Vacation Part Two, Utah

This is a continuation of yesterday's post about my vacation in the US.

So Utah was an interesting place to be after such a long time. I visited last year, before leaving for Korea, and coming back was almost like coming home. The first day, however, I experienced one of the most frustrating thing I think I've ever been through.

We were staying at my Aunt's house, in one valley, and I wanted to spend time with my friends in another valley, which meant I would have to have transportation. So, I went to the nearest Enterprise Rent-A-Car that morning. To my surprise, they didn't have any cars available until the next day, after the times I needed it. So I walked back to my Aunt's in the heat (it was gross) and talked with my Dad about it. We made a reservation for a car at the airport, then Dad and Mom drove and dropped me off there.

So I started going through the process of getting this car, when the woman at the counter discovered that I had a debit card, not a credit card. She then proceeded to tell me that because I was under 25 and didn't have a credit card, she couldn't rent me the car. I was dumbstruck, because I have been renting cars with a debit card since I was 22 (with my military ID), without any problem. I thanked her for her time and walked around to another rental desk. The next two rentals didn't have cars available at all, because apparently weekdays are busy for rents. I never would have guessed. One place had an SUV, but that required I actually be 25, with or without my military ID. I went to every single desk, and was stunned at how rude some of the places were when they told me they had no cars.

Finally, I found a place that had a car and was willing to run my debit card. I stood at the desk for a good fifteen minutes while the woman went through the process of getting everything set up, and she was super nice, and the two women working at that desk tried to set me up with the other guy getting a car. Then, alas, the woman ran a credit check (apparently required with a debit card) and since I have zero credit because I don't do things to get credit, then it was declined. Le sigh. At this point I had been trying to get a car for an hour.

The woman at this last desk must have felt bad, because she called another, off-site company that would take my debit card without a credit check, and I got picked up by one of their drivers and taken to their office. I then proceeded to spend way too much on a way old car with mileage limitations (which I didn't know was still a thing). But I had a car! I could drive places! I could be an adult!

That evening I drove down to the other valley to visit my high school best friend, Cheez. She's an awesome person, and I had such a good time seeing her again. I only get to see her about once a year now, and it's more than a little sad, because I would love to spend more time with her. She's like my little sister.

The next morning I drove back down to the valley to meet up with my other best friend, Balgram. I've known her for more than ten years now (hard to believe it's been that long) and if I'm being honest with myself, she's the starting point for everything great in my life. It was through her I discovered Japanese stuff, and it was through Japanese stuff that I found K-Pop, so when I talk about K-Pop too much, just blame here. (Love you!) I wish we could spend more time together. She's like my big sister. (I see a pattern here...)

That afternoon my new Marine brother, PWT, said his goodbyes and left for Idaho to pick up his truck before heading back to California for more training. After saying goodbye, I went and returned the rental car (I will never ever buy a Grand Prix. I did not like that car.)

That same day was my youngest brother, DHT's birthday. He turned 16 (!) and to celebrate we went and saw X-Men: Days of Future Past as a family. It was a great movie, and immediately after watching it I wanted to see it again. That's always a good sign.

We were going to leave the next day, but instead we decided to stay one more day to rest up before the main road trip started. It was a nice relaxing day, hanging out with my Aunt and Mom, just us girls. We went to a big outdoor mall in downtown Salt Lake City, I spent too much on a phone case for my US phone, then we went and visited an elderly relative and a cousin living nearby. It was great to see them, and it was great to just be together, and do things together. I miss doing things with people...

Then, we packed everything back up, including all the stuff the family had left in Utah before going to California, and we were off on our Magical Family Roadtrip Adventure. Which will be another post.

Thanks for reading!

Vacation, Part One - Seattle, California

So you might have noticed, I've been a little absent on here. This is mainly because I was on vacation and had an annoying lack of internet access. But I'm back now, and I think it's about time I spill all my exploits from vacation. This is going to be cut up into several parts, because it was a long vacation and a lot of things happened.

My leave started May 26th, but because of paperwork issues (and I thought of this in advance) I didn't leave until the 27th (Tuesday). So I just had an extra day off, which I used to pack and relax. Then, Tuesday morning I ran around at a frantic pace calmly getting a bunch of things done that had to be finished before I could leave. Breakfast with a good friend was had, shots in the arm were received, and paperwork was printed off (I had to have approved Leave paperwork before I could leave the country.)

I eventually got a later start leaving base than I liked. But after a bus ride, then a subway ride, and an express train ride (that was super comfortable, quiet, empty, and wonderful) I made it to the airport with time to spare. Then there was a 10 hour flight from Seoul to San Francisco. I unfortunately didn't have a window seat. I normally try to get window seats, because I like being able to look out the window and I would much rather only be sitting by one stranger, rather than between two. But, alas, I was in the middle, between an older Korean woman (who smelled) and a young Korean man (who was adorable, and really tall, and a bit forgetful when we went through security to get to connecting flights.)

After that flight it was just a quick hop from San Fran to Seattle, and then I got a nice rental car before driving to my nice hotel. I felt yucky from all the travel, I was tired from all the lack of sleep, (I normally stay up 24h to eliminate jetlag)  but I was super excited to be back in the States, and particularly in Seattle, which I'd never really been in before. So I showered, then drove around in Seattle for a while, just taking in the sights and reveling in all the English I could see. It was great.

I then passed out early, and woke up early, but felt too lazy to get out of bed so I watched Law & Order SVU for a few hours until I had to get ready for the day, pack up, and check out. Then I drove around Seattle again, because my next flight wasn't until late. I saw the Space Needle, almost drove into the bay, parked the car and wandered around on foot a little bit, stopped at a Barnes and Noble to pick up a few books (it's an addiction. I can't go anywhere without picking up a few books at a bookstore) and even drove through Chinatown and little.

After dropping off my rental car I got on the plane to San Diego, my last flight for a few weeks. It was another quick flight, and I had a window seat, and I read practically the whole way there. Then, my family picked me up from the airport in their packed-to-the-gills SUV and we drove to Grandpa's house. It was late, but everyone was excited to see me, I was excited to see them, and it felt great to be back with my family after so long.

We arrived at Grandpa's house, everyone helped unload the car, and there was another great reunion before I passed out in bed, well past my bedtime.

In the morning we all got up early and went back to the airport to pick up my second brother, JET, who was flying in from Nebraska, then we drove to MCRD San Diego for Family Day. I got to watch my first brother, PWT, run in Marine green, then got to see him in uniform before finally reuniting after four long years. It had been a very long time, and I was so super excited to finally get to be with him in person again.

We spent most of the day with him on base there with him, talking and listening to his stories of Marine Boot, and meeting his fellow recruits and his DIs and just having a good time. Then, too soon, it was time to return him to his barracks, and we went back to Grandpa's house.

Because there was an extra person I got kicked off the bed and onto the living room couch, but I didn't mind. That's where I had stayed when I was 11 and staying with my grandparents for a month, and it was so refreshingly cool in the living room that I got some of the best sleep I've had in a long time. My dorm room is almost constantly too hot to sleep properly, and so sleeping somewhere it's cool is amazing.

The next day we went back to MCRD for the official graduation day, and it was such a wonderful ceremony, albeit kind of long in the hot sun, and then PWT was done and he was ours again. We got his stuff and left MCRD to go have lunch at a really nice Mexican restaurant near the Mormon Battalion Museum, then we got family pictures taken (by my first cousin Jessie) before going through the Museum. After that, we rushed back to the airport to drop JET off, because he had to get back to Nebraska for work, then we went to Grandpa's house from there we just spent the rest of the weekend catching up and being together and doing fun things in San Diego.

Two important things (in my opinion) happened while we were in San Diego. Because we always do touristy things as a family, we went first to Cabrillo to see the lighthouse (again.) While there a scene popped into my head. I took a lot of pictures and video of Cabrillo, thinking about this scene that took over my brain, and later I started writing it because dang it, it was a good scene. Then, the next day we went to Balboa park, and while wandering around there we stopped at the Botanical Garden, and another scene appeared, related to the first one, and when we got back home I wrote that one too. And with these two scenes, and a character that had been in my mind for a couple weeks without a story, I began putting together a story.

We also went to the beach and rode a roller coaster, and did shopping, and went to church, and other fun things, but after that, my all-consuming everything was this story, nicknamed SD Story because I had no other name for it.

Finally, we packed everything back up and left San Diego, traveling up to Utah. It was a long drive, I got some writing and reading done, and we arrived really late before staying at my Aunt's house. And that is for another post.

Thanks for reading!

At A Loss

Note: If you are not interested in K-Pop this might not be the most interesting post to read. I apologize, but it's something important to me.

I'm at such a loss for words right now. I think I've stared at the computer screen for ten minutes trying to think of what to say. I've yelled angrily, I've throwing things, I've stomped my feet, I've even cried. I've flashed back to when a hauntingly similar even happened. I went on to Twitter today and discovered it was flooded with the news that Kris, a Chinese member of the SM Entertainment group EXO is filing a lawsuit to terminate his contract with the company. The topic has been a worldwide trend for the past two hour. (edit: still worldwide trend after twelve hours) It makes me think back on when Han Geng left Super Junior and all the mess that was, and how devastating it was.

There's honestly not a lot of information out there. There are a lot of rumors, but the only facts known are this is a real thing, and Kris won't be performing with the rest of the group while they promote for their latest single, Overdose.

The outpouring of love from EXO fans all over the world is just amazing, and not only that, other fandoms have added their voices and support. But no matter how many fans beg and plead for him not to leave, it's up to him. If there is something going on in SME that he can't endure anymore, then he needs to get out while he can. That was what happened with Super Junior and Han Geng. And with DBSK and JYJ. Both from SME. I'm seeing a horrifying trend, that really REALLY needs to change, and soon before more singers have to resort to such an extreme action.

The thing is, line-up changes are more common that you think in K-Pop. My former favorite group, U-Kiss, is going through their third lineup change right now. But still, it is always heartbreaking to see something like this happen, especially when I've become so attached to the group as a whole.

I just hope this gets resolved quickly and cleanly, whatever Kris ends up doing. Because I don't think the fans, EXO as a group, and Kris as a person would be able to get through a long drawn out mess, like what Han Geng and JYJ had to go through.

Just some thoughts I had. I can't really thinking properly enough to write something that makes sense. And I keep getting distracted by staring into space or tearing up. Such is the life of a fan...

Thanks for reading.

Future Writing Problems

I hope to someday publish fiction in the urban fantasy and young adult fantasy genres. Mainly because those are my favorite genres, but also because I feel like my writing style fits those the best. However, I realized recently that I might run into some problems trying to publish in these genres. Let me explain a little, and I'm generalizing a lot to make this point.

In most, if not all urban fantasy stories, the main male character, whether the point of view character or the love interest of the point of view character, has a certain look, a certain personality, a certain feeling; strong, protective, slightly overbearing, manly.  The UF male, sometimes called the Alpha male, usually has scruff, fills out whatever clothes he's wearing, and can take care of himself in a physical fight. A lot of times his eyes 'smolder' and he makes the UF female feel both irritated at his overbearing-ness and unable to control her lust for him.

In most, if not all young adult novels, the main male character, usually the romantic interest in what I read, also has a certain look and a certain distinction that sets him apart from all the rest; he's the teen who doesn't look like a teen, he is sometimes a bad boy, and he always falls for the main girl in a way that is totally different than any of the other many girls he's been with before. His eyes also smolder. What is with eyes smoldering?

So, now that that explanation is out of the way, here's why this is a problem. While yes, some of those things are attractive -- I'll admit, if someone looked at me with smoldering eyes I would probably melt right there -- that's not what I'm most attracted too. Sure, I get a little giddy when I'm reading, because what red-blooded woman doesn't? But over the past three years my taste in men has changed, and in corresponding with that, the male characters I write about has changed as well. And unfortunately I realized today that it has changed in such a way that I'm  not sure I'd be able to get them published. Because my taste in men is so wildly different than the majority of everyone else.

Let me illustrate: I haven't come up with a story for him yet, but I've had a male character in mind for the past few days. He doesn't have a name yet, other than the nickname Deer. He's a senior in high school, he's not short but he's not too tall either, he has thick brown hair that he usually doesn't bother too much with so it does it's own little wavy thing, he's pretty athletic, so he's lean without being gangly, and he has a bright smile and quick laugh that always lightens moods and cheers people up. But here's where it gets different than what you'd find in most fiction nowadays. He may be athletic, but he doesn't actually look it, instead he looks delicate, with small hands, a thin frame, and if people didn't know any better they would assume he was younger. And he has these wide dark brown eyes that look like doe eyes. He wouldn't ever be called gorgeous. He wouldn't ever be called hot, or even handsome. Maybe adorable, cute even, but not anything else.

And a character like that would never cut it in the cut-throat world of publishing among all the tall, dark, and handsome ones out there. Which is unfortunate, because there are men out there just like him, don't they deserve to be the hero too?

I'm probably going to keep writing characters like him and others that I have, because maybe by the time I'm ready to publish the market will have changed enough to allow him a fighting chance. I hope so.

Do you like reading about characters that are different than normal? There's a lot of minority out there that rarely, if ever, gets represented. Is there some minority that you would like to read about more?

Thanks for reading!

I Might Have Too Much Stuff

So I spent most of yesterday tidying up my room, vacuuming, dusting, etc. I always feel uneasy when my room is a mess, and since I have a dust allergy then I have to dust and vacuum pretty regularly. And I really wanted to get some writing done, but when my room is a mess then I can't get anything to come out. So yesterday I cleaned and it all looked great.

I woke up this morning and my room was a mess again. I swear, there's a goblin that haunts my room and as soon as I clean up, it comes out while I sleep and messes everything up again. It's a nightmare.

But honestly, it's because I have too much stuff and not enough places to put things. It's been like this forever. Since before I can remember. The biggest problem is I get attached to things. This picture has a memory, I will read this book someday, I'll need this thing-a-ma-jig in the future, etc. And with the limited amount of space I have right now, I just can't keep everything.

So today (Sunday) before and after church I'm going to be working on getting rid of stuff. Because until I have a tidy room, I'm not going to be able to get anything productive done. And that's the truth.

As always, thanks for reading!

My Favorite Topic

I'm going to take a quick moment to talk about my favorite topic: K-Pop. It's been a little over three years since I first discovered this wonderful music genre, and I haven't looked back one. It's become my longest running obsession, and sometimes feels like an addiction, but it's a good addiction. Like being addicted to laughing, or the sound of your lover's voice.

And there is such a wide variety in K-Pop, there's practically a song for everything. Like country music, but without the twang. I've had songs leave me crying, songs make me smile, leave me breathless, inspire stories, make me mad, and everything in between.

Today, I'm going to share with you a list of songs and artists and music videos that mean things to me. Some of them will be funny, some of them will be not so funny. But they have all become a part of who I am, and I wanted to share that with you. They are all linked to Youtube videos for your viewing and listening pleasure. Some of them have music videos, but not all of them.

The first K-Pop song I ever heard: Run Devil Run, by Girl's Generations (소녀시대)

The K-Pop song that made me fall in love with K-Pop: Ring Ding Dong, by SHINee

The K-Pop song that made me cry it was so beautiful: 내게만 일어나는 일 (Things Happen Only To Me), by 이승환 (Lee Seung Hwan) (I found this song because of a commercial. Awesome.)

The K-Pop song that always makes me grin from the first notes: B.A.B.Y, by B.A.P

The K-Pop song I bought for the feature artist: Good Boy, by 백지영 (Baek Ji Young) Featuring Junhyung from Beast

The K-Pop song that I liked better than the album single: Black Pearl, by EXO (Korean version)

The K-Pop song that I wanted to listen to the most while I was at military basic training: ManManHaNi (만만하니), by U-KISS  (Still one of my top favorites of all time)

The K-Pop song I love from an artist I don't really like: Metronome, by Jay Park (I'm torn between loving and hating the music video for this one. It borders on very inappropriate, but has some pretty cool pendulum stuff. Watch it with care.)

The K-Pop song whose singer's gorgeous deep voice doesn't match his baby face: 병이에요 (Spotless Mind), by 정준영 (Jung Joon Young) (Serious, where does that voice come from?)

The K-Pop song I love running to: Hip Song, by Rain (비)

The K-Pop song that I prefer the remix to the original: Shout Out (Synth Rock Ver.), by Royal Pirates

The K-Pop song that I always dance to: Body to Body, by ZE:A

The K-Pop song from a favorite group that because the reason they aren't my favorite anymore: 내 여자야 (She's Mine), by U-KISS (I really dislike this song... I love the group, but this song just doesn't fit with all their other music. It's too much a rap song.)

The K-Pop song that is currently my most played K-Pop song: Ringa Linga, by Taeyang of Big Bang (at number 6) (this was a surprise to me, not because it's not worth being the most played, but because I didn't realize I had listened to it that much.)

The K-Pop song that I bought because it's by a favorite actor: The Scent of Flower, by 최진혁 (Choi Jinhyuk)

The K-Pop music video that made me cry it was so heart-wrenching: Baby I'm Sorry, by MyName (Warning: A little bit violent and will make you cry)

The three K-Pop music video that have inspired the most story ideas: Rising Sun, by TVXQ, Tell Me Goodbye, by Big Bang (admittedly it's in Japanese, but it's by a Korean group so it totally counts), No. 1, by F.Cuz (pronounced Focus)

The K-Pop group that used to be my favorite: U-KISS

The K-Pop group that is my current favorite: B.A.P (for favorites, there are specific qualifiers that I look at. I'll talk about that in a different post.)

The K-Pop group that is my favorite male/female duo: Akdong Musician (Warning: this music video will make you cry. And if it doesn't, that means I'm a big baby.)

The K-Pop group that get better with each single: VIXX (seriously, I didn't particularly like their debut - I thought it was too generic - but it got so much better after that) (Aren't they just adorable? Assuming you watched the video...)

The K-Pop group that is the most expensive because I buy both versions: EXO (EXO-K and EXO-M)

The K-Pop sub-unit that I like better than the main group: Speed, male sub-unit of Co Ed School (I'm not saying I don't like Co Ed School, I just like Speed better)

 I could go on for so much longer, but that would get boring to read and it will take too long to watch everything as it is. :)

Thanks for reading!

Pirating Books and the Great Tumblr Debate

I was going to post something awesome about Star Wars since it's May the Fourth, but instead I've been thinking of something else the last couple of days that I felt I needed to add my two cents to.

I follow a lot of my favorite authors on Twitter and Tumblr. They always have something fun or inspiring to say, talk a lot about writing, and are generally fun people. And then, a couple days ago my Twitter and Tumblr blew up with tweets and posts asking people to not pirate books. And then a huge debate took over going back and forth between authors and people. And some of the things the people were saying were just horrible. And right now, I'm part of the 'people' group, but some day I'm going to be part of the 'author' group, so this one kind of hit me, and really made me think. Also, pirating books? That's a thing? Whut?

So, for this, I'm going to do something a little different, and use quotes and try to write like I know what I'm talking about, or at least sound intelligent. Because some of the things these people were saying just blew me away at how... I don't even have a word for it. Wrong? Out there? Upsetting? Entitled? I could probably go on. But anyway, here I go.

It started with a few posts by YA author Erin Bowman, who wrote Taken and it's sequel Frozen, which I admit, I haven't read either yet. They're on my to be read list, but it's kind of a long list, so it might take me a while to get there. She wrote:

I'm so tired of seeing my books  (or any book) pirated. It doesn't even get me in a rage anymore. I'm just sad, defeated, and depressed.

and

Go to the library. Request they buy a copy. DL the sample if you're "not sure you'll like it." Borrow from a friend. Ask for it for you[r] bday

and

I could go on, but in short: you are not entitled to free entertainment. You are not entitled to steal my next paycheck. STOP PIRATING BOOKS

Those make sense, right? Pirating is stealing, stealing is wrong, correct? When this and others like it starting flooding my Twitter, it really took me aback. I knew music and movies were pirated (everyone in the military seems to do it... it's really quite shameful) but I had no idea that books were pirated too. The thought of someone pirating books horrified me, because as a hopeful writer, I can understand how that would really cut into someone getting paid.

So on Tumblr you can post something, and people can repost it with their added comments. After these three Tweets were compiled and put on Tumblr, everyone started reposting and adding their thoughts. The  first couple were nice. But then someone said something that started it all.

Whoever it was, wrote some excuses for reading a pirated copy; own the book but can't find it, don't want to support the author (and proceeded to name Orson Scott Card who apparently is hated on the internet for bigotry against homosexuals. Huh?) but still want to read the book, etc. The next person rebutted that with a post about not being entitled to steal something, even if you have the aforementioned reasons. That person talked about how reading pirated books supports piracy. And then they talked about how it's okay to not support an author of you don't like them, but pirating is not the way to not support someone.

Next up, someone brought up the issue of the economy and how the average (young) reader doesn't have the money to buy books or the time to go to the library [which I call bullcrap on]. Then they said something about it isn't a good idea to spend $10-$20 on a book that you MIGHT like, because if you hate it your are stuck with it. [What? Since when? Have you never heard of donating to a library? Or a thrift store?] They continued on with more examples and 'factors' that could lead a person to pirate a book, and ended their little thing with 'we can't always support you financially, so we'll just support you with social media.'

Then someone put her short bit in, by taking "issue with the excuse that young readers don't have TIME to go to the library." And I agree with her, because it's not that pre-teens and teens don't have time to go to the library, it's that they chose to use their time for other things. She then asked if everyone could stop excusing the pirating behavior by removing personal responsibility.

Then someone else came in and started ranting about "how telling somebody to just go get the book from the library is a laughable joke," and went on to list a whole bunch of reasons libraries are not a good way to get books. [This is the sound of me staring dumbly at that statement. Duuuuuuuh.] There were a whole bunch of reasons, and they all were all very stupid interesting to read.

After that, thankfully the debate went back to someone with sense. This time, they talked about waiting, and how the society of instant gratification has made waiting a foreign concept. And that they have no patience for the impatience argument. [I'm cheering now. Someone with sense! This is the truth!]

The good sense didn't last long, however, as the very next person said something about how "having your books pirated makes the authors more money." [Jaw drop, because whut? What planet do you live on?] And then they talked about how they don't read books by selfish authors, i.e. authors who complain about their books being stolen, authors who don't like fanfiction, authors who cause trouble, etc. And then they tried to remind authors that "your reputation matters. If you aren't grateful for what you have, no one is going to want to give you more." [I can't even...] In conclusion, they finished up with the argument that authors are paid in advance, and so even if the book bombs or people steal it it doesn't matter, because it's already been paid for.

Next up someone took the time to correct the 'paid in advance' misconception, and said that yes, we get paid in advance, but not very much and we have to pay it back in royalties before we see anymore money. Which makes sense, because it's an 'advance.'

Then someone went on this really long tirade about how you chose your job, you shouldn't quit your day job if you aren't making enough money writing, don't blame the readers, etc. Then compared writing to a bunch of different jobs, and different amounts of words for different 'levels' of writers. e.g. 1k every day is part time. 3-5k every day is full time. Which I call BS on, because I know for a fact that 3-5k is really hard for novel writers to write on a consistent basis. My all-time favorite writer, Brandon Sanderson, has said he averages about 2.5k every day. And he's most definitely a professional, full time writer with more than a few hefty books under his belt. Of course, every writer is different, but to arbitrarily put daily word requirements for whether you are part time or full time is not correct, and not being fair to all the professional writers out there who do write full time and don't write that many words in a day. It's not how many words you produce, it's the quality of words you produce, and the amount of time spent. You don't see cashiers being paid according to how many customers they helped in a day. Yes, there are commission-based jobs, but writing novels is not really one of them.

Anyway, that wasn't the end of their really long post. they went on to talk about how it's really the poor people who can't afford your books who are pirating them, because otherwise they wouldn't get to read them. The person really talked about how the original author, Erin Bowman, was saying " 'Don't read my books unless you have money or your community has money!' " And since I'm trying to be nice in this post, I can't say what I want to say about this.

Then the original poster, Erin Bowman comes in and corrects the person [as she should have, the person was putting nasty words in her mouth.] She said "no one is entitled to STEAL entertainment," and called books a luxury, not a necessity. Which is absolutely true. She then went on to set the record straight even more about how advances and royalties work, and to be honest it was very eyeopening. She also said she was "getting so tired of feeling like the bad guy in this conversation," and I really feel for her.

The last person on the very long list of reposts was another author who talked about the sense of entitlement and how the argument that 'poor people need to resort to piracy in order to read anything' was appalling, in poor taste (pun not intended) and needed to stop. She then went on to talk more about advances and royalties, [wow, that's an awful small amount to live off of for three years... good thing I'm not doing it for the money...] and finished with another thing about how there are other ways to get books and that "paying for things and waiting for things never hurt anyone." [Well said.]

Now let me put in a quick little thing before I finish. I did not grow up with money. Sure, we had what we needed, my dad made at least that much for the first half of my life, but we were always in so much debt that when my dad was in school and we were just living off his military pension things were really tight. I had to earn my own money if I wanted anything extra, and I don't think I ever bought a brand new book until I was sixteen or seventeen and had a job of my own. But before that, I earned money through baby sitting, and it wasn't very much.

But I loved reading, and wanted to have books, so I had to get creative. I went to the library as often as I could. Before I was thirteen that meant waiting until the family trip to the library, but after that we lived close enough to walk to a library in all the houses we lived in. And I put my legs to good use, walking to the library and hauling home backpacks full of books to read. I shopped at thrift stores and always made a beeline for the book section (I still do.) I bought books at yard sales where they were ten cents a piece, or at books fairs where they were under five dollars.

So a lot of trash-talking went down, and I learned a lot of interesting facts. Readers apparently pirate books. Writers don't make a lot of money [I knew that already, I just didn't know to what extent.] And a lot of people on the internet and in this fast paced society of instant gratification don't have any common sense or sense of guilt for breaking not only civil laws against piracy, but also laws of decency towards fellow humans and the laws of God, which are very clear and ultimate.

Sorry this was a long one.

Thanks for read.

Scatterbrained

So this post might be a little scatterbrained, but it's mostly because I have a lot of things on my mind right now, and I want to talk about a lot of things. So, lets get started.

I dislike being labeled. Today in class we talked about politics. Again. Third day in a row. I really hate politics. Anyway, so we were talking about politics and the different sides like Left and Right, and stuff like that. And of course my very Korean teacher decided it would be fun to ask everyone where they stood on the Left/Right scale.

I normally claim I'm Republican. This is mostly because I've grown up with Republican parents, agree with a lot of Republican ideas, and stuff like that. However, as I've grown older and realized somethings about myself, and other people, I've realized that that label doesn't really fit me. But I'm not Democratic, either. So I'm kind of just stuck in the middle, wishing I didn't have to claim anything.

And it's not just in politics that I don't like being labeled. I'm in the military, but I don't consider myself a military person. I'm into a lot of nerdy things, and I can spit out all kinds of trivia about things like Doctor Who, Star Wars, etc., but I don't always feel like the labels nerd or geek fit me. Because I also enjoy ballet, musicals, classical music, art museums, etc. But I'm more likely to put on a pair of jeans than a nice dress or skirt, and I rarely if ever wear makeup, so girly is out of the question. Except I'm not a tomboy either, because I'm not good at sports, I don't like getting dirty, and I would rather sit an watch a movie or read a book than do something active. I like my alone time, but I get depressed when I don't have people to hang out with. Except when I spent too much time out with a lot of people, I use up a lot of energy and I'm no good for anything afterwards. So I'm not extroverted, but not introverted either.

So I just don't like labels, because I don't fit under any.

Next Topic, Supernatural and Supernatural: Bloodlines

So Supernatural is the TV that I've been watching the longest, and the only show that I have stuck around as long as I have. There have been others that I've watched that have as many or more seasons, but Supernatural is the only one where I've seen every episode, sometimes multiple times. Why? Because it's my favorite genre (urban fantasy) and stars two of the hottest guys on TV right now playing brothers. And I don't know what it is, but I love reading about and watching brothers interact. Maybe it's because I'm jealous?

Anyway, it was announced late last  year, early this year that Supernatural would be getting a spin-off series, much like a lot of other shows of the same genre. I was excited when I heard about it, though a little worried because it most likely wouldn't be the same. And tonight I watched the latest Supernatural episode, which was a backdoor plot for Supernatural: Bloodlines. And I had really mixed feelings about it. It didn't feel like I was watching a Supernatural episode, which was a minus, and because of everything I've been watching lately (read: Korean everything) all the white guys looked the same to me. You know how Asians all look the same? Yeah, to me, white guys all look the same, especially after I've watched nothing but K-Dramas for a while.

Of course, the episode was okay. The kid who looks like he'll be the main main character (colored, I might add. A major plus) was really cute, and I liked his character. I hope for good things about his character in the future. Over all, the episode was enough to start an itch, and when the show finally airs sometime in the future I will probably at least watch the first episode. No promises after that, though.

Next Topic: Sewol Ferry Sinking and My Callousness

So, as I'm sure everyone knows, two weeks ago a ferry sank off the coast of S. Korea, taking an awful lot of people down with it. We've been studying about it in class (because it was the only thing on the news for an entire week) and so I know a little bit about what happened, why it happened, and how Korea is reacting to it. And let me tell you, Korea is reacting badly.

Now, I understand mourning, to an extent. I have the benefit of knowing that there is life after death, and that families can be together forever, so mourning is a bit different for me, but I understand it. And I understand the outrage that everyone is feeling over what happened. A lot of people screwed up and were lazy, and it has cost a lot of people, and a lot of school kids, their lives. It's a terrible tragedy. I get that.

What I don't get is putting EVERYTHING ON HOLD, suspending life essentially, for an indefinite amount of time while everyone rages and weeps and wails and gnashes their teeth. This is where I might be a little callous, I can't tell.

Of course, I come from a major country at least fifty times larger than S. Korea. And with that many more people, life just goes on. But even in a small country like S. Korea, a lot of people have to earn money to live, and with everything suspended for this long, a lot of people aren't earning the money they would have. It's like the government shutdown the US went through last fall, only the people who aren't earning anything are the people in the entertainment industry.

I'll admit, some of this confusion comes from my desire to see promised music videos and TV programs that were postponed or cancelled all together. I admit that, I am kind of selfish that way. But at the same time, it also comes from this intense desire to shout to the world that, 'Hey! They're in a better place! You can see them again! Families are Forever! Stop Crying!' That also comes from seeing how crazy emotional the Korean people are at funerals. And I've only experienced Mormon funerals for old people. So my inexperience is showing.

Just some thoughts.

Next Topic: Storium

I think I learned about this on a nerdy blog I follow, but I took one look and fell in love. It's storytelling and role-playing all wrapped up into a pretty game and put on the web for intelligent people to play together. It's been such a long time since I've role-played, and I used to do that a lot, and I love telling stories (hence the writing) but I've never seen anything like this before.

Of course I had to try it out. So I backed the Kickstarter and sighed up, then started my own game as the narrator, using the bare-bone basics of my current story. I wanted to see how other people would handle it, if it had enough to interest people, etc. I really didn't expect the kind of response I got, however. I started the game late at night, went to bed, and when I woke up I had two people waiting with characters at the ready. Then over the course of a few short hours more people joined up. My game is popular! It made me so excited and I jumped for joy a lot. I've never been popular like this before!

Now I just have to narrate this story well enough to keep everyone participating. Hmmm...

Anyway, that's what I had for now. Sorry it's kind of a long post. Lot to get off my chest. You know.

If you made it this far, thanks for reading! And I'm sorry if I said some things that aren't very nice. Like I said, kind of callous.

Writer Problems

This month I haven't read much. The largest reason for that is I've been busy with class, but another reason has been I've been working on a story. And I've been working really hard on it, took. It's a great story that has evolved a lot from the first story-starting idea, and I'm really excited for it.

The problem, though, is this story has decided to let me know I'm writing in the wrong perspective. *flips desk* And so now comes the momentous task of trying to switch the point of view around so that it works better, while still keeping as much of what I have already written intact. Oh the things we writers go through to create a novel.

Sorry I wasn't able to post anything more about the speech contest. There was no one there to record it, and I lost -- which made me more upset than I thought it would -- so I didn't really feel like talking about it much. It was fun, I made some Korean friends, and I learned that no matter what I do, because I have no comedic timing whatsoever I will never be able to win. Le sigh.

Thanks for reading.

Korean Speech Contest

This is a quick note to let you know that I'm participating in a Korean Speech Contest this afternoon, and that my real blog post will come after that, hopefully with video. Something to look forward to!

The Beauty of Engrish

A lot of times in K-Pop, and in other Asian music, they try to add a little bit of English into their song to try to make it more hip, more accessible to English speakers, etc. Sometimes this works, and other times it doesn't, because English has a lot of sounds that Asian languages don't have. And because the grammar is completely different.

The loof is on fire. I'm a oolf. Careless, careless, shoot anonymous. I'm ready to bingo. Hey do you now. We gonna take it to the next revel. These are just some examples of how English gets turned into Engrish.

A lot of my friends and co-workers claim this as a reason for their disliking K-Pop as a whole, or as a part.

But for me, there is some sort of magic that comes from their use of Engrish. It gives the songs flavor, and that special attribute that only they have. Without the Engrish, it wouldn't be the same kind of K-Pop. Yes, a lot of times the English phrases don't make sense, and a lot of times the individual words they use aren't spoken correctly. So what?

Of course, sometimes people complain too much about it and then the producers fix some of the pronunciation for the album. That always makes me upset.

One of my favorite examples of this is B.A.P's Hurricane. In the music video, Himchan says The loof is on fire. What he meant to say is roof, but just the way he says loof while wearing an intense stare made it endearing. However, a lot of people laughed and made fun of and complained about it when the MV first came out, and so for the album, the producers had Himchan re-record that part, this time pronouncing the word a little bit closer to roof. It still wasn't perfect, but it wasn't loof. The problem with this was it didn't have the same integrity and just plain adorable-ness as the MV version. And so even now I still sing loof, even when Himchan sings roof.

To me, Engrish is just an endearing part of Asian culture, and one of the things that I like about. I hope it doesn't change anytime soon.

Sorry for the late post, and thanks for reading!

Ten Things About How I Write

Well, first off not very well, pretty inconsistently, and usually by the seat of my pants. But, other than those things, there are some points that I've noticed I follow over and over again, and while I have yet to finish something, these points have worked so far.

Some of these are things I've learned through trial and error, and other things just come naturally.

1. I don't ever share my story with anyone until I have written the last word of the first draft. This one has been one of those trial and error things. And I have only recently figured it out, and so I have lost a lot of good stories and hard work to the problem of sharing it with others. What usually happens is I get excited about something I'm working on, so I want to share it. I love it when people compliment me on my writing, and that can only happen if they read what I've written, so I share. Except, while they do say good things about my writing, they usually have ideas and thoughts about what I should do with the story, and try to interpret things, which in turn changes how I thought about things and. Other times they take one thing they read, one thread that I hadn't finished writing about, and then they make fun of me for it for weeks and weeks, until I can't stand to think about the story anymore and toss it.

2. I don't listen to any kind of suggestions, except from Artemis (my inner editor who I talk to like a crazy person. Seriously, my inner editor is a real persona and she can be pretty mean sometimes, but she always steers me in the right direction.) Usually the suggestions of others don't mesh with my original idea, but they sound cool anyway so I add them to the story and then they multiply like plot bunnies until the story is so overloaded that I scrap the whole thing.

3. I pick one method of writing and I stick with it for the whole story. Sometimes that means I'm writing with pen and paper, sometimes with my laptop or my desktop, and sometimes that means I'm forcing myself to not be frustrated with the crappy keyboard on my phone or iPad. Either way, the story gets put onto paper (literal and figurative) the same way for the whole story. It is my way of setting my brain up for writing, because I don't really have a specific place I write. So as soon as I pick up my laptop or iPad, I know it's time to write.

4. I write when the inspiration strikes. This kind of means I'm a fickle writer. When I'm in the middle of planning for one project and a brilliant idea strikes me, then I have to immediately sit down and start working on that. This is something I need to change, because I need to figure out a way to finish something.

5. I don't write anything plot related down. Ever. It's hard for me to get the right words down no paper, because I don't create the stories in my head with words. It's all a movie up in here, and translating that to the written word can be challenging. So when it comes to plot and things, I usually leave it up in my head, where I can understand it better, and just let the writing flow. If this means I forget a few minor details, that's fine. But so far, I'm pretty good at remembering everything.

6. When I'm working on a writing project, I don't read, I don't watch movies or TV, and I try my darnedest to stay away from music videos. Because all of those things are idea machines for me, and when I'm trying to work on something, getting more ideas is usually not a good idea.

7. When I'm looking for story ideas, the first place I look is K-Pop music videos. This may seem kind of silly, but a lot of times my greatest ideas have come from a music video. I usually take the basic idea, or maybe create an individual scene from the video, and then my brain takes it in a completely different direction so that the final product is usually completely unrecognizable when put next to the idea or video.

8. I agonize over character names. I have been told that it's okay to have placeholder names for while I'm writing the first draft, but to me, names have a lot of importance in the character's development, and if they don't have the perfect name to begin with, then their development is stunted considerably. I have two characters that I have had to change their names for various reasons, and I still struggle to call them by their new name, instead of their real old name. So if I have to break my writing flow to find the perfect name, it's a worthy sacrifice.

9. While I'm writing, I try to listen to things that won't interrupt my writing (like k-pop). My current favorite writing sound is MyNoise's Flying Fortress, set on The Real Thing, which is really REALLY loud, but relaxing to me, and usually creates the perfect mood for writing. But occasionally I have to work a little harder to get in the right mood, and I'll listen to specific playlists I have like "Fighting" or "Romance" or "Depressing".

10. When I'm writing, I sometimes forget to eat. Or I decide not to eat so I can write instead. It's not really healthy, but specifically when I'm in class and only have an hour for lunch, that's an hour I could write, or an hour I could got get food. And I usually choose writing over food.

So, there you have it. I don't have the best writing habits, but I'm working on it. For your information, I am currently working on a pretty exciting idea (on my iPad, which can get annoying) and while I don't expect to have it finished anytime soon, I do hope this one has the right staying power for me to make it to The End.

Do you write? If you do, what are some habits you have that help you get the words on paper? Tell me in the comments!

Thanks for reading, and sorry for missing Sunday.

Too Many Things To Do In One Lifetime

It seems like what I want to do with my life changes more and more often recently. One day I'm thinking of living in a large home designed after Korean style homes. The next, I'm considering the crazy idea of living in 120 square feet of tiny house (thankfully Mom talked me out of that one.) One day I'm dreaming up all the details for opening and running a bookstore, then I'm thinking about everything I have to do to become a homemaker. First, 'City!' Then, 'Country!' Cats! No, dogs! Teaching English! Writing novels! Riding horses! Cooking for a living!

The list can go on. I guess I haven't changed much from when I was a child. Every week I had a new middle name (I have none, and I was always jealous of everyone else in my family. Even my mom has one but I don't.) Every time someone asked me, I had a different job I wanted to do when I grew up. Journalist, Marine Biologist, Veterinarian, etc. etc. ad nauseam.

I really need to just sit down with myself (I can be a bit stubborn about these things) and remind myself that I really have very little control over what will happen in the future. I will just have to do what I can today and wait to see what will happen tomorrow.

I mean, look at where I am right now. If you asked me at any point in my life before that fateful moment when Dad suggested the Air Force, 'where do you think you will be at 25?' I never would have said military. I'm sure my 15 year old self would have had many a heart attack if she heard I joined the military, lived in an Asian country, and still wasn't married. That just wasn't in the plan. I didn't really have a plan at the time, but that just wasn't in it.

And look at me now. I'm in the military and actually like it. Okay, it's not really 'like', it's more like 'pride' and 'gratitude', but those can equal 'like', right?

Hold on. I got sidetracked here.

The point of all this, is there are too many things I want to do in life, that I just can't make a 'Life Plan.' If I tried to do everything, it wouldn't work. I can't work full time while still being a full time mom, and I can't live both in the city and the country. I can't worry about what kind of home I'm going to live in. The future is a mystery to all but one person, and that person I am not. So I need to just sit back, relax, and enjoy the now. Otherwise I'll regret it in the future.

What are some things that you wanted to do as a child or young adult that you haven't had a chance to do yet? Do you think you'll ever get the chance? Tell me in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

Two Movies

So I went a little overboard and went and saw two movies today. First I made plans with one friend, forgot about those plans, then went and saw a movie with another friend, and after that movie was over I remembered the other plans I had made and arrived back in time to go with that friend. A bit of a mess, but I got to hang out with two friends I don't get to see very often, as well as watch two interesting movies, so it was worth it.

The two movies I saw were Captain America 2 (in a Korean theater) and Noah (at the base theater.) Normally I don't review stuff like this, but then again normally I don't come out of two consecutive movies with something very important to say, something that bugs me and needs to be said. So, here I go.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (spoiler free)

This was a great movie. What's funny is the first Captain America movie was the first movie I watched when I got out of Air Force Basic Training. I really like Captain America, more so than some of the other super heroes nowadays. Because he fights America, and not for the bureaucrats and the rich and powerful and those in power, no, he fights for the people and for the freedom of Americans and for AMERICA. But that's not what I want to talk about today.

This was a great movie, but what I want to talk about are the minions and peons and the people on the lowest level. Basically people like me. And this isn't really just about Captain America, it's also about most movies that have legions of bad guys and soldiers and police etc. that the 'good guys' have to fight their way through. I don't know about other people, but it always bothers me that there are so many people who don't question their orders, don't question what they are being told to do, don't question if what they are doing is right. Of course, I understand that a lot of times they are being lied to, or misled, or brainwashed, or the like, but really? That many people?

And then when the 'good guys' do their thing and destroy the bad guy's fortress/flying machine/ship etc. what about all those people who didn't realize what they were getting into and died anyway? I realize that there are people who do know what they are getting into and either don't have the moral courage to stand up for what's right or expect to get out of whatever they do. Maybe they expect power or money, or any other temptation that pulls men and women away from the good. But how can I honestly believe that that many people were either unable to think for themselves or were expecting to get something out of it?

For the last couple of days I've been thinking about stuff like this, and I'm not exactly sure why. I've imagined spending years interviewing prisoners in the States to try to find out how they ended up that way and to try to fix things, I've imagined being inside the movies I've watched talking with the minions and peons to try to get them to think for themselves and to realize that they are on the wrong side. Anything to stop the death and corruption.

And Captain America really made me think of it more. When you see it, you'll realize why.

Noah (again, spoiler free as best I can)

Noah made me think of other things. And this one had more to do with the actual movie. As the title suggests, the movie is about Noah and the Ark. As a movie that has nothing to do with the biblical story, it makes for a great movie. Maybe set in a fantasy setting or something. But as a retelling of the bible story, it is poorly done, and done without a real understanding of what a Man of God is and how a prophet like Noah would have communicated with God.

Maybe this all just comes from my LDS/Mormon background, but this movie was so hard to watch because of the things that Noah did and said and felt. Yes, Noah was a man, and he probably had his faults and all, but Noah was a Prophet of God, and he would have known a lot more than the movie Noah did. Now I know that the real story probably wouldn't have been quite as exciting, and so the film-makers added a bunch of things to make the movie 'worth' watching. But to me it was not worth watching and it left me with an uncomfortable, dark feeling.

At least one good thing came out of this movie: I was reminded of how grateful I am to know the truth of things and to have the Spirit so that I can tell what is wrong or right.

I wish I could talk more about Noah, but it would be too spoiler-ish, and spoiling movies and things is one of my big pet peeves, so I don't do it, except in private settings with people who are sure they want it to be spoiled. (like my mom, sometimes

So tell me, have you see movies that just made you want to talk about something? Something that buzzed around your brain until you told someone? Tell me about it in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

OUAT In Wonderland and why I'm glad it got cancelled

First off, I need to apologize for not posting on Thursday, like I normally do. Language class has been a little more time consuming and distracting than I expected and while I knew what I was going to post about, it completely slipped my mind.

Now, I am in love with Once Upon A Time In Wonderland. It's a wonderful spinoff series based on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which is one of my favorite children's story, and as I have talked about it before, some of my favorite relationships and characters. But even saying that, I'm glad it was not picked up for a second season, and here's why.

When I first heard about it, I thought it was supposed to be only a mini-series spinoff, just something to supplement the main show while having a completely separate setting and set of characters. Then I learned that no, it was supposed to be it's own show and that it would hopefully continue for at least a little bit. As I started watching it, I thought this was a good idea, because I was enjoying it so much.

Then, before I had watched the season one finale episode, I heard it was cancelled. This made me upset and a little angry, although I should have seen it coming because a lot of really good shows that I enjoy get cancelled. (e.g. Firefly, The Dresden Files, etc.) But then I watched the season finale, which had such a perfect, well-suited ending that wrapped everything up quite nicely and actually finished the story, leaving no loose ends to be picked up later. So it was perfect. And if they had used that ending and still went on with another season, it would have taken away from the ending and made it seem cheap.

Maybe I'm just used to Korean dramas, where there is a definitive ending and very rare sequels (and even those aren't about the same characters,) but I enjoy complete stories much better than continuing series that never seem to end, but do seem to run out of steam.

So while the cancelling of shows like Firefly and Terra Nova leave me upset and wondering why, I'm glad OUAT In Wonderland was cancelled, especially with the ending they got. Because anything more would have ruined the story.

Adventures

Tomorrow I start a new adventure. And the day after that, I start another new adventure.What are these adventures you ask? Well. Tomorrow, I start language maintenance class. It's been a really long time since I've REALLY studied Korean, so it's definitely going to be an adventure. And the day after tomorrow (we really need a word for that) I start Camp NaNoWriMo April. This will be my first time doing a Camp, and I'm pretty excited. I have my story all laid out in my head, my cast of characters keeps developing to be better and better, and I'm actually excited about this one. It's going to rock.

Do you have any upcoming adventures? Tell me about it in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

Once Upon A Time

I got into the Once Upon A Time (OUAT) franchise back when the first season was airing. I watched it on Hulu with my roommate at the time, after doing homework and before going to bed. It was a nice way to wind down after the long day, and a great way for me and my roommate to bond over. Somewhere around the middle of the season things came up for me and she wound up watching without me, and then I just sort of stopped watching it. It wasn't that it wasn't interesting, it was just that the fun watching it together-ness had been lost because she went ahead and watched without me.

When season one came out on DVD I bought it and eventually finished watching it. It was good, and had a happy ending, with the usual American TV cliff hanger tacked on at the end. Then, when the second season came out, I bought that as well. However this time, I only got around to watching one or two episodes before I set it aside for other viewerly pursuits. It wasn't that the second season was bad or anything, I was just in the mood for something different, and my reading and watching of things is all dictated by my mood.

Then two weeks ago at work, we caught season three on the TV, as well as some episode of the spin off series, and my interest was renewed. So last week, on my off days, I marathoned season two to catch up. Then I got the iTunes season pass for the spin off, Once Upon A Time In Wonderland (OUATWonderland), and watched that over the weekend and my days off this week. Watching almost all of it all at once has given me a unique perspective and a glimpse at the big picture, as well as a pretty good idea of why I fell in love with this show, and why I keep coming back.

Because honestly, this is one of the best American shows I've seen in a long time. Both of them, although I prefer the spin off by a small margin, are very well done, with all well-rounded characters. But here's why I'm watching this show, and will continue to until it's series finale, hopefully in the far future.

Every character has a back story that is relevant to the story. There are no flat characters anywhere. And best of all, the villains all have logical motivations and histories that lead them to do what they do. It all makes sense, and is completely transparent about it. This is what I like. Real characters with real dreams and wishes and motives. There is no such thing as an evil-to-be-evil character in either of these series. It's very much like real life; everyone has a story of how they got to where they are.

Another thing is how the stories really delve into what love is, and all the different variations it can take and how a person's past and character can influence how things turn out. For example, in OUAT there are many different relationships to look at. There is the 'true love' relationship of Snow White and Prince Charming, the mother-son relationship of Henry and Regina, as well as the different type of mother-son relationship between Henry and his biological mother, Emma. And those are just a few from OUAT.

The biggest contrasting relationships, and the ones I enjoy watching the most, are the main and secondary couples in OUATWonderland. The main couple is Alice and Cyrus, and theirs is one of those adorable 'true love' romances that everyone wants. It  makes me all giggly just watching how hard they work to be together, how much faith they have in each other. I talked a bit about them in my Top 10 post on Sunday.

To contrast that relationship, there is the secondary couple of Will and Ana. Now this relationship is the perfect example of a failed relationship because of personal weaknesses on both parts. Ana was tempted by wealth and a life of luxury, and succumbed, though she regretted it almost immediately afterwards and this regret became her motivation for everything she does afterwards. Will, other the other hand, didn't have the faith to keep waiting for her to change her mind and come back to him, and he allowed someone to talk him into making a stupid decision. And so he suffered for it, and she suffered for it, and it is so heartbreaking to watch them both struggle with the consequences of their weaknesses.

To say I'm excited for the next episode of OUATWonderland would be an understatement.

What is your favorite movie or tv show that has the realest characters you've seen? I'd love to hear about it in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

Top Ten Most Adorable Couples

The last little bit I've been watching the TV show Once Upon A Time and it's spin off, and it's got me thinking about all my favorite TV and literature couples. These couples making reading and watching worth it. Their adorableness makes me smile and root for them through all the crappy things they have to live through. Now, because there are so many to choose from, I have to set down some ground rules. The first,
I can only chose one couple per franchise. The second, they have to actually elicit a response from me when they are together. e.g. squealing, hand-flailing, general fan-girling. Third, they can't be a real-life couple. That would make a different list. And the fourth, they have to actually end up together in the end.

So, here's the list of my top ten favorite adorable couples of TV and literature.

10. Cath and Levi, from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell - This is one of my top favorite books of all time, and surprise! it's a contemporary novel. The realness of these two makes the adorableness even better and while it took them a bit to get together, once they were official it was just perfect.

9. Katie and Tomohiro, from Ink by Amanda Sun - This couple was just adorable, as are all the couples on this list. They started out antagonistic, but once they got to know each other, oh the sparks were so cute. It was especially great to see the very American Katie trying to come to terms with the very Japanese Tomo.

8. Cutter and Leetah, from Elfquest by Wendy and Richard Pini - These two had a very rough start. But once they reconciled and really got to know each other, they were so perfect together. The rough and the refined, the moon and the sun, the wild and the civilized. They were perfect opposites and yet so perfect for each other.

7. Ruby and Liam, from The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken - Two slightly broken teens in a very broken world. The romance that happened between these two was so sweet and cute to watch, and it was truly heartbreaking to see them part. But they got back together because NOTHING stands in the way of true love. Not even having your memories stolen.

6. Amy and Rory, from Doctor Who - How can you say no to the man that waited 2,000 years to see his girl again? How can you say no to the woman who gave up all of time and space to be with her man the rest of her life? You can't.

5. Katy and Daemon, from The Lux Series by Jennifer L. Armentrout - This couple makes me giggle and fan-girl until I'm silly. It's hard not to enjoy reading about the girl who won't take the boy's crap and the boy who would burn down the world to make sure his girl is safe. And this boy definitely could do that, so no one had better stand in his way.

4.Alice and Cyrus, from Once Upon A Time In Wonderland - It was hard picking this couple because in the OUAT franchise there are more than a handful of couples worthy of this list. But of the couples, my favorite is by far Alice and Cyrus. They are an adorable couple together, and the faith they have in each other is amazing and something few get to enjoy.

3. Cha Bong-seon and Seo Jae-hee, from Me Too, Flower! - This couple went through so many ups and downs together it made all the ups that much more special and adorable. Especially since the two of them needed each other so much that when they weren't together it was hard to keep watching. But when they finally managed to get past all the crap standing in their way, the fan-girls cheered and the world celebrated another perfect couple.

2. Kim Boong-do and Choi Hee-jin, from Queen In-hyun's Man - Their meeting was fate, and their romance was adorable and heartbreaking and ended so wonderfully. A sword-wielding scholar from ancient Korea and a B-list Korean actress? You could never guess how right they were for each other, and how hard they fought to be together.

1. Alice and Hatter, from SyFy's Alice - I thought it would be hard picking a number one couple, but this was far from the truth. Because Alice and Hatter have always been my favorite couple and always will be. The way they go from strangers who are just using each other to further their own goals to the couple who trust each other as much as they did in the end, it was just beautiful and natural and wonderful and lots of other -fuls. And their reunion at the end? Nothing short of perfect. Buttercup and Wesley ain't got nothing on that kiss.

So who are your favorite fictional couples? Tell me about them in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

Note: All pictures were taken from the internet and belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.

It's All Just A Matter of Opinion

Unless it's fact (e.g. the sun is round, the Earth goes around the sun, etc.) everything is a matter of opinion. That song was great. This movie was amazing. That was the worst food ever. [insert type of person] are stupid. Those kinds of things cannot be stated as fact, and are statements that should be made with caution. Because someone somewhere didn't like that song, thought the movie was poorly made, loved that food, and wants to be [insert type of person].

So when you call me stupid and fadish for the kind of music I like to listen to, slam the type of movies I like, say mean things about the type of books I like, that hurts me and makes me upset. Just because your opinion is different than mine does not make it any more or less valid than mine. I don't slam your likes, so I'll thank you if you don't bash mine.

Thanks for reading.

Things

Sometimes life has an annoying way of getting in the way of things.

This week has been a bit stressful at work, more so than usual, and it's carried over into my off days, where I've been too overwhelmed and stressed to do anything more than sit and crochet while watching movies. I've progressed a lot on the lap blanket I'm making, but other than that nothing has gotten done. Which is why I missed three days of blogging. I'm really sorry about that. I knew it was bound to happen at some point, but I'm still sorry it did.

But like all things in life, it's best to just acknowledge the mistake and move forward. So here I am, moving forward.

I've been in a really bad writing slump recently. Nothing seems to be able to pull me out of it, and while this is really good for my reading (I'm reading a ton nowadays) it's really bad for my future as a writer. Today I picked up my first novel and started re-reading it. I wrote it for the 2008 NaNoWriMo, and it was my first winning year. It's a great story idea, about a teenager girl who learns she is the Greek goddess Artemis, although at the time I wasn't the greatest writer. It definitely been a laugh, reading what I had written as a 19 year old. It's almost like taking a peek at my state of mind at the time, like a time capsule.

Someday, I'm going to finish getting this story publishable.

Starting today, I'm going to be back on schedule, so look for a post on Thursday, and again on Saturday and Sunday.

Thanks for reading!

Coming Soon

I need to write more. And not only do I need to write more, I need to include writing as a topic on this blog more often. Technically that's what the blog is supposed to be about, but I got a bit distracted. To fix this, I've come up with an idea. I already do regular posts on Sunday and Thursday. I never thought I would actually be able to keep up with that, but so far I have managed it pretty well. There have been a few times where I've slipped up on writing something interesting, but there's always been something to read on Sunday and Thursday.

So here's my idea: Once a week I find myself a writing prompt, either on creativewritingprompts.com, Sunday Scribblings, or the Brainstormer app on my iPad, and spend half an hour writing something based on that. I will then post that something here on Saturday, which will hereby be called Story Saturday. I will also include at the beginning what prompt I used, and you are welcome to take it and use it to fuel your own story-writing.

My goal is to improve my writing craft on a more regular basis, as well as give you something fun to read other than my sometimes ramble-y or dry posts.

Then maybe to even things out, I'll find some kind of series or other to post on Tuesdays, like Korea or food or something. It's going to be great.

Thanks for reading!

Edit: This is going to start next week, because this week was kind of hectic at work.

The Great McDonald's Bulgogi Burger

 A little bit ago I promised my best friend I would try the bulgogi burger at a Korean McDonald's for her, and tell her how it is. So, on my way home from a trip to Seoul, I stopped at the McDonald's outside the main gate and got one.

I'm not one to eat burgers very often. I only sort of like fast food, my wallet doesn't like fast food at all, and my body tends to react in annoying ways, like gaining weight. But occasionally I 'treat' myself, usually when I'm with other people. So it's not like fast food is a foreign concept for me. On the other side of this, however, most of the time when I do get burger-type fast food, I go for the chicken, instead of the beef. I don't know why, it's just been a thing I've done for the last couple of years. I don't think I've had an actually 'ham'burger in a really long time.

The McDonald's was a bit busy. It was about nine o'clock and the bars were all hopping outside, so of course the food places were full of people as well. And the girl at the counter didn't seem to understand my Korean, which left me a little disappointed, but oh well. I ordered a bulgogi burger meal with orange Fanta, got my food, and escaped the press of tipsy couples to finish my trip back onto base.

The line for a taxi just inside the gate was a bit long, longer than I was willing to wait, and so I walked. It's really only a fifteen minute walk, and while it was getting a bit chilly and I only had a light leather jacket on, I wasn't going to freeze to death walking back to my dorm. My hands were full of bags of treasures from my shopping in Seoul and my food, so I was worried that the burger and fries would get smooshed, but when I finally slid my key-card into the lock and got out of the cold into my room, everything was fine.

I set my treasure bags aside, to be gone through later, and put the McDonald's bag on the desk. The bag was a little crumbled from where I held it, and I was so sure that the food had gone cold. The only food normally hot that is also good cold is pizza, and I wasn't looking forward to trying a new food cold. I hesitantly reached into the bag and pulled out first the fries, which thankfully were still warm, and the burger.

It was small, or rather normal sized, compared to the burgers I was used to in the states. It wasn't hot, but at least it was still warm, which was more than I had been expecting, and probably more than I deserved after trekking through through the cold for fifteen minutes. The Hangul on the wrapper said 'Bulgogi Burger' and 'Anytime, just right for my mouth!' as well as some English I didn't pay attention to. I opened the wrapper with some trepidation: What kind of burger was it? What would it taste like? Would I like it?

It looked surprisingly like a normal burger. It was pretty plain, too, just the patty, lettuce, and some sauce, which is just how I like things. No tomato or pickle to pick off. I looked at it for a moment before realizing that the longer I waited the colder it got. Fearing it had already gotten too cold, I grabbed the burger, a little roughly, and stuffed it as far into my mouth as I could fit it. (Not very lady-like, I know.)

Immediately my mouth was filled with the most amazing flavor, like nothing I had ever tasted before. It wasn't like a hamburger, or a chicken burger, and it was definitely not the same flavor as  Korean bulgogi, from which the bulgogi burger is supposedly derived. But that didn't matter because the flavor was so mouth-wateringly amazing that I couldn't find any words to describe it.

A lot of times I scarf down my food and don't take the time to really enjoy the flavor. It has a lot to do with the mindset I have that taking the time to eat, prep and clean-up included, is a waste of time, and is also a remnant of my time in Air Force Basic Training, when we didn't have time to eat like normal people. However, with this burger, I ate as slow as I could manage, savoring eat mouthful and wishing I had bought two. It was worth whatever I paid for it (it was loud and I wasn't paying attention) and if I wasn't so stridently against regular fast food eating, I would eat this every day.

If you visit South Korea, which I feel like everyone should at some point in their lives because it's a wonderful place here, the bulgogi burger is something you must try, along with bibimbap, kimchi stew, deokk boki, pickled radishes, and banana milk.

What is a favorite dish of yours that is from a foreign country? Tell me about it in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

February Reading Wrap-Up Video

As promised, here is the video, my very first in a hopefully long career of bookish videos. Note: This is my very first video ever filmed and edited, so it might not be the greatest. Also, it took me two days to edit it because my program kept crashing and losing all my hard work.

Have you read any of these books? If you have, tell me what you thought!

If you have some video filming or editing suggestions, tips, or tricks, I would love to hear about them!

Thanks for reading and watching!

February Wrap Up

I was going to have an awesome video to post, and it would have been my first foray into the booktube world. But it took me 3 hours to edit the video, and before I could save it the program crashed and I lost all the editing I had done. :*( So instead, I'm going to edit it again Saturday night, and it will be up as the regularly scheduled post Sunday morning. Until then, I read 11 books in 28 days, which is my new record, and I found a new favorite.

Thanks for your patience!

I Live Such a Boring Life

Really, it's completely boring. I work, I sleep, I read books, I watch videos, and I write a little. That's about it. That sums up my life right now. There's no exciting adventures to share, no ground-breaking opinions, no life-changing events.

And I kind of like it this way. There's a certain steadiness, a consistency in my life that makes it easy to live with no complaints. I know a lot of people who complain about their life. They have no money, they have no time, they don't like their job, they don't like the people they are with, they don't know what to do with their lives, they want to go back home, they don't like the military, etc. Its' really quite draining to hear people talk like that, and I honestly can't understand why people complain so much.

I'm not saying I don't complain. Because that would be a lie, I'm human, so I do complain occasionally. But whenever anyone asks me how I'm doing or how life is, the word that comes to mind is 'comfortable.' I'm comfortable with my  life right now. It may be boring, but it's my life, and I read enough about awesome adventures in my books, so I'm perfectly happy with boring.

Thanks for reading!

Teenagers

I dislike teenagers.

Let me be more specific.

I dislike modern teenagers. I don't know what it is, but there's just something about modern teenagers that annoy me.

But at the same time, I love reading Young Adult fiction, because I am almost always guaranteed a clean read. So sometimes I have to read about snotty, selfish, whiny, melodramatic teenagers.

Thankfully, I prefer a type of YA that eschews those kinds of teens. Generally, fantasy, science fiction, and dystopian books have teen protagonists that are more mature, and wise beyond their years. Those kinds of teenagers I am okay with.

Sorry this was such a short post, I got distracted.

Is there an age group that you don't like reading about? How about a certain kind of character? Tell me about them in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

Something New

I was going to have a fun post about the crazy weekend I had the last weekend, but time got away with me and it's not ready yet. So instead, I'm going to talk about something new I want to try. This will be a short one.

So, I have a new story idea that I'm working on. I've started working on a couple of scenes, and I've done quite a bit of worldbuilding for it. I'm pretty excited for it. But while writing the long novel, I want to try my hand at writing short stories set in the world. It would help me flesh things out, and it would give me a break from the big picture when I needed it. And not only that, but I also want to have these short stories available online, so that maybe I can garner a bit of a fan base before I actually try to publish.

So, these short stories are going to going on a site I've used before, called Protagonize. And I'm going to share links to the site and stories here, so that you readers can see them too. It's going to be a fun, interesting experience, and it's going to be awesome.

Thanks for reading!

Control, by Lydia Kang

Control, in Hardcover

Read February 4-February 18

First let me pause to take a breath. Except for the first chapter or two, I read this book in one sitting, and I'm still a little breathless because it was such a wild, fast-paced ride.

I read Control as part of an online read-along with my favorite booktubers. Normally I probably wouldn't have picked this book up. The blurb sounds interesting, but I'm usually more drawn to fantasy than science, and this is definitely a science fiction. However I would have been at a loss, and I'm really glad I read it.

The world building was fairly simple, but it didn't really need a whole lot.  There was plenty of futuristic technobabble to create the atmosphere, and just enough explanation of the world was given to make sense of how the world had changed. And most, if not all, of the tech and geography changes felt like a logical destination tow here our current world is headed.

Most of the characters felt barely fleshed out, however, and a lot of things suffered because of the super fast pace. But for it's faults, and it's weirdness, it was a good, easy book to read, and the world needs easy books to read just as much as it needs hard books to read.

Rating: Keeper

Have you read Control? If you have, tell me what you though! If you haven't, tell me about the last science fiction you read, I would love to hear about new books!

Thanks for reading!

The Little Lady Agency, by Hester Browne

The Little Lady Agency, in Hardcover

Read February 12-February 17

I read chicklit very infrequently. I have enjoyed Sophie Kinselle books in the past, but for the most part chicklit doesn't interest me enough to entice me to pick one up. However, I promised my mom I would read her one of her favorite books, because she's read a lot of books on my recommendation and I felt I should reciprocate.

The Little Lady Agency is a fun romp through British social life, and the life of naive and funny Melissa, and I did enjoy it, despite myself. It's funny, and cute, and I can't help but feel a bit similar to Melissa, in more ways than one.

Some of the middle of the book was hard to get through because when Mom was reading it a while back she spoiled the whole series for me. So a certain large part of the book that was dedicated to one relationship that I know won't last felt like it dragged a bit. It was a little disappointing that I couldn't just enjoy it, but what can I do? This is why I don't like spoilers of any kind.

The end of the book was fantastic and had me giggling and making me look crazy to my co-workers, although at this point they are kind of use to behavior like this. Revelations were made, just deserts were passed out, and it ended on a happy, uplifting note. Just the kind of ending I love.

Rating: Keeper, though I would have to be in the right kind of mood to read something like it again. And unfortunately I have to mail it back to my mom. Sad face.

Have you read The Little Lady Agency? Tell me what you thought in the comments!

Thanks for reading!