Games of Hunger

Ironically enough, I AM hungry, but this post is actually about the alleged "Hunger Games". Like the majority of people who don't live under a rock, I have heard all of the hype surrounding these books, and I'll admit I was skeptical (wha? me? never!) to read them because of the types of people that kept saying how amazing they were.
A couple people in my classes last year said they were an easy read, and pretty interesting, so I decided I might give them a shot one day, just to see what all of the fuss was about.
The more I heard about the books, the more I put off reading them. Then, over Christmas break, my sister gave me the first one and told me to read it. I looked at it for awhile, and I even read the first sentence, but I left home with the book tucked away in a backpack, and soon forgot about it.
Social media reminded me that I should probably get started on the book, but the more I heard about it, the less I wanted to start reading.
The last weekend in January came. I worked Friday and all day Saturday, and when Sunday came I realized I had the entire day off. I went to church, cleaned out and vacuumed my car, then set to work on my house. I cleaned, scrubbed, vacuumed, washed, straightened, folded, you name it, I did it. With everything gleaming, I decided to curl up with a cup of coffee and a book. Unfortunately, the books I recently purchased from McKays were not calling my name. Then I remembered the book that I had stuffed in a backpack, and I kept hearing that its a book that you "can't put down", so I decided a day when I had a nice block of time was a good time to read it.
And so, I started it. Now, if you know me at all, you know I'm about to give you some opinions. You can disagree of course, but this is my blog so if my opinions offend you, look away. Little disclaimer there.
My first reaction was "What the? Present tense? Terrible choice." Because as anyone whose ever taken a basic writing class knows, present tense is difficult, and it usually doesn't work very well. It was jarring, and even after finishing the book, I think present tense was not the best choice. But, she did make it work, so props to her for that. I just personally didn't care for the tense.
Also, as I read the first four or five chapters, I kept finding grammatical errors. This is a curse I was born with; anytime I read anything my mind automatically corrects the errors. I was confused; was she trying to convey the voice of the narrator by using incorrect grammar? Or were they mistakes?
So, that threw me for a small loop. But, I overlooked it, because a fellow writing student told me that despite the rough writing in the beginning, it gets better.
So, I pressed on.
I thought it was obvious that the author was setting up a romance between Gale and Katniss, so I was pleasantly surprised when he didn't volunteer to go to the games as well.
I didn't find the book particularly interesting until about halfway through the Games segment. The writing definitely improved, and the world that she set up turned out to be much more in depth than I expected. It was a strange combination of a post apocalyptic world, where the people have nothing, and the electronic future, where everything is tracked and watched and televised. Obviously I found myself thinking of Lord of the Flies several times, but the Hunger Games had a sick twist, since the children should not have been in that situation in the first place.
I appreciated how dark she let the book get; I was afraid that being in the "young adult" genre would hinder her from going into too much detail. There was a nice balance between action and suspense and description, which is hard to do.
I didn't find that I "couldn't' put it down", but I did find myself curious as to what would happen. It was a really easy read, which was a nice change, and the plot was nicely pieced together. All in all, I'm glad that I read it, but I wouldn't say that I would read it again. I'll probably see the movie, and I might even read the rest of the trilogy if someone offers me the other two, but other than that, my time with the Hunger Games is finished. I gave it a chance, it didn't dazzle me but it did entertain me for a few hours, so that is that.
Cheers!

Words...

Words are definitely high on the list of my favorite things. No, this list does not actually exist, and probably never will, but I never tire of mentally adding things to it.
Let's see...blog blog blog. Well for starters, I posted a political statement on facebook. This is what I consider to be myself evolving into an adult. Granted, the post was a little negative, but you get the picture.
Ummm. Well, I've started delivering pizzas to people, which is actually quite fun! Granted, zero degree weather or rain could put a damper on things, but tonight was a BEAUTIFUL night, and I got paid to drive around (I may or may not have been listening to a book on my Ipod) and make people happy by bringing them food. There was actually a note on an online order that said "I'm drunk and hungry, plz hurry!! This was my favorite thing tonight. Honesty really is the best policy people! No, I didn't deliver their food, but the message still cracked me up. People are so crazy.
Presidential stuff is of no interest to me, which is silly because I'm always saying that we should respect our rights as Americans and use our freedom for the greater good. I'll figure out who I'm voting for when it comes around to that time of year again (ok fine, I still get excited at the idea that I'm old enough to vote again, sue me) but until then, I mostly stay out of political stuff.
So that's that.
I've really been trying to concentrate on "the little things" in life. Now that I'm graduated, I don't have ten things due in a day or have a bunch of meetings or classes or things that HAVE to get done. Also, the sermon last Sunday was about the parable of the talents (look it up, I'm not about to explain it) and how God really wants us to be diligent in the small things before he'll trust us with bigger things.
This was a really big deal for me. I've been struggling SO much lately about not having "big" tasks in my life. I want to be changing the world, not delivering pizzas! But God apparently has other things in mind for me right now. So, I've been using my free time to "be diligent" and try and stay grounded in what is important. Yesterday was one of the worst days I've had in a really long time (and if you know me at all, you probably know that I never have "bad days") and it seem to come at the worst time possible. I was like, really God? I'm trying my best to be diligent and you throw me this crap??
And then it hit me. I can't grow, or have any sort of substantial relationship with God, if I'm not tested. God gave me his fatherly all knowing look (I always personify God in my mind) and basically told me to suck it up. I've had an amazing life, and the little things that go wrong and seem to weigh me down are really pretty silly in the long run.
I was like, okay God, fine, I see your point. I'm going to remain diligent in the small things, even when it seems like everything is being thrown at me at one time. *grumble grumble*
Because really, if we can't remain true in the small tasks when things are going poorly, how can we ever expect to have big things thrust upon us and still survive?
So today, I woke up with a fresh attitude, and I concentrated on the small things. I drank coffee, I started a new book, and I dragged my awesome comfy chair onto my porch and basked in the sun. A friend who went to Cambridge with me once told me that "the sun is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy" and I believe that with my whole heart. The fresh weather, sunshine, and relaxation completely rejuvenated me! I went to work with a smile, and I've had a great night thus far. Attitude is SO important, people. So yeah. On that note...
This is me, the humbled servant, signing off for the night.
:)

FINE!

Ok ok OK people, I really and truly am going to try and blog more often. I have no idea why blogging is such a struggle for me, it makes no sense for a cynical writer to not enjoy putting her cynical thoughts down and having people read them. Maybe it is the fact that I doubt many people will read my posts, and I think it is a bit of a waste of time since I don't know how to do all of the fancy shmancy stuff with blogs that most people do. I'm going to try and start including pictures and stuff though, so hopefully that will make it a little cooler? Yes? Maybe? Arg.
What to say, what to say...
Lately I'm struggling immensely with the dreaded question: What comes next? Everyone has been asking me what my plan is now that I'm graduated, and I get extremely frustrated anytime someone asks me this. I've reverted to saying "I'm just chilling" or the ever popular "I'm going to be a writer!" (I absolutely love how uncomfortable people get when I say the latter, they back away slowly and tell me how lovely that is...haha)
The problem for me is that there isn't much that I could do that I wouldn't be happy with. Let's see, a mortician, a coroner, a nurse, a Wal-Mart employee, a construction worker, and a truck driver are pretty much the only jobs that I wouldn't enjoy. Actually scratch truck driver, that would actually be kind of awesome. I could wear flannel all day and have an awesome dog for company.
Anyways.
The point is, at every stage of my life thus far, I've been content. More than content actually, I've been happy. No matter where I live or what I'm doing, I'm always fine with it. 9 out of 10 people who ask me what I'm doing now assume that I've moved back to my hometown, which really blows my mind. Don't get me wrong, I love North Carolina, but my town is so small and really has nothing for me right now, especially when I've pretty much got the world at my fingertips.
I've considered the Peace Corps, long term missions work, teaching English somewhere random, going on and getting my masters (I would only do this if it was somewhere abroad, I'm thinking Edinburgh) or just moving to a big city and trying to find a random job. The last option is the least appealing to me, but it seems to be what a lot of people assume I'm going to do. For me, right now, Cleveland is great because I'm comfortable here, I know people, I have connections with professors at school, and I have a great job (not great pay, but amazing people and an insanely flexible schedule) that pays the bills. Also, I have free time to write, and I'm freelancing for a tax software company based out of my hometown.
But alas, I know that my college days are over, which probably means I should get out of my college town, but I just can't seem to figure out where to go next! It's not that I don't have enough options, on the contrary, I seem to have too many. I could seriously do anything and everything and probably be happy. I could live anywhere (except maybe Antarctica, but I do love penguins...) and do any job, and be content.
Anyway, those are my current frustrations. Most people seem to think I need to have some big master plan for my life, but I honestly never gave much thought to post-college life. Graduation was always the goal, and it seems so unfair at how fast everything turns on you. One second everyone is super happy for you because you are about to graduate, then suddenly, they turn into an angry mob, demanding to know what your next move is going to be. Not fair.
I'm sure I'll get bored in Cleveland, but for now I try and stay busy reading and writing and working and hanging out with my friends. And catching up on sleep ;) My first endeavor after graduation was to reread all the Harry Potter books (granted, I've read them all at least five times, but not consecutively) which I've now almost accomplished. Next, I'm reading the Hunger Games, which I'm actually dreading because of the crazy hype surrounding it.
Oh crap, I promised pictures! I need to go back through and add some fun visual stimulation, which you will have seen by the time you read this, so maybe I should just erase this sentence. Nah.
So I can't think of any images that would be appropriate for this post. I promise I'll include pictures in some posts from now on!!