Guac, Cyber War and Snoop Dogg
Welcome to my week in pictures. They may appear random, but I promise I have a connection with all of them. I hope my life is at least somewhat mysterious to ya’ll. Enjoy.
Shark Week, enough said
Exposition: I was first really introduced to Shark Week freshman year. Of course, I’d heard of it (who hasn’t), but no one in my household at home really thought it was a big deal, so I didn’t really think it was a big deal (a. sharks are terrifying b. it might give me nightmares c. who wants to see what’s inside of a shark belly? d. I had better things to do with my time) My roommate freshman year, however, thought it was a big deal. Now she isn’t the typical shark-hunter, action-loving person, quite the opposite in fact, so I was rather confused as to why she loved it. This is when I realized that Shark Week doesn’t have a demographic. Everyone loves Shark Week. Every age, every race, male or female, prep or punk. It transcends the typical. And I just couldn’t figure out why. So for three years I would get the hint from everyone’s Facebook status, SHARK WEEK! and just roll my eyes and keep clicking past the Discovery Channel.
Rising Action: I’m sitting in my living room last night with my roomies J and K, the bf and K’s bf. We’re all happily talking and watching K and her bf play Super Mario Bros. when they decide to switch to t.v. It was bound to happen. Click. Click. Click. “SHARK WEEK!” The boys scream in unison. And of course, I roll my eyes and start going off about how much I hate Shark Week and don’t understand the big deal. As I’m saying this, a woman is cutting open a shark’s belly and pulling out everything inside with her bare hands. Case. in. point.
“Next on Shark Week, Shark Attack Survival Guide.” 
Okay, that caught my attention. Remember a. b. c. and d.? Well this particular show on Shark Week defied my reasons for banning it. (Yes, it might make me even more terrified, but at least now if I’m ever in a situation I will know what to do, and no I didn’t have anything better to do.) Thus, I became wholeheartedly engrossed in what to do if I’m attacked by a shark.
(Keep in mind these tips may be a little misconstrued due to the fact that K was distracting everyone by making them watch ridiculous, but hilarious Dora/Maraka videos)
1. Don’t panic. (Pretty basic, but still can’t make any promises that it’s going to happen)
2. If your fishing boat in the middle of the ocean blows up for no reason, jump out into the shark-infested waters. (Honestly, I don’t know if I would choose blowing up or being eaten by sharks)
3. Grab a weapon (I swear that’s what they said and I was very confused as to where I was supposed to get this weapon seeing as my boat just blew up and I’m doggy-paddling in the middle of the ocean)
4. Use your water bottle to look deeper into the ocean to see how many sharks surround you (Again, I think I should have paid more attention on this one because I was confused, but honestly, do I really want to know how many sharks are down there?)
5. Don’t make any odd sounds. It attracts the sharks. (Does my boat blowing up and me screaming count as an odd sound?)
6. Do not attempt to grab a shark. (PHEW, good thing you told me that DC, because that’s definitely my first reaction)
7. Punch or claw its gills or eyes out. (Alright. If he doesn’t eat my hand , I’ll definitely try that one)
8. If all else fails, get on the Discovery Channel rescue vessel waiting for you on the side. (I don’t think this needs any commentary)
How to save someone who has been bitten by a shark
Stop the bleeding, apply direct pressure, take off your shirt (even if you’re a girl, that’s what he said and you want to save your friend right?!) and use it to make a tourniquet (you can click, I didn’t know what it was either). 
Random fact on the bottom of the screen: The average adult male can die with only 20% loss of blood.
And then, when he appears to be semi-okay, even though he’s pale and shaking on the beach and blood is gushing everywhere, and your tourniquet sucks, tell him, “Hey dude, you’re not gonna die today. I got it.” And whisk him away in the Discovery Channel helicopter to a hospital.
Conclusion: Shark Week may be OK and I should probably start watching the survival tips more often. Now I’m really starting to rethink the decision to go to bed before seeing “what to do if you’re locked in a cage underwater with a shark.”
The evolution of movie-going
St. Louis, Missouri, May 1910
As I was sitting in the movie theatre Friday (for about the 3rd time that week) I started thinking about how much has changed since I first started going to the movies. It brought back lots of memories and I wanted to revisit some key points in, most likely, all of our movie-going careers…
Family Outing: It was always exciting to go to the movies on a Sunday afternoon when there was nothing else to do. It was either with my parents, my grandpa or family friends. Either way, it didn’t matter, as long as we got to get out of the house, go see the newest G or PG rated movie and try and finagle some popcorn or candy out of the parental supervision.
Titanic… I’d say this movie was a transitioned me into the next phase. I remember seeing it in theatres 7 times, starting with my parents of course to make sure my little ears and eyes could handle it, but then seeing it with friends…
The Cool Kids: Then there came the time when FINALLY my parents let me go to the movies without an adult. I saw an occasional movie with just a couple close friends, but the most important movie time in this phase was group movie time. There were always the “cool kids” who went to the movies in a huge pack. For starters it mattered if you got invited, and then what you wore, who you sat next to, who you talked to, who you flirted with and so on. This was the biggest deal ever, and began…
The Backseaters: Enter in boys. As I get older and wiser, I realize how scary of a time this probably was for parents to let a child go to the movies alone with a boy. But at the time, it was the most exciting possibility ever. In this phase, it didn’t really matter what movie you went to see because the entire time (sitting in the very back seat of the theatre if you could) you would be worried about how you looked, what he thought of you, if he was thinking about you, if he was going to reach for your hand and help us all, if he was going to kiss you. It was all about the ambiance of the movie and nothing about the movie itself.
The Friday nighters: Then we get to the part where the Friday night social scene was at the movies. You had to be there, every single Friday night, to hang out with new friends, flirt with boys or spend “alone” time with your boyfriend. Of course it was all very particular, you had to arrive at a certain time and leave at a certain time. Your mom couldn’t pick you up too early because then you didn’t get to talk after the movie, but if she waited too long everyone else would be gone and make you look like a loser. This era was still not about the movies and unfortunately, includes sneaking in to movies that were sold out, but the boy you liked got tickets to.
The Car: The invention of the car was never as sweet as when you got your license or your boyfriend got his and could take you to the movies sans parents. You didn’t have to coordinate schedules with your parents, which could definitely be a pain as a bratty teen, and often times had a hot, older guy taking you to the movies. What could get much better than this?
Life: Shortly after everyone got their own car, everyone started getting a life outside of movies. Sure, everyone still got together once in a while to go see a movie they really wanted to see, but the real movie lovers continued going to the movies and began going for very different reasons: you actually wanted to see the movie. It wasn’t about the food and drink (well, okay still sometimes), the gossip, the shameless flirting, the perfect outfit or the backseat.
As I sat in the movies Friday, I realized how much had evolved throughout the years because of a simple building with a large screen. I sat there in my favorite seat (close to the front), no drink or popcorn in hand, next to someone I genuinely cared about and knew I could grab his hand and waiting in anticipation for a movie I really wanted to see.
Here’s to Life
It’s 2:45 a.m. and I’m more than a little hyped for the hour. (You’re talking to someone who’s normal bed time is around 10:30). I just went to the midnight premiere of Eclipse and as ridiculous as this sounds I can’t stop thinking about it. I also have a lot of thoughts floating around in my head that I’ve been meaning to blog, so here is insight into my mish-mash.
Team Edward vs. Team Jacob
Two years ago when Twilight was the biggest thing to drop onto the earth, I was completely against it. I thought it sounded ridiculous and the biggest waste of my time to read. I had much better books to read that would teach me and invoke serious thought. (“But it’s a looooove story!” I can’t tell you how many times I heard that) My roommates and I even banned it from our apartment: no Twilight paraphernalia or talk, at all.
Fast forward a year later when I was forced against my will to watch the first movie- ridiculous and probably one of the worst movies I have ever seen. However, part of me was intrigued, so I promised a friend I would go see New Moon in theaters with her.
I walked in a skeptic. I walked out a twi-hard. My roomies from the previous year couldn’t believe it, and wouldn’t let me live it down (they still won’t). I saw the movie in theaters three times and began acting like a love-struck teenager when either Taylor Lautner or Robert Pattinson was seen or mentioned. I had decided that I was on Team Jacob (Taylor Lautner, the werewolf, for all you non-Twilighters). Friends told me it was because they weren’t portraying Edward correctly in the film, which may be true, he’s just too depressing and pale for my taste.
Which all leads upto tonight. I LOVE movies and LOVE going to movie premieres, so I thought the Eclipse midnight premiere would be an experience, and it definitely was. I had just one problem. I’m almost positive I was the only person in the theatre that hasn’t read the books. Thus, I’m sitting on the edge of my seat, heart pounding, during the battles of flesh and the battles of love. I would gasp and get wide-eyed, when no one else even flinched. The plot was no surprise to them, just to me.
I’m very glad I haven’t wasted my time reading the books. I am getting much joy and excitement waiting for the next installment of the movie, not knowing what’s coming. I can also say I’m not too much of a twi-hard since I haven’t read the books. (Well, let’s be honest…..)
My Future Career
After my post about acting as a passion, I received several very concerned texts about what I was going to do with my life. Apparently I left everyone hanging. Which, in all honesty, not even I knew what I was going to do. I was left hanging.
I’ve always prided myself in not worrying about the future. I worry about everyday things a lot, way more than I should, but I’ve never been one to worry about what will happen after college or how much money I will have or how my life will turn out. I’ve always had a peace about it, knowing God has already made my plans, so why worry?
After writing that post I thought back on other posts I had written, about how I wanted to mentor students, how I wanted to write something that affected people and now how I want to act. It seems like I don’t know what I want. And I don’t. But that’s okay. I don’t have to know. I trust that God will lead me where he wants me and that I will be most affective with the talents He has given me. I can’t, however, sit around and just wait for him to shove the perfect opportunity my way. I need to keep stepping through open doors until He closes one. Thus, I will mentor, I will write and I will find a way to act. And when he leads me to the position He wants me in, I will know. In the mean time, why try and figure out His plan?
Sick
As it turns out, I have gotten my week of sickness I’ve so desperately desired in the past, and I know even more now that I never ever want this again. I’ve literally come home every afternoon, taken a nap, then watched 24 pretty much until it was time to go to sleep again. I’ve interspersed other things I needed to do in between, but I’ve felt so terrible that all I want to do is lay down. I feel so unproductive, so useless, but I know I need to learn how to be still and let my body heal itself. I’ve also actually been learning a lot through my t.v. watching. Everywhere I go I feel like I’m being watched and snipers surround me in the bushes. However, I feel like I could protect myself in any situation and know not to make the stupid mistakes they make on t.v.
Et Cetera
Other things I’ve learned today include: waiting two hours for a movie is the best time for conversation, D.O.D. means Department of Defense, laying out is bad for you while you are sick (and yes, maybe not the best when you are healthy either), the new Harry Potter trailer is incredible, you can always learn something new about someone you thought you knew everything about.
Don’t Stop Believin’
Why do people give up on their dreams? Why do so many people get complacent in where they are, the job they are in and hold back on what they are really passionate about? Is it fear? Too much hard work? Low self-esteem? This may not resonate with college age people as much as it does older people, because hopefully we are pursuing our dreams in college. Hopefully, I say, because there are those who aren’t. Like me.
In high school, theatre was my life. I loved performing. It made me happier than doing anything else. I wanted to get on stage, live a life different than my own and make the audience feel what that character was feeling. I wanted to make them cry, laugh, connect to these characters that are only a two-hour part of their life.
But I decided not to pursue it in college, despite people telling me I was very talented. Why? Because I didn’t want to live the life of an actor. (Assuming I made it to the big time) I didn’t want to live under the constant scrutiny of the paparazzi. How ridiculous that reasoning sounds to me now. I LOVE acting, and if that’s what I want to do the most, that’s what I should do. I don’t want to look back and wonder what if. I don’t want to think I didn’t try because I was afraid of what would happen if I did make it big or what would happen if I didn’t make it big.
Don’t get me wrong. I love journalism. I love interviewing people and sharing their stories and writing. But it doesn’t fulfill me like acting does.
What got me on this path of thinking was watching the finale of my latest favorite show Glee. The show is about a group of high school misfits coming together in a glee club because they love singing and dancing. It doesn’t matter that they get thrown in trash cans, ‘slushied’, or bullied by everyone else in the high school. It’s their passion and they’re going to do it no matter what.
I was watching the finale and bawling. Partly because of the show and various storylines, but partly because it was hitting home. They knew they weren’t going to win regionals and wanted to just give up all together. Then their coach said to them, “Who cares what happens when you get there, when the getting there has been so much fun.”
So here’s to my journey, and that I don’t stop believin’ in what I want to do.
My newest fashion obsession is fedora hats. They go in and out of style a lot, and I’ve never liked them before, but now I want one so bad. The problem is I’m not sure if I can pull it off and I can’t find the one that is just perfect. I’m going on vacation to Orlando in a week. That’s my timeline to find one. Let me know if you have any leads for me.
I love that you can dress it up or dress it down, wear it on the beach or the street and I LOVE that even Zac is in on the trend. But Miley.. I just don’t know about that leopard.
Hocus Pocus
I’ve always been fascinated with magic. I will go to any magic show, go inside any magic shop and look around until someone makes me leave and most likely buy some ridiculous trick I can never master. I also LOVE movies like The Illusionist and The Prestige. I used to dream I would grow up to become a magician’s assistant- a beautiful accomplice who would be a part of fascinating and mystifying people, but who knew all of the secrets. Though that might make my interest in magic dwindle, it’s still always been a dream.
Today my mom and I were watching David Blaine, an illusionist and street magician. If you’ve never seen anything he does look it up on Youtube right now. Seriously go. It’s insane. He will ask someone to write a name on a piece of paper, then burn the paper and rub the ashes over his shirt. He then lifts up his shirt only to show the name that was written down is now written on his stomach in ash. He also sticks pens through his lip, pulls string out of his arm and makes cards appear inside audience members shoes. He has also broken several world records by being buried alive for 7 days, frozen for 63 hours and several others. I think it’s extremely interesting to see what he’s going to do next and how people react.
As I watched it again today, I just don’t know how I feel. Some of the things he does are just freaky and it makes me think he has supernatural powers. I don’t know what I would do if I saw some of the stuff he does in person. Some people think he is the anti-christ. Other people insist he is just a performer. I don’t know what to believe. All I know is I will stick to magic shows in Branson.
Here is a hilarious parody of David Blaine. Like I said, watch something he does first, otherwise this won’t be funny.
She’s just bein’ Miley
As we all know, I used to.. yes, used to… be obsessed with Miley Cyrus. I thought it was the greatest thing ever that so many people thought I looked like her and I just really wanted to be friends with her, but recently things have changed. She has become too scandalous, raunchy and very bluntly, skanky. It is a sad day in my book to move her down the friend list, but it had to be done.
However, while shopping today I found some cutoff black jean shorts that I loved, but very much made me think of Miley- who is now famous for her booty shorts. (She’s seventeeeeeeen!!) Now I promise my shorts are not nearly as skanky as these, but she would in fact wear them I believe. Which leads me to think I will always hold a special place in my heart for Miley, and definitely Hannah Montana (which if you don’t know the difference between the two, please contact me. Or watch Disney).
m.davis xoxo 
