Interlochen February, Day 3: Open Room Madness

DAY 3
February 4
Prompt: "Open rooms."

Few Interlochen traditions are as mystifying as the open room. Okay, so you've got boys, most of whom are gay, and you've got girls, most of whom are single, and yet the administration thinks that if you have any less than four people of mixed genders in a room together, for a period longer than one or two hours, at any other time than 5-9 PM on weekdays and 7-10 PM on weekends, sex will be the main festivity. I still can't work that one out.

But open rooms are magical in their own way: you can gather in a friend's room and do absolutely nothing of any importance, and still have the time of your life. I've met some amazing people in open rooms. I've seen some amazing things in open rooms. I haven't even participated in that many open rooms--but the few that I have been involved with, I've never forgotten.

But there is one open room that will forever stand out in my memory...

Rewind the clock back to the first semester of my junior year of high school. I'm minding my own business, just hanging out in my dorm room, when I get a call from the ever-lovely Gustavo, who invites me to come and hang out in his room. What he doesn't mention is that there are about half a dozen people there, one of whom I don't even know. Now, I can't remember what time of year this is, but I really want to say either October or November, because I don't remember there being snow on the ground, and we had snow the second we got back from break that year--but it was definitely cold, and it definitely wasn't September.

So I get there, and I see the usual suspects--Gustavo, Mishka, Erica, Ahmed, and I think Sam was there, but I don't remember--and there's another girl there, who I don't know, but seems to be incredibly nice. I don't think we even properly introduced ourselves, but I do remember that I didn't catch her name at first and was too shy to ask her to repeat it. I remember thinking that she looked like she'd be very nice to hug, but of course I didn't want to just walk up to her and hug her; that's generally gotten me in trouble in the past.

I spent most of that open room laughing at the antics of Mishka and Erica--and unless you've met Erica, you can't possibly understand why. Erica is quite possibly the funniest pianist that Interlochen has ever been lucky enough to educate. With her unwitting humor, adorable accent, and hysterical butchering of every rule of political correctness in the book, she was one of the most valuable assets to our rebellion--no one could help but love her.

That night, the topic was, if I recall correctly, Kurt Cobain and his glamour (or lack thereof, depending on who you asked). I remember that at some point, Gus turned on a disco ball. I remember Mishka lecturing Erica about the difference between celebrity-based romanticism and actual depression. And I remember, because I wrote it down, a quintessential Mishka quote:

"Did I just make 'smartassity' a word?"
(Yes, Mishka. Yes, you did, and we are forever grateful to you for doing so.)

I don't think I even really said much. I just sat back and watched the delightful entertainment that was the Mishka and Erica Show.

So afterwards, we're all walking back to our dorms to sign in. I'm talking to Ellie (I later learned that was her name) and discover that we're technically neighbors (she lived right across the street from me). And the rest, as they say, would be history. Imagine a little montage of us over the next two years--lots and lots of hugs, going jogging in the woods, arguing about yoga and whether or not she should go to MORP, more open rooms with our friends, talking about classmates (and former classmates) at Stone, having adventures in the Writing House, and chilling in MB. And if I hadn't gone to that open room, just think--I might not've met one of the sweetest, coolest people at Interlochen.

This is the magic of open rooms: You go into one because you're bored. You come out of it with memories, inside jokes, and--if you're incredibly lucky--friendships that last forever.



Update: It is finally snowing at McDaniel...now THAT'S more like it!

Because I miss my school...

It's been a whirlwind these last few weeks--I apologize for not having a post sooner, but between unpacking, visiting, grad parties, and getting sick I've been in waaay over my head. BUT. The posts are back! :)

So because I'm feeling nostalgic (and I miss everyone sooo much!) I'm going to create my own "Only at Interlochen" list. Trust me...you will ONLY understand this if you've been to Interlochen. (Prospectives, take note--THIS is what you will be dealing with come fall if you decide to attend!)

ONLY AT INTERLOCHEN:

A gaggle of teenage boys dressed in insane costumes and the weirdest wigs known to mankind walk down the street carrying a camera. They set up the camera and begin to film themselves chasing each other. And even though people witness this, both from their dorm windows and as they walk by on the street, no one questions it or even really notices what's going on...it's just an ordinary weekend.

Every single person in a major wears felt mustaches during an end-of-year cookout. And again...no one questions this.

An evening at the cafe can turn into a mini-dance party, regardless of whether or not there is anything else going on.

A girl can wear a skirt made out of an old sweatshirt to a school dance, and instead of being weirded out, her friends go, "OMG where did you get that? AAAH you made it? How??? I WANT ONE!"

The phrase "Macaroni stop!" is a perfectly acceptable substitute for "I don't know what to do!"

Girls can give guys piggyback rides, and it's considered perfectly normal.

Nobody in the room--except the chaperones--was born in the 1980s...but they go crazy and yell, "THIS IS MY JAM!" when "Jessie's Girl" starts playing during prom.

It's considered admirable for your entire hall to dress up in slutted-out versions of the school uniform, jack up the words to "California Gurls," and do a kick-line at the end-of-year talent show...which is really called CoffeeHouse.

No one--repeat, no one--gives a crap if you're gay, bi, trans, lesbian, asexual, or "free love." In fact, if you don't fall into one of those categories, you may actually be considered a bit strange.

You don't run away screaming when your screenwriting teacher starts doing the electric slide in front of your entire major. Instead, you join in.

Seeing your hall counselor salsa-dancing with one of your friends in front of the whole school does nothing except make you jealous--you just sit there thinking, "Wow, wish I could do that!"

During an afternoon block, you are doing absolutely nothing because you don't have class, but have to stay in the building and "work" anyway. To liven things up, three of your friends stage a drama in which two of them are married, but the husband is cheating with his roommate, whom his wife insists he kill with a stick. The pictures go up on Facebook, and no one comments on them not because they didn't see them, but because there's nothing to comment on--this is, after all, pretty much an everyday occurrence.

A gay guy and straight guy stage a dramatic mock-fight in order for one of them to ask a lesbian to prom. And she says yes.

It's totally normal for the phrase "baby-killing" to be used in casual conversation.

A group of kids make a pact that at midnight on Halloween, they will begin writing their NaNoWriMo novels, stay up all night, and meet at noon the next day to share their progress. They then walk into town to buy energy drinks, caffeinated drinks, chocolate, and other high-sugar products to assist them in the monthlong event...after all, what's an all-nighter without caffeine?

When you and your friends go to Mackinac Island, someone suggests you go to a butterfly pavilion, and the rest of you immediately say, "Yes!" without a single hint of sarcasm. Later that same day in Mackinac Island, you have nothing to do, so you follow three of your guy friends into a toy store and shoot each other with wooden guns and rubber-band ammo.

You can wear anything you like--poodle skirts, tutus, saddle shoes, bomber jackets, Tokio Hotel makeup, hipster glasses, skirts made out of your mom's old pants, jewelry out of a vending machine, handmade hats and scarves--and not only do people not tease you for it, they actually ask you where you got your stuff.

Nothing to do? Just wander around taking photos of the campus. It's guaranteed that there will be at least five other people doing the exact same thing. Photography party, anyone?

"Homeschooled" does not automatically equal "socially awkward" or "weird look from whoever you're talking to." Instead, it's, "Oh my God, you too?!?" or, "Wow, that's awesome!" In addition, homeschoolers do not have to fend off stupid questions such as, "So do you have any friends?" or "You do get lunch breaks, right?"

If one roommate is dormed on the other's birthday, the birthday girl will bring the dormed roommate food from Wendy's and have a mini-party with their suitemates so that the dormed roommate can join in the fun.

Snow-jumping, sledding, snowfights, and snow sculpture-building is not just encouraged, it's required.

People will do anything and everything to keep from getting bored--host picture-drawing parties in the Writing House, make short films that have literally no plot, make an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink dessert with the girls in their dorm, try to climb that giant tree on Main Camp, make a huge snow fort in the middle of campus, have a "starving artist party" complete with fake cigarettes and black coffee, sit under the table at dinner, throw chairs into the lake, watch gay guys make out with straight girls, read Twilight solely for the purpose of mocking it, start random blogs and abandon them two months later, play yard games in the Concourse, or risk suspension by spending the entire night in their guy friend's dorm room just so they can play Monopoly after sound-out.

Someone can start a word trend with surprising ease--just say the phrase "ass hat" or "f**k me gently with a chainsaw" once or twice, and next thing you know EVERYONE is saying it.

S'mores are not only your favorite food, but a key part of your diet. In fact, they've replaced one of the main food groups for you--after all, who needs protein when there's S'MORES around?

You'd think that with so many gay guys present it'd be easy to tell when two boys are dating...but no, it's impossible, thanks to the presence of so many bromances that Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg should really think about coming here to get material for their next screenplay.

Coming across a friend riding a tricycle while wearing footie pajamas and a top hat is not unusual in the least. Nor is seeing that same friend carry a boom box into the dorm commons after sign-in and blasting Justin Bieber--and dancing along.

Knock on the door? Who does that? It's much more fun to blare music outside your friends' doors until they answer!

Instead of the majority of the population being Christian trying to convert atheists, it's the other way around.

There is such a thing as a "Failbook Party," which occurs when three or four friends gather in front of one person's computer just to read Failbook, Meme Base, Monday Through Friday, and There I Fixed it.

Ever seen a trail of hair and rocks leading to a poster in the middle of Main Camp? Ever seen a preview for a strangely color-corrected short film with a foreign title? Ever seen a handful of weirdly-dressed boys wearing Mardi Gras beads and clown wigs taking pictures or videos in random places? Don't worry...it's just the MPAs.

One of two things happens concerning idols: 1) Everyone at Interlochen knows who you're talking about because it's an epic guest speaker who came to a community meeting, film festival, or master class, and your friends all understand when you reference that person's work...meanwhile, nobody outside Interlochen knows who the hell you're talking about. 2) Nobody knows who you're talking about at first...but after spending time with you, they know, and they tell their other friends, who tell their other friends, who tell pretty much the entire school, and the next thing you know, you've started a craze.

The phrase "slut" applies equally to both genders.

Everyone says that theater majors are the loudest and creative writers are the quietest...but if you're friends with any creative writers, you know that's not true.

Instead of buying cigarettes or going clubbing on their eighteenth birthdays, everyone has dance parties on Main Camp or dinner parties in the MB or TJ basements.

In terms of being sheltered at home, everyone falls into one of two categories: Either Interlochen is waaaay too strict for them, or they have twice as much freedom at Interlochen as they do at home.

Everyone wants to get into DeRoy because of the heated floors. Meanwhile, DeRoy kids complain that their rooms are too hot.

Open rooms are magical: You and your friends can gather in someone's room and do absolutely nothing, and still have the time of your life.

Friendships move at the speed of light. It's completely normal for you to meet someone, decide they are your long-lost twin, get married to them on Facebook, and then suddenly hate them, all within a one-week timeframe...

...On the other end of that, it's also completely normal to not meet someone until the year is almost over, and then wonder how on earth you got along without them.

STOLEN DIALOGUE: BEN BUSCH EDITION

(The following quotes came from a talk with Benjamin Busch, who came to my Writing About War class on May 3, 2011.)

(on serving in the Middle East)

"After awhile you realize that everybody is named Mohammed...so you've gotta keep your Mohammeds straight."

"To live your life 124 characters at a time is cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs."

"We're idiots--we're Americans!"

"You can't run around in a combat zone yelling at people. It'd be interesting, and great for YouTube, but it'd get you dead."

(on adolescence)

"You're transforming into the period of love...welcome! It's hell on earth!"

"You can't be satisfied by vengeance. The thing done to you can never be outdone by the thing you can do."

"People in the military sometimes are stupid."

(on writing nonfiction)

"We're all trying to articulate something that's pure to us."

"We've been pissed off by love for a long time, so we've got a lot of great words to describe what happens when it fails."

"My father wrote from a woman's perspective all the time, and if you've ever seen a picture of my father...not an attractive woman."

"Love sucks magically in just about ever setting you put it in."

"Never name an American film 'sympathetic details.'"

"Apocalypse Now is an anti-war film--it makes people love war!"

(to a girl who kept raising her hand)

"You'd be great on a game show, but I already hit you once."

"I live in central Michigan; I pretty much shot myself in the foot that way."

"So I was like, 'Ok, I'll make my own films...oh, crap, now I have to write them...'"

"It's like independent film: You do terrible things to yourself and complain about it."

"Charge across the desert with a sword, that was my plan. It's a terrible plan, but it'd make a great story."

We make the hipsters fall in love

HOLY CRAP...

...it has been TOO FREAKING LONG!

I have soooo much to tell you and not enough time...but I will try to say what I need to say before the internet shuts off.

First off, MORP. MORP MORP MORP MORP. It was FREAKING AMAZING.

In a nutshell: I have the best friends in the world. From the moment I got up that day, I was surrounded by amazing people. There was literally no point during May 1st that I looked at someone and thought, "Why do I have to deal with you, you're a jerk!" My date/MORP buddy/whatever you wanna call him was honestly the best person I could have chosen to spend my senior prom with (let's pretend that sentence was structured properly, shall we?). Isaac R., the soon-to-be Ivy League-attending, film-acting, play-writing, saxophone-playing, physics-whiz BADASS who has been one of the best friends I've ever had and gotten me through the year (a LOT...you seriously have no idea) was my MORP date and I will tell you, we had a blast. I'd never seen him dance before and dude, he's an EPIC dancer...in fact, I got to judge a dance-off between him and another good friend, Emily D...and he won, it was close thanks to her disco moves, but he did win...and then he kicked my ass at bowling, and then we kicked ass at pool and got our collective asses kicked at pool by Ariel F.--no joke, she beat us single-handed! WOW.

Ok, so you know by now (or at least you should) that my friends and I are weird, right? Well, what would you say if I told you we had our own code for playing pool? We did...and I can't translate our code words (it's our secret!) but I can give you a sampling of our insanity:

MACARONI STOP!

What even is that thing?!

But I'm from Michigan!

"But I don't know anything about International Relations!" "It's okay, my dear, nobody does!"

Greyhouse moment!

But I want to adopt it!/Can I adopt it?/Do I want to adopt it?/You want to adopt this one, yes you do!

It was, in a single word, amazing.

It gets even better...WE HAD A REAL DJ...we had a proper, hired DJ from Traverse City, instead of having an Interlochen kid do it...and he played ALL my jams..."Jesse's Girl," "Thriller," "D.A.N.C.E.," "Boom Boom Pow," "We R Who We R," and "Just Dance"...and it was awesome. It really was. This is why I like REAL DJs...because they play REAL music instead of just doing the same thing over and over.

Shout-outs to all who made MORP memorable:

*Isaac

*Krista T.

*Morgan

*Mishka

*Lydia M

*Julia H, MY WIFE :P

*Emily H-C

*Thomas

*Gustavo

*Emily D

*Aaron

*Danny R

*Jackie G

*Harry H the HIPSTER ;) jk, jk <3

And a huge, HUGE thank-you to Lisa M., our activities coordinator, for making MORP magical for all of us...YOU ROCK and I want to be just like you when I grow up! :)

But while we were all getting ready for MORP, a few things happened that I have to mention, because without them, my senior year would be incomplete.

I have not had an easy time in my department this year. That's no secret. I've had to fight hard to get even the tiniest roles--I've done continuity three times this year!--and by April I was honestly really sick of this. So sick of it, in fact, that I started behaving very immaturely and blaming pretty much everyone but myself for my problems. I whined. I cried--a LOT. I complained to anyone who would listen about how unfair my life was and how I would've been better off in Comparative Arts or Creative Writing.

And then a truly amazing person in my department came to me, looked me right in the eye, and said, "Grow up."

But he didn't say it in a mean way! Not at all. Quite the opposite, in fact: He spent the night before HIS junior thesis pep-talking ME. ?!? How's THAT for an incredible friend? I swear to you, until that night I did not know that there was anyone other than my parents who would be willing to get up with me at four in the morning just because I was upset. I think that was half the wake-up call--knowing that even though he had every reason not to, he was still willing to come and talk to me in the middle of the night.

And you know what? I screwed up. I admit it. I screwed up a lot this year--I don't know anyone who DIDN'T have their screwup moments this year, but it felt like I had about a billion of those--and yet he was still willing to give me another chance.

All year, I've been dying to do lighting. It got to the point where I went to an MPA who I didn't like, who I knew didn't like me, and begged them to let me grip for their thesis simply so I could touch lights--didn't matter if I designed them or not, just so long as I could do somethingwith them--and I was whining excessively about how I would do anything to light just ONE person's thesis. (As you might have guessed, that did not work out too well.)

And when my friend got up with me in the middle of the night, he told me that he'd give me one last chance. He assigned me the position of lighting grip--which is a hell of a lot closer to what I wanted to do than continuity or vanities, a.k.a. what I'd been doing pretty much the whole year--and that meant that I got to set up, tear down, and operate lights...

...and, of course, go up in the grid.

Holy crap. The Grid. It should be the title of a horror movie. I'm not kidding. I have a new respect for theater techies--if you have the guts to go up in the freaking ceiling, on a mesh floor, using a ladder so sketchy it's enough to make a skydiver afraid of heights...well, in my opinion you deserve a curtain call, at the very least.

To say that I was afraid to go up on this thing is an understatement of breathtaking proportions. On a scale from one to ten, my panic level was at "OhmyGodholyhellIcan'tdothisohmyGodgetmedownNOW!" before I'd taken two steps. As I bluntly told my film teacher after the fact, it's not that I don't like heights, it's that I don't like near-death experiences, which is what I was sure I was about to have (or having, depending on how you look at it--hmm, going up to the ceiling untethered? sounds pretty deadly to me). So when I actually got to the top and got into the grid...wow. Exhilarated doesn't even cover it. I was on top of the world (figuratively and literally).

So as long as I was up there, I was fine. It was when it was time to come down that I had a problem. I went right back up to "OhmyGodholyhellIcan'tdothisohmyGodgetmedownNOW!" and pretty much stayed there until I was on solid ground. But it was worth it. I will tell you this much, right now: It is absofreakinglutely worth being scared for a few minutes to go up in the grid.

But you know what? I don't think anything was as amazing as hearing the director--my friend--tell me, "You are doing an amazing job." That alone was worth the scary ladder and the scary grid. I hadn't actually gripped for someone in a long time, so it was a double shot of amazing: Doing something I loved and getting recognition for doing it.

And you want to know something else? THAT is why I came to this school, right there, in a nutshell. That's why I came here. I wanted to do what I loved and get credit for doing it. Isn't that why we all came here? (Sorry, I'm about to go on a rant here. I hope my soapbox doesn't crush anyone.) Because I've heard an awful lot of people complaining about Interlochen lately...

~cue new section of blog post~

Guys, come on. I will be the first to admit that there are things I don't like about this school. (Tip lines? REALLY? Holy crap...) But you know what, I think we need to stop, take a look, and put this in perspective.

First of all, did anyone come to Interlochen expecting that it was going to be perfect? I hope your answer to that is no, and if it's not, well, I'm sorry, but I think most of us knew going in that this was going to be tough. And believe me, I'm not going to pretend that I've loved every second of the past two years--I haven't. There have been parts that I've absolutely hated. There have been moments that I wish I could erase.

For anyone wondering, no, I haven't always gotten along with my suitemates or roommates. I didn't always take advantage of opportunities that Interlochen offered me. I didn't go to every dance or eat every meal at Stone or trust the laundry service with my favorite clothes. But those were petty things, little things that I could just kind of ignore. When I say there are moments I wish I could erase, I'm talking about bigger mistakes. I'm talking about the kind of moments when you just wish the floor would open up and swallow you.

Put yourself in the following situation and see what I mean:

You are sitting in a film workshop, presenting your first-ever thesis script. It gets torn apart time after time, until you finally give in and change the whole bloody thing. At the last minute you write a screenplay that you think will satisfy everyone, including yourself. You submit it to your thesis advisor and he turns it down flat, telling you that it is "worse than the first draft," despite a trusted friend's insistence that it is much better than your current shooting script. Your friend advises you to send it in to your department head. Afraid of what your thesis advisor will do--namely cancel your shoot--if you go behind his back or over his head, you chicken out and don't send the latest draft of the screenplay. Instead, you shoot the script that he likes and hate yourself for it later.

I don't care what anyone says or thinks. I will never, ever forgive myself for screwing up my junior thesis. The fact that now I have a better film doesn't matter. The fact that I will probably be able to re-shoot Alien Water Torture someday doesn't matter. The way I see it, I essentially wasted my junior year. My GPA dropped, my thesis film was a mess, and I lost most of my friends and had to start over senior year, replacing graduates and returners alike with newcomers.

In other words: Not exactly the magical Hogwarts of the Arts that I was hoping for.

And things didn't exactly perk up the way I'd hoped senior year. I was told that seniors had priority for theses and crew roles. Not true. Now, I was told that my attitude through the year had a big role in this, and you know what, that's probably true. I admit that right now: There are definitely things I could have done differently, better ways I could have handled myself, and I would make a fair few changes in myself if I could go back to the beginning of the year and do this over.

But you know what? That wasn't the only contributing factor. As I mentioned above, when I actually got on sets I kicked ass. I stayed positive when on-set, didn't whine or act petty to the people who had crew roles that I wanted while I was stuck doing continuity. It was getting on-set that was the problem--by the time I finally got onto a crew, there had been five shoots. And it's not like no one knew what I was trying to do. I told everyone in the department, newbies and returners alike, that I was willing to work. I made it known that I was available. And I still got absolutely nowhere.

For anyone who doesn't know, there's a rule in the MPA department that we are only allowed to do the same job twice per season. So, if I were to be the cinematographer for two people, I couldn't say yes when a third person asked me to be their cinematographer; they would have to find someone else. Last year I noticed that there were certain crew roles, like vanities and grip, that could get away with breaking this rule and no one really noticed. I figured that was okay. I didn't realize yet that people weren't just doing minor roles more than twice.

I know people who have done lighting four times and camera three times. I know one person who did audio four times this season--why? Is it really that much of an inconvenience to have someone who's not the best in the department do your film? Last year I had a great DP who dropped out at the last minute and replaced him with someone who had never DPed a film before. And my gaffer? Yeah, she'd never lit a film before, either. And say what you like aboutPossession, I'll be the first to admit that it sucks, but no one can say the cinematography and lighting weren't anything less than 100% solid. This year the same guy was supposed to be my DP, but he overbooked and couldn't do it. I replaced him again, this time with a first-year who I'd never worked with before, whose reel I'd never seen, and hey, guess what? My cinematography was flipping amazing!

So yes, I know there are people in my department who are already at a professional grade, and I respect them and love them and view some of them as close friends. I'm not saying that it doesn't take serious dedication and some major raw talent to do what they do. I'm not saying that I don't admire them for it, because I do. (Read the end of this post if you think I'm just saying this so I don't sound like a jealous bitch.) I look up to them like crazy and I hope that I can be as good in five years as they are right now.

All that being said, Interlochen is a school, not a major studio. I don't care how much talent one person has compared to another, it's not fair for a teacher to showcase the more-talented student and let them do all of the jobs that everyone is supposed to learn how to do. During one conversation with another student about how I wasn't getting enough crew roles and how I might change that, my friend said to me, "Well, you know, they're three-years. Of course people know that they can do things."

EXACTLY. They are THREE-YEAR SENIORS. Of COURSE they know what they're doing, they've had a chance to do it all before most of us got here! Which is why it's the TEACHER'S job to step in and say, "Hey, this kid has been the DP for about six thesis films since he's been here, and I have this other kid over here who's really good at cinematography but hasn't gotten to do one yet and it's their senior year--hmm, maybe I should let this other kid take a shot?" (Terrible pun not intended.)

Yes, in the end I did get my chance. But by then it was too late in the year to really do anything except say "Ha, ha, you didn't know I could do that, did you?" to the people who wouldn't let me on their sets before. And yes, Mom and Dad, I DID learn a lesson about myself and about what I can do differently when I go to college. But that's not the point. Point #1: It should not be my job to teach myself how to make films. That's what Interlochen is here for. It's not fair that the self-taught, raw-talented students are showcased, while others are shunted to the side.

But the bigger point, and the reason I started this rant in the first place, is this: If you have complaints about Interlochen--and we all do--do not waste them on things that you knew going in would be problems, such as the food or laundry or sign-in or overloads of homework. Use them for things that matter. I would have to say that being overlooked in your major is a pretty freaking big problem.

So, prospective students, listen to me now: DO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN TO YOU. Do not make the mistakes that I did. If your thesis advisor is holding you back, go to your department head and MAKE HIM LISTEN TO YOU. If people are throwing you off their sets or not letting you on in the first place, ask yourself why. If the problem is you--and be honest, because sometimes it is--change IMMEDIATELY. Don't wait until the end of your senior year to show everyone why you deserve to be on set. And if the problem is with your department, go to your department head--and if he doesn't listen (which mine unfortunately didn't), GO OVER HIS HEAD. Go to Nicole or JWes. Go to Mr. Farraday or Mr. Wade--THIS IS WHAT THEY ARE HERE TO DO. Get your parents involved--yes, I know it might be embarrassing, but let them get involved anyway. DO NOT LET YOURSELF GET PUSHED TO THE SIDE. Fight back. It's hard, and I learned this lesson in the worst way possible--so learn from my mistakes. FIGHT BACK LIKE YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT.

On that note, I have to mention a very special teacher who made this year infinitely better than my junior year.

I know that everyone loves our artist-in-rez from last year. Fine, whatever. Maybe I was the only one he picked on. Maybe others faced the same treatment but don't want to say anything. Either way, he and I did not work well together, with the inevitable result that I learned very little from him. When I heard that we would have another artist-in-rez teaching editing this year, I was wary. What if he turned out to be like last year's artist-in-rez--nice at first, but after awhile things went sour?

Turns out, I didn't need to worry. It was (platonic, thankyouverymuch) love at first sight. This man taught me more in one session of thesis editing than Anthony taught me in an entire semester. This is Danny Daneau, an editing teacher, a filmmaker, and a mentor, who showed me that editing is in fact an art form, who showed me that post-production does not have to be painful, and that there is life after film school.

For the first few weeks I was still cautious, watching for any signs that my new teacher had a dark side. Any signs of power-tripping--any slip-up--any insistence that we were the ones who got the date wrong and not him--any unfair test questions--I jumped. But no one is perfect, and over time even the imperfections grew on me. Classes with this teacher are not sit-around sessions. We do things. We cut films. We critique each other's films. We use professional-grade materials and footage from professional-grade films. We are not just film students in this class--we are editors, and he treats us as such, instead of condescending and making us feel like grade-schoolers.

So far we've screened three of his films--his short Good Night Charlie, his college thesis The Attic Door (WHICH IS MOTHERFLUFFING BRILLIANT, BY THE WAY), and the film he edited, Fly Away. I absolutely love watching his work, just like I loved watching Anthony Penta's work--but the difference here is that I respect Danny Daneau not only as an artist, but as a person. Having Q&As after a screening is more like chatting with a friend than interviewing a teacher.

In an editing session with Danny, you do not feel intimidated or nervous. You do not worry about pleasing him or disappointing him. You just look at him and say, "Tell me what I need to do to make this better," and he tells you, and you do it. He does not hurt you by telling you that you're "too stubborn," that it doesn't matter what he tells you because "you won't listen to me anyway," or that "you just don't know how film works." He is honest--but he is honest about the good as well as the bad. It's impossible not to trust him, which makes it pretty damn hard to not learn from him.

I'm going to write him a more formal thank-you at the end of the year. (Writing train letters to teachers = SO FREAKING INTERLOCHEN it's not even funny.) But for now, I just want to let everyone know--I love, love, love having classes with Danny Daneau, and I feel so fortunate to be here, at this school, where I have access to people like him. Thank you Danny, and thank you Interlochen!

Now that the cheesiness is over...remember that Artist as Badass post I promised? Well...

Have you ever gone to an underground concert and fallen in love with one of the opening bands? Ever seen an indie short made by someone your age and thought, wow, I wonder if I could do that? Ever read a short story by a sixteen-year-old that was ten times better than certain published novels I could mention (but won't, for the sake of not beating that poor old dead horse)? Ever watched a friend do sketches and wondered why in the hell no one had snatched her up to design logos for some hi-tech company yet?

I have done all of the above...and that is why I've decided that from here on out, I'm going to take the time in each of my blog posts to highlight one of my awesomesauce (or awesome possum, as my screenwriting teacher says) fellow indie artists. I go to school with some of the most amazing young artists in the world, not to mention some of the most interesting human beings in the world...it's high time I stopped just giving "shout-outs" on this blog and actually started telling the world why I love them so much.

In this post I'm showcasing the amazing filmmaker Aaron Tyson. Let me tell you, if there were an MPA award for all-around proficiency, this kid would win it, hands-down. Some people are born to be wild, some people are born to be artists, some people are born to be unprofessional...well, Aaron Tyson was born to be a kickass indie filmmaker. I have seen more short films and trailers on his YouTube channels (yes, you read that right, CHANNELS, as in, plural) than I could make in ten years, and he seems to crank them out by the day.

What I love most about Aaron is that he doesn't give a damn if anyone else thinks it's "good" or not, and as a result most of his films turn out so well that you don't care either. It's only afterwards that you realize, "Wait a minute, there was no plot," or, "Wait a minute, that was Jeff?!" All Aaron needs is a camera and a few friends, and BOOM, out comes a short film. It also doesn't hurt that he's an amazing editor--he can take a random clip of a party in his dorm room and turn it into an angst-filled mock-trailer for a movie that you're dying to see...only you can't, because it doesn't actually exist.

However, the talent for making real trailers is as great as making mock-trailers...as these so nicely point out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz_w7JsC2eE&feature=channel_video_title

http://www.youtube.com/user/Sachte2#p/u/34/OVbBtny0e1w

The first trailer is for Nippeldiebstahl, the film that turned into a miniseries, and trust me, it doesn't make any more sense after you see the full movie. But here's the thing...IT DOESN'T MATTER! Remember what I said about why I love Aaron's films? Here's the practical example. When I saw that film, I wasn't thinking, "Uh, where's the plot?" I was thinking 1) "What's going to happen?" and 2) "Why the hell is Keaton wearing that wig?" (Well, okay, maybe I only thought that once, but still.)

The second is for Sachte, his junior thesis film, which I was fortunate enough to crew for (remember the fifteen friends and a crowbar post?) and I honestly can't make head or tail of this film...but I still love it. I don't care how many times you watch this thing, you will never be able to interpret it the way it was intended (and I would know, I'm friends with the writer AND the director), but it doesn't freaking matter! Part of the beauty of Sachte is coming up with your own interpretations. Or, if you're like me, you just chill out and think, Who cares? and enjoy the movie for what it is: A stunning display of editing, music, casting, visual effects, and choreography.

When you watch an Aaron Tyson film, you enjoy it. Period. And then maybe afterward, you realize that the only reason you did was for the graphics or the casting or the music...or maybe it was because the enjoyment from making the film seems to pour out of the screen and into the audience. When someone truly loves their craft, you can sense it, and it's almost impossible to not go along for the ride.

In place of stolen dialogue (yes, I KNOW you missed it, I missed it too, but this is more important), I'm going to close out this post with an interview with Aaron Tyson, the first-ever recipient of the Beatnik Belle Artist as Badass Award (yes, more WILL win this useless but fun award, and they WILL be featured on this blog and the "sequel blog" when I go off to McDaniel).

AWT: How long have you been making movies?

Aaron Tyson: I started when I was about seven years of age. My first camera was a large VCR camcorder nearly twice my size. Filmmaking was a hobby back then, something for my friends and I to do on weekends, so elements of story were rushed and mostly absent, similar to Nippeldiebstahl

What filmmakers inspire you? Why?

Alfred Hitchcock, for his ability to create suspense, and tell compelling stories with simple yet effective techniques. Robert Elswitt, for being the best DP ever. His ability to tell a story in one sweeping shot has always fascinated me. Walter Murch for his focus on sound design and his ability to make every cut count.

Your films are known for having a chaotic, edgy look with a heavy dark (Sachte) or comedic (The Jeff Who Wasn't There) tone. Where do your ideas come from?

This came from limited resources. When I started making films, I had no lights or trained camera operators. The limited lighting, and use of haze/fog to provide arial diffusion was necessary.

Nippeldiebstahl, your latest film/miniseries, has a few fresh faces (most notably Keaton Manning), and was made simply because you and your crew were "bored." Can you elaborate a bit on the story behind Nippeldiebstahl? How did you come up with the concept? What made you decide to release it as a series, instead of a stand-alone?

Alex Szemetylo (Corey) needed to shoot a music video for a Math extra credit assignment. Austin Holm (The Bear) was bored and wanted to shoot a country music video starring Keaton Manning (Edmund) and Harry Hunter (Crizzald). Neither of them can sing or play any instruments well. I posed the idea of a scary short. horror films are fun, and due to my experience, easy to make with limited time. They all agreed this idea was suitable, yet had no idea of story. So we made it up as we went long. Eventually Jeff Kasanoff (Jack) became the show runner and has written the next six episodes premiering soon.

Sachte has officially become an Interlochen Legend. What's the story behind that film? How did you come up with your marketing campaign? There have been rumors of a sequel - is this going to happen? If so, when?

I would love to make a Sachte II. The t-shirts already have been made to market the potential part two. If this ever happens, it will be a remake more so than a continuation. The film was originally the story of Boy and Girl, two lovable teens, who mistakenly stumble upon a trail in the forest. the trail leads them to a house. The house's foyer is filled with candy and other sweet foods. This lures them into the next room of the house, inhabited by dolls and toys, which come to life and dance with the two protagonists. the dancers are warm loving children, who a revealed to be ragged, ghostly minions to the witch who runs the house.

The marketing campaign came very naturally to me. I figured YouTube and Facebook were perfect place to promote the film at a high school: targeting the artsy teen demographic.

Do you have any advice for prospective MPAs?

Don't be discouraged by the difficulties you will experience here at the academy. Make sure your priorities are in order, though a 10 hour school day feels long there is a lot of time to produce projects independently and perfect your in class thesis work.

Is there anything you would like the readers of AWT to know that I haven't asked you? Any shout-outs to friends or colleagues?

Vote Szemetylo+Overton!!!

Sorry about the lateness of this post! Won't happen again, I swear! ;)

Five things I never thought I'd miss about Interlochen...

...And ten things I knew I would.

THE FIVE:

1. Community Service
Laugh if you want, but it's true. I'm an ex-theatre geek, so it was incredible to go back into the auditorium and work as a stagehand, even if my co-stagehands did think I had more than a few screws loose. And food service was...well, what the heck, you already think I'm nuts...fun. At times, anyway. It was like actually having a real job...only I got paid in good grades. ;)

2. Stone Cafeteria
Yes, the food sucked. Yes, it was noisy. Yes, it was a pain in the butt most days. But I have damn good memories in that cafeteria, and I'm not going to lie, I really miss that place. (However, I do NOT miss the food. I'd just like to make that perfectly clear. Mom, forget coming to Interlochen as a nurse--we need you for HEAD CHEF.)

3. My dorm room
Was it small? Was it crowded? Did my suitemates and I have trouble coexisting at times? Did my hall counselor give me a hard time? Yes, yes, yes, and yes. BUT. It made me feel...go on and roll your eyes...grown-up, like I was at college or something. There's something very freeing about being in a dorm, even if it's at a strict arts boarding school in the middle of freaking nowhere.

In addition to the room itself, there were the noises. What kind of insane person mows the lawn at six A.M.? The caretakers of IAA! What kind of insane person watches a horror movie at one in the morning? The occupants of DeRoy House! What kind of insane person takes a shower at midnight? My suitemates!Yeah! Now, you'd think this would be annoying...and, trust me, it is. But I'll tell you, knowing inside and out every little noise and exactly what's causing it is very helpful if you are like me and can't sleep if you "hear noises."

4. The weather
In the words of my good friend Andrew Way, northern Michigan is uninhabitable during February. Understandable, thanks to the piles of lake snow, the frozen roads which render off-campus trips damn near impossible, and of course walking to class in zero-degree weather. BUT. In December, the snow is actually quite nice. And in fall and spring there IS no snow--just RAIN, which I LOVE. So, I will admit that I said "Thank God!" when snow season was over--but I actually miss the unpredictable Interlochen weather.

5. The dances

There were only three dances at Interlochen that I actually enjoyed: The Halloween dance, the Hipster dance, and of course MORP. The rest of the time, I felt out-of-place and completely awkward. And don't get me started on the epic DJ fail--when I tried to DJ the GSA dance and ended up surrendering my position to the usual IAA DJ and running out of the building in tears. That's one experience I hope to never repeat. But you know what? The few times I had a good time at an IAA dance, I had a BLAST. And I plan to do it again next year...and hopefully, someone will let me DJ again so I can prove that I DO know how to DJ as long as I'm well-prepared.


So there we go. That's five things I didn't think I'd miss about Interlochen. And now...

THE TEN...THINGS I KNEW I'D MISS ABOUT INTERLOCHEN

1. My friends
This one should be self-explanatory. I never shut up about my friends, as anyone who reads this blog or, heck, anyone who has ever spent five minutes with me, will know by now. I love my friends and I miss them. End of story.

2. The concerts/plays/musicals/screenings
It was a WYSO concert at the summer camp that convinced me to go to IAA. This past year, few concerts took place that I did not at least attempt to see. Between the performances of the theatre department and the IAA orchestra, it's a wonder I ever got any homework done.

3. The incredibly strange Saturday Night activities
Here's a few things you will never, ever see normal high schoolers do on Saturday night:
--Make up a new dance to "Thriller" out of sheer boredom
--Run around singing and screaming in an outdoor concert hall (and get in trouble for that)
--Create a mountain-like dessert out of things bought in the local grocery store...and then feed it to the boys downstairs because it's ickily sweet
--Make props for a film using things found in your garbage can and bottom desk drawer
--Analyze the hell out of Jim Henson's Labyrinth, for no reason other than "because we feel like it"
--Sneak into each other's rooms to critique thesis scripts
--Translate UnderOath songs into Spanish
--Go to talent shows WITHOUT being forced to do so by your parents
--Perform in a talent show, but NOT because it'll look good on your college application if you win something
--Willingly go and see a Shakespeare play...without being assigned to do so by a teacher
--Do homework--and enjoy it
...Yes, these are all things that I have actually done.

4. The Coffeehouses
All three times that I sucked up the guts to perform in a Coffeehouse, I made a total fool of myself. The first time, I impulsively decided to read a poem I'd written for the boy I liked, and ended up embarrassing myself so bad that--you guessed it--I started crying the minute I got outside. Then there was the Christmas poem incident, when everyone mistakenly thought I was addressing a lesbian lover (long story, but they were wrong). And finally, the end-of-year Senior Coffeehouse, where everything that could go wrong did. First I missed my rehearsal with my accompanist. Then, the very first act to go on performed the song I was hoping to play. And then because we had to choose a new song, we were totally out of synch and I didn't even finish before getting the HELL out of there.

So why do I miss the Coffeehouses, if I screwed up so much? Easy: Coffeehouse is fun to watch, and it's got this incredible stripped-down vibe that you can't even get in the Agora Ballroom. I heard Jesse McCartney's "Beautiful Soul" performed in a way that made it sound like a good song. I heard a song that a senior actress wrote about pornography...and believe it or not, it was actually quite tasteful. I saw cross-dressing, stripping, and sexy-dancing that was too funny to actually be sensual. Improv jam sessions. Acoustic covers. Singer-songwriters. Original skits. It's something that no Interlochen student wants to miss (literally...Fine Arts is PACKED on most Coffeehouse nights).

5. Motion Picture Arts
It's the reason I'm there. 'Nuff said.

6. Blaming any and all eccentricities on the fact that I'm an art student/filmmaker
You really do have to be an Interlochen alum to get this one. But trust me--we use this excuse a LOT. Why do I stay up til four A.M. on weekends? Because I'm an art student. Why do I draw on my Converse and on my white tank tops? Because I'm an art student. Why do I have a picture of the Joker taped up beside my bed? Because I'm an art student.

There are the major-specific ones, too. Why do I carry a film journal with me everywhere? Because I'm an MPA. Why do I wear that Stingray Sam t-shirt? Because I'm an MPA. Why do I find the concept of loading heavy equipment into a massive truck named after an animal exciting? Because I'm an MPA.

And there's one more...the one that I'm sure we've all said to our parents or our friends at home: "You wouldn't understand...you don't go to Interlochen." Wow. How stuck-up are we about our school to say THAT? I can't even rant against this one--I've used it.

7. Lisa Melnyk's THIS WEEKEND!
This is one of those things I took for granted...until I realized that, what do you know, at home there IS no "This weekend!" because, uh, there's nothing to DO on the weekends. Oxford is Boringtown, USA--yet another reason why I NEED to go back to Interlochen NOW.

8. The Writing House
The Writing Hosue is pretty much my second-favorite place at Interlochen, my #1 favorite being the waterfront (which we'll cover later). In winter, there is nothing like going to the Writing House with a few friends and just chilling out in the huuuge Great Room, which is not only the size of a cathedral but contains a huge fireplace AND a piano--what else do you need? It's cozy and it's PERFECT for hanging out with your friends on a freezing-cold night. ALSO. The Writing House just happens to be where GSA meetings take place...and that just so happens to be where I met The Seal. (See my FaceBook page for more information. (;)

9. The Waterfront
This is more of a spring/summer type thing, the Waterfront. Literally. Because in winter, you can't GET to the Waterfront, thanks to this little thing called SNOW. But when it's semi-warm outside, you can wak to the waterfront and if you're lucky it'll RAIN. And rain is GOOD, especially when you can watch it hitting the lake and...okay, I can tell I'm getting a lot of "are-you-insane" looks. Moving on.

10. The senior MPAs
I will be honest here: The senior/returning MPAs intimidated the hell out of me. At the beginning of the year, my thoughts were along the lines of either "Oh my God, I'm not good enough to be here, how can I possibly EVER measure up to THEM?" or "Thank God for next year when I'LL be a senior returner and won't have to worry about impressing these guys."

Well, guess what? Somewhere in the year it went from "They're better than me" to just plain "They're good, but if I work hard I can be that good too...can you teach me to do that?" I won't pretend that I became best friends with the seniors/returners. But I like to think that I did make friends with some of them, and I am VERY glad to know that there will be a couple of postgrads next year. At the very least, I learned a lot from the seniors in my major. I am proud to have gone to school with such talented people, and I am grateful for the time I spent with them.

...And now I'm getting ridiculously sappy so it's really time to move on.


STOLEN DIALOGUE

"So basically, we can either hang out with the bible-thumpers in Cincinnati, or we can go to Muskegon and hang out with the bible-thumpers there. So I think the general theme here is, if we go to see the Almost, we will have to contend with bible-thumpers."

"I have nothing against the Jonas Brothers...except for the fact that they're idiots."

"He thinks people are after him on the road because he's driving a Toyota. I think that it's just that people don't know how to drive."

Person one [American]: You'd better not mess with me, my daddy teaches at this school.
Person two [International student]: Who's your daddy? (surprised when person one starts laughing) What? What'd I say?
Person one: In America, that phrase has three different meanings, two of which I'm absolutely certain you didn't mean.

"I find it more than a little strange that the only page in the "interests" section of my mom's FaceBook is the page for my musically inclined ex-boyfriend."

"In the words of Dave Barry, Dad, you needed to promptly and professionally get the hell out of there."

"Everybody in this gas station is probably wondering, 'What the hell is she doing?'"

Person one: Right now, I’m going to act weird, so just go along with it.
Person two: Will it kill me?
Person one: I hope not.

Person one: You're crazy.
Person two: That's code for, "You're right, but I really don't want to believe you."

Hello, Welcome to the Loony Bin, May I Take Your Order?

ALMOST ONE MONTH WITHOUT AN UPDATE?!?!?!?! ONLY TWO UPDATES IN MARCH?!?!?!?! OH MY GOODNESS, TALK ABOUT EPIC FAIL!!!!!!!!


As of this post, I hereby swear that I will never, EVER EVER EVER go so long without posting again. I promise anyone who reads this blog that there will NEVER be a lack of updateage after this, yes, even though it is thesis film season and I am up to my neck in filmmaking, I will NOT be such an idiot about updating my blog. I promise!



And now, to the actual update. Spring Break kicked major ass...I'm not even going to go into full detail of how much fun it was. I'm just going to point out the highlights:

1. Watching all three Back To the Future movies in one weekend with my dad...that was just epic on so many levels...and then we watched all bonus features, so we had BTTF overload :D

2. Seeing all kinds of epic indie movies! Henry Poole Was Here, Interstate 60, and Saint Ralph were my favorites - if you haven't seen them, you should, they were both EPIC :D

3. Making a Pete Townsend-styled guitar cake for my dad's birthday :)

4. Making a prom dress with Mom...that was just made of epic win...and shopping for fabric was the fun part :)

5. Getting the 25th anniversary-edition of Thriller, as well as the This is It DVD, and staying up until 4 AM--only once, I swear!--geeking out over Michael Jackson and, once again, wondering why I only figured out that he was a genius AFTER he died. Also realizing all over again that, despite my general aversion to synthesizers, I absolutely LOVE his music. (But don't worry, Ronnie Winter, you're still my favorite.)

6. FINALLY finishing my feature-length for class - and then the downside, realizing it was crap and having to rewrite half of it. Oops. Good thing I like revision...

7. LEARNING TO DRIVE ON THE HIGHWAY!!!!! Seriously, this was a defining moment for me. I realized that I am in fact one of THE slowest drivers in America and, for my own safety and the safety of others, I should never, EVER drive in the left lane.

8. Reading (but not BUYING) the New Moon movie book while in Jo-Ann fabrics. Yes, I am just that big a nerd--I actually liked reading the how-we-did-it movie book better than actually SEEING the movie.

9. Finding out that I do in fact sleepwalk, or at the very least wander around the house half-asleep. I only discovered this after having a dream that I went down in the basement, discovered several celebrities inside said basement, and came back upstairs to get my parents, and then when I woke up I actually was standing in the middle of the master bedroom. The next day I reported this to my parents, and my dad said something along the lines of, "If I was having a dream that Bill Kaulitz [lead singer of Tokio Hotel, who Dad thinks is a total freak] was in my basement, I'd sleepwalk too."

10. Talking to my ICA Camp friends over FaceBook. Yes, I know I do that all the time ANYWAY, but it's much better without the threat of failing a homework check hanging over my head.

So yes, that was my Spring Break. Not the most exciting thing ever, but it was a nice break from the business of Interlochen. With the added bonus that now, if by some chance I ever go on a sponsor group trip and we drive on the highway (this is what you call "suspension of disbelief" and for some reason said sponsor cannot drive, I can take over, provided I stay in the right lane.

Okay...moving on.

So it's only been a few days since I got back to IAA, but whoa, what a week! So far we've had sunshine, rain, wind, cold, heat, and now--if I'm not mistaken--snow. At least, I assume it's snow outside my window and that there is not a flock of dandruff-infected birds sitting on the roof directly above me. As soon as the suitemates get up and I can enter and exit without waking up half the people on my floor, I will go out and investigate. For now, I think I'll just report on what's been going down for the past few days.

Who here knows this feeling: You're on the phone with a pal from back home. You're all snuggled up in your (admittedly not too comfortable) dorm bed with you cell phone and a package of Oreos. You're not arguing with your roommate/suitemates, they aren't arguing wiht each other, and everyone is, for once, getting along perfectly. The internet isn't down despite the fact that it's a near-thunderstorm outside. The room is warm but, since you have the window open, it's not a human-size oven. Everything is totally fine.

And then...

Your homeland best buddy informs you of ridiculous but still horrifying (to a teenager, anyway) drama which you can't help him with because you're out in Middle of Nowhere USA while they are stuck in your hometown.

Can you say, "oh, crap?" Because I sure can... Let me tell you something, few things are worse than hearing "Oh, by the way, my girlfriend is cheating on me with my best friend, I'm failing Chemistry, I crashed my parents car, got into a fight with Joe, and almost got arrested for underage smoking all in one weekend, but don't worry, I'm totally fine" over the phone from someone who you would have to sprout wings or obtain a jetpack in order to help. This is when you yell over the phone, "ARE YOU NUTS?!" and end up getting into a screaming argument about how Kristen Stewart could SO kick Ben Stiller's ass. (Don't ask.)

So, what's the solution? I have no f#$%ing clue. All I know is that I am finally beginning to understand why my parents worry so much whenever I vent about school disasters to them. Worrying about stuff you have virtually no control over totally sucks. So, my advice is...don't.

No, you didn't misread that, and no, that was not a typo. My theory is, all you can really do is give you friend (or, mom and dad, your KID) advice on how to handle the istuation and then CALM THE FRENCH DOWN, as my friend from fiction class would tell you. It's totally fine to be concerned. That being said, I've finally figured out after six months of school that stuff is going to happen whether you're there to help or not. Might as well not give yourself gray hairs over it.

And to the person who nearly gave me said gray hairs (you know who you are!), if I were you I would tell this so-called friend to go to hell, and then pour Jell-O down his shirt for good measure. But that's just me. Oh, and Kristen Stewart WOULD win that fight. I only say this because I would love to see someone--ANYONE--beat Ben Stiller.

Speaking of freaking out over things we can't control, was anyone else totally shocked when Aaron Gillespie quit UnderOath? Or was that just me? It was? Okay, moving on.

I also recently found out that Red Jumpsuit Apparatus has a new EP/album coming out sometime in May. It should not surprise anyone to know that I actually jumped off my bed and screamed, "YES!" when I heard this. (See, Ronnie? I TOLD you you're still my favorite.)

Okay. So, on to the freak show that has been Interlochen Weather since the third week of March. In said third week--the week leading up to break--it was warm. And sunny. And did I mention WARM?! I'm talking about sundress-wearing, shorts-wearing, frisbee-playing, sunbathing warm. And then as a welcome-back present, we were all treated to three days of cold and rain. ow, being a rain-lover, I was actually pretty happy about this. In fact, yesterday I went down to the waterfront (don't worry, any IAA officials who might see this, I didn't go INTO the lake, I'm not that crazy) and watched the rain hit the water for the better part of an hour and a half. Rolled around in the grass wearing jeans, a tank top, and a very thin sweatshirt and got SOAKED. This was, to me, total freaking heaven.

And it only got better when I got back to my dorm and had what I like to call a "Rocky Horror moment," as in, a similar situation to something that happened in The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The counselor at the desk looked at me like I might possibly need my head examined (and she might be right about that, but still) and remarked, very observantly, "You're...very wet." To which I happily replied, "Yes...it's raining," and had to try very, very hard to not laugh. I then went back upstairs to my dorm and had a good night of calling parents and working on fiction class homework (trust me, this IS fun) and then went to sleep listening to the rain.

After the magical night of rain it was a bit of a letdown to wake up and see snow flurrying outside my window. To be fair, it has STOPPED snowing by now (it is, as of this very moment, April 8 2010, 3:13 in the afternoon, just for the record), but as a friend said earlier, "Welcome to the seizure that is Interlochen weather," so we are probably in for a LOT more weirdness.

So, I've talked about music, I've talked about spring break, I've talked about weather. Hmm...what else is there to talk about? Oh, I know. OREOS! Which I mentioned earlier, but I just have to rant about this because it's ridiculous, and we all know how much Beatnik Belle loves ridiculousness.

What. Is. The. Deal. With. Oreos!?!?! Seriously, do we NEED seventeen different varieties of Oreo? There's the classic black-and-white thingie with the cookie halves and the white frosting in the middle. That's good. Then there's Double-Stuf, which is also pretty good. Then we have seasonal Oreos, with colored icing in the center, depending on which season we're talking about. That's fine. Can't we stop there?

Oh, no. We have to have "Uh-oh Oreos" with chocolate filling and vanilla cookie halves. We have to have "Golden Oreos" with vanilla cookies AND vanilla filling. We have to have "Cake Oreos" which are self-explanatory and, if nobody is offended by this opinion, rather disgusting. We have "Golden Cake Oreos" (see previous sentence). Mint Oreos. Peanut butter Oreos. Double chocolate Oreos. "Fudgee" Oreos, a.k.a. chocolate Keebler cookies made in a skinny Oreo mold instead of an Elf mold.

I think I speak for the entire cookie-eating public when I say, "WHAT THE HECK?!"

Seriously -- does anyone actually BUY the million and one other varieties of Oreo? If you do please, by all means, TELL ME. This is getting insane. It's only a matter of time before they come out with "Chicken Pot Pie Oreos."

With that rant ended, I think I'll post this and go to the prom committee meeting. Once again, I PROMISE I will never go so long without posting again.

STOLEN DIALOGUE: CABIN 16 EDITION

(for you, Hannah!)

Person one: So when I lifted up my bedspread I saw three chipmunks under my bed.
Person two: What did you do?
Person one: I said hi!

"Nothing awkward ever happens to me."

"Tame the bangs!"

"I swear on whatever is above us...including the squirrels..."

"We don't want anyone getting sick. So use Purell! Use it every time you come in and every time you go out! Purell, Purell, Purell!"

"I'M STRANDED!"

Person one: Last night I dreamed that I slept through camp!
Person two: Last night I dreamed that I was on a yacht with Adam Siska and President Obama.
[later on]
Person one: I want to listen to Iron Maiden so bad right now. Like, I don't think you guys can understand.
Person two: Can you understand getting pushed off a boat by Sisky Business?
Person one: Can you understand sleeping through six weeks of camp? I woke up saying, 'What the heck is going on?'
Person two: I woke up saying, 'Don't arrest him, Mr. President...he's just drunk.'

Person one: Hey, Leah, will you check my caper [daily chore]?
Person two: No way, I'll get hit by a flying rubber glove!
[That last one takes a bit of explanation. Basically, we had two dancers in our cabin who were always getting "ice packs," a.k.a. water-filled, frozen rubber gloves, from the nurse. So one day, a couple of people realized that the rubber glove would make a neat trick, so they rigged it up to the ceiling so that when a string was pulled, the glove-on-a-swing would whiz down and whack the person walking beneath it. There were a couple of days where you couldn't walk to the door without getting hit by a frozen glove!]

Person one: Uh, guys? Why is there a wrapped tampon in the toilet?
Person two: I...uh...got hungry. I ate a tampon. [pause] Dude, I can't believe I just said that!

"Yeah, she and I are the resident lesbians of Cabin 16..."
[Once again, it takes a bit of explanation. There were two girls who jokingly flirted with each other throughout the time at camp, even though neither one was actually gay. One night, one of the girls said this to someone who was visiting our cabin and got a shocked stare in response.]

Person one: Are you sick?
Person two: Oh, I just have Thrush. But don't worry, you can't actually catch it from me. Well, unless you drink from my water bottle, use my toothbrush, or stick your tongue in my mouth.
Person one [sarcastic]: Oh, darn. I was hoping we could make out tomorrow.

[referring to a good-looking, long-haired guy]: "Now, on to Jesus...ah, what a babe."

Person one: Uh, guys? This is bad.
Person two: What happened?
Person one: Michael Jackson is dead. Like, he just died, like half an hour ago.
[shocked silence]
Person three: Maybe...every tabloid in America is just playing a joke on us.

The Secret to Surviving "Winterlochen"

Ah, Northern Michigan winters--nothing like them! First, you freeze to death in weather that is so cold that it doesn't even snow, and you literally cannot breathe when you're outside becuase it is so damn cold. And then you get BURIED in snow and start to wish that the breathtaking cold would come back. And then you get two or three nice, warm--"warm" meaning somewhere between thirty and forty degrees--days, and you start to think, "Okay, this isn't so bad, I can deal, if it just stays like this." But it doesn't! Three nice days, and then, BAM! Winter socks you in the gut like Jack Dempsey.

And then, to put a few sprinkles on this lovely sundae (get it? Sundae? Ice cream? Cold? Meh, forget it), it rains. And everything freezes on the ground, and you skid on ice every time you try to walk to class. And did I mention that it is FREEZING?! There's piles of dirty, renegade snow EVERYWHERE, there's a few solid inches of ice on the ground, there's CLEAN snow which falls every other week or so and makes you long for the rain and ice again, and there's this nice little chill that cannot be blocked even by a down coat.

But it gets even better! At Interlochen there's this thing called the "concourse," which houses all the classrooms. It is one long hallway, with small buildings attached called "rotundas." (Sooner or later I'll do an Interlochen Dictionary post, don't worry. You WILL know what all these words mean eventually, I promise.) And when you walk down this hallway, you get sweaty because you have to walk FAST, due to there being ten minutes between classes and one of your classes (if your luck is anything like mine) is at the opposite end of campus from your NEXT class and you have to rival Jesse Owens to get there on time. So you get sweaty and you leave your coat unbuttoned when you go outside and...well, you know what happens next.

Frostbite, anyone?

And let's not forget the food issue! You know how in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl states that something about cold weather makes people hungrier? (And no, mom, I do NOT want to know the scientific reason for that. (; ) So yes, after a hard day of classes and practices and screenwriting and playwriting and history tests and stress tests and composing music and composing functions, we're all hungry enough to eat a cow. So we go to the cafeteria...where Death awaits us in the form of overcooked salmon. Yum. And the alternative? Go spend ten bucks at the cafe for bad fries and crappy ice cream. Or order a hamburger from Bud's, which I am not as of yet brave enough to do. No wonder the motto for stone is, "Stone Cafeteria: Where the starving artists of tomorrow begin starving today."

And of course there's the fun of the clothes! Honestly, tights or no tights, I will never understand how some of you brave girls can wear skirts in this weather. I freeze my ass off with long pants and kneesocks, and some days I actually wear long johns beneath my pants, so how in the heck you can stand to walk around in a skirt and pantyhose is something beyond my level of comprehension. Then again I've been gawked at for going hatless, so maybe I can't talk. All I know is, without a coat, long pants, boots, kneesocks, and a pair of gloves, I'm useless in the cold.

So what does all this add up to? One very freaking long winter. (Daddy, do you remember reading The Long Winter when I was in sixth grade? Say yes, dang it!) But don't worry. I've found the secret to surviving the Interlochen Winter (or Winterlochen, as I've heard it called). Here it is, in three parts:

First of all. BE HAPPY. I can't stress this enough. If you mope through winter, you will be bushwhacked the second November 1st rolls around. Don't believe me? Well, think about this: I went out on a shoot with my fellow MPAs shortly after Halloween. It was a nice, clear, sunny day...and the temperature was enough to make one believe that Hell had literally frozen over. I swear to God there was FROST on the grass. There were actually people whose job was to run blankets out to the freezing actors (it was a baseball movie).

Anyway, I'm digressing. The point is, BE HAPPY. Don't let Winterlochen kick your ass with its icy gloominess. The sadder you get, the harder it is to pull through the looooong winter months. So do yourself a favor. Go to the dances. Go to Coffeehouse. Watch the Olympics and laugh when the media makes a big deal about a snowboarder's coach letting out a few f-bombs. Read silly blogs on the internet. (Mine notwithstanding (; ) Watch silly crap on YouTube (but keep it G-rated, please; we don't want any Porn Infractions).

Some things to bust the Winterlochen Blahs:

http://community.sparknotes.com/index.php/2009/07/16/blogging-twilight-index-page/
If you love Twilight and take it seriously, or if you are Team Edward, stay away. However, if you are like me and take the whole thing as light entertainment, you will love this. You will laugh. Hard.

http://aaronrgillespie.tumblr.com/
This is Aaron Gillespie's (The Almost; UnderOath) blog about food. It's more interesting than it sounds. Trust me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9va1wVNizE
TRY to watch this without laughing, or at least smirking and rolling your eyes. It can't be done.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxLT98chljg
Maybe I'm just biased because they're my favorite band...but the beginning of this interview cracks me up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUnRAqEEVWQ&feature=PlayList&p=C45ACB753D9BC89B&index=2
This is self-explanatory. Just watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNSdBLYXJD4
If this doesn't crack you up, you are officially NOT HUMAN. And no, you do NOT have to be into zombies to like this short film. (On that note, what is it with us Interlochen people and zombies? Seriously! I think we've all watched the "Thriller" video one too many times...)

Second. Remember that artistic reason you came here? MPAs, make some indie shorts!(And then post them on YouTube or facebook so we can all share the laughs!) Creative writers, crank out some fiction! (Or poetry, if you'd rather do that.) Musicians, hold random jam sessions in the rotundas! Visual artists, show off with your snow sculptures! (So far this year, I've seen the Loch Ness Monster, some Igloos, a lion, and my personal favorite, a large toadstool.) There's a reason that young artists come here, and it sure as heck isn't for the brilliant weather. We are CREATIVE! If we can't figure out a way to beat this winter cruddiness...well...who can?

Third--possibly most important--RELY ON YOUR FRIENDS. There is a reason that Mr. Film Teacher tells us after we come back from breaks to look after each other. (Motion Picture Artists, you know what I'm talking about, right?) The people in your dorm, your major, your classes, and even people whom you would never see if you didn't make the effor to seek them out will help you more than anything you're told to do by the Health Services people. Seriously, without my friends I would've gone bug-nuts crazy by now. Friends provide entertainment, stress relief, hugs, companionship, love, and most importantly, support. If you don't trust them...excuse the cliche...who can you trust to get you through the horror that is a North Michigan winter?

So there you have it. The secret to surviving "Winterlochen." (Am I even using that in the correct context?) You're welcome. :)



STOLEN DIALOGUE TIME!!!!!

"I sound like a Wookie on helium!"

"That there's what we call an inside joke."

"Did you eat a bowl of unoriginal for breakfast?"

"No. No, no, no. This is an ALICE IN WONDERLAND prom, not a LET'S SHOW OFF NINETY PERCENT OF OUR SKIN prom. You can't wear that dress. People will think you're confused about the theme."

"Let's not tell Mr. Wescott that none of us did our homework, okay? We'll just say something we got off Sparknotes; he won't know the difference."

"I Facebooked the crap out of him! No--I did not STALK him. I FACEBOOKED him. There's a difference."

"You know what would be really interesting? If he fell into a sand pit full of rabid Miley Cyrus fans. That would be fun."

"Hey, guys, I've got an idea. Let's have a revolution!"

"Some people are born to be wild...some people are born to be artists...he was born to be unprofessional."

"This just bypasses all normal levels of awkward. This is so much awkward it's practically coming out your ears. You are unnaturally full of awkward. Instead of the date-rape drug, someone poisoned your drink with a whole lot of awkward."

Person one: "Can you just shoot me please?"
Person two: "No, but I can dismember you and flush the pieces down the toilet."
Person one: "Okay, that works."

"That door has issues. That door is being a...Doork. Sorry, SOMEONE had to say that."

"Oh great. This table is chairless, and THAT table has more chairs than it knows what to do with. That table is Napoleon's army marching in to invade Russia, and this table is Napoleon's army marchinng OUT of Russia, minus ninety percent of his army."

Saturday Night's All Right for Tokio Hotel

Hello. If you are reading this blog, chances are you already know who I am. If not...well, have fun figuring it out.



In the event that you don't know me, this is who I am, in three easy steps:



1. I make movies at Interlochen Center for the Arts. It's amazing. Case closed. End of story.

2. I'm a girl, as evidenced by my screenname. (Beatnik BELLE, people, come on!)

3. I love Red Jumpsuit Apparatus.



There. That's me, in a nutshell. Moving on now!



Okay. So for those of you who DO know me, you may be wondering, "Why in the hell is she starting a blog NOW? Since when does she even have TIME to blog?" To answer your questions, I have three reasons to start a blog now that I did not have before:



1. I'm sick this weekend. And bored. In my book, bored + sick = innovative ways of entertaining myself, which means doing stuff I've never done before...which, this time, means starting a blog.

2. Thesis Film Season has officially started, which means I'll have PLENTY of anecdotes that will be far too epic to keep them to myself.

3.



Okay, so I really don't have three reasons...I just have two...but they're good reasons, right? RIGHT? Okay. Moving on again.



So, this weekend I didn't get out of my dorm more than twice. Which is for me more than a little unusual; it's normal for me to get less rest on the weekends than I do during the week (thanks to Student Senate, church, the mall, GSA, ect...) but, as I said, this weekend I'm sick, which really sucks. So, instead of reporting the insane Interlochen goings-on of the weekend (which I'll do NEXT weekend), I'll blog about the strange things that one thinks about when one is trapped in a dorm all weekend.



First of all, have you ever noticed that when you're not sick enough to feel like you're dying, but just sick enough to have to stay home, you do the weirdest things just to keep yourself from getting bored to death? Well, okay, maybe it's just me who does that, but I really don't think so. So, last night I was sad about missing GSA coffeehouse and I was bored out of my mind. And even after calling my parents and catching up with a few long-distance friends via FaceBook, I was still bored and lonely (my lucky suitemates were at the coffeehouse!).



And so I did what I'm sure ANYONE ELSE in my situation would have done: I watched a Tokio Hotel documentary, then part of their concert, and made two lists. One of them was things I loved about Tokio Hotel, the other was things I hate about Tokio Hotel. Now please understand, Tokio Hotel is NOT my favorite band of all time. They don't even make the top three. That would be Red Jumpsuit Apparatus (#1), the Almost (#2), and the E Street Band (#3). And, if we're going top five, #4 is the Who (whom I will probably blog about at a later date) and #5 is Augustana. So as you can see, poor Tokio Hotel has to settle for top ten, which we won't get into right now because it will take forever.



With all that being said, I do enjoy Tokio Hotel quite a bit. I wouldn't call them a guilty pleasure - any band that my dad approves of just cannot be called a guilty pleasure, in my book - but they're certainly don't have the rough, artsy, rock-and-roll badassnessosity of my top five. I have even jokingly referred to them as "the German answer to the Jonas Brothers," because of their massive teenage-girl following and the ridiculousness of their lead singer. But as I said, my dad likes them, or at the very least can put up with them for a decent lenth of time and admits that they have a few good songs, so as far as I'm concerned, they DO have talent.



So, keeping all that in mind, here is my "love" list for Tokio Hotel:

1. They have REALLY FREAKING GOOD videos. And being a film geek, I am a sucker for a good video. And trust me, theirs are DEFINITELY up to film-freak standards. If you don't believe me, go on youtube and look up "Don't Jump/Spring Nicht," "Ready Set Go," and "Rette Mich." On second thought, here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ODdhNH0n8U&feature=channel (Ready set go)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nevnXxRxfjU (Don't Jump/Spring Nicht)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UISQF9uHEv0&feature=channel (Rette Mich, which means "Rescue me" in English)

2. Their music IS for all intents and purposes good. Hint: Listen to their German albums, they sound best when Bill sings in his native language. Why these guys decided to "Americanize" is something I will probably never fully comprehend (but I will rant about that later).



3. Their live shows are BRILLIANT. I would love to see these guys live...but as they rarely tour in the U.S. I doubt I'll get the chance. For now, I'm stuck with DVDs and the ever-helpful youtube.



4. I can identify with their lyrics. Yes, I KNOW that sounds cheesy. But it's true! I challenge you to find one teenager on the planet who cannot identify with at least ONE Tokio Hotel song. The one that struck the most important chord with me was the opening verse of "Scream":



You get up and somebody tells you where to go to

When you get there, everybody's telling you what to do

Thank you, it's been another bloody Monday

And no one is asking what you wanted anyway



I LOVE that song, becuase I UNDERSTAND that song. I don't get their love songs (mainly because these guys seem to enjoy putting inside jokes into their love song lyrics. Oops, did I say inside jokes? I meant metaphors, my bad). But this one? And "Ready Set Go"? And "Don't Jump"? And of course, "Live Every Second." No, it's NOT just because those are their "happy" songs, I swear. It's because those particular songs have what I consider their strongest message, which is a fairly typical one--live life to the fullest, do what you need to do to be happy, and don't hold back or chicken out--but no matter how typical, it's still a powerful message.



5. They have a cute bass player. Yes, this goes onto the "things I love" list, because I'm sorry, but he IS cute. And he IS talented, so yes, I DO have a teensy crush on him, sue me. I would just like to say in my defense that this was NOT the first thing I wrote down, therefore it is NOT the main reason that I like this band. I'm just saying...



6. Their album artwork is infreakingcredible. Google "Humanoid album pictures" and you will see what I mean. (Or, Mom and Dad, you could just wait until you come and visit, and I'll show you. And Dad can laugh at Bill's hair. Oh wait, he already did that. (; Never mind...)



7. Much as I detest Tom Kaulitz, I must admit that he has serious guitar skills. The downside is that you don't get to hear them as much on Humanoid...yet another reason that I prefer their German albums and their first American release, Scream.



8. They have a somewhat interesting webisode series called "Tokio Hotel TV" (which I now have on DVD). This show is pretty much a waste of time--I recommend it to all who enjoy procrastinating--but it is amusing as all living hell. This is when you get to see how ridiculous the twins really are, how amusing Georg the Cute Bassist really is, and how quiet their drummer really is. Okay, so that last one isn't really all that fun, but you get the point.



9. They are FUNNY...they really are...Bill Kaulitz can take something as simple as going to Meijer and turn it into an explosion of comedic ridiculousness...I swear, my life was not complete until I watched a guyliner-wearing German teenager exclaim over a package of Twizzlers.



10. This is more of a guilt-by-association thing...but I LOVE hearing my dad rant about these guys. Which I encourage by showing him episodes of Tokio Hotel TV, pictures of Bill Kaulitz, and moments from the "Zimmer 483" documentary and then asking, "So, what do you think?"





So, as you can see, there is plenty to love about these guys. But, to use a common cliche, every coin has two sides (or something along those lines). Which leads to my "hate" list:



1. As my dad so rightly said, Bill Kaulitz is a freak. I'm sorry, but it's TRUE. What self-respecting guy would voluntarily sculpt their hair into a fauxhawk (fake mohawk) that ends up being taller than they are? Okay, so that was an exaggeration, but you get the point. Bill Kaulitz is the strangest person I've ever seen, no joke. The combination of his appearance, his hyperactivity, and the fact that, like his brother, he can't seem to stop beating up on his bassist and drummer slightly creeps me out. This isn't necessarily a reason to hate them, it just annoys me.



2. Tom Kaulitz is a jerk. Yes, the guy is a great guitar player, but that does not give him the right to talk about girls as if they're something that he can pick up at a McDonald's and then drop in a garbage can at the next rest stop. (This actually is a "hate" reason.) Added to that, he beats up on Georg (bass player) more than any sensible, semi-caring human would. Honestly, there is no reason for him to make fun of that guy the way he does. And of course Bill eggs him on, which drives me NUTS.



3. They have a screaming teenage girl fanbase. I don't know why this bothers me so much, because if I was at a Tokio Hotel concert I would DEFINITELY scream. Then again, I scream at ANY concert I attend (with the exception of Interlochen Orchestra concerts because that would just be weird), but I certainly would not scream/squeal/pass out if I met any member of Tokio Hotel. I managed to not scream when I met Ronnie Winter, and I like him ten times more than I like ANY member of Tokio Hotel (and will probably blog about him at a later date).



4. On their latest record, Humanoid, they totally and completely sold out. Don't believe me? Listen to any of the songs that I posted above, and then listen to this:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONNIfNyPFaE ("Pain of Love" from Humanoid)



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oER1O2tTIFw&feature=related ("Human Connect to Human," also from Humanoid)



On Humanoid, Bill auto-tuned (I THINK that's what it's called) the crap out of his voice. You can tell the difference. They used waaaay too much synthesizer on Humanoid. Most of the songs on Humanoid sound like Britney Spears had a love child with 3 Doors Down: Whiny, synthesizer-saturated love songs that rarely make any sense. Want proof? Take any two lines from "Pain of Love" and compare them. I guarantee that each line on its own will make perfect sense, but put together they will leave you scratching your head. Their first albums were pretty damn good - not the most mindblowingly original things on the planet, but at least there was meaning behind them. Humanoid sounds like anything else you might hear in a club on Saturday night. And, as anyone who knows me can tell you, I do NOT like dance club music.



5. All of them, not just Tom, beat up on Georg to some extent or another...that is not okay with me. -cue possessive female instinct kicking in-



6. Personally, I find the fact that Bill swears hands-down that he is a virgin and that he NEVER bothers with any of the fangirls almost as creepy as Tom's insistence that he has a one-night stand five times a week.



7. They "Americanized" their music...now, I know WHY they did it, in the strictest sense, anyway. The record company they're with wanted to make more money. What I don't get is this: Why didn't they just sell German albums in America? It would've been easier and more convenient, they would've sold just as many records, and they wouldn't have needed to go through the bother of choosing which songs to re-record, then re-recording the songs, then going through all the crap of ANOTHER album release when they already had two perfectly good albums out. Besides, they sound much better in German anyway. It drives me insane!





So, there you have it. Ten reasons to like them; seven reasons to NOT like them. The good outweighs the bad in this case, but as I said before...they're not my favorite, or even in the top 5. They're good, but not INCREDIBLY SUPER EPIC, like certain other bands I could mention.



Moving on to my favorite part of the day: STOLEN DIALOGUE! (Yes, Mr. Film Teacher, be proud of me - I actually use it!) This probably WILL be a regular feature of my blog, just a heads-up. So here goes: The top stolen dialogue of the past week is...



"If Bud's is what people eat to escape the cafeteria, I don't even want to know what the cafeteria's like."



"Batman: the Midlife Crisis!"



"So wait...if you like him, and he used to be a she, does that mean you're...bi-transgender?"



"Oh crap, she's got her Joker Pants on!"



"It's like Helena Bonham Carter fornicated with Dean Moriarty and they produced YOU!"



"Three hours alone in the Writing House? What the heck were you trying to do, start a family?"



"Michael is above a Facebook group. Michael needs a full-out Appreciation Day. Michael needs a freaking national holiday. Michael deserves seeing a banner flown over the campus with 'MICHAEL IS AWESOME written in huge letters. In Freestyle Script font, eighteen-point, double-spaced."



"That's nutty. Dipped in Crazy. With a side of Insane. Oh, and can I get some fries with that?"



"You do realize that Valentine's Day is a satan-sanctioned holiday, right? Okay, just checking. Oh wait, it's for Prom? Double satan points!"



Person one: "He put his SHOES in the HALLWAY?! What was he trying to do, commit fratricide?"

Person two: "Wait, I thought you could only do that in college!"

Person three: "What, kill someone with stench?"

Person two: "No, join a fraternity..."

(I think they might've said something else after that, but I was laughing too hard to listen properly.)



Yes...I will have better stolen dialogue next time. I promise.



Okay. Now I'm done for the day. This was fun. Hopefully I'll have time to update the thing from time to time. ;)