Wednesday, December 1, 2010

I Miss India

Wait, did I really just write that?

Yes. Yes I did. And I actually mean it too.
Lately, I've been watching a new show called "Outsourced", which was recommended to me by my sister, Heather. I had heard about the show before--it's about a call center from Kansas City that gets outsourced to Mumbai, India, and the new manager from Kansas City has to go over to India to manage the call center. I read some reviews on the it, and they all said that it was an "Office" wanna-be that had way too many racial slurs against Indians. Well, I decided to watch it anyway because: a) I love "The Office", and any show that comes close to "The Office" is probably funny and b) I trust my sister's judgment. If she says it's funny, then it's probably worth looking into. I watched the first couple of shows, and while I won't say I'm hooked, I do like the show a lot (and there aren't that many racial slurs. They do tend to overexaggerate Indian culture, but they're actually pretty close on what life in India for an American is like).

Anyways, the point is that I've been watching the show, and yesterday I watched an episode about Diwali. That's when it hit me--I really miss being in India, with all the crazy holidays, and the monsoons, and the insane taxi/tuk-tuk drivers. I miss being a part of all that. And I would kill for some real Indian food, not the Americanized, tame version that they sell at Bombay House. Also, I kind of miss the heat (I say this as I'm watching the snow fall outside of my window at work).

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Guess What...

I'm a legal driver now! Yep, I can drive a car all by myself.

'Nough said.

Sunday, November 21, 2010

First Snow

The first snow is finally here! It's so soft and beautiful, and I love it. Of course, that means that now I have to drive in the snow...great...

I'm still fascinated by the season's first snowfall, though. It brings a whole new aspect to the winter season--it brings the winter season to life. It says, "Here comes the holidays, everyone; you can go ahead and start celebrating now!" Anyways, I'm glad it has arrived. Yes, I know it will be cold, and driving in it will not be so fun, and yet my love affair with the snow will continue. It's one of those inexplicable facts of life.

Friday, November 19, 2010

Harry Potter Speaks American

Maddie and I found this hilarious clip while we were waiting to go see Harry Potter last night. I thought it was worthy enough to share.



Yes, I did see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows yesterday (actually, it was this morning). Although I am still very angry that David Yates included partial nudity in the movie, I have to say that the overall movie experience won me over. I have to tell you all, though, that the news article I read (and then wrote a very angry post about) was rather misleading. The dance scene that David Yates referred to was not a nude scene. It was simply a fun dance between Harry and Hermione, and I agree with Yates that the scene was very sweet. The only nudity in the movie was during the scene when Ron destroys the locket horcrux, and the only thing the audience truly saw were Harry and Hermione's bare shoulders. Yes, there was definitely implied nudity--and I am still really, really upset that Yates felt that he needed to go that far with the scene.
The movie, however, was spectacular, and I really enjoyed it. I feel that they are really doing the book justice. Yes, that one make-out scene is disturbing, and I wish they had changed it to be more appropriate for what is essentially a kids movie, but I'm glad I went. I just hope the next one is as fantastic.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

A Penny for My Thoughts? Psshh, I'm Upping the Price to $1.25

When I get tired, I can't think straight, and sometimes I can't even see or hear straight. Oddly enough, this is usually when my best and most creative pieces of writing come to life.

Boots and a little bit of make-up are all I need to feel sexy. That and shaved legs.

Sometimes I wish I could be strange and insightful and write things that make people just stop and say, "Whoa." I wish I could change the minds of people all over the world because of a book or poem I wrote. Then I feel insecure, and this tiny, annoying voice in the back of my head says that I will never be more than a Stephenie Meyer wanna-be, which really depresses me.

There are four things that truly bring me out of "the depths of despair": 1) reading one of my favorite books; 2) eating chocolate in any form; 3) having long talks with my mom; 4) playing with a dog.

I've discovered that I really like answering phones. Which means my job=awesome.

Aside from when I'm really tired, I also write my best stuff when I'm really emotional--either super happy, really depressed, or angry.

Many times I wish that I can travel back in time and live in either the 1950s or the late 1800s. I wish I could go back there and truly feel like a lady; I wish I could go back and find the love of my life, kind of like Kate and Leopold, but in reverse. Now, I realize that those time periods aren't all that books and shows like Bewitched make them out to be, but I still carry that secret wish with me at all times.

One day, I'm going to go to Decades (a vintage store in down town Salt Lake) and buy every piece of clothing in there.

Travel is amazing. I love it, and I can't get enough of it. This is why I'm going into the Foreign Services.

I'm afraid that my future fiance will have very little say in our wedding. I have it pretty much all planned out.

I am inordinately excited about the fact that I'm going to Harry Potter World with my family this year for Christmas--I also really, really, REALLY want to participate in a wand ceremony and receive a wand from Olivanders. That would be INCREDIBLE! And yes, I do realize that I am a gigantic nerd.

How is it that I never went through the I-Hate-My-Mother-And-I'm-Going-To-Rebel-In-Any-Way-Possible phase? During my teenage years, my mom became my best friend.

I miss seeing Chelsey, Aaron, Katie, Paul, and Averi. I get to see Heather, Danny, and Brayden pretty much every other day, and that makes me incredibly happy. But I want to see the Jorgenson family too!

My life is awesome. I wouldn't trade it for any other in the entire world.

Must Go Travelling

Travel+Leisure just posted their 2010 "World's Best Hotels" list. I've been flipping through the pictures, and I want to go to all of them! Is anyone up for a trip? Or willing to donate to the "Ashley is poor but wants to see the world" fund?

Here's the link, for anyone interested in browsing through some truly gorgeous hotels.
www.travelandleisure.com/articles/worlds-best-hotels-2010

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Warning: Harry Potter is no longer fit for children to see

I just read the saddest news today: in the new Harry Potter movie, coming out next Thursday, there will be two nudity scenes. Neither of these scenes were the book, so the director, David Yates, just added these scenes because he felt like it.

I couldn't believe it when I read it in KSL News. It is so upsetting that David Yates has decided that a movie that is geared toward children should have nude scenes in it. Here's a statement from David Yates about one of the nude scenes: "It's where Hermione and Harry dance together and is not in the book. It's something that we create for the film..." I just don't understand where this is coming from. Later, Yates said that the scene is"tender." What? I'm still trying to figure out how a scene like that could be tender--it feels more like Yates is trying to see how far he can push the envelope in this scene. What messages are they trying to send our children? And what messages are we sending our children if we let them go see this new installment of Harry Potter?

I have been so excited to see this film, but now that I know there are nude scenes, it makes me step back from the movie a little. And I wanted to let everyone know, so that they don't go to the movie theaters as an unsuspecting audience.