Not Guilty!!

So today, I got papers back from one of my classes and on one of them, she said that I plagiarized! I didn't. The only reason I can think of that she would think that I did was either that I used a description that didn't fit right, or that I didn't sight the Bible or the footnotes in the book that the class was ordered to have for the beginning of the class. I mean, WHAT THE HELL?! Then she gave me an "F" on the second paper she gave me and the only explanation she gave me was "Sparknotes"... what the fuck are sparknotes when she barely wrote anything on my paper! 

All day, while I was at work, I remembered what she said about what she did to people she accuses of plagiarizing. That they failed her course or she reported them to the school board or whatever they call it at OC. I worried myself sick because I need that class and I would have to take it over with her again. If I do have to, well, I plan on taking it from another school online so I don't have to deal with her.

I mean  GODDAMMIT!!! I don't need this today!

Then I had my employee evaluation with my boss and her boss. Apparently, I did a great job this year, but there's no way that I could be promoted because all the positions are already full. I understand that. Then they said that the job that I have was originally meant for high school girls 15-16 years old. (My thoughts: am I being fired?) They told me that it was their way to give kids the opportunity to get a positive job experience. The boss boss kept telling me that he's happy to write me a letter of recommendation. (Inner monologue: Is this a hint hint?) Then they said that it would be seen as a good thing on my resume if I had other experiences that would help with my Library Science background.  (Inner monologue: AM I BEING FIRED/LAID OFF?!?!?!)

"We aren't firing you, Katie. We don't want you to feel like we're trying to get rid of you..."

Well, I've come to the conclusion that I probably will have another job by the summer. I'm thinking either Bed, Bath & Beyond or CVS. We'll see.

Nearing the end...

So there is only a few more weeks till my birthday, then after that are finals. I believe I have a week off before I had my ILT [Intensive Learning Term] which is just 3 weeks long. Then a break before I have a summer class that starts at the beginning of June and ends just after the fourth of July. Sigh. I can't wait for classes to end so I can take all the time I want just doing what I want.

I'm tired of doing all this writing for other people that I don't really have time to write for me. I miss it. I have plenty of ideas in my head that I want to write down and hope to elaborate on later, but once i sit in front of my computer, I'm consumed by all the writing homework that I have to do that I either forget about what I was going to do, or I just don't have the energy to do it. It makes me feel bad for those who I send my writing too. They have been great, the best, but I haven't sent them anything in a very long time.

But there's one good thing that comes out of all this homework, I don't have time to do some online shopping. lol. Since my cousin, Elise, got me hooked on Half.com, I seem to be shopping there all the time, especially around the holidays. Now I know where I'm going to get my families gifts if it's something that is available there. Out of all the stuff that I own, movie wise, I've bought 80%-90% from Half.com. Pathetic, don't you think?

The other sight that I'm addicted on for online shopping is Barnes & Noble. Not that I own the Nook, I've been looking up books to buy and pre-order (pre-ordering in SOOOO much easier now). Since I've first had the Nook in December until now, I've bought 30 some books. When I was buying them in paperbacks/hardcovers, I'd be lucky to get one or two every two months. Yeah, that's a huge increase. But surprising enough, I have stayed as a comfortable steady money level since I don't spend money on gas every other week or so, it's rather every 3 weeks now since I don't have classes on Mondays of Fridays.

That's going to change next semester when I have classes every day. Yippy.

Why can't it be July yet?

First Crack At Poetry

So I was sitting in class today, and suddenly I was hit with the first two lines of my poem. I've never written a poem before, so this is a whole knew thing. If you hate it, tell me why. If you like it, tell me why. I want to know because I'm going to be taking a poetry writing class this summer so I need to know what to work on.

There are two poems that I am posting. The second one was just from an image I had in my mind while I as sitting in that same class as when I wrote the other one. I don't have a name for the second one yet, so I'll but a divide between the two so you'll know.

My Friends

I am surrounded by a sea of faces,

Yet none of them know me.

I know them, was once friends with them,

Yet none of them recognize me.

I remember laughing, crying, spending time with them,

Yet they don't seem to remember.

I watch us break apart, them pulling away,

Yet I try to swim out to them.

Why must we part? Was it something I did?

Only I know the answer.

--------------------------------------

[Unnamed]

Green eyes,

Emerald eyes,

Sparkling in the sun.

Olive skin,

Soft skin,

Caressed by her dress.

Fiery hair,

Long hair,

Blowing in the wind.

Small feet,

Dainty feet,

Hugged the building's edge.

Small smile,

Sinister smile,

Spreading over her face as she leaned forward.

Rose colored,

Slowly spreading,

The last pedal fell.

So? Thoughts?

I Wish I Were An Artist

People may think that an author's job is easy. All they have to do is write down some stuff and then get it publish. Well, being a writer, it isn't easy. Being an painter would be so much easier. They just have to pick an image out of their head, find the right paints, and go at it. While a writer has to describe one single scene, an artist can do so without words and get a greater picture. An observer can look at the painting and figure out a story to go along with it and let their imagination run wild. A reader has to try to get the image that the author wants them to see and try to put themselves in the world the author has created.

Though I love writing, reading is so much easier and doesn't take as much time.

Since I'm in 4 English classes this semester, all the writing I seem to be doing has sucked out my willingness to write for fun. Though I do it once in a while, it's not on the story that I should be working on. I'm tired all the time and find it difficult to will myself to sit down and write a world  that I see in my head in a way that my readers (my favorite cousin Elise) can understand and like.

Maybe I need a vacation from all the writing I have to do. I'm currently on Spring Break and yet I have two papers to write that are due the week I get back, or the week after and I have to have multiple pages done. I already finished one on Thursday, but that was only a page or two. Though I like all of my classes, I'm getting tired of all the writing I have to do.

*Laughs*  Here I thought that I was sick of taking math classes for the last two and a half years when it took me barely a full semester to get sick of writing. How twisted is that? Pretty twisted, I'm guessing.

Well, I'm going to get back to my fun story that is just for me [sorry Elise! :) ] before I start up on my other project.

Crips. I wish summer would come already then stay for a whole year.

Sometimes, Parents are a Pain in the ASS!!

Today was not the first example of all the shit that goes on between me and my parents. I'm the oldest, the first born so I get hit harder with all the rules and expectations. I've almost ever missed a day of High School while I was there; mainly because my dad says that if I'm not puking, then I'm fine to go to school. Even when it comes to my grades. If I get anything under a B- then I wouldn't have any computer time.

Now, my little brother, who complains with all the rules that he has, has everything easier. He's been able to stay home more if he 'isn't feeling good' i.e. if his throat is sore, he gets to stay home. One time, when he didn't get good sleep, he was able to skip his first two classes before going back. Now, I haven't been feeling good and decided to stay home today rather than going to my classes. This is the first time in a long time that I haven't felt good enough to go to school, so I thought I should get a day off. I tell my mom that I stayed home and got 6 more extra hours of sleep, and when she tells my dad, he gets all up in my face about it.

He says how it wasn't acceptable, how I should be more responsible, and all that other shit parents usually say. I was just too tired to listen to him, and I told him such, but he just kept talking in my ear (not literally) and even when I tried to tell him that he let Jake do what I did once, he wouldn't even let me finish speaking.

Well guess what dad  SCREW YOU!!!

If I want to skip one day because I'm not feeling good, I will do it. I'm still doing my homework, even though I'm not there. I'm still keeping up with everything in my classes, so why are you bugging me? And why are you caring less about my brother when he's getting E's in classes? To my parents (Dad): "Get that stick out of your ass!"

 

At Long Last

If the title of this blog decieved you, I'm sorry and would like to correct that. I have not gotten an acceptance letter from an agent...yet...but yet another rejection. I was merely commenting on how I haven't posted a blog in a long time. I know, how could I keep my audience waiting? One word: School. I started school last week and already I have a lot of reading to do.

I'm surprised by how much I like the reading in my Fiction Writing class. We have a large book dedicated to short stories and I actually read more than what was assigned. Crazy, I know. But it was fun anyways. We have to write, I think, three short stories and I have yet to know what I'm going to do for it. My Professor said that we can't write about anything that we haven't written in class because that's how she knows that it isn't plagiarized. Dammit. I had a great one that I wanted to write about...now all I have to do is figure out how to write it out in an assignment so it won't be considered false. But I've been waiting to take this class since FRESHMAN year and I'm now a JUNIOR. That seems unfair, doesn't it?

Well, that's one class. I also have Creative Nonfiction writing. I have to 40 hours of community service by the end of the semester and the prof (same one as in my fiction writing) said that I can work at the library--since I work there anyways--as long as I don't get pay. I thought that was rather convenient since I am not all that skilled at any other thing besides books and organization.

I also have two other classes, though those aren't really worth mentioning. SOOOO I'll skip those.

For all those that have the privileged of reading my book and giving back feedback, I would like to inform you that I have just finished chapter one and it's seven pages long. HAHAHA!!! and it's over 3 thousand words already. Not a lot, I know. but I'm working when I can. hopefully, I can get about half done by summer then finish it before school starts in August. Since we're not planning on going anywhere for summer, I'll have more time to write. Hopefully.

*Cross Fingers*

Montana Sapphires!!

So, this summer, my family and I went to Montana on vacation. We went to a place called Gem Mountain where you can actually find your own sapphires (and other gems, but mostly sapphires). You buy a bucket of rocks ($15 for 1) and you wash them and search for them yourself. I know that it might now sound like a lot of fun, but the minute you find your first gem (looks like glass against everything else) you're hooked.

To find the stones, you are given a tray you use to wash the dirt off the stones and shake it so the sapphires sink to the bottom of the tray and directly in the middle. Then you take the tray to a table and flip it over. You should find the gems right smack in the middle of the rocks, shining in the light just like glass.

What you might not know, is that sapphires don't start out blue. Almost all of them are crystal clear. Some of them will be yellow tinted, or even a light green. They're easy to see if they're where you shook them. (Sapphires are actually heavier than regular rocks so when you shake them, they sink to the bottom.) The people that run the place give you a film canister with slits on the top to push the gems through so they don't go all over the place. (Which is really, really, bad.)

If you happen to look like you're not doing so good, some worker(s) will come up, as if you're finding anything... SO NO!! They will get you a whole tray full of rocks not in your bucket and clean them for you. I found 15 stones in one tray whereas it was rare to find more than 5.

One of the rare sapphires you can find is the pink sapphire. I found one. a 1.73 carat one. I was so excited when they said that I had found something. Unfortunately, it had a spiderweb crack through the middle of the gem.

Unfortunately, out of all the gems that my family and I, there were only three stones that were big enough (without any cracks on the inside) for us to be able to have fired (That's where they get their color), send to China to get cut (yeah, long way to get cut), and about 6 months later, you get a sapphire mailed to your house.

Now, you don't have a say in what shape the stone will be cut into. It just depends on the shape of the raw stone. The one that I got was cut into what's called 'Princess' style and went from over a 1 carat stone into a .44 kt beauty. Perfect for me, I know. ;) While my mom's was cut into a 'Round Brilliant' and was cut into a .34 kt gem. Both of the colors are a little different. My mom's is more blue and mine has more teal in the center. Under the right light, in the middle of both stones, looks crystal clear. It's pretty awesome.

So, since I've been talking about this, I thought I should add some pictures.

Using a macro lens, we're able to see the detail in the gem. Pretty, isn't it?

Then, using photoshop, we magnified it so you get an even closer look. Hehehe, I found that all on my own. I dug (not really, but it felt like it) it out of the dirt, cleaned it, and am able to call it my own. Oh, how it love it!!

If you want the address to the mine, you can access their website by the following link: http://gemmountainmt.com/default.aspx

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask me. aka: leave a comment, please. ;)