A Pretty Little Turntable and some Delicious Pies.

Merry Christmas!!!!

I love this holiday :)

So here's my list of gifts (abridged):

A Crosley Turntable and TOMS from Honey Char :D

25 One dollar bills all rolled up, individually wrapped and stuffed in a box from Aunt D

A Satchel for Europe from my Memaw, and 20 dollars to go into my Europe fund

A spider hanging thing-y for my pictures in the dorm room from Kimble

Hair clips from Africa and an awesome shirt from Mom :)

Anyway, I made my butterscotch pie, and everyone in my family loved it. I'm really quite proud of myself.

I hope everyone's holiday was absolutely AWESOME, and that you spent it with the ones you loved.

These days are the ones you want to remember.

It's Christmas Eve

and I've been cleaning. All. Day.

I am seriously looking forward to worrying about nothing but eating delicious food, unwrapping presents, and snapping pictures all day tomorrow :)

Happy Birthday, Jesus!

I had an awful dream last night. I was getting myself ready for Jeff's funeral, again. That really was something terrible to wake up thinking about. Thankfully I know that's never going to happen again, but I wish it had never happened in the first place. I miss my dear dear friend...

Now I'm off to make a butterscotch pie for our family feast tomorrow! I hope everyone's holiday is everything it should be, and full of happy memories :)

Fast Film Express

^ My new best friend :) ^

Today I hung out with Zachary all day, minus a few hours in Conway.

Zach, Tina, and I made CANDY this morning :D. It is wonderful.

Then this afternoon Kimble and I went to Conway where we drove through the UCA campus, then found a little hole in the wall called Fast Film Express. They develop almost every speed of film, and even sell all the chemicals and supplies for dark rooms. I was in heaven. Since they develop 120, I can actually get the pictures I've been snapping with Renee's Yashica LM TLR developed soon :D

I am STOKED!

After I returned to Cabot, I headed to Aunt Shannon's house for a gathering with the Soderlings with Tina and Zach again. It was absolutely awesome to be with everyone again. I miss them. They make it feel like Christmastime.

Also, we watched SALT. Awesome movie, awful ending. It's just abrupt and needs just a little bit more, I think. Really great though, I'm going to have to watch it again.

GAH!

I love talented people :) alot.
I knew there had to be a great cover of this out there somewhere! /sohappy

I really love playing Halo with Tessa :) our sleepovers are so weird...for teenage girls.

Right now, I'm reading A Man Without A Country by Kurt Vonnegut. I would reccommend it to anyone with a brain. It's absolutely hysterical, yet completely intelligent.

From pg. 67: "If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph:

THE ONLY PROOF HE NEEDED

FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD

WAS MUSIC

"

Yes. sir.

Oh, Katy Perry.

So, it's been awhile.

I've missed you, blogger! x)

Jake is home for the break, so to say the least, my computer does not hold my attention for very long right now.

Today I went shopping with Andrea and my stepdad, and got Jake's present :)

Also, Andy and I ran UP the DOWN escalator...childish, yes...dangerous, yes...but totally fun. I've got the killer bruise and occasional limp to prove it ;)

For those of you who aren't elitists about music and just like to jam to whatever gets you moving, listen to 96.5 for a good dose of some crappy mainstream for a good time. I had quite the time driving with my windows down, by myself, with the volume all the way up today.

Katy Perry -- You are awful live, and you're kind of a slut. Nevertheless, I adore your music. "Firework" is something that everyone should listen to, whether or not you sing it. Thank you for being catchy, hot, and sounding nice after some serious mixing. :)

This is kind of random, but really not I suppose...I watch The Sing Off. I'm a big fan. x) I'm so happy that Committed won this season, but I really think The Backbeats deserved to be in the top two instead of Street Corner Symphony. Their performance of "Firework" made me tear up tonight (The Backbeats, I mean). Also, everyone should look up their performance of "Breakeven" on youtube...much better than the original. The service that each group gave to a few charities also jerked on my heartstrings, especially what Jerry Lawson and Talk of the Town did. Those girls are so grateful for them :)

Which brings me to another point! I was watching the Teen Nick HALO awards (Helping and Leading Others) probably a week ago, and one of the girls who got an award was named Jordan Summer. She held pageants called "Miss Amazing" pageants where girls with disabilities got to come out and show off just how wonderful they are. The way she changed their lives was truly inspiring to me, and I really want to have one in Cabot, or somewhere in Central Arkansas. The only problem is, I don't know how to get the word out around here for an event such as that, so if you know any way that could help me out, please let me know. I really feel it would be a good thing not only for the girls involved but the community as well. :)

Saturday night, Jake and I went to the Trans Siberian Orchestra concert at Verizon. Needless to say, they brought the house down. Definitely a show I would reccommend to ANYONE. I'm still going to marry sexy-flying-guitar-man. You know, the one who played "The Hall of the Mountain King" by Grieg? Yeah, him. Better known as "The Mountain" by TSO :P

Another thing, I cut my bangs. My hair is now parted down the middle, and I like it, mostly. I'm still insecure about it because my hair has been parted down the side since I was eight, most likely. All but one person I've talked to has liked it. Andrew's just stupid though...or people are lying to me. Either way, I feel cute.

I miss my Magpie :( Come hoooome, Meghan. Christmas break is not the same without youuuuu!

My Soldier.

His name is Jake Thomas, he's a Private First Class in the US Army, and he's stolen my heart.

For anyone who really knows me, they've known this has kind of been a long time coming, so if it seems foolish, you honestly just don't know. Feel free to ask if you doubt my reasoning. :)

About 2 weeks later...

Days 29 and 30!

haha, wow I fail sometimes.

29- 3 wishes.

1. I wish I could see my brother more often.
2. I wish I could play piano like a beast right now, and skip the learning part.

3. I wish I could get back into dance, I miss being a ballerina and tap dancing.

30- a picture

Where I've been: Working, Hot springs, Thanksgiving-ing. :)

HOT SPRINGS: Simply delightful! Renee and I enjoyed a day of taking pictures in Gulpha Gorge and different places around town after we had our Starbucks and then we blacked out the playroom to create a camera obscura. It worked, somewhat. Either way, it was a jolly good time. Shopping with Ambah was thoroughly awesome as well :D

Thanksgiving: Went to memphis, and it was wonderful :)

28

My parents stress me out, things not going right stress me out, jazz region stresses me out, work stresses me out. More than anything though, boys stress me out. haha.

27

My pets! :D

This is me and my miniature dachsund, Princess. She is so adorable and I laaahv her :3

She's a little ball of sunshine.

This is Kimble, my stepdad, with my cat, KITTY :)

She is my besfran. My kitty loooves me. She is the best cat in the world.

These two rascals are Scotch (blue bandana) and Rooster (pink bandana) They are the most playful big dogs ever and live in two big log cabins in the back yard :) They are quite pampered for outside doggies. I love them LOTS. :DDD

This is the late Julio Weldon. I miss him so much :(( He was my sweet baby boy.

Twenty-Six

There is no way possible to get a picture of my whole family. for real. ahaha. I am the black sheep, what can I say? This is just part of my mom's side. Closest I've got :)

Shuffle tap step.

Man, I miss dance.

Day 25- iPod Shuffle

1. "Drowning" - Backstreet Boys

2. "The Bo Tree" - Balance Problems

3. "Dragostea Din Tei" - O-zone (numa numa song)

4. "Logan to Government Center" - Brand New

5. "Stuck Like Glue" - Hope & Social

6. "Bigcitydreams" - Nevershoutnever

7. "Anna Marie" - Dana Falconberry

8. "Phantom Limb" - The Shins

9. "Sugar, We're Going Down" - Fall Out Boy

10. "Take Me Away" - Avril Lavigne.

This pretty much sums up my taste in music from when I was thirteen until now. I do reccommend all of this music to anyone, especially Dana Falconberry and The Shins :)

Today was complete crap. I found out that I cannot try out for the spring musical because I am going to Jazz Band All Region Tryouts next Tuesday night, where I probably don't even have a chance of making it. I figured I had a good shot in the musical. fml.

222324FASHIONNN.

22- My favorite City.

MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE! Gahhh how I love it. Beale Street is absolutely wonderful, all the time. Moreso, I love Memphis's surrounding areas such as Germantown and Lakeland because my Grandparents live in Lakeland and Wolfchase Galleria is in Germantown! There's always something to do and some place to eat there and I have always felt at home in my beloved Memphis :)

23- Favorite Vacation

My favorite vacation would certainly be from when I went to the Grand Canyon on Memorial Day Weekend in 2008. It is such a wonderful place, and absolutely gorgeous :) Next time I'll have to take some hikes down into the canyon and see the North Rim.

24- Something I've learned.

I've learned that music and time heal all wounds. Laughter soothes an aching heart, and friendship is essential to happiness. As cliche as all that is.

Lately: I have aquired an obsession with the banjo. I'm trying to teach myself how to play

and so far teaching isn't the hard part, finding things to learn (songs/finger-picking stuff) is very

very strenuous.

Because Tessa Smith has wonderful fashion sense that is also purple, I borrowed this outfit/

dress from her for our UCA admissions social last night, and since I only wore it for three hours I

wore it to school today and decided to post another fashion exposè.

Shirt&Dress: Charlotte Russe. Dog Tags: Jake Thomas <3>

I felt cute, so why not? heh.

Yesterday I went on a field trip with the CHS Ecology Club to our Waste Management MRF (recycling center). It was really interesting to actually see the way the things we send from our school and homes get to wherever they get to to be made into things we can use again :) Afterwards we went to the Lakewood Center in Little Rock to eat at CiCi's Pizza, but they weren't open when we got there so we walked on down to Saied Music and I bought two new reeds and my banjo picks. Mitchell Lurie reeds are awful, don't ever buy them if you're any good or aspire to be any good at the clarinet. They cannot hold up to the right amount of air you have to use to create a musical sound. Atrocious, simply atrocious. The two reeds I bought are Vandoren V12's, and as soon as I started playing on one, my sound improved tremendously. Unlike the stupid Mitchell Luries, these V12's augment the good in your sound, not the disgusting airy, buzzy, crap that you get with a bad reed and a talented player. I am an extremely satisfied band geek :). At CiCi's Tessa and I had a lovely lunch with Anthony and Anthony, and then bought lots of temporary tattoos. We returned to school with a bee and a frog on our faces, and had to rip them off with tape in like 2 minutes before we left for the UCA social. We are also now in charge of Operation: CHS Cafeteria. We are formulating a plan to stop using styrofoam trays to start using recyclable trays, and to bring metal silverware back to the cafeteria instead of wasting tons of plastic. There will probably be a petition involved at some point, and as soon as we have it all worked out, CHS is sure to hear about it--whether with the newspaper or CHTV, we're going to get the word out about this.

In short, yesterday was a great day :)

"Oh soldier, Oh soldier, will you marry me?"

'The Nightingale' - Irish folk.

The last thing I need

is encouragement to be vain. :)

Day 21: A picture of me as a Mad Hatter.

This is from Halloween, we went trick-or-treating. It was delightful :) A ladybug, the mad hatter, and our zombie prom queen party was awesome.

Since playlist.com doesn't have it, everyone should turn off my playlist and listen to this RIGHT NOW. I figured out the guitar line last night and I am super excited :D'

I've decided to try out for the spring musical, and if I don't make it I'll always just be back home backstage where I belong :P But anyway our show is High School Musical and I'll be auditioning for the role of Sharpay :) I think I have a decent shot! S

Since I never mentioned it earlier, The Wizard of Oz went beautifully, and was a thoroughly enjoyable show to be a part of. Being stage manager was alot of fun and I love all of my crew :)

1920

I miss being little and having tea-parties with my Paw Buddy.

As far as nicknames go (Day 20), Pants is the only really off the wall nickname I have besides Luna/Nargles. Sammi, Sam, Sambo, Samboat, and Hummingbird are ones that I'm called more often though. :)

18

Something I regret...I'd like to say that I don't regret it, honestly, but this is a subject that's hard to put into words for me.

I want to regret it, but that goes against part of my lifestyle which has something to do with trying to live without regrets.

I want to regret caring too much about someone, but I just can't. Plain and simple.

Looking Forward

15 Days left :)

Also, I'm looking forward to going to college at UCA! :D

Dream House

My dream house is one in which I can live the rest of my life in. A beautiful Grand piano in the sitting room and a big fireplace. I'd like a room with a barre and mirrors so I could teach my daughters ballet, and a big backyard where the sons can play football and we could all ride horses together. Very picturesque.

I wrote a letter to someone today. They're never going to read it. It helped me get alot out though. 'Twas quite wonderful.

I still play the songs I wrote for you.

1415

14. A picture I love. Taken by Meghan McFadden during the summer of 2010 :)

15. A Bible Verse. Proverbs 30:18-19

There are three things that amaze me--

no, four things that I don't understand:

how an eagle glides through the sky,

how a snake slithers on a rock,

how a ship navigates the ocean,

how a man loves a woman.

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL!

13 :)

1. I plan on attending UCA for four years and graduating with an Instrumental Music Education degree.

2. I am aiming for awesome scholarships for band and academics.

3. I am DETERMINED to make the UCA Colorguard, because I practically worship them.

4. I wish to be able to play the piano very well by the end of my college education.

5. I want to learn how to cook like a pro.

6. I will be a princess at prom this year. No dissappointments.

7. I want to do someone's Senior pictures on film :)

8. I want to learn how to develop film in a dark room.

9. I will spend more time with my siblings.

10. I want to put a smile on someone's face every day.

11. I want to live as if nothing has gone/is going to go wrong. Perception is everything.

12. I want an xbox 360 live. :( I want to be awesome at halo.

13. I will become awesome at guitar/ukulele soon enough.

12.

I believe that Jesus Christ is my savior, and the savior of the world. I believe in a God who loves all of his children no matter their sexual orientation, race, or things they might have done in the past. I believe that music heals all wounds, and changes the world with every note written, played, or sung. That the written word is something to cherish, and that our previous ways of living are something we should hold onto. I believe that as much as it hurts, it is better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all. I believe that Harry Potter is not a doorway to the occult but a compelling book series for all ages (Blame my research paper for that one).

I believe in love, even when I don't feel it.

Day 12: What you Believe.

Day 11- Video Killed the Radio Star

TELEVISION!

I really don't enjoy it, but these are the few exceptions to that statement.

Avatar: The Last Airbender is officially my favorite TVshow, EVER. I watched it sporadically as a child, but thanks to the Cardillo Brothers I downloaded it on my Netflix Instant Queue and am now in the process of watching the second book/season. I love it, the animation is nearly flawless and very artistic...not to mention the plot is terriffic. I am a nerd. Thank you, Tony and Harry :)

Law and Order: SVU and NCIS are the only crime-scene-y shows that I really enjoy. SVU because it's really dramatic, and NCIS because it has the best kind of humor.

^Guilty Pleasure^

It fostered my love for Ashton Kutcher, how could I deny that?

Since I mentioned Avatar, I realized I meant to blog about this quite awhile back...like during Homecoming week. Anyway, on character day I was Luna Lovegood from the Harry Potter series--'twas quite a time. Harrison was Prince Zuko from Avatar: The Last Airbender, and I got the honor of doing his scar makeup, so here's a few pictures of my practice attempt on my own face, then the process of putting it on HJ, then the final product :) Hope you enjoy!

(yeah I know it's on the wrong side, but I'm right handed..so there.)

(Mid-Scar)

(Harry's Finished "Prince Zuko" Scar)

Day 10 - My fear.

I am afraid to be alone.

Honestly, I'm very independent, but I am scared to death of living my life completely alone. I want someone to grow old with.

Also, becoming deaf or blind.

Day 9 - FRANS!

Oh Dear.

Meghan McFadden is my best friend, she gives me hope :) I love her with all my heart.

Andrea Hughes, because absolutely NOTHING is awkward between us anymore--"We've reached that Point". Ever since 2nd grade we have been the weirdest kids together and it's wonderful to see the women we are growing up to be :) I love you!

Mackenzie Herbert is one of the most lovely, talented, BEAUTIFUL, and deserving females I know. We haven't seen each other in about 3 or 4 years, but we are still as close as if she lived next door. Colorado may be a lovely place, but I will always hold a grudge against it for taking away the best friend I have ever had. I love you sooo much Zee, you deserve the best life can give you. Also, I owe you bigtime for instilling my love for Harry Potter, AND Oliver Wood does in fact, taste like Peanut Butter.

The Boys.

Jake Thomas, Josh Gardner, and Michael Godsey. I love them, 'nuff said. (Actually I wrote something about each of them individually but Blogger killed it so I'm too lazy to re-type it).

HONESTLY, this blog post does not do my huge group of friends justice. I have many best friends and they ALL deserve to be in here, but I didn't want to be typing for hours on end. I love you all, and you'll probably end up in this blog eventually.

Lately I've been extremely busy with play practice for the Wizard of Oz, I'm Stage Manager, and it's alot of fun. First show is tomorrow, and Waffle House awaits.

Our last marching performance was last Friday, and I'm extremely sad it's over, but I know I've got even bigger things awaiting me at UCA. I love the Cabot Band and Color Guard with all my heart and want to thank you all for the best marching season EVER.

Weekend. (6,7,8)

It seems that on the weekends I spend less time on my computer, so I got behind on my blog challenge...again x).

Day 6- A Picture that Makes Me Happy

I miss those times :) and that chick. baha.

Day 7- Favorite Movies

Oh ho ho :) I looooove movies. My favorite(s) are a few of the Harry Potter series, preferably the Prisoner of Azkaban and the Half-Blood Prince. I am absolutely STOKED for The Deathly Hallows on Nov. 19th, and I WILL be dressing up for the premier. As for the Disney Realm, Sleeping Beauty and Beauty and the Beast are my all-time favorites. My favorite animated film EVER would have to be Anastasia, which was a Fox feature film sort of thing. Other movies I reccommend to everyone would be Howl's Moving Castle, Everything is Illuminated, Koyaanisquatsi, Donnie Darko, and Requiem for a Dream. I could go on an on, but those are the ones I thought imperative to mention.

Day 8- A Place I've Traveled To

So I've been to DC! :) it was pretty awesome. I've also been to the Grand Canyon, and it was even more awesome. I just don't have a picture of it on my mother's laptop.

Day 5 - Siblinggssss! :D

I have the BEST little brother in the world.

His name is Zachary, and he makes the universe shine brighter every day.

Zachary is 10 years old, and he was born on June 2nd, 2000. He is the light of my life, and the greatest little boy anyone will ever meet. He plays football and even though he's one of the smallest boys on the team, he can hold his own (he gets it from me) :P. He makes me so proud with everything that he does and he deserves the most wonderful life God has planned for him. We like to play ninjas vs. hobos and make up code-names and chase each other around the yard, he also likes to play xbox and we used to watch Power rangers ALL THE TIME when he was into that....not to say I wasn't. I love him more than anyone on this earth and I would give anything to be able to see him every day but High School really gets in the way :/ . So to you Zach,

I love you, I'll see you soon.

Love,

Sissy.

Furthermore! I have a sister on the way, most of you know. Her name is Mabel Grace, and she's going to be the most beautiful baby girl on earth :).

Day 3 & 4, because I'm behind x)

Day 3- Your first love.

Honestly, my first love was a boy named Harrison (I didn't realize this until it was too late). Things didn't work out the way I wanted them to, but we're great friends and he's a wonderful person :)
That's all that needs to be said about that.

Day 4- My Parents

My mother, Noelle Weldon Linch, is awesome. We don't get along all the time, but we love each other and have tons of great memories :)
My stepfather, Kimble Linch, is also awesome. He's a funny dude. I kinda like him. :P

I feel bad for not having more to say, but both of these things are more on the personal side for me. Sorry for the lackluster post x) I've been way too busy lately.

Day 2 - Life Through Lenses.

Day two of the 30 Day blog challenge! The meaning behind my blog name.

Life Through Lenses

Obviously, I'm into photography. It's something I love, but I know I could live without at the same time if I had to give it up for some assanine reason.

The reason I know I could give it up is simply because even without a camera, I have my eyes to capture those same moments in my memories that would have been on film.

I live my life frame by frame, completely in the moment it seems. I live my life through what I see through my eyes, which are the best lenses I could ever ask for. :)

Today I had a strange phenomenon occur though. I lost my peripheral vision in my left eye during college algebra as a prequel to the migraine creeping up on me. It was absolutely terrifying. The first thing I worried about was my music. How could I live if I couldn't read music anymore? Well obviously, I'd learn to play strictly by ear and memorize, but it would be so much harder. I was seriously worried about going blind. x)

Luckily, it went away and just gave me a really horrid headache.

Our first Technical rehearsal for the Wizard of Oz was today! I am one of two stage managers, and absolutely loving it :) It's going to rock!

Thanks to Emily Henard, the blog now has a playlist! So I'm going to stop putting music in each post unless I just feel like it. If I've got something I would like you to hear, it will be in the playlist :)

30 Day Challenge!

So I saw a few other blogs doing this, and thought it seemed interesting to do since I really am just too busy to blog about things I've been doing right now, but I still want to blog. Here's my motivation! Thank you to AlissaClaire for this :) I know I'm late on the pickup, but whatever.

Day 1 - Introduction and 15 Interesting Facts

Well Hi there, I'm Samantha :) I'm 17, and there's alot more to me than I can put into a single sentence or paragraph.

1. I work at McDonald's, and despite the fact that I come home really angry sometimes, I kinda like it.

2. I'm a growing musician, and I wanna be the very best...like no-one ever was.

3. Actually, I just want to be the very best Band Director like no-one ever was, but Mr. Trusty and Mr. Tenney are giving me a pretty high precedent to beat.

4. I'm most likely attending UCA next fall, definitely as an Instrumental Music Education Major :)

5. I am a co-captain of our Marching Band's flagline, and I love every single one of those girls with all my heart.

6. I am a photographer. I want to convert my closet into a dark room, but it doesn't have a sink. /sigh.

7. I like vintage things...I have a small vintage camera collection, and a small library of vinyl that I delight in listening to :)

8. I really don't like clothes they sell in big stores so much anymore. I have Meghan McFadden's impeccable taste wearing off on me to thank for that :)

9. I love Jesus. He's cool

10. I find beauty in everyone and everything, it makes my life much more enjoyable.

11. I like to draw.

12. It's really hard to sweep me off my feet: there are two who have accomplished it, but then dropped me off a cliff.

13. I don't like having enemies. Too much effort put into hating someone is just wasted effort in my opinion.

14. I'm really just a big nerd.

15. I love my friends as if they were my family, and my family's pretty rockin' too. :)

So there's day one :) feel free to join!

Day 1-Introduce, recent picture, 15 interesting facts

Day 2-Meaning behind your blog name
Day 3-Your first love
Day 4-Your parents
Day 5-Your siblings
Day 6-A picture of something that makes you happy
Day 7-Favorite movies
Day 8-A place you've traveled to
Day 9-A picture of your friends
Day 10-Something you're afraid of
Day 11-Favorite tv shows
Day 12-What you believe
Day 13-Goals
Day 14-A picture you love
Day 15-Bible verse
Day 16-Dream house
Day 17-Something you're looking forward to
Day 18-Something you regret
Day 19-Something you miss
Day 20-Nicknames
Day 21-Picture of yourself
Day 22-Favorite city
Day 23-Favorite vacation
Day 24-Something you've learned
Day 25-Put your iPod on shuffle, first 10 songs
Day 26-Picture of your family
Day 27-Pets
Day 28-Something that stresses you out
Day 29-3 Wishes
Day 30-a picture

Music: "Well Thought Out Twinkles" by Silversun Pickups :)

So you can see what I can't say.

"I'm dyin' here"

Today was simply inspiring. I went through alot of emotions and had alot pent up, and I took it all out on my sketchbook with Frau Eckhart's awesome pens she lent me.

Chelsea, in freshman comp sitting next to me. I am very proud of this.

Cartoonish doodle of myself. I look like a Polaroid-bot.

Nonetheless, today was emotional. Nothing was really triggering it, but I was just feeling everything at once. I heard this song a few days ago, but I just downloaded it tonight because I thought of it today and I really feel this right now.

Homecoming was crazy crazy crazyy...haha. It was thoroughly enjoyable as my senior homecoming though. Everything went well, no wrecks this year :)

Cabotfest was pretty cool, went with the girls and had an interesting night :P What with "spiked lemonade" and all. They were hilarious :P

So not much to say for this post, but I felt the need to vent/share. I'm off to draw some more now. Hope everyone had a great day :)