Quasi-ninja Entertainment

Reminiscent of adventure packed, third-grade, “choose-your-ending” readers, Hero is a repetitive, over stylized martial arts spoof. Un-named and enigmatic, the samurai-warrior appears in the first scene and immediately displays his aggrandized mastery of judo. Hero, zealous for world renown fame, easily accomplishes his mission and defeats the three assassins, only for the story to rewind and revisit the epic narrative in new color schemes. Four colors, one hue prominent in each retelling, are used to show the emotions of the person describing the action sequence. However well coordinated the colors are to the feelings they are trying to provoke, they are distracting and discomfit the viewer by inundating the mind with an overload of stimulation. Moreover this film is chalk full of ridiculous phenomenons--lightening-fast reactions that are not humanly possible without special effects; ambivalent characters that vacillate between right and wrong; men flying through the air, brandishing otherwise unwieldable ornate katanas. Along with the fantastical, flawless choreography, these unrealistic elements turn the noble and manly qualities of ancient hand-to-hand skirmishes into bizarre ballet-like dances. Not to mention the irrelevant details that are added indiscriminately to the subsequent recurrent plots. Hero’s computerized reality is inordinately pathetic.

This was my last recitation before I go home for fall break! yay!!!

it's a Spencer recipe

Yesterday, Melissa, a fellow freshman came over and we baked all afternoon. We made Cake Balls, Cinnamon-Cappuchino Scones, Soft Pretzels and Spicy and Sweet Mustard dipping sauce. After that we made a mexican dinner: Green Chile Enchiladas, Mexican Rice, and Sopapillas.

The Sopas were a lot of fun to make. I used Daddy's recipe and they turned out beautifully--after I figured out how to measure a "quailswallow" (one of Daddy precise culinary measurements). I was teaching Mel how to use yeast in out various recipes so I was very happy that they worked so well (it was actually the first time I had made them on my own).

thanks to Mel for the pictures!

half way to 40

Yes, I am 20 now. I feel old, grown up, and supposedly mature but somehow naive and callow at the same time. How does that work? Can you explain? What an adventure life is, taking me places I never dreamed I'd be and blessing me so lavishly. God's grace is so mind-boggling awesome!

Curtis was amazing and pulled off a surprise birthday party for me. =D We talked, ate cake and ice cream, and watched Emma.

5 flavors of ice cream, bananas, m&m's, nuts, chocolate chips, sprinkles, and syrups. delicious!!

they were all so sweet. here's happiness:

I also received a box from home and cards from dear family and friends...so good!

Declamations are a weekly 2-hour torture session that all the freshmen participate in. We all write roughly 250 words and present them on stage to our class (50ish students and 2 teachers/critics). If you can't guess, I don't like these at all. The writing isn't bad, but my presentation is kinda a flop--I get so nervous and I can't talk very loud...lots of room for improvement there. I thought I'd share today's assignment with y'all (persuasive argument against something):

When was the last time you carried on a conversation of any substance with a friend? And no, that does not include Facebook chats.

Used properly, Facebook is a convenient photo-sharing interface. But, have you considered what else you divulge via the facade of pop-culture in the world of cyberspace? Not only do you see your friend’s weirdest faces that you wish you had never seen and learn about the grossest food combinations, you also publicize personal information for the world’s exploitation, and spend hours perusing random people’s pages--admit it, you don’t know a fourth of the people you “friend” or the people in the photos you check frequently. The majority of status updates are mental blurbs of stupidity, a steady flow of uninteresting happenings, or, most exasperating, un-cited quotes.

This evening, instead of logging into your account and submersing yourself in the shallow world of computer-nourished peer-dependance and a deluge of “likes” on your most recent one-liner, break out of your Facebook mania and live in the real world; get some fresh air, drink coffee with a friend (not a text book), or write a letter--yes, snail mail does still exist.