Idol Talk

I am quite surprised that Adam did not win American Idol last night. Although Adam was not my favorite out of the whole competition (Allison was), I think he deserved to win between him and Kris. I mean, COME ON, even Kris himself admitted that!

Anyway, I won't rant anymore about it. It's all a little funny. But I did want to show this performance from Adam that I really really liked. And I had higher standards going into the song, since I adore Sam Cooke. He can't beat Sam, but he did put a nice spin on the song:

Cause I'm an Idiot, and I'm Your Boyfriend...

I love Jimmy Fallon. Love. I love that man-boy in all his awkward humor. Oh yesss. So, I played his song for a friend over the weekend, who said, "Wow, that was great! I never heard that before."
Never heard it before?!?

So here is that song, in all it's glory, in case you haven't heard it (random side note: Zooey Deschanel is in this video too, but with blonde hair):

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Four Stars, For Sure

I saw two great movies over this past weekend (both older releases)...I gots to share them with you!

The first one I'm pretty sure the majority of you have seen: Girl, Interrupted. It was a unique, outstanding, brilliant movie. And I always end up loving Winona Ryder. Why is she so great? If I were into chicks, pretty sure she'd be my type.

The second movie I am more stoked about, because I watched it this morning. ha. It's called Run Fatboy Run. If you haven't seen it, you need to. The plot is not necessarily unique; in fact, it's fairly predictable. But that's not a bother. Because the beauty of this movie is in the details. The humor is flawlessly executed. I was crackin' up! And this movie has real heart. I couldn't help but saw "awwwwwww..." during many scenes. And guys, take note, this movie is a unisex film. You'll love it as well. RENT IT!

Besides those two four-star movies, I had a four-star weekend.

On Saturday, I went to little Isaiah's game. He was stoked that I was there, which made me smile. These kids were so small, they hit off the tee and didn't even keep score. Can you say cute? Scratch that, it's freakin' adorable. Wish I could adopt that kid, but I'm pretty sure his parents would miss him.

On Sunday, I went to the Getty Museum in Los Angeles! Fantastico! How can you go wrong with some Monet, Degas, Renoir and Van Gogh? Can you tell I love impressionism? I spent 5 hours at this place. There was tons to see. I also got a kick out of seeing the antique furniture from the 1600-1700s. That stuff is ballin.'

Cutie with the Glasses went too. I'm still trying to figure him out a little. I like spending time with him, but I'm not sure if I can see us together. I won't date someone until it's clear that I should date them. But again, I over-analyze, so I'll just let it alone. When things are right, I'll know.

Anyway, like I said, four-stars. I can't complain. I'll just sit back and eat some popcorn and enjoy the view.

*Forgot to mention: I got that summer camp job. Yay for getting a tan!

Overgrown Children, the Whole Lot of Us

I took a break from reading High Fidelity from when I started it a couple months ago...but I have resumed.

Can I just say Nick Hornby is a brilliant writer? I love this passage from the book:

None of us is young anymore, but what has just taken place could have happened when I was sixteen, or twenty, or twenty-five. We got to adolescence and just stopped dead; we drew up the map and left the boundaries exactly as they were.

Basically, that is dead on. And I see it everyday on the playground working with kids. Battles, fights, wars that you've swear you've seen on the nightly news acted out by adults. "I've got the better toy" turns into "I've got the better car" as we age. It's all silly, it's all childish. We are overgrown children.

Yeah, I'll admit that we've matured a little. We've become supposedly smarter, read more books by world-renown philosophers, and contemplated the meaning of life. But when it comes down to the essence of a fight, in the heat of the moment, we a act almost exactly the way we did when we were 5.

Another example: this little boy Isaiah invited to me to his baseball game this Saturday, cause he really wants me to come see him play. He's one of my favorite little boys ever, so of course I am overjoyed by this request. But why else am I happy? This little boy is including me. He's inviting me to his "birthday party," so to speak. You never wanted to be the kid that wasn't invited.

I'm not a psychologist, but this stuff is not too hard to figure out. And it all makes me laugh a little. And makes me feel crazy for ever thinking I am an actual adult.

Adventures of Ashley and the Creeper

Two nights ago, I was at a cafe, and this emo looking boy sitting at the next table turns to me and stares right at me.

Obviously, I'm a bit creeped out, but I avoid eye contact and continue chatting with my friends. Then he leans over and asks, "Do you dye your hair?"

I answer, "Umm...yes."

The guy, whom I shall call Creeper, replies," Oh. Well what color is it naturally?"

Me, getting frustrated: " A little darker."

Creeper: "Well, I used to be a blonde, but I dyed my hair black. Does it fit me?"

Me: "Uhhhhh, sure."

Creeper, holding up a hand to wave: "Ok, well bye then."

WTF?!? Like, what the hell was that? The most disturbing thing was the severity of this guy's eye contact, like he was trying to steal my soul or something. You can't have my soul, creeper!!!

The last time I had an awkward convo like this was when some chick asked to take a picture of my eye.

I attract weirdos sometimes.

Space, the Final Frontier...

STAR TREK WAS AWESOME!!!!!

Maybe I am biased, since I used to watch Star Trek with my dad as a kid, but seriously it was AWESOME! I usually don't comment on graphics in a movie, but these graphics were outstanding.

And Spock is a baller, nuff' said.

Oh, I am nerd and proud of it!

New things happening in my life:

• I'm finally moving out. Oh man...it's been almost a year since I moved back in with the parents. Time to say goodbye again! July 1st I'm moving into a house with some good friends of mine. It's a nice house, and the rent is decent.

• I had an interview this morning for a summer camp job. I believe it went well. It'll be a good break at the beach (yep, literally on the beach). And I'll be working with more kiddies.

• I'm taking the CBEST in June. Thus my work towards becoming a credentialed teacher beginnith. I've heard horror stories about this process. We shall see if this is the path I want to take for sure. For now it's a go!

Life is...a set of taking chances, and figuring out which way to take. A guess and check process, if you will. It is sometimes annoying, sometimes exciting.

What a Mighty Good Man

Have come to the conclusion that I could adopt the two cutest little boys at my work, never marry, and be completely content with that. Because I'm pretty sure husbands are more work than kids, so can I just skip that step?

Hehehe. All I'm sayin' is...I don't need a man. They are good for somethings, but I don't need 'em.

That's a good place to be, I think. And yeah, I'm diggin' on Cutie with the Glasses, but that's all it is so far...I will not be one of those girls that lets a man dictate/run/control her every thought and life.

Besides, there are two little kindergartners that have my heart.

So Sad That I Never Knew

A coworker recently suggested Jeff Buckley to me, based on the music I like now. I had never heard of him before. Dude, he is honestly amazing. His songs are a menacing blend of pain and other-worldliness. You can literally feel the heartache in these songs...

I found out that Jeff, in fact, died in a drowning incident.

If you were unaware of Jeff's greatness like me, take a listen and tell me what you think:

The A in Ashley is for Awesome

A short post.

Cutie with the Glasses sent me a text message yesterday that simply said:

Ashley...you are awesome.

I will not try to dissect this a million different ways (because chicks totally do that). But I will take this compliment and realize that there might be a little something there. I'm interested in this guy, and I like this path...a slow but rewarding path. I really like being patient. After not being patient (and careful) with my heart's desires for J, I really got burned.

There ain't no rush. Let's see if he thinks I'm worth waiting for, and vice versa.

You think you's a wise guy?

This past month I've had three people tell me I'm wise, and a strong girl. And they used those exact words.

Wise? Seriously? I don't often feel wise. And I've made some pretty dumb ass decisions. I think I just must give good advice, cause I'm not so sure all my actions have reflected wisdom.

And strong? haha, not sure about that one.

If I am either of those two, it is because I've learned from the past. And when I learn from the past, I REALLY learn. I don't repeat the same mistake twice. Nahhhh-uhhhh.

Anyway, whether or not I can believe those compliments, I am still flattered by them. *blush*

This weekend was great weekend. I had no real plans, so everything was kinda spontaneous. This lead to ending up at an awesome beach bonfire where we played Ultimate Cabbage (yes, you heard right) and watched some fireworks going off at Sea World next to the beach. I always love those fireworks that are gold and sparkly, and look like they are raining down magic dust to the earth below.

The next day, I kid you not, I went to a hippie fair at Balboa Park. I've been to a hippie fair once before--the Summer Solstice in Santa Barbara. And when I mean hippie fair, I mean vegan food, long flowly skirts, grown adults dressed as fairies, "Zen" booths and the like. So maybe it's not officially called "Hippie Fair 2009" or anything. But close enough. Why be PC about it?

Overall a good weekend with conversations about spirituality and life. I am...refreshed. Just realized I sound like a hippie. Go figure.

Cause you're the only song I want to hear.

Where soul meets body, indeed.

DEATH CAB ROCKED!!!!!!! It's the one concert I've been to where the band sounded the most like the album...Ben is a great singer...and a great writer...well, he's just GREAT.

Can I say much more? It's too hard to put a concert into words...