Harry Potter and the Midnight Showing

So I saw Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince at midnight.
The movie was really good. The audience... notsomuch.

It was FILLED with teenagers. Not even the relatively intelligent ones; these were the obnoxiously annoying type. There were countless antics in the two hours I sat in the theater whilst waiting for the film to start.

One highlight of the experience was when a group of five teenagers actually performed their version of The Mysterious Ticking Noise. Even though we really couldn't hear them very well across the massive theater room, it was still a pretty great idea.

At one point, four girls started running back and forth across the theater in a feeble attempt to get everyone to do the wave. It was really pretty embarassing.

Perhaps the most annoying thing happened when the lights started to go down and the trailers started. The very first trailer was that of New Moon, the sequel to Twilight. Dear Lord. I have NEVER heard so many girls shrieking for no apparent reason. It actually made me disappointed with the intelligence of the average public-schooled female. I mean, honestly. I actually booed a couple times, and was consequently hit in the arm several times by my friend's little sister. But it was still very much worth it. :)

I'm probably not going to see the next film at midnight, for fear of repeating the same experience.

Mischief Managed.

Tupperware Copilot

So I hopped into my mom's car for a quick errand-run when I noticed this odd bit of kitchenware occupying the passenger seat:

"Tupperware Copilot" would be an awesome band name.

2:37

Halfway because I chose to and half because there were certain obstacles anyway, I didn't make it to the midnight showing of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. That night, after I had already fallen asleep, I got this text message:

Clearly I have entered a bizarre alternate universe where I actually sleep at night and Diana is a Sci-Fi fanatic.

Growing Up

Everyone's got something they grew up with; something that defined their childhood, and, therefore, defined them as people. Sports, dancing, music, art, etc.
For me, it was Star Trek.
And Star Wars.
And Superman.
But we're talking about Star Trek here.

Star Trek was something in my blood. Both my mom's dad and my dad's mom were huge Trek fans, and their fandom easily spread down the genetic line to me. Trek is an ideal; the ultimate expression of that heroic "we will prevail" nature of the human spirit. While highly idealized and somewhat humanistic, Trek is still something special. It calls upon its viewers to put aside their differences and work towards a better future. (Or, alternatively, to blow the living hell out of whatever alien is in the way. Whichever works best)
There's something odd about a well-told Trek story that makes me feel like a giddy five-year-old. A good space battle can gently rock me to sleep like a baby. (though from what I've heard, babies don't actually sleep peacefully for very long, so that phrase really doesn't make sense, does it?)

Lately I've been looking through the list of Trek episodes and reminiscing about the way I viewed those stories as a child. Now that I'm older and more self-aware, I'm actually learning a lot about myself as a person by studying those stories and comparing my beliefs to the ideals portrayed in those not-so-subtle moral tales. I don't always agree with Trek's messages (a little too much political correctness and general liberalism for me), but a lot of it is still very uplifting. It's that concept of hope for a better future. Space travel, world peace, and photon torpedoes.
In the last year, I've had to deal with a lot of challenges to the truths that I hold dear. With seemingly everything and everyone screaming at me to give in to the world's ways, it's only when I take a stand for those standards and beliefs that I can actually see things clearly. Star Trek is one of those rare stories that makes me think for myself; to examine what I truly believe about the way things are and the way I should act.

Make no mistake: I don't confuse Trek or anything else of its kind with reality. If it came down to something (or someone) important, I'd throw away everything that has unfortunately come to define me.
But, as a fictional story and an ideal, Star Trek is pretty awesome.

Life Frustrations

I'm getting frustrated with myself.

Last week I filled out a facebook "make-your-own quiz" about myself (as many of my other friends had done). While I could think of a few things that were interesting (I was born in Hawaii, I kicked David a few weeks ago, etc), at least half my questions were geek-related. ("At what age did I see Star Wars?" "Which of these types of sci-fi apocalypses am I most concerned about?")

That really, really bothers me. It means that I've actually come to define myself based on what geek franchises I've become interested in. Back in high school, I was "the Superman geek" because I wore a Superman T-shirt (that didn't even really look good on me) every third time I left the house. Now I don't really do that. Ever.

I can carry a conversation about virtually anything. Politics, economics, literary analysis, etc. However, sci-fi and fantasy seem to be my "default" thing.

I often worry both that I spend too much time in the sci-fi realm and that others will see me only on that surface level. I've been blessed with rather insightful friends, however, so it's not all bad.

Still, though. It's frustrating to me. I want to be a writer (since that's evidently what I'm extremely gifted at), but I could end up being the next Stephen King or end up making no money at all. I need to be able to support myself and my family, so this is a bit of a dilemma. If I can't get to the point where I'm self-sufficient and ready to support a family, then I'm not going to marry the as-of-yet unknown love of my life (which is what I want more than anything else in the world).

Oh well.

So I saw Star Trek for the Fifth time

And that was one time too many. x_x

Beloved

My friends sometimes berate my dating life (or lack thereof).

But this is what I believe:
It would be wrong for me to date someone who I know is not the type of person I'll marry. I'd be giving away a little bit of my heart to someone that I know I'd just be leaving eventually. It wouldn't be fair to me, her, or God. I'm not saying that dating is wrong (definitely not!), but the world would have me think that I'm supposed to "play the field" or "get into relationships so that I can learn." That is wrong on so many levels; it's like Satan himself came up with it. Yeah, you're supposed to go and become romantically involved so that you can learn to be better romantically involved? No. God is the one who tells us how to act and how to relate to people. He'll set things up so that I'll meet the right girl (and maybe I already have!). If I want to learn how to love, all I need to do is turn back to 1 Corinthians 13.
In another ten years, when I'm married, I can look back at my life and say that I did it right; that I waited until the right moment, with the right person.
When my wife asks me "who was your first kiss?" I'll turn to her and say "You, my beloved."