If it's meant to work out, then it will. The universe will unfold as it should.

welcome to the sound of...

There isn't really any other album that I love so completely as Panic at the Disco's "Pretty.Odd." It's really a work of utter genius. They broke up around July last year because of 'creative differences' and that makes me sad for innumerable reasons, but they couldn't possibly have produced something better than this had they stayed together. This album has a corner of my heart reserved for it and it has gotten me through many happy, sad, and angry moments. There isn't another song that can make me smile and instantly cheer me up like "Folkin' Around", and so far in my musical encounters there isn't a more beautiful song than "When The Day Met The Night" or "Northern Downpour". Please, please, please, look up this album and give it a listen. You really won't be disappointed because it is beautiful, sad, happy, whimsical, and utterly, utterly, magical.

Another wonderful recommendation for these rainy winter days is "Umbrellas and Elephants" by Cinematic Sunrise. Listen to the lyrics and you'll understand why.

rainspiration

I was riding today and got soaked, and along with my body warmth the rain also took my inspiration. Usually it's the other way around, isn't it? Something about the weather chucking a hissy puts poetry in everyone's mind. Well not today. So instead I leave you with this.

http://chevalamant.tumblr.com/ In case you're an idiot, that's my Tumblr. You should check it out and if it peaks your interest, follow me because I occasionally put up pictures of half-naked people and/or cool lyrics.

The picture above is Misha Collins. He's beautiful in almost every way and you should watch some clips of Castiel from Supernatural on Youtube and you'll discover why I love him as much as I do. The lovely Kate whose blog is located here (http://kimikokate.blogspot.com) alerted me to a goldmine of Misha Collins photos and we spent hours fangirling over his amazingness last night. So jump on the Misha train before it leaves the station.

And lastly, I had something else to say but I forgot. Shit.

saving you the trouble

So I was reading the fabulous Obnoxious Owl (check her out) and she gives great advice. Seeing as she's about nine years older than me I thought welllllll.... not all of her advice is applicable to girls and guys my age. So I thought, because I'm so clearly knowledgeable and cultured, and I also know a procrastination method when I see one, here's some stuff I learnt over the past couple years and I think you should know too. Enjoy :)

` Go to an art gallery. Even if it doesn’t make any sense whatsoever. Get cultured.

` Buy at least one pair of suede heels in your lifetime.

` Don’t wear said heels in the rain.

` Find out what bikini type is right for your body. Not every shape suits everyone.

` Watch It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia. It may not be your sense of humour, but it’s a work of genius and deserves to be appreciated.

` Grab a camera and get out there and shoot the world before it shoots you.

` When applying false eyelashes, let the glue dry for a little bit before applying. It took me ages to figure this out.

` Find your signature scent.

` People are never thinking about you. They’re thinking about themselves, just like you are. Quit the paranoia.

` Sing in the shower. I recommend Hannah Montana.

` Fake tan never works. Moisturizers that gradually build up to a tan are the way to go.

` If you’re self-conscious about your body, get to work on it. I promise you that if you get into shape and show off your body, you’ll feel a thousand times better than if you just avoid showing skin your whole life.

` Learn to love yourself.

` Get a Tumblr. Quick, easy, and they make you look awesome. Collect beautiful pictures.

` Don’t put mascara on your bottom lashes.

` On the topic of mascara, throw it out after 3 months. Trust me on this one. It will expire and you won’t know it and you’ll keep applying it and wonder why your eyes are so red and weepy all the time. Gross.

` Go to youshouldhaveseenthis.com and brush up on the trends of the 21^st century otherwise you’ll have no idea what everyone is talking about.

So there you go. Advice I wish I had known a year ago. Tell me if it's useful or if I'm just boring you to death. :)

asshole

On a scale of one to Will Smith, I'd say I'm pretty fucking smooth. Not to blow my own horn or anything but I'd like to think I have a way with words. I've been told I write nicely and I'm fairly sure my English Lit teacher is in love with me. But there is this one guy that I sound like a total idiot around. I look like a complete fool and my God, it's like I'm back in year seven with a crush on the pretty Asian boy who is quiet and intelligent. It's not even like I try that hard, in any circumstance. But with this one guy I can't say anything right, it's like I forget how to speak and the words just trip off my tongue and fall in a mess on the floor. And shit it's embarrassing.

showjumping

It's kind of hard to understand why clinging to the back of a huge beast while it jumps over ridiculously high obstacles is so enjoyable to some people, unless you're actually one of the people who happen to enjoy it. While I admit that it causes large amounts of pain, stress, and fear, jumping has to be the best kind of sport in the entire world. The power needed to complete a course is incomprehensible. Even tiny little Pony Club courses are full of fear. When you're approaching the jump, the horse gets excited, and after you land they basically go skitz. It's your job to somehow take control of that excitement and power, and direct it so that you jump everything safely and properly. It's so much easier said than done. Pointing at a grid and saying 'jump it' seems like an easy instruction, but what non-riders don't realise is the amount of shit you have to think about. Approach, where to take off, whether your horse's rhythm is even, whether their strides are too long or too short, your position in the saddle, rein contact, leg contact, balance, straightness, flexion and bend around the corners... and bounces are just all of that terror times two. The exact same pattern repeated in a millisecond. But somehow, when you're actually going over the jump, everything melts away and you don't have to think. You just do it. And no matter how high the jump or how excitable the horse, that's exactly what you do it for. The thrill, the fear, the adrenalin... the wonderful feeling of getting it right.

chase you down until you love me

I'm probably late with this but just in case you haven't heard this, this is Greyson Chance's cover of Paparazzi by Lady Gaga. Keep in mind this kid is twelve. It's absolutely beautiful.

insanely badass

This is one of my all-time favourite songs, it's called Lux Aeterna by Clint

Mansell and it's from the movie Requiem for a Dream. This cover

is so badass is should be illegal.

Caution: When listening to this, your ears may have an orgasm.

Just a fair warning.

the new face of failure

I am so insanely ridiculously hungry right now. That's not relevant to anything I'm about to say. Just thought I would share.

So I was sitting at lunch today with my two gorgeously wonderful best friends, chatting whilst cramming for my maths test next period. The picture above indicates rather well how we are all feeling. Year Twelve is raping my time, energy and life right now. I was a bit naive going into my final year of high school. I think I can be quoted as saying "It's just like Year Eleven" in the first week. This is terribly, terribly wrong. Year Twelve is hell. HELL.

I have never felt so much stress. I actually think I'm developing an ulcer. It's ridiculous. Today I had three assessments, including a test and an oral. I failed the test soo hard it's scary. I'm literally drowning in work.

I'm in a super bad mood and it's wrecking my ability to write coherently so I'm going to finish this boring-ass post before it's too late. :)

grease

So last night I got invited by some friends at Sacred Heart College to come and see their school production of Grease. Sacred Heart isn't a performing arts school so I was expecting it to be lame but I went along anyway because one of their best friend's was a T-Bird and we were all going to support him. I had forgotten that it was a private school, therefore a lot more time, money and effort would have been put into the production.

It was incredible. Their stage was in their gym and it had full-on wings; I was so jealous. The gym was packed because it was closing night but we had really good seats. The props were amazing, the stage setup was awesome, and the actors were incredible. The singing was fabulous. It was a mindblowing performance and I really really wish I had been in it!

On a side note, if you want to be able to walk, I wouldn't recommend showjumping and hockey in the same weekend. It causes extreme pain, blisters, cramped muscles and general unhappiness and misery. So yeah. Take my advice on this one people. I may never walk again.

intellect

There is a guy who's been in my class for five years and I've never really noticed him. I always got him mixed up with another boy - that's how indifferent I was to him. Today I discovered his blog. And it's amazing. He is the kind of intellect that you want to sit down with a huge cup of something hot and chat about everything. The world, literature, music, politics, what happens after you die, shoes and ships and sealing wax. I don't think I've ever met someone so fascinating. To be fair, he also infuriates me. He has a very superior attitude towards the 'uneducated masses' and I kind of want to punch him in the face. I also want to kiss him because I think it would be one of those kisses that you think back to when you remember all the fabulous times.

The problem is, he's as indifferent to me as I was to him. Damn.

from barbies to boys

When I was a little kid I had this incredible ability to take a lifeless doll and invent the most fascinating scenarios, intertwine relationships and create an entire world inside my bedroom. I would spread out clothes and houses and accessories and have the 'main' Barbie live her life, all the while interacting with other Barbies, fall in love with Ken and then have to overcome the scheming of the manipulative Barbie who was trying to steal Ken from my Barbie. I would spend hours upon hours playing with these dolls and I was never bored. I could think of endless plots and conversations and happenstances to amuse myself.

Then over the years I got busier and had less time for my Barbies. And suddenly, one day I went to play with them again and the magic had just... gone. I couldn't think of a single conversation and the plotlines were boring and unimaginative. It was like the light switch in my mind had just been turned off, or maybe the bulb had blown. I just couldn't get the magic back. And eventually I got too old to keep pretending I was having fun with the dolls and went to Ikea with my mum to buy big plastic boxes, packed Barbie and her accessories and clothes and houses away, snapped the lid on and put the boxes at the back of my cupboard.

Playdates became parties and Barbie became boys. I didn't have time for anything except homework, and on the occasions that I went out for fun, we didn't play Pass the Parcel and eat cake; we played Truth or Dare and drank Smirnoff. The scenarios of cheating boyfriends, backstabbing 'friends', and the sudden realization of SEX, that I had once played out with my dolls, began playing out in my own life. I became Barbie. Suddenly I was the one who was having boy trouble; I was the one who would have to figure out who was manipulating me to get their own way.

Gradually over the years, the magic of Barbie became the trials and tribulations of adolescence.

Thinking back on it now, my years of playing with dolls set me up to understand how to handle the situations being thrown at me now. Having played them out already in my head, now I know that no matter how hard or difficult or impossible it may seem, you can hold your head up and deal with the situation with pride and dignity. It isn't the end of the world. Whatever you are facing, you will eventually get over it and have to deal with something else. Don't get stuck on something for too long; all too soon there will be other shit to deal with.

Keep calm and stay classy: a lesson Barbie taught me and something I won't forget.