The Trip to England is ON!

After a year of setbacks and saving money, I finally have my flight and hotel reservations for London! My trip is from July 12- July 30th.

Due to financial constraints, my friend I was supposed to travel with can’t go. SO I’M GOING ALONE. (Heads up to all of you murderers and dirty people- Grandma is making me take a “rape whistle”; don’t make me use it.) During my stay I’ll be staying at a small bed and breakfast (cheap room, no en suite bathroom), and will probably go on a handful of the London Walks tours. (Definitely the Jack the Ripper tour, and most likely the Stonehenge and Cambridge tours as well.) I’ll go to museums and the like, and will be meeting my pal Jackie! (If she can get off of work.)

Any suggestions on places I absolutely shouldn’t miss this first trip? Let me know please!

IT’S HAPPENING! IT’S REALLY HAPPENING!

The English Flag

Also, look for a blog I’ll be writing for BritFancy, which should be up in late June!

Follow Friday

I’m pretty big into the website Twitter. It’s simple, there are no ads, and it’s free. I’ve made my fair share of friends on the website, and every Friday there is a tradition of suggesting people to follow. It’s called Follow Friday. I participate every week, wanting to help my friends get more followers, and they usually return the gesture. Sometimes it seems like a chore, and people may think I only do it because I have to, and don’t mean it when I suggest people to follow them. This isn’t the case. I mean it when I suggest people to follow someone. They may not have thousands of followers and be hugely famous, and they may not tweet about deep, philosophical subjects all the time, but they will engage you in conversation, be it silly or serious. They tweet about their life, and what’s happening in it. (Mostly.) They tweet about what music they’re listening to, what TV show their watching, what politician they’re currently disappointed in. Isn’t this the point of Twitter? I suppose Twitter means something different to everyone.

I have three people I’d like to recommend to you with a few words about why I’m such a fan of theirs.

1. @Harrisonfan aka Ann Bandolik. She’s in high school band, likes Monty Python and the Beatles, and a good book. How could I not be a fan of hers? We often tweet each other about random things, from politics to Monty Python, and it’s always a good time. She takes time to reply to everyone. Twitter BFF!

2. @ElizabethR1533 aka Jackie Crossley. She’s English, likes food, Monty Python and the Beatles, and once made me an “honourary Brit”. OF COURSE SHE’S COOL. She’s a nurse for the NHS, and is always fun to have a conversation with. We have plans to meet this summer. Woo!

3. @bobsteele777 aka Bob Steele. My favourite Canadian who isn’t Christopher Plummer. He’s a huge Monty Python fan, and is always a blast to “talk” to. I always have a smile on my face after a conversation with this guy. (We’re also having a “poke war” on Facebook. I will win. Eventually.)

Those are my 3 favorite people on Twitter. Everyone has their own favorites.

Take a Look

I love the fact that 2 of my favorite actors have taken such similar photos. Though, Michael Palin’s has a more humourous tone. Looking for pictures like this of other actors as well.

Anthony Stewart Head

Michael Palin

Dinner For Six!

If you could have dinner with 5 people, alive or dead, real or fictional, who would you choose?

Here’s who I’d pick, with some runners-up.

1. John Lennon- Why not? The man is a legend. Musically gifted, all about promoting peace, and just to speak to him would be an amazing experience.

People for Peace

2. J.K. Rowling- She wrote the books that made reading cool again. Screw Twilight.

JKR

3. Robin Williams- He’s interesting. He makes movies as different as “Good Will Hunting” and “Aladdin”. I’d love to have a chat sometime.

Cool Glasses, Dude!

4. Merlin- Fictional wizard… “Lived” during one of the greatest soap operas of all time. Here’s a picture of the current Merlin:

Colin Morgan plays Merlin on the BBC show of the same name.

5. Rupert “Ripper” Giles- Because I’m on an Anthony Stewart Head binge right now. But Giles= a sexy British librarian. Who has a dark side. How can you resist?

Love that smirk...

So those are my 5… Here are some runners-up though:

Anthony Stewart Head- Did I mention I’m on a high with this guy right now?

Tim Curry- How does such a fantastic actor get such crappy roles?

Mother Teresa- Why not?

King Arthur- Same reason as Merlin, except he was more of an idiot at times than Merlin.

Graham Chapman- Might be the most interesting (in my opinion) of the Monty Python group.

Emma Thompson- She’s lovely!

Stephen Fry- He’s lovely!

Any other guy on my “list”.

My List

Most people who know me know how much I love older British men. I thought I should just start a “list” here and give everyone some pictures… Granted these guys are old, but they’re so talented and *ahem* attractive The order changes each day, so here they are, in no particular order:

**EDIT** I have simply put all of the pictures into a gallery, since it’s easier to organize. This is one of my more popular posts, and I add to it often, so this gallery format is easier. Click on a picture for a larger image!

Yes, I have a thing for British comedians. Is it obvious? I’ll be posting more separate blogs about Peter Sellers, Sense and Sensibility, Being There, and the Goons. I have posted plenty of blogs about Monty Python. Feel free to leave comments!

Michael Palin part 2

I got my autograph in the mail yesterday! I also got a note from his secretary saying he is busy in July when I’ll be in London, but he sends me his best wishes. But it was worth a shot, and I still got this lovely signed photo:

Michael Palin

My my… I’ve been away from here for a bit, things have been rather hectic. But, I felt the urge to write and give everyone an update, so here’s a fun story about something I did recently:

I have a trip to London, England scheduled this July. The other day I was thinking about what I would do there. What if I met someone, made new friends and acquaintances? How would I go about meeting anyone at all? I figure that apart from spending time in the museums and doing all of the tourist-y things, I should spend time in places where residents stay. Go shop for food. Go catch a film. But then a brilliant idea struck me: It was high time I wrote a letter to Michael Palin, telling him how great he is. Why not write that letter, and include an offer to meet up while I’m in London? Problem is, he’s a very busy man, and meeting up with a crazy fangirl probably isn’t high on his to-do list. But he does have a reputation for being nice, so maybe things will swing in my favor. It would certainly be a meeting worth remembering!

For those of you who have NO IDEA who Mr. Palin is, don’t worry. I’ll tell you: Michael Palin is one member of the Monty Python comedy group. (He’s the cutest one too! XD) He is not related to Sarah Palin (thankfully, in my opinion), and for the past 20 years has gone around the world a few times, stopping to say hello to people who live in the countries he visits, and learn about their culture. He has the reputation as being the nicest Python. He has written books and movies, starred in movies, and even won a BAFTA for his role as Ken Pile  in the film “A Fish Called Wanda“. Here are some pictures:

Wish me luck!

Strangest Fiction

I never thought of myself as a writer until I started this blog. Even now, I feel like I’m a better reader and editor than writer. But my previous blog “Overactive Imagination” got a lot more views and positive feedback than I anticipated. It kind of gave me a warm and fuzzy feeling…

I figured I could write a bit more of the random stuff that comes from my imagination; I’ll just need to remember to jot that stuff down. My mind is always going a mile a minute, so I think organizing my thoughts will make it easier for you guys to read.

(I should make it clear though that I am not always the “main character” or “protagonist” in my ridiculous day dreams. I feel kind of weird making these day dreams known to the world, but I also find it funny, and it makes me laugh, so here we go!

Changes

Last year, while at OSU, I went through a “dark patch”. I wasn’t going to class, and couldn’t get out of bed most days. I was suicidal, hated myself, and hated being alive. During this time I read my Bible and preayed looking for answers and looking for God. I couldn’t find anything. I want to know why I felt that way. Where was God when I was up many nights crying for Him? What kind of benevolent God sits by while His “children” suffer? Why does He let them kill themsleves, and kill each other? During this time, I also started reading C.S. Lewis books. I could understand him, and I credit his writing with saving my life.

During this time, I applied for a job at YMCA Camp Classen. Because I was pretty shaky in my faith, I thought that working at a Christian-based camp would help me. I was wrong. Camp only helped me to see the hypocrisy of the “Christians” that work there. Counselors at that camp smoke marijuana and get drunk on camp grounds, while kids are at camp. The Camp Classen director is a bigot, and is a “holier-than-thou” Christian. What is it with people like that? Do they really think that by waving a Bible in someone’s face and telling them they will go to Hell if they aren’t Christian? Really? Because all I see is an insecure person who hides behind their god, using him as an excuse to bully people and scare the crap out of them.

One time, I related my story about my time at OSU to a fellow camp worker. When I asked my question, “Where was God?” and said I had lost my faith in Him, she simply replied, “Valarie, that’s so childish.”

What is childish about it? To me, blind faith without questioning your god is childish. Yes, Jesus says believers should have the faith of a child. Children ask a lot of questions.

As of now, I have no religion. I don’t want one. I feel like God does not exist, because when I reached out for him and needed him, he never came. There are too many things in science and plain logic that can explain away God. I will not apologize for this post to anyone, nor will I apologize for my beliefs and convictions.

Comments are welcome, replies are not promised.

Your Opinion is Wrong

Ok so I don’t usually blog about things in the news unless I feel really strongly about them. But in the past week so many people have been “attacked” or judged for not having the “correct” opinion.

Of course, there’s the Perez Hilton/ Miss California scandal. The fact that Miss CA was docked so severely for expressing her opnion is wrong. Sometimes people need to agree to disagree. If you want to avoid hearing the “wrong” answer or hearing something you don’t agree with, don’t ask the question! Not to mention, I wonder how the winner of the contest, Miss North Carolina, feels about hearing that she was probably going to lose, and only won because of something so silly. Not to mention we haven’t heard anything about HER in the news, but about her runner-up and judge. Perez Hilton after the competition posted a video on his blog in which he blasted Miss CA, calling her a B**** and whatnot. Real classy, Mr. Hilton. I hope you don’t get invited back to be a judge on Miss USA next year.

I am not a homophobe, or anti-homosexuality. Do I agree with the lifestyle? No. But I will not judge someone simply because of the way they live their life. That’s like telling me I’m a horrible person because I don’t want to live in America when I get older.

Another example of people telling me I am wrong:

I take Zoloft for depression. So when this guy on Twitter posted something about the evil of anti-depressants and how they are linked to school shootings and teen suicide, I was angry. This guy is a Scientologist, so doesn’t agree with the use of anti-depressants. I was prescribed this medicine when I was 15. I am obviously still alive and never shot anyone while I was in school. Yes, there are statistics that show an upswing in these things, and so they are linked to anti-depressants prescribed to teens. But all I can think of is how many school shootings and suicides were prevented BECAUSE of the prescriptions? Those are undocumented. I cannot help but get angry when I am told that I should not be on anti-depressants because they are bad for me. When I am not taking my meds I am sulky, depressed (obviously), prone to have a very short temper, and withdrawn. I have thought about suicide more than once in my life, and it was always when I wasn’t taking my medicine.

So, Scientologists, I disagree with you. Stop looking at the negative, and focus on the positive. And a note to the guy on Twitter- I’m  not mad, just frustrated. I stopped replying because we were both going to have the same opinion after our conversation as we had before. What was the point in getting angry over something petty like that?

And a note to all human beings- agree to disagree, and stop being so hateful towards people with different opinions from your own.