Vacation Log: Tuesday's X-treme Edits!

Here are four pictures I took that Tuesday that I wanted to edit, just to see what would happen!

A wave's crash, unedited:

I loved the texture in it, but wanted it to be more apparent and have more contrast in it, and this is what happened:

It looks different, that is for sure!

Here is a picture from the pool deck, which was taken when a huge cloud was overhead:

And here it is after I brightened it and then messed w/ the focus so the image looks like what it looked like to me when I first opened my eyes. Though the picture was dark, it was still BRIGHT outside!:


I took this of the inside of a bush next to my chair:

And here I went crazy with it:


And lastly, a picture of a seagull over the sea, taken at a time it was so dark you can barely see it:

And the X-treme edit:

And zoomed in some:


That is all of the edits from Tuesday! Hope you enjoyed seeing them :). Thanks for reading,

Vacation Log: Tuesday + PICS

On Tuesday Morning, this was the view:

We packed up the fishing gear and I packed a beach tote with towels and a book and some empty spray bottles so I could hit the pool if the fishing wasn't any good. Then, we walked to the beach. The sun was insanely bright:

We passed a dwarfish palm tree:

And we passed a real one:

The walkway to the beach, where you can see the gate to the pool (and if it wasn't so bright, the ocean):

Once we hit the beach:

Some of our gear, including the most awesome bucket ever with a padded seat that swivels. Oh yes:

The chair:

A small wave mid-crash. Am I the only one who can imagine a lego man surfing that mini pipeline?:

This seagull was very inquisitive, I think he really liked me. Either that, or he could smell the shrimp we were using as bait and was hungry........ nah, he totally liked me:

This little guy zoomed past, unfazed by the fact I was sitting right there:



Because we weren't catching many fish and the sun was shining bright, I grabbed the 'pool bag' (we always call it the beach bag, but we only use it for the pool, so it is kind of a misnomer for us...) and walked to the beachside pool. Once settled on the deck, I took this shot of the sky:

Then I went over to the edge of the deck which wasn't blocked by a fence and got this one which I LOVE:

And then I climbed over the fence thing to the side and walked down the stone it came out of for a bit until I reached this flower, and had to just hang on to the fence. I can't help but wonder what everyone else at the pool thought of me hopping the fence and then hanging out halfway down taking pictures of a flower while wearing a swimsuit... lol:

(as you can see, the 'inside' of the fence was blocked off by this annoying HEDGE, which is what resulted in my extreme measures)
After I slept in the sun for hours (I set the alarm on my phone to wake me up every so often, to make sure nothing had been stolen and I didn't get too burned), I headed back to where my parents were fishing. The sun began to go down, and more clouds rolled in:

I caught a fish with purple scales around its face, the final catch of the day:

I took a picture of my dad standing out in the surf just as a seagull passed by him, and after zooming WAY in on the image you can see how cool it looks (though it is really low res, sorry about that):

Since it was really late and the fish weren't biting and it started raining, we headed back to the room. I looked in a mirror and was in shock about how DARK my skin was (I'm normally a pale-face, despite the fact that I'm part Cherokee. Not fair):

I don't know about you guys, but that is REALLY dark for me! After we got back, I got dressed (you can see my shirt in the above shot) and headed to the activities center to get wifi while my mom hit the hot tub. It was already black outside. All in all, it was a LONG day in the sun, and mostly fun :). Hope you enjoyed reading, and sorry about the delay!


--
"But you see, it's not me, it's not my family.
In your head, in your head they are fighting,
With their tanks and their bombs,
And their bombs and their guns.
In your head, in your head, they are crying..."


´¨)
¸.·´¸.·*´¨)*´¨)
(¸.·´¸.·*´¨) *
(¸.· Elizabeth *´¨)
¸.·´ ¸.·*´¨) *
(¸.·´*

The Past Week + Peanut (a puppy) + A Prayer Request

Last Friday I worked again for the first time in almost two weeks, which was strange. The club is now a five dollar foot long, which is just crazy considering how expensive the meats are. There were a couple new menu items and new shirts and new buttons on the register, so I was asking more questions than I like, but eventually I think I got caught up. Glad to be working again :D.

Saturday I took the SAT! I'm nervous about sending my scores, since I don't know what they are. I'm trying to find a way around that at the moment. Other than not finishing the essay part for the third stinkin' time, I think I did alright.

Sunday I worked again, and Monday night when I got out of the shower my mom, who had just come home from work, knocked on the bathroom door and asked me to open it. I said I wasn't decent and she said to open the door, and I knew something was definitely up. She normally just breaks in. We have a sliding door. But anyway, I opened it and what did I see? The face of a miniature Doxen puppy. I didn't say anything because I was in shock, then later I asked "Can it walk?" because it wasn't walking and its legs are just so tiny! Then I asked my mom "So, what's the story?", wondering if it was a rescue or someone she knew was selling puppies or what. And she said "What do you mean, 'what's the story'? I bought a dog!" and walked off XD. As of now, his name is Peanut. And he is way too cute :). I ended up on puppy duty Monday night, and I blocked off the corner of the fireplace room with a table and the kennel(with newspaper) and a footstool, then slept on the floor with the baby. He kept trying to eat me, including my hair, but eventually got under the blanket with me and we fell asleep.

Tuesday I finally mailed my application for finalist standing in the National Merit Scholarship competition! My essay was pathetic, but at least I got it done :). The wonderful teacher who wrote my letter of recommendation for it signed the form, and it was finally COMPLETE :D. Went to Spanish class and learned about RADICAL stem changes. My teacher said RADICAL at least 27 times, trying to make sure we understood just how RADICAL a change it was. "o-ue is RADICAL. RADICAL stem changes. Do you understand what I'm saying? It is RADICAL! Not ordinary stem changes, RADICAL!!!". I ended up laughing XD. After class, went to the mall and mailed the magical envelope with the application inside. And it was the last day within the deadline too… cut that one close!

Wednesday in Physics I ran down a hallway and was supposed to knock a bag of beans out of the teachers hand. I hit it on my arm, and my arm turned red and a little welty. I hit it a teeny bit harder than I should've :D lol. I also dropped a bag of beans when I passed him, and that one burst open all over the place… so maybe I was just moving a mite too fast… though I wasn't really RUNNING, you know? World History was interesting enough, talked about Greece and then Rome, both of which I was actually interested in. I didn't fall asleep in class :).

Today, Thursday, I didn't work! I've been doing homework all day, and I've finally got each vacation picture from Tuesday saved as a draft, and am almost done working on moving them into one post. Some of my favorite pictures from the vacation are of my family and myself, but I won't be posting those, so not ALL of my favorites will be shared. But most will be :). I've also gotten to play with the puppy some today :D. It is CRAZY!

Tomorrow, Friday, I'm working again :). The local highschool is having a football game, and we should be really busy! I haven't worked game night before, and am excited/nervous. We'll see if I can 'handle it' ;). I didn't get but three days this week, and am hoping to get more next week. I miss my customers!

LAST NOTE: My Aunt just found out that her husband has lymphoma. Please, those of you who pray, pray for him, and for her. She has been through so much, and only married him last year. I'd never seen her so happy, and it kills me that she is in pain again. Thank you for any thoughts and prayers.

Until next time I get to catch my breath and TYPE,

--
"But you see, it's not me, it's not my family.
In your head, in your head they are fighting,
With their tanks and their bombs,
And their bombs and their guns.
In your head, in your head, they are crying..."


´¨)
¸.·´¸.·*´¨)*´¨)
(¸.·´¸.·*´¨) *
(¸.· Elizabeth *´¨)
¸.·´ ¸.·*´¨) *
(¸.·´*

Music that Moves Me: Welcome to the Masquerade

"We've got the fire, who's got the matches?
Take a look around at the sea of masks
Come one, come all, welcome to the grand ball
Where the strong run for cover and the weak stand tall

I'm not one to scatter ashes
But there's some things that melt the plastic
Try and dig down deeper if you can

I'm not afraid, I'm not ashamed
I'm not to blame, welcome to the masquerade
I'm not ashamed, I'm not afraid
I'm not okay, welcome to the masquerade
Welcome to the masquerade"
Welcome to the Masquerade-Thousand Foot Krutch

I absolutely love this song. For all the people who feel surrounded by masks, and those who know they're wearing one. I used to pretend to be okay when I wasn't, full on fake happy, and now I'm not hiding anything. I'm not spilling my life's story to everyone who asks how I am, but I can still be honest about how I feel :). And the fact that I've chosen to be free from that act actually makes me free to feel happy for real sometimes :D. I love "the strong run for cover and the weak stand tall", because it is so true to my life. This whole song rings true. I hope you enjoy it, and let me know what you think either way!

Thanks for reading people, and sorry for my horribly inconsisent posting. Life comes at you fast...

--
"But you see, it's not me, it's not my family.
In your head, in your head they are fighting,
With their tanks and their bombs,
And their bombs and their guns.
In your head, in your head, they are crying..."


´¨)
¸.·´¸.·*´¨)*´¨)
(¸.·´¸.·*´¨) *
(¸.· Elizabeth *´¨)
¸.·´ ¸.·*´¨) *
(¸.·´*

Music that Moves Me: Keep Passing the Open Windows

"Do you know how it feels when you don't have a friend
Without a job and no money to spend?
You're a stranger
All you think about is suicide
One of these days you're gonna lose the fight
You'd better keep out of danger - yeah!
That same old feeling just keeps burning deep inside
Keep telling yourself it's gonna be the end
Oh get yourself together
Things are looking better everyday

Just believe - just keep passing the open windows
Just believe - just keep passing the open windows

This is the only life for me
Surround myself around my own fantasy
You just gotta be strong and believe in yourself
Forget all the sadness 'cause love is all you need
Love is all you need"
Keep Passing the Open Windows-Queen

I've been at that point, where all I wanted was to die. Almost caused that to happen, too. But He stopped me, and I was mad about it for a long while, then eventually grateful. I just have to believe that I can make it through this. And now I know, more than ever before, that I am loved. And that makes all the difference in the world :). I will make it, I just need to refocus and find some direction. Work hard and not waste the opportunities I've been given. I just have to be strong and believe in myself, forget all the sadness, because love is all I need...

P.S. My dad has made it so that my laptop doesn't get Internet at night. I haven't figured out the exact hours yet, but I know it doesn't work at 10:49pm, and am worried he has made it so it doesn't work at 10pm, which is way too early for someone who works the morning/afternoon shift and then does homework and is nocturnal. I'm sorry that I wasn't able to post this sooner, I didn't realize that he had done that until I'd tried Wednesday and Thursday nights to get on here and post, and it wasn't working, and I pumped my mom for information. Not having Internet is not cool.

Thanks for reading,

--
"But you see, it's not me, it's not my family.
In your head, in your head they are fighting,
With their tanks and their bombs,
And their bombs and their guns.
In your head, in your head, they are crying..."


´¨)
¸.·´¸.·*´¨)*´¨)
(¸.·´¸.·*´¨) *
(¸.· Elizabeth *´¨)
¸.·´ ¸.·*´¨) *
(¸.·´*