british invasion.

England. My first "i'm-going-to-travel-there-someday" love. While kids were throwing out China and Fiji and Mexico as awesome destinations, my response was consistently "Great Britain, please." I'm not quite sure when the obsession surfaced. Let's just say it's been here awhile. And visiting the UK last summer only made me want to go back more, because two weeks is not NEARLY enough time to see/smell/taste/do everything. Really. I've added to my dream list a study abroad to London. (Don't worry. My next adventure is still my mission to France and I am beyond excited to study the gospel, learn some French, and experience the sites and tastes of France. Maybe it's just Europe in general that I'm obsessed with.)

Anyway. This sudden blurb about England surfaced because some of my friends are traveling/ studying in Europe and I'm a tad bit jealous. And then there's the whole One Direction boy band that's not half bad. Which translates to, "I've been listening to their music. A lot." (Just preparing for the fast approaching 18 months of straight classical music and MoTab). It's funny, they kinda remind me a little of Beatle Mania, what with all the recent hype here in the states.

And this picture...

...looks a little familiar.

A few of my loves of England:

Fish and chips. Harry Potter. The Lake District. St. Paul's Cathedral. Coldplay. Jane Austen. J.R.R. Tolkien. Muse. Green expanses of countryside. Oxford & Cambridge. U2. Big Ben. Red buses. Kate & William. Shakespeare. London Town. Musicals. The Rolling Stones. Hadrian's Wall. Pubs. The Cotswolds. Wimbledon. Stonehenge. Robin Hood. The Beatles. English breakfasts. Trains. The Police. Rainy days. The Cliffs of Dover. The Smiths. 

And in case you want a lovely video of places around London (plus One Direction), take a look at this.

Cheerio!

waiting for the midnight showing of HP!...I mean, HG.

Ever since I started college three years ago I have looked forward to the magical month of November (or July) when the next Harry Potter (HP!) movie comes to theaters. Wait, I take that back. Ever since I saw these three faces in the newspaper one morning in 2000 (wow, has it really been 12 years?) I've been stoked to see the movies. After all, my childhood is synonymous with several words, one of them being Harry Potter.

source. 

But watching the movies during college has held a special place in my heart. My friends and I, who love Harry Potter as much as me (thank goodness!), have gone to every midnight showing together. Dressed up, of course. Usually we have about a month's worth of anticipation because midnight showing tickets are sold a month in advance. And people, they are sold out lightning fast. Then there's watching the trailer and deciding what character to go as and the random squeals of HP! late at night. Suddenly, it's the day of the movie. And you get to stand in line with a bunch of Harrys and Dobys and Lunas and people who love Harry Potter as much as you. And my favorite part is the dynamic of the theatre right as the movie is about to start. The cheers and clapping and oohs and aahs and yes, sometimes even tears.

But this year was different. Because there were no more Harry Potter movies. Don't worry, I won't get started on that whole drama. (I've already discussed it here.) Anyway, I was pretty sad that I wouldn't be going to a midnight movie with my friends. But then I found out about The Hunger Games being made into a movie, and my world was righted once again. :) That's right everyone, I'm going to the midnight showing of HG in exactly one week! (HG just doesn't have the same ring as HP, though. Lame.)

I'll admit the books are not as good as Harry Potter. But the story line is still intense and the characters are well developed. And the book makes you think about a lot of interesting things like what life would be like after a destruction of North America or what you would do if you had the choice to kill and live or not kill and die. Also, the trailer looks impressive. So I'm excited. Yeah.

Also, my preparing for this movie has been slightly different then the Harry Potter's.  I read the book again, because it's been a while. Then I slowly realized that I've been preparing for the actual Hunger Games. By rationing my food. And running a lot. And practicing my bow and arrow skills. Ok, maybe not that last one. But still. It's good to be prepared, because you never know, right?

May the odds be ever in your favor.

source.

shout out to the beatles.

I've had a Beatles song stuck in my head alllll day. 

Which I guess is a ok, considering it's Valentines Day 

and the song was written by the all-you-need-is-love foursome. 

Then I remembered that there's an awesome version of the song 

on the movie A Hard Day's Night. 

So I looked it up on youtube, and sure enough, there it was. 

[Hooray for modern technology!]

I've posted it here for your enjoyment. 

Seriously, watch it if you're a Beatles fan. Or if you like beautiful music.

Or if you're avoiding homework.

1:56 is my favorite part. Paul McCartney singing straight from the heart.

[I may or may not have had a crush on him since I discovered the Beatles.]

I hope you had a brilliant Valentine's Day. 

I've just been smiling all day.

Here's a quote I found the other day. I really like it. And it's kind of Valentine-y. That's all.

triple-a monday. (a day late.)

source.

Sooo, walking on campus today I saw the last "a" encounter I needed for my triple-a Monday blog/post/thingy. And even though I'm a day late I thought, why not? (That phrase reminds me of an awesome movie you should see. Check out the trailer here. Impressively clean, inspiring message, excellent script, Matt Damon. What more could you want?)

Anyway...

Awkward:
Walking past a guy with skinny jeans skinnier than my skinny jeans. Uhhllll. Seriously, if boys need help with how to wear pants, I suggest they check out Ryan Reynolds in The Proposal.

Annoying:
Going to my favorite place in the library, only to find it overrun with a bunch of random people. Where did you all come from?!?! Now I have to, *shudder*, share a desk with another person. ;) And in case you were wondering about rules of the BYU library, here's an interesting one. Once you sit at a desk to study, the next available seat on that desk is the one in the opposite corner, as far away from you as possible. Once someone sits there the desk is full. No discussion. Unless the following exceptions occur:

• Couples. 2 seats are still used and then the table is full, but the seats are on the same side of the table. Positioned as close together as possible. Obviously.
• Groups. 2+ seats are used, and it doesn't matter where they sit, because they all know each other. But these people usually find a study room so they can be noisy. 
• Finals week. ALL 4 SEATS CAN BE OCCUPIED. I know. It's crazy. This strange phenomenon occurs because students start stressing about upcoming tests and race to the library to suddenly become an excellent studier. 

Awesome:
Spending the week with this girl. So. Much. Fun. It's like Jerusalem all over again. Only in Provo, with normal food, and normal clothes.
Also, adding avocado to my BLT. Brilliant idea. I thought about calling my sandwich a BLAT, but that just seemed to degrade the awesomeness of the sandwich. So, it will remain BLT + avocado. Try it.

source.

Hope you've found some ordinary little moments in your day that can thrill you, too!

screaming babies and ryan reynolds.

It all started in the airport. Typical. Where else do you take people from all ages/ cultures/ locations and cram them into a tiny space for x number of hours? I'm convinced something interesting is bound to happen to you in an airport. My experiences range from when my dad and I saw Stevie Wonder in the Las Vegas airport to the one time I was stuck between the extremely chatty gun-man from Colorado and the elusive, British dude who drank one too many shots on my ride to New York.

This last airport trip was no exception. First, I was seated in the emergency exit row, and the pilot came by and asked us if we would be willing to open the exit during the emergency. I nodded "yes", but in my head I was like, "I'm not quite sure I would be that sane and alert as our plane was careening in a nose-dive towards certain destruction to remember, oh yes! I must now lift this thingy-mabob and open this window and help each passenger out onto this wing. Hi, my name's Charlotte. What's yours? Oh, I love your shirt! Right this way to the wing, please." Anyway, if your wondering why to sit in the emergency seat, the bonus is you get more leg room. Hooray! However, if you're me, and like to sleep by resting your head on the tray table, you'll soon discover that the seat in front of you is too far forward to make this possible. Also, there was a draft coming from the exit window and the thin, Delta blanket didn't quite cut it. And I thought it was cold in Utah. I was feeling around for the draft and I put my hand right over the emergency exit lifter-thingy right when a flight attendant walked by and she said, "I wouldn't open that if I were you." Right, since I was planning on opening that anyway. But, hey, if you love ample feet space and don't mind wearing thermal underwear, the emergency exit seat is for you!

Getting back to my story, I spent the last 30 minutes of the flight listening to a screaming baby. And it wasn't on and off crying, it was non-stop, fog-horn loud, ear-piercing screaming. The mom and child were having some constant silent struggle back there. It was sups intense. But I was pretty impressed with all the surrounding seated people, because no one complained or shot them nasty looks. For the first 15 minutes I felt bad for the mom, for the last I vowed never to have a child that acted that bad on a plane (knock-on wood).

When I finally got off the plane (hallelujah), I was exhausted and tired and slightly grumpy. I stumbled out of the jetway, walked past the check-in desk and this guy, did a double take, turned around and looked straight at Ryan Reynolds. What the!? We both looked at each other for a couple seconds. He seemed to be saying, "you don't know me!" I was saying (in my head of course), "what are you doing in Utah?!" However, I was pretty impressed with myself because I didn't freak out or scream or run over for his autograph. I just looked and then walked away. It all happened super fast. I hurriedly told my family and their response was either, "who care's?" or "who's Ryan Reynolds?" But I thought it was pretty awesome. It's not every day you get to see a famous (and attractive) movie star.

And, in case you were wondering why I was in an airport, my parents surprised us with a trip to Orlando, Florida! It was a great way to spend the last days of Christmas Break. We went to Island's of Adventure and saw the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter (HP forever!) and then spent our remaining days in Disney World, visiting EPCOT, Universal Studies, and the Magic Kingdom. On New Year's Eve, we found ourselves with thousands of others in the Magic Kingdom. We were all smashed together in front of the brilliantly-lit castle, watching an awesome fireworks show, and dancing to music. It was the ultimate party. All the rides were open till 3 AM, so we went on Splash and Thunder Mountain while waiting for midnight. When it was all over it took us 3 hours to get out of the park...and then we had to leave for the airport at 4 AM. So basically I slept 1 hour that morning before leaving for a 7 AM departure. We were all pretty wasted, but it was worth it!

Here are some pictures, because you probably just saw all that text, gasped, and scrolled down looking for pictures. I did not disappoint. :)

Excuse me sir, can you tell me where I might find Platform 9 3/4?

Welcome to Hogwarts!

In front of the entrance for the Harry Potter ride.

Entrance to Hogsmeade.

It looked so real! And the butter-beer was brilliant.

Just 2 muggles chilling in Hogsmeade. 

James and his pygmy puff.

Check it out! Extendable ears really do exist. :)

At the entrance of EPCOT.

We love Splash Mountain!

The castle, all lit up, right before midnight. 

On Main Street, USA. Happy New Year 2012!

A rush of blood to the head.

*You might be obsessed with a band if:

1. You own every single one of their songs.
2. You've been to their concert (and wish you could go to every single one).
3. You stalk their website.
4. You have been anxiously waiting for their new album to come out.
5. You cried when you realized it was going to be released when you were going on a field trip sans computer.
6. You listened to their new single every day on the field trip.
7. You returned home anxious to make a trip to Hebrew University to download the album, because your internet blocks iTunes, only to feel completely devastated because Hebrew U was closed. You go to a service project for 3 hours, feeling somewhat better because you're helping others. But then the last song at the service project is by the band and you start to cry.

*All of these things might not relate to you exactly. Manifestations of obsessions vary per person.

What I am trying to say, my friends, is that I am in love with Coldplay. Their music is beautiful, yet haunting; upbeat, yet deep. Their lyrics express my thoughts sometimes better then I can. Seriously, listen to their music if you haven't. And not just their popular songs, i.e. the only three ever played of them on the radio. Listen to the obscure ones.

My song is love

Love to the loveless shown

And it goes on

You don't have to be alone

Your heavy heart

Is made of stone

And it's so hard to see you clearly

You don't have to be on your own

And I'm not gonna take it back

And I'm not gonna say, "I don't mean that"

You're the target that I'm aiming at

Got to get that message home

My song is love, is love unknown

And I've got to get that message home 

The end.

My first blog post is, ironically, about endings. And all of these endings seem to have big yellow caution stickers across them that say: "Warning! Your childhood is over!" I'm not saying I don't act like a kid, because you will still catch me running through the sprinklers, eating gobs of cookie dough, delaying decisions, and maybe watching an episode or two of Arthur. But lately, little things come along that remind me of the million decisions I have to make...

Like the end of Harry Potter. I know, sounds pathetic, but seriously I grew up with the Harry Potter books.  I devoured every page and waited in countless midnight lines for the newest books and movies. I laughed out loud over Fred and George's pranks, cried when Snape died, and thoroughly despised Umbridge. I often wonder about J.K. Rowling and how she created a magical world that so fully captivated me for over 11 years. For the latest and last Harry Potter movie I dressed up with my brothers and some of my friends and we went to the midnight showing. It was a brilliant night! We even had chocolate frogs!

Hermione and Doby.

Trelawny, a Muggle, Doby, Hermione, and Umbridge. Midnight showing at Jordon Landing.

Colin Creevy and an unknown Slytherin.

But the movie ended. First I felt sad that it was over. Then I felt a little dumb for feeling that way. I love this quote from the 7th book, because even if I did live the whole story in my head, why should that mean it isn't an important part of my life?

"Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?" ~ Dumbledore 

Another ending happened this morning when my dog Taffy died. She was almost 11 years old. My whole family was pretty sad because she was the best dog, requiring only food + water + treats + walks and returning a wagging tail + doggy breath + tummy to be rubbed + small surprises in the yard + instant vacuum + loyalty + and love. She was a good dog. I will miss her sneaking into my room every night.

But endings are good. They bring change and new life and excitement. Anatole France said, "All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter another." 


I like to think that time is on our side. And life is good.