//: Read This Post ://

Oh good, you clicked on this post.
That's exactly what I wanted you to do. That's why I called this post "Read This Post".
Aren't I so convincing?

I should be a writer... oh wait, I am a writer.
But wait again, I haven't written in a long time because of reasons, so, maybe I'm not a writer.
I don't know.
I like to pretend that I am in my head, anyways.

But I didn't write this post to talk about writing.
I didn't really have ANYTHING in mind when I wrote this.
I was in a letter-writing mood, so I just wanted to write a letter to you.

This is the way I am in most of my letters to my friends... a bit random, a bit unusual, just... me.
 Of course, SOMETIMES my letters make sense. The parts where I cordially inquire about how the recipient's Christmas went. Or how their New Year's went. Or how they're doing, or how their puppies are doing...
And such.

Do you ever writer letters?  
They are rather old-fashioned, I know. But I like them, 95% purely because they are old-fashioned, and 5% because... well, I don't know. Because of other reasons.
(Like because I get to sit in my room and write my appropriate responses in my own time without the pressure of conversing face-to-face with a random person who expects me to give a reasonable response to their inquiries within a short second or two after they finish their sentence).

Have you gone outside and seen the stars lately? Or the moon?
I know it's dreadfully cold in most parts of the world, but perhaps brave the bitter chill tonight (or tomorrow night, if it's clear) to look up and see the magic. For, it is magic.
What looks like pinpointed diamonds at the tip of your outstretched fingers, are really tumultuous balls of fire billions of miles away. And the same God who created those dots-that-are-fireballs created you and me.
So look at them, if you can. Because you can't feel them or fly with them or hang in the air with them.
If you're lucky, you can spot Venus (my favorite planet). Just look for the brightest 'dot'.
Aaand I forgot where I was going with this.

Do any of you have a birthday in January? I do! *raises hand* Winter birthdays are interesting in themselves because pretty much always (unless there's unusually warm weather... and even then it's hard to plan ahead for that kind of thing) you have to do indoor type of stuff to celebrate. A fancy restaurant, a trip to the bookstore, a night at home with love and laughter, surrounded by people with glittering smiles who say, "How does it feel to finally be 19?!!" When I have absolutely no idea how to answer that question. Hm. Maybe I should Google it...

I'm working on a post of some of the stuff I did and presents I got (from people and from myself) for my birthday. Would you be interested in reading something like that?

I did get a book that I am REALLY enjoying so far (I'm like two chapters from the end...): Hidden Places, by Lynn Austin. I'm in love with practically all the characters (except for the mean ones...).
Have you read a good book lately?

Well anyways, I'm going to sign off now.
Tell someone you love them today.
Smile at a stranger. Be sure to look at their eyes. (They tend to be more touched when you do).

Smell candles that remind you of Spring, pet your dog (if you have one), wear your favorite comfortable clothes.
If you have a camera, take pictures. Lots and lots of pictures. Remember little things for no reason.
Read your Bible and relish the words in it.
Take a deep breath.
Goodbye, dears.

~Amaris

p.s. God loves you.

~*~ Happiness ~*~

Happiness is:

Popcorn strings and paper snowflakes... all over the house

~*~
  d

Kermit the Frog

~*~
  d

Cold, starry nights in January
~*~
 d

Purple eye shadow
~*~
 d

My bare feet on the cold floor
~*~
 d

The term "always forever"

~*~
o

Writing my name and the date in a crisp new book

~*~
  d

Being called "good looking enough to be a goddess" by a stranger 

~*~
  d

FINALLY finding a note in a used book

~*~
  d

Adam Young: "Brave"
~*~

Han Solo: God's gift to television
 ~*~
  d

My new Instax Mini 8 Camera! #thanksmomanddad
 ~*~
d
Homemade tacos on a cold January afternoon
~*~
d
The sound of a typewriter 'ding'. 
 ~*~
d
Marlo Thomas (a.k.a. 'That Girl')
 d~*~

My birthday. :) 
 

Photo credit: ME.

I hope your January is going lovely, my friends. 

Alas, The Scores are Finished

So I gotta write a post on one of my favorite things of the year 2016.
The Adam Young Scores.
If you've been hanging around my blog for awhile, you've heard of them before.

What are the Adam Young Scores, you ask? Let me start with the 'Adam Young' part.
He's the guy who writes Owl City. You might have heard of Fireflies, one of his most popular songs. Like most Hoot Owls (for that is what they call us), Fireflies is what got ME started, about oh, 6 years ago. My brother would take me places in his car, and he would always play the song for me, among others.
Well, time passed, and for my 16th birthday, he gave me my very own album! Ocean Eyes still sits proudly among my other CDs.

Over time, of course I got to liking his other albums too, 'All Things Bright and Beautiful', 'Maybe I'm Dreaming', and his LATEST album, 'Mobile Orchestra', which I just love.

Anyways, the guy's really talented.
He records his own noises and then layers them with the computer to make music. How awesome is that?! Some might say it's not really 'music', but I disagree. If it sounds good and I like it, who cares how it's made? Besides, some of it IS real. I mean, have you heard this guy's piano?! That's real! And so is his voice, which I love as well.
Anyways, no amount of talking down to electronic music will make me love Adam's music any less. The words speak true to me, and they have helped me get through some of the toughest times in recent years.
If you're a teenager and don't have Owl City, I gotta say I'm sorry for you.

'Tidal Wave'

At the beginning of 2016, in February, he came out with the first 'Adam Young Score'.
It was called 'Apollo 11;, and it 'told' the story of America landing on the moon. I actually didn't care for this one very much, so I wasn't too excited.

BUT THEN.

In March, 'RMS Titanic' came out, and BOY.
I was BLOWN. AWAY.
See, the Titanic has always been one of my favorite stories in history. And here was MUSIC TO GO WITH IT. But not just music. Noises like the ship is creaking and breaking apart in the ocean.
As I listened, it was like I was right there on the ship. Among the chaos, desperate for the only hope for survival: the lifeboats.
It was like a soundtrack without the movie.
What's more perfect than that?
Then I found out that he does these music/soundtrack/depiction thingies every single month. Boy was I happy.
It's kind of like when you subscribe to a really cool monthly magazine. Every month, you're there at the mailbox, waiting for the newest issue to come out. Craving to get your hands on it.
That's the kind of blissful anticipation it was for me.

I, the one who loves history, and learning, and music, and Owl City most of all, was getting the most amazing 'subscription' every single month.
Of course, it's over now. The scores are done (for the time being).
That's why I'm writing this post NOW instead of months ago.
The last score came out December 1st, 2016. 'The Endurance: Shackleton's Journey'.
I am sad that it's over, but I will always remember what fun they were. And of course, they're still on YouTube!

After all of that, I have to say "Thank you, Adam Young."

And now, of course I had to write down my top five favorite scores for 2016, as well as a few others.
So here they are. If you've never heard the Scores before, I would start with these. :)

1. Corduroy Road (A beautiful depiction of the Civil War just before it ended. I absolutely adore this one. There's piano, sounds of the rain falling in a Civil War camp, a rewrite of Amazing Grace and EVEN ADAM YOUNG'S VOICE... It's all so beautiful I could cry. Definitely my favorite out of all of them).

2. RMS Titanic (The story of the Titanic has always been close to my heart. I just love learning about it and my love for Titanic history is wrapped up into this beautiful musical package, complete with Irish themed music and "Nearer, My God, to Thee".).

3. Voyager 1 (The story of a lonely space probe traipsing across the galaxy. I like this score because it's practically the exact same as me: A tiny bit beautiful, a little strange, somewhat mysterious, a little dark at times, but altogether, quite amazing. Plus, stars and galaxies and moons and dark matter are among my favorite things in the entire world).

4. The Endurance (this is the most recent score to come out. I probably know the least about this score's historical representation than all the others, but I still have a fantastic time listening to this one. I loooove how it's so LONG. It gives me more to listen to, more to love. This one also has some pretty cool sound layering. In fact, Adam Young made a video about how he layers sounds for this score. It's pretty neat to watch)

5. Last but NOT least, Project Excelsior (first of all, that's just fun to say. Excelsior. It makes me think of Gomer Pyle {don't ask me why} and I just love the sound of it. Anyways, the music is quite pretty, less flowy and delicate sounding than some of the other scores, but really cool. There's some guitar music and a tiny bit of piano near the end. Love it).

 

And of course, a couple of honorable mentions that didn't quite make the list, but they're still pretty good:

Mount Rushmore: I just have to ask WHY IS THIS ONE SO SHORT. It's really pretty but it needs to be much longer. :(

Spirit of Saint Louis: This one came out pretty early in the year, so I feel like I've listened to this one more than the others. I have always liked the story of the Spirit of Saint Louis with Charles Lindbergh (especially since some of my family originally came from St. Louis), so this one holds a special place in my heart.

Miracle in the Andes: I didn't like this one as much as the others, but it DOES have some pretty piano parts, and therefore deserves a mention on the list.

So if you've never tried Adam Young's Scores before, try a couple of these out. :) I promise you won't regret it.
I mean, they're like soundtracks, only better. How is that not amazing?!
So though I'm sad the scores are finished, I am still super excited because APPARENTLY HE'S GOT A NEW OWL CITY ALBUM COMING OUT THIS YEAR.
YEEEEHEHHEEHHEAHAHAAAAAHHHHH!!!!! HOORAY FOR NEW SONGS!!!!

And he apparently said on Instagram that he might do more scores again sometime, after the new OC album and all that.
I, for one, will be holding my breath until that time comes.
Until then, don't assume you WON'T hear about them on The Blog. I assure you, you will.

Oh and before I go, here's a tip from Adam:

Ok, I'm done.
-Amaris

p.s. Have any of you guys heard the Scores before? Which ones are YOUR favorites? Comment below!

// 2016: A Summary //

Hello, my friends.
This is the post in which I re-visit all the best highlights of 2016. 
I am blessed to say that 2016 (in spite of the stress involving Nov. 4th) was a fantastic year for me. It was by far one of my most happy and productive years of my life so far (and I've only lived 18...).
It's the beginning of my illustrious career as an adult.
I saw things and did things that I have never done before.

I imagine this will be a long post, so I better get going.

APRIL:

I met my first famous person! That would be Markus Zusak, author of the Book Thief. :) He talked with us and told jokes and said "hi" to everyone (wow just like a real human) and then he signed all of our books! It was a pretty great experience, because I've never actually been to an author event before. Here's a post I wrote on my experience.

MAY:

I (FINALLY) graduated from ye old High School. How does it feel being graduated, you ask? Let's just say I miss school, but I also DON'T miss school... at all. And I don't like all the expectations that come with being 18-going-on-19. I mean, chill people. If I don't want to go to college right away (or even at all), that doesn't mean my life won't be a success, or whatever. Don't you watch Blimey Cow?

JUNE:

I spent two whole weeks away from home when I went to camp. We learned to teach Bible Clubs to little kids. I met some great (and not so great) people, and I feel like the experience really broadened my view of the world and people's opinions. It was really neat to see God work right in front of my eyes as we ministered to the kids and it was a blessing to everyone involved. Before you ask, YES I'm going again next year. :)

JULY:

I had my first surgery! No, nothing serious. I didn't almost die. I was only getting my tonsils out. It was quite a painful ordeal though, don't get me wrong. I mean, I was able to relax on the couch for 14 days, but I wasn't exactly comfortable. I ate Jell-O (LOTS of Jell-O), I watched Sherlock and Call the Midwife and did lots of browsing on Pinterest. Yay. So fun.

SEPTEMBER:

It's weird to call this one of the highlights of 2016, but I FELT MY FIRST EARTHQUAKE.
I've always wanted to feel one, which is why this was a big deal to me.
It wasn't a huge one, and fortunately, the earth DID NOT crack open beneath my feet and swallow me up into a deep chasm of nothingness.
I was sitting on my bed doing some writing (what else...) and I started to sway back and forth suddenly. I had no idea what was going on (I figured I was dizzy or something) until I saw some necklaces that were hanging on my wall swinging back and forth, and then I knew that HOLY MOLY THIS WAS AN EARTHQUAKE.
It was very interesting.
At least now I can say "Oh yeah, I felt an earthquake once..."

DECEMBER:

I wanted to add December in here because I actually had a great one. It was a little hard toward the end because of CERTAIN situations, but I enjoyed the Christmas season pretty good.
I went to like... *counts on fingers* 4 Christmas parties (usually I don't go to any), I actually tried out some Christmas volunteer work (thanks to my best friend for inviting me... you better know I'll be back to help next year), and I went to this beautiful street near my house where all these drama volunteers walk around as Christmas characters (Ebenezer Scooge, Kris Kringle, Jack Frost, Dickens Carolers, Santas from around the world, etc.) and you get to talk to them and collect their 'character cards' and they never once break character (not ONCE) and there's glowing lights and quaint little shops and homemade cookies and hot chocolate and the crisp Winter air and the gladness of Christmas cheer on the faces of everyone you meet.
It was simply glorious.
And that's coming from me, who is not usually a "Christmas loving person". Oh, don't get me wrong, I love JESUS, I just get tired of songs, and "Happy Holidays", and grinch music. And candy canes. Don't ever give me candy canes for Christmas. I will hate you.

And a couple of Random High Points:
The Best book that comes to mind: Gone With the Wind. Guys. This. Book. Let's just say it's one of the best books I've read in a long time. :) The Circle Series deserves an honorable mention here as well. This year I'd like to keep better track of how many books I read. It will be easier now that I have a Goodreads profile.
The Best movie: Wow, don't get me wrong but I actually didn't watch a lot of movies this year. I mostly watched TV shows. We did get VidAngel, which has enabled us to watch some movies that we couldn't watch before because of CERTAIN content, *ahem*, and that has been pretty cool.
While I'm on the subject of movies, also in December my best friend had me over to her house and I FINALLY SAW THE FIRST STAR WARS. That is, Number Four (A New Hope).
And GET THIS: I actually enjoyed it. I always thought it was stupid that everyone LOVED the Star Wars movies so much, but now that I have actually seen it, it isn't so bad.
A week later I saw the second movie (The Empire Strikes Back) with some friends, and I liked THIS one even better. I can't really form an opinion of the entire "fandom" yet, because right now I've only seen 2 out of 8 movies. Therefore, my opinion of what I've seen matters little at this point. (*whispers* except that I like it so far).
Moving on.
The best TV Show: You know the answer: Call the Midwife and Sherlock BBC.These two shows made up the majority of what I watched this year in TV Shows. What? No, I don't like British shows, why do you ask?

My Writing Progress: Actually I didn't write very much this year. As you can see, I WAS TOO BUSY. It seriously hurt, keeping my ideas all pent up inside. I'll tell you one thing. I don't 'do' New Year's Resolutions, but if there's one thing that I want to improve in 2017, it's my writing. That is, how MUCH I get done.
But it's just hard, you know? Let's just say that I hate writing first drafts more than anything in the world. :P
I do love my ideas and stories too much to let that stop me, so I just have to work on it.
*sigh*

Favorite Concert this year: I'm not really a 'concert person' (crowds and loud noises and big dark rooms with bright lights are NOT my thing at all. In fact they make me really nervous) but I do go sometimes if I like the artist well enough.
This year the best concert was MercyMe back in April. Seriously, I love those guys, and the concert was sensational.
For those of you who don't know MercyMe,  I gotta share a couple of their songs: Flawless (seriously listen to the words, people!), Greater (again, hear these words, my friends), and Wishful Thinking  (beautiful, I love this song).

Favorite songs and bands for the year: This year I really enjoyed those songs mentioned above, as well as two other songs I've mentioned in a previous post, Be the Change, and Through Your Eyes by Britt Nicole (she's been a favorite of mine for years). And of course Owl City is still one of my favorites, as well as Casting Crowns, Danny Gokey, and others.
Of course my very favorite music this year has to be the Adam Young Scores. But I am not going to talk about them at ALL right now because I want to write a whole post on them soon.

So: What are my plans for the new year? Get this: I literally have none. I'm just hoping it will be another good year. I kinda feel bad saying that 2016 was a good year for me, because a lot of my friends (both my internet friends and my 'real life' friends) are saying that 2016 was so ridiculously hard as well as emotional for them.
I express my sympathy and prayers for those people, but I am also grateful at the same time for how this year turned out for ME.
God did some great things in my life. He showed me how to take care of myself, He taught me to love my enemies (Yes, surprise, I do have enemies), and He told me who I was.
Not only am I a child of God, but I am unique and special to Him, just like everyone is.
This year I discovered the Meyer's Briggs Personality Type Indicator, and that helped me get to know the people around me as well as myself. It helped me discover that the Human creation is really such a special thing, and superior to all that God has made.
We have to remember that life is not about sitting around waiting for God to give us a good year. It's about trusting Him with everything, and believing who He says we are- in HIM. That is, his precious children. This is true in the good years AND the hard years.
That is what I pray for all of us in 2017.
Remember to enjoy life, for everyone only has one.
Life is hard, but let's not take for granted its lovely side.

AND THAT ABOUT WRAPS UP MY NEW YEARS POST.
Thanks for sticking around to the end! I know I will enjoy looking back and reading this in the years ahead. 
I wish you all the very best year! Keep on posting, my friends. I do enjoy reading about you all. Even if I could never meet most of you. :) As for me, I posted 29 times this year!
Just for funsies, here's my last New Year's Post. :)
Here is a good verse to sum up my year, and I hope you will be encouraged as well!

 2 Corinthians 5:1
"For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands."

See you later!
-Amaris