It Needs to be Said...

Hello, my blog-reading friends!

I wanted to take a post to specifically address something that, whether we like it or not, affects all of us in the current technological landscape. Something that is, unfortunately, almost inescapable on the internet at this point in time. 

That's right, I'm talking about AI. 

Recently, if you have been on the internet AT ALL, you know that ai is absolutely and completely EVERYWHERE. Every single website, it seems, definitely all the major ones, have some type of ai "help tool" or search engine for users. 

I'll be straight from the get-go. I am not here to write a full post about the goods or the bads or the uglies of ai. I'm not here to stand on a soapbox, or preach anything about anything, or compare opinions or moralities of any of this. Heaven knows that it is a crazy wild west out there with ai, what with how it's used, whether or not it's truly helpful in some ways, the data center controversy, the artist theft, and much, much more. 

My intention is not to address any of that in detail today. I simply wanted to assure each and every reader, that this IS, and HAS ALWAYS BEEN, an AI-Free Blog. And I intend to keep it that way. 

What I'm not saying is that I've never pulled up ai to help me figure out a word or two to use based on what I'm trying to express. It has been used as a dictionary/thesaurus and search engine type tool multiple times. But I have never and will never ask ai to spit out a full blog post for me. I believe that would be disingenuous, and frankly dishonest. Dare I say, even unethical. Not to mention it takes away one of the main purposes of this blog, which is to HAVE FUN by writing posts!

When you visit The Storybook Journal (which has been around for longer than 10 years at this point!) you are coming to read a slice of Amaris, her psyche, her ramblings, and her life. Me, and only me, Amaris (...though, if you look back far enough, I used to call myself "Phoebe" on this blog! My mom had me scared that someone was going to read my teeny tiny, barely-a drop-in-the-unimaginably-vast-bucket-that-is the-internet-blog and come and stalk me just based on my name... LOL). 

So anyways, what I'm saying is, despite the changing technology landscape, past, present, and future, this blog will remain the same as it always has. It will continue to be a digital journal, with ramblings of life and its emotions, ups, downs, and complexities. Another one of many (though still unique) perspectives of life, GOD, love, happiness, feelings, books, movies, coffee beverages, family, and marriage. 

And I seal this with a typed promise on my sidebar, which reads: 

"This is an AI-free blog"! 

This is my promise and vow to you, the reader! 

☆~☆~☆

There is one other note I had to convey, on a different subject. 

As you might know from recent previous posts, I had a baby in February (hooray!). And with the pregnancy craziness and the birth craziness, of course then followed by the newborn craziness, my posting schedule for this blog has gone a little awry. I WAS doing every Wednesday to post, and it was a pretty good schedule for me. My plan is to get back to that again, now that my schedule and routine is settling in with the new baby and my new normal! I know that I don't have very many regular readers, and that's ok. But for the readers I do have, I just wanted to remain communicative. I have been guilty of getting wrapped up in life for months at a time without even looking at this blog, much less opening up the drafts to write a post. But I wanted to continue posting on here somewhat regularly because it is a source of great enjoyment for me, as it has been for 10 long years! 

That all being said, I know I am a little late this week and am posting on Thursday. But I wanted to share that my intention is to do Wednesday every week, so that can be something we can all look forward to!

☆~☆~☆

Well, that is all, my friends. Thank you for reading. Thank you for coming back to my blog, again and again, to peek into my tiny corner in a sea of internet blogs, in a day and age where blogs are somewhat antiquated and dare I say, even out of style! But despite all that, thank you for being here, and thank you for reading! 

Until next time. ◡̈

~ Amaris // ☆

Why I Stopped Posting My Child's Face Online

I recently made the decision to stop posting my child's face on my social media profiles (including Facebook, Instagram, etc.)

I'm aware that there are a lot of people that I know that still do this. And honestly, that's fine. I do not judge them for that. Everyone has the right to decide what to do with their own social media accounts, AND their kids. But, the fact that I know so many moms and am friends online with so many mom's who do this, I didn't want to post my reasoning on those accounts because I know it will come off as some kind of virtue signaling, or just "look at me and my decisions, they are better than yours". I'm not trying to give that impression. 

Plant Haven

So I figure, I'll post my reasonings on my blog, which hardly anyone reads, much less the people I'm online friends with on those platforms. I'm making it so that if someone wants to dig hard enough, they can and will see my reasons, and that's fine! If they never find this, that's fine too. I'm putting this out there in the world in case the right people do come across it. I'm not trying to say that everyone's values and views should be the same as my values and views. But, if you come across this post, I hope it will give you something to think about!

So with that out of the way...

I'm a fairly new mom. I have a two year old son, and if you caught my last post, you'll know I'm also pregnant with our second child (gender to be discovered!) When I first had my son, I was like any other new mom, posting the newborn hospital pictures on my feed, announcing my sweet baby's arrival, and the subsequent monthly updates. 

I don't think I realized it fully at the time, but even back then I felt... weird about it. As long as I've had a social media, I think I've been like everyone else where I'm trying to pick the best and favorite edited photos in my camera roll to share the highlights that I want to share. I did this back in 2020 when I shared some of my makeup looks, and I've done it on the blog for years when I share some of my VSCO edited photos of my every day life. 

It gets a little weirder to me when thinking about what pictures of my son, my child, LOOK the best that I want to post and share with people and the world. 

Posting my child online, subconsciously made me to ask these questions when considering which ones to post - 

Which of these photos does he look the cutest? 

Which of these photos show my best vsco editing on him? 

In which of these photos does he showcase the kind of child I want to be seen as raising? 

Which of these photos is worthy to showcase the announcement that my son has finally entered the world? (out of the 75 of them I took, trying to get the "perfect photo" for my son's newborn announcement)

Maybe at this point you can start to see where my "ick" has come from at the beginning. Why would I think it's appropriate to have such an appearance mindset towards my baby son?

My son is barely alive. Barely born into this world, and by posting him online, I'm subjecting him to this type of scrutiny, even if only in myself, even without realizing it. 

I recognize that not everyone will even have the same mindset about choosing photos of their children. Maybe no one is thinking anything remotely like those questions above. 

But, as I grew my "mom knowledge", another huge reason to avoid posting my son started to make itself known.

Privacy, safety, and consent. 

The internet has evolved so much since I was young. Predators are constantly finding new ways to be, well, predatory, online. I'm not going to cite my sources here, you can do as much as a google search to find out more about what I'm talking about. But nowadays, AI software is so advanced it can be used to change an innocent photo into something very realistic that can be used for evil. Even apart from AI usage, I have known people personally who was involved and trusted in church, but was actually a child predator. He would google pictures of little girls to use them for his fantasizing and f*etish behavior. Truly disgusting stuff. I would not be surprised if he used pictures on Facebook of friend's kids for the same thing. 

And you know what, sure. Any predator online can do anything they want to any photo online, including of me! This isn't exclusive to children. I have to make my own decisions about my own face online based on that knowledge. But the fact that my child is a minor and is unable to consent to any of that, is where I draw the line. 

My son does not have the ability to decide if he wants to subject his face to random online predators. He is two. It's my job as his mother to protect him in the ways that he can't protect himself. 

If I'm out in public and someone is filming my child without my notice or knowledge, then there's nothing I can do about that, sadly. That person will receive their due payment for their behavior. But subjecting my son to predatory behavior and even just scrutiny online is something that I can control.

Some might believe that their children's pictures are "safe" just because they have their accounts private. 

I thought that too, and to this day my accounts are still private (even thought all my son's photos are removed by this point). 

The fact is, your child's pictures are simply NOT guaranteed safe within a specified group of people just because they are posted on a private account. Screenshots are a thing. And chances are, people you know (or think you know) aren't who you think they are. Remember the dude I knew personally that I mentioned above? He was involved and respected and trusted in the church. Perfect "private friend group" material (also don't worry, he's in jail now).

But I want to share child updates with my friends online! Great. Do that without pictures. You can type a post about your child's development and funny quirks without any pictures at all (on Facebook). Or better yet, if my friends want to keep themselves updated on my life and my kid's progress, they can come see me and my kids personally! That's what hanging out is for. That's what a village is for. That's what church fellowship is for. 

This leads me to one last point about no longer sharing my child's face online - which is kind of a perk! I can't tell you how many mom friends I know who, as soon as they had kids, their social medias are just FULL of their kids. It's all about their kids. You go onto their profile, with their name on it, and I can't even find the person, cause it's allllll about their kids! 

Again, this is fine, and whoever wants to do this, is totally fine. But I think a big part of "losing yourself" in motherhood is blending your life with your kids in ways that you don't really need to. Of course, becoming a mother completely changes your life. This is a wonderful thing, this is how it should be! But each individual mother in the world is still a person, and still themselves! Why not utilize YOUR social media, to showcase YOUR updates? And YOUR likes and dislikes? And YOUR hobbies? And YOUR favorite foods? And YOUR milestones? Your profile has YOUR name on it, after all!

Even if you're a mom, YOU ARE NOT YOUR KIDS! 

I'm a new mom myself, but I've already met many many moms who struggle with this. They even come to resent their kids for it! 

We can be great mothers, but I also believe that our individuality is a priceless gift! 

GOD made me, ME. He gave me children, and being their caregiver is part of who I am. But it's not ALL of who I am. Just like being a wife is not ALL of who I am. 

I am me, a child of GOD, made in His image first and foremost. 

After all, if people want to be update on my life, they can come to MY social media and be satisfied. Because it's my social media, and I'm an adult posting myself and/or other adults who consent to be a photo on my page.

At this point I've seen enough and heard enough online and otherwise in my personal experiences in life that this is the conviction I've come to have and therefore must follow through on it. Again, I recognize not everyone agrees or feels this way, and that's totally fine. But I hope that if you have found this post and read my thoughts, maybe it will help your thoughts on it too! 

If you have any thoughts you want to share, feel free to leave a comment!

~ Amaris // ☆

Everything's Boring Now ...

... A Rant :)

 “I had no idea how much these quiet pleasures had retreated for my life while I was rushing around, and now I’m inviting them back in: still, rhythmic work with the hands, the kind of light concentration that allows you to dream, and the sense of a kindness done in the process”

- Wintering, by Katherine May 

I recently cancelled my Apple Music subscription to save money (following our decision to quit my full time job, as detailed in this post). 

As a result, on my way to work twice a week, I have resorted to listening to a total of 3 Owl City CD's that I obtained as a teenager. They have lived in the little in-between-the front-seats-compartment (I don't know what that compartment is called, LOL) in all my cars since my first Buick when I was 17. 

Even though the days of CD's are long over, I just never got rid of them. Partially because of sentiment (after all, Owl City Ocean Eyes was the first album I ever listened to that wasn't completely and obviously "Christian", and paved the way for me to experiment with music until I have the tastes that I do today), and partially because I was just too lazy/or didn't care to. 

The albums are Ocean Eyes, Mobile Orchestra, and Maybe I'm Dreaming, and even though these albums in their digital form are apart of my Apple Music Library, I haven't listened to them in their entirety in a long time. 

So I was surprised to find that, when listening to them for the first time in my car on the way to work, how utterly enjoyable it was. How happy it made me! 

It got me thinking... why is it that when I have unlimited options - a digital arsenal of practically every song I could ever dream of listening to - I am so much more... stressed?? Overwhelmed? Unsatisfied? Some of my favorite songs are on Apple Music that I can access, after all. But a lot of times, I won't even listen to the whole song. I'll listen through the first chorus, then skip!

I think a huge reason for the decline in many people's mental health in recent years is the introduction of unlimited media. But not just music. YouTube has every video about every topic you could ever imagine. Streaming services have practically every movie and show that you could ever care to watch. Social Media has every profile of almost every person you know, with endless updates about their lives, and endless opinions on politics, pop culture, health, parenting.... etc. 

Don't get me wrong, this is great and all. This is all very valuable and helpful in it's own way. 

But it's not just the problem of decision paralysis from all the unlimited choices and information overwhelm, something that I believe our brains weren't designed to handle in the first place. No, it's also the fact that we are all being robbed blind by subscription services. 

Think about it. A year of my Apple Music subscription cost me $10.99 x 12 months = about $130 bucks. 

You are telling me, after paying A HUNDRED AND THIRTY DOLLARS - that if I cancel the "subscription", I don't have the choice or the option to access ANY of my favorite songs anymore? 

So in essence, nothing is really MINE. Nothing is OWNED. 

In the olden days, you bought a CD, and then that CD was yours FOREVER. Even my Owl City CDs, TO THIS DAY are still MINE! I can still play them, I don't have to continue paying to continue enjoying them, and what's more, the songs aren't going to change if the world decides it's offensive for some reason for 10 years. 

So while driving along hearing my CD and having my thoughts. I thought to myself - this is the life to strive for. 

A life that owns instead of rents. A life that is grateful for what I have, which isn't everything in the world ever. 

There is no striving for everything I can't have, because I'm content with what I do have. And what I DO have, I'm grateful for and I take care of. 

A life that doesn't dull the pain of the mundane with hits of dopamine just to get by and feed the need of more more MORE. 

Because here's the thing ... the internet never ends. If I have an addiction to scrolling, here's the scary thing. There is no end to it. There is no limit. You could literally go on, and on and on. But it will never fully satisfy! 

I remember when I was a young teenager and I was getting into nail art (side note.... my mom didn't approve of the nail art. She thought nails should only be painted red, pink, or nude colors only. When I tried different colors such as purple as well as designs, she was gravely disapproving! I have no idea why, but it makes me chuckle today. LOL), I remember I would log onto Pinterest, which was still new and hot at the time, and search "nail art". And I WOULD ACTUALLY EVENTUALLY SCROLL TO THE "BOTTOM" OF THE PAGE because that was the END of the search results for "nail art"!!!! Nowadays, that just doesn't happen. 

It is my belief that a big learning curve for my generation (Gen Z, or the micro-generation, "Zillenial") was how to manage our own screen time, because it's not something our parents grew up with. 

As a new mom, I see plenty of online advice about not letting your kid have too much screen time, because there's actually some research on the subject now. 

But I'm still struggling with my OWN screen time, after 10+ years of cultivated habits from when I was a social media and internet-using teenager! My generation's parents didn't know how to deal with this phone stuff, because it all became available after they were adults.

It's something that I want to better in myself, so that I can raise my child with the tools he needs to be self disciplined. 

This is ONE of the reasons that I have avowed myself to start blogging more and regularly. To, in a sense, bring back the enjoyment of "slow internet". I have no idea if anyone still even reads my blog. Every one is out watching short form videos! Including myself, at times! 

But I want to get back to the slow, methodical, even ritualistic practice of the delayed gratification type of media, the type that takes awhile to put together, that helps me share thoughts and even understand my own values while I type them out. It takes practice, and honestly, a whole lot of unlearning and RE-learning. But I think it's worth it! 

Well, friends, that is all. This was a rather rambly, rant/vent sort of post. It was something that came to mind for me recently after actually giving up some things that I used to have "limited" options of. It got me thinking and so I wanted to share. If you haven't taken a break from your subscriptions lately, I recommend you give it a try! It might be "boring" for a bit, but that's where you start to see the magic! Not to mention your wallet will thank you. 

What are your thoughts on this topic? Do you think that the introduction of streaming and the "unlimited" nature of the internet, has ultimately improved society or harmed it? 

Until next time :)

 

An Interesting Summer

Hello there, people!

This post is a peek into my Summer of 2018. The Summer in which I spent a lot of time NOT blogging. :P In fact, I've not only failed to write my own blog, but I've neglected reading blogs as well. So if I haven't been commenting on your blog posts lately, I apologize. I still love you all!

Not my photo- taken from Pinterest

It's just been really busy and so much has changed in my life. Like, for real. I think I've changed more in the past 8 months or so than I ever have. Except maybe when I was a toddler. Hehe. :)

Anyways. My Summer has been an interesting time. For one, because it's the first Summer that I've owned a smartphone, and (I don't know if you've noticed this, but) smartphones have a way of influencing your every day life.
So, it's just been... I don't know, different. But good.

// Summer of 2018 //

Not my photo- taken from Pinterest

// Movies //

As of August 15th (the day I am originally writing this post), I have watched 42 movies this year! That might not sound like much to some people, but it's certainly a lot for me! In 2017 I literally watched like, 10 movies.
But anyways! Here are just a few of my favorites from this Summer.

July 9th: Big (1988)

 This movie was literally so cute it had me and my sister laughing and crying. It's safe to say this is one of my favorite Tom Hanks movies. There is a bit of content, so I would read a review first. But it's literally, like, 3 things. :) We loved it. 

July 16th: The Terminal (2004)

 It's not surprising that me and my sister loved this Tom Hanks movie as well. We loved it so much we even watched it a second time the next week to show it to Mom! Thankfully, this one is even cleaner than 'Big' and definitely worth the cuss word or two.

July 19th: Big Eyes (2014)

 Oh my goodness, I just adored this movie. It was so sad and heart wrenching, and I just wanted to hug the main character and the story was so FRUSTRATING but it ended up ok which was amazing! I also loved Amy Adams in this movie. I'm pretty sure the only reason it got the PG-13 rating, was because of one really loud f-word. But other than that, I loved this one. 

July 21st: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly (1966)

Even though Westerns aren't my thing, it was really enjoyable to watch this one because not only is it a timeless and iconic classic, it's also my mom's favorite movie of all time (which I don't really understand because she doesn't even like Westerns...??? Who knew..). It's also the first R-rated movie I've ever seen without a filter. Not sure if that counts for any accomplishment, but. *shrug*

Not my photo- taken from Pinterest

 // I Taught At Vacation Bible School //

...and it was such a good experience. I learned so much and made a really good friend through it! Me and my friend, Maggie, wrote the lessons from scratch to teach the kids each day (we taught the lessons as well as wrote them, me and Maggie), instead of using curriculum lessons!

Maggie and I began meeting about twice a week at her house starting late in April to figure out/write the lessons.
We knew that God was telling us to teach the kids stories that inspired them to fall in love with God, instead the idea of being saved and going to heaven. Heaven, after all, is just a side bonus. The real reward is serving God with your life.

But anyways! After weeks (months...?) of studying and preparing our props and our lessons (we had skits and props and visuals to go along with our custom lessons of course!) the VBS in July went very smoothly.
It was truly so fulfilling to be used by God in such a way!
I know I would rather come up with my own lessons for kids anytime rather than just read from a curriculum script, because then I will be able to teach from what I have already learned about God.

Photo credit: me

// I Dyed My Hair //

... for the first time ever! Unfortunately, it didn't come out according to the picture I showed the salon worker. It doesn't look bad, but definitely different than what I asked her to do. The color that she used is growing on me, however, and I'm able to dress 'the new hair' up to look pretty good.
I also got it cut as well as colored, so it's been fun having low-maintenance hair again!

Photo of me taken by me, taken from my Instagram

// I Started Drawing Again //

...and I also created a Tumblr to post my lil drawings on! It's quite a small ordeal (I have 0 followers right now XD), but I mostly created it to motivate myself to keep drawing! I've been practicing mostly eyes lately, and if you follow my Instagram, you've probably seen a few examples.
I kind of explain the reason for taking up drawing again in the synopsis of my Tumblr blog:

"My whole life, I would be off and on with drawing. Here and there I would get a burning, passionate motivation to draw, so I would. For awhile. The Summer of 2018 I decided to take drawing more seriously and enhance my skills through more consistent practice, and I figured a blog would help motivate me. I hope you enjoy what you see, feel free to comment but please be nice... I am learning. Thank you!"

Drawing by me, photo by me, taken from my Tumblr.

If you like drawings of eyes and have a Tumblr account, go follow me! :)

---

Well, that's about it. I didn't do a whole lot of note-worthy things this Summer, but to wrap things up, here are a few more small things I did that might be interesting.

-I went to an outdoor theater for the first time ever!! It was such a blissful and relaxing experience. The breeze the night we went was absolutely wonderful!

-I have been getting to know the area I live in. You might remember my family moved back in May. I was quite unfamiliar with the area surrounding our new apartment, but the past couple of months I've been discovering more things around here. There are some great restaurants as well as a movie theater almost next door to us!

-I went to our local Science Center to see an exhibit about Apollo 11 and the Moon! They had the entire Apollo 11 Command Module there on display. It was pretty neat, and I learned a lot. The moon is kind of my thing, so it was very fun. :) We also saw a very informative and cute documentary about pandas, because they have a giant IMAX theater at the Science Center.

---

Not my photo - Taken from Pinterest

As you can see, it was a good Summer. I am still working at my job at the embroidery shop, and I'm going to be serving at my local AWANA club as the Sparks Director. I am looking forward to Fall and Winter!

Thank you for reading!

-Amaris

Spider-Man: Homecoming // 2017

Did you ever think you would see another Spider-Man post on this blog?
Well, if you did and even if you didn't, here's another one.
This past Sunday I saw Spider-Man: Homecoming.
I'm going to try something different with the way I present this review. I'm going to separate my thoughts into categories, and we shall see how it goes.
What's that you say? You want pictures and gifs? Don't worry, I have those too.
Let us begin.

Firstly, I must say, this is a bit of a long review, as I have lots of things to talk about. I tried to cut it down some, but it's still pretty long. So bear with me. :)
Before I actually saw this movie, I was a little worried that it wasn't going to make a lot of sense, because I got the impression after watching trailers that it went hand-in-hand with the latest Avengers movie.
That would have been very confusing, considering I have not seen ANY Avengers movie, ever. So if SH made a lot of references to past stories, where would that leave me? Thankfully, that didn't really happen. While the Avengers people DO tie into Peter's story in this movie (Iron Man and Captain America were both involved), Spider-Man: Homecoming stood 99% on it's own, apart from just a few references that I didn't really 'get'. Anyhow, I was happy to discover that a person can watch SH with or without having seen past Avengers movies.

What I Liked About Spider-Man Homecoming:
~First and foremost, I gotta say that Tom Holland did an excellent job as our friendly web-slinger. Even though I love past Spider-Men, Tom has something that they didn't: youthfulness. Sure, Tobey Maguire looked kind of young, but he didn't really look high school age to me. Same with Andrew Garfield. But Tom? Perfection. He did such a good job at being awkward, and boyish, and a geeky science nerd, and fifteen. Which is quite young to act like. But Tom did it! He brought it. Amazingly. You see, Peter Parker's character has to have the correct ratio of boyish and edgy (but not annoying) sarcasm, spider-resembling superpowers, and emotional baggage for him to be the Peter he was meant to be.

From the Amazing Spiderman... see what I mean about the sarcasm...

 He is a combination of weakness and strength, *semi-spoiler* but his strengths always come through in the end, just like they're supposed to. And they end up saving the day, which was a great part of this movie. *end of spoiler*
He is your modern and updated Spider-Man, but he's still your classic Peter. He even cried a couple of times. Yes, when you get Tom Holland as Spider-Man, you get the complete package.
Like I said, Tom did it. Jolly good show, Tom.
*hats off to tom*
 Plus can we just take a second to appreciate how low-key adorable he is....

~The overall story, I feel, was engaging and very thought out. Some of the problems I get when I try (yes, I do try) to watch other super-hero movies (HEMcaptainameicaAHEM), is that they don't have enough plot to satisfy me. Well, there's plot, I guess. But it's just a bunch of fighting plot, and not enough interesting plot. I feel like I can't even get to know the hero because everything is moving too fast and everyone is punching and shooting, but where's the emotion? Where's the personality? Where's the heartbreak? I just can't find it. But in Spider-Man: Homecoming, I found it. The excitement and violence did NOT outweigh the touching parts, and we were actually given a chance to resonate and connect with who Peter is supposed to be as a character.

-"I just want to be like you!"  -"I want you to be better."

~This movie was funny! I loved the kind of humor that Peter's friend, Ned, brought to the picture. There were some scenes that I just laughed right out loud. It was just enjoyable like that. I get a little tired of crude and rude humor in movies. But thankfully, this movie wasn't like that (for the most part). It was genuinely hilarious. It was the perfect blend of serious stuff and funny stuff, which (to me), is what a good super-hero movie should be like.

I also like how Ned knew Peter was 'The Spider-Man'. It brought a lot of humor into things, and it was kind of a refreshing change from the first Spider-Man movie with Tobey Maguire when literally no one knew who he was. I guess I'm glad that Peter wasn't alone in this one. Several people knew who he was, actually.

What I Didn't Like (yes, there were a few things):
~Aunt May. I did not like Aunt May. No offense to the actress who played her in the movie, but I prefer the older, friendly, understanding, granny-type Aunt May. This one was... weird. And annoying. She didn't seem like your typical 'aunt' at all. I mean, I know everything is supposed to be redone and modern and updated in this movie, but couldn't we keep the 'old Aunt May' theme? This one seemed more like Peter's older sister! Plus, to me, the two didn't have the aunt/nephew chemistry at all. Every time she tried to encourage him, or give him a hug, or just be his aunt that we've always loved, it was just... so... weird. It didn't seem right. :P

~There was one more little thing: I wish that the movie had shown more of Peter helping and saving people. There wasn't anything BIG that he was able to help with. In fact, he messed a lot of things up. It almost seemed like Spider-Man wasn't a big deal to anyone at all. Aren't superheroes supposed to be heroes to people? I do realize that the movie was portraying how young and naive and immature he's supposed to be, but I feel like they could have made him be a bigger help to random people in general.

 Ok, last of the dislikes:
~I did not like Peter's high school girlfriend/crush, Liz. Ok, I didn't hate her. I just didn't feel like she was right. Kind of like Aunt May, she didn't seem to go with Peter. She wasn't terrible, but I think they could've done much better. She was no MJ. Also, it was kind of weird that she's like, 8 years older than him (in real life, not in the movie) and I could kind of tell it. But I do like the way Peter acts around a girl he likes. It's pretty funny. XD

Violence & Other Content:
~I didn't enjoy the generous amounts of language sprinkled throughout this movie. Why are superhero movies like this? Can't they just be clean? Anyways, you have to watch out for cuss words. Because there are some, including an unfinished f-word (please, Marvel. Please), crude comments made by high schoolers (you know how they are... in the movies, anyways), rude nicknames for Peter, and your usual d-word, h-word, a-word, and more that I can't remember. It wasn't an unbearable amount of language, but I gotta say that a language filter would be nice to watch this movie with.

~As far as violence goes, it didn't seem super intense or graphic to me. I'm not used to watching Marvel movies, you understand, so I don't rightly know what kind of violence levels are in all of them. But anyways, in spite of a few small things, the hitting and punching and shooting wasn't the worst I've ever seen in a movie.
A guy gets disintegrated by some kind of matter-dissolving ray gun (that sounds pretty cheesy when I type it), Spider-Man gets beat up a couple of times, of course (he's the 'good guy', after all). People scream when there's a disaster on a ferry, a store almost gets blown up, etc. You know. The usual.

That's almost all I had to say, but here are A Few Other Things:
I liked the villain: Not too cheesy, interesting enough. I liked his bad-guy costumes, too.
I liked Michelle: She's always... just... there. With funny comments. "You guys are losers..." "I can't believe you guys are at this lame party."
I liked Tony Stark: Or as the internet calls him, 'Papa Stark'. I love his role as Peter's mentor figure, and the way he sweeps in with his fancy suit all the time.
I liked the high school setting: All the teenager vibes, backpacks and school hallways. Sticky notes, pencils, notepads, gym bleachers. You know.
I liked Peters super-cool super-suit: I do feel like the spider symbol thingy could have been more epic looking, but the rest of the suit and all it's gadgets was pretty cool. Karen was hilarious. :)

Overall:
I kind of expected to enjoy this movie because of my partiality to Spider-Man, and I did. It was put together well, the acting was splendid on everyone's part, I laughed out loud and even almost cried once. It was quite a fun time all around because I usually don't watch superhero movies at all, much less in theaters. So it was pretty great. Would I recommend this movie? Yes. Even if you're not a superhero person (and I'm still not at all...), I dare you to go see this movie and not enjoy it.

After all, this is what I said when my friend texted me and asked me how the movie was:
Me: "Well, there were a lot of funny little bits, mixed with touching bits, mixed with exciting bits, [plus Ned plus Tony plus Karen] and altogether it made a pretty enjoyable movie."
And so.
I think I've said my piece. If you've read all the way to the end, congratulate yourself.
Bye, friends!
-Amaris

But first... just look at those glasses... look at them.

 Ok. Bye.

Summer 2017 // Favorites // I'm Back, Guys!

Well, that was a fun summer.
Between re-watching my favorite detective shows, teaching little kids about Jesus, going to a cabin with my best friend, and being annoyed at my neighbor's continuous fireworks during Independence Day festivities, I've had a pretty adventurous summer.
Let me apologize for any of you who feel neglected because I didn't comment on your posts, or didn't respond to YOUR comments, or not posting on my blog at all. It's been a very interesting summer for me, but I appreciate all of your patience!
From now on I think you can look forward to more (kind of / almost / semi) regular posts from me. :)
Thus I welcome you to the post in which I share what I have done or been interested in this Summer. Enjoy!

Ministry~
As I've told you guys before, this Summer I've been busy with ministry. Specifically, children's ministry. I was able to go all around my home town and teach clubs and share Jesus with children, which was very rewarding! I had some great clubs this year for sure. :) Although I'm sad that Summer's over (which means I won't be involved in them anymore), Awana will be starting in a couple of weeks at my church, and I am very excited for that!

Teach the children, 

so it will not be necessary 

to teach the adults.

~Abraham Lincoln

Detectives~
Like I said up there, I have been re-watching my favorite detective shows. Those consist of: Sherlock BBC, Monk, and Columbo. Heck, I even watched the Psych pilot episode!
I think my favorite has to be Sherlock, but I hate to say that, because I really like Monk and Columbo too. They're all good in their own ways.
Anyways, in a future post (and believe me, I have like 52 drafts of 'future posts' that are all wondering if they're ever going to get published because I am a very mean author) I would like to do kind of a comparison post of my three favorite detectives, but I don't even have a rough draft for a post like that yet. But hey, it could be fun. :) 

Spiderman~
Guys. Please tell me something.
Why do I like Spiderman at all? For some reason, out of all the super-hero-people, Spiderman is the only one I'm actually interested in, the one that I don't hate. Why is that?!
Why?
#don't mind me over here sometimes i just don't even understand my own self
Well, I don't hate ALL the super-people. I kind of like Superman too, because he was a big part of my childhood. And he's been around forever. *shrug* I don't know, guys. But anyways, I saw Spiderman Homecoming the other day, and really enjoyed it! Now I don't have to worry about seeing spoilers anymore.  :)

Car & Driving~
Yes, my friends. I have been driving. What a unique thing to do.
No really, you might remember that I bought my first car, which is pretty fun. Sadly, however, I didn't get to drive my car a lot when I first got it, because I was away doing my ministry things a lot, and there was always someone else to drive me places.
But that's all over with. I am home now. No one is picking me up, and no one is dropping me off. I am now driving my own car.
And it's. So. Fun.
Oh, the ability to go places. Like Starbucks. And the thrift store!
I realize I'm making a ridiculously big deal about a very trivial thing. Driving a car is very ordinary. But right now, it isn't ordinary to me. It's a novelty. I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm quite young, and enjoying the little things in life is very important to me.
Yes, driving will be boring one day.
But right now? Pardon me while I live a little. Now goodbye. *rolls up window*

Star Wars~
I finally watched all of the Star Wars movies. Boy, oh boy. *whew!* *wipes sweat from forehead* What a ride. I did kind of a marathon thing with some friends to finish them all up, and boy. I'm getting tired all over again just thinking about that night.
I don't want to share too many opinions, because I'm trying to get a post together for like a review on all the movies. I don't know how that's going to work, but I'm trying. Overall, though, I have to say that Star Wars is still not my thing, but I did enjoy them. Well, most of them. But we'll talk about that in said Star Wars post. If I can get all my thoughts together.

Cabin in the Woods~
I already talked about this a bit in another post from awhile back, but it deserves a mention in this post as well, because even though it happened back in May, I still consider it apart of my Summer, and will always remember it as such. It was a great four-and-a-half days of getting wet in the river, collecting teeny tiny shells, reading books, using outhouses (heh, heh...), taking aesthetically pleasing Instax pictures, and collecting lots of foam letters (don't ask). It was a great time. 

Photo Credit: ME

Making~
As far as 'making' stuff, I haven't been doing a LOT of creative things lately, other than having fun with makeup, but I did make this crown. Before you ask, yes. My fingers hurt quite a bit after making this.

Photo Credit: ME

I Have Read NO BOOKS~
All Summer. Not. One. Book. Do you see Mansfield Park, and The Potato Peel book up there in that picture? I HAVE NOT READ THEM. Although I have owned them for months now. How terrible is that? Well, I did read my Driver's Guide (for the second time around). But that doesn't count. If it does, then it had the worst plot I've ever read.

I Have Not Written a Word of my Book~
And my Characters are mad at me. I can feel it. They're really, really mad. They refuse to speak to me. All summer they have been lost in nothingness, with no purpose. No life. No... nothing. Because I didn't write a word.
I am a terrible Keeper of Characters.
Forgive me, characters.
Goodbye.
*dies dramatically of shame*

I Have NO Money~
This Summer was a little different for me because I had no money. I was qutie poor. Like, no-more-than-12-bucks-in-the-bank-at-any-given-time type of poor.
See, I spent almost all I had on my car and its expenses at the beginning of June, and then the ministry work that I did was all volunteer work, which meant I didn't get paid, which meant I couldn't work at my regular job, which meant I had no money all Summer.
Which meant that I had to find other things to amuse myself in my spare time that did NOT involve money. But it was a great time of growth, I think. I learned to be a bit of a minimalist, and I got to appreciate what I already had, without spending a thing. God surely uses everything. :)

And a Few Other Things~

• Pusheen Cat. For some obscure reason, I love Pusheen Cat.
• Singing, "Hey it's ok, it's ok, you're welcome!" from Moana every time someone says "Thank you".
• Little kids. Just children in general. They have squishy faces. I love them.
• Dramatic people. I could never be like them, but it's fun to watch them.
• Benedict Cumberbatch. No more words needed.
• Looking forward to Fall. And Thanksgiving, one of my favorite holidays.

So.
That's about it I think. Like I said up there, I'm sorry for having almost no posts for all those weeks, but I am back now, and ready to shower you with lots and lots of interesting things...
Now if you'll excuse me, I have a half-eaten donut from this morning that I must finish eating, if I don't want it to go stale.
No one likes a stale donut.

 -Amaris

p.s. That kind of sounded like a Blimey Cow closing sentence... 
p.p.s. Also, I recently wrote a more updated About Me page. If you want to go look. :)