*☾ - A Rambly Post About Astronomy & The Solar Eclipse - ☽*

 (a.k.a. a very ramble-y, nonsensical post about space... and things. Prepare yourself)

If you've been hanging around this blog for awhile, two things are possible. 1. You have great tolerance for putting up with me (congratulations for that), and 2. you might have noticed that I am sort of obsessed with astronomy.
In fact, I consider myself an amateur astronomer.
My love for the night sky (and even the day sky) has always been around, but first began to show itself among my many interests when I took an astronomy course for high school (which seems like so long ago). I also saw Dr. Jason Lisle in person, around the time that he had just published "The Stargazer's Guide to the Night Sky" (a greeeeeaaat book btw if you are clueless about celestial objects/events and you want to get started somewhere), and I was rather depressed at the time that I didn't have enough money to buy the huge book (which was something around 20 dollars; a fortune for me back then). But a couple years later, in 2014 or so, my mom bought the book for me when I was doing the astronomy course! I was pretty happy, folks.
I learned a whooolllle lot with that book.

It was around this time that I really began to take an interest in astronomy.
Not only the aesthetic of it, but the wonder of it. I mean, have you seen this video? Outer space is amazing! Do you realize if you floated up into the sky, past the planets, past interstellar space, past our solar system, you would just keep going and going and going?
There's nothing out there.
And there's everything.

(one of my favorite star clusters)

 ☾ * ☽

Anyways. I said all of that to say, that on August 21st, 2017, I saw (what has been called) the Great American Solar Eclipse.
I saw the moon pass over the sun, people.
Did you hear me?
I saw the moon.
Pass over.
The sun.
And I can't. believe. it's over. It felt so surreal the whole time. It still feels surreal. Like a really amazing dream that cannot possibly be true.
But it is true.
It happened.

NOT MY IMAGE. (not sure who to credit. : / )

I had the safety solar glasses, of course. Hopefully they were 'safe' ones, as there were apparently a lot of controversy about fakes out there. All I can say is, my eyes seem ok, but hopefully I won't go blind in a few years. (even though it would be worth it, I think)

 ☾ * ☽

I made a pinhole viewer to watch the progression on the ground. And I saw crescents everywhere. Through the holes in a colander, through my pinholes, even through the shadows of the leaves on the ground!
And then.
I looked up through my glasses, and I saw the last smidgen of sun disappear. I also saw the diamond ring before it faded out.
(photo credit to whoever took the shot)
The outdoors around me went dark, and the nighttime creatures started to make their sounds.
Then, I looked up (without my glasses this time) and I saw the most beautiful thing I think I've ever seen. 

It was a big, dark circle, with a bright ring of light around it. But it wasn't a smooth ring. It had, like wisps. It was totally amazing. I don't want to break any copyright laws, but here's a photo of what it looked like. 
(and I can't credit the photo because I don't know who took the shot. #please don't sue me)
Guys, it was so surreal. I have never seen anything like it.
I saw stars! I saw sunsets all around the horizon! I saw a beautiful, bright planet (pretty sure it was Venus or Jupiter), all at 1:10  in the afternoon! 

By now in this post, I feel like I'm just saying the same things over and over again. If you didn't see the eclipse, you are probably really bored right now, and I probably sound like some nutty stargazing fanatic-who-doesn't-know-that-much-about-outer-space-and-science-but-likes-looking-at-stars-and-moons-and-suns-anyhow. (But you know what? That's what I am.) And that's ok.
All I can say is, God is amazing.

Millions of people saw what I saw. Can you believe that probably a lot of them still don't believe that God exists, or cares about them? In wonder if and how many people were affected on a religious level by this eclipse. It's interesting to think about.

☾ * ☽

As for myself, I feel more in touch with God (if that is possible. He has always been as 'in touch' with me as He's ever going to be, but you know), and His creation.
I feel more in touch with the universe.
I feel like the sun is my friend now. The moon has always been my friend (throwback to my old profile picture, anyone?), but now the sun is special to me too. I just can't observe it as well. But I can learn about it.

Photo Credit: ME

Speaking of cool and interesting things, I am lucky enough to have a great memory of the eclipse to look back on through the years, besides just pictures. A friend from St. Louis sent me a postcard with an eclipse stamp! This postage stamp is different because it is heat-sensitive. So when you put your finger over it, the moon appears! 
And look at the post mark: 21 Aug 2017, the day of the eclipse!!!!!!!!!!!! (look at me, using all of those exclamation points... #yourfangirlisshowing)
Definitely the coolest stamp I own out of all 2000 something that are in my collection. 
I'm so happy right now, people. And amazed. And inspired. And everything.

*sigh* 
I'm going to leave now. For I am sure that I'm boring you. 
Time to binge watch space videos on YouTube. 
Bye!  

☽* Amaris *☾  

p.s. Before I leave, let me just share a video. This is one of the best ones I have found. I just get excited all over again when I watch it. I love how this guy captures the cheers and excitement of the onlookers. 



That is all!

Watching Shows & Movies At My House

Some of the reactions/comments you might hear if you ever watch these shows with my family at my house.
~

Doctor Who:

-Why though...?

-Who/what is THAT?!?!

-Can I just touch his hair please
-What is going on?
-JUST KISS
-noooo plz don't send the cute one back in time.....
-Why is he doing that again?
-Why doesn't he just tell her he loves her? What is he, stupid?
-Pretty sure Rory is like the most adorable thing that ever happened to Britain.

~

~

Pride & Prejudice:

-Oooh look at the dresses

-Ew, Mr Collins. Ew.

-Colin Firth is SO the best Darcy
-Look heheh she ran into him again
-I'VE DONE THIS DANCE BEFORE AT A BALL.
-Since when is Lady Catherine the Queen of Everything?!
-You. Are so. Annoying.

~

Call the Midwife:

-Wow, look at THAT baby.

-When are one of the midwives (besides Chummy) going to have their own baby?

-HOW CAN YOU NOT KNOW WHEN YOU'RE THIS FAR ALONG, WOMAN
-Please don't make this an awkward gay moment. EaW STHOpP
-If he's the doctor, I'd want to get sick too.
-Why are you insistent on not getting help, lady. You obviously need it.
-I KNEW IT. I CAN ALWAYS TELL WHEN THEY'RE HIDING PREGNANCY.

-So what if your husband finds out? He might be happy, you know...
~

~
Sherlock:

-Oooh look at Sherlock's hair.
-can we pause at this shot so i can take a pic fo instagram...

-Do you ever wonder if John actually is gay

-*Humming the theme song*

-Look, mom! It's Bilbo, your favorite!

-I think I read a tumblr post about this part...

-hehe John's face...

-Poor Graham Lestrade
-Well that was a very British thing to say, sir.
-AAAAUUUUGHHHH I CAN'T TAKE ANYMORE TRAGEDY
-*shaking fists at moffat*
 ~

~

The Lord of the Rings:

-How do you never run out of arrows, elfboy?

-Aragorn, please take a shower. 

-Are Frodo's eyes real...?

-Finally a woman character
-eugh. faramir is such a mean-o.
-DID YOU SEE THAT. THIS IS WHY I LOVE HOBBITS.
-9 members... why couldn't they make it an even 10?

~

North & South:

-how?! is his face so perfect and British??

-DUDE. Relax. He's her BROTHER. gosh. #chill already

-surprise, surprise, another death.

-Mrs. Thornton... why you so mean all the time.
-you did not almost faint. calm down, drama queen.
-YOU SIR, ARE DISGUSTING AND I HATE YOU.
-Ah, yes. Margaret. Turning down proposals like a boss.
~

~

Monk:

-HAHHAHhahhahahahaaa he touched the lamp

-What is Sharona wearing?
-aww theres the trudy music
-NO NO YOU'VE GOT THE WRONG GUY YOU IDIOTS.

-Hehe I like his moustache

-I see, half painted nails. This was no suicide.

-How was he ever married at all?
-CALLED IT.

~

I Love Lucy:

-WHY DON'T YOU EVER OBEY YO HUSBAND, WOMAN

-Why is everyone scheming against one another?

-How dare you call ethel fat!

-yeee i love the costumes in this showww
-NOW LOOK YOU'VE GOTTEN YOURSELF INTO A MESS
-If you ask me, you're all fatheads.
 ~

That is all.
Goodbye!
-Amaris

* * * * * 

No, wait. I have a few P.s.'s:

p.s. Firstly, I wanted to apologize that I didn't post yesterday as I had intended to, but I WAS BUSY ALL DAY WATCHING AN ECLIPSE. You know. No big deal. Anyways, I was busy with that, because it did involve some traveling, and I was not able to post this because it was too late by the time I got home. 

But anyways, more on the eclipse later.

* * * * *

p.p.s. Also (yes this is random), here's a shout-out to the very first time I've ever shown (even part of) my face to the internet. Behold my new profile pic. I realize it's not a big deal, but it's kind of a big step for me. *shrug* I don't know.

#yay #accomplishments

 ...and yes I know my hands are reflected in the picture. #i'm not an expert at this

Ok, that's all. See you later!

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. :)