Season Premieres (WFMAD Day 14)

It's that time of year again. School is up and running, the temperatures are cooling, and my favourite TV shows are starting to return at last.

The time for season premieres is upon us.

Last night was the first in the line of many returns and new arrivals on television this fall. Down in the States, the second season of The Legend of Korra premiered, and while I couldn't watch it live on television, some kind soul uploaded it online for us poor non-Americans to watch. I've been waiting over a year for the return of this show, and I REALLY enjoyed it!

Next up, this Monday, is the premiere of Dancing with the Stars is airing. I don't normally tune into this show, but Bill Nye the Science Guy is going to be dancing this season.

You heard me. Bill Nye the Science Guy. My childhood is screaming at me to watch this.

A week after that, on September 23rd, is the Castle season 6 premiere; which, after the finale back in May, I am absolutely FREAKING OUT about, you have absolutely no idea. (Unless you know me in real life, in which case yeah, you probably do have a pretty good idea.) I sincerely hope I don't work on this date because I'm 99% sure I will die in the prolonged wait a closing shift at the restaurant will cause.

A week after that, on September 29th, is the Once Upon a Time season 3 premiere. While I didn't enjoy the second season as much as the first, I'm still SUPER excited for its return. They're going to have Ariel, guys. Ariel. She's, like, my favourite princess ever.

And finally, on October 10th is the series premiere of Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, a OUaT spin-off. This is a new show, and one that I hadn't originally intended on watching...until I saw the trailer.

I mean, come on. It's a love story. This is ME we're talking about. I'm tuning in if it's the last thing I do.

Of course, there are also going to be new episodes of Phineas and Ferb airing occasionally, which I will DEFINITELY not be missing, because I love that show to death. The season finale of The Amazing Race Canada also airs the same night as the DwtS premiere, which I am equally stoked for.

What shows are you looking forward to watching this year?

Until later,

- Justyne

Rollerskating and Smelly Feet (WFMAD Day 13)

These are the things my family instructs me to blog about.

(My sister also suggested "the joy of working at MacDonald's", but that's her job, not mine.)

Since the day is basically over and I have yet to come up with anything better, I think I'll just roll with it. (Hehe. Roll. Get it?)

I suck at rollerblading about as much as I suck at ice skating (which makes sense, since they're basically the same thing in different seasons). I'm not too bad, I guess, considering that I can at least stay upright. But God forbid I go rollerblading on pavement that isn't brand-new and 100% smooth. I hit the slightest bump or imperfection, and I go flying.

My dad and sister talked today about going to a rollerblading rink. I really hope I get to go to this because come on, how many bumps or imperfections are going to be on a rink?

(There will probably be a lot just because I'll be there.)

I don't have much to say about smelly feet, other than the fact that I tell my sister that her feet smell a lot when they really don't.

(Oh no, my biggest secret has been revealed! *darts into refrigerator filled with chocolate milk because why not*)

Another random thing to add before I go: I spilt chocolate milk all over myself today. Not even kidding, guys. That's what I get for not putting the lid back on my Milk To Go cup between sips.

(I also got it all over the table and all over my chair at Subway.)

Really, really random blog post tonight, I know.

Until later,

- Justyne

In Which I Blog About Blogging (WFMAD Day 11)

I've been wangin' this blogging thing for the past six months now. (Seriously, though, it has not been six months already. It hasn't. I refuse to believe that, just like I refuse to believe my younger sister just entered high school, and that I, myself, graduated over a year ago. WHAT.)

To be completely honest, I still have no idea if I'm doing this right.

I find that my blogging tends to be all over the place. Sometimes, I give writing tips. Sometimes, I blog about writing in general. Sometimes, I ramble on about my life--which, I admit, is pretty boring. I'm still not entirely sure what I'm doing a good 99% of the time. Sometimes it's nice, to be able to wang it so frequently. Most times it's a pain in the butt, because I still have no idea what I'm doing.

It has its ups and downs, I guess.

But, since you're still reading this after six months, I must be doing something right.

Now, considering that I have blogged about a wide variety of topics, let me ask you: why do you read my blog? For the tips? For my day-to-day life activities? Answer in the comments below; I'm curious. :)


Until later,

- Justyne

Holy Crap Why Did I Do This (WFMAD Day 10)

It's that time.

That time, during any challenge I commit myself to, that I ask myself a simple question:

"Why oh why oh WHY did I agree to this?!?"

It's always easy in the beginning.

"Hey, this looks like fun! I'll give it a shot."

I never really think about it too much.

"Wow, this is easy! I'll nail this challenge, no problem!"

But eventually, the time comes. The time when you start staring at a blank document for hours upon hours, every day. When your daily goal isn't accomplished quickly and painlessly, at the start of your day, but mere minutes before you go to bed at night; if you even complete it at all.

Just as I have these problems with NaNoWriMo--which eventually leads to me writing 13k words in a day, which isn't all bad--I also find myself having troubles with WFMAD, this month. Some days have been easier than others; some days I finished the post early, had a chance to read it over carefully, and was able to post it without any problems at all. Other days, however, are filled with struggle; I spend the greater part of the afternoon wrangling words into sentences, failing to succeed before heading to work. My supper break is then filled with more wrangling, as I type furiously into my phone, followed by more of the same once I get home. Finally, the blog is updated; late into the night, when I should really be asleep.

I always imagine writing as easier than it actually is. I picture myself typing away furiously, the words flowing quickly and painlessly onto the paper. I'm always harshly awoken from my little fantasy the second I sit down to write, the blinking cursor taunting and torturing me as it refuses to reveal any more words of the story. 

This is the hardest part of any challenge I commit myself to; tredging on, even when writer's block stands in my way, and I'd rather do just about anything else.

It takes perseverance, and determination.  And I think it provides a test, of some sort; can you commit to finishing what you start?

I sure hope so.

Until later,

- Justyne

Happily Ever After (WFMAD Day 9)

I love happy endings.

Maybe it's my love of Disney movies, my hopelessly romantic heart, or the fact that sad endings make me...well, sad. Either way, I have always loved happy endings; both in the stories I'm reading, and writing myself.

Developing the perfect happy ending, however, can be tricky sometimes. Obviously nothing is absolutely perfect; there will always be one person who doesn't like the way things turned out, or who finds holes to poke in your happily ever after. For some people, a happy ending is ideal; for others, they need a more realistic, real-world-esque finale.

I love reading about happy endings. I love when the guy gets the girl; when the hero saves the world. I just love it when everything works out. When it comes to writing, though, things are a little different.

Generally, when I come up with a new idea for a story, three things come to mind: the initial conflict or plot concept, the climax, and the ending. I generally know right from the get-go how a story is going to end, but honestly, that ending isn't always completely happy.

Normally it is, don't get me wrong. Most of my stories have fairly happy endings; even if everything doesn't work out perfectly, enough falls into place for it to be a satisfying finish (to me, anyway). But every now and then, the story takes a more depressing turn, and the ending isn't quite as happy as I'd like it to be. It's not my personal preference; it's my writer's intuition, so to speak.

Like any aspect of a story, the ending has to feel right. I could make an ending as perfect and as happy as I'd like it to be while reading it, and it wouldn't mean anything if I didn't feel in my heart that it was right.

But whenever I write a sad ending, you can bet that there's an alternate version stashed away somewhere; one where the girl gets the boy, the hero saves the world, and everything works out.

It's always nice to have.

Until later,

- Justyne

3 Reasons Why I Love My Job (WFMAD Day 8)

1. I get to have dance parties! While deboning chicken. But still, dance parties!

2. I have easy access to pie! I still have to pay for it. But still. Pie.

3. Most of the people there are awesome, even if some of aren't so awesome. They make me laugh and are fun to be with and totally don't mind that I whistle while I work.

Today was a good day. It's days like these that remind me why I chose to go back to my old high school job, despite all the times that I complain about it. (And those who know me know that I complain about it a lot.) 

Even though my job is not the most glamorous, and I sometimes find myself wondering why the hell I decided to return to it, the people I work with make it worth it.

To quote John Green, what you do is not nearly as important as who you do it with.

(Actually I think that might've been closer to a paraphrase, but you get the idea.)

Until later,

- Justyne

And now, your Feature Presentation (WFMAD Day 7)

I've always loved movie trailers.

Not sure exactly why, to be honest, but I'd always be secretly disappointed whenever someone skipped over the previews on a DVD or VHS. There was always something exciting about them; "Ooh! A new story to fall in love with!"

Trailers give a brief insight into the story, the characters, the world. They are produced to sell the movie, and as such, the movie is rarely what we expect it to be. (I can't begin to list the number of times a movie was completely different than what I thought it would be.)

In a sense, a movie trailer is its own story. The story contained within them can change, depending on who's watching it. Different interpretations or expectations lead to different tellings of the story.

Sometimes, when I get stuck on a story, I imagine what the movie trailer would be for it (because I'm lame like that). Every trailer needs to be filled with just enough information to get the audience intrigued, but leave out enough to make them actually go see it. Trying to imagine it as a trailer sometimes helps me think of really dramatic / plot-invoking scenes worthy of a movie that I wouldn't have thought of otherwise.



Can you guys tell that I'm running out of things to blog about?

Until later,

- Justyne