Sooo... Yeah.

It's been awhile. I utterly failed at BEDA/VEDA. My life is a crazy mess. I'm probably dropping out of my school's Honors Program. These are facts. All point to the fact that my internet presence has been way down since the fall semester began. I hate that. I love the internet. I have legitimately missed you. A lot.

I was super enthused about making myself known in social media at the end of this summer, because I didn't foresee the chaos that my Honors Perspectives in Medieval Thought class would visit on my psyche. I'm doing doctoral level work for this class. I'm a sophomore. I can't handle this class without blogging let alone with it.However, I really feel like I let you guys (& myself) down.

I want to make it up to you, though. I am going to begin blogging and vlogging at least once a week starting during Winter Break. I am going to make time for this, because I want to get to know the people of the internet. I want to make friends, do something fun, & writing about something that doesn't involve St. Augustine's City of God!

So it's a date. If I could find a tablet and a chisel, I would set it in stone. I will return to the land of social media... just as soon as I get done with the class that is making my life hell!
I'll see you in December!

So, I'm a Creeper?

I’m always a little bit worried about how I come off to people when I talk about the people I follow on Twitter and subscribe to on YouTube. I don’t actually know these people, I admire their work, but I’ve never met them. I know tons about their lives, but they know nothing about me. If I think about it too long I get worried people will think I’m some sort of stalker, instead of someone who just really loves the creative energy these people give to the world. While I can’t wait for Natalie to put up a new video on CommunityChannel, I’m not about to go to Australia so I can find her at her house and abduct her.

There are always boundaries. No one is going to tell you everything about their life on YouTube, unless they are: 1. Really open. Or 2. Really stupid. Fans know that even if they feel close to someone they don’t know on the internet, they don’t know everything and don’t expect to know everything. I think that’s what sets fans apart from creepers. I’m not trying in earnest to find out everything I can about these people, but I take what they give me and cherish it, because it’s nice to get to know people you admire so well.

I genuinely cried when 5AG announced that they were disbanding. I loved those videos, because those girls are some of the greatest people I will ever know. If I have the opportunity to become friends with them I won’t hesitate to do so, but I’m not going to force myself into their circle of friends in the name of being a devoted fan.

The people I follow and subscribe to interest me, give me inspiration, and make me want to do amazing things because they’re amazing. I want to make people laugh, and I want to have an impact on people the way they have on me. I just hope I don’t come off as scary creeper girl in the process.

How do you feel about following people on social media sites? Does it concern you that the people you follow may not know who you are? Does it creep you out if people you don’t know on social media act as if they know you? Tell me your thought’s in the comments, find me on Twitter (@glowinthedark7, or check out my YouTube Channel (SheGlowsInTheDark).

See you tomorrow!

It's the Little Things

How do I begin to explain the strange inner workings of my brain? I guess when it comes to things being in their proper places I’m a bit type A.

Right now, I there’s this nagging thought in the back of my mind telling me that my bookshelf isn’t set up right because The Count of Monte Cristo is next to a The Once and Future King instead of near my Charles Dickens books where it ought to belong. Since I couldn’t fit all of my classic works on one shelf they got a spread out. I only have peace of mind about my books, because I have enough room to fit my C.S. Lewis collection and all of my books pertaining to the Harry Potter series, on the middle shelf where they can be seen.

The remotes to my TV and DVD player are set in exact places when the TV is not on, because otherwise I would go insane with worry that I lost one of them. If you really want to know how nuts I am the TV remote (the taller remote) is always placed to the left of the DVD remote, because I like to organize certain things by height.

I’m not clinically OCD… I just like to find little random quirks about myself and highlight them for the entire world to see, that way I know I’ll end up a bitter, lonely, spinster someday!

Do you have random things that annoy you or little things you do to keep things in order? Tell me about them in the comments, or on Twitter (@glowinthedark7). Also, check out my video about a similar topic, on my YouTube channel (SheGlowsInTheDark).

See you tomorrow!

My British Love (Not Just About the Accent)

There is very little I like better than a British accent. I love British TV & music. I could be content listening to nothing but Arctic Monkeys for the rest of my life… & maybe some Kate Nash. I pray to God that BBC America will eventually start showing something other than Gordon Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares, because I can’t stand to watch cooking shows, but that’s another post…

I watch a lot of British TV. I can quote the whole of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, from start to finish. I have a good chunk of the Python skits memorized as well. NO ONE EXPECTS THE SPANISH ENQUISION!!! I love Doctor Who with every fiber of my being. It is my favorite TV show & will never be rivaled in my heart. KERA is the source of my late night Sunday entertainment. I am obsessed with Downton Abbey & am counting the days until it returns for its second season*.

I like British books, plays, and foods. Basically, I’m obsessed to the point that I should just change my nationality & get it over with.

Let me explain why I’m this way… since I know, you’re dying to know. My mom has always been a big part of why I want to know more about British culture. She went to boarding school while my grandparents were on mission in Africa. Her house parents & almost all of the other children in her school were British. She received a classic British education (took her A Levels & everything) & came back to America for University. She retained a lot of the culture she grew up around therefore, I listened to The Beatles in the womb, have eaten Shepard’s pie one more than one occasion, & watched more Britcoms than any other type of TV show during my childhood. I watched classics like Are You Being Served, Allo Allo, Fawlty Towers, & Keeping Up Appearances. In consequence, I have a very British sense of humor, & a rather extensive vocabulary of British slang words.

Speaking of British slang... I watch Skins. &  I can follow what they're saying at all times, I speak fluent Bristol chav...

By the way... Warehouse Thirteen is doing a thing with Beatrix Potter. She is my favorite author from my childhood. & she's British. You gave me a great example, perfect timing, SyFy.

Check out my Twitter (@glowinthedark7) or my YouTube Channel (SheGlowsInTheDark)!

See you tomorrow!

*138 days, if you’re interested.

A Uncharacteristic New Love

There has been a gaping hole in my movie watching experience, & I don’t understand how I managed to avoid this treasure for so long. I am talking of one of the strangest & most gruesome movie series I have ever actually wanted to watch. I am speaking of Final Destination.


I am not a horror movie type person. In fact if you asked my family about my experiences with horror movies they would confirm that I cower in a corner hiding my face behind a pillow every time I watch anything remotely terrifying. I can handle suspense; I just really hate things jumping out at me. Thinking about The Ring still gives me chills, & I watched that 5 or 6 years ago.

Given my track record I shouldn’t like Final Destination. It has too much waiting & wondering when the next person is going to die & worrying how awful it’s going to be. Everything about this movie is suspenseful & horrifying, but for some reason I can’t look away. There isn’t anything jumping out at you, so maybe that’s why I can tolerate it, but surely I’m not so much of a suspense junkie that I want to see how people will die in horrible ways. At least they cut-a-way from the goriest deaths…

This movie is kind of like my gladiator games. This is my football. It’s like a mystery TV show that has seconds left on the clock until someone dies, & you have to figure it out before they do. The person will die that’s unavoidable, but at least you know how it’s going to happen before they do. It’s a test of your mental ability while under pressure & I love it! If you really want to save them you get anxious for the character, which is something that shouldn’t be relaxing or fun, but somehow manages to be both.

Is it amoral for me to like this movie as much as I do? …Probably. Do I plan on watching 2.3.4 & 5 sometime in the near future? Yes.

Reality TV: The End of Imagination?

Last year my roommate was obsessed with the Bachelor. I can not stress how much I loathe this show. If it were up to me the creators & producers on that show would have their own personal ring of hell for putting the self respecting public through the crap they did not only on a weekly basis on TV, but tabloids were effected likewise. There was, & is, no escape. Shoot me in the face! I digress...

I'm not a fan of reality TV. People making drama for the sake of making drama, with no foreseeable plot line make me roll my eyes into the back of my head & scream like a crazed banshee... or something. It's one of the lowest forms of entertainment only slightly higher up than the gladiator games we as Americans so fondly call "football". I know there are a lot of shows out there that have solid stories & creative writing teams who make magic on the small screen (I watch them!), but it seems like more & more "reality" shows keep popping up.

What does this say about the way our culture & consequently the world views entertainment? Are we going to become a society that tries even harder not to think about issues than we are now? I am afraid for the imaginations of generations to come. We already don't think reading is enjoyable, because we have to be engaged & create our own scenes, what happens when all of the TV shows that make us think are gone? How will we instill individuality & imagination in our children without showing them a product of society that givens them inspiration?

My mind & my imagination are my most valued possessions. With them I can do anything. When our entertainment becomes something that no longer sharpens our minds, but dulls them, it's time to think outside the box & create something that will bring out imagination in a whole new way. Hopefully, by the time the world needs such a revival I will be gone, but I pray for those who may have to live through such dark times, if we can not turn the problem around before it gets too out of hand.

My Love of Books (Pretty Little Liars in Particular)

I want ice cream... & the second book in the Pretty Little Liars series. Mostly just the book.

I read the entirety of the first book today during work today, in about 3 hours. The book centers around a group of girls who share one thing, they each confided secrets to their friend Allison who brought them together in the first place. When Allison goes missing the girls grow apart until they all begin to get mysterious messages from someone named "A".

This book was very enjoyable. It was not the sort of thing I normally read (at least not since 8th grade), but I love the TV series and I vaguely remember reading the book when I was in middle school. The scandal & revelations the girls have are believable & well written.

 Pretty Little Liars kept me entertained & makes me want to read more, not just of the series, but anything by this author, because of her attention to detail & her amazing ability to craft an enthralling & realistic story.

See you tomorrow!

P.S. I really love all books. If it has a good plot... I like it. Pretty Little Liars is only one example of the awesome that can be amassed in one story.