Time Travel Won't Happen

This is just a thought I've been exploring all day. I somehow began thinking about time travel, and how unlogical it is and how it likely will never be able to happen. Then, I thought of something- if time travel was invented anytime in the future, and people were to use it... wouldn't there inevidably be people from the future here in the past? I asked my dad this, and he gave me a pretty reasonable theory:

If time travel ever was invented and people DID use it to go back to the past and see themselves... they wouldn't want others to know it. If someone DID find out, then being the people would be able to use time travel they would just use it to go back and erase their mistake. Simple as that. Technically, even if you did have time travel, you wouldn't be able to go back and change time. Anything that you changed would have already happened to you before you even left for time travel, because before you left you would have already came back. All you'd really be able to do is visit memories- and then even upon return not have a clearer image of them because you would have already forgot.

This leads me to believe and conclude that there are many different things that happen to us throughout our lives that we don't even know about... they've just been changed and we've forgotten, or been made to forget, about them. For all I know, I could have another sister or brother and just have forgotten it! The question is... if time travel DOES exist and IS being used in this way... who is controlling it and why are they changing things? This should give my readers things to think about... leave me your opinions in the comments below.

Maddie

Poetry

Sometimes all you need,
to brighten up your day,
is a simple smile or laugh,
sent from far away.
A rainbow forming from the clouds,
the stars that shine at night,
all the tiny things,
that make a day so bright,
a small yet perfect butterfly,
perched on a dainty flower,
jumping into puddles,
 from an afternoon shower,
All these little things,
they make our life so great,
yet are barely acknowledged,
until it is too late.
For little things create the big,
the "big" that we find great,
like going to a party,
or staying up real late.
but these things do not happen,
every single day,
and so we feel unlucky,
sad, and down in every way...
we feel rejected, and feel mad,
because our life's not "perfect",
but now, sit down, lie back,
reflect!
for it truly is the little things...
the little things that make life perfect.

To:

To Dad,
You're my parent, guardian and mentor. But you are so much more while being this. You are also my best friend, someone who I can talk about LITERALLY anything with, and someone who knows my sense of humor better than I know it. You can always make me laugh when it is needed, but keep me in line at the same time. You have my back 24/7, and I never have to worry that you'll abandon me for someone else. You've taken care of me singlehandedly for 6 years now, and I can't thank you more. You've given me a great education and helped me pass 7 college courses- since I was ELEVEN.

While you were doing this, you also brought up my sister, which is a task in and of itself. But you stick through it. I love you Dad, and I look forward to having many more laughs and making more memories with you in the future. Merry Christmas, I love you.

To Ashleigh,
You're my sister. And I love you, even when I get ticked off at you. You know this and I know this, and we still yell at each other and squabble. 2015 is coming soon, and next year, I want to bond with you more. I try to guide you, but no one seems to like me doing that so I really don't know. However, if you ever need to talk about anything, I'm here for you. You're going to be 5 soon and I'm quite honestly amazed- I still remember holding you in the hospital when you were first born. I never knew what a little amazing handful you would become. Just kidding, just kidding- I really do love you and I don't know what I'd do without you. Who else would be there to wake me up by screaming in my ear, to have sleepovers with me when the power goes out, to keep me up talking until 5:00? Who else would be able to always be there for me, and come to me for advice and to vent out?

You have a level of weirdness that competes with my own, you have a unique sense of humor, and you are so caring and sweet that it literally kills me. I love you Ashleigh- Merry Christmas.

To Grandma,
I love you more than you realize- and I think you know that. Yes, we get annoyed at each other at times, but I value knowing that we can always make up and pretend it never happened (even if, in some instances, it takes us a few days). You're there for me when I need to talk, to vent, and to complain, and you take it all in without judgement- and I'd easily do the same for you. As 2015 approaches, I'd like to clear up whatever problems we have with each other so we can go into the new year free of... annoyance. Next year, I'd like to focus on becoming more in tune with each other so that we don't scuffle so much. It CAN be done, we've done it before, and we WILL do it again. I think it'll help out everyone, not just us.

You're caring and sweet in general, and you only get annoyed at me because deep down you care about me. I realize this, I really do, but in the blink of an eye I forget it and I need to learn to remember. I'll make an effort to keep things more tidy, and also to help out around the house. Hopefully that will give you your much deserved rest. I love you. Merry Christmas.

Maddie

Ruined by Rap

I got an Ariana Grande album for Christmas, and today I got around to putting it on my computer and listening to it. I'm almost sorry I did now- and not because of Ariana. I think she has a very nice voice and can sing well, and I always have. No, it wasn't her singing that made me feel like tearing my ears off- it was all the rap music she put into the album! Almost every song featured a different rapper, from Big Sean to Iggy Azalea. I don't like rap music to begin with, but when it's on an album, I can usually find ONE I like. All of the rappers in this album, however, were HORRIBLE! Me and Dad sat listening to the album in awe while cringing everytime a rapper began to slur his/her way through whatever tiny bit of singing they had- and even that tiny amount was enough to spoil the song.

I think that today, rap has become a large part of "culture" for many. So much so, that singers who can do perfectly well on their own if they don't mind appealing to a slightly smaller audience are ruining their own music by adding these rappers into their songs. As my dad says: "I think she has a nice voice- I just wish she'd keep those other clowns out of it." I couldn't agree more. What's your opinion? Leave me a comment below.

Maddie

Poetry

All inspiration has run dry,

And everything I try

Nothing ever works,

No nothing ever works

And when you sit around and wait

for people to respond,

you grow tired and bored,

because nothing ever happens anyway

what more am I to say?

I've tried hopelessly to move on

and even to forget

but at times like these you sneak back in

on my mind, an imprint

I know I'm not the only one

who misses you so dearly

but I think that I'm the only one

who envisions you so clearly.

Attack of the Dust Mites

Today, Ashleigh and I decided to go down in the basement. It was mid-afternoon and we wanted to play for a bit, and Ashleigh is going through a Barbie phase right now. I used to have TONS of barbie dolls, and they are all stored in the basement. Now, normally I love going into the basement- but recently, I haven't. The reasoning for this isn't anything to do with lighting or temperature, but the fact that our basement is a complete MESS.

When my grandma moved in with us, she brought a lot of stuff with her. We got busy after the move and we haven't exactly had the time to clean it up... so the basement is pretty much stocked high with toys/boxes of stuff. Now, being it is already messy, we rarely go down there. And since we rarely go down there, we don't bother CLEANING down there. And when you don't clean... dust mites gather. For those of you who don't know, my sister and I both have sensitive skin- to pollen, dust, creams, makeups etc. So when we opened up a big bin of barbie dolls (might I add that they haven't seen the light of day in about 4 years), dust got all over.

Within 5 minutes of playing/ripping through the dolls, Ashleigh and I were covered from about the chest up in itchy red bumps. However, I was pretty persistent and we dug through to the bottom of the bin. I was shocked how many of my dolls I actually remembered... and could still name!

When you were a kid, what was your favorite toy? Leave me a comment below telling me!

Maddie

Poetry

Weird how life works

how God arranges coincidences

like three golden roses

to link us together

after she passed away

consolation, I suppose

though nothing can take the pain away

yeah, it's been a year

but not a moment passes

where you aren't on my mind,

so I peer through rose colored glasses

trying to put on a smile,

I tried to fake it for awhile

but every plaster mask does break

cracks form with time

and now I can no long fake

I don't tell people,

and they don't ask,

it's better, I guess

it makes my life less of a task

though sometimes having someone to talk to

someone who understands...

on one of my bad days,

they act as a helping hand

behind a screen, no one knows

the words you say are said with tears in your eyes

seeming like your laughing

when it's really just a bunch of lies

only two people identify

and know what it is like

two people I can talk to,

who make me feel fine.

The Importance of Living: A Great Read

This week, I have been reading the book "The Importance of Living". I'm only 3 chapters in, but I love it. Unlike most philosophers, Lin Yutang (the author, duh) is easy to read and puts things in perspective well. He is slow paced so that you don't get confused and raises good questions that you wouldn't think to ask yourself. Chapter 2 was about religion, and Yutang covered 3 different religions: Taoist-Confucianism, Greek paganism and Christianity. He did a great job of explaining each one and actually asked good questions that made me think.

I have found my self looking up the other religions that I otherwise wouldn't have out of curiosity. I'm also writing a set of papers on the chapters of the book, and they will be up on The Book Stack by tonight. I'm only on my third one, and that may be the last one. I'm not sure. I definitely recommend this book though, for anyone 13+. If you like philosophy, that is. If not, you probably won't like it. Pick up a copy from my dad's store Buy-Buy Momma- it links right through to Amazon and if you use his store to link to the site, we get a cut of what you pay! It costs you nothing extra, but part of it goes to us.

If you read the book, leave me comments below and tell me what you thought of it!

Maddie

Poetry

When it helps but it hurts in the long run,

The right choice has not been made,

to have the life you want,

you shouldn't have to be a slave,

have the rug ripped out from under you,

leave the two of them in tears,

I've begun to wonder where your allegiance lies,

throughout these last few years

throw your hand on the bible you refuse to believe in

swear you're for us and not against

and while everyone believes it

you know I'm still in the mode of defense

I've seen this one time too many

to fall into your web of lies

and they all go running back to you,

but I'm out of second tries

I won't let you drag me down with you,

I won't let you pull me apart

My compassion has run low,

there's no more trust left in my heart.

A Hard Wizard101 Quest- completed!

Last night, I got on Wizard101 with my Dad to do some questing. We've been working on a hard dungeon in Marleybone for quite awhile with no hint of sucess. All of my friends have made excuses not to help us, and it's too hard for us alone (level 70 and 57's that we are, doing a level 30 quest) so we have been putting it off. We've tried each night but to no avail- we make it up to the last boss, but by then we are exhausted of health, mana AND healing potions so it is rather pointless. ESPECIALLY when the bosses all heal and get absorb shields if you heal!

Last night went a bit differently. My friend Megan agreed to help us out with the tower and we finished it in about an hour and a half. It took us all our potions, trading off to flee and get health, struggling through 12 levels of traps and cheating bosses, BUT! We made it! We completed the quest and were extremely happy about it- until I went to redeem my experience and found out that we only got 1000! That was like a slap in the face after how hard we had worked to get the dungeon done.

So in the end, Dad was displeased, I was displeased, and the dungeon FINALLY got done. One less quest in my quest tab, I guess. But it was so annoying! If you play Wizard101, tell me what your least favorite dungeon/boss is in Wizard101 in the comments below. My least favorite boss is Estrakir Gloomthorn.

Maddie

Boredom

Me and a lot of my friends have a bad habit of complaining that we are bored. Bored, bored, bored. So, seeing as it is a problem I frequently have, and I need a blog post, here are my ideas on how to stay occupied.

1) Peel the onion! No, not literally. But online, "peeling the onion" is a term used for link surfing. Clicking on one page, then using a link on that page to get to another page, and so on and so forth. You'd be surprised how much you could learn from it! I start on wikipedia and usually go through links on that site. Then, months later when I am able to tell my Dad which band Nikki Sixx is from, I put my knowledge to use!

2) StumbleUpon. I've blogged about it in the past, and it's a great thing to do if you're bored. Just create an account, put in your interests and hit the stumble button! The site generates articles based on what you like and dislike, and you can rate each page so your account gets customized to what YOU like. You can also add links to your own sites and blogs to get more pageviews.

3) Last but not least, the Bored Button. Similar to StumbleUpon, the Bored Button generates random things for you to do while you are bored. Often times you will click the button and get a small, mindless minigame or a card trick. However, it does its job and works well to keep my brain preoccupied when I have nothing else to do. You can check it out here: http://www.boredbutton.com/

Maddie

HTML

Yesterday, I started a new course in computer programming. Being I finished Python, I am now trying my brain at HTML- and I am enjoying it more than Python! Now, maybe it's because I already know some of the coding structure or how coding works, or maybe it's just a preference- but I find the language easier to understand and easier to work with. The tag names are short and simple and I can remember them easily- which is good for me as I hate having to go back to old lessons.

The course is being offered by CodeCademy. It is free, and you can connect to it with your Google+, Twitter or faceBook account. The course has discussion forums where you can connect with other students, share ideas and help each other with different problems. I have taken the Python course so far and it was well structured and easy to learn. Try it out: www.codecademy.com

Anyway, I'm going to end my post here. Check out codecademy and let me know what you think by leaving me a comment below.

Maddie

A day with my sister

Today, I got to spend the day with my little sister! I got my homework done early, and since Grandma was at the doctors, I got to take care of her for most of the day. We had a nice lunch together and then had fun doing each other's hair. Now, she has homework, so I am helping her out with it. She is halfway done with her writing, so I figured that while she is writing, I would write a quick blog post.

I love Ashleigh so much. I really do. She and I have our ups and downs like any sisters- a squabble over something stupid every now and again, but we can always forgive each other and move on. Today as I brushed her hair, we talked. It was nice- just sister to sister, which we seldom get the chance to do. I realized that no matter what, she's always going to be my sister. I will always have her, and she will always have mine- even when we grow up and lead other lives. We're tied by blood, and tied by a special bond that not even the strongest person could break.

I love you Ashleigh <3

Maddie

Another Poem

There comes a time,

In everyone's life

when you have to make a choice

Blood before water

Is what I've been told

but when the blood runs thin,

the heart grows cold

If you don't have the time,

then neither do I

I'd rather talk to the fox,

even if she feeds me lies

At least they have my back

and while I know you do too

they're my preference for now

they're the ones that I choose

and while in the future

the odds will turn 'round

in this moment I find consolation

in knowing how I can be found

to those who think the know,

you never truly will,

to those who think they'll never know,

you've already figured it out. 

Christmas: What it Actually is and What We Make it Out To Be

Each year, Christmas seems to appear earlier and earlier- last year, it popped up at about Thanksgiving time, and the year before a bit after Thanksgiving. THIS year, I actually saw two of my neighbors put up Christmas lights BEFORE HALLOWEEN. Over the years, Christmas has become more and more commercialized, so much so that the true meaning of Christmas has been distorted and forgotten. What is the first thing that pops into your head when you think of Christmas? I really doubt you think of Jesus' birthday. Instead, you probably think more along the lines of gifts, food, and decorations.

Pop culture and many businesses have shoved Christmas at us as a big PRODUCT. Nothing to do with Jesus (unless, of course, they can sell more decorations). On the first Christmas, the only gifts given were to Jesus himself! Since then, it is to my belief that it has been blown out of proportion more, and more, and more. Most tradition has been wiped out of it. Stores stock up around Halloween time to start selling christmas ornaments, trees, gifts, and food- AND WE ALL GO FOR IT! Christmas music started playing a week before Thanksgiving near us (I flipped through stations and heard "Feliz Navidad" playing) and it actually put me off.

I remember when I was really little, we'd start listening to Christmas music as soon as we knew it was on the radio. The past couple of years, no one has really wanted to listen to it because by the time Christmas ACTUALLY rolls around, you feel like if you hear ONE MORE FREAKING CHRISTMAS SONG, your brain will explode. I don't know. I think this year we're saving the Christmas music for the week before Christmas, but I'm not sure. Speaking of the week before Christmas: that's the week we always get our Christmas tree! A few of my friends have already had their trees up for a few weeks, and my church even started selling trees a week before Thanksgiving. UGH. By the time Christmas comes, if you got your tree too early, it ends up dead! Not fun or nice at all.

Well, I've ranted enough for today. Leave me comments below on what you think about Christmas!

Maddie

Christmas Shopping

Today, Grandma, Ashleigh and I are going out to do our final Christmas shop. We did part of it last weekend, but we want to finish off. I still have a LOT of mine to do- I have to get gifts for family AND friends. We are about to leave to go to Keene (which is a pretty good shopping area in NH).

We're going to eat lunch on the go at McDonald's and then shop til we drop. I have to go help Grandma right now: she needs me to do some dishes and clean up a bit before we go. So, I will keep this post short and sweet and end here.

HOWEVER! I will write a second post later after I return.

Poem

The Fog Around the Lake

Let all your emotions go

Let it cloud around your beauty

Let no one see inside

God forbid anyone know the truth

Because if anyone knew

What would they think

What lies beneath your crystal clear

shining bright surface really?

Fight yourself,

every morning as you wake,

should you warm up to life today,

or put on your usual fake?

Looking at a pond,

you see only the surface

not the murk that lies within...

everyone has sins and weaknesses,

not everyone will let you in...

so behind a mask of fog they hide,

so the new sun won't rip away all their pride...

A Post

GAH! Apologies once again on not blogging! It was Thanksgiving weekend, so I had a good reason for it at least. My aunt and uncle from NJ came to visit, and it was an awesome time. The internet was out the whole week, which sucked a bit... but I think it helped at the same time. Everyone wasn't busy on their devices or staring at a screen, and we got to have some quality time together as a family over the holiday. That's how things should be more often- not just hours upon hours of screen time. From funny family stories to late night sessions of "the name game", I had one of the best Thanksgivings I have had in awhile.

I've also been busy with a long-due paper on The Art of War. I should be done with it by tomorrow, and it will be posted on The Book Stack. I didn't like the version of the book with commentary, so I opted to look online and see if the REAL book was there. Sure enough, I found a fully translated version with no commentary and am finding it to be a good read so far. I am just beginning the 3rd out of 3 1/2 pages, but as it is late I am going to finish it tomorrow. The book has some good... lessons, if you would call them that in it. The book was written as a strategy for war, but can also be used as a strategy for LIFE. If you'd like to read it, this is the translated version.

http://classics.mit.edu/Tzu/artwar.html

I will try to get some pictures from Thanksgiving up tomorrow. It is currently 11:30... a hot shower and bed for me sounds good. Thanks for reading!

Maddie

The family :) <3

Me and Ashleigh being goofballs :P

Dad and Ashleigh 

Dad after eating too much turkey ;p

What would Thanksgiving be without a stupid selfie between sisters?