boy meets heaven

"i have never had anyone close to me pass away."
this is a phrase that, until recently, i could say with ease and a thankful heart.

but no, no more can i utter those nine words. to my extreme dismay, this past saturday...septempber 16, 2006...some one very dear to me died. you may know him as ben savage, but i knew him as corey...corey matthews. that's right, the exuberant character from the greatest show known to man kind, "boy meets world". for the past ten years or so, corey and i have bonded daily, as a plopped onto the couch, after a long day of division and prepositional phrases at school, i would push the buttons on the clicker that led me to my play date...my play date with "mr. matthews" (as mr. feeny always called him...you know mr. feeny, right? right.) as he grew up, i grew up; yes, it seems as though we grew up together. we were pals.

but, as i said before...this past saturday corey passed away. he was in a fatal accident...one that put him into a coma in which he did not wake. and so now, my heart is in a state of sorrow in which i am not sure it will come out of either. luckily, i still get to see my friend...weekdays from 2:00-3:00 p.m. on abc family. corey and i still have our play date, but it's not quite the same knowing he's not still with us in reality.

i already miss you corey matthews. i can only imagine my sorrow once "boy meets world" gets taken off the air. but in the mean time, rest in peace my friend..i now have had someone cloes to me pass away.

.

i wonder how tapanga's feeling.

,

.

[this blog has been based on a myspace bulliten, posted by an unreliable source. the fact that ben savage is dead may possibly be a rumor. a cruel and disgusting rumor. after long research hours on line, i could not find any information on the actor's death]

the fpoons + nickel nickel = <3

i know i havent been blogging lately...but after "the fpoon's" band outing last night, i feel as though i have no choice but to take some time out of my busy schedule and write about it. before i go on about the venture itself, i figure i should give some background information. for example, you may be asking yourself, "who the heck are 'the fpoons'?" well let me tell you..."the fpoons" are not only spoons used in the consumption of frosties...but the name of my band in the high school ministry at church. there's eight of us in the band, but only five (plus shea) could make it to the fiesta last night. you see, every band gets $100 to spend on a band hang-out. but seeing as the fpoons are an exceptional group of people, and won the bowling competition between all of the hsm bands a few weeks back, we got an extra $100. (as a side note, i should mention the fact that shea joined the bowling team and aided in our victory, which is why she was included in last night's activities). so anyways, we smoked the other bands, and now had $200 to spend on our adventure. and where better to go and spend rediculous amounts of money than nickel nickel?

before going to the arcade, we (me, landon, jason, drew, cris, and shea) all met up at fudruckers for some one pound burgers and assorted fried foods. on our way out we all rang the bell...you know, the one with the sign next to it that reads, "if you had a great time please ring our bell." after dinner the real party began...it was off to nickel nickel, where we still had over 100 bucks to put towards a night of fun..(that's 2000 nickels, in case you arent so good at mental math.)

if you've never been to nickel nickel, let me tell you it's in a class of its own. it's full of 9 year olds who have consumed about six-too-many energy drinks prior to their arcade experience, as well as the random old guy who, sadly, has nothing more productive to do on a friday night or perhaps its trying to cling to his youth. there's also, of course, the one guy who plays dance dance revolution, or as i like to call it DDR, the entire time...and has mastered every song on expert. there are also many interesting games there...none of which i would consider modern, including a retro version of guitar hero, as well as the aligator bashing game...which, dont get me wrong, i love a good round of aligator bashing...but the game didnt even work. all in all, the games in which you win tickets are where the fun was at. but even better than winning the tickets, was spending them. seeing as shea stole a bag of jasons coins "on accident", she ended up with 1000 tickets; i ended the night with 820; and together, landon and jason got 800 (they spent too much time trying to beat virtual tennis). shea and i spent a good amount of time at the prize counter...mostly since everything we asked for, such as giant inflatable punching gloves, was sold out. in the process, i was considering spending 200 of my tickets on a good old "water snake." if you dont know what it is, i wont bother trying to explain. but shea and i decided to talk to the prize man about it...the conversation went as follows...

alli: i think i want one of those [pointing at item]...what do you call those things?

ticket man: those? those are water snakes

shea: what exactly do you do with them?

ticket man: you just play with them...like, uh, this [putting hand in an "o" shape and moving it back and forth...in a seeminly sexual gesture]

all: awkward moment of silence

shea: uh, can you play with it in the bath tub?

all: EXTREMELY awkward moment of silence, and wonder as to why it is shea just asked that obscure question

ticket man: errrr....i guess?

all: feeling quite embarassed about what just happened...and wishing we had just gotten the tacky boomerang instead

the whole thing ended in, as i just said, extreme awkwardness. at that point i couldnt possibly get the water snake...so instead, i got a blow-up hammer, as well as a blow-up monkey named gerard. i also got a faulty woopy cushion and harmonica, a few parachute men, a balloon toy of some sort, and some fake hair extensions. all in all, i'd say i scored big time; 820 tickets go a long way. after getting all our prizes, we took some time and, of course, endulged in the entertainment they bring. (which isn't very much...i havent yet bothered to take mine out of my car yet, and they will likely end up in the trash by the end of the week).

by the end of the night, i think it's possible that i lost 9.43 pounds from laughing so much. i definitely propose that it should be an occasional friday night hang out from now on. i have also decided that it is more than likely that at age 62 i will be that weird old person that i mentioned before. despite it's germ infestation, rusty games and lack of decent prizes, i have fallen in love with nickel nickel.

the summer of my sixteenth year

..it's kind of poetic, in a sense. i will never be "sweet sixteen" again. the year of my youth has come and gone; and a huge peice of that year was the summer. the summer of your sixteenth year should be filled with lots of things...romance and adventure, laughter and tears, new friends & old. my summer was filled with all of those things, and more. there's no possible way that i could write about each memory individually...but the summer's highlights consist of the following...

+the orange county fair [and starship 2000]

+hume freaking lake [with all its bush diving fun]

+disneyland [the three or four times i went]

+"the park" [because i cant name all the parks i went to]

+my birthday [read the blog below]

+the pdym conference [and my first all-nighter]

,.

...and that's just a few. this summer came along with a lot of firsts, and a lot of lasts. i feel as though i did it all. to me, summer is about so much more than tan lines and sleeping in. it's about truely enjoying life and all of its freedoms. last night, i have to admit, i shed a tear or two as i looked back on the past three months, and realized it's really over...summer is really over. i loved this summer with all of my heart. it was only as amazing as it was because of the people in it, so thanks to all of you guys (hopefully you know who you are). i'm counting the days until next year. but until then...i bid you a fond farewell, summer; you will be terribly missed and reminisced upon often.

happy birthday to me

i know, i know...my birthday was a week ago. but i've been busy, and when i'm not busy i'm lazy; therefore i havent gotten around to blogging until just now. so anyway...my birthday. on august 25th at 7:48 a.m. i turned seventeen. i know, i'm kind of old. i started off my day by going to nathan's house (he's the b.f...incase you weren't aware). he surprised me by taking me down to the park where he had an amazingly adorable picnic set up. and we're talking a legit picnic here...i mean, the sandwhiches were cut in heart shapes. it doesnt get much better than that.

so after our lovely picnic we ventured back to his house where we watched a movie entitled "the day after tomorrow." random, i know...but i forgot to bring pride & prejudice, which is what we had planned on watching, seeing as it's my favorite movie and all. after the movie he gave me my gift: a teddy bear (whose name is now jonathan) and a picture frame with some pictures of us. yep, my boyfriend is pretty stinken great. but my day did not end with that...

i got home just in time to get into some nicer clothes for the evening's activities. i really didnt know what those activities were going to be though, seeing as everything that night was a surprise for me. shea and ali picked me up at 6 o'clock and took us to the harker house, where colton, logan, and jason all were. confettie cake and gifts came next. the cake was delicious, but the presents were even better. the best gifts consisted of grizzly man, along with the sound track (twelve tracks of "hoo yip"). thank you jason leith :) and a plastic tarantula that climbs down walls. it's pretty much the sweetest thing ever. after some good laughs we hopped in the car, where a bandana was tied around my head...covering my eyes, and sheilding my vision so that the evening's activities would be a surprise.

first it was to macaroni grill. a 45 minute wait drove us to bed, bath & beyond across the street. we admired the magic bullets and bedsheets, but quickly found that bed bath & beyond was pretty unsatisfying. so we went back to the resteraunt where nikki and alanna met up with us, and waited patiently while taking some strange photographs that i really can't explain with words (i'll post them some time in the future). we were eventually seated...and besides that one time when jason spilled his drink all over shea, dinner was really good.

next was boomers. now, for some reason, someone (cough, colton, cough) decided we should all get the night pass for all the boomer activities: lazer tag, go carts, bumper boats, etc. first was lazer tag, which i of course owned everyone at. [see picture below...my game face is obviously better than everyone elses. well, except for maybe jason]

the boys may complain and say that their guns were broken, but the truth is they simply were not good. the birthday girl won with a score almost 1000 points ahead of logan and jason. colton got zero, which is just sad. after my outstanding victory we waited in line for the go carts for about 23 days...or atleast that's what it felt like. but we had to leave even before we got to go on them. and so colton's "night pass" idea turned out to be a dud. we got our money back and left the park with money back in our pockets. mrs. harker, the cheufer, drove everyone home, and we called it a night.

i had a great seventeenth birthday. so thanks to everyone who made it special: nathan, shea, colton, ali, jason, nikki, logan, alanna, and mrs. harker...you guys are amazing :)

dont check yourself out

i am an independent girl for the most part. i like to do things on my own, in my own way and in my own time. recently ralphs has put in self check-out stations. cashiers are not needed. bag-boys are not needed. you just do it all yourself. and being a person of independence, i'm thinking this is my kind of deal. so today i went to ralphs to purchase some drinks for the greenroom at church. four 2 liter bottles of different kinds of beverages. i got to the check out area, glanced at all the lines, and quickly found the self-check-out area. i thought, "no lines. just do it all myself. this'll be quick and easy"...i was wrong.

after scanning my first bottled drink, some delicious squirt, i was breezing through this whole check-out deal. before grabbing the second liter, though, the screen quickly began flashing, followed by a computerized voice telling me to "please wait for assistance." after pushing a few buttons, i eventually realized i actually had to wait for a ralph's employee. a lady in a red apron walked over within a few minutes and told me to wait a little longer...aparently she had more important things to attend to. upon her return, she pushed a button or two, and told me to continue my scanning.

by the third bottle, i needed a new bag. so i took the full bag and put it into my cart. but i guess that's not allowed, because i was quickly scorned by the red aprin lady, and told to put my bag of beverages back where it was and use the bag next to it, and not to put my bags in the cart until i was finished. i dont understand the point of that at all, but i did as i was told. and everything was mostly down-hill from there. i then payed and got out of there.

in conclusion, the whole process was neither quick nor easy. i'm sure now, that everyone who was waiting in the normal check-out lines has experienced the self-check out process, along with all its dissapointment and frustration. they have learned from their mistake, as have i. i have found a new love for cashiers and bag-boys. never again will i use the self check out system in ralphs. and i advise you as well, don't check yourself out.

the dastardly deed of t.p.ing

my house was toilet-papered last night. i was greeted by my brother this morning with, "your friends left you a 'gift' on the front lawn." now, i dont know what makes him think it was my friends; it could just as easily have been his. i was then ordered down stairs, handed a trash bag, and put to work. as i opened the front door, i was nearly blinded with the pure white toilet paper reflecting the morning sun. my lawn, driveway, and porch...all completely covered in a soggy, white mess. after a good half-hour of labor, the driveway is now decent looking, but the whole thing is still pretty much a disaster. i suppose "t.p.ing" (as many call it) doesn't happen much in coto, where i live. it was entertaining to see peoples facial expressions as they drove by our littered house. an annoying litte girl emereged from her house across the street to witness the scene and attempt to start some small talk...saying something about snow, and her older sister. (i wasnt paying attention. after all, i was hard at work and focusing on the job...plus, like i said before, she's annoying.) while picking up the toilet paper my brother and i had some laughs while contemplating the different possibilites of who the purpetrators could be. i didn't only have some bonding time with my brother, but with nature as well. i was almost stung by some bees, and caught a praying mantis (which was pretty freaking cool). i also came across some toilet paper that had been urinated on. and frankly, that's just gross; after that, i was done...though there is still a good amount of time and energy that needs to be put into my vandalized lawn, shrubs, and trees. so to whoever did this dastardly deed, be sure that i will hunt you down and return the favor. though i do i commend you on your "t.p.ing"...it was a job well done. (other than the multiple rolls you left un-used. if you're gonna toilet paper someone, you might as well go all-out).

goodbye hume lake

i'm finally back from camp. all week long i have experienced countless adventures, and made dozens of memories. after each experience, i would say to myself "i can't wait to blog about this!"...but now that i am home, on the computer, and ready to blog...i find that i have no desire to write about it all. i think there is simply too much to say about the past seven days to pick out certain memories and discuss them in detail. besides, i'm sure plenty of other people will blog about the same crazy camp memories. and so, to sum it up, hume lake was an amazingly fun week. and as much as i miss it, it's nice to be out of the estrigen-filled cabins, and back in my own room. silence has never sounded so good. so goodbye hume lake, and hello to the rest of summer. its time to make every day count.

pre-camp jitters

after, what seems to have been, 478 hours of packing, i'm pretty much done. i've got a lot of mixed emotions and expectations for summer camp this year. dont get me wrong, i'm SUPER excited. but there are some people i wish were going that aren't, and some stuff going on at home that i feel guilty about just leaving with my family to deal with. as guilty as i feel for leaving, though, i also am relieved to get away from it all. and i know god is going to put all circumstances aside and do some great things, he always manages to do that some how.

i'm thrilled to spend the next seven days just hanging out with my friends. i'm starting to feel those pre-camp jitters. i'm anxious to see what all will happen this year...i hope to avoid getting the stomach flu, unlike last year. and i'm pretty curious to see what this ninja/grasshopper theme is gonna be like. i pretty much just have a million-and-one thoughts running through my head right now, not all of which can be spilled out into a blog.

all in all, i know this is going to be a great week. hume lake, here i come :)

packing my bags & emptying my mind

i go on a lot of trips; every few months i get out the suit-case and load up some clothes and a toothbrush. but one trip i take every year always turns packing into an extremely vigorous task. day after tomorrow i leave for summer camp at hume lake. seven days is a lot to pack for, especially with the array of activities done at summer camp: recreation, lake activies (swimming, kyaking, etc.), the ever popular "hanging-out", and so much more. although i've been to summer camp every year since i was in the third grade, i still cant manage to think of what i need to bring. perhaps if you're going, you can share my building stress. the problem is, instead of trying to remember to pack towels and tennis-shoes, i really want to be preparing my heart for what i'm going to learn this week and how i'm going to grow. but only after packing my bags can i empty my mind and focus on what i need to.

.

tomorrow is going to be a long day.

fun freaking frenzy

usually, i'm not big on computer games. every once in a while, though, i'll find one on the internet that i get a kick out of. the other day i was introduced to one: four second frenzy. its linked to addictinggames.com and when they say "addicting" they arent kidding. the game takes a lot of trial and error, seeing as the directions are extremely vague. i'm beginning to master it though. i beat endurance mode in 417 seconds. which i think is pretty darn good. so who's up for a challenge? see how many seconds you can last. click here.

i-suck

there are some things i wish i were better at. after taking my mom to the doctor's today, i realized one of them. while sitting in the designated waiting-room, i flipped through the given pile of magazines, containing the latest celebrity rumors, and new found miracle diets that do not interest me in any way. the real fun was discovered in a seperate pile, better known as the "kids' section." it was there that i came across a classic "i-spy" book. as i turned to the first page, my imediate thought was that this would be a sinch. it was, after all, in the kids' section, and if i kid can do this...i can do it better. but to my dismay, i could barely get through one page. the game of "i-spy" requires not only a good eye, but patience, and endurance. three characteristics i have yet to hone. to put it plainly...i suck at i-spy. and so, today i have added another item on my "to-do" list: become an i-spy master.

chocolate covered banana-less

as the owner of a deluxe annual disneyland pass, i venture to the land of disney every now and again. i am a huge fan of anything disney...the theme park(s) included. the rides are enjoyable, the abience is great, and the experience all together is always memorable. the one thing about disneyland, though, that holds a special place in my heart is the chocolate covered bananas. after picking most of the nuts off, this food item is nothing less than a supreme delicacy. if you've never had one, i'd strongly advise you to try one; the disneyland experience is not complete without one. tragically, though, last night's visit to walt's theme park left me chocolate covered banana-less. my friends and i were having an extremely pleasant evening at the theme park. so i figured i'll end the night on a high note with one of those incredibly delicious chocolate covered bananas, and get one as we leave the park. but to my misfortune, the moron who runs the snack-cart system decides to rob me of "ending the night on a high note" and closes the choclate covered banana stand at 11 pm. i arrived at the ice cream cart merely a few minutes too late...leaving my taste buds, as well as my heart, in a state of discomfort and yearning. my disneyland experience was now not only incomplete, but in an even lower ranking. as jared moine would say...it was "uncomplete." i left the park last night with my head hung low, and a bitter attitude. a haagen-daz shop in down town disney quenched my taste-buds to a small extent with their $7.25 version of a banana split. but the treat could not even hold a candal to the legendary frozen banana covered in delectable milk chocolate and crumbled nuts. i have learned from this devistating experience, though. on my next venture to disneyland, i will purchase my chocolate covered banana no later than 10:45 pm. in the mean time, i curse you snack-cart vendor, you are the reason there is heart ache in this world.

i want to be an israelite.

i'm sure most of you have heard the classic bible story of moses, pharaoh, and the plagues. if not, get out your bible and read exodus [its a good story]. like most stories, this one contains protagonists and antagonists...the good guys and the bad guys...and in this case, the israelites and the egyptians. in this story, there are the followers of moses (and god), or of pharaoh (and the world).

when relating this story to my life, or any christian's life for that matter, it seems, at first, obvious which of the two represent myself: the israelites. i am saved, i am a child of god, i am an israelite. right? not necesarily...

so many times in life i choose to do things the world's way. pharoah's way? even if it's just the little things, the small choices. too often i make deciscions that lead me to egypt, and not the promise land. so does this make me an egyptian? ugh.

while thinking about this, at first, i quickly told myself that i was somewhere in between. but the moment i said that, i realized it was a rediculous conclusion. you cant be both an israelite and an egyptian. there's no "in between." and there's no "in between" when it comes to following god. either it's done whole-heartedly or its not done at all (or at least not how it is intended).

so i have realized, through this internal debate, that i need to stop turning to pharoah, and stop looking to the world for my answers. in times of trial, or in the midst of deciscion making, i need to seek out moses, and turn to god.

.

i'm done being an egyptian. i want to be an israelite.

guitar hero

for quite a while i've been searching for my true purpose in life. and though, i still have yet to discover it, i have stumbled across something that may possibly be better. guitar hero. although this amazing creation is linked to the seemingly mediocre system some people like to call play station two, this game goes far beyond the average ps2 realm. basic controllers are thrown out the window, with an actual guitar-like figure taking their place. this "guitar" comes fully equipped with a wammy bar and other mind-blowing features. in the game itself, you are able to choose from an array of classic rock songs, which vary in difficulty and speed. after choosing both a song, and the level of difficulty (easy, medium, hard, or expert), a guitar neck comes scrolling from the depths of the screen, indicating which notes to play where, and for how long. as you actually play the song characters perform in the background of the screen. but wait, it gets better! after earning a certain amount of "rock power" you have the ability to rock out with your guitar, tilting it up in the air, and giving you bonus points, along with the empowering feeling of being a rock star. i know, its incredible! (if you still dont get it, you're an idiot..and think of dance dance revolution, guitar style.)

while playing this game with a group of friends, and taking turns on the synthetic stage, an idea of pure genius was derived. the gaming industry should make this game in multiple musician-based forms (drum champion, bass master, vocal protagonist, xylophone star, etc.)...the possibilities are endless! they could even go as far as making it for xbox live, where bands could be formed, and competitions could be held. i cannot take credit for this ingenious idea...i believe it was the profound minds of jared moine and taylor ishii that produced the concept. i also think a letter to those at the video game headquarters needs to be written containing this million dollar idea.

so in conclusion, i have fallen in love with guitar hero. though..after finding this game, along with a new passion in my life, i have also found a great sense of loss...for i do not own a play station two. so, as alanna would say, "shang it!"

me? a working girl?

okay. if you know me, and know me well...you know that i hate even the idea of having a job. most of my friends, especially the ones that work, see me as spoiled. which at times, i suppose i am. i get a lot of things handed to me by my parents, especially money. and because of this, the thought of me working never really crossed my mind, at least not in a serious manner. that is, until just now. i spend a lot of time at saddleback church, and at the church there is this place called "the pavillion," and at the pavillion there is a book store, and at the book store there is a job opportunity. a friend of mine, lauren owens, just started working there two weeks ago and has convinced me that i need to join her in her employment endeavor. the job pays incredibly well for an incredibly little amount of work. and i figure, i'm already at the church a lot...why not spend my time there making some money? i think it's finally time to get rid of this title i have of being "spoiled." it's time for me to step into the working world. me? a working girl? yes, i dare say, i may be.

dear loved ones,

love letters. letters of love? no, they arent the same. often times i have heard that the bible is "god's love letter" to us. this phrase, to me, has always seemed to go in one ear, and out the other. but as a result of current events in my life, this idea that the bible is god's love letter to me has congealed itself into my mind. before this past week-or-so, i always seemed to think love letters were an incredibly romantic sentiment. a "love letter," to me, was seen as a note that a boy would write to a girl (or vice-versa, of course), containing all of his endearments towards her, confessing his love and telling her of how brilliantly wonderful she is. and what girl, or boy for that matter, doesn't want that version of a "love letter"? i based my definition of a love letter on what i'd seen in the movies and read in novels (something that i often do). but i have recently come to realize that that is not what a love letter really is. my new definition of a love letter is simply this: a letter written by someone who loves you. my mom could write me a love letter, as could my friends, and anyone else who loves me...not just a boy. earlier this week i received a stack of "love letters," from the person in which i consider my "boyfriend." as he left for two weeks to venture to the other side of the world he left me a letter for every day that he's gone. and i was extremely excited to read them, one by one. but suddenly, i realized something. something that made me feel kind of aweful. i was more eager to read these letters that a boy had written me, than to read what god had written for me (i'm talking about the bible). this is because i thought the letters from my boyfriend would hold true to my previous definition of a "love letter." i wanted to hear all the "mooshy" stuff. and so i had my expectations; they were broken. after reading quite a few of these "love letters," so far only one of them has contained anything heart-felt or romantic. and i couldnt be more thankful. because this made me realize the real reason i wanted to read these letters. i wanted to read them because i knew that they were written by someone who loves me. i knew they had been written with love. and that is what a real love letter is. god has written me thousands of pages of love letters. the bible was written with me in mind. no, it doesn't contain the romantic sentiments that make a girl's heart melt, but everything that was written was written by someone who loves me. the bible isnt a letter of love; the bible is god's love letter to you and me.

sincerely,
alli

three cheers for peer pressure

...and so i have done it. i, alli reinhardt, have created a blog. but why? honestly, i don't really want a blog. supposedly, they grow on you...and according to the opinions of my peers, i need one. but still i ask...why? so that others can read my intelligent thoughts, or lack-there-of? i have fallen into another trend. thank you, peer pressure. my need to be part of the crowd has pulled me into this new world of blogs, comments, and whatever else is done here. i'm not exactly sure what to expect. i am more than certain that i will become addicted. i love to write, and most all my friends know this. unfortunately, this sets a high standard for me, as far as this whole blog thing goes. on the rare occasion that i feel insightful or come across an epiphany, i suppose i'm supposed to write about it here. and whenever i venture home from some exciting place, i will type in the url that will lead me to this place, and i will write about my adventure. so here is to the "blogs" that are yet to come, to my future addiction, and lastly, to peer pressure...where would i be without you?