The Outsiders

As I mentioned before, The Outsiders is one of my favorite books of all time. I read it with my students every year- and they always love it. Mainly because it's amazing. And party bc I'm an awesome teacher. :)

After we read the book, I always show them the movie.

And the kids always get a kick out of the fact that it includes Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze, Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, and Ralph Machio-the-guy-from-Karate-Kid. The guy that played the main character Ponyboy, C. Thomas Howell, has gone on to do other things, but he is-by far- the least famous of the cast.



But, my favorite thing is that all of my girls fall in love with Rob Lowe. He plays the roll of Soda Pop Curtis, and he is precious. Since Rob Lowe is older than my students, most of them have never seen him in movies and stuff.
But, after watching this movie- especially the scene where he's looking for his clothes- my girls all love him.

They're welcome.

Princess Diana

When I went to Philadelphia in November for the NCTE conference, I stayed a few extra days to sight-see and be touristy in Philly. I had a great time seeing everything- loved all of the "Founding Fathers" and Constitution stuff. I'm a history nerd- times a million.

Almost by accident, I went to the Princess Diana Exhibit. It was in the same building as the Constitution exhibit, and tickets were cheaper if you bought for both exhibits.A short background of me: I love Princess Diana. I remember where I was when she died. (I'm too young to remember her wedding.) I've read her biographies. I bought the magazines about her.

So, when I had the chance to see this exhibit, I was way excited, even though I wasn't sure what it was going to contain.

It was better than I could have ever imagined.
It was pictures, letters, videos, mementos, scrapbooks, and so much more. There was a whole room devoted to her fashion- and had numerous dresses she wore on display. There was a room devoted to her childhood, her courtship with Prince Charles, her wedding, divorce, philanthropy, and- of course- her death.

Here's my embarrassing confession.

I cried.

Kinda teared up early on, but by the time I got to the room about her death/funeral, I was bawling. Tears running down my cheeks and sinus situation creeping to a very unattractive level.

It was bad- to the point that a woman stopped me to ask if I was ok.

Embarrassing.

When I got home, I told my mom about my trip- and told her that we'd have to go if it ever came to Atlanta.

Well, glory in the day- it's here. At the Atlanta Civic Center. Now until June.
SO EXCITED.

You have to go. I'm sorry. You get no choice. It's amazing.
If you're not in Atlanta, I highly recommend you figure out when it's coming to a town near you.

Try to not cry.
Or take some tissues.

global warming? pfffff

From my car this morning.
Al Gore has a lot of explaining to do.

update. in bullets.

1. So, my lungs are much better. I haven't had any more issues since the weekend before Christmas. I am happy. Not sure what was going on then, but I'm glad it's no longer going on.

2. As I already knew, I was VERY well-behaved this year. Santa confirmed this with his generosity on Christmas morning. Pictures to come asap.

3. Am trying to make resolutions. Not sure just yet. Will keep posted.

4. Started drinking more water. Began yesterday. Victory thus far. (Keep in mind that I just said more- which won't be hard because I was drinking close to none. Ooops.)

5. Playing "Words With Friend" on my iPhone. this is possibly the best decision I've ever made. You can play me! My username is CamiSmith.

6. I want a UNC Tarheel's shirt. I'm an Alabama fan, but since I lived in North Carolina for a few years, I love Carolina too. My love for the Heels is NOTHING like my love for Alabama, but I feel like I need a shirt. Also, I tend to look smashing in that shade of blue.

7. I hate New Years. Least favorite holiday. After Columbus Day, and Stab Yourself With Your Fork Day. Ugh. But, I have plans.

8. Cleaned out my closet. 3 bags for Goodwill. Officially have too much crap.

9. Excited to go back to school. SO much to do to get ready!

10. Love my family. Lots. Maybe more than last week.

the past few days of my life. in pictures.

Sunday night. ER. asthma attack.
regular breathing treatment didn't work. continuous nebulizer.
that wasn't working fast enough. IV drugs.
oxygen level at arrival to ER: 82%.
by the time I left: 98%
5 days of steroids. make me hot. and hungry.

In the words of my dad, "It's not Christmas unless Cami's going to the Emergency Room"

random sports stuff.

I hate Charlie Weiss. And Notre Dame. ugh. times a million. Seriously? Take your loss like a man. Don't blame officials. Take it. Own it. I already hate you. So complaining about a loss like you're a spoiled brat isn't gonna help your case. Tool.

I'm no Michigan fan. But Forcier did look like a stud on Saturday. And they beat Notre Dame. So that'll earn you points in my book. I don't care if it's the University of Hell- I like you if you beat Notre Dame.

Love these "What We Learned" Articles- always so entertaining. Especially this truth- "Alabama has options on offense". PTL. It's about time. And. This bit of wisdom to knock the Kiffin fans down a notch- "Now we know. Western Kentucky was just that bad." Ha. Love it.

This makes me so sad. I can't even imagine the Atlanta Braves without Bobby Cox. He's been their manager for as long as I can remember. It may be time for him to retire, but it makes me so sad.

shameless promotion

my bff Adam is an amazing photographer. you should have him take pictures of you.

His website is www.youtopiaphoto.com

Check him out- you won't be disappointed!

Window (Browser) Shopping at Anthropologie

my GLORIOUS weekend

FRIDAY NIGHT!!!
Britney Spears at Phillips!
Box seats- AMAZING.
She was SO SO SO good.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Saturday.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL IS BACK FOR REAL.
ALABAMA.
Rough start to the day- but fought hard- and earned that win!
It's gonna be an awesome season!!!
McElroy!
Maze!
INGRAM!!!! SEC player of the week!!
Touchdown!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sunday Night.
NAVA.
Favorite restaurant in Atlanta.
Sonoma Jack Cheese Fritters?
Scallops and Grits?
Key Lime Pie?
Don't freaking mind if I do.
And I love the girls I went with- they make it even better :)

no wonder!!

I've been freakishly tired. And freakishly sickish.

Finally went to the doctor today.
Sinus infection.
Double ear infection.
Acute bronchitis.

Way to go, body. This is a good start to the school year.

Good grief!

Taking Up My Cross

"Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me"

(Mark 8:34).

So often I hear this verse and look at it with the perspective of a “cross” being some hardship I’ll have to take on in order to follow Jesus. But this wasn’t written in my lifetime where the cross was a symbol of Jesus’ death for me. This wasn’t written in a time when people wore cross necklaces around their necks as a reminder of the sacrifice Jesus made for them. Or even as a sign to others that you’re a Christian. Mark didn’t write this in a time where the cross was a symbol on the tops of buildings or in front of churches or strategically worked in as the “t” in the logos of churches and youth groups.

Mark wrote this during the only time in history when the cross was the method of excruciating execution. This was the death for murderers, thieves, and rapists. This death was slow, painful, and full of suffering. This was the death of shame, mocking and degradation. Most importantly, it was death.

To follow Jesus was to sign up for death. Jesus knew that people who chose to follow Him wholeheartedly were going to be in trouble. Because the things they were signing up for did not match up with the popular and acceptable ideas of the day. Rome was in charge- and to follow Jesus was to say that Rome no longer had control over you. Rome- and Caesar- were no longer the highest power in your life. The religious leaders of the day wanted you to do things as they had done- to need them to lead into the presence of God. But to follow Jesus was to say that the old way was gone and the new way was come. To follow Jesus was to no longer need a priest to intercede for you- because Jesus was now our high priest who would intercede on your behalf.

To follow Jesus was to go against the things that were accepted.

To follow Jesus was to break laws that Rome had set.

To follow Jesus was to be an alien in your own land.

To follow Jesus was to be prepared for opposition.

To follow Jesus was to take up your cross. And be executed.

Just like Jesus took up His cross. And was executed. For us. For once. For all.

So, whoever will come after Jesus must be willing to lose their own face, accept the possibility of death, and follow Him.

Most of us cannot even begin to imagine what it would be like to lose your life for choosing to follow Jesus. We’re the lucky ones. There are people all over the globe who cannot publicly proclaim their faith without the threat of persecution, jail, or even death. There is a Christian organization in place in China that is working to bring Chinese people on staff. Just like any ministry application, there are countless questions about your history, your faith, and your vision. The Chinese national application is very similar to the application that an American would fill out in order to go on staff with this ministry. The two applications differ by only one question. The last question on the Chinese application says “Are you willing to die in order to ensure that the Gospel is shared?”

Are you?

Am I?

Would I actually be willing to take up my cross and walk that same road as Jesus and die?

"Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me"

Top 10

I ran across the blog of an old friend- well actually, Amber is my brother's old friend. But I like her. So, I consider her my friend too. She's hilarious. I had to make myself stop reading in class because I was laughing too hard. To the point my stomach hurt. It was not good. I mean, it was good. But bad. All at the same time.

One of my favorite things on her blog was her Top Ten List- this is her intro:
Due to so many people being currently interested in my romantic status, I have decided to lay it all out there for everyone. Thus, I have composed a list of the top 10 men I would date. If you know one of them, feel free to set me up. If you do not have connections with any of these 10 men, do not set me up. I'm tired of going on dates with people who resemble wolverine (and I wouldn't even go so far as to say he resembled the pseudo hot version of wolverine as done by a handsomely hugh jackman) or who want to take me on a tour of their church. Yes this actually happened...on the first date. Therefore, either follow these guidelines, or don't set me up. It should all be rather simple now.

I am now following in her footsteps. Here is my Top Ten: (in no particular order)

10. Anderson CooperSmart? Witty? Rugged looks? Looks hot in a suit? Sounds like a win-win-win-win sitch to me. I love him. I don't always agree with him, but I do like to look at him. And I think I would love to sit and talk to him for a minute.

9. Luke Danes from Gilmore GirlsEverything good about men is summed up in Luke Danes. I know he is fictitious (as are a few men on this list), but I just adore him. I like that he's no-frills, no-nonsense, down-to-earth-- but still a nice guy. Sometimes the girls on Gimore drove me crazy, but Luke Danes could never do any wrong for me.


8. Tyler WattsAlabama quarterbacks are usually cute. Just sayin. (See John Parker Wilson) My first college football crush was on Tyler Watts. He played for Alabama when I was finishing highschool/starting college- so we're the same age. And this is important. Because it meant that (in my mind) we could actually end up together. Maybe this didn't happen. He's still around Alabama football- calling games and stuff on Saturdays in the fall. But, I still love him. A lot. And he looks good in a suit too.

7. Jarrod SaltalamacchiaHe played for the Braves for a hot minute. And it was over. I got nothing else. I just think he's adorable. And if you're gonna have a ridic last name, might as well go big, right?

6. Seeley BoothOh. My. Word. This man makes my heart jump. Seriously, he loves God, kids, monogamy and fighting crime. What else could you possibly want in a man? If you don't watch Bones, you should. Now. Like, right now. Get up and start watching it.

5. Nathan ScottHe may be a work of fiction, but he is the perfect mix of bad boy and southern gentleman. Good grief. Nothing angers me more than when the writers of OTH try to mess with Nathan.

4. Eli ManningI mean, he played SEC football, won a Super Bowl, and is related to Archie. Uh, yes please.


3. Adrien GrenierI feel in love with Chase in Drive Me Crazy. Then he showed up on the greatest show ever- Entourage. If you don't like him, I really do not understand.

2. Jason Morgan
If you're thinking WHO? Let me tell you. This is Jason Morgan. Used to be Quartermain. But. He got hurt. And didn't remember them, so he got a new name and a new life. Now he works with Sonny Corinthos in the coffee business in Port Charles. Sometimes he dates the most annoying people ever (ie Sam), but that's his only flaw. Oh. Yeah. He's on General Hospital. I love him. And have loved him for about 13 years.

1. Anthony DiNozzo, NCISHeaven help me, I love this boy. He plays the perfect mix of bad boy, smart guy, and sweet heart. I love him. And he reminds of one of my favorite people on the earth, Heath. He is one of my bff's from college- and DiNinozza reminds me of Heath SO much. And I love DiNozzo... maybe more than Heath. It's still a toss up. But he's my number one. Done. And DONE.

I got robbed.

For reals.

So, I've been moving for the past few weeks- doing a little bit at a time you know. And I was finishing up this week- to be out of my house on Tuesday.

Well.

I only had a couch and a table that needed strong men to move- so my brother and his friend Kyle and my uncle Nick came and moved it Monday night. No problem.

I went back Tuesday to get the last few things, meet my friend to give her some things I don't want/need, and to clean.

And the garage door was open.
Weird.
And the door to the house from the garage was open.
Weird.
And my dining room table was missing.
Weird.
And the front door was wide open.
Weird.

Yeah, so I got robbed.

Luckily, most of our stuff was moved out- but they did get my dining room table (SO STRANGE) and chairs, my friend's triathlon bike, my roommate's bike, my vacuum cleaner, my mom's ladder, 2 coolers, my lawn edger... but saddest of all...

ALL. OF. MY. NECKLACES.

all.
like 30+ necklaces.

I still had them hanging on the hooks because I hadn't been able to decide where I was going to hang them in the new place.
Now I don't have to decide.

I now have 3 necklaces to my names. None of which are "everyday" type deals.

So the only upside is that I have a really good excuse to start buying new necklaces! Any suggestions!

just a cool moment.

great day.
listening to the Across The Universe soundtrack.
and I had a really cool moment.
Hey Jude was playing.
and it got the end of the song where it's na-na-na-ing.
and all of a sudden, there's like most of my class singing along really softly.
it was like a movie.
i liked it.

couple of things on my mind

Earthquake in Sichuan was a year ago. At the time, two of my best friends (Rachel and Maranda) were living in that area of China. It was terrifying. Because I had a first hand connection to what was happening in the area, I remember it differently than your average American.
Things are not ok.
Things are not back to normal.

Rachel's blog today said:

On May 12, 2008...

87,000 people lost their lives.
1.5 million homes were destroyed.

On May 12, 2009...as we remember,

200,000 people still remain jobless.
20,000 people still remain missing, buried beneath rubble.

Also- ran across this website on James Fallows at The Atlantic. Check it out.
Don't forget.

-----------------------------
I LOVED Caedmon's Call in college. I mean, I still love them now, but when I was in college- they were my favorite Christian band. I played 40 Acres until it was just about dead. I saw them in concert about 5 or 6 times- great songs, great music. Loved them. One of the guys in the band- Derek Webb- was always a little more "edgy" in his way of thinking and just the way he came across. Nothing super scandalous, but he was just not your typical "seemingly perfect" Christian musician. He's been doing solo stuff for a few years- it's pretty good. I don't listen to it like I listened to Caedmon's, but it's still some quality stuff.
I was reading on Bryan Allain's blog- he writes for Prayers For Blowouts too- about Derek Webb's newest album called Stokholm Syndrome. SO MUCH DRAMA surrounding it! It's not very "Derek Webb-y" to be all drama just for the sake of publicity. So, I don't know. But, I do know that I want to listen to the album.....

----------------------------------
Well, these are just adorable.

Read about them at Kelly's Korner.
I want them so badly!! Not for me. But for all of my baby-producing friends!

Dear Universe

If at all possible, I would like to trade lives with Stephanie Zinone. You know, from Grease 2?
Thank you,
Cami Smith


I want a whole lot more than the boy next door...
I want hell on wheels.

all we are saying....

love Carolyn Forsman!
love this necklace!
ordered it for my hippie sister.
hope she doesn't read this.
she SHOULD be studying for her finals.
hopefully, that's the case!

if you want, you can match her.
she'll HATE that you match her, but you can.
just so you know.

Peace.

good news!

I was just sad all day yesterday, so I asked people for some good news!
Sometimes when I'm really bummed- or talking to a friend who's really bummed, I'll make myself (or them) list things that are good.

Here are some things that are good in my life:
1. My sister comes home this week. Could not BE any more excited.
2. Going to the beach soon!!! With Rachrea!!!!
3. Only 13 more days of school! Hooray!
4. My small group continues to bless me. I love them more every day.
5. My mom is awesome-er than your mom. Just sayin.
6. Had some really stellar hang out time with my sister-in-law lately. Truly dominant.
7. La Parilla is back open.
8. My friends love me. And they tell me all the time.
9. Heather found a car! JCLS got a new job!
10. Chick-fil-A has a new spicy chicken sandwich. It's not in Georgia yet, but I am cool enough to know people in the loop (ie. Amy)- so, I know it's gonna come here eventually. And I love spicy chicken.


What's good?

Hilarious

I met Jordan in high school. I was a junior. He was a freshman. He was my buddy. We just understood each other. Just one of those cute friendships- where we just genuinely enjoyed being around each other. Then he moved (back) to Charlotte, North Carolina- and we rarely kept in touch. We're friends on facebook now and still chat every once in a while. He and I are really different today- both changed a lot. He's way more liberal now, and sometimes doesn't think that I "get" his life.
But. I still love him. and we can still talk to him for hours.

So, when I saw his facebook status telling me to go to some link at The Atlantic, I had to check it out. (BTW- if you don't read The Atlantic, you should. It's awesome. I'm a big fan.)

Pay off for sure.
This is what I got.
hahahaha. you're welcome.

Gidget

I love this movie.
I have the tape. Like VHS. Yes. It's true.
I have loved this movie since I was a kid- my mom loved it and made us watch it. So, I've grown up watching it. And I still have about 10 VHS tapes in my life- mainly because I haven't been able to replace them on DVD. Either I haven't found them, or I haven't looked. People in my life make fun of me for watching this movie. And then double the fun making when they find out that I have the tape. But I don't care. I love it.

I want to BE Gidget. In the scene above specifically- when Moondoggie is singing to her. Cannot take it. Love it. Love the boys. Love Kahuna. Love Moondoggie. Loves James Darren times a million. AND to top it all off, it makes me want to surf! Now, I've grown up going to the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico- not really known for their killer waves. So, I do not surf. But this movie makes me want to surf. But a sad thing happened on Saturday.
I was watching my moive in my room.
And then I had to leave.
And while I was gone, a TRAGEDY OCCURED.
SOMEONE ACCIDENTLY TAPED OVER GIDGET.
Like with the news.
I don't know how.
I don't know why.
But it happened.
And I am BEYOND sad.
So, now I need a DVD.
If you would like to support my happiness, you can follow the link (click the pic) to buy me a copy of this movie. Seriously. I may die without it. I'm just saying.
It has all 3 movies on this DVD. Which I mean, whatever. I really just NEED the first one. But I can't find it alone on DVD. And I like the other ones ok.

Am dying without my movie.