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The Hunger Games trilogy and I, we’ve had quite a month! I’m going to attempt to type this post quickly, as I’m already about to cry, and blurry vision never did make writing easy. Truth be told, I didn’t know what to expect from the series, but I certainly didn’t predict an undeniable love of nearly ever character (bad, bad, BAD idea) or a shocking realization that a trilogy cannot be a trilogy if there is a fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh or 39th book. The following are my surface thoughts on the stories, including my loves and dislikes. Because honestly, if I tried to give an in-depth analysis, I would be writing for the rest of my life.

~Spoiler alert! If you have not read The Hunger Games, but plan to do so at some point, I would suggest returning to this post later on, when your life is three books better off.~

With that…

What I love: The characters. The characters, the characters, the CHARACTERS. My love of fictional people put me at a kind of disadvantage when reading this series, but I couldn’t help it. Katniss, Peeta, Gale, Haymitch, Prim, Finnick, Johanna, Effie, Rue, Mags, Madge, Delly, Greasy Sae, Hazelle, Darius, Cinna, Octavia, Venia, Caesar, Boggs, and Annie…. I love Buttercup, for crying out-loud! These characters make the story what it is, from Katniss’s long lists of debts to Annie’s strange habit of blocking out total silence. It’s who they are. It’s what they do. They’re all just so special.

And, of course, what’s a good story without a little romance? Staged or true, Suzanne Collins did a wonderful job creating a love triangle that put me on the edge of my seat until the very end.

So, I’m walking around, subconsciously singing the song above, and Brody yelps, “Peeta DIES‽” So then, of course, my mom walks in, and she’s all, “Peeta DIES‽” So I attempt to explain– actually, no. He only dies for a minute– but no one believes me. Best of all, my mom thinks it was Peeta I was crying over a few nights ago, not poor Prim. Oh, well. She’ll figure it out soon enough.

What I don’t love: Katniss’s utterly traumatized nature at the end of Mockingjay. Peeta’s hijacked state. Gale’s whipping. Haymitch’s reliance on wine. Prim’s explosion. Finnick’s tragic death. Johanna’s fear of love. Effie’s unfair treatment. Rue’s untimely death. Mags’s death. Madge’s disappearance. Delly’s inability to see things as they really are. Greasy Sae’s destroyed business. Hazelle’s traumatized state. Darius’s transformation into an Avox. Cinna’s horrifying death. Octavia and Venia’s mistreatment. Caesar’s Capitol state of mind. Boggs’s death. Annie’s madness. It hurts to watch people whom you love be mistreated. It hurts even more to watch them die. I cried over Primrose for two days before telling myself that she was never alive in the first place. But then again, she lives in us, does she not?

I also don’t love President Snow, Cato, Brutus, Enobaria, Mrs. Mellark, Thread or President Coin. Their flaws are fairly obvious.

All in all, I love the Hunger Games, and I can’t say that I’m particularly sad to be reliving them as my mom dives into the reading. Actually, now that my time with the series is up, I’m heartbroken. But as you know, lovelies, I never was unable to reread a good story…

 

Me: *Walks up to cash register with an armload of active wear.*

Cashier: Hello! How are you today?

Me: Great! How are you?

Cashier: Good! *Looks at pile of clothes. Looks at me. Looks at pile of clothes. Looks at me.* You’re a dancer, aren’t you?

Me: Yes, yes I am.

Upon noticing the large number of ill people at dance this month, I have decided to disclose my not-so-secret cinnamon and honey recipe for you to enjoy. Depending on how you feel, this can be used as a simple pick-me-up or can be taken every hour to kick colds fast.

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp. raw honey
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon

 Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix the honey and cinnamon until well blended.
2. Eat the mixture with a spoon.

Quick, easy, and definitely worth a shot in the long run! And it tastes like heaven (this coming from a girl who doesn’t particularly like honey). Plus, it’s not a drug. In fact, it’s really good for you.

Looking back, it was an extremely eventful afternoon…

It was fantastic to see Miss Bethanny, new jumpsuit and all, for ballet/tap. We had a catch-up conversation before opening the door to our little princesses. With four new students, things were pretty hectic, but we managed to line the girls up for their recital dance— ah! Is it seriously January…?

In modern, I ran around like a chicken with my head cut off, attempting to–at least– greet all of my sisters. After a wonderfully lengthy warm-up, Miss Sara began recital choreography. This dance is going to be a-maz-ing… SO thrilled! We also had a little chat about costumes, eventually deciding that black tights and shorts are going to look better on stage than our jazz pants.

And then, there was the one about ballet class. We had a quick warm-up and stretch and then ran over to the main studio for pointe. Upon finishing up our releves, Miss Bethanny hurried into the room. Quietly, she blurted, “Sara, I think we have a gas leak.”

That was the moment when we all realized… yes… it smelled a little funny. Miss Sara, Miss Bethanny and Miss Rochelle all crowded into the back room to take a look. “Oh! Oh! Oh, no!”

Food for thought: our studio is located in a mass complex of other buildings, all connected to one another. We have a gas leak. If we aren’t careful, we all (the studio, the pet groomer’s, the pizza place, the sushi shop, the florist’s, the coffee house and the gym) go sky-high.

I wanted to laugh, but I was a little too skeptical to do much more than stand in place and plug my nose.

A few moments later, Miss Sara returned, ordering us out of our pointe shoes, into our warm clothes and back to the Training Center. Hurriedly, we did as we were told, ignoring the disturbing stench of the lobby and “running like dancers” back to the other side. All except Allison, who performed her signature “penguin scurry” down the hall. I definitely laughed at that.

We called our parents for a ride home, but before they could arrive, Miss Sara rushed in to give us an update; the smell was dispersing and the leak was seemingly no more. Ms. Tina drove over, just in case, but when it came down to it, the leak left nearly as quickly as it came. To be honest, I don’t think that anyone knows exactly what happened in there. But, taking all necessary precautions, we walked back down to Studio A to work on our recital piece. In the half-hour we had left, Miss Sara choreographed an entire minute of the dance– wow!

I just missed dance. So much. Break is fantastic and all, but dance is a part of me. If you can imagine walking around without your ten fingers for two weeks… what a pain.

And a pain it was, returning to the studio this afternoon. My neck was tense, my hips and legs were sore, and my feet might as well have been stuck in a freezer, but the hugs, catch-up conversations, random chats and prayers were all well-worth the trip. <3

Miss Sara gave to us a series of barre combinations to help us ease back into things, as well as a glorious 20-minute stretch. Afterward, we practiced our chaines turns and challenged ourselves with a bit of allegro. All in all, a well-rounded class to start off the spring semester. I couldn’t be happier!

If you haven’t already guessed, I started my reading of The Hunger Games trilogy over break and am an immediate fan. I think I speak for all of us when I ask, Why? What is so enthralling about these stories?

They’re just fiction… right?

Merry Christmas and a happy New Year! I do hope that you lovelies enjoy these Christmas dance clips (courtesy of my beloved parental units).

Advanced Modern

I just love my studio. And Christmastime. And Christmastime at my studio. <3

Yesterday was crazy. Beyond crazy. To be honest, I’m not even sure how I got to Thursday, so coming up with all of your lovely details is going to be quite a challenge, indeed.

But nobody ever said that Christmas Program week was easy. Ever. And no one ever said that it wasn’t completely and totally awesome. Ever.

Miss Bethanny and I rounded up our Ballet/Tap girls and practiced their dance piece by piece. When all was said and done, Bethanny read to everyone, while I dressed each little princess in a red tutu and hair clip. Afterward, the door was opened, and everybody and their fourth cousin flooded into Studio B. The kiddos performed their dance twice, remembering virtually all of the steps without any help at all. They were fabulous.

After work, it was down to the Training Center with me for modern. I went over a few steps with Carrie and Elizabeth, had an elaborate conversation concerning Abby’s red Christmas shirt and ate a bag-full of food before heading into class. We warmed up, stretched and then finished our dance in a snap. A few run-throughs later, our parents came in to view our work. Despite limited choreography and practice time, our performance was practically flawless. I could feel the energy from our limbs work its way into the floor and up through the walls, to reach our tightly packed audience. It was awesome.

I threw my hair up in a bun, for it was on to Training 3! We did a bit of barre, ran our dance several times, and then– what‽– it was time for our parents to come inside. Once again, we performed twice, taking a break in-between to work on “landing softly.” All in all, I felt that we put on a very nice show, and I am so proud to have been a part of it.

Today, I arrived just in time to complete my cleaning job and run some errands with Moriah. After a stunningly encouraging conversation with Miss Jenna, Ballet 2A began. We edited and practiced the girls’ dance, dressed everyone in silver tutus and Christmas ribbon and ran down to the Training Center to perform. The girls were absolutely lovely; I couldn’t have asked for more. Taking their seats, they were able to watch the Training 1 girls’ show (gorgeous!), which just about made them squeal with delight.

In the aftermath, I collected tutus, ribbons, streamers and handed back belongings. Beyond that, I had to collect my things from the main studio and hurry to my car, where my new puppy was waiting.