Ummm... Everything Sucks

I recently finished this book Everything Sucks by an author I had no idea had been through so much. Hannah Friedman was the youngest author ever featured in Newsweek 5 years ago, from which she received Hell for writing. This book kind of jumped off the shelf at me in the library and I'm glad I read it because as I was going through the motions of college ACCEPTANCE! so was Hannah. Hannah had a very interesting story, as well as growing up with a capuchin monkey for a sister she traveled through Europe with her family as a child for her Father's (up and coming) band. She retells funny coming of age stories and an arrival home laced with fierce hatred from girls she had known since kindergarten. Hannah becomes the target of everyone's amusement for having a monkey and a dad in a little known band,as well as a shoe car. Yes her Dad was very....eccentric, but he loves her so much that its okay in the end.

Since Hannah becomes the object of such torture her parents decide to enroll her in a private school. She ends up at a prestigious school right here in New York State: Danforth Academy, where she will, as in the title, lose her mind and find herself. A dedicated student Hannah throws all she has into her school work and and then into getting the kind of friends she never had. Popular, pretty and rich girls. Her closest friend becomes the rich and conceited Cashmere, whom she finds out in the end tried to convince a boy she liked that she was crazy. These girls whom students call the Great Eight are renown for their animosity and general bubbleheadedness. These are the girls everyone knows and are glad they aren't accepted by because they gossip fearlessly about each other. Hannah goes on extensive shopping trips with the Great Eight and watches them blow through stores with their parent's credit cards. Hannah even receives a shoplifted gift from Cashmere. Did I mention this is true??

Hannah eventually moves onto campus as she was previously a commuter, on campus she gets into drugs that keep you focused like prescription Aderall so she can writes long papers and remain focused on her work. Hannah is the class president and always talks about how she has to be the picture of a perfect student every morning as she announces the school announcements, this is probably why she is so set on going to Yale.

Hannah's moral compass spins uncontrollably as she lives constantly in an Aderall/cannabis induced semi-bliss. Nobody finds out for a long time about her weed,prescription drug, cocaine use until after she writes the article that exposes the scramble to get into college and it gets featured in Newsweek. The Principal becomes her worst enemy because he feels she named names and his was one of then in the controversial article, he then proceeds to get her suspended on false claims of 'lascivious acts' in the library (avec un garcon) Her father stands up for her questioning the validity of the claims and the Principal immediately gets defensive while claiming that a respected teacher witnessed the acts. After this little scene Hannah's mother asks the boy supposedly involved why her daughter had his drug scale, to which he denied ownership of. This kind of told Hannah's mother that her daughter was a crackhead, never a good thing for a parent to be aware of. Also her father figured out that she used the ATM card to get money for more drugs.

I started to wonder how Hannah did at Yale because she obviously had a drug problem. Not to mention she published this book exposing all her High School 'trials and tribulations' with drugs. I wonder if the other students at Yale had any idea a hardcore druggie was among them. One thing's for sure though, Hannah's drug use didn't put her on the streets she actually turned into an average person still. And not all former crackheads can say they've been published in Newsweek. I also wonder when she stopped her drug use. I guess something monumental would've had to happen, the overdose of her friend Julian their Senior year wasn't enough so what was?

Somehow I always end up reading the same books with a reoccurring theme of drugs and substance abuse, I don't know I must have a sixth sense for this kind of reading. Maybe as a reinforcement of what I would never do. Reading books like this one and A piece of Cake as well as those Ellen Hopkins books have been testaments to how screwed up drugs can make you and those around you. And if you don't stop they could take over your life.

How about these...ear tattoos

So lately Steph ( fellow blogger) and I have been into looking at odd tattoos you know from the cute, girly butterflies and flowers to manly cat on the belly and other ugly, ridiculous tattoos. Things no normal, thinking person would ever subject their body to, until I stumbled onto ear tattoos which look good, if done right. A lot of kids around school ( mainly the young and naive)
have tattoos of their name, for what reason I do not know. But hey, if they ever have a horrible accident and are cursed with amnesia they'll be in luck because HEY they have it permanently branded on their arm. Yeah I see so many kids with stupid tattoos I would never get branded onto myself like the classic boyfriend's name , The momtoo and huge crosses, I say instead of getting your boyfriend's name on yourself therefore ensuring you will be 'together for ever' you should go to movie or even better get henna tattoos they shouldn't fade before the relationship does so you should be good. For the cross tattoo you could wear a necklace, everyone loves to wear their religion around their neck and the church would enjoy you not branding yourself.

Christina Aguilera has a back of the neck tattoo of her name while Miley Cyrus has her just breathe ridiculousness even though she claims its to remember a friend, she also bullied her Dad into getting a little star tattoo. Angelina Jolie is fraught with baby momma tattoos which have the latitude and longitude of her children's birth places. Lots of celebrities are going this kind of rock star skin and bones direction which young kids at school think is appealing.

What most teens fail to do is picture the future, you want to be a doctor a pediatrician to be exact. Do you think that a parent wants their child's pediatrician to have a huge tattoo of their name on their hand or arm and some big skull and crossbones on their neck? Of course not. You have to think ahead when you reach twenty is your tattoo skill going to describe you in a way you like? The best way to ensure you don't make decisions you wish you hadn't made was learned in seventh grade health class abstinence. You should abstain from getting a tattoo that you may have the chance of regretting. Now I sound like a parent.

Speaking of honorable tattoos though I think these are a good way to get that that tattoo and only have it perceived as artistic. The Ear tattoo. This kind of tattoo is very appealing to me, the way it is visible but not in a bad way, especially if you get a cute floral design or a vine pattern going down your ear. Behind the ear tattoos are fun too Queen Latifah has one and if its good enough for the Queen...But I think this tattoo would really be okay for any career you could have it wouldn't be seen as the biker tattoo that scares small children or worries parents into finding another doctor. You caould be perfectly qualified and not mistake for otherwise with this tattoo.

Lets try something...a little different

Lately I haven't read any books or finished the three I was reading ;) I've kind of been obsessed with watching old episodes of HEROES as I have the first and second season on DVDs. So far I've watched the full first season and four episodes of the second season.I had to start from the beginning beacause I'm not an avid tv watcher and I had missed the most important parts and only seen episodes here and there, never full episodes either. I have always liked HEROES I think it's genetic beacause it's the one show my WHOLE family likes, thats how we have the sets they were a Christmas gift to somebody. I think the different characters and there specific powers are the best part of the show, but the special effects make it possible for the characters to really HAVE those powers and make it believable. As well as the good vs. evil dynamic, in HEROES the dynamic changes rapidly. Just beacause someone is working with Peter today doesn't mean they won't be an accomplice to Sylar the next day. So I wanted to talk about the different characters and their role in the story. Starting with my favorite; Peter Petrelli.

Peter Petrelli is the 'good' equivalent of Sylar, he can absorb any power he comes in contact with but he isn't shamelessly collecting them like Sylar. Peter is bound to his brother Nathan who treats him so dirty sometimes (undermining his efforts to save the world by throwing paint over the prophetic painting.) I think Peter being a male nurse was perfect for his

characterization because he always worried about others and was completely selfless. He was the best person to be able to absorb powers, he doesn't use them for evil as others (Sylar) would and he takes one for the team more than once even though where I am right in the season I have only seen one instance. Since Peter soaks up powers he has all of that stuff floating around, invisibility, healing, the fire thingy, telekinesis, telepathy. and more and more every episode. He can't control the powers. Until he meets Claude Rains and he teaches him to control the abilities that may result in the explosion that leads to everyone dying,this like my favorite episode other than later when Peter is captive in the holding cell and Elle keeps zapping him. back to my theory of Peter being Sylar's foil. Everything Sylar is Peter isn't, at first Peter is a dreamy and unsure of himself, Sylar has always been confident in his killing. Sylar has separated himself from the idea of family because his isn't there, while Peter has always been totally dependent on those he loves. Peter makes the story balanced,because he has all the powers rolled into one person, just as Sylar is making himself. They are the perfect counters but Peter is definitely better, he has good morals but sometimes I wish I could tell him not to trust Nathan simply because they have the same blood flowing through their veins.


Mohinder Suresh gets on my nerves for the most part, mainly because Sylar was his partner in getting other (mutants) to let him take research about them. He was side by side with Sylar for the longest time and had no idea, he just took his odd behavior for gratitude that others would be helped. Suresh also thought he could kill Sylar, this was stupid because we all know Peter is the only person who can kill that man. I started disliking Mohinder when he didn't believe Peter and was always doubting that he had a power, of course he never doubted Sylar for some reason, who he really should've been suspicious of.


Matt Parkman is cool, I really like his ability to read minds but I think he shouldn't always let himself be so much of a pawn. When he was an ordinary police officer he was always being pushed around by aggressive women officers. They were always calling him a loser in their minds and he heard them. I thought it was weird how they all took him as a loser.


I can't stand Claire Bennet, she always has to blow things out of proportion especially when she has to lay low because she can't let everyone know she can regenerate. Of course good thing the world doesn't depend on her because it would end. It's not long before someone knows, this boy who annoyingly can't stop referring to aliens and robots.

I have no place for Sylar in my heart, all he cares about is collecting more and more powers, if you think he has fallen in love with someone he isn't really. he just wants their power and needs to build up their trust before he gets it. I have seen a few recent episodes and it seems as if there are less abilities to pilfer these days. But he did kill a love interest, Elle, they were in a relationship and he just killed her after saying he wouldn't. Sylar even killed his own mother. Thats how ruthless he is, Peter is like the only person who has ever survived a murder attempt from him. The only person he ever didn't kill when he was going to was Suresh. Maybe Sylar felt bad about betraying Mohinder's trust, then again I doubt it.