Black Friday: Showcasing America's Greed

When I was younger, I always loved the holiday season. I loved getting together with family and presents and food... then I grew up. Now the holidays make me sick. Not really the holidays themselves (the ideals and morals they are based on are nothing I am against), just what they have become. Black Friday is by far the WORST part of the season. This awful day is nothing more than an entire day dedicated to teaching our children that it is okay to trample, punch, kick, beat, yell at, and (in some cases) kill fellow humans over MATERIAL POSSESSIONS. I don't know if you all realize this, but that is what you're fighting over. Meaningless material possessions. You are camping outside of stores, getting in fights with strangers, trampling other humans, all in all acting like complete neanderthals over material possessions. Let me ask you this, is that DVD player really worth it? Is that digital camera that important to you that you are willing to act like a complete ass to get it? I bet if we recorded people shopping on Black Friday and played them the tape after, they would be ashamed. And they should be. We all should be. Ashamed that we allow this insanity to continue. When is someone going to stand up and say "enough is enough"?



Now I know that there are some of you who are going to say "Black Friday is good for the economy" and "Not everyone acts like idiots on Black Friday". I will agree that not everyone acts like a complete ass on Black Friday. My point is that despite the maybe 30% of americans that act like civilized humans on this day, there are 70% who aren't. There is not a single material possession in this world that is worth it. In a perfect world, this day would be abolished. But until someone wises up and realizes that there is more to life than material possessions, our greed will continue to be at the forefront of the holidays. The holidays are no longer about spreading hope and peace and joy and good will, they are about who spends the most money on their friends and family. Maybe instead of fist fighting with strangers over PS3's and crock pots, we should focus on what the holidays are REALLY about. Spend Thanksgiving being thankful for something or someone. Spend Christmas celebrating the birth of Christ (if that is how you choose to) or spending time with the people you love and cherish. Let's get back to the feel good cheer of the holidays. Throw aside greed this year and spend time focused on what really matters. Maybe if enough of us civilized people boycot this pathetic day, it will eventually become nothing more than a bad memory.

Natalie Jean's Halloween Movie Musts

Hola bloggers! Since we are in the homestretch here with Halloween, I thought I would give you a list of movies that are mandatory in my eyes for the holiday. There is no specific order or system here, just Halloween movies that I enjoy. I hope you will too.

1. Hocus Pocus
"Hocus Pocus" is pretty much a must for me. I've been watching this movie every year since I was little. It's just a fun movie.
2. Halloween
Come on, it's a classic. You weren't expecting me to skip this one, were you?
3. The Nightmare Before Christmas
I love that this one can be on my Halloween and Christmas lists.
4. Idle Hands
This movie is the perfect blend of comedy and gore. Devon Sawa, Seth Green, and Elden Henson are HILARIOUS. The perfect movie for scaredy cats who like a bit of blood and guts.
5.Halloween 2 (2009)
Okay all you John Carpenter die hards, don't kill me for putting this one on here. I know Zombie strays from the original concept of Michael Myers quite a bit, but that doesn't make it a bad movie.
6. The Crow
Granted, "The Crow" is not about Halloween... but it takes place on Devil's Night and Halloween. That's enough of a reason for me.
7. Trick t Treat
This movie not only follows the 4 basic rules of Halloween to a T, but it also does a stupendous job at creeping you the fuck out and telling one hell of a story.
8. Casper
A Halloween party in a creepy house? Sounds like fun to me. Especially if all the ghosts turn into Devon Sawa at the end.

Well Ladies and Gents, that's my list. I hope that you can at least find one movie to sit back and enjoy. The next time I post a movie musts blog, will be at Christmas. Oh do I have some goodies in store for you there kiddies. ;)

The Night "He" Came Home is My Favorite Night Of The Year

Yes my friends, I am that in love with Halloween, that I had to throw a John Carpenter reference in there. :) You know you love me. Halloween is, and always will be, my favorite night of the year (and my favorite holiday). Ever since I was a little girl, I have always loved Halloween. Once I discovered my love for all things horror, my love affair with the holiday only grew stronger. As a fan of all things bloody, gory, gross and disturbing, how could I not? My main reason for loving what may be the most hated holiday is something a little more involved than loving blood and guts. Halloween is the one day of the year where you can dress however you want, and not get shit for it. The slutty girls can dress like sluts, the Goth kids can dress Goth, the fantasy geeks can dress like their favorite D&D character, you get the idea. Yes, there are costume contests and so forth, but nobody gets made fun of for being a freak. Which is a nice change of pace if you have ever been on the receiving end of such ridicule. I love that Halloween is a holiday that encourages us to all find that inner child, and let loose. Halloween is all about having fun, and recapturing that child like carefree persona we all lose as we get older.

I was going to write this blog as more of a "true origins of Halloween" idea to give a one-two punch to those insane bible thumpers who think by partaking in Halloween, we're all going to hell. Then my ever so wise boyfriend pointed out to me that when it comes to religious fanatics, facts don't matter. They'll overlook any and all facts I may present to them and stick their self righteous noses in the air and still believe what they want. So I decided to not waste my time on that bullshit. Bottom line is this: believe whatever you want to believe about Halloween. If you want to believe that by dressing up in a costume and getting candy you are partaking in some Pagan or Satanic ritual, then you go right ahead and live in your sheltered, misguided little box. Halloween is what YOU make it. If you don't want to dress up as a Witch or Zombie or The Devil, then DON'T. Dress up like an Angel or Princess or something else completely innocent. Halloween is only as evil as the soul of the person partaking in the activity. I'm about 200% sure that when I die, God isn't going to look at me and say, "Natalie Jean, you participated in Halloween every year of your life on Earth, therefore you are denied admittance to Heaven."



My case in point? Have fun with Halloween. Let yourself see the holiday through the eyes of a child, behold the wonder and free spirited feeling of it all. Eat a shit ton of candy and get a stomach ache. Play pranks on your scardy cat friends. Go to a haunted house or an apple orchard. Watch Halloween themed movies and make Halloween themed snacks. Whatever you decide to do, remember that whatever Halloween was in the past, is in the past. Now-a-days it is all about having fun. So go have some fun. I can almost guarantee that you'll feel better if you do.

It's almost here...

You're trying too hard, and failing miserably.

This is a topic that has been bothering me for quite some time now. Seeing this picture online prompted me to finally publish this blog. I hate emo kids. I really do. I hate that because of them, I can't wear black and fuchsia together without someone asking me if I am emo. Seriously?! To be fair, my beef isn't just with these lame ass emo kids. My problem is with the whole idea that we all have to have some kind of social label. And if you don't conform to that specific label and what it deems acceptable, you're a poser. Now I know that social labels will never cease to exist. I am a realist, and I realize that cliques and labels are just a part of the dealio. My problem really is what they represent.

The whole "I'm Emo/Goth/Punk/Scene/whatever" deal started because someone didn't want to be part of the majority. They wanted to be unique, stand out, to be a non-conformist. There's nothing wrong with that at all. Everyone wants to be an individual. But by becoming emo/goth/punk/scene, you're not being an individual. You're being an emo/goth/punk/scene kid. Part of a group. A group with rules and standards and boundaries. Which, is going against your wanting to be non-conformist in the first place. See my point here? Say for example you're an emo kid. If you don't have a zillion bracelets on your arms, listen to all the right bands, wear the right colors, wear skinny jeans, etc... everyone calls you a poser. You can't be considered an emo kid unless you conform to what the emo culture says makes you an emo.



Now I know that any of you who have known me for years are going to start complaining and saying "Natalie, you were a goth kid in high school. You're no better than the kids you're complaining about." And you'd be right. In high school I was so desperate to stand out from the cookie cutter jock and bimbo population at my local high school, that I tried WAY too hard. Looking back on it now, I see just how foolish I was being. I was different from the majority of the kids at my school, but I was exactly like very other goth out there trying to be different. I had become what I was trying to avoid being, part of a clique. Now days, I don't try to be anything. There are certain people in my life who, to this day, want me to uphold a specific label so they can say that they have a goth friend. I don't care. Are there things that I like that would be considered goth? Sure. There are also many other parts of me that would have me labeled girly, punk, tomboy, and even preppy at times. The main thing is, I don't care. I am going to like what I like, no matter what. On one hand I love wearing black and watching horror movies, and on the other I love listening to Katy Perry and watching "The Hills". I am, and always will be, a mutt. I am a little of everything thrown into one female, and I don't care.

So the next time you catch yourself doing something or not liking something because you're afraid that someone will call you a poser, DO IT ANYWAY. The only true way to be a non-conformist in this world is to be who you are, like whatever you like, and not let other people tell you otherwise. That my friends, is true individuality.

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year... for me. :)

Almost all of you read that title and thought of Christmas. Make no mistake, this is not about Christmas at all. My recent distaste for that holiday will be in a later entry. (it has nothing to do with religion, I assure you.) My favorite time of year is Fall/Autumn/Harvest, whatever you may call it. There is just something magical in the air this time of year that gets to me every time. That, and football comes back. ;) Leaves change color, everyone goes to the local orchard for cider and donuts, and Halloween is right around the corner. (There will be an entry soon about why Halloween is my favorite holiday also.) There isn't really any depth or complex thought in this entry, I just wanted to remind everyone to take a moment and feel the magic that Fall brings. Go on a walk and take pictures of the scenery, go on a hayride, take the kids to the park and let them play in the fallen leaves. We all need a little bit of beauty in our otherwise stressful lives. Why not take advantage of the beauty Fall has to offer? Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go take some Fall pictures of my own... and run all those pesky errands that follow us no matter what season. At least I'll have beautiful scenery to run around in!