Roxie and Sarah's Guide to Horror Movies Part 1

My roommate Sarah and I really love horror movies. We are constantly scouring Redbox or Netflix for a new flick. We want to be scared. We want to our heart rates to go way up. We want something original that terrifies us. It becomes very frustrating to do this sometimes though.  When choosing a new movie, we can't rely on online lists or ratings because everything we have found online is bogus. We understand that everyone has different preferences and fears, so there is no way to make an "ultimate" list, but we are tired of mediocre movies like The Poltergeist and Let Me In topping every chart. So we have created our own guide.


Section 1: The Paranormals

These movies have such mixed reviews. So many people vehemently hate them, but the two of us are generally fans. It's all about the silence in these movies. The anticipation without dramatic music is magical. And we love all those nights that nothing happens at all. False anticipation can be just as great as a big scare. We rate them in this order:

-Paranormal Activity 3:

• This one wasn't as original, but it's all about the moving camera. What will be there when it turns back around?!? Also the little cubby hole in the girls' room is horror in my own life. I hate small creepy places like that. We weren't too happy with the ending, but it didn't matter.

-Paranormal Activity 2:

• More scares than the original. Love the security cam footage. That was new for us. The kitchen scene almost make me pee my pants.

-Paranormal Activity:

• The original still holds a very special place in our hearts, though it isn't the end-all-beat-all that many swear it is. It was new and amazing at the time, but watching it again shows how slow it can be at times.

-Paranormal Activity 4:

• This was was enjoyable, but not memorable. As video game fans, we did like the Xbox technology, but the story line made little to no sense.

-Paranormal Activity The Marked Ones:

• We didn't even want to see this one. It looked so terrible in the previews. After the 4th movie and the delay on the release of this one, we didn't even see it in theaters like all the previous movies. But then we rented it later and didn't hate it all that much. Another enjoyable film.

-Paranormal Activity Ghost Dimension.

• Please don't waste your money on this one. We got free tickets to the premiere, but otherwise this would have been a waste. The 3D was not used to its potential and it was just stupid. If you want a scare, watch the trailer. It is far better than the actual movie.

Section 2: Spanish Movies

They really know their horror in Spain. Seriously. Some of the best random Netflix horror we have watched have been low-budget Spanish films. The subtitles don't even get in the way of the scares. We watched one that was part of "Films to Keep You Awake." It was called Baby's Room and it scared the crap out of us. It was all about seeing someone on the video baby monitor. We watched this one time over three years ago and we still talk about it to this day.

Another one that is available on Netflix now is The House at the End of Time. It is kind of trippy with all the time warp stuff, but we enjoyed it. It was original and, as I said before, that is key for us. After seeing so many, we predict stuff before it happens and that one kept up guessing.


Section 3: Horror/Comedy

This is a very recent trend where the genres of comedy and horror intertwine. The first one I saw was The Cabin in the Woods, and I wasn't sure if it was intentionally funny or not for about half the movie. Now I've watched it a few time and love it. It is humor that really appeals to horror movie buffs like us.

Very recently, the two of us went to the theater to see The Visit. My middle school students were raving about it and the Comedy Horror genre listed online for it intrigued me. We loved it. We were laughing aloud and a few minutes later crouched low in our seats. It was totally weird (written by M. Night Shylaman, so what do you expect) but unexpected and refreshing. I did predict the ending at the beginning and gave it away to Sarah, so it's surprising that we liked it so much, but we would both recommend it.


We have a lot more to say on this topic. To be continued...

When Did Trailers Become Entire Movies?

Movie trailers used to spark an interest. It would be 30 seconds of mystery with a few glimpses of an actor or actress you knew and you'd have to see the movie to find out the rest. The last time I went to a movie, I asked a friend to go. She asked me "What's it about?" And I was able to tell her the entire plot line without ever having seen the movie. Why were we even going to see it?

Trailers have started to become 3 whole minutes, the length of short films. The worst part about this trend is sometimes the trailers are better than the movies. A few weeks ago, my roommate and I saw the most recent Paranormal Activity movie and this is the second one in a row that had scenes in the trailer that weren't even in the movie (good scenes I might add!). Trailers now give away big reveals before the movie even starts and, in comedies, the biggest laughs become only chuckles because you've heard it 20 times on TV before going to the theater.

This is my rant of the day. I'm just sick of this trend. Leave some mystery in. Make me want to know more. In the words of my roommate, "Is that something that people really want?" Maybe it is. Maybe we can't take a gamble on a movie anymore. I'm guilty of looking up ratings beforehand instead of just judging for myself. Or maybe we aren't patient enough to wait for the movie. I'm not sure. But I want it to stop. Come on, Hollywood.

What's In a Name?

I remember when I was a kid, my mom had a book full of names and their definitions and origins. I used to flip through that book all the time, saying name aloud and writing them down. Even though I am awkward when meeting new people, I love learning new people's names. I like both incredibly unique names and soundly traditional ones. I love how some siblings have such similar names and how some are insanely different. I love nicknames. I almost never forget a name and knew all of my students' names by the end of the first week of school. On the flip side, I hate when someone spells or pronounces a name wrong. Of course, I understand if you don't know that person yet. But when it's your cousin or friend or student, a lack of knowledge for their name means you didn't care to really get to know them. I've seen people write "happy birthday" on Facebook walls and spell the name wrong. It's on the same page! It makes me cringe.

But I know some of you are rolling your eyes right now. "What does it matter?" "I don't care when someone spells my name wrong." So here's a story for you:

 There is a student at my school who has a lot of behavioral problems. He is sent to the office or our "strategy room" several times a week. He usually doesn't turn assignments in and often doesn't work in class. But, for some reason, about the 2nd week of school, he started coming into my class and giving me a high-five each day. He would actually work if I came over and asked him. One day, as he was heading to his next class, I thanked him for working hard that day and he turned to me and said, "Miss Siel...it's really cool that you call me KB." "Well, it's a really cool name," I replied. He laughed and walked away.

You see, KB is this student's initials. But that is the name he wrote on his folder the first day of school. It's the name his friends holler after him in the hallway. Although it isn't the name listed on the roster, I knew that was what he must prefer to be called, so I called him that. And that small thing must have showed him I cared about him as a person. Of course, this is not a miracle solution. I'm also not the only teacher who calls him by this name. I am sure, though, that it was the recognition of KB's "real" name that helped me gain his trust.

Some Poetry for Your Soul

In the summer of 2010, less than a month after graduating from high school, I met a man named Gary Dop in a Summer Honors Creative Writing class. He was only my teacher for 10 days, but he made a major impact on my life. He gave me assurance in both my writing ability and my leadership skills at a time when I wasn't sure about anything in my life. He made me laugh and less than a minute later made me think deeply. He reminded me of the beauty in words and revealed such honesty in his poetry. So it shouldn't be any surprise that this year, with only 91 pages, he has touched my life again.

Gary Dop published his first book of poetry called Father, Child, Water this year. This book was filled with moments of delightful humor, deep pulls at your heartstrings, and insightful moments of what it is to be human. Even if you are not normally a reader of poetry, I can assure you at least one of his poems will speak directly to you. Dop uses clear images and plain speech to illustrate much deeper fears and hopes. It really is quite incredible. Just like back in 2010, I am astounded by the honesty in his poems. I was particularly fond of the poems "Guys Like Me"  and "A Brief Argument" that burst through with bravery and wit to challenge standards of masculinity. Even the poem that is, as a whole, the opposite of honesty, a poem created purely from a moment of imagination titled "Amish Man in the Andy Warhol Museum" (which is my personal favorite poem in the book) hits you at the end with honest confession. "But I wanted a poem. My lying, line by line, began/ as he disappeared down the uncobbled street, my back/ to Warhol's head: great, terrible, and looking down." 

Dop has an amazing ability to take small moments like buying a bomb pop at an ice cream truck or a mowing lawns in order to buy Cool Ranch Doritos and paint them into something absolutely extraordinary. I can't say enough about this poetry collection. My own book is full of marks and tabs and sticky notes and each time I read a poem again, I am struck by something new. I haven't written anything in a long time except this blog, but Dop's poems have inspired an energy in me. 

A Few Lessons in Teaching So Far

Being a new teacher is tough. I knew this coming in. When I would tell anyone about my new job, the response would always be either "Just keep your head above water" or "Bless your heart." I heard horror stories from new teachers and many, many stories about crying on the way home from work.

I also wasn't going in blind. I have been lucky enough to have a variety of experiences through my education and student teaching to show me exactly what a classroom was like. Still, though, I spent my first few weeks stumbling through lessons and meetings and training. I would return to my apartment and have no energy to move from the couch or the bed.

The good news? It's already getting better. Why? Because I took a deep breath and started thinking logically about things. And here is what I know so far:

-I cannot teach in isolation. My best teaching moments have come from collaboration. I can step into another classroom and ask questions. I can email a former classmate and ask what he/she is doing in class that is working. I have to stop putting the burden on myself.

-Going along with the last lesson, why am I always trying to reinvent the wheel? For some reason, I always feel like I have to do lessons or pose questions that I haven't done before. This is so ridiculous. Being a creative teacher doesn't mean every single day in every lesson. Sometimes I can just pull from a binder or a former lesson or the Internet. I promise my kids won't know the difference.

-I have to leave work at work. Teaching is now a big part of who I am, but it isn't the only part. I can't work 24/7. I've tried. It makes me a worse teacher. I'm starting to leave my school laptop at school along with those piles of papers. That doesn't mean I won't ever have to stay late or come in early to catch up. The work is impossible to fit into a school day. But when I leave the school, I have to really leave or I get stuck and stressed and crazy.

-I also need to do things to force me to pull my mind elsewhere. I am constantly thinking about the kid that is failing my 2nd period or copies I need to have run by Wednesday or how to review for the next vocab test. It interrupts my sleep and my meals and my conversations with friends. Luckily, my roommate reminded me of this when she bought me a paint-by-number set last week. This was something I started doing a few years ago when my mom suggested it. Unlike yoga or television or even reading, this takes a lot of my concentration and I release other things on my mind. I've also been watching Netflix when I go to the gym recently and by concentrating on running the elliptical and following the story of the show I'm watching I can sometimes avoid "school brain" that way too.

-I do not have to do things exactly how other teachers are doing them. If there's one thing I've learned in all the school environments I've been in is that everyone teaches differently. And that doesn't mean that some are right and some are wrong. I have to find my own teaching persona. I complained so many times about all the teaching philosophy statements we had to write in college, but I now understand why they pushed this. They wanted us to discover our strengths as teachers and what we felt strongly about. It's been so easy this year to think I should do the spelling worksheet on Wednesday that all the other classes are doing. Is it required? No. Does it make sense to me? No. So why would I do it? I can do my own thing. It's okay to be different.

-Kids are mean. It's just a fact of life. They are mean to me. They are mean to each other. And I can't change that. I'm no miracle worker. Sometimes, though, I can make a student think about his or her words. I can compliment a student that is being bullied to show they matter. I don't have to take the things they say about me to heart. The opinions of 12-year-olds should never affect my own self-esteem.

-Last, but most important of all my lessons, is that you have to find humor in teaching. Yes, kids are sometimes mean, but they are also sometimes hilarious. It's ok to laugh with them or act a little silly sometimes. I can't take everything so seriously all the time.

73 Stops in Nebraska So Far!

The Nebraska Passport trip my friend Hillary and I have been going on this summer has 80 stops, 10 tours with 8 stops each. We have made it to 73 total places and completed four of the tours so far. Here's what we have:

1. PLAY NICE

The Stops: Alia Arram Children's Museum in Kearney, Cody Park Train Display in North Platte, Edgerton Explorit Center in Aurora, Lincoln Children's Museum, North Platte Children's Museum, Omaha Children's Museum, Pawnee Plunge in Columbus, and Lee G. Simmon's Wildlife Safari Park

Our Top Pick: Wildlife Safari Park. We weren't able to participate in a lot of these because two 20-somethings aren't allowed to play in children's museums. But we did swim at the water park, climb on trains, and drive through the safari park. We loved the drive-through animal show. It was fantastic!

2. CRAZY CONFECTIONS

(No picture for this one.)

The Stops: 4th Avenue Coffee in Holdrege, Gering Bakery, Licorice International in Lincoln, R. F. Goeke Variety Store in Atkinson, Sehnert's Bakery in McCook, Serendipity Chocolate Factory in Tekamah, Sweet Shoppe in St. Paul, and Tru Café in Kearney.

Our Top Picks: My top pick was definitely Serendipity Chocolate Factory. That place was so cute and we got truffles and fudge there that were wonderful assets to our road trip. Hillary disagrees and says Gering Bakery because they gave us free cookies. We also ate a great breakfast in Holdrege, but didn't find anything we were hungry for anywhere else (we couldn't possibly eat at every place unfortunately). 

3. YUMMY TUMMY

The Stops: Back Alley Bakery in Hastings, Baker's Candies in Greenwood, Big Mama's Kitchen in Omaha, Dinty Moore's Lunchroom in Nebraska City, Duster's in Columbus, Dundee Dell in Omaha, The Drifter Cookshack in Crawford, and Kuper Farms in Norfolk.

Our Top Picks: The Drifter Cookshack hands down! We were very unsure about this the whole way there on some washed-out roads in the badlands, but it was well worth it for the view, atmosphere, and food. I even ate a buffalo burger. We have talked about going back to this area already and would stop in to eat again. I'm also a big fan of the meltaways I got from Baker's and would go again. We also got a free drink at Dinty Moore's (and this has nothing to do with the brand of beef stew). We didn't eat anywhere else, but most of the places definitely looked good enough to try (if only we had more meal time to spare). 

4. SAUCES & CYCLES

The Stops: The Brewery at Divots in Norfolk, Fairfield Opera House Brewery and Grill, Kinkaider Brewing Company in Broken Bow, Sandhills Motel and Glidden Canoe Rental in Mullen, Schillingbridge Winery and Microbrewery in Pawnee City, Stagecoach Mall Antiques and Tasting Room in Faribury, Storz Trophy Room Grill in Omaha, Union Bar and Grill in Gering.

Our Picks: Stagecoach Mall Antiques and Tasting Room. To be honest, we didn't have drinks at any of these places so we aren't the best to judge, but we didn't feel very welcome at most of the places (especially Storz who didn't want to give us a stamp if we wouldn't eat there) and so we won't be going back to try them either. I picked Stagecoach only because we did feel welcome there and they have a ton of really cool stuff that we walked around it looked at. We did eat at Union Bar, but weren't overly impressed with the food. Maybe the drinks are better. 

That's it so far. We are going to try to finish up the last 7 on September 12th. Wish us luck!!!

Blind Dates as a Server

As a waitress, I serve a variety of diners. People come to Red Lobster on business, for birthdays, on dates, and regularly every week. But some of the most fascinating guests I have had are the ones who come to eat alone. This is because without the conversation with another person, I become their "date" for the meal. I often literally sit down across the table from them.

The first time this happened on my job, it was much later in the meal and by complete accident. The woman barely talked to me as I took her order and seemed very caught up in her own world, but as I boxed up her leftovers, I casually asked what she was doing for the rest of the day. Turns out, she is a professor at the university so I told her about how I had just graduated from UNL. Her face lit up. She wanted to know what my major was and what classes I had liked and where my job was. On and on. I ended up just sitting down and talking for several minutes. She was new to town (from Texas) and taught business classes. She was teaching during the summer to make extra money. It was obvious she was anxious about this move and was very interested to hear what I had to say about my move into Lincoln and how much I loved it. She left the table with a smile and wished me luck at my own new teaching job.

The next time it was the exact same booth. An older lady ordered a steak. She was very polite but also quiet. I delivered a meal to the booth next to hers and came to check on her meal. She was eating very slowly but assured me it was wonderful. She smiled and said, "My dad always ate a steak every place we went out to eat. And so did I. Because I wanted to be just like him." All my guests were enjoying their meals at that moment and so I instinctively sat down. She told me about her father and the farm they lived on. Then she told me about a recent throat surgery she had and how much more she could enjoy food now. She had even overheard my conversation with the booth next to hers (they had ordered one meal). Her husband and her, she said had always thought people were stingy when they ordered one meal to share until they got older and realized they couldn't eat as much anymore. It was so obvious she was missing those she loved (her father and husband) and it broke my heart. But she had a nice meal and I packed her a few of the biscuits she loved for the road.

The third experience was with a woman I felt I had known my whole life. She actually came in on a busy night and I didn't have as much time to spend but every time I came to the table she had a new story to tell me. First, her son and grandkids were coming from Florida to visit. She was so excited and told me all about them. Then, she told me about her mom who she took care of (this was her night to herself). Next, she told me about her house and how big it seemed since her husband died and how she was making the basement into an apartment for her granddaughter to stay in. And even funny stories about how she failed at cooking crab or quit her job of waitressing after spilling on a guest. She told me she'd ask for me if she came in again and I always hope to see her and hear some more stories.

My final story was just this week and it was a man by himself. This one was much different because he didn't really talk to me at all. When I talked to him I saw in his face and posture that he was very upset about something, or maybe just a sad man in general. It broke my heart. I tried to start conversation but he just grunted. So when he ordered a Bahama Mama from the bar and said "Fill it to the top," I decided to take it to heart. I requested the bartender fill it as full as she possibly could. Then I made a show of balancing it and delivering it to his table. "Couldn't fit another drop," I said and it worked. He laughed out loud. He never did converse with me at all, but he smiled each time I came by and that was enough.