Changing...it keeps changing...

"Changes come and we know we can't, we can't stop them. But I hold these memories and I will never drop them." - Brett Dennen, 'When I Go'

Yesterday as I held in my hands the Install CD for the scriptwriting software that was to change my life forever (more on that later), it occurred to me that life now is already rather different from what it was just two weeks ago. The College Years* are crazy that way - it seems like everything changes in a second, over and over again. OK, that makes it sound like something especially significant has happened, when in fact, these are all the highlights:

I cut my hair
And it's a very significant change. Like, it went from past the shoulders to above the chin. Which I know is a very small area of the body, comparatively, but it makes a world of difference in how people look at you. Not only that, but I let some girl at a hair school do it. Being as I'm a bit of a control freak, this was a pretty major adventure for me. The stylist was great, though the end result looks nothing like what I came in planning on getting. This was a little hard to deal with at first (see two sentences ago), but now I'm loving it. And hey, here's some before and after photos. Note that in the before, I have patchy remnants of show makeup on my face, and in the after, I am in serious danger of going emo. And I'm sitting in a closet for some reason. Anyway, just remember these pictures are about the hair, people.








See? It's like looking at two completely different people with the exact same face and body!

I started Spring Term classes
But have I actually attended my Physical Science lecture? Um...let's just say not yet.

I wrote 60 pages in one night
See, it suddenly occurred to me last Wednesday that the submission deadline for WDA scripts was...last Thursday. So I stayed up pretty much all night, wrote for about 8 hours straight, and managed to turn a 28-page idea into an 88-page finished draft (which admittedly was 18 pages shorter than my projected length estimate), and yeah, maybe the second act is not fantastic, but the experience itself was remarkably satisfying and hey, at least it's done. And submitted. And now I just have eons of rewrites to go, which is the part I complain about the most even though secretly I find it very enjoyable.

Final Draft! Final Draft 7 Academic! Woohoo!
What is this Final Draft of which I speak? Only the most glorious scriptwriting program ever invented! It arrived yesterday, and I found it sitting in a FedEx box, propped against my bedroom door (thanks, roommate, for bringing it in). After the considerable coaxing it took for my computer to actually run the install CD, I got it going and started to play. And oh. Oh people. It's incredible. And so fun. And convenient. And I love using it. Seriously, I haven't been this turned on by a computer program since...well, let's be honest, computer programs don't turn me on. That would be kind of creepy. But I love it so much. And I just want to be writing scripts all the time, but then I realize I don't have anything to write because I haven't gotten through all the prewriting stuff yet and that's just plain annoying. But in the meantime I've been playing around with short screenplays and let me tell you, it is fun. I'll be trying out the stageplay formats later today. You cannot fathom the ridiculous joy this brings me.
In related news, I'm about to get to work on my first ever full-length screenplay (or screenplays, since I'm grappling with two ideas at the moment). When I'm not feeling like a sellout, I'm just real excited about it. I'll definitely let you know how it goes.

I started watching 30 Rock
And by "started watching" I mean watched every episode of both seasons of the show between now and two weeks ago. People, this show is downright brilliant. You can catch the first season online if you have Netflix (or you can just find someone who has it on DVD), and the current season is all available on NBC.com. Please watch it. Also, I now want to be Tina Fey when I grow up.

I overdrafted my checking account
Oops.

Then I got paid
And now it's all good. Right? Oh boy. Next up on my list of skills to acquire - financial responsibility.

I figured out that I'm kind of good with kids
Like, kids other than my nephews. Who knew?

I started listening to Brett Dennen
Listen to him right now. Please. Here's one to get you started.**
And those are just the random things from the past two weeks that occurred to me right now. Let me tell you, it's been a very significant fortnight. I feel like a completely different person. I look like a different person. I'm loving to write again, I'm loving to do my hair in the morning, I'm actually getting to know people in my ward...it's a very good place to be in.

On a completely unrelated note, I am thisclose to writing and posting a rant/critique about some sex talks I've gotten from parents and church teachers and how I feel they fit into the development of a rape culture (don't believe we live in a rape culture? I can point it out to you). Not totally sure if it's a good idea in light of a recent discussion on Feministe about posting certain things under your real name. Of course, most of them were talking about people discussing their own (often controversial) experiences rather than just writing opinions, and I'm almost certainly being paranoid, but it's enough to give a person pause.

*The real ones as well as those featured on Saved By the Bell.
**Seriously, join imeem. Now THAT will change your life.