Fa ra ra ra ra, ra ra ra raaaaaaa.

Yep. It's pretty depressing that it's all over. Although, to me, Christmas still feels like it hasn't happened yet. I never really got into the mood of the whole thing. Even watching Christmas movies ALL DAY on Christmas eve, and listening to RK's christmas cd, my Happy Christmas Vol. 4 cd, and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and then jamming to Christmas tunes on my guitar didn't help. Oh well, I had a decent Christmas, even though it was spent at home with just my immediate family.

I did, though, start a new tradition. My whole family absolutely LOVES "A Christmas Story," and in honor of that movie, we went out for Chinese on Christmas Eve. I am perticularly happy about this, considering that Chinese food is my favorite food in the entire world. There is this gourmet chinese place in town that sells really REALLY high-quality, delicious chinese food. YUM.

Oh boy, was I wrong about this band. I saw The Rocket Summer a few years back with Kelly, and we both hated them...but now Kelly likes them, and the other day she introduced me to their Do You Feel album. I bought it, and have been listening to it non-stop. Half the songs are already in my top 25 most played songs in my Itunes. Haha.

-Hannah-

Yayuh.

I just found out last-minute that I'm going to the Punk the Halls tour this friday! It's at a super-sweet small venue that I saw The Elms at way back. It is the Jesus Alive Coffee House, and it is literally a coffee house. No bigger than your average Caribou Coffee. Heck yes. =D

Hmmmmmmmmm...

So today I have the day off, and have no idea what to do. This has been happening to me alot lately, which gives me the hint that I have no life. I would gladly appreciate suggestions to avoid this boredom that occurs way too often. And playing solitaire on my Ipod doesn't count.

Hannahannahannahannahannah

Firsts.

*Got into my first car accident.

*Lost our first basketball game of the season. Badly.

*Managed my first night at work. Got out early.

*Still trying to buy my first car.

*And trying to go to my first show of December.

Pointless.

I could blog about the springfield show, but Kelly, April and Chris already have extensive posts about the awesomeness.(even though, from reading ALL THREE of their blogs, I appear to not have existed..but whatever) So go read theirs. I assure you that I was there for the show. =]

I could go into some emo rant about what's going on in my life right now, but I'll spare all none of you who read this blog.

Later.

iLove

Attention internet amigos: Hannah is finally in the 21st century! That's right, I have an iPod. Black 80gig iPod Classic. Oh yes. I happen to be listening to it right now, and I'm listening to Taking Back Sunday.

I currently have 1,101 songs. And that's only about two-thirds of my cds. I have way more uploading to do!

TEN DAYS TILL RELIENT K AND SWITCHFOOT!

Happy Jack's? More like Sad, Scared Jack's!

So the place where I work, Happy Jack's, was robbed on Saturday night. I closed saturday night. Talk about freaky.

Sunday in church I got a call from one of my co-workers, and I thought that was odd, considering all of them know I'm most likely going to be in church on sunday mornings. Anyway, I texted Sam back(ooohhh...pastor's daughters text in church?), only to recieve the responce "Happy Jack's was robbed last night." Needless to say, I was freaking out the whole rest of the service, itching to call her back with more details. I found that they had come in after we left, de-activated the security system somehow, and stolen the entire safe, and all of the gift cirtificates. Considering I had to work that same day at 4, my thought was "Okay. At least I get the day off." Nope. They re-opened at about 2:30pm, just in time for my shift. Yipee. I arrived there, feeling like I could vomit at any moment, and my hands were literally shaking. I know a thief would have to be a complete retard to return to the scene of the crime the NEXT day, but still, you can't blame me for being scared! I was relieved when the two guys who were working that night arrived, even though I'm taller than them. I made sure to tell them they had to protect us girls! The other girl manager there that night was scared as well. My dad had offered to come and sit there studying just incase, and we decided to take him up on that offer. Needless to say, nothing happened, but it was still nice to feel somewhat safe with my 6'5" dad on the lookout.
What made it even more scary was that there were still muddy footprints on the floor, and fingerprints all over the windows. I felt like I was in the movie "when a stranger calls" everytime the phone would ring.
But a thing that got me through the night was singing Skillet's song "Whispers in the Dark" in my head the whole time. I think that was God's way of keeping me feeling protected. Thank you, God, for your protection!

:'(

Dave Douglas, why do you have to leave Relient K? You're my favorite!!!

I hate that I'm the last to know because of my lack of technology. I'm cirtainly out of the loop. I hate it when people leave bands, but nothing in the past compares to this. Dave is seriously one of the coolest people I've ever talked to when meeting a band. I will have to go to his last show, no matter what. And after that, to Gypsy Parade's shows.

I was having a good day until this came up.

I just finally ordered my Rk/Sf tickets. Apparently one of the parental units is insisting on coming with me. They "don't want me to be driving south of chicago in the middle of the night." Well, I suppose Springfield is WAY south of chicago? Whatever. At least I'm getting there.

I have returned.

From the land of blistering hot car interriors and frigid air conditioning. Also known as Tampa, Florida(which, might I add is the hometown of Underoath..) I wasn't there for the most joyous of reasons, but it turned out to be a blessing.
It all started a couple Saturdays ago, when my 87 year old Nana coded in the hospital, and had to be kept alive by a respirator. She had alot of health problems, so this was somewhat expected. The multiple scans of her brain showed absolutely no activity, so it was obvious that we had to turn off the life support. We waited until the extended family flew in from Maine and Florida to say goodbye, and we all stood around the hospital bed singing hymns as we watched her pulse flatline. It was a...different...experience, to say the least. The thing that made it easier is that we know, without a doubt, that Nana is with Jesus.
Her funeral was scheduled for the next week in Florida, so we booked our flight. We arrived at the airport at about 5am on tuesday morning for our 6:30 flight. Needless to say, we were tired. We got "randomly" chosen for an extended security check...and also needless to say, they found nothing by searching our bags and patting us down.
We got to florida around 11ish. It was nice. The funeral was on wednesday, and it was very sweet. The thing that made me cry was watching my dad sing his mom's favorite songs with his guitar. It was sweet though, nana would've loved it.
My uncle left for maine the next day and that was sad. My uncle Matt is one of my favorite uncles. The next few days were spent at the beach...LOVE! Perfect weather..perfect water temperature.....and a school of minnows jumping in the air and slapping us in the face. Ahh...Florida.
We left on saturday, and surprise! We were "randomly" chosen AGAIN for extra security check! I wonder if it's because we have a weird last name like Drinnenberg. Hmm..maybe, maybe not. Whatever. When I got home I was slightly sad, but I missed the cool fall air. Fall is, in fact, my favorite season.
So yeah, that's pretty much my trip to florida in a nutshell. Hope you weren't too bored.
----Hannah

for once,

i actually have alot to say on here.


but i don't have time.

i'm in tampa, florida until saturday. this is my second home!

update when i return!

A short post from a not so short person.

A conversation from the other day with my dad, while I was baking cookies, and he was cleaning:

Me: Hey dad! What cd should I put on?

Dad: Hmm...OH! That one..Five...five...

Me:..FIVE SCORE AND SEVEN YEARS AGO? BY RELIENT K?

Dad: YEAH! I love that one!




Gotta love my dad. My mom is the same way. My mom told me I should listen to Switchfoot more often when she is around. haha. My dad is upset that he has his play performance on the night of the Eleventyseven concert next week. I pretty much have the coolest parents ever.





I will leave you with the words of Stellar Kart...Life is good, eternal life is better!

=D

Untitled.

What to say, what to say....
I have been working alot lately. I like my job surprisingly alot. Well, maybe not the job, but the people there. The day I leave Happy Jack's will be bittersweet. Emphasis on bitter.
I have always told myself that the day they build an Old Navy in McHenry, I'd apply there. And look at that. Right as I'm enjoying my current job, they start building an Old Navy. I would probably start at around $2 more an hour there than I make now. I would get a discount on clothes. I would get some experience on the fashion industry(ish), and it would help me for my future career(possibly. that's only if I do decide to go into fashion design.) Sounds like all systems go, right? Ahhhhhh. I think I'll stick with HJ's, because I'm almost a manager, I know what I'm doing, and it's flexible. I would hate to have to start learning a new job from scratch again. Maybe I'll just get two jobs......
Here are three shows that I'm most likely going to in October:
Oct 6th: Eleventyseven/Matthew West
Oct 19th: Underoath/Every Time I Die/Maylene and the Sons of Disaster
Oct 30th: Paramore/The Almost/The Starting Line

Oh man. I can't wait. Then comes November...and RELIENT K AND SWITCHFOOT!

Sorry for the randomness. I really have nothing else to say at the moment.




Should I cut like 6 inches off my hair?

Still Great The 8th Time Around.

So I saw Relient K on tuesday. Again.
Kim and I left around 2, and got to madison in lightning fast time around 3:30. It took us until 4 to actually find the stage and/or parking though. Hey, at least we pretty much know madison like the backs of our hands now.
We parked and walked over to the stage, which was still getting assembled. There were only a couple fans there, including a girl that Kelly and I had met at the Rave show. Kim and I decided to go find some grub, and ran into good ol' Relient K. They were walking down the street, and I said "Hey" and they said "Hey how's it goin?" as they passed. After getting some hot dogs with Kim, we headed back to the stage to secure our front row spots. Somehow I always end up in front of Hoopes. I think 6 out of the 8 times I've seen them that's how it's been. Strange. Then I glanced over to the street and did a double take, because I spotted Kelly and April! I ran over to them screaming. What can I say, I was happy to see them! They were like "Surprise!" They definitely drove 7 1/2 hours to see this show. Now that's fan dedication.
Next we went back to our front row spots, and April and Kelly said they would be front row by the time the show starts. Kelly said she didn't drive 7 1/2 hours for SECOND row. The girls next to us proceeded to push right back when we tried to make room, we even asked them to make room, considering they had plenty. The girl from the Rave refused, I think it was because she wanted to be right in front of Thiessen(no surprise there.) When The Last Goodnight started, Kelly and April made their mad dash for front row, and succeeded. Now all four of us were front row, and everything was better. Relient K came on, and only had a 40 minute set. They did about 5 songs, and had to skip to Be My Escape because Matt T's guitar wasn't working. Then the crowd screamed for an encore(the usual), and they got his guitar working, and played a few more songs. Hoopes tossed me his pick and I nabbed a set list and some posters that some girls were handing out and that completed the show.
Kim and I went over to talk to Jon, and I got my picture with him, because he was the only RK-er that I didn't get my picture with at Sonshine.
Then Jon spotted April and Kelly before we could and we went over and chatted with them some more. As Jon left, Matt T came over to say bye to Kelly and April. He recognized me and we all talked for a little bit. I snapped a picture for Kelly and April, as always. I think I should have a uniform that says "Kelly and April's personal Relient K Photographer."
Then we said goodbye and Kelly and April left for MN. Kim and I went back to the good ol' Illinois and after getting lost by missing our exit, were glad to be home when we finally arrived.
It was a good day.

Let's give 'em something to blog about.

Why can't I sing? Why can't I play guitar better by now? Why did I stop at 5 years of piano?

It's a secret wish of mine to be in a band on tour. After going to so many shows, being stage crew at shows, and meeting so many cool people in bands, I envy their lifestyle. Sure, they may be tired, worn out, and homesick the whole time, but I personally think it would be worth it.

Hopefully I can continue to develop my guitar skills past the point of just the basics. Then I can really RocK out.

Singing, on the other hand, may take a little more work than merely practicing.


Listen to Eisley. Now. My personal favorite and high recommendation is the song I Wasn't Prepared. [which I can totally play on the guitar now, let me hear a "boo-ya!"]

An attempt at Emo-ness.

Sometimes I wonder, if I called some people with any phone number than my own, they would actually pick up?
My homeschool group this year consists of people I don't know too well/don't hang out with, friends who I consider as friends...but the feeling isn't too mutual, and friends that I have hurt or there has been drama with in the past. Yay me, what a great senior year. Well, there are exceptions. There are some people who are really awesome and wish I could've hung out with this summer. :) But back to the emo-vibe, I actually feel like I can connect with my work friends easier than my christian friends sometimes, and that is discouraging. Why do girls have to make such a big deal out of everything? Why can't we just let go of the past? [I speak in the overall-general sense, not any specifics.] Guys are so much easier to get along with. But if I hang out solely with guys, all the girls create more drama by hating me and considering me a "flirt." Why can't we all just get along....
Who knew homeschool had this much drama?

Your typical spiel.

So the retreat was amazing. I adored rappeling down cliffs that towered over Devil's Lake. Most of the time on Sunday our group just sat on a perfect area, some flat rocks on a cliff surrounded by woods with a view of the entire lake. It was incredible. David came up with a very true analogy that I thought was worth mentioning on here, even though he doesn't read blogs(that I know of). Well as we were all sitting up on the cliffs, there were dozens of hawks circling and soaring over the lake. Apparently hawks can't fly by just flapping their wings, because they are so big in comparison to their bodies. They have to rely completely on the wind to blow under their wings to keep them from plummeting to their deaths. That is kind of how we are as humans in the sense that we can't "fly" on our own. We aren't strong enough to keep ourselves from falling to our deaths(so to speak), and we need to rely on God entirely to keep us soaring.
So yeah, that explanation just struck me as cool. A retreat was exactly what I needed revive and rejuvenate my walk with Christ. And the fact that there was 0% drama the entire time was a definite plus.

In other news, I finally found someone to buy my Ipod Nano from me. Now I can get the 30gig one that I have wanted for oh so long!

Things are great here.

So I hate the library. What else is new? The only way it will let me post on this site for some freakish reason is if I write all of this in Wordpad, copy, and paste it onto my blog. That is, in fact, what I'm doing. It is odd how technology finds newer and more far-out ways to tick me off everyday.
I want to update this thing regularly, but I never know what to write! I guess I can tell you that I might be getting a car soon. Someone my mom knows is selling a 2001 Mazda Protege(Okay, for once I have no idea how to spell something). I don't know how much it is yet, but I'm about to Bluebook it. I still want my Dodge Neon that was taken from me.....(well, taken before I could buy it)
I really like Showbread. And Eisley. Just thought I'd put that out there. They have been practically all I have been listening to lately. They are also two of the very few bands that I'm into who I haven't seen live, but don't worry, I will at somepoint. I am sad I missed Eisley on Conan last night.
I write really boring blogs.
I leave for my retreat to Devil's Lake, WI, today at 5. Amusing that my youth group is going to Devil's Lake. We're going to be adventurous and go rockclimbing, hiking and camping. I can't wait, because I love things like that. I find it annoying though how some girls bring their hair straightener, ALL their makeup, and their best clothes. Then they complain how they will get "dirty." UGH. Yes, I could consider myself a girly-girl, but on occasion it is inappropriate and just plain stupid. Sorry. I like to complain. I shall return Monday evening sometime, so in reality I probably won't be online until Tuesday sometime.
Pray for Kelly. I'm sure all of you know why.

Jumping on the blogwagon

So I decided that I felt left out without one of these. So here ya go.

I have a xanga that I blog on, but I got bored with it. I will probably end up the same way with this, but I couldn't live with the fact that I was probably the only J-snag-er without a blogspot.

So here's what's going on in the life of Hannah...

The thought of school makes me feel ill. Literally. I don't like this whole homeschool thing, because it's basically up to me to make sure I graduate. I don't feel like I have done enough, I don't feel smart enough, and I don't think I can do it. I think this might be God's way of telling me that I can't. He can. And I can through Him. I don't know what I am doing for college, and it sure doens't help that everytime I talk to someone who finds out I'm a senior asks, "Oh really? What are you doing for college?" "I have no idea...." That is my routine conversation with adults. And everytime it happens, I feel sick. I want everything figured out. I want everything to be figured out for me. I just want to sit back and watch.

I realized that I need friends who live close who have the same obsession with shows. I mean, Kelly does, but I'm losing her to Minnesota....so that doesn't help much. Everyone I talk to seems to look down on me because I blow all my money on shows. No one can ever go with me, because they've got "responsabillities." I don't like going to shows alone. I have missed many a show because no one would go with me. So if you don't know me, live close to me, and adore concerts, please be my friend!

I guess that's all for now. I doubt anyone will read this, let alone comment it, but whatever. I like blogging. Now I just have three blogs to manage. Yay me.