A War, An Accident, and A Proposal // August 2022

Hello everyone, I hope you’re having a lovely morning, afternoon, or evening! This month was nice and chill. Between getting more and more used to my job, to experiencing some pretty great stuff, it was swell. My word for August 2022 is “amicable.”

– amicable –

[ am-i-kuh-buhl ]

DEFINITION: characterized by or showing goodwill; friendly; peacable:

via: Dictionary.com

>> Special Happenings <<

– Civil War Reenactment –

My younger siblings will be homeschooled this year, and my parents found a Civil War reenactment group. They went on a Friday, and on Saturday, there was going to be another sort of program, so I tagged along. We were a little late, but we walked a mile and a half to get to the main spot where we saw them shoot a cannon (I’ll be posting a video or two on my Instagram… just sayin’). We also saw a Civil War skirmish reenactment and the guys even let my younger brother, dad, and I fire the cannon! We did it twice, and I even got to pull the string that fired it the second time. ALSO, I got to fire a Civil War-era rifle TWICE, and I felt super cool! It was my first time shooting a gun; they even gave me a coat, hat, and some satchel things to wear while I shot.

– My First Car Crash –

Yeah… my older sister and I were on our way to a sermon study with some friends; it was raining hard when we left, then lightened up, then suddenly began downpouring again. We were on the highway, and the side we were on had three lanes and we were in the middle. We began swerving left, then right, then left, almost turning a full 90°. Suddenly, we turned too much or something, passed through the lane to the left, and smacked head-on into a jersey barrier, activating both airbags. We somehow spun across all three lanes again and hit the side of the car against the metal guardrails on the side of the highway, coming to a final stop. Because of all the smoke from the airbags, I thought the engine was going to explode, and I was terrified of turning to my left and seeing my sister dead. Providentially, neither of us broke or sprained anything, just bruises/brush burns, and my sister was cut from her seatbelt. It was terrifying, quite honestly, and I’m struggling not to flash back too much or anything while writing this, but I want to share because it showed a very important message.

I’m scared of thunderstorms and heavy rain, and when we first left, I prayed a quick little prayer that we would get to the sermon study safely and remain okay. Well, around ten minutes later, we crashed, so at first thought, you would think God went, “lol, sike.” But no, I don’t think of it like that. We made it to the sermon study safely (we called our mom after it all happened, and she took us after dealing with the police and that stuff). We were both okay from the crash. We were blessed to even be alive. I can think of around four times where we could have died or been in such a worse crash, but that didn’t happen. We swerved a bunch, crossed into another lane, then spun across all three lanes again without hitting a single other car. It’s a miracle. Although I’m still dealing with some anxiety and a pinch of trauma from it, I’m just glad to be alive after that.

– Bluegrass Festival –

We went to a Bluegrass Festival! The last time my dad took us was five years ago, and we were finally able to go again! We got a bit lost on the way there, and I was struggling a bit anxiety-wise since it was an hour-long drive, but we made it! We hung around for about an hour or two, and I filmed some fun moments (you can watch the video on YouTube below!). My older sister and I got pickles on a stick, and although I was really hyped about it, it all faded away after I smelled it… but the rest of the time was really enjoyable!

– My Big Sister’s Engaged! –

My older sister got engaged! Monday, August 15th, my older sister’s then-boyfriend, P, texted me, asking me if I could take pictures of his surprise proposal that Saturday. I, obviously, replied with, “OH MY GOODNESS YES” y’know, as you do. The plan was that my older sister and P would go on a double date with his roommate, K, and my best friend, Lydia. Afterward, they were to go down to The Point, where the proposal would happen. Meanwhile, my friend, C, and I were to be waiting at The Point to take a video and snap pictures when they came down and capture the before/during/after of the proposal. C and I ended up waiting down there for forty minutes (my older sister is a slow eater…), and we kept looking back to see if they were coming, causing my anxiety to stir up with every peek.
Eventually, C spotted them and began taking a video as I got off the rock wall we were sitting on and stood around the corner of the stairs they were going to walk down. Another thirty seconds passed, and we spotted the quartet entering the main plaza. But then they turned away from where we were and began walking around the entire fountain. I told C that we needed to follow them (we didn’t know when or where exactly P wanted to propose), so we trailed them, trying to take pictures/videos while speed-walking every now and then, probably looking like absolute weirdos. Eventually, the quartet stopped about 4/5 of the way around the fountain, and C and I sat down, using a family that sat on the fountain as a shield so my older sister wouldn’t spot us. P removed his coat, it was Go Time, and C and I popped out and began taking photos/videos of the whole thing.
It all turned out great, folks around us clapped, and, obviously, she said yes. We walked up to a nearby bridge, had an impromptu photoshoot (I took pictures as Lydia, K, and C gave occasional pose ideas and pointers), then made it down to Market Square, where a bunch of craft vendors had set up shop. It was a great evening and I was very happy to be a part of it.

>> Movies and TV Shows Watched <<

Outer Banks (Season 1: Episodes 2 & 3)

adventure, mystery, thriller
first-time watching
MY REVIEW: I’m really enjoying this show so far. It has some funny lines and a cool plot, and I love the overall “beachy” vibe. I’m not a huge fan of the few scenes with drug use and suggestive stuff, but they’re not super long or graphic (at least that I’ve seen so far). I plan on continuing to watch this show! I give it an 8/10!

National Treasure

adventure, action, thriller
first-time watching
MY REVIEW: It was good. There were certainly funny lines, and it was cool to see the plot unfold and watch Ben execute all these random tricks to get out of a sticky situation or figure something out. I didn’t like the random, almost rushed romance between him and Abigail, but whatever. I liked it. I’ll give it a 7/10!

Uncharted

action, adventure, exploration
first-time watching
MY REVIEW: Again, pretty good. I really like Tom Holland, so he was a big plus, and I’m pretty sure this was also the first movie I’ve ever watched with Mark Wahlberg in it… They were a funny pair, and Wahlberg’s character was hilarious (despite being a lowkey jerk). I also enjoyed that there was no random romance between the female characters, and they weren’t super sexualized. The plot overall was great, and I liked the little twists they put in here and there. I give this movie a 9/10!

National Treasure 2

action, adventure, thriller
first-time watching
MY REVIEW: I mean… pretty much the same thing as the first movie. I liked Riley’s character and how they created a treasure hunt containing another National monument thing. I don’t know… it was good. I give it a 6/10!

Tron: Legacy

action, sci-fi, adventure
second-time watching (?)
MY REVIEW: The first time I watched this movie, I was really young, like ten or younger. With that being said, I didn’t know what actually happened in the movie and didn’t comprehend the plot at all, so this time I felt like I was actually watching it for the first time. It’s great. I also love the soundtrack in it! It got me really excited. I give this an 8/10!

How To Train Your Dragon

adventure, fantasy, family
I don’t remember how many times I’ve seen this
MY REVIEW: I LOVE THESE MOVIES!! I literally get this overwhelming feeling of happiness and joy when I watch them and hear the soundtrack, I literally forget how to act; it’s like I’m shortcircuiting or something. I will never get over this movie… I rate it a 10/10!

>> Some Fun Photos <<

>> Some Fun One-Day Vlogs <<

@calboylieer
didn’t record much of when I went out because I was too in the moment (anxiety and also fun) but here we go!
♬ Relaxing lofi music(1014185) – Akase

@calboylieer
was home all day and (kinda) cleaned myself up after a multiple-week depression slump 🙂 #vlog #lifestyle
♬ freaking out the neighborhood by mac demarcoシ – offline