Dear Carla,

My heartbeat beats me senslessly, why’s everything gotta be so intense with me?

- Hook Up

When I say I’m writing this from my sickbed, I’m not exaggerating. I’m sick a-freaking-gain. I think it’s probably because after the play and the exchange and all that hard work, my body is tired so I’m just weak right now. It’s actually a real thing to get sick a week or two weeks after a play. Teachers get it during the first week of the summer holidays. A break after too much work can be a bad thing.

As of now, my symptoms are: headache behind eyes, dry mouth, runny nose, pounding head and droopy eyes.

I don’t want to have a letter where I talk about being ill the whole time, BUT, I thought I’d mention that today was the WORST. I went into school, feeling like crap, and I literally was falling asleep in every lesson. In Biology, there was no way I was going to be able to stay awake, so I ended up falling asleep and falling off my chair.

To top all this off, one of my teachers is being incredibly unreasonable. Here is what happened (literally chronological order):

Last week, during the French exchange week, I had to take my exchange to a lesson to give a presentation. After I did that, I hurried back to physics. I came in, apologised and sat down. I looked to the left, to see what was going on as there was quite a noise coming from the back row. Suddenly the teacher yells at me as if I had been yelling at the top of my lungs to shut up and get my books out. I don’t make a comment about it, I suck up the ridiculous accusation and get my books out.

Five minutes pass, I am talking in a low whisper to my friend [this is where my narration becomes unreliable. I know for a fact I was talking. It was at a low level, but I was talking. Whether it was about the lesson or something else, I don't know. I think it was about music, actually]. Anyway, the teacher comes up to me, and yells at me to get out. He picks up my books and puts them outside and shuts the door.

I am now sitting outside the door. The doors in the science building have glass panels in the door. I am sitting outside on a bin at this point. People in the class, thinking they are hysterically funny, start yelling “STOP MAKING FACES BEN! STOP SWEARING BEN etc. etc.” My teacher, thinking I actually was being stupid, sends me further away into the physics office.

I sit there for a minute. A physics assistant comes in, and on a power trip sends me out of the office. He makes me sit at the end of the corridor for the rest of the lesson.

I didn’t mention this incident again. I apologised to my teacher (for doing nothing) and he made no fuss.

Yesterday, a slip came in the post reading:

“NOTICE OF DETENTION:

Ben was disrupting the class, inattentive and didn’t have his books again. I sent him out to do the work outside of the classroom.

KMP (the teacher’s initials).”

Compare the reasons for detention with my story. I had my books (and have never failed to bring my books before, so why the word “again” was used, I don’t know). I was not disrupting the class – maybe at most I was distracting my friend, but that was it. I was also not inattentive – I looked to the left. ONCE. And, he didn’t send me out to do work, he just sent me out. Period.

Now, let me explain the punishment system in the school:

1. WARNING - this is an email or note written to a housemaster (a teacher in charge of your house) for first time offenses that appear out of character, or are minor.
2. OMEGA – this is a punishment of forty five minutes to an hour after school for breaking the school code of conduct. Repeat offenses of minor offenses garner omegas (such as failure to do two homeworks).
3. DETENTION – this is a more serious punishment of an hour and a half for severe breaking of the school rules. This includes – insolence, lying, being out of bounds, missing lessons etc. Three detentions will warrant a review of the student.
4. SATURDAY – A two hour detention served on Saturday morning. This is for major breaking of school rules, or an accumulation of omegas and detentions
5. SUSPENSION
6. EXPULSION

I am not a bad student. I am a good student. I have never had an omega or a detention or ANY punishment before (which is why I am making such a big deal of this). I’ve already had one problem with this whole situation – which is I think I was unfairly sent out. I now have TWO further complaints:

1. Being sent out of a lesson should be punishment enough. Why be punished for being punished? Plus, the lack of warning of any sort of punishment is ridiculous.
2. Fair enough, if he really thinks I did something wrong – I would accept a punishment of some sort. HOWEVER, what I did does NOT warrant a detention. At most it warrants an Omega. The guidelines for punishments I wrote above were more or less copied directly from the school book. I did not severely break school rules, and it was a first time offense. A warning would suffice, me thinks.

Anyway, I must return to bed and bath.

Lots of love,

Your sicky wicky licky friend,

Ben.

P.S. DICTIONARY WORD OF THE DAY:

wizard: - adj. whizz-ard - Archaic language spawning from the 1940s/1950s, meaning cool or exciting. e.g. Ben thinks “wizard” is a wizard word and more words like the latter should be used. He, therefore, is trying to make these wizard words come back into popular use. His efforts are helped by a wizard character named Pandora in a wizard show called Skins. She, the character, commonly uses such words in her day-to-day language.

Have a wizard day!

Dear Ben,

But it’s too late for you and your white horse to come around.
-Taylor Swift

FINALLY, a letter!  I was starting to get a bit anxious and thought about sending you anonymous death threats until a letter was posted.  I’m a bit disappointed I didn’t have to resort to these measures, since I was planning a lovely heist over at your house…

KIDDING.  I’m trying this new thing where I’m sarcastic.  Very original, I know.

AND.  Before I continue… IM A HORRIBLE PERSON.  I forgot to do the challenge!  And I can’t now since it’s 10 pm and Lilly is already sleeping… BUT I WILL THURSDAY.  I PROMISE.  I SWEAR ON CANADA.

Soooo, I have good news for you guys!  Well, good news for me.  And my fans.  Today they announced who made DVC for indoor track.  Basically, what they do is they take the top two fastest runners in each event and send them to an all conference meet with like 10 schools.  It’s pretty insane.  But, guess who made it?  In pole vault, 55m dash, AND the 4×4 relay?  I did!

Which is pretty awesome.  I’m excited, nervous, but really excited.  By the way, did I tell you my new personal record for pole vault is 6 feet 6 inches?

Weirdest thing ever.  I think stAbigail may have seen the same movie you did.  She came back this weekend from a film in the inner city and she said it was french and the french boys in it were very delicious.  So perhaps it was the same.  WEIRD COINKADINK.  Let’s all join hands and start singing: it’s a small world after all….

Alright, now on your discussion question.  I know that here it does happen.  Like, the “preppy” cliques definitely have booze and the guys smoke cigarettes (I’m not sure why it’s an all guy thing) and some other weird smoking thing.  I think a couple of them smoke pot, but I’m not sure.  Definitely drink, though.  As for other illegal drugs like cocaine… i haven’t heard too many things about it.  Or crystal meth.  My area is likes weed more than anything.  Back to the point.  There are the “preppy” cliques who drink, the unpreppy weird cliques who drink and smoke (pot), the boys that smoke, the random druggies.  My “clique”?  Can’t say I really have one, I’m usually in the norm.  But so far we haven’t run into any instances of drugs, pot, alcohol, cigs, or anything.  I think at a little grander scale there’s some alcohol, but otherwise we’re not too bad.  (However, don’t forget I’m just a lowly sophomore.)  How do we avoid it?  Basically, honest and truly, it’s by who we hang out with.  It sounds so cliche and exactly right out of a health textbook, but it’s true.  None of my friends smoke or drink.  I have a couple of acquaintances that I’m sure have taken sips, but none of my immediate friends do.  Why?  Well, basically, (no offense to your friends or anything), but we’re smarter than that.  We’re all honor roll geeks and some of us are top 5% and know that drugs would screw up everything we hope and aspire to be.  There was, yes, a point in time where I was friends with a girl that isn’t of the right… influence.  Basically now she’s a big slut and is dating a guy who looks anorexic, smokes (most likely pot) and hangs out with people who would do illegals.  What do you do?  Drop them.  You just can’t hang out with people like that.

That’s honestly how I avoid it.  I’ve been lucky enough (or very unsocial) where I haven’t gone to a party with liquor, so I haven’t had to deal with it yet.

However, some of my friends do something worse.  Have you ever heard of the drug “running”?  Where you jog at an intense pace for lengthy amounts of time?  It’s insane and I’ve been peer pressured to love it, haha.  Turns out I’m pretty handy with my feet.  Except I have shin splints.

Oh life, with it’s ups and downs.

Much love,
Your friend who hates the first week of spring because she’s allergic to the change in seasons (no joke) and she’s been sneezing and coughing and stuffy nosed with watery eyes,
Carla

Dear Carla,

Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul.

- Lolita

Okay, SO MUCH to talk about this letter.

First things first, if you can’t tell from the quote – I’m reading Lolita, which is amazing and beautifully poetic. It’s ridiculously easy to misunderstand though, so it helps to read it slowly.

Secondly, I must apologise for my absence. I haven’t even been in contact with you Carla! Basically, after the French play last week, my french exchange arrived and I had to entertain her all week. Now, let me do a couple of bullet points about the experience with Cléo. (That was, obviously, her name. Hehe):

• At first, I liked her.
• Then, I disliked her because she wanted to go out (understandably) one night till 12 o’ clock (not understandably) when I wanted to do homework (understandably). And she was very rude when my parents finally agreed to pick her up and drop her off.
• I then disliked her further when for the following two days she was icy silent towards me and just barely spoke.
• She spoke brilliant English by the way.
• Then, on the last night (Thursday) we went to Oxford street so they could shop, and on the way back I went with my friend Max and his exchange and Cléo was so much nicer then it was ridiculous, and I realized she just found it difficult to speak conversational English.
• And she gave me a wicked cool book with photos of Paris in it, and it was spectacular.
• So I give the exchange a 6.5/10 (It is REVIEW MONDAY after all)

Speaking of REVIEW MONDAY:

I saw a film this weekend called The Class. (Or Entre Les Murs, en francais). I didn’t see it with my exchange (funnily enough) I saw it with my sister, because I have to do my oral presentation on it.

In a word, it was spectacular and amazingly intelligent.

It’s about a teacher in Paris who has a very very very difficult class. It’s based on a book by a teacher about his class. Funilly enough some of the students that the book is about, and in fact the teacher himself are in the film. It’s NOT a documentary though. Think Lifetime movie starring Lindsay Lohan as herself. But in French. And fascinating.

Like seriously, it was such a brilliant film. There was no soundtrack. No clever cuts. No powerful acting. It was just real life. The actors (and students) just acted as normal. They chattered and laughed and it was seriously amazing.

There were points when it dragged a little. Towards the end I just didn’t like a certain part of the story, as I thought it was slightly superfluous, but it was just that bit that I didn’t like.

So yeah, it was mesmerising. Great stuff.

***** Five Stars

(Also, you must remember to do your challenge tomorrow!)

OKAY, next I wanted to ask you a sort of question and have a discussion. I am saying all of this with a pinch of salt and a sprinkle of pepper because it might sound ridiculous.

I’ll prep you first (please don’t judge):

Whenever I go out now, it is literally impossible for me to be somewhere where there isn’t the following: drink, cigarettes and (sometimes) drugs. I do none of the above. Let me clarify. The taste of alcohol baffles me. Cigarettes perplex me and drugs are just ridiculous.  But if I go to parties, it is literally inevitable that they will be there. Most people would think that a party without the trio would be “dry”. (Urban dictionary: Very boring. That history lesson was bare dry.) It’s just a sad sad fact, but stuff like this happens. In fact (this is the thing I asked you to remind me about): I was at a party a couple of weeks ago, and a load of uninvited guests who go to my school turned up on coke and so everyone had to be kicked out. Yes, I know – COCAINE. And it’s not the first time. One of my friends had a house party once, and a boy I know started doing coke of the kitchen table. I steered well away.

Every single “group” in the school – no matter how unpopular – experiences or is near or has to have the “trio”. So, so so sad.

My question is: is it like this in America? I don’t know why it is like this here, and if it isn’t like that there how do you/others avoid it?

Alright, sorry I’m so dull.

Lots of love,

Your party (not) friend,

Ben.

Dear Ben,

“Guys, an amazing thing!  I went to buy hot cocoa and they made cheaper the amount of money you have to pay to get it!”

“You mean, they lowered the price?  Wow..”

–stAbi making fun of me for not being able to speak today

I feel so sick right now.   So, sorry if this is not comprehensive.  You must’ve gotten me sick via internet.  Fu on you.

Don’t mind if my words don’t make that much sense.  I’ve used words like “gullible-ing” since I couldn’t think of the word for tricking someone and check out the above quote and see that I couldn’t remember the word “price”.  It’s been a rough day.

AND, I don’t want to go to school tomorrow.  Just because I feel so rotten.  However, I have a quiz second period so I need to take that.  However, it will be impossible for me to be able to go home if I don’t have a fever, which I currently don’t.  Grr.

My package looks awesome!  I can’t wait to get it.  I honestly got really scared when I read the title of the video – I thought you lost my address or something and that some creepy man found it!

Just really quick, for my challenge that I have to do today (speaking of challenges, I have no idea why i assigned you one last week) it will be postponed.  I’m sick and most likely contagious, so none of my friends want to really be near me right now so I have to wait until I get a little bit better before I can ask questions.

Oh, and I feel really cool for actually knowing who Groucho Marx is.  He had the big furry ’stache and eyebrows, right?

La dee da dee da.  I feel sick.  I hate head-aches.  I probably shouldn’t of eating so much cake that I baked Sunday.  I feel like I wanted to tell you something.  Hmm.  Time zones suck… ESPECIALLY THE TIME CHANGE.

Even though you barely feel the lost hour, you know that you lost it which only makes it so much worse.

OH YEAH.  Pole vault!  Did I tell you about my experience?  So last friday I had my first meet, the first time I would be pole vaulting in a meet, where I would actually have to sprint and go over a bar.  My coach wasn’t really expecting much, knowing that I still have no clue how to pole vault, so she said it would be more like practice.  With the bar set at 5 foot 6 inches, it was  really low (for polevaulters… i mean, we run with 12ft sticks) and I was very determined to get over it.  As an FYI, you get three tries per round (each height).  The first try, I completely just ran into the bar and knocked it down.  Second time I got over the bar, but I didn’t push the pole away from me.  And the third time?  I cleared completely and moved to the next round!  The next height was 6 foot 3 inches.  First try I knock the bar down with my feet, second I hit it with my knee.  So down to the lucky third try again.  So I run run run, plant my pole, and as I’m going over and throwing my pole away from me, I hear the crowd going “YEAAAAAAAAAAYYYY!!!” most likely meaning that I made it over the bar, which I was.  (This is all during the air, in a matter of five seconds.)  However, as I was shoving the pole away from me, my arm didnt’ come back in time –and, even though I cleared the bar with my body, my arm hit the bar and knocked it down.

It was pretty depressing.  However, it was better than I was expected to do, which was awesome.  I really love pole vaulting!

Alright.  I’m vomitee-feeling.  I know there’s a word for this that starts with N but I can’t think of it right now.

Much love,
Your friend who doesn’t want to go to school,
Carla

P.S. I’m to remind to you tell me something.  A party and getting kicked out?  I can’t remember and I think my internet just died since it won’t show the video no more. Oh well.  REMEMBER.

Dear  Carla,

First video letter of the new season of LFATP.

Right, I need to sleep now.

Lots of love,

Your VLOG friend,

Ben.

P.S. Why is the video so yellow? Weird.

Dear Ben,

If you want to test your memory, try to recall what you were worrying about one year ago today.

E. Joseph Cossman

HARRY POTTER IS ON.  So sorry if this is rushed… I FREAKING LOVE HARRY POTTER.  While some kids do pot, I go home and watch the Disney channel.  And nickonlodean.

Yes, yes, I am sixteen.

So, as you may have found out… I have my license now!  SO EXCITING.  My mom still won’t let me drive everywhere – understandable – but I am slowly moving up the list!  AND PEOPLE ARE GIVING ME SO MUCH FREAKING RESPECT.

Like, take yesterday.  I was bored and wanted to drive, so I drove to the doughnut shop to buy stAbi a sprinkled doughnut and myself a munchkin.  Well, when I looked in my bag later, I realized they gave me TWO chocolate sprinkled doughnuts for the price of one!  SCORE!  Then later, I got lost on my way to the coffee shop picked up my Zach and went to Starbucks and the lady gave me a free “sample” of a brownie… which was really a whole brownie that was delicious.  DOUBLE SCORE!

So, either I must’ve looked really hot yesterday, or people are just respecting that I’m a new licensed driver.  It’s the latter, obviously.  SO MUCH RESPECT COMES WITH THE LITTLE CARD!

Oh!  I know what I forgot to tell y’all… I auditioned for the top band at my school.  I did it freshman year and made fifth chair of the second band (highest band you can make for a freshman), auditioned last year and didn’t move up, but became Principle, or first chair/lead/soloist/whatever of Symphonic Band (middle band)… and this year….

IM FOURTH CHAIR IN WIND ENSEMBLE!

It’s freaking amazing.  For being sick the past three years I’ve auditioned, this year I finally pulled through.  I’m so happy!  They are the top band.  And now, I’m in it!  It’s even going to Carnegie Hall.  Not the year I’ll be in it, sadly, but still.  Wow.

OKAY, REVIEW:

Since I’m also watching it right now, I’m going to review the last show of the Bachelor.

Lemme say one thing – EFFING LOL.  This guy, the bachelor, get’s so freaking emotional and basically starting crying before the show even started.  And then this girl he was with was acting like a five year old, being like, “Uhm… I gave you my heart, and this is what you do to me?”  And he’s like, “I understand.”

HAHA.

It hasn’t gotten to the part where he meets the only girl he dumped three months prior and now wants to get back together with because “he can’t control his brain or his heart”.  If you want a laugh, seriously, watch this.  ITS AMAZING.  1 star out of 5, for making me laugh uncontrollably.

Promise me you’ll never go on a show like that Ben.  PLEASE.  However, Rock of Love 7 is acceptable.

Much love,
Your friend who loves birthdays,
Carla

P.S. PHOTO CHALLENGE(s).

this was actually taken over valentines day weekend in the downtown area while walking through an alley.  yeah, i am just that talented.

I’m not really sure how this qualifies as a “response”.  i was thinking of teleportation in your photo (my thought tracks are weird…) and then i figured the question would be like “wanna go?” and that my response was “sure, lemme get my converse on”.  except this looks more like a crotch shot…

WELL. it was a time to use my camera.  and tripod.  so yay!

P.P.S. Since you have to do a challenge, my challenge for you is to pick your favorite (too bad if you can’t find any) Jack’s Mannequin song and review it.

P.P.P.S. READERS!  If you’d like to suggest a challenge for BEN (and/or me) for FRIDAY, start leaving your comments!  :]

IT IS THE BIRTHDAY OF

Hello inhabitants of the interwebs.  Today is the First of March, 2009.  What’s so special about today?

LETTERS FROM ACROSS THE POND.

Take a moment to sit back and grasp this subject.  It may take a couple of minutes.  I realize this is difficult to comprehend, but don’t worry, we’ll wait for you.

Are you ready now?  No?  Well, we’re going to start without you.  See if you can catch up.

ALRIGHT.  As you may have noticed, today marks the day that LFATP was born.  Back in the days where Ben and Carla struggled to fill 100 words, rather than the 500 they’re pouring out per letter.  Ben’s first letter was a mere three paragraphs about Isralian cookies and peppiness while Carla–even from Day 1, she was a big chatterbox–seemed to go on and on and on about how she wanted to hang herself with a straw at a school dance.

In the next posts, Ben starts to write more and, to the readers horror, so does Carla.  Funny coincidence: last year at this time Ben was talking about how he loved being sick, while just recently Ben posted his letter on how he hates being sick.  Interesting, eh?

BACK TO THE PRESENT.  What does the new year in LFATP bring?

Well, as you can tell, a new theme!  Pages are being overhauled and reconstructed and new ideas are bubbling out of Ben and Carla every second!  Also, sticking with their one letter a day schedule, look forward to seeing this on certain days of the week!




MONDAY: Review of a movie, book, and any other weekend activity.
TUESDAY: Do the challenge assigned to you!  Can be anything.
WEDNESDAY: Normal letter.
THURSDAY: Normal letter plus dictionary word.
FRIDAY: Vlog!  Challenge for Tuesday will be announced.

Along with this new schedule, we really want to thank our readers.  As a crafty scheme to make the readers comment more, challenges will now be assigned by YOU.  To assign a challenge, just comment on any random letter with WHAT the challenge is, WHO it’s for (you can choose Ben AND Carla if you’d like) and who it’s FROM.   We want YOU, the readers, to be more involved with LFATP!

Letters from Across the Pond started because Ben and Carla could rarely talk to each other because of time zones.  Though they now have other means of communication and talk a lot more, this site is still going.  Hopefully there will be many more birthdays to come.

Love,
Ben and Carla

Dear Carla,

He has a gold of heart! Wait… a heart of gold!

- Penelope Cruz backstage at the 2009 Oscars.

Okay, I like “Just Dance” as much as the next person. It’s a fun song! But I am fed up of hearing it on the bloody radio every single second of the day. Way to kill a song! I don’t know what it is about the song, but after the eightieth listen it tires a little.

That is my photo challenge picture for today. Very exciting, yes? One would almost say it is so abstract that it’s not even a portrait!

Your challenge is going to be a slightly self-brooding sort of challenge. You have to respond to my photo with your own! Imagine that photo up there is a question. What is your answer?

I am working on your package Carla. I need to buy a box for handle with care delivery. But it is nearly on its way! I think I shall post it tomorrow or the day after, depending on various factors. It’s full of very very very very random stuff. A quick snippet reveals that you are going to get (amongst other things): a heart shaped notebook and a tape measure.

I have been ill for the last two days. Not life threateningly so, but the sort of ill that makes me feel bad about myself. As soon as I hit 500 on this thing, I’m zooming under the bedcovers again. I keep feeling absolutely exhausted for no particular reason – it’s very very peculiar.

On March 10th the ol’ Kelly C’s album comes out. And you must must MUST buy it. There is one song on there (in particular – you will love them ALL) that I know you will listen to on repeat for about fifty years. It’s called Whyyawannabringmedown. It’s on the You Choob right now, if you can be bothered to look for it – and it blooming spectacular. She has such killer vocals on it. CRAZINESS.

Oh my god so many words and not enough time! AH I HAVE TO GO.

I’m glad you had a lovely birthday. Your presents sound wicked cool.

Okay now for take up space time! Zing zebra cody zack diablo devil prada leapord ann curry anish kapoor bean silver wear cupboard lionskin cheetah plains savannah rhianna chris brown milk chunky funky wizard wand spell harry potter weirdo.

Okay that did not help. It’s telling me I have 100 words to go. UM. 100 word story time:

She glanced upwards at the tall man.

“And you are telling me,” she breathed heavily, “that my father was my uncle, and that you are my father?”

He nodded and knelt down to her head height.

“Yes, and I have loved you for so long.”

He took her hands, his eyes shining with irridescent tears. She pulled away.

“You were absent too long, father.”

Waves of sorrow splashed onto her dress as he wept.

“Eleanor…” he protested.

“No!” Her voice was commanding, and wicked. “The shadows came out to play when you were gone, father.”

Lots of love,

Your weird story friend,

Ben.

T H A N K Y O U ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

Dear Ben,

Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.

-Chili Davis

IM SIXTEEN!  AHHHH.  I even feel different, which is weird, considering that I never real notice the age difference.  I just feel older, more mature… and, I just feel so… for lack of a better word, nifty.

Unfortunately, I must’ve done something bad previously because karma told the weather to act up; causing me to have a horrendous morning due to driving an hour to the DMV, getting lost, getting yelled at, and realizing they no longer were testing.  To come home to getting yelled at, and a phonecall from my sister who was apologizing that she couldn’t come, since it was blizzarding where she lives.  BUT, my mom made me feel better for a day of getting completely pampered: from mani/pedis to a haircut, it was simply fabulous.  My nails are now hot pink.  They are quite lovely.  AND that night at my party,aside from a couple of people not showing up, it was a total blast and everyone had loads of fun.

I actually may have partied a little too hardy… I had to take today off for a rest. Baha.

But, I’d like to say your gift was FAN–FREAKING–TASTIC  and that I loved it SO much.  so…

Really.  Honestly, your gift was… AH.  I don’t know if I’ve told you this, or maybe you’ve just gotten that vibe… I’m a very sentimental person.  Like, little things and sentences that have a point are really special to me.  Or, in other words, I love the cheese.  So the letter was my little fantasy land.  Right now you’re in ranking with best present, aside from Cheryl who made me a scrapbook filled with photos of all my works that she downloaded and printed off my various websites that I have no clue how she found them, but I’m happy she did.  Oh, and Sammi, who bought me tons of things for Miriam.

OH.  I haven’t talked about Miriam on here!

Well, Miriam is my… CAR.  She’s an old beat up Honda from I’m not sure with what year, that I’m pretty sure was in a flood at some point, considering her radio, automatic windows, and air conditioning system are ca-put.  She also has a lovely nick in the windshield and a dent in the passenger door… but she’s my beaut of a car!

Unfortunately, I have no license to drive her in.  YET.  Hopefully, I’ll get my mom out of bed early enough on friday to get one.

So, my birthday was quite joyful.  Your letter did make it 20 times better, as well as the 50+ birthday wishes.  For some reason, just the notion of people remembering my birthday makes me so happy.  It makes me feel so loved, which is something that brightens up my day everyday.  I think you’ve probably figured that out by now, haha.

Birthday’s are also great, considering I got a TRIPOD for it, filters, and a load of cash.  I’m already carefully plotting out what to go waste carefully invest my money on.  Hehe.  YAY.

So… thanks LFATP.  Next big birthday?  LFATP’S!!!

And trust me.  We’re all excited for that.  [ps. ben message me about this, I've got a great idea]

So much farking love that the world isn’t big enough to hold it all,
Your friend who would like to thank you times a zillion,
Carla

P.S.I did the photo challenge, I just need to lookat my photos from that day.  So, in order to not slow down letters, I’ll put it up in my next one.  YOUR CHALLENGE IS: Take an abstract portrait [may be of yourself or another person] that shows a person’s personality.

I’m not really sure what I mean by that.  So have fun figuring it out!  ;D

IT’S YOUR FUNKING BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dear Carla,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

HAPPY BIRTDAY TO YOU

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR CARLA

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

So, I heard:

There are SIXTEEN exclamation marks there, you can count.

But seriously

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARLA!

I’ve known you for about two years, and it’s safe to say that you’ve been my lucky charm. I don’t know why (I know this is cheezy), but ever since I actually spoke to you things have been better off for me. I’ve felt more confident, and I’ve had a place to get things off my chest (creatively/ventingly). It might not have been JUST you at first (perhaps the dA comunity and various podcasts played a part) but now I truly feel you are one of my best friends. With you, I get to show every side of myself that I don’t get to show my friends.

You have seen my art.

Not many of my friends have.

I have ranted with you.

I haven’t with many of my friends.

I’ve started a website with you.

I haven’t with any of my friends.

There’s something about you, Carla, that totally allows people to be who they are. For about 1% of people, that’s a bad thing – because you get to see just how douchey they are – but you make the other 99% of truly nice people feel so comfortable!

In other words, you are absolutely the most epic person I know.

A three verse haiku about Carla:

Charming, artistic,

Hysterical, outspoken,

Incredible: you.

Sixteen years, she feels,

Yet wisdom beyond her years,

She lends to others.

Stoic, sensitive,

She dwells in all emotions,

For better, for worse:

Carla.

You can put it in your pocket and keep that. You have the copyright (hehe.)

Seriously, you deserve the most incredible birthday.

I’ll help make this one the year to remember, if you stay “Carla”.

In fact, I’m going to go old school LFATP and do a word of the day (prepare for XTRA CHEESE):

Carla – noun, adj.

1. One who possesses both outer and inner beauty and a purity of soul and thought for others. An angel amongst men.

2. A word to describe something absolutely awesome.

Examples:

1. To many she was a Carla – a thoughtful creature with selfless tendencies.

2. That cake was carla! Delicious!

So there you have it.

Have an amazing, amazing amazing day Carla.

Remember I and the readers love you!

AND GOOD LUCK DRIVING!

Funny facts about the number 16 and February 21st:

A caterpillar typically has 16 legs.

The New Yorker was first published on February 21 1925.

16 A.D. was a leap year.

16 is the atomic number of SULFUR.

16 is one of the numbers in LOST (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42)

BORN ON FEBRUARY 21st:

ELLEN PAGE!!!

Corbin Bleu

Charlotte Church

Chuck Palahniuk

Kelsey Grammar

Lots of BIRTHDAY love,

Your LOVING LOVING LOVING friend,

Ben.

P.S.

Here is my photo. I didn’t want to interrupt the birthday letter with it. It’s a duck that has now become my lucky charm which I was given inside a box of pirate plasters for my birthday. Silly, I know – but I do treasure it. It helped me through my exams (which, did I say I got all A*s in! I forgot if I said it ) Sorry, it’s a tad blurry – I didn’t realise.

Okay, and for your PHOTO CHALLENGE: Take a spontaneous portrait of happiness. (It might mean you have to carry your camera around with you!).

THIS CHALLENGE IS ABSOLUTELY OPTIONAL! It’s your birthday, you’re allowed a day off.

Also, I downloaded the leaked Kelly Clarkson album and it’s epic. (YES KILL ME NOW SORRY.) I also BOUGHT it, so it makes up for me downloading it before it’s release date.

ALSO:

READERS! LEAVE CARLA BIRTHDAY WISHES NAO! You have been erroneously absent of late!

P.P.S!

CARLA! What is your adress (can you email it to me?) – I have a box of little presents that I found+bought that I want to ship to you! They are cool and quirky and hopefully charming. PLEASE give me the address ASAP!