Well, each school in the district sent three debaters to the tournament. I actually received a “by/buy/bye” the first round (I don’t know how they spell it!) which meant that there was an odd number of debaters and each round someone had to sit out. It counted as a win, though, so I didn’t complain.

I was actually really nervous for my first round. I don’t know why – I’ve been debating for three years now, and last time I felt super confident. Well, for some reason I had a lot of anxiety. I think I just needed to “get my feet wet” as my debate sponsor says. As the judge went over his preferences for twenty minutes (seriously, he just talked and talked!), I grew more and more anxious. Literally, my legs were shaking and my throat was so dry I couldn’t even talk.

Thankfully, it got better after my first speech.  Whew! I don’t know what had happened – it wasn’t even mental, it was almost like my body’s reaction. I used to have such a fear of public speaking, so maybe it was a remnant of that.

Guess what? I won first place! Granted, there were only 15 debaters, but I am still very happy! In each round I received 49 out of 50 speaker points. I feel a little guilty since I did have a buy the first round, but it was totally random, so I guess there was nothing I could do about it. Now, onto regionals!

* One very strange thing. The coach at the school we were at told me they had a debater there a few years ago with my exact same name, first and last. My name’s not very common – I actually thought it was quite unique. Well, he told me she was a very good debater, so maybe I should have taken that as foreshadowing? Hmmm. *

In the dream, I was on the executioner’s block, and I guess I had my head chopped off, but then I was laying dying later with my full body intact (dreams never make sense). I was in my government classroom at school for some reason, and I was laying in this casket thing only it was a soft case with a zipper around it. All my body systems were failing, one by one, and I could feel the life slipping out of me. My classmates were gathered around. I kept thinking, “Now I will know what happens after death.” It’s a question I’ve always wonder about ever since I was a child. However, I felt a lot of fear. Will I just disappear after death? What will happen to my consciousness? Will “I” just end? How can that possibly happen?

I was fading away fast, but I still wanted to hang on. I didn’t want to disappear into that unknown realm. I attempted to cry out, to hold on, to have one last chance, but my classmates and my teacher jumped upon me and suddenly closed up the casket/bag thing. Then all was darkness and I was dead.

It was here that I awoke. However, the strangest part is yet to come.

I did not know that I was awake from the dream, since it was pitch black in my room because I always keep the shutters closed so I won’t be disturbed by early morning light. Well, I thought I was dead, and all I could see was darkness. A black void. Frightened, I thought to myself, “Is this a sort of hell? Am I doomed to eternal black silence? Is this what happens after death? Am I going to suffer like this forever, in this place with only my thoughts? Then I noticed a tiny sliver of light, recognized it as my window shutter, and knew I was awake and it was a dream.

This disturbed me for the rest of the day. What does it mean? Why did I awake just when I died, and yet think I was still dead in the darkness of the room? I’m not a very religious person, but is God trying to send me a message?

NATURE VALLEY

Oh Nature Valley, how dear you are to my heart. So versatile, so diverse, and so relatively inexpensive…

• Chewy Trail Mix

To me, these are the original granola bars. They are sweet, sticky, and chewy, with clumps of juicy dried fruit intermixed with nuts. These bars are just the right size for a little afternoon pick-me-up. The only disadvantage is that I believe this bar contains high fructose corn syrup. Also, it is really sticky, if that bothers you. My favorite flavor is Fruit and Nut.

• Chewy Granola with Yogurt Coating

These bars are similar to the chewy trail mix except they have a generous layer of sweet “yogurt” icing covering one side of the bar. Now, if you’ve read my other reviews, you know that I don’t really appreciate the hyper-sweetened icing deal. The bar itself is sweet enough. However, the coating does contribute a good dose of calcium, if you are concerned with your calcium intake. And again, very sticky.

• Crunchy

These bars come two-in-a-pack. They are extremely hard and crunchy, as the name might hint. There is a crunchy oat base with a nutty flavor, Peanut Butter, Almond, or Oats n’ Honey. All of them are really yummy. The ingredient list is surprisingly short and there is also a good amount of whole grains.

FIBER ONE

What can I say – it’s a great way to get fiber! Just be careful not to overdose on these wonderfully chewy bars. I love the texture, but not so much the sweetness and ingredient list. These bars, if I remember correctly, contain some partially hydrogenated oils, which is a code name for transfats, even though there are 0 grams on the label. It’s not the most natural bar, but good for a sweet fix (or dose of fiber!)

SPECIAL K

I’ve never understood the obsession with these bars. Yes, they’re only 90 calories, but that’s because they are about twice as small as any other bar out there! They’re really not satisfying, are overly sweetened, and can’t really brag about the ingredients either. Seriously, ditch this bar and go for half a Nature Valley Crunchy or something. It’s a marketing scheme.

So, do you have a favorite bar for every day snacks?

Clif

• Clif Mojo

Wow…possibly my favorite bar. These are soo delicious. Peanut Butter Pretzel is my favorite – the perfect mix of sweet and salty. The bar contains large chunks of peanuts, pretzel pieces, and peanut butter chips. It is really a gorgeous piece of food. Honey Nut was also really good. I’ll include the Dipped Mojo in this product line. The reason I enjoyed them less was that I didn’t like the layer of sickly sweet icing which is their main difference from the other Mojo bars.

• Clif Nectar

These bars were another hit from the Clif Company. They taste very natural and wholesome. The texture is soft and moist with generous pieces of crunchy nuts. I’ve tried the Cranberry Apricot Almond and Dark Chocolate Walnut. They are similar to Larabars and share the same downside – not a lot of protein. Still, the ingredients are minimal and you get 2 servings of fruit in each bar.

• Clif Bar

Eh. I’ve only tried the Pumpkin Pie flavor of these regular Clif bars and it did not impress me. Much like the Luna Bars, it tastes sweet and artificial. The texture was uniformly chewy and the taste did not really bring out pumpkin. I don’t know… are the other flavors good?

Larabar

The only bar out of this line that I’ve tried is the Peanut Butter Cookie, after hearing so many good reviews of it. And yes, I did eat it knowing that it was being recalled. Bad Molly. I’m alive though, and better than ever!

Larabars seem to be the “purest” bars out there, meaning the least processed and fake. The only ingredients for Peanut Butter Cookie are peanuts, dates, and salt How they make it taste incredible, I don’t know. The bar was extremely rich, thanks to its 13 grams of fat. The texture is soft and crumbly. It didn’t taste as much like a cookie as it did crumbly peanut butter, which I’m totally fine with. I love PB . I’ve also been informed in my last post that Jocalat bars are worth trying, so I am looking forward to those.

Okay, that’s it for Part II. I have lots of schoolwork that I’ve been procrastinating on, including finishing up War and Peace. Yikes – I’m only on page 150!

In Part III, I will be reviewing Fiber One, Special K, and Nature Valley bars. Stay tuned! Comments on any of the above bars are great encouraged!

KASHI

• Kashi GoLean Crunchy

I’ve tried the Chocolate Peanut, Chocolate Almond, and Chocolate Caramel varieties. These bars are big and satisfying. They have a deliciously chocolately taste, but I must say that they are more chewy than crunchy. That’s all right with me- I love a good chew. The one downside is the price, but I bought a 24-pack at Costco for $14.99 with a coupon, so I’m good for right now.

• Kashi GoLean Roll

These bars have a chewy interior and a crunchy coating. The inside has a thick, caramel-like consistency. It’s good for when you want a snack that takes a long time to eat. I liked them less than the Crunchy bars because they seemed overly sweet and jaw-breakingly chewy. They do contain more protein though. I believe I’ve tried all the flavors.

• Kashi Chewy Granola

I’ve tried the Trail Mix, Honey Almond, and Cherry Dark Chocolate. They taste extremely…healthy. Yes, there are large chunks of nuts and fruit, but the bars are really dry and a little bland. Maybe I’m just used to the overly sweetened bars but I felt like the taste was lacking. The bars were pretty gritty and chewy. At least they were filling.

CLIF

• Clif-Z

I love these things. They are the perfect size for a little snack, when you don’t feel like committing to a large bar. I tried all of the flavors (besides Apple Cinnamon), but I’ve enjoyed all of them. I thought that the Blueberry tasted a little fake though. Peanut Butter was great and I like Chocolate Chip too. The bars are nice and soft, while having a little chew.

• Luna

I’ve never understood the popularity of Luna bars. To me, they taste very artificial and the texture is mediocre. There is a thick layer of fake sweet icing over the bar that I usually crumble off. Plus, I don’t think the bar is very large or filling. The one good point is that there are plenty of flavors so if you like them, you probably won’t tire of them.

Wow, I think that’s enough for one post. Stay tuned for reviews of Clif Mojo, Clif Nectar, Lara, and more! I would really like to hear your opinions on the bars featured in this post. Which is your favorite brand and favorite flavor? Which one is the best “bang for your buck?” Are there any flavors I should try to change my opinions of any of the above?

I’m thinking possible book reviews? New product reviews? Recordings of my (hopefully) improving music? Definitely look forward to descriptions of random events that flood my life, such as debate tournaments, orchestra concerts, high school life, etc. Hmmm… first to introduce myself:

Memories of 2008:

• April: finding a new violin teacher AKA learning that everything I’ve been done in my past seven years has been wrong.
• July: two weeks of debate camp. Yes it sounds nerdy, but oh so fun…
• July again: winning 3rd place in the Ayn Rand essay contest. Sure, I’ll take 1000 bucks.
• August: family road trip/college campus tour. Let me tell you, spending 13+ hours cramped in a car with your family…and needing urgently to use the bathroom half of the time…
• September thru November: suffering through first semester senior year with eight honors/AP courses, college apps
• December: Getting into YALE early action!!! Woohoo! One of the happiest nights of my tender young life!

Hopes for 2009:

• Reading 1,300 pages of War and Peace by February 26 *gulp*
• Start some sort of formal exercise. Suggestions anyone?
• Finishing high school off with a BANG!
• Having lots of fun in college…and learning too
• Continuing this blog, and getting lots of readers!

Wow, I can tell blogging is going to be time-consuming, haha. I think I spent about an hour just thinking up this post. Hopefully it gets easier to just spill out my thoughts on paper – I mean on the screen . Well, in my next post I’ll probably put up some random quirky facts about myself, so please stay tuned!