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mood

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Crafty

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I have the costume bug. The artist from work who goes to con every year called me up and let me know that 4 Days at DragonCon was gonna be on the air the other night. I watched it, it was from 2009, the last one we went to. Now I'm itching to make another costume. I want to do Pam from Archer so hard, but I'm not chubby enough. That's the weirdest costume complaint, usually it's the opposite.

This year I think I'm gonna do Kagura from Gintama. I just watched the movie the other night and the new season started yesterday. She has a couple variations of her outfit and one of them from the movie/benizakura arc has the dress with slits to the moon, but she's weaing black pants underneath. So that would be easy, would probably look nice, and wouldn't show off fat-assery. I hope my weight keeps going down as con approaches, but somehow I doubt it'll go down enough to affect my chubby thighs. I've lost about 10 pounds since my weigh in at the doctor's office. \0/ DDR seems to work.

I've also been trying to think of other costumes I'd want to do. I looked through my old ones and I noticed that out of all the costumes I've done, most are anime, and only two are female. I did Tsunade one time before that show started to suck, and I have a generic pirate costume. Everything else I cross dressed. Even headcrab zombies seem to be dudes. I guess if I do Kagura that'll be the third female costume I have.

I think before I do mine I need to finish this time lord costume I was supposed to sew for Lyme last year. Which reminds me, Lyme, do you want to march as henchmen again this year? >_> Also, a couple of Kyle's friends want to go to con this year, but discovered rooms are impossible to come by. If you give up your extra reservations, is there any chance you'd transfer one to them? This is the group he went with the first time, and apparently they had a bad time with overflow hotels and they want to be in one of the host hotels. I've also passed along a link to the rooms community, but they're not buying tickets until they know they have a room, and the community requires some sort of proof you're going. So that might not work out for them.

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mood

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geeky

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Hooray, my room for D*C is reserved at the Hilton because I've heard it's quiet and that would be nice after several years at the Hyatt. I'm sure it helps that the Hilton has the gaming tracks and other quiet panels. Now I'm just waiting for memberships to go online. I heard to buy them at the end of con this year was $60. That went up. I think I also read that once they go on the website, they may be $75. O_o I'm glad I missed 2010's con after reading all the stories, but I am excited about going next year. Having a year off and avoiding the insanity was good. I think if I had gone this year I'd probably never want to go there again. Now I'm pondering if there are any costumes I might try to make and what I want to be in the parade. I need to make Lyme's Timelord robe first.

Sort of related, I saw this on the community: Geek and Gamer Girls Song. I know I'm probably in the minority, but this makes me cringe. It's trying way too hard with the nude-save-for-some-crotch-comics and slumber party scene. Seriously? It also promotes an idea that's been bothering me... that somehow nerdy girls are so rare and few that they must be revered as the ultimate prize. "Look at me, I know NERD STUFF, you should be so excited by this you run home and jerk off." There are too many forced references and there's too much, "HOLY SHIT WE'RE AWESOME. We like video games! TEEHEE!" Maybe it's because most of my friends are geeks and female, but we don't seem overly rare to me. Just because girls like geeky things doesn't mean the heavens open up to shine pure rainbows and magic upon us while a flock of angels sing our background music. We're just fellow nerds. There are plenty of us, and it bothers me that there's this idea we're a rare breed to be sought after. Fuck you, I don't want to be objectified, I want to enjoy my stories in peace. It probably bothers me more after reading about all the sexual assaults at D*C this year.

In other con and non-ranty news, I think Kyle and I are gonna be going to PAX East next year. \0/ We pondered it for this year, but it was before Kyle got his awesome new job so it wasn't really affordable. But now money's not a worry, so next year will be PAX and D*C. Kyle also said one day he wants to go to Blizzcon, but I know there's nothing I'd be interested in there so he'll do that one alone if he goes. I'm hoping PAX East will have the Duke Nukem Forever demo like Prime did. Maybe some Valve stuff. >_> I swear episode 3 has taken so long they better be working on making it Half-Life 3. It better be so awesome my head explodes with bear sharks.

I have finished many new shawls, and I think I may list my best ones on Etsy and save the others for the holiday show. The ones I put the most work into I'd like to get the most money from. I'm keeping the prices in the same range, but on Etsy the percentage they take is miniscule. Especially compared the the consignment percentage the gallery does. The problem is I need a decent stock of them for the show and I'd actually sell them quicker there than on Etsy. When people pick them up and touch them they gush at me about how soft they are. On Etsy they're just a picture, you can't try them on for size or see if they feel good against your skin. We'll see how it goes. If they sell out completely, I may remove whatever I have left on Etsy to sell locally. Better to sell and make some money than have them sit there forever.

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mood

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artistic

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Things at work have been looking up lately. I have a new boss who I think has a good grip on everything that's been wrong with the gallery. There's a perception that we only cater to rich people, that we're too exclusive, etc. There are probably reasons for it that have to do with how the place used to be. But clearly it's not that way anymore. She came in about a month ago and things just feel better. The energy of the place is a lot more positive, it feels like we're focusing a bit more on attracting the college crowd, which is something we should have been doing, but for some reason we haven't. My new boss is also giving me enough hours to get benefits through them, so I'll have the good health insurance plan again. HOORAY! She sounds like she wants to hire me on full time if the gallery can get turned around in the right direction. She has not said she WILL hire me full time, things are still way too uncertain. But with the changes going on, if that could happen, I think I might actually want to stay on. There's yet to be a director who actually made me want to stay there and see what happens. There have been other directors I liked, but the place never felt like it was coming back to life, just more of the slow downward spiral. I'll keep searching for jobs and I'll see what happens.

In spite of that burst of optimism, I still hesitate to be too hopeful. There have been other directors I liked fine in the past, and they ended up fired. So I still have doubts they'll see this one through, even if she seems to be working miracles. Those doubts alone are enough to keep me looking and applying. I'd really like for the place to turn around and work there full time. It's pretty rare for anyone with a degree in art to actually get a job in the field. I was talking to dad and he said it's the same for people who get degrees in anthropology. There's not a huge demand for anthropologists/archaeologists, so those that do get those jobs, like he did, are pretty lucky.

On a different note, we just got new Droid X phones. The person in the store really confused the fuck out of the order, so it took about 2 hours on the phone to get it sorted out. Surprisingly, customer service did a good job getting it all worked out. It's just the dude in the store screwed it up so bad it took awhile to fix it. So far Kyle, his brother Evan, and his mom have their phones. Mine's being shipped because of the confusion. It's very shiny. And I know there's been some people saying it's crap because if you try to root the phone it'll brick it, but apparently that's been circumvented already. I don't really have any desire to do that anyway. Now I can browse the internet while I poop!

I have finished all but one of my looms. I now have a large 7 foot tringle, a small 3 foot square and a 6 by 2 scarf loom. The large 5 foot blanket loom I didn't finish because it took me all day to do these. Someone put one of my shawls in a treasury, then someone asked me if I traded on Etsy. I understand trading can get you good feedback, but I'd rather get money for my work. I also put business cards in with some party favors I was asked to make for a fundraiser. I saw a little spike in views after that, but not much. I know it's just the wrong time of year for it. No one is interested when it's 100 degrees outside and the humidity makes it more like 110. But it's a good time to build up an inventory for winter and for the holiday show.

I'm also able to use the ceramics facilities at work now. I just have to keep the lab cleaned up, and it's impossible to keep any ceramics area truly clean, so I feel like it's an easy task. I started trying to throw on the wheel again. I forgot how hard it is. I'm hoping that I can get enough practice to produce some usable/sellable items also for the holiday show. Even if I don't, I'm having a lot of fun doing it. It's been so long since I could do anything with clay, that it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside getting to do this again.

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mood

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sleepy

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Been pet sitting for the past few days, and when I finish it will have been a week here. I think this will be one of the last, if not the last time that I do this. It's not as easy to do this now that I live an hour away. My neighbor seems sad that I'll be leaving her soon, but she knows I can't do this if I get a full time job.

Lots of things have happened in the past couple of months, all of them good. Kyle got a new job working at HP. He's getting a nice raise, and he'll be working with people he knows and likes. Which is an improvement. We were breaking even before, but now we'll be able to save some money. Also, it looks like we might get a new car and finally put my old one to rest.

I had another interview at FDLE. You'd think it's the only place I apply to because it's the only place I've been interviewed at. I've applied to so many other places for jobs that are far more simplistic and pay less, but only FDLE ever calls me in. I've applied very low paying data entry positions and get those "We chose the most qualified candidate" emails. So apparently on paper I have something FDLE likes. The interview went better than last time, but I interview poorly. Even with mom coaching me the night before. We'll see what happens. I think we've decided that if I do get this job, or any full time job, that it'll be time to house hunt.

I took over the position of membership coordinator at the gallery, so if nothing else, at least I have more hours there. It looks like my current boss may be leaving soon. She applied for a better paying job elsewhere and it sounds like they want her. I'm happy for her, she works so hard I'm surprised she doesn't pass out. It'll make future job applications a bit more complicated, but I keep dealing with a constant stream of new bosses. At least this one is leaving for good reasons.

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mood

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hungry

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I decided to start doing homemade catfood because Davey has a sensitive stomach and whatever it is they put in kibble makes him puke. Feed him meat and suddenly he eats everything and doesn't have nasty poops. I was looking around on the internet and couldn't find any information that I would consider reliable, so I bought a couple books. One was good, the other was written by some crazy woman who spends the first half of the book trying to make you feel like Satan for feeding your cats kibble. Because you may be feeding your cat euthanized animals and PETA says so. Because PETA is a trustworthy source of information even though they're proven hypocrites when it comes to euthanizing pets in their own shelters. So I think I'm going to use that book for kindling in a pit fire. I feel bad burning a book, but I don't want to give this book to goodwill and have someone follow this batshit woman's advice.

While searching on the internet I also found that there are people out there who insist on feeding their cats a vegan diet. This to me is animal cruelty. Cats are obligate carnivores, there are things they need in their diet they can only get from eating tasty little animals. I've learned there's a nutrient called taurine that if they don't get enough of it, the cat will go blind. Apparently they make all sorts of special vegan shit so you can supplement your cats diet, but even then there are things cats need that they can only get from an animal source. If you're that damn determined to have a vegan animal BUY A BUNNY RABBIT. Or a fucking hamster. What the hell is wrong with these people?

I never thought I'd do this because in my mind it's river dancing for nerds, but I took up DDR/Stepmania. I'm tired of feeling like a fatass and it's really good exercise. It's also surprisingly hard. Somehow I assumed because I do well in audiosurf, Stepmania wouldn't be too hard...don't ask me why, it makes no sense. We spent a good chunk of our tax return on buying a pair Cobalt Flux dance pads which are supposed to be some of the best you can buy without setting up an arcade in your house. They are very shiny and they've made it a lot easier. I've found all sorts of Weird Al songs and obscure anime songs like the themes from Zetsubou Sensei and Gintama. I wish it were a bit easier to find some Jrock though.

I did another skills test. I keep applying to jobs all over the place but for some reason FDLE is the only place they ever calls me to come in. I mean, out of all the jobs I apply to, it's the one I prefer because it pays the best and from an entry level job I could work my way into a design job within a state agency. I don't know if FDLE itself hires desginers, but I know that several others do, like the Florida Lottery, FWC, and even the Public Service Comission where my mom is. Tiffany is also looking for jobs at Juvenile Justice to recommend me for. Which is nice of her since she's busy being a new mom.

I don't post often anymore because there's just not much going on that's interesting. I'm searching for jobs, working part time, and trying to sell things on Etsy. But life is good even if it's uneventful.

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mood

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accomplished

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I've somehow aquired my mom's love of gardening. Something I thought I hated while I lived at home, and now that I've moved out I've started planting the shit out of this place. She and I went to Sam's Club a few months ago and bought some hydrangea bushes and a bunch of plant bulbs. So I've planted 4 hydrangeas, 30 caladiums, and 10 astilbe. I've also got about 24 containers planted on the back patio and near the door. The manager for this apartment complex said I could plant anything I wanted anywhere I wanted to. So I could, if there were enough sunlight, plant a huge ass garden off my patio. Someone at the end of the lane did exactly that too. I've also got a ton of plants my mom gave me because she didn't have time to take care of them. I haven't really done anything to take care of them other than make sure they're watered. And I still have FRAKENLILY that Clyde chewed up when he was a puppy years and years ago. It hasn't bloomed yet, but when I got it I think I beat it up a bit when I replanted it. Also, evil little squirrels kept trying to dig the bulbs up to eat them. Before I put cayenne pepper all over it. I've pondered copying my grandma's exlax idea. Instead of feeding them to raccoons, just bury some extra strength exlax tablets in next to the bulbs and see if the squirrels eat them.

I've also got my etsy shop setup, yay. No sales yet, but I only posted 6 items before I managed to throw my neck out of whack while gardening. I probably should have had the doctor look at it since it's been about a week, but I knew what I did to it, so I know they'd probably tell me to do the same things I did when I strained my back. Today it feels like it's almost completely better, just a rare twinge when I decide to twist it the way I know I shouldn't.

I'm gonna be buying lumber to make my new looms either this week or next. I want to build about 6 of them. I got my kiln! \0/ Came with all sorts of goodies. The place I ordered it from is primarily a stained glass supply store, but for some reason they had the best deal for a kiln that I could find. Comes with all the furniture, kiln wash, some stilts, a few cones, some glazes, a bisque plate and some other things I forgot. It looks like they were marketing it toward old ladies or housewives who just buy bisque ware and paint it, but it's a good starter kiln for earthenware. Dad's supposed to stop by here this week and we're gonna load this thing in the back of the truck, and then I'll be setting up an area down at the house to fire. I also am gonna keep experimenting with pit firing down there. I've been asked to pet sit sometime in April, so whenever she calls me up to give me the dates I'm gonna go down and play around with my new toy.

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mood

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determined

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I haven't posted in a long time, but I just found out about this monstrosity.
The bill hasn't been voted on, and looks like it has only been introduced so far, but they're trying to ban abortion in Florida. And from the sounds of it, the only exception is if the woman might die from her pregnancy. If a woman wants an abortion, she'll seek out any method to obtain it, even if it means she might die. If I were to get knocked up and abortion were made illegal, I'd do it too. I genuinely believe that people who propose these sorts of bills want that to happen because then it'll learn those sex lovin' women. Just lay back and be a breeding machine like god intended or die a horrible nasty death because you don't want the baby.

Edit: Found this article that talks about how difficult it would be to pass this law. So it makes me feel a little better. Also, most of the commenters so far seem to also think it's a terrible idea, especially financially. I'm still not happy that it's even being considered in the first place though.

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mood

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groggy

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I'm getting ooooold. I asked for a chest freezer for my birthday. Actually, I asked for a little money to help me out in buying a chest freezer. There wasn't much else I wanted and we both want a place to store delicious tasty things. It was either that or a netbook, and I chose an appliance because we love cooking.

Oooooold.

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mood

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full of ice cream

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We adopted a second cat today, named Davey by his foster mom. He is the sweetest little thing with a really sad story. They captured him, neutered him, docked the tip of an ear to indicated he was a feral, then released him. And since he's so damn friendly, he approached another feral cat who got pissed off and clawed an eye so bad they had to have it removed. So he's a one eyed sweetheart. I kinda want to rename him somehow and the one eye makes me think of either pirates or penises. He might end up stuck with Davey, or Davey Jones, if I can't think of anything creative.

He was brought over here this morning and Brutus didn't seem too bothered by it. Just curious. I thought for sure he'd have issues with another cat in this appartment, but now that Davey's been here a few hours Brutus seems to think it's Christmas. He's all excited and wants to play. He pinned Davey down and started bathing him. He sometimes looks like he might be a bit pissed off, but then the playful urge seems to take over. They were bounding all over the furniture earlier. Hopefully they'll keep being friendly, because it's so fucking cute it hurts.

I had planned on taking shawl pictures, but my time was spent on cats today. Hopefully tomorrow the cat will be a bit less skittish. Already he's checking everything out and trying to love on Brutus. So maybe I can get some pictures tomorrow.