I finished my last two finals today... the semester is officially over! Well, except I still have three more days of work (Tonight, Monday and Tuesday). But still! No more classes/studying until January! And, can I just say, I am really looking forward to next semester. (I've changed my schedule just a bit since I posted about it last time.) I'll still be taking the same number of classes (7) but it'll be less credits (This semester was 16.5, next semester will only be 14.5). I was actually signed up for an extra class for next semester so I'd have 16.5 credits, but I've done some thinking and thought better of it. This semester was a pretty stressful one (this week was a pretty stressful one... *headache*) and I'd like a bit of a break, which I think I'm gonna get, and not only because of the somewhat lighter credit load.
This semester I had alot of GE credits and 1 1/2 art classes. Thats it. (Oh, and a fun class. Which I plan to sit in on again next semester, only because it was like the awesomest class ever.) Next semester I have:
4 art classes (Basic typography, Intermediate Computer Applications for Illustrators, Illustration 1, and Intermediate Life Drawing)
1 Religion class: the Doctrine and Covenants
2 Fun classes: Beginning Social Dance, and, uh, Public speaking. Yes, I just put this under the heading "fun class". I keep telling myself that thats what it's going to be. And, IF (*crosses fingers*) my paper gets accepted for the religion symposium, I'd kinda like to be able to speak about it... well. And intelligently. And anyway, public speaking is, I think, a good skill to have, and is an area where I think I'm somewhat lacking. (And while we're talking about fun classes, I moved my classes around so I can sit in on the first hour and a half of Writing For Children. Because I want to.)
Oh, and I'm not saying that art classes are easier than others, because they're not. (Often, they're harder.) But I DO think that I'll enjoy them much more, which is what counts. Because if you're enjoying it, who cares if its hard, right?
But back to finals and this semester, it was kind of interesting to compare the two finals I took today. Both were for religion classes--LDS History (1805 ish to 1844 ish) and the other was New Testament (The Gospels). I really liked both of these classes alot. The teachers were nice, interesting, and enthusiastic. I think maybe my LDS History Lectures were more interesting, but some people might think otherwise from looking at my notes. (There are, uh, alot of doodles in that section of my notebook.) His lectures were interesting, but it was really, really, really hard to pick out the 'important' (AKA This Stuff Will Be On The Test Study It) stuff. There were really good lectures in New Testament, and they lent themselves much more easily to note taking, and there were even a few times when the teacher said, "Hey, pay attention, This Will Be On The Test." (Well, not those exact words, but same difference.) (My New Testament notes had fewer doodles than my LDS History ones had, but it actually kind of became a joke between me and my teacher. When I went in to take my test today he handed me the paper and said, "Ok, I want a whole lot of drawings all over this. Can you do that for me?")
So taking the tests today. On the LDS History test there were three different categories of questions. 1) Oh, I know this answer, I studied it. 2) Um, I think I remember him mentioning this in class once. 3) Who the what now? Where did THAT come from? I swear I've never heard of these people in my life.
I will admit, I did kind of badly on that test. Or maybe very badly. I didn't fail, though. We're looking on the bright side.
New Testament test, two kinds of questions. 1)I just barely looked over this in my notes! I totally know the answer! 2) Oh, I remember when we talked about this in class. I'm not sure, but I think the answer is _.
That test won't be graded for awhile, but I feel much better about it than I did about my LDS History test.
Both teachers were great, but if I had to choose to take a class from one of the two professors again, it would definitely be from my NT teacher.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Finals
4 down,
2 to go.
I think I have a cold. Fortunately its not a bad one, mostly I just have to use alot of Kleenex. I hear that this sort of thing is not uncommon--your body holds up against the stress, etc., as long as it can, and then when finals are almost over your body gives into the strain. My high school English teacher said this happened to her like clockwork. This makes me feel better for some reason.
Of course, it might also have something to do with all that cold white stuff outside. And the fact that I'm running low on herbs/healthy foodstuffs.
2 to go.
I think I have a cold. Fortunately its not a bad one, mostly I just have to use alot of Kleenex. I hear that this sort of thing is not uncommon--your body holds up against the stress, etc., as long as it can, and then when finals are almost over your body gives into the strain. My high school English teacher said this happened to her like clockwork. This makes me feel better for some reason.
Of course, it might also have something to do with all that cold white stuff outside. And the fact that I'm running low on herbs/healthy foodstuffs.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
FINALS
2 down.
4 to go.
Wish me luck.
I am not good at studying. I never really had to do it for most classes until I got to college, and I never really lived with my awesome and distracting and funny friends until college. Meh. *WILLPOWER*
4 to go.
Wish me luck.
I am not good at studying. I never really had to do it for most classes until I got to college, and I never really lived with my awesome and distracting and funny friends until college. Meh. *WILLPOWER*
Monday, December 15, 2008
Bad Day at Work
So yesterday was pretty awesome. Today... was not. Well, today was actually pretty OK until I got to work.
Ok, so maybe I'm a wimp, but work today was NOT HAPPY.
First, I did not have breakfast this morning and had only a quick small bowl of granola before dashing to work. I had a steadily growing headache throughout work, maybe from lack of food or stress or both. And I had a bruised knee--I don't know where the bruise came from. This wouldn't be so bad except for shelving books on the lower shelves is usually made easier by kneeling down, and even if I didn't put pressure on the knee its one of those bruises that hurts when you just bend your knee.
And it turns out that my supervisor wasn't there. She hadn't mentioned to me that she would be gone, but maybe she's sick or something. (Along with failing to mention she might be gone, she also failed to mention why :-).
Supervisor Gone. This means that for all but the first hour of my shift I'm the only employee in the childrens book section to help customers find stuff. And shelve things. And oh, my were there things to shelve. There were 4 v-carts(http://www.handtruckdistributor.com/800_V-CART+BOOKS_S.jpg) filled with books (double stacked) waiting for me when I got to work. I shelved all the books on one of them and took the empty v-cart to the back room, to find that another big cart had just come up from recieving, nearly all of it childrens books. So I filled up my v-cart, and another as well, and decided the rest of the books would just have wait in the back room, so there.
So I'm shelving like a madwoman and helping ALL the customers in the childrens section (usually more than half would be handled by my supervisor, who usually stays at the desk and therefore they go find and ask her) when the Full Time lady who works in the Religious Book section comes with a customer.
"Where is the Eclipse book?"
I told her where they should be. Then the customer asked her, and then she asked me, which book was the second in the Twilight series. I had never realized until that moment that I didn't know. (I know Twilight is first and Breaking Dawn is last, but I don't know if Eclipse or New Moon comes first. Well, I didn't then. Now I know its Eclipse, then New Moon... I think. Actually, I've forgotten already. *facpalm*)
When I admitted that I did not know which book was the second in the series the Religious Book Full-Time lady gave me a YOU ARE A VERY BAD PERSON (Who Hired This Idiot?) Look. "You work in this section," she said, looking disgusted, complete with wrinkled nose and tightly-pressed lips. "You should know these things."
So then I felt like an idiot and a Bad Employee. And also very frustrated and defensive--I've never before been asked what order the books go in (all the squeeing fangirls seem to know it already), I've never been told its something I have to know, and anyway, I Hate Those Books. (My hatred of those books has only increased after working in a bookstore. Gah.)
A bit later a guy comes looking for a boxed set of the Twilight books. The computer says we should have six in the store, which is usually a safe number. (One is a Very Unsafe number. If the computer says we only have one copy of a book, that just means probablyhopefullymaybe we have it.)
So the computer says there are six in the store. I look on all the shelves where we keep the Twilight books... we have all the books individually, and special editions, and books on CD, but no boxed sets. I went to the General Book desk to ask the Full Time Worker there if she knew where they were. Her answer was very clipped and impatient, with a definite edge of "You should know these things yourself... who hired this idiot?" To it. Heading back to look again at the Twilight Shelves I ran into one of the general book student employees and asked her if she knew where they were. She, at least, was very helpful, and even kind of took over the customer for me so I could get back to shelving.
So I'm trying to shelve the Massive Piles of Unshelved Books crowding around the Childrens Book Information Desk, dealing with a headache and a painful knee, helping all customers doing their Christmas Shopping both in person and on the phone, feeling rather stressed when Religious Book Lady comes back with another customer. I was on the phone helping a customer, but she waited loomingly while I finished up the call.
"You have all the v-carts in the whole book department at your desk. You just can't do that, others need the carts too. You can bring one of the big shelving carts back here or something, but you have to make some v-carts avaliable for everyone else to use," she said, leaving almost before I answered her with a very timid "Okay."
I'd forgotten that most of the v-carts were upstairs on the textbook floor, being used for textbook sellback this week. But the other general book employees in the backroom had seemed totally fine with me using the v-carts.
Bring a big shelving cart back to the childrens desk? Was she blind? I wouldn't want to have to maneuver it all the way through the shelves to get it back there, and there would be absolutely no room to get through to the cook books with another shelving cart at the desk.
I chose the v-cart that seemed to have the least number of books and squished and balanced them as well as I could onto the (very small) shelving cart we keep by the childrens desk. I dashed around shelving and helping customers and got another cart empty and brought it to the backroom. The cart I had emptied before was still sitting there, and another one I hadn't been using was next to it. I had all the v-carts in the department and everyone else needed to use them? Liar. I am stressed enough with finals, thank you, it would be much nicer if I could not stress about work too.
Well, anyway... the rest of my shift continued in much the same vein. Then the girl who works in childrens book after I do was ten minutes late, as opposed to her usual five minutes early, which I was kind of counting on. Well...she was not a full ten minutes late, but since she immidiately got busy doing helpful things I didn't actually see her until ten minutes after my shift was supposed to end.
So, yeah. Bad Day At Work.
Ok, so maybe I'm a wimp, but work today was NOT HAPPY.
First, I did not have breakfast this morning and had only a quick small bowl of granola before dashing to work. I had a steadily growing headache throughout work, maybe from lack of food or stress or both. And I had a bruised knee--I don't know where the bruise came from. This wouldn't be so bad except for shelving books on the lower shelves is usually made easier by kneeling down, and even if I didn't put pressure on the knee its one of those bruises that hurts when you just bend your knee.
And it turns out that my supervisor wasn't there. She hadn't mentioned to me that she would be gone, but maybe she's sick or something. (Along with failing to mention she might be gone, she also failed to mention why :-).
Supervisor Gone. This means that for all but the first hour of my shift I'm the only employee in the childrens book section to help customers find stuff. And shelve things. And oh, my were there things to shelve. There were 4 v-carts(http://www.handtruckdistributor.com/800_V-CART+BOOKS_S.jpg) filled with books (double stacked) waiting for me when I got to work. I shelved all the books on one of them and took the empty v-cart to the back room, to find that another big cart had just come up from recieving, nearly all of it childrens books. So I filled up my v-cart, and another as well, and decided the rest of the books would just have wait in the back room, so there.
So I'm shelving like a madwoman and helping ALL the customers in the childrens section (usually more than half would be handled by my supervisor, who usually stays at the desk and therefore they go find and ask her) when the Full Time lady who works in the Religious Book section comes with a customer.
"Where is the Eclipse book?"
I told her where they should be. Then the customer asked her, and then she asked me, which book was the second in the Twilight series. I had never realized until that moment that I didn't know. (I know Twilight is first and Breaking Dawn is last, but I don't know if Eclipse or New Moon comes first. Well, I didn't then. Now I know its Eclipse, then New Moon... I think. Actually, I've forgotten already. *facpalm*)
When I admitted that I did not know which book was the second in the series the Religious Book Full-Time lady gave me a YOU ARE A VERY BAD PERSON (Who Hired This Idiot?) Look. "You work in this section," she said, looking disgusted, complete with wrinkled nose and tightly-pressed lips. "You should know these things."
So then I felt like an idiot and a Bad Employee. And also very frustrated and defensive--I've never before been asked what order the books go in (all the squeeing fangirls seem to know it already), I've never been told its something I have to know, and anyway, I Hate Those Books. (My hatred of those books has only increased after working in a bookstore. Gah.)
A bit later a guy comes looking for a boxed set of the Twilight books. The computer says we should have six in the store, which is usually a safe number. (One is a Very Unsafe number. If the computer says we only have one copy of a book, that just means probablyhopefullymaybe we have it.)
So the computer says there are six in the store. I look on all the shelves where we keep the Twilight books... we have all the books individually, and special editions, and books on CD, but no boxed sets. I went to the General Book desk to ask the Full Time Worker there if she knew where they were. Her answer was very clipped and impatient, with a definite edge of "You should know these things yourself... who hired this idiot?" To it. Heading back to look again at the Twilight Shelves I ran into one of the general book student employees and asked her if she knew where they were. She, at least, was very helpful, and even kind of took over the customer for me so I could get back to shelving.
So I'm trying to shelve the Massive Piles of Unshelved Books crowding around the Childrens Book Information Desk, dealing with a headache and a painful knee, helping all customers doing their Christmas Shopping both in person and on the phone, feeling rather stressed when Religious Book Lady comes back with another customer. I was on the phone helping a customer, but she waited loomingly while I finished up the call.
"You have all the v-carts in the whole book department at your desk. You just can't do that, others need the carts too. You can bring one of the big shelving carts back here or something, but you have to make some v-carts avaliable for everyone else to use," she said, leaving almost before I answered her with a very timid "Okay."
I'd forgotten that most of the v-carts were upstairs on the textbook floor, being used for textbook sellback this week. But the other general book employees in the backroom had seemed totally fine with me using the v-carts.
Bring a big shelving cart back to the childrens desk? Was she blind? I wouldn't want to have to maneuver it all the way through the shelves to get it back there, and there would be absolutely no room to get through to the cook books with another shelving cart at the desk.
I chose the v-cart that seemed to have the least number of books and squished and balanced them as well as I could onto the (very small) shelving cart we keep by the childrens desk. I dashed around shelving and helping customers and got another cart empty and brought it to the backroom. The cart I had emptied before was still sitting there, and another one I hadn't been using was next to it. I had all the v-carts in the department and everyone else needed to use them? Liar. I am stressed enough with finals, thank you, it would be much nicer if I could not stress about work too.
Well, anyway... the rest of my shift continued in much the same vein. Then the girl who works in childrens book after I do was ten minutes late, as opposed to her usual five minutes early, which I was kind of counting on. Well...she was not a full ten minutes late, but since she immidiately got busy doing helpful things I didn't actually see her until ten minutes after my shift was supposed to end.
So, yeah. Bad Day At Work.
The Happiest of Birthdays
We just finished our roommate gift exchange.
My gift was obviously a book, simply by looking at the size of the package, but also by how it felt through the paper, etc. When I opened it, it was some random obscure book that didn't really look to be my kind of thing... but I started to make grateful noises anyway. Annilyn laughed and told me there was a note inside.
Anyway, long story short, I was sent on a treasure hunt all through the apartment, looking for letters. I colleced letters from the books/belongings of all of my roommates, including myself (There was one on the Firefly disks, one one one of our english books from last year, one in my copy of King of Attolia, one in my scriptures, one in my butter...)
Finally, I had all my letters. But then I had to unscramble them. I am absolutely NO GOOD at unscrambling. I was given the option of looking the word up in Russian instead of unscrambling it.
Russian has a messed up alphabet. Just sayin'.
The Happily Ever After:
My totally awesome and wonderful roommate whom I love got me The Winter Prince for Christmas/my birthday! It will be coming in the mail any day now.
Dude, I've got great roommates, tuition for an awesome college, lindy hopper shoes, and my new favorite book for Christmas/Birthday. I think I've got about all I need for a seriously awesome Christmas... if I recieve much more awesomeness, I just might explode.
*grins to self*
Oh, and more awesomness of the night: the roommate I was supposed to give to was Annie, but I could not think of anything to get her that was, like, good and special and unique. It was down to the wire, so I just... cut her a few snowflakes. I felt like it was kind of a lame way to get out of buying a gift, but she actually seemed really happy with them. Actually, I was really happy with them... I tried a new way of doing the classic angel-with-trumpet snowfake which I think is my best yet. I also tried doing a word and image on the same snowflake (Peace, with a dove) which turned out looking pretty nice as well.
And Annilyn got a special gift for all of us because she's leaving. Annilyn has this very strange... mutation (:-p) where onions simply don't effect her. She'll be happily cutting onions in the kitchen while we're all blind with tears. Anyway, she got us a special onion chopper machine. The note said something like, "for my roommates, so you don't cry too much when I'm gone." Ha ha, get it? I was amused.
And Annie gave me her awesome bird-as-a-wig-and-cat-as-a-scarf art piece for my birthday. And also the DVD of Dark Knight, which I took to be kind of mostly a gift for the whole apartment but I'm very glad to have recieved it for myself just the same :D.
And our home teachers brought a little flame torch thingy over and sang happy birthday and let me "blow" the torch out.
So it was a very birthday all around. :-D.
My gift was obviously a book, simply by looking at the size of the package, but also by how it felt through the paper, etc. When I opened it, it was some random obscure book that didn't really look to be my kind of thing... but I started to make grateful noises anyway. Annilyn laughed and told me there was a note inside.
Anyway, long story short, I was sent on a treasure hunt all through the apartment, looking for letters. I colleced letters from the books/belongings of all of my roommates, including myself (There was one on the Firefly disks, one one one of our english books from last year, one in my copy of King of Attolia, one in my scriptures, one in my butter...)
Finally, I had all my letters. But then I had to unscramble them. I am absolutely NO GOOD at unscrambling. I was given the option of looking the word up in Russian instead of unscrambling it.
Russian has a messed up alphabet. Just sayin'.
The Happily Ever After:
My totally awesome and wonderful roommate whom I love got me The Winter Prince for Christmas/my birthday! It will be coming in the mail any day now.
Dude, I've got great roommates, tuition for an awesome college, lindy hopper shoes, and my new favorite book for Christmas/Birthday. I think I've got about all I need for a seriously awesome Christmas... if I recieve much more awesomeness, I just might explode.
*grins to self*
Oh, and more awesomness of the night: the roommate I was supposed to give to was Annie, but I could not think of anything to get her that was, like, good and special and unique. It was down to the wire, so I just... cut her a few snowflakes. I felt like it was kind of a lame way to get out of buying a gift, but she actually seemed really happy with them. Actually, I was really happy with them... I tried a new way of doing the classic angel-with-trumpet snowfake which I think is my best yet. I also tried doing a word and image on the same snowflake (Peace, with a dove) which turned out looking pretty nice as well.
And Annilyn got a special gift for all of us because she's leaving. Annilyn has this very strange... mutation (:-p) where onions simply don't effect her. She'll be happily cutting onions in the kitchen while we're all blind with tears. Anyway, she got us a special onion chopper machine. The note said something like, "for my roommates, so you don't cry too much when I'm gone." Ha ha, get it? I was amused.
And Annie gave me her awesome bird-as-a-wig-and-cat-as-a-scarf art piece for my birthday. And also the DVD of Dark Knight, which I took to be kind of mostly a gift for the whole apartment but I'm very glad to have recieved it for myself just the same :D.
And our home teachers brought a little flame torch thingy over and sang happy birthday and let me "blow" the torch out.
So it was a very birthday all around. :-D.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Birthday!
Happy Birthday to me,
Happy Birthday to me,
Happy Birthday dear Saraaaaaaaaaaahhh...
Happy Birthday to me!
Happy Birthday to me,
Happy Birthday dear Saraaaaaaaaaaahhh...
Happy Birthday to me!
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Very Angry Letter
Dear Illustration Department,
You guys are just Not Cool. No, I'm serious. You accept my portfolio but not Annilyns? Do you know how much awesomer Annilyns stuff is than mine? I mean, seriously. And she, like, actually Illustrates stuff, as opposed to my random paintings that aren't connected to stories in any way.
In short, you guys just don't know what you're doing and you DESERVE the HUGE loss you'll have by not letting Annilyn into your stupid program.
Thats all.
Sarah
You guys are just Not Cool. No, I'm serious. You accept my portfolio but not Annilyns? Do you know how much awesomer Annilyns stuff is than mine? I mean, seriously. And she, like, actually Illustrates stuff, as opposed to my random paintings that aren't connected to stories in any way.
In short, you guys just don't know what you're doing and you DESERVE the HUGE loss you'll have by not letting Annilyn into your stupid program.
Thats all.
Sarah
Word Art
This is what happens when you take words from my blog and arrange them randomly on a page.
Birthday Countdown: 1 day!
Birthday Countdown: 1 day!
Friday, December 12, 2008
Reading day
I didn't get much reading done this reading day. The library is partially to blame--Annie and I are WAITING to read The Empty Kingdom and the library is Taking its Precious Time getting it out on the shelves. If I didn't love the library, I would hate it right now.
Library, I take it back! I really do love you! I just want the book! I need it!
So I got my birthday present from the bookstore--a pound of fudge. I decided to try the Flavor of the Month, Eggnog. A pound is alot. But I'm sharing it with everyone, so its ok :).
I'm really missing my crayons. I haven't used them for weeks! Some girl from one of the neighboring apartments came looking for some crayons to borrow(maybe she figured that someone in the Art Major apartment would have crayons) and has never brought them back. This makes me Very Sad. I love my crayons.
Birthday Countdown: 2 days!
Library, I take it back! I really do love you! I just want the book! I need it!
So I got my birthday present from the bookstore--a pound of fudge. I decided to try the Flavor of the Month, Eggnog. A pound is alot. But I'm sharing it with everyone, so its ok :).
I'm really missing my crayons. I haven't used them for weeks! Some girl from one of the neighboring apartments came looking for some crayons to borrow(maybe she figured that someone in the Art Major apartment would have crayons) and has never brought them back. This makes me Very Sad. I love my crayons.
Birthday Countdown: 2 days!
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Up Late
So I've been pretty good about going to bed early enough to get a decent amount of sleep this semester. I'm usually in bed around 12:30 and up at 7:30 or 8, so thats about 7-8 hours of sleep, which I think is pretty decent.
Well, last night was different. (Today being the very last day of classes for the semester might have had something to do with it. But it was mostly just randomness.)
Annie had an art project that she needed to have done this morning. It involved the same sort of weird creepy awesome style that is hers... (It looks like she mostly has photos on here, but there are also some weird creepy awesome drawings: http://annstinator.deviantart.com/gallery/#_featured)
So anyway, Annie was doing this art project which had a bald lady with a bird draped over her head instead of a wig. She wanted to do another person with some other kind of animal draped over it--maybe a fox or something. She didn't really make alot of progress on the drawings. I was just doodling, drawing nothing in particular, so I decided to try my own version. So I did a quick doodle:
It was somewhere between one and two in the morning. I was kinda chuckling to myself after drawing it. But I didn't stop there. Tired and amused, I did another drawing:
I was chuckling to myself as I finished it. Annie looked over and... well, anyway, the drawings were a hit ;-). Since I'm not normally one to draw random weird things like these, all I can say is it was getting pretty close to two in the morning and I was looking at Annie's awesome weird drawings.
And, just by the way, I did get to bed at 2:30ish. And it only took me an hour or two to get to sleep. And I did go to class this morning and pay attention and take notes and stay awake.
The End.
Birthday Countdown: 3 days!
Well, last night was different. (Today being the very last day of classes for the semester might have had something to do with it. But it was mostly just randomness.)
Annie had an art project that she needed to have done this morning. It involved the same sort of weird creepy awesome style that is hers... (It looks like she mostly has photos on here, but there are also some weird creepy awesome drawings: http://annstinator.deviantart.com/gallery/#_featured)
So anyway, Annie was doing this art project which had a bald lady with a bird draped over her head instead of a wig. She wanted to do another person with some other kind of animal draped over it--maybe a fox or something. She didn't really make alot of progress on the drawings. I was just doodling, drawing nothing in particular, so I decided to try my own version. So I did a quick doodle:
It was somewhere between one and two in the morning. I was kinda chuckling to myself after drawing it. But I didn't stop there. Tired and amused, I did another drawing:
I was chuckling to myself as I finished it. Annie looked over and... well, anyway, the drawings were a hit ;-). Since I'm not normally one to draw random weird things like these, all I can say is it was getting pretty close to two in the morning and I was looking at Annie's awesome weird drawings.
And, just by the way, I did get to bed at 2:30ish. And it only took me an hour or two to get to sleep. And I did go to class this morning and pay attention and take notes and stay awake.
The End.
Birthday Countdown: 3 days!
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Paintings
So last night, instead of studying like a good little responsible student (Hey, I don't have another test 'til next week! Thats ages away!) I started a painting.
At first I was just working on the paintings I've been working on for awhile now, but I got impatient with that pretty quickly. So I decided that, since these paintings weren't interesting enough, I'd just have to start one that WAS interesting.
These pictures were taken with my camera phone, so they aren't very great quality, but you still get the idea.
Oh, and by the way, these paintings are moms Christmas present. Surprise!\
The one I started last night turned out looking nice, but not a whole lot like the person in the reference photo, who happened to be Breanna.
In progress...
And then today I started one using a picture of Lynzee as a reference photo. I think its funny that the one of Breanna makes her look alot older and the one of Lynzee mkes her look alot younger... but since she's alot younger in the photo I guess thats not so surprising.
And here they are together. I worked more on the Breanna one since I took the other pictures and I think its almost done... if you look here you can see there is more definition to the curls, etc.
Birthday Countdown: 4 days!
At first I was just working on the paintings I've been working on for awhile now, but I got impatient with that pretty quickly. So I decided that, since these paintings weren't interesting enough, I'd just have to start one that WAS interesting.
These pictures were taken with my camera phone, so they aren't very great quality, but you still get the idea.
Oh, and by the way, these paintings are moms Christmas present. Surprise!\
The one I started last night turned out looking nice, but not a whole lot like the person in the reference photo, who happened to be Breanna.
In progress...
And then today I started one using a picture of Lynzee as a reference photo. I think its funny that the one of Breanna makes her look alot older and the one of Lynzee mkes her look alot younger... but since she's alot younger in the photo I guess thats not so surprising.
And here they are together. I worked more on the Breanna one since I took the other pictures and I think its almost done... if you look here you can see there is more definition to the curls, etc.
Birthday Countdown: 4 days!
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Merry Christmas!
The blog is decorated for Christmas! Ok, so the colors don't match all that well... but I'm over that already. But there are Christmas songs too! Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing isn't exactly a Christmas song, but, well... close enough.
Birthday Countdown: 5 days!
Birthday Countdown: 5 days!
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Randomness
I thought I had work today, because Maria worked last Saturday, and we had a cleaning check today... cleaning checks have always been on the days I work. But last Saturday was a fifth Saturday and so everything is thrown off. Meh.
I got this e-mail the other day:
Dear Students,
This is just to confirm that I have received your paper and it is in the process of being reviewed. We hope to have the reviews back and decisions made regarding presentation by January 15, 2009. Congratulations on completing your paper and good luck with finals!
Patty
I counted about 80 addresses that received this e-mail. Thats 79(ish) other papers that mine will be judged against. (Assuming that they didn't send more than one e-mail because they had so many to send it to or something like that.) I'm really nervous, even though I should just calm down and forget about it until January 15th... thats over a month away! And their papers are probably all better than mine, and alot of them are probably religions education or somesuch majors so this kind of thing is what they do and... yeah.
And here's a quick wish list for my birthday/Christmas. I don't want this to be taken wrong--this isn't The List Of Things I Must Get For Christmas Or I Will Be Angry With Life. This is just The List Of Things I Can Think Of That I Wouldn't Mind Receiving This Year. In fact, if I got all of them I wouldn't know what to do with them all. And some I really don't expect to get but I might as well throw them out there because it'd really be awesome to have them... anyway.
-Microsoft Word on the laptop I'm using (and other basic programs, like Power Point and such...) because it creates difficulties not to have them, and I have to still use the labs a whole lot so that I can put my assignments in the right format, etc., and open documents from blackboard, etc. While we're talking about it, the absolute ideal would be to get a Mac laptop with all the basic programs and the art ones and a touchpad and all that artistic stuff... but I'm thinking that isn't really likely.
-Some dancing shoes (with the non-grippy soles, you know...). Some saddle shoes would be totally awesome. I think thats what they're called, you know, those black and white ones...
I have some shoes I can dance in fine, but they fit when I bought them and have since stretched, so they're a bit loose which makes for some difficulties. I wear size 8 shoes.
-Books. Big surprise there. Um, maybe I'll make a list of the ones I'd like... later. (Elizabeth Wein's, for a start, and Garth Nix's Sabriel books, and maybe a copy of The Thief since mine seems permanently gone and even if it comes back two copies can't be a bad thing and, well..) A gift card works just as well here. :)
-Watercolor... stuff. And Oil paint stuff, while I'm on the subject. Brushes, paper, canvas, masonite, paints, palette knife... whatever. You could just go pick out a paint brush that looks nice and give it to me... Nana did that it it was my favorite brush for a long time... I really really like that brush. Except its getting kinda frayed... I've used it alot. Anyway.
-Ponytail holders/bobby pins. I didn't bring alot of them with me to school, but they'd really come in handy for getting my hair up and out of the way for dancing, which I've gotten in the habit of doing. I don't like having my hair flying around when I'm dancing, and I especially don't like whipping any guy who is nice enough to ask me to dance, which my hair has a habit of doing when I give it the chance.
-fun socks. :-)
Some more I've thought of:
Sketch books. They will definitely get used. The ones that are something like 5x7 size work best.
Sculpy/pens. Because I like making sculpy pens.
A skirt (or maybe more than one) to dance in--one thats fun to twirl in. Ok, so I have a few of these already, but that doesn't mean I couldn't find an occasion to use another :-)
Also! One of those boxes with 200 or however many crayons and a sharpner in the back... some girl came and borrowed my crayons and hasn't given them back. I need my crayons.
AND! An artist calendar would be cool, like with paintings by Monet or Degas or Van Gogh or Wolf Khan or Thiebaud or some cool artist like them. :) (Man Gogh might be the most appropriate, seeing that it will be put up in VanGoghvia, but I'm not picky.)
Well, thats what I can think of right now. I might come back and add some stuff later if anything comes to mind.
I got this e-mail the other day:
Dear Students,
This is just to confirm that I have received your paper and it is in the process of being reviewed. We hope to have the reviews back and decisions made regarding presentation by January 15, 2009. Congratulations on completing your paper and good luck with finals!
Patty
I counted about 80 addresses that received this e-mail. Thats 79(ish) other papers that mine will be judged against. (Assuming that they didn't send more than one e-mail because they had so many to send it to or something like that.) I'm really nervous, even though I should just calm down and forget about it until January 15th... thats over a month away! And their papers are probably all better than mine, and alot of them are probably religions education or somesuch majors so this kind of thing is what they do and... yeah.
And here's a quick wish list for my birthday/Christmas. I don't want this to be taken wrong--this isn't The List Of Things I Must Get For Christmas Or I Will Be Angry With Life. This is just The List Of Things I Can Think Of That I Wouldn't Mind Receiving This Year. In fact, if I got all of them I wouldn't know what to do with them all. And some I really don't expect to get but I might as well throw them out there because it'd really be awesome to have them... anyway.
-Microsoft Word on the laptop I'm using (and other basic programs, like Power Point and such...) because it creates difficulties not to have them, and I have to still use the labs a whole lot so that I can put my assignments in the right format, etc., and open documents from blackboard, etc. While we're talking about it, the absolute ideal would be to get a Mac laptop with all the basic programs and the art ones and a touchpad and all that artistic stuff... but I'm thinking that isn't really likely.
-Some dancing shoes (with the non-grippy soles, you know...). Some saddle shoes would be totally awesome. I think thats what they're called, you know, those black and white ones...
I have some shoes I can dance in fine, but they fit when I bought them and have since stretched, so they're a bit loose which makes for some difficulties. I wear size 8 shoes.
-Books. Big surprise there. Um, maybe I'll make a list of the ones I'd like... later. (Elizabeth Wein's, for a start, and Garth Nix's Sabriel books, and maybe a copy of The Thief since mine seems permanently gone and even if it comes back two copies can't be a bad thing and, well..) A gift card works just as well here. :)
-Watercolor... stuff. And Oil paint stuff, while I'm on the subject. Brushes, paper, canvas, masonite, paints, palette knife... whatever. You could just go pick out a paint brush that looks nice and give it to me... Nana did that it it was my favorite brush for a long time... I really really like that brush. Except its getting kinda frayed... I've used it alot. Anyway.
-Ponytail holders/bobby pins. I didn't bring alot of them with me to school, but they'd really come in handy for getting my hair up and out of the way for dancing, which I've gotten in the habit of doing. I don't like having my hair flying around when I'm dancing, and I especially don't like whipping any guy who is nice enough to ask me to dance, which my hair has a habit of doing when I give it the chance.
-fun socks. :-)
Some more I've thought of:
Sketch books. They will definitely get used. The ones that are something like 5x7 size work best.
Sculpy/pens. Because I like making sculpy pens.
A skirt (or maybe more than one) to dance in--one thats fun to twirl in. Ok, so I have a few of these already, but that doesn't mean I couldn't find an occasion to use another :-)
Also! One of those boxes with 200 or however many crayons and a sharpner in the back... some girl came and borrowed my crayons and hasn't given them back. I need my crayons.
AND! An artist calendar would be cool, like with paintings by Monet or Degas or Van Gogh or Wolf Khan or Thiebaud or some cool artist like them. :) (Man Gogh might be the most appropriate, seeing that it will be put up in VanGoghvia, but I'm not picky.)
Well, thats what I can think of right now. I might come back and add some stuff later if anything comes to mind.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Doorbell ditching hilarity
Oh my goodness, we're all in such a hyper giggly mood right now. And I have to write up the reason before we forget.
So yesterday, today, and tomorrow our ward is doing this Secret Santa thingy. Each day is themed on a different letter--J, O, then Y.
Anyway, Jocelyn got her Secret Santa gift all ready and delivered it to the apartment which was on the piece of paper telling her who/where her assigned person lived. It just so happened that the apartment was our next-door neighbors. After delivering it she looked in the ward directory to see who lived in that apartment. (Our directory is organized according to apartments.) She saw that the girl she'd been assigned didn't actaully live in that apartment. I looked through the directory and found that the girl that she had actually lives up on the third floor.
Well, that was a bit of a dilemma. How to get the present back to deliver it to the right person...
We debated just going up and knocking on the door, but that wouldn't be any fun. So Jocelyn wrote a note on a scrap of paper:
Hi! I just accidentally delivered my gift for _____ on your porch! Could you please put [it] on the porch for me to pick back up? Thanks! Have a great evening.
I forget who delivered that note, but they doorbell-ditched it and ran, keeping our door open for a quick and easy escape.
We waited a couple minutes. We peeked out and saw a note on their doormat. Someone (forgot who again) ran and picked it up.
It was the note that we'd left before, but with the backside up. On it they'd written: For a price.
We debated about how to answer that, what kind of things we could give them to 'pay' for it. Finally we decided on just another note, which I delivered:
I have a wife & 9 children, thats a total of 10 mouths to feed. I just can't afford to get a new gift, I'm desperate. Please give me my gift back?
We waited a few minutes, but nothing showed up on their doorstep. So we left another note, which I also delivered.
Cruel Women! Have you no hearts?
A couple minutes later we checked again. Both notes were on the doorstep. On the back of the first it said, Your plight has touched our hearts. Merry Christmas! and on the other it said, We delivered it for you.
So how were we supposed to answer that? Much laughter accompanied our debate. Eventually, what happened was this: Annie made a 'mask' out of a piece of purple paper she'd cut two eye holes in and taped to her glasses. She, Annilyn, and I put blankets over our heads (well, mine was a bright orange towel--great for stealth, those bright orange towels) so we wouldn't be recognised. Deidre, Jocelyn, and Brooke went up to the floor above so they could watch without being seen (or participating. Scaredy-cats). On our way out the door the first time, Annie and Annilyn were laughing so hard and were so nervous that they had to go to the bathroom before we could actually go.
I went first, then Annie, then Annilyn. Annie stood slightly in front, me and Annilyn stood on each side of her, like henchmen. I rang the bell. The door was thrown open by someone determined to catch the doorbell-ditchers, but the expression on her face quickly turned from triumph to fear/surprise/WUT?!?. A couple of her roomates and some guy who was visiting were watcing too. In a very weird, gravelly voice Annie said,"We wanted to thank you personally for delivering our gift. You will recieve blessings in heaven." Then we ran away around the corner and went in the sliding door so they wouldn't know we were their next-door neighbors.
Jocelyn, Deidre, and Brooke could see the whole thing from upstairs. They said that when we ran off one of the girls said, "What? Where are they going?" and they were laughing really hard. One of their other roomates walked up and they said, "Oh my gosh, you just missed it!"
So that was our evening of hilarity. Now back to homework. I don't want to think about finals...
So yesterday, today, and tomorrow our ward is doing this Secret Santa thingy. Each day is themed on a different letter--J, O, then Y.
Anyway, Jocelyn got her Secret Santa gift all ready and delivered it to the apartment which was on the piece of paper telling her who/where her assigned person lived. It just so happened that the apartment was our next-door neighbors. After delivering it she looked in the ward directory to see who lived in that apartment. (Our directory is organized according to apartments.) She saw that the girl she'd been assigned didn't actaully live in that apartment. I looked through the directory and found that the girl that she had actually lives up on the third floor.
Well, that was a bit of a dilemma. How to get the present back to deliver it to the right person...
We debated just going up and knocking on the door, but that wouldn't be any fun. So Jocelyn wrote a note on a scrap of paper:
Hi! I just accidentally delivered my gift for _____ on your porch! Could you please put [it] on the porch for me to pick back up? Thanks! Have a great evening.
I forget who delivered that note, but they doorbell-ditched it and ran, keeping our door open for a quick and easy escape.
We waited a couple minutes. We peeked out and saw a note on their doormat. Someone (forgot who again) ran and picked it up.
It was the note that we'd left before, but with the backside up. On it they'd written: For a price.
We debated about how to answer that, what kind of things we could give them to 'pay' for it. Finally we decided on just another note, which I delivered:
I have a wife & 9 children, thats a total of 10 mouths to feed. I just can't afford to get a new gift, I'm desperate. Please give me my gift back?
We waited a few minutes, but nothing showed up on their doorstep. So we left another note, which I also delivered.
Cruel Women! Have you no hearts?
A couple minutes later we checked again. Both notes were on the doorstep. On the back of the first it said, Your plight has touched our hearts. Merry Christmas! and on the other it said, We delivered it for you.
So how were we supposed to answer that? Much laughter accompanied our debate. Eventually, what happened was this: Annie made a 'mask' out of a piece of purple paper she'd cut two eye holes in and taped to her glasses. She, Annilyn, and I put blankets over our heads (well, mine was a bright orange towel--great for stealth, those bright orange towels) so we wouldn't be recognised. Deidre, Jocelyn, and Brooke went up to the floor above so they could watch without being seen (or participating. Scaredy-cats). On our way out the door the first time, Annie and Annilyn were laughing so hard and were so nervous that they had to go to the bathroom before we could actually go.
I went first, then Annie, then Annilyn. Annie stood slightly in front, me and Annilyn stood on each side of her, like henchmen. I rang the bell. The door was thrown open by someone determined to catch the doorbell-ditchers, but the expression on her face quickly turned from triumph to fear/surprise/WUT?!?. A couple of her roomates and some guy who was visiting were watcing too. In a very weird, gravelly voice Annie said,"We wanted to thank you personally for delivering our gift. You will recieve blessings in heaven." Then we ran away around the corner and went in the sliding door so they wouldn't know we were their next-door neighbors.
Jocelyn, Deidre, and Brooke could see the whole thing from upstairs. They said that when we ran off one of the girls said, "What? Where are they going?" and they were laughing really hard. One of their other roomates walked up and they said, "Oh my gosh, you just missed it!"
So that was our evening of hilarity. Now back to homework. I don't want to think about finals...
Monday, December 1, 2008
Sharkbait. Ooh ha ha.
Our apartment now has a fishtank, a fish table, and three fish.
One is a sort of mottled white/red/black. Specifically, it's got a reddish patch over its left eye. His name is Zuko.
One is a tiny red fish called a fireball. That one's called alterniately "Fireball" or "Agni Kai" (yes, another Avatar reference) depending on preference.
The last fish is whitish with a few odd red and grey patches. Its named Medraut, after the narrator of The Winter Prince.
Deidre has ordered an "Aang as the Waterspirit" action figure to decorate the tank, in addition to the plastic plants already in it.
I'd show you guys pictures of them all, but I no longer have a good camera.
**EDIT**
Ok, you all will just have to make due with cameraphone pics.
One is a sort of mottled white/red/black. Specifically, it's got a reddish patch over its left eye. His name is Zuko.
One is a tiny red fish called a fireball. That one's called alterniately "Fireball" or "Agni Kai" (yes, another Avatar reference) depending on preference.
The last fish is whitish with a few odd red and grey patches. Its named Medraut, after the narrator of The Winter Prince.
Deidre has ordered an "Aang as the Waterspirit" action figure to decorate the tank, in addition to the plastic plants already in it.
I'd show you guys pictures of them all, but I no longer have a good camera.
**EDIT**
Ok, you all will just have to make due with cameraphone pics.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Customer Service--complaints
There was a training meeting for work this morning. So not only did I have to get up way early (well, compared to when I usually get up) to be there on time, it has now left me feeling guilty and frustrated. But mostly frustrated.
We talked about customer service at the meeting. The store has started this new program thingy they call "secret shoppers". Basically, they hire (I'm actually not sure whether they're paid...) people to shop here and report back on what they thought of the customer service.
Basically, the General Book department has gotten some very bad reviews. No names were named, but they read off some of the comments. Some of them were things of which I was guilty--like focusing on shelving books when there was a customer in the area, telling them I couldn't tell them whether we carried the book they wanted unless they could tell me a title or author... things like that. I felt very bad, because I really should and can do better. And I will.
But the secret shoppers comments are not an extremely accurate representation of the customer service in our department in general, in my opinion. Firstly, usually they're in there just to do the secret shopper thing and so they're not actually looking for any specific book. So instead of saying "I'm looking for A Certain Book by So-And-So" they'll just say, "Do you have any books about Random Subject?" And the problem is, the computer program we use to look up books in our computer doesn't have a subject search. Apparently there were alot of complaints when secret shoppers asked if we had a book on a certain subject and we told them, completely honestly, that they would have to give us a title or author, or even just a word of the title, for us to find anything specific.
But thats when the secret shopper actually gets to the desk with a question, which they don't always. Again, because they're not really looking for anything specific, they'll just hang around in the area, browsing, waiting to see if anyone will ask them if they're looking for something specific--which they're not. The vast majority of the times I've asked a customer if they need help finding something when they're just hanging around in the area, they'll just say, "No, I'm just browsing." I've even had some who seem annoyed with me for asking. I admit I've kind of slacked off on asking them because of this and because I've found that when people are actually looking for something specific they don't just hang around, glancing over the shelves. They will actually go find a desk or someone with a lanyard on and ask them for what they want. (Wow, what a novel idea.)
And lastly, just so I can have three things, these secret shoppers seem to be coming in to look for anything that is bad/wrong. So of course they find it.
End of rant.
We talked about customer service at the meeting. The store has started this new program thingy they call "secret shoppers". Basically, they hire (I'm actually not sure whether they're paid...) people to shop here and report back on what they thought of the customer service.
Basically, the General Book department has gotten some very bad reviews. No names were named, but they read off some of the comments. Some of them were things of which I was guilty--like focusing on shelving books when there was a customer in the area, telling them I couldn't tell them whether we carried the book they wanted unless they could tell me a title or author... things like that. I felt very bad, because I really should and can do better. And I will.
But the secret shoppers comments are not an extremely accurate representation of the customer service in our department in general, in my opinion. Firstly, usually they're in there just to do the secret shopper thing and so they're not actually looking for any specific book. So instead of saying "I'm looking for A Certain Book by So-And-So" they'll just say, "Do you have any books about Random Subject?" And the problem is, the computer program we use to look up books in our computer doesn't have a subject search. Apparently there were alot of complaints when secret shoppers asked if we had a book on a certain subject and we told them, completely honestly, that they would have to give us a title or author, or even just a word of the title, for us to find anything specific.
But thats when the secret shopper actually gets to the desk with a question, which they don't always. Again, because they're not really looking for anything specific, they'll just hang around in the area, browsing, waiting to see if anyone will ask them if they're looking for something specific--which they're not. The vast majority of the times I've asked a customer if they need help finding something when they're just hanging around in the area, they'll just say, "No, I'm just browsing." I've even had some who seem annoyed with me for asking. I admit I've kind of slacked off on asking them because of this and because I've found that when people are actually looking for something specific they don't just hang around, glancing over the shelves. They will actually go find a desk or someone with a lanyard on and ask them for what they want. (Wow, what a novel idea.)
And lastly, just so I can have three things, these secret shoppers seem to be coming in to look for anything that is bad/wrong. So of course they find it.
End of rant.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Exhausted
Yeah, its another entry for today. What of it? Whats more, this entry has a very small likelyhood of coherency, because, as you may have guessed from the subject line, I am absolutely positively asleep-on-my-feet exhausted.
Then what am I doing writing up a blog entry instead of sleeping? That is a very good question. I'll tell you--I don't know.
I love dancing. And yet, even while I'm dancing I feel bad too, because I feel like such a poor dancer in comparison to all the other regulars at the Swing Club. On the other hand, I've collected enough complements on my following over the last couple weeks that I'm actually starting to believe its true and not merely a nice thing to say as I'm being escorted off the floor. On the other hand, since Saturday Swing Dances are basically the only "hard core" excercise I get each week (well, not even that, because it obviously doesn't happen when I'm at home) and so about halfway through I'm absolutely exhausted and yet I can't say no when asked to dance. This results in sloppiness, and... sporatic following? Because in some ways I follow better, because I'm not trying/thinking too hard about it and just going with the flow, but on the other hand, I'm sometimes make stupid mistakes because I'm not thinking/trying hard enough. (There are alot of hands and other hands and other other hands in this entry. Heh.)
One thing I do wish I could do--well, I guess I really could, but I dont--is go to the malt shop after the dance. This is the thing that many regulars do every week and they usually announce it and invite everybody who wants to come. But I don't for several reasons. First, since I'm exhausted by halfway though the night, I am completely and totally asleep-on-my-feet exhausted by the time the dance is over (which is 10:30-11 ish. It starts at 8 ish.) Second, I have 9 am church, so I need to be up and, well, awake. And I don't bring my purse/wallet to the dances because I don't have to so I wouldn't be able to get a malt anyway. On the other hand (there I go with those hands again) If I DID go I could become better friends with some of the swing people. Since I've been going for a couple months now I, like, know the names (or at least the faces) of several of them, but I don't really know then beyond "Hi, whats your name, whats your major, oh illustration thats cool". (Everyone acts surprised, like they're thinking "Illustration? Thats a Major?")
Anyway. I haven't read over this post to edit for grammar/typos/coherency but I'm not going to. I'm going to fall into bed and sleep like a log. I might even put my pajamas on first.
Then what am I doing writing up a blog entry instead of sleeping? That is a very good question. I'll tell you--I don't know.
I love dancing. And yet, even while I'm dancing I feel bad too, because I feel like such a poor dancer in comparison to all the other regulars at the Swing Club. On the other hand, I've collected enough complements on my following over the last couple weeks that I'm actually starting to believe its true and not merely a nice thing to say as I'm being escorted off the floor. On the other hand, since Saturday Swing Dances are basically the only "hard core" excercise I get each week (well, not even that, because it obviously doesn't happen when I'm at home) and so about halfway through I'm absolutely exhausted and yet I can't say no when asked to dance. This results in sloppiness, and... sporatic following? Because in some ways I follow better, because I'm not trying/thinking too hard about it and just going with the flow, but on the other hand, I'm sometimes make stupid mistakes because I'm not thinking/trying hard enough. (There are alot of hands and other hands and other other hands in this entry. Heh.)
One thing I do wish I could do--well, I guess I really could, but I dont--is go to the malt shop after the dance. This is the thing that many regulars do every week and they usually announce it and invite everybody who wants to come. But I don't for several reasons. First, since I'm exhausted by halfway though the night, I am completely and totally asleep-on-my-feet exhausted by the time the dance is over (which is 10:30-11 ish. It starts at 8 ish.) Second, I have 9 am church, so I need to be up and, well, awake. And I don't bring my purse/wallet to the dances because I don't have to so I wouldn't be able to get a malt anyway. On the other hand (there I go with those hands again) If I DID go I could become better friends with some of the swing people. Since I've been going for a couple months now I, like, know the names (or at least the faces) of several of them, but I don't really know then beyond "Hi, whats your name, whats your major, oh illustration thats cool". (Everyone acts surprised, like they're thinking "Illustration? Thats a Major?")
Anyway. I haven't read over this post to edit for grammar/typos/coherency but I'm not going to. I'm going to fall into bed and sleep like a log. I might even put my pajamas on first.
Tree Cozy. No, I'm serious.
Some people are insane. (I mean that in the best way possible.) Thats all I have to say. This says the rest:
http://www.carolhummel.com/?p=portfolio&nav=recent&pid=41
http://www.carolhummel.com/?p=portfolio&nav=recent&pid=41
Friday, November 21, 2008
Ten Pages
Well, I've been working on this paper for the religion symposium. The paper is due on December first and must be 10-12 pages long. More Here
So I finally broke ten pages an hour or so ago. Not ten full pages, mind, there are only about eight lines on the tenth page, but its still there. The paper is not finished--far from--but now that I've made it up to the page count (well, kind of) I feel like I've accomplished something. And also like its really going to happen--I'm really going to turn this paper in to be read and reviewed, and if its good enough it might be published! After I actually finish writing the stupid thing, of course.
And, just while I'm on the subject...why on earth did I CHOOSE to put myself through this? I can't remember ever being required to write a paper this long for a teacher, for a grade. And instead of a grade, my reward for doing well on this paper is that I have to stand up in front of a lot of people and talk about it instead. The only paper of comparable length that I've written was for the National MUN conference... also a choice. And I also had to get up and talk about it in front of a lot of people... I should stop thinking about this before I decide I'm an insane, backward, masochistic nerd. Because that is where this train of thought is headed. But the train is crashing NOW. IT REALLY IS. BECAUSE I SAID SO.
I'm guessing that the completed paper will sit at around eleven pages, which I think is a pretty good length. There are a couple 'paragraphs' that are only single sentences right now, to be expounded on later when the rest of the paragraph is more than a vague something in my head. Funny how clearly I could see the paper in my mind, what it would outline and what the overall message of it would be, but when it comes down to actually getting it out it simply doesn't want to come at all, like it has to be forced, fighting tooth and nail. (Is it me fighting tooth and nail, or the paper? You know, I'm not entirely sure.) I think I have at least a little more appreciation for the authors of those books that I consume within hours of picking them up--even if they had a clear idea of what the whole story would be, actually forcing it onto paper is not the easy, carefree, inspired process that we might want to think it is.
So I finally broke ten pages an hour or so ago. Not ten full pages, mind, there are only about eight lines on the tenth page, but its still there. The paper is not finished--far from--but now that I've made it up to the page count (well, kind of) I feel like I've accomplished something. And also like its really going to happen--I'm really going to turn this paper in to be read and reviewed, and if its good enough it might be published! After I actually finish writing the stupid thing, of course.
And, just while I'm on the subject...why on earth did I CHOOSE to put myself through this? I can't remember ever being required to write a paper this long for a teacher, for a grade. And instead of a grade, my reward for doing well on this paper is that I have to stand up in front of a lot of people and talk about it instead. The only paper of comparable length that I've written was for the National MUN conference... also a choice. And I also had to get up and talk about it in front of a lot of people... I should stop thinking about this before I decide I'm an insane, backward, masochistic nerd. Because that is where this train of thought is headed. But the train is crashing NOW. IT REALLY IS. BECAUSE I SAID SO.
I'm guessing that the completed paper will sit at around eleven pages, which I think is a pretty good length. There are a couple 'paragraphs' that are only single sentences right now, to be expounded on later when the rest of the paragraph is more than a vague something in my head. Funny how clearly I could see the paper in my mind, what it would outline and what the overall message of it would be, but when it comes down to actually getting it out it simply doesn't want to come at all, like it has to be forced, fighting tooth and nail. (Is it me fighting tooth and nail, or the paper? You know, I'm not entirely sure.) I think I have at least a little more appreciation for the authors of those books that I consume within hours of picking them up--even if they had a clear idea of what the whole story would be, actually forcing it onto paper is not the easy, carefree, inspired process that we might want to think it is.
Another One
Yeah, its just another Hero's-Journey-Related image. I didn't make this one, but I wish I had, because its Very Funny.
From:
http://www.clickok.co.uk/index4.html
From:
http://www.clickok.co.uk/index4.html
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Monday, November 17, 2008
Abandoned
Its official. Annilyn is leaving me to some unknown fate with some unknown (well, not known yet) roommate so she can go to Russia (and New Zealand) next semester.
This is not fair.
Jocelyn and I got back from visiting teaching and I was going to go straight in to finish the paper thats due tomorrow morning. (I have one page written. Its supposed to be five pages long.) But just as we were arriving at our apartment door, Annilyn came out. She was wearing her coat and had her purse and seemed a bit hurried.
"Where are you going?" Jocelyn asked.
"I'm going to Moscow next semester! I'm going to Thai Ruby to celebrate. Deidre and Annie are already there."
So instead of going in to co homework, Jocelyn and I joined them at Thai Ruby (which is like our official roommate celebration restaurant, just by the way.) I didn't get a full meal, but I got some absolutely delicious mango dessert (SO GOOD) and we talked and, well, celebrated.
On the way back Jocelyn and Deidre were talking about how they had looked into going to China next year, after Annilyn told them about going to Russia. It costs less than room/tuition here does, and its a full year away... maybe me, Jocelyn and Deidre could all go to China in 2010. Its not like I have many years in this stage of my life to do this sort of thing...
This is not fair.
Jocelyn and I got back from visiting teaching and I was going to go straight in to finish the paper thats due tomorrow morning. (I have one page written. Its supposed to be five pages long.) But just as we were arriving at our apartment door, Annilyn came out. She was wearing her coat and had her purse and seemed a bit hurried.
"Where are you going?" Jocelyn asked.
"I'm going to Moscow next semester! I'm going to Thai Ruby to celebrate. Deidre and Annie are already there."
So instead of going in to co homework, Jocelyn and I joined them at Thai Ruby (which is like our official roommate celebration restaurant, just by the way.) I didn't get a full meal, but I got some absolutely delicious mango dessert (SO GOOD) and we talked and, well, celebrated.
On the way back Jocelyn and Deidre were talking about how they had looked into going to China next year, after Annilyn told them about going to Russia. It costs less than room/tuition here does, and its a full year away... maybe me, Jocelyn and Deidre could all go to China in 2010. Its not like I have many years in this stage of my life to do this sort of thing...
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Moon, Paintings
So this evening I went to a lecture thingy on the Japanese Wood Block Print show thats in the MOA right now. And it was seriously incredibly cool.
It ended a little after 8 and I was hurrying home so I could do my homework like a good little BYU-Co-Ed (as dad would say). Then I happened to look up at the moon and it looked SO COOL. It was AWESOME. I stood gaping like an idiot for a few seconds, then made a mad dash for home to get the camera, which I cleverly hadn't brought with me today. I burst into the apartment, all out of breath, and rushed toward my room.
"Where are you going?" said Jocelyn, who I brushed past without a greeting.
"MY ROOM."
I dashed back out of the apartment with the camera and ("Where are you going?" asked Jocelyn, but the door was already shut before I could answer.) The camera wouldn't focus on the moon and clouds. It absolutely refused. Very, very sad news.
In this picture, the camera ALMOST caught the awesome RAINBOW aroud the moon. Almost. SO I almost forgive it for being a failure. ALMOST. You get a HINT of the colors that were there, but NO detail of the awesome fluffy clouds. *pout*
Then I had a (not so) brilliant idea. I'd just have to paint it while its awesomeness was still clear in my mind!
Yeah, well, it didn't work out so well.
It actually started out ok. But... well, then it ended up looking strange and ugly. *sigh* I might... might... be able to save it. If not, its still a perfectly good piece of masonite. But since I really didn't use much turp/liquin at all, it'll take FOREVER to dry. Blah. I guess I could like mix in turp and liquin with the paint thats on the board..... hmm.
The painting starts out ok...
Still looking ok...
...PbBbbffFfffdtfdtt. That is the sound of all of the good momentum this painting had going for it blowing out and away and.... gone.
But fixing this painting is a project for another day. Another month. Or maybe year. Yeah, thats about right, because November and December are looking kinda crazy so far, but what else is new...
Oh, and I got both hands covered in blue paint. Isn't THIS fun. I really don't want to have to do the gloves thing...
Then I worked on my angel-with-trumpet painting. I think its VERY close to finished. I finally have a background that I LIKE (more or less). From my HEAD. This was/is kind of encouraging, having just completely botched a painting done completely from my head, at least I was able to make up a background from my head that I liked. Like. Mostly. Lets see how I feel about it a week from now.
And the camera really liked throwing a glare where the background is. Because it was wet because I'd just been working on it, yeah, but still.
It's SUPPOSED to look all foggy/misty and the sun just barely rising over the hill in the background. But there is a nice glare there, and I was/am too lazy to play with the light and placement and camera settings and stuff to get you a good picture. So you'll just have to wait. Or come see me, I mean it, in person. :D
I tried to get a picture of the texture of the painting, which I really like. Camera and I had an argument about focusing, so this is as good as you get. Of course, canvas is like this except awesomer.
It ended a little after 8 and I was hurrying home so I could do my homework like a good little BYU-Co-Ed (as dad would say). Then I happened to look up at the moon and it looked SO COOL. It was AWESOME. I stood gaping like an idiot for a few seconds, then made a mad dash for home to get the camera, which I cleverly hadn't brought with me today. I burst into the apartment, all out of breath, and rushed toward my room.
"Where are you going?" said Jocelyn, who I brushed past without a greeting.
"MY ROOM."
I dashed back out of the apartment with the camera and ("Where are you going?" asked Jocelyn, but the door was already shut before I could answer.) The camera wouldn't focus on the moon and clouds. It absolutely refused. Very, very sad news.
In this picture, the camera ALMOST caught the awesome RAINBOW aroud the moon. Almost. SO I almost forgive it for being a failure. ALMOST. You get a HINT of the colors that were there, but NO detail of the awesome fluffy clouds. *pout*
Then I had a (not so) brilliant idea. I'd just have to paint it while its awesomeness was still clear in my mind!
Yeah, well, it didn't work out so well.
It actually started out ok. But... well, then it ended up looking strange and ugly. *sigh* I might... might... be able to save it. If not, its still a perfectly good piece of masonite. But since I really didn't use much turp/liquin at all, it'll take FOREVER to dry. Blah. I guess I could like mix in turp and liquin with the paint thats on the board..... hmm.
The painting starts out ok...
Still looking ok...
...PbBbbffFfffdtfdtt. That is the sound of all of the good momentum this painting had going for it blowing out and away and.... gone.
But fixing this painting is a project for another day. Another month. Or maybe year. Yeah, thats about right, because November and December are looking kinda crazy so far, but what else is new...
Oh, and I got both hands covered in blue paint. Isn't THIS fun. I really don't want to have to do the gloves thing...
Then I worked on my angel-with-trumpet painting. I think its VERY close to finished. I finally have a background that I LIKE (more or less). From my HEAD. This was/is kind of encouraging, having just completely botched a painting done completely from my head, at least I was able to make up a background from my head that I liked. Like. Mostly. Lets see how I feel about it a week from now.
And the camera really liked throwing a glare where the background is. Because it was wet because I'd just been working on it, yeah, but still.
It's SUPPOSED to look all foggy/misty and the sun just barely rising over the hill in the background. But there is a nice glare there, and I was/am too lazy to play with the light and placement and camera settings and stuff to get you a good picture. So you'll just have to wait. Or come see me, I mean it, in person. :D
I tried to get a picture of the texture of the painting, which I really like. Camera and I had an argument about focusing, so this is as good as you get. Of course, canvas is like this except awesomer.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
the Parable of the Feast
Today I experienced the consequences of not doing my reading for New Testament class.
Mind you, this isn't a habit. There have only been three or four times I've missed my reading this semsester, I'm usually very good about getting it done.
The reading for today was several parables, most of them less familiar ones. Our class is divided into groups, and today our teacher gave each group a parable and we were assigned to act it out for the class. My group was assigned Luke 14: 16-24 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/search?search=Luke+14%3A+16-24) the parable of the Great Feast.
The Parable of th Great feast? Those in my group who had their scriptures opened to the right page and started claiming parts.
"I'll be the master."
"I want to be the guy with the oxen."
"We can be the poor people."
"I'll be the land guy."
"You're engaged, so you can be the guy with the wife."
Then they turned to me.
"How about you be the servant?"
"The servant? What does the servant do?"
"Um, here. Just... read it."
In the scrupture not all of the dialogue is written out, but when the parable is acted out, it turns out that the servant has more than half of the lines in the thing. Uh-huh.
I'm going to do better with my reading from now on.
Mind you, this isn't a habit. There have only been three or four times I've missed my reading this semsester, I'm usually very good about getting it done.
The reading for today was several parables, most of them less familiar ones. Our class is divided into groups, and today our teacher gave each group a parable and we were assigned to act it out for the class. My group was assigned Luke 14: 16-24 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/search?search=Luke+14%3A+16-24) the parable of the Great Feast.
The Parable of th Great feast? Those in my group who had their scriptures opened to the right page and started claiming parts.
"I'll be the master."
"I want to be the guy with the oxen."
"We can be the poor people."
"I'll be the land guy."
"You're engaged, so you can be the guy with the wife."
Then they turned to me.
"How about you be the servant?"
"The servant? What does the servant do?"
"Um, here. Just... read it."
In the scrupture not all of the dialogue is written out, but when the parable is acted out, it turns out that the servant has more than half of the lines in the thing. Uh-huh.
I'm going to do better with my reading from now on.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Relay Call
I had a new experience today. Its called a relay call. It didn't actually work extremely well, but that was no fault of mine.
While at work the phone at the children's desk rang and my supervisor wasn't there to answer it. Which means I'm supposed to answer it. The caller ID didn't have a name, but I saw it was from an 800 number. What?
"Childrens Book, this is Sarah."
"Hi Sarah, I'm calling for AT&T's relay service. Are you familiar with how relay calls work?"
"Uh, No..." I was tempted to say, 'I'm sorry, but you've got the wrong number', because the way she said it was so telemarketer, and the words were kinda telemarketerish anyway, but I didn't.
"Well, in a relay call I have a customer here on the computer. What they type I say to you, and then what you say I type to them."
"Oh, ok." So is this for a deaf person, or someone with some other kind of disability? I didn't ask.
"Alright. Their question is, 'Do you have any Obama books'?"
"Obama books? Can they give me a specific title or author?"
I heard the sound of typing on a keyboard. I waited. After a short while I went to the computer and looked up 'Obama'. Books he wrote and books with his name in the title came up. They probably should have called the General Book desk or office instead of Childrens, but for some reason they called the Childrens Book Desk. (I've gotten a couple weird calls at the Childrens desk. One person wanted directions to the administration building. Why did they call the BYU Bookstore Childrens Book desk? Why not call BYU Information? I tried my best to give them directions, and then I looked up the BYU information desk number and put it in my drawer, to give to people in case something like that happens again. But I digress.)
"There is no respose yet," I heard from the phone.
"Oh, um, thats ok."
Pause.
"Still no response."
Pause.
"Uh, could you ask them if they want books by Obama, or books that are about Obama?"
Typing on the other end.
"Still no response."
Pause.
"Still no response."
Pause.
My supervisor walked up to the desk, saw me on the phone, smiled briefly, and left again.
"Still no response."
Pause.
"Still no response. I'm not sure they're still there. I guess theres no point in staying on the line."
"Oh, well thats ok." How does one end a call with some random person they'll probably never speak to again? "You can just call back if they say something." Probably not that. It sounded kinda stupid. Oh well, I'll get over it.
"Yes, I'll do that."
The End.
While at work the phone at the children's desk rang and my supervisor wasn't there to answer it. Which means I'm supposed to answer it. The caller ID didn't have a name, but I saw it was from an 800 number. What?
"Childrens Book, this is Sarah."
"Hi Sarah, I'm calling for AT&T's relay service. Are you familiar with how relay calls work?"
"Uh, No..." I was tempted to say, 'I'm sorry, but you've got the wrong number', because the way she said it was so telemarketer, and the words were kinda telemarketerish anyway, but I didn't.
"Well, in a relay call I have a customer here on the computer. What they type I say to you, and then what you say I type to them."
"Oh, ok." So is this for a deaf person, or someone with some other kind of disability? I didn't ask.
"Alright. Their question is, 'Do you have any Obama books'?"
"Obama books? Can they give me a specific title or author?"
I heard the sound of typing on a keyboard. I waited. After a short while I went to the computer and looked up 'Obama'. Books he wrote and books with his name in the title came up. They probably should have called the General Book desk or office instead of Childrens, but for some reason they called the Childrens Book Desk. (I've gotten a couple weird calls at the Childrens desk. One person wanted directions to the administration building. Why did they call the BYU Bookstore Childrens Book desk? Why not call BYU Information? I tried my best to give them directions, and then I looked up the BYU information desk number and put it in my drawer, to give to people in case something like that happens again. But I digress.)
"There is no respose yet," I heard from the phone.
"Oh, um, thats ok."
Pause.
"Still no response."
Pause.
"Uh, could you ask them if they want books by Obama, or books that are about Obama?"
Typing on the other end.
"Still no response."
Pause.
"Still no response."
Pause.
My supervisor walked up to the desk, saw me on the phone, smiled briefly, and left again.
"Still no response."
Pause.
"Still no response. I'm not sure they're still there. I guess theres no point in staying on the line."
"Oh, well thats ok." How does one end a call with some random person they'll probably never speak to again? "You can just call back if they say something." Probably not that. It sounded kinda stupid. Oh well, I'll get over it.
"Yes, I'll do that."
The End.
Friday, November 7, 2008
I found a little nursery rhyme
I was looking up nursery rhymes when I came across this little gem. I think its funny, anyway.
There was a little guinea-pig,
Who, being little, was not big;
He always walked upon his feet,
And never fasted when he eat.
When from a place he run away,
He never at the place did stay;
And while he run, as I am told,
He ne'er stood still for young or old.
He often squeaked, and sometimes violent,
And when he squeaked he ne'er was silent.
Though ne'er instructed by a cat,
He knew a mouse was not a rat.
One day, as I am certified,
He took a whim and fairly died;
And as I am told by men of sense,
He never has been living since.
There was a little guinea-pig,
Who, being little, was not big;
He always walked upon his feet,
And never fasted when he eat.
When from a place he run away,
He never at the place did stay;
And while he run, as I am told,
He ne'er stood still for young or old.
He often squeaked, and sometimes violent,
And when he squeaked he ne'er was silent.
Though ne'er instructed by a cat,
He knew a mouse was not a rat.
One day, as I am certified,
He took a whim and fairly died;
And as I am told by men of sense,
He never has been living since.
Classes again
I signed up for classes last night. I got into all of the classes I'd planned out the other day, which is good. I do wish there were other classes I could take, but its just not going to work. I have the same number of classes as this semester, but only 14.5 credits instead of 16.5. I want more credits, as much to move up my priority registration as anything, though I guess as a junior I shouldn't really have any problems getting into the classes I need/want. I just did some poking around and added Pearl of Great Price to my schedule, which brings me up to 16.5 credits. Hoo-rah.
I guess I might as well say when/what my classes are. Because I can.
My schedule:
Mondays-- Illustration 1, D&C, break, work, beginning Social Dance
Tuesdays-- Intermediate Life Drawing, break, PGP, work, Basic Typography
Wednesdays-- Illustration 1, D&C, break, work, public speaking
Thurdsdays-- Intermediate Life Drawing, break, PGP, work, Intermediate Computer Applications
Fridays--just work. Long weekend :)
I guess I might as well say when/what my classes are. Because I can.
My schedule:
Mondays-- Illustration 1, D&C, break, work, beginning Social Dance
Tuesdays-- Intermediate Life Drawing, break, PGP, work, Basic Typography
Wednesdays-- Illustration 1, D&C, break, work, public speaking
Thurdsdays-- Intermediate Life Drawing, break, PGP, work, Intermediate Computer Applications
Fridays--just work. Long weekend :)
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Labels
While I'm here and on the computer (I'm posting plenty today, aren't I?) I decided to label all my blog posts, because I could. It was fun. The most used label is 'life', being used 19 times. I guess I write about my life alot.
Labels
life (19)
art (11)
pictures (10)
awesomeness (10)
randomness (10)
college (8)
books (6)
painting (6)
pros and cons (5)
school (5)
classes (4)
job (4)
roommates (4)
seasons (4)
work (3)
cuteness (2)
avatar (2)
snow (1)
snowflakes (1)
Labels
life (19)
art (11)
pictures (10)
awesomeness (10)
randomness (10)
college (8)
books (6)
painting (6)
pros and cons (5)
school (5)
classes (4)
job (4)
roommates (4)
seasons (4)
work (3)
cuteness (2)
avatar (2)
snow (1)
snowflakes (1)
Headache
Signing up for classes... so time consuming, and frustrating, and... headache inducing. And I haven't even done it yet--I've just been looking at classes, so that when I'm allowed to sign up for them tomorrow night I can just go straight to the ones I want and sign up for them, without wasting time looking at all the classes.
(I had music playing the whole time and I sang along the whole time and now I'm hoarse. Which is just another sign that this is taking much too long.)
Trying to get the classes to fit in a reasonable schedule is HARD. I have my work schedule to work around, which creates a difficulty that my roommates (etc.) don't have, so that complicates it significantly. (And I LIKE my job, I don't want to try and get a new one. My last job was a bit easier to work around, and not a bad one, but still.)
Ideally, I'd want about the same workload as I have this semester, which I think is reasonable-- 16.5 credits, plus work. Enough to keep me busy, but with some free time now and then for painting and reading and hanging out with roommates and dancing Saturday nights and such. (Well, technically I don't quite have time for all those things, when you take into consideration the Homework I Don't Do Because I Can Easily Get Away With Not Doing It.) This semester has been pretty much awesome, while I'm on the subject. (I've been meaning to do a My Life Is Seriously Awesome Right Now post, but I've never gotten around to it. This can be it I guess.) My roommates are awesome, my classes are (mostly) awesome (or, in the cases of Art History and Physical Science, they're not all that bad) my job is awesome, my ward is awesome, my apartment it awesome, and... well, yeah. You get the point.
But signing up for classes? (Back to the original subject...) So not awesome. I've made a list of classes I'm going to try to get (I think it's pretty likely I'll get into most/all of them) and they add up to only 14.5-15.5 credits. All the other classes either conflict with the classes I need/want to take more, my work schedule, are already full, or I just don't want to take them. And I can't find the World of Childrens Book Publishing that my Writing for Children teacher is doing next semester, maybe I'm just looking in the wrong places? And that'd fit my schedule (but overlap the free swing lessons Tuesday nights. Again. Tuesday nights just really fill up. Tuesdays are my busiest days this semester. In case you were wondering.)
One good thing is, with the classes I currently have listed to sign up for, I won't have anything I have to do Fridays but work. I'm all over the longer/earlier weekend thing.
Anyway. I'm not really sure who cares about all this, but I felt the need to vent.
(I had music playing the whole time and I sang along the whole time and now I'm hoarse. Which is just another sign that this is taking much too long.)
Trying to get the classes to fit in a reasonable schedule is HARD. I have my work schedule to work around, which creates a difficulty that my roommates (etc.) don't have, so that complicates it significantly. (And I LIKE my job, I don't want to try and get a new one. My last job was a bit easier to work around, and not a bad one, but still.)
Ideally, I'd want about the same workload as I have this semester, which I think is reasonable-- 16.5 credits, plus work. Enough to keep me busy, but with some free time now and then for painting and reading and hanging out with roommates and dancing Saturday nights and such. (Well, technically I don't quite have time for all those things, when you take into consideration the Homework I Don't Do Because I Can Easily Get Away With Not Doing It.) This semester has been pretty much awesome, while I'm on the subject. (I've been meaning to do a My Life Is Seriously Awesome Right Now post, but I've never gotten around to it. This can be it I guess.) My roommates are awesome, my classes are (mostly) awesome (or, in the cases of Art History and Physical Science, they're not all that bad) my job is awesome, my ward is awesome, my apartment it awesome, and... well, yeah. You get the point.
But signing up for classes? (Back to the original subject...) So not awesome. I've made a list of classes I'm going to try to get (I think it's pretty likely I'll get into most/all of them) and they add up to only 14.5-15.5 credits. All the other classes either conflict with the classes I need/want to take more, my work schedule, are already full, or I just don't want to take them. And I can't find the World of Childrens Book Publishing that my Writing for Children teacher is doing next semester, maybe I'm just looking in the wrong places? And that'd fit my schedule (but overlap the free swing lessons Tuesday nights. Again. Tuesday nights just really fill up. Tuesdays are my busiest days this semester. In case you were wondering.)
One good thing is, with the classes I currently have listed to sign up for, I won't have anything I have to do Fridays but work. I'm all over the longer/earlier weekend thing.
Anyway. I'm not really sure who cares about all this, but I felt the need to vent.
Its white and fluffy and cold...
It looks like snow
it feels like snow
it falls like snow
its cold like snow
It must be... snow! Yes indeed!
You know what this means...
SNOWFLAKE CUTTING SEASON HAS OFFICIALLY ARRIVED. Thats right. Build up those old scissor callouses (I really have gotten those, by the way) because I'm determined that this apartment is going to thoroughly decorated for winter.
it feels like snow
it falls like snow
its cold like snow
It must be... snow! Yes indeed!
You know what this means...
SNOWFLAKE CUTTING SEASON HAS OFFICIALLY ARRIVED. Thats right. Build up those old scissor callouses (I really have gotten those, by the way) because I'm determined that this apartment is going to thoroughly decorated for winter.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Today...
So how about that election? Yeah, thats what I thought. Well, happy next for years to you all, in any case.
Next, though maybe I should have mentioned it first, MWT's next book IS an Attolia book (Yay!) and it's scheduled to come out in 2010. I can wait til then, right? The first Avatar movie is scheduled to come out in 2010 too (I think). Yay for 2010.
Worked a bit on paintings today.
Still playing around with the background on this one, but its otherwise pretty close to finished.
I really like the sleeve on the left side. Big, thick brushstrokes... doesn't quite match the rest of the painting, but I'm not gonna change int because I like it, and you're not supposed to focus on it anyway. Except I guess you are now because I pointed it out. Sorry. ;-)
Oh, and the other painting.
This is how it looked the other day...
...and now this is how it looks
Next, though maybe I should have mentioned it first, MWT's next book IS an Attolia book (Yay!) and it's scheduled to come out in 2010. I can wait til then, right? The first Avatar movie is scheduled to come out in 2010 too (I think). Yay for 2010.
Worked a bit on paintings today.
Still playing around with the background on this one, but its otherwise pretty close to finished.
I really like the sleeve on the left side. Big, thick brushstrokes... doesn't quite match the rest of the painting, but I'm not gonna change int because I like it, and you're not supposed to focus on it anyway. Except I guess you are now because I pointed it out. Sorry. ;-)
Oh, and the other painting.
This is how it looked the other day...
...and now this is how it looks
Monday, November 3, 2008
Hey, Guess What...
...turns out that the the bookstore was having a costume contest on Friday. I guess I kinda knew that, but I just didn't really think about it, if you follow me... my thoughts didn't go beyond "hey we can all dress up on Halloween and it'll be great fun yay." I never actually considered that I'd, you know, win anything.
But guess what... I got second place! Yeah! Talk about Annilyn's awesome costume-making skills...
(Third place was a friend of mine from Highschool/seminary council. She and her husband dressed up as... wait for it... Thing 1 and Thing 2. Complete with spiky blue wigs and the whole shebang. I didn't recognise the name of the first place winner, I don't know what s/he dressed up as.)
But guess what... I got second place! Yeah! Talk about Annilyn's awesome costume-making skills...
(Third place was a friend of mine from Highschool/seminary council. She and her husband dressed up as... wait for it... Thing 1 and Thing 2. Complete with spiky blue wigs and the whole shebang. I didn't recognise the name of the first place winner, I don't know what s/he dressed up as.)
Friday, October 31, 2008
Happy Halloween!
Ok, first news: The first chapters of MWT's next book has been recieved by the publishers. http://community.livejournal.com/sounis/199654.html?nc=29
It does not say, however, whether or not this will be an Attolia-realted book or not. It will be absolutely marvelous whether it is or isn't, but I'd really like to know what happened to Sophos and... well, yeah. Lets just hope its an Attolia book.
That said, today was, as you know, Halloween. I woke up, went to physical science, did a bit of homework, ate lunch, and then got out the costume I'd be wearing to the bookstore. And I was absolutely brilliant and only left myself about an hour to get it all ready and get there, including pinning it because it's Annilyn's and therefore like seven inches too long for me. So I was rushing out the door so I didn't get a picture. I wore it all during work and it was wonderful and when I got home all my roommates were getting their costumes ready, so I took it off so Annilyn could wear it so I... didn't get a picture of it. Well, not another picture. Its the red Renaissance dress I'm wearing in all those paintings, so its not as if you don't know what I look like in it.
I hadn't really decided what I'd wear to the ward party. I thought I might be Chicken Cordon Bleu... er, Chicken Chord On Blue, that is. But Jocelyn reminded me of my awesome colorful skirt, which I really wanted to wear. So I put it on, and was trying to think of some kind of costume it would work for.
I wore the colorful skirt, with green leggins, green capris, long sky blue flowered socks with a short fluffy blue sock and a long fluffy purple sock over. A striped green and pink shirt, a bright orange sweat shirt, four multi-colored bracelets on each wrist, three colorful necklaces, a green and blue scarf, a pink and blue and brown and green winter hat, and a blue coat over all (the coat only for outside, though). Then I painted my face, with Annilyn's help.
I was a rainbow.
I tried to take my own picture of myself. It didn't work so well.
Me as a rainbow, with our rainbow wall:
All of us (except Annie, who we love even though she left us):
Mom, go get Lynzee and everybody because, yes, she is dressed up as Zuko as the Blue Spirit. Have I mentioned that Zuko is made of awesome? Because he is. (They call the show Avatar to make you THINK its about Aang, but what it REALLY is about is Zuko and how awesome he is.)
It does not say, however, whether or not this will be an Attolia-realted book or not. It will be absolutely marvelous whether it is or isn't, but I'd really like to know what happened to Sophos and... well, yeah. Lets just hope its an Attolia book.
That said, today was, as you know, Halloween. I woke up, went to physical science, did a bit of homework, ate lunch, and then got out the costume I'd be wearing to the bookstore. And I was absolutely brilliant and only left myself about an hour to get it all ready and get there, including pinning it because it's Annilyn's and therefore like seven inches too long for me. So I was rushing out the door so I didn't get a picture. I wore it all during work and it was wonderful and when I got home all my roommates were getting their costumes ready, so I took it off so Annilyn could wear it so I... didn't get a picture of it. Well, not another picture. Its the red Renaissance dress I'm wearing in all those paintings, so its not as if you don't know what I look like in it.
I hadn't really decided what I'd wear to the ward party. I thought I might be Chicken Cordon Bleu... er, Chicken Chord On Blue, that is. But Jocelyn reminded me of my awesome colorful skirt, which I really wanted to wear. So I put it on, and was trying to think of some kind of costume it would work for.
I wore the colorful skirt, with green leggins, green capris, long sky blue flowered socks with a short fluffy blue sock and a long fluffy purple sock over. A striped green and pink shirt, a bright orange sweat shirt, four multi-colored bracelets on each wrist, three colorful necklaces, a green and blue scarf, a pink and blue and brown and green winter hat, and a blue coat over all (the coat only for outside, though). Then I painted my face, with Annilyn's help.
I was a rainbow.
I tried to take my own picture of myself. It didn't work so well.
Me as a rainbow, with our rainbow wall:
All of us (except Annie, who we love even though she left us):
Mom, go get Lynzee and everybody because, yes, she is dressed up as Zuko as the Blue Spirit. Have I mentioned that Zuko is made of awesome? Because he is. (They call the show Avatar to make you THINK its about Aang, but what it REALLY is about is Zuko and how awesome he is.)
Random Art Project! (Image-heavy post... even more than usual)
So today I got home from work (I accidentally said 'homework' at first... oops) and had no huge homework things in great need of doing right then. I was going to read Dragonhaven (which I think might be replacing The Blue Sword as my favorite McKinley, just by the way) but somehow I wasn't in a reading mood, I was in more of an art mood. And I really wanted to use my left over tissue paper, in something NOT meticulous and time consuming in the way that tissue paper stained glass windows are. (Tissue Paper stained glass windows are exactly the sort of detail-oriented labor-intensive media that Annilyn would name as one of her favorites.) I wasn't sure exactly what to do... so I sort of made it up as I went. And here it is.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Paintings
I finished one painting and promptly started another! Can't have too few paintings in progress, now can we? Especially since you can't always count on their cooperation and they end up becoming nice under-colors for a better future painting.
The finished painting:
and a bit closer, because I can:
Did I show this painting earlier? I dont know if I did, because I didn't like it. I still don't, for that matter. Well, here it is in any case:
first:
second:
third:
I keep changing alot because I don't like it. I'll find something that works eventually... I hope.
Didn't do a whole lot to this one:
And I changed the background color to green on this one. I think its going to stay green, but I'm going to glaze it witha blue-grey to push it back and make it look like a sort of patchwork landscape, like the angel is flying over it.
And this is the one I just started. This is a very rough underpainting, mind.
Closer:
And can I just say that canvas is Made Of Awesome? These last several paintings have all been on board, and I'd forgotten how wonderful canvas is.
Oh, and this is the reference photo for the last one. Yeah, the proportions in my painting are a little off. And this is me, not caring.
The finished painting:
and a bit closer, because I can:
Did I show this painting earlier? I dont know if I did, because I didn't like it. I still don't, for that matter. Well, here it is in any case:
first:
second:
third:
I keep changing alot because I don't like it. I'll find something that works eventually... I hope.
Didn't do a whole lot to this one:
And I changed the background color to green on this one. I think its going to stay green, but I'm going to glaze it witha blue-grey to push it back and make it look like a sort of patchwork landscape, like the angel is flying over it.
And this is the one I just started. This is a very rough underpainting, mind.
Closer:
And can I just say that canvas is Made Of Awesome? These last several paintings have all been on board, and I'd forgotten how wonderful canvas is.
Oh, and this is the reference photo for the last one. Yeah, the proportions in my painting are a little off. And this is me, not caring.
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