Random Socks and the Litterbox

When life comes crashing in

2011-02-28T14:36:00.001-06:00

Hi bloggers!

Lately, I know I’ve been neglecting this page and I’m really sorry. With all the things going on, some days I’m not sure that I have enough time to breathe, and I’ve been told that that is a good thing to continue doing. Breathing, that is, not stressing. Right now at work, I’ve been scheduling, rescheduling, and doing dictations since my co-worker was out 4 days for a funeral. The other co-worker has been out so long that we just do her job anyway, so I was doing the work of 3 for a couple days. When I’m not doing that, I’ve been trying to plan the wedding for October and worrying myself sick over what’s going to happen next in our lives because I don’t know where I’m going or what I’ll be doing, and it’s really hard to plan with nothing set in stone.

Right now, we’re juggling 3 places: Oklahoma, Houston, TX, and Memphis, TN. Oklahoma is at the bottom of the stack, and of course since we like it least, it’s the most promising. Next is Houston, which means I have to apply to RICE, which boasts a great school, but an outrageous tuition. I’m finding that so many schools require a masters to get into the PhD program now a days, which is ridiculous. OSU, Tulsa, Houston . . . so far RICE and Memphis don’t, however. And Tulsa has a great program that does a MA in 2 years, and then a PhD in about 3, so I could finish everything. OSU were jerks and they recommended a MS – excuse me? For a PhD in Arts? Don’t you care what the master’s is in? Needless to say, I will not be applying there. I’ve sent my application to Memphis, and it looks like Tulsa and RICE will be next.

When I have a few minutes, I’ve been wedding planning – I have 3 weddings I’m going to be in within like 6 months, so I’m trying to make sure everything is accounted for mine because I’ll have to buy 2 other dresses and gifts. Mo is in September, I’m in October, and Stac is in April. Then the following September or October is Mich. Of course, this April is also Linds – so many wedding so close together.

Once again, Honey and I have been trying to get everything taken care of and trying not to dissolve into a big hot mess of indecision. So far, I’ve got the dress, the venue, the date, the officiant (although I have to talk to him regarding that fact) and I have my wedding party. After that, well, let’s just say we’re working on it but it’s not helping. I think honey is going to book the DJ today – and I have to call the caterers, but it’s really hard at work with the boss over my shoulder all day. I’m down to 3 different ones, but I haven’t been able to speak with one at all ‘cause there is no answering machine and they were busy. The other two I have to work on the menu – unfortunately, no one down there has the same palate that I do, and I’m having to ditch things I like for things that will get eaten. It’s really sad to starve on your wedding day because you don’t eat all the “home cooked” food people think you should. Honey’s the same way I guess – except he can eat chicken, and not worry about wearing every little crumb. After that, the things left are the limo and the flowers and making sure my wedding party is dressed – my girls I’m letting pick their own dress as long as it’s the right color. The boys, well, Honey will have to handle that end.

So – I already have the dress, but I thought you’d like to see the ones I looked at and you can guess which one I picked. Oh, that reminds me, I have to email the photographer AGAIN and see when we can set up engagements – Since we’ve booked, the only time she messages me is when she’s worried we’re changing something. Questions go right out the window! ARGH!!

Kat

Dress One

Dress Two

Dress Three

So leave me a comment and let me know which dress you think I chose. I might chose a random correct answer for a prize!

Peace!

all things paper: JJ Quilling Design / Diane Boden Crane

2011-02-16T12:58:00.000-06:00

all things paper: JJ Quilling Design / Diane Boden Crane: "For those of you who are like me and continue to be amazed at the possibilities of paper quilling, do I have a post (and a giveaway) for you..."

It's a paper giveaway -- and such wonderful papers at that. I've been doing a lot more paper art these days making cards, so I thought I would share this giveaway with my readers. I'll share the cards as soon as I've finished taking pictures of them all, but for now, I have 4 of them up on my facebook.

What's your favorite paper hobby?

Kat

Blog Giveaway! and Essie Polishes

2010-11-11T11:20:00.000-06:00

If you've read this blog at all, you know that I LOVE nail polish. I like looking at the colors and the styles and consistencies. My favorites are China Glaze, but there are SO many other brands. I read Kronicles of a Konader quite often, and right now, she's having a giveaway with Apothica for the ESSIE brand. I don't use Essie too much. I have Funky Limelight, which is a bright neon yellow you can see at right. It's a little on the thin side and requires a few coats, but it is very bright when you get it on.

Essie is one of the higher end brands, I've found, and they carry lots of shades of pink, purple, and red. My favorite colors right now are "Damsel in a Dress," "Tart Deco," and "Martini in a Bikini."

Apothica carries all these colors and more and can be found at the link above. They have decent prices and a great rewards program. I have to look through later today and see if I can decide on some colors, even if I don't get Essie, I know I'll get some good deals. Kronicles of a Konader is having a giveaway in conjunction with Apothica, so be sure to stop by and leave her a comment and follow her blog. With all those car engines and power lifting, she shows women that you don't have to have "girly girl" hobbies to look and feel like a beautiful woman!

It's That Time Again

2010-11-03T17:01:00.003-05:00

If you know me at all, you know that November for me means 30 days of insanity. November 1 through November 30 are what is not-so-commonly, but becoming more so, known as

NATIONAL NOVEL WRITING MONTH!

You see, the goal is to write 50,000 words in one month -- it boils down to 1,667 words per day. You start at 12:01 am November first and you don't stop writing until you reach 50 THOUSAND words or 12:00 midnight on November 30. I'm not going to lie -- it's a huge undertaking and I've never reached the finish line. I've gone half-way, but I still have a long way to go. So far this year, I'm doing good. I'm using the same story as last year, BUT, I'm retyping and adding to all of it as I go. As of today, the 3rd day of the month, I'm 1,111 words AHEAD of schedule. That's more than 8 times more than I was ahead last year at this time. But, I can't slack now. I'm ahead in the count, so I have to keep it up so that I don't fall behind if I get busy -- or worse, WRITERS BLOCK! I know, it's enough to make me want to crawl under the bed and hide with the cats. You can keep up with my statistics here:

http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/user/244761

And I'm going to try to update my blog from last year with the new chapters and totals, so be sure to stay tuned HERE as well.

http://katsnanowrimo10.blogspot.com/

AND: A brief description editted from the Nano Site: NanoWriMo is a seat-of-your-pants approach to novelling. We begin writing Nov.1. The goal is to write a 50,000 word novel by Nov. 30. Valuing enthusiasm over craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel writing program for everyone who has thought about writing a novel but has been scared away. Because of the limited writing window, the ONE thing that matters is output. It's all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, & write on the fly.

I'm still working out, as well -- except for a week last month when I was pretty damn sick, but I walked on the weekends (13.5K) to make up for it. Here are my totals for last month:

October 12 - 30 minutes; October 13 - 8 flights of stairs; October 16 - 5:; 1 hour; October 18 - 3 flights of stairs; October 23 - 3.5K: 45 min; October 30 - 5K: 1 hour

My total for the entire month was 32.50 toward my supplies.

My totals for November so far: November 1 - 8 flights of stairs; November 3 - 3 flights of stairs;

So, blog o'sphere -- how is your writing coming??

Dirt Cake Cupcakes?

2010-10-17T22:14:00.000-05:00

Today was an experiment in turning two different objects into one delicious dessert. As you well know, I love cupcakes, but every Halloween, I make a dirt cake. And I love dirt cake, it's gelatinous and sugary and diabetic coma inducing. All my friends will eat until they're sick if I let them. So today, after finding NO help on the inter-nets finding a way to make my dirtcake into cupcakes, I decided to try to make it on my own. I had all the regular dirt cake ingredients on hand since I'm going to make a dirt cake next week, so I started with that and some Devil's Food cake mix I had in the cabinet. Here's what I did:

Split about 24 oreos, (enough to line the bottom of your cupcake tins. I made 24 from one box).
Use the half with the icing and line the bottom of your cupcake tins. Crush the other halfs in a food processor or smashed in a plastic bag.
Mix the cupcakes according to the box, but before pouring it into the cups/tins, I mixed in about half of the crushed crumbs into the batter and mix well.
Divide into the cups and cook according to the box's instructions. Once cooled, trim the tops of the cupcakes to a flat top for icing. Afterward, cut holes into the top of the cupcakes. I used a size 12 icing tip and punched holes and then used a 1/4 tsp scoop to take out the centers. (These make great snacks!)
Meanwhile, prepare the mixture for the centers:

4 oz. of cream cheese
2 tbsp butter
1/2 confectionary sugar
1 3 oz package vanilla pudding mix
1 3/4 cups of milk
6 oz of Cool Whip or other chilled whipped topping (needs to be chilled and not canned)

Cream cream cheese, sugar, and butter.
Mix pudding, milk, and cool whip in another bowl, then add into the first mixture. Continue mixing until it is a pudding type consistency.
Spoon this mixture into a piping bag and then pipe into the center of the cupcakes.
Afterward, pipe frosting onto the top of the cupcakes and then sprinkle the rest of the crushed oreo over the top. I used store-bought butter cream frosting and colored it with gel food coloring to make them green.

I decorated these with some candy bones I bought from Target just to give it more of a graveyard feel. They aren't exactly like dirt cake, but it's really good and creamy in the inside with a crunch on the bottom. If you bake them up, drop me a line and tell me what you think -- or if you have any tips for fixing the flavor, let me know!

Ja ne!

Leaping into Fall

2010-09-28T16:57:00.003-05:00

I really need to stop using "okay" to start my blogs. I have a better background than that, and while this blog isn't professional or trying to be, starting 75% of my posts with the word, 'okay,' is not. It's almost the end of the month and it's finally starting to feel like autumn. Since the Autumn equinox was on the 23rd of the this month, it's about time. I like summer, but I think that's more along the lines of the fact that I used to be off. I'm not anymore and this 110 degree weather at 6 pm is for the birds! The last two days, it was around 60 degrees when I left the house, so I brought out my pediatrics jacket. I like it, since I don't have another zip up jacket in brown and it's comfy jersey knit without being too heavy. I've been trying to look for sweater dresses too and I'll have to do more shopping this weekend -- maybe check out Dillards, Sears, and Target before Ross and Marshalls. I've looked at Penney's briefly and Kohls didn't have anything like last year, but it's been so abnormally humid that I don't think they wanted to put out long sleeves too soon.

I've been playing a new game on Facebook called Cupcake Corner, which is a lot like all the other café games, except this one is little desserts and I love cupcakes, so I joined. It's kind of cute, but I don't like that it runs all the time. I like games that when I leave, I don't have to worry about things going bad or losing all my money. I'm not all about the real-time. I have enough real life. I don't want to have to devote more to the games on facebook. Am I not on that soul-sucking website enough? I'm still trying to work out and I've re-cast on that pair of socks from hell and I'm working on the stockinette stitches before starting the pattern back up. For those of you who don't knit, that's the part where it looks like just rows and rows of the same stitch. When you do straight knitting on two single sided needles, that's accomplished by one row of knit stitches and one row of purl stitches, which alternate to give you this pretty flat fabric of little 'v's. On socks, and other "knitting in the round" projects, you knit every stitch on the circle, because you always knit across from the same side instead of turning your work back and forth. Some knitters get really bored with stockinette stitch, because it's the same two stitches over and over, but really, all knitting is the same two stitches over and over, it only matters if you do them in a different order or if you twist stitches to make new patterns.

This week, I hope to bake a loaf of homemade bread -- yum yum -- perhaps bake some cupcakes as well. I'm thinking about cheesecake cupcakes or dr. pepper cupcakes. Both sound really promising. I'm also almost ready to tally up all my workouts for the next month. I've got to subtract the money for the Halloween polishes from China Glaze and I needed to buy a new needle, because Lislis destroyed one of my cables last weekend, so I ordered two balls of Pirate King from Knit Picks to make the shipping worth while. That will either become socks for Aaron or my brother. I think that's it for today. If I think of anything else, I'll do edits later.

Totals since my last post:

September 23, 2010: Nothing. I was going to workout with Aaron, but did not feel well.

September 24, 2010: 8 flights of stairs (30 minutes)

September 25-26, 2010: Nothing, I went home for the weekend.

September 27, 2010: Nothing. My out-of-town doctor and the nurse returned and I was swamped all day.

September 28, 2010: 8 flights of stairs (30 minutes). I usually work out tonight, but Aaron won't be staying to workout cause he doesn't want to miss Glee so I won't get the chance.
Complete total so far: 71.5 -- I think I'll need to reevaluate my minutes for next month and cut down on the amount for stairs. *nods*

That's it for now. Okay bloggers -- what's your latest purchase and are you super happy about it?

Sock Woes

2010-09-22T15:45:00.003-05:00

Okay, so the day I'm having hasn't been the greatest, but Mom was able to find me a ticket to Hope's play this weekend, and I'm going home so I'll get to see the family, which is awesome! Hope will be in Bull in a China Shop at Le Petit Theater this weekend, and all the reviews so far have been great! I'm really looking forward to a little bit of theater with my mommy.

However, my sad news is that the socks I've gotten a good section finished on will have to be frogged back to before the pattern work. There's several reasons for this. One -- I miscounted the number of rows I needed in the length, and subsequently forgot to accommodate the extra length of the foot in rows of plain stockinette stitching. Two -- I misread the pattern when I transcribed it from cuff-down to toe-up and I've been doing a single cable twist over two stitches instead of a double over four stitches, which changes the look of the pattern. Normally, I would just leave this and keep going anyway, but as these socks are supposed to be a test knit for someone else's pattern, I'll have to go back and fix the error. At least I'm only about 22 rows into the pattern, which is where I was supposed to start the heel, but am not ready, so I'll just undo those rows, add the extra stockinette rows and start the pattern over. It's not an outrageous amount of work, but I really hate frogging those little stitches. Maybe I'll move my Addi Turbo needle to the front side while I work up the pattern and move it back for the heel. I'll be sure to take a picture before the frogging and after, so I can post them both on here and you can see the difference. The only thing really making me frown about this is I'll be pulling out the lime green stitches, which have been giving me no end of grief, and putting them right back -- yes, it's still cute, but the other sock is SO much cuter for not having a HUGE break in the color. You'll see when I put the pictures up.

Workouts have been doing well though, and we're getting closer to the end of the month! Yay!

September 18-19, 2010: I don't work out on the weekends, because I try not to do much and relax.

September 20, 2010: 8 flights of stairs (up and down, remember) (30 minutes)

September 21, 2010: 8 flights of stairs; 30 minutes of DVD workout. (60 minutes)

September 22, 2010: 8 flights of stairs (30 minutes)

I'm supposed to be working out with Aaron tomorrow since W will be gone and getting ready for his trip to France. Let's see how that one goes!

Oh, as promised, here are the pictures of the Soft Rose Wave Socks!

Woot woot!

2010-09-17T13:47:00.004-05:00

So, it's finally Friday -- this week has just drug it's feet on some days, and a couple of others, I looked at the clock with a double take that it was already 2 or already 3 (Then the rest went backwards. . . *HMRPH*

Yesterday, I got home from work and picked up the towels -- after stopping by Target and buying way too much stuff, including cake mix, so I can bake cherry coke cupcakes this weekend. (They had some really cute Halloween cupcake papers and bone sprinkles, but I didn't buy any of them! I stayed with the plan.) What I did get, however, was some 1lb wrist weights because with the stairs I've been climbing at work, I'm not doing much for my upper body. That's what yesterday's workout was all about. I did the cardio and the upper/mid fix workouts on my Carmen Electra DVDs, to add another 30 minutes to my 8 flights of stairs (That's 8 down and 8 up.) That means, I got a full hour. I'm a little on the tense and sore side today, but I have to go get the mail in a few minutes, so I'll try to keep it up. I've done it 3 days already this week. I'll also try to get a little exercise besides walking the mall or Boardwalk this weekend -- maybe I'll take a brisk walk around the neighborhood. I should also probably get on a scale Sunday.

When I checked the mail after my workout, however, my order from 8ty8beauty had come in! That's right, China Glaze's Awakening Halloween Polish set. Here's the display image:

Aren't they just to die for? I love the purple one (Mummy May I) and the Orange-y one (Ick-a-Body) Ya know, like Sleepy Hallow? I think they have great names. The Green one is Zombie Zest and the other polish is a clear top coat, although a moon light white would have been cool too. I'll post swatches after I paint with them this weekend, although, there are lots of swatch posts all over the web. (It took my forever to find someone selling these. I've searched Ulta, Sally's, and all the mega chains -- I finally found them on one of my e-tailers, but the other is still sold out!)

Anyway, I finished the "Soft Waves" sock, (pictures later) and I've got almost two inches of the "Sherbet Socks," so I hope to add to that too, and I need to fix that last image set from the Northwestern game last weekend, and I want to do some more scrapbooking on my Disney Halloween scrapbook, so I've got a lot to do this weekend. I hope I can get at least some of it done before it's over.

September 16, 2010: 8 flights down stairs and 8 flights back to the office. Then cardio, upper/mid fix from Carmen Electra [60 minutes!]

September 17, 2010: 8 flights down, 8 flights up, then 3 more down and 3 more up. [40 minutes]

Have a great weekend, mina-san. And if you'd tried these, or you're doing your own workout plan, leave a comment and tell me about it!

Chugging

2010-09-14T14:59:00.008-05:00

. . . and not the beer kind.

I have been trying really hard to get into workout mode lately, but being alone most of the time makes it really hard. Aaron works out at school with W and keeps saying that I could come too, but they mostly do weight training and I'm not into that sort of thing. Plus, I don't want to interfere with their 'bro' time. I've been doing my Carmen Electra dvds at home, but although fun, it can be quite boring without someone to share it with. I know it's hard to talk while working out, but I want someone to collapse with after and smile and think -- yea, that was a great workout. Not a cat that sniffs my face while I'm doing pushups. It's not so cute, and cat hair is really hard to dislodge from sweat-soaked skin. I won't enumerate what I see in the mirror these days, since it's too depressing, I guess I just have to take it a little at a time and hope it all works out. (No pun intended).

September 11, 2010: Sweated my butt off in 100 degree weather in an open-air stadium at Northwestern, which would count if I hadn't eaten Popeyes for supper and shared nachos at the game. [0 --boo!]

September 12, 2010: Nada. Blah! [0 minutes]

September 13, 2010: 3 flights up, none down. [5 minutes.]

September 14, 2010: 6 flights up, 8 down and 8 more up. [45 minutes] [so far. Workout night!]

September 15, 2010: Didn't work out -- instead went to academy and school with Aaron, who needed to see if he had closed his lab. Today -- 8 flights up and down. [30 minutes.]

On the up side: I finally found someone who had the China Glaze Awakening Halloween set on sale and ordered them immediately before they sold out. Aaron says that counts toward my total for next month, but I have to argue, because I was lemming them and looking for them WAY before I started my work out regimen. Maybe I'll take half the price from my total in compromise.

Keep on burning . . .

2010-09-10T10:39:00.005-05:00

Okay Day 4, September 10, 2010. Aaron didn't work out yesterday with Walter, cause he's headed out of town for a concert this weekend, so I didn't get much of a work out either. Went down 8 flights and up 5, and I realized that each flight is 24 steps, not 20. That's a whole nother 4 steps! WOOT!. Wish me luck!!

September 10, 2010: [25 minutes] (so far!)

Being Resolute

2010-09-08T14:27:00.006-05:00

As much as I hate to admit it, I've put on a few pounds -- it's not like a ton, or even really like 20 pounds, but I am getting heavier and I need to get off my fat butt and work out again. So, with the idea from flinty over at Polish or Perish, I'm going to start an incentive program for my work outs. For every 10 minutes that I work out, I get 1 dollar to use on nail polish or cupcake items. She has hers set up that the longer she works out, the more expensive of a polish she can buy, but since I rarely have days that I can workout for 90 minutes or longer, I'll just use the dollar increments and they only last for the next month. No roll over to get something really expensive, so I have to work out for it in that month. At the end of the month, I'll tally all the times and that's how much I can spend in October. And to keep my honest, I'll try to post all of the totals here. We're at the beginning of September, and I know I've done some stairs in the past week, but since I can't remember exacts, they don't count. Here's the total so far:

September 7, 2010: 30 minutes of intense cardio; 3 flights of stairs (that's 72 up and 72 down, which is 10 minutes, as agreed upon by Aaron.) [Totals: 40 minutes]

September 8, 2010: Nothing yet today, but I'm going to take the stairs down this evening and back up to get my things for class, which should count as 192, plus the 60 steps back to 5th floor, which is not working out for 30 minutes, cause it only takes about 15 minutes total but as 72 steps is 10 minutes, 192 steps should be just over 30, but I will count it as 30. (Okay -- so I didn't make it up all 8 flights, but I made 6.) [20 minutes]

Wish me luck on keeping up with it, since my thighs are a little sore today.

Michaels Mini-Haul and Cupcakes (PIC Heavy!)

2010-08-25T16:00:00.000-05:00

Konnichiwa!

As I’ve mentioned before, I am a major sucker for cupcakes. I really like trying new recipes – although I won’t be using any more Martha Stewart for a while – her last cupcake recipe I used didn’t rise at all! And her caramel recipe was completely not right to fill the cupcakes – it was kinda runny and poured right out the bottom, even after I let it cool in the fridge. And the peanut butter frosting was far too rich and just wanted to slide right off the cupcakes. Oh well. Since then, I’ve done fun-fetti cupcakes with rainbow chip icing for the Grad Student Council bake sale and helped raise over $1000 for two Gulf Charities. SO YAY!

Funfetti Cupcakes with Toppers

I’m planning on making some Mountain Dew cupcakes from the Confessions of a Cookbook Queen blog this weekend and Paula Deen’s Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf to go with them since we have to stop eating out so much. I even bought some really cute cupcake liners to put them in! Look -->

I finally found some Mary Engelbright Cherry Berries too so that I can use them on the mini cupcake and mini cake toppers for my cupcakes! They should be so cute! Here’s what else I found while I was perusing my local Michaels. . .

Martha Stewart CupCake Punch

Cupcake Corner

Yep! That’s a Martha Stewart item – I said I wasn’t using her recipes. I didn’t say anything about her craft items. And it makes a really cute little corner punch.

Cupcake Brads

Candy Stickers

I found these really cute cupcake brads and stickers while looking for metal findings to do some pressed penny jewelry.

Pumpkin Patch

Autumn Sprinkles

I also found these really cute buttons that will be adorable in my Disney scrapbook with all the Halloween pictures

Tink Stickers

And that wonderful boyfriend of mine got me these really cute stickers for my fairy obsession.

Tokidoki Stationary

Cute Food Stickers

And last, but not least, I found these stickers and stationary that were just too cute not to get. I got the stationary when our local Borders closed and the stickers were from Michaels.

Anyway, that’s it for now – so bloggers, have you found anything cute lately??

(WHEW! That post took a lot out of me -- blogger really needs to find a better way to insert pictures without minute HTML changes!)

Blog Giveaway!

2010-08-20T10:50:00.000-05:00

Mon Coin a Moua is having a giveaway on their blog for subscribers. Just look at all the stuff you could win! Now, I admit, I just found this blog, but they have some great information about polishes and makeup for all you pretties out there! Make sure to stop by and give them a few more followers -- Just click the link in the title, or in my side bar -- and the contest is open until August 31, so that only gives you a few more days!!

Catching up. . .

2010-08-17T17:00:00.000-05:00

Lately it seems as if that's something I just can't do. Granted, I'm kinda lazy. I do my work -- I just do it in my own time. As long as I have patients scheduled for a few weeks in advance, I don't see the need to panic and schedule every chart on my desk. However, they continue to pile up. As soon as I think I've got the schedule set and ready to call the 40 something people for the next month, I get told that she needs another vacay and I'm moving everyone around. I mean, it's her prerogative. She can take a vacation anytime she wants. That's why she's the doctor. I just wish it wasn't so last minute that I'm shuffling the same patients further and further back. I think I have enough patients on my desk to schedule into next year. And don't even get me started on the ones that call like 10 times in the week I get the referral, but when I try to call them to schedule closer to their actual appointment, forget it. I might as well try to reach Santa Clause. At least he has a stable address that doesn't return to sender 3 times.

But I digress. I've been meaning to blog lately, but I haven't been able to f ind something to blog about. In the meantime, I've started writing on some of my stories a little more and I'll try to post them and the prompts I've been working with on my Teases blog. In the meantime, YOU could head on over there and tell me what you think . . . or even leave me a message here with something you'd like to see me blog about -- maybe something you'd like to see researched more?

Anyway, that's all the time I have for this minute, kiddos, so I'll catch you on the flip side.

SO BLOGGERS, WHAT ARE YOU BLOGGING ABOUT TODAY?

Leave your interesting or creative responses in the comment section BELOW! (Thanks Ray!)

CUPCAKES

2010-06-02T14:35:00.000-05:00

For those of you, who know anything about me, you know that I am an avid baker, who has an undeniable love for cupcakes. And I'm not the only one. Lately, cupcakes have been popping up EVERYWHERE! I've seen jewelry, t-shirts, socks, shoes, folders, nail accessories, and even scrapbooking items. There are yarns with cupcake names and my favorite lipgloss is a shimmery purply pink called "CupQuake" from Victoria Secret, that tastes like icing. Here are some of the newest and cutest cupcake items I've found.

Bake it Pretty
Bake it Pretty Blog
Bake it Pretty has cup liners, sprinkles, toppers, packages, and everything else you need to make your cupcakes the cutest EVAR! They have a store and a blog, where they can give you recipe ideas and the shop to get all your ingredients. My favorite are the shaped sprinkles and colorful nonpareils with the unique cupliners -- Like these:

Cupcake Cupcake Toppers
Confessions of a Cookbook Queen is a blog by a self-professed cookbook and cake decorating collector. Not wanting to part with her cupcake toppers, she set about making her own. I first learned about her blog from EpiCute, but I just couldn't pass up copying down her idea to try it on my own. Here are her cupcake cupcake toppers:

Cupcake Yarn
Cupcake is a yarn line by Lion Brand. It is a medium worsted-weight afghan yarn, which means it's on the thicker side, but not too bulky for slipper socks. It comes in 8 colors, with cute names like "SugarPlum" and "Marshmallow." Here's my favorite, "Pink Lemonade."

All Things Cupcake
All Things Cupcake is another blog about cute things: Cupcakes. They feature the best of everything cupcake, from tv shows with cupcakes to reader tattoos. It's updated daily and has been running since 2007. They have recipe book reviews, pictures, ideas . . .if it has a cupcake, they have it. And if not, send it to them and they'll be happy to add it to the site.

EpiCute
Epicute is a blog that's part of the famous Cheeseburger Network, which includes LolCats, GraphJam, and FailBlog. They feature cute food and food items, be it savory or sweet. Updated daily (or close to it), there's usually some sort of cute cupcake to get the ideas flowing.

Cupcake Nails
So the latest craze in nail art in Japan has been to add bulky acrylic decorations to the acrylic nails before gluing them on. There are lots of different designs with bows and Hello Kitty and just about everything, but the ones I think are Supa Kawaii are the cupcakes, of course. I found these on Etsy: (note: these exact ones are sold out, but she might have more.)

Then I saw these, and I'm not sure where to get them, but they are so cute. A little too expensive for these types of things since I'm sure they wouldn't last a week on my beat up hands, but they are really cute anyway. And I found the last ones a while back and saved them because I wanted to try to paint something similar on my nails so I wouldn't have spent so much money. The last ones are from the Tokyo Fashion Expo and I think they're the cutest.

I also bought some nail polish called Cupcake by ORLY when I couldn't find the Sprinkles color from China Glaze. I think they would be very pretty together, what do you think?

I'll leave you with some random cupcake images I found on Epicute and Etsy. A quick search on either site will give you the cutest things from jewelry to food boxes to ornaments. The first two are from Epicute, the second an Etsy vendor.

So forum: What's your favorite cupcake?

My socks.

2010-05-27T15:11:00.000-05:00

Okay, I've been working on my hand-knit socks, and actually making some progress now. I think I have a couple of inches left before I can start the ribbing on the first sock. The next pair will be knit two-at-a-time in some hand-spun wool that my sister-in-love got me from her trip to Alaska, but those will have to be after the entrelac scarf I'm gonna knit for mom. It will be my first time trying entrelac and I've heard at the beginning it seems like you're doing everything wrong and all of a sudden it's like magic and beautiful. Okay -- I know most of you out there don't know what entrelac looks like, so here's a picture of it.

I really like the woven look of this design. I'm going to do it in variegated yarn with a brown and blue color-way. My socks are in Schoppel-Woole's Zauberball. I've heard a couple of different names for this. The first was Tropical Fish, and more recently Rich Jewels, but the rainbow effect is beautiful for socks. It's a little expensive at about $20 per ball, but I can get a pair of knee high socks from a single ball, so I think it pays off for this type of work. I have a couple of little holes in the sides where I transferred from one needle to the next on the circular, but I think it adds some character to my first pair of hand knits. I knit some baby socks before, which can be seen on my facebook page, but those were simple on size 8 needles. This is yards and yards of knit on size 1 needles. They're only 2.25 mm around.

You can buy Zauberball in several places around the net, but here's the best two sites I've found:

Webs: Yarn.Com http://www.yarn.com/webs-knitting-crochet-yarns-weight-sock/webs-knitting-yarns-schoppel-wolle-zauberball/

Paradise Fibers http://www.paradisefibers.net/Zauberball-Sock-Yarn-p/472458.htm

In looking for some more Zauberball colors, I ran across a new yarn that I might have to try out called Flying Saucer -- it makes ring patterns like space particles when knit at the right gauge, which is perfect for socks. I'm just having trouble finding someone besides a wholeseller that has it for sale. Even the Schoppel-Woole website is not helpful. The wholesale site says that "Knitting Under the Influence" here in Shreveport shops from them, I'll just have to find out if I can get it from them and make a trip sometime since their website does not exist. Here's some of the Zauberball colors:

Oh, and before I forget, I posted these on FB, but here's the "so far" pictures of my socks. They fit well and feel good, so that's all that matter.

So forum, "What's on your needles?"

Nails

2010-05-14T16:14:00.000-05:00

So today, I wanted to talk about something that goes along with socks, but isn't necessarily sock related.

Nail Polish.

There I said it.

I've been reading a lot of blogs lately. A LOT. Most of them have been comics like

Girls with Slingshots by Danielle Corsetto (Yay Sprinkles!)
Something*Positive by Randy Milholland (Yay Choo-Choo Bear crossovers!) and
XKCD (Have to love geek comics with stick figures)

But I've been looking at a lot of makeup and nail blogs too. While looking for new polish designs and ideas lately to remove the Bahamian Escape (China Glaze) and Snow (China Glaze) from my toenails and replace it with something else.

Don't get me wrong, the colors are brilliant in the blue with white polka dots, but I love to change it up. Today, for instance, they are Snow with Significant Other Color (OPI) over the top, which partially makes them look dirty and partially gives them a pretty pink/orange/green shimmer. The color is very pretty by itself, even if it's a bit translucent after 2 coats and you can still see a nail line. I might try it over a more muted color than the Snow. I've also got a few more colors on the way that I'll have to swatch up and post, but here's the Significant Other Color.

I've also got the For Audrey (China Glaze) that I ordered a while back. I'm really digging the China Glaze colors, although the formula seems almost different for each one. Some are very smooth and thin and some are really gloopy, but dry nice without streaking in two coats. I don't like to put more than that, because it tends to get too thick and chips super easy. Here's the For Audrey.

Please excuse the horrible images, but my phone doesn't take the best images in bad lighting. These are both one coat of NailTec Maintenance Plus with two coats of polish and one coat of China Glaze Holographic Top Coat.

Anyway, I started this blog with the intention of giving you two of the new blogs I've been reading a lot. The first is The Daily Nail (http://daily-nail.blogspot.com). She is trying to do 365 different designs in 365 days and so far, she's doing well. I don't have the patience to change my polish every day, but she's got some great designs and I've gotten to see some of the Konad plates from her. The second I want to share is Polish or Perish (http://polishorperish.blogspot.com) She's got some great swatches of color and I suggest checking her out before buying because she gives a good detail on how it applies and how many coats they need to make it opaque. The third, is Dr. Frankenpolish (http://drfrankenpolish.wordpress.com/) and this one is all about showing you what mixed polishes look like. It's got some pretty colors and it's another good way to see what colors go best with others.

I think that's it for today. If you have a favorite blog or site you look at for polish, just leave your response below. And to borrow from Ray William Johnson, "So forum," What color are your nails?

Writing

2010-04-28T16:30:00.000-05:00

Okay, so my last few posts were about socks -- which is all well and fine, since "socks" is in the name, but in the past, I've also talked about writing, and that's what I want to bring up today.

I've been doing some research lately on plotting, since I don't usually map out a full plot in my head, and in the end, I actually never get to the end, and well, that's got to stop. I decided in order to get the time line down for The Senate Race, I needed to write down my major plot points and make sure they were all in order. To do that, I enlisted the help of the interwebs in order to see what advice other writers had on the subject. I came across quite a few sites that were helpful and some interesting links on other subjects that I'm going to share with you today. And if you have any tried and truth methods that you swear by or swear at, even, you can leave me a comment and I'll check them out as well. Let's get started, shall we?

http://www.diyplanner.com/ I came across this site looking for tips, and lo and behold, they have a little program that installs super fast that allows you to create your own planner with just a few clicks. It's really simple and I made a few daily, weekly, and monthly so that I can seen everything at once and map out which hobbies I'm going to work on which days so that I can actually get some work done across the board. For example, my knitting class is on Thursdays, so I can work on my socks on that day and I can scrapbook and work out on Tuesdays, because I know Aaron works out. It's all there in my planner.

http://www.learner.org/interactives/literature/read/plot1.html This site wasn't what I was looking for, but it offers some basic information on Plot, Point of View, Elements of Plot, and Characters -- it appears to be a textbook companion and indeed, I seem to recall some of these stories from my high school texts.

http://johnaugust.com/ This guy has a lot of information on screen-writing, but he's also got a pretty in-depth archive covering an exhausting set of topics. Luckily he has a search box right there in the side bar.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/112552/tips_for_plotting_how_to_create_a_fascinating.html This is some more basic information about plots, not really the diagrams I was interested in, but some questions to ask yourself when setting up your story. Since the story I'm working on already has a cast of characters, and I pretty much know how and where everything will play out, I might use this for a later story.

http://www.musik-therapie.at/PederHill/Structure&Plot.htm -- this site has a lot of diagrams and information on all the parts of the novel. This particular page is on Structure and Plot and diagramming the elements of your plot.

http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/plot-diagram/ This is a cute little flash site with a diagram plot builder. You just put in headers and a brief (really brief) description of what's happening. I created one, but the description is so small, I couldn't put half of what I wanted in some places. I'll have to use a page and separate them one by one.

Pretty much every other site I looked at said the same things these did -- and for those of you to still prefer a paper book, there are a lot of books out there that discuss this at some length. Here are just a few that I turn to whenever I get the chance:

Braine, John. How to Write a Novel.
Brande, Dorthea. Becoming a Writer.
Brohaugh, William. Write Tight: How to Keep your Prose Sharp, Focused and Concise.
Burack, Abraham Saul. Techniques of Novel Writing.
Burnett, Hallie Southgate. Fiction Writer’s Handbook.
Burroway, Janet. Writing Fiction.
Edelstein, Scott. The No-Experience-Necessary Writer's Course: A Unique Stress-Free Approach to Writing Fiction and Poetry for Anyone Who Ever Wanted to Put Words on Paper.
Hubert, Karen M. Teaching and writing popular fiction: horror, adventure, mystery and romance in the American classroom.
Lowenkopf, Shelly. Secrets of Successful Fiction Writing: A Guide to Techniques and Approaches the Professionals Take for Granted(Santa Barbara Writer's Conference Sh)
Saunders, Jean. How to Plot your Novel
Unknown. The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers.
Unknown. The Plot Thickens: 8 Ways to Bring Fiction to Life.
Unknown. The Writer’s Mind: Crafting Fiction.

So if you have any others that you turn to, and I haven't mentioned it, just leave me a comment and I'll check it out. Or if you've read one of the last three books and have the author's name on them . . .I'd appreciate it. I couldn't look them up before this post, and I've heard them mentioned a couple of places with out author attributes, and they deserve all the credit for them. If you have questions or if you want me to look up something to add to the next rant -- just leave me a line. Until next time blogger-geeks!

Keeping Busy.

2010-04-16T16:48:00.000-05:00

Gomen nasai – I am so sorry.

I told you guys I’m horrible about actually keeping track and updating things. Yesterday was the deadline for the 2^nd Annual Little Miss Matched Project Sock contest, and I’m happy to say that I sent in 3 entries. Maybe I’ll do a few next year. I had one character, one animal print, and one weather design and I think they came out good. I’ll update everyone when voting begins to look at the participants. I’m still meeting with Dawn to work on our knitting class on Thursdays, so anyone in the Shreveport area who wants to be in a Stitch and Bitch, you can leave me a message and I’ll give you the details, or you can come. We meet in the BRI at about 5:20. Just message me before you come so I can make sure we’re meeting that week. I’ve been making a little progress on my rainbow knee socks. I’m up over the ankle and about to start the increases for the calf area. They’re just beautiful in that ShoppenWoole tropical fish yarn. It’s really fine, so the needles are tiny – size 1, which makes the work go pretty slow, but it makes the work that much better. I’ll post the pictures as soon as I get them off my phone. You’ll be able to see my pointy heel – I think the other will work out better, but it fits well for my first pair of socks and my first time with the short-row heel work. I’ll try to post some of my scrapbook pages as I get them finished as well. Other than that, work has been busy and so I’m keeping my home life simple.

Keep my updated and leave me comments in the box BELOW.

Ja ne!

Types of Socks

2010-03-17T17:05:00.000-05:00

Okay -- so I've been doing some looking around, and I'm with wisegeek.com on this one: if you think the only type of socks are the white ones that come to your ankle or part way up your calf are the only socks, then you definitely have not been shopping lately. There as many styles and colors and you can imagine. Below I've listed some of the basics styles and shapes, starting from the bottom of the foot, going up.

Anklet --these socks are just like the name implies. They reach about ankle level and are mostly used in cases where you don't want a lot of the sock showing. A lot of men wear these socks with tennis shoes since they are more sporty and you don't have to continuously pull them up while moving. These are often divided into three categories, no-show, low, and quarter. No-show does not show over the ankle and usually has a tab to keep them pulled up. Low reaches just to or just below the ankle and quarter reaches just above. I've also read that many schools with uniforms are abolishing ankle socks -- for various reasons of course, but statistically, the most common reason seems to be that teachers are unsure students are wearing socks with some ankle socks and therefore it can become a hygiene issue. They don't seem to be differentiating between no-show socks and other ankle socks. Never bothered me since I don't particularly care for these socks.

Crew -- these socks are the working man/sometimes woman's staple sock. They are mid-length (usually 6-8 inches above the shoe line) socks, often reaching to mid-calf and have a ribbed cuff to keep them snug to the leg and in place. They are, I think, the most commonly used type of sock, since they are simple and versatile, especially for crew workers, as the name implies.

Knee-High or Over the Calf -- Socks in this length often tend to be one of two styles: athletic or novelty. It doesn't mean that there can't be socks in other styles that are athletic or novelty, but since these socks come up to just below the knee, they are more on display than ankle or crew socks. Toe-Socks, which are novelty (usually) socks with separate areas for each toe, rather than one full area, are often in this length. These are also my favorite type of sock since they are cute and warm, but not heavy.

Over the Knee -- These socks could just as easily fit into the knee-high category, but they are a little longer, reaching to the thigh area instead of just the knee. Often this style of sock is a novelty costume sock, but if you group socks and stockings together, thigh-high dress stockings would fit into this category as well.

The other style that could possibly be included here is Stockings or Tights. These are usually made of nylon/lycra blends and come in two basic shapes: stockings, which are like socks, but usually sheer and should be held in place by garters; and pantyhose, which come in a variety colors and designs with a undergarment style waist band to hold them in place. There are also foot-less tights, but since the whole point of the "sock" is the actual foot, I am going to ignore them for the sake of argument.

What are your favorite styles of socks? Do you have a favorite place to buy socks? Right now, I'm really into the knee highs, and I'll explain more on why next time!

Little Miss Matched

2010-03-11T16:26:00.001-06:00

Those of you who know me personally know that I like lots of bright colored socks. I ran across a company recently that caters to that whimsy. It's called Little Miss Matched and they carry lots of different styles of socks, including sport length, knee high, and anklets. More specifically, however, their socks don't come in pairs. They come in sets of three, designed to be mixed and matched as the mood strikes. You can see some of the new line below. They have similar colors and styles, so that they match, but don't.

So, for the second year now, the company is holding a competition for new socks. You have to design 3 mismatched socks for one set. You can send in as many entries as you want and they hold a online vote for the winners. The winner gets like BIG BUCKS and to see their socks in the new line. I've done two full color sets so far and I have another drawn to color, so I thought I would share my socks with my readers! I'll post one from each of the two I've finished because I don't want to give away all of them -- just in case anyone out there wants to attempt to steal them from me. I'll keep everyone posted on the deadlines and such and I'll post more later.

Ja ne!
HKat.

New Dawn

2010-03-09T11:12:00.000-06:00

It's a new day, it's a new dawn -- it's a new life.
It's a new day, it's a new dawn -- it's a new life.

And I'm feeling good.*

Actually, I could be feeling better today, but I wanted to get this blog started so that it can go somewhere. I haven't decided yet, if this will remain mostly a blog, or if I want to transform it into a sort of web page like my writing blogs, so bear with me while I continue to make transitions. It's so hard to find a decent webhost these days if you aren't interested in paying. I know, they're pretty cheap, but when you don't keep it up, it's just not worth the extra money every month.

SOCKS!!

Anyway, I guess my first post should be about socks in general -- I've been trying to get some definitive information for the first socks and where socks come from and here's what I've learned:

Sock, pronounced [sok] is usually defined as a short stocking usually reaching to the calf or just about the ankle. It has it's origins before 900 B.C.E. and comes from the Latin soccus, meaning slipper. Some of the earliest socks were found in Egypt, and were noted to be knitted toe-up. This is important because it allowed easier rework of the toe and heel when they fell out of repair due to use. These are usually the first parts of the sock to be worn through, and today, they are often reinforced to keep them in tact. Knitting toe-up also allows the creator to fit the sock as it grows, which allowed for a more uniform and comfortable fit.

Earliest socks were made of animal skins and fur and used predominately by tying them on the feet with strings to protect the foot from cold. Later, the Greeks used them on actors in comedies as they could be easily slipped on and off. By 1,000 B.C.E. socks were used as a symbol of purity and status among the nobility, since only the richest could afford decorative stockings and socks.

With the invention of the knitting machine in the 1800's, socks could be produced at a much faster rate and by 1938, the invention of nylon made making blended socks with cotton, wool, and linen easier with ensured fit and stretch. Today, we still used nylon and a blending method to ensure sock fit. Creators can blend a variety of colors and designs to create socks in all shapes and sizes from ankle length to over the knee. Team socks are even used to distinguish one team from another based on the color of the socks.

There are several different types of socks and styles, but we'll save that for another day and I'll leave you with a picture of one of the earliest recorded
socks!

*Feeling Good by Nina Simone

It's almost time. . .

2009-10-21T15:08:00.002-05:00

Okay chickadees. It's almost that time of year. The time when a whole group of writers jump off the deep end and pledge to write 50,000 words from 12:01 am on November 1st through midnight on November 30. It's a daunting task that requires you write 1,677 words every day for 30 days. Any many do it. They write 50,000 words and then some. Yours truly has never finished, but I've gotten half way. . . and I keep going back. It's gotten me writing, even if I haven't finished, and that's the purpose, isn't it? To write and write and write instead of killing every word you put on paper. I have a habit of over-editing instead of finishing writing first. I keep thinking that this year will be different, and maybe it will, but if I don't finish, at least I'm writing.

If you live in the Shreveport/Bossier area, feel free to stop in at our write-ins this year, so far it looks like the Barnes and Nobles on Youree or the Cupcake Gallery on Youree. And sign up and put your pen to the paper. If you want to follow my adventures this year, stay tuned to my blog for the link. I think I'll start a new blog for this year's story, like I did a few years back.

As always, keep on writing!

I shouldn't have kept you waiting...

2009-07-08T13:58:00.005-05:00

Okay, I know, I know, I haven't written much lately at all, and it's wrong of me. I've been super busy at work the last couple of weeks, with my part time boss in from California and having to get all of his stuff done before he leaves again. Plus, my full-time boss took a trip and some vacation, so she put all of the stuff that has been piling up in her office for over a month on my desk so that it wouldn’t be in her office when she got back. I still haven’t finished sorting through all of it and I have the stuff I’m supposed to do on a daily basis that’s adding to the stack while I try to finish the “boss man’s” dictations. All in all, I’m exhausted and it gives me a headache. I’m actually typing this at the bottom of a dictation at the moment to rest my brain before I write about another pregnant woman with a baby problem or another sick baby with a bigger problem. And I know I’ll have a bunch more to do tomorrow and I still have two to finish today for him to sign.

On happier notes, I’ve finished the front side of Aaron’s scarf and about 1/3 of the back side. I would have probably finished it, but I ran out of yarn and need to go get some more, unless I make it strip-y and I don’t think Aaron would go for that. I even offered to do a design or two on the back, but he said he didn’t want it any more complex than it is. I was going to do the items that make the Marios on the back, but he said it was too much. Oh, well, I guess that means I’ll finish faster. Until I can get the yarn, I’m working on a baby kimono for Emily in the complex office because she’s having a baby girl in September. I’ll do another one after for Aaron’s niece or nephew. I think I’ll do one in lime and one in turquoise because neither color is really gender specific – and if she doesn’t like them, I’ll sell it on E-bay or something. I think I might do a stuffed toy too – or some baby booties. I’ve just been in a knit and not a write mood lately. I still have to do the quilled white rooster and the scrapbook for Disney last year and start this year and the trip we took to the Caldwell Zoo.

Oh well – I better get back to work. I’ll try to write more about my new fav band later!

Here's the pictures of the scarf.

Why I Write

2009-04-17T13:17:00.002-05:00

I was reading Miss Snark's blog on agents -- I highly suggest it, even though she's retiring it, it's got great "snarkives." And one of the posters in the comments posted this bit from Dylan Thomas. I like his stuff, but this one just struck me. Writers should heed this when we write and write for us and because we can not do anything but write. I don't write to publish otherwise I would have finished more stuff and actually query my work. I write because I have to get the voices out. I have to give them breath and life and growth. I write because I have to.

In my craft or sullen art
Exercised in the still night
When only the moon rages
And the lovers lie abed
With all their griefs in their arms,
I labor by singing light
Not for ambition or bread
Or the strut and trade of charms
On the ivory stages
But for the common wages
Of their most secret heart.

Not for the proud man apart
From the raging moon I write
On these spindrift pages
Nor for the towering dead
With their nightingales and psalms
But for the lovers, their arms
Round the griefs of the ages,
Who pay no praise or wages
Nor heed my craft or art. --Dylan Thomas

Why do you write?

On Second Thought

2009-04-16T15:15:00.003-05:00

I was looking at my older posts, and I just realized I've had a blog for 5 years now. Not that I was ever very faithful about writing in it, but that's a long time. Maybe now that I'm trying to be more serious about writing and wanting to get my PhD I'll be more consistent about logging on. It's funny: Last year at this time, I was going nowhere and it didn't really bother me. After my stint in the hospital, it seems like everything is clearer and more focused -- even though what I have isn't life-threatening. I guess any kind of tragedy can put your life in better perspective. I went to college for English because I wanted to write, and now I've been out of college for 3 years now and I'm no closer now than I was then. Sure, I'm a better writer now, but what good is that if I don't write? I've been told I'm good at it -- so what's the problem? Why, if I have all these characters and ideas inside me, haven't I finished a story since Running Away? And that was a short story -- I have all these ideas for novel and great characters and I write dozens and dozens of scenes, but I can't cohere them into a novel length production and in the end all I'm left with is scenes. I've started reading Plot by Ansen Dibell. It's supposed to help with problems like mine and I've bought 5 more books on writing, including one on romances and one on overcoming writer's block. Maybe they'll help. I think I could write more if I had some type of encouragement as well. . . but I don't have that here. I thought about joining a writing group, since there's one for Romance authors here in Shreveport, but it's rather expensive, and I was told I'd be the youngest there. Maybe I should find another online community. Aaron was going to get me a subscription to Paula Deen's magazine for Easter -- Maybe I'll get a writing magazine, even though there are only 4 good ones and out of 10, the highest only got like a 5.8 on this review site I was reading. Maybe once Prelims are over Aaron will consent to reading part of my novel. Until then, he's got to study -- or he's supposed to be. I think a little feedback is all I need. Maybe I'll post on Mediaminer or AFF and see if I get any hits. *shrugs*

Research on Senator

2009-04-16T10:22:00.003-05:00

With blogger introducing mobile blogging and email blogging, maybe I’ll get the chance to update this page a little more often . . . then again, maybe not. It’s not that I don’t really have time to write, which is the case sometimes, but rather that I don’t have much to write here. I’ve been trying to work on my characterization for Senator, but I’m unsure on Antoinette’s looks. I’m pretty sure I want auburn hair and green eyes, but as far as length or style, I thought about longer hair so that I could have her in a ponytail cleaning the villa or in a short choppy Victoria Beckham look so that it’s not the classic Southern debutante that her mom is pushing for. M is helping me think about it, but she’s rather partial to long hair from years of having to have short hair from her mom. I’ve had both, and although I want to grow it out for my wedding, I’m okay with the short styles as well. It really depends on the facial structures of the person I think. I think I’ll have to do some more research on pictures and write some more to see what it feels natural for her to be doing. Chase on the other hand will be a bit easier since he has to be the height of fashion. It’s a little different having a female character that doesn’t care about fashion and a male that responds more to the society. Most of the novels I read – especially the Regencies – have men that have hair that’s a little longer than fashionable and does exactly what they want because they are high enough in society to ignore most of the rules. It will be a little different doing a more modern piece as well, where society shapes a lot, but is not as strict on what happens before or after marriage. I won’t have to pay as much attention to the ton since it isn’t England and they won’t be in a normal society too much since I want to base most of the story in Greece – I’m leaning a lot toward Kythria. I started with San Padre, but I think that’s a little too populated and touristy for her “confinement.” I haven’t decided yet if I want her to have the baby in Greece or not. She’s only 4, maybe 5 months when the story opens, so I have a few months to play with.

On another note, I've been looking for a good primer for my eyeshadow -- blame it on too many vlogs and youtube subscriptions on makeup (I especially love panacea81) since I have that huge manly 120 eyeshadow palette, I've been wanting it to come out right. I found one at Target, but it was awful-expensive, so back on the shelf it went. I tried vaseline -- Lauren promotes that if you can't get a good primer -- and I would love to have hers, but I did find these neat little cream shadows from Victoria's Secret (yes, I am biased since I used to work there). They're part of the Beauty Rush collection and although they're a little shiny, they work great as a primer for pigment powder shadows. I got three (Bronze Medal - kinda a bronzish brown, What a Blush - a light pink color, and Glampagne - a neutral cream) and I love them. Smooth, and they stay put! I was already addicted to the lipglosses (still use my Cupquake, Buttersgotcha, and Gimme Smore) but it looks like they have a lot of new flavors out. The mascara in that line seems really good too (I picked up a navy one and a purple one). More after I've played more with that or checked out the new makeup from VerySexy.

I don’t know if anyone is reading this blog, but if you are, leave me a message and let me know what you think.

Still moving

2009-04-14T12:39:00.002-05:00

I've updated the Teases Blog for anyone interested in reading it. Just a partial song. Life is moving onward. Mom and Adam are coming in this weekend for a bowling tournament and I went home last weekend for Easter. Did a little bit of shopping and saw family that I really haven't seen in about 2 years. I have to work to clean up my apartment this week so it will be presentable for Mom to come, since I don't want litter and junk all over my rooms. It's pretty easy to clean up everything, just time consuming. And I have to go shopping so that I will have food for lunch this week and food for her this weekend, although on Saturday night we'll be going eat at Chef Lee's, so no chinese food during the week. . .We'll probably eat at the bowling alley on Saturday for lunch, but I don't know how long it will take for him to bowl his games. I think it's the state tournament, but Adam doesn't listen to anything, so I don't have any details. I'm not even sure it's at Holiday Lanes, I just know it's in Bossier and their website says they are completely booked for that day. I guess I better get back to working on my story. I started reading a new book on writing last night called Plot: How to build short stories and novels that don't sag, fizzle or trail off in revision -- and how to rescue stories that do. It seems pretty good so far and I hope it can keep me on track and maybe I'll finish Senator. I have an idea of what I want to happen and I have the two main characters although I don't know them as well as I should yet. I'll probably do some more work on them in the next couple of days. I have a villain I think, besides "society" but I don't have a personality or description, or hell, even a name for her yet. She's just the fiance so far. So, this blog is getting long enough and it's not helping me write Senator or Cowboy's Song, which I want to get a OneNote book started for as well, so that's all for now.

Comments will be wined and dined until complacent.

There is a reason. . .

2009-03-31T13:20:00.004-05:00

Okay, last couple of entries I talked about blogging more as a way to make myself write, but Aaron suggested that I start journaling as I did in high school and it's true, I kept a pretty updated journal from junior high until the start of college and it really helped me keep my thoughts organized enough to write, so i've picked up a notebook and started a new journal. I don't know if I will keep it in the notebook, since I can use all kinds of paper and clippings in a binder and I have an empty binder at mom's that I can put everything in. It will also help me to keep track of some of my pictures and ticket stubs and what not so keep it updated. I can't wait to go home for Easter and get it now. I've even started writing on one of my other stories recently to take a break from Mission so that I don't get overwhelmed with it and put it aside for as long a time this time. I think I'll update that on the Writing blog, so check it out, it's called Senator and I think it will make a great novel, or maybe even novella. I think there is a bit much there for a short story, but sometimes all of the background just makes the characters that much more mysterious. I don't want them to be boring.

Still Working. . .

2009-03-23T16:31:00.001-05:00

Okay, I know I said I would try to write at least 15 minutes a day to get back into the swing of it, and I've been slacking big time. I have been writing. A letter here, a note there, just nothing major. I did work on my story today and added in about a page inside my already fleshed chapters. I need to move forward with it, but it's hard because I know what I want to eventually happen, it's just getting to those points without coming off really cheesy. Anyway, I have 10 minutes left to work and my writing time, so I'm going to work on biographical sketches. Maybe I'll post them here after so you can help me as I work through my characters.

Ja ne!

>*.*< Kat

Day 2 and 3

2009-03-11T12:40:00.007-05:00

So yesterday instead of blogging I wrote a letter to my Japanese penpal. It was a pretty long letter. Longer than my last fiction post, but that's not going to cut it for today. I need to start writing something creative and something with a bit more substance because if I don't start writing again, it might go away. Some days I'm scared that I've lost it. . .that maybe the words won't ever come again like they used to. When I started getting sick, I was tired all the time and I didn't want to do anything. I just laid on the sofa and moped about. And now that I'm getting better, I am starting to want to do things again, like read and work with my knitting, but the words just trickle. They used to pour so fast into my brain that I could hardly keep up with the information before the next idea was crowding in. I used to have the voices of my characters in my head keeping me up at night and now I pass out so fast that the voices don't come. I try not to get depressed since, getting depressed won't fix it and it just upsets Aaron. I think I'll have to find a writing exercise page again and do one every day just to see if I can force myself into a habit since i know the talent and creativity is there. It just seems to be dormant. I tried my hand at writing fibonacci poems a while back to try to get creative. Here's a few that I came up with:

I
Fold
Paper
Cranes because
Maybe after a
Thousand my wish might be granted.

Wow.
Space
Can be
Really high
Maintenance when everyone
Takes a holiday from reality.

She
Is
Heather:
Lieutenant,
But do we really
Even know anything about her at all?

I've also had a song by Wynonna Judd stuck in my thoughts for a few days. I guess I'm feeling kinda nostalgic. I've been singing "Come Some Rainy Day," after all. Maybe I'll start a new story with that.

When I first saw you,
I knew I would love you
Halfway through sophomore year
I finally asked your name.
When I kissed you,
I lost my heart completely
And all we wanted
Was just to stay that way.

We move on,
Put those dreams away
Hoping that we'll find them
Come some rainy day.
How could I know
That everything would change
Except the way I miss you,
Come some rainy day.

New Beginnings

2009-03-09T16:19:00.005-05:00

Since this is the month for NanoEdmo, and I didn't write a lick during November. . .to be fair, I was in the hospital with an IV in my right arm for a good portion of it. But instead, I'm going to use this month to start writing again. Since I already edit all the time, and it keeps me from writing a lot of the time, since I edit the same thing over and over instead of adding more, I'm going to start doing writing exercises again like I did to keep the creativity going back in college. The rules are simple. You must write at least 15 minutes every day. More if you wish, but at least that. And you can write about anything. . . your shopping goals, a new story piece, why you are too busy to write for today. . . anything. You can even expand on a piece you started on another day. So. Here is the piece for Monday, March 9, 2009. Leave me a comment and let me know what you think.

I watched her as she sat there for a while, pen in hand poised above the blank sheet of paper. her face was lax, her mind far away from the blank stare and the empty lines. I wonder what has triggered such a journey, as her eyes gaze in the general direction of the pen, unseeing and unmoving as her fingertips. She blinks and partial thought returns as she pushes the pen to dance along the page in loops and lines forming words and thoughts, even though I can tell by her absent minded smile that portions of her mind are still far away.

"Did you need something, Commander?" The flourish of scribbles halts as she turns her face to look up at me. She's taken to speaking only in Japanese to me, my native language rolling off her tongue with an ease I can't fathom after years of English.

"No." I respond simply -- harshly, even when I know it's a lie. I need more than she can give . . . more than she knows.

"Oh, okay." She returns to her scribbles, looking over the patterns of words as if they will impart the truth, but even they seem to be lying to her today. She bites her thumb as she contemplates adding more words to the rows of letters and after a brief smile, she puts the pen back to the paper and begins to write again, my presence mostly forgotten in the flurry of ideas and explanation. I want to ask her what she's writing that's so interesting and is growing so rapidly down the page, but I don't and instead watch her for a moment more before kicking myself and retreating back to the relative safety of my office across the hall.

Celebrity

2007-10-16T09:57:00.000-05:00

Okay, now while I've had my share a meeting semi-famous people and people who have been on tv shows and stuff, like Brian Brushwood, Ron Irizarry, and my friend Ren (who is on K-Ville and works with Cal Penn,) I absolutely love my job and the celeb exposure it provides me. Since working here in June, I have met no less than 4 big name Hollywood people. . .well they may not be big name to you, but I have seen their work, so it's a big name to me. . .

First, Sharen Davis! She is such a phenomenal designer and so sweet and happy that you can't help but love her to death! In case you don't know, she was the designer on Dream Girls. I met her when she was working on the "Great Debaters" with Denzel Washington. Whom I also met. . .he was really laid back and kinda all over the place. On the day he came in the office, he was in jeans and a white tee. . .and he just kinda looked rugged.

Then yesterday, Matthew Broderick came in for the first time. He seems really introverted and quiet. (Dare I say, skittish?) I mean, he was in jeans but a really nice sweater both days (yesterday and today) but he doesn't talk much and he seems a lot older in person.

Then today was a major celeb day. . .they were casting for Feast, but that's nothing new . . .but Mr. Broderick came back and with him was Ally Walker. . . (well, at least it looked like her.) (AN: It was her.)She didn't even say hi. . .just walked through. . .I guess that's just my Southern Hospitality showing. (AN: When she came back through she was complaining about being tired and was really down to Earth, so I guess she was zoning this morning.)

Then, my favorite celeb sighting so far. . . JODELLE FERLAND!! She is so adorable. . .she just turned 13 this past week, and she's a phenomenal little actress. She's also really nice and loves smores poptarts, just like me! They were trying glasses on her for costuming this morning, and it's just awesome. She was just great in Kingdom Hospital, and although I haven't seen Silent Hill yet, I heard she was just awe-inspiring. I hope I can see her again this afternoon!!

Well, that's it for my brush with Celebrity in Louisiana today. . .I'll have to keep my eyes open and hopefully I'll recognize anymore people coming through!

The Off-lympics

2006-02-19T22:24:00.000-06:00

Okay so I don't know if anyone out there has ever had Off-lympics, but I can tell you that four idiots running around a circular hall in rolling office chairs has to be like the funniest thing ever. First race: mano y mano - CC and DD raced each other around the hall while the BC spun circles and watched. . . hilarious, right? But then you add in myself and AP, subtract CC and add the other AP and it gets better. . . those office chairs were flying down the halls running in to desks and walls and spinning like freaking helicopter blades. . . ah sweet killer furniture.

And as if that wasn't enough, Hide-N-Seek was our second event. . . it's spooky in an empty building. . .then you make the elevators go in circles. With only two floors to play on and 3 stairwells and two elevators, there weren't too many places to hide especially when there is only one unlocked room door in the entire building. . .and that was base. Oh my goodness that freaking tile floor was cold. . .my feet were nearly frozen and then I ran all the way around to get to my spot, so I was trying to catch my breath with a twisted ankle in an empty stairwell. . . it echoed so bad I thought I would go deaf. But with the potential of a professor in the building. . .we abandoned that game for Name Tag Search Party.

AB, FAP, and BP hid the two name tags for the bosses in the office and the rest of us had to find them. . .boys can't find anything. . .even if you put it right in front of them. . . like under the hole puncher. . .

End results? A promise for more nametag hijinks later and wishes that we could do it again. . .but unlikely.

Planning and Planning

2005-10-04T11:51:00.000-05:00

So I started getting together all the information I need to plan a trip to Disney for our Senior Trip. All I really know, is there may or may not be four of us, but there will at least be three of us. We want to stay on Disney grounds for at least a week, and that Aaron wants to go to Universal for at least a day.

Now, Disney is expensive enough, but when you factor in a hotel stay before and possibly after, plus 100 dollars for tickets into Universal to see both parks, meals for a week, and gas money. . .well, you get the picture.

I really want to do this with Aaron and Matt, and possibly, Lauren, but Matt and Lauren don't want to spend a lot of money. . .like more than like 5-6 hundred dollars. . . UGH. . .this is hard. . .I want to plan a good, fun vacation, but such strict boundries makes it really hard.

I hope I can do this.

JA NE!

How do you cope?

2005-07-13T23:11:00.000-05:00

Days like this, I wonder why I bother. It's not that I got held a half hour extra at work. It's not that I have to work 8 hours on Saturday afternoon, even though I told my boss that I couldn't work Saturday afternoons and that I would rather work mornings. I meet with my therapist on Saturday afternoons, since the rest of the week he's in Shreveport on an internship for what maybe our future. I don't even know what I want with my life anymore. . .But I'll get into that later.

Mostly, it's because, not only are those two things happening, but also, I feel like total crap with a head ache, and a stomach ache, and I've been sniffling and coughing for like 3 days. When I was finally able to leave from HELL, I mean, McDonald's. . .I felt like I was going to puke, or pass out. . .Or something along those lines. . .But I was going home, so that was fine. The VCR didn't want to work, while I attempted to balance a plate of nasty cold macaroni and a baked potato in my lap so when I reached for the other remote, there went supper. Stomach ache not going away anytime soon as I starve until breakfast tomorrow. Then I work 7 hours tomorrow. . .Off Friday. . .And 8 hours on Saturday. . .Why couldn't I have 8 hours on Friday and ZERO on Saturday. . .Instead of getting off at 10 on Saturday (yea, like that's gonna happen. . .Probably be more like 11) then drive home and go straight to bed cause I have to be back up and out the door for 7:30 to be at work for 8. How in the HELL am I supposed to be cheery with all the elderly people and the morons that come in on Sunday mornings on like no sleep. I'm not cheery with no sleep. . .I'm more like Annie. Delirious and hating people. My highlights were looking cute going to the bowling alley, talking to Aaron and Attack of the Show. They are awesome. .. WATCH IT on G4 at 6 Central and 11 Central. Or you can check them out online and see everything from the site. They even play "Happy Tree Friends" on Monday and Friday. Today, they blinged out phones and an X-Box. Kevin and Sarah are f'in awesome. You can even get clothes like them at JINX. I want the shirt that says, "You are so off My Buddy List."

So yea. . .The future. . .Well, who knows. . . I don't even know what I want to do really cause everytime I think I do, something falls apart, or something else becomes a major obstacle for it that is mostly impassable in this retarded little town or with the people I'm with or my parents. I'll never get anything I want staying here unless I can do it over the internet. Maybe I'll loose weight by the time I go back to school, and I'll feel better . . . And maybe I'll be happy for a while. I want to be happy, but sometimes I feel as if I'm one of those people who weren't meant for happiness...It's so fleeting when it comes and not nearly often enough to be called more than not. I thought I was supposed to be the optimist. . . .Maybe that's all an act too. I should have been in theater. Problem is my act is real life and no one knows or can even really tell. I want someone I can be real with and they won't get upset or ask me what the hell is wrong that I'm not being myself.

SLEEP, like DEATH, chases us all and one by one, at some point in time, we call succumb.

Good night.

Just trudging through life. . .

2005-05-23T23:27:00.000-05:00

I supposed I should post more, but lately, I don't feel like it. . . I'm still reading a lot, but I just don't feel like writing anything. Maybe I should start doing those writing excercises again where I make myself write for at least 30 minutes a day. . .I know I could make time to do it, but I just don't feel like doing that either. I played Fuel's Bad Day for a while tonight. . .that song kinda makes me depressed, but I like it, so I play it anyway and feel rather indifferent to everything. I've started diligent work on a scrapbook for Aaron and myself. I've got three pages done and several ideas, but I have no crafting glue since Elmer's makes the paper bubble, so they're just laid out and not really finished.

Adam made the All-Star team in baseball and he got first place in Singles and him and Luke got first in Doubles at City Tournament. The scores were in the paper last Saturday. He has a game tomorrow, and I think another on Wednesday, but I can't go to that one.

I still haven't found a job for the summer yet. . .I've put in several apps, but no takers. . .I have one I have to fill out for Dillards as soon as I get off tonight. They're looking for two people.

Maybe after I get up and clean the house a bit tomorrow I'll feel better. Maybe.

=*.*= Weyrd Kat

Summer has arrived. . .

2005-05-13T01:03:00.000-05:00

So Summer has started and like you, I'm hard at work trying to find that elusive summer job. . .I don't really care what it is. . .just work. No experience is a major issue. . .

Anyway, I went see 3 Doors Down on Wednesday, and they totally kicked ass. There was a mystery band called "Top of the Orange" that performed a half hour set, and they were awesome! Click the link up top and check them out! SilverTide sucked. . .who's that guy think he is? Keith Richards? It's not cool to dress like an 80's rocker. . .his band consisted of a nerd, a Chilli Pepper's wannabe, and two Monkees. . . come on. . .in rock, it's 1/3 music, 1/3 looks, and 1/3 presence. . .and he was 3/3 horrible. Breaking Benjamin on the other hand. . .that's a great presence. . .I wasn't too big into them after listening to the cd, but their performance was hot. After that, the guys from TOTO came out and I got autographs from the lead singer, Jeff Beritiech, and lead guitarist, Brandyn Ulmer. . .they're really down to Earth fun guys.

Then 3 Doors Down took the stage. . .Oh my! What an awesome show! I sang along and bounced around and had a great time. The lead singer, Brad Arnold is from Mississippi, and he was on 106.7 before the show, and I never really thought about him having that Miss. accent, but the minute he started talking on the radio it came out STRONG. It wasn't too bad during the show, however. Here's the rest of the band: Matt Roberts (guitar), Chris Henderson (guitar), Todd Harrell (bass), and Greg Upchurch (drummer) all from Escatawpa, Mississippi. You can check them out at their website or any cd store. Their new album, Seventeen Days is awesome too.

Anyway, that's it from me for now! Take care!

Journal 6 for C&C - Romantic Tech

2005-04-12T01:14:00.000-05:00

Sorry I didn't do Journal 5. :(

My tech project is looking to be an extension of some of my research for my undergraduate thesis. So far, I want to look at what the romance novel actually is as compared to what popular culture defines it as and why it is not accepted in more academic circles for the work that goes into making it a piece of fiction. I know that a lot of critics call Romance novels ‘porn in words’ and that it is really just ‘sappy, annoying crap’ but there is a lot more that goes into a novel of the genre than just two characters having sex or confessing their love for one another. Historical novels must be accurate, or have a really good reason why something is portrayed in a not historically accurate way (which is most often frowned upon.) This topic is important to English literature because it is a large field of writers (one which I want to join) that aren’t getting their (although mostly, but not always her) proper credit for all the work that goes into a novel simply because it isn’t part of the ‘dead white guy’ canon. Romantic literature includes drama and poetry too, yet we accept William Blake and Shakespeare. Shakespeare wrote about emotions and romance. However, these were male writers, almost in the same way that Richards is accepted as canonical for his ‘romance’ Pamela, because he was Victorian and male. Romance novels are usually very good prose, written in a way that attracts a reader’s attention with not only what they are saying, but the format and style they say it in. I intend to add links to some of the sites I’ve looked at with information on selling statistics for romance novels and the most popular types of novels. There is a set formula followed by these authors without this formula being enforced or even stated. My thesis will look at this formula and my tech project will highlight some of the basis points and plot devices in romance and briefly explain what they are. Hopefully this will help me to more clearly define my thesis proposal and my thesis itself.

Journal 4 for Comp & Comp - Bolter's Meaning

2005-03-18T13:52:00.000-06:00

Please excuse this if it's not coherant. . .The flu medicine is making my system do loops. - Ashli =^.^=

I think Bolter’s book attempts to offer up the idea of an ever changing genre of writing. The writing space he attempts to define is not only the place where you postulate your ideas, but the mind where you form and shape the ideas you put out. In this way, the writing space of the mind is constantly being remediated by the changes our mind makes to the way we think and the way we perceive ideas and information. He outlines that not only is the field in which we write ever changing, but also the words, ideas, and the way we perceive them. As we saw in Chapter four, pictures and graphics are being remediated with text and vice versus. In this way, pictures are used on the web to enhance or even replace text such as a mailbox being used instead of the word Email. There are also places to get talking graphics instead of typing out instructions. Therefore, we remediate text with visual and sound art in order to catch the attention of the audience more readily and remove the need to read from our sites. However, Bolter makes it clear that those opposed to the remediation of print into hypertext often do so because the hypertext form could alter the argument by delineating the logical order of their idea. They also resist the loss of the authorial voice in hypertext that no longer lets the author denote the next step in the process or secquence in the story, but rather lets the reader decide how the story unfolds – in this manner, it is harder to distinguish who the real author is because the plot is no longer formulated by the writer but rather the audience. But, as Bolter makes it clear, there will always be a remediation of what is present because it is within human nature to always try to change things, whether it is for the better or not.

Journal 3 for Computers and Composition: The Problem with Bolter's Logic

2005-03-09T19:43:00.000-06:00

Perhaps one of the major problems in Bolter’s explanation of hypertext is that instead of defining what it is, he defines what it does. In this manner, it makes it harder to separate what he considers hypertext from preexisting definitions of hypertext, such as those used in a hypertext markup language (HTML). He also uses the Cartesian method of explaining hypertext by what it is not. For example, hypertext, to Bolter, is non-linear, unlike a book, which follows a linear plot order. He also attempts to argue that the book is becoming less popular as a means of publication because of the accesability of internet publishing, but contradicts himself in stating that “Both as authors and as readers, we still regard books and journals as the place to locate our most prestigious texts” (Bolter 3). However, as we see with the library at this university, it is becoming simplier to find a full print journal as a pdf file or e-book, affectively cutting out the need to host years of printed paper journals on the shelves. Are these e-books hypertext as Bolter means the word? I find it hard to dissemilate what he means from what he says. Perhaps with this seperation of printed word and thought Bolter attempting to redefine what he means by hypertext, but I’m still not quite sure of his meaning. I know what the HTML coding does for building, but is this hypertext of links and pages what he means when he talks about hypertext media? If he means the hypertext language of the internet as a means of remediating the language of the printed book, can’t he just say that? Does he have to bury it in literary metaphors and theory of what it should be? Not everything is a metaphor or theory. I think it’s this abstraction that helps to distract readers from an accurate definition of his point.

The Hypertextuality of Graphics - Journal 2 C&C

2005-02-28T22:03:00.000-06:00

For the most part, I am inclined to believe that even as we go to an image and visual based society from a textual, logic based founding we are still more inclined to use visual media arts as a enhancement of textual applications. Even if the text is not completely visible, as a viewer and reader, we are more inclined to pay attention to it and focus our attention on it if there is a visual stimulus accompanying the words. I was searching on friendfinder.net, trying to find a pen pal and updating my profile when they showed a statistic stating that you were three times as more likely to receive a response to your profile if you included a picture with it, and ten times as likely with a video file. There is an old saying that a picture is worth a thousand words, but in this age of hypermediacy, those thousand words may very well be hidden in the picture to start with. One of my favorite examples, which you can see below, is the header graphic for a site that is no longer runnning. Elaine Castillo is the author of the picture, and she incorporates the words into a montage of pictures giving the feel of dispair and loss to an otherwise normal picture of a man and mulitple shots of a woman. It’s the text that lets you understand what is hiding in his eyes and what exactly she’s bracing herself against. Even though the words overlap themselves in a display of color, the words that are discernable say enough about the picture to not need to be able to see every part in its entirety. The fact that you can’t see every part of the text or the graphics also gives a sense of chaos and the unknown between these two people. Perhaps they are lovers. Perhaps it is a tale of unrequited love. Perhaps they love each other and don’t know it. The fact that there are so many different ways the picture can be interpreted with the texts given, or judging from the text missing, leads us to realize the hypertextuality of the graphic in regards to the user’s definition of the outcome of the picture based on what they see of it.

2005-02-28T21:59:00.000-06:00

The Computers and Composition example from Elaine Castillo's "The World." Created in Printshop Pro.

Computers and Composition

2005-02-20T16:32:00.000-06:00

Okay, for the next few months, this will become my Computers and Composition journal for class so that I don't have another blog added onto my account. It doesn't really matter who reads it, cause I don't have anything to hide. So, if you're interested in my Tech class, go ahead and read until April. After that, it will go back to being my personal blog where I just post anything that I feel like rambling about. . .or flaming. . .I might do a little of that, but only about things, not about people's work cause that's just rude. People work hard to write their stories, and they don't need to be flamed at. . .a little constructive criticism works just fine. . .Okay. . .Back to my four papers before Friday. Take care!

Neku-chan,
Ashli

Mardi Gras

2005-02-05T22:50:00.000-06:00

Once again it's that time of year that makes me glad to be in Louisiana. It's Mardi Gras. That time of year where people from all over flock to Houma and New Orleans to get drunk and yell for little plastic trinkets that really don't mean anything unless you know some one who is going to ride the next year, or you're going to sell them to one of the many companies that sells them for more to some first time rider the next year. Of course you could get doubloons, but are you actually going to do something with that? And you could get blow ups, but they just pop and end up all over the house. Stuffed animals are almost like that too, and they're one of the most sought after things on the floats, well minus the underwear and the long thick beads. (known to most as pearls cause of the white ones that vaguely resemble the real thing.) I personally like to play with the stuffed animals, but unfortunately for my parents and happily for me, they end up piling up in my room. . .lots and lots of variations of teddies and such. My favorite are the pandas, but they're pretty rare. I did get a funny little dancing reindeer tonight though. It sings "rocking robin." Kinda cute, but not really. Maybe he'll grow on me, and maybe I'll just throw him in the hammock with the rest of my stuffed toys. . .There are quite a few of them up there now, and I keep getting more. Maybe I'll give them as throws one year, or I'll pass them on to my kids. . . something. . .

Okay, Ghost in the Shell is coming on, later.

Kat

Procrastination

2005-02-01T14:23:00.000-06:00

You know, paper writing time is the perfect time to remember that you haven't done a personal blog in quite a long time and so instead of doing your paper on media studies and ideas in analytical writing you convince yourself that you are justified because you wrote a sentence and therefore you can write a full blog and maybe play with the color and text and edit it several times before going back to your paper.

Maybe.

Maybe I just want to feel justified.

Maybe.

Maybe I lie too.

Actually I've done a full page and a half and that's a lot of work on a three page paper. ..half you know. That justifies me reading comics and blogging. After all, I haven't blogged in this one in forever, even if I keep updating Cowboy's Song in the other.

I made it in Argus. Who knows if I won. ..well, Angelin does, but she's the editor. I'm in and that's good enough. . .it's publication and publicity and us writers for all of our solitary lives, love praise. It's a blessing and a curse: The one time we crawl out of our fun little worlds and into the one of harsh reality. Great, huh?

I really must finish now so I can edit while Rico's in class and then print it for tomorrow's rough draft peer-editting session.

Ta Ta For Now!
ME in all my weyrdness.

My Stories Blog

2004-12-15T01:18:00.000-06:00

Hey, go check out my new blog with all my story pieces in it. Hope you read Mission. Take care!

Ashli

WEYRDKAT**TEASES

Guilty Guilty Guilty

2004-11-12T15:31:00.000-06:00

*Does a great big happy dance* Okay. I'll try to calm down now. Deep breaths.

Okay, so today, on November 12, 2004, the Final verdict for the Laci Peterson murder case was announced. Scott Peterson was convicted on one count of 1st degree murder of Laci Rocha Peterson and one count of 2nd degree murder of Conner Peterson, Laci's unborn son. I've been following this trial for the last 5 1/2 months, and while I have to give props to Mark Geragos' team for their attempt to cause doubt and get an accuital, it wasn't going to happen. Plus, it really looks bad if you 'have other business' to attend to on the day the verdict is being handed out. I mean, he knew that was happening, it's been happening for 5 months!

Anyway, I'm glad they got him, and I'm glad he's getting charged with Connor's murder too. I mean, he wasn't even remorseful at her funeral or when they were looking for her, instead he was on the phone with Amber Frey. And then, that sob story on 20/20 or whatever. . .he hated that Laci was so happy. Bastard. I mean, he even tried to sell her stuff before they found Laci's body. That right there tells you that he knew she wasn't coming back. . .not to mention the blood in the truck and the boat, the boat not being known to anyone but him, the hair on the pliers, the neighbor seeing him carry away a large object covered in a tarp. . .you don't mistake large body shaped things, esp the size it would have to be to be Laci's body for umbrellas. He took a shower and had a snack before he realized her car was there, but she was gone, and he did lots of cleaning that afternoon after he returned. . .Laci was supposed to be cooking, not cleaning.

I'll stop now. He did it. They caught him, and I'm glad.

Later

Week Two

2004-11-10T16:05:00.000-06:00

Okay, half way through week two and I'm trying not to go crazy. Actually, I'm probably crazy already, but I'm going to deny it while I get this done. I finished a 10 page Science seminar paper in like 3 days, and I sent it already so that I don't fret over it until Thursday. I thought I had a H.E.L. test due on Friday, but it's not due until next Friday, so I have a bit of time to finish and I can quit stressing about finishing it in two days. My word count is climbing little by little, and I'm not passed the half way mark in the time or words yet, but I'm barrelling toward it. I'm a day behind on my writing and posting because of my paper, but I will catch up this weekend, and then double time it through week four when I'll be at home for most of it, right until the deadline on that Tuesday after I'm back. I have a full week off for Thanksgiving when I just have to start DV and work on my HEL paper, which won't be too bad, and my Tech Project for AdvComp, and finish my Creative Non Fiction piece for the first. . .so I do have to write that one over the break. . .maybe I have more to do over break than I thought. . .I better get going. . .class starts soon and I have lots to do!

*kisses*
Ashli

P.S. Woohoo fun with color!

Day Two

2004-11-03T01:56:00.000-06:00

Nanowrimo has officially been going on for two days, and I have posted my allotment for those days (roughly 1,667 words a day). So, for the next month, don't expect too many posts here. I have too much to do to run both blogs, so unless I get a couple of free minutes, to see my progress go HERE Take care and See you on the Flip-side of November!

Wish me luck!
Ashli

P.S. - Two and a half papers for Thursday down, one and lots of printing left!

Just under 9 hours and counting. . .

2004-10-31T15:08:00.000-06:00

That means I have to finish my cultural codes essay today so that I can get my book back from Cassi and start on my DV paper so that I don't have to worry about those and I can get SciSem out of the way so that I can write on my novel. Whew! That's a lot on my plate, but if I work really hard I can take an hour off for good behavior and work on my novel for Nanowrimo tomorrow. . .plus it will help not having Adv. Comp on Tuesday because of election day (GO Bush!) So far, I have 9 characters that are major and two or three minor (at least everyone has names, unlike the story that went in Argus last year where my two characters only had nicknames). . .I also have to decide what piece I want to send to Argus this year. That's coming up soon too. . .I think I have a piece I like, and I want to expand on my elven piece, but that will have to wait until at least January so I have at least a month to edit, but I'll probably need two, so February it is. :) So, I'm going now. . .papers need to get done sometime. . .and blogging won't get them done any time soon.

*MWAH* *huggles*

Ashli

2 full days left . . .

2004-10-29T23:38:00.002-05:00

Well, I finally got to talk to John about Nanowrimo. . .He's participating. It's going to be a really busy month, but I think I'm up to the challenge. . .Granted, I've already got characters and a plot, but I don't have an ending, and some plot points are still pretty shaky. . .Plus, I have about a million and a half other things to write. Here's what's left of my list:

Cultural Codes Full Rough Draft for Advanced Composition. Due: 11-4
Democratic Vistas Position Paper 2 on Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. Due 11-4
Cultural Codes Final Paper due 11-6 at 5pm
Physics Test #3 - 11-8
Proposal for "History of the English Language" (ENGL 4000) research paper - maybe this wouldn't be too bad if I had a topic. :) Due: 11-8
Science Seminar Paper: I finally narrowed it down to two topics and I'm going to the library tomorrow. The paper must be at least 10 pages with 3 outside sources. Due: 11-11
receiving another Take Home Exam for H.E.L on 11-12 Due 11-19
H.E.L. Research Paper. Due 11-29
Creative nonfiction Final due on 12-1
Democratic Vistas Final Long Paper Due 12-8
Creative nonfiction Book Review Due 12-10
Physics Final 12-13

That will see me through till the end of the semester. It seems like so much in a list, but I know I can handle it. At least I don't really have to study for Physics, I just have to do the Lab Papers and Pre-Labs once a week. I really don't want to have to take Physics 2, but I don't have any other choice because Writing as a Profession (the capstone of my curricula) and Ecology 2, the other science I took, are only offered every other year, so they wouldn't be offered again until after my projected graduation date. Therefore, I can't take a science this Spring, and I have to wait until next Spring when I'm writing my thesis and trying to graduate to finish my sciences for this retard school. So, I'll have all writing classes next semester, except for Thesis Research Methods. Here's my classes that I plan to take:

Intro to Analytical Writing - MWF - 10am-10:50am - 3

Advanced Grammar - MWF - 1pm-1:50pm - 3

Computers and Composition - M - 5pm-8pm - 3

Writing as a profession - TR - 9:30am-10:45am - 3

Fundamentals of Linguistics - TR - 11am-12:15pm - 3

Technical Composition - W - 6pm-9pm - 3

Thesis Research Methods - F - 2pm-2:50pm - 1

That's 19 credit hours, which means I only have to take 14 for one of my semesters in my final year, which might help with that lab I'm supposed to take, and thesis, but I have to reorganize my schedule to show what I've already taken and what I'm projected to take.

Well, I better get going, I have to see about working on my proposal and getting some sleep since I didn't go see Rocky Horror Picture Show tonight. . .And it's not playing tomorrow. . .And that's sad. I wanted to go see it, but Aaron didn't, and well. . .We watched History of the World Part one instead. . .He says he thought it was tomorrow night, but I kept saying tonight, so I guess he just misheard or misunderstood me. . .It doesn't matter. I might go cry now. . .I need a god cry to get all the stress and frustration out of my system. . .At least I'm going back on my regular birth control pills now so I won't be as hormonally imbalanced. Sometimes I wonder if Aaron and I will stay together forever. I mean, I love him, but sometimes I get so frustrated that it seems like it might be over any day. . .And others, I can't wait to see him again. I guess that's just part of relationships and being so young. I mean, I'm 20 years old now and my hormones haven't balanced yet. . .But that could just be because I'm a late bloomer. It doesn't matter, really. . .And I have to go now.

Later!

Journal 5 (AdvComp) Cultural Codes

2004-10-27T14:40:00.000-05:00

After all this discussion concerning "cultural codes," what have you seen on TV most recently that has caused you to think about them?

“Cultural codes” on television seems like too broad of a spectrum to discuss. I don’t watch TV much, I don’t even have a TV in my dorm room, and the little TV I do watch plays the same set of commercials over and over because it is so late that they just program the server on repeat (those of you who watch Inuyasha and Wolf’s Rain on Adult Swim know what I mean). The one commercial that really sticks in my head, (besides the freaky one for “The Grudge” that made me not want to use the dorm showers) is the one for the Chocolate Factory.

Now I know that that’s cheesy, but I really want one. I am a chocoholic and I can’t help it. It appeals to the cook in me because I know how hard it is to melt chocolate without burning it and keep it melted smoothly. I’ve burnt many a chocolate bunny. Plus, I love making gifts. I could make chocolate gifts for all my chocoholic friends and then we could go to “lose weight/help I’m addicted” meetings together, wouldn’t that be fun? I suppose it says that “The ideal dessert should be/do/have chocolate, but I didn’t need a commercial to tell me that, I’m already an addict. Perhaps on a deeper level it discusses that “the ideal woman should make better desserts her whole family will not be bored with,” but that may be reaching.

Count down to NanoWriMo

2004-10-25T20:24:00.000-05:00

Okay, there are 6 days until NaNoWriMo actually begins, and I'm already kicking myself for signing up. I have to write 1,667 words every day to reach 50K, but I have so much to do for my classes. I have a:

Cultural Codes Rough Draft and Final Paper due (10-28, 11-4)
HEL Take Home Exam (10-29)
Lead Seminar on Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee (11-4)
1 Paragraph proposal for HEL Research Paper (11-8)
Physics Test #3 (11-8)
SciSem Term Paper Due (11-11)
Recieve another Take Home Exam for HEL (11-12, due 11-19)

That's a whole lot of stuff to cram all before Thanksgiving. . .I hope I can handle it. . .Wait, I know I can. . .better get started! Plus, I want to be relaxed enough to work on my figures over Thanksgiving, and I have to start bringing stuff home because i can't leave it up here during the holidays. . .:( I sure hope they don't condem the building over break. . there's no fricking way I'm living in Sabine with Aaron living in Rapides. . .they can't do that to the Scholars.

NaNoWriMo Challenge

2004-10-22T15:08:00.000-05:00

I've started another blog for NaNoWriMo. For those of you who don't know what NaNoWriMo is, it's short for National Novel Writing Month. That's November, in case you didn't realize it. I'm going to try to finally finish Mission Complete, since I've been working on it forever and have never even come close to finishing it, maybe this will give me the incintive I need. You can read what I have so far HERE. Wish me luck, 50,000 words is a lot of letters!

The Blame of Advertising?

2004-10-20T14:29:00.000-05:00

Perhaps “society” is the wrong “person” to blame for the effects of advertising on people. For the most part, I believe that it is the result of the individual’s self-control that causes downfalls such as eating disorders and gambling addictions, but one must remember that these are like diseases in many ways. The ‘user’ feels helpless to stop once they have started and at that point, perhaps they need someone else to step in take part of the responsibility from them until they have learned to control their problem. A lot of the times, these things get out of hand not because of the constant advertising, but because of the inability of the person to admit there is a problem. It is not the responsibility of the company to change their advertisements because someone believes this caused their problem. The point of advertising is to create a need for people to buy their product. As a consumer, a person should be able to discern what is good for them and what is a need, versus what is a want that could in the long run do damage to their mental and or physical being. In this manner, I do not think “society” should be blamed for the effects, they are only PART of the cause. The other part of the cause is the weakness of the person, and in this manner they should seek help for these weaknesses instead of seeking to exploit the companies because of personal downfalls.

I agree that there are many temptations in the media, but there are temptations everywhere, not just media advertising, but store advertising and visual perseptions. The media will not tell you not to buy it simply because that would be the opposite of what they want. It is up to the consumer to put a limit on the things they buy. Just because I like McDonalds French Fries doesn't mean I need to SuperSize them and eat the whole box when I'm not that hungry. No one can tell you your limits, you must discern them for yourself.

One day at a time . . .

2004-10-14T13:32:00.000-05:00

Okay, so the week is almost over and I've only got a few more things to do and then I can play Nintendo and poker and read what I want all weekend. Well, I do have to start on my project for CNF and possibly start on my paper for SciSem because they're both due at the same time, but that will be about all. . .Maybe I won't have any homework in Physics. . .Maybe, but I doubt it. We're starting centrifical force or some bullshit like that.

Oh well. . . anyway, I guess I better go work on my Physics PreLab or something useful so I can get it all done before I crash tomorrow. . . Whew, October has come early. ..this year is FLYING past.

The Cute Kitty.

P.S. - Check out my webpage!

Journal 3 for Advanced Composition Choose or Lose: VOTE

2004-10-12T18:37:00.000-05:00

First of all, I have made no secret of my personal views on this coming election and the fact that I believe the current President, George W. Bush has done the job he set out to do in office and deserves reelection. But, if I were not so biased, i.e. if Bush had not already served 4 years where I was allowed to view the actions he takes in office, I believe I would still vote for Bush on the following basis:

1. He has not personally put out ads defaming his opponents and has publicly asked for any ads on the air that do, to come to an end. Hence the reason the “Swift Boat Captains for Truth” ad is no longer played. Kerry, on the other hand attacked Bush for not personally calling out the creators of that ad. If Bush would have, it could have cost him support and caused an embarrassment issue with the creators. The fact that Bush called for the ad to be removed at all is very diplomatic of him, because he did not pay for the ad to be made and was not required to do anything about it.

2. Bush did not receive a purple heart in the Vietnam incident for shooting himself in the foot. Kerry advocates will argue that at least Kerry served in the military, but Bush did serve in the military, just in the National Guard. In times of war, even when the conflict is not on our home territory, military personnel is still needed to maintain security at home and be on call incase more troops should be needed in what ever country we are fighting. Bush did not dodge the draft like Clinton, but just because he was not in the middle of the conflict does not mean he does not know what was going on. Those who were the guard with Bush have given testimony to the fact that he was a great leader and a trustworthy person, but several of the men who served with Kerry have stated that he can not be trusted. Furthermore, his one kill in Vietnam was a crippled child that was running away from him.

3. Bush has taken a standpoint on each of the issues and sticks to his beliefs, while considering the beliefs of others. Perhaps maintaining a steadfast position in light of new details is not always a good thing, but at least he hears the issues and judges accordingly. Bush’s faith may not think gay marriages are appropriate, but Bush himself understood that marriages should be between people who love each other, not for the government or an overall church to decide. This nation was founded on many different beliefs, and should continue to be that way. Kerry, on the other hand, decides his viewpoint on the people he is talking to. While it is good to consider your audience, the goal of the speaker should be to persuade those who do not agree to their side of thinking, not to lie to them and say you feel the same way, only to turn around and tell their opposition the same thing.

4. Bush does not speak down to his audience, even though he graduated from Yale. Bush’s speeches, although probably not written by him, seem to speak directly into the heart of American people. He does not gloss over the facts with words the average American would have to look up, nor does he use technical jargon that is hard to follow. He continues to rally people to his cause, rather than watch them pass out in their seats from boredom. I ask you this, would you rather have someone who you don’t understand giving a speech of something that is important to your future, or someone who will tell you the important things in terms easy to understand?

It is not for me to decide who people should vote for, but when you do vote, I ask that you consider the facts as they are presented. Be sure you discern the truth between all the propaganda and lies.

The Week is Over. . .

2004-10-08T13:33:00.000-05:00

Wow, after a long, hectic week with four papers, a prelab, and lots of regular class stuff to do, it's finally over. I have finished my last class of this Friday and all I have to do now is fix the citations in my DV midterm paper and print it and then I am so DONE! Next week is not nearly as hectic with only a Final Rough Draft and lots of reading on the calendar so far. Thank goodness that I can finally relax.

I think we're gonna go watch a speech at the ISIS convention tonight, but other than that, I'm going to buy me some icecream and watch a movie or finally get back to working on Mission to see if I can finish it for a contest. . .not to mention finish an essay on global and distance learning for another scholarship. . .maybe I'll get the money to go to Italy after all. . . :)

MOOD: pretty happy. Needing sleep and sugar relaxation.

Last one for this weekend

2004-10-01T19:00:00.000-05:00

Okay last one for this weekend because I really have to write my papers now and stop goofing off before I fail something. . .so um yea. . .I leave in about an hour and I'm pretty much finished packing I just have to get it together and get it down stairs. . .I'll call mom in a little while and say good night and whatever. So, umm. . .yea. . .okay that's it! Have a great weekend!

Ashli

Damn I'm busy. . .

2004-10-01T01:56:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I'll be out of town this weekend . . .well at least all day Saturday and I'll have a bunch of papers to write, so don't expect a post from me. . .maybe I'll be able to post sometime next week, but so far it doesn't seem like it. Actually, I should be in bed right now and as soon as I brush my teeth I will be. . .there is much to much joy in sleep to spend too much time writing this tonight. Man there is a lot of shit to do: plan a fund raiser, write 3 papers, journal, get better, start 3 more papers, homework, readings, balance my checkbook, and take care of my neopets - My Pets - well, I'm going now. . .NIGHT!!

2004-10-01T00:54:00.000-05:00

My grad picture. . .I don't look like this anymore

2004-10-01T00:46:00.000-05:00

This is me and my love, Rico at his little sister's dance recital

October hasn't even started and I'm going to hit the wall

2004-09-30T00:35:00.000-05:00

Life is about to get major hectic on my end of the world. There is planning a fund raiser to do, several papers to write, a few topics to come up with. ..and most of it is due next week and I haven't really started. So why am I writing this blog and not working? Because it's past midnight and my brain shut down like over an hour ago. . .now all i can do is a bit of research and some recipe printing for the Italy trip fundraiser. I hope I can go in one sense, but I will miss Aaron something serious, especially since he's supposed to be going study for a few weeks in Shreveport and I won't get to see him during those weeks except maybe on the weekends. . :( Anyway, it's late and I was supposed to read but can't but that doesn't mean I don't need to actually go to class, so Later!

WeyrdKat
Check this out: Meet the President It's hilarious!

I should really probably go to a doctor. . .

2004-09-25T22:45:00.000-05:00

Man, I have been feeling sick for ever now. . .My head is pounding and I feel like I might throw up. I was supposed to go to the doctor this morning, but everything seems to pass in a whirlwind when I'm at home. . . I still need to pack and I want to move crap around in my room a bit more. . .plus I haven't done much in the way of polymer this weekend except finish building the cover on my box. I haven't baked it yet. It's just one of many boxed too. . .I have one I want to put a little geisha girl on and a couple I don't know what to do with. I really should quit goofing and get something done. . .later!

Updates: None, there's no time for anything and it's not even October yet. Or maybe I just don't want to take the time to open the builder right now.

2004-09-21T18:42:00.000-05:00

AHH CUTIE!! I love Inuyasha, and will talk to about anyone about him. *GUSH*

WOW! I'm moving up. . .got a blog.

2004-09-21T18:28:00.000-05:00

Yay, okay, so everything is going pretty well here, minus having to kinda re-take a Physics test and taking a test on Old English tomorrow, where as I DON'T KNOW OLD ENGLISH! Ugh! I should probably be learning that right now, but my brain is frazzled at the moment so it will wait.
For those of you here that don't know me, GET A CLUE! J/K. I'm the Weyrd Kat. Ya know, kinda like the Chessire Cat, but not pink and purple - more human. . .or was that alien. . .doesn't matter anyway. You can read this or my site and get to know me a bit better. . .or if you're brave, email me. . .MWAHAHAHAHA! *ahem* :) so. . .umm. . . yea. . .go click or something. . .show's over. . . (okay, leave!)