So, I'm done!

I'm finally finally done! No more evil professors! No more slaving away to homework! No more getting four hours of sleep a night for a week and a half! I'm done! I passed! YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY! ^_^

And I actually passed with decent grades! I'm totally surprised. I didn't even think I would survive a fall semester with five classes, must less do pretty good.

Anyways...

Tomorrow night is the New Year's ball. Yay! But I need to learn to braid my hair pretty before then, so I am going to try this afternoon. And toight we are going to Tammy & Adam's for a board game night. So that will be fun, I haven't seen Tammy in forever! And she is pregnant again, I need to find out when she is due...so I can knit her baby a blanket, or something, I guess.

I need to catch up on all of the things that I have been wanting to do but have been so overworked by classes that I haven't had time to do. Plus, I want to continue working with Maya and improving my skills with that, and eventually completely redo my senior seminar animation project. But right now I am just still so tired from the last week of classes, then Christmas, etc, and since Syd is working again I have been getting up early and doing more stuff around the apartment and stuff that I am just totally incapable of getting anything done at all. :P

Like right now I should be seaming my sweater...instead of posting this. Heck, I don't even know why I post stuff. O_O Not like anybody reads this, because I don't post regularly and I don't put pictures up and I don't even have anything interesting to say! So I guess this is mostly just a journaly thing for me. It's good for keeping to-do lists though. =)

Okay I'm going to seam my sweater now. And then figure out what else to do with my day.

I want to buy stuff now that Syd has a job but realistically I shouldn't, because we both need new dance shoes and we would like to take Shotokan Karate lessons (Syd used to, and misses it, and I think it would be fun and a good way to get in shape, seriously) and we want to go places (skiing at Mad River Mountain, the zoo, around? :P) and stuff and yarn is kind of sadly expensive. So basically I need to finish the projects that I have now (well, Anna's doll didn't cost very much but I am so close to being done I should finish it now, but Syd's sweater did cost a bunch and I should work on it, I just need to get the yarn divided up onto bobbins and am procrastinating that part :P) before buying yarn for any other projects, there are just six projects that I am really wanting to try (long opera gloves, fingerless gloves, lace stole for Mom, lace "ballet" dress for me, pirate socks, lace top for me, and maybe "Quidditch"/rugby socks for me..okay, so that is seven. :P Whatever!).

Okay, I'm going to start seaming now. See if I can get that off my list, at least!

Random to-do-ness (w/Syd):
1) scrapbook
2) airbrush
3) other art
4) go places =)

Random to-do-ness (by self):
1) design sketchbook
2) cross-stitch designs
3) string art (earrings? Stuff?)
4) little Mermaid doll
5) seam sweater
6) Syd's sweater (bobbins, first)
7) Maya!
8) call Tammy
9) Wii Games?
10) beading
11) that darn pearl necklace
12) put away Christmas presents
13) dust 1/2 the house done
14) sleep!
15) clean computer files
16) go through favorites
17) back up computer on harddrive
18) Hobbit Comics
19) embroider hand towels, place mats, etc
20) knit (see knit list)
21) make apartment pretty
22) bake/cook
23) needlepoint(s)
24) cross-stitch 1/2
25) poi
26) braid hair
27) organize recipes that I actually use in Word, add pictures, etc, and also make sure I have recipe cards written or printed for each one!
28) scan and organize all beading and knitting and lampworking patterns to pdf format and organize!!
29) 101/1001 list! >.<
30) Write
31) Figure out what to start boxing up...
32)

I will add more if I feel like it later.

I can't believe I'm done!

I'm done I'm done I'm done! But it doesn't feel like I'm done yet. :( It will, though...maybe once I catch up on sleep?

So it's almost time for New Years resolutions. I don't know whether to make any or none. O_O

So....

1) finish writing my 101/1001 list!
2) learn to knit socks this year
3) knit at least two: sweaters, lace shawls, scarves (presents), and gloves...
4) continue to keep sketchbook/inspiration/pattern idea "journal"
5) actually MAKE some of the things from my sketchbook
6) make our apartment prettier
7) clean once a week
8) cook at least one new meal a month, and reduce eating fastfood to after dance and Saturday's with Mom, except on "special" occasions...
9) lose at least 10 pounds..
10)...continue ballroom dancing (learn viennese waltz! and latin club dancing!)
11) continue learning poi, and actually make an entire poi routine =)
12) start some other kind of exercise (bellydance/hooping/karate/swimmming/whatever)
13) enjoy my time off for a bit, and then FIND A JOB!
14) continue working with Maya and other 3-D graphics programs, and create lot of models, worlds, and shorts to put into a demo reel!
15) write video game with Syd!
16) for a while(aka while not working) try to make one new Hobbit Comic every week

...that's all I've got for the moment. Hm. I can think of lots more though. Which is the problem. The more stuff I want to do, the less is going to get done.

Now, I am going to go work on finishing Anna's little mermaid doll. And watch something on Netflix.

Why Gears of War is the best shooter game on the market!

The Gears of War saga has something that is unlike most first-or-third-person shooter games. In addition to the best field tactics - the ability to take cover, provide covering fire, use fallen enemies as shields, etc - the game is truly unique. Despite the four main characters (Marcus, Dom, Cole, and Baird) being incredibly macho males, and there not being a female COG solider in sight (or even a female in sight - no, Anya's "voice" does not count, nor does her one brief appearance in both games, and unfortunately Maria doesn't count either), Gears does not treat the war that they are fighting as being purely "fun" or "challenging". While there are those light-hearted moments ("let's go kill some bugs"), there is also a prevailing sense of desperation. They aren't fighting for kicks (although you might be). They are fighting for their very survival (and sometimes, for revenge). Essentially, what the Gears of War universe has that most other shooter games are lacking, is humanity. COG soldiers - men that you, through Marcus or Dom, fight with - die (both Carmines, Tai, etc). Men, COG soldiers and civilians, are captured, enslaved, and tortured. Entire cities are sunk. And Marcus and Dom themselves both suffer personal losses - in the original Gears, Marcus' entire family has been killed and he has be wrongly kept in prison for years for 'treason'; in Gears 2, Dom is searching for his wife, Maria, and when he finall finds her, she has been tortured to the point that she doesn't even recognize her, and so he kills her (although there is a sliiiight story line loophole with Maria supposedly being released from the hospital a 'few days ago' and becoming THAT emancipated THAT quickly...I mean, seriously? :P She looked like a holocaust survivor!).

For me, this is what makes Gears of War stand out from other first-or-third-person shooters. In Halo, there is little emotional connection to the game. Master Chief is, essentially, pretty much detached from the battle, and the light-colored world does not lend any gravity to the fight. (This is not to say that I did not enjoy Halo - I did, but preferred the online play rather than the 'story' play).

All that said, all the game is really lacking, in my opinion, is a female soldier playable character. I mean, I would think if the human race was as desperate as the game depicts that the military would have no problem conscripting girls. What gives, Epic?

Still, the Gears of War saga is easily the best first/third-person shooter game there is, and definitely one of, if not THE, best games available for XBox 360. I am eagerly awaiting the third title (and the movie).

Almost there?

So this is the list of started-but-unfinished projects that need finishing after I am done studying:
1) That darn pearl necklace
2) Butterfly Needlepoint
3) Anna's Ariel
4) Mermaid Earrings
5) Florida Earrings
6) Birthday Happiness Earrings
7) Syd's Sweater
8) Jingle Bell Earrings (repaint)
8) Um?

And a list of things that I have not yet started but am planning to start:
1) French beaded snitch
2) French beaded lavender bunch
3) French beaded pinecone
4) Tatted necklace
5) Fire corset
6) Matching fire beaded cuffs and necklace
7) Disney Shorts Cross-stitch
8) Little Mermaid / Disney Princess wall art (cross-stitch/needlepoint/drawing)
9) AIRBRUSHED STUFF!
10) Christmas Cards
11) Hobbit Comics (Christmas present)
12) Knit Fish & Elephant (for Nate & Leah, Christmas Presents)
13) Fish Had for Syd
14) Presents for Irene, Maria, Tammy...
15) I'm sure there is more stuff I can't think of now...

I love you my fishy! <3
4)

Wakey, wakey! It's day breaky!

Fabel 2 is an RPG-type game. And it is quite amusing. You get to run around as a hero (male or female, your choice, and does not really affect game play), be good or evil (which affects your appearance), defeat the evil guy who killed your sister, and buy stuff (buildings, items, whatever). It has multiple side quests, you can get married (and, yes, you can marry someone of the same sex, multiple people, and even have kids). You can complete the main gameplay at your own pace, and continue playing afterwards to earn more gamer points. And there are quite a few amusing gamer points.

This game is very easy to sit and play for days on end, until you beat the game and collect most of the points and items...I'm not convinced of how re-playable the game is, however.

I'd say that the dog is the best part of the game. I'm not even a pet person, but without your dog by your side the game just seems...weird. Besides, your dog finds all sorts of great items and treasures for you!

While very fun, and a game in which you are never lacking in things to do, even after the main plot is completed, one of the few drawbacks is the sounds. While funny and amusing at first, by the end of the game, the town crier and other noises are just, frankly, annoying.

The hour is...very late.

List of unfinished projects:
1) that darn pearl necklace (second strand)
2) Anna's doll
3) Syd's sweater
4) my sweater (seaming)
5) butterfly needlepoint pillow (background)
6) geek cross-stitch

Additionally, this week there is the election (tomorrow), Wednesday is Mom's birthday, and Thursday we are going to a Microsoft convention thing.

(Mis)Adventures of a Fall Break

So, this weekend was fall break, and I had Monday and Tuesday classes off. Since Syd is working, I decided to actually have a break Saturday and Sunday (for once!) and spend Monday and Tuesday working on my senior seminar project.

Saturday Mom came over, and we went to the Commons, had lunch at First Watch, and then went shopping at the mall. I was looking for a cocktail dress to wear for our chacha routine, but the only thing that I found that I *reaaaaaaaaally* wanted was $168, $68+tax over my budget. Sigh. So I came home empty-handed, except with knitting needles so I can maybe finally start Anna's Ariel.

Sunday Syd drove me down to the Greene, where we had never been but kept meaning to go. We looked around there, but it was uninspiring. Very pretty, though. Too many food shops and work clothes selling places. Not a single cocktail dress even worth trying on! Bah! So once again, we came home empty handed. After eating at Don Pablo's. But it was still fun. Sunday late afternoon/night Syd spent figuring out a problem in his work, where dynamically deleting items caused other dynamic text boxes to lose their information. After determining that it was not a problem with the viewstate, searching through myriad articles in the MCSD and developer blogs and not finding the answer, he finally stepped through the code with all the variables showing at the bottom of the screen and eventually figured out the problem (the dynamic text box's indices are not automatically renumbered, but the dynamic controls are, which is very odd) and it took a good three lines of code to fix it. At 3:30 AM. :P

And so Monday I got up and got him off to work, and settled in to work on giving my Fishy a face (well, continue giving him a face, really, because I had already created the eye sockets and did a little bit of the "nose", but still had the mouth, lips, cheeks, and actual eye balls to do. And so I do get that done, but not really to my ummm liking. >.< So I still need to fix that. And then Syd came home at 3, and said that the contractor had cancelled the assignment because the company was being unreasonable (which was true) but he was still kind of bummed. So we went home to my parent's house for dinner, then came back later in the evening. Yeah.

Today, since Syd was home, we slept in late (well, relatively so) and then Mom came over and we went out to lunch with her. I wanted to go to the mall here, and to Kohl's, but never got around to it, because I ended up working on my penguin model all afternoon. Good news: The penguin model is lacking only in eye ridges (in place of brows, because penguins just don't HAVE eyebrows :P), eye balls, and her "hair" feathers. But I still need to start rigging the characters, because I want to have the animation itself basically done in just over a month. Meep. That does not give me much time, especially with all of my other work. :\

However, I *do* think I am getting better at creating models. I suppose that is progress of some sort.

I have classes again tomorrow. That is sad. I don't like class and I didn't get enough done over break, really. I still haven't gotten mail ready, I need to write a thank you and a note to my Grandma, because she had surgery today and her birthday is this week, and Grandpa's birthday is next week! Oh my!

We haven't even had time to put Halloween decorations up!!! Noooooo!

I was going to try to seam my sweater this weekend, too. Sigh. Oh well, I guess it will have to wait (more). By the time I get around to seaming it, it will probably be too warm to wear it! :P

Okay, I think I am going to be done working for today, yeah. :) I'm tired. :\

101 in 1001

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

The Key:
Items in bold are headings/general info/categories
Items in italics are items in progress, with date begun and/or progress listed
Items in strikethrough are items that have been completed, with end date and link to corresponding blog post.

Heck, maybe eventually I'll feel like making my list pretty colored! :P

The Info:
So I have way too many things to do. Seriously! I can't even fit them all in a 101 list...so I left off most of the things that I think will not happend in the next two years, or chose between several things (trips to places) because even though some of the things in one category may be completed in two years, all of them cannot be (applies to things like travel). Oh, and I'm super indecisive so I may change/modify my list as I see fit...to add things or whatever. XD

Home
1) cook one new main dish a month (10/33)
2) cook one new bread/pastry a month (10/33)
3) cook one new dessert a month (10/33)
4) cook one new candy a month (10/33)
5) embroidered set(s) of napkins, placemats, and tea towels - penguin & fish, Spring/Easter, Summer, Fall/Halloween, Winter/Christmas (0/4 sets)
6) dust, vacuum, and generally pick up the house once a week, regularly (40/143)
7) do a more thorough cleaning once every spring and fall (2/6)
8) decorate house for all major holidays (Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, Fourth of July, Valentine’s Day, Easter) (4/14)
9) make home/apartment pretty – themed bathroom, just generally nice
Love
10) return to the Inn at Versailles for our honeymoon at least once
11) make/buy random “I love you” presents
12) Take random lessons or classes with Syd (archery, pottery, karate, whatever)
13) Make something that he requests every other week week (or surprise him) (30/171)
14) Do things together
a. Build a Kite (& fly it)
b. Build at least one thing from one issue of Make magazine
c. Put a puzzle together
15) Go see a movie (in theaters) at least four times a year (10/10)
16) Go bowling together
17) Go ice skating together
Exercise, Health, & Beauty
18) only eat out on dance nights (Thurs/Sun) and Saturday morning
19) Eat more fruits and vegetables (work up to 5/day)
20) Get weight down to 155 and keep it there (7/10)
a. buy new clothes to celebrate!
b. continue losing until 145 or 150, if possible :)
21) Start & Complete 100 push up challenge
22) Start flexibility workout (yoga?)
23) Learn to braid hair, easily: On hold, because the front of my hair is shorter than the rest now and it doesn't work to braid it :(
a. French braid
b. Lace braid
c. Fishtail braid
d. at least one crown braid
e. one braid with ribbon(s)
24) Buy a Hoopnotica hoop and video
25) Learn more poi moves…one a week? (1/143)
a. complete the Encyclopoidia (2/???)
b. work with The Scales Of Poi, as much as possible (0/???)
Travel & Adventure
26) visit South Africa next Christmas
27) Do things on our list of places to visit in Ohio (1/10)
28) Go places for the weekend
a. Aunt Jackie's
b. Springfield, Il.
c. NYC
d. Chicago
29) Take Dad to Gettysburg for re-enactment
30) Take Mom to Florida to SeaWorld & Discovery Cove
31) Return to St. Louis and actually be able to go places :P
32) Go to New Zealand
33) Go to the Tucson bead show (or just to Tucson?)
34) Use free flight tickets to go somewhere fun on a weekend
35) Go for a Hot Air Balloon Ride
36) Go skydiving (indoor or actual…whatever!)
37) Crew or ride on a tall ship
38) Ride in a Waco Plane with Syd!
39) Reapply for a passport!
Educational
40) Buy RosettaStone learning language course thingies for any/all of the following:
a. French
b. Spanish
c. Chinese
d. Arabic
41) Learn Afrikaans – vocab sheet/week, or vocab specific to things we are going to go do
42) Read 50 books on my list of classics that I need to read (2/50)
43) Subscribe to magazines – Make Magazine, PC Format, 3D World, ?
44) Read at least 5 non-fiction books a year (2/13)
45) Study engineering and create cool stuff (then start a company, etc…)
46) Participate in NaNoWriMonth
47) Continue practicing French at home – watch Disney movies in French, read French blogs, etc
48) Continue to take random classes
Financial
49) Find a job! Completed Sept 30, 2009!
50) Save money in a separate savings account just for travel/trips
51) Save half of my salary in a personal retirement account
52) Go through bank & credit card statements each month when they arrive (0/33)
53) Get a credit card?
Programming & Computers
54) create professional 2.0 website with content
55) Post random blogs/tutorials on geeky computer stuff
56) Game programming
a. Hobbit Game
b. Thumbwiggle Games
c. 3-D Pirate game
d. 3-D world?
e. Agricola Test game
f. Settlers Test game
g. Stargate game
h. Jock game
57) Reminder program
58) Budgeting program
59) Continue to make 3-D models
60) …And 3-D shorts
61) Compile a demo reel
62) Go through computer files
63) Go through computer favorites
64) Back up computer onto external hdd
65) Read computer magazines to stay on top of “the industry”
a. CoDe Magazine
b. 3D World Magazine
66) Build a super powerful desktop computer from scratch!
67) Become an MCP
68) Make a pretty desktop background for Syd, with custom icons
Arts & Crafts
69) Use art prompt program to create artwork with Syd
70) Airbrush!
71) Knitting
a. Knit Syd’s sweater
b. Learn to knit socks
c. Knit lace shawls as gifts – Mom, Ma, ?
d. Knit baby present for Tammy & Rose Completed July 2009
e. Learn to Dye my own Yarns
f. Knit fingerless gloves Completed March 2009
g. Knit at least 10 finished objects (6/10) - plush elephant, plush fish, plush giraffe, fingerless gloves, purple dress, riding to avalon hoodie,
h. Design my own pattern(s)
72) Beading
a. Fire Armlets
b. Golden Snitch Flowers
c. Lavender flowers
d. Beaded pine cones
e. Projects from magazines
f. Monet cuff
g. Chinese coin bracelet, again
h. That Darn Pearl Necklace - Finished February 2009
i. Design my own pattern(s) and submit to magazine(s)
73) Needlecrafts
a. Finish butterfly pillow
b. Begin second pillow
c. Witty/Funny cross-stitch
i. Mario themed
ii. Geek themed
iii. Disney Shorts
d. Petit Point Pattern?
e. Create Disney Princess Dancing patterns?
74) Book Binding
a. Use the book from Irene, make random books for fun!
b. Learn to bind proper books, and bind Syd & my chat logs and emails
75) Lampworking
a. Make at least one SET of beads/month (0/33)
b. Learn and experiment with new techniques
c. Buy a kiln…
d. ..sell beads
e. ..& participate in Beads of Courage
76) Organization
a. Organize craft/art supplies
b. Scan magazine, etc patterns and organize in pdf format. (20/42, est.)
77) Jewelry Making (not beading)
a. Find some place to continue taking silver jewelry lessons
b. Or a studio to rent
c. Make some chain maille pieces
d. Make some wire pieces (not chain maille)
e. Keep design sketches while waiting for opportunity to continue silver lessons/studio space
78) Other
a. Shrinky dinks
b. Perler beads
c. Candle making
d. Soap making
e. Clothes/Costume making & altering – fire corset, princess dress, ballroom costumes ???
f. Learn to woodcarve?
g. Perfume making
79) Drawing
a. Use copic markers more!
b. Do every Illustration Friday Prompt (6/143)
c. Keep design sketchbook and actually use it…(fill an entire sketchbook with designs)
d. Art100 Challenge (0/100)
e. FanArt100 Challenge (0/100)
f. OCArt100 Challenge (0/100)
g. Illustrate an entire book (The Three Musketeers?)
h. Learn to draw all Disney "princesses", Disney style + my style & their expressions (0/12?)
80) Scrapbooking
a. Get caught up!
b. And then stay up-to-date
81) Home Geekiness
a. Create stuff to decorate house/apartment/cubicle with
b. Create cool magnets (stargate, mario, ?)
Dance
82) Become proficient in Latin dances, then go to Latin club(0/5)
a. Mambo
b. Salsa
c. Chacha
d. Jive
e. Samba
83) Continue dance lessons (aka, still be dancing at the end of 1001 days)
84) Actually PRACTICE outside of class >.> once a week?
85) Go to at least one or two dances a month (1/143)
86) Do at least two exhibitions a year (3/5)
87) Learn quickstep & Viennese waltz well enough to dance at Arbor Hall (0/2)
88) Compete for first time?
89) Create costumes to wear at one of the exhibitions!
90) Take pole dancing lessons because it looks fun
91) Take bellydance lessons or learn bellydance from videos
92) Take any other dance lessons (Chinese Folk Dance, ballet, etc?) that I can
Geekery
93) Make Xbox pretty colors (& matching controllers)
94) Make geeky crafts/clothes/stuff
95) Make geeky foods (for Syd to take in to work?) (0/12)
(see “make custom desktop”, and “build projects from Make magazine”)
Other, Random
96) Learn modeling, balloon, and coin tricks for fun ^_^
97) Volunteer at aquarium, if possible
98) Send care packages, at least 5/year (4/13)
99) Send cards for holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries (using reminder program)
100) Blog about each item on the list as it is in progress/completed
101) Celebrate each completed item in the list, the end date of the list and create a new one!!

from Thursday, January 8, 2009 to Thursday, October 6, 2011.

Almost fall break and I'm falling apart.

Well, I was working on a 101 in 1001 list, but I seem to have lost it, so I suppose I will have to re-write it sometime. It didn't have 101 things on it, anyways...

It's not like I don't have 101 things that I want to do, I just know it is imposible to do all of those things in 1001 days. Like...all the traveling I want to do. I would have to spend the entire 1001 days traveling, and I have neither the time nor the money for that, so I have to narrow it down. And that is (sadly) only one example.

I'm so frustrated right now. I have this one professor, had him last semester as well, who is just really really bad at teaching. And I am not the only one who thinks so. Nearly everyone else agrees (well...everyone, actually, at least to my knowledge). I'm really not even sure why I am trying any more. The stuff that he teaches should NOT be that hard (200-level CS courses, I have had several 300-level courses as well as difficult math courses, that have been NO problem). And I have the feeling that with a competent prof it wouldn't be that hard. I mean, maybe I wouldn't get an A...a B or something. But still. Trying really hard and still doing terribly is awful. I am at the point where I just want to stop trying, and all I am trying for at the moment is a D anyways. Argh.

On top of that, the rear tire blew out yesterday on Syd's way home from work, I don't know how he didn't crash the car. O_O That added complications to stuff yesterday and today, and on top of it Syd is feeling sick. :(

I have my three rings due tomorrow for jewelry class. Not too worried about that, though. At least this weekend is fall break. I'm just hoping that I don't get sick...that would be terrible. :( And probably likely...*sigh*

I need to work on my animation desperately. But I am either just trying to stay caught up with my other four classes or so exhausted (I bloody HATE fall allergies) that I just am not getting to it.

And to top it all off I STILL haven't cast on for the last third of mon petit chou! T_T It's been like two weeks...that's just sad, I am so close to being done (I probably would be done if I had cast on two weeks ago) and I still haven't finished seaming my first sweater. And the yarn still hasn't come in for Syd's sweater. Thinking of attempting to knit that for the knitting equivalent of NaNoWriMo.

So all in all I'm kind of in a depressed mood, which is bad, considering that fall break is this weekend...I should be in a good mood, looking forward to it, my three tests are (mostly) behind me, etc...but...meh. :\

I do NOT understand the aversion Men have...

of writing down items on a grocery list when they run out! It is NOT THAT HARD!!!! And how the hell am I supposed to know we are out of it if I am not the one who used it up?? >.<

Now I can't make dinner. BAH!!!!

*breathe, self. breathe* I am just trying SO HARD to be on top of things and I bought $50 of groceries last night (granted, $15 of that was spent on ground coffee for Syd and wine for cooking, but still), and I still don't have all the bloody stuff I need.

Plus I am trying to cook dinner so we don't eat out so much and stuff, and then I end up giving up time that I should be studying or whatever in to make dinner, which is okay, but then it is frustrating to try and not be able to. Plus, I did the dishes so that I would have the pots and pans I needed (also so Syd wouldn't have to do them when he got home). >.<

Maybe I am just in a bad mood, however. Because I am tired and still half-sick and this has been a whole week now of being sick or half-sick and less than productive and so now I am running behind on stuff (or at least not as ahead as I would normally be) and so now I am starting to panic, but I still don't feel good enough to really push myself to get things done.

Or something. I don't know, I don't even feel good. :\ I'm probably partly PMSing on top of everything else because I already have my montly pimple. So I'm sure that isn't helping anyways because I do tend to feel rather lousy around that time.

I just want it to be the weekend yet. At least Friday I don't have my religion class, so that might help a little bit.

I don't even know why I am wasting the time in writing this. It's not like anybody reads it, and besides, it's not like I have anything interesting to say either! :P

I need more sleep.

I didn't get a nap today. And I hate algorithms class. Know what makes it even worse? The fact that I *shouldn't* hate it, I just hate the professor (as does everyone else, it really isn't just me) and that makes the whole class terrible. *le sigh* I mean, I have taken so many classes that are supposed to build on the foundations of this class (and be harder than this class) and I passed those with no trouble at all. So, theoretically, this class should be easy. Rawr.

I'm so hungry and Syd is 20 minutes late. And I even fixed dinner, tortillas included! Sheesh. And we need to go grocery shopping and I need to finish my reading for tomorrow and maybe work on my models if I have time.

I was looking on ravelry today and somehow found my way over to NoTwoSnowflakes on Etsy, where I found absolutely GORGEOUS yarn in the perfect color, perfect type (SILK!!! OMG ALL SILK! I LOVE SILK!!!), and perfect name (Shark Fin...Sharks are soooooo cool). However, it is $30 plus $3 shipping, BUT I could totally make the Seashell Shawl with it (which I already have the pattern for) and it is 830 yards of pretty laceweight silk, so....that is actually pretty cheap for a shawl. Hmmm wonder if I can talk Syd or Mom into buying it for my birthday (since I don't really have time right now and I really want to get started on Syd's sweater once the yarn arrives).

I do wish Syd's sweater yarn would get here, it's six skeins of Cascade 220 and I already have two skeins of Cascade 220 in a different color. But I do have the mon petit chou to finish first, anyways. The top is finished, I've only just started the bottoms because I don't have much time to knit.

I need more time to do things that I actually want to do, but between homework, and fixing Syd's lunch and my lunch and our dinner, and washing the dishes, and trying to keep the house semi-clean, I just don't have any time. And then Syd comes home at night and wants all of my attention (which isn't a BAD thing, I just haven't even ended up knitting during any movies or anything because by the time we start watching them it is just so late I don't want to mess up my knitting).

I need to go do something now. >.< Something PRODUCTIVE.

I'm sick again. Same thing I had last week, only worse, so I must have either re-caught it on Sat when I was sneezing my head off or sneezing my head off just weakened my immune system. Grar. I had a lot I needed to get done today, too. I slept most of the day, still don't feel great. I'm going to fix dinner around 5:30. Soup, I think, because I might actually eat soup.

I really should be doing homework, and I am going to try to force myself to now, but I am just SO tired and ugh. I miss having Syd home. :\

I was looking at Ravelry, at the finished Ravelympics items, and was adding random patterns to my queue. I found two very pretty lacey skirts that I would like to make to wear dancing. My dance wardrobe definitely needs help. Then I went to look at my queue...and I have almost 100 items saved! D: Even if I never add another pattern, and kept knitting at the rate I am knitting now, it would still take me upwards of oh 20 years to finish off all of those patterns! Of course, I probably wouldn't actually end up finishing them all, as there are several lace patterns (a few I definitely want to do, but others I will probably end up doing maybe 1 out of 5 or so), and several fingerless gloves/mits. There are also some smaller items, like socks, but even so. The one shawl I am just DYING to knit is the civil war shawl...drooool. But that will take so much yarn and so much time to knit.

I am working on my 101 in 1001 list, but am stuck at around 50. Which is really silly, because there are so many things that I want to do I know I should easily be able to come up with 101! lol Maybe I have too many lists? Also, I know that many of the things that are on my full to do list are things that I can't get done in two years, or things that I can maybe get one or two things done per category (ie: I can't completely travel the world in two years, unless I forgo work and do nothing else, so I had to limit that to going to South Africa and maybe one other place).

Yeah..I am going to attempt to do something now. Or maybe just sleep more. >.<

That darn pearl necklace!

So, I was supposed to sew a button back onto one of Syd's shirts. He needs to wear the shirt tomorrow (man, I have GOT to get him more shirts XD) so I was going to do it this afternoon, as we have dance tonight and of course have to get up early tomorrow. But anyways, I digres...So I went to get the button and it was not where it had been for the past week (seriously...it was there yesterday! I know it was!) but that is okay, as there are two spare buttons sewn to the inside of the shirt, so I can use one of those and if the original button shows up sometime, I can sew it to the inside, no problem. And I borrowed the right color thread from Mom this weekend, so I had that. So I go to find my needles...and I have no idea where they are! None at all! I know I had them this spring (May 3, to be specific) when I fixed a hole in my dance dress. But I have NO idea where they are. So frustrating! So I was looking in my bead box, thinking that maybe they had been stuck there (after all, that would be a fairly logical place to put them). Alas! No luck, however, I *did* come across..

That darn pearl necklace!!!

A couple of years ago I was at my local bead store (had nothing better to do, I guess) and I was just looking around. Now, normally I'm not really big into pearls, especially not white pearls. However, this time I happened to notice a strand of tiny white/silver button pearls, and I decided that I HAD to have them. I thought they would be perfect wedding jewelry, although I wasn't planning on (ever) getting married. But anyways, I thought I would try pearl knotting so I bought a strand. And I made a double-stranded pearl knotted bracelet. Silk thread. SS clasp. And it was so pretty!!!!

Then last fall, I was out with Mom, and I thought that I wanted to make something for my bridesmaids to wear, in navy(ish) and lavender(ish). So I found two pearl strands that I liked and decided I would pearl knot necklaces for my bridesmaids. Annnyway. They happened to have a few strands of the tiny "wedding" pearls that I had made the bracelet out of. So, of course, I decided that I should buy two more strands and make a matching double stranded necklace for myself. To (possibly) wear with my wedding dress (but it didn't match, but I was going to go ahead and make it anyways).

So I made my bridesmaid's necklaces, no problem (I even bought matching silk thread online, because Crafts2000 only carries white and black). Then I start on my necklace. I get oohhhh maybe 4 inches in to the first strand...and I get a bad knot (not tight enough) that WON'T come out. So I go buy more thread, and start over. The same thing happens. FOUR TIMES. FOUR @)*$(#*$# times. >.<
So I gave up, and decided it was cursed. I had no problems when I did the bracelet, and that had two strands. I hadn't done even a quarter of that length with the necklace before it had problems.

Anyways...there it was, in my bead box. In a bag. And I have this sneaky little suspicion that I bought two more packs of silk thread (...which would be like six packs total for this ONE necklace >.<) to try again, but I don't know where they are. So now I am kind of tempted to try this necklace again. After all, it *has* been a year, and maybe the "curse" is broken. Maybe.

So that, my non-existant readers, is the story of That darn pearl necklace!

Day #1 minus Car

So yeah we are going to be without car until Wednesday at least, so this will be fun. :P No dancey dancey tomorrow. :(

I was going to try to work on my internship stuff but I can't get my main animation to open correctly so I don't have any images to stick on my presentation or poster and I have looked at the help and there isnt anything that works so I think I just give up now. T_T

I need to go fix dinner just now anyways. I also need to order my textbooks (uuuugh) and work on my sleeve, I *have* to get that sleeve done today and get started on the next if I want to have the sweater done by next week. I sure hope Hobby Lobby has a 40% off coupon this week so I can start buying yarn for Anna's mermaid.

I just feel annoyed with everything. That is the ONLY scene that won't open, and there is no good reason for it, either...that I can find, anyways. And that was the best thing I made for my internship, and I am NOT remaking it, and my internship stuff is all BS anyways, I at least need images for it...or maybe I just won't bother with the poster and ppt. That would serve Dr. S. right..

I also need to start applying for jobs places. :\

I think I am PMSing, I feel generally a bit grumpy and annoyed with everything. Meh.

I hate my internship

Yeah, so it has pretty much been a complete waste of time. And now I am at the point where I have to sit down and write up "deliverables" to hand in. A "nontechnical" paper, a "technical" paper, a poster, AND a powerpoint presentation (which I then have to present). AKA "pull stuff out of my butt" that looks/sounds good about what I DID for my internship and why it is important.

Which leads directly to the problem: I didn't actually DO anything for my internship (because I wasn't given anything) and I therefore don't have anything to write about. And the stuff that I DID do really ISN'T important. So.

Yay?

I am really tempted to just not turn them in, or to go to the prof and tell him that I really have no clue what to write. But he doesn't really care. Obviously. So.

...I'm kind of in the mood to color pictures. XD I will have to see what good things I have to color. Yeah...although I could be knitting or needlepointing or even (le gasp) working on Senior Seminar or my dance animation.

But I think I should get the papers, poster, presentation, etc, out of the way now (even though it means pulling BS out of my...erm..yeah) because I am going to be so busy once classes start that it isn't even funny. All my free time? Yeah, that will pretty much cease to exist until mid-December.

Speaking of that, I need to order my textbooks this week, and I need to be searching for jobs. That scares me. I need to get a website up and running with pretty models and code and stuff. Meep.

So that probably means I should stop this stream-of-consciousness writing and actually get down to DOING something that I need to do, right?

But...that isn't any fun. :(

The difference between men and women...

So we were at Kohl's the other day looking for a birthday present for my brother, and we were looking at the "young men's" graphic tees. And I see one that says "XBox" on it with the XBox 360 logo on it and I'm all like "OMG THAT IS MINE!!!" and then I see a blue shirt with "Wii" on it. Uh-oh. Which one to get? Which one? Hard-core gamer? Or cool fun obsessed-with-new-tech-gadgets girl?

Eventually (after not buying either shirt but still wanting both), I got off on the train of thought on the differences between guys and girls and gaming. That's a lot of g's.

Guys (most guys, not all, but those who really like games) are perfectly happy to sit and play a video game (or multiple video games) for hours on end. They forget to eat, drink, and sleep while playing games. Additionally, they get very very very involved with games. To the point that they yell at the screen, at the game, at the other player(s), and want to throw things (or fits) when they don't get their goal accomplished for whatever reason.

Girls, on the other hand, even those that really enjoy video games, don't want to sit and play video games for more than a few hours at a time, at which point it becomes kind of like "well, this is fun, but I am kind of just wasting my time". Additionally, girls don't get quite as upset if they can't do it. They have the attitude that it is "just" a game.

I have a sneaky suspicion that if I bought the Wii shirt and wear it, people would label me as a "nerd girl". Which isn't bad, and partially true. However, if I wore the XBox360 shirt, I have the feeling I would be labeled as weird. As in "YOU play XBox360 (and like it enough to buy a SHIRT?)?!", which would obviously lead to the question of "which games do you play?", which then leads to the reaction of "REALLY? But you're a GIRL! Hardly any girls play that game..."

Now, I know there ARE other girls who play the games that I like. In fact, I like quite a few games, both girly games and non-girlygames. And I have met other girls while playing Halo3 online. But I would have to say that my favorite "new" game (not including things like Mario and DDR, even the newer versions, because they have been out for a while) is Microsoft's Gears of War. I like it so much that I am considering applying at Epic Games so I can convince them that they desperately need a PLAYABLE main character girl. Not just a secretary/ops lady...who you see once and then talks to you the rest of the game. No, that is not good enough. I want a female soldier, in ARMOR, out in the field with Delta Squad. Oh yeah. And I don't think I am going to get it for Gears2, so I need to get on the team so we can have one for at least Gears3....

...but that is off-topic. See? Don't get me started on my favorite game. What I was going to say is that when people find out that I play/like/obsess about Gears, they are always shocked and surprised, whether they are a girl or a guy. Why? Because Gears carries the connotation that it is very much a 'guy' game. The graphics are dark and fairly realistic, there are lots of guns (torque bow....drooooool) and explosions, lots of blood, and a fairly dark storyline. Oh yeah, and there are super-cool awesome-scary badguys all over the place that you can shoot the **** out of...or just chainsaw in half! Who wouldn't love a game like that....? I know there are pleanty of other FPS games out there with similar characteristics, but Gears just struck a note with me. It's main characters are funny (in a very dry, dark-humor kind of way) and easy to get attached to, the game play is great, and the story is awesome. But it is, in every sense of the phrase, a "guy" game.

Now, if I told people that "OMG I LOVE Legend of Zelda!" nobody would be a bit surprised. But I don't. LoZ is okay. But it is very much a kid/girl game. I mean...the grapics are okay, but not amazingly realistic. The tasks can be hard, but they aren't dark, there isn't a lot of shooting and blood and in-your-face-violence, and the whole plot is more fantasy based. Not saying there couldn't be a really good fantasy video game, but fantasy and rpg games on the whole tend to be a little bit more girly, for no apparent reason. I mean, I could think of tons of really cool fantasy games that guys would enjoy as much as girls, if they were done properly. But they all seem to be targeted at girls. I know people partially think it is because Link is "cute", but why don't girls fall for characters like Fenix and Dom?

Of course, there are games that aren't seen as "girl or guy" games. Things like Guitar Hero seem to be pretty unisex, so telling someone you like Guitar Hero or Wii boxing isn't a big deal, or a big surprise. Telling someone you like Halo3 or Gears, and actually being able to hold a conversation about it with them (and generally knowing more about it than them) IS a big deal.

What is wrong with girls playing a FPS? And being GOOD at it? Playing Halo3 live, many times people notice my name, and the first question is always "Are you REALLY a girl?" Uh, duh. Why would I have "Lady" in my name otherwise? >.< And the second comment is usually "You're one of the only girls I've ever seen play this game!" Whopee. At which point they decide to friend me for no other reason than I am a girl who plays games like Halo3, which is apparently sexy? o.0 Or something. Whatever. Their friend requests just sit in my inbox forever. Losers!

I just don't get it, but I am proud to be what most people would label as a "gamer girl geek".