The Musings of Isis M. Nocturne

Awesome Contest I Found

2012-01-21T11:58:00.000-08:00

On a book blog I follow, there'a a HUGE contest going on. The prize is a MacBook Air and an Apple TV. Be sure to check it out! There's still 9 days left to enter!

http://www.sparklingreviews.com/2012/01/13in-macbook-air-and-apple-tv-giveaway.html

Ringer Personality Quiz

2011-11-29T19:15:00.000-08:00

I'm a HUGE fan of Sarah Michelle Gellar's new show Ringer, and BuddyTV.com has a personality quiz. This was my result:

Which 'Ringer' Character Are You?

More on Ringer. Created by BuddyTV

So cool, especially since the show revolves around Bridget and her twin Siobhan.

Just Love This

2011-11-29T12:37:00.000-08:00

Currently, my favorite actor is James Marsters, best known to most people as Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. I found this GIF of him, so I decided to post it here so I can appreciate how gorgeous he is. :)

One Hour Draft

2011-11-20T21:56:00.000-08:00

I was REALLY bored today, so I did a one hour writing sprint, and this draft was the result. It's completely unedited at the moment, so please excuse any and all mistakes you find. :)

And slowly the girl wakes up, stretches her arms, arches her back. Pulls herself out of bed, looks over at her sleeping lover, smiles lightly. Continues rolling her body around, stretching out the kinks from the night before. Sits down at her desk, starts writing in her journal about a night from her childhood, brought on because of a dream. She remembers hands soothing her everywhere, unidentified faces and voices calling her terms of royalty, then their sudden silence when another enters the room. Her father, alongside the man who is now her lover.

The brush of a pair of lips on her unadorned back, paired with the weight of another body sitting beside her on the massage bed. Her father gives a grunt of approval, leaves the room. Now there’s a warm arm curling around her, a whisper in her ear asking if she wishes to go out to an open air market.

The noise of her lover sitting up on the bed throws her out of the memories of a dream in a world long gone. She looks over to her lover, sees him as he was in another lifetime, hair long and straight and dark, not light brown, short, and curly. Sees eyes that are dark grey, potent as stars in the black night sky rather than a brown/green hazel blend.

She smiles, offers a good morning as her lover walks to the bathroom for his morning piss and a shower. Contemplating breakfast, she gets up from her desk, journal long since forgotten.

Looks in the kitchen; sees nothing of interest to eat even though lots of food is available. Realizes what she thought was the shower running is actually rain.

Jumps when thunder pops and the few lights on all flicker ominously. Maybe it really is only a day to snuggle up and watch movies in front of the fireplace. Sounds appealing, but not as much as usual.

There’s a lull in the rain; she hears her lover humming a familiar song as he finishes his post-shower bathroom ritual.

She turns back towards the fridge determined to make something edible—eggs—as her stomach rumbles. Opens the fridge again, grabbing for the eggs and butter. Sets them on the counter. Gets a pan from the cabinet it’s kept in. Unbeknownst to her, she starts humming a song: a lullaby. Lover calls her name, walks into her line of vision still adjusting his shower towel around his slim hips. She smiles, asks him if he can grab her some chocolate, a pan, and milk. Today feels like a day for fresh eggs and hot cocoa.

She loves the way his eyes light up so that she can see the little boy within as he hurries to fulfil her request. Continues prepping to cook, only to realize that she’s thinking about seeing him with a child, their child, with the same sort of morning routine.

Mentions this to her lover as he helps set up the cocoa while she scrambles the eggs to cook. He replies to her comment, lightly teasing about her being a homebody in training. A grin breaks across her face; he’s okay with the idea of a child.

Eggs are being poured into the butter-greased pan, milk has been poured into another pan, beginning to warm. Her lover wraps his arm around her waist, gives her a peck on the cheek. Tells her how much he loves her, how happy he is to have found her in this lifetime. She asks what of their past lives he remembers as the eggs finish cooking and chocolate pieces are added to the warming milk.

He asks if she wants the tales of their times as members of the royal class, the upper class, or the poor class. She stirs the cocoa, adds a bit of vanilla extract to it, and checks how the chocolate is melting. Tells him to get the mini marshmallows, pretending that his question didn’t direct her memories to a life that ended in her death during the childbirth of a stillborn baby and his capture by royal guards after being falsely identified as a highwayman while she took her last breaths.

He notices how she’s stilled, grips her arm; he caught the tail end of her painful reminiscing. Tears fill her eyes; his match as he grabs the spoon she’s been stirring with from her. He’s already plated the eggs.

She says something; she’s not entirely sure what, only knows the feeling of his comfort to take away her pain. There’s a suggestion of creating a child together as soon as she’s really ready. She rolls the the idea in her thoughts, sees a baby’s face in the cocoa as her lover continues to stir it. She is still wrapped up in his arm. Unsure of how that is possible. Detangles herself; grabs cinnamon from the spice rack in front of her, adds a small amount to the cocoa. Tells her lover to keep stirring, then stops him for a moment so she can taste it. Cocoa’s ready.

Her lover mugs the cocoa for them, then drops marshmallows into both cups. She grabs eating utensils, napkins, and their breakfast plates. Hastily puts it on the dining room table in seats beside each other rather than their typical spots across from each other.

He pulls her chair out for her, seats himself only after she’s settled. Both dig into their food, a bit wary of speaking and bringing more sad memories into being.

She stares pensively into her cocoa, mentions something about how medicine is better now than it was, how pregnancies are easier when watched by trained medics. Safer to try for a baby now than it used to be. He looks up at her; his eggs fall off his fork. His eyes are warm and happy. Puts his fork down, grabs her hand, rubbing the top of her palm with his thumb. Tells her how happy the decision to try for a child makes him.

Everything but him is forgotten; the clanging of her fork hitting her plate takes place on another plane. She gets out of her seat and settles into his lap. She snuggles in, his arms and hands run up and down her back. She takes his face in her hands, tells him of her love. Pulls his face down and kisses him deeply.

He picks her up, brings her to the couch. Snuggles her into him before covering them with a blanket. A child will come soon, for now they are happy to just be together.

'Elemental Reality' by Cesya MaRae Cuono — A Review

2011-09-06T10:48:00.000-07:00

I came into 'Elemental Reality' with no idea what to think of it. However, once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down! What a phenomenal book! From the first page to the last, I wanted to know more about Callie and everything she's going through. I loved seeing her reactions to gaining her powers as well as falling in love with Oli (her soul mate/next door neighbor). They're such an adorable couple and their UST had me turning on the fans in my room to cool off!

A lot happens in Elemental Reality, especially since it's the introductory book to a series. After we meet Callie and her friends and family, the plot is slowly revealed. It's Callie's birthday and she's somewhat depressed, since on her birthday many years previously, her mother left the family for no apparent reason. We soon learn that all is not as it seems, and Callie's mother left to protect her two daughters. We also learn that Callie is more than human and has special powers. Quickly after learning about her powers and the truth of her mother's disappearance, Callie goes out to try and save her mother with the help of her family and several new friends, and discovers that she has some powerful new enemies...

Overall, I really enjoyed 'Elemental Reality' and could not put it down! However, I don't like where the book left off and really wish the cliff-hanger hadn't been such a harsh tone to end on. It was jarring and discomfiting to have a somewhat nice ending suddenly turn into something very dark. I feel like that was done in the style of a television show and didn't work in the medium of text.

I really enjoyed seeing Callie come into her powers, as well as her awkward first attempts to use them. It's made ever better by her two best friends who are there for her throughout the entire book. I also really loved seeing how Callie met Oli (short for Oliver) and seeing their relationship begin and strengthen. Not many writers pull off the building relationship as well as Cesya did!

As I stated above, the only thing that threw me as a reader was the jarring end to the story. It felt awkward and uncomfortable.

However, this was such an excellent read and I was so involved with this story, I easily and confidently have to give 'Elemental Reality' 5 stars. It's a fantastic story!

Writers Li.P.P.: 47 Things You Should Never Apologize For

2011-07-25T21:31:00.000-07:00

I really just had to share this, since I deeply agree with it. :)

Writers Li.P.P.: 47 Things You Should Never Apologize For

The Beginning of a New Journey

2010-12-11T13:25:00.000-08:00

I really haven't updated this blog at all this year because my life has been so crazy. However, now that my semester is over, I'll be backdating and adding some new stuff. :)

Anyways, I'm about to begin the journey of a lifetime. I'm currently on a plane that's taking me to Washington, DC so that tomorrow I can get on a flight and go to Israel. This is my first time going out of the country like this. (Of course, I've been to a couple touristy areas in Mexico and Canada, but this is totally different.)

I will be offline the entire time I'm gone. However, I'll be keeping a daily journal, and when I get back, I'll type them all up and post them here, along with tons of pictures, etc.

For the time being, I'm just going to enjoy the anticipation of going around the world and experiencing so many new things.

I can't wait to share when I get back! :)

A New Dream

2010-01-04T07:09:00.000-08:00

I had a somewhat strange dream today. And I swear I've had it before. It started off with me in a large room. The walls were white, the lighting basic, and there were at least twenty-something people in there with me. One of them was a guy I called "my Peter Pan." I called him that since I was myself in my dream, and it was a running joke between us.

Everyone there had a pretty bare bed, a small mattress, a white pillow, and light gray sheets and comforters. I laid on mine at an angle, my head to the right side of the mattress as I talked with my boyfriend (whose name I can't remember). As we chatted, many of the other coeds in the room walked out for food, though he and I each stayed on our respective mattresses, about five "beds" apart.

I know that not long after that, he went off to war, and I worried and worried about him.

The next thing I remember is going to what felt like an airport hangar that had been turned into a parking garage. My father was driving the car I was in (his Maxima), and I went over to my group of girlfriends as we all waited anxiously to find out if our lovers were home safe or not.

Slowly, each one came out, and I got more and more nervous because my boyfriend didn't come out, and at the end, I was the only one alone. I stood there in some sort of shock as the commanding officer just stood there, watching everyone together and totally ignoring me. When I'd had enough, I walked back to the car to find him sitting in the back seat, stuff already stowed in the trunk. I remember my sister being there too. She had her clarinet music (instrument nowhere in sight), and she put the music in the trunk before going off with a friend of her own.

I sat in the car as we headed up and out of the lot, not saying a word about how hurt and scared I'd been that I'd lost my boyfriend. He didn't say a word either, and I was somehow both grateful and worried about that as my dad continued to drive.

After that, we were somehow at a restaurant with about eight other people. We were all sitting together with our respective dates, and my boyfriend was sitting in the corner, next to the wall, with me sitting on his left, another guy sitting next to me, his girlfriend across from him, two guys across from my boyfriend, and another couple of girls sitting on the girl's other side to complete the table. Here, the walls were cold to the touch and appeared to be metal. People kept getting up to "grab more food," even though we'd already eaten and our plates were still on the table.

At one point, my boyfriend was talking with the two guys across from us (one of them was Kevin McHale), and then the girl sitting a couple seats over joined in the conversation and asked my boyfriend if he didn't like people touching him now. He gave an affirmative reply and mentioned he needed a tissue. I grabbed a small tissue bag (the ones you can buy at the store to stick in your purse) and joked about him being Monk, but with less issues. He smiled lightly and accepted the tissues, before joking back that since I'd used one, he couldn't use them.

For a good while, we weren't very touchy-feely, but I was beyond comforted to have him sitting next to me again, so I kept looking over at him and smiling lightly. He would smile back at me each time.

Somehow, the topic of conversation had moved on, and the guys across from my boyfriend were talking about how they'd hooked me and my boyfriend up. I got really upset with them, and said that we'd have gotten together without them, as I'd already liked my boyfriend and I was pretty sure he'd liked me. (Even as I said this, I looked over at him and my heartbeat got a lot faster. It was a good, loving feeling.) This time, though, we'd upset my boyfriend. He looked down and made a not-so-nice comment about me and my needing to be with him or committing suicide.

I was really hurt and upset that he'd say such a thing, so I instantly defended myself, even though my voice was weak and shaking, saying that I knew someone who'd committed suicide, and I would NEVER hurt someone like that. I was too attached to living.

By this point, the meal was over. So my boyfriend started clearing the table, trying to gain control of his own emotions. I watched silently for a bit before helping him.

After we'd put the dishes away, I walked back while he paid the bill for everyone. I just stood there numbly (the seats were now gone) until he got back and pulled me gently into his arms, just being a source of comfort, not saying a word. He rocked me back and forth, rubbing a hand down my back and telling me that someday in our future he planned to marry me.

It was sweet, loving, and perfect. I just wish my mom hadn't woken me up, as I'd have liked to see where this dream went, since it went farther than the last version of it did. The two weird things, though, were that the dream ended with me hearing David Bowie's "Let's Dance" as everything faded out, and that the SECOND I woke up, I could no longer remember my boyfriend's or face name at all!

Vampire Queen Anne Rice is a Fan of True Blood's Bill Compton!

2009-12-16T11:35:00.001-08:00

This was originally going to be posted on truebloodnet.com, but was turned down as too polarizing. Since I did write the article, I was given permission by the admin of the site to post that article here, so hopefully I can do it justice in this setting. And with that said, here's the article!

Hello, my fellow Truebies! Thanks to the awesome AdoreBill, I discovered that the ORIGINAL Queen of Vampires, the lovely Anne Rice, has commented on who her favorite True Blood character is on her Facebook Page, which Anne has linked to directly from her official website. This is what she said:

Guys, enough about Eric on True Blood. Georgie Pendragon, you are right: "Bill is the man!" I assure you that Lestat, Armand and Louis are fans of Bill Compton. Eric is a disgrace. He's cruel and one dimensional. Bad press for vampires who are such tragic and conflicted heroes. Forget about Eric.

As for all you Eric, fans, I know you may see him differently, but you are really comparing apples and oranges, as you always seem to use the books in your defense, even when we are actually discussing True Blood, which is very different from the books!

Please don't take this the wrong way, as this is obviously Anne's opinion, and one that I and other Bill fans hope that Alan Ball continues to see. After all, Alan has said that Bill is the character that brought him to the Southern Vampire Mystery series, and caused us all to get our beloved show True Blood!

(Image Source: HBO, Inc.)

What I Did This Weekend

2009-12-06T23:18:00.001-08:00

This weekend on Twitter and Facebook, some serious digital fundraising was going on. HBO told fans of True Blood that if they donated 500,000 "drops of blood" on Twitter by today, December 6, they would donate $10,000 to the Red Cross.

Well, slowly but surely at first, before picking up steam, we True Blood fans did it! Our reward (besides HBO giving the money to the Red Cross)? We got Bitten or Kissed by some of our favorite characters on True Blood! Originally, there were only six, and they were Eric Northman, Sookie Stackhouse, Bill Compton, Jessica Hamby, Pam, and Jason Stackhouse. However, in the later hours of today, both Lafayette and Sam Merlotte joined in on the fun.

As for me? Well, I lost count of the number of times I personally donated drops of blood, but I do know that I was bitten and kissed by everyone EXCEPT Bill and Jessica. *shrug* No big deal, as they were busy along with everyone else in dishing out as much love as they could!

So, in closing, it felt really great to be a part of this, and I'm so glad we were able to reach our goal and get HBO to give money to a worthy cause like the Red Cross! It feels really good to be a part of something larger than myself!

Wow! Another Hugh Jackman Dream!

2009-12-04T08:31:00.000-08:00

Well, it happened again. I had another amazing dream in which I worked with Hugh Jackman!

I wish I could remember everything about it, but some aspects of the dream are already leaving me. So here's what I do remember:

It started off with me in a crowd (near the front of it) right by some random room which I had seen Hugh walk into. Once in there, I raised my voice a little to be heard over the crowd and said hi. Hugh responded in kind, then grabbed my hand and pulled me right to the threshold of the door. We chatted for a bit about inconsequential things before our conversation turned to more serious topics.

We had just started talking about some of Hugh's upcoming movie work when Deborra-lee Furness walked in from another door across and to the right from where I was. She was in some sort of flight stewardess outfit, and appeared to be much heavier than I know her to be. Of course, this was a dream, so I didn't make any comment about that, but I did say hi to Deborra as well and shake her hand. (Somehow, at that point, I was now in the room, though I have no memory of walking into the room, just to the threshold.) Deborra smiled at me, and Hugh picked something up off the floor and started talking with someone else who seemed to just appear in the room. As Hugh and the other man talked, Deborra and I started chatting about her career and how much I had enjoyed her short "Standing Room Only."

I can only assume that Hugh and the other man were listening in, because Hugh jumped back into the conversation and the other man was suddenly gone again.

Soon after that, I was just walking out the door I had come in from, and Hugh stopped me again. This time, he told me that if I wanted to continue getting the access I had to people like him, even when there was a crowd, I had to blend in. While he said this, he pointed out a group of people in very plain clothes, and whispered to me that they were actually security. I remember that all of them were wearing various colors of long sleeved flannel shirts, which makes me assume that we may have been in New York again.

Anyways, after Hugh pointed out the plainclothesmen, he also reminded me that the attitude I had kept (very calm about being around him), was something that was good for anyone who wanted to work in the film industry, because a majority of celebrities prefer it when you don't get overly excited about meeting them.

After that was the point where the dream started to get kind of weird.

Somehow, after I walked away from Hugh in that little building/room, the dream shifted and suddenly I was in some sort dirt pit, about 6 feet deep and at least 30 feet wide. Hugh was back with me, and we were in some sort of weird golf cart. I remember the definite shape of the cart being identical to a real golf cart, but there were half doors on each side, like the ones that are on toddler cars. (The only difference is that the doors on the cart were white.)

So, we're sitting in this cart, looking up at tons of people yammering excitedly around the top edge of the pit in some foreign language that sounded ancient (I actually think it might have been the language of the Maya), and trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

A couple minutes later, someone who appeared to be the leader of the group surrounding us appeared. He babbled in their weird language before somehow explaining to us that we had to survive our trip in this pit. At these comments, the crowd began cheering wildly, and suddenly, we were off.

In the cart, Hugh was driving and I was sitting next to him. We both looked around but really saw nothing in the pit but us, so we kind of glanced at each other and shrugged. Then, Hugh started driving us in circles around the pit, over and over again.

While we were doing this, random people would jump down into the pit, and we'd see them struggling for their lives, even though nothing ever touched us. It was really weird, but we were grateful for the safety. All I know is that I was curious as to what happened to those people that they were struggling to survive and appeared to be in the grip of some invisible being.

Several minutes later, we were still driving around when all the crowd started cheering. Hugh then put the stopped the cart near where we had first been in it, then we both climbed out. Instantly, Hugh was pulled up and out of the pit, while I jumped up until my arms were resting at the top of the pit (like how you hold onto the side of a pool), and my feet were just dangling into the pit below me.

I'm not entirely sure what happened next, but I do remember that a more minor person in authority stopped Hugh from reaching down to help me out of the pit. This man said something to the effect of "Do you want to drown?" I was really confused by his statement until I saw the water flowing in from the bottom of the pit, with a tendril of it wrapped around my right calf. Hugh shook his head, then carefully stood up straight again, and just waited for the pit to fill so that I could be released.

The pit filling didn't take very long, and soon I was up to my mid-chest in water. At that point, I suddenly remember feeling free, and I was grabbed by two of the observers near me and pulled out. I gave Hugh a hug, and that was when I woke up.

Weird dream, huh? What's your opinion on it?

Elizabeth Naughton's New Book Contest

2009-12-01T17:49:00.000-08:00

There's a League Member in my Group of Friends!

2009-12-01T13:21:00.000-08:00

Fellow Kenyon Minions, for those of you who've read the League books, I must introduce you to one of my friends. He's asked that his name be kept private, but this is him...

Random Cuteness

2009-11-23T10:06:00.000-08:00

Just another cute kitty from my favorite silly image site, Icanhascheezburger.com...

AWWWWWW!

Found An Old Picture of Myself!

2009-11-19T20:02:00.001-08:00

Can't believe I'd forgotten I had this pic on my Facebook page! It's of me and Kevin McHale (now known as "Artie" on GLEE) at our high school graduation back in 2007! He'd sung the National Anthem beautifully, and I was blown away by his vocal talent!

So, without further ado, here's the pic!

Just Had to Try It...

2009-11-19T11:27:00.000-08:00

Your result for The What type of MAN turns you on Test...

Exotic Bad-Ass

You scored 65% masculine, 53% athletic, 55% exotic, and 44% refined!

You want everything in a man at the same time! Masculine, built like a Greek god, exotic and mysterious and even some bad-ass in there too. I think you would really like Freddy Ljungberg, the Swedish soccer player. He's the guy on the right. But let's face it, the whole point of this was to look at a bunch of hot guys. If you liked what you saw, please rate my test!

Take The What type of MAN turns you on Test at HelloQuizzy

Funny thing is, I've taken this quiz before, and I had a different result! I think I kind of prefer this one!

Bye Bye Baby

2009-11-19T11:07:00.001-08:00

Temposhark has just released a music video for one of their new songs, called "Bye Bye Baby." It's brilliant, simply put. yes, the message is simple, but it's highly effective. I really enjoyed this video, and I've put it here so you can too!

Leave a comment and let me know if you liked or disliked the video! Here's the link to the Arjan Writes blog, where this was exclusively posted! (I grabbed the embed code from the video while I watched it on Arjan's site!)

Another New Pillow! (Finished 11/17/09)

2009-11-17T16:33:00.000-08:00

Yep, did another pillow today! It looks MUCH better live than in the photo... This one is green with a few blue stripes... On both edges and in the middle...

As always, let me know what you think!

EDIT: I have a better picture that I'm putting up on here now! Hopefully that helps!

New Pillow! (Finished 11/14/09)

2009-11-14T20:11:00.000-08:00

Yep! I finally finished a new pillow again! This time, I used Lion's Brand® Velvetspun Yarn... In a pale blue color (Bluebell), and really liked the softness of the yarn, though I found it to be a pain to work with in some ways.

Either way, I took the time this morning and this evening to make the pillowcase and the actual pillow. (In between, I was at the LA Paley Center with a couple friends and my godmom for screenings of previous panels about different vampire-related stuff... Angel, True Blood, and Moonlight...)

But anyways, here's the pillow!

As always, let me know what you think!

EDIT:

I've got a better picture again! Here it is!

Maine Gay Marriage Vote: Voters Repeal Law Legalizing Gay Marriage

2009-11-03T23:03:00.001-08:00

Green Day had it right with American Idiot. FUCK America! The land of HATRED, INTOLERANCE, and XENOPHOBIA!

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/03/maine-gay-marriage-vote-e_n_344688.html
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Fangs, Fur, and Fey Just Turned 3!

2009-10-30T12:02:00.000-07:00

Due to the excellent blog Fangs, Fur, & Fey turning three, they are holding a contest. The prizes are GREAT! However, to find out more, you have to go to their blog yourself! The title of this blog is directly linked to their blog post, as is the title of the blog in this post.

So how about you go on over and take a look! I promise it's worth the time!

Stars are Just People Too!

2009-10-24T13:25:00.001-07:00

Ok, I admit it. I'm addicted to "social networking" sites. My two favorites are Twitter and Facebook.

Now, something awesome happened today on Facebook... I caught actor Kristoffer Cusick online, sent him a message, and he responded. This may not be a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but to me it means a lot because I saw him a couple years ago playing Fiyero in Wicked. This was in LA, at Broadway LA, and the cast there was PHENOMENAL! But Kris really caught my attention because his voice was so compelling. Hearing him sing was like hearing Michael Crawford when he played the Phantom back when I was a baby. There just aren't words to describe how deeply his voice moved me.

Anyways, today's chat with Kris was pretty short, but still awesome in that it was him I was talking to.

Here's what was said:

Me: Hey Kris! I'm a really huge fan, and I was wondering what kind of stuff you're working on right now.
Kris: just lots of auditions and such
Kris: we shall see what happens
Me: I was also wondering if you knew anything about the Wicked movie I keep hearing about
Me: b/c I'd LOVE to see you as Fiyero in that! You were so amazing in Wicked when I saw it out here in LA
Kris: wicked movie is years and years and years away
Kris: at least 5 if not 7 to 10
Me: Either way, good luck in everything! Hopefully I'll see you on Broadway someday!
Me: that's too bad. Wicked is one of the best shows I've seen in years!
Me: And I honestly believe that the LA cast I saw was better than the OBC
Kris: ah thanks
Me: MAN you and Eden were great together!
Me: and everyone else too...
Me: Any chance you may do a guest appearance on Glee?
Me: One last thing, Kris. My dad used to be a musician way back when Phantom was still playing in LA and Michael Crawford was the Phantom. I saw POTO several times live, and was always affected by Michael's singing. I feel the same when I listen to you via video on youtube, and I really wish the LA cast had recorded it's own Wicked soundtrack. You have such an amazing voice.
Kris: that is really sweet of you to say and to support so much
Me: I love Broadway... And talent like yours is hard to find in other forms of media

So yes, transcribed above is my totally awesome happiness for the day so far! *Squeeeeeeeeeeee!!*

I'm So Happy Right Now!

2009-10-07T11:55:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, I'm a full-time college student. This semester, one of the classes I'm taking is the Literary Magazine class. Basically, I'm now part of the staff of the ONLY creative content published for my school (thanks to budget cuts, our school's paper was cut). I'm really in love with the class, and my classmates and teacher are all really fun to work with.

Anyways, we got seriously stiffed in our budget this year. Instead of the customary $5,000 that the class used to get, we only got $3,400. This is a serious problem for my class, as we rely on every cent we get to create a great publication and have a great release party. So, to try and get some more money, my teacher is playing college politics with other staffers at the school for more money, and we the students held a bake sale.

For the bake sale, I did my part by baking about 10 dozen cookies. Half of those cookies are Chocolate Chunk, and the other half are Chocolate Chocolate Chunk. (Scarily enough, that makes about 27 dozen cookies so far in the past three weeks! Sue me, I've been a baking fiend!) Of the most recent 10 dozen, I took about half (2 dozen chocolate chunk and 3 dozen chocolate chocolate chunk) with me to school for the bake sale. Others brought soda, water, bakalava, muffins, more cookies, and even cotton candy (prepackaged to make our lives easier). We sold everything from between $.25 to $1.00, and we also had live music.

It was a great sale. We did a great job in profit considering how much we sold everything for. And we also got to hear some great live local music!

Now for the really great news... We made $175.55 in profit from the sale. Then we REALLY lucked out! One woman, another student of my teacher's, gave us a $100 donation. Then she returned later with another check, this one from her mother. That check was for $500! We made almost $800!

Then, to top that off, our teacher was able to get us $3,000! That means our budget for this year's literary magazine is higher than ever! We have over $7,000 in our budget for the first time ever!

Morris Ups the Ante - Challenges Palin to Charity Dinner with Progressives for $200,000

2009-09-25T14:19:00.001-07:00

Calling out Sarah Palin! PROVE to us that you actually HAVE a heart, that you CARE about people other than yourself, and that you actually ARE in some way coherent! Otherwise, I'll be forced to continue to believe as I do that you're nothing more than a spineless, pathetic, miserable, weak sack of feces that is bound to spontaneously combust in the very near future.

Woman up and get behind your words, Sarah! Better yet, do it for this wonderful cause!

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/akmuckraker/morris-ups-the-ante---cha_b_299526.html
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

How Compatible Are You with Vampires?

2009-09-16T11:59:00.000-07:00

Find True Blood at LocateTV

"I Remember"

2009-09-14T13:11:00.000-07:00

This was another journal from my Poetry class, and I decided to share it here...

Journal #4 "I Remember"

"I remember there was mist/swirling mist upon a vast glassy lake/there were candles all around/and on the lake there was a boat/and in the boat/there was a man…" Those lines haunt my ears every time I think about Phantom of the Opera. I see the passion, the love, the devastation that follows in the rest of the story just thinking about that, and those memories… Well, they just make it into an even bigger deal.

How can anyone not see the curiousity there? That innocent curiousity, which as we all know can be devastating… It's a reminder that heartbreak and betrayal are easy, and can happen in the blink of an eye.

It's a common theme everywhere, and the fandoms I find myself involved with all seem to deeply deal with it.

What is it about betrayal that becomes sensual in the darkest of ways? Why are people drawn to committing actions that hurt and betray others? I'm not talking about a physical hurt, just a deep emotional one, like the stabs of the ancient Grecian dagger against the ribs, leaving scars on both skin and bone.

Many people seem drawn to that pain when they witness it coming from others - so much so that it almost seems like they live from the misery and pain of others.

Where does that come from?

We all have to deal with it, so why do some people gain pleasure from such horrible things while others don't?

I think that may be part of the draw of the gothic genre. That darkness coming from one person to another as it flows off the pages of the book and stings you, the reader, straight in the heart.

Is it just that the pain makes us feel more alive? Or is it that such pain, whether experienced in real life or through the feelings of another (even a character from a book), allows us to better see the joy in life as well? How fine a line is there to cross between despair for the sake of being depressed and despair for the sake of realizing how good you actually have it?

I remember being on both sides. I hated one, yet I'm drawn to the other. It's scary. And I want more than anything to let all of that out of my system. I don't want to enjoy others pain, even if it reminds me that I have a great life regardless of my opinion on each particular day.

Is it just that everyone needs some negativity to focus on, or are we as humans in NEED of that sweet anguish?

I wish I knew the answer to that, because I bet I'd make a lot of money if I wrote about it and got published. *snort* At least in my head, that sounds like a good idea… Not sure how well it actually translates to real life though.

My Night... (Includes Info about the Season Finalé of True Blood)

2009-09-13T23:11:00.000-07:00

My night has been great and heart-wrenching...

First, it was great because I got to spend some quality time alone with my dad, but it was only because we drove my car down to my grandmother's house so that he can catch a flight tomorrow morning to get back to DC. But then again, any personal chat time is a good thing with him, because I have an easier time talking with him when we're just one on one.

Then, I had to leave him and drive home alone... NOT fun! I HATE driving the 405 at night!

After that, when I got home, I sat down and watched the season 2 finalé of True Blood. And what a finalé it was! I LOVED the episode for the most part, but HATED the ending! It was so completely heart-wrenching that I still have tears in my eyes from it! (However, I'm not going to spoil the ending here.) Let's just say that it makes an EXCELLENT cliff-hanger leading to season 3, but at the same time I just didn't want it to happen like that, and I'm sure that my theory about who the "bad guys" are for season 3 will end up being proven true.

My theory... Well, let's just say it involves a certain vampire calling on another to kidnap another vampire and torture said vampire...

Either way, I think I'm not gonna sleep until I rewrite the ending of that episode to the ending I want, then I'll go to bed... Yeah, I'm actually that depressed by the ending! Is that pathetic?

Nathan Barr's True Blood Score Signing at Dark Delicacies

2009-09-13T15:49:00.000-07:00

Today has been a REALLY fun day so far! After yesterday's trip to the Santa Monica Pier and Bubba Gump's (a favorite of Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer's, or so my waitress told me) for lunch (in honor of my sister's birthday), I really didn't think that my weekend could be better...

It turns out that I'd forgotten that I had plans today! I went down to Burbank, to my favorite bookstore, Dark Delicacies, where Nathan Barr was doing a CD signing of his new True Blood Score CD. I arrived early, and had a GREAT time! Nathan was very open, and answered my questions about working on True Blood, whether or not he'd have a cameo again, how he got involved with True Blood and Alan Ball, etc.

It was very informative, and Nathan's producers/managers were also very cool. They also answered the questions I asked. All in all, EXCELLENT experience, and I'd happily go do it again!

Here's a couple pics!

And here's the signed True Blood Score cover:

However, the Nathan Barr signing isn't the only one who had a signing today... Bear McCreary (of Battlestar Galactica Score fame) was signing the season 4 score for BSG, and I chatted with him for a bit as well! He's a total sweetie, and REALLY cute! (Same goes for Nathan Barr!)

Here are more pics:

I really wish I'd seen more people there at the signing, simply because it was so much fun!

Sharing a BRAND NEW Music Video!!!!

2009-09-10T15:03:00.000-07:00

Hey all! My FAVORITE band, Temposhark, just released their newest music video for a single from their new album, which won't come out until early next year...

It's called "The World Does Not Revolve Around You" and since I enjoyed it so much, as well as the message that the song provides, I just had to bring it here and share it with all of you!

Temposhark - The World Does Not Revolve Around You from EQ Video on Vimeo.

">

Please leave comments telling me what you think so I can pass that information on to the band!

My Random Moment of Happiness Today!

2009-09-09T18:17:00.000-07:00

Sooo, today I happened to notice Darren Hayes had posted a cute little Twitter post... the one below (reminder: to read what was said, click on each image for full size!):

Naturally, I had to respond:

Then, the REALLY cool part: Darren RESPONDED TO ME!!!! *bounces up and down and squees*

So I was bad, and I responded again:

Yeah, that's kinda my big happy moment of the day, and I'm just LOVING it!!!

My Second Time on Wii Fit...

2009-09-08T18:47:00.000-07:00

Ok, well, it's technically four days since my last run on the Wii, and I'll tell you now it's because I'm so sore from the way Wii Fit makes you work your body! Of course, it's tons of fun, as I've mentioned previously, but still...

Anyways, today was my second time. I went through the process again of being weighed, having my BMI checked, etc... It was actually pretty cool! See, when I was weighed today, I discovered I'd lost 2.4 pounds!

2.4 LBS IN JUST 4 DAYS! Wooo-Hoooo!

Well, after the excitement, I realized that in just 4 days, my habits have already started changing. I have dropped my soda intake by at least 50% (this going months back because I realized that soda really isn't a benefit to me), I'm eating less, snacking less, and when I snack, it's on healthier alternatives, though nowhere near where I should be yet... (But I'll get there eventually.)

Of course, after I got weighed and everything, I had to work out... So I did about 21 minutes of exercises that I (mostly) hadn't done on my first try. New stuff I tried included a couple of yoga poses and some strength training... *sigh* I have a feeling that I'll be REALLY sore tomorrow!

Oh, and before I forget... I also did almost an hours worth of Wii Sports prior to getting on the Wii Fit train... Oh YEAH I'm gonna be sore tomorrow!

And New Dreams Keep Coming...

2009-09-07T10:57:00.000-07:00

Once again, I woke up from a nice dream and remembered it. This one is particularly special to me because it involved my grandmother, who passed away last December.

In the dream, it was the holiday season, and I believe it was Hanukkah (though Christmas may have been going on at the same time)... Either way, it was the holiday season and some random member of my extended family was having his Bar Mitzvah. I barely remember sitting through the service, but after it was over, everyone got out of the temple service room, then went outside to another area, then up the stairs to the second floor of another building.

Once there, my entire family started exchanging gifts. The weird part was that I really didn't recognize some of them... And I at least recognize my family for the most part, even if sometimes I can't remember all my cousins' names...

However, the weirdest part was my uncle giving both myself and my little sister a present, saying it was from my grandmother, and she'd want me to have it. I turned the envelope he handed me over so I could see what was written on the front. I instinctively noticed that the writing was NOT my grandmother's (even in my dream I knew that she was non longer with us), but after looking at it, my sister, who had been on my right side moved, showing another person in my peripheral vision. I ignored that person for a moment, turned the envelope back over, and opened it. As I did, the person in my peripheral vision stepped closer to me. I stopped pulling the card out of the envelope, and turned to that person.

It was my grandmother. I instantly lunged over to her and gave her a giant hug, which she immediately returned. I can't even describe how great it was, or how comforted I felt. I also told my grandmother that I missed her, and she responded in kind, before telling me to open the card, and I deserved everything that was inside.

I did as she asked, and inside the card was a bit of money, which is a great thing because I really am cash-strapped in real life right now.

Soon after that, I woke up again, feeling unrefreshed, and missing my grandmother, but at the same time I felt comforted, and I knew that she had really been there, telling me that she loves me and is still watching out for me.

At the very least, I'm going to continue to believe that, because I know that were she still with me on this plane, that's exactly what she'd be doing.

Day One on the Wii Fit...

2009-09-04T21:45:00.000-07:00

Ok, today starts a new part of my life... My seriously taking on the challenge to slim down a little bit... So I started today on Wii Fit...

Let's just say it didn't quite go as planned, and made me pretty upset. First off, you always get weighed, and your BMI is measured... Let's just say that neither was what I expected... It was higher! NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Well, I tried it out, and I did eventually get 30 minutes of exercise done. Hell, my sister even got me to RUN! If you know me, you know that running and I are NOT friends. But somehow, I managed to get it done! Five minutes of jogging! I'm impressed by myself!

After that, I cooled down by playing the hula-hooping game! SOOOO much fun!

Well, I expect after all that, I'll be tired tomorrow, so I think I may wait a day or three before I do it again.

"I Should Have"

2009-09-02T13:12:00.000-07:00

This was a journal for my poetry class, so it's very close to my heart... Please keep that in mind as you read.

Journal #2 "I Should Have"

I should have not let Andy go. I should have fought harder to prevent the loss of our friendship. He was my best friend, the only guy who REALLY knew me. I should have realized when he stopped wanting to hang out that something was wrong. I should have looked to see what his eyes were saying. Were they full of pain? Were they weary? Were they wary? What would I have seen if I'd just stopped for a moment, and not been so selfish and all about me?

In those last few months before we dissolved our friendship, Andy would always say he loved me, and I'd respond in kind, thinking that he meant close friendship, nothing more. Did I read him wrong? Did he read me wrong?

It's hard to blame either one of us singularly, but I can't help it. Does he still feel the pain of not having someone to talk to like we talked? Was I replaced instantly or not? There is no replacement for Andy. He was everything I was not, and then some. We laughed together, fought hard, smiled together, thought it was hysterical when we were confused for brother and sister…

Can that relationship really be over so quickly just because someone had to say goodbye?

Did I hurt Andy? I would never do it intentionally, unless we were fighting, but we had known parameters of how far that would even go. Was he in love with me? I remember still the days we spent over a month of weekends curled up together watching The 10th Kingdom. He laid on my favorite pillow, and demanded that I use him as a pillow. I remember that damned smirk on his face as we continued to pause and laugh at scenes in the movie while discussing them. I remember the comparison between him and one of the characters in the movie… I found the character attractive, but, as I laughingly told Andy, him not so much, probably because I'd known him too long.

*sigh* I should have realized that all good times come to an end. I wish I'd seen the signs beforehand. Instead, I'm left clutching each memory of the taunts, the fights, the laughs, the smiles, the hugs… And still not over him.

Someday, I'd love to go out on another random drive with him. Not really going anywhere, just a drive to wherever the road takes us. I remember the silly street names we'd call out, then the exits off the freeway. I remember laughing over getting lost, and how finding our way home again took almost the entire night. Those memories fill my head almost all the time.

Hell, Andy's taken over my mind. I can no longer read my favorite poem without thinking that it's talking about me and Andy.

To quote said poem, "If I should meet Andy after long years, How would I greet him? -With silence and tears."

Tears for the lost time, tears for the pain, tears as I try to find enough voice to ask him what really happened. And how would he respond? I have no idea. But if he approached me, would I even have enough left inside me to open my mouth and turn sound into words?

Andy has moved on. Why can't I?

A (Very) Belated Yarnworks Update

2009-08-30T18:56:00.000-07:00

Hey guys... I've still been working on my yarn stuff, just not so much and with less time available to me, I haven't been posting about what I've accomplished recently.

So, here's a quick update:

For my big blanket that I'm working on, I now have 26 or 27 blanket squares completed, and I'm over halfway done with another. When I get a chance, I will take pics of all my new ones, and I'll put them in the blog, backdated to approximately when I finished them.

I'm still working on my pillows and pillowcases... I gave one to Anna Paquin for her birthday, and she loved it. I just finished another pillowcase today, and when I get a chance to (probably Tuesday), I'll add a picture to this post so you can see it.

I'm also working on another new pillowcase for the moment.

For now, school's just started for me again, so I'll take what little time I can, and I will be posting about my yarn stuff again whenever I can. Same goes for regular blog posts, which will probably be more often so that I can use them to my advantage in one of my classes.

I Dreamed A Dream...

2009-08-30T09:48:00.000-07:00

I just woke up, and I remember having the most awesome dream last night!

In it, my home was part of some sort of hotel, and Hugh Jackman and his awesome wife Deborrah-lee Furness were staying there! I'm not entirely sure of all the details, but somehow I knew they were there, and I actively searched them both out.

I found Deborrah-lee first. I called her over, and I started telling her about how big a fan I was of both hers and Hugh's. She responded very politely, and we discussed some of her work. I remember directly telling her how much I loved her short film "Standing Room Only" and her shock when she realized I'd seen it, as well as a large grin on her face when I blushed, looked down and mumbled that I'd seen almost everything Hugh had ever done.

Right before my conversation with Deborrah-lee ended, she sat down on the side of my bed (somehow we were in my room), leaned over me, then kissed my forehead. It was a motherly gesture, and a very comforting and much appreciated one.

Well, now that I'd found her and KNEW she was there, I figured Hugh had to be there as well, so I stared searching for him. At first, I didn't find him. It was highly disappointing, and reminded me of a conversation I held with a friend a long time ago about how if you see one celebrity you like, you're probably not gonna see another one unless you're on a movie or film set or something.

However, that happily did not turn out to be the case in my dream. Instead, I heard him talking with someone, so I ran in the direction of his voice. He was in another room, the door wide open. I knocked on it and was given permission to enter.

From there, a very long, wonderful conversation was started. It began with me introducing myself, and telling Hugh was a huge fan of his I was. He smiled back and told me how nice it was to have fans like me. All the basic polite chitchat led to us discussing characters he'd played, what he thought of them, etc. The part I remember most from the conversation that was in the room was me asking him about Wolverine as he was in X-Men and X2: X-Men United, and the relationship with Rogue. I specifically asked him how Wolverine REALLY felt about Rogue, and his response, as I remember it was:

"I think Wolverine loves Rogue. She's the first character within the movie series to make him feel like he's worth something, not just a loner and brawler. He actively checks up on her in the first film, worried about the companion who in only a few moments made him care about someone besides himself. After all, remember how desperate Logan was to save Rogue at the Statue of Liberty..."

I ended up cutting Hugh's comment off to ask him what he thought about a Wolverine/Rogue relationship that included being a couple. Hugh made a comment about liking the idea, and thinking it would be cool to work with Anna Paquin again, but I don't remember anything else from his response.

Then, Hugh turned the conversation around on me, and started asking me questions about my goals, what I wanted to accomplish, etc. I remember specifically telling him that my major goal in life was to become an Oscar-winning Screenwriter and Director, and someday a mother.

Hugh responded by telling me a highly clichéd line: "Don't give up on your goals, and someday you'll get there."

I think I raised my eyebrow at him before continuing my response about how I'd love to have him in a movie of mine someday, possibly playing a young grandfather or a father with 20-something kids and teenagers. This ended up with Hugh giving me a giant bear hug! (And boy did that feel great!)

All during this time, Hugh and I were walking along, and somehow we ended up on a train together, still talking, with Deborra-lee a few rows behind us, rolling her eyes at our conversation and laughing lightly.

The conversation on the train turned towards Hugh once more. I asked him about the lunch he had with Miley Cyrus about some movie that they were supposed to costar in. I asked Hugh why he would risk his career like that.

I didn't get a response about the career risk, but I did get a response about the Miley issue. Hugh said that it had only been an idea, and he wasn't going to do the movie with her (and then grinned as I sighed in relief).

Unfortunately, I don't remember any more of the conversation I held with Hugh, but I remember that my stop on the train had come up, and Hugh and Deborra-lee BOTH hugged me goodbye and said that they hoped to see me around New York again, which means that I must have been somewhere in New York, though I don't know exactly where. (The area around me was completely new to me, even though I've been to New York many times before...)

The last thing I remember from my dream is seeing Hugh and Deborra-lee waving to me from the train as it continued on its way out of the station.

Quite the interesting dream, huh? I wonder what it means for me in the long run, as I believe dreams have deeper meanings than just what we see and remember in them. Of course, that's nothing to say of the frustration when I woke up and realized my dream wasn't real... Let me know what you think of this! I'd love to hear some opinions on the meanings of the dream!

The Scary Future of the United States...

2009-08-27T15:20:00.000-07:00

It's obvious. Many people just don't care about politics, and the country they live in. This is especially true in the current political environment in the United States. The largest group that NEEDS to get with the picture is people my own age, the current youngest voting bloc. Most people I know from school did not vote in last year's presidential election. In fact, some of these people, who have been able to vote for years BOAST about how they've NEVER voted before! That's really disgraceful, especially since these people are the ones who are most frequently found bitching about whatever they hear "reporters" tell them about what's going on with things like health care, town hall meetings, the stimulus package... Anything they can think of. And then, they become the "dittoheads" we as a country should NOT listen to! They have nothing to add to conversation, and the only information they have is talking points that have been hand-fed to them.

It's scary. VERY scary. I mean, even I've tried to keep my mouth shut about this, but reaction to my proclamation to my friends the other day about the death of Ted Kennedy was met with blank stares, and questions of "who's that?" THAT IS WHAT IS WRONG WITH AMERICANS! They have NO freakin' clue as to what's going on politically, and they don't care! It's one thing to not know who Ray Bradbury is (and that is another issue I have with these same people), but to know NOTHING about the current political state of affairs and then just repeat what you hear with no evidence to back your statements up is just WRONG!!!

HOW can America as a country prosper and get back to her older strength if the masses are uninformed? It just doesn't work!

Ray Bradbury's 89th Birthday!

2009-08-22T17:22:00.000-07:00

I WENT TO RAY BRADBURY'S 89TH BIRTHDAY!!! It was AWESOME! Basically, it was a signing at a bookstore in Glendale, CA, and I went with my awesome godmom Wendy! It was fun, and I saw a few other writers besides Ray. Plus, it was Wendy and Wendy time, and that's always a great thing! My godmom ROCKS! She's one of the most interesting people I know (same goes for her friends), and the way she shares experiences like the signings I've gone to with her are incredibly special to me. I treasure each one!

That being said, I do have a few pics to share. Some come from my camera, others come from my godmom and her friends, which I got and share here (with permission) via facebook.

Here are mine:

Me and Ray as he signs my copy of Fahrenheit 451...

Me and Ray again, just after he'd finished signing my book...

My Godmom Wendy and Earl Hamner, Jr.

As for the pics I didn't take:

Earl Hamner, Jr., My Godmom Wendy, Me, George Clayton Johnson, & Jackie Estrada...

A New Update From My Favorite Band!

2009-08-08T21:29:00.000-07:00

Temposhark, one of the best bands to pop up in the last several years, has just posted their first single from their sophomore album at ArjanWrites Music Blog... Yes, it's an exclusive there, and the title of this blog post links directly to that posting...

Now, a little info about this new single, which is AWESOME!!!
• 1. It's called "The World Does Not Revolve Around You"
• 2. It's not what you'll expect it to be.
• 3. It has to be heard to be believed.
• 4. I'm making sure you all get to listen to it, so I'm posting the link to the site HERE as well!

So, please take a listen and let me know what you think! That way, I can forward your (hopefully nice) comments about the song onto the band, which you can follow on Twitter. They can be found @temposhark

BTW, PLEASE BE SURE TO VISIT ARJANWRITES FOR THE BEST COMMENTARY ON TEMPOSHARK'S NEW SONG!!!!

Another Sherrilyn Kenyon Signing!

2009-08-06T23:47:00.000-07:00

Today was the third stop on Sherrilyn Kenyon's "Bad Moon Rising" book tour (and by the way, an EXCELLENT read for fans of the series!), and today's stop was the only signing I'm able to attend. This year, instead of being at my favorite bookstore Dark Delicacies, the signing was held at the Buena Vista Library. VERY nice place! There were a lot of people there! I ran into a ton of old friends/fellow Kenyon Minions while there, and had a ball discussing Sherri's books and more recent plot points with them!

I got there around 4 pm, about an hour after most of my friends had arrived, looking forward to great seats and seeing everyone else. I immediately looked for my friend Seri, since I see her very rarely, and luckily for me, there was a seat in the row in front of hers which I was able to take so that we could chat while awaiting Sherri's arrival.

Luckily for everyone present, Sherri was early, along with her friend and fellow writer Dianna Love (another very talented woman), so the "chat" prior to the signing started early. (And even with that, I lucked out. I was #36 in line for the signing, and there were at least 115 people in the audience who were getting books signed!) Sherri made everyone in the audience laugh with her comments about the books, the stories she told, etc. Plus, her back-and-forth with Dianna was pretty hysterical too! Sherri talked a little about upcoming books (mostly to the effect of "Well, such-and-such thing WILL happen... EVENTUALLY!"), a little about a couple of her other series, and then just "sparred" verbally with the audience! Let's just say that there's a reason people "heckle" Sherri, and it's NOT to be negative! It's to promote open, easy, REAL conversation between the fans and their favorite author. In fact, the heckling ended up leading to some pretty amusing stories!

Yes, it was great fun, and even better because I got to see Sherri so quickly after Comic-Con! This is now the second year where I've gone to Comic-Con, hung out with Sherri there, and then less than a month later seen Sherri again! Last time, it was for the end of arc 1 of the Dark-Hunter series, and the book for the main character, Acheron. This time, it was for a book that travels throughout previous books, only from a point of view that wasn't available then. Fang Kattalakis is QUITE the hero in the book! It was so worth buying the book on Tuesday (the release date aka 8/4/09), then returning it and buying it again for my place in line at the signing!

Of course, now I won't see Sherri again for another year, but somehow, I think I'll survive, seeing as Sherri is such a wonderful woman, and I had so much fun when I saw her today at the signing, and a couple weeks ago at Comic-Con. Plus, I can keep in touch with her via my Akri Erin!

The News of the Day

2009-08-05T19:33:00.000-07:00

Today is a pretty big day for a couple of reasons. First, it's my mom's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! I LOVE YOU! Second, two of my favorite celebrities got engaged!

A little info about my mom's birthday... It's pretty hard to shop for her, since she really likes jewelry, but has rings for every finger (except a pinky ring or two), TONS of necklaces, earrings, etc... And she's a rather discriminate tv viewer that really doesn't believe in buying tv shows on DVD (the only exceptions being Animaniacs and Rocky & Bullwinkle).

So, this year, my even more discriminate father asked me and my little sister what we thought our mom wanted. I immediately piped up with "A Wii and Wii Fit!" My sister countered, saying she hadn't heard mom talk about it in a while. However, I pushed and pushed on this until my dad and I went to Costco a little later. There he sighed and gave in, grabbing a Wii and Wii Fit for my mom, though he still questioned my motives for wanting it. I won't lie; I do want those as well, because I REALLY like Wii Sports, and my sister and mom like yoga and want the Wii Fit for it...

Basically, this is a HUGE deal in my household because my family has been intensely anti-gaming systems for as long as I can remember. So, I'm still not sure how it happened, buy my mom got the surprise of her life in getting the Wii and Wii Fit from us as a present, and we're already taking advantage of it! I'm so glad that my mom loves her new toy MORE than I do!

As for the second bit of news....

CONGRATULATIONS TO ANNA PAQUIN AND STEPHEN MOYER! News is, they've gotten engaged for real! After the previous hoax, I'd had my doubts, but since it's now been said on the news... I'm gonna believe it to be true!

After meeting Anna and Steve at Comic-Con, even though it was a very quick thing (since it was at the True Blood signing), I really believe they're in love. Both Anna and Stephen looked at each other and just GLOWED when they were signing items and talking to fans! Plus, it seemed to me that they were being rather "touchy-feely" behind the privacy of the signing area. (Let's just say it wouldn't surprise me if they were playing "Footsies" with each other out of view of the fans and everyone!)

I'm gonna guess that this is a real relationship, and that it's gonna last. For me, as a fan of both, I just want the two to be happy, just like how I feel about my friends and family.

So, *raises imaginary glass of wine* Congratulations and Good Luck to you both, Anna and Steve! May your lives together continue to be showered with love and happiness and respect for each other and TONS of passion!

And again to my mom, Happy Birthday, and I love you!

Comic-Con: Thursday Edition

2009-07-24T01:19:00.000-07:00

Today was a GREAT day at Con! I'm really tired, but it was an excellent day. I got up really early for pretty much no reason (we're talking 6:30am)... Just hung out in my cousin's apartment until he got up and we left...

Once we got there, I went right over to Sherrilyn Kenyon's booth, and once again enjoyed seeing Erin and the rest of the crew Sherri brought with her (Kim and Ed, I LOVE you guys! Sheri, same goes for you too, though I didn't see you as much...) After that, I ran around. I went to about 20 minutes of a panel for an animated movie coming out next year called Quantum Quest... The animation I saw was STUNNING! I may not have known what the movie was originally, but I'm definitely interested now.

For that panel, I skipped out pretty quickly, since it was an hour, but I actually was running to the panel my awesome godmother, Wendy All, was on. That one was at 12:30, and again, I wasn't able to go to the whole thing, but this time it was because I had to check in for my volunteer work, which was really boring. But back to the panel.... It was Comic-Con in the 70's, and actually very interesting, from what I saw... (I did learn something completely unrelated to it though... I need to get a tripod for my video camera... I'm apparently pretty damned shaky when just taking straight film!) One of my favorite moments in the panel was when I was indirectly mentioned by my godmom... She talked about how she warped the minds of children, so I did what I do best, and responded directly to her statement, saying that I was grateful for her having warped me... I wouldn't be who I am without her influence. It got a laugh from the audience, and a huge grin from Wendy. Made my morning...

Unfortunately, after that, I had to run to my volunteer work. It ended up being me and another girl just standing outside in the direct sunlight for 3 hours, leaving both of us not feeling well, and rather irritated (with INCREDIBLY sore feet!)... No wonder we both sought out booth 1220, aka Sherri's booth... Of course, she was looking for Sherri, and I was more focused on my amazing akri Erin... Either way, I got a BIG hug from him, and it made me feel better, at least for a little bit.

I did end up staying there for a while, and I did run into Sherri (and her awesomely sweet hubby Ken, and her incredibly cute children!). So, I did what I most enjoy... I sat down at the seating which was luckily right across from Sherri's booth, then relaxed, letting my sore muscles take a break for a while...

Then I moved on. By now it was about 6pm, and I decided to search out the True Blood stuff, which I still haven't found. (However, this morning, I lucked out and got a special True Blood matchbook which says Fangtasia on it. It's one of only 200 in existence! I think it's my treasure from Con this year!) Instead of finding True Blood, I found another author I used to read a lot - Kevin J. Anderson. He used to write books in the Star Wars universe, as did his wife, and now he has the famous Dune series... He and Rebecca, his wife, were in a part of Con called "Artist's Alley." I spent a good hour or so there, just talking to Kevin and his wife about writing, and how they both got into it, then I got my cheap purse signed by both of them! It's pretty freakin' awesome!

After I left, I just walked around for a while before going back to Sherri's booth and just hanging out. I stayed for several hours, then went to Ballroom 20, where there would be a showing of Michael Dougherty's movie Trick 'r Treat. I got in early, and lucked into seeing the WORLD PREMIERE of the new animated Green Lantern movie! It was really good, lots of fun and laughs to be had, even though the movie was in all honesty pretty corny and very clichéd and predictable. Truth is, that movie wouldn't have worked any other way. I really enjoyed the movie, and I highly recommend it to anyone who has young children who like superheros.

After the Green Lantern movie was over, it was time for the Trick 'r Treat screening. I was really excited, since it would end at midnight, and midnight would mean that it was Friday, and officially Anna Paquin's birthday... I was really hoping to give her a birthday present (pictures to come in a later post), but Anna ended up not showing. Instead, before the movie started, there was a panel with the film's director, Michael Dougherty, and many of the actors from the movie, including Brian Cox.

Now that may not seem to important to someone like me who has an overactive imagination and holds a desperate fear of horror films, but to me this was a REALLY big deal, as Michael is one of the top dogs who penned X-Men 2: X-Men United, and Brian Cox played baddie William Stryker in X2. (And it should be obvious that Anna played Rogue in the X-Men trilogy though I STILL don't believe that X3 actually exists... But that's a rant for another day...)

So, I was more excited for the chance to see all these people who were involved with one of my favorite movies than any real particular interest in Trick 'r Treat (though I admit to enjoying the ironies of Anna Paquin playing a girl who gets killed by a vampire in Trick 'r Treat, then becoming the star of True Blood and playing a character who is in a deep and committed relationship with a vampire who loves her...)

Well, here's where I take a quick break from my typing, and post a couple of pictures from the panel... Where I was seated in the FRONT ROW Center seats of the room. Literally right in front of me is the panel seating...

This was really cool except for one thing... I was unable to sit through the entire film. And it wasn't because of my typical inability to watch horror films (normally I can't stand them since I have an overly active imagination and I get nightmares from such things)... Unfortunately for me, it was because I actually got sick, which sucks because I was really enjoying the movie! Yes, what little I did see grossed me out, but the movie was both scary AND incredibly funny! I was laughing almost as much as I was cringing! So, it really sucked to not see the final outcome of the movie!

Since I left early, I, along with my cousin Corey, took the trolley back towards SDSU. What we didn't realize was that the trolley stop we needed was already over for the night! We actually had taken a different route, thinking it'd be easy, but boy were we wrong. Once we got off the trolley at the stop, there were a couple of cops on the opposite side of the station, and we hailed them to ask about the line to SDSU that we needed. Once they told us it was done for the night, we walked up towards the street, and ended up at a BJ's Restaurant. Since they were closing down for the night, I had the guy cleaning the bar call a cab for us, and that's how we got back, well after midnight, to his VERY loud apartment!

It seems that while we were out, his room mates decided to have a party. Nice, and the people who were over were nice, but I was tired and wanted to go to sleep... It took a couple hours before that happened!

Comic-Con: Preview Night (Wednesday Edition)

2009-07-22T23:21:00.000-07:00

WELCOME TO COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL!

Yes, today was Preview Night, and it was NOT what I expected in the least! First, it was INSANELY BUSY! There were SO many people there, it was almost impossible to walk! I luckily didn't have to work my volunteer hours on Preview Night, so that was good. However, I did sign in and set up for my hours of work for Thursday. After that, what do you think the first thing I did was?

That's right! I went over to booth 1220, where Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark-Hunter® booth was located, and immediately saw my Akri there, along with Evyl Ed and Kim. I'd never met Ed or Kim before, and it was a pleasure to meet the two of them! Ed has an awesome accent, and it made me smile as I spoke with him. Kim was just a joy to be around. She has such a positive attitude! It's like being around Sherri. Regardless of how you feel, your spirits are going to rise being around Sherri and Kim!

I also ran into several old friends from previous Sherri signings, and that was just awesome. I'd forgotten how much I missed my fellow minions! It was great seeing them, and I'll enjoy seeing them all more throughout Con!

I Finished An Awesome Pillow!

2009-07-22T15:45:00.000-07:00

This is my latest pillow... And I finished it early today, before I started on my 3+ hour trip to San Diego for Comic-Con! If I really luck out, I'll be able to give it to Anna Paquin (Rogue in X-Men series, currently Sookie Stackhouse on True Blood) while there to celebrate her birthday!

Tell me what you think!

My new hairdo!

2009-07-21T16:38:00.003-07:00

I will be going through this post later and adding more pictures later, but for now... I just got my bangs dyed today, and I have some cute pics that really show the color! Here they are!

Well... Let me know what you think!

Random Thought of the Day...

2009-07-13T14:11:00.000-07:00

Well, I was in my summer class (English 102) today, and we were discussing poetry and breaking down a few of Shakespeare's sonnets... I got bored, as the conversation REALLY wasn't very stimulating, and I started looking for my favorite sonnet, of which I had LONG forgotten the number...

To be quick, I found it, and just had to share it with you... So without further ado, the Bard's sonnet 21:

So is it not with me as with that Muse,
Stirred by a painted beauty to his verse,
Who heaven itself for ornament doth use
And every fair with his fair doth rehearse,
Making a couplement of proud compare
With sun and moon, with earth and sea's rich gems,
With April's first-born flowers, and all things rare,
That heaven's air in this huge rondure hems.
O! let me, true in love, but truly write,
And then believe me, my love is as fair
As any mother's child, though not so bright
As those gold candles fixed in heaven's air:
Let them say more that like of hearsay well;
I will not praise that purpose not to sell.

Any comments on one of my favorite poems would be greatly appreciated... And remember, I didn't write it, William Shakespeare, aka The Bard, wrote it! DAMN he was brilliant!

Something Interesting Happened Today...

2009-07-08T21:59:00.000-07:00

At my home, we have 3 hummingbird feeders. Usually, those beautiful birds are always around 'em, eating. However, today was something special... Some different kind of bird, with a much stouter beak, was at least attempting to eat from the feeders! (I'm still not sure if he actually got anything, but he was there for almost 15 minutes!)

Because it was so odd, I just had to share, and I even got a few pics of this...

By the way, if anyone can tell me what kind of bird that is, I'd really appreciate it! He's very pretty!

Oh No! Not Billy Mays too!

2009-06-26T20:57:00.000-07:00

We have suffered yet another celebrity loss - Billy Mays... He will always be known as the guy who could practically sell anything, though the current infomercial that I really think of is the OxyClean one... It always made me smile, simply because Billy was so intense. Either way, all I really have to say is that I'm really gonna miss watching Billy promote random items in infomercials. NO ONE does it like he did!

RIP Billy!

True Blood Sweepstakes

2009-06-26T12:54:00.001-07:00

So much fun! I'm really enjoying this right now!

Death Still Comes in Threes...

2009-06-25T18:59:00.000-07:00

Today has been shockingly depressing. Yesterday has also been pretty bad. We've lost three American icons in a very short amount of time. First, Ed McMahon. Then Farrah Fawcett this morning, followed by Michael Jackson this afternoon. I don't think I'll be forgetting this day anytime soon.

I was not alive when these stars all were in the prime of their fame. I was born in 1989, so I came into a world that already knew and loved Ed, Farrah, and Michael. However, I did grow up in a house where Michael was a huge influence because my mom was a large fan of his. I remember learning the dance to Thriller when I was little. Same goes for Beat It. I knew of Ed because my mom and dad were always going "Heeeeeeeeeerrrreeeeeeeee's Johnny!" Farrah, on the other hand, I learned about by watching entertainment television - She was always shown in that famous bathing suit, and also for being one of Charlie's "Angels."

And as for Michael... Well, there's so much I can say, but it's really hard. I grew up listening to some of Michael's greater hits, Thriller being my very favorite. I could always hear how much Michael loved music through his songs. That vibrancy was just there, and it never left in any of the stuff I heard from him! I'm really going to miss that, as I can think of NO other artist on Michael's level. He was a genius. RIP, Michael! We'll all miss you!

Really, the RIP just goes to everyone, as this is just so depressing and horrifying. At least with Farrah, I can be somewhat certain that she's happier now, wherever she may be, and out of pain. Same goes for Ed. For Michael, however, questions will always remain.

Andy

2009-06-24T02:14:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, this one is really personal to me, and it is something that's completely true to me. If you're uncomfortable with a blog post that mentions sex, this would be a good post to ignore...

I can't stand it. I can't stand thinking about Andy and missing him and realizing that when I fantasize about sex, I see him moving over me, in me, around me, love shining at me through his dark sensual eyes. I haven't seen him nor talked to him in years, and I still miss the relationship I had with my former best friend. Andy was the best I had, and then I lost him, and lost a part of me. I want him back in my life with a desperation that I know nowhere else in me.

There isn't a day that passes when I don't think about him, even if only for a brief second.

At this point, he's been gone from my life so long that I'm kind of numb thinking about him, but then I walk by something or see something that reminds me of him, and I'm no longer numb. My chest burns in pain, and I wish desperately again to see him, hang out like we used to…

I'll always remember watching The 10th Kingdom with him, him laying on the couch, me laying on his chest, just relaxing together, smiling, and enjoying some quality escapism on the laptop screen in front of us.

I remember that he fell asleep under me once, missed at least half an hour of the movie, and while he slept, his arm came down and wrapped around my waist. I wish now that I'd had the foresight to ask my mom or dad to take a picture of us like that. It would be a comfort for me now.

However, I just can't forget that he chose his girlfriend over me. I understand that there's a distinction between a man's best friend and his girlfriend, especially when he's a year older than his best friend. But, from what I do recall of our relationship, he'd been telling me he loved me for a couple months, and I to this day believe he meant it as nothing more than a close friendship type of love. I'd even gotten so comfortable that I'd tell him I loved him back. Then, a couple months after this started, he stopped calling and asking to hang out. I'd call him instead, and he was never home (granted, he IS a year older, and was already at CSUN, but still…), so he never really had time to visit. But, when he was home on weekends visiting, he didn't have time for me either.

I think the moment I realized that the close friendship we'd cultivated and shared for so many years was over was when I was at a bar or bat mitzvah, miserable out of my mind. I called him, and he picked up the phone. When I told him I missed him, and wanted to see him soon, there was hesitation on his side of the line. There was a long pause before he told me he missed me too, but he had to go. That was the breaking point. When my family left that damned bar or bat mitzvah, I was struggling to keep my composure. I'm still not sure how I lasted until I got home before crying.

I think he broke me that day. It's years later, and I still can find guys attractive, but none have really made me stand up and take notice. I can't feel more than friendship for them, and I'm scared that I'm going to end up alone for the rest of my life.

I just want to hug and cuddle Andy one more time. He was my friend, my protector, and in many non-physical ways, the love of my life. I just hope he wasn't my soul mate. That would just kill me now, since if I ever really saw him again, I don't think I'd be able to talk to him without trying to hurt him the way he's hurt me.

Strangely enough, I don't think he realized or cared about how much he hurt me.

I Finally Finished Laura's Pillow!

2009-06-21T18:05:00.000-07:00

It's done! Sure it took a few extra days (I've made more pillowcases, and I'm making them into full pillows next, if anyone is interested in purchasing...) So, here's what the final product looks like! Let me know what you think!

Laura, sweetie, this was made with love for my Simi Sister and Fellow Minion! Hopefully we'll meet up sometime soon!

(I think I'm getting better at this! It's the 5th pillow I've made so far! Woooo!)

Even More New Pillowcases!

2009-06-16T17:04:00.000-07:00

Ok, I'm now obsessed with making pillows, but I do the pillowcases first, since it's a really brainless activity, and I can do it while listening to music with the tv on in the background (a "skill" I've gained from my mother, thankyouverymuch!)... Just let me know what you guys think, as always!

Loving My Summer Weekend!

2009-06-14T22:14:00.000-07:00

I've had the best summer weekend so far! I've had FREE HBO and MAX, so I've been able to watch LOTS of movies I've wanted to see FOR FREE! *squees* So much fun! Of course, the best part of free HBO is that I was able to watch the season premiere of True Blood! OMG, I LOVED IT! Just the continuance of last season's storylines, the introduction of new ones, and, my favorite part, the BILL/SOOKIE love scenes! No, that doesn't just refer to that HOT scene towards the end of the ep, but also all the relationship stuff, when they're trying to communicate and deal with Bill's latest problem... Well, let's just say that I'm REALLY looking forward to watching next week's ep (even though I'll no longer have HBO... I'll get around that problem quickly, I'm sure)...

Of course, not everything is quite going my way... My little sister just got her license, so she's trying to steal my precious car, Xiamara, from me, and that hurts. However, I have summer school (in the form of English 102) starting tomorrow. I think I'll get to keep my baby, since I'll have to drive across town to get to the campus... Ugh on the summer class, but then again, starting Tuesday, I'll have my belly dancing class on Tuesday nights to keep me occupied! Hopefully that'll help with the boredom...

More Pillowcases!

2009-06-12T15:13:00.000-07:00

So... Instead of finishing Laura's pillow, like I should have been, I've been busy making more pillowcases... Here's a couple new ones, both of which were made in the last couple days! Let me know, as always, what you think!

Carrie Prejean was FIRED! YES!

2009-06-10T11:53:00.000-07:00

It FINALLY happened, folks... Carrie Prejean, better known as Ms. Bigoted CA, got her ass FIRED for BREACH OF CONTRACT by Donald Trump! While I find it funny that Trump saved her from the same accusations earlier this year, it's still a sad day to realize that the moron still thinks with his genitals instead of his brain.

Serves him right, though!

BTW, the title of this blog links to TMZ, which has the article up with a little more information...

CONGRATULATIONS TO MS. TAMI FARRELL, (FORMERLY ONLY) MISS MALIBU, NOW MISS CALIFORNIA!

New Pillowcase....

2009-06-10T11:23:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, I've gone back to being creative since I finished this past semester of college. I'm still working on my blanket squares, and am now almost finished with my 22nd one... I'll backdate some posts with pictures again soon. However, I'm more involved in making my travel pillows now, and I'm working on the 5th one right now. So far, I've just barely started, and will continue it later today.

Here's what that new pillowcase looks like so far...

Let me know what you think of it so far!

Mommy-to-be Laura's New Mini-Pillow!

2009-06-07T11:38:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite people in the world, Laura, is expecting her first baby, and since I don't live near her, I'm making her a present. So far, half of it is completed, and I will make the actual pillow in a couple days... However, the pillowcase ROCKS! It's a gorgeous black and white (with pastels) pillowcase, and so much cooler in real life than the pictures show it to be... However, take a look and tell me what you think!

Laura, my sweetie, if you read this, let me know what you think of the case! And remember, you need to chat with me so that when it's done, I can send it out to you!

Here it is!

Today's Horrific Tragedy

2009-06-01T21:54:00.000-07:00

By this time tonight, I believe that everyone knows about Air France flight 447, which disappeared while en route to France from Brazil.

This is a horrifying tragedy, especially since there were over 200 people on board the flight. From what information I've gathered, this flight suddenly lost contact with radio control, and automatic distress signals were sent to the control tower. There was a report about how another flight thought they might have seen fire in the general vicinity of where flight 447 was supposed to be HERE...

No matter how sad and horrifying this is, it's lead to some rather silly comments from people like me who don't want to think too deeply about the losses... For example, I posted several things on my twitter account earlier (I'm @Isis_Nocturne there)... Here's what I said (and responses I got):

-approx. 13 hours ago... I hope that we know more about this flight soon! http://bit.ly/25FRG
-approx. 3 hours ago... Flight 447 - was it sent to the Twilight Zone, a new entrance to the Bermuda Triange, or do we need to call Mulder and Scully?
-approx. 3 hours ago... PROXART @Isis_Nocturne or maybe the island from lost?!
-approx. 3 hours ago... @Proxart yeah. I mean, it's really horrible, don't get me wrong, however, it lends to the imagination running wild...
-approx. 3 hours ago... PROXART @Isis_Nocturne yes... no disrespect at all. definitely agree that it's horrible. however, the lack of a plane or knowledge is wild.
-approx. 2 hours ago... @Isis_Nocturne: @Proxart It's bringing to mind the mystery of Amelia Earhart... And somehow adds to it, esp. since it's 2009 and the plane disappeared...
-approx. 2 hours ago... PROXART @Isis_Nocturne absolutely. it's a crazy, tragic, and unexpected thing.

-approx. 2 hours ago... Update about Air France Flight 447: http://tinyurl.com/n896xu - This is so sad!

-approx. 2 hours ago... PROXART @Isis_Nocturne :/ such a strange happening...
-approx. 2 hours ago... @Proxart And now that other flight crew is reporting that about the time contact was lost, they saw a fire in the Atlantic near 447's route.

-approx. 2 hours ago... @Proxart yes, but it may answer the mystery.

-approx. 1/2 an hour ago... Best wishes to those affected by the disappearance of Air France Fligh 447... I hope we find out what happened and you guys get closure!

So, as you can see from this exchange, people are seeing the really not funny humor that comes out of such dark news... And referencing to old shows/things that go "bump" in the night... And sadly, such comparisons work.

As I said before, I really hope that those who have any connections to anyone who is lost from Flight 447 will find closure and that the plane will be found so that we all can find out what happened...

Such tragedy should NEVER happen in the 21st century!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

UPDATE 6/2/09 @9pm:

Debris that is almost certainly from the wreckage of the accident was found in a 3 mile radius from where the last automatic communications from the plane took place. Unfortunately, so far, the small amount of wreckage found indicates that the plane probably hit the water whole, and that it's probably at the bottom of the sea. That spot is believed to have a mountainous ocean floor, which makes the search for the plane more difficult, and makes it even less likely that anyone could have possibly survived. This is just a terrible tragedy, and no wishing on my part can take us back in time and prevent this.

BTW, HERE'S an Associated Press article that talks more about the debris field. Again, my deepest and most sincere condolences to those who have lost because of this tragedy.

The Fourth Pillow I've Made...

2009-05-27T12:36:00.000-07:00

Here's the completed fourth travel/personal pillow I've made... Let me know what you think!

BTW, this one belongs to me! It's sooo cool!

The third pillow was a gift for my second-mommy, Anne. Once I have a picture of her with it, I'll post it so that you guys can see it!

My Second Pillow!

2009-05-18T17:02:00.000-07:00

Here's the second pillow I've made... Let me know what you think!

This one now belongs to my grandmother, and she loves it! I'm so glad she does!

My First Home-Made Pillow!

2009-05-15T16:37:00.000-07:00

I've decided to start trying something new... So I've started making pillows... Here's the first, hope you like it! Make sure to tell me what you think! (And, should you want to buy one from me, let me know!)

A Pretty Example of EXTREME HATRED!

2009-05-06T00:19:00.001-07:00

Twitter is an excellent way to realize just how much of the world is ignorant to one of the best, most honest and pure ideals:

ALL PEOPLE ARE CREATED EQUAL!

It doesn't matter if you're gay, straight, transgendered, or anything else, everyone should have exactly equal rights, especially in the "good 'ole U S of A." Well, unfortunately, that isn't true... YET!

I have been closely following the disgraceful story of Carrie Prejean, the woman who apparently "represents" the state of California as Ms. California.

She's gotten more than her 15 minutes of fame already. In fact, I'd say it's time the tables turned on her hatred, and that of her loyal raving followers, who think she's the best thing since sliced bread.

I despise this woman, based upon her "Christian" morals alone. HOW is it okay for her to bash the rights of AMERICAN CITIZENS? They pay taxes, just like everyone (okay, mostly everyone) else, have jobs, help stimulate the economy... You get the gist of what I'm saying. To me, and many others who agree with my opinions, her willingness to let an approximately 2,000 year old FAIRY TALE dictate her life, and make her decide that gay men and women can't marry the people they love... It's complete ludicrous!

Anyways, I was on Twitter, and I did a search to see what was being said about her. I found this post:

I was insulted to say the least. So I responded with two posts of my own:

And THIS was the response I got to those messages (read these from the bottom post up):

HOW FREAKIN' REDICULOUS IS THAT? WHAT AN UNINFORMED POOP! Also, notice that he didn't touch the question I asked him...

Oh! And I was told by a friend that this ass continued his rant, then acted paranoid. Here's what he said...

Doesn't sound very stable, especially after that last post, does he?

UPDATE:

AT this point in time, I'd also like to point out the hypocrisy that Ms. Prejean is representing in having lied to the pageant in her contract in which she lied about having taken any nude or semi-nude photos at any time in the past... Would a "good Christian girl" even be showing her body off like that, especially if she was 17 when the pictures were taken like she claimed? Or better yet, would a "good Christian girl" get breast implants?

On top of that, I've been on many different websites, which both show or don't show the pictures, and I've been reading the comments on them. It's amazing how those of us who believe that she should lose the crown are called derogatory names for our beliefs... Regardless of the fact that they're not based upon the comment she made in the pageant, but instead on her breaking her contract, which is available on the Fox News website HERE... Take a look at that, and then tell me if you think she broke her contract or not...

My Heart Broke A Little Yesterday

2009-04-30T14:01:00.000-07:00

I'm going to start off by assuming that most people know what Republican Representative Virginia Foxx of North Carolina said on the floor yesterday. If you don't, then go HERE to get a brief idea of what happened.

Having heard this, I am forced to wonder: WHY do people continue to believe BS like this? It's horrendous and stupefying!

EDIT: When I'm not so upset by this, I'll try to post more.

My Brilliant Idea

2009-04-28T14:40:00.001-07:00

Ok, many people know that I'm a hardcore Kenyon Minion.

And for those of you who don't know what that means, I'll explain. A Kenyon Minion is a fan of the incredible Sherrilyn Kenyon, author of many series including the Dark-Hunter® Series, which is a preternatural series that deals with vampires, gods and goddesses, were-creatures, and all sorts of other stuff - I'd say more, but I'd give so much detail that you might just go insane! LOL

Anyways, I have a brilliant idea! As such a hardcore Minion, I am one of many who want a tv show or movies about my favorite characters, especially in this time, when vampires are so popular - See the awesome True Blood, the defunct Moonlight, and the highly overrated Twilight (random rant: Twilight is horrible and badly written! Get better stuff to read! Bella is a lame lead! The vampires in the series are even lamer!) end of random rant). As I was saying, it's time for the Dark-Hunters to get their own series, especially since the Anita Blake series is getting one now too.

So, my brilliant idea:

MINIONS, it's time to CAMPAIGN FOR A DARK-HUNTER SHOW! We have to show the industry what we want! My idea is to start a letter writing/email/etc. campaign to Seed Productions, which is owned by Hugh Jackman, Deborra-lee Furness, and John Palermo. As their last show failed miserably, what better way for them to get over it by producing a tv show with a pretty much guaranteed audience? Plus, in that set of three, we know that there's some serious talent! Hugh is, as I'm sure we all know, one of very few legitimate triple threats in the current entertainment industry. (Triple threat = singer, dancer, actor.) However, most people (read: Americans) don't know about his amazing wife, Deborra-lee Furness. She is another incredible actor, but she has also directed before (Deb wrote and directed a short film called Standing Room Only, which is available on DVD).

Now, knowing that the Dark-Hunter series is written by a woman, I think the best idea is to have a woman direct the show. I think a Minion campaign to get a Dark-Hunter show HAS to have it written into the movement that a woman direct the series, since it is my firm belief that a woman will be able to better grasp some of the more subtle nuances of the series. It is also my firm belief that Deborra-lee Furness is just the woman for the job.

Something needs to be done for the fans of Dark-Hunters! We, as much as any other group out there, DESERVE our brave heros like Acheron, Savitar, Zarek, Kyrian, Valerius, Vane, etc brought to life on the "small" screen. However, to get what we want, we have to reach for the dream first, by actively searching for a way to accomplish it.

Please join me if you want a Dark-Hunter tv series as much as I do!

Weird Dream...

2009-04-28T07:01:00.000-07:00

I had the weirdest dream earlier this morning... And I know it was morning because I was awake from 4am to approximately 5am. Then I got another hour and a half of sleep. My dream took place at that point in time...

In this dream, I was somehow in the White House under the current administration. I got down to an area that was outside, and hosted children's toys (like one of those plastic playhouses) in a fenced off area, and a couple of benches to sit on. I sat down, and was enjoying the peace when Sasha Obama came outside. We had a small conversation, and at the end of it, I requested a hug (I really like hugs and I think they're very therapeutic), which Sasha gave me. As she skipped back inside, two secret service agents came out. One was a very tall man, with a sort of shaggy haircut (and very dark hair), and the other a slender blonde woman of average height. They asked me questions about my future career and plans, and I remember responding about how I dreamed of being a professional writer, and that's all I've ever really wanted. As more and more questions were directed my way, all I remember is answering each honestly, and really trying hard to impress the man and woman interviewing me.

As the questions wrapped up the two agents sat down on the bench I was still sitting on (one on each side of me), and another woman (this one a brunette with bronze highlights) came out and asked more questions, but these sounded like they were for an interview! I'm not sure what the position was, but I recall her having a clipboard in her hands, writing comments about what I said, and flipping the pages of what looked like a resume.

Then, I noticed the dogs. There were two dogs, a large golden retriever or golden lab, and a VERY large mutt (after waking up, I honestly thought it was a demon dog). The golden retriever liked me instantly, and licked my hand several times as I petted his head. The other dog, however, was pretty evil. That dog growled at me and had to be restrained. I remember that I stood up as the dogs came near me, and I closed my eyes as the mutt growled at me. I felt no fear, but even as his razor sharp teeth dug into the first layer of my skin (he'd caught the top knuckle of my middle finger of my right hand, but only the top side, so my finger was not in his mouth), I stood still, eyes closed, and gently petted the top of his head.

I was still being interviewed as I dealt with the dogs, and while answering a question about how much I liked dealing with children, my alarm clock went off and I woke up.

Weirder still, I was sleeping on my side, which is something I never do, and I had the pillow I sleep with settled behind me as though it were another person in the bed. I swear I could feel very warm arms wrapped around me!

How odd is that dream and the aftermath?

Damn! When I'm Depressed, I'm Seriously Depressed!

2009-04-20T22:54:00.000-07:00

Ok, first things first: I DO NOT currently feel at all like the post below. I just found this on my computer, and realized that I basically wrote two different things about the same incident, which is a few posts below this one - YES, the one about my being depressed over Hugh Jackman... The one called Realizations.

I was REALLY upset, and probably part of it was because I was punchy. I typed up a rough draft, then saved and ignored it. The below text is what I originally wrote about that incident.

Also, please note that this is out of date, as tomorrow HJ will be in Los Angeles, getting his star on the Walk of Fame (it's open to the public, and I can't even freakin' go - Damned school!) He hasn't been in Australia for quite a while now.

Again: DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME! I'M FINE! I'M HAPPY! THIS IS OLD!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I think I have sufficiently broken down enough to write something.

Realization's a bitch. Yes, a large cliché, but still the truth. When I woke up yesterday, I was still the same shallow dreamer as pretty much every other person on the planet. I still dreamed of meeting my celebrity idols, and having them respect me as much as I respect and admire them.

I was wrong. Simple as that. No celebrity gives a fuck, especially since they have their own lives to lead, regardless of how many fans they have or how much success those fans bring them.

I think I really realized this when I was on Twitter earlier. Hugh Jackman is my favorite actor, and I check his Twitter several times a day. The latest thing he posted was a picture of himself and a fan who had created his own set of Wolverine claws. I know that he's currently in Australia, promoting the hell out of Wolverine, but somehow, just looking at that picture, I realized that the fantasy was broken.

I knew as I tormented myself by staring for long minutes at that picture that I would NEVER be that fan, smiling and happy in the picture with a celebrity that I idolize. I'm just one of the millions, deceiving myself into believing that I COULD be that person. Doesn't mean it's ever gonna happen, but that's exactly what delusions are.

I think many of my favorite book characters have it right: Life's a bitch and then you die.

Evidence that I'm a Serious Kenyon Minion...

2009-04-15T11:04:00.000-07:00

Ok, I'm a college student. I just want to make sure you understand that before you read this...

Well, one of my classes is History of the Middle East. Now, I LOVE this class. It deals with ancient cultures that I care about, and love studying. So what happened earlier today is more than slightly embarrassing and funny to me...

Basically, we were discussing the Ancient Persians and the Ancient Greeks fighting over land in class today. Somehow, we got slightly off topic, and began discussion various Greek city-states, like Sparta and Macedonia and Thrace. Well, I was not entirely paying attention (I was actually on the Dark-Hunter BBS©), and I spoke out of context as we discussed the city states. What did I say? Well, I asked about Julian and Prince Kyrian, respectively from Sparta and Thrace. Now, I instantly realized my blunder, as my teacher (who actually looks like he could be a Greek demi-god) looked at me and said in a very dry, and rather sarcastic tone, "I don't have a clue who you're talking about, maybe you'd like to inform the class about these people you've mentioned?"

Well, I blushed and sank down in my seat, before glaring at my computer screen and trying to forget that I was screwing around instead of paying attention... And you'd think the story ended here...

Not 15 minutes after the first disruption I caused in class, we were beginning to talk about how next week, we move on to Alexander the Great, and his building of his army. THIS time, I muttered (and I swear it was under my breath), "Acheron should be mentioned too!"

Well, I sit in the front of the room. The teacher heard me again... Only he knew who Acheron was (I've discussed Sherri's books with him before), and this time, he looked at me and practically growled, "Your obsession with Acheron and his friends MAY help you study for this class, but that still doesn't mean they're real!"

And, to make it worse, I heard snickers from the back of the classroom. I assumed from how they sounded that someone else knew EXACTLY what I was talking about...

Now why couldn't THEY have been the one to do all this? I just made myself the laughingstock of my favorite class!

I hope everyone forgets by Monday!

Well, I think I'm Actually A Little Embarrassed Now...

2009-04-09T10:34:00.000-07:00

I have several groups that I follow on Yahoo. One of the members of a fanfiction group posted a link to something that happened on an Aussie radio show... So I sat back and listened...

OMG, I'm sooo... There aren't words enough to say what I feel! I guess the two closest words to what I feel are excited and embarrassed... If MY dad talked to me like that, I'd have probably run out of the room...

Well, I'll just say now... Just click HERE to listen for yourself...

Realizations

2009-04-08T00:08:00.001-07:00

What does it mean when you look at a picture of something, and you feel your inner being clench with pain at the realization that the picture is something that can never happen to you?

Yes, it's very late right now, but I'm reclining in my bed, completely on the verge of tears because of this picture.

I looked at this, which I got from a link from Hugh Jackman's twitter, and I completely realized that my dreams and aspirations for meeting him and his wife are for naught. When am I ever going to have a chance to sit with someone of their fame, and get to ask the questions I dream of asking them? I think I've finally realized that that will never happen.

And it hurts. It hurts like hell. I may know many people in the industry, and I may even hang with them and their friends on occasion, but I'm never going to be one of them. I'm always going to be one of the many; the fans who use celebrities and the illusion that surrounds them to live out their lives in daydreams.

I thought I was stronger than that. I thought I was smarter.

I'm not.

Stress...

2009-03-19T21:44:00.001-07:00

My life is not easy. Growing up isn't easy either.

This is an honest account, and I'm living it right now.

Today is Thursday, March 19, 2009. It has now been several months since I've started on my journey to plan my entire summer by myself for the first time in my life. Guess what? Life sucks. My summer plans, so far, have all failed. Miserably.

My plan, for a couple years now, has been to visit Israel. And I'm lucky enough that I have the ability to get a trip that would be mostly paid for. However, it's a lot of work to get that whole experience going, especially in light of the recent economical crisis. (The economy is making less money readily available to groups that take young adults to Israel, so less people are getting to go, which means the competition to get accepted for the trip is more advanced.) So far, I had tried and failed last year (summer 2008) to go to Israel, which put me on this year's priority list, which was supposed to give me an advantage in getting access to Israel.

That doesn't seem to have happened. Instead, I've worked my ass off since last summer, making plans that were supposed to work in my favor, including telling my cousin when to register, who to register with, etc. so that we could go together and room together.

Well, that didn't work at all. Instead, she got accepted, and I got waitlisted AGAIN! I don't think that this is my fault, but truly the fault of the group I chose. You see, I never got called for my personal interview, so I sent an email asking about it. In response, I got an urgent email which stated that I needed to call in the next day, in the morning. This email also said that they'd be open from 3 am on. Problem with that? Yes there is. WHAT 3 am are they talking about? Which time zone?

Anyways, I called the next morning, at 7 am my time (Pacific Standard Time), only to get a snobby woman on the other end of the line, telling me my call was in the late afternoon, not the morning like everyone else's. Well, throw me a clue here, woman! Either way, the interview did not go very well due to her attitude, and my anger at her not for giving me the benefit of the doubt about the time issue.

At the end of the interview, this woman informed me that I'd hear back again from the group as to whether or not I was accepted by the following Sunday, which didn't happen at all. Instead, I got an email from them this time that simply said I was wait listed again several days after Sunday. I forwarded the response to my father, since I believed I'd get a better response from this group if a parent inquired as to what had happened instead of the applicant. My father did send the group an email, with these three questions:

1) I don't understand how my daughter went from being wait listed last year - to being priority this year - and being wait listed again.
2) I understand the world financial situation, yet we have a friend who didn't apply last year and who received a position this year. That doesn't seem to be fair to my daughter, does it?
3) Since we will be on the wait list for another year, do we receive interest on our deposit should we leave it with you?

They never responded to any of the questions, and I'm stuck without something fun to do this summer. There's nothing more I can do with this but wait for another chance to go to a place I've never been before.

There's another part of my summer that may be saved, though... So here's hoping for that!

4th Set... Siggie & Icon

2009-03-19T16:06:00.000-07:00

Thanks again, Calli! Glad you found pics you liked of Hugh and Anna to use to make me this icon/siggie set!

LOVE how this was done!

This is gorgeous too!

What do you think of these babies?

3rd Set of Icon/Siggies...

2009-03-19T15:57:00.000-07:00

I got yet another new set so far of BBS stuff that I'll eventually switch to using... Here are the piccies!

This is based on screenshots I've taken of episodes from "Wolverine & the X-Men"

LOVE my siggie!!!

What do you think?

2nd new Siggie and Icon...

2009-03-18T21:39:00.001-07:00

Here's my second new set! I luvs you lots, Calli! You're the very bestest!

Other new icon

Other new siggie

Calli, these are great! I'll probably use them next month on the BBS or something!

On my fav. BBS... New Siggies and Icons!

2009-03-18T20:55:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my girl Callista_Rose on Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark-Hunter BBS, I have a new siggie and icon for that... Check them out!

That's my gorgeous new icon (I go by Isis_Nocturne on the BBS as well as here)

And this is my new siggie...

Please let me know what you guys think, and if you're on the BBS, please tell Calli what an excellent icon/undie maker she is! I luvs her sooo much!

Some of the Latest Blanket Squares I've Made...

2009-03-07T21:49:00.000-08:00

I know I promised these a while ago, but life caught up with me... Here are a few more blanket squares... And yes, I do have even more done, but I haven't had a chance to take pics of the newest squares yet...

8 is my 3rd "Vineyard" square.

9 is a gorgeous "Waterlily" square.

10 is another "Scarlet" square.

Lemme know what you think....

From my Old Blog...

2009-03-07T17:13:00.000-08:00

Yes, I accidentally found my old blog today, and freaked out before realizing that it was attached to a different email account, and I was logged in on the other one... However, you can only have one question to answer on your blog, and I like the one I have on my current account:

• Your people want to make a statue in your honor. What will it be made out of and what victory will it commemorate?

My statue shall be made of white marble and decorated with ammolite and other fine jewels, and it shall commemorate the day that I discovered Atlantis.

This one is from my old blog (which I am now going to delete to prevent this happening to me again, and also because it's completely obsolete since I moved my 3 posts from there to this blog)...

• Which is more important to you and why: flexibility or expandability?

Depends on the context. *Evil Grin*

Laura's Latest Pregnancy Pics...

2009-03-03T21:45:00.000-08:00

These are Laura's latest Sonogram pics, up for everyone to see... Pregnancy is such a beautiful thing! What do you think?

Just A Quiz...

2009-03-01T16:45:00.000-08:00

About the Kind of guys I like... for fun, nothing more, nothing less...

Your result for The What type of MAN turns you on Test...

Tough Guy

You scored 80% masculine, 71% athletic, 36% exotic, and 44% refined!

You love men, you love testosterone and you know it. You like a bad-ass man who knows what he wants. He isn't what you might bring home to mom but I don't think it really matters - he's hot! Someone like.....Vin Diesel. But let's face it, the whole point of this was to look at a bunch of hot guys. If you liked what you saw, please rate my test!

Take The What type of MAN turns you on Test at HelloQuizzy

Tour of California

2009-02-22T17:35:00.000-08:00

The Tour of California was INCREDIBLE this year! On one of the days (*cough* yesterday *cough*), the Tour took off from my home city, Santa Clarita, at our local mall (which you may recognize from tv shows like NCIS, The Unit, etc.)

Basically, I was there for hours, talked to Lance Armstrong and Levi Leipheimer for a short amount of time, and took a few pics...

Since I'm still tired from the excitement of being there, I'm just posting my pictures and describing them, ok? Also, the photos are MINE! I took them, I'm posting them... Yeah, they belong to me.

Weird... My pics won't load here for me... But that's ok... I've got 'em posted HERE

If you're interesting in getting a copy of a picture, just post a comment. I'll be glad to send it to you if you tell me why you want the pic and leave a second comment (I'll keep it private) containing the email to send the pic to!

They've got MAGIC to do, Just for YOU...

2009-02-15T21:36:00.000-08:00

Hey all! Just got home from an AWESOME version of Pippin, which is one of my fav. Broadway shows to begin with (yeah, I'm soooo not biased at all!)

First, the story summarized:

We've got Pippin. He's just finished university, and is coming home for the first time in a long while. What we find there: Daddy is King Charlemagne (called Charles in this production), Step-Mommy Fastrada (a woman who wants to put her own son on the throne and not to be trusted), and Half-Brother Lewis (who is most likely gay and very into himself). Not the happiest home situation, and it's followed by news that Charles is taking Lewis and his soldiers into war with the Visigoths... Pippin ends up convincing Charles to let him come along to war.

After all is said and done with the war, Pippin realizes that it's not what he wants from life, and that there really isn't any glory in war. He runs to where his grandmother Berthe lives, out in the country. Berthe gives him advice: "Don't fret your life away - take some time and have fun!" Well, again Pippin follows advice, and once again he still isn't happy when he's tried it.

Pippin "runs" again, and is found by Catherine, a widow with a young son. There, Pippin finds the beginnings of true responsibility, as well as a relationship that could turn into a love match, and he's still unsatisfied and runs again, still looking for what he terms his "Corner of the Sky."

This leads to the finale of the show, which I'm going to exclude from the summary to leave as a surprise in case you go and don't know the show yet... However, I will give you the final detail about the show - and one of the most important features... Pippin isn't alone. As this is a musical, he's got a whole crew behind him - including a Leading Player (quite possibly a more important character than Pippin himself.)

OK, now that we're done with the summary, let's get to the show!

First, this incarnation of Pippin is very special. It's a show that is both sung and signed. This particular version, which is currently showing at the Mark Taper Forum, is mostly double-cast with actors from Deaf West Theatre and the Center Theatre Group. When I say mostly double-cast, what I mean is that there are some characters with two actors. For example, Pippin has two incarnations that are usually onstage at the same time, so Pippin can both sing and sign. It's quite a beautiful sight to behold. Other characters onstage sign (using ASL) and lip their lines while another actor is speaking the lines offstage. With all seriousness, this is something EVERYONE should see! It's so beautiful, and it just adds another dimension to the show.

This is especially great since all the voices that were cast are excellent! I was bouncing around in my seat and singing along (at times) throughout a majority of the songs! Sooo much fun! Ok, I'm giving the list of songs... And I warn anyone who goes to see, if you've seen the show before, some of the songs/lyrics may be different from what you remember.

The list:
Magic to Do
Corner of the Sky
Back Home Again (totally different lyrics from Welcome Home)
War is a Science (again, different lyrics)
Glory
Simple Joys
No Time At All
With You (again, different lyrics)
Spread a Little Sunshine
Morning Glow
On the Right Track
Kind of Woman
Prayer for a Duck
Love Song
I Guess I'll Miss the Man
Finale

Now, for me there was one major failing in that listing... Extraordinary was cut from the show! That's one of my favorite songs! (Didn't exactly make my day, even though I didn't realize until after the show finished...)

Ok, and I know it took FOREVER, but on to the best part, the actors! The cast list:

• Pippin: Michael Arden (voice) & Tyrone Giordano (signing) - Both were excellent and complimented each other very well, as well as making it possible for us to see multiple sides of Pippin (especially during the finale). Boys, I'm so glad that I saw you both playing Pippin! PS - Thanks both of you for signing playbills and taking pics with my little sister! She's so thrilled!
• The Leading Player: Ty Taylor - Can you hear the heavenly choir singing around saying his name? Yes, Ty was that good. However, as great as he was, Ben Vereen still owns the role for me... However, I do have to say this as well... Ty, if you read this... You're sooo gorgeous! You gave the role such great life!
• Fastrada: Sara Gettelfinger - So much fun! She played a conniving woman very well, and just gave the perfect amount of vinegar and honey!
• Berthe: Harriet Harris - Wow! No Time at All was a huge high point in the show for me, especially with the gorgeous guys who popped up during the song... Just one question... Why the bondage gear on 'em? They would have been just fine without it!
• Lewis: James Royce Edwards - Uh, HAIR! and MUSCLES! You played gorgeous and vapid so well! Loved it, loved it, loved it! Plus, the sparkly outfit - so reminds me of something a few rock stars have worn...
• King Charles: Anthony Natale - You were great! Also, thanks for giving my sis an autograph and taking a picture with her! It means a lot!
• King Charles (voice): Dan Callaway - Loved hearing you sing!
• Catherine: Melissa van der Schyff - I'm sure after seeing you tonight that I also saw you in Big River many years ago... You were awesome as Catherine! Seriously, it was such a joy to watch!
• Theo: Nicholas Conway (sign) & Bryan Terrell Clark (voice) - I was really impressed by how cute you were, Nick. Plus, little Theo acted just like I'd expect a young boy to... Plus the duck was great!
• Magician Assistants/Players: TL Forsberg, Victoria Platt, Nikki Tomlinson, & Alexandria Wailes - Wow, you all were so beautiful and looked great! You were all excellent backing to Ty's Lead Player!
• To anyone else I didn't mention: It's late and I need some beauty sleep! - Ok, honestly, the best I can say is that this is definitely one of the excellent performances I've seen recently, and you all obviously had to work together to make it happen. Well, it all worked, and I'm just thrilled by how you sold it!

And a quick Post-Script to Rodrick Covington - Damn, babe, you're gorgeous! And I LOVE the hair! Thanks for the autograph!
And a Post-Post-Script to Bryan Terrell Clark - You have an awesome voice and you're also very handsome! Thanks for the autograph!

Ok, before I close this off with a couple pics I took of my sister with a few cast members... Anyone who gets a chance to see this really needs to go! It's absolutely worth it! The acting is superb, the costumes to die for, and the music sweet and very memorable! Please support the arts and ASL by seeing Pippin! I promise you'll enjoy yourself!

My sister with Michael Arden

Tyrone Giordano, my sister, & Anthony Natale

In (sort of) Honor of Valentine's Day...

2009-02-14T13:25:00.001-08:00

Ok, update first. My dad came home from DC yesterday. It was night. His plane was late. It took FOREVER to get to a restaurant that was still open to eat (yay for The Villa Italian!) Plus, we (the family) all got to go and see Grandma! Really great, though the best part was getting home and realizing that my dad would be in the house again.

Also, I've got more blanket squares and stuff done, but I'll post that later when I'm not trying to hide what I'm doing and making it look like homework...

However, back to the topic of today's blog...

Since it's Valentine's Day, and I'm still sadly single (and praying that my birthday wish will be granted by the fairy Steve - hey, my big 20th birthday is in 2 DAYS), I've decided to explain myself so that if anyone who knows me asks about my "Hugh Jackman Obsession," I can point them here so that they can take a look for themselves.

Basically, anyone who knows me to some degree will tell you if asked that Hugh Jackman is not only my favorite actor, I'm obsessed. However, that's not completely true. I mean, it's not like I'm crazy and will stalk him, because that's just scary and disgusting and WEIRD!

With full honesty, here's my thing with Hugh Jackman:

*He represents everything I want from my own potential mate...
*He's a complete family man...
*He is dedicated to his wife - they have been together for OVER a decade!
*He has a strong work ethic
*Plays well with children
*Is a genuinely nice guy - all who meet him only have nice things to say about him (the same goes for Deb! I wanna meet her too!)
*He is very respectful of others
*He's playful, and enjoys life
*He's stable - He's not about to go out and do drugs (which are GROSS!) or risk losing his family in any way...

Of course, there's more to this list, but that's all I can think about for now...

I just found out that one of my girlies is gonna come out and visit me in JULY! WOOHOO!!!!

The Scarves are with my Akri!

2009-02-12T15:45:00.001-08:00

I spoke on the phone with my akri for a good 20 minutes yesterday... And he informed me that he is now home again in TN, from NY and the New York Comic-Con, and had picked up the package before he went home. He also updated me on a situation I discovered dealing with a website that allows users to upload and download ebooks for free.

I had discovered a site that allowed what is stated above, and all of Sherrilyn Kenyon's books were available up-to-date for free. This kind of thing upsets me, especially since I understand how bad piracy can be when it comes to books. However, I was surprised by what my akri told me. He said that in the case of romance authors, such piracy is actually in some ways free publicity. This also led into a discussion in which he told me that Sherri had fought long and hard to get St. Martin's to even allow the free book giveaway that took place over the Cons last year... (Sherri had my favorite book in her series, "Seize the Night," set up with a special cover as a freebie for each Convention she went to last year to help promote the series) - Basically even the current piracy is good free publicity for romance authors, but usually only for the genre... Not sure I understand how that works exactly, but as it is, IF it's ok for authors that I hope to someday be in the same league as, then I'll let it be. I guess I'm just business savy enough to wonder about the profit loss, though... *shrug*

Now, back on topic with my scarves. I got a call only a few minutes ago. He told me that he LOVED the scarf, and so did his wife. Then he asked how much I charge for them... I'm hoping that this means that he's gonna be promoting the hell out of my scarves to others... Akri also told me that he loved how they curl up into circles (I use the circular loom seen in one of my previous posts, and that causes the reaction, along with gravity...) and that the fact that they curl makes him warmer...

I am so beyond thrilled that akri and his wife both like their scarves! To me, that's the most important thing!

Not the Best Day Ever...

2009-02-09T21:24:00.000-08:00

The picture tells part of my story today... Ok, not really a story, but the telling of how crappy today was.

First, it rained today. No, not when I first got up at 6:30 this morning, but after I arrived at school... I just have no idea when exactly it started. What I do know is that by 9:15, when I left to head over to my classroom, it was pouring, and I was in a t-shirt, light pants, a light jacket without a hood, and FLIP FLOPS. Yes, those damned flip-flops. Hey, I'm a California girl all the way, and those shoes are part of the lifestyle and school dress code when you're in college out here. However, being a California girl also means that I usually take any warnings of rain with a grain of salt, especially since it does rarely rain out here...

Well, that was my loss. Since I had no idea where my classroom was (the class is History of the Middle East), my darling friend Kayla was laughing at my meager attempts to protect myself from the rain. In fact, she went so far as to say, and I quote, "It could be worse..." Now, I'm sure most of you know that saying that is NEVER good... In fact, it almost always leads to something worse happening. Yep, that would be the case today. As soon as Kayla said that, it started raining HARDER!

So, not too long after that, I'm sitting and shivering in a lecture room with the AC on, nose running like crazy with no tissues to help, praying for my teacher to just let us go so I can get home and change.

Eventually, we did finish, and by then, I thank my lucky stars that the rain had let up, so that I was able to get to my car and go home to change. After all, my next class after that one wasn't for a couple of hours.

Well, to make a long-ish story a little shorter, I managed to get through that and got back to school in better close-toed shoes and socks, with a warmer pair of pants, a raincoat, and a new sweatshirt with me... Then my next class went just fine. I got in and out without much rain damage to my person (my hair - totally another story. Moisture in the air and my hair just don't mix!), and got back to the car and home safely.

HOWEVER, when I got home... I got the mail. Waiting in the mail for me was an innocent envelope. Or so I thought. Happy almost freakin' birthday to me. That envelope, well... It was my first Jury Duty Summons. And of course it wasn't for the courts near me... Oh no. It's waaaayyyy out of town. Damn it all! This would be why I hate Zeus' guts, and I hope that Hades and Persephone blast the hell out of him!

After all this, I just hope I don't get more sick since I seem to be on the path to mending, minus the whole drinking tons of tea every day, coughing, and having a stuffy/runny nose...

Being Sick Sucks!

2009-02-07T13:09:00.000-08:00

True story, and I'm writing this as the last of my brain cells give up on me...

Ok, last Saturday, I'd been feeling pretty under the weather... You know, the full body ache, the head that's too big for your body, sinuses that are completely CONSUMED by the pressure building on them... Yeah, all that and more. So, I do the smart thing. I go to the doctor. Well, that's great, right? WRONG! The doctor I go to does a quick check, then says that what I have could either be viral or bacterial, and if I don't feel better in a couple of days, here's a prescription to fill... Well, the prescription... Uh, how do I put this nicely? I'm IMMUNE to the damned medicine! So...

I still feel sick on Thursday, so I go back to the doctor again... And by now, I just wanna DIE I feel so horrible. I'd woken up that morning at 2 FREAKIN' AM, with a throat so sore that I couldn't swallow... The doctor I see is one who I usually have a better time with... And he again tells me that there's not much he can do, but he offers to give me a shot of some medical steroid to help me get on my feet, along with some horse-pill prescription to go with it... And me, sick as I am, accept the offer, even though I HATE shots... Well, a nurse is brought in for the shot, and guess what? It's a booster shot... So now I have to do the "lower the pants and show nothing off" game so that I can feel better...

Somehow, I succeed and win the game, hell, I didn't even notice getting the shot, and in a few minutes, I'm already feeling TONS better! Great, right? WRONG! I wake up again Friday, and my throat is still sore, but not nearly as bad. However, I've basically lost my entire voice, which I had had at the doctor's the day before...

Now, I was supposed to have plans Friday night. However, they fell through since I didn't feel like going out, especially since it was RAINING IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA and my throat hurt like the dickens... So I somehow managed to choke down the horse-pill I need to take to go with that shot I got... And I somehow let myself think that if I go to bed early, I'll be soooo much better in the morning...

NOT SO FAST! Oh no... I wake up at 7:30 this morning, throat still sore, less voice than before, and other than an achy head and stuffed sinuses and sore throat/lost voice, I'm great! So now, though, I realize that the cough that I've had (you all know that infamous "seal bark" that people have when they're really sick, right?) seems to have moved INTO my chest, since I'm now wheezing as I cough. I've also realized that the only thing that makes my throat feel better is either VERY cold string cheese or very hot tea...

How much fun is that? *sarcastic* It's absolutely NOT! Plus, when I cough, I can totally taste the sick when I cough - GROSS! Anyone know how to get over this heinous thing? I have school starting on Monday, and it's a whole new semester! I have to be there! ARGH!

My friend Laura's first Sonogram!

2009-02-05T19:20:00.000-08:00

I'll be sporadically posting new information about my girlie Laura, who recently found out that she's pregnant. When I last talked to her yesterday (before my migraine drew me away from the bright intensity of the computer screen), she was soooo excited to show me her first sonogram picture, which I'm posting here as well...

According to Laura, the baby is due around September 27th... Congrats, again babe! I'm so excited for you and your hubby!

Also, happy early birthday to you! (Laura's gonna be another year older on Feb. 12.)

Totally Meant to Do this Yesterday...

2009-02-05T19:12:00.001-08:00

New blanket update! I've got a couple more squares done right now, which would have been up yesterday but for the fact that I've got whatever bug has been going around, and I was sooooo punchy yesterday and couldn't even bear to look at a computer due to the migraine I had...

Anywho...

New blanket square #6

This square is the Lion's Suede® in "Seacrest"

New blanket square #7

This color is called "Mountaintop"

Let me know what you think!

What I've Completed Today...

2009-02-01T20:08:00.000-08:00

Today was yet another busy day in my life. I discovered that a beloved elementary school teacher has moved from CA to TN (near Nashville, I'm told), to continue to raise the dogs he rescues, I made 5 dozen chocolate chip cookies for my class for tomorrow's potluck, I finally took pics of my Akri Erin's awesome finished scarf (technically finished yesterday night, just before midnight), and finished Akri's wife's scarf as well (it also looks awesome!). Plus, there was also the Stupor Bowl... Yes, I watched, groaned at the commercials, and tried to ignore my mother's squees during Bruce Springsteen's half-time performance. Either way, in all honesty, it was kind of boring, since I'm not a sports fan, and I just don't get the point of American Football.

However, I did catch a few mins. of my fav. ghost-hunting shows, 'Ghost Hunters' and 'Ghost Hunters International,' which both showed some spooky findings... Oh so cool! Other than that, I've discovered the secret to perfect (well, in my opinion anyway) Chocolate Chip Cookies. However, I'm not sharing that information, because I want to be able to sell them and have people wonder at what I do to make them so yummy!

Here's pics of the outcome of my cookie making:

As for scarves #9 & #10, those are now going to be packed up and mailed out to their owners....

This one is for Akri Erin (colors used are Caron Simply Soft® Emerald, Navy Blue, and Red):

And for Akri's wife, who I'd love to meet some day... (colors used are Caron Simply Soft® Black and Purple, with Lion Brand Micro-Spun Yarn® in Blue):

LOLcats

2009-02-01T09:35:00.000-08:00

I'm sure that most people by now have heard of the website Icanhascheezburger.com - If not, basically, it has funny pics of all sorts of stuff, but mostly animals, and really amusing captions on the pics. I've decided to post a few that I've downloaded from the site in the past....

Again, the website to visit and see more of these cute pics is http://icanhascheezburger.com/

More Yarnwork Updates...

2009-01-30T18:04:00.000-08:00

Yes, I've made even more blanket squares, and finished yet another soft, fuzzy scarf. (If anyone wants to purchase one, PLEASE let me know!) So far, I'm now up to 8 completed scarves, with #9 two-fifths of the way done, and #10 already planned... Both of those will be very thick, soft, warm, and non-fuzzy. When complete, I'll again put more pictures up.

But for now, in order...

Blanket Square #4 - "Vineyard" Lion's Suede® Yarn

Scarf #8

and finally

Blanket Square #5 - "Scarlet" Lion's Suede® Yarn

Update to Yesterday Night's Michele Lang Post...

2009-01-30T12:37:00.000-08:00

All right, I've gotten an email back from Michele Lang, in which she offered me a .pdf of her book, "Mists of Manhattan." Of course, I'm happily taking her up on her her offer, but I also wish to help her in return. I hope that she takes my advice about offering the two books, "Ms. Pendragon" and "Mists of Manhattan" as free egifts to people, then uses that offer to promote an enhanced version of both books as Print On Demand books. I think that's a good way to get more fans to her books and promote herself well. I know that if Michele follows my suggestion, I'll be right there on various messageboards and promoting the hell out of the books, since I believe in them and the sheer enjoyment just reading "Ms. Pendragon" has given me. I really do believe that one good turn deserves another, and as I'm one of those "obsessive" people who is quite literally addicted to a good story enough that I'll read it hundreds of times over just to get every nuance I can from a story, I really want to help share the love of a good book.

I Hate Not Being Able to Find What I'm Searching For...

2009-01-29T21:25:00.000-08:00

Well, here's a fact about me: I'm a huge reader, especially of romance novels. So long as they're not types that I've (mostly) outgrown *cough*Harlequin*cough,* I'll happily sit down and devour or redevour several of them a day. However, there can be a negative aspect to being so addicted to romances...

The complete down you get when you search for a book only to realize that it's out of print (OOP) and you can't even find a copy of it on Amazon.com or eBay. Well, that's what's happened to me over the last rereading of a book I really enjoyed.

First, the book that I do have, which is also the first book of the two. It is by Michele Lang, who is quite the talented author. The book is "Ms. Pendragon," and tells the story of Gwen, a modern woman who is the reincarnation of the Guinevere of Arthurian legend. She is being haunted by Mordred, the son of Arthur Pendragon and his half-sister Morgana. After putting a holding spell on Mordred (by sheer luck), Gwen runs down to the business of her dearest friend, who is a Wiccan priestess. While there, the one and only fabulous Merlin shows up. Basically, Gwen is sent back in time to prevent something bad from happening. There is a lot of action, and heaps of adventure, but the ending is one that simply satisfies, yet still leaves the reader wanting more. To top it off, the first chapter or two of the sequel is also included.

And THAT, is where my problems begin. I had brought the book to my Sociology 101 class the other day, to quote a line that went along with the topics being discussed that day. When I got home, I searched for the sequel, "Mists of Manhattan," only to discover that Amazon did not have any copies for sale, even used. After that, I went and searched eBay, once again with no luck, and then finally giving up and using google to do yet another search. Yet none of my searches yielded any fruit, and now I'm left hungry for more and unsatisfied. I even went to the length of going on Michele Lang's site and searching for more information, only to discover that the company that had published and owned the rights to the books had gone under, which leaves Michele with the rights to her stories. I wonder why she won't at least be her own publisher, since many authors can now go that route with POD (print on demand). It seems to me that this would be a good way to both satisfy fans and still make a profit off of older books....

But oh man oh man do I want a copy of "Mists of Manhattan!" That first "Ms. Pendragon" just got me hooked, and I'm just going crazy trying to find more about the world that Lang created!

Ghosts can be Annoying...

2009-01-26T12:26:00.000-08:00

Yes, my house is haunted... I've got it all, but most of the time, my ghosties are really sweet and stuff. However, not today. Today, since I got home from class, all I've gotten is tormented. I think they're bored. So far, I've had several non-breakables thrown at me from upstairs. Since I am on a desktop computer with open space behind my back, I must make an excellent target. Sadly, all the baubles thrown at me are things from my room, including my favorite day-glow orange football shaped stress ball, which got me straight in the back. I'll update this post later with pics to help explain...

As for now, I think I'm going to the other room to watch a movie and invite the ghosts to join me. Maybe then they won't be so antagonistic....

UPDATE:

This is the view behind my back while I'm on the computer I'm currently using. See the area above the white door? That area up on the second floor is what hides my room, where my possessions were taken and thrown at me.

Here's the rest of the view:

BTW, maybe it's just me, but I think I may have caught a dark gray orb in the second picture... Let me know if you spot it!

Scarf # 7 is Complete!

2009-01-24T21:02:00.000-08:00

I finished that scarf a little earlier today, and basically, it's the same as #3 would be, except that it has a purple base instead of a red one... It's just over 5 feet long, and I look forward to sending it out to my beloved akri's wife... Should my akri read this, here's a pic of what your wife is getting! I want you to send me a pic of what she looks like wearing it, ok?

*hugs to my akri and his family*

Also, I've mentioned here previously that I'm making a very nice blanket for myself and my family. So far, I have 3 squares, which are somehow all magically the same size (yay me!) that are complete so far... Now, it's up to fate to see when I can afford to buy more of the amazingly soft yarn I'm using... Lion's Brand® Lion Suede yarn - it retails for $5.99 plus tax here in Cali...

Here are those squares!

Teal:

Crimson:

"Vineyard" (multicolored):

The Quintessential Teen Angsty Rant (While I'm Still An "Official" Teenager)

2009-01-22T20:43:00.000-08:00

Just shoot me already. Seriously...

Bad day doesn't BEGIN to cover it....

First, yesterday, my beloved laptop Simi gave out on me. Now, for those of you who think that means that my computer is dead, think again. What I mean is that the ac charger connector in the laptop is kaput. Dead. And with a clunky old battery like mine that has very little power and doesn't store charges well, that means that my laptop is unavailable to me, unless I shell out a LOT of money to get it fixed or save up enough to go buy another computer.

Here's where the big problem begins, though. I injured my hand in a stupid incident last January, as in 2008, and it screwed up the muscles in my right hand, so that it hurts to write consistently. Well, I'm in college, and many of the teachers at my school think it's just GREAT to have quizzes and tests that are completely handwritten. I can't get exemption from those - and I've tried to get such teachers to let my type my quizzes and tests to no avail. So, that leaves me with issues with note taking as well. I type all the notes I take in classes. Without a computer to take notes on, I'm pretty much up shit creek without a paddle.

On to the rest of the story - I spoke with dad via webcam, and we argued over how to either fix my computer or get a new one. He wants me to find a job in this economy - NOT gonna happen, unless you can work full time and have a college degree - I have neither... STUDENT = current job! Seriously, I really need to have a laptop available to me, and he won't let me use my college money to pay for it, even though it'd be for school.

Soooooo, if anyone has any suggestions to help me find a way to fund a new computer purchase, I'd be delighted to hear it.... If you have a part time job offer with flexible hours, that'd be great too, so long as it's in Santa Clarita...

One of the Best Days of My Life!

2009-01-20T16:19:00.000-08:00

I've been singing all day long... "Ding, Dong, the DOUCHE is GONE!"

Now, that may show my political view, but it's also something that makes me happier than I've been in a very long time. I will never forget this day.

While in my spring intercession class today, everything was postponed a day with our assignments so that we all could watch the inauguration of Barack Obama. I sat in class, tears of joy in my eyes, as I watched Barack take the oath of office. The things he said in his speech resonated in the minds of my classmates and myself. We found ourselves nodding along with many of the comments made in Obama's speech, and also focused on what we all considered to be a gaffe. However, there wasn't a dry eye in the classroom as we watched the inauguration unfold.

As to the gaffe, Obama spoke in his speech about how America is made up of patchwork, referring to people of all shapes, colors, and sizes. From there, though, he also mentioned several religious as such: "Christians, Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and non-believers..." THAT caused issue in the class. While we all understood what Obama meant by what he said (that people of every faith make up America and can all work together), we all agreed that that comment could have been set up SOOOO much better than that. It was the only issue most of the class had with his speech.

On the other hand, the class listed things that Obama talked about in his speech that made us feel that we were veering off the path of fear that President Bush had put us on, and that we were being put back on the path of hope and faith. Obama discussed health care, education, following the rule of law, and living with a living constitution, among many other things. He reaffirmed to America that it takes work to get anything accomplished, and with the help of the country, many wonderful new things will be fixed and set up anew. All we have to do is work with him, and let him know what we want.

No one yet knows how Barack Obama will do as president, but all I can do is hope for the best, work hard, and let Obama know what causes are important to me to get the issues I care about taken care of, be it ending the genocide in Darfur, pulling our troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan, or just making sure that there is more funding available for education.

Obama as our new president not only represents a new chance to be better than we currently are, it also gives our country a chance to open its arms to other countries in peace and find new ways to solve global conflicts.

Good luck, President Obama. You're going to need it, but I have faith it will be there for you, and that you and Michelle will help make the world a better place.

Scarf Pics!

2009-01-19T18:15:00.000-08:00

This is shot #1 of my favorite work station in my house.

Shot #2 of the same workstation...

Scarf #1 that I finished, which happened while I was in NY over my winter break...

Scarf #2 - This one was started while in NY, but finished once I got home...

This is scarf #4 that I finished. #3, which I will post a pic of as soon as I am able to, was a gift for a member of my family, so I didn't have it when I took these pics.

Scarf #5 - As you can see, I really enjoy doing stuff like this...

Scarf #6 - I just LOVE the teal under the flame-colored yarn..

Currently, I am working on scarf #7, but after that, I'm taking a break to make blanket squares from Lion's Brand® Suede Yarn, so that eventually, I'll have a multi-colored blanket for my favorite couch at home... Pictures of each square will be posted eventually, along with a pic of the final result whenever I finish it...

HELP!

2009-01-19T10:24:00.000-08:00

I've started making more and more scarves, and I'm starting to work on a blanket... The problem is, I'm out of yarn and money, so my attempts are going down the drain... I'll post pics soon to show you what I've accomplished so far, but for now, if you're at all interested in a new hand-made scarf that is soft, warm, and cute, or interested in me making you a blanket for not too much money, please let me know with a comment!

I PROMISE TO POST PICS OF WHAT I'VE DONE SO FAR LATER TODAY!

Avatars - Part 2

2009-01-15T19:42:00.003-08:00

This is my nymph muse. She's rather annoying, as she's a special nymph. In fact, she's a nympho!

This is santa's favorite diva... The missus!

A dark and cranky mermaid... She's more likely to torment you than to sing to you.

A dark witch. Don't mess with her - she makes the Wicked Witches of the East and West look like seductresses!

Snake woman. She loves her hair and tail - such a vain creature!

Avatars - Part 1

2009-01-15T18:24:00.000-08:00

A young princess - waiting for her prince charming...

Spider princess - she loves to "weave" her love spells around those who aren't guarded against her powers.

A kooky mermaid - she enjoys swimming with the dolphins.

These are more avatars I've made. Most of these are just fun ones I've made for myself, not Dark-Hunter based. Since this site is being obnoxious, I'll have to do several posts to show all of these... Hope you like!