Another Year

I really want the background photo to be centered and not tiled. But currently I am having issues trying to get it to work. Wah.

Oh well. Life goes on.

So this blog. I keep saying I'm actually going to keep it going, and that never happens. I mean, it's been nearly a year since I did anything with it. There seems to be a pattern - whenever I have work due, I remember my blog. I revive it. I mess with the layout and touch it up. I spend an hour getting everything the way I like it, and then I leave it for another year.

Patterns. Gotta love 'em.

Renaissance Faire

Ren faire!

It's that time of year again: time to don the long skirts and floofy shirts.

This will be the third year we have gone to the faire, and our wardrobe has improved accordingly. My sister and I have gathered up a little collection of accessories and different costume elements. Below is a list of suggested items, as well as links to websites that show you how to make various accessories.

- a floofy shirt (white, off-white, beige or other neutral colors are best). These shirts are fairly easy to find or make. We have a few extra if you need one.

- floor-length skirt (in cotton, linen, or heavier fabric). Technically neutral colors are the best, because they are closer to what colors would actually have been worn, but pretty much any color is ok. Black, white, metallic, and neon colors are not good.

- second skirt or 'apron'. We usually take an extra piece of fabric and drape/tuck it into the belt to make it look like an apron or overskirt.

- bodice (made of heavy material or upholstery material). These really make the outfit, but usually have to be made to fit the wearer. We have a few extra of these as well.

- belt (leather or leather-looking) A belt is necessary to hang your accessories on, as well as tuck your outer skirt layer into (if you are wearing two skirts...)

- shoes (please no sneakers or flip-flops!) The shoes can be one of the hardest things to find, but they really make the outfit. Boots or dark/natural-colored flats are suggested. As little heel as possible on the boots.

- pouch/bag/satchel to take a few of your most precious belongings in.

- muffin cap/caul/hat - not really necessary, though most women in Renaissance times wore their hair up and had it covered at all times. We've never worn hats or caps to faire before, but we have some this year that we might try out.

- cape: because capes are fun. Also not necessary, but really easy to make and fun to wear.

Other things to bring

- water! It gets hot and there is dust EVERYWHERE. Even if you don't carry it around with you, bring a bottle for the car.

- money: food and games are expensive. The food and drinks especially. And there's awesome stuff for sale as well.

- a camera! So many photo-taking opportunities.

Links

- Cape-making directions: super simple. I didn't make ties at the neck for mine, I used a brooch to hold the cape together instead. Much easier that way. (http://diyfashion.about.com/od/costumes/ss/Make_a_Cape.htm)

- Muffin cap - This video is the one I used to make mine, although I only made it in one layer and didn't use interfacing. I like using the video because it makes the steps much easier to understand. The video is in German, but... it has English subtitles :) (http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x22grd_how-to-make-a-muffin-hat-sewing-tut_creation)

Also, some of us have decided to make "gifts" that we will hand out at the faire. Little random hand-made or other things to give to unsuspecting faire-goers. We're still working on a storyline. If you would like to bring something to give, I think the following have already been taken or suggested: flowers, yarn dolls, riddles, random jewelry, and an old book. Bring something to give, if you want. It might be fun.

Please also take a look at the rules: http://www.renfair.com/socal/kids/documents/Rules_Regs.05.pdf

I don't *think* any of you going will be tempted to throw things at performers, but hey. Also, I will have name tags for you that I will give to you before we go.

For more info on the faire - http://www.renfair.com/socal/index.asp

2010 Faire

Art and stuff.

Some recent and some not-so-recent work. We've got

The Good

The Bad

The (Really) Ugly

And the Awesome.

The first is Christopher Eccleston, an actor who also played the ninth doctor in the series Doctor Who. Took me about six hours with two pencils.

The second is, well... the second drawing is of Timmy. Timmy is a strange little mixed-up critter.

The third picture - sorry about him. He popped up in some school doodles. Every time I see him I start cracking up. He's so terribly hideous and retarded.

The fourth - coffee. I love coffee.

And here are some bonus pictures, both to make up for drawing #3 and to prove I can draw, uhm, normal things.

School.

I hate school.

But I also love school.

Right now, though, it's not lookin so fantastic.

I enjoy learning. It's something of an addiction. Learning new things and reading and writing are awesome, but when things I have to learn/read/write conflict with things I want to learn/read/write, I get fussy. I get... well, like this. I decide to write blog entries that no one will read instead of finishing Mrs. Dalloway for my British Novel class. My room gets really, really clean. Chores get done that would normally be ignored. I am a procrastinator, but quite a productive one.

It's an interesting problem. I don't have time to do the things I want to do, and because of that I really value the free time I do have. I don't ever write or draw as much as I do when I'm on an academic crunch. Christmas break? Eh, I'll write later. Ten-page paper due tomorrow? Wow, I have so many AWESOME ideas for a story! It happens.

I have two speeches coming up. They won't be that intense. I don't like speeches, though: and that is enough of a factor to make me dread them. In one I have to do several close readings, and then summarize the text and help facilitate class discussion. In another I have to analyze two books we're reading and give a ten-minute presentation on the themes or style. Eh. Eh eh eh.

My Shakespeare class is probably the least stressful class I'm in. Here's proof.

How's that for good note-taking skills? I know. I'm special. "And then Hamlet turns, and *loss of focus*... I'mma draw a pony! With WINGS! and maybe some random doodles on the side, and oh - an eye. Because eyes are nice." Sometimes after a long day of school I'm surprised I have any mental functions at all.

I'm also trying to revive my poor garden. Well, maybe 'revive' is not the right word... maybe 'restart' is a better one. Starting last September I kind of just... um... left everything, and it's in various stages of decay or piteous half-life at the moment. I turned under about a third of the garden, stuck a few seeds in the dirt, and will see how that goes. If I have time.

But now I really must go read Mrs. Dalloway. Not my favorite thing to read before bedtime, but hey. Stream-of-consciousness is really not my thing, at least not in this style. Wasn't much of a fan of Joyce's either. I like some of it - the heightened sense of self-awareness and description of internal battles is interesting - but when it just keeps going... and going... and going.... annnd goinggg... and - you get the idea. Not my favorite.

I almost wrote that last sentence in German, which is a sure sign that a) I just finished my German homework, and b) I need to go to sleep.

Alrighty then.

NEW YEAR

Hah. July. Yeah.

It is no longer July. It is 2011 and I start school tomorrow. I've been up to a bit of this and that: getting into trouble and making a general nuisance of myself. Fun stuff, that.

Finished my first quarter at Cal Poly. Did relatively well. Enjoyed my classes for the most part. Got the lowest grade I've ever gotten in a class - and in Stress Management. Figures. I've learned to embrace it, and I must admit I kind of like it now (didn't have much of a choice... grumble grumble...), because it's ironic. I know, fail. Ah well.

This quarter I've got German, Shakespeare after 1600, Language and Human Behavior (which I am stoked for), and Modern British Novel (not so stoked). Two repeat professors and two new. That's a class more than I had last quarter but I don't have as many extra things to do this winter/spring as I did last fall. And I love school and reading and writing, so yup. Stellar.

I've technically sort of written a novel. Not published or anything, no - a long way from finished. But a novel nonetheless. 57,000 + words, 100+ pages: now I've invested too much time to not finish it. Heh. It frustrates me beyond belief because it refuses to cooperate: but that's kind of what it's supposed to do.

I haven't done as much art as I would like, but I sketch and draw and paint still. Finished another portrait recently (and that will probably be the last one for a year or so, lol), and noticed today that my sketch book is half-used-up. I've been sketching some scenes from dreams I have, and those are... uh... interesting. Drawing is crazy, and a great stress reliever for me. Put my headphones on, get my pencils, and go. I can spend hours that way before noticing how late it is. And of course I get the best drawing ideas (and writing ideas, for that matter) the night before a test or major project is due. Oh silly human brain.

Still have some pets. Got my guineas, and three rats. That's all. I'm not going to say how many guinea pigs I have, but I only have two species of pets at the moment: and that's quite a feat for me. I won some nice awards for my guineas last year at the national Specialty show for guinea pigs. Had some great litters, and am currently bringing up quite a few show-stoppers. If showing guinea pigs sounds strange to you, well... it is. If you're a pet lover you'll understand. If you're not, think of it this way: it's a gamble and a challenge. You have little critters that can be quite arbitrary and come in many colors. Your goal is to play a game with genetics and try to create the 'best' guinea pig: body type, markings, coloration. It's rough because it's not a color-by-number type of deal. You never really know what one guinea pig plus another guinea pig is going to make, and you have to roll with the punches. I have been raising guinea pigs for about ten years, and I have four or five generations of guinea pigs I have personally raised. There's just something about showing a guinea pig you've bred that is contagious, and winning helps. They're neat little animals anyways, and make great pets.

So does that help you understand? No? Didn't think so. Oh well.

My poor garden is all mud and a few greenish-brown sticks right now. I need to work on that. Found a praying mantis out there the other day. It's raining right now (ILOVERAIN), so it'll probably be a few days until I get to work on it again.

Oh, and I left my car windows rolled down today. Fail. They were only rolled down an inch or so, but then we were gone all day, and it rained, and... yeah. Fantastic. The only reason they were down is because I finally got around to shampooing and vaccuuming my car and left the windows open a tiny bit to dry. Good thing I didn't check the weather forecast.

Well, I need to close out. The only real reason I wrote this was because I was procrastinating. Come to think of it, that's really the only reason I ever update my blog. Heh. I need to work on that story of mine, and hey-presto blogging instantly sounded like a great idea. Ugh.

Quote time. Love it. C.S. Lewis is amazing.

If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.

Hello World.

I am really good at...

Neglecting my blog.

Oh yes, I am.

School was a legitimate excuse, but now that school is out... I guess I have no excuse after all.

What has happened since November? Welll, a lot. A whole lot. I took a dance class; and even with my two left feet and ungainly lack of coordination, now I actually know how to dance a (very little) bit. I got published in a magazine. I won an honorable mention for a short story in my college's writing competition. My best friend is getting married and I am the maid of honor.

So my life has been pretty busy - but that's the way I like it :) I am enjoying my summer though - quite a bit. So relaxing to not have classes to strees over (yet). I am going to Cal Poly this fall, and integrating there will be interesting. I'm excited. I want to be getting somewhere with my degree.

Here are some photos of random things I've managed to do this year.

Turn this (January 2010)

Into this. (July 2010)

ACBA Specialty Show April 2010

This little piggy's name is Donovan. Donovan is the baby of a pig that someone dumped in the empty field behind our house. My sister and I donned gloves and dove into the underbrush to catch her. She ended up being a nice piggy, and we decided to try showing her. Surprisingly, she did quite well. Better than some of the ones we've been raising and showing for several years. We bred her, and Donovan was the result. We went to the American Cavy Breeder Association's Specialty Show in Monterey, and he won Best of Variety. Go little piggy, go!

Donovan's little brother getting judged. Donovan is in the coop on the far right.

This boar also did very well, winning BOSB (Best Opposite Sex of Breed), our biggest win overall.

Southern California Renaissance Faire - April/May 2010

We (my middle sister and I) fenced at the faire again this year. And again. And again. And we got a little bit addicted.

So, we bought our own kits. And now we bruise each other regularly from the comfort of our own backyard. We have some bets to settle at next years' faire.

Rubber knees!

We're hoping to take some lessons this year. We've got the interest, but not the direction. Most of the time we just try to poke each other. It's still fun, and though we have those nice little jackets we still end up with a motley rainbow of bruises.

So those are some of the things I've done this year. Hopefully I'll update more often ^^

School

Haha, in the last post I was talking about June gloom... fast forward five months, I guess!

I have been busy. Really, really busy. This past week I spent over thirty hours at school, and was just happy to be home yesterday and today. Sleep has become one of my new best friends.

The main reason for the madness is debate. Yes - the class I never thought I would be in. At the beginning of registration for the fall semester this year, while glancing through the class schedule, I saw it: staring up at me from the thin gray recycled page, threatening me. I quickly dismissed it until my registration appointment, at which time I somehow 'accidentally' registered for the class.

Whoops.

The first few speeches went well, but I still wasn't really enjoying it. It wasn't a necessary class for my GE or my major, and I already have my Associate of Arts in Language and Communications. It was more of a 'let's see if I can do this' type of thing. I've gotten to the point where I enjoy the class, but the more I enjoy it the less I seem to understand it. I don't 'get' it yet, but I am told that's normal. I stumbled through my first debate on Domestic Transportation Infrastructure, and I got royally beaten - but that only served to make me want to debate more.

I still don't get it. It frustrates me, makes me nervous, and coming up with logical arguments on-the-spot comes as naturally to me as flying does to pigs: but I am beginning to enjoy it. I noticed, too, that I can speak more fluidly off the top of my head in front of groups, which is definitely helpful. I've been watching the debate team at their practices to try to understand it better, but they're so far ahead of me that it's kind of more confusing than helpful sometimes. Once they had me debate with them (I'd been told that the fastest way to learn to debate well is to be soundly beaten by a much better team - and it's true), and I attempted to. Then we had a practice debate on a resolution of value (which we don't get to in class, we only have resolutions of policy), and that was hilariously atrocious. It was kind of fun, too, though. And somehow I have managed to get myself signed up for a rookie debate competition at the Fall Champs at our school. It's in two weeks. That's why I've been so busy at school - trying to understand as much as possible in the short amount of time remaining. I'm just hoping to have fun with it, I'm not going to worry about being serious competition. It's a round of four debates, and basically our goal at this level is to be as organized and clear as possible, and just talk. We'll see how that goes... I'm excited. It's one of those things that is making my stomach knot up, but I know if I don't take this opportunity now I'll regret it later.

So yeah, that's most of what's eating up my time right now - besides the reading and essays for my lit classes, which are time-intensive too. I have two essays due on Tuesday. At least I started one...

Three more weeks of school - only three! I'm happy, but I'm sad too. This semester has been my most involved at school and with people at school, and I have to say that though it was intensely busy I learned a lot - and kind of don't want to leave debate class. I've found that the classes that I suffer the most through are the ones I'm most hesitant to leave. I briefly considered joining the forensic or debate team, but I always consider those things a little too late. Ugh. Besides, I really enjoy it - but it's a whole 'nother world.

My first days on break I will probably be sleeping. My poor sleep-deprived body and mind are unresponsive to caffeine.

On a side note, there is a fly that is really bothering me right now. It's really slow: must be the cold. He zooms around every once in a while, futilely buzzing along the computer screen, and I can't seem to get rid of him. Dumb fly.

On another really random sidenote, I recently sold a guinea pig that now lives in Michigan. I think that's one of the farthest one of my pigs has gone yet. I've had pigs go to Arizona, Oregon, Arkansas, Washington, and Texas. None out of the country yet... ;)

I have also decided to paint one of my walls. It's going to be a mural of some sort, I'm still working out the details. Of course, that's assuming I ever get the time...

Well, I should probably attempt to get some sleep. Next week I have another debate! The last one before fall champs.