a glass can only spill what it contains

040

2012-01-21T14:34:00.001-05:00

First snow of the season! We had that one snowstorm in October, but nothing since. I woke up this morning to a lovely blanket of white outside, but it seems like it's already melting. :(

Got some new jewelry from BAF! These are the Colette Coils by Diablo Organics. They're quite lovely and shiny, and look very pretty in-ear. :) Ryan and I are going to a wedding next week & I can't wait to wear them!

039

2011-12-28T22:11:00.000-05:00

I was very blessed this holiday season. Not only did I get to spend time with my family & loved ones, but they showered me with wonderful, unexpected gifts! I didn't photograph everything I was given, but suffice to say I received more than I expected to and it was all very thoughtful.

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday, and that you all have a delightful new year!

038

2011-12-12T14:46:00.000-05:00

Ever since Ryan gave me the Zelda 3DS bundle & Mario Kart 7 (my boyfriend is amazing) my online presence has grown scarce. I haven't been a news-following fan of Nintendo for a little while, but I think this little hand-held will really take off soon. It's gorgeous & feels so good to hold. The games so far are solid, but there aren't too many of them. I'm really looking forward to Animal Crossing 3D -- in Animal Crossing: Wild World I had the cutest little yellow-roofed house with all-pink interiors and I was BFFs with all the animals in town (except for that one REALLY gossipy bitchy squirrel.) I know Ryan and I are totally going to hang with K.K. Slider on Saturday nights. :D

Also, I got Pushmo after I watched Ryan play it. It is such a good puzzle game! So cute. T_T

I was very bored last night and decided to make a new necklace utilizing some of my Victorian cut steel button collection! I'm not sure I'm sold on the asymmetrical beading I tried, but that could just be my hugely annoying OCD at work. I need to restock on French cut steel beads. I wish they weren't so expensive. :(

I received a gift of the most wonderful smelling perfume! A wonderful family member sent me the full bottle of Hermes' Un Jardin Sur Le Nil, a bottle of perfumed lotion with the same scent, and a little travel vaporiser for freshening up away from home! :D I'm very much in love with this fragrance. It plays nice with my skin -- the initial spritz smells like lychee to me. I don't get the first super bitter note some reviewers commented on.

"Inspired by annual themes at Hermès, the garden perfumes collection is an olfactory stroll, in situ creation, in the footsteps of the in-house perfumer. A sensory stroll along the Nile river. A new translation of freshness: green mouth-watering and tangy scents. A fragrance of light and life, generous and sparkling. Fruity, green, woody."

Top Note: Green Mango, Grapefruit
Middle Note: Calamus, Lotus
Base Note: Sycamore, Frankincense

037

2011-11-28T18:47:00.001-05:00

So Ryan (being the wonderful boyfriend he is) got me a Zojirushi water boiler! I love having hot water for tea ready at the press of a button! I can set it to 175, 195, and 205 degrees! Perfect for white, green, and black teas that require precise & attentive brewing. I think I'm going to make myself some white blooming tea in a little bit. :)

Today was oddly warm. It is late November! I should be wrapped in scarves, layered in sweaters, and wearing boots! I wore a light jacket and was sweating almost instantly. I carried Chai-kitty out in my arms and let her smell the warm air and feel the sun and wind. She started falling asleep in my arms while purring. :'D

My dad has the firewood stacked outside ready to get the wood-burning stove going. If I weren't completely terrified of getting splinters I would have brought some inside during this fair weather. Alas, the threat is too great for me!

036

2011-11-20T17:45:00.001-05:00

Today I had a horrible migraine and I've been drinking lots of tea from my jadeite teacup. So glad it was an overcast day ... I didn't have to deal with the sun blasting into my room and worsening my symptoms!

I've been somewhat absent from the internet as of late! The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was released, and since then I've been spending lots of free time in Tamriel playing a Khajiit thief/sometimes assassin. I also made a mage, but I spent her skill points poorly and she isn't as good as she should be. She's also stuck in a dungeon 10+ levels above where she is. Blarg! I really liked her too. I made her an especially scary-looking dark elf.

Ryan and I went to Assi Mart and got a delicious meal. I can't eat wheat, so I photographed his ramen dish to daydream over later. I got my usual chicken teriyaki (sounds ~boring~ but Izumi makes the best teriyaki EVER.)

035

2011-11-04T01:46:00.000-04:00

Relaxed today with some floral Tie Guan Yin brewing in my tetsubin Ryan gave me last year. :) I have a little hobnail iron cup with a lotus-motif iron coaster to match! So heavy and satisfying to hold in my hands.

Chai-kitty attempted a grand escape the other night and gave me a heart attack. I was bringing the dogs inside and she slipped out the front door into the night. Made sure the dogs wouldn't run away, and I managed to jump and corner her in our front bush. Shrieked for Ryan to come outside and help me wrangle her up. She is a strictly indoor cat. Declawed in the front with a small deformity in her one paw, and she gets into so many places inside that she doesn't wear a collar because we're worried she'll strangle herself in a closet.

After my mom also rushed outside to spot her with a flashlight, Chai ever-so-nonchalantly strolls into my arms like her little slip was no big deal. She even let out a little "maoooo" as if to say, "Hohoho, got you."

I had chest pains and a headache for the rest of the night. Cats know they are in charge. I guess they like giving us little stress-inducing reminders. T_T Chai-kitty, please, NEVER AGAIN.

Enjoyed a bit of Rose Scented tea from Harney as well. :D

034

2011-10-31T19:04:00.000-04:00

We had a freak winter snowstorm this past weekend. A nor'easter in October! All the trees had leaves, and that weighed them down. Our perfectly healthy tree in the front yard succumbed to the heavy, wet snow. It snapped and took out our neighbor's cable/phones. Surprisingly, none of us lost power! Sorry, neighbor. :(

Received Harney's Rose Scented black tea! It is a combination of Ceylon & Keemun black teas with velvety rose petals and oil for flavor/fragrance. I cracked open the tin and felt like I was sniffing a bouquet of roses. :)

Brewed a pot-full of it and Chai sauntered over to inspect. She loves tea-time. Occasionally she'll hop on the counter while I'm boiling water and will sniff the dry leaves in the tea-maker. If you aren't watching your teacup she'll occasionally dunk her paw in the tea and splash it everywhere. Disrupting tea-time brings her too much joy. T_T Maybe she wouldn't do that if I appeased her with a little teacup containing a small bit of milk once in a while.

033

2011-10-28T16:41:00.001-04:00

I just love our little backyard birds. They've grown so accustomed to us putting seeds/nuts on our back deck. We have a winter storm warning for this weekend so we put extra food out there for them! Hopefully they can bring a big dinner back to their nests before the snowfall. :) I love watching the finches carry off whole peanuts!

There's a lot of construction in our area, and Ryan's car hit a manhole jutting out of stripped pavement by about 6-8". It was completely unmarked -- no cone, no nothing, on a very dim street. Now his transmission housing is damaged and we had to open a claim for compensation for the repairs. I've been on the phone for what feels like all day, but I think we've gotten the ball rolling towards a resolution. Hopefully contractors will be more careful.

The Amandine Rose was put on backorder, and Teavana sent me 4oz of Almond Biscotti tea by mistake! I called customer service, they fixed my order and are sending me Amandine Rose when it becomes available. In the meantime they told me to enjoy the tea I received accidentally! I ordered a tin of Harney & Sons Rose Scented Black Tea after the Teavana mix-up. I've heard that the tea, unlike Upton's Rose Congou, is a very perfumey and sweet rose. Upton's Rose Congou is a very herby subtle rose flavor -- almost spicy. I can't wait for it to arrive! I have a huge fixation on rose teas. That flower complements black teas so perfectly!

032

2011-10-23T17:42:00.000-04:00

Chai needed to inspect the almond biscotti tea.

Ryan got me a new teacup!! I love it. It is Rosina Bone China with an adorable harvest pattern!

I ordered one of Teavana's new blends. I got 4oz of the Amandine Rose black tea. I find myself increasingly frustrated with their repetitive fruity blends. They used to have things like Vermont Maple, Pistachio Apple Pie, Rooibos Sweet Amore, Rose Marzipan Delight, and so on. They discontinued those delicious blends and I swear they replaced them with overly fruity/citrusy teas. The requests to bring back certain spiced blends have gone largely ignored, or customers have been advised to try one of their newer teas that are nothing like the discontinued blend.

My personal hope is that the Amandine Rose is a "revamped" duplicate of their Rose Marzipan Delight.

I loved Rose Marzipan Delight so much that I kept about one spoonful after the discontinuation in a little container so I could open it up and just take a big breath of the candied rose fragrance. It was my absolute favorite rose tea and I hated Teavana for taking it off shelves. I'm worried that if Amandine Rose is a duplicate of Rose Marzipan that it won't last long with their fixation on fruit. I'm quite nervous they'll discontinue Almond Biscotti as well.

I wish Teavana would do what Lush does ... periodically bring back products in a "retro" collection.

031

2011-10-13T20:26:00.000-04:00

Cut all my hair off today! I went from just-above-waist to just-below-jaw length. I was getting horrific migraines from having my hair tied back quite often, and the weight of it was just uncomfortable at times. I don't know how other long haired ladies keep up with it! I can't wait to wear my little wool cloche this winter! Less hair means more room inside hats. You'd be surprised at how poorly a hat can fit with even the tiniest of buns inside.

Ryan and I went to the PA Renaissance Faire, and I discovered that the itty bitty tea shop relocated to a slightly larger location on the grounds. They had so many teacups, but this little potbellied one caught my eye. Ryan was sweet enough to purchase it for me! It is a new favorite in my little collection. :)

030

2011-10-03T23:49:00.000-04:00

An autumn chill has finally hit! This past weekend I couldn't go outside without a cardigan, and wearing a dress with my legs bare turned out to be a poor choice. I took solace at The Zen Den in town -- they make a mean pumpkin chai, and their hot apple cider warmed me to my very core! I desperately need to restock on loose autumn teas. If anyone has any suggestions or favorites, please let me know what they are! :) I'm all for trying something new.

I am restarting my 365 photo project! Another photo a day for an entire year. I'll resume on the 10th and will hopefully complete the project on October 10th, 2012!! The 365 blog is located here!

I'm sticking to it this time around. I let a second job and belly dance derail my photo project. I want to be able to manage dance & photography seamlessly. I am also not working that second stressful job anymore!

029

2011-09-07T16:01:00.000-04:00

I'm in love with nail polish right now. I love sitting down and quietly painting my nails, and then watching a movie while they fully dry. I'll never be a nail blogger with hundreds of polishes and swatches. I just like buying a few colors and wearing them over and over again. I decided to try out the Julep Maven program and then decided to cancel because I don't really need a new polish every month. I got my first introductory box, though, and it is AWESOME. The base coat/nail therapy smells like a floral grape candy when it dries.

Went to Teavana with Kim yesterday and she gave me this adorable little teacup! I love it. :D
Ryan and I decided to try out Vine & Fig Tree Bistro in town. We were both a bit unimpressed. Maybe we're too frugal for their style of business but I looked at our dishes, then at the bill, and thought to myself, "This is the most overpriced platter I've ever received." The amount of food I received on my grilled veggie platter was somewhat depressing and I ended up munching on Ryan's generously portioned Greek salad. It was tasty!

I just really hate thinking to myself at restaurants, "I could have made this myself and spent less money to boot."

028

2011-08-22T14:49:00.008-04:00

So I quit my 365 project because I acquired a second job, and then a few weeks ago I quit said job. I almost wish I kept chugging along with the project, but my photos became repetitive and dull after a while. I much prefer taking photos when the desire to do so simply hits.

A little gelato/coffee shop opened in town. I like the gelato, but the Italian owner lady seemed to exude impatience and annoyance from people who were overly curious and had questions for her. The nicer man took over when children came in. I don't get why some shop owners aren't as friendly as they should be toward their patrons.

I got a matcha set as a shared-gift for me and Ryan's birthday (I'm August 18th, he's the 20th!) It is a seriously powerful beverage. I think I added too much powder the first time, but I'm pretty sure it is supposed to be as strong as it was. I've just gotta prepare myself a bit more for the flavor next time, haha.

Oh, and I opened my shop!!

027

2011-04-15T23:42:00.002-04:00

So I've decided that in June I will "officially" open an online shop for my jewelry. I've been collecting Victorian steel buttons, little knick-knacks, and I'm always keeping my eyes peeled for oddities in antique stores. I intend to use my tax return to fund the initial venture on splurging for unique vintage materials. French cut steel beads are expensive, but they are absolutely worth it for how they drape & sparkle as part of a necklace. Here's one of the 'prototypes' I've been making and happily wearing to gauge reactions.

That necklace in particular was inspired by dusty attics, the forest, and this song.

026

2011-04-04T15:25:00.003-04:00

It is incredibly warm outside. All the windows in the house are open, rose incense is burning, and it feels wonderful. I love winter (autumn most of all), but the first days of spring weather are just heavenly.

No one knows the trouble I go to trying to find tribal bracelets that fit me. I have incredibly tiny wrists, and finally found a gajre ball cuff that was meant for younger girls. The inner diameter is 1 7/8" and it fits my wrists perfectly. Can't wait to wear it for my next performance.

025

2011-03-22T18:14:00.004-04:00

Dropped my one painting course today. I feel like a lazy good-for-nothing person because of it. It was for the best, though. Woman at Admissions office gave me a condescending look when I turned in the forms. The school I attend treats their students like utter shit. As I filled out the forms I was told at least 3x that I wouldn't be getting money back so if I was looking for a refund I should forget about it.

I mean, come ON. I was dropping the course because I was sensitive to the solvents and couldn't carry all my supplies because they GOT RID OF ALL LOCKERS IN ART DEPARTMENT. I even wrote it on the form and she raised an eyebrow like I was lying. :( People on their high horses ... maybe they forget they're pencil pushers forevermore.

026

2011-03-15T16:45:00.002-04:00

Drinking lots of tea and making tons of jewelry.

^^^ I absolutely love the colors of this tea. The bits of bright safflower are so pretty.

025

2011-03-11T18:27:00.004-05:00

Bought a new teacup today. The woman at the counter said it was one of her favorites, and that it pained her to sell it. She also mentioned it was a collectable and offered to sell me a stand. I declined on the stand and said that I would be using the teacup and not displaying it. In hindsight, declaring it would be used after being told it was ~highly collectible~ was probably a poor decision. I love it, though. Glad to have it in my collection.

024

2011-03-02T15:57:00.002-05:00

I love the spring-like weather we've been having, but the weather says we're going to get another cold snap. Ugh! Decided to have a blooming tea today in honor of the grass being visible and birds singing outside.

I loooove this glass teapot. I always bring it out when I have company. There are some water stains I can't get off at all, though! Any recommendations?

Chai always insists upon inspecting the tea I'm brewing. Guess it makes sense, seeing as I named her after tea! She likes sniffing cinnamony rooibos most. Our Yorkshire terrier, Winston, prefers Earl Grey so much so that he'll drink from your mug if you aren't careful.

023

2011-02-11T23:49:00.004-05:00

Went to a local tea room with my boyfriend today. My favorite tea room regrettably shut down last year, but another remains in the area. They've been rather rude and off-putting in the past, but I decided to get my once-in-a-while tea sandwich fix with good company today. They were surprisingly pleasant towards me today, but I still hold something of a grudge against them for treating me as well as my grandmother poorly in previous instances.

I also broke my gluten-free diet and have been suffering the consequences since. :( I miss being able to eat pastries with no regrets. Darn you, gluten sensitivity!

Cranberry orange, raspberry scone with chocolate chunks, and a heart-shaped chocolate scone with some raspberry swirls.

022

2011-02-02T20:26:00.003-05:00

Amazing & simultaneously horrible ice storm today. It broke the birch tree by my window, and knocked out the power/internet for many people I know. I stayed inside, but when I went out to walk the dogs I wished I had a hard helmet handy -- branches & chunks of ice were falling everywhere!

My new rice cooker arrived and I decided to make a batch of rice just to see how it turned out. Plain rice is somewhat boring, so I made fried rice from memories of watching hibachi chefs at work, though the sriracha & szechuan was my own personal touch.

The end result was delicious, and I kinda love the tacky flowers on the rice cooker.

I also received new silver earrings by Tawapa!

021

2011-01-31T17:28:00.003-05:00

Went shopping for school supplies -- a long overdue task considering it is the third week into the semester. I forgot how heinously expensive some items are. I also forgot that some very expensive chemicals come in very fragile glass bottles. They're lovely to look at, but transporting them is a nightmare.

She always holds still for the camera. :')

Fantastic Goodwill find! I had misplaced it, but found it recently. It is a part of a whole silver set! Skinny & tall teapot, sugarcube dish, and tray. Desperately needs a good polishing.

020

2011-01-27T18:12:00.003-05:00

Back to school again, much to my chagrin, and I'm still belly dancing.

My art history professor seems very interesting, but I'm stuck in a classroom that is completely full with people that don't seem to appreciate class discussions or interaction. She'll ask a damn good question that would normally provoke a good debate, but she's met with resounding silence. My favorite so far was when we were going over the Maestà of Duccio and she stopped mid-lecture to ask, "Am I teaching you dogma? When I show you these paintings, and tell you of their religious origins, am I teaching you dogma?"

More silence. Oh well. It should be an interesting semester.

Here are some photos of tea I've been drinking:

019

2011-01-05T12:34:00.001-05:00

As of January 1st I started a 365 photo tumblr. You can find that blog here.

018

2009-12-09T16:07:00.006-05:00

Still happily belly dancing, and still in a photography slump. I'm having everyone over tonight for tea, roasted chestnuts, cheese, fruits, and maybe a spot of mulled wine & cider. Also, we're smoking out of my majestic hookah. I've been something of a hermit and haven't seen friends in several weeks. It happens. I'm excited to host people again. I also love getting feedback on my shisha blends. I'm thinking we'll rock coconut jasmine rose tonight.

I recently invested in Ana Paula's (Quetzalli) gorgeous handmade eyelets. She makes beautiful filigree jewelry for the modded ladies and fancy gentlemen out there. After taking a metalsmithing class, I appreciate what she does more than I would have before.

017

2009-10-14T15:19:00.003-04:00

Semester got off to a bad start. Way too much stress. The weather has gotten cold already and my stomach has been unruly for the past 2 weeks. Still belly dancing, still having way too much fun with it. I miss frequenting Little Marakesh and having Aly's amazing hookah blends. Also: her cheesecake oasis (the works: chocolate chips, chocolate syrup, crushed nuts, caramel, honey, etc). Also also: her Moroccan mint tea with orange blossom water. I want to take a mental vacation.

That is September and the beginning of October summed up.

016

2009-08-10T17:16:00.005-04:00

Today I welcomed a new friend into my home. Her previous owners called her Sarah, but I've taken to calling her Chai. She is sweet and very adventurous. She loves hiding under my bed!

015

2009-08-04T01:57:00.006-04:00

My summer has disintegrated into nothing but hookah, tribal belly dance, sewing, food, and time spent with friends. I've taken some (keyword being some) photos, but I've hardly had the creative juices going in that regard. I've been pouring it all into dance and expressing myself through earthy movements. This is the healthiest I've ever been and I am loving every minute of it. There are plans to enroll in more yoga classes, my advancement in belly dance is imminent, and classes are starting in 3 weeks. Oh, I'm working a lot too. I hardly have idle time on my hands.

Tomorrow: cliff jumping and I AM BRINGING CAMERAS. I want to take more photos.

Also: I am buying lots of ethnic jewelry. I am in love with Rajasthani, Thai Karen Hill Tribe, Kuchi, Ethiopian, Turkish, and Tibetan baubles. Tribal belly dance makes me feel enabled to spend so much money on frivolous things, but they've got backgrounds and histories and I love it.

014

2009-06-06T19:04:00.005-04:00

This fall semester I am going to be taking a jewelry-making and metalsmithing class. This is good. I already make and sell jewelry but I generally wing it and I am fairly limited by the small amount of knowledge I have. I am also probably preregistering for level 1.5 tribal belly dance as well to keep myself in shape. Also, I am taking a crapload of photography classes (duh).

This summer, once I stop working SO MUCH, I intend to get crafty and reopen my Etsy shop.

I am eating baklava and being lazy until I go back into work.

013

2009-05-29T18:25:00.003-04:00

Today I bought some cake. Delicious cake.

I brought it home and looked at the label and thought I ordered a slice of strawberry shit cake.

012

2009-04-06T21:42:00.003-04:00

Today I photographed glass in the studio. I placed the glass on black plexi and pinned a clean white piece of paper to the wall for a backdrop. I set a flash up on a floor-stand and pointed it at the white backdrop. All of these photos are backlit using the reflected light.

PHOTOGRAPHING GLASS IS INFURIATING. I constantly had Windex on hand and was wiping the glass off every other shot because dust would show up or fingerprints or SOMETHING. INFURIATING.

011

2009-03-27T12:39:00.004-04:00

Last time in Studio Lighting we messed around with color gels and whatnot. The teacher has always been hesitant to let us do what we want with them because the entire class starts OVERUSING them and it gets annoying/tacky-looking.

We used green, blue, and yellow gels. We had 3 flashes set up. 2 shoot-through umbrellas and one snoot placed on the floor aimed at Nikkita's face.

We messed around in class for a while. She split us into two teams and forbade us from using the seamless backdrop for in-class photos. Some of us worked well together ... and others really did not. It was kinda funny seeing a classmate retreat and hide in the digital lab because his group really got on his nerves. I had to leave class early because I got about 2 hours of sleep and had not eaten yet that day and around 5pm I just got dizzy and felt faint and decided to split.

ALSO: My school's cafeteria-coffee sucks. I went for hazelnut cream blend and the jug was only able to fill half of my cup. I filled the rest of my container with vanilla mocha and then I went and checked out. Let me tell you: THAT COFFEE WAS COLD, CHUNKY, AND NASTY. Even though when it came OUT of the dispenser it was steaming, by the time I got to my seat and started working it was ice-cold and disgusting. I tried for another cup [DESPERATE FOR CAFFIENE]. It was warmer but just as disgusting. I pinched my nose and chugged it since I was dead on my feet. Please, school, improve your purchasable caffeine so that your students may survive the day.

010

2009-03-11T23:08:00.008-04:00

I bought some tea about 30 minutes ago. Rooibos Rose Garden -- it is delicious and I drank all of what I had in the tea cabinet. I usually buy it and blend it with Queen of Babylon White Tea. Makes for a very good cup. I like adding a drop of rose syrup to half a spoonful of sugar for the perfect sweetener. It is fragrant and refreshing.

Also: Rose Marzipan Delight? KEEP IT AWAY FROM ME. I will go into that tea and eat all of the candied violets. Crunchy, almondy, and so good.

Also also: My bent-fork bracelet arrived and it is awesome.

Tiny wrists represent.

009.

2009-03-07T14:30:00.007-05:00

Today was a nice day. I went to a local tea house with my grandmother [they know me by name, that is how often I go there]. Today was a golden and warm day, so I chose a very light black tea and sweetened it with vanilla cane sugar. My Lubitel 166B also arrived, and I can't wait to take it out and shoot with it. YAY FOR NEW CAMERAS!!!

My light meter is powered by AWESOME LOOKING SELENIUM CELLS. Woo.

Today was a good day.

008.

2009-02-20T14:14:00.010-05:00

WELCOME TO MY LIFE, LUBITEL 166B!

Also, I managed to get my old Kodak Duaflex III to work, but it only takes 620 format film. It is pretty much identical to 120 minus the size of the reel holding the film. So I wound 120 film onto a 620 reel in pitch black darkness. Cut my finger because 620 reels are thin metal. :( I would love to shoot with this camera more often but it is a pain to fit film into it AND a single roll of 620 film is like $12. Which is why I splurged on a little Lubitel. I'd like a TLR that doesn't need film modification to work. I do believe I can also modify that to take 35mm as well. I prefer 120, though.

I'm such a sucker for TLRs. Any camera that looks like it could be in Fatal Frame sounds good to me.

007.

2009-02-14T21:15:00.007-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day! I spent some time in the studio on Friday and got a couple of hilarious photos from that. My classmates, Kensey and Jim, are awesome models and are more than willing to put on silly costumes and do whatever in front of the camera just for laughs.

Jim is Raggedy Kanye and Kensey is a UPS courier taking flight. Can you imagine having packages shipped to you by flying Asians? I'm not sure I want to.

006

2009-01-29T19:02:00.014-05:00

Studio lighting is one of the most fun and interesting photography classes I've ever taken. My classmate [oh god, I can't remember his name] is pictured above. He did many hilarious things with those creatures. This photo was taken with a softbox over the monolight head. My f-stop was off on this one, resulting in an underexposed image [I already lightened it as much as I could in PS without destroying the thing], but I like the photo because of the t-rex shoulder accessory.

005

2009-01-18T16:13:00.002-05:00

I used to be good at Scrabble! Not so much anymore. :(

ps: Classes start on Wednesday and I'm totally excited.

004

2008-12-08T18:10:00.004-05:00

THERE IS NOTHING I HATE MORE THAN GRADED SKETCHBOOKS. I truly hate them. I don't really use sketchbooks. I kinda just slap assignments together and build upon them as I go. Planning and spending time plotting things out just doesn't work with me. It is kinda like how I am with studying as well. If I spend too much time on a project/test beforehand, I screw everything up [royally so]. If I spend hardly any time planning things out I do an ace job.

I'm terrible, but whatever. It works for me.

That being said, I have about 50 required pages due TOMORROW. Between last night and today I churned out all 50 pages. I don't know how I gathered up the attention span to accomplish this feat.

I'm hurting. :(

003

2008-12-04T19:16:00.009-05:00

What an awesome turn of events! My one teacher moved final crits to next week and pretty much nixed next week's full class in favor of just ENDING it. I am SO OKAY WITH THAT. Give me my vacation early. Sure, I have a couple less days to do any make-up work, but whatever. Nothing I can't manage. I just can't stand walking into that damn classroom one more time. And yay! I get 2 wall panels for crit this year instead of just one.

I am so excited about my studio lighting class next semester with Kimberly Witham.

I am not so excited about Art History. I DO NOT WANT TO LOOK AT THE VENUS OF WILLENDORF'S EXTREME CAMEL TOE AGAIN. I DROPPED THIS CLASS YEARS AGO I DON'T WANT TO RETAKE IT GAAAAAAAH.

At least I was wise and opted for the 1.5 hour art history course 2x a week instead of 4 hours straight of slideshow hell once a week. I think that was my mistake the first time around. 4 hours of statues isn't good for anyone's sanity.

ALSO: WINTER BREAK MEANS THAT IT IS TIME FOR ME TO BREAK OUT THE NEWEST ADDITION TO MY CAMERA-FAMILY.

It has colorsplash flash so be warned, friends. I will blind you with a multitude of colors instead of just LIGHT. I'm really excited to start playing around with medium format film. I should also start working on my own darkroom. I could do a not-so-hostile takeover of the wholly unused downstairs bathroom and convert it to my own little photo-developing haven.