I know I won't get time later, so..

My Life in 2009-

January 1: I start a relationship with Jack, a close friend over the winter holiday. We keep in touch via instant message for the rest of the break. Once we get back to school, we manage to see each other very frequently, as our rooms are only a building apart in the dorms. Aside from the relationship, though, the semester starts and I meet my fellow cast members for the springtime production. I am nervous, as this is my first college play and the others all seem to worldly and experience to my eyes.

February: I participate in the sorority's rush week, but do not get accepted. Jack's and my first month "anniversary" goes by, but on February 10, Jack and I break up. I was devastated, not least because I had already bought him things for Valentine's Day. This was my first actual relationship - I do not count ones that lasted all of three days - ie Bradley, my first kiss in high school, or Jeff, my first kiss in college. In late February, I enjoy my first time on a television set, as I work as an extra on the show Numb3rs. I decide that when I can, working as an extra would be nice. (The episode you can play "Spot Samantha" in is "Animal Rites".)

From this point up until Spring break or so, I focus on my schoolwork. I am so embarassed from my experiences with Jack. I avoid him for months. My friendships aren't going as well as they could be, either. This is evidenced when my three "closest" friends all hung out together in spring break and did not invite me to anything. However, I do get closer to some of the cast of the production, which is better in the long run, I suppose. A few of us go to Disneyland during spring break, and hang out when we have to paint the set for the show.

April: My other classes fall by the wayside (not evidenced in my work, just in my attention span towards them) as the production draws closer and closer. We have tech week, and I now know my castmates quite well and am comfortable being myself around them. This is quite a feat for me. We have the production ("Once in a Lifetime") in late April, and it is amazing. There are a few flubs in the lines here and there, but we know each other well enough to work past them so the audience does not see the awkwardness of the moments. My parents come see the show, as does my uncle and four of my friends. Only two stay after the show (Nick and Ross). Jess and Liz go and do laundry before they see me after the show.

May: Aside from the end of the spring semester, nothing really remarkable happens here. I get to go home for the summer, and not see my castmates until fall. Fortunately, my nerd friends are online all the time, so I can talk to them. May is a time of relaxation, as my summer school classes won't begin until late June. Ahh, this is the life. ;) One major thing that happened in May is that I get my closure from Jack. It is the first time since we broke up that I am able to look him in the face and talk to him.

June: I go to Disneyland a LOT in this month. I get my Annual Pass in the first week of the month, and go quite a bit before my pass becomes blacked out in July and half of August. In one week, I go on a Tuesday with one bunch of friends, a Thursday/Friday grad nite trip with another friend, and that following Monday with one of my friends from the Tuesday trip, and some of her other friends. Summer school starts. I decide to drop one of my classes, so I won't be there from 10 am to 10 pm. Instead, I'm only there from 10 am to 5 or 6 pm. Makes all the difference, doesn't it? I take Cultural Anthropology, Sociology 1, and Developmental Psychology. The first class is all right (except the video we watch when a giraffe is brutally murdered.. gag!), but I LOVE the last two classes.

July: My family from Arizona decides to pay us a visit. I am partway through classes at this point, but decide to drop Anthro when it starts kicking my butt big time. And I mean, when I get cranky and start hyperventilating the night before a test, since we have gone over NONE of the things involved. I also set up an appointment with Brigitte, a family friend who owns a voice acting studio. I am nervous as heck, but manage to go in and quirk my voice enough to pay my respects to various video game stereotypes. Fourth of July rolls around, and Mom and I take Gary to see our fireworks show at the CBS studios. My classes end for the summer, as session two ends while I'm in college. I also get my wisdom teeth taken out - ouch!! Somewhere in here, I manage to make a few visits to my friend Nick, who is working at the school for the summer.

August: I am knitting quite a bit. I finish my first real bag - it is wool, and I felt it because it is far too large. It is pink and black and one of my proudest knitting achievements. I manage to figure out a faster way to purl faster when I start a beautifully long afghan. I manage to finish most of the afghan within a few weeks, but run out of yarn near the end so it is put on indefinite hold. In the week before school, I take a vacation to San Diego and Las Vegas. I enjoy the sun in San Diego with such activities as sea-dooing and kayaking, and enjoy the nightlife in Vegas as much as I can, as I am still only eighteen and cannot legally do most of the fun stuff in the city. However, I do see a nice performance of Phantom. The next night, however, I get sick for most of the night, the car ride home that day, and a few days afterward. I do not even pack my own things to go back to school - I am feeling so ill, my mother does it for me. I do feel better once the first week of school starts - coincidentally, also two days before my birthday.

On August 26, I throw a small party on my 19th birthday - my dad and uncle show up, as do my friends Caitlin, Nick, Jess, Liz, and Ernest. Liz invites her roommate Zoe without telling me, but there is more than enough pizza to go around. I end up eating it for about a week and a half straight, and still throwing away about half a pizza. At the party, we sat around and talked for quite a while, then decided that playing some games would be fun. We head over to the library (after a false start) and lose Liz and Zoe, but the rest of us play the Game of Life for about an hour or so. It is very fun.

September: This is a month of social drama. I hang out with Liz, Jess, and Nick almost constantly, and almost always feel awkward. We had almost none of the same interests - they play video games, I read. They watch anime, I watch chick flicks. Their nerd interest is computers and electronics, mine is drama and books. I am really close to Nick, though, and get closer to Jess as time goes on, so do not much mind Liz's company - even when she seems to mind mine. It seems to me that tension spirals higher and higher before one day, I am cast out of the room like an unruly child. It is here that I snap, and decide to cut my involvement with this group. I decide that I need a group of friends that I have common interests with, and that will respect me as I am and not put me down for trying to be me. This is how I viewed the other group. Whether or not they were actually like this is anyone's guess. It is also in September that Nick and Jess start to go out. In this month, I went to the D23 Expo in Anaheim, as I am a huge Disney nut. This is definitely one of the highlights of 2009.

October: With my goal of good friends in mind, I invite a bunch of high school and production people to go to Disneyland with me the first weekend of October. Two are available and get back to me: my friend Lauren, who I have gone to Disneyland with previously - she was the grad nite friend, and my friend Ernest, who I was in the production with, and spoke to on Facebook over the summer quite a bit. We go, and have a blast. The next day, Lauren is picked up by her mother, but as I am the ride back up to school, Ernest is dragged to the Long Beach Aquarium with me and my parents. Many pictures are taken, and an injury is had to his hand. In place of ice, two cold cans of soda are placed on his injury. The next week, he holds my hand on the way from our mutual class to my class immediately following. On October 18, we start a relationship. For Lauren's birthday and for Halloween plans, the three of us go back to Disneyland on the 30th. It's not too crowded, and we do things that we didn't do on the previous trip. Lauren and I go on the Halloween-ized version of Space Mountain. I do not like this at all - bloody skeleton corpses coming at me? Not my deal. We go on the "Nightmare Before Christmas" Haunted Mansion ride. I still prefer the original, but scream anyway when prompted in the Elevator Room. We watch the Halloween fireworks in front of the castle and pray that the CD comes out soon. For Halloween, I doll myself up (haha) as Dolly Parton - fake breasts and everything. Ernest doesn't have a costume, so improvises with his towel. He says he's a hitch hiker. Lauren dresses as a flapper. We make quite a sight - first going through my neighborhood for candy, then through Lauren's grandmother's neighborhood (where we get much more candy), then finally to visit my uncles before heading home. Lauren is picked up and Ernest and I proceed to play my old video games for a few hours.

November: A lot of furlough days happened here, so it feels like not a lot happened. I had essentially two weeks off classes - one because of furloughs, the other because of taking of the whole of the Thanksgiving week. I spent some of this time catching up with friends that I hadn't seen in quite some time - Chase, a friend from my last high school, Ra'idah, my bff from middle school, and Bryan, my bff from my first elementary school. In my spare time and during the break, I work on papers due for the end of the semester. In the rest of the time, I see Ernest around campus. Our month "anniversary" rolls around. :) I also pick my groups for performing in my musical theater and world drama and theatre. I know at least one person in all three groups - Albert is in my multicultural lit and creative writing classes as well as world drama, and I chose two groups for the other class because I knew the majority of the class from the production and my friends needed another person. I participate in Black Friday this year, and do NOT regret it.

December: I bring Ernest to explore Hollywood for a day, and to see a play. We have rehearsals and such for finishing up the semester - I get to watch a good friend (who played my love interest in the play) strangle my boyfriend. I always make sure to give Ernest a hug after he was "killed" for his scene. On the tenth, I'm done with classes and pack up to come home until the 16th of January. During winter break, Ernest and I text a lot, which is nice, but not as nice as seeing one another in person. Our two month "anniversary" goes by. I also sign with Booked Talent, an extras agency. I hope to get some jobs before going back to school. I finish up my Christmas shopping, and enjoy knowing that my chosen people will LOVE their presents - I got Mom a Julia Child cookbook, a mug from the Disney Store, a meditation day-by-day calendar, a small book with jokes by George Carlin, and several magazines for crocheters. I got Aunt Kathy the same Julia Child cookbook, a purse, the DVD of "Julie and Julia", and Mom included some of her crocheted scarves.

Now, it is almost the end of 2009 - only 23 more hours left, now that I'm almost done with this blog entry. This afternoon, we will be heading upstate so I can bring in the New Year with Ernest and spend some time away from Los Angeles, as we would not bring it in very spectacularily down here. The next I talk to you blog people, we'll be in 2010.

I can't wait.

Happy New Year!!

Twas the week of Christmas...

And I couldn't be more excited! I love Christmas- all the hustle and bustle to get the holiday right, the mini-and-silent competition among my relatives to see who gets who the best gift.. The lights and decorations and music always put me in a good mood.

Once I'm in this holiday good mood, it's very hard to get me out of it. For instance, right now I'm sitting at a Starbucks, getting some caffeine in before I go home and wrap presents to go to Arizona tomorrow. And make fudge. But anyway, I just waited at least seven minutes (according to my iPod) for a parking spot. There was a lot going on in the aisle I was in. But in normal times, I would probably get a little mad at the dumbasses impatiently honking behind me, or the people taking forever to get out of the spot. Not today! :)

By the way- Friday was two months. :)

The sock heel I turned last post was that of a Christmas stocking. I was as thrilled as anything that it actually worked like the book said it would. And yes, I did finish the SOB that night. Lol!!

Okay, well, I'm gonna go inside the Barnes and Noble now and finish up some Christmas shopping.

If I remember later, I'll give my review of Mary Poppins the Musical. <3

We interrupt your blog reading with this news bulletin.

HOLY SHIT I JUST TURNED MY FIRST HEEL ON A SOCK!

HOLY SHIT!!!!

OK BYE GONNA FINISH THIS SOB!

XOXO

Hey all!

I'm home for the holidays.


^^^ you have no idea how long I've been waiting to spontaneously say that.

Anywho, I'm at home. I miss my friends at school, but I enjoy not having any homework. I do miss my boyfriend, of course. I wish he didn't live like three hours away from here.

I'm also the only healthy person in the house. Hence why I'm blogging now instead of watching TV or something with my parents. I'd like to keep my health, thank-you-very-much! Especially with Christmas next week!

Speaking of Christmas.. all my shopping's done! Hooray! Then again, I didn't have to buy for very many people. A friend of mine got the spare ticket to a play we saw last Saturday (Extinction, starring James Roday [from "Psych"] and Michael Weston... OMG sooo amazing! The whole Psych crew was there! Well, except the Chief and Lassie, but otherwise....), my boyfriend got various knick knacks I found that I thought he'd like, along with a scarf I knitted for him (the yarn was 80% baby alpaca and 20% silk... *dies*). Most of my family will get the various knitted things I've made over the past year. My family (on two sides.. I don't know about the third) has come up with a tradition that we pull names from a hat, and we only get that person a gift. It really helps, especially because you don't have to think about everyone, just the little kids and whoever you got. This year, I have my aunt Kathy and my mom. (Kathy is on one side of the family, my mom is from the other drawing). I shan't be posting what I got them here just yet, just in case, but I am jealous of them. They're going to LOVE their gifts. :)

I can't believe it's been a year since I started knitting. It has really calmed me down, and although it can get pricy to buy the top-notch yarn that I like, it is sooo worth it. Not to mention, for birthdays and such, presents are a snap!

So. My plans for the holidays. Well, I hope to do a trip maybe up the coast for fun, later on. My main goal is getting more background acting work, because that was a lot of fun when I did it last February. (Yeah, I did a two-day stint on Numb3rs. I was an FBI agent, a student, and a flash mob member. See if you can spot me in the episode of Season 5, "Animal Rites". I'm there. You'll see. XD ) Not to mention I thought it paid well for not that much work. The only thing is, it's very hard to get work independently - and by that, I mean if you're signed with Central Casting, and you only call their hotline like fifteen times a day. You need help. I was fully planning on signing with an extras agency this week, but woke up too late on all three days of registration. So that's put of until next week, unfortunately.

Facebook has changed its format YET AGAIN. *sigh* I don't really mind so much when I get used to it, but it's pretty disconcerting when you don't know where things are, all of a sudden.

Tomorrow is going to be fun, despite the chores my parents have set up for me. I plan on getting up earlier than I have been and racing through those, so I can go up to Valencia to pick up my aunt. Before that, however, I am fully planning on going to one of those pottery painting places, because I have a gift card there that's been burning a hole in my wallet! I really want to go! So after that, I'll pick up Aunt Janey and we'll come down to my area.. and we'll go and see Mary Poppins, the Musical in downtown. I'M SO EXCITED! We seem to have really good seats, and I want to see if it's as good as everyone says it is. <3

I suppose that's it for the time being. Please ignore the last post.. Or, actually, don't. Just accept it as a fragmented thought, as I was extremely multi-tasking at the time. ;)

By the way - is anyone actually out there? Or am I talking to myself still....? Let me know, random blog-people. :)

xoxo-

Just a disclaimer-

I'm not going to make much sense this post. It probably won't be helped because i'm rehearsing with my My Fair Lady group for my musical theatre final as I type.

I know that I made the conscious decision to stop my association with my friends. I knew I would be lonely. I did not think it would be so hard to see them again.

Let me clarify. I miss them. I do not miss the drama associated with them, or those who did not like me. But... I was really close with one or two of the group. And I do miss our conversations and such. I saw the ones I was close with today and I didn't anticipate the sudden heartache and nostalgia.

Don't get me wrong. I probably wouldn't change my decision from two months ago, because I don't know if Ernest and I would be together if that hadn't happened.

I honestly have no clue where I'm going with this. Until I do, I'll end it here.

I'm not sure..

if I like this whole Thanksgiving-week-off deal. Sure, it sounds good in theory. A whole week off?! Gee, thanks Mister! But going from a week of constant schoolwork (I'd like to meet one of my classmates who has not spent this week working on papers and projects!) to a national holiday to a few more days of relaxation and work back to the grind and back to finals, of all things.

Not to mention, I've been so busy, I've barely seen anyone besides my parents. I love em dearly, but I do miss seeing my peers on a regular basis. (No, Juliet, I didn't forget about you.. just saw you today. The first non-family person this week!) Hopefully the 5 week long winter break will be better. I won't be doing papers, and I won't worry about deadlines, and I'll be able to work how I wish (extras time!) or I could go to Disneyland! It's all wide open!

So I think yeah, winter break's gonna be better than this. I am not looking forward to Sunday night and Monday night. Getting everything done in time is gonna be hell.

I'd better look forward toward tomorrow, then! I get to go see Spring Awakening, at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. The next few weekends are jam-packed full of shows! I think the weekend after this is Grinch, then a play with James Roday of Psych, then Mary Poppins. I think. That sounds about right.

Okie doke, knitted stuff.
-made a pair of fingerless gloves out of Noro's Cash Island. It's a great yarn, but thinner than I anticipated. If I make another pair with it, I'll have to pair it with a solid yarn...
-have most of the sweater done! One full side is complete, but I don't think I have enough yarn for the second, so I kind of have it still on needles in the first stage - but mostly complete in that stage. I go back to school (and the Michael's by it) on Sunday, so I may pick it up then. I checked my local one and they don't stock it. They barely had one ball of the brand at all. It was kind of pathetic.

I went to THREE Thanksgiving dinners this week. The first one was when I was going out to Arizona again and saw the whole clan. The second was our traditional one - heading over to my aunt's - my mom's sister - and having Thanksgiving lunch. The third was heading from my aunt's to my uncles - Gary's brother - and having dessert. That's where I beat my kid cousins at pool. They were astonished that I kept winning. Well, yeah, I have 10 years of experience over you!

Anywho, I'm tired from doing Black Friday today (soooo worth it....) so I'm off to bed.

Night!

research

I'm in my local library (cuz I can't focus at home) and skimming through my well-worn script of La Cage aux Folles, just in case I missed anything in my paper about Jerry Herman, the composer and lyricist of said show. One section just made me laugh so unexpectedly, some heads around me turned.

The situation is that Jean-Michel, the son of Albin (the drag performer) and Georges (the owner of the drag club) has just announced that he is to be married to the daughter of really really conservative people. Georges was in the room, and Jacob the butler (though he prefers "maid") ran down to tell Albin the news. So, without further ado:

(The U.S.L. club door flies open and in a rage, puffed to twice his size, ALBIN enters and crosses D.S.L.)

ALBIN: Wedding bells? Do I hear wedding bells?!?!?!?!?

GEORGES: Jacob strikes again.

ALBIN: (circling the stage) What have we raised, Georges? An ani-mal? Snakes live male and female together. Cats live male and female together. We are human beings. We know better!

-

Ah, I love Harvey Fierstein. (He wrote the libretto). Thank you for giving my research a bit of a kick. :)

-

ADDITION:

Okay, I came across another instance that has me in stitches. The little girl being read to at the next table is giving me very odd looks.

The situation: Jean-Michel has requested that Albin be sent away for the night, so that George and his biological mother, Sybil, can meet the conservative family with no repercussions. Albin is heartbroken and performs the super powerful "I Am What I Am" (please look it up on iTunes, if you haven't heard it. The one by George Hearn, if you please.) then storms off stage and disappears for the night. The next morning, Georges finds Albin and says that he can come to the dinner that night, but only as Jean-Michel's "Uncle Al". His straight Uncle Al, no less. This is quite a feat to be performed. Here is Georges trying to tell Albin how to act heterosexual:

GEORGES: Thank you, my love. (Crossing C.) Now to prepare. (He pauses to think how to go about this. Looking at ALBIN:)

ALBIN: Slouch?

GEORGES: Go ahead. Slouch! (ALBIN tries to slouch) Not like that.
(MME. RENAUD appears from the cafe with breakfast tray, and puts it on the cafe table. GEORGES takes ALBIN R. to the S.L. cafe chair.)
You better slouch in that chair. (to MME. RENAUD:)
He's going to be a heterosexual man tonight. He'd better behave like one. Slouch! (ALBIN screams.)
What's the matter?

ALBIN: You yelled at me. (M. RENAUD appears.) Sorry, he yelled at me.

GEORGES: (Crossing D.S.C.) Yes, I yelled at you. But you're a man. You must face up to your destiny. Even if that means getting yelled at. You must say to yourself, "Something terrible has happened to me. I have been yelled upon. But I am a man! I am strong! I will climb back up that mountain!"

ALBIN: (applauding) Bravo!

GEORGES: (crossing to ALBIN) Now, drop your shoulders, and let them go round and beaten. Stop holding in your stomach. (ALBIN tries to cover up his stomach with his scarf.) Let it pour over your lap, a testimonial to the nights spent drinking with the boys. (GEORGES pulls away the scarf.) Let it pour over your lap. Now... spread your legs!

ALBIN: Excusez-moi?!

GEORGES: You're wearing pants not a skirt. Spread them! ... (ALBIN spreads his feet, keeping his knees together.) ... You can do better than that. Spread them! ... (ALBIN pries his knees open, and daintily covers his crotch with his hand.) Now pick up that croissant. (ALBIN picks up a croissant delicately. The way he holds it, it looks as though he is holding a penis.) .... Better try the toast. (ALBIN picks up a piece of toast with equal delicacy.) No, not like that. Think of a man. Think of...

RENAUD: John Wayne!

GEORGES: Exactly; John Wayne. I want you to pick up that piece of toast like John Wayne.

(ALBIN stands, takes off his hat and hand it to MME. RENAUD. He pretends to take a gun out of a holster, shoots GEORGES and then M. RENAUD. He then sits legs together and picks up the toast as he had before.)

GEORGES: And what was is that supposed to be? I thought I said John Wayne.

ALBIN: It is John Wayne. As a little girl.


xoxoxo so much George Hearn (in La Cage) and Nathan Lane (in Birdcage) love in this scene. I can't wait for La Cage to get back to Broadway, so it can tour! :)

NOTE: None of the text cited belongs to me. It was written by the amazing Harvey Fierstein, and copyrighted 1984 and 1987.

Driving back

We're on the way back from Arizona right now. All I can say is, thank God for this iPhone app. A good third of my posts have been from here.

But anyway.

California is stupid and we had to change our clocks back one hour, last month. So I've gotten used to that time. Well, Arizona isn't on that schedule. They kept our old time, so everything went forward an hour while our bodies were still with California time.

Insert groan here.

Yeah, that wasn't the most fun. But it was fun, seeing all my relatives. I don't see them nearly enough. My baby cousin ("Liam") is getting so big! We had an awesome time this morning watching The Incredibles! Every time he would request that I turn it off, I'd ignore it (I blame my behavior on the fact that I was woken up at 7 am according to my internal clock) and he'd go outside and visit with his mom then come inside and become fascinated again. I love his attention span! Three year olds are awesome.

So anywho, we got back on the road at 10 or so and drove about two hours before stopping in Quartzsite, Arizona. Quartzsite is this itty bitty town that plays host to a gem show/flea market from late November to late February. It sounds pretty epic. But it wasn't going on just now. But the reason we stopped is because of the naked bookseller. Yes, you read that right. Well, he's technically not NAKED. He does have a crocheted thong pouch thing to hold his.....thing. His store is pretty awesome. He has books from all eras, so you're pretty much guaranteed to find something. Both times I've been there, I've had a specific book in mind. Last time I didn't happen to find it. Today I found it purely by happenstance. My dad had already paid for our books and was talking to the guy, and mom and I were still in the store. On a lark we decided to look for Julia Child's 'Mastering the Art of French Cooking'. It wasn't there, but my book was plainly there in the next section over, staring right at me. :)

After that, we walked around the town some more. I got a turquoise ring and an opal charm for my necklace for $20.

Good trip.

Oh! That's right! I forgot to mention that my grandparents are letting me borrow four Al Jolson movies- including the first "talkie" ever: The Jazz Singer. I got so excited...

Okay, NOW knitting update:
- I finished a scarf for my friend for Christmas.
- Started a 1x1 rib cotton scarf cuz my hands were getting tired of the wool I was working with.
- Just about at the point to turn the heel for my Christmas stocking.
- Forgot my sweater directions at home, so beyond "knit 7 inches garter stitch before decreases", it's all a mystery.
- Started another Christmas scarf for another friend. On size 15 needles with one of my favorite ever yarns.
- Debating what stitch to do on an important project.

And that's it for now. Are we there yet, are we there yet?

Xoxo-

Well, now-

This was a nice surprise. I check Facebook and saw I had an invitation - a call to post creative writing pieces to the school newspaper, which I've been a part of since last year. I accept the invitation, go to the page, and see a friend's poem, which looks interesting. I click the link to go to the site, not thinking anything of it.

Until I see under the "Recently Commented" links: 'Opinion: RENT'.

Wow, I thought. Did someone else write a RENT article? And proceed to click on THAT link. Which deposits me at my article. Posted ten days ago. That I had no clue about.

HOLY CRAP!

I am still soooo excited! I don't care that I wasn't told - I have the site bookmarked, and yet I didn't notice my own article? Come on... - but that I'm a published writer again?

Oh, sooo good.

In other news: I had my audition for the spring Production last night. Kinda (really) screwed up my monologue, but had clear sailing once I was able to hold my notecards - I think just having the option of having them made me more confident in my ability to perform it. Other than that, I feel I did well.

Oh, yeah. Yesterday was a month. :)

I'm at home now, getting ready for Thanksgiving break. Tomorrow we head out to Arizona to make Thanksgiving dinner for my grandparents. The car ride out there should be really fun. I've my knitting (and LOTS of it, so if I get bored with one project I can just pull out another) and a few books and my homework sitting on the floor next to me. THAT shan't be joining us.

Ahhh... let's see here. Knitting update: I've started a Christmas stocking. It's moving along fairly quickly, which is a pleasant surprise. Of course, it helps that I'm using needles larger than toothpicks or skewers, and really bulky yarn. Instead of the aforementioned toothpicks and spiderweb-thin yarn. Yup. Um.. on my lap is my newest project: a sweater. It's on absolutely HUGE needles and REALLY thick yarn. If I have enough, I want to be finished by the time we get back from Arizona. I think that the time in the car may be enough time. I hope so, in any case. I started it an hour ago and have about three inches of the top already done. And it only has to be twenty on one side.. always nice.

I think I'll leave it there.

xoxo-

My hair...

Has calmed down. Thank god. I've been getting compliments on it left right and center today. :)

Okay. I had too many thoughts in my head at dinner so wrote them down in no particular order. So please excuse the randomness and order of the below topics.

The Odyssey (where we were at) is very very yummy. Also very "antique chic". It has the best view of the Valley of anywhere I can imagine except when crossing the Sepulveda Pass in driving. It's so pretty, especially at night. The whole Valley just lights up.. Love it!

I admire anyone who works in food service. There must be so many people that come through your section, and all of them expect so much of you. Of course, in this town, it's all about substitutions and what's health-conscious and stuff. They deserve more than what they get, dealing with brats like us.

Okay, so I've come to the conclusion that Friends had the right idea. Chatting in a coffeehouse with friends has taken up two days of this weekend already and I've had so much fun.

The caffeine doesn't hurt matters, either. :)

So my new idea is to find an independent coffeehouse in both towns - at home and at school. Screw Starbucks. They have enough customers. It's the little companies that need the support.

Barnes and Noble almost ripped me off today. I was looking at a CD, and it was $18. As I'm standing at the listening station, I get the brilliant idea to check on my phone on iTunes. Where the same CD was only $9. Um, I'm all for supporting the music industry, but I'm still going to get the cheaper one. At least I'll buy it, you know? I know people that could get it for free for me. Illegally, but still. I buy. I'm legal. :)

Okay. That's all the backside of my script has to offer. If anything else comes up, you'll be the first to know.

Xoxo!

My hair...

looks a little like a wig right about now. I spent FOREVER getting used to my new hot rollers, but the end result is a bit fantastic, if a bit poofy and crunchy cuz I hairsprayed it upside down to slow the straightening process. Also, I have on my scarlet red lipstick - the one that gets used for special occasions so still feels brand new and I curled my lashes and put on lip liner and blush and a whole bunch of stuff that normally doesn't happen.

I feel like I look good right about now. I love this feeling! It ususally comes in this huge dose when I've spent hours dolling myself up, but in the end it's always worth it. I don't ususally spend that much time on myself, makeup and hair - wise, but the knowledge is there. I just don't have the time (or patience, everyday) to get like this. Oh goodness no.

So today I went on a mini shopping spree through Target and Ross. I'd forgotten all about Ross, except for the irritating commercials that have popped up recently. So I got a shirt for tonight (I cut off the collar and made it 80s style) and these AMAZING argyle style tights. They give the impression that my leg is being wrapped in 1/2" wide straps, but then there's these purple squares that appear in the diamond between the straps. SO cool.

Plus I'm wearing a skirt tonight, so I'm gonna want to have some insulation between myself and the cold (?) air.

I also attempted to complete my "business" look, so I can sign with an extras agency soon, but I don't know if the pants I got are going to work. I'll bring them home this weekend and check with the whole outfit.

Oh, good, my nails are finally dry.

This weekend should be fun. Tomorrow I'm planning on having lunch with my best friend from middle school. Then, (again), Sunday I'm having brunch with one of my best friends from elementary school! (Yesterday, I caught up with a friend from high school. This has been/ is going to be a week of reunions!)

So these few free days off have been very good to me, knit-wise. I did not get as far ahead in my school work as I would have liked, but that's all right. HOWEVER! I did finish the blanket. This is still a huge deal for me! It was there to comfort me after I had my wisdom teeth taken out, when I went on road trips and went through friends.

This weekend I'm also going to be focusing on memorizing my monologue to audition for next semester's production. I've chosen one from Oleanna, and I think it's pretty good, especially with the material of the show in mind. I've also got to work on my three other scenes - one from Cinderella, one from My Fair Lady, and one from an Argentinian play called Information for Foreigners. The latter needs to get memorized more quickly than the others do - the performance date is two days earlier.

Okay, well, I'm feeling the bass line through my walls and hearing the beat of the music of the block party not quite outside my window. Should be fun!

TTFN-

Ow.

I just ran into a door. Well, it kind of bitch-slapped me, but since it's an inanimate object, I'll just say that I ran into it. But I digress.

Has it really only been a few days since I last updated? It feels like a lot's gone down since then..

Well, I've had a long weekend so far. It's Thursday evening, and I'm technically on Night Two of This Weekend. It's not been as productive as I'd like, but I blame only myself because I never COULD work in my room properly. But I'm working now, so that's okay.

Ah, er, um... knitting news!

I finished my blanket. THANK GOODNESS! About time, right? Well, apparently the numbing solution for ripping back four rows is watching various episodes of Sex and the City. Problem solved, all bound off, and I have a nice lovely LONG afghan at the foot of my bed.

Also: I started (and finished) a neck-warmer last night. It was this really cool pattern, and I had a button and some spare yarn and the right needles.. it just all cried out to be made RIGHT NOW. And I did. And it's pretty and warm and not really itchy, which is good.

Um, um... I've almost finished up the ball of the Neopolitan Cowl yarn. Fortunately, apparently my local Michael's carries it, so when I run errands tomorrow I'll just get another. :)

Another small project I've been working on is this pillow. It's a star, and the various pieces are really easy to work on... I've been doing one a night before I get to bed. Again, Michael's may come in handy - I don't know how much stuffing I'll need for it when push comes to shove.

This weekend's going to be fun. Tomorrow is the circus themed block party, which is always exciting. I'm fully planning on dressing somewhat crazy, by the way. Be warned. ;)
Um.. then Saturday my mom's friend is hosting a baptism.. And Sunday I get to have brunch with one of my closest friends from when I was younger.. and I'm really really excited for that! It's been a while since we've properly caught up, so it'll be fun.

I think that's it for the time being. Gotta go, my contacts are driving me NUTS!

xoxo-

I have a confession to make.

I am a procrastionator.

There! I said it! Are you happy now?

So midterms have come and gone, and final exams and papers are upon us here. Isn't it lovely? So tomorrow, with my lovely, LOVELY (please note sarcasm for this) three-class day, I have so much work due, it's crazy.
For musical theatre: bring comfy shoes for dance, find script for My Fair Lady and Cinderella, and watch the insanely long DVD of West Side Story.
For multicultural lit: write a freakin' 5-7 page paper. Sure, it's the rough draft and double-spaced, but I still have no clue how to write this paper at all. I have a feeling mine's going to be closer to four pages.
For world drama and theatre: read the plays online so I can decide which I want to read my research paper on, so I can do and turn in the abstract tomorrow.

Fun stuff, fun stuff.

Today I had to show off my drawn and painted figures for Cloud 9 for costume design. If you haven't read this play, please do. It's so amazingly trippy and just insane all over. I really enjoyed it. Not to mention I think that it was my best work of the semester.

I am not an artist.

So I got back to my room and was going to start immediately on the huge load of stuff.. then noticed that on my autumn Jasper scarf, there was only a few more yards left. Okay, so I'll just finish that, then get started. Yeah, right.

So I finished the scarf - love love LOVE it, btw - and right after whipped out another set of needles, a pattern for a cowl, and the yarn I got for it yesterday at Velona's Needlework in Anaheim. Then proceeded to keep checking facebook and email alternatively while I did the first four rounds of 1x1 rib and first round of knit.

I'm going to call it my Neopolitan Cowl. It's made with white, brown, and pink self-striping yarn (Patons' Shetland Chunky, "Ashes of Roses") and looks like a bowl of neopolitan ice cream decided to become a cowl in Fair Isle pattern. It is quite lovely, and moving along quickly.

Okay... The blanket. Still not done. I told you before, I HATE ripping back! Only thing is: It's getting colder, and the blanket's cozy and warm, so I will force myself to finish it in short order, if only because I want to be warm and have the needles free again.

My outlook on life shall be stated Musical Theatre style, because that's just how my mindset is this semester - Everything's coming up roses! Loving school (for the most part), loving my peeps (you know who you are!), loving my hobby (especially finishing projects!), and loving life! <3

I bid you adieu, so I can go read some plays for world drama.

xoxo!

I'm sure...

Everyone out there will be happy to know that the "damn yarn" from last post did behave.. almost immediately after I posted, as a matter of fact. I think it just wanted into the blog. Silly yarn. I don't blame it - it was wonderful. A mix of wool and silk. *happy sigh* It worked on size 10 needles, with 2x2 ribbing. It worked out well, as the friend I gave it to appreciated the more sensible stitch.

Ah, let's see, what's going on in my world? Me and Ernest are still going, and I still couldn't be happier. I still know it's been too short to really make an opinion (or so I hear) but I don't care, I'm happy.

Aside from that, life has basically been school. Still. And of course three of my classes have papers due on the same day. FML. But not really, cuz I love my life.

Halloween weekend was fun. Friday, Ernest, Lauren and I headed to Disneyland again.. we didn't really do much, but what we did was a blast, in my opinion. Only thing that could have gone better was that the Halloween Space Mountain scared the crap out of me! I am not a horror flick loving chick, and honestly didn't expect Disney to make it so... so... words escape the fright that came from that ride. Ah.. Actual Halloween was pretty fun. Ernest and I watched The Matrix (cuz I hadn't properly seen it, before), then Lauren and I carved pumpkins as I was partially dressed up for Halloween.

I don't know if it was shared, but here it is: I was going as Dolly Parton.

Feel free to laugh.

All I can say is: I managed to put on false lashes for the first time in my life, and couldn't be prouder. The false nails fell like flies - they were all gone once two hours was up. The wig was hysterical. The fake boobs were so embarassing to shop for, but so fun to walk around in. My balance was totally weird due to them.

We stopped several different places: my neighborhood, Lauren's grandma's neighborhood, then my uncles' neighborhood. Mine was a let-down (my house is the one that celebrates the most. It's great, but not fun when walking around looking for other holiday-y people). Lauren's grandma's was a goldmine! Not only did we get a load of candy, but my costume got recognized (!!!) and we stumbled across a gang of pre-teen boys running around in drag. They cat-called me and Lauren, saying stuff like, "You think YOU'RE a woman? Pfft!" and "Please don't judge me..." XD They had some guts, I must say.

So let's see here. I am (still, continuously) surrounded by yarn and needles of various sizes and textures. One is a lovely lovely cotton scarf (for a Christmas gift!) that may almost be completed; I've not quite yet decided yet. One day I'll say Yes it is, time to cast off, then the next day I'll say No way in Hell, this needs to be longer! My mind will be made up by Christmas, I swear. Another project is a wool autumn scarf (I know, I'm a bit late) also in 2x2 rib - it's my favorite, lately - that I know I'll need more of when I go home, as the scarf is fairly wide and the skein only consisted of 98 yards and I can see this needed 300, easily. Number three is an acrylic yarn that's sort of soft (but will be really warm!) in a really different kind of pattern, for my friend going to Iraq. And number four is nylon and acrylic, denim blue, and so warm and soft I almost don't want to let it go. It's also in 2x2 ribbing, and almost as tall as I am. I'd almost forgotten how to make a scarf longer than 45 inches - this is probably 61 1/2, if my eyeballing is correct. I need to make this long - it's a guy's scarf, also for my friend going to Iraq. I've been on auto-pilot for the past few hours, surfing the web, reading friends' blogs, facebooking.. and it just grew and grew (yep, that 2x2 rib is very repetitive). Oh so soft.. I only hope he likes it.

That seems to be it for now.

H&K's!

:)

Well, aside from this damn yarn becoming way too stubborn for its own good, I have been excellent this week.

It started really well- a guy who I've really liked for a while now and had a good flirtation with asked me out on Sunday evening. The week can't go badly from there, can it? :)

I think it's going really well. Obviously, it's only been a few days but I'm really really happy.

In other news, my friends and I haven't spoken in about a month now. I still love them dearly and treasure the good times we had, but I am happy not to be going through the drama still.

This upcoming weekend and resulting week and even that following weekend should be loads of fun! Let's see.. Tomorrow will be going to goodwill and getting copies of classic Disney films on VHS for my room, then the Housing Hoedown, complete with mechanical bull! Saturday is going to TO to go to a book signing then heading home. Sunday is going to RENT! I've seen it a few times already, but I still love it! Not to mention it has Anthony Rapp and Adam Pascal in the cast.. *happy sigh* Also, Lauren's U2 concert is going to be streaming live on YouTube, so I may try and get back to school in time to download it for her.

Now if only this beautiful silk/wool yarn will cooperate with me, I will be complete.

At least for tonight. ;)

My day.

Today was a good day.

I had my typical exhausting 10:30-3 class schedule. I swear it wouldn't be so bad if I had a slightly longer break SOMEWHERE in there. But these classes are really fun, so I don't mind too much. Usually.

So I had a bit of an adventure on the way home. There was supposedly a fifty-minute drive only ten or fifteen miles away from my house, which was utterly ridiculous. So I looked on my GPS for the nearest yarn store.

Yeah, I know, I know. I have plenty of yarn as it is. But this was a new place, and I was only gonna look around, I swear!

So I'm driving around a part of town that I'm not all that familiar with anyhow. It's not dangerous, so I'm not feeling any of that paranoia. It's just when my GPS says I've passed the location over and over again (as I keep doing U-Turns, you know) that I get frustrated and finally figure out where the actual address is. It's in a residential neighborhood. I finally call them. And no, there is NOT a new yarn store. It's a commercial knitting place that only makes gloves. So I got lost for nothing.

Anywho, I made my way back to places I knew and saw that the freeway was still a nightmare, so took Ventura Blvd. Then that got kind of clogged, so I stopped off at my friend's dojo to say hi. It'd been a while, so it killed two birds with one stone. I'd chat for a while and wait out for the traffic to be gone.

Also while there I grabbed myself a schedule, so I'll probably stop by soon so I can get back up to date on my kata. I was trying to fall asleep earlier this week and one of my fail proof plans is that I go through my katas in my head, and the repetition puts me straight to sleep. Well. It appears that my fail proof plan can fail. It would certainly help if I actually remembered my kata. It's been a few years...

So. Yes. It has been a pretty epic day. :)

xoxo-

Pretty random, but...

I'm trying to become more feminine.

Growing out my hair.
Going from "Sam" back to "Samantha".
Getting high heels.

Why?

Cuz it's hard to be seen as female when my hair is spiked and I'm called Sam, wearing tennis shoes. If any one of these was different (probably name and/or hair), I probably wouldn't care.

As it is, though, it's hard to change.

You see, all my teachers and friends know me as "Sam". My hair is at an awkward length. I'm self-conscious at the click-clack of my heels.

I know I'm conforming to traditional gender roles and expectations. But I don't know what else to do.

Maybe I'm taking the easy way out. (Though try telling my poor feet that!) It would be one thing if I truly considered myself this girly-girl. But I don't. I only consider myself the most feminine one in my group at the moment. I don't mind doing any of this change, truly and honestly.

I'm just not all that excited or passionate about it, either.

---

That was from a little while ago. Most of it is still applicable to me now, a few weeks later.

I've just been through my notebook, and BOY, do I go off on tangents a lot in my notes. The notes are for classes, no less! For my own use, but still, I don't even need to read "Why the hell is everyone so against the Jews? Someone please explain." when looking at my notes for World Drama and Theatre! Especially when the section of the world we're looking at is Central America..

Or, or..

"Selling arms: limbs vs. guns? :) "

"Green exit signs make sense. Green = go, so it's like go NOW if there's an emergency"

And by far the most random one yet:

"This girl sounds like Megan Mullally."

It'd make sense if I had a note saying where that note was, or what I was doing. But I have no flipping clue!! And now I'm wondering if whoever it was sounded like Megan Mullally from Will and Grace, or from Young Frankenstein. There's quite a difference!

But now I'm going off on a tangent about my tangents. Crap.

In other news, I am just so happy, I could burst. The last few days have been so SO awesome. More later, if anything really happens. ;)

I am not pleased, though, with being stuck in a stagnant situation. I also do not know how to react to lies. They are someone's opinion about me, but they are not true at all.

Anywho. Knitting update:

Sunday night I made another pair of fingerless gloves. I usually use cotton, but since it's getting cooler and I had this fairly small ball of a wool/angora blend, I thought I'd use it. And I'm SO glad I did. They are navy blue and soft and warm and getting all fuzzy.. Note to self: do not EVER put these in the washing machine!

As for my shirt: I'm still only at eight inches for the back. All last week it just kind of sat at the foot of my bed on my trunk, but hopefully its hiatus will be fairly brief. Well, maybe not. I just picked up a bunch of yarn to make a care package for a friend going to Iraq next month. (Hi, Dylan!) Now to find the patterns... It's hopefully gonna be awesome.

The blanket: I know, I know, why the hell don't I have this thing done already?! Well, right now, it's sitting across the room in a fairly opaque bag so I can't see it glaring at me. "Damn you Samantha! I only have six rows left! Have some sympathy!" The only problem is that I made a mistake a few rows back and I have to rip it out.. I hate hate HATE ripping stuff back. Anyone who says they enjoy it is a big fat liar! And it's not something I could just continue with.. no. It's like this six-foot long afghan, and this gaping hole is at the end because I dropped a stitch or some nonsense.. it would be stupid to let it continue. I just have to bring myself to rip it back. Once we're past there, smooth sailing ahead! (And I can use those needles again, thank God.)

So this weekend I made a scarf. Nothing new. Except this scarf is bright pink. And it has three textures: one like ribbon, one like really smooth fleece, and one like feathers. It looks good in the 1x1 ribbing I gave it... it's just not that attractive of a scarf for anyone over, say, eight. Which is why I've decided to give it to the daughter of a family friend, for Christmas. Mainly because she's the only one who has even a remote chance of wearing it.

Also this weekend, I bought sock yarn and a book, and brought all two sets of my double pointed needles back to school with me. I chose a pattern that doesn't call for a heel (cuz I'm intimidated as hell as it is!) and cast on. Let it be known, I despise double pointed needles. With a passion. Yet somehow, to my left there is a small triangle of purple yarn attached to three of those suckers, with a fourth (as the guide) to the right of my keyboard. (Note: I had to stop because the yarn kept getting tangled up. I unwound and rewound for two hours tonight. Not all that fun, let me tell you.) I'll see what the fuss is, see if I can stand DPNs at all, and keep my feet all nice and cozy this winter with socks I made myself.

That part of it is attractive, I must say.

Okay, well.. I think that's all for the time being. I'm gonna go watch Monk now. :)

Bye for now!

This is new..

So today, I woke up late after seeing Medea (at UCLA with Annette Bening- very good!) and decided to go to lunch with my mom and one of her coworkers. We had sushi. It was yummy. ;)

After, I went to my local Lenscrafters to pick up my contacts. I swear I don't know why they keep on this one man. He's been there for a really long time, and he's always rude.

Then I headed back home. It's probably 2:30 at this time. Yet somehow, when my dad came home just now, I realized I'd been knitting for nearly three hours! This is not a big deal in my house - I'm always knitting. So why am I so shocked?

I was cabling.

To you non-knitters out there, a cable is the braid you see on various knitted pieces. Cabling is therefore the process of making said cable. I've tried it before but it always came out miserably. You could barely make out the cable pattern from the rest of the area.. There's more, I'm sure, but I blocked it out. ;)

But anyway, today I got home and decided after doing some reading that I would try again.

And it looks beautiful.

It takes a lot of concentration, as does anything, when you first learn it. That's why I was so surprised to see that three hours had gone by. I am hungry now, so the knitting's going down now and pizza's being ordered and we're going to watch Ghost Town with Ricky Gervais. Gonna be fun!

TTFN!

Keep your sunny side up, up...

Boy, I'm glad I waited til tonight to post this. Hell, I'm glad til I waited til JUST NOW to post.

Otherwise, anyone who's reading may have gotten a face full of dramatic angst and ramblings. Now, you get a positive outlook on, well, still ramblings. But the angst is gone, so that must be a nice change.

I know it is.

What I made my mind up to do last post is working. I am happier. Yet oddly that makes me sad. As I said before, it was a difficult decision to make, but one healthier for my peace of mind. I'm saddened that it's working and that it was even necessary in the first place. If that makes sense. No? Well not really to me either, so that's okay.

As to why I'm so happy I waited? My iPod has been of great comfort to me over the weekend, and I have fun putting together random compilations. I am a great Broadway fan(atic), so my music is mostly (all) soundtracks. And yet I put side by side two songs that made me feel better about things in general: "So Much Better" from Legally Blonde the Musical, and "Astonishing" from Little Women the Musical. (I swear, I didn't go alphabetical by album title. This randomly really happened.) So I got pulled up in the joy and exuberance of "So Much Better". It's a cheerful little tune, basically saying 'fuck you, world! I'm gonna do what I'm gonna do, and there's nothing you can do to make me feel less than I am!' Which is wonderful to feel, I must admit. Then "Astonishing" came on. I've had the songs on this particular playlist memorized for at least a year, so I can kind of half sing along, half do whatever I need my attention on. Yet somehow, I guess my psyche wanted me to tune in for this:

"I thought I knew him / Thought that he knew me / When did it change? / What did I miss?"

Which, to those in the know, will see how closely it actually follows my real thoughts.
Then the real hope of the song came through:

"I'll find my way / I'll find it far away / I'll find it in unexpected and unknown / I'll find my life in my own way / Today
Here I go / And there's no turning back / My great adventure has begun / I may be small / But I've got giant plans / To shine as greatly as the sun
I will blaze until I find my time and place / I will be fearless, / Surrendering modesty and grace / I will not disapear without a trace / I'll shout and start a riot / Be anything but quiet / Christopher Columbus, I'll be Astonishing / Astonishing / Astonishing / At last"

To me, this came out loud and clear. Just like Jo March, I will follow my passions and my dreams. I can do it, and I don't need flakes to pull me back from my full potential.

So fuck you, world! Look out! I'm gonna do great things, and no one can stop me!

So.

I made a rather radical decision last night. I shan't go into the details, but I will say that I hope my life will soon feel more normal, less out-of-control. Less bad drama. More respect and happiness.

I know it'll be for the good - things can only go up at this point - but it's still a hard choice to make, and I fear it'll be even harder to abide by.

Please let me have strength of will. Patience would also be nice. Clearness of sight (maybe inner sight - though some Visine wouldn't go too amiss! ;] ) would be best. I need to see what I can and cannot do, and the consequences of those actions.

This week seems to have been full of unfortunate revelations. I need a vacation.

Knitting update: I don't remember if I shared that I got the yarn necessary to finish my blanket. Well, I did. And I only have nine rows left - all knit stitch, which is so nice. As for the shirt - I have half of the back (below the armholes) finished. It's quite an easy repititive pattern. I just hope it fits, in the end. Also - there's this lovely lovely mohair-wool combination yarn I have that I had no clue what to do with.. then my second revelation of the night came through - make a lacy scarf! (It doesn't have enough yardage to do anything else.) This will be my first foray into anything lacy. I generally prefer larger (US 10+) needles, ribbing, or even just garter stitch.

So this'll be interesting.


EDIT: I tried the lace pattern with the yarn I had chosen out and it became itchy as hell. I don't think the mohair reacted well with the holes in the pattern.. It is a nice pattern, though, so I'll just choose another yarn.

Yesterday

... Was very busy. At least, it seemed that way.

So I got a belated 18th birthday gift- a tattoo! It's of the comedy and tragedy drama masks. They look so cool!!

Note to self: if I ever get another one of these things, please make sure it has little to no shading in it. I was doing fine during the outlining, but the shading was the really intense and annoying and painful part. I tried to keep myself distracted with my iPod and the pidgeon outside. Then the pidgeon flew away and I needed another distraction. I decided that the Hollywood sign wasn't too bad of an option for that!

Today is all about working at Rockaway Records' 30th Anniversary sale. It should be huge! Well, I hope it is, anyway. I'm currently in cargo shorts (that I got in the seventh grade! Holy crap!) to let the tattoo breathe, a new-logo Rockaway shirt, and a headband in black and yellow that I knitted myself.

Knitting update! I only have nine rows of knit stitch left on my blanket! It's absolutely amazing! Huge, like six feet.. But that's part of the charm, dontcha know? ;) I've also made two headbands.. Both in the same pattern. Both on my size 7 16" circulars. Both awesome. The first one I made with cotton and it's kinda loose, but like a beret. The second one I made with Plymouth Encore yarn (acrylic and wool) and is the aforementioned yellow and black one. I'm starting a third, for when the crowd gets slow during the sale, with pink Cascade 220 wool doubled up.

More later!

Surrounded by desert..

Yep. I'm currently in the car, a few hours away from the destination: Phoenix, Arizona.

I love all of my family that lives there. I do not love the drive that we take going out there. Not because I get carsick or anything, but it's just so long. It's a good thing that I've been able to read (and more recently, knit) in the car for long periods of time.

No worries- I am banished to the backseat, knitting in lap and books on the seat next to me. I'm not driving with all those distractions!

Knitting news: apparently, my blanket's yarn will not get to the store for maybe another two weeks! That's a pain. I need those needles for the shawl I've been craving to make since I found the yarn and pattern a few weeks ago. At least this will give me the time to work on the other big project I started last night- a shirt! Well it's technically a vest, but still. It'll be something to wear! This is amazing to me. I think I was intimidated to start since it called for over a hundred stitches for one row. For one section of the shirt. That will be worked on teeny needles for 14 inches.

It'd better turn out well. I hate ripping out work. I've barely needed to since I started. Let's hope that that pattern keeps.

You know, for the first time in what seems like a long time, I'm not very conflicted as to what is going on with my friends. I've finally figured out that I was incorrectly regarding someone as a friend, when we're only really acquaintances who share some friends.

This only goes to prove I've grown up since the third grade. Then, I fought with all I had to make the person in question only MY friend, and so did my opponent. Now I am secure in knowing that my friends are and always will be mine.. Even if they're someone else's at the same time. Though this time, my opponent is using the third-grade approach- hanging on with both hands.

Time to let go. They're not Barbie dolls. These people have opinions too. Only time will tell what happens.

Xoxo-

D23 and lotsa lotsa yarn!

Quite a bit has happened in so short a time. Or so it seems, anyway.

Well the block party was a flop. We got In N Out from the truck (for free, no less), but that was really the only good thing about it. And you know that feeling you get when you KNOW you look good, and you KNOW people are eyeing you but not in a creepy way, but in a damn that's a good outfit way? Yeah, totally felt like that for all of like half an hour when we were in line.

Then my friends disappeared and I gave up and went to my room. Because I got really freaked out because That Guy was there. Maybe more on That Guy later.

So Saturday I wake up bright and early from a phone call from my mom - "Honey, come on, let's go to the D23 Expo!" Okay, that totally made up for being awake at 8am on a Saturday morning. :) So I call my friend who I'm driving home, make sure all my crap is ready, and drive home to get into another car to go down to Anaheim.

Oh. My. God. The D23 Expo was AMAZING. I am a Disney nut. I know this. My friends and family know this. Hell, the person walking outside my window probably knows this. (Okay, maybe not them. But it would be funny if that were true.) So we pull up to the Anaheim Convention Center and it's all Disneyfied. Like there are huge signs hanging, and a few booths around, and Disney just everywhere. Not like, movie covers in color or whatever, but like line drawings. Like how it was advertised. All the signs and stuff.

So tickets were only $37 a person - without the benefit of even belonging to D23 - they only get a seven dollar discount! And we walked into paradise.. That curlieque D as far as the eye can see... Disney Technology, Disney Stores, Disney Disney Disney.

<3

So I got a loooooooooooot of free stuff. Believe you me, that definitely makes things a lot happier. Free bags, free posters, free Volunt-Ears Mickey Mouse ears.. all that and so much more. If I listed everything, even I would get bored with all the Disney crap given to me. Needless to say, it was very exciting.

THEN, to make a good day even better (!), we headed to Velona's. You know, the yarn store in Anaheim I raved about either last post or the one before? Mmhmm. And I took pictures. I'm not quite sure how to put them on here, but they are in fact in existance. Though I was very good. I only got 2 skeins of yarn (one to make something for Christmas, the other just for fun) and a book. And the book only because I saw like three patterns I would love to make.

Sunday was kind of lazy. We all relaxed at home, then Mom and I dragged Gary to see Julie and Julia. Still an amazing movie. Still loving the fact that I started this blog from seeing it! (Is it a month yet? ;] ) After that, I just headed back to school. Had so much homework to finish.. Damn costume design.. I (rather stupidly) thought it would be easier than this. I should have known.. hell, I can't draw a damn thing! Well, one play's costumes are over and done with... time to move on to the next project.

Before heading back to school, though, I stopped at my local yarn shop.. I had stopped there last Sunday as well, and the vendor didn't have my blanket yarn in stock. I assumed she had put in the order. Apparently not. Well, we fixed that, and I am waiting for her phone call that it is in. Can't WAIT to finish this SOB. It's gonna get to be that time to be all cuddly soon, and this blanket'll help. ^_^ Also got another Christmas yarn and one for a gag gift.. shall tell what it is after I give it! (Also the reactions will be in that post. LOL)

So here I am, running on about four or five hours of sleep. Still reminiscing that this was such an amazing weekend. Hoping and praying that next year's D23 Expo is just as good.

Well, we'll see, won't we?

:)

Honestly!

Would it kill you to leave a comment? I have no idea who - if anyone - is even reading this! It does get fairly frustrating, wondering if I'm rambling to myself or if anyone is amused at what I'm spouting off.

Not much change from last night. Well, except that I'm away from all the nerd-speak. Which is nice. XD I still love you, guys.

Um.. well, I may be going down to Palm Desert for the weekend. When asked why, I told my friends (kind of hestitantly), "There.. might be yarn shops?" And at their incredulous looks - "Okay, and I have a chance to go to the D23 Expo." Wherein I was given a lecture on how I should have started with the Expo and then said yarn. I got frustrated, I'll admit, and basically said that yarn to me is like their nerd-stuff to them. And there's this one in Anaheim that leaves me in shock every time.

Jess said I looked like a kid in a candy store when describing Velona's Needlework.

I'm not surprised.

I'll show you.

XD

Okay. So right now I'm sort of preparing for the school's block party - and really, guys? The year's first block party on 9/11? Shame on you! - This entails painting my nails, laying out my makeup and outfit and just basically getting ready to get ready later. :) It's gonna be awesome.

Let's just say that I am no manicurist. But that's why God invented nail polish remover and Q-Tips. :)

There. That looks so much better than before.

-MAJOR TIME JUMP-

Oops. I thought I posted this like, eight hours ago.

Well, my nails are still painted. My hair is straightened to its full capability, my makeup is on, except for the lipstick - the major player in this outfit! I still need to get dressed, but that'll take only a minute. It's actually getting anywhere in the heels I'm planning on wearing that is slightly concerning.

Thankfully, we shan't be out there long. Game night! My friends (basically) in their pajamas, and me looking ready to go clubbing. What a sight we'll be.

Well, I shall (finally) have to bid you adieu for this evening.

H&K's!

Booooooooored...

Sitting on my friend's couch, surrounded by nerd speak. So I decided to blog instead of nod and smile anymore. Sorry, guys. XD

I've knitted one of the softest scarfs on the face of the planet. And how cute is this- it's a baby yarn. The company name is Darling. The one I used is called Tinkerbell. I think they have the other characters too. Since I love love love Peter Pan, I couldn't resist.

Let's see. What else? My eyes are still kind of glazed over from pretending I know anything of what they are talking about.

We watched Young Frankenstein earlier. I still love Madeline Kahn in her role, even though she doesn't appear too often. She doesn't have too much on iTunes, which is disappointing. I love her voice! Not so good: I've had the violin tune stuck in my head for two hours now.

Jess: It sucks.

Much love-

Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.

Just finished watching The Princess Bride for the second time in my life - and am still awed that I didn't watch it beforehand. It really does have everything in it... action, love, humor.. what more could you ask for?

Though the last twenty or so years haven't been kind to Cary Elwes. If one googles his picture, one of the main images that comes up is one of him then and now. He's gained quite a bit of weight, and although he still has the same acting talent (and the same voice) it does take a bit of staring at the screen to reliably recognize him.

I took out the black beaded itchy thing. For one - it did not become itchy, which is definitely good. However, I don't think the weave was looking good, and it just wasn't working. I'll find some other purpose for it later. I'm purposely being slow with the blanket, because I don't know if I'll even get it this weekend at my local yarn store, which is where I found it in the first place.

Tomorrow, I have class from 3-6. That is my first class in almost a week. :)

Today, I dragged some of my friends with me to the local Goodwill and we found a "vaudeville costume" for a class on Thursday. It is so drab and staid.. I am shocked that I even bought it. Even if the whole outfit only cost $11.

Well. Time for bed. Homework to do in the morning, and all that stuff.

TTYL!

Well!

This first September post took long enough to get off its ass and onto the screen!

So hello. It's finally becoming autumn, thank God. These heat waves could honestly kill someone one day. Damn global warming and normally moderate weather!

Things have been the same... yet taken on a different feel to them, if that makes any sense at all. I am still going to classes and having fun with my friends.. it's just that I feel more relaxed. Well, around some people, of course. It's hard to put into words, but I'll do my best. Things feel more charged with me and my friends - like we're providing tons and tons of laughter-energy like in Monsters Inc. and it's up to us to re-energize the world. So we do, with laughter and drama and lots and lots of sugar. In class I'm definitely more relaxed - having people I know well in there certainly makes a difference! It looks to be a fun semester, if I can budget my time well enough. But with all the various holidays and the state-mandated furlough days, time management shouldn't be too much of a problem. Plus all my teachers seem pretty cool.

I know this seems random, and it ... well, it is. It's very random. I was pondering the other day about age. So much has changed in the last hundred years - hell, the last twenty years! - that really any etiquette book has pretty much been forced out of the window. With all the technology around, what is the proper etiquette for a myspace/facebook booty call? With mass text messages saying "YOU WILL DIE AT MIDNIGHT IF YOU DO NOT FORWARD THIS TO A BAJILLION PEOPLE!!!!!1!!"? And to step aside from the techonological aspect of our society, we have (as a people) become much more aware of the alternatives to aging. A sixty year old can still resemble a forty year old. Twenty-five year olds are being subliminally pushed into buying various products to reduce the effects of aging. I wonder what the shame in aging is. I realize that once that occurs, the angle will probably change, but until then, I am perfectly happy being as I am. But I'm getting way off track. My original thought (you know the one I tried to start the paragraph with?) was with all of this new etiquette, what is the proper response to an inquiry of age. Is it still proper to respond "You never ask a lady her age", or do you give it up? Or perhaps is it to a certain age that this is applicable? (Or maybe a certain age you look? In this society, you may never know.) For instance, I imagine that once a woman reached thirty or so, the "you never ask a woman her age" response would become common. Since forty is the new thirty, does the age question also make that ten year leap? Something to wonder about when bored or daydreaming..

Perhaps I'll read this blog later and wonder what the hell I'm rambling about. Maybe it'll still make complete sense. In any case, I'm off for the night. I'm tired.

OH! Just a knitting update- the blanket is NOT yet finished. I've been busy, don't look at me like that! Not to mention I'm running out of the yarn, which really doesn't help matters. However, I finished a nice self-striping cotton scarf, with an equally nice broken rib pattern. Now going onto a mohair and synthetic fiber scarf, with teeny tiny beads already threaded in. It promises to be itchy. I hope it doesn't come to pass.

All the best-

Well. It's been a while.

My apologies for taking so long. I've only just started feeling like myself again, all while getting back in the swing of school, and learning about new teachers and stuff.

I'm glad to be back at school. Isn't that odd? For years and years I hated school and hated coming back.. mainly because I also hated the people and had to take courses I was not interested in. Now I suppose I enjoy being here because I have friends at my disposal, as well as classes I've signed up for because I actually want to learn what's in them.

For the past few days I was feeling so un-me that I stopped knitting. I didn't knit for an entire week. I don't think that's happened since I started. At least not when I had a few projects nearly finished! Finally yesterday I pulled out my needles and finished a scarf I had been working on - thank God, finally the green alpaca yarn is available! - as well as a few rows of my blanket.

You know, I thought I'd feel worse for not finishing my blanket on time. I really did. I pretty much had my heart on finishing this thing on time, and when I didn't I just kind of shrugged it off. "Ehh. I was sick. I'll get back to it. At some point." This is not like me. I do not say "at some point" about something I love. "At some point" implies to me that it's okay if I don't pick it back up. Ever. And for this blanket.. it'd be unacceptable. So I had to (wo)man up and work on it. And I'm glad I did. Even though it's not by last week.

Speaking of.. (well not really but I needed a segue), today's my birthday! As I told my mom earlier, "Wow. This year does nothing for me legally." An odd statement, but a true one. ;) I'm currently waiting for people to show up for a little soiree I'm throwing in my room. Got the cake. Got the pizza. Just need guests. Come one, come all, there's way too much pizza in here!

I hear a knockin' on the door! Gotta go!

xoxo

Hello, lovelies.

Needless to say, the blanket did not get finished. This is not for lack of trying! As I bid you adieu last night (or very early this morning, take your pick) I was unable to sleep for another five hours- again, not for a lack of trying. So I'm running on five hours' sleep. And that sinus headache turned to pain in my eye, which has gone all red and watery. Some time ago, I took my temperature and it is at a lovely 101.9 degrees.

I still need to pack for school and everything tomorrow, but that will happen, I suppose, after visiting the doctor.

Isn't this unfortunate?

Do do do dum-dum do do da!

For those of you who may not realize what my post title is all about, that's part of the Jeopardy waiting music.

So. It's almost midnight. I've been trying (and failing quite spectacularily, I think) for the past hour to fall asleep. And yet I can't. Not too surprising, really, as I fell victim to a nasty sinus headache about two hours ago. So that prevents me from getting too comfy. Then my thoughts keep wandering to what I'm going to need to do when we get home tomorrow. Like, what I still need to pack, and all that stuff. I'm trying not to think about it, I promise, and am trying to think of more pleasant things (like last night's Phantom performance, for instance) but eventually it goes back to wondering about what clothes I'm bringing, or where I put all the miscellaneous yet essential bathroom things when I unpacked at the beginning of the summer.

Unless I work my ass off and am incredibly lucky, I don't think I'll be able to finish my blanket by tomorrow afternoon. In my doze-hazy mental calculator, I figured out that I have roughly 55 rows left. And at 114 stitches a row.. Like I said, hard work and luck will determine if I finish by my self-appointed goal.

Also, I don't know if anyone else heard this rumor, but apparently Eminem died on Sunday morning, by a fatal text-related car accident. Now, I'm pretty sure it's false (the man's had more death rumors in the past nine years than Elvis has had live spottings) but if anyone anywhere has reliable evidence to the contrary, please let me know.

Wish me luck for a good night's sleep!

Viva Las Vegas!

My day has passed in a haze of driving and knitting and smoke and Vegas... And most recently, Phantom.

We left San Diego about eleven thirty this morning.. Got into Las Vegas at about four or so. Managed to do quite a bit of damage on my blanket. I think I should reach my goal of Wednesday afternoon. And if I don't, it'll be very shortly afterwards.

The new Palazzo hotel is just lovely. I'm not staying there, but it's just so pretty that I had to comment on it.

So I had my heart set on seeing Phantom again here in Vegas for my upcoming birthday. And it happened! I was fifth row center, and it was such a great seat. A bit pricey, of course, but worth every penny. Even though I got sat next to a pair of six year olds. Honestly, who brings six year olds to Phantom of the Opera? Especially to the more expensive seats? Geez.. But anyway, the kids weren't TOO annoying, and I managed to get through the performance with no damage. The kids also let me connect with the very nice gay couple sitting in front of me. Anywho, the Phantom wasn't the best I've seen (that title would belong to John Cudia - soooo wonderful!) but he definitely gave the part what it needed. Christine - and let it be known that I feel catty even typing this - was appropriately weak. Even though Christine is innocent, she needs to have a certain weakness of mind that allows the Phantom to have so much power over her. This actress played it wonderfully. Not to mention she had a beautiful singing voice. :) Raoul is considered a big part, I know, but Raoul (besides being cool to type) seems more of a bit part to me, in the information we're given. There are only so many ways to play "rich noble hates Phantom, loves Christine, must be tenor and tall".

So I'm back in the room and my mind won't get off Phantom.. Hope sleep comes soon!

I shall update soon. Until then-

Later..

So as I said, here's more.

Goodness.. I am still so sore from today's earlier activities.

My blanket was temporarily put on hiatus, so I could focus on being more active, and work on my month-and-a-half scarf. That's why I desperately needed that skein yesterday. I couldn't find that brand at any place near me, so I'm eager to finally finish. I think just a few more rows and I'll be done. Thank God! Then tomorrow on the drive to Vegas (waaay too early, but 6 and a half hours should get me through quite a bit!) I'll continue to work on my blanket. The goal is to still finish by Wednesday.

Ttyl! ;)

Just a note..

Jetskis and kayaks are a lot harder to navigate than they look...

We all toppled off the jetski thing after he pushed us away from the dock.. How embarassing! Then, not to sound like a brat, but I wasn't able to go NEARLY as fast as I wanted to, or as far. Hmph. And I suppose this should have been obvious, but kayaking takes a LOT of arm strength.

That's it for the time being. More later, I'm sure.

3 days later...

So sorry I haven't been here for a few days. It's been a flurry of getting-back-to-school stuff - from hair to brows to picking up books to taking the last chance of the summer to go on vacation.

Here I am, in lovely San Diego. I absolutely adore the Gaslamp District- it seems like one of the nicest downtown areas around in SoCal- definitely including downtown LA (but excluding Phillipe's - yum!). Getting back on track... We walked around Ocean Beach for a while today. We ate at Hodad's, which is this burger joint that's been around since 1969. I think that the ambiance was nicer than the food itself- the burger was all right, but definitely below In N Out on the burger-goodness scale. Yet there was a line going down the block to get in! I don't get it. Anyway, Ocean Beach is full of antique-y shops so we roamed for a while.. I got a magnetic salt and pepper shaker set that is of Snoopy and Woodstock laying on top of Snoopy's doghouse. The roof of the house comes off, and that is where the seperate holes are- one set on the roof, the other "inside" the house. Very cute. I also got a blue glass heart pendant that reminded me so much of the necklace in Titanic... Can't wait for an apropos time to wear it.
After Ocean Beach, we dragged my dad into driving us to a yarn store a few miles away. I got three skeins, one of which I desperately needed.

Tomorrow is filled with (hopefully) water play in the bay, seeing a movie, and having some good food and company. :)

I know that anyone reading this must be on the edge of their seat - (please read bolded and italicized) "but what about the felted purse?!". Yes, I did felt it, it is drying, it is nice and fuzzy and much smaller than it was, thank God. I'm also about halfway through my blanket. My goal is for it to be done when I come home from vacation- in other words, on Wednesday afternoon. It shouldn't be a problem. Hopefully!

I recently re-watched The Birdcage and was reminded of its genius. Go watch it. Now. :)

My bag is done! Finally! It's drying now, with like six Pom glasses stuffed inside it, so it'll shape right. I'm so happy that a: it's done, and b: it turned out well. I'm not sure what I would have done with it had it not become what I wanted it to. Probably gifted it. ;) Just kidding... My next big project is a blanket. Not a baby blanket, like how I did before, but an actual afghan with an actual pattern. And since I learned how to purl more effieciently, it's a lot easier.

Holy crap, I just saw Freddie Prinze Jr. on a Friends episode... knitting. Oh my gosh, that just made my night.

Hm... I can't wait for vacation. Four nights away from here before returning to the mad mad pace of school. And move-in. And seeing my friends again. That'll be fun.

So over the course of an hour or so my blanket has grown by about six inches. I'm very excited about this.

Well.. I'm gonna log off for now. Question: What are anyone's thoughts on the Fiddler on the Roof movie? I saw the play when it was local, and loved it. Is the movie different/better than the play?

Ehhh..

Okay, so the fair was kind of a flop. Not that I managed to get in. No, instead, VC decided to be really stupid and say on the freeway "fair exit here". So I get off the freeway and there is nothing telling me how to get there. There are no signs at all anywhere. Bad planning right there... Six U-turns later, we finally find the correct road. And the lot is full. And there is no way in hell that I'm parking in Ventura- I've too much paranoia for that to be a good idea. So then we're driving around lost for an hour and a half. By this point I'm so tired of the whole thing, I know the fair won't make up for it. I'll be cranky and ruin the others' day. So I turn my car around and drive us away from that whole nightmare. I'm glad I did.

So I got my textbooks for next semester. There's quite a few of them!! I don't know how I'll keep them all straight. There'll be a way.

Um.. I haven't quite managed to felt my bag yet. That'll come tomorrow, cuz my hair appointment got moved to Friday instead of tomorrow. But everything's still all attached, so I'm happy about that.

Haven't watched a movie yet today, so I can't make any advice on what's good to see. But just in general, Clue is excellent-with Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn, and a bunch of others. :)

Well!

So. I just watched Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore act out the most memorable hand job of the 1990s. That's right. I just saw the movie "Ghost". Holy CRAP it's good! Still haven't gotten over seeing the sensuality of the clay. I shall never look at a pottery class the same way ever again. But the other aspects of the movie were great too. I mean, Whoopi Goldberg can never go wrong. Seeing the "supernatural" and the responses to it in this were great. The penny balancing.. what a thing to do to prove that he was still there, hm?

In other news, I finished my purse today. Now I just need to find the time to put it and a pair of jeans/ a towel into the washing machine and felt it. Hopefully it'll shrink - it's practically down to my knees, and quite wide as well. But it's all sewn together and everything, so I'm pleased about that. It should be done and felted and everything by the end of the week - maybe I'll bring it on vacation! That'd be nice...

Wondering if there's any iPhone apps for blogspot. Shall look into that now.

Hmm.. sorry it's short - I'm still a bit numb from Ghost. See it, if you haven't already. If you haven't - shame on you, it's been 19 years! ;)

First Post!

Hello to anyone who may be reading this.

Why did I suddenly decide to make a blog, and hopefully stay with it, now? Really, I blame a little story called Julie & Julia. If you haven't read/seen it, please do so. It was really incredible. I think that ranting to something, even if it's just to myself via blog, will be relaxing in its own way.

So I am a knitter, as the title says. Apparently it's hip now? IDK. I never knew that, just thought a few months back that it sounded like fun. I thought, why not pick up a hobby that there is actually something that comes out of it? Can't spend my whole life in front of a computer like the rest of my generation. I need concrete evidence that I am doing something with myself, not just an image on a computer screen. Ironic, then, that I am starting a blog. Ha.

My latest project is a purse. I've made one before, but this is not a little half-assed clutch. It is a tote. A messenger bag. Something that you do NOT want to mess around with. I've been working on it for about a week now and have the body done, and the attached button-flap. I would have had it done a lot faster, but I ran out of yarn for the body halfway through and it took me a few days to muster the energy and the will to go to TO and pick up another two skeins of the necessary yarn. (Oh, and why is it "skein"? Shouldn't it be "skien"? I mean, i after e except after c, and all that? Ah well.) And anyway, it took me like five tries to get the button-flap ready. Each time I thought I'd have it right then be proven wrong. Very frustrating. No matter now, though, I managed to tame that wool beast!

Now I'm going to work on the handles. Ugh, another trip to TO may be necessary. I really want this purse done by tomorrow, as I'll have like no other time this week to work on it. Tomorrow: Nothing. Tuesday: going to the VC fair with a friend and her mom and aunt. Wednesday: hair appointment up in Santa Clarita. Thursday: back to the oral surgeon so they can inspect my wisdom teeth holes. Friday: pack, both for school and for vacation, because Saturday-Tuesday of next week: vacation! Two days in San Diego, two days in Vegas. It's gonna be fun. :)

All right.. I think that's it for now. I'm sure there's more ramble in me, but this is fine for first post. Can't give away all my secrets all at once! LOL