One of my last semesters in college is almost over with, and I feel pretty happy with finally being able to, as Mom keeps saying, "see the light at the end of the tunnel." I think her optimism is in the family blood; I'm feeling more confident that, yes, graduation is possible. Senioritis hit me about two years ago, and it hit even harder last semester when I had to learn how to juggle my job with my classes. This semester seems a little less stressful, but I'll be just as happy to get it over with as I did in the winter.
As graduation draws nearer, my plans for life are falling into place. (It seems vague to say "life," but I'm learning to deal with how plans for the future are pretty vague most of the time anyway.)
My very last semester of college will consist of three English classes, all of which I have charted out at this point. My summer is going to be taken up by working more full-time hours again, and I'm hoping to turn part of my hours into an internship that's required for my English major. Turning a few hours into the internship will save me a lot of stress during the school year. In fact, I was worried I would have to somehow drop something in order to fit the internship in, but it looks like everything is working out for the best after all!
The best part about this whole working hard thing is planning for what I want to do after graduation. Shawn and I are currently working (and saving money for) an apartment for in a few months. Since Kathleen will be coming to live with Beth when she starts going to our university, Shawn and I decided it would be best if we started to branch off into our own little world. A few years ago, I would have thought moving in with a boyfriend was a big step, probably because of all the hype from silly TV shows and dramas. Honestly though, I've learned that a step like that can be simple if a couple is ready for it and really wants to progress in a relationship. This September will mark my six year anniversary with Shawn so planning for the future isn't just a plan; it's what I've been working towards for a good chunk of my life.
Shawn told me something that meant a lot to me the other day. Now, I'm not the one for mushy statements. We were standing in the kitchen making dinner together a few weeks ago, and we had been discussing something about his job. I think he was complaining about a few assignments he was given to do, so I turned to him and asked how he could put up with some of the tasks that his everyday job demanded of him. He turned to me and said, "Well, I do it for you. Actually, everything I do is for you." Hearing that made my mind wind back to a few years ago when he told me that if we hadn't started dating, he would have joined the army. He felt that he didn't have anything else to do in life so he thought he would try to look for meaning in some other form of work. Something like that didn't seem so profound to me until I casually told Mom about it during one of our conversations. She told me that a guy telling his girlfriend that says that he's living for that girl. And it's true. Shawn letting go of certain things in his life and choosing to work an office job would have never happened if we hadn't started dating. He's chosen to live his life with me, and everything he does-- from running to the store for soda because I have a caffeine headache to keeping a desk job and working long hours-- is for me.
I've thought about what Shawn has done for me a lot. So now, I feel like I have a reason for graduating and working towards finishing college. Even with all this busy work going on now, at least I know that something good is coming out of all of this. After we stay at our apartment for about six months (so until I graduate), we're going to be finding a really nice apartment and then save up for a house. Jokingly one day, we started to look at house ads online. After we browsed some beautiful homes, I realized that a beautiful home in a safe neighborhood is something that I do want to work for, even if it means working this hard. Who knew a future was possible? I didn't, until recently.
And sometime after we graduate, and some more time after we live together, we'll decide to take the next step. Marriage is an idea that many, many people have asked us about over the years. In fact, I think everyone else is eager to hear about a wedding announcement from us, but we've just decided to take things easy-- one step at a time. We're planning though, and we've found that confidence in our relationship is our marriage to each other. An official engagement will come in time. For now, all I need is this pretty amazing reality we're facing together. It's a pretty damn good reason to keep working and living.
And that's pretty much where I'm at right now...
I'll say it straight out: I'm worried about Yukimo. For the past few weeks, she's been having "womanly" bleeding. She showed the same thing a few months ago, but it only lasted a day or two. After doing some research back then, I found that dwarf hamsters don't have regular menstrual cycles; girls actually only have a period maybe once in their lives, and the period only lasts for a day or two.
Yuki's problems seem a bit more serious though. Within the past few weeks, there's been a lot more bleeding in that area-- to the point where she leaves little trails of blood on whatever she walks on. The bleeding isn't continuous though. It lasts a few hours and then stops anywhere from a few hours to a few days.
I decided to do a little more research this time, and I found a very helpful thread on a hamster forum. That girl's hammy experienced the very same symptom as Yuki. In fact, my situation sounded identical to what was posted in that thread. From what I've discovered, it sounds like Yukimo could either have an infection or a tumor, but the only way I would be able to find out is if I take her to the vet (something that I am against at this point in time). The vet could give her antibiotics for the infection, or he could recommend Yuki having surgery. Honestly, I would never give such a small animal surgery, especially Yuki. She's lived a long, happy life and I know that putting her through something so traumatic would most definitely hurt her more than anything else.
In the past, I've had hamsters and guinea pigs who have also displayed health problems. Whenever I took one of them to the vet though, they died shortly after the visit. The main difference between Yukimo and my past pets is that Yukimo isn't super sick like they were. When thinking back, all of my piggies and hammies were deathly ill, ready to pass on... so I suppose it isn't extremely weird that they died. I guess that one of my worries is that something will happen to Yukimo if I take her to the vet. She's so small and trips never sit well with her. If anything, I can see something about the trip making her nervous, which is the last thing she needs right now.
The good news about Yuki right now is that bleeding is the only thing that seems to be wrong with her right now. Other than that, she's as happy as ever in her one and a half years! She's running (well, trotting... since she's getting pretty old now) in her wheel almost every night. She's eating great and getting a good amount of water every day. She's active whenever I hold her. Of course, the only real things that are different compared to when I first brought her home is the fact that she's a bit slower than before. Instead of walking, she wobbles around. Instead of running everywhere when she's outside of her cage, Yuki likes to walk around and sniff things when exploring. She doesn't have that teenager-like mindset that makes her think she needs to do everything at once. She just likes to explore things-- in a more mature fashion, tee hee. Boy, that hamster wisdom has really kicked in!
So, despite her current health situation with the bleeding, Yuki is doing really well. I think I'm going to try to speak with a vet to see if there's any way I can get antibiotics for Yuki (to see if she has an infection) without taking her in to the vet. I just want to make sure I cover all the bases when it comes to keeping my little hammy healthy. She's had a great and happy life so far; I want to make sure she continues to have one for however long she's still with me.
I thought I'd wrap up this post with a very funny video I took of Yukimo back in early January. I had been staying at my parents' house for a week or so, so that meant that Yuki was on her own at my apartment for a few days. I made sure to stop in, check on her, feed her and clean her cage so that she knew I was still around. Needless to say, Yuki showed how much she missed me... by hopping around with a piece of lettuce! (And yes, that's me narrating, along with Kathleen. ^__^)
I love you, Yukimo.
Vox has done it again, and it's pretty awesome this time around. Vox is currently helping to host the HP Themes Contest, an event that's being shared between some of the biggest (and best, in my opinion!) blogging sites around: TypePad, Vox and LiveJournal.
I got pretty psyched when I heard about this event because it reminded me of past contests Vox has hosted. Back in late 2006, we hosted our first banner contest, and the winners of the contest got the chance to host their winning banners on Vox so other bloggers could use the designs on their own blogs. I wasn't yet a part of the Vox team then so I was legible to win-- and I did! Two of my banners were chosen ("Beads Love" and "Bubblegum Skies" as seen below) to be used by other people, and I have to say: knowing that other people appreciated what I had to offer, both artistically and bloggingly (tee hee), made me feel pretty awesome. In fact, Team Vox back then liked so many of the banners so much that the team extended the winning number! That just shows how many talented people we have here at Vox. And now that the site is even bigger than before, I think we can expect even more spiffy entries. ^___^
Like I mentioned above, the HP Themes Contest at Vox is a little different. Not only will the winner get his banner chosen to be used on TypePad, Vox and Livejournal, but cash prizes are going to be given out to the three favorite banner winners-- $1800 worth! *dances* If this event would have happened back in 2006, I think I would have been antsy with anticipation to see how my banner was doing with the votes, haha.
Here's a confession. One of my favorite things about blogging at Vox is visiting the Design page. Even though I often host my own banners for my own blog, it's fun to see where Vox likes to go with the designs it hosts. Plus, I get pretty inspired by other peoples' banners, which sparks a lot of creativity with my own designs. Some things that I'd really like to see pop up on the Design page someday are:
- More banners containing photography (we have so many talented photographers here)
- More banners made with homemade art, like drawings and paintings
I guess what I'm really looking forward to seeing is the raw art that people can come up with. I like knowing that something digital like a blog banner can be made using tools that are both modern and traditional. I think a lot of people might immediately jump to banner ideas with fun ideas involving work done in Photoshop and Illustrator, which are great programs to use for something like this contest. Something that we don't see very often though are the talents found outside of the computer world, like using stencils or paintbrushes. As long as you have a scanner and a simple image/art editing program then, you can crop the images down to the right size.
I think what matters most is the inspiration that comes out of whatever a person enjoys doing. For instance, I'm fascinated with color-- how colors work together, how lack of color exists, the brightness or dullness of colors, etc. Being able to experiment with with my hobbies for a contest like the one going on for HP Themes is not just fun to do, but it's an opportunity for me to play with new ideas. I've used my photograph, my love of kawaii and even my favorite hamster ever, to create pretty banners. Some of my favorite hobbies have produce really wonderful results:
Of course, anyone who wants to enter will probably want to read the rules before entering a banner. I'm not sure if any of these would work because of the credit (kawaii.vox.com) I put on each of them. ^o^ The ones above are in my private little Kawaii at Vox database, but I'd still love to create a new banner (even though I can't win since I'm a Six Apart employee...) just to show how much I love the contest idea.
If anyone who reads this post submits a banner to the contest, please, please, please let me know. I'm anxious to see what my friends are coming up with. Also, if anyone needs help with any design ideas, I'd be happy to throw some ideas out there or give my personal feedback. And if anyone has questions about the HP Themes Contest, definitely submit some feedback by contacting the Vox team.
I guess the thing I really wanted to say about the contest is that winning something like this really is possible. Whenever I see a contest, I get pretty overwhelmed with the possibility of not winning but knowing that I've won something like this in the past, and seeing a lot of my friends win at the same time, makes me realize how possible winning this contest really is. If anything, have fun when you submit a banner entry. I can't wait to see what everyone makes!
Update: The Heart Day packages are being sent out in two batches. The first batch consists of everyone who lives within the states, and it was sent out this last Saturday. Several people have already written to me to let me know that their gifts arrived.
The second batch is made up of everyone outside of the states (which includes places from all over the world, like Thailand, Russia, Hong Kong, Canada and so many more!). This international batch will be sent out this week.
I'd like to ask everyone who particpated in this event to let me know that their packages arrived safely. You can either leave me a comment, send me an email or drop me a private message. I just want to make sure everything worked out for you.
Thankies to everyone who participated in my little Heart Day event here at Vox. For some reason, I didn't think there would be a huge turnout, but boy, was I wrong! As the first few days and then week or so passed by, I realized that I should have known better, haha.
I have to be honest, too. Receiving so many great comments, emails and private messages probably had to make up the best bunch of Valentines I've ever received. So many thanks are going out to everyone who sent such sweet words. ^____^
Heart Day has come and gone (very quickly), but I just wanted update everyone on how the whole process went. Due to the crazy and horrible Wisconsin weather I've had to deal with for the past month or so, I had to delay a lot of the happenings for the event. Since so many Voxers expressed an interest in getting a little card, I had to make sure that every expectation was met. ^^;
I had all my Valentine Day cards, but what I really wanted to do was include a small gift to each person. Of course, the gifts couldn't be any old objects laying around! They had to be totally and completely kawaii. In order to do that, I made a special trip to my "local" Sanrio (which is about an hour away from my house). Bad news soon hit me hard, because I found out that my beautiful, lovely and much needed Sanrio store was gone. All that was left in place of my Hello Kitty Haven were empty walls, no lights and a huge iron gate. *cries* I was devastated. Not only did I not have a place of kawaii to go to every now and then when I needed it most, but I started to worry about where I would find my presents for Voxers.
After a lot of thinking, I decided to go to another store that had a Sanrio section. I was extremely grateful for the chance to redeem my kawaii standing, tee hee. By last Saturday, I finally had all of the gifts, so it was time to write out the cards and package everything up.
Everyone will be happy to know that not only will they be receiving a very adorable Heart Day card, but they will also be getting a small kawaii gift-- and everything is packaged in a very stickered-up envelope! *grin* I had so much fun personalizing each and every package. With over 35 people who participated in this event, over $150 was put towards Heart Day this year. I figure that this amount equals out what is usually my December/Holiday event anyway, so it all evened out in the end. Yays.
The gifts range anywhere from small notepads to sticker sheets to little booklets to small stationary sets. I tried to make sure that everyone received an equal amount of gift-giving. ^o^
Even through all of the bad weather and the disappointment of the disappearance of Sanrio (which I'm still mourning), I'm very happy with how this event turned out. I really hope that I could help spread the kawaii love at this time of the year.
Please note: As for everyone who was interested in sending me back a present, I thank you very, very much. I might be sending out an email to everyone who asked for my address, but if you're still interested in sending me a letter/package, you can always refer to the envelope I sent to you, which has my new, spanking P.O. Box address. I'm now an owner of my very own mailing address. This is very exciting for me.
To make up for my absence during the December holidays, I decided that I wanted to make up for my lack of cards and gift-giving by sending out something for the next holiday: Heart Day!
I have to be honest. I'm not really one to celebrate something like Valentine's Day. Even Shawn and I don't go out of our way to get each other extravagent gifts. My feeling on the subject is that if you care about someone, you'll show him/her that type of love all year 'round. With that said, I have to be a hypocrite and change my beliefs around this year.
I feel like I missed out on a lot of the holiday fun. Everything seemed a bit dull this year because of all the work I was wrapped up in-- no fun! To spice up my life and the Vox atmosphere a bit, I'd like to offer a little Valentine to anyone that reads this post. ^__^ I've even stocked up on a ton of kawaii cards for my friends this year, which is something I haven't done in many years.
This invitation is open to everyone, whether you're in my Vox neighborhood or you aren't, whether we know each other or not. I think that Heart Day is a great time to get to know both old and new friends.
If you're interested in having a pretty Valentine sent to you within the next few weeks, you need to do two things:
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Leave me a comment in this post and let me know you're interested. (Depending on emails alone in the past has proven to be troublesome, so an extra note in a comment always helps!)
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Send me an email (milkeyes@gmail.com) and provide the following:
Your Vox Name:
Your Real Name (first and last):
Your Address:
Once I have this information, I can go ahead and send you a fun Valentine. (I'm still trying to think of a little gift I could send along with each letter. Hopefully, I can think something up before Heart Day gets here.)
If you're not interested in having a letter sent to you, it's no problem. ^^ Just know that I wish you a happy Heart Day 2008. Try to remember that Heart Day isn't about being in a relationship or being part of a couple; it's about loving yourself and those around you. Heart Day is about brilliant independence just as much as it's about sharing your time with a loved one. That's what I've learned throughout the years.
Anyway, I hope to hear from some of you Voxers. I'd love to spread a lot of love around this time of the year-- as much as possible! ^0^
This introduction is way overdue, but alas, it's here. ^__^ I would like to introduce the newest addition to my dolly family: Lullo.
On December 23rd, I went back to my parents' house after worrying about my last project of the semester. Mum asked me what I wanted for my birthday in a few days, and it was after she asked me for the third time that I realized that I truly didn't know what I wanted. It was the first time in years. I hate saying, "Oh, just money will be fine..." Birthdays are about surprises and real, tangible presents, and I like the thought that people put thought behind things like birthday presents. At least, that's what I think birthdays should be about!
That night, I started making my usual rounds online, and then decided to make my way over to some BJD sites to see if there were any good "prospects". Sure enough, Dollmore had some new dolls up, and one in particular caught my eye. She was so beautiful, so unique. From that minute on, I was a goner.
The next morning, I asked Mum if the doll I showed her the previous night could be my birthday present. She was happy that I finally decided on something and said that would be no problem. I ordered her right then and there, and I decided that I would put Mum's present money and the money I would get the next day from Grandma (for the holidays) towards my new doll and her extensive wardrobe (not to mention the huge shipping costs).
I knew that my new dolly wouldn't arrive for a few days or weeks since BJD companies have to do each, individual faceup for every doll order (if requested by the customer in the ordering process), not to mention having to get together all of the items before shipping. Surprisingly enough, I only had to wait fifteen days for my package to arrive-- I was shocked! Some people have to wait months to receive their orders.
During the waiting period, I had to somehow get my dolly fix. (Seriously, I get this craving for extra cuteness when I know I have a new doll on the way.) I spent almost every free hour during my day online, usually browsing the Den of Angels forum, or trying to find new outfits to buy so I could get new ideas about what kind of wardrobe my girl would have by the time she arrived.
Then, on January 6th, I had my real fix: she arrived! Beth and I made a special trip back to my parents' house so I could pick up the big package. Dollmore always keeps their word, because my doll not only came in a beautiful box with silk pillows as protective wrap, but I was given extra holiday surprises from the company. They also sent me a free Alice in Wonderland outfit (dress, stockings, bloomers, crown, apron), an extra set of eyes, and a Dollmore pen.
It took me a second to let my new doll's appearance sink in. Her look online had been so inspirational to me; it was more Asian-looking than any other doll of mine that I owned appeared. Where some BJD lovers found her eyes not as "appealing," I found it to be incredibly special and more authentic, as far as natural features go.
I had requested very specific faceup (makeup) tones, and with only artificial lighting to go by, it was difficult to tell if my requests were actually looked into. Once I put her new clothes on and fixed her wig, I was in love. Everything about her was just right, and I knew the name I had picked for her-- Lullo-- would be more than perfect for her.
One thing about the world of BJDs is that there's a very "Comic-Con" (for lack of better words) following. Dolls are not just dolls with personalities. There are stories and backgrounds and real-life scenarios that take place within the time spent with their owners. Every single detail about their personalities and lives is thought out, and everything has meaning. I always try to create this persona for my Blythes, but I'm rarely ever successful in doing so (with the exception of Plum, of course).
Lullo made things very easy. From the second I saw her online, I knew her story. I wrote it out for a contest that Dollmore hosts every month. The idea behind the contest is to write a small story for a photo that the owner of the doll takes. Because Dollmore is an Asian-based company, I had to make sure that I put things clearly and simply so it could be easily understood for anyone that doesn't read English very well. If anything, I think the way it's worded makes Lullo's story seem even more real. It's like a children's story. ^^
Lullo is a mischievous and happy girl who has just been given one of the greatest honors of her people. Like every person, Lullo has been given a special job that she must carry out in her world. Her title is "Keeper of Lullabies". This means that Lullo is responsible for helping those around her find their inner lullabies so that they can find peace and happiness within their lives.
Lullo is very young and is still only learning all of what she must do for other people, but she takes great pride in her work.
I'll be expanding on Lullo's background over time, but I think that will do for now. I think her story will grow as time goes on and as Lullo gains different looks and outfits. Her pink piggy outfit inspired the story as it stands right now.
I'm a very happy girl right now. Lullo, Lullo, Lullo...
Being away from Vox for so long has caused a very unnatural feeling to settle in. I don't know why, but I let the guilt consume me even when I know that I have a perfectly good reason why blogging has to be put on hold. Yet, through the weeks of extreme labor put towards projects, papers, my dreaded exam, and no blogging, I've survived. I think that all the panic and stress built up over the whole semester are the reasons why I feel like I almost don't exist anymore. My life for the past few months has consisted of two things, and two things only: school and work. In my mind, I keep thinking, "Am I really here right now? What work do I have to do next? What is going on?" In fact, I still feel somewhat confused about the sudden amount of time I have for myself for actual relaxation. And then the best part happens; I take a step back, just like Mom taught me to, and I let that ever-so-natural feeling-- the one I know I deserve-- take the place of that unsettling feeling. I'm finally, finally home.
Despite the stress, the last few weeks' worth of work I put into my classes paid off. I didn't think that I'd be able to keep my grade point average (GPA) as high as I normally do, but shockingly enough, it's about as high as I normally get it: three A's and one B. Needless to say, I'm relieved that I can multi-task up until a certain point. One thing I have learned, however, is that sometimes the job of multi-tasking means dropping one of the important tasks in order to really pull through. And you know what? I've also learned that not being perfect makes living life one step closer to perfection in happiness and satisfaction.
As the exam period started to take over my life even more, I just knew that I'd need some time for myself. I decided to request for some time off as a little vacation reward for all the work I've put in to the last year of my life. There were some major landmarks that took place in 2007 for me, personally, and I thought that deserved some recognition. Here are some of the personal goals that I reached, ones that I'm totally and completely proud of:
- Shawn and I had our five year anniversary in September, and I've almost known him for half my life. I realize that not many couples are as lucky as we've been so I'm really proud of how far we've come.
- I finally got a job that I'm content with. I used to get "made fun of" (or teased, I guess) by Mom, Beth and Kathleen because of how, er, lazy I was with being responsible. I think I'm still considered the least mature out of my sisters, ironically enough. Either way, I have a job and I'm finally making my own money.
- I've chosen a major and a career path that completely suits my skills and passions in life.
- I found out when I'll be graduating college. *jumps for joy*
- I've maintained a blog (for the most part) that I'm happy with and pretty consistent with.
- Kitties have finally entered my family, after years and years of waiting and wanting.
- My toy army has grown to amazing numbers! It's made up of dolls, plushies, vinyl toys, plastic toys, paper products, oodles of Sanrio products.
Speaking of my kawaii army, its numbers have especially grown in the past few weeks. Thanks to the holidays and my birthday, I received some really awesome gifts from family and friends. I haven't been able to take photos of everything they gave me, but I did get the opportunity to capture a few. Shawn's family surprised me with a huge box stuffed with vinyl toys (Dunnys, toy ink cartridges, Moofia figures, etc.); Mom gave me ten Dunnys; Kathleen gave me six huge sheets of Sanrio wall decals (which now adorn my room) and a Gloomy Bear puppet; Shawn gave me ten more Dunnys and my new white fawn plushie, Purin; Beth gave me six Re-Ment sets (accessories for my dollies); Celena sent me two adorable Maffy figures and a bunch of clothes for quite a few of my Blythes. It's been an exciting few weeks!
Like I've mentioned in the past, I'm a firm believer in rewarding myself. (Everyone should feel that way once in a while. ^__~) I wanted to have something to look forward to so I decided to splurge on a huge birthday present for myself by using some of the money I received from Mom and Grandma. With their money combined, and a little of my own, I was able to buy a dream ball-joined doll (BJD). I've waited a couple weeks and I was just notified that she's on her way to me this very moment. I haven't looked forward to a new doll in such a long time. I'm anxious to see if the faceup I requested is done the way I'm hoping for. *crosses fingers*
Today was my last day of work for a whole week. It's the first time in about a year that I have more than a weekend to do anything I want. I don't have a schedule to live by or a deadline to get work done by. I just get to relax and spend time the way I want to. I think a lot of naps, reading and dollies will be involved. This is what life should always be like.
It's cold outside. I've walked in the snow every day this week.
Everything is coming to a close. I'm ready for the finale at the end of December.
(Yay for being vague.)
November has included one of my longest absences on Vox, and after all this time has passed, I'm starting to wonder what even happened to November. It was here and now it's almost gone.
I have a lot to catch up with and a lot to say, so I thought I'd sum up how my month has been going through a series of little snippets from my life. I feel like I often share huge chunks of my life at Vox, and switching a post around to a small medley of events might be fun for a change.
Kawaii design. I thought I'd start off by introducing my new banner. Kawaii (at) Vox (dot) com finally has a new look and feel to it. I've been struggling with what kind of banner I wanted my blog to have. I'm extremely picky and very obsessive over the appearance of my Vox. The content is important, yes, but the whole look of my personal space at Vox is just as essential as the rest of it. The usual routine for making and choosing a banner for my Vox usually consists of: having a photoshoot, editing old photos, experimenting with color schemes, finding fun brushes to use (if needed), and then either trashing the results or actually settling on using a banner. The entire process usually takes a couple of days. I don't like switching around my banner a lot, so whatever I decide on means that it will be around for a while. After a lot of work on this last banner, I finally decided on Kawaii Pink Medley:
I wanted to include a lot of the elements in my life, especially ones that I love right now. I figure that Lola the fawn stands for my plushies; Yukimo shows for my love (of Yukimo!) of pets; and Plum represents my adoration (for Plum!) for dollies. Being the narcissist that I am, I like including a photo of myself to kind of, I guess, represent my blog as a whole. (After all, I'm the voice, tee hee.)
The kitties. As I mentioned in a past post, Beth and I decided to keep our sister kitties. Falling in love with them took a little longer than usual-- a lot longer than it usually takes me to fall for a cat. Even though it took a while, the wait was worth it. Both Edgar (Ed) and Isis are pretty awesome companions, and although they're a little insane, I like their craziness around the apartment (sometimes). After all, unpredictability is priceless.
As much as I hate to admit it, Beth and I have had an easier time bonding with Ed. Even though the sisters were raised the same, Ed has a much more friendly personality, and she's a lot more willing to be happy. She's the only cat I know that will pur for no reason at all. I'll walk into a room and Ed will be purring so loudly that I can feel the floor shake.
Isis, on the other hand, has really stayed in her shell-- and not in a good way. An example of this is when I get up from the couch to go to the kitchen. I won't even be heading towards where Isis is laying down on the floor, yet she'll see me coming and run away and hide under the bed for hours. If I get up and go to the kitchen when Ed's around, she'll either follow me or affectionately rub against my legs. Beth and I are still giving Isis the same amount of attention as Ed, but it's hard having such an unfriendly kitty around the house, especially one that hates to be held and scratches. (I have some painful pieces of evidence on my stomach if there's any doubt about Isis.)
Despite their differences, Beth and I love Ed and Isis. It's great having built-in friends. ^__^ More of Ed and Isis can be seen in my My Kitties collection.
The work load. I wish I could say that the stress wasn't as much of a problem anymore, but to be completely honest, it's about the same. I've been working my butt off at school. On the days that I'm not in classes, I'm either working or doing schoolwork (projects, papers, presentations, etc.). On the days that I do go to school, I'm working in between the classes. This time of the year is always crazy, and this November is no exception.
Blog, blog, blog! One of the benefits of working and being a Professional and Technical Writing major is that I can have some fun by combining both worlds-- that of school and that of work. Throughout the semester, I've been doing a lot of interviews for papers and projects with fellow bloggers, friends and co-workers. Like a lot of the projects that I've chosen to do, one of the last projects I worked on focused on blogging. My Technical Writing professor assigned the class a huge project where each person had to write a technical description. I chose to focus my descripion on networking at Vox.
As long as I've been at Vox, I've noticed that a lot of the articles and people who help others expect the new people at Vox to be familiar with everything blogging has to offer. Unfortunately, this isn't always the case. A lot of new Vox members are often unfamiliar with what blogging is and how it can be used as a networking tool. They sign up for an account but then never return because no one explains to them what they can do to get their blog "out there." Bloggers not only want to write, but they want to meet people and share their thoughts with them. Because of new members' lack of networking know-how, I decided to create a description on how people can get to know the ropes of Vox for networking uses, whether it be for social or business reasons. Some of the results can be seen here:
Here are little pieces of my project. The entire technical description was several pages long, but as long as it took to create, I found that I really had fun when I wrote this. I'm a huge fan of screen shots and creating tutorials for helping people, so I guess that's why this project didn't seem as painful as some of the other ones I've had to do. Plus, I was able to focus on a topic that I love: blogging!
I'm currently working on an article that involves many Voxers and their thoughts on blogging. The article is for my Creative Nonfiction for Publication class. I'm thinking about posting it here once I have it completed (which should be sometime later this week).
Mapling it up with gaming. So after my long days of work, work, work, I realized that I needed some sort of release. I resorted to one of my on and off obsessions: Maple Story. I decided to pick up where I left off with my very first character, Minkka. Instead of going out every weekend, I've been sitting in my cozy apartment, zoning out by playing MS and finally leveling Minkka to 50. *grin* I couldn't be happier with her level right now. MS is great for not only relaxing, but for socializing as well. A lot of my old online friends started to slowly come back to the game, and I've been able to get a lot of energy out just by chatting with them through the game.
... And when I "socialize" on MS, that also means that I'm spending money on making my character super kawaii. I hate to admit it but I've spent a good chunk of change on Minkka-- her appearance, her accessories, and her pet(s). This last round of playing has resulted in a lot more clothes for Minkka. (I decided to go pink this time.) Her outfit includes: the Starry Pink Beanie, the Pink Sunglasses, the Pink Camo Hoodie, the Brown Plaid Pants, the Pink Ogg Boots, the Heart Tattoo Gloves, the Bunny Doll Cape, and the Seal Pillow Weapon.
The above screen shot shows Minkka in action: kicking some Master Chronos ass by using her Holy Arrow power.
My month. November has been a long month. The main thought that's keeping me going at this point is the middle of December-- when all of my classes end and some of the stress is gone. I'm so pumped for the holidays and my birthday right now. As much as I hate to admit it, I love this time of the year.
Happy birthday, Yukimo! I've been thinking that over and over now for the past few days. I know that the "anniversary" of Yukimo joining my little family is coming up in early November, but then I started realizing that her actual birthday has probably already happened. After all, she was already a few weeks old when I bought her last year.
I don't think I've ever shared the small story of how Yuki came to be in my family, so I thought it would be appropriate to share it on her first birthday. *snuggles Yukimo*
This time last year was a bit rough for me as far as friendships go. Beth and I had always been close, but she had recently fallen into a complicated relationship with a guy. The relationship between the two dramatically hurt what Beth and I had, so the only real person I could turn to was Shawn. One of the ways he helped me was supporting my decision to get a hamster. Since my apartment (at the time) didn't allow cats, I thought a hamster would be the friend I really needed when Beth wasn't around.
One cold night last November, Shawn and I drove back to a pet store near his house. (We wanted to go to a place with a wide selection of hamsters to choose from.) I had made sure to clean my entire apartment, including the table where the new hammy's cage would go, before we left. I had hamsters when I was little and remembered how sensitive they were to germs and small spaces. I wanted to make sure my new hammy would be completely healthy and comfortable in her new home.
Shawn and I spent quite a while in the "rodent room" looking at all the hamsters. I started off browsing the regular-sized hamsters. I hadn't planned on considering a dwarf hamster. Shawn, however, was already a little freaked out by the size of hamsters but for some reason wanted me to consider getting a dwarf instead. I figured that since Shawn and I had decided on getting a hamster together, I would make sure that he was as equally happy with our sweetie as I was.
I went over to the two or three cages with the dwarf hammies and found two that I was drawn to. I was either going to get a grey and white boy or an all white girl. Ironically enough, I found that I wanted to get the all white girl, even though I told Shawn that I didn't want a hammy that was all white right before we went into the pet store. I never really liked all white rodents for some reason. This hamster was different though, so I had the pet store employee come over and "wrap her up" for me to take home!
The thing about dwarf hamsters is that their life spans are short; they usually only live to be one to one and a half years old. My goal for my hamster was for her to live to be at least one year old. I wanted to prove to myself that I could take care of a pet on my own (with a little help from Shawn) and help her live a happy life. Now that Yukimo is a year old, I really feel like I've helped make her time with me special. After all, Yukimo is special to me in so many ways. And even though I've fulfilled my dream of having a cat (or two), I still find that Yuki and I share a strong connection. At times, I've even put Yukimo's health and happiness before my own. (An example of this would be keeping my apartment's temperature at 60 degrees while Beth and I freeze. Yuki absolutely loves the cold air!)
I really wanted to share Yukimo with the rest of the world. She's affected my life in so many ways... So here she is, at age one, exploring the vast world in front of her. I have to admit-- she has never looked so fluffy, white and happy before, tee hee. She even starts wiggling around at one point. o___O (I narrate during most of the video by giving tidbits of information about Yuki.)