Noam Chomsky's AMA.

Reddit just posted their AMA (ask me anything) of Noam Chomsky. I'm 8 minutes in but I'm really tired since I haven't gone to bed yet as I was doing my linguistics homework. Crazy coincidence. Anyway, I'm going to have to finish it later. I hope it's awesome! 

blah.

Sometimes I just feel really tired and burned out on life. That's when I make things or scour the internet for things to cheer me up, or both. So tonight I'm going to make a card or two and listen to a new playlist. Yay for music! 

Purchase the art in this photo here. 

Regretsy.

Umm what the hell is this other than super creepy? Pretty sure these manillows make me want to vomit. 

Thanks to my friend Angela I just wasted an hour of my life at Regretsy. I did laugh a lot though, the author kind of reminds me of myself. We both possess the ranting gene. 

Etsy has some wonderfully talented artists and crafts people who make really cool stuff but there is a lot of crap on etsy too. I mean, really bad pieces of crap I would never spend any kind of money on whether it be real or monopoly. This site compiles and makes fun of all the crappy crafts on Etsy that people are actually trying to sell. I love it! 

Frida.

Last night I called my mom with news that I had gotten a new tattoo, "Mom, you're going to freak out. It's an anatomically correct heart with the word mom over the top of it but it has a zig zag line down the middle breaking it in half. It's intense." "*groan* Why did you do that?" This is when I started laughing and gave away that I didn't actually get a mom heart. I did however get a new tattoo of Frida Kahlo. I think she is amazing and I really admire her and the passion with which she confronted life. I have to go back to get it touched up but as always Steve did an amazing job!

I have several tattoos but this is my first that is visible to other people on a regular basis. All of the rest are hidden under clothes. For a long time I had a very strict "no visible tattoos" policy as I wanted to be a teacher and I didn't want tattoos hindering my chance of getting a job. I've thought about getting this particular tattoo in this location for over three years and in the end decided to do it because I knew I would love it and it would make me happy. I still have some reservations about how it will affect future job searches but it's not exactly so far down my arm that a nice little cardigan or suit jacket won't cover it. Also, it's tasteful unlike the cover up of a "Fuck Tibet" tattoo Kay was doing for a guy while I was there. Idiot. 

This picture was taken with my cell phone as I have yet again misplaced the cord that connects my camera to my computer. If and when I find it I may post better pictures. 

Tattoo work done by Steve Fuller at South Side Tattoo in Ashland, Oregon. 

Bookstore.

I'm still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. I really have no idea but I'm sure it involves words and books, maybe something a little creative as well. It absolutely has to be something I'm passionate about. Lately I've felt like I'm floundering, just kind of floating, not overly excited about anything that's going on in my life. Yesterday I made a list of what I want to do in life (I'm a big fan of the to do lists) and I found that I want to live in another country and own a bookstore, although not at the same time. I'm pretty convinced this bookstore idea is awesome. Now to just finish my degree and then talk to my sister about a business plan. Good thing I have a couple years. 

Bonus: I can wear cardigans at my bookstore. 

Oh, and what should I name my hypothetical bookstore?

A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.

This book was suggested to me by a friend and I just finished it today. It's the memoir of the author, Dave Eggers, and is the story of how his parents both died of cancer and he took care of his younger brother. He wants his brother to be well adjusted and therefore meticulously analyzes every single thing he and his brother do and how it may affect his brother in the long run. At first I really fell into it and couldn't put it down but three quarters of the way in I put it down and didn't pick it back up for quite some time. The book is insane, annoying, interesting and quite wonderful all at once. The author has these fake conversations with his friends and brother which are actually internal conversations where he is more honest and self critical than he is anywhere else in the book, otherwise he's obnoxious and infuriating. I found that skipping over some of his long passages that made me want to bash my head into a wall was very beneficial to my enjoyment of reading this. After finishing the book I felt exhausted but also like I had just read something brilliant. I would definitely recommend it but not if you're looking for a book of fairies and rainbows or an easy read.  

Also, the fact that "staggering" means both amazing and stumbling really works for this book.  

Straight or Curly?

How about short? I decided instead of spending 6 hours and $200+ I would just chop it all off and donate it to Locks of Love which turns it into wigs for children with cancer. So I said adios to 20 inches of hair and got this super cute hairdo. Do you have 10 inches of extra hair you don't want? Donate it!

Victory!

It sure as hell waits on someone's finger. Crackhead bitch has been evicted. Too bad it was only partially to do with my incessant nagging and mostly had to do with her sticky fingers. Seriously, thanks for stealing my favorite diamond ring, glad I had that thing insured. I'm sure my dad is super stoked you stole his ring too, it's not like he didn't have it forever. I hope you got a lot of meth in exchange for all of those diamonds. I also hope you overdose. Cheers! 

Dress Code Bullshit.

So about a month ago my wonderful workplace let everyone know that they are changing the dress code to no cardigans. What the fuck is that? Cardigans comprise 90% of my wardrobe. I was super pissed that I was now going to have to go buy all new clothes because I was going to be spending my own money on shit I don't even like or want. So, I've decided that perhaps I should be super obnoxious and buy crazy hideous jackets like the ones pictured above. They're *technically* considered dress code. FU corporate. 

Lady Gaga feat. Beyonce.

My friend Sarah and I went to Portland last week for a little shopping trip. I drove up to Eugene where I met up with her and then we took her car to Portland. I grabbed my ipod but her car doesn't have an auxiliary input which I thought was weird because her car is a 2007, the same year as mine. Oh well, we just listened to her c.d.s instead which got me hooked on this Lady Gaga song. It cracks me up and makes me want to dance all at once. 

I'm a Terrible Person.

So one of the many joys in my life is when I am on facebook and run across the profile of somebody that I couldn't stand in high school to see that they are now really fat and ugly. It's probably bad karma to be so excited but I don't really care. It makes my day every single time! 

Axe Cop Again.

I'm still in love with this comic. Eef made this fake movie trailer for his comic and some people in Hollywood have contacted him about making an actual movie. Please view this video to help him out, it's really short and completely awesome. 

Comfy Comforter.

I got this reversible comforter at Macy's the other day. I have a down comforter that I love and several duvet covers that are really cute from IKEA but I haven't been to IKEA in years and it was time for something new. The only thing is that the pillowcases are too small for my pillows but I stuffed them in there anyway. Damn pillows had better bend to my will!

There was another one that was really cute as well and I was having trouble deciding between the two so I picture messaged them to Jennie and she knew just which one I needed. I'm glad I went with her advice. The other comforter had a flowery vine design and was a beige/light blue color combination which was calming but not exactly my personality. It was very pretty but too boring for me. Thanks for your help Jennie Lynn!

Books Without Shelves.

I realized today while glancing around my room that perhaps it's time to lug my bookcase up the stairs. I have stacks of books everywhere. On the couch, next to the couch, under the couch. On the bed, next to the bed, under the bed. They've taken over my room and multiplied. 
Now that I think about it I should probably just buy a new bookcase. I'm pretty sure the one downstairs is already full to overflowing.
Anybody want to borrow a book? Brooke? I'll mail them to you but you must promise to return them eventually. 

Valentines Schmalentines.

Remember in elementary school when we used to exchange Disney movie valentines with suckers attached and you would spend hours deciding who would receive which design because some were obviously so much cooler than others? Well screw that, I got people big chunks of dead animal this year. I'm pretty sure this is the way to most men's hearts, exactly this. 

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Chinese New Year starts in a little less than 3 hours and it's the year of the TIGER! Woot! It's my year people. We had Chinese New Year dinner last night at the crappy Asian place that some guy died at last week while waiting in line for the buffet. I'm currently celebrating by drinking a beer and writing a paper. I do it up right. Anyway, I did some googling and here's a little picture of the tiger for you:

People born in 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998 and 2010 are “tigers.” Tigers are active, self-assured, optimistic, passionate and independent. They also are considered rebellious, dynamic, unpredictable and quick-tempered, but considerate. The Tiger is a natural born leader and symbolizes power, passion and daring. 

What's with the, "but considerate" I find that really irritating because it implies that being rebellious, dynamic, unpredictable and quick-tempered are all bad qualities, which in my opinion, they aren't. 

Oh, it's also Valentines day tomorrow which is in no way as cool as Chinese New Year. 

Sleep.

I suck at falling asleep. I'm always too stimulated and my mind is racing (damn you, Reddit) and I will be up until 4 or 5 in the morning and then have to be at work at 9:30. It's terrible because then I have to take naps on my lunch breaks. Lunch breaks should be for lunching. Anyway, a friend suggested I try Melatonin. I researched it extensively through wikipedia so what I read was probably roughly 80% correct and I decided to try it. I used it last night for the first time and I started feeling tired about half an hour after taking it. I went to bed at 12:30 rather than 4:30 but instead of sleeping until a decent hour I woke up at 6 and couldn't fall back asleep. What the hell is that? Tonight is night #2, we'll see how it goes. 

I'm sick.

I'm sick. Yes, kind of in the head. Really though it's more in the face. I'm sick in the face. :(

clarification: this is not jammed up my nose, it's taped on. It's the kleenex version of a clown nose, obviously. 

Morons.

This is the note I left tonight for the idiot lady that lives at my house. So my dad and I lived all by ourselves, enjoying life and the barrier these walls provide against society. One day, one of his crackhead employees got into an argument with her roommates so my dad let her rent a room here since we have plenty of them. I was not thrilled with this idea because I don't like people and I especially dislike crackheads. She doesn't pay rent, she's supposed to keep the house clean or something. She's not supposed to use my bathroom but she does, as evidenced by the empty toilet paper roll she left me tonight and the fact that she uses my shampoo and adds water to the bottle, like I wouldn't fucking notice. While not paying rent she also decided that she's too much of a bitch to contribute to the purchase of any household items. So not only does she leave empty toilet paper rolls on the toilet paper dispenser, she also uses the toilet paper that I paid for, the laundry detergent that I paid for, the garbage bags that I paid for and my fucking $25 shampoo that, hey guess what, I paid for. First thing in the morning I'm launching a "crackhead bitch needs to be evicted asap" campaign. My poor father. 

Crafty McCrafterson.

Woot! All that crap is finally unpacked and in its rightful place. It's very similar to the setup I had at my apartment but now everything is within reach, no getting up to go get paper or stamps. That could be good or bad; hello fat ass! I love my craft area because it contains many of my favorite things, my wooden tulip, my Salvation Army owls, my picture board that I made, a place to create things and apparently my kitteh. 

First Card I've Made in Months...

I finally finished unpacking and organizing all of my crafting things today. In honor of that I made a card (plus it's my friend's birthday next week). Anyway, it's just a "paper and ribbon" card as my sister would call it; nothing crazy, fast and easy. But hey, it works. There are some imperfections, one of which really annoys the crap out of me but there wasn't any way to fix it so it had to stay. Oh well, that's what makes it handmade awesomeness. Oh, and I love the cassette paper. 

Attn: Brooke

Vogue patterns were on sale at the fabric store the other day and even though I don't sew, I bought some because I have a sister who sews. Now, the one I want first is the green one, it doesn't have to be green though, details can be worked out. Thanks, love you! 

Etsy, yet again.

I bought this on etsy today. I couldn't not have it any longer. I'm so excited for it to get here, the artist lives in France so it'll be a little longer wait than I want but I suppose I'll live. 

Axe Cop

Back in high school there was a local band who rocked called Lunar Active. They were nice guys and had basically the only live shows around, they comprised the entire local music scene. One of them, Eef (Ethan) is a very talented artist. He wrote an Eisner Award nominated graphic novel called Chumble Spuzz. 

Lately Eef has been, in his free time, drawing the ideas of his little brother Malachai, who is 5 years old. Malachai's story turned into Axe Cop which Eef has been posting periodically on his facebook page but today it went viral. It was featured on Reddit yesterday and Entertainment Weekly today. His website crashed from so many people visiting it but all the issues have been worked out. 

Everyone should check out Axe Cop as it is really fun and completely hilarious and awesome. I mean, with characters like Uni-Baby (a baby with a magical unicorn horn) and Bobber and Gobber Smartist (they eat only candy canes) how could you go wrong?! 

Alright, it's that time of year...

      

It's hair time people, decisions need to be made. In January I decide if I'm going to have curly or straight hair the rest of the year. I've had curly for two years now. I love it curly, hair flowers stay in it really well and I just like the look of curls. That being said, I think really long straight hair looks very healthy (unless you dye it crackhead blonde). So, thoughts? 

*I know this is shallow and vain, I don't care. I want your opinions now. 

Geology

I fucking hate Geology. So, I completed all of SOU's science requirements, all of them. I thought I was forever done with science but here I am, taking freakin' Geology because OSU has an additional requirement. It was either Geology or some soil class, pretty much the same thing, imo. Anyway, Geology class wouldn't be so bad if the labs didn't take 4 hours each. Seriously lady, this is a basic 100 level class, the kids enrolled at the actual school don't even show up to your class so what is up with all of the homework?! Oh, and I have to get a proctor so I can't even use the books on the tests which means I have to actually memorize this crap that I'm never going to use. My uncle is a Geologist, it blows my mind but to each his own. :)

my sister

This is my dear, sweet, beautiful sister. It's not her birthday or anything but for some reason I'm thinking about her right now. She is six or so years older than I am and we didn't really grow up together. I remember thinking when I was younger that we didn't have anything in common and it never really hit me that I had a sister. I mean, I knew I had a sister but not in the way that I had a little brother. Then in my teens when she would come home for holidays it was a little eerie that we would have some of the same clothes but we still didn't have anything to bond over. Once she even accused me of wearing her belt when in fact I was wearing my own, we just had the same one but had no idea since we lived so far away from each other. It's funny how you can have so much in common with someone you barely know, and yet still be so different even though you share a biological background. Anyway, the last few years have really brought us to a place where we can get to know each other, we can talk, listen, learn and appreciate each other for who we are, as sisters and as people. I have a wonderful, brilliant, vibrant sister who has an amazing heart and yet isn't too goody-goody, she still has the family bitchiness to her, which is a quality I deem necessary and greatly appreciate. I'm just really appreciative of time, that it gave us a chance to both be in a place in life where we were able to finally forge a meaningful bond. Love you Brooke! 

I heart robots.

Many moons ago I had posted about my new studio apartment and its ugly brown cabinets. I no longer live in the apartment, and haven't for about 8 months now but I still think I should share with you what I did to the cabinets, just because I loved them so much. These little robots are so cute I'm thinking I may have to get them for where I live now but the walls here are heavily textured so I'm not really sure how that'd work out. I bought them on etsy and they're vinyl decals. All you do is rub them on, very easy to apply but not as easy as they say to get off. They took a little of the varnish off the cabinets when they were peeled off so my friend Pat sanded the cabinets and re-varnished them. Yay for friends! 

Oh how I love thee, dear hair accessory.

I'm a big hair accessory aficionado. I wear flower clips in my hair almost everyday or some type of headband. My favorite headband of all time had a gigantic champagne colored flower attached to it but Scott's dog ate it. I wanted to cry. Anyway, I find beautiful hair accessories on etsy and anthro all the time but hesitate to buy them, and when I go back they've been sold. So, I should learn how to make them myself, I think. I'm not even sure where to begin. I guess sewing would be a good start. I've been wanting to learn to sew for about a year but just can't seem to find the will to begin. 

Dear Lord Jesus it's 2010

I've severely neglected my blog for over a month. I know you were all starving to death for information on my life like those poor Ethiopian kids. Life has been busy, I have things to do. Here's what I've been up to:

*School. Online classes are interesting, in both a good and bad way. I sometimes miss sitting in lecture, I also miss intelligent conversation. The people on discussion boards are morons. Rapers, really? Last I checked the correct term is rapist. Also, if I have to explain to you what Socialism is then your skills are lacking, use wikipedia dipshit, you're already online, that'll give you a clear enough idea. Overall, I'm glad that I'm doing this, it's ridiculously easy and affords me lots of time for video games and reading. 

*Anne of Green Gables. Speaking of reading, I re-read the entire Anne series by L.M. Montgomery and I still love it. Anne is such a lively little thing, I highly recommend this for any young adults, or not so young adults. 

*Work. Let's just say I love my job and I rock at it. Getting up in the morning is still difficult and I'm thoroughly convinced that it always will be but I don't dread going to work. I've had jobs that I've hated in the past for various reasons and it's so nice to be happy at work and work with people you actually enjoy spending time with. 

*Holidays. Umm, Christmas would've been nice if I hadn't slept all day from pure exhaustion. Mom made her awesome oatmeal choc. chip cookies, I only got to eat two though, they seemed to disappear before I could get my hands on them. 

I went to a New Year's Eve party at the casino here in town with some guildies. Yes, I hang out with my nerdy internet game friends. It was a really fun disco party with a live band that was actually quite good. 

Okay, I have played catch up, now my brother can stop bitching that I haven't posted since November. Love you!

p.s. Jets are in the playoffs! woot!