Time for new resolutions

Today I went to see The Social Network.  When I first saw the previews for it, several months ago, I thought there is no way in hell I will ever see this movie.  Well, then the reviews came out, and then I got bored, so... yeah.  Great film.  They didn't sugar coat the facebook king, or any of the other characters.  It was very well done.  I will actually go so far as to say it was inspiring.

Now, onto an update of my life.  Ups, downs, and current status.

Towards the end of September I ended a relationship that had lasted over a year and a half.  Not out of spite, or hate, or any amount of distrust - but out of a need for self discovery and self sufficiency.  The man I was with was, and is, a very good guy.  It was the single hardest thing I've ever gone through.

As luck would have it - a friend was subletting his apartment (as described in an earlier post).  So I had somewhere to move.  Fantastic.  I had thought my new Droid X's mobile hot spot had unlimited usage, so I had internet.  I was, however, mistaken.  Now I owe Verizon somewhere in the $800 range.  I tried to get a pardon, as their site displays data usage of that type very poorly, but no dice.  Luckily, it is Verizon, and they have great customer service, so I've worked out a reimbursement plan with them.

I've had moments of doubt, of sadness, feeling that perhaps I can't make it on my own.  That I would become another late twenty something living with their parents indefinitely.  And then I began looking around me.  Opening my eyes.  I am not alone.  I am not the only one in my age range going through this nightmare.  My mother actually acknowledged the fact that our generation has it harder than hers.  By a lot.  When my parents were young the future looked bright.  America was a superpower.  Sure, there were issues, and peace rallies, and poorly fought occupancies like Vietnam, but they still knew they would be able to find jobs, get married, raise a family, and retire at a reasonable age.

We can't do that... and we have to quit whining about that fact, and accept it.  No one, on either side of the aisle, is going to fix the economy before we're all too old for it to matter.  Accept that finding a job is hard.  I am thankful every day for the fact I have a job at all, especially a job I love.  Accept that we live in a society where your skills will expire.  If you work in any industry related to technology (which is most now), that technology will advance and change quickly, and you must advance and change as well.

In our parents generation if you didn't improve your skills, you simply stayed at the same job level.  In todays world, if you don't improve your skills, your job will eventually no longer be needed, as those with better skills will program you out of necessity.

Any person of my generation who believes that their career is exempt from this is a fool.  Everything is affected by newer tech - not just IT companies.  From farming to health care.

It's not longer keep up or get left behind, it's keep up or get in line for unemployment.


...this was not the blog entry I had intended to write at ALL.

Resolutions.
I wanted to share my resolutions for 2011.

First, the big ones:

1. Beat Pre-diabetes.  If I lose weight in the process, great, but that's not what I'm going for.  Every time I go home I see my diabetic Grandma more and more disabled.   Less and less able to move her fingers, because they're so swollen from being so diabetic.  I don't want to become that.
2. Learn Java.  Big time.  I've gotten pretty adept with CSS over the last couple months, I'd like to add an OOP to my skill set.  Now that I'm about to have a more stable life (signing a 12 month lease on Tuesday) I think I will actually be able to focus enough to be successful at this.
3. Have my apartment decorated the exact way I want by the middle of the year.  Hopefully the money I save from cooking at home can go towards this.
4. Get some of my debt paid off.  Set up a payment plan with Credibility (formerly CCCS) in the first quarter of the year.

Now the smaller ones:

1. Learn to play the ukulele.
2. Get back into photography using models.  Like, the living breathing human type, not plastic air planes or something.
3. Move my dog, Edward, in with me.
4. Quit biting my nails (cuticles, fingers, etc).  Especially in public... >_<
5. Expand my cooking abilities

Well, I'm bored of writing now.

Till next time... :-P

...

...well that didn't last long... :-)

Anti-faux-sugars - Day 1

Today I'm going to start removing faux sugars (plus cream/half & half in my coffee) from my life.

One of three things will happen:
1.) I will fail
2.) I will just quit drinking coffee and soda all together
3.) I will succeed and making myself like coffee with Sugar in the Raw

10 minutes in... so far so good :-)

New Apartment Ideas

I've had a lot of changes in my life as of late, one of which has been my living situation.  I recently began subletting a friends apartment.  The lease is up in December, so I have until then to completely plan out my new apartment (at which I will be for several foreseeable years), and save money to make it awesome.  For now the plan is a one bedroom apartment, all my decor plans are going on that track.

My current paint idea is to paint all the walls white.  When I was growing up, the color of the walls was constantly changing.  Not because we moved around a lot, but because my Mother is a lunatic and can't stand for the house to look the same for over two months at a time.  So a stable color like pure white seems appealing to me.  It's such a good surface to build off of by adding art and accents.

So, bearing that in mind, here are the rest of my plans so far:

• The Living Room - Inspiration: River 
• No sofa - going to decorate the living room with river rock pillows that I plan on making myself (with the assistance of my mother.  Ok, with the assistance of my mother's sewing machine).  I plan on potentially buying two adult sized bean bags and covering them with a rock like material, possibly in multiple colors and prints.  The rest of the "rocks" will be various shapes and sizes of my choosing.
• On the floor I'm going to have a rug that somehow represents water.  Maybe something like this.
• On the walls I'd like to mount either wall-fountains or mount small shelves to place wall fountains.  From what I've seen online there isn't much out there that fits exactly what I want, so if I find something I'll be sure to update this post with a link.
• Ideally I would like to have a TV stand from somewhere like Ikea, but I may buy one at Goodwill and refurbish it.  My only requirement is to be able to hide the TV somehow (sliding doors, cabinets, whatever).  This could, of course, be avoided if I can manage to afford a flat panel TV sometime in the near future (that, however, is extremely unlikely).
• Beneath the wall fountains I want two large fern or small tree-like plants that are easy to maintain.  I have a brown thumb and keeping plants alive has always been a problem for me.  I am considering getting very well made fakes.
• I am considering using a high gloss white to paint a large tree on a one wall (assuming I have a full wall other than the one the TV is in front of)
• The Bedroom - Inspiration: Purity & Comfort (I know what you're thinking, "You and purity in the same sentence?" but just hear me out).
• I want this bed frame, along with white net-like draperies hanging off the top frame, along with window curtains to match.
• All white, high thread count, bed linens. Obviously I would buy new giant fluffy pillows, as all of my current ones are flat and uncomfortable.
• Any furniture, aside from the bed frame, has to be natural wood grain, or painted white.  No fakes.
• I'd like to decorate my walls with large prints (possibly on canvas) of some of my nature photography.  Perhaps this series of photos.
• On the nightstands I'd like floating lotus blossoms in square glass vases.  
• Instead of table or floor lamps, I'd like wall mounted ones on either side of the bed.
• There will be NO TV in my bedroom.  
• I imagine I'll eventually have a chest of some type at the foot of the bed.  
• The Kitchen - Inspiration: TBA
• I can't really plan my kitchen until I know what the appliances will look like and what shape it will be.  This will be something I come up with once I have chosen my apartment and know exactly which unit I will be moving into.
• The dining room will most likely be a mix of the kitchen and the living room - as all of the apartments I've looked at have dining areas that flow into one or the other.
• The Bathroom - Inspiration: Gaudy Faux Royalty
• Everything will be deep blues and purples.  
• I will buy all new towels (ones that actually MATCH *gasp*).  This time around they will be luxurious and soft.  This is something I will drop a good amount of money on.  Can't DIY good towels.
• The shower curtain will have to be something dark and/or satin-like. 
• I'd also like to have a small bench (we used to have one when I lived with my family, it came in handy quite a bit).  Goodwill most likely has something I can refurbish.

Obviously, I have a lot of grand ideas that probably seem very costly.  90% of the items I have listed, however, I can DIY.  I will post tutorials on all my DIY projects here.  From rock pillows to lamps. :-)

The other plan I have is to get a small dog to match the walls.  Maybe a Maltese, American Eskimo Dog, or Westie.  I grew up with a Westie named Daisy.  She was the best dog in the world.  Of course, I'd like to move Edward in first cause she's my No. 1 baby.  I'd just like her to have a little friend to play with while I'm in class or at work.

Dalek Costume Tutorial (and regrets)

This entry is going to be a tutorial on my Dalek costume I wore to DragonCon. After the tutorial I will go over some things I want to change for next year - things I learned worked and didn't work - and things that could just be easier.

Materials needed:

• a pattern - something like below, for a skirt or dress
• any material that looks like rubber - if you can afford it vinyl will do - I ended up getting a cheap "chalkboard" type material (apparently it's supposed to be drawn on with chalk) that saved me a lot of money over vinyl.
• Dalek colored material.  I probably spent more time in the fabric store choosing the perfect blue match to the new Dalek I was impersonating.  Make sure to go with a material that can be sewn.  Anything thin or stretchy will probably feather and fall apart.

• A small plunger.  Due to time restraints I could not obtain a black small plunger.  The only one I could find was gigantic.
• Shiny silver paint
• A threaded metal dowel 
• Some metal and rubber pieces
• A paint roller

Materials not pictured above:

• black satin or flat made for plastics spray paint
• plastic craft Christmas Ornaments
• a hula hoop
• black poster board

The Dalek Costume Creation in the Forrester household:

• Follow the pattern according to your size - the length down to a few inches below the knee. Make the top with the black "rubber" material.  
• I'm not entirely sure how she did it, but my aunt sewed a gap for the hoola hoop into the bottom of the skirt.  Directly under that, she added the black material to floor length
• Create six panels to go around the waist, but do not attach them yet.

• For the bumpers, go to Hobby Lobby and buy (most likely their entire supply) plastic christmas craft ornaments.  They're usually bought at Christmas to make ornaments with scenery inside. (They come in halves, one half has as plastic hoop bit on top.  VERY CAREFULLY cut this piece off) 

• You will need 24 halves total.  I suggest getting a lot of newspaper, and laying them out on on it on your porch or driveway or whatever you've got.  They will need several coats.  Use quick strokes, and be sure not to layer wet paint too much.  

• Once they're all dry, use one (or all) to trace circles around the black poster board.  One regular sized poster board should be enough.  Then cut out each circle.  These circles will be glued to the back of the halves with E6000 - use the same glue to glue the circles to the panels (4 on each panel)


• Note: Hot Glue will NOT hold.  E6000 or a super glue like it is the only thing that will work, unless you want to sew the poster board to the panels

• Once complete, sew the panels to a "belt" of the color material, which will be sewn on to the skirt part of the dress.
• We used buttons to close the back of the dress - but I have several thoughts on better plans for this portion I will talk about later

The Plunger & The Whisk

• The "whisk" is made with a paint roller.  The roller and handle are all you'll need.  The bendy metal part holding them together is not needed and can be discarded.  You will probably need a clamp, a hammer, and a strong person (like my Dad, for example) to help take it apart.  Some of the metal on the roller may pop out, but this can easily be fixed with some E6000.

• Spray paint the handle with the remaining black paint.
• Spray the roller with silver paint, this too will require a few coats
• Using a bit the same width as the metal threaded dowel, thread the end of the roller and handle
• Screw the dowel into the roller, and add some glue to the top to keep it sturdy.
• Screw the handle on as far as you feel is a comfortable length. Add some glue here as well to keep it sturdy.
• Use the round rubber/foam pieces to create the circles in the center of the whisk

• For the plunger it's very simple.  If the plunger part is black, great! If not, spray paint it.  Use the silver spray paint to paint the handle.  Assemble.


• Note: Do NOT plunge the plunger once it's painted.  This will chip all the paint off and it will look really awkward when painted again.

The Results

Things I will change for next year:

• The top will be either a corset or waist cincher.  Either way - it needs to be lace up, because if you lose even a little bit of weight after creating this costume, it will be a little too big (I had boob escapage paranoia the whole weekend)
• I would like to find a much smaller plunger, and remake the whisk part.  They will both be attached to some sort of wrist apparatus, holding them to the tops of my forearms.  It will take some time, but it's worth it to have hands free.
• A pocket needs to be sewn into the skirt - somewhere under one of the front flaps.  The lack of ability to carry anything became annoying
• The skirt either needs to be a straight hoop skirt OR have a petticoat underneath (but this may be a bit warm for Dragon*Con)
• Get some of those shoes the kids have with a little roller skate at the bottom, to give more of a "floating" affect.

---


Edit: Someone in the comments asked about the headband.


It's very easy to do.  You will need a strip of the blue material (preferably sewn in a way that it won't fray), and plastic shot glasses from Party City or your local grocery store.


Use E6000 to glue the shot glasses to the head band, let it sit for a while, and you're done.


If you're really energetic and have the time, get a LED kit from Radio Shack to put small lights inside. :-)

Movies I love that everyone else thinks are absolutely retarded

As I was watching "Don't Mess With The Zohan" tonight, I realized that I like a ton of movies that the majority of my friends think are probably some of the worst movies ever made. So below is my list of the worst ones that I simply adore.

In no particular order, here are 10 of the "worst" movies I love:

1.) The 2005 Charlie & The Chocolate Factory

A lot of my friends thought this was an abomination and insult to the original film. While I did adore the original, I also loved this one. To me, they were such completely different films they could almost be put in separate genres. Also, it was nice to see Johnny Depp finally playing someone OTHER than Jack Sparrow in a post Pirates movie.

2.) Jersey Girl

Ok, ok, I know. Worst movie ever made. Kevin Smith was even disappointed in it. Blah Blah Blah. Screw you guys - this movie was effin awesome. The little girl does a scene from Sweeny Frakin Todd at the end - with blood spurts and everything! Most morbid, awesome kid character ever.

3.) 13 Going on 30

One of the many chick flicks I really love. Logically, I should love it. It's got time travel, the dance from the Thriller video, and the little geeky kid gets the girl in the end. What's not to love?

4.) Star Wars Episode III

This is probably the most controversial movie on my list. The hard core fans that I am friends with (which is way more than I am willing to admit) are split down the middle. Half loved it, half hated it, but no one is indifferent. I am - obviously - on the loved it side. Sure it's because the hottest version of Obi-wan is in this one, but that is completely beside the point.

5.) Crazy People

I am not sure how much this movie is hated. I watched it when I was younger, and it was already a bit old then. The amazing thing is how much advertising actually has gone in the direction of the "crazy" people's ideas in this film. Seriously - it's worth the spot in your netflix queue.

6.) Funny Face

My favorite movie of all time. OF ALL TIME. Seriously though, I had a big fan-crush on Audrey Hepburn when I was a kid. I've seen almost all of her movies, and this is hands down my absolute fav. Most people complain that some of the song and dance scenes are a little um... lengthy. But c'mon - it's Fred Astaire. He probably made the producers give him extra dancing time in his contract - which I can't fault him for. The man could dance circles around the idiots you see on So You Think You Can Dance.

7.) 27 Dresses

I'll admit it. I like this one cause it's girly and has a fashion show of horrifying bridesmaid dresses. There is no other excuse.

8.) K-Pax

Kevin Spacey as an alien. Fantastic fiction or plain fact? Either way, I could watch this one over and over again - despite certain friends of mine who find the acting rather less than appealing. :-P

9.) Don't Mess with The Zohan

The first time I saw this film, I nearly pissed myself laughing. Sure it's slightly racist and insensitive - but that's how America runs, people. All movies have a bit of racism, sexism, or insensitivity. If it's comedy, get over it and laugh.

10.) Made of Honor

mmmm, Doctor Shepherd and Doctor Hunt. Just wish I were in the position of the girl they battled over. Gawddamn.

Flickr Pro Account

After two years I finally got a new Flickr Pro account, and therefore have access to all my photos again! Woo!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tyz/

Enjoy.