Moving away from blogger

Well, it's been a fun run here on blogger, but I've decided to move my url to a tumblr blog.

I will still restrict this blog to "personal" posts, but I like the format of tumblr a lot more... plus, blogger stats no longer help me, as my site seems to be overrun with links from spamming eastern European websites.

So, in a few days, jessieforrester.com will be pointing to jessieforrester.tumblr.com

I will try to make it so comments can be added by non-tumblr folks.

Book Donation

I've pretty much decided to donate all of my books (that aren't regularly used) to the local library.

I recently signed up for a membership at my local library, and have realized that I haven't picked up any of the books I've already read in many months - so why let them collect dust around my house?

I realize that to a lot of my friends this is blasphemy.  They are all very attached to their books and can't imagine life without them.  I received the same static when I got rid of all of my DVD's (albeit, I've been obtaining a small collection since - thanks to MovieStop's insanely low prices).

Here are my reasons for going "paperless":

1. Time limits: If I check out a book, I have about 3 weeks to read it.  That's it.  For me, this is helpful because it forces me to actually make the time, and if the book is so boring that I don't make the time, it wasn't worth it.
2. Do Gooderness: No, that isn't a word, but I don't care.  I feel good about donating the books I have, as I like to believe that I have awesome taste, which needs to be inflicted upon the rest of society.  Some of the books I will be donating will include The Art of Seduction, Eldest on hardback, The Life & Letters of Tofu Roshi, and Good Omens.
3. E-books:  When college starts I plan on getting some sort of e-reader (suggestions would be helpful, I'd like to avoid the Ipad if possible).  So the need for books in general will go away.  Sure, I'd still rather read an actual book, but again, that's what the library is for.
4. Space: The shelf my books currently inhabit would be perfect for displaying certain objects that I can't bring myself to donate/toss (e.g. - The hourglass I inherited from my Grandmother, my MVP trophy from work).  The lower shelves could be used for kitten play areas (not that they aren't already...)
5. Embarrassment: Owning no books means that while I can tell people (as I often do) "Oh my god! You need to read this!" I cannot in turn bring it to work, hand it to them, and then be struck by disappointment when it just sits on their desk for months on end, unopened, not taken home, and definitely not read.  Only to leave me feeling stupid and embarrassed, and taking it back while they're absent one day.  Not that any of that has ever happened before...
6. Financial: I won't be tempted to buy books, because I make a point of not owning them.

I think the days of judging someone based on how many books they have is over.  It is a ridiculous statement to begin with.  We have libraries, e-readers, and the entire internet - books are no longer a necessity, and owning or not owning a certain amount does not - and should not - define you.

Just as my choice to become minimalist does not define me - but it makes me a better person.

Why am I getting so many visits from Ukraine?

Looking at my stats on blogger I've gotten tons of visits over the last week or two from the Ukraine, from several different .ru sites.

Can anyone shed some light on this phenomena? At this rate they'll overcome my visits from the US and UK combined!  Should I start learning Russian?

The Minimalist Bandwagon, Kittens, and Laundry

For a while now I seem to have slowly fallen off of the Minimalist bandwagon.

I was so gung ho at the beginning of the year, but then life happened and I just lost track.

My apartment isn't exactly a mess, but it's not as orderly as it was... and I really seem to have accumulated a lot of things that don't have homes.

Part of this misstep is the fact I adopted two kittens - Eleven & Riversong.  They're wonderful and adorable and act like their namesakes from Doctor Who:

However, being cats, they're rather messy.  They either haven't completely grasped the litter box concept yet, or if they don't get their way, they go to the bathroom behind a sofa.  I try to remind myself that animals don't feel the need for vengeance, and they're not doing it to be mean, but sometimes it's hard to believe otherwise.  I am currently trying to find a better system or location for their litter box, because it seems as if my bathroom floor is always covered in bits of litter.

I have taken a step in tackling my problems with laundry.  After the epic closet clean out earlier this year, I have managed to keep from accumulating a ridiculous amount of new clothes.  However, I am still absolutely terrible at keeping up with laundry, since I do not own a washer & dryer.  I had been going to my parents every other weekend and using their equipment, but between the drive & cost of water/electricity for them, it was becoming a rather cumbersome task... and then I found Marietta Coin Laundry.  They are less than 4 miles from my apartment, and have a "Wash & Fold" service.  On average I have about 20lbs of laundry every two weeks.  I took everything to them last Sunday around noon, and for less than $15 everything was washed, dried, and ready for me by 3pm.  It was fantastic!  While it may cost more in the long run in actual dollars, the time and annoyance it saves me is completely worth it.  The only down side is that they do not take credit/debit, but I should be carrying cash on me more often anyways, as it forces me to pay more attention to my budget.

Time to start planning for DragonCon

As we all know, Dragon*Con is right around the corner! (EEEK!)  Here are some of my plans!

The Dalek Costume

Sure, it's only June, but I have a lot of work to do on the Dalek costume.

Last year's costume:

Dalek Costume Changes:

• Reattach / Re-secure bumpers that have popped off when I was moving to the new apartment
• Turn bottom half into a skirt
• Purchase a corset top in either black, blue, or both
• Buy a pair of Heelys (maybe)
• Lose weight (the most important part, lol)

The Kaylee Costume

My other costume, for days I feel like being a bit more relaxed, is Kaylee from Firefly.  I threw together a costume for an event a couple weeks ago, and while it's ok, I'd like to re-do it for D*con.  Here's a pic:

Changes for the Kaylee costume:

• Buy a new jumper - in green or brown.
• Use jumper to work on cars :D
• Remove patches from current jumper, add to new one
• Get a better matching shirt, preferably one a bit more breathable (this one was sweltering, and it's not gonna be much cooler out by September in Georgia).

A few other details.

Depending on savings, I will be staying with my buddy Jeffrey in Atlanta this year.  He only lives a couple blocks from the con, and this is the view from his apartment:

So yeah, it's win-win.  There is still a possibility I'll be staying with a couple friends in the Marriott, but we'll see.  It really all depends on everyone's cash flow, and I still haven't bought my actual tickets for the con.

I know I haven't posted a lot lately...

..but I've developed a tumblr addiction.  You can see it here:

http://tronthedaywalker.tumblr.com

Savannah/Tybee Island Trip - Day 1

Mom and I arrived in Savannah this afternoon at about 2:30pm.  We found out we could not, in fact, check in to our hotel until after 4pm, so we went to visit Tybee Island.

The beach was packed, and we weren't really dressed for it, so we went shopping at some of the kitschy places further inland.  I ended up buying a fair trade coin purse made from coconuts in Bali.  It was only $4, and the cuteness is amazing.

A highly rated place was called "The Crab Shack".  It's a tourist trap, they have alligators (very small ones), an exotic bird building, and their main reason for existing: a restaurant.

Well... after being seated, we made the horrible assumption that someone would be by in a timely manner for our drink orders.  5 minutes passed, 10 minutes passed.  I tried to flag down a waitress to no avail.  A group of 4 sat down behind us and were immediately served... so finally, we left.  Informed the servers and they just looked at us, mouths gaping open, saying nothing.  It was very bizarre.  I think that may have just been how they looked.  A permanent "duuuuuuuuuuuuh" face.

The next place we found - called Bubba's something or other - wasn't quite as bad.  We did eventually get food.  However, the running away from us whenever we tried to get assistance was still prevalent.

Oh well, it will not affect the rest of my vacation!  Tomorrow Mama and I are going shopping in Savannah, followed by Kayaking in the afternoon. Super super excited.  I've never been Kayaking.  Looking for good photo ops.  Tomorrow's review will include pictures :-)