Yoko Chow Mein

summer closet cleanout

2011-07-02T13:31:00.003-04:00

trying to further minimize the amount of stuff in my life, i'm going through my closet and figuring out what i can get rid of, and it's come to the rather immense box of manga in my attic.
some of the stuff i can't stand to part with, and some i'm just donating to the local library, but the rest is up for grabs!
stuff i'm selling/giving away, priced to include shipping:

MANGA
Trigun max volumes 1-6 $25 for all
Kamichama karin volumes 3-5 $12 for all
Loveless volumes 1-8 $35 for all
Here is greenwood volumes 2 and 5 $10 for both
Chrono crusade volumes 1-6 $30 for all
Eerie queerie! volumes 1-4 $20 for all
Hands off! volumes 1-3 $15 for all
Imadoki! volumes 1 and 3 $10 for both
Deadman wonderland volumes 1-2 $12 for both

DVDs
AVATAR:The Last Airbender Season 1 collection $15
Azumanga Daioh vol 1-5 $35 for all box set

email me at mische@temple.edu if you are interested!

Hey, Let's Breath some life into this Just Incase Someone Actually Cares!

2011-06-02T02:09:00.005-04:00

Haikus about my
life since i last updated
this sad little blog:

Survived Freshman Year
Didn't need to cry at all
now, buckets at home.

Working Isn't Bad
So long as you're doing it
and getting paid too.

I have made big plans
on how top spend this summer:
sit and knit all day.

I feel inspired
I really hope this feeling
doesn't go to waste

Capital Letters
are severely o'errated
so i won't use them.

i now have these sites:
etsy twitter facebook here.
follow me, you guys.

Inspiration of the Day

2010-11-14T20:37:00.001-05:00

ingrid michaelson + steampunk in space? brilliant!

Inspiration of the Day

2010-11-13T00:07:00.000-05:00

this video.

College Dinner

2010-10-24T19:29:00.001-04:00

I was just kind of stunned cause between the two of them =$7.18 /7.20 that is my dinner equiv. they are quite large but still - funny how it works out.

2010-10-19T12:43:00.001-04:00

Test for Shane

Inspiration of the Day

2010-10-05T22:18:00.001-04:00

This just cracked me up. Why wouldn't spoons have more than one function?

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Nekomimi Receivers

2010-10-03T15:37:00.006-04:00

In celebration of the Autumn 2010 Anime line up, I'm putting this online, finally.
I knows I was going to do this months (years?) ago, but I finally got around to it. Super quick project, just in time for Halloween! Both the knit and crochet pattern are super customizable - want to crochet stripes or in a fuzzier yarn? Go right ahead, I'm not stopping you. Have a particular character to cosplay in mind? Adjust accordingly and feel free to ask my help with the math and such.

As per custom, knitting abbreviations here.

Knit - The Cheshire Ears

I don't like headbands; they just don't make them for people with huge heads, like myself. The great thing about these ears is that you can adjust them on your head in whatever way you find comfortable. The striping sequence is made to match the "Turn A Square" hat pattern by Jared Flood. Color changes are totally optional though - make them in your natural or current hair colors! A great project for using up itty-bitty scraps.

Gauge is inconsequential.

Materials :

· <10 yards of a worsted weight yarn in 2 colors >
· 4.25mm / size 6 dpns
· Notions: tapestry needle, scissors, the usual kit and kaboodle.
· To wear them, you'll want 4 or 6 bobby pins.

I used:

Moda Dea Washable Wool in raspberry (A) and plum (B)

Pattern (make two):

In color A, CO 20. Join in round.

Row 1: k all.

Row 2: *k5 m1 * to end. (24 stitches)

Row 3: k all.

Row 4: (Switch to color B) k all.

Row 5: Pick up first stitch of row 3, and k2tog with first stitch of row 4. k all.

Row 6: (Switch to color A) k all.

Row 7: *k 2tog, k8 ssk* twice. 20 stitches

Row 8: k all.

Row 9: (Switch to color B) *k2tog k6 ssk* twice. (16 stitches)

Row 10: k all.

Row 11: (Switch to color A) *k2tog k4 ssk* twice. (12 stitches)

Row 12: k all.

Row 13: *k2tog k2 ssk* twice. (8 stitches)

Row 14: (Switch to color B) k all.

Row 15: *k2tog ssk* twice. (4 stitches)

Weave ends for color B through the remaining 4 stitches. Tuck or weave in all color B ends

Using the ends of color A, close the ear by slip stitching the bottom seam together. Tuck or weave in ends.

As per custom, crochet abbreviations here.

Crochet version - the Natural Cat

Materials

About 50-60 yards of lion brand chenille in the colourway closest to your current/natural hair color.
4.00 mm hook
Optional - stitch markers.

Chain 3, join in round. No slip stitches between rounds.
2 sc in each chain.6 stitches. 2sc in each sc. 12 stitches. Sc in each sc.
Sc, 2 sc in next sc 5 times. 18 stitches.
Sc in each sc for two rows
2sc, sc in next 2 sc, 24.
Sc in each sc for two rows.
Sc2tog, sc in next 4 sc four times. 20 sc.
Flatten and holding the front sides together, sc 8 across the bottom, slip st. in last 2 sc.

If you find any mistakes of error, as my mother would put it, please feel free to comment or message me on Ravelry right away so I can correct them.
PDF version available as soon as I'm not buried in school work X_X

special thanks to my pattern testers: Val1ant, The youngin, The knitting cat, Mion lion, and Aayjay, all from Ravelry :)

crochet pattern photos ganked form my boyfriend's personal website :o

First First Friday!

2010-10-02T16:02:00.002-04:00

So, despite what feels like a mountain of school work, I made time yesterday to go to my first First Friday. I left my dorm around 6:30 and headed for the nearby subway station, where I ran into Kenan (a cool guy) and a bunch of people from my dorm who were also going to the same spot. We talked for a bit and I kind-of coerced Kenan into taking my crazy scarf - i had brought tit with me in hopes of eschewing it upon someone, and he was the lucky victim. Kenan and i boarded a different car - he was going to an opera - and got so wrapped up in conversation, I didn't realize - I had missed my transfer! I had to wait for a car in the other direction.

Getting off at spring-garden station, I realized, I had no fucking clue as to where I ought to be going. so i got to street level, oriented myself (I had my wisdom teeth taken out at the office right by the subway entrance) and walked all the way to the convention center, looking for a bus that might take me where i ought to be going. I ended up taking the 48 (I had bought a transfer ticket at the first subway station)and finally made it to Penn's Landing, only to realize - I could have just taken the Market-Frankford line and saved myself a dollar. :(

Nonetheless, I was there! I spent the entire evening tromping up and down 2nd street between Market and Arch. Stopped at Brave New Worlds, a truly classy comic shop I've heard nice things about. And it was nice indeed - definitely felt like a boutique, without being snotty, and still had all the necessary traipses of comic geekery.

And as for the actual art galleries:

LGTripp Gallery was showing David Foss: Exits and Entrances,
The Works by Anthony Palumbo and Thelma Grobes cuaght my eye at Artists' House Gallery, which was actually a very cramped but still well utilized space.
EPI's Artist in Residence Tomas Pineda Matus had some beautiful, culturally inspired works.

What definitely interested me most, out of all the things I saw this evening, were the street artists. There were lots of performers but also probably two dozen people just sitting out on curbs with there work on blankets and tables, hocking to the general public. and some of the stuff was absolutely beautiful - one girl, whose card i took but lost, was selling jewelry made form epoxy preserved fruit. Another guy was selling Dr. Who inspired Tshirts and other pop culture prints and whatnot. and there were plenty more just selling their work, in all sizes. it was super inspiring! I bought a cute pair of zebra-print ribbon earrings from some ladies, because I hadn't brought money for more - and it was a good thing too, because i would have bought every other piece on the street!

last but not least a stopped at some of the bookstores - the Book Trader and another whose name escapes me. The former had a very expansive collection, all used items and the whole place smelled like old paper, yum. :)

I decided to head back around 9, but walked up Market street first - past Smak Parlour, a totally high end boutique that had cute, fresh clothes that i could never afford in my lifetime, and on the next block, Artist & Craftsman, definitely the coolest and most well stocked independent art store in which I've ever set foot. It was a little more pricey than some of the small chain competitors in the area, and less convenient relative to where I am in the city, but I'll have to go back sometime and actually buy something>w<

When I finally found another subway station (5th and Market was closed for construction or some nonsense, so i had to go all the way over to 8th Street!) I did okay, but ended up waiting around half an hour at City Hall Station for a train that was never coming - There was a Flyer's game and the local line had been shut down, or something. at that point I noticed I had left the Hall, or at least thought I left the Hall, with my trusty Pokewalker, which was nowhere to be found. I was completely pissed but figured i could find a new one online.I ran into a couple people from my dorm again -Abby, Derek, and a girl whose name escapes me - who had been waiting for the same damned car too. We made it back a little after 10, and after unsuccessfullly attempting to get food at Temple's "Free Food and Fun Fridays" (they ran out of food) I went and just got food at the cafeteria. Ran into more people from Peabody there, and we had a nice chat. over our late dinner.

In the wee hours of the morning I found the Pokewalker - fell off my pants when i was tying my shoes or something before I had left earlier. It was sitting in a pile of laundry on the floor.

and I cut my hair!

Pics to come as soon as i get them uploaded.

Inspiration of the Day

2010-10-01T16:19:00.001-04:00

I hear this song occasionally and it always, always makes my eyes well up. X3

2010-08-16T21:56:00.002-04:00

Staying occupied on vacation- brush pen practice Resh

2010-07-29T10:08:00.001-04:00

This is what i'm hoping to knit while i'm out of it. I just put in a lifeline... We'll see he it comes in handy

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Inspiration of the Day

2010-07-26T16:06:00.002-04:00

since i'm leaving in a month and want to take my family's brita water tank with me, i promised to find a replacement for them to keep. since i couldn't remember the word 'tank' i went to search google images for brita stuff...

and came across these ads.
why did i never see these before? they're very stark, disturbing and highly impactful, in a minimalistic way. advertisement at its best.

2010-07-23T10:55:00.001-04:00

It's official. :)

Inspiration of the Night

2010-07-21T05:46:00.001-04:00

The sunrise through my window. i drank coffee that was too strong and didn't sleep a wink last night. but i dreamt- or perhaps i had visions, sudden inspiration for things i want to do when the sun is out. i thought to myself: today is a month since the summer solstice. what have i done these past thirty days?
I wish ideas were a body fluid- they could cut me open and drain my brain when i get bloated, and put it all in little vials for cold storage. and when the time was right i could find the ideas, all nicely bottled up, and i'd actually do something with them. but in their current state, i can't do too much: the ones i don't get around to harvesting, they slosh around in my head til they spoil and fall from recollection.
But i guess that's the purpose of writing things down.

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Doodle!

2010-07-20T16:21:00.001-04:00

I'm writing thank you notes today so this is the doodle i drew to put on the front :)

Inspiration of the Day

2010-07-19T14:44:00.000-04:00

This is a close up of my Inspiration Corner! It's a collection of my old school ID cards, business cards and promo stuff, movie tickets, and used gift cards i stole from my job >3<. Here we have two awesome little 'gifts' from my SO: a photo he took for a class, which portrays a bunch of yarny things he had(or stole) at the time, and my corsage from prom. :) is this all going to come to college with me?!¿¡?!

Inspiration of the Day which also happens to be an FO.

2010-07-17T02:32:00.001-04:00

I kind of regret this yarn, but not the typical buyer's regret- i bought it on a wednesday and had a new, next- to-skin-soft-but-surprisingly-Noro scarf on thursday evening.
The yarn is Noro Taiyo in colorway #4. while i was working on it i couldn't help but think of all the sweet summer treats the colors called to mind- neopolitan ice cream, watermelon, sasaparilla root beer on ice... and a bunch of things i can't eat right now! XD
Yes, I'm on a diet, but it's a not a weight focused diet so much as an "improving well being thru limiting very specific foods" diet. which is hard enough anyways. i hope you are all well, or at least enough so that you don't have to avoid yummy foods like me :0

Plague of Flies Cast-Off Marathon and The Internet as Your Enemy.

2010-07-16T03:21:00.001-04:00

I've been busy, lazy and increasingly nocturnal this week. On either monday or tuesday, my little sister <let's call her "Glare" cause she's good at that> got in trouble with our folks, her friends, and the nice people who run a popular social networking site. it just goes to show:actions speak louder than words, but on the internet they are one in the same. she made a remark about a friend who had been ignoring her: word got around, bans were made and parents were called. so now she's become social pariah. and my folks have assigned me to address the issue of her internet usage. to be frank i don't want to go near this whole ordeal. so let's think happy thoughts!
when i woke up tuesday morning and opened the door to the office, a dozen flies were chilling out by the window. i moved my yarn and computer out ASAP. and by the end of the day i killed at least 20, though i stopped count at 14.
and i finished all but three of my WIPS! i hibernated or frogged what was left and started anew.

Inspiration of the Day: cute dresses from CONWAY ! <3

2010-07-11T00:59:00.002-04:00

Posting after midnight for Saturday -_- it still counts...

today my dad, sister and i went to go visit a friend of my dad's who is in rehab - he fell off the roof of his house and split his pelvis wide open. moral of the story is: be careful when you're on a roof and have someone with you! it was an interesting visit; the dudes talked about old movies, bad animation from the 70's and CSI. then on our way home we stopped to investigate a sign we had seen on our way in: CONWAY.

when my mother was a student living in Manhattan, conway was her favorite store for cheap and trendy clothes. And they are dirt cheap! i work part time at a retail store that shall not be named, but the dresses at conway were so much cuter, and $10 cheaper to boot. when i went to a conway in manhattan with my family last year (we had gone to see avenue q) i got some really cute dresses from their 'out of order' line. the prints are quirky and flattering! next time you
pass a conway, be sure to check it out! :O

Finished Project: Blue Boobies

2010-07-09T23:51:00.001-04:00

A friend for a gift.... i mean a gift for a friend! the pattern is Tit Bits from Knitty, made in the B cup size with Moda Dea Washable Wool. Actually made a while ago, but i forgot to take photos before i gifted them.

Inspiration of the Day: Acquerello by Aurora Yarns with a bead tube

2010-07-09T00:17:00.001-04:00

It has been summer for quite a while now! a lot of things have gone down since i last wrote. first of all, i got a phone with a full keyboard! so i've resolved that using it to blog everyday might be good practice typing on this thing. i'll have inspirations of the day, project updates and whatever else strikes me as awesome enough to let the world know about.
right now i'm job hunting, since they're handing out significantly less hours where i'm already employed. however i need my license soon, even if i don't have a car. i failed the first test back at the begining of the month; please wish me luck this time around :).
i have a banch of things i want and need to do before i leave for school in the fall. hopefully i'll get a few done at least, and then i'll tell you all about it.
til next time!

Inspiration of the Day

2010-04-16T23:13:00.003-04:00

heard this at work and it's subsequently been stuck in my head all week.

Inspiration of the Day

2010-04-14T23:22:00.002-04:00

Yesterday's Post at Hyperbole and a Half was brilliant and grammatically sound. and angry grammarians ( Jeff Barg, any one?) are some of the most amusing individuals on the planet.

Inspiration of the Day

2010-04-05T18:14:00.003-04:00

or the most sentimental, romantic and maybe a little cheesy thing i've ever come across

picture from Fabuluster on Etsy

Inspiration of the Day

2010-03-30T19:29:00.003-04:00

or Things I want and Photoshop.

i originally saw this scarf sitting wrapped around the neck of a girl in my public speaking class - she told me she got it from Charlotte Russe. upon further research i found it (the exact scarf) on the Torrid Site on Clearance - alas it was sold out when i next checked on it. however, i want to make something similar out of my first handspun, from blushing ewe.

it already is very similar in color to my Noro Fingerless Gloves

so hopefully i can combine all three into something beautiful and wearable.

The Pompus Scarf

2010-03-29T17:15:00.004-04:00

SDC12891

i work at a clothing store, which unfortunately for my bank account is parked right next to an A.C. Moore. so on my 15-minute break the other night, when i went to go get some more embroidery floss for the Legend of Zelda doll I'm making, i spotted some of Red Heart's fairly new Pomp-A-Doodle yarn there was one lonely skein of this hideously Pink fluff, so i had to get it. I've also been looking with envy at te slew of Baktus Scarves on Ravelry, but knew i didn't have the patience to do all that garter stitch. this resulted.

i used the recommended gauge of 9 US 5.5 mm
10 sts x 12 rows =4” in Stockinette Stitch, but note that it is worked in garter. it's 2 stitches between every pompom and all stitches are worked between pompoms

Pattern:
make a slip knot as close to the first pompom as possible, and cable CO 1.
row 1: k all
row 2 and all even rows: k all
row 3: kf&b in first st, k all

repeat 2 and 3 until there are 24 stitches on the needle, k 2 rows.

row 4: k2tog and k to end of row. repeat 2 and 4 until there are 2 or 3 stitches left; by now you should be down to your last 2 pompoms.

bind off: knit all stitches together and pull pompoms through.

friday : finish or frog

2010-02-06T17:39:00.003-05:00

i recently joined the Finish or Frog group on Ravelry. the concep tis simple enough : every friday, look at all the things you are currently working on, and decide whether or not you are actually going to finish them. if not, frog it! i was uber tired and didn't get around to posting last night, but better late than never.

for my first FoF friday, i picked three projects i was absolutely sick of:

in this bucket is Spring Fever Mittens from the latest issue of Interweave Crochet, ahlf of a Comfy Sock from knitting Daily's free patterns, and the start of a glove based on the Fusilli Beanie pattern from Stitsailuja.

the comfy socks pattern i've done twice, once as a gift and one that i ended up giving away because it grew in the wash. i thought i wanted a pair for myself, but it was taking way too long to get to the toe, and i simply lost interest.

the pair i gave away is currently keeping my mom's feet warm from the foot of snow we got last night!

the fusilli- based glove was going to be a gift for my cousin, for whom i knit the beanie for christmas. couldn't figure out how to go for the thumb, and again, had lost interest. took it off the needles for another project.

lastly the spring fever mittens - i've been trying to find something i want to do with this yarn ( Lamb's Pride Worsted and Patons SWS) for ages, but i realized i'm not too keen on having to felt it.

forgging is like cleaning out your closet - very refreshing.

Inspiration of the Day plus

2010-01-07T20:30:00.002-05:00

Relient K - Give

and now for the plus:

tonight i'm finishing my temple application. i've also been tipped off to 2 knitting/crochet scholarships. and who doesn't love scholarships? definitely checking it out

Inspiration of the Day

2010-01-05T23:44:00.001-05:00

the fox, the crow and the cookie by mewithoutYou

Inspiration of the Day

2009-12-22T19:50:00.003-05:00

this has been my background since november or thereabouts.
even though my family is not happy, we got the rest of the christmas spirit down to pat

Inspiration of the Day

2009-12-20T16:43:00.003-05:00

it is funny because what it claims is ridiculous.

bigotry never ceases to amuse. bigoted anti-bigotry is what gets me.

Inspiration of the Day

2009-11-13T15:27:00.001-05:00

The Decemberists - 16 Military Wives

Inspiration of the Day

2009-11-08T11:38:00.002-05:00

Roy Lichtenstain's Mural with a Blue Brushstroke. using this as a reference for an upcoming project. :)i've seen this in person.
image from the wikipedia page on Lichtenstein.

Inspiration of the Day

2009-10-29T17:24:00.002-04:00

so instead of trying to keep everything in One note, i'ma post it here. keeps thing nice an orderly.

i'm in love with the Chowder Hat by Mandy Zeller. pattern can be found on her livejournal
her hat

and from the show

cute/accurate,no?

Flickr

2009-06-26T15:36:00.001-04:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

My Concerns are None of Yours

2009-06-10T20:00:00.004-04:00

i hate complaining on the internet when i have no real qualms. gov school didn't count because there were things to back up my disappointment in that so instead of a rant here's a progress pic of the last project i really worked on in my Drawing and Painting class.

also, the new season of true blood starts on sunday and thanks to resubscribing to verizon cable and getting a new TV, i will be watching in HD. when it airs, instead of online. this is something to be happy about. really.

My First Open Letter

2009-05-08T22:55:00.002-04:00

I've been told that writing letters can be therapeutic, so i gave it a try. it helped a little, i think.

To LPPAC, Governor Rendell, and whomever else it may concern,

Thanks for giving me the opportunity to spend a few weeks of one of my last youthful summers surrounded by my young artist peers, and the chance to take free classes in art and the many different aspects of it, to learn new things, make friends, and have a ridiculously fun time. I had a lot of fun just preparing, stressing out over the deadline, taking pride in my portfolio and kissing it good-bye before it went off to be judged.

Mr. Rendell, you have a special place in my heart since the moment you ripped the rug out from under my hopeful feet and the funding out from all eight of the governor's school programs. I didn't know it until a week or so later, but all the waiting I'd done, the excitement of simply being judged in this first round, had me floating. All for naught. I'm sorry I didn't get around to writing you this letter until so many months after the fact. I was just too blown away by the fact that my wonderful summer had dissipated, because you couldn't spare 4 million bucks, half for now half for next year. Where else is that money going to go? Standardized testing? Expect another angry letter if my sister has to take more than the current state-mandated tests when she hits my level in high school.

And, oh! Sweet, generous LPPAC. I'm sorry I giggled at your name, but when your share it with that of a pop punk rock band, it's hard not to snicker. Thanks for picking me up and stringing me along another month and a half, for inspiring me to drag my mother and sister to two FedEx Kinko's at nine on a Friday night, in the rain, to rip my precious handiwork out of its comfortable mats, to scan and send for one hundred and thirty something dollars. It was a worthwhile investment. And after my dip in hope over my summer vacation, it was refreshing to be able to leave the store and know that I still had a chance. I even kissed it goodbye again, knowing that this would be the last time I saw those copies. And most of all, thank you very much for waiting to tell me another 3 weeks that my chance was not redeemable; not even store credit.

Now I'm sitting here and all my friends have made other plans, and I'm back to square one. No Otakon ( though I'm not sure how keen I am/was on going again) no free art classes, no 'get-out-of-another-mind-fracturing-family-vacation-free' card, no single thing to do. I'm down to volunteering at my mom's hospital ( again, just a different one) finding a job (as if), and college searching. If I'm lucky my parents will take pity and send me to classes at Moore again.

I don't regret the time and effort put into my art for you; some college may welcome it with arms wide open, someday soon. And the first feelings of accomplishment and excitement I'll always cherish, and maybe even look to replicate. There are scholarships and contests, and as the PSEA show reassured me, the flaws I perceive in my own work are invisible to some others. i guess you weren't some others, but I'll be over you soon enough.

I may not know what I'm going to do now; things can fall into place on their own, but right now I'd like to think I'll be doing something to force them into a shape that is aesthetically pleasing.

Sayonara,

Mische.

Bitten by the Comic Bug

2009-04-30T19:36:00.005-04:00

you can say i was a bit bored during my driver's ed class this week.
or you could say i'm being productive. Dood ( the one with the Beret) is (C) Lan-kun. http://lan-kun.deviantart.com

and then the day after i pieced together some newprint and started paneling. it's not meant to make sense yet. Kudos to whomever figure out the scribblings in the first 2 panels.

no promises about finishing though. characters in order of appearance :
Unnamed OC
Lan-kun's Dood Palette
NP Mische
NP Eugene
NP Dan ( currently just a face, pg 2, p1)
Resh and NP.

dream interp blog is not dead yet! just needs a little bit more discussing...

and also, the Gov School replacement program, Summer Arts at Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center ( it's ok to lol, i did too) results sometyime before May 8th. i'm crossing all my crossables.

Spring Break Is The Pits

2009-04-08T14:19:00.002-04:00

Spring break is halfway over and the most exciting things i'vedone are knit and underwear shop.
the bright side of that is the a found a pretty good strapless bra type item to wear under equally strapless outwear type items. finally.

other than that i've been college/job searching (WTF indeed) and studying for SATs (taking 'em in June) and AP english language and comp. exam (in May). and a little for the driving. XD.

hopefully i will get the chance to hang out with peeps soon; Possibly going over to Pop's house tomoro, she's possibly coming over here, it depends. also planning on movies Friday.
poll on the side. all for now. gotta finish some gloves.

Nekomimi Ears!

2009-03-26T22:38:00.003-04:00

maybe a free pattern?

they clip onto your hair, rather than as a headband. more colros and better pics when i tweak the pattern...

If You're Here to Join the Party

2009-03-09T18:48:00.002-04:00

Attention to those who came here looking for the Dream Interp Blog Information!
i see you have uncovered my partially concealed lair. and i'm not finished even moving in yet....

anyways, what you need to know/ do:

if you plan to join, make your reservations here. i also suggest that if you aren't already, sign up for blogger, so you can officially contribute and whatnot

if you are suggesting a title, or just suggesting comment here.
if i don't know you or you didn't receive an invite, comment but don't expect to be able to join this exclusive little club. for now anyways.

all for now. name voting starts thursday morning ish and ends 8:00 am-ish saturday

did i say art? i meant anger

2009-03-02T07:45:00.003-05:00

there goes my summer...

anyone who comes across this and happens to live in PA, please assist in assaulting gov. rendell's office in angry letters asking to reconsider this decision.

mortal mom wrote a little more intelligibly on this matter, so go read that too

in the meantime, i've got shit to do. even if it is a snow day.

Life and Crochet

2009-02-06T19:49:00.003-05:00

i may or may not choose to go into detail about my current circumstance, but all you need to know is

i am not on good terms with my parents at this moment.
i am grounded in several ways
i need to get myself ungrounded or my next 4-6 months will be terribly blaise.

and the fun part: amigurumi hearts! pattern from this instructable. by the way, instructables is one of my favorite websites. the larger one is based on this same pattern. the smaller ones are for sale amongst people i don't have to mail them to. sorry, rest of the internets.

i swear on my life that the next post will be 100% PGSE art.

PGSE progress report 4... Final??

2009-01-11T01:29:00.003-05:00

cross your finger for me, please.

on thursday, Mrs. Taylor drove the portfolios of three of my classmates and myself to the place where they are to be judged. location: generally unknown. but it's somewhere in the county. being judged against other talent in the county.
t-bird says only ten will make it to the next round....
i am so nervous about it. but relieved to be done with it for now. unfortunately i neglected to take pictures, but whenever i get the damned thing back, i'll make a record of the whole set to show off here. and i hope that isn't too soon. i'm already psyched to be spending a month of the summer in Erie, PA.

back to those pics though. i basically pulled all-nighters monday, tuesday, wednesday, and wasn't done until noon thursday XD. and still forgot those pictures! again, oh well. time to move on with my life. which include a paper about photography which was due friday so i have less than 24 hours to write it now, and the best grade i can get is a 'C'. i'm borderline failing the class, so it's better than nothing. and i neglected to spend the last 4(?) months writing it in increments, instead of past the deadline in one 48 hour period. plus the window of time on friday after school. so...57 hours.
my one reward for finishing this ( cause at this point there can't be too many rewards) is spending monday afternoon reading the Law of Talos comic contest entries. it's a competition being run on deviantArt, my home on the internet since 2005, and it is part of what i might be obliged to call a series of competitions being run by a group of popular and friendly artists on the site. and it is really a test of skill. this being the semifinal round, i've pretty much fallen for all the characters left ( not romantically, but fandom-ish, i suppose) and will be devastated no matter who wins or loses. my bet, however, is Blacklillian's characters, Annie and Ginger, aka "The Professor", against Unknown-Person's Karl, the most popular, and only surviving 'villian' of the competition.

all for now. i'm either off to flirt or sleep.

PGSE progress report 3 + multiple hairs cut

2009-01-04T13:39:00.003-05:00

short entry because my parents neglected to tell me we are going to a party this afternoon. so now i have to get ready. i was looking forward to sitting in my own filth all day D:finished and re-matted skate conte!

current works! i really despise the toothpaste one, simple because it is in ebony pencil. which i despise.

and i got a few hair cut. before and after pics

PGSE progress report 2

2008-12-31T20:53:00.004-05:00

with minimal added background

with a touch more- shutters perhaps? remember the ref pic is only like540x680 pixels or something in that range.
zoom on shuttered area!
another one already, because i picked up a different piece and ran with it until i hit a wall. this time it's a conte crayon composition. the only thing i'm tweaking is the background, because i thought i finished it back in November. it's a touch more, well, monochrome because i neglected to take a new bistre stick, and the one i do have is more of a stub. as is now the white. my dad was going to see if Home Depot was still open, so we hopped in the car, and got there ten minutes too late. bummmmmmerrrrrrr.

PGSE progress report 1

2008-12-30T21:13:00.000-05:00

this entry is dedicated to my art teacher and mentor, Mrs. Taylor. because i'm terrible at formal emails and there are too many files to attach.
Pennsylvania governor's school of EXCELLENCE! portfolio progress: -50%

i'm working from cell phone shots as references for the background of one conte piece. i feel like i already screwed it up D: this is the ref shot

now these are a series of shots (again from my phone, and surprisingly accurate colors) of my 'key chain' picture done in prismacolor pencils. BUCKET OF FUN IT IS.
first- zoom of corner

second

third - i don't understand why these are bigger files D:

fourth

fifth

sixth

seventh- taken with a real camera!
i think (or at least would like to believe) that this last shot has a little too much brightness in the warm colors. but i did add a whole bunch of white to the right side. but t is far better than the cell shots just cause it makes it look rather rich.

and about the work itself XD
metallic things are dreadful and sadistic. after at least an hour of only scrutinizing the rings, i've only done the bottom corner. i'm also lost as to the red-grays in the bottom-right key. does silver even truly exist as a color???

i feel that even though it resembles the original key chain, it hasn't become it yet. i've just figured out ' adding the contrasting color to darken' trick, which is minimally evident near the pinwheel, but i am downright frightened of trying it in the rest of the shadows, which in the reference shot (not shown) are nearly a cadmium red. i am also not sure how to address the background, which was kind of busy. i might use the grayish browns of the table, but i'm partial to the pinkish color that is already in the foreground, which would make it more uniform.

i'll take more zoomed shots for next entry.

all for the artses.

and now some classic literature!

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. goodness, this book is out there. i picked it up because i read about it in an afterword in my edition of 1984 which i read for school, and there are a lot of parallels. nearly identical, to be precise.
in a nutshell, the story is that of a future where humans are 'decanted' using a manufacturing system and bottles, Henry Ford has replaced God, and by process of 'conditioning' from birth an drugs, the entirety of civilization is 'happy'. sex is embraced, but actually giving birth is shunned. and tiers of society are decided from decantation as well. the story focuses on a handful of unhappy 'alphas' who are smart enough to somewhat think around their conditioning and be unhappy, question society, etc. . One who is a chump with little self esteem goes with a lady friend to an Indian reservation, and meets a young man who is white, Shakespearean, christian and born to a 'civilized' mother who had been left behind on her own vacation years ago. they bring him back to London with them and ideologies clash. in the end civilization in that modern state drive him to suicide. it is very sad.
unlike 1984, it led me to question whether i might enjoy being part of such a society. drugs, sex rock and roll, depending on which 'tier' i were to fall. but the idea of mass-production of humans is frightening. and i don't think i'd like the world much if everything were unified and peaceful. nothing would change. i would say even if you think nothing changes today, it's because things change constantly in the world so we are used to it and roll with the punches.
Brave New World also reminded me of The Giver by Lois Lowry, a book i completely despised as a child. it was the lack of a happy ending, and the choked feeling i had for days after reading it. 1984 left me with a hole in my stomach. but i'm getting hooked on dysotopian fiction, for sure. next on the list is a book called We whose author i am not certain, and maybe even picking up The Giver and its companion Gathering Blue ( also read, verdict: eh).

was John, the young man from the Indian reservation, agreeable because i could identify most with his ideology? most likely.

Sudden Impulse+ Do List 1

2008-12-21T16:24:00.000-05:00

i wonder who shall stumble upon this. also, what to post, what not to post, and whether or not i should really be working on this or another in a line of procrastinated-upon term papers.

and so it begins, i suppose.

Tei's Do List ( Chowmein style) #1:

term paper rough draft for soc class, due tomorrow, currently 0% finished. eh heh heh.

finishing amigurumis for christmas presents ( 4.5 out of ... 7?). and basically no time to do it. Popcorn's can wait until next weekend when she comes over to hang out for two days ( exciting) and we exchange gifts then. she keeps saying she has something nice in store for me. i'm rather curious...
Art ( normal) homework. something about drawing shoes. not too exciting.
compiling a portfolio to submit to the PGSE. the postmark deadline is the 5th and it look like, a lot of fun. srsly.
Graphic Arts class related things. basic photoshop tricks i have yet to learn, and screen printing ' family coat of arms' coasters ( of all things, why coasters?!?!) and suchness.

i'll be posting throughout christmas break, just for the hell of it. there are so many movies i want to see: Benjamin Button, The Spirit, etc...