Well, I just got back from another card night. You see, some of my Sunday School buddies like to get together and do activities together, at places, for some time. Sometimes, we go to Starbucks to play cards.

Tonight was such a night.

I love my Sunday School buddies. ;_; We're all females... late teens to mid twenties. I'm pretty sure that I'm the youngest at 18, but whatev!

Anyway, I wanted to be hardcore, so I ordered a hardcore drink.

BLACK COFFEE WITH SIX SHOTS OF EXPRESSO. 8D 8D 8D

God, I am so wired. I don't have the shakes, but there is no way that I'm getting any sleep tonight. I PROMISE THAT I AM TOTES GONNA WORK ON ART, INSTEAD OF PLAYING PHOENIX WRIGHT.

I'm in the process of making myself some PW icons, btw. It's gonna be rad. I'm thinking of making myself an Edgeworth mood theme, even though I really like the one I have now. Lolcats ftw!

Anyway, art. I'm going to work on commissions. I'm also going to work on a SUPER SEEKRIT project that I'm doing for CAPSTARA. I'm hoping that they will get a kick out of it.

Bragging teim is now.

I just got out of Acting class. Our assignment was to bring a monologue to class and read it. I chose "Wasted Youth" by Jim Steinman, which is can be heard on Meat Loaf's album, "Bat out of Hell II: Back into Hell". We were graded on a scale of 1 to 30 points, and my grade was 30+++/30.

I thought the three extra plusses were a bit much, but damn do I feel good about myself! It never hurts to feel good about yourself once in a while, right? And hay, at least this journal post isn't another fannish rambling!

Speaking of fannish ramblings, it's time for a Phoenix Wright update!

I'm nearing the end of the fith case (I think). It's without a doubt the craziest case so far, and the funniest episode. The episode introduced characters that are simply outrageous, and I love it. Edgeworth is still my favorite character by far (HURRRRRR), but Ema has really made her way into my heart. She and Phoenix make a much better team than Phoenix and Maya, in my humble opinion.

Despite this, I suddenly started shipping Ema with Edgeworth. This shouldn't shock anyone, as I ship Edgeworth with everyone, and Phoenix with no one (except for Edgeworth).

I'm so lazy about updating this darn thing.

Spring Break was epic. First day? Aunt's house. Second and third days? Made money. The next few days? ATLARP. Also, snow. FRIGGEN SNOW. AND IT STUCK. ILU, COLD FRONT. Yesterday, Aunt's house again. And today? My last day of Spring Break?

I'm traveling to Nashville with my IRL BFF to watch him do an audition. I'm comming with him for moral support. 

Oh, yeah. I totes stayed up all night chatting with  dutchtoast. MOSTLY IN ALL CAPS, CAUSE THAT'S HOW WE ROLL.  I also spent the night browsing through SetoAngel01's gallery.  SHE IS SOMETHING SPECIAL, YOU GUYS.

HOLY CRAP I HOPE I GET COFFEE TODAY.

Yesterday was the longest day ever: I was on the go from 6 AM to 10 PM.

While I was working, it started to snow outside. Nothing heavy; just a flurry that didn't stick. Nevertheless, it was very pretty, as if the world became a snow globe.

After work, I went to see the Passion Play that my church was doing. I used to love Passion Plays, but I haven't seen one in about 8 years. This Passion Play was very well directed, I thought, and I enjoyed myself very much.

As always, King Herod was all "LOL I'M AN EFFEMINATE PARTY ANIMAL WOO" and Pontius Pilate was all "ARRRG I'M TOO OLD FOR THIS SHIT".

OH! You know what my favorite part about any Passion Play is? It's the scene right when Jesus dies, and the Temple's Veil rips dramatically in two. I always dug that.

Anyway, today, I get to go to work again! Wooo! This will be my last day, though, as I am almost out of boxes to do. That means I can either do art tonight or tommorrow.

Well, today was interesting, to say the least. :\

Today was the day in which I needed to drive over to my IRL best friend's high school so that could see him perform. Right when I was turning into the school, I crashed my dad's car. It's a Dodge Magnum.

My dad's an even tempered sort of guy, and I never heard him drop so many f-bombs. He calmed down within the hour, though. I'm probably really lucky to have a dad like him.

Because I know you all are curious, I'll tell you about the damage. The car isn't totalled: far from it. Something from the underside of the car fell off... I'm not sure what, as I know nothing of car parts. My dad estimates that it's about $1000 worth of damage. Now I'm more motivated than ever to get a job: I won't stop feeing guilty until I pay off the car repairs. I'm going to apply at my church's bookstore this week, and at the library too. And any other place I can!

Anyway, on to the next part of my day! Even though I wrecked the car, my dad insisted that I see the play anyway, because we were already there. The play was "High School Musical", and I haven't seen it before today. My friend played the part of Alan.

I've heard a lot about this play. I heard that it was overhyped and a piece of theatrical tripe. Personally, I enjoyed myself. The cast had lots of energy, the songs were fun, and both the coreography and the orchestra were absolutely amazing. My favorite characters were Sharpay and Ryan Evans. Diabolical twins who are also theatre geeks? Hell to the yes. I totally dug the "slave and master" relationship that they had. I really wanna see the movie now. I wanna draw lots of creepy fanart for it, too.

After the show, my friend's family invited me to go out to eat with them. We went to a Chinese buffet (MMMMMMM). I engaged in idle chatter with my friends cousins, such as "do you prefer a sweet wine or a nice dry wine?".


....I guess that's it. Nighty-night, ya'll.

It's Wednesday! You know what that means!

Well, actually, you don't, because I haven't mentioned it before.
On Wednesday, I have two classes: Acting at noon and Typography at six. Instead of going home between those two classes, I just hang out in of the computer labs until Typography starts. I brought some paper for drawing, so I'm all set. I think I'll get started on the prize art for slashnaricssist and oneinnabun today.   It's HSR stuff, so it should be fun.

I also wanna draw some "wedding snapshots" for Longshot and Smellerbee.  My devotion to ATLARP may be creepy, but at least it's making me draw more.

OFF TOPIC: I'm going to do my best to land a job before the end of next week.  I've applied to the local dry cleaning place (I have yet to hear back from them), and I'm going to work on applying for some jobs on campus (if I can figure out where to start!).  Remember, I'm taking commissions right now, so drop me a line if you're interested.

There are two things that I need before I can establish my independance: a steady(ish) flow of income and 1334 driving skillz.  After I aquire those two things, I can rent an apartment and drive myself places without killing anyone.  

I think I'd like to drift a bit before I settle.  [/vague]

Oh lawds, what a week.

First of all, I still haven't gotten that magazine that I ordered off of Ebay. I'm starting to worry.

Second of all, I sent in a job application to the local dry cleaners. Hopefully I'll get the job.

Third of all, my Valentine's Day was great. My best friend came over for a surprise visit, which was bitchin'.

Forth of all, OMG FRIDAY WAS A GREAT DAY FOR QC FANS!

Fith of all, I made Smellerbee pregnant on ATLARP for the lulz. Longshot later proposed.

http://community.livejournal.com/capslock_atlarp/32199.html?thread=1588167#t1588167

I guess that's it!

ASLKDJFOPQIHEWFLKJDFKASFJD Okay, I'm better now.

Remember a couple of posts ago when I told you guys that the weather was getting REALLY crazy? Well, a tornado sort of blew it's way across Tennessee. Luckily, my neighborhood wasn't affected. However, in case you guys didn't hear about it, the tornado completely smashed the Union campus. Now, I when to Lambuth last semester, which happens to be really close to Union. My friend from Lambuth emailed me a day after the tornado hit, telling me that Union looked like it had divided by zero. Miraculously, there were no deaths.

A few nights ago, my religious aunt invited me to have a game night with some of the other girls in my Sunday school class. We all met at Starbucks to play cards. As it turns out, I'm really good at Spoons. Speaking of spoons, there was a guy there who began to bend forks with his mind. Seriously! He stood up in the middle of Starbucks and began doing it! I have no idea how he did it. My aunt was not amused (but I was!). Oh, and I had a green tea Frap. MMMMMM.

A few days ago, my mom made me go to Walmart with her. I went to the movie section to try and find "The Blues Brothers". They didn't have it, but they did have the complete first season of Teen Titans for only 10 bucks. Several years ago, I was a shameless TT fangirl. I drew shitty fanart, I read shitty fanfic, and I was an active poster on several TT themed forums. I remember really wanting to buy the DVD when it first came out, but I could never find it in stock. Naturally, I bought the DVD. The cover art is terrible.

Valentines Day is soon! I've been working on a picture that I want to finish by then, but I'm not even done with the lineart. ATLARP's been eating my soul time.

Why did deviantART suddenly give us the ability to categorize deviants in folders? Not only can one do that with their own deviations, but they can categorize their favorites, as well! I spent the entire day sifting through 50 pages of favorites and assigning them to appropriate folders!

Once I started, I couldn't stop. D:

OH.

But I did do something useful today, other than going to class.

I applied for a job! Or rather, I drove to the local drive cleaning place and picked up an application. Yeah... business isn't exactly booming when it comes to commissions. Well, as long as I'm making money, that's what matters. The sooner I become self-reliant, the better. All I need is a stable flow of income and MOAR driving skills.

THAT MEANS GET A JOB AND PRACTICE DRIVING SOME MORE, YOU LAZY WASTE OF SPACE!!!

Um, yeah.

I'm only 18. It's not expected that I move out of my parent's house at this time. But I want to- I yearn for independence. My parents are nice enough folks, but they want to control my life. I also know that I can't really grow up until I'm on my own... for real. Living in a dorm for a semester doesn't count.

Realistically, I'll probably living at home for another year or two. I'd like to have moved out by age 21.

I did one of those surveys on learninpjs.com. They match people up with online colleges, apparently. Anyway, I did he survey, and less than 10 seconds later I got a call from one of the colleges that it matched me with!

I think that an online college is a good idea for me... because I'm online all the time anyway. The thought of not being late for class is also very appealing to me. I know that I work very efficiently on a computer, and I am an extremely fast typist.

What I'm looking for is an Associate Degree in Graphic Design. I may go for something more prestigious from there. I'd definitely want to take art classes.

I'll definitely be applying for a job. If I'll be studying at home, I'll need another excuse to get out of the house. I think it's healthy to have human interaction, other than with family members or people online.

I already applied to Hastings, but I haven't heard from them. I think it's safe to say I didn't get the job. XD I do not want to work at the cinema again, but I will as a last resort.

As we look back on the past year, it's good to list our accomplishments so that we don't feel like total bums.

Here's my list, in chronological order:

1) I had a small role in my high school's musical production.

2) I converted to Christianity.

3) I directed a one act play for my drama class, and the play was successful.

4) I was inducted into the Thespian Society.

5) I graduated from High School.

6) I traveled to New York and saw several shows on Broadway.

7) I came to terms with my identity as a gay man in a lesbian's body.

8) I celebrated my 18th birthday by getting my first job.

9) I saw an R rated movie, in a cinema, by myself for the first time.

10) I read the last Harry Potter book without getting spoiled.

11) I got my earlobes double pierced.

12) I got accepted into a prestigious university, after which deciding that I would feel more at home at a community college.

13) I found true love (and lost it).

14) I got my 10,000th pageview on deviantART.

15) I completed my first commission and made twenty dollars.

There. Fifteen accomplishments. Next year, I resolve to have sixteen accomplishments.

I'm going to celebrate New Year's Eve by wishing I had booze in the house. :(

Now that I'm sober, I can give a more thorough report of what my Christmas was like.

I woke up a four in the morning, excited. Christmas is the only day of the year when I can wake up so early with a smile on my face.

This is how Christmas works at my house: presents from family and friends are wrapped and put under the tree, and presents from "Santa" are displayed in the living room, unwrapped. Me and my sisters wake up really early (while mom and dad are still in bed) to examine the presents that Santa left us, and we open the wrapped presents later in the day, together as a family.

Santa left me a red Zune 8. I spent the morning downloading music onto it, such as both Cobra Starship albums which I acquired through Megaupload. After listing to it and dancing around the house, I realized that I was still tired. So I went back to bed and woke up at 10 A.M.

Santa also left me a totally gross jelly bean dispenser that's shaped like a sheep. The jelly beans are brown. :| To make up for that, my stocking was filled with yummy things: a box of lemon flavored thin cookies, and a box of Godiva chocolates.

After I woke up again, I showered and got dressed. Mom, Dad, my two sisters, and I all sat in the living room to open presents. I got my mom a novel called "The Historian". My mom loves a good read, so she should like the book I got her, if she ever finds the time to read it. I got my dad a "The Princess Bride" giftset, which includes the DVD and a Fezzik T-shirt. He loves "The Princess Bride", and he needed more T-shirts, so needless to say he is really enjoying the gift. I was relieved, because my dad is somewhat hard to shop for. I got my younger sister the complete Invader Zim series on DVD. She was ecstatic. I got my youngest sister a Kick the Cheat doll: one of the last ever made. It's a really cute doll; I feel sorry for it whenever my sister abuses it (but, that's what it's for...).

Me? I got a $50 gift card to Target. Cheap DVDs and T-shirts, here I come! :D

After present opening with the immediate family, I worked on ( this picture ) for the toko-fans account on deviantART. Right when I was submitting it, the extended family came over to visit. By "extended family", I mean my maternal grandparents, my uncle and his Japanese wife, and my other uncle (my mom has two brothers).

Japan!Uncle cooked Christmas dinner. While the we waited for the meat to finish cooking in the oven, we all sat in the living room to open presents again. Japan!Uncle really loved the magnifying glass I gave him, and my other uncle really loved the book I got him (I don't even remember the title of the book, but it was by Christopher Moore: one if his favorite authors). I got my grandfather a "Young Frankenstein" DVD, and my grandfather the first season of Bewitched. I have no doubt that they will enjoy their presents. I'm fairly certain that my aunt liked the perfume I got her, but it's hard to tell. I mean... I thought it smelled good...

From Japan!Uncle and Aunt, I received a bag filled with adorable Japanese goodies. Among them were a set of Hello Kitty cooking chopsticks and a set of Hello Kitty stationary.

I... I love Hello Kitty. :[

My other uncle gave me five fine cigars. My dad's look of dismay was hilarious, but he didn't protest. I'm looking forward to smoking one of them, but I don't know when or where I will. I want to save them for occasions that would produce the most lulz as possible.

My grandparents gave me a box of lip make up (which is good, because I needed some lip liner) and a cute charm bracelet.

Later, we partook of Christmas Dinner. Japan!Uncle is the best cook in the family, by far. He made delicious pork tenderloin stuffed with dried apricots and prunes. He also cooked a turkey, of which we have an obscene amount of leftovers from. We also had English peas, asparagus, and stir-fried peppers and mushrooms. For desert, I had a slice of Italian creme cake (Cheesecake Factory brand).

Over the course of the evening, I consumed several glasses of fine white wine and homemade eggnog. When the adults were all mildly drunk, we sat down to watch "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and "How the Grinch Stole Christmas". This year, my first Christmas as an adult, I learned a little secret: adults don't watch these animated classics for the nostalgia: they watch them because they are hilarious when you are a little drunk. Really.

After the extended family left (Grandfather was the designated driver), I posted drunkenly in my live journal, listened to my Zune for a while, and went to sleep.

The End.

This was long. I'm not going to proofread it.

Yay it's Christmas Eve yay!

I'm going to my paternal grandparents' house to have Christmas Eve Dinner and open presents. My aunt, uncle, kid cousins, and great-grandmother will be there. Tomorrow, my maternal grandparents, and aunt and uncle from Japan will come to my house. Commence moar opening of presents and eating of festive foods.

And homemade eggnog. OH GOD YES.

The only thing I'm disappointed about is that I didn't finish the Christmas pictures I had planned. This is because I spent the entirety of yesterday working on my penance for CAPSLOCK_ATLA. I... I got a little carried away.

Well, at least it provided me with much holiday-themed lulz.

HAVE A HAPPY AND SAFE DECEMBERWEEN, EVERYBODY!

I had a wonderful time tonight. My IRL best friend took me to the zoo, and then to dinner.

The French Onion soup at the Outback Steak House is amazing, by the way.

I bought this really cool magnifying glass at the zoo's gift shop. It has a carved yellow jade handle, and it looks very oriental and scholarly. I decided that that is going to be my uncle's Christmas present.

I'm so glad that I found that magnifying glass, because my uncle was the last person I needed to buy a gift for. Now I'm all done with my Christmas shopping!

And now, I'm completely broke. Well, I do have a Canadian twenty dollar bill, but I'm reluctant to exchange it for American currency because the Canadian bill looks so pretty. ):

If you want to commission me, gimme a holla! I want to start on commissions again after Christmas. I'll probably do simple ones: one or two characters, with no background. I haven't decided on prices yet. I want to keep them low, but I would also like to make some sort of profit so that I can have money in my wallet again.

Tomorrow, I'm going to spend they day drawing for leisure.  I also have to do penance for CAPSLOCK_ATLA because I typed in lowercase like a moron.  Well, drawing naked Iroh isn't such a bad punishment...

After the I saw "Sokka's Master", I began fantasizing about Iroh.  I am not ashamed in the least.

I think I'm coming down with something.  For a few hours now, I've been blowing my noes nonstop.  My head kinda hurts, too. 

Crap!  I said I'd get some work done when I got home, and now that I'm home, I don't feel like doing anything.

I just want to lie down and reeeeeeeeeest.  I should probably take some medicine, go to sleep, and wake up nice and early tomorrow.

Yeah.  I think I'll do just that.

*Ah-choo!*

I'm posting from a different computer than usual, which doesn't have spell-check.  ):  There will be typos.

My sister and I are visiting my grandparents right now, and my aunt and uncle are visiting my grandparents as well!  

It's pretty exciting that my aunt and uncle are visiting, because they live on the other side of the world.  Japan, to be exact.  Long story short, my uncle fell in love with a Japanese woman, and now they live together in Tokyo.  I love them both, but I rarely get to see them!  I love watching them interact; it's pretty funny to watch them banter in Japanese together.

Besides visiting, the reason why I came to my grandparent's house to help decorate for Christmas.   I wish you guys could see our Christmas tree!  It certainly is a sight to see.  First of all, it's a real cedar.   Second of all, it's not Christmas tree shaped!  Although the tree was painstakingly trimmed, set up, and decorated, it looks like someone threw a bunch of random flashy crap on a large, dead tree.  It is truly the best Christmas tree I have ever had the pleasure of viewing.   I'll post pics.  Maybe.

Last night, I went shopping with my aunt and uncle.  We were looking for ornament hooks, but we ended up buying everything except  ornament hooks.  You know how it is.

One of the things we got was Jones soda.  Ever since Mu posted about it in her journal, I've been jonesing for some.  I was so excited when I saw it in the store!  We got Crushed Melon flavore in bottles, Berry Lemonade flavor in cans, and Blueberry Pomogranate also in cans.  The first kind I tried was the Crushed Melon.  Musachan wasn't exaggerating: this soda is truly delicious.  I think I said before that I don't care much for soda, but Jones soda is now the huge exception.  It tastes great, and it doesn't burn going down.  I also tried the Berry Lemonade. Though also tastey, I liked the Crushed Melon flavor better.  I think whether or not the soda is in a can or a bottle makes a huge difference.  

FYI, Crushed Melon flavor tastes like very sweet cantaloupe. 

Even later last night, I watched "A Christmas Carol" staring George C. Scott for the first time.  Of course, I've seen "A Christmas Carol" before.  I've seen it in play form.  Heck, I've even been in that play !  I was the Ghost of Christmas Present, by the way.

Anyway, I desided that I love the George C. Scott version.  In fact, I think it's my favorite version.  Scott knows how to act!  I'd reccommend this movie to anyone who is having trouble getting into the Christmas Spirit.

I got up early this morning and made breakfast for the family.  I made everyone omlettes, which is my specialty.  I love making omlettes.  I enjoy making them more than I do eating them.

Well, I've had a nice, relaxing Christmas Break so far.  However, when I get home later today, I really need to get back to business.  I'm working on applying for my new college, which is taking more time that I thought it would.  I also need to get some art finished before Christmas Day!  I've been so caught up in the Christmas festivities, that I've been neglecting my poor art.

I think I'm gonna get more of that Jones soda now.  That stuff is prooty gewd.

Yesterday was awesome. I got to see my IRL best friend perform Christmas carols at the Peabody Place with his choir. I also got to watch him audition for "High School Musical". His audition was outstanding. He's bound to get a part for sure!

I haven't seen "High School Musical" yet. This is okay... I'd kinda rather watch it in play form than in movie form.

Last night wasn't as awesome. I got my grades back from Lambuth. To my surprise, I didn't fail math after all! I did, however, get a D. I also failed my Biology class. This didn't come as much surprise, but I'm still not happy about it. Mostly, I'm just dismayed at my stupid decision to sign up for Biology in the first place. Did I ever mention that I failed it in high school as well?

I spent most of today cleaning my room and doing laundry. My bookshelves are nice and dusted, and my manga collection is organized. Now, when my relatives visit me for Christmas, I can show off all 28 volumes of Rurouni Kenshin! I'm such a weeaboo dork.

Right now, I'm editing a Strong Bad/Strong Sad slash fic that dutchtoast  , oneinnabun   and I wrote. This is how it went down: dutchtoast and I role played, I turned our role play into a rough draft, oneinnabun wrote the final draft, and now I am proofreading the final draft. I won't spoil it, but I will say that the fic is really cute. It's also in-character, thanks to oneinnabun.

I'm almost done with a commission I'm working on for slashnaricssist .  I completed the lines and the flat colors: all I have to do is add shading, highlights, and some other details.  After I'm done with that, I think I'll do some Christmas themed drawings for some of the clubs I'm in.  I might even whip something up for CAPSLOCK_ATLA.  Actually, I'd like to do some "Mai-Chan's Daily Life" fan art soon.  I'd also like to do some "Kodomo no Jikan" fan art.

Hmm!  Now that I think of it, my taste in manga is a little strange.  Guro and lolicon.  I sometimes forget how desensitized I am.  This is what I get for making Encyclopedia Dramatica my homepage!  Let me reassure my readers: I have no desire to torture people, nor do I have the desire to molest children.  As I said before, I have a weakness for shock manga.  "Kodomo no Jikan" isn't actually a shock manga, but I'm sure that many people have found it shocking.  I also have a weakness for taboo relationships in literature.  Forbidden fruit is the sweetest fruit, or so they say.

As I was writing this journal entry, I got a ring at the doorbell.  The Kick the Cheat doll and poster I ordered from the Homestar Runner store have been delivered!  I'm so excited, because right after I ordered my Kick the Cheat doll, the website announced that they have less than 100 dolls left.  I wonder if they will stop making them?  If so, my little sister will be the proud owner of a collector's item!

I saw the new Decemberween toon, and it was awesome.  I love how the trees in the stop-motion Christmas Special parody were Little Debbie Christmas Tree cakes.

Speaking of Homestar Runner, I plan on working on opening CAPSLOCK_HSR to the public after I'm done with the art I need to finish.  I've also been distracted by doing Christmassy things.

Tonight I have to go to a stupid Christmas party at my church.  It's for college students .  I don't want to go, but my aunt is the Sunday School teacher, so I kind of have to.

...Wow.  This journal entry is kind of long, and it went all over the place.  Why did I bother writing it?  Why did you bother reading it?

I could go for some eggnog.

Man!  I just realized that Christmas is only 12 days away!  It's literally "right around the corner"!  I'm so excited.

There are several drawings I want to complete before Christmas.  Hopefully, I'll stop sucking so badly at things like anatomy and inking.

Tomorrow, I'm going to apply for a new job and a new college.  I'm excited about these things as well.  I think I'm going to mainly apply for computer classes.   Some art classes really wouldn't hurt me, either.  I'd be perfectly happy with a generic "Graphic Design" degree.  I don't care as much for the degree as much as I care for the skills I need to acquire.

I'm still getting a fucking degree, though.