tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80438848702632219672024-02-02T16:06:46.785-07:00Random and Rarely UpdatedThis is my writing blog, but it's also where I come to complain about random things, like evil kittens biting me. ~~~ Posts will invariably include something dealing with writing, photography, gardening, or yarn.Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.comBlogger102125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-36892242515118406932015-11-01T18:56:00.002-07:002018-11-02T01:43:51.475-06:002018 Word War widgets<img src="https://nanowrimo.org/widget/WordWar/bobtheenchantedone,gunns,army_of_gnomes.png" /><br />
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Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-80986416261645486512014-11-30T08:27:00.001-07:002014-11-30T21:53:51.516-07:00Last day of NaNo 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'm starting the day at <b>36220 </b>words. Yep, nearly 14k words to go to hit 50k. Not as bad as last year. And a much more believable goal now that I've remembered to take my Prozac, unlike yesterday. Oops.</div>
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I'll try to check in roughly every hour with what I'm at, what I'm listening to, and how it's going. So:</div>
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At around 8:15 I'd just added 1022 words, making my new total <b>37242</b>. Now that I have this post set up, let's kick that in the butt before 9:00 rolls around.</div>
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9:02 <b>37875</b><br />
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I shouldn't talk so loudly about wanting to kick things in the butt. Because then my computer freezes up and I have to twiddle my thumbs instead of writing while it gets its brain back together. If my gremlins are quite finished (ha), I hope to get more done in the next hour, while I still have the fire of this first wind at my back. Mixing metaphors is good for you.</div>
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9:57 <b>39466</b></div>
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That's more like it. And I managed to take a moment of 'um, why would these entirely different species understand each other' and turn it into calculated plot! Take that, NaNo induced oversight!</div>
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10:58 <b>40582</b></div>
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Even with the distraction of making breakfast, I made my 1000/hour goal with fifteen minutes to spare for the hour. I then petted cats. Story-wise, I killed off a much-loved character and made my MC look like the one to blame. Tee hee hee.</div>
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12:01 <b>41323</b></div>
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Less this hour, mainly because people woke up and then I socialized and poked at my computer instead of writing. But a sprint right at the end with my mom at least got me above 5000 words for the day. Onward and upward, and into the next hour!</div>
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12:56 <b>41462</b></div>
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First I stared at the screen . . . then I made breakfast sandwiches for everyone. Then my mom farted and I laughed and died.</div>
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2:00 <b>42347</b></div>
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I've gone from action to reaction, and am definitely feeling it in my wordcount. Not to mention that this is the most I've written all month, and my brain thinks I should get a rest now. But I work at 4 tomorrow morning, and if I want to get /any/ sleep, I have to keep writing. Bah.</div>
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2:57 <b>43435</b></div>
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I just want to go to sleep. Not write for what will likely be another seven hours, if this trend of 1000/hour keeps up. And all night if I can't manage that much. Damn past Danica and her damn depression. At least I'm getting places in my plot. Kind of.</div>
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8:54 <b>44312</b></div>
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I took a bit of a break, that turned into an hour gone. Then an hour of staring at the screen being depressed. Then a three hour nap. Now I'm back to staring at the screen. Guuuuuuuuhhhhhhhghghg.</div>
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9:54 <b>45350</b></div>
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Bluuuurrghl urghly burgh blurgh.</div>
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Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-43926426390565015882014-11-01T11:41:00.002-06:002014-11-07T11:06:19.855-07:00Word War 2014 widgets<img src="http://nanowrimo.org/widget/WordWar/umikuma,lswiftl,opheliac,gunns.png" /><br />
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<br />Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-49803248655872107182014-02-04T19:08:00.000-07:002014-02-04T19:08:00.769-07:00to save a hat<div dir="ltr">
I did a thing today.</div>
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Quite a while ago, I supported a great sustainability <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1597899565/ricefield-collective-knit-4-life">kickstarter</a> that involved teaching indigenous women in the Philippines to knit. I got a hat through it, which looked a little something like this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_NN344y9CfL6O8HtvpVnjMZcoa0lR1j73HAK-oSRDQsqjNjS5pYhBezJ9NNdUDPH3nawu56SZh6JzBbrmaIJ577UlawLouogG9l2mt3QzqyktuwdwDvXHoYOodD_X9qbwX2YtdL6pIDZS/s1600/128b462f4bf9ca5f6261b96ce504e041_large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_NN344y9CfL6O8HtvpVnjMZcoa0lR1j73HAK-oSRDQsqjNjS5pYhBezJ9NNdUDPH3nawu56SZh6JzBbrmaIJ577UlawLouogG9l2mt3QzqyktuwdwDvXHoYOodD_X9qbwX2YtdL6pIDZS/s1600/128b462f4bf9ca5f6261b96ce504e041_large.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
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I loved it. I wore it. A lot.</div>
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But then once I pulled it off with an acrylic sweater, which it ended up inside of. So when said sweater was tossed in the wash, said poor hat went in too.</div>
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This lovely cables became this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFIVwF88IcFDTf4fLwtGfzqDy9E7R2Pe6vV2-TR_vYbVt1BqmmaeIJzWTP6pk36fO9_eczmPk7zVTyvl9MwFo3OPflyClJXb4fnBxIrlfUYaAOTDu3YIzMMlj42_54VcIBI2eJObM-48gy/s1600/20140204_154908.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFIVwF88IcFDTf4fLwtGfzqDy9E7R2Pe6vV2-TR_vYbVt1BqmmaeIJzWTP6pk36fO9_eczmPk7zVTyvl9MwFo3OPflyClJXb4fnBxIrlfUYaAOTDu3YIzMMlj42_54VcIBI2eJObM-48gy/s1600/20140204_154908.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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My camera didn't even want to focus on them.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbIci76aSc-SVbGUiE0oMQ_9EQVutTj712OPIEGY5rSp3zGJ-oGYGquhGa0Fkzcs3QZNzDo4SmIFC6Tonw6cCQS9vCwYQuCgLTH7ptRfA6f0j462vrNHc5egBUOsa7LwsGd7S0cOOmQaX6/s1600/20140204_154920.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbIci76aSc-SVbGUiE0oMQ_9EQVutTj712OPIEGY5rSp3zGJ-oGYGquhGa0Fkzcs3QZNzDo4SmIFC6Tonw6cCQS9vCwYQuCgLTH7ptRfA6f0j462vrNHc5egBUOsa7LwsGd7S0cOOmQaX6/s1600/20140204_154920.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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My heart was broken. But I paid $40 for this hat, and some wonderful woman out there in the world spent her time to make it for me. So I still wore it. But now it sat up on my head like a bowl cut or a mushroom cap.</div>
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I was determined to fix this. And so, some hours and lovely blue variegated yarn later:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgexTwzpYU81jKsE6YZ7ble5f2u4siqRKHvjf4alTAOKMv1NkX5mdXCuSVt-De3mIOAS11lcK-u0wzvaoaOxWyvADO5I9ALcyM0JGLoWQM6jrn2XSBx5EDzIjY_ojBtYpGxKPWbbKsBiIit/s1600/20140204_184212.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgexTwzpYU81jKsE6YZ7ble5f2u4siqRKHvjf4alTAOKMv1NkX5mdXCuSVt-De3mIOAS11lcK-u0wzvaoaOxWyvADO5I9ALcyM0JGLoWQM6jrn2XSBx5EDzIjY_ojBtYpGxKPWbbKsBiIit/s1600/20140204_184212.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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It's perfect! Well, not as much as if it hadn't gone through the wash, but I consider it sufficiently resurrected from the dead.</div>
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So,<b> </b><b>have </b><b>you </b><b>been </b><b>able </b><b>to</b><b> save any fel</b><b>ting </b><b>mistakes, or transformed them int</b><b>o </b><b>something </b><b>else?</b></div>
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Listening to: Ampersand by Unwoman. Beautiful rendition. I have a weakness for that little vocal squeak she does at one point during the bridge.<br />
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Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-53433921542580447402013-11-06T07:06:00.000-07:002013-11-08T05:00:42.484-07:00nano 2013 widgetsNothing exciting; just widgets for the wordwar my friends and I are having.<br />
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Team A <br />
<img src="http://nanowrimo.org/widget/WordWar/rukia_neesan,stefleed,myrddynlynn,umikuma,gunns.png" /><br />
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Team B<br />
<img src="http://nanowrimo.org/widget/WordWar/catmagnet,army_of_gnomes,tyrca,dextrose,opheliac.png" />Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-23298776563736529862013-04-06T01:03:00.002-06:002013-04-06T01:06:27.184-06:00warning: boobs are below!Because this culture is stupid and prudish about female nipples, I had to mark this as mature on deviantart. I'm pretty sure that also means I can't post it to facebook to share it.<br />
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I could go on a rant now--I mean, really: everyone, and I mean <b>everyone</b> has nipples. What's so mysterious and porny about them if they're constructed of XX genes?--but I'd rather talk about my picture. Ahem.<br />
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This took me about four hours, which is much improved from past projects I've done. I think a lot of that is because I got a new program: Artrage really makes me confident enough to do my pictures 100% digital, and being able to go from sketching to inking to coloring in one picture speeds everything up nicely. (Oh boy did that sound like a paid promotion. But I'm not being paid. Not even in anchovies. I just like the program.)<br />
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<a name='more'></a>So this is a continuation of the tarot card project I started in January. Not sure if I'll finish all 78 by the end of the year (since including this one I have three) but they at least serve as good inspiration if I'm stuck on what to draw.<br />
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This one was inspired by the four of wands, especially the concepts of unexpected good fortune, home, harmony, harvest, celebration, and blessings. I'm really quite happy with how it turned out.<br />
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One last warning if you really do have a sensitive nature: below this sentence, there are boobs. Small, drawn boobs. Protect yourself! Protect your children! Or be an adult and look at the picture; I'm a sign, not a cop. :)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI77uuKWpukENrtYZXea_Vi3A1lKGscZ_DUBWCFnEuNOs7lBLL3uk4zklQ3CgHpZbqquZXh-9O6FFiy_I271UqjkA7f-Z6Bn62RGIyx3WvGWsUaOXxrOgJn_MCz1Z-ahY92zybWf2QgkuZ/s1600/04.05.13+-+four+of+wands.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI77uuKWpukENrtYZXea_Vi3A1lKGscZ_DUBWCFnEuNOs7lBLL3uk4zklQ3CgHpZbqquZXh-9O6FFiy_I271UqjkA7f-Z6Bn62RGIyx3WvGWsUaOXxrOgJn_MCz1Z-ahY92zybWf2QgkuZ/s640/04.05.13+-+four+of+wands.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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Listening to: Doomsday by Nero. I'm kinda in love with this album, especially how each song blends in to the next.Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-39843341532456380822013-02-02T22:00:00.000-07:002013-02-03T05:16:03.234-07:00checking gauge is for suckers<div dir="ltr">
And I am apparently not a sucker. I'm not quite sure this sock will fit me--same pattern size as my last one, but very different yarn. Oh wells. If nothing else, I have a sister with small feet.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5YkavI3c3rHIrtds26YVartBVm4fWSQH0UOdObNWts5ETZJYT9K6J51SOHbjW8fRnXL2MHVH4PAQmXZyOVUQumGfEg85-kpS8uZlXQiW5IIAUSIqubdAfmkXrfarLGEkcDoKjqp1d8fss/s1600/20130203_045516.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5YkavI3c3rHIrtds26YVartBVm4fWSQH0UOdObNWts5ETZJYT9K6J51SOHbjW8fRnXL2MHVH4PAQmXZyOVUQumGfEg85-kpS8uZlXQiW5IIAUSIqubdAfmkXrfarLGEkcDoKjqp1d8fss/s400/20130203_045516.jpg" width="400" /> </a></div>
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I got quite a lot done during the evening session of Stake Conference today, and I'm hoping to get even more done tomorrow. I don't mind the three hours sitting in church at all; I often wish church was a lot more listening and knitting and a lot less herding six-year-olds. Sigh.</div>
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Lynx is way too cute.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ZCpg-NVUCsbGSsFD3l_oAz3avnyF9T7NwZmT4mRuqtZJ_iP6JM238lDo01q0Jcp-zfho5VB0q4EbXSbQiBA2LIKGz1X0sqR0EVPPPk9brrp0L0M0kdlIhzHypmFn4ZeNFV4aziLhVfin/s1600/20130203_041206.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ZCpg-NVUCsbGSsFD3l_oAz3avnyF9T7NwZmT4mRuqtZJ_iP6JM238lDo01q0Jcp-zfho5VB0q4EbXSbQiBA2LIKGz1X0sqR0EVPPPk9brrp0L0M0kdlIhzHypmFn4ZeNFV4aziLhVfin/s400/20130203_041206.jpg" width="400" /> </a></div>
Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-74669821494787244612013-02-01T23:30:00.000-07:002013-02-03T05:16:16.533-07:00sock it to me!<div dir="ltr">
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I finished a sock! I really should be working on things for my <a href="http://crochetedwings.com/">etsy shop</a>, but I've been knitting socks instead.</div>
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I finished this one and started another. The pattern is <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cakewalk-socks">Cakewalk Socks</a>, since I wanted more handknit socks for less work. </div>
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And my cat is sleeping with her head squished on a pop tart box, because she's like that.</div>
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Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-49599634476448439302012-11-30T05:02:00.000-07:002012-11-30T23:34:35.040-07:00the end is nighFor NaNo of course, but I hope for my novel as well. I've been half-busy with Etsy stuff this year, and half incredibly lazy and unmotivated. I managed to reach 50k by the 15th, but I haven't even added 20k more in the time since. So I'm aiming to change that today <b>(and will be blogging throughout)</b>.<br />
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I've decided to have a last day of NaNo crazy writing day, despite the fact that I woke up at 6:30 yesterday morning after about 3 hours sleep. But I've decided I'm not going to bed again until I either pass out, get way closer to finishing (maybe final confrontation done, but not final wrap up), or write The End. I'm hoping for the latter, but I'll take what I can get--even passing out would hopefully give me good dreams. After all, this entire convoluted mess started from a dream I had during last year's NaNo.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Start of day total wordcount: <b>66,365.</b><br />
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At around 2 AM I was impulsive and did this:<br />
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But I brainstormed while the bleach was doing its work, so not complete procrastination. I'm not sure yet whether I'll be dying it purple, blue, or pink over this. I'm tempted to leave it, except my bleaching was very uneven, and the roots look weird.</div>
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After I got all the bleach washed out, I sat down and did a ton more brainstorming (which may or may not have outlined the rest of my novel--we'll see) and actually pounded out some words with only a few bouts of extreme distraction.<br />
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<b>4:42 - wordcount so far today: 2169</b><br />
<b>Listening to: In the Flame of Error by Coheed and Cambria</b><br />
Huge mug of English Breakfast Tea and a plate of nummy oatmeal raisinet cookies sitting in front of me. I'm ready to get some more written--if only I had more of a clue where I'm going with this! You'd think that at over 100k in (40k written before NaNo) I would know, but I guess that's the pain of being a longwinded discovery writer. And right now, my flashlight for the path ahead is a little shaky. Hopefully the tea and cookies (and loud music) will either jumpstart the batteries.<br />
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<b>5:41 - wordcount so far today: 3127</b><br />
<b>Listening to: Devil in Jersey City by Coheed and Cambria.</b><br />
I'm not quite sure whether I want to be updating this by the hour, or by the thousand words. By the hour would probably work the best. It's been kinda close to an hour, so here's an update! This will probably get boring very soon.<br />
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C & C is my writing music, if you hadn't guessed that yet. For whatever reason, it works the best for dramatically spurring me on without making me get too lost in the music (though it still happens on the songs I really love--ahem; In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3, I'm looking at you!). It's worked like that for me ever since my first NaNo in '08, when Spotify didn't exist (and I hadn't bought their albums yet), so I spent the whole month with a youtube playlist I'd made of my favorites on repeat. Now I listen to all of their albums in chronological order according to the storyline. Because I'm a nerd like that.<br />
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<b> 6:12 - wordcount so far today: 4155 (70,512 total)</b><br />
<b>Listening to: Neverender (just assume all songs are Coheed and Cambria)</b><br />
Maybe I'll just update whenever I feel like it. Like now.<br />
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Oh boy. I'm about to put the 'tea' in TMI. Because there's a reason tea rhymes with pee. Maybe I shouldn't have drunk quite that much. Not to mention that my stomach is now angry at me and trying to retaliate by becoming less than habitable. But at least I'm awake!<br />
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<b>6:42 - wordcount so far today: 5045</b><br />
<b>Listening to: In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3</b><br />
I'm not exactly excited by the way my left wrist is starting to feel. But my characters are almost to the bad guy headquarters! I just hope my wrist/shoulder holds out long enough for me to chase down my ending.<br />
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<b>7:16 - wordcount so far today: 5498</b><br />
<b>Listening to: The Crowing </b><br />
I've been up more than 24 hours now, and despite the caffeine, I'm definitely starting to feel it. But I don't want to stop. I want to at least get my final confrontation done, even if I don't finish all of the wrap up at the end. Onward, with aching wrists, I go!<br />
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<b>7:38 - wordcount so far today: 5866</b><br />
<b>Listening to: A Favor House Atlantic</b><br />
I need to not make insane goals like this. I want to go to sleep. I feel like I would write faster and think better if I went to bed and then got up and continued this whole blogging writing thing. And maybe that's true. But at the same time, it sounds so nice to be able to go to sleep exhausted but feeling accomplished rather than worrying about not having enough time after I wake up to finish to the point I want. I don't think my sentences make sense any more. But I guess I'll keep trying. For now. <br />
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<b>8:01 - wordcount so far today: 6260</b><br />
<b>Listening to: I took off my headphones and forgot to put them back</b><br />
Awesome of a title as that would be, the above is not a song by Coheed and Cambria. :p<b></b><br />
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I don't want to say second wind, because I'll jinx myself. Especially since I've gotten to that stuck spot right before the big confrontation starts, and I remember clearly thinking 'I'll never make it' at that same spot last year. But I didn't let myself give up, and that was the first time I actually finished my novel during NaNo. So I'm hoping I can make it if I keep pushing myself, even when I'm up against the convoluted mess I've spewed out over the past month.<br />
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<b>8:32 - wordcount so far today: 6867</b><br />
<b>Listening to: still haven't put my headphones back on. Willow meowing, I suppose.</b><br />
Slogging. That is the word for it. Slogging. But slogging is at least moving forward, however slowly.<b> </b><br />
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<b>9:08 - wordcount so far today: 7007</b><br />
Getting less lucid by the minute, I swear. Mitten. Yep. There's a swear for you.<br />
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Rowan distracted me by watching X-men Evolution. Rude sister. Now I would much rather keep watching than keep writing. But only 3k more words and I can . . . maybe beat Rowan for the day? Oh poo. I will definitely not finish this in 3k words. That thought scares and hurts me. I don't know what a 10k goal is for then. To beat my best day this month, I guess.<br />
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<b>9:25 - wordcount so far today: 7400</b><br />
<b>Listening to: Cuts Marked in the March of Men</b><br />
As I get less lucid and write less, I really should update less often. But I'd much rather ramble here than in my novel. Except my fingers aren't quite cooperating the way I want them to anymore, so I really should put all my effort typing words into my novel for now.<br />
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<b>9:42 - wordcount so far today: 7776 (74141 total)</b><br />
<b>Listening to: Blood Red Summer</b><br />
I did updated now because it's a cool number. A pair of them. No one really needs to read this anymore except for me later to laugh/cry at myself.<br />
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Nigh does not look like a word. I googled it to see if it was a word. I want to spell it neigh, except I really do know that's wrong. My head is fuzzy. Stupid not sleeping me.<br />
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I can't even quite comprehend numbers anymore. Like, I'll write a few hundred words, and have no clue how they compare to what I had before, or how long it took to write them, or if my fingers are moving fast or slow and plodding on the keys. I didn't really mean this to be a rambling sleep deprivation guide. But I figure I'll look back on it and laugh at myself, so I shall continue, even though I kind of feel like my head is rocking back and forth when I'm pretty sure I'm sitting still. Maybe that's the motion of my fingers on the keys doing that. I wish I could count all of this words for NaNo, but I can't bring myself to. Besides, I'm going for finishing this year, not wordcount. Phooey.<br />
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<b>10:07 - wordcount so far today: 8639</b><br />
<b>Listening to: The Light & The Glass</b><br />
Hey, I typed a lot more! Mostly because I got to describe disgusting things, which I'm good at. But it totally counts!<br />
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<b>10:22 - wordcount so far today: 8765 (75130 total)</b><br />
I got distracted. And now I'm going to take a nap so I can hopefully dream about my story and make it actually have an ending. I'll pick this up again after my nap. Though even if I don't manage to get up before midnight, I still got higher than I was thinking I would after the last two weeks of the lazy plague. Now to see if anything I wrote makes sense later.<br />
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<b>19:59 </b>- I'll be getting back to writing soon. As soon as I make myself a mountain dew/orange juice concoction to wake me up. And then swear off caffeine for the rest of the week.<br />
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<b>23:32 - wordcount for today: 15,123. (81,488 total)</b><br />
The best part is, the last two words I wrote were THE END.<br />
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Well, that was a strange crazy journey of today. I'll write more about the strange crazy journey of all of NaNo later--for now I'm breaking out the WoW expansion I just bought and reveling in my victory. :DDanica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-70321736354828799172012-11-01T05:27:00.001-06:002012-11-01T05:27:54.811-06:00Na-Na-Na-NoAs sung by Lady Gaga, of course.<br />
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But yes, I'm doing NaNo this year, of course. At this point, I really can't picture my year without it. I would be totally lost in the month of November. And it's been a very sub-par year for writing (deciding to put a lot of focus on majoring in Illustration and starting a small business will do that, apparently), so I'm hoping to make up for that. Not with an impressive wordcount, as in years past, (although that would be nice too), but by finishing another novel during NaNo. That felt way cooler even than my 135k year. I like that feeling. I'm a bit addicted to it. And March was the last time I got my fix.<br />
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So I've already written nearly 5k words on my chosen WIP. My goal for day 1 is 10k--I want to start this month with a BANG. I'm not sure when/if I'll sleep. My teeth have that slightly icky drank-too-much-cola feel to them, but the need for mouthwash is worth the extra caffeine.<br />
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Anyway, I'm going to get back to my novel writing instead of my blog writing, but like my twitter, this is about the only time of the year that my blog gets some serious attention, so this certainly won't be the last you'll hear for me. (dun dun dun--famous last words?)<br />
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And then this happened in my head (to the tune of Bad Romance, of course):<br />
"I'm gonna write 'til I hit 50k,<br />
This whole month is NaNoWriMo time.<br />
I'll only 'member to eat once a day,<br />
This whole month is NaNoWriMo time.<br />
Na-Na-Na-No."<br />
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etc.<br />
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Listening to: Don Giovanni, K. 527, Act 2: "Don Giovanni, a cenar teco m'invistasti". Spotify radio make me sound all cultured and stuff.<br />
<br />Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-27849605240796824072012-09-21T11:30:00.002-06:002012-09-22T11:01:34.478-06:00I'm not dead, I promiseMan, what a downer of a post to leave my blog on for months and months!<br />
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I don't feel like doing a full 2012 goals recap, but suffice to say that I've actually started <a href="http://etsy.com/shop/crochetedwings">my Etsy shop</a> now, so my days are filled with more knitting than I'd ever imagined they would be! Nothing much to show for it yet, as far as being in the shop--like with everything, I'm great at being motivated to start new things, and rubbish at actually seeing them through to the end. Getting stuck at 96% for weeks because I can't bring myself to do an hour of finishing work is the story of my life lately. Alas.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I'm really tired now, but I thought I'd at least post some photos I took of a knitting project I just finished. Bulky yarn was on sale at Jo-Ann's, so I bought some fun colors and decided to try it out. It knitted up so dang quick, and the yarn is really soft and snuggly. Makes me want to go back (if only I had money) and buy a whole bunch to make a double-knitted blanket out of.<br />
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Anyway, this is <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/sweetgum">the pattern I used</a>.<br />
And here's<a href="http://ravel.me/crochetedwings/s1"> my pattern page with my notes</a>.<br />
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The hat is a design I may one day get in pattern form to put in my shop--I'm thinking of doing a pattern pack with various modifications I've had ideas for. Anyway, I've been wearing it a lot recently because it's comfy and great for hiding my bedhead.</div>
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<br />Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-2322106006295586002012-07-13T00:57:00.000-06:002012-09-22T11:01:54.156-06:00inner critic, go away; go jump off a cliff today. . . .It's ridiculous that I just wrote a blog post justifying that yes, I am a writer, since now I feel so very iffy on that front. I know it has to do with the fact that I'm randomly depressed again, and that I just got a good critique (read, was not nice to my story in exactly the way it needed to be, and pointed out a lot of things I need to fix to make it work), so I feel like if I can't even write a story that makes sense, who am I to say I'm a writer?<br />
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<a name='more'></a>But it was a Story a Day story. I wrote it in one day. I don't know why I can know that and admit it and not give myself credit. Because it feels like an excuse? Well, maybe it is, but maybe not all excuses are bad either. Or maybe I feel like I should have polished it more before group, but I did go over it, and that's what the group is for--pointing out problems I wouldn't notice. But I feel guilty for passing out a 'crappy' story that people had to actual put effort into their critiques for. Because that's not at all what we're doing in our writers' group, no--we just pass out already perfect stories and praise each other on how perfect they are! Idiot.<br />
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I don't know. I almost feel this is more personal journal rambling, but I said I'd blog more often, so here I am, in all my capacity for ridiculous sentences and angst. I mean, if I'm not a writer, it shouldn't bug me to feel like I'm not. If someone walked up to me and said I wasn't a lawyer, I wouldn't be offended. If someone said I wasn't a writer, I'd punch them in the face. With words, maybe. But when I say it to myself? I let it weigh me down. It's ridiculous.<br />
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I'm so sick of this low self-esteem. I just want to feel like the things I do are worthwhile. I keep questioning everything I do, to the point where I don't want to do anything anymore. And then my inner critic gets on me for wasting my time and being a useless lump. I feel guilty taking a break after eight hours of work, because 'there are more productive things I could be doing, and if I don't draw every single day with my own heart's blood I'll never be a better Illustrator and might as well just give up'. Okay, maybe not that over the top. But it was fun to write.<br />
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I don't know. I hope I'll feel better when I sleep on it.<br />
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Listening to: Krähenkönig by Subway to Sally. My playlist isn't changing much lately. Just the same Deutsch music all the time. I tend to do that--listen to one or two albums over and over again for weeks until I find a new music obsession, and they get added to the general random playlist.Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-42442675928426703892012-07-11T09:12:00.000-06:002012-07-11T21:15:33.135-06:00in which I watched a ton of movies while on the clockOne really nice thing about the work I've been doing for my etsy shop lately is the amount of Netflix I get to watch, guilt free. I need something to do while I knit and crochet, after all. My viewing history of last night/this morning reads as follows:<br />
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Two episodes of <b>How It's Made</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117008/" target="">Matilda</a></b>, since I love that movie and my cousin wanted a not-horror movie.<br />
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<b><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0396707/">The Secret of Moonacre</a></b>, to follow the loosely based on children's books theme, which had the added perk of Tim Curry.<br />
<br /><b><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104254/">Ferngully</a></b>, for nostalgia and another dose of Tim Curry.<br />
<br /><b><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1657299/">The Decoy Bride</a></b>, because David Tennant (and besides some really contrived character/romantic development, this turned out to be pretty fun).<br />
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At this point, my cousin went to bed, so I swapped to thrillers/horror:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1346961/">The Eclipse</a></b>, which was billed as horror on Netflix but was actually a surprisingly enthralling well-paced drama with great characters--and a few random jump horror moments tossed in there for no reason I could see.<br />
<br /><b><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0816530/">Imprint</a></b>, a fairly enjoyable thriller that managed some good tense moments despite seeming a bit low-budget.<br />
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Finally, <b><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0418879/">Memory</a></b>, which I only started. Then I realized I've done nine hours of work since I'd woken up, and I have class this evening. So it's off to bed for me for a max of six hours sleep. During all this movie-time, I crocheted five(?) basic wings (no edging or wire yet), and designed and knitted one phone cozy and most of another. A nicely productive night/morning.<br />
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<br />
--<br />
Listening to: The evil new fan my mom bought, which I will only let live because it's so darn hot in this room. The sound is boring into my brain!Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-64894946609486574482012-07-10T04:50:00.001-06:002012-07-10T04:50:45.137-06:00guest post (or, what I spent my evening writing instead of fiction)I've written a post for the Callihoo Publishing blog, entitled "What does it take to be a writer", in which I outline a few of the struggles I've faced in calling myself a writer. Check it out, and let me know what struggles you've faced in taking on that title!<br />
<br />
<a href="http://callihoopublishing.blogspot.com/2012/07/what-does-it-take-to-be-writer.html">http://callihoopublishing.blogspot.com/2012/07/what-does-it-take-to-be-writer.html</a><br />
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Also, I got oil paint on my gardening pants in class today, making me wonder if I should make them my painting pants instead. There, now I can still be random, even if I'm updating more frequently! :)<br />
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--<br />
Listening to: In der Stille by Subway to Sally. The problem with this band is I keep listening to all of their albums on repeat while I work, so I keep getting bits stuck in my head and having no clue what song they're in.Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-34662641842177926622012-07-09T15:34:00.003-06:002012-07-09T15:35:37.144-06:00summer classesDon't you just hate those days where you forget you have something to do? I think I subconsciously set the tempo of my days based on whether I have to do something in the evening or not. Today, I forgot I have a class at 5:30, so I've been taking some time getting things done for my business, thinking I'll have the evening to relax a bit. Well, there went that plan. And now my drive to do anything work-related is faltering, since I know I won't get home 'til nine, and will only have about an hour before my self-inflicted bedtime. And I have to take the non-air-conditioned car again. Ick.<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"></span><br />
<a name='more'></a>At least it's just my elective Illustration class, so despite my constant complaining, it should be fun. But still, we're working with oil tonight, and I have about zero experience with oil. Worse, I think most of the rest of the class has taken Foundations II, and therefore not only knows about oil and acrylics, but also how to properly do color and value. Being more of a novice than much of the rest of the class is definitely a stressful situation for me. I want to give myself a chance to make mistakes, to be able to look at other student's work and use it as a challenge to do better, but my mental conversations usually turn out more like "You want to be an Illustrator, but your work in a medium you've never used before looks like <i style="background-color: white;">that</i><span style="background-color: white;">? Compare yourself to this person over here who specializes in oil and has also been committed to this for longer, and then go apply at McDonald's".</span><br />
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Oh crap. And I was supposed to write a blog post for something completely different today too. Bah. I don't think evening classes are good for me. Morning classes leave me with the rest of the day to get stuff done after, but evening classes somehow make it so I have no time to do anything. Probably because I sleep in too late. Well, I should go write that other blog post before class, then make sure I have all my art supplies in one place.<br />
<br />
--<br />
Listening to: Wechselbalg by ASP. I'm definitely in a German music kick right now.Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-233273703656807802012-07-06T14:53:00.000-06:002012-07-06T14:54:50.654-06:00start of july goals recap: take that, mid-may!<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Rewrite (at least) one of my novels.</b><br />
Well, I didn't get it done in June, but I have been working on rewriting Clockwork. I polished my first scene up nicely before realizing I should probably be editing for story before doing line edits. So I'm in the process of summarizing all my chapters and scenes on notecards to try and get an idea of the shape of the story. It's hard because the only way to get better at rewriting is more rewriting, which you don't have a clue how to do unless you've done some rewriting. . . .<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"></b><br />
<a name='more'></a><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Finish </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my fanfic.</b><br />
No work on this front lately.<br />
<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Weekly </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Artist Dates/</b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">walk </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">more </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">often.</b><br />
Does the trip to the porta-potties that turned into an unexpected 2.5 mile excursion on the 4th count?<br />
<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Design a </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">large </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">knitting </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">pattern.</b><br />
No work on this front lately.
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Stock </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">etsy </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">shop, </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">and keep it </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">that </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">way.</b><br />
Well, I got my EIN so I can open a checking account and paypal for my business, made a twitter, updated my website, and started making wings again. Nothing actually in the shop yet, but my goal is to get things there by the end of July.<br />
<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Blog </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">more </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">often.</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">And </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">manage </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">online </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">presence</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">.</span><br />
Hey, look, I'm blogging right now!<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Clean the house.</b><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">A few weekends ago, Rowan, my cousin Melissa, and I totally cleaned the office. 10+ hours of work, many a garbage bag, and now I can actually turn my chair without having junk avalanche on me! It's not completely clean yet, but it's actually usable by four people comfortably for the first time in years. I am so very pleased with this. Our next goal is the kitchen/first room of the basement, so we can get a washer and drier.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Y'know how I said things don't avalanche anymore? As I wrote this, the set of plastic drawers next to my desk that Willow was sitting on randomly fell and attacked me. Thankfully, I caught her without claws extended, and perched her on my shoulder as I set them back up. She's now happily curled up on my bathrobe again. Since she was sleeping when it happened, I have no clue why they tipped over. I blame poltergeists. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">--</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Listening to: Meine Seele Brennt by Subway to Sally. This band makes pretty awesome music, both for background as I work and for actually listening to. :D</span></span>Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-82146545090145998572012-07-04T09:00:00.000-06:002012-07-06T14:16:43.196-06:00in which I decide I would like to blog more often<div>
Even if I feel I have nothing to say. I can talk about writing, current knitting/crochet projects, my poor garden, even the fact that I really do want to get my Etsy shop up and running one if these days.<br />
Of course, I always think that, every time I visit my cousins. Two of them run the pretty darn successful <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/QuietMischief" target="_blank">Quiet Mischief and Co.</a>, and watching them work and have goals and actually make a living off Etsy always inspires me. Usually for only about three days, or so, but I really would like to actually do it this time. Even if it means dealing with being a business, and taxes and shipping and having to build my customer base from scratch.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
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What else is going on? Well, I'm signed up to pass out a story tomorrow in my writing group, and though I wrote several during May, I don't feel any sort of hallelujah chorus about any particular one to polish a bit and send through the group. Also, because I wrote them using several formats, notebooks and phone programs in addition to my computer, I'm not actually sure exactly how many I did write, or where they all might be. Stellar organization skills, that's me.<br />
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The other complication is, I'm not quite sure when I'll find the time to do anything with it. I'm staying at my cousin's until tonight, when I'll be driving home at likely three in the morning, meaning that after actually getting some sleep I doubt I'll have time to do anything but print it tomorrow. And I'll be out of the house most of the day today, because it's the fourth and we always hang out on a particular hill all day, waiting for fireworks come evening. Since my laptop has laughable battery life, without an outlet, my writing plans are somewhat sunk.<br />
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Hopefully I can wake up early enough on Thursday to edit a story before we have to leave for writers' group. Though with how late I'll have to be driving home, I might be lucky to wake up in time to leave at all!<br />
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--<br />
Listening to: Do It With a Rockstar - Amanda Palmer and the Grand Theft Orchestra. I'm pretty excited about this new album. </div>Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-90646031825723793522012-05-21T11:47:00.000-06:002012-07-06T14:55:13.795-06:00mid-may goals recapAll right, rather than trying to catch up on (what feels like) months of missed blogging, I'll just jump in today as if nothing happened. Kinda like I tried to do for my 366 project, which has flickered out yet again.<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />Rewrite (at least) one of my novels.</b><br />
I've decided this is a June goal, since that's when the createspace offer from last year's NaNo expires. So, I haven't made any progress on this front recently. I finished another novel though, and at 48k words it's definitely my shortest. Might be a good one to start a rewrite on.<br />
<br />
I could have been working on it this month, but I was planning to do Story a Day in May. That's also kind of fizzled out. I suppose I could still try for it this last week, but I have almost no motivation to do so. I feel kind of blah overall, regarding my writing. :/<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Finish </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my fanfic.</b><br />
Well, I wrote and published a few more chapters. But it isn't finished yet.<br />
<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Weekly </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Artist Dates/</b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">walk </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">more </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">often.</b><br />
Yeah, about that. I have gone walking a few times, and spent some time in my garden. But even with the gorgeous weather, far too much of my time is spent in the computer chair. I blame the fact that outside there are hornets and barking dogs.<br />
<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Design a </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">large </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">knitting </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">pattern.</b><br />
Haven't really made any progress on this front.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Stock </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">etsy </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">shop, </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">and keep it </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">that </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">way.</b><br />
Hmm. Nope. Though I got a sewing machine for my birthday, and with it, more ideas of things to make and sell. But for some reason, ideas don't work to stock an etsy shop. Couldn't I list them under 'supplies'?<br />
<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Blog </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">more </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">often.</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">And </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">manage </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">online </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">presence</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">.</span><br />
I keep wondering why this is even a goal. Do I /have/ to have an online presence, just because the possibility exists? Then I remember that I want to be an author in this day and age. Darn it.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Clean the house.</b><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">I have been seriously thinking about this one. Strangely enough though, that hasn't been helping anything get cleaner. Maybe I need to work on my telepathic abilities. Or, you know, actually lift a finger to do more than click the mouse keys.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Maybe this is why I was avoiding my blog. Kinda depressing. Not that I haven't been doing things of worth lately, just apparently not the things on this list.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">--</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Listening to: my idiot rats squeaking and fighting over food. Because they're lovable little morons like that.</span></span>Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-17880204218669222592012-03-24T14:20:00.000-06:002012-03-24T19:55:49.048-06:00project 366 - another dose of highlightsI finally got caught up on my 366 project again. I'd been taking photos, and even processing most of them, but without actually putting them on my flickr, it didn't feel like I'd been keeping up on my goal. I even felt like calling it quits again. But now that I have them all up, I feel better about this project. So here are my favorites since the last update (going to be a long post, since it's been a while):<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6808878474/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 32 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 32" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7187/6808878474_a6b17d82fb.jpg" width="375" /></a></div>
I think I may have overprocessed this one, but oh well. I love it when the conditions line up just right to get this effect in my backyard.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6808865210/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 23 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 23" height="375" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7176/6808865210_6570eb31e3.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
Less for the photo than for the creativity involved--I've been shooting so many sunsets lately that I was happy to find a new way to look at one.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6808863662/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 22 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 22" height="375" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7047/6808863662_f5d72b9fe4.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
The photo itself was nice, but what I really love about this is the 'after' shot: the processing I applied. When I first started in photography, I prided myself on the tag SOOC (straight out of camera), but since playing with Picnik and getting Lightroom, I've come to find the fun in processing shots, both subtly and in a completely over the top way. Mainly I just work with the colors, so the actual shot itself--from focus to subject--still needs to be strong; I think that's a good balance between photographer and photomanipulator.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6954980157/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 28 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 28" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7044/6954980157_d95c2a8c83.jpg" width="375" /></a></div>
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Another shot where I like the processing and the tones I created, though I liked this shot even in full color. The split-tone tool in Lightroom is my very favorite thing to play with right now.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6808877364/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 31 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 31" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7064/6808877364_830160a9bc.jpg" width="375" /></a></div>
This one has more subtle processing, and I love the way it turned out. The rotation is what really makes this shot.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/7010237773/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 37 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 37" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7123/7010237773_3acfece24b.jpg" width="375" /></a></div>
I blame winter for the abundance of dark shots, silhouettes, and sunsets. If this project is anything like last year, my photography will become increasingly bright and cheerful as the months go on.<br />
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I told you this would be long! Let's take a break for a moment. Breathe in, breathe out. Good? Good!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6864127972/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 40 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 40" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7078/6864127972_8bff3e6ded.jpg" width="375" /></a></div>
Finally, another self portrait! They've only accounted for 1/5th of my photos so far, a percentage I aim to change. It was cold enough this morning to see my breath, so I tried to incorporate that into the shot.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6864131804/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 42 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 42" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7134/6864131804_41d5c5d405.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
I always love playing with photos to make them look aged. In this one, I pulled out all the reds and purples (since the cats harnesses were both), and found that it made the cats basically gray-scale, while the rest of the photo was left in color. Add in a light red tint and some heavy vignette, and it reminds me of one of those old photos where the color is painted on.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6864139652/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 47 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 47" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7183/6864139652_46137e1cc5.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
I love how the tones make my skin look so pale. Also, my hair looks very red. I guess I just like how the tones worked out in this one, and how it feels more like a captured moment than a lot of my very posed stuff. Also, I've been experimenting with square crops lately, and liking them.<br />
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Almost done! Maybe I should remind you you're here of your own free will? No, maybe that's the wrong thing to remind readers of at this point! :D<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/7010257753/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 49 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 49" height="375" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7061/7010257753_73a88f9a4c.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
I'm proud of how this one worked out. The sun only came out for a moment, and it was just enough to get that shimmer in the background. See, spring and brighter pictures are coming!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/7010259921/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 51 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 51" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7082/7010259921_9af36ee297.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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One last picture where I love the tones. And how can you go wrong with bird and tree silhouettes?<br />
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I obviously need to update more often; this was a long post! Though because I'm bad at picking and choosing, this was almost a majority of the pictures I've taken since the last update. Either I have really low standards, or I'm taking/processing better photos now! I think it might be that first one. :D<br />
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So, in an attempt to get some reader interaction, <b>how has this winter been for your goals?</b> Have you been enjoying the unseasonably warm weather, or missing the snow? Is spring being sprung yet in your yard, or in your head?<br />
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Listening to: Untitled 27 by Polly Scattergood. Sometimes you find a song that you swear was written for you. This is one that really hits me like that.Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-26850372821165979552012-03-13T19:40:00.004-06:002012-03-13T19:43:32.842-06:00leave a message after the (text) toneOkay, that title really makes no sense. But basically, this blog is to highlight the latest project I did for my design class, where we used text as value (tone). Here's a link to the picture, which you can click on to make it huge: <a href="http://armyofgnomes.deviantart.com/art/text-tones-self-portrait-290078115">http://armyofgnomes.deviantart.com/art/text-tones-self-portrait-290078115</a><br />
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There are five values (six, if you count the background). This is where you're supposed to guess what they all are.<br />
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Tone 1: paper white<br />
Tone 2: katakana<br />
Tone 3: script<br />
Tone 4: kanji<br />
Tone 5: black<br />
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Extra tone: background kanji<br />
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Need help?<br />
Here are some hints to help you guess:<br />
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<b>Tone 2: </b>Mitarashi dango! (I really don't expect anyone to get this one, but people sometimes surprise me!)<br />
<b>Tone 3:</b> look below my eyebrow (top right) for a fairly recognizable line<br />
<b>Tone 4:</b> Read this line out loud. Can you count the syllables? Then you have your clue.<br />
<b>Background:</b> Hmm. I can't think of a good hint here. Read the kanji? One uses the 'on' reading, and one uses the 'kun'.<br />
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All right, give up? Here are the answers (highlight to see them):<br />
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<b>Tone 2: </b><span style="color: white;">In the manga D.Gray Man, the main character Allen loves to eat. The kana is his first order after he reaches the Black Order headquarters. I think you can read 'tofu' and 'beef stew' in there somewhere.</span><br />
<b>Tone 3<span style="color: white;">:</span></b><span style="color: white;"> Bits of various Emily Dickinson poems, with a little bit of Robert Frost. The line right under my eyebrow is: "If I can stop one heart from breaking/I shall not live in vain;"</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white;">Tone 4: </b><span style="color: white;">Various Bashou haiku. There are also a few parts that are just dense kanji, one of which is 'ore'. Oh, and my glasses say 'megane' which means glasses.</span><br />
<b>Background:</b> <span style="color: white;">It says 'man squid', which can sort of be read as dan-ika, and is an injoke about my name.</span><br />
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So there you go. I think the 6 hours of inhaling rubber cement fumes went to my head, because I utterly haven't had a brain today. So I'm going to go crochet and watch The Hunchback of Notre Dame with Derek Jacobi as Frollo. Excited! Thank you, Netflix!<br />
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--<br />
Listening to: Let It Die by Three Days Grace. This song always reminds me of one of my bleach fanfics (which is mary sue wish-fulfillment and therefore will never see the light of day). I loves me some Grimmjow.Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-48356812167290895402012-03-09T23:31:00.002-07:002012-03-09T23:41:09.540-07:00february goals recap<br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Rewrite (at least) one of my novels.</b><br />
I've been focusing more on writing lately--trying to finish one WIP before starting in on a sequel for my second finished novel, since my writers' group is doing our own NaNoWriMo in March. Maybe I'll take the summer to focus more on this goal?<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Finish </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my fanfic.</b><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Yeah, just 'cause I said I was writing, doesn't mean it was this . . . sorry story alert peeps.</span></span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Weekly </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Artist Dates/</b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">walk </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">more </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">often.</b><br />
Bah. Maybe I need to keep these goals in a place where I can see them more often, so I can remember what they are. Because I'd <i>totally</i> forgotten I even wanted to do this.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Design a </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">large </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">knitting </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">pattern.</b><br />
Well, I've been 'designing' small knitting patterns--though it's more like adapting, I suppose. Still, it's been trial and error and experimentation.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Stock </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">etsy </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">shop, </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">and keep it </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">that </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">way.</b><br />
I actually did start cranking through a skein of yarn to see how much it costs me in yarn per set of wings. But not much beyond that on this front.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Blog </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">more </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">often.</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">And </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">manage </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">online </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">presence</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Ha! Well, I tweeted a bit, but that's about it.</span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Clean the house.</b><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Before it snowed again, I cleaned the backyard; does that count? Yeah, I thought not.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">All right, so what I've learned from this is I need to have my goals somewhere I can see them daily, because otherwise I get distracted, and it's amazing how fast days turn into weeks turn into months. And I've been slipping lately, so far as managing my time well--I need to start paying attention to that again.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">--</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Listening to: the soundtrack for Ink--I'm so happy I found this on Spotify, especially since Netflix took Ink off of streaming. I love this movie. It's a really strange, really interesting and moving story, and the music is awesome.</span></span>Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-42122413424822336692012-02-22T05:27:00.000-07:002012-03-08T03:45:00.448-07:00project 366 - february highlightsI restarted my daily photography project, though instead of only self-portraits, I'm now allowing myself to do the point my camera at cool things in nature that I like to do--especially on bad hair days. Also, I know February isn't over yet, but if I take any more really cool pictures, I can always edit the post.<br />
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As with all things requiring commitment and time, I keep wondering whether I should just scrap it, but I look back at all the pictures I took for the last project I did, and I know that I got a bunch of cool shots I otherwise would have never gotten. Not to mention how much it taught me about self portraits and editing.<br />
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So anyway, to keep myself motivated, here are those 'cool shots I wouldn't have taken otherwise', i.e. my favorites so far this project.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6799944593/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="in the shadow jester's court by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="in the shadow jester's court" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7009/6799944593_dd083d8ffb.jpg" width="375" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6799947751/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 1 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 1" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7019/6799947751_3c84f40e47.jpg" width="375" /></a></div>
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day 1: These two have to top the list, just because I'm so exceptionally pleased with how they turned out. And they kind of proved to me that even if I don't have the patience or time for elaborate set ups every day and my house is a mess, I can still get some really cool photos by taking the time to try.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6843953457/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 9 - tangle by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 9 - tangle" height="375" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7197/6843953457_cc69031d40.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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day 9: I just love how this one turned out. It goes with what I love about photography, how something so simple as a few drops of water on a string can be so artistic. Also, you may notice a theme with colors--I like blue/purple processing right now. :)<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6913367239/" title="day 17 - blown away by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 17 - blown away" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7186/6913367239_5b7a6ed8e4.jpg" width="375" /></a></div>
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day 17: This is a big reason why I like knowing a bit of how to use my camera, now that I've taken a photography class. Had I been shooting in auto, I never would have gotten this shot. Knowing when to over or underexpose is a big part of being good at photography. I actually don't think I needed to edit this picture at all, which is always cool. Also, look, I dyed my hair red again!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6889172693/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 15 by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 15" height="375" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7046/6889172693_12c2f87069.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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day 15: I've been experimenting with tones to try and make my edits look more like they enhance the original photo, rather than overpower it, and that's what I like about this photo: I was able to get the greens to pop without altering the original too drastically.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/army_of_gnomes/6809163749/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="day 3 - other side of the fence by army_of_gnomes, on Flickr"><img alt="day 3 - other side of the fence" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7169/6809163749_61fca193e3.jpg" width="375" /></a></div>
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day 3: And finally, to show that sometimes all of that planning is overpowered by luck, here's a silly photo of my next door neighbor's dog that I really love. I was spending some time exploring a different shot when he came bounding over to say hi. I got one shot, with no time to adjust my aperture, my zoom, anything, and that one shot worked better than any of the ones I'd meticulously chosen all my settings on. Sometimes, it just works out like that.<br />
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Now, I hope I can look back on these if I'm feeling like I should stop, and picture what wouldn't have been had I given in to that impulse earlier. Because if I'm going to ever complete one of these daily photo projects, I'm going to need all the motivation and reminders that I can get!<br />
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Listening to: Cymbeline by Loreena McKennitt--my writing music, which is what I should be doing. But this blog has been long overdue for an update, so I'll justify it.Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-18111790318756945252012-02-22T04:50:00.000-07:002012-02-22T04:51:13.935-07:00january goals recap<br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">More than halfway through February. Because that's apparently how I roll. Plus, I can be so unusually creative at finding ways to procrastinate while avoiding writing, so I figured I may as well take the time to do something at least slightly productive by finally updating this thing!</span></span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Rewrite (at least) one of my novels.</b><br />
Well, I at least printed out the last part of my first novel so I could get started on editing it, but I've mostly been focusing on finishing another WIP before working on editing. And March will probably be straight production, as my writers' group is doing our own NaNo, but maybe I can take more time in the summer to focus on editing.<br />
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I have two first draft finished novels (working names 'Gold' and 'Mother of Sky'), but I'm not sure which one I'll work on first. It would do good to try and make sense of Gold, but it's 165k, versus Mother's 90k. Having less to work with and worry about is definitely a temptation, but I'm afraid that if I put off Gold because it's longer, I'll never do anything with it. Plus, Mother of Sky is definitely a series, and I don't have plans to do more stories in the Gold universe, so it's be good to get that entire project finished.<br />
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So, not much on this front--I could say school has been more crazy than I've expected, but really, <i>I've</i> just been more <i>lazy</i> than I expected. Need to stop that. Maybe I should give up cracked.com and imgur.com for lent? Not that I'm Catholic, but it seems like it would be a useful goal to pursue.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Finish </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my fanfic.</b><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Ha. Haven't even touched it. Though I got a review the other day begging me to update, so there's the guilt monster again.</span></span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Weekly </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Artist Dates/</b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">walk </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">more </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">often.</b><br />
A more sad Ha! here. Haven't done a single artist date or walk since the start of the year. Part of it is my odd sleep schedule--when you wake up at 5 pm to the sun already setting, it's not very inspiring to go out and walk in the cold and dark. But I did at least start up another daily photography goal. That at least usually gets me outside and wandering about the backyard.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Design a </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">large </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">knitting </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">pattern.</b><br />
Well, I haven't been designing, but I've been thinking about working out the proper gauge for the heart square double-knitting project I've been working on to turn out closer to 36x36 with the border. I'll have to write a blog post about this project. I'm rather happy with the decision to do it, even if I am 3 squares behind my self-imposed goal.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Stock </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">etsy </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">shop, </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">and keep it </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">that </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">way.</b><br />
Thinking about it doesn't really count, but I did spend a good part of yesterday considering what I could start working on soon to now to actually get this off the ground. I think a good place to start would be figuring out exactly how much a pair of wings costs me to make and ship, probably by making a bunch until I run out a skein of yarn, then sending a pair to my cousin in Provo. She can tell me whether they ship well and hold up to repeated wearing. Also, I'd love to collaborate with her to add duct tape elements, since that's her forté.<br />
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I feel almost like I should start with the small stuff, phone cases and things, but what good is a shop called 'Crocheted Wings' if it doesn't have wings in it? Oh, and I need to do that business-ey think for Utah at some point. Hmm.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Blog </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">more </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">often.</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">And </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">manage </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">my </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">online </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">presence</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">.</span><br />
One more Krabappel Ha! to the list. Though I have somewhat gotten back on Twitter, which I hadn't touched since the first of December.<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Clean the house.</b><br />
Well, I've been plotting with my mom and sister about the best way to go about this, but not much actual cleaning has happened. It doesn't help that I was sick, then my sister, then my mom, then me a bit, then my mom again. Stupid flu season!<br />
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So overall . . . this is why I don't make resolutions!Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-79190629411132486032012-01-07T18:39:00.001-07:002012-02-22T04:51:39.178-07:00new year<div>
I hate new year's resolutions, but it sounds like a good thing to do a blog post around. A week late. 'Cause that's how I roll, apparently. So here I go:<br />
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<b>Rewrite (at least) one of my novels.</b><br />
I finished my first two novels last year, and haven't really looked at either since. Now that I've succeeded at that first big step of actually writing ' The End', I want to get at least one of them to the point where my writing group can go over it. This will likely be quite the hurdle: I've never rewritten anything longer than a short story.<br />
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<b>Finish </b><b>my fanfic.</b><br />
I have a chapter fic on fanfiction.net, in the Bleach universe, called Lucky. I think I started it . . . 3 years ago? My priorities have definitely shifted since then, but I still have lots of story alerts and favorites and pleas to continue on that story. I know how it is to be on the other side, hoping for updates, so I don't want to just leave it hanging--especially since I have the end basically plotted out already.<br />
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<b>Weekly </b><b>Artist Dates/</b><b>walk </b><b>more </b><b>often.</b><br />
These goals are tied together. Last year I bought The Artist's Way book to go along with an online workshop on it. I completed many, not all, of the lessons, but even without finishing I learned some very useful techniques to restart my creativity. One of these is the Artist Date; a date with yourself (or your creativity) for the purpose of refilling your creative well. The few of these I did engage in were very inspiring, and also a nice way to find some peace and quiet, depending on where I went. I'd like to start them up again, and along with that, I'd like to go for walks more often. These don't have to be done alone: often I'll go with my mom or the whole family. But getting out of the house and exercising are both important things to stabilize my moods, and I neglected both as I got busy with school last semester.<br />
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<b>Design a </b><b>large </b><b>knitting </b><b>pattern.</b><br />
I've been knitting a lot over the break, and thinking more and more about improving my skills to the point where I could design my own patterns. I've made a few small things of my own in the past, mostly crochet, but I'd really like to design something more along the lines of a sweater or shawl. I have a few books I intend on purchasing to help with this, but much if it will have to be practice, trial and error, and the guts to actually try and possibly fail. And try again, until I get it right.<br />
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<b>Stock </b><b>my </b><b>etsy </b><b>shop, </b><b>and keep it </b><b>that </b><b>way.</b><br />
For real. With all the ideas I have, it's ridiculous not to be making things happen with them. And I've love to be able to have some money on the side without the stresses of a 'real' job. Freelance and self employed have stresses of their own, but they're more of the sort I can deal with.<br />
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<b>Blog </b><b>more </b><b>often.</b> <b>And </b><b>manage </b><b>my </b><b>online </b><b>presence</b>.<br />
The first goes almost without saying. The second is a more personal issue of knowing my own limits. I keep hearing about all the things I <i>should</i> do, especially as an author: I <i>should </i> have a professional blog, with my own domain name and guest blogs and blog tours and constant posting about interesting subjects, and and I <i>should</i> have an active twitter, where I not only post often but link to others and have conversations and am social and bubbly . . . yeah. None of that is me. It's probably good marketing, but it's not me. And the stress of the shoulds is making me not want to blog at all. And that's just silly.<br />
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The other issue I want to address with this is my fractured online presence, that is: trying to have a writing blog here, and photos on flickr, and art on deviantart, and being witty on twitter, and keeping up with friends and family on facebook and google +. The pressure that if I do one of these things I have to do all of them is what makes me avoid the internet for such lengths of time. So my goal is to keep it simple by reworking my website to include all if these things, so I only have to post at one place. A multi purpose blog, like the Jack of All Trades that is me. If I want to talk about art, or knitting, or gardening, or writing, I want one zone to do it in. Which, to be fair, I was kind of doing already: now I'll just do it without guilt.<br />
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Last but certainly not least: <b>Clean the house.</b><br />
I know the state of the house has a big part in my moods and my oft faltering creativity. So this year, I want to actually do something about it.<br />
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Anyway, I think a good way to keep track of all of these goals is blog posts about how I've done with them, at least monthly. Weekly would be better, but I find I'm better at exceeding minimum goals than at meeting high goals. So, monthly it is.<br />
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Listening to: Bring on the Wonder by Susan Enan. This was playing on one of the episodes of Bones I watched while marathoning it from the start, and I fell in love with it. So simple, and yet so pretty.</div>Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8043884870263221967.post-54392629005060324832011-12-17T07:33:00.000-07:002011-12-17T10:12:49.134-07:00so that's why I have a tablet!I got a little Wacom Bamboo tablet for . . . I think it was my birthday last year. Or maybe the year before. My not remembering the exact date may show exactly how much I haven't used it. I mean, I asked for it, I wanted it, I was excited for it. I'd seen people do digital drawings in tutorial videos and had been blown away by all the options. The possibilities of layers, for one, made me want to dance around in glee, clutching the tablet to my bosom. Ahem. Anyway.<br />
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So I plugged it in, loaded the drivers, had fun writing "omg I am writing with a tablet" a few dozen times before dragging out whatever photoediting software I was using at the time (might have been Paintshop Pro, maybe Paint.net). I scribbled excitedly. And it looked like . . . a scribble. A scribble where all the lines were a uniform blackness, a uniform unattractive fatness. I blinked, and tried again. Same thing. Not exactly the sexy depictions of line quality I'd seen in tutorial videos.<br />
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Maybe I just needed practice. So I scribbled some more, trying to draw my basic 'face', and getting more and more discouraged, thinking I might have to relearn how to draw entirely in switching to a tablet. I had a bit more success drawing some books on the shelf behind the monitor than my anime girl, but they still looked somehow wrong. Then it clicked. When we draw, our lines aren't all the same darkness. They have different tones, and with that comes gesture and suggestion of importance. Line quality is a big part of what makes a drawing, and mine were coming out like the most determined 3 year old with a big black marker in their fist and their parent's new sofa before them. It was like drawing in capslock.<br />
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So I looked around the internets and found GIMP, which I'd downloaded on one computer in the past, looked at the strange floating interface, said "nope!" and gone back to paint. However, GIMP would give me what I craved--pressure sensitivity. So I downloaded it, and learned to deal with the interface. I even found how to bring back my Layers, Channels, Paths, etc. Window after accidentally closing it--that only took me two weeks! (just a note: GIMP is now my go-to for photoediting that Lightroom can't cover--getting past that initial steep learning curve is worth it! I'll drool about Lightroom in another post.)<br />
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GIMP gave me what I wanted, as far as making my lines lighter or darker depending on how hard I pressed. But my drawings still looked oddly kindergarten. I once again chalked it up to inexperience, and did my best to practice, knowing that was the only way to get better. But as anyone deciding to pick up a new hobby can tell you, it's a bit harder to convince yourself to practicing when all you produce is crap than when you're decent at something.<br />
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So my poor little tablet sat by my computer for the better part of a year, getting dusty, and somehow managing to keep track of its expensive pen companion. I'd occasionally pick it up again after watching another digital drawing tutorial, or after stumbling across a post of somehow talking about how much they wanted a tablet but couldn't afford one. But these awe and guilt sketches did very, very little to convince me to ever use what was turning into a rather expensive brick.<br />
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I don't exactly remember why, but I picked up my tablet again today. And I struggled with it again. I tried to slow down, work on hand-eye coordination by writing my name and drawing lines--I even taped a piece of paper over the touchpad to make it feel more like the drawing I was used to. But I ended up putting it away again, still discouraged. And then, feeling like I should accomplish at least something more than reading Cracked.com for hours, I brought it out and gave it one more try.<br />
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It was at that point that I, on a curious whim, did the smartest thing I've done since downloading GIMP: I went over to the brushes panel, deselected my big bulky circle, and replaced it with a smaller circle fuzzy.<br />
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That was all it took. I could smack myself.<br />
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So, after that long-winded post, here are some doodles I did at various stages of this process:<br />
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/cwDHZE--VDhSMtW6cagh2TmmqRcR_465hrhtBzUmkD4?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaSoEM0tqbEyeeAwS_5-XveaxRKfPK9jsz-3PNr-kmhZfQdX5IBCw_aeKgUOmLllpYbcpHYRb0swrqVDkqOF97C7VxyQz097aQhYDGmLYPL2EkVkApRBtoTechX6CWM3XsJb8GG6Ncn50F/s400/ball%252520of%252520yarn%252520on%252520garter%252520stitch%252520shawl.png" width="400" /></a><br />
This is one of my early sketches, before I'd tried GIMP.<br />
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/pl0fSETb7TeOM19adTjuWzmmqRcR_465hrhtBzUmkD4?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7i8ntR7EWBMQ3217z2iefMii0WW6PYxXZwQPdG8newV6L6ul8bzEmS4FiErpZPV03DjIUnxhop9DfU29YYfor46WoDLNu_BrQ-E4PWClXcbX48NNWJMQpmGnsDA_XZdBNPI4Iv2q57Liu/s400/books.png" width="400" /></a><br />
Likewise, though I'd at least lowered my brush size and tried color now.<br />
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/47tD7253mNJ-Hy8rGEtI_DmmqRcR_465hrhtBzUmkD4?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqvKH_ADyC36a_Tj9bjaJH4pbLv8ddqrmyV130AxAdx7lwX38VPrsl1APygruzhlxLJYHiRmM91UV8aFq0xGW_yaXR0aHPklPMmW_Y4kvLWSd_mzCQW5xXYTdXQeYu1s77hf1C5p65fYBI/s400/raven.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/RFp9YvzFyNZw4sX6Wpxm5zmmqRcR_465hrhtBzUmkD4?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE2oL2YaWBU_HiX13XFm_DnnWMnGy4i55-RjBRdEwfC7Lh9B3UFhHXJx86zO47pgUj5gHWZpFk-PlEUl7ahUtS-7TiusvmpQ7pln0UTSgpub7GLbfnd33H-zICyGoPbrB2xvF-WBuEuz_H/s400/gruffydd.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
I did these two in GIMP, but was still struggling with line width.<br />
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/PWgsGOZpmR4N7pD2GPYz5DmmqRcR_465hrhtBzUmkD4?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNnWHLD-vImYG0BH4DMsWgXelodAVUYtbg39B96dmSF6WvEzZC00LIsGhCAojXRj5lhYxS2yvCCWXbM3QyUaJnrqq0QxF34T2ogGyM8oaOclgWyekfyJ8-tMuH8zPWEq1kQi38CF1xRh5g/s640/doodle%25252012.17.jpg" width="427" /></a><br />
This was after I taped the paper over my touchscreen. Better control, but still having problems. (Also, if you save as a jpg, don't let it compress as much as it wants to. I've decided compression means it chews on it for a bit then spits it out into your save.)<br />
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And then: see the difference a feathery brush can make in even a quick sketch!<br />
<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/oZKGeKYeh_0DueO9CE4dhTmmqRcR_465hrhtBzUmkD4?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb6TXzKes_ccGgM_QE1wbp2VgPQk8GgKytw7rC5Kfy7IgPWJtaaHhEFuSpD6a_lVj7mqptA3AG3sSlgd87V52qoYTklwnixs2aS7hssX64iLIJZ4zVmNWS5-Ui0pxF4qShpWo0SFXCTKT_/s800/Sketch%252520002%252520%252528cowgirl%25252C%252520no%252520shading%252529.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Suffice to say, I'm now much more interested in experimenting with my tablet for sketching!<br />
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Though I did get something more out of this struggle before having my epiphany, and that is what I resorted to doing with my tablet once I was sure I'd never get good art out of it: pure, unadulterated, completely ridiculous doodling.<br />
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/WLDpGw7n0I3Xm9DvCoE9bzmmqRcR_465hrhtBzUmkD4?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrciIkWlLZ2povuKnbYmyLKQ0rr4q_4Ljt9LWLPjlIdbpS3i-6PB0MF_cF5roSTSJIaiHbciXddKY3ns-T_1qSBRZUFsohQcy5BAmo-VVyBkUV-BYwb-ItiVtQvLTddw0QqQpUsJfwugor/s640/2011-01-10%25252014.55.26.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/zgoSgF1cSWpZ8hKztP4VkTmmqRcR_465hrhtBzUmkD4?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4dDQTDgd2sG3Yjd-7aHFlV-sV6gVzLeDEiz4-LbsP0vyyoJ6jQCFf18CxIudC88smRELrNOpg3DzXhRWrGPYi_NCH6go6o-rJgv_E3tCuGL3bGLJ72VngTUcVifQcAKQeA2lKdtZZhu1/s640/2011-02-16%25252018.52.32.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/YZt-yknIJvzwwXWPDIpJkTmmqRcR_465hrhtBzUmkD4?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRlq1Nuo0GJdNGPDxdsuMtR01dA6FA-4zRtErXQmAIryfqI3tpJW-5fnXs6WeMWyXzzIKougpfUC6sDdsAppeIL7Sf1M1xrRwahRS3uxqJ2yTYw1PDy_6yeOhqBK2sGQpAnsklZtaCOOe7/s640/willow%252520fun.jpg" width="480" /></a><br />
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The possibilities are limitless. :D<br />
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edit: Oh, and look, a calligraphy brush! And pencil sketch brushes!<br />
(it's hard to do a facepalm when you're shaking your head in disbelief at your own fail :D)<br />
<br />
--<br />
Listening to: Still Love by Holly Brook. I want her to put out another album, dang it! I need to google her and see what she's up to. Interesting enough, I found her because one of her songs came pre-loaded on one of my old mp3 players.Danica Westhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15966203022168758086noreply@blogger.com3