26/28 Car Truths: Getting Sick

Source.

Getting Sick...
bleh.
It sucks,
It happens,
The best thing is to wait it out.

Surprisingly I didn't get sick during the hectic blizzards, but in the warm spring. My co-worker caught the flu from her son and then it infected me. Fortunately I don't get that sick when I catch colds, just a high fever and some sinus problems. The last time I really came down with the flu was a month after dating my ex; I must of caught some kind of stupidity germ that left me in a bed for a week.

Instead of waiting it out, like I'm advising here, I'm just moving about my day slowly. Slowly getting up from bed, slowly running errands and computer work, slowly going to my job, quickly going to bed afterward. Sleeping in and going to bed early are like adult treats. It's the best I can do right now.

Post Grad Update

I graduated last weekend, but my month long job search really hasn't yielded any results. With a BA, I'm too qualified for dead end jobs needed for the Summer, but under qualified for more professional jobs. I've been trying to transfer from my current job to the Springs, but they keep dragging it out. It's almost like the managers want me to quit.

The Car Truths isn't exactly finished, but I'm stuck on finding three more things to talk about. As I graduate, I no longer have admittance to the facilities on campus and have been scrounging around Fort Collins. This includes sink showers and having no permanent location. Maybe I'll come up with some more writing then. In the mean time, the blog will get an overhaul soon with the new graphics I've been working on.

I don't enjoy being tied to my job and not having a permanent residence to "hang out" in. Traveling in general would be more interesting than staying in one city, but that is just personal preference. Living in a car is better than paying rent.

Some Thoughts Concerning Education and Economy

I didn't proof read my little rant, and looking back the gaping holes in it are kind of embarrassing. I'll re-post it after I finish editing my thesis paper.

9/28 Car Truths: Uhm.

Let's talk about...

First off, I recently saw Salt-n-Pepa live in concert. They still got it.

Uhm. I debated about writing this post. Depending on the type of person you are and how you live this may or may not effect you, but most people are sexual.

I wouldn't suggest having long-term relationships when living in a car, unless your partner is participating.

Unless you're out in the middle of no where, miles away from any cop, park ranger, or whoever can hear you - don't have sex in your vehicle. Not speaking from personal experience, but bumping uglies causes noise and movement, which in the city is iffy (and illegal).

If you feel like masturbating, be aware of your surroundings.

If you want to have a one-night stand, or a casual relationship, plan to go to their place.

Same rules of safety and consent always apply.

Ever Faster

Now let's see if I can run six miles in 60 minutes.

5/28 Car Truths: Clothes

My typical laundry bin

Clothes!

Choose every piece of item you keep carefully. I have two jackets, a hoodie, a plastic full of day clothes and a locker of gym clothes. It doesn't seem like a lot, but it can get me through two weeks pretty well.

I have my four skirts, two black jeans, two long johns, two work out pants, a black dress and an assortment of tops. For socks, I have two heavy duty, cold weather ones. There are nights I definitely need them. Two towels and one wash cloth. A beanie to keep my head warm during cold night.

For dressy occasions (I haven't had a need to be fancy) I have two business casual skirts, a black dress and my black boots.

I already mentioned my black boots and brown, which keep my feet cozy. For warmer weather I have a pair of tennis shoes and running work out shoes for the gym.

Really, there is not much one needs. I dressed plainly before, so this isn't a big leap for me. Keep what is necessary, eliminate everything else.

Miss Minimalist has the best travel assortment I have found on the web. She manages to fit all the clothes she needs for travel in a large purse. In comparison, I definitely need to cut down!

For more insights on minimalist living, I would definitely check it out. It doesn't have much of anything to do with van dwelling or car life, but cutting back on the excess is a part of either way of life.

2/28 Car Truths: Drinking

Drinking!

Safely drinking can be an issue even when one does have a home. The several times I have gone out drinking started and ended pretty smoothly: stayed at a friends house till morning and slept down town in my car. Then there's just practicing good old moderation and staying fit to drive (no more than two drinks).

A couple of weeks ago my friends invited me out for a ~girls night~ which included a free lobster dinner. I know, right?! My friend won a Red Lobster gift card and took another friend and myself out for a night on the down. What a pal.

At the restaurant, I had an Irish Coffee and two tequila shots.

At the house party afterwards, I had a shot and two cheerleader beers.

When it got time to leave, our two DDs decided that it would be easier to pick up my car and one of them drive it to the dorms and the second one follow to drive the first DD back home.

I've been telling my mom and friends I live on campus; which is technically true. I do live off the facilities on campus: Rec Center, bathrooms, Study Cube. 

Not exactly knowing how to handle this, a little drunk I played along, rode in my car with my friend to the dorms. The second DD and her waited for me to "go inside" so that I would be safe.

I sneaked around a tight corner and hid until they left. Once the truck drove out of sight, I ran to my parked car.

Always have a plan. Always drink according to that plan. I also would suggest not to have alcohol in your car, to avoid problems if the cops run into you.

Full-time Online Favs of Mine!

Previously, I posted my aspirations and thoughts over work, creativity and online artists. Over the years, I, like many online folks, follow a mixture of online sources for entertainment. Here are some of the...

Full-time Online Favs of Mine!

Taken from Hodge's Deviant Art pic

Starline Hodge

Most of my submissions will probably be webcomics, as my interests tend to steer toward the comic variety. Since high school, when I first heard of webcomics, I have been following Candi comics, by Starline Hodge. A talented story teller, who consistently posts comics strips on a weekly basis, Starline is also a professional graphic designer and a Sailor Moon fan. (My favor scout is Sailor Saturn.)

Candi is posted at candicomics.com

Starline also has a "tumblog" and shares drawing tutorials and skilled fan art. starline.tumblr.com

Personally, I broke up around the same time Candi and Alex did with my boyfriend of three years, who pretty much left me for a booty call (Linda, in the comics). Before I transferred to CSU, my major was graphic design too. We definitely have a lot in common.

Candi lives in a world of relationship drama, flying ferrets from the science lab and a school funded "sexy police." Starline keeps the comic fresh and empathizes with all the characters in her writing, even when, as a reader, I don't want to. 

Vol. 1 of Ma3 is found here.

Gisele Lagace

A lot of these stories start in high school, huh? Penny and Aggie is a finished webcomic, but I started reading it as a teenager. Starting off a typical popular girl versus rebel grrl, Penny and Aggie developed into a comic addressing multiple teenage issues. Gisele drew the comic and T. Campbell wrote the script. Right before Penny and Aggie ended, Gisele started her own comic (her first online comic to my knowledge is Cool Cat Studio, about a graphic design firm) Menage a 3.

The comic is centered around a struggling, virgin artist Gary and his two new room mates, rocker girl Zii (Suzy) and amazon beauty, Didi (Desiree). Gary is forced to find new room mates after the old ones, Matt and Dillion, hook up and want to move out together.

Featuring a load of sexual jokes and cliches the story is sexy, witty and appeals to a wide variety of internet dwellers. Gisele pioneered a collection of new comics with other artists, now running a network of webcomics. Eerie Cuties, Magick Chicks, Dangerously Chloe, and, just recently, Sticky Dilly Buns all have her stamp on them.

Found at the QC store.

Jeph Jacques

Probably one of the most reliable webcomics out there. Questionable Content is a internet sitcom, featuring music aficionado, Martin Reed, his sarcastic drinking buddy and room mate, Faye and personal computer, if-the-internet-could-speak robot, Pintsize.

Questionable Content posts on a regular Monday thru Friday schedule. It's reliable, funny and has a stash of archives if you ever need to revisit episodes. I stick around for the romance/personal drama.

The Questionable Content store featured at Topatoco.com has a life of its own. The characters in the comic often wear the feature gear in the store, which host a variety of internet memes and inside storyline jokes. That one time in high school, I excelled at math and bought a "Math is Delicious" tote bag to carry my calculous books in.

Unfortunately, the tote is no longer in the store. Although, purchasing items from online retailers makes me feel like I'm a part of a secret society, lurking just below the surface of mall fashion and normalcy. 

I can't say that QC isn't secret; it's one of the most popular webcomics out there. A year of posting three times a week, Jeph quit his day job and began working full time, able to support his wife, adorable pyrenees pup and himself on the comic.

Older picture; more at biorequiem.com

Zoetica Ebb

Tried of me saying, "in high school?" Okay then, in middle school many of girls I knew, mostly online, but one IRL friend, liked Suicide Girls. As I stated previously, I tend to steer in more graphically and instead of adopting a Suicide Girl to like, I favored Zoetica Ebb.

A photographer and fashion connoisseur, "What's Zo Wearing?" was her featured article on the SG's website. Wearing motley clothes and a badass attitude, Zoetica stood out as a model character for some of my middle school art work. The original writer that I am, I created a space rocker named "abbyxia vvebb," who had a flying skateboard and played the drums. Many of the sketches of abbyx, had similar styles that Zo' wore in her articles; although all of them had my hair style and face. (abbyx didn't capitalize her name, a mixture of German grammar and futuristic trend setting.)

Currently, she's an LA artist, using her photographer, artistic, fashionable styles to do whatever the hell she wants: partnering up to create The Secret Guide to Alternative Beijing, her own Alien Botany project, helping to create and then leaving Coilhouse. I occasionally check her tumblr, just to be reminded that you can be weird full-time.

93, 100 Creatives

Danny Brito

Cute creations and hot boys! What more could I ask for? The talented Florida artist, Danny Brito mixes different mediums to create one of a kind illustrations, accessories and pop culture references in his art work. He also owns a pug named Roxy, who is adorbz. He is another full-time artist I follow. Getting past his anxiety to produce self supporting art work is motivating.

Roxy is on the left

I recently found out about Danny Brito through my endless search for pug photos on the internet. He made a custom jeans shirt for his pug, Roxy, and an hour later of looking at his original work, I walked away impressed!

das Ende!

It appears most of my internet inspirations are a mix of morbidly cute personal dramas from sexy extraterrestrial moon, pug fans.

Snowing in April

"We want state monies, so we're going to keep campus open even though it's dangerous to travel here."

"On second thought, now that thousands of students have risked the blizzard voyage for the sake of their grades, we're going to cancel class because the county offices told us to."


CSU logic.

I left my car where it was Monday night and I'm debating about calling into work tonight just to avoid driving. I need the money, but honestly forty dollars isn't really worth it (yes, it is.).


UGH!

Further, everything on campus is closed. I can't go workout, classes are obviously canceled and internet at the study cube is the only available thing. I feel more confident walking around in the snow than during warmer weather, but I really have no where to go. 

#Firstworldproblems + #Homelessproblems.

Snow Romp

I enjoyed a gay romp in the snow today.
During Xmas, my ex and I both exchanged one hundred dollar gifts to each other. He received a waste of money vaporizer (I could make a whole rant post about potheads and how I spent an awkward Xmas dinner with his family, while he ignored everyone to figure out how get high from his vaporizer.) and I asked for cold weather boots.

Best purchase ever.

I have issues with nonfunctional clothing and shoes. If there's no point in having it on the item of clothing, then it should not be there. All those non-function, Ugg boot knock offs really got on my nerve, finding functional footwear became much harder.

My Keen-brand, cold weather, black knee high boots are essentially what I wear almost everyday. I have an older pair of brown boots, that are also cold weather, but black combat boots please my inner fourteen year old.

http://www.amazon.com/Keen-Womens-Silverton-Waterproof-Winter/dp/B004KNWH9K/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1366157618&sr=8-7&keywords=keen+cold+weather+boots+black+woman

Snowing in April

Woke up to a car covered in snow. I've mentioned previously that I feel safer when it does snow. The car is completely covered and while I generally feel people's apathy for their surroundings protects me most of the time, it is nice to have that extra security.

Although, to be honest, yesterday morning I felt a little defeated. My first draft of my thesis paper is due on Monday and I feel like I only have a small grasp on a much larger subject. Friday, I spoke to the a Eastern European studies professor, more in tune to the early twentieth century and the transitional shifts that brought people from the medieval period, to the Enlightenment to the modern era. Those seem like large gaps in history, but it is all interconnected. Once my paper gets reviewed a couple of times I might post it on here.

Anyways! The sky snowed nonstop. I went to bed pretty late Sunday night/Monday morning, and left the library to a light snow fall. By the time I woke up, the snow blanketed the landscape. I opted out of going to the Plasma center, not wanting to wipe off my car. Slept in, unintentionally and scrambled off to class.

 I stopped by the library before to find this notice. The school offers a 24 hour study location in the library, but the library itself would be closed. I still had to work though.

The warehouse grocery store had little traffic. Normally, it takes the crew an hour or so after closing to clean up everything. We left ten minutes after closing, because no mess had been made.

Here are some pictures of the open area covered with snow. I love walking through there, it's like being in a little forest. Can you believe the school wants to tear this down and build a stupid fucking stadium?

I imagine a small Fern Gully community living in the man made forestry, terrorized by the very threat.

National Poetry Month

To celebrate National Poetry Month, the library has a neat little table filled with book puns. I don't care much for poetry. There are a few great poets, like Poe, who can capture my imagination however, that's not what this post is about.




  I love libraries. I remember going to the Sand Creek Library almost every week and checking out books. Over the summer the library featured programs that rewarded you with a beanie baby knock off if you read so many books. My sister and I would grab stacks of books and spent all week reading just to get a crappy little stuffed animal. She would read out loud to me.

She would summarize books she had read that were a little too much for my age at the time and make up her own stories, relate them to our neighborhood and lives. We would go on walks through the block and she would say things like, this is a zoo now and in each house an animal lives. Underneath that brush there is a leopard! This empty lot is a for a cheetah! Unfortunately, her wild imagination is also spawns from her mental illness, which turned pretty violent around puberty.

Even when she moved out and went to live with my dad, I still went to the library. I walked, rode my bike, checked out books and still find myself in libraries when I need to feel connected to something.

In middle school, you'd find me with my nose in a book, sitting in the corner. In high school, I joined impromptu book clubs, because the Sword of Truth novels captured the imagination of a random collection of students. My love for fantasy novels led me to find a medieval combat group and now I'm a part of a HEMA community. I'm graduating, in thirty-one days, with a history degree due to my love of reading.

My interests, imagination, and motivation sprung forth from the pages of books. Libraries are my havens, walls of books to guard me against the world by introducing me to it. When I feel I don't understand people, my empathy is found within the pages of someone's mind spill. I am never alone when I read, but feel connected to people even more.

Positive Messages, pt. 2

I took these last semester, but it seems to be the theme in CSU.

Love you for you

Live. Laugh. Love.

Be the change you wish to see in the world.

You're awesome.

Cute people.

Expectations on Easter

EXPECTATIONS

My friends from work invited me over
for Easter. We decided to bake these cute
little bunnies for the occasion.
I don't know the exact source, but found them on tumblr.

  Reality is less picturesque.

Fun at work

Crushin' Cullens in the Compacter

Tax Returns

Basil and me

Tax returns! I forgot to mention that my mom and I also filled out our tax returns over Spring Break.

My return, on top of my work bonus, was around 1,000. Well, where did all that money go!? I could of paid off my college loan by then!

You're right, rhetorical me!

I decided to pay for a martial arts conference, anime convention and family visitation instead. I worked very hard for that money and while it would be responsible just to wipe out my loan immediately, I can still pay off my college loan by the time I graduate and spend a little money on myself.

Another part of that pile of money went to buying a pretty sweet sword too. All of these purchases are for the long term outlook and to get better prices I needed to purchase things a head of time. By the 25th, my college loan will be paid off and by the 22nd of May, I will have saved up another five hundred to go towards my timing belt. Yay, living rent free.

So, there's that.

Development of teh Plan

When I first transferred to my CSU, I wanted to continue on to get my doctorates in Medieval History.  Since childhood, I have been obsessed with the Legend of Zelda and that preoccupation carried over the years as an interest in the time period it emulates.

Swords.
Castles.
Garb and kick-ass shoes.

All of it interested me.









Further down the road, I still study the material culture of the period, but right now I'm focused on the history (and the modern world's reimagining) of the Crusades, specifically focusing on Christiandom's relationship with the Islamic Middle East.

My GPA is not competitive enough to qualify for significant financial aid. Partially due to my personal life and unfamiliarity with college as a first generation student.



BUT, I always have a goal and plan to work towards, even though it changes a long the way! Right now, after graduating I have a specific schedule.

Pay off my college loan by the end of graduating (300 left, I'll explain what happened to the other monies I've been saving in the next post.)

Work until mid-September.

Go to a martial arts conference and an anime convention.

Visiting my artificial family in California.

Turn twenty-four.

Sign up as a linguist for the military.


Even if the VA benefits and health care are shit due to the current economic mess and mismanagement of VA records, the money made in the military could mostly go towards my education. I already know German proficiently and adding another language to that would set me up as a great candidate for a master program.

Just a plan.

Plasma Center

Needle hole, iodine stains, bandages

I started donating plasma. The first two weeks, as a first time donor, I made 80 a week. Now, as a regular, I'm down to 55.

It's a strange, painfully draining feeling to have a needle sucking the blood out of you and then pushing it back in. The saline that they provide after the blood plasma separating process makes me shiver, because the saline is 20 to 30 degrees colder than my body.

Also, let's look at the word usage here: donating plasma.

Donating is a gift, to contribute towards a cause and, like most gifts, nothing is suppose to be expected in return. When I donated a bunch of clothes and knick knacks to Good Will, I'm not expecting a monetary return.

I do not donate plasma.

I'm selling it.

I'm selling it at the lowest price they figure they can get away with paying people, to then sell the plasma to research facilities.

I do not wake up super early in the morning to rush over and donate blood, because they don't pay me for donating blood. (I have once, and probably should again. I'm B negative, which apparently is super rare.)

I wake up, to avoid the lines, of the misfit groupings of people, who all need those extra couple of bucks a month just to survive, to sell my plasma.

The end.

Snow

It's still snowing.





What the heck? Why do I get stuck with the longest winter in memory when I have to live outside!? On nights like these I have to drive around for ten minutes or so to warm up the car first, before I climb under my hen nest that is the back seat.

Visting Cousin!

Source

Source

Exciting news! My cousin is traveling down from Germany to visit my mom, sister and myself. Except for my late grandparents, none of her family has ever visited. 

I've been to Germany a couple of times as a kid, but didn't have a firm handle on the language then. Now with my improved proficiency in the language, it will be great to actually talk to my relatives directly and not through my mom.

While I visited my mom during break, my cousin sent an early Easter care package with a bunch of German chocolate. Yum! Germans know how to make their sweets.