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  | Foeva Me, A Blog
Thank you to Andrew and the judges for a surprising "Best Blog" win in the 2012 Quills! |
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Huge Thank you to eyestar~  for the awardicon! It's beautiful!Thank you to Thundersbeard  and the Challengers in the "30-Day Blogging Challenge"  for the second place awardicon for June 2012! The competition was much appreciated!Thanks to blainecindy-I♥theCircle  and the "Blogging Circle of Friends " for the December 2012 "Blogger of the Month" award  Truly an honor.  Thank you so much to Andrew C. - Congrats new mods!  , the judges of "The Quill Awards" , and blainecindy-I♥theCircle for sponsoring the "Quill Award for Best Blog - 2012!" I am beyond humbled. Thank you for this honor. "If God is a writer, he wrote a story so big that when it all ends for everyone, it'll be the biggest, most profound, and satisfying ending in all of existence." -Mr. Midnight  "Remember that guy who gave up? Neither does anybody else." "Man cannot remake himself without suffering, for he is both the marble and the sculptor." -Dr. Alexis Carrel "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." -Leonardo da Vinci "I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it!" "If the music's too loud, you're too old!" "Be original." "When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth." -Sherlock Holmes "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas Edison "If nothing ever changed, there would be no butterflies." "I may not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it." -Voltaire "My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, . . . But I abhor the dull routine of existence. I crave mental exaltation." -Sherlock Holmes A couple things you should know: 1. All this quotes  above are my favorites and I try to live my life by them everyday.2. Entries will not be everyday, maybe not even every week. I will post when I have something worthwhile to say or something that needs sayin'. 3. I tend to be very  humorous . . . read with caution  P.S. I am not a huge metal fan . . . I just thought it was a funny pic! What's hot NOW?: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ke1Y3P9D0Bc Click here to see all past blog entries:
       Leave a comment so I know when you drop by! |
| New Fundraiser! |
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Hello everyone!! I'm here today to announce a brand new fundraiser/image auction event with 50 images to bid on or buy and a unique custom image option to purchase personalized images made exactly to your specifications! The images in the auction are going F A S T with some already sold!  Come get your bids/buys posted in the forum quick! Thank you! |
| Pedicure, Washlets, Expensive Mall Experience, April Fools! |
I didn't write an update on my trip as soon as I got back because ... well ... same as always, I was behind on homework and had to focus on that. I got caught up (mostly) and snatched a free hour, so let's get to it.  After the fiasco with the cancelled flight, we made it to Oahu with only an hour delay on the make up flight. Once there, we spent time by the pool and made plans for the next day to do a lot of shopping and other touristy things, including getting that pedicure. We went to the mall first thing in the morning, and stopped by the pedicure place right after a short Starbucks run. Now, I have never gotten a pedicure before, so I didn't know what to expect. Upon entering the mani/pedi place, one thing became strikingly and obviously clear: I was not in I was very aware and self conscious of the grungy slippers I was wearing and my clearly not Japanese heritage, but I dipped my feet in the hot water bath, which was relaxing, and leaned back against the massage chair, which was jarringly painful. The massager things in the chair would not move away from my shoulder blades, so I cricked my back and sat nearly sideways to ease the pressure on my back. Uncomfortable as all getup, but by then the Japanese pedicurist was washing my feet, so I couldn't get away. The pedicure progressed normally as far as I know. Cleaning, clipping, filing, scrubbing, etc ... I became bored and filmed the lady squatting at my feet without her knowing, but I can't put that video up here because of the privacy issues.  I was so bored, I even texted my Dad who couldn't come in to the salon because of his debilitating phobia of nail files. Here's an unflattering picture of my toes with the final polish (French): https://www.dropbox.com/s/8uv6l7vrjslmozb/2013-03-30%2018.32.22.jpg We walked around the mall some more, and I was struck again and again by how many Japanese-run stores there were. I mean, Hawaii is a blend of many many cultures and backgrounds, and I have seen plenty of Japanese/Korean/Chinese/Taiwanese on the Big Island and at my school, but their abundance on Oahu was almost shocking for me. One clear example was when we accidentally found ourselves in a Japanese marketplace claiming to have been around since 1662. A whole section of the mall was dedicated to this market, which wasn't a single store, but an enclosed space with multiple booths, similar to an outdoor market from 1662. It smelled overwhelmingly of cabbage and fish, and there were NO other Caucasian people around. I didn't hear a scrap of English spoken, and all the signs were in Japanese. It literally felt like we had stepped into a foreign country - far more so that I feel on a regular basis, even living in Hawaii. On Saturday night, we decided to walk through the streets of the most tourist-y street on Oahu: Waikiki. We saw the street performers (my favorite was the man painted all gold who stood perfectly still who looked exactly like Johnny Depp), an Indian percussion traveling band, people advertising a gun range, ABC stores (there was one on every corner), and a homeless man sitting in the middle of the sidewalk eating a spilled omelet. It is easy for a country girl like me to stare at all these things and become overwhelmed, but I learned quickly to walk swiftly and not look in people's eyes for fear they might try to sell you something. I thought I couldn't get any more overwhelmed, but then the incredible happened. We peeled off the main sidewalk and found ourselves in a mall where all the "rich" stores hide so the customers don't have to walk in the rain. Immediately upon entrance, we were confronted with Golden Elephant sculptures, and I knew we were in some kind of wonderland. https://www.dropbox.com/s/yy4e4jzxlhdbguj/2013-03-30%2019.41.31.jpg We came to the Michael Kors store and eyed the security guards as they eyed us. We clearly didn't belong there (again, more than 95% of the customers were Asian). Deciding to plunge in even further, we took the escalator up to the next floor. And what an escalator ride it was. It was unlike I had ever seen in my life, and I thought for sure we were being teleported into Oz. There were displays of clothing hanging from pink trees on both sides of the escalator and a gigantic TV screen at the top of the escalator. It was all you could see while standing on the elevator. You must realize now, how I was beginning to realize, how truly overwhelming this was all becoming. At the top, I look around almost frantically for the escalator down, but there was none. There was one way to go: into the building even further. We could not turn around. We could not go back. We had so eagerly lept into the lap of luxury, and now there was no going back. I briefly wondered if this was how celebrities felt when the leave their ho-hum lives behind. Unfortunately, we were not celebrities, and clearly stood out for all the wrong reasons, like our ratty slippers. We passed a bathroom, and the inspiration struck me in an instant. The restrooms here were bound to be killer in comparison to anything else we were going to find. Everyone else agreed, and we ventured past the over-sized beetle carcasses ... https://www.dropbox.com/s/0h08y52fbk0e62o/2013-03-30%2019.50.42.jpg ... to the bathrooms. And guess what, I was right. The bathrooms only had "washlets." (see picture for detailed description): https://www.dropbox.com/s/keqsdv5lhgxj1lv/2013-03-30%2019.52.33.jpg The toilet had instructions for "Rear Cleansing," "Front Cleansing" etc ... again, see picture for description. I fail at trying to explain these things. (sorry for out of focus picture): https://www.dropbox.com/s/6uqocjaucyjyruo/2013-03-30%2019.53.01.jpg Mom actually screamed when she used it! That's how country we are  As we ventured further in, it was like a maze, but such a well-crafted one where you think you are lost, but there is really only one way to go. This way, you pass all the stores (we didn't go in because everything would have cost more than our house, and the dual security guards on either side of every door were giving us funny looks.) Also, at that point, we really just wanted to find the way out. We came to what looked like a dead-end, and all simultaneously deflated with the knowledge that we had missed the exit and would have to turn around. Luckily, one of the female security guards (Japanese), pointed us toward one of the corners of the dead end, which we had suspected was another store, and sure enough, it let us not out of the mall, but further in. We were really into the expensive stuff now. It seemed the further in you went, the more expensive things were. To demonstrate, here is a video of a $50,000 watch with hologram tech. Yes, you read that right: $50,000. For a watch. I can't explain how stunned I was, so I'm giving you this so you can be stunned with me: Then came the Dior makeup store. I swear to anything, there was an eight-foot man serving champagne, a DJ, free makeup tutorials, and a professional photographer. Parents both had champagne, and the three girls got our makeup done. (See new bio page pic for how I looked, or the link below). https://www.dropbox.com/s/nbxa8wavo8vh5ku/2013-03-30%2020.56.28.jpg I never wear makeup, but damn ... I looked stunning. When I was walking, Dad said the people I passed were turning back to look at me.  I walked with my head so high I felt like I was scraping the sky and my chest out. People moved out of my way. It was glorious.When we finally found the exit, we walked out new women. It was all so surreal and such a stark contrast to the homeless man eating the omelet off the ground. Two different worlds entirely, but all withing a block of each other. The flight home was only an hour delayed too, so that was better than the alternative. ~~~ A few random thoughts I wanted to share before wrapping it up for today: There is a man who paddles who looks exactly like Robert Pattinson (except older). His name sounds like sha-lawn ... but I'm not sure how to spell it. Yesterday was April Fool's day, and thankfully, I wasn't pranked. I did get my friend though. I texted her and told her she had 12 demerits (citizenship points - you don't want to have them), and she flipped out. I immediately told her I was joking, and her reaction was: "Ugh. Fuck you." That makes me think about April Fool's Day. I have never been into the whole pranking deal, but if you are one of the ones who is pranked, how do you react gracefully? "Oh! Haha! You got me! I look so silly!" *insert sarcasm. The first of April isn't really a day of Fools, it is a day of Jerks.That's it. Off to paddling, Emily |
| 24 hour Airport Adventure |
For all you Hawaii dwellers present in my readership *cough* Wordsmitty  *cough*, NEVER fly on Go! again, and maybe we can put them out of business so Aloha can come back.I had the worst experience with said airline, that I will actively discourage people from using it. Go! makes its money as an inter-island puddle-jumper. The planes are small and the flights are cheap. When they first started out, they literally pushed another airline out of business and caused the loss of many jobs. What happened yesterday and today for me with regards to this airline leads me to believe they are headed the same way. Our original flight was set to depart at 5 something on Thursday, so we arrived at the airport an hour early, only to be told our flight was 2 hours delayed. I won't bore you with the details (as there were none), but eventually, at 9 pm, they told us that our flight was cancelled. I have never had a flight cancelled on me before, and I sincerely hope it never happens again. I am just grateful it we didn't have to catch a connecting flight or had an important event we had to be at. So, we rushed back to the ticket counter and they gave us a voucher for a night at the King Kam hotel with dinner and breakfast the next day. The room and view were pretty bad, but it didn't matter because it was freeeeee!! We stayed there for a night and hung by the pool in the morning after our buffet breakfast. Our flight was at 2:50 on Friday, but when we got to the airport, the flight was delayed again until 3:30. We all expected the worst and knew they were likely to keep telling us the plane was "delayed" when it was destined to be cancelled in the end. On the plus side, I got a lot of reading done in all the waiting time. All the stores were closed (don't know why) and there was no place to buy food or even water. The lady kept commending us for our "patience" through the loudspeakers and told us to wait in the "holding area until our plane arrived. We were cattle. Trapped and hot in a holding area waiting for a flight that was highly likely never to show up. Thankfully, the flight left at 3:45, and wasn't terrible, though it was crammed and the bags didn't fit in the overhead compartment like they would have on normal sized planes. I rebelled and used my electronic device (iPhone) to film the take-off and landing when it was supposed to be turned off.  All in all, it took 24 hours fly on a 30 minute flight. I worry about the flight back, as we cannot afford for it to be delayed or cancelled 'cause we have school the next day ... This bad airport experience will make all subsequent airport experiences better though. I suppose that's a positive thing that came out of it. I don't know how many total hours I spent waiting in lines, but I think I deserve a pedicure for the stress my feet went through Tomorrow, I may finally get that pedi I've been talking about ... too bad we can't get the airline to pay for that too ~~~ Going back in time a little bit, I was rejected from Williams on Wednesday. I'm not sure I would have gone there had I gotten in though and I am perfectly content and happy with the colleges I have been accepted to, so getting the rejection email wasn't that big a deal. ~~~ At Paddling on Wednesday, one of the barges was going out and the entire harbor stank of straw and animal poop, just like a petting zoo. And it stuck around a long time too! It wasn't just a wafting scent that is disturbing for a second, it lingered over the water for the better part of practice while the barge was pulled out of the harbor by the tugboat. I wondered where the animals were headed to, and couldn't help but imagine the scene in the movie "Life of Pi" when the boat with all the zoo animals sinks. What must the water have smelled like then? That same day, as I was driving home up the hill, I ran into a rainstorm. Not your average rainstorm either. This one came out of nowhere. One second, the air was hot and dry, the sun was shining, and the birds were chirping, and the next second, a bucket of water was dropped on my windshield and I couldn't see the road ten feet in front of me. You know there must be a flash-flood warning when you have to turn the windshield wipers on high, the headlights on, and the window defogger on all at the same time. I had never been in a rainstorm that severe since I was learning to drive on the steep and windy mountain roads of Hawi. Not pretty ... I had to pull over at the lookout stop to get my senses straight and turn all the dials where they needed to be. Thankfully, I have learned to multitask while driving, so was able to avoid this this time. ~~~ I have yet to receive the image for the Quill Award for Best Blog 2012 from Andrew C. - Congrats new mods! . He did say the person who was making the images was busy or moving or didn't have reliable internet access, or something similar. I hope to get it soon though. I'm excited to see what it looks like! ~~~ Speaking of images ... I'm learning to make animated images!   I will take requests if you are interested in me making something for you. I don't plan on opening a shop though. Only good friends who have read this blog and know that I will take bribes ~~~ My foot is slightly infected. I scraped it on a rock while I was free diving last weekend, and it hasn't healed and is red and puffy. I'd show a picture, but ... It might be kinda grody for an 18+ rated blog Doctors and nurses are welcome to email me and request to see the picture. I'm looking for advice about what ointment works best or if I should see a doctor ... I really don't want to though.  That's it for me. Nighty, Em |
| ACCEPTED TO SARAH LAWRENCE! (and other mood-lifters) |
| Oh. My. GOD!! HUGE news! https://www.dropbox.com/s/21bnmu6ll2yalxf/2013-03-25%2019.57.10.jpg I was ACCEPTED to SARAH LAWRENCE COLLEGE in NY!   There are too many emotions going through my head right now to write them all down. I love this school beyond words! The system of "dons" (individualized, personal advisers) is a HUGE turn on for me about the school, as is the freedom to create and choose your majors to fit your personal learning style. Everything about this school is me, and I desperately want to visit it and live in a dorm and go to some classes. I want my parents to fall in love with it as I have. It has outstanding opportunities and is in a apparently beautiful location, but I need to see that for myself before I can judge.  Thank you to the SLC admissions staff, and a special thanks to OOT ~ Finished Law School  and RenDuring® Infinitely Alone for their sincere congratulations. It means more to me than you both could know I was also waitlisted for Haverford, but that matters less to me than the acceptance, which I am gushing over. ~~~ Today I realized a very simple act I now have the right to do as a senior: I WILL NOT move out of the way of underclassmen when I am walking. They will move for me. End of story. ~~~ Update on the crazy boat guy from paddling: His boat, "Dawn" was docked on the pier. His trailer was sitting where I had last seen it. The truck was gone though. He was also no where to be seen. I see a couple options here: Either his time on earth has expired and the truck was impounded with the boat soon to follow; The truck was towed and the man was arrested for BUI; The man came back safely and drove away leaving the boat behind. I honestly could care less, but an interesting story to ponder. What actually did happen to this man while he was at sea? ~~~ Using the white strips again tonight and following my routine, which worked in lifting my mood yesterday. I'll be darned if I can see the white strips working already after only two days. Great product, I have to say. Well worth it. That's it for me. Gotta stop procrastinating ol' HW, (new image! ) |
| Gaining Control - Shaping Myself w/ a STRUCTURED evening |
| Spring Break has finally come to an end, which probably means that blog updates won't be as regular. Watched Robot & Frank and thought it was cute, but I wasn't very satisfied by the end. It is the kind of movie you watch to fill time, but don't really feel positively or negatively about it. Rating: Meh ... Plus side of the homework situation is that I finished that big "Civil Disobedience" essay. Not the best, I'll admit, but fairly decent for two weeks with no mental stimulation whatsoever. Negative side is that I completely neglected the AP Art History homework I had, thinking I could do it in a weekend like I am normally able to do. What I didn't realize, was that I had ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY art cards due instead of the usual 10-30. Oh. My. God. I am utterly screwed ... The first fifty are due on Friday, then the next hundred the Friday after, so I still have time, but damn! How could I be so stupid to not check something like that? The thing is though, I'm not entirely sure I would have jumped on doing them like I wished I should have in hindsight. Procrastination is the plague. What you should have done only becomes clear AFTER you have done the wrong thing. Water under the bridge now. Nothing I can do. Once I realized that horrific fact, I promptly went to the beach to cool off and take in the last of Spring Break. Picture proof: https://www.dropbox.com/s/qbad0r6s99ileo2/2013-03-24%2010.48.33.jpg https://www.dropbox.com/s/3fppxild7kvgslk/2013-03-24%2012.43.59.jpg I started watching another of Miyazaki's films (love that guy): From Up on Poppy Hill I'm only 20 minutes in because I got interrupted and haven't had a chance to continue, but all of his movies are soooo unique and innovative, not to mention that the animation is killer. Definitely gonna finish watching when I have a chance (and homework isn't breathing down my neck).This whole break, I've been focusing a lot on myself, and I think I've become lonely because of it. I don't know how to explain it, but I've been moody and touchy the last 24 hours. Sparked, I think, by my being waitlisted for one of my top choice colleges. These depressive feelings seem to happen every month, so I suppose it is hormonal, in which case, I just need to learn to recognize the signs and take measures to prevent escalation. I need to go back to school and be around people again. I always thought I was a solitary/private person, but I suppose I do well from interaction with friends. Positive thinking tells me to focus on my acceptance to a Cali school instead of focusing on the waitlisted part, so I'm going to meditate on that happy news before bed tonight. That's why I'm a bit curt / terse ... etc ... you know what I mean. To help myself, I'm going to take note of my mood every morning and evening and meditate on what made me feel that way and how I can feel better. Looking forward to shaping myself the way I want. Speaking of shaping myself, I don't just mean my tumultuous mind, I mean my body/hygiene as well. Followers know I've been doing a nightly exercise routine before I sleep, and it has been helping me sleep better. I'm feeling fit and energized, so I am starting a new thing where I am going to try a new exercise and perfect it every night. I need abs, glutes, and thighs most, so I'll be focusing on those. I feel happier/more sane after I'm sweating, so this should be good.I'll start with these websites to take an exercise from each night: Glutes/Thighs Abs Play along with me if you like. I've also resolved to drastically improve my personal hygiene regimen. I'm doing all the normal things now, but I haven't kept up with flossing like I said I would back in January, and I had to get a filling this month, so tooth-care obviously needs an improvement. I'll start there. Bought White Strips, so I'll be using those for 30 minutes every day for fourteen days (thirteen now, 'cause I've used it once already). If I have things to keep me busy, I believe I'll feel more confident etc. Less crabby as well, I hope. So! Every night, I WILL: Use White Strips for 30 minutes after Paddling and dinner (during homework time) Exercise: Abs/Glutes/Thighs with varying exercises every night Floss! Record my dominate feelings of the day in my iPhone calendar Meditate on feelings + how to shape them into something good Sleep by 10 PM and hopefully have some dreams to interpret I will keep you updated on my progress when I have a chance. I need more structure. This will be good for me. Thanks for reading, Em |
| Thoreau, Boat Guy Lost, Do I look 25? |
| I have to make this a quick entry 'cause I've procrastinated my homework until the last couple days ... again. Working on my "Civil Disobedience" essay right now. Having a bit of a brain fart and I needed a break. I added a couple new exercises to my nightly routine. Now, instead of just doing crunches over the edge of the bed, I do this weird twist thing where I touch my right hand to the ground and then twist and touch my left hand to the ground. It's really tough, but I gotta tell you: It's really working. I'm also doing an exercise called the "Bridge" which is supposed to work your glutes and thighs. You lie on the ground with your knees bent and knees and feet together and basically thrust your hips forward and up while clenching your leg muscles. Looks real funky (don't let anyone walk in on you while you're doing it), but a fast thirty in a row is intense.The crazy boat guy from Thursday still wasn't back. I saw his truck and mangled trailer sitting by the pier when I went down this morning. That would make about 36 hours that he's been on the water. Hopefully they don't find any bodies. O.o I suppose we should call the Coast Guard or something, but I'll leave that to the adults. We practiced with both the morning paddlers in the afternoon paddlers today. I go in the afternoon so I don't see the people who come in the morning, but one of them came up to me after practice and asked me how old I was. When I told her I was a high school senior, she recoiled and was completely shocked. I was shocked too that she had such an explosive reaction. She said, "I thought you were 25 or something!" I'm not sure if it is a good thing to look older ... I guess I could get into clubs if I wanted. That's all. Back to Thoreau, Em |
| Tanned Siri, Inept Boaters, and Not To-Do List |
| I was lying out in the sun again today, breaking Tina's SOOTS rule, when my phone buzzed with this alert: https://www.dropbox.com/s/xt349t7kscjdqia/2013-03-21%2012.01.22.png I didn't know Siri didn't like getting tans! I didn't even know she was smart enough to know when her insides were boiling ... Needless to say, her complaint was enough to get me rushing inside and was effective in ending my tanning session for the day. Maybe Siri knows when I should get out of the sun more than I do. I held her near the open fridge until she cooled off and let me use her services again. After that, I stayed inside and kept my phone in a cool place while I watched a movie I have been meaning to watch for a long time: Silence of the Lambs . I had stopped myself from watching it a few times 'cause it was getting on nighttime, and scary movies sometimes really get to me, especially in the dark. This time though, I timed it in the middle of the day. Turns out, I really enjoyed the movie. I'm interested in the psychology of criminals, so it was informative and fun to watch. Hannibal is such a good criminal, his character was insightful for when I create my own villains in books. Definitely a movie everyone has to watch at least once. ~~~ Interesting story from Paddling today: I got down to the pier early like I normally do, and witnessed the start of what turned into a major fiasco. An old man in a beat up old pickup truck was reversing his equally beat up orange fishing boat called "Dawn" down the ramp and into the water. He couldn't get the angle right, and kept reversing and pulling away causing a major disturbance in the traffic. The pier isn't very big, and there was nothing our paddling team could do to move our canoes until he was finished putting "Dawn" in the water. His truck was skidding a little down the ramp when the man tried to go forward, and all of us were worried the whole truck, trailer, and boat were going into the drink. Our coach made all the younger kids get out of the water just in case the seemingly inevitable did happen, and the rest of the adults waited and watched while the man slowly and methodically got the boat into position and began untying it from the trailer (which itself looked home-made). Both back wheels of the truck were in the water, and the tide was coming up. At the speed the man was moving, the whole truck would be submerged before the boat was unhitched from the trailer. Moving the speed of a man overly dosed up on NyQuil, the man climbs the side of his beat up trailer and onto the prow of the boat. He begins to cut off the rope holding the boat to the trailer. Eventually, he gets that free, and sets about tying the ropes to the pier. A couple of the other paddlers go over to help him hold the ropes (thank god), and he gets back in the truck. He drives forward a bit until the boat comes free of the trailer, and the stops in the middle of the ramp! The team lets out a collective sigh. All we want to do is use the ramp to move the canoes into the water. Looks like we will have to wait even longer ... At this point, the surging in the harbor is getting pretty bad, and it is hard to hold the canoes. We are worried for our lives so near to the man with the crazy boat, so six of us take the three canoes out into the bay to wait until the man is out of our way. Meanwhile, the man and one of the paddlers maneuver his boat around to the other side of the dock and tie it up. The truck is still in the way. The ropes are apparently insufficiently tied, and the man ties them again. The truck is still in the way. We all want to tell him to move his truck, but the man is methodical and we know our efforts would be fruitless and may even slow him down more. He gets into the boat by weaving his way through the fishing lines that hang haphazardly around the vessel. He tests the engines. The truck is still in the way. He reties the ropes again. The truck is still in the goddamn way. Finally, after what seems like ages, he moves the truck and we are able to move the rest of the canoes into the water. But this story is not over yet. As we are loading up, the man seems ready to head out and unties the ropes. He test the engines again, and putters out into the middle of the bay, less than 10 feet from where the boats are sitting prone, and revs the engines. The boat doesn't go forward, it goes in tight pinwheels! Corkscrews! Out of control, the man turns off the engines, and attempts to return to the pier. At this point, all of us realize the peril we are in. The man is very likely BUI (boating under the influence) and possibly high on other drugs as well. This whole time he has not said a word, and now he is trapped in the middle of the harbor with a rope that won't reach the pier. We all watch just to see what he will do, and somehow he manages to inch closer to the pier, with a paddle perhaps (I didn't see exactly as I was preparing to head out with my crew). My canoe is ready to go, and we begin to paddle out, when we see the other women's boat waving their hands and yelling for the coach. The inept boater had fallen into the water ... We had just about had enough of him, so we go out into the main harbor to start our warm-up. As we are coming back toward the end of the pier, we see the man coming out. Oh crap ... He had apparently gotten back in the boat and got the engines working and was now a hazard coming right for us. We steer clear and watch him putter off toward the horizon. Our coach tells us through his bullhorn: "Whatever you do, stay away from that boat." After practice, it was near dark and we still hadn't seen the return of the man. We wondered if he planned to honor the namesake of his boat and stay out on the water until dawn. The boat was small though with no place to sleep. Our coach told us in the huddle that if we found the boat drifting, claim it 'cause the man wouldn't be on it. Twas an interesting day ... There's another story for my English memoir arsenal. ~~~ I especially love the prompt I came up with today for the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" : "Lists, lists, lists. To-do lists, check lists, laundry lists, bucket lists ... Seems like there is a list for everything. Write a humorous list of things you are NOT going to do today."I can't think of what I would put on that list, but according to certain people, (*cough, RenDuring® Infinitely Alone *cough) I am funny when I am annoyed. The boat man annoyed me, so perhaps I'd better try writing this list.NOT To-Do List: 1. Do not lie in bed until 11 am 2. Do not eat one meal to satisfy both breakfast AND lunch 3. Do not lie in the sun long enough to make Siri boil 4. Do not procrastinate your homework 5. Do not deny your sister your help in making Oreo truffles 6. Do not go to bed too late - you have to get up early on Saturday 7. Do not forget to post the 30DBC prompt for Saturday 8. Do not forget about this list Well, that wasn't so funny, was it? I'd better leave the blogging to the competitors and go back to hosting ~~~ More dreams are happening!  Here's the one from last night: I am in a big library mixed with a cafeteria with two of my guy friends from school. We couldn't sit at our normal table, so we sat at a long, slanted table made of bookcases and stacked with books. For lunch, I got at huge blueberry the size of an apple, brought it back to the table in a small, white bowl, and went back to wait in line again. There were two lines and you got something different from each line. I was in the line where you could get a single cracker with a piece of cheese and an almond on top. Just before I was about to grab my cracker, the girl in front of me snatched the cheese off mine. I wasn't allowed to take a full cracker with cheese and almond, so I took the one without cheese and aggressively threw it into the trash. I begged the person to give me back my cheese, but she didn't and started adamantly arguing with the lunch lady. That's all for me. GN, Em |
| Exercise, Midnight Workout, Bikini Crew, Body Types |
| I missed posting yesterday ... Uh oh, minus points on my English homework (Sorry Mrs. ... I swear I have a genuine excuse. It's called 40 Year Old Virgin and it is a hysterical movie ) I am paddling so SO much more than I was with school. I was able to hop in with the "Bikini Crew" (the nickname of the high level Women's boat - so named for the fact that they all wear bikinis 'cause their bodies are smokin'. Yes, I am jealous of a couple 40+ women's bodies. ). Anyway, I got to sit seat five with them 'cause their other member wasn't there that day. And DANG! Those women are F A S T ! We paddled for an hour straight and kept withing 5 boat lengths of the Men's crew the entire time. It was thrilling Exhausting, but utterly thrilling My legs are still sore from the hike up Buster Brown. Been stretching and such, but Paddling tightens my muscles up again. I've also added a bit to my bedtime routine. I'm going to bed around midnight during break, so I do a Mini Midnight Workout before sleeping. It isn't much, just enough to get me breathing harder. It's easier for me to fall asleep right after a little exercise anyway. I wanna give my stomach some more intensity so I can rock a bikini when I'm 40 like the Bikini Crew ( ) and weight my legs down with my textbooks (the only use those books have gotten all break so far) while I sit on the edge of the bed and do sit ups over the edge. This is probably breaking the mattress, but it allows the use of all my ab muscles (including obliques, which are hard to work out) and gives a bit of a stretch too. Very difficult, mind you, but I definitely feel it working. Sets of five depending on how tired/sore I am.Then, I switch it up every night with deep squats (30), Sun Salutation (Moon Salutation), planks/low planks/push ups, or something else if I feel up to it. Sometimes nothing, but break days are important too, right? Speaking of Bikini Crews and exercise, Elle - scrambling for lollies  's recent post ("You're going on a diet, kid!" ) about her children and "being fat" really hit a chord in me. I don't consider myself skinny, nor do I consider myself fat. Still, just like any other teenage girl, I see a toned stomach of another girl, and I think, "Why don't I look like her?" It isn't jealousy, I am comfortable in my skin, but there is a little trigger inside all of us that makes humans see other humans who they perceive to be "more fit" as threats. It is a primal code which causes us to want to look the best we can look, and that standard is set by supermodels who are computer generated and Barbies who wouldn't be able to stand erect given the size of their tits.When girls ... girls I KNOW say they are "getting fat," "look fat," "are fat," I turn my head away and puke silently to myself. Seriously?? Your waist is skinnier than my thigh! These are girls I know as friends, acquaintances, or strangers, but they suddenly all transform into the same person with the simple utterance of those few, demeaning words: attention whores. No offense meant to those who I do see as friends, but the vision we see as "skinny" is NOT healthy. Starving yourself is NOT healthy. And bemoaning your "fatness" certainly does NOT gain you friends. It may gain you sympathies or reassurances that you are not fat, and maybe that is what these attention whores want, but those assurances are not going to make you more happy in your own body. Only you can be comfortable in the body you were given. Body types are VASTLY different, and trying to look like the model of beauty seen in magazines will only lead you down a path ending nowhere and a life of wishing you were someone else. Bottom line: Self appreciation habits start early. I will surely follow Elle's example when I have kids of my own. My kids will never be told they are fat, nor that they are skinny. They will be healthy, and that will be perfect. All that being said, I know I can look healthier. I'm feeling accomplished this Spring Break with all the extra exercising I've been doing. I'm also getting a nice, even tan (Read the chapter in Bossypants where Tina Fey describes her "Secrets of Beauty" while I was lying in the backyard, and cringed when I broke rule #3: Skin Care, Skin Care, Skin Care! I completely read by the rule about SOOTS (Stay Out of the Sun) and the following AWAH (Always Wear a Hat) and DLO (Don't Lay (Isn't that supposed to be "lie?") Out). I did get the AWAH part right at least )After I was done disregarding Tina's SOOTS rule, I washed the car with my sis. Yes, I was in my bikini when I washed it, and yes I did get pretty soapy Shoulda taken a picture of that. Funny part: The mail guy came by while we were out there giggling and spraying each other with the hose ... Easy to laugh off, but I'm sure he wished he had taken a picture too Omg, I crack myself up! I'm pleased that I'm dreaming regularly again. My dream from last night was disturbing though In this dream, I had to transport my two dogs and two kittens in the Durango from someplace far away to a dark mansion. I put them all in a black sack and then I tied a plastic bag around the sack and tied a towel around the whole bundle. I put the sack in the backseat of the Durango, and moved the driver's seat which caused the sack to flip over. They whined, and I was terrified, but I had to keep them in the bag even though I knew they would be scratching each other and whining and might not be able to breathe. I drove to a village where the huts were made of candy. There were some more things that happened during the ride, but I don't remember. In the middle of the candy village was a big castle with a porch outside. I carried the sack on my back like a backpack to the castle and heard Buddy whining. I remember being terrified and scared I wouldn't make it to the castle in time. It was nighttime and I quickly got people to cluster around me on the castle porch and make a little circle so I could take the animals out and they wouldn't run away. I opened the bag and took out our old dog first. His butt was sticking out of the back and I dragged him out. His toenails and eyes were bloody. He was lying very still, but I don't remember thinking he was dead. I remember taking out one of the little kittens, but not the other, and that's where the dream ends. The most prevalent emotion was terror. Gotta sleep. More dreams are waiting, Em |
| I'm dreaming again! |
| Finally had a couple dreams the last two nights. I've had a restless mind for weeks, so dreams didn't stick around long enough for me to write them down. I recently realized something significant and that stress has been lifted from my mind. Consequently, I dreamed deeply the next two nights. The first night, I dreamed about being in a hotel and going to the bathroom where I met this old man and an old woman. The old man was doing parkour over the grand staircase balconies. The woman and I watched him and then started to walk back to our separate rooms. She used a walker, so I walked slowly to keep pace with her. We were in a dark hallway, and for some reason, there was a largish drop, about 4 feet, blocking our path. I made it down fine, but was worried about the woman. However, she remembered what the old man had shown her and parkoured down the drop. We parted ways then, and I came across a cluster of people around a little round table with an old style, box TV on it. The TV was very small and the picture was grainy, but the hotel constantly played ads on the TV for the hotel guests. The little TV monitor fuzzed and said, "Insert disc 13." I sat down next to the people who were putting in the discs and we started talking about "your" verses "you're" and one man had a DVD that apparently would reduce the number of children who used "your/you're" incorrectly down to only two uses per family per year. He said something about how I would enjoy this and started spewing statistics, but I told him I was taking a Statistics course and could prove him wrong in a minute flat so he had better stop talking now. ~~~ Last night, I dreamed I drove up to Canada in a tiny, open-sided car that was my friend's. It was difficult to turn on and only had two seats. It kind of looked like a golf cart mixed with an electric car and was white. I was wearing a tank top and a little cardigan and I put on my big fuzzy sweater when I was driving at night because the wind rushing into the cab made it very cold. I remember vaguely jumping over red tile roofs around a courtyard with a tree in the middle. My dad was with me, but I had to leave him behind because he stopped to help our old dog after Dad knocked him down while he was running. I also remember typing to Wordsmitty in Scroll on my phone while I was at a party, but every word I wrote was autocorrected so there was no way he could understand what I was saying. I think I was asking for help, 'cause I was trapped in Canada with a car that didn't work too well. Then I remember going into this restaurant where a couple of my friends were eating. I got there late and couldn't stay, so I ate one of Lauren's green tortillas with pesto on it and paid her two dollars for it. She wanted more for it, and thought I handed her a $5 and a $1 but I actually only gave her two $1s. I explained since she had a stack of the tortillas that one was only worth a couple bucks. The waiter told me if I was going to stay, I had to get a table of my own, but I said no, I was leaving in 10 minutes anyway. I had to drive back to Hawaii apparently and it was a five hour drive so I had to go ASAP. It was the middle of the night, and I tugged the flimsy cardigan closer over my shoulders and tried to start the little car, but it wouldn't start. The dream ends with me stranded in Canada on a cold night. ~~~ We brought both dogs to the vet for their check-ups today. Our old dog is 13 years old, and getting quite frail. He has arthritis and his muscles are weakening, but the good news is that he is still very healthy inside. His blood work is near perfect and all his organs are functioning fine for an old guy. That was happy news. Till next time, Em |
| Troll Feet, Tech Savvy (matey ;-) ), Underground Bloggers |
| I did not get a pedicure yesterday. I was looking forward to it, actually ... Looking forward to taking creepy pictures of my feet and the rarity of painted nails, but alas ... it didn't work out. To rebel, I went on a hike instead with my sis and dog up a near sheer cliff face covered in cow shit. Talk about troll feet after that The hike was grueling and I was nearly crawling on my hands and feet near the top. My dog, Buddy, musta run up and down the entire hill multiple times with all the running back and forth he did by the time I got to the top. He has Australian Shepherd in him, so he needs as much running as he can get. (He needs more - baby's getting chubby.) Panorama: https://www.dropbox.com/s/bblbirczq0gysff/2013-03-18%2011.12.16.jpg Top of the World: https://www.dropbox.com/s/egacr36wsxqptvm/2013-03-18%2011.46.36.jpg ~~~ I was pretty proud of myself yesterday night. I am not normally tech-savvy, but with only a bit of research, I was able to connect my laptop to the TV to watch a movie (ask me: "Why not just use Netflix?" and I'll say: "  " ) At any rate, I was able to take the HDMI cable out of the DVD player and plug it into my laptop instead to project the image. The thing I could not figure out though, was how to connect the sound so it came out of the TV instead of the laptop. The sound would only come out of the laptop speakers, which are decent, but not good enough for movie watching when you are sitting ten feet away. Thinking quickly, I scavenged up some old iPod speakers and plugged those in. Unfortunately, they made the sound quieter, not louder like I had hoped ... I gave up in the end, but hope to ask a professional and get it working before Spring Break is over.~~~ I'm working on a secret project. More on that later when I have some of the preliminary items set up, but I'm looking forward to it. Should put a whole new meaning to the term "Image Shop." Have you ever wanted to personalize your OWN images EXACTLY how you want them, but don't have the tech skills or the proper computer programs to do so? Never fear! Blog readers will be the first to know when I'm finished (Made the photo album last night )~~~ "Addicted to WDC!" has become an underground group of bloggers suddenly! Those sneaky addicts are thinking up the most innovative ways to get points! (Thanks to Elle - scrambling for lollies for the first MB from the group, btw) And BW ~ On a Witchy Job Hunt  got a stunning Awardicon on her blog from nicholson! (I have to confess: A bit jealous over here ) Well deserved though; the last couple entries of YW's (March 17-18) were very creative and had me laughing all the way through. Well done, girl Once you blogging newbies (Elle - scrambling for lollies , Carmela  , and nicholson) are settled in, there are Blogging Communities and Blogging Challenges around the site that would benefit from your participation, including the "Blogging Circle of Friends " by blainecindy-I♥theCircle and the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" by Yours Truly A New Blogging Newsletter has also recently been started, so I highly recommend getting in on that action: "Blogging Bliss - Unofficial Blogging NL" (I'm writing this month's Featured Article )~~~ I still haven't gotten the "Best Blog" image from Andrew *pout. I wanna put it up top there and brag a bit Y'all know you'll be the first to know when I get it Talk later, Emily EDIT to add: WHOA! Just reloaded my blog page and LOVE the new look! |
| Very Cool! |
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| Just a quick entry to congratulate nicholson, Carmela , and Elle - scrambling for lollies for starting their blogs on site! Check them out here:
I'll write another entry later, but I wanted to get this done before midnight Take care! Em |
| Happy St. Patrick's Day! |
| For those of us under 21, St. Patrick's Day is not a real holiday. The festivities proceed as follows: Step one: Wear green so you don't get pinched Step two: Pinch anyone not wearing green Step three: Drive your parents home once the shamrocks and booze make them tipsy Step four: Wish there were presents to open or candy to eat -END- There's not much to ol' St. Patty's Day, and frankly, I think it's useless. Why was it even created in the first place? Maybe for some noble reason which has long since been lost. Ask Google/Siri/Bing/Answers.com/Yahoo* or your favorite search engine 'cause I'm too lazy to find that answer. ~~~ Might get my very first pedicure with my mom and sis tomorrow (err ... today WDC time). That shows how much a tomboy I am, don't it? First pedicure comes after 18 years of stanky, filthy, callused troll feet ... I'll take pics after they're done. I might get them painted green just for the occasion ~~~ My sis and her friends went to a dance last night. What has the world come to that 12 year old girls go to Spring Break parties, but not me? Not that I have the slightest interest in going, but seriously? Where does that come from? How did lil' sis find out about a spring break party!? Gah! ~~~ Watched Perks of Being a Wallflower and it was much better than Flight. I enjoyed the quirkiness of the characters and the dilemmas of high school because I know people like them and understand the circumstances and emotions. Hard to explain, but it was an immersive movie and worth a watch.Take care, Em *This is not a sponsored entry |
| How boring can I make this entry? |
| Twas raining all day today. A bummer after all the sun the last couple days. My sunburn is itchy. That means it's going away, right? It did fade a lot last night 'cause it wasn't too bad in the first place. Not to mention the fact that I lathered on the Aloe before bed. No, no, you don't understand ... I practically bathed in the stuff. Slept in 'til 11:15. A car-repair man fixed the cracked windshield on the Prius (I didn't crack it, I swear). He had a handsome face, but was at least a foot shorter than me ... My AP Art History review books also came and my replacement copy of Stephen King's 11/22/63. I was thrilled they came early The estimate was March 18, and they came three days early! That's what Amazon does, I've realized: They give you a long estimate so you are happy when the books come "early."Watched Flight with Denzel Washington and learned one thing: cocaine solves everything. It wasn't a movie about "flight" or planes at all ... It was a movie about addiction and alcoholism. My rating: Lame.Shout out to my groupies over at the new group: "Addicted to WDC!" . Elle - scrambling for lollies , BW ~ On a Witchy Job Hunt , blue jellybaby is BLUE!  , and airplane1285  Come join us! We all know you are addicted too! And ... that's where my brain stops working. Remind me to do some homework tomorrow. Goodnight. Em |
| Spring Cleaning |
| I never talked about the massive room cleaning project I had been sunk into all day Monday, did I? Was so tired after all that, I didn't want to think about it anymore, I guess. I've finally got my head back together after the all the cleaning fumes. My room hasn't been seriously cleaned for a year, and I haven't cleaned it myself for much longer than that. I usually manage to fake clean by running wet paper towels over the surfaces and claiming that is enough to remove the colonies of bacteria and other various germs. Yes, I know all females reading this are cringing right about now, but I honestly can say I lived like a bachelor. I couldn't walk on the floor without trailing wads of hair the size of small rodents or brush my teeth without looking at my reflection in the mirror through toothpaste polka dots. Nasty, I know.In short, my room was in desperate need of a deep clean. I started with my mountain (it really was very threatening: avalanche imminent) of college spam mail. Most of it was for colleges I hadn't applied to, so there was no need to keep it at all. I sorted through every brochure, letter, postcard, calendar, poster, map, and booklet the colleges sent in bulk. I filled an entire trash bag (the stretchy "Don't get mad, get Glad" kind) with all the crap and was left with a smallish stack of mail from the colleges I did apply to. I organized that stack by college and stored them in a filing box (like a filing cabinet, but only a box with folders inside) thinking they may be useful when it comes time to decide. I could look at the pictures of groups of racially diverse students laughing under trees at colleges where it never snows. (I've looked at a lot of brochures; they are all the same. All college brochures have laughing students, smile-y professors, and either an African American kid and/or an Asian American kid with a white kid on the cover. No joke) I was proud of myself. I had successfully organized a threatening pile of paper and that small corner of my pigsty was finally looking normal again. I was still trailing hair wads, but I had finished something at least. The funny thing about cleaning up, is that you get into a mode. Suddenly, everything looked like trash. Even my textbooks cluttering the floor My next victim was the desk in my room which I haven't been able to use for multiple reasons. One: it was stacked high with "trash, and two: the chair was a clothes rack 'cause I don't own enough hangers. Anyway, I fell on the desk to sort the "trash" and discovered something unexpected: More college mail! Well, I guess it wasn't that unexpected ... I put the letters on the desk instead of on the pile to protect my floor from the avalanche I knew would be coming. I sorted those, threw away the birthday cards from January (checked for money first), the folder of papers from my Writing Workshop over the summer, the gum wrappers, used gift cards, and everything else which was cluttering up the beautiful desk I have (I realized it was beautiful after everything was finally off it and it was dusted). I have good memories of putting together this desk. I did it myself, and remember stabbing the box with a kitchen knife before reading the warning: "Delicate Legs Inside." One of the legs still has a scar from the knife. Alright. Two areas done! I was excited, and still in that cleaning mode so I shook out the rug on the lanai (it is unvacuumable with long sheds that would destroy the vacuum - I could not believe the dust that came off it), elbow-greased the window and bathroom sink (Scrubbing bubbles didn't scrub hard enough), and Swiffered the surfaces and floor (even under the bed - vacuum wouldn't fit there either). I was drenched with sweat by the end and learned a valuable lesson: In future, I will design and decorate my room to be vacuum-friendly. So much easier that way.I realize now why women (and men who women rope into helping) clean. They clean to keep the home habitable, of course, but they also clean because it is a thrill once it is complete. An accomplishment to be sure, and an accomplishment you can continue to have week after week (My Creative Writing class is going to be writing memoirs when we get back to school. I wonder if I can re-purpose some of these blog entries )~~~ So naturally, after Monday, I've been lazing around the house and outside more. Tanning and reading mostly. (I cannot forget that I have homework too that needs doing ... must remember to do some tomorrow) Got a little pink after today's tanning session though ... did three rounds instead of two. The last one was one too many. Aloe and sleep will turn it into a tan though https://www.dropbox.com/s/0sltl8dbixayrx7/2013-03-14%2011.11.13.jpgPaddled five miles today too (was worse with the sunburn) but I felt even more accomplished. And last, before I go: Good night all, Emily |
| Lazy Day |
| Stayed up 'til Got up. Tanned on the front lanai (porch) with my new bikini. Finally evening out the tan lines from all the different length shorts I wear. Went inside. Watched a movie with sis and ate a yummy lunch salad (artichoke hearts, tomatoes, and feta cheese: https://www.dropbox.com/s/3tkozbz7zcuj3x1/2013-03-13%2012.22.36.jpg) and a homemade chocolate shake (One cup milk, half cup sugar, one teaspoon vanilla extract, tablespoon cocoa powder (or to taste), and ice cubes = one shake ). Went outside and tanned again (I do shifts so I don't get burned ) Gonna rinse and repeat tomorrow (minus the shake ). I haven't got much else to say about my day ... Besides the fact that I was SAVED by Wyrd_Naos - Finals arrive!  who has graciously offered to help me out with the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" and send out the prompts Mon through Thur! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! I was really beginning to wonder what I was going to do if I couldn't get the "Delay Send" to work.Gonna take an early night. Take care, Em |
| Frustrations of "Delay Send" |
| Is the feeling of being let down worse after you think you were getting somewhere? It's gotta be ... Life's successes lift you up higher and then plummet you down to the jarring depths of failure. Okay ... so maybe my life isn't that horrible, but I have been let down in something I've been trying (and very nearly succeeding) in doing for the past day. Those who have been following my exploits with the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" know that I've run into a bit of a brick wall when it comes to sending out the prompts at midnight WDC time. I used to be able to send them out fine because I was home by 7 pm Hawaii time, which corresponded to midnight WDC time. Now that DST has decided to come along, Hawaii is another hour behind the Mainland which means I have to send out the prompt at 6 pm instead of 7. This had never been a problem before, but now I am out of the house Monday through Thursday from 4:20-6:45 pm, which interferes with the time I have to send the prompt.Now, you may be wondering: "Why is it so important to send the prompt out at exactly midnight? Can't you send it out earlier?" Well, yes. Technically, I can send the prompt out at 4:15 (10:15 WDC time) before I leave the house, but I run a competition. Sending the prompt out early like I have been forced to do gives the competitors an extra 2 hours or so to think on the prompt, or even begin to write, before posting on the day it is actually due. That's gotta be unfair, right? Thinking fast, I posted a job offering in the last post: "NOW HIRING! - 30 Day Blogging Challenge Assistant WANTED" . And although 23 people have viewed it, no one has snatched the opportunity. (What a shame ... I woulda been all over that offer. )Wordsmitty then gave me an idea: Why not use a "Delay Send" feature to set the prompt up to send at the proper time without me having to press the send button? Brilliant! Unfortunately, WDC doesn't have a "Delay Send" feature ... (that's one for the "Suggestion Box" ). Again with Smitty's insight, (as I am largely computer illiterate) I found the "Creating Your Offsite Mail Service" , a feature for Premium members (thank you Charles~Thanks, Raok!  ), on WDC and followed the directions for linking to "Gmail" (I linked my "iPhone/iPod Touch" too.) With that done, I now had the mess of emails from both accounts all jumbled together ... I need to learn to clean out my inboxes ... Okay! I was making progress! This is good Now my gmail has an option to "Send from hawaiifoeva@writing.com"  Next: Install "Delay Send" feature to gmail.This had very thorough directions, and a helpful video: https://code.google.com/p/gmail-delay-send/ I had the "Delay Send" installed in no time, and now came the trial and error bit, which consisted of puzzling through the possible ways to tag the email with the correct time to send. I'll spare you the nitty gritty bits. It turns out the Subject line of the email has to have the tag: "-- (date) (time)" [date can be omitted if it is to be sent out the same day]. Took me about an hour to figure out I needed TWO hyphens, not only one. I had about 30 ErRoR messages in my inbox by the end of it all. Very frustrating ... But hey! I accomplished something else! I got the "Delay Send" to work! Now for more trial and error. I had to determine whether WritingML would work. I tried sending from my gmail to my wdc ... no go. Sending from my wdc to my gmail and back again ... no go. Sending from my wdc to my wdc and then forwarding it to my gmail ... no go. At this point, I was beginning to realize the WritingML was not going to work. And to make matters worse, I had noticed through this process that the emails send from my gmail to my wdc said they came from my gmail account even though I checked the box saying to "Send from hawaiifoeva@writing.com." This was not going to work if I wanted to keep my offsite email private, as it should be. A solution to this would be to create a new gmail account to send from, but then I would have to go through the whole setup process again and it still wouldn't solve the problem of the WritingML not transferring ... By the time I came down from the tornado of possibilities my mind had become, I felt a bit like this: https://www.dropbox.com/s/iw81zyw11yi45hy/2013-03-12%2009.19.07.jpg Frustrated as all getup and no closer to solving this problem that was now plaguing my every thought. Ideas welcome ... ~~~ Found a beautiful tiger cowr(e)y shell while I was down at Paddling today. (For those of you who need a refresher, it kinda looked like this, except bigger and brighter: http://www.shells-of-aquarius.com/images/tiger-cowry.jpg) I was overjoyed and sooooo wanted to take it home, but, sadly, when I picked it up, it was already inhabited. Too bad I didn't get a picture.It is whale season here, and we also saw a whale breaching just outside the harbor. Didn't get a picture of him either ... Here's a picture of my breakfast instead (we used to get these double yokes all the time on the farm, but I thought they did quality checks or something at the commercial egg factories ... Costco didn't have organic eggs for the first time in forever. The hard boiled white eggs are easier to peel though): https://www.dropbox.com/s/14v1ye2rizrrm7w/2013-03-12%2010.11.14.jpg On that note ... take care all, Emily |
| NOW HIRING! - 30 Day Blogging Challenge Assistant WANTED |
This position has been filled. Thank you for your interest. The "30-Day Blogging Challenge" is now hiring!We are looking for a member(s) interested in being part of the permanent staff of one of the most rigorous blogging challenges on Writing.com. The job will consist of emailing predetermined blog prompts to the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" group at midnight Writing.com time Monday night through Thursday night. I will provide you with a document from which you will simply copy and paste the WritingML code into an email and send to the group and into a forum post in the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" forum. Job requirements are asfollows:  Ability to be online Monday through Thursday at 12:00 midnight WDC time (East Coast time) - If you are in another time zone, please calculate how the time where you live correlates to WDC time, and plan accordingly Understanding of the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" rules and procedures should you be needed to answer questions Understanding of the group email function and how to correctly post in a forum Reliability and consistencyJob benefits include: 2,000 GPs per week of service (this correlates to 500 GPs per prompt sent out); recognition as a permanent staff member of the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" .If you are interested in the position, please email Emily at hawaiifoeva@writing.com *All candidates will be reviewed by me prior to hiring |
| Damn you DST! |
Daylight Savings Time is screwing me over!  The prompt for the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" today is: "Yesterday, Sunday March 10, was the start of Daylight Savings Time. Research DST and provide us with your thoughts. Feel free to take this prompt anywhere you like." and of course I just HAD to send it out late ... Gahh! Here in Hawaii, the time doesn't change, so suddenly, I'm another hour behind the rest of y'all. I felt like a fool ...And to make things worse, I now have to send the prompt out at 6PM Hawaii time instead of 7PM. This is not going to work ... I am out of the house Monday through Thursday until 6:30PM at the earliest. Sometimes it was a race to get home before 7. If WDC had a way to set a time to send an email so one does not have to do it manually, this would solve all my problems. Unfortunately, I have to do without and I'll have to figure out whether I'll send the prompt earlier or later. Better to do it earlier, I think. Maybe I should hire an assistant who would actually be on at the correct time? Any ideas guys? ~~~ I hardly ever go shopping, but when 4 out of the 5 good pairs of jeans I own are too short, I knew the time had come. I went in looking for jeans, and came out with: 2 tank tops 3 t-shirts 3 pairs of jeans 1 swimsuit 1 hairbrush and 40 hair-ties 1 computer case and wireless mouse (score!!) A renewed love of hats ... I resisted the urge to buy one thoughA video of my haul for your perusal (everything but the computer is new): And for you dedicated fans out there, ask to see my "Crazy Hat Adventure" for pictures to prove I am indeed insane Here's one :https://www.dropbox.com/s/9q5xcm2uc7e76sy/2013-03-10%2018.12.51.jpg Who are those idiots? Oh yeah ... me and my lil sis ~Em |
| Thoughts on Community Recognition |
Aloha from iPhone central! (Idea stolen from Fivesixer...blog CHAMP!!  and his "Blackberry central updates ). Unlike Norb, however, I am simply too lazy to get off my butt and go to my computer. Golf has never been so mind-numbing...I only have a short thought to share with you today anyway. (On a side note: I am gonna try to blog every day this break, not only because it is homework for my English classes, but because I feel like I have something to prove. An award winning blog ought to have regular updates, don't it?) And that thought is: community recognition. For those of you who need a reminder: community recognition is the little number next to a member's handle. As an example: Emily ~ Graduating TODAY    my number at the writing of this entry is "132." The number increases a couple ways, the most well known being receiving merit badges (I'll insert a link after I'm off the phone - or maybe I won't and let you figure it out yourself ). The number is also increased each year on the member's anniversary, when a member is promoted to a Preferred Author, Moderator, or Sr. Moderator, or by referring new members.As a newbie, I recall being obsessed with my community recognition and getting Merit Badges to raise it etc. This went on for a time, and while I was thinking about it this morning, I realized I hadn't payed attention to that little number of mine since it passed 100. I remember that moment distinctly: Princess Zelda  gave me a poetry MB (I think I might have even posted about it in an entry ... no energy to look for it though.) After that 100 ComRec mark was hit, I don't recall paying much attention to it (except when it was on 123, 'cause that was cool )Not really sure where this entry is headed, but it must be that we begin to pay less attention to things once the accomplishments begin to blur together. Does that make sense? As a Newbie, the transition from 1 ComRec to 2 ComRecs is a HUGE deal! Suddenly you've doubled your recognition! There's a word for this ... I remember it from Psychology ... Weber's Law I believe ... Look it up; let me know if I'm right. (iPhone central, remember?)Well ... lazy Sunday post done. That's it for me. Em |
| Warning: Attempting to find a hidden moral may cause injury |
*** Warning: Attempting to find a hidden moral or underlying message in this entry may cause injury or death. Keep out of reach of children under the age of 12. Side effects include but are not limited to: Blurry eyes, fainting, vomiting, indigestion, headaches, nausea, confusion, heart attack, stroke, and even death. Read at your own risk. *** This entry will be more of a compilation of random updates 'cause I know I'll become overwhelmed if I let them sit. Odd isn't it? I want to come up with an underlying theme or message or some BS to glue an entry of this blog together, but honestly, I end up rambling anyway, so what's the point? I have a list consisting of seventeen items I want to talk about (some upwards of a couple months old), my YouTube playlist set on repeat, and a couple free hours, so let's get to it.I met a new friend today I have seen Mark C. Bradley  hanging around scroll sometimes while I'm in there, and noticed his handle (which previously read that he was "going away") and, being the nosy person I am, IMed him explaining my similar situation to his and that though people may cause us hurt, if we are in the right, the hurt never lasts and the pain will eventually return to the one who did the hurting in the first place. Well, I didn't say exactly that, but I could understand how he was feeling because I had been hurt by two separate people here on WDC, which resulted in my taking a break for two weeks. It was therapeutic and healthy to "get away" from it all, and I realized that the person who had caused me pain was nothing in the larger scheme of things. I was not angry with WDC as a site, so I came back after collecting myself and centering my emotions. (On a side note: The first person who hurt me deleted her account, and the second has not been online for 3 months and counting).In any case, I was nervous about IMing someone I had never talked to before, but Mark was grateful and we started talking. (His side: "Out of nowhere" ) He is a talented poet (two collections of poetry published) and I really ought to go review some for him. And you should too ~~~ I'm not sure if I talked about this before, but the iPhone image editing apps have taken a giant step forward. They are so versatile and easy to use! An image editor's dream! I've been playing around with some I have found and been creating some sick pieces, in my opinion.I might have to make a folder on Dropbox or something to show off some of it. Here's one I made recently. I made it gray scale and popped the color back into my eye only. (no filters or added brightness/color):  I really like the patterns and blends of colors in eyes. I want to collect a bunch of pictures of eyes of people I know in this same style and make a collage. There was another image I wanted to show off, but the owner I gave it to on here must have deleted the item it was in 'cause I can't find it Yet another reason I need to compile them all in a central folder.~~~ EEEEEEE!! Lookie at the pretty yellow Awardicon up top! It is B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L!! (Nice change of pace from that baby-poop green one that was up there before ) It really brightens it up in here, doesn't it? Still waiting on the Quill Best Blog image from Andrew, but while we wait for that, we can look at the Blogging Circle image from Cindy again: Yes, I am gloating just a little bit. But seriously, I might need a trophy case up in here real soon if these honors keep coming my way. ~~~ I got a filling the other day. Back right bottom molar. Have to get the left one filled as well soon. They numbed up my mouth (Doc tried first with the "short acting," 45 minute numbing medicine because he was "sure" I wouldn't need the stronger one. They gave me two doses of the mild numbing one before realizing it wasn't working. Then they gave me a half dose of the stronger one and I ended up being numb for much longer than the expected 2 hours). The procedure itself was quick and painless, but I was biting my tongue and cheek for upwards of 4 hours after. I couldn't eat a proper dinner and sucked on malasadas instead. Don't judge me; I needed the sugar.When the medicine was beginning to wear off at about 8 PM (the appointment was at 3:30), I needed more sustenance and went for the Santa Cruz Organic Limeade I had been storing in the fridge for the past week. NOT a good choice. The drink was cold of course, but only half of my mouth could feel the cold. The other half, the numb half, felt an extremely hot, almost scalding liquid, which was certainly not limeade, burning my mouth.  Awful experience and ruined the last bit of my favorite drink.  ~~~ Interesting thing happened a couple days ago: I was accepted into a group that I had asked to be in in November of 2011. Wow ... That's *scampers away to do calculations* 16 months ago. The owner must have been away from the site, I suppose. I was still only a darling newbie when I posted this message: "Oo! Pick me!" The group, "Smile~Worldwide" looks like a fine group, and I'll stay a member, but you have no idea how confused I was when I got the email welcoming me to the group. I was like, "Wut? ... O.o" ~~~ A special anniversary passed for me on March 7th. It was the eight month anniversary of my bf and I getting together. It is amazing to me how fast the time has gone. It doesn't feel like 8 months ... Where did the time go? I've never been in a devoted relationship like this one ever before, so every day is beyond special for me. I don't know how to express it other than a feeling of being blessed. Thank you. (You know who you are )~~~ I gotta say, whoever invented Spring Break deserves to be a God. You always know it is break time when the teenagers in the neighborhood sleep in until noon or take naps at odd times throughout the day, both of which I am guilty of doing in the past two days alone. That's all I have to say about that. ~~~ What I'm Reading Now (remember this?) Recently Finished: The Namesake Mini Review: Definitely worth a read, especially for mothers Animal Dreams Mini Review: One of Kingsolver's best, I think. Quick read and powerful message Planned for Spring Break: In the Woods Mini Review: Halfway done and the detective work is engaging and the mystery is interesting. I've heard the ending isn't as satisfying as it could be Bossypants Mini Review: Hysterical so far Reread 11/22/63 Mini Review: I adore this book. Unfortunately, my copy is currently held hostage in my grandparent's house on the mainland. So, what can I do but buy another copy? This is one book I will actually buy just to have. Kindle can't handle the epicness. ~~~ I've probably said this already too, but I'M GOING TO EUROPE THIS SUMMER! We are gonna stay in Salzberg, Austria near the castle where my mom grew up (she lived in the castle from The Sound of Music). We might pop down to Venice to see it before it sinks and travel around the continent to see some of the other monuments and cities. I'm gonna be tossing out all my newly acquired Art History knowledge ... time to nerd out! We are going to get our passport photos taken tomorrow. *excited!Here's the house we are staying at: http://www.vrbo.com/754489ha?cid=E ~~~ I was going to write out an awkward moment (remember when I used to do those?) but wasn't up to relive the humiliation. Involved an Asian cashier at a grocery store, un-showered hair, miscounted change, and the tattered shred of my baby blanket tied around my ankle ...Instead, I'll leave you with this funny video. Congratulations if you made it all the way through this entry ~Emily |
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