Taen's Stuff

O_O Studio Ghibli has made Tales of Earthsea

Discovered totally by accident when I was in a japanese shop today. I saw a "Tales of Earthsea" calendar and asked to see it, thinking it was some artist's illustrations or a collection of covers drawn for the books. It was scenes from an anime! and it was Studio Ghibli!! geek geek spaz spaz....

Alas! Due to SciFi having done a (crappy) live-action TV version it won't be coming to the US until 2009! *sob*
well, at least there are still trailers online ;)
The website is: http://www.ghibli.jp/ged/index.html (its in Japanese though)
the trailer is the 8th thing from the left in the "menu" tab...only 3 symbols long

Apparently the movie is mostly the 3rd book, "Farthest Shore", so the kid would be Prince Lebannon and the man with the goatee and funny tassle hat is Ged by my reckoning

Almost done! Almost Done!! ALMOST DONE!!!!!!
Counting down- T minus 15 hours: 37 minutes

^_^ Two more finals then I'll be done with college! I'm not looking forward to a winter break...I won't have a break (can't be a break if you aren't going back!)...its the beginning of my college-graduate life!

I'm excited. Can't you tell?

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Sorry I haven't been very active online but I've been busy with work and school....and nothing will really change for another few weeks, maybe not until after Christmas. Sorry everybody.

This guy is awesome:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vr3x_RRJdd4
What a great idea to spread love and good feelings. It makes me feel all warm and squishy inside to watch it...makes me want to be a part of it

My pirate name is:

Red Jenny Bonney

Passion is a big part of your life, which makes sense for a pirate. You can be a little bit unpredictable, but a pirate's life is far from full of certainties, so that fits in pretty well. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

*yawns*
It's hard to get up for 8am classes...

but at least its easy to find parking

Well, school's been going well. So far so good anyway. I'm taking Vertebrate Anatomy, Darwin&Darwinism, mammology, ceramics, and yoga. I think it's going to be a pretty good semester and I can always drop one or two since I only need Anatomy and Darwin....then I'm DONE!! >_> It's going to be so weird to be out of school finally. I mean, I started preschool when I was 3 or 4 so I've been in one type of school or another for 20 years. O_O
The other I realized that Christmas, graduation, my birthday, Mike's and my anniverary(5 years), and our wedding will all occur within 3 months of each other...the end of December through March 3rd is going to be really interesting O_o
Ooh, and on the wedding front....we finally booked a place so the date is locked in for March 3rd (yeah, I know, not the date we wanted but it works). Yay! Ok, so far I've got the man, ring, dress, date and place...now I need to find a caterer, photographer, DJ, florist, cake baker, ooh yeah and that guy who will actually do the ceremony, and we need to get save-the-date cards out and work on invitations and centerpieces...ooh and figure out bridesmaids' dresses *goes all cross-eyed*
Lol, its going to be interesting to see how it all comes together, especially since school's back on and I'm working the days I'm not in class :P

*sob*
Classes start back up today...I dun wanna go to schooooooolll!!!

Last semester though, then I'm done!! Yay!!

Mike and I went down to his parents' house this weekend for a surprise birthday party for his dad's 50th. We totally surprised him too!! A friend took him out golfing all day so we could decorate the place and prepare the food. ^_^ It was a luau...lots of fun. It was hellishly hot though...at least for Mike and I. His family said that it was nice weather, especially compared to the heat wave that had been there previous weeks. Mike and I were melting, especially on the drive down there and back. >_> The fan is broken in our car so the only way to cool down is to roll the windows down or to turn on the a/c with the back windows cracked to suck it through into the cab.
We got started on the registering at Macy's. I realize more and more that I have no idea what I'm doing with this whole wedding thing. With registering I know /what/ I should register for but when we actually started we realized that we have no clue /how much/ I should be registering for...how many towels? how many plates? Colors?? I have no clue...I've never bought anything like this before...the amount and color of towels has always just /existed/...I've never picked out these things, my parents did and everything I have now are hand-me-downs or cheap things I bought because I needed them. I've never been good with wish lists. At Christmas my brother would have pages of things but I'd have down "movies and books" or something like that. oy

***giggle fits***

http://www.scifi.com/eureka/

"Welcome to Eureka!
Nestled in the Pacific Northwest, Eureka is a seemingly ordinary town whose residents lead ordinary lives … at least to the naked eye...."

"With the help of Albert Einstein and other trusted advisors, President Harry S. Truman commissioned a top-secret residential development in a remote area of the Pacific Northwest, one that would serve to protect and nurture America's most valuable intellectual resources. There our nation's greatest thinkers, the über-geniuses working on the next era of scientific achievement, would be able to live and work in a supportive environment. The best architects and planners were commissioned to design a welcoming place for these superlative geniuses to reside, an area that would offer the best education for their children, the best healthcare, the best amenities and quality of life. A community was created to rival the most idyllic of America's small towns — with one major difference: this town would never appear on any maps. At least, none that haven't been classified "eyes only" by the Pentagon.

Thus, the town of Eureka was born."

Dude! I live in Eureka!! I at least thought it would be middle-of-nowhere-America when I went to check it out, but nope....its Pacific Northwest Eureka! The little town I live in the south end of...and while it is a bit remote, it does appear on maps. :P ...although I haven't seen any bizarre things happening about town, there are some strange people up here ^_^

Man, I never update these things...I'm a horrible person :P

Well, summer is going well, although the weather sucks. It's frickin' July, shouldn't it at least be relatively sunny? Its been overcast and cold most of the time for weeks and weeks. And its not just because its Humboldt. I remember lots of warm sunny days from previous summers. I'm just hoping we at least get a nice sunny Fall to make up for it.
In other news, I'm finally getting more hours at work. YAY!! It makes me happy.
My friend Jess came and visited for a week. It was great seeing her and meeting her kids (I'd only seen the oldest when she was 6mo old....that was 2 years ago). We played around town, went to a festival, and relived a little of our high school days of sitting in a cafe chatting and drawing. It was fun :D
Still trying to plan my wedding....its hard! I didn't think it'd be this difficult and time consuming. I've basically got 9 months left and still need to do everything. I should have already found a location, caterer, and officiant by now. O_o At least we finally decided on a date.
I'm going to a birthday party tonight :D Still waiting to see if Mike's coming or not... I'd like him to come with me, but he isn't a big social person, and doesn't know these people as well as I do, and he'll want to leave before I do. :(

well, I gotta get ready for work....wheeee

O_o

...

never saw this one coming

http://www.clerks2.com/

...but I have to admit, I'm curious...

Wheeeeeeeee..............I get to go to work today >_<
Oh well. Work is a love/hate thing. I enjoy where I work; nice coworkers, fun merchandise (hey, its the Irish Shop!), I get money. But at the same time...its work. There's so many other things I'd rather be doing with my day. But, on the other hand...we need money :P

quick update:
The semester's over...not sure how I did yet. *crosses fingers*
My family is visiting (mom, brother, future sis-in-law, and niece) O_O 2yr.olds are exhausting.
The weather hasn't been that bad...and downright sunny and warm a few days.
I got my wedding dress :D
Sleep is gooood.

^_^

I just ran across this...I figured a few of you might enjoy it muchly :P
http://www.deviantart.com/view/32668075/ its a little interactive Snape thingy somebody made in DA. It's pretty cute

...or at least I won't for another 2 weeks. One week left in which to cram 2 papers for history, a lab report and lab final (and studying for said lab final) in chemistry, finishing experiments for our final project in Bacteriology and writing the paper, and finish glazing and painting major projects in ceramics. Then its finals....thank god they are spread out, especially in the order they are. Bacteriology on Monday, Chemistry and ceramics on Wednesday, and History on Friday.... :P it goes hard to easy, which is good because I can just get stupid BacT over and done with and hopefully I'll never have to even THINK about it ever again! ....hopefully....I'm not doing too well in that class >_< . It kind of sucks that I have a final at 3pm on Friday though :(

First things first after its all done:
1)relax
2)go on mad cleaning frenzy because its been neglected due to busy busy schedule
3)draw, craft, etc....all those things I haven't had time for
4)hang out with friends
5)work....I need money >_>
6)plan wedding
7)exercise...I'm getting fat and I don't like it...actually, everybody in this house could use some exercise. Caylee could stand to lose a good 5 lbs to get back to her healthy weight we got her at a year ago (Mike likes to overfeed her and she gets alot of table scraps...she's the baby :P ). Mike weighed himself the other day and learned that he's 210 now...he'd been 200 for years, no shift, but now his great teenage metabolism has finally decided to kick the bucket..which it should at 25 and he's gotten pudgy this last year. And I...well I'd personally like to be about 20 lbs lighter as my ideal, but honestly I just /feel/ fat and I don't like that. I want to feel healthy again. I don't care if I'm as skinny as I was at 16 but I'd like to be able to fit into my clothes I bought in the last few years that I've unfortunately outgrown. I also hope that my boobs will shrink when I lose weight too because finding bras in my size, let alone ones that fit comfortably, is really difficult and annoying >_> Plus, I'm getting married in a year,and who wouldn't want to look good for that??

OK, back to homework and studying >_< ....I feel like I'm drowning in books and papers at times

There was a rape on campus earlier this week. It wasn't even dark out yet, and it was near the library...not a very secluded spot. This afternoon there was a rally and open mic for anyone who wanted to speak as well as posters, signs, and t-shirts (they had the spray paint and stencil for anyone who was willing to have their shirts painted) everywhere and the crowd out there in support was huge, enthusiastic, angry, and well represented gender-wise. Alot of men as well as women stood up and spoke out against violence and rape. Alot of women who had been victims of sexual assault spoke up about their experiences too. "Silence = Violence" was the saying of the day.
As I was down there on the quad, listening, watching at applauding along with a few hundred others, two things came to my mind:
First, I wonder where the poor woman is...was she on campus that day? Is she having to relive the experience everytime she brushes past a man on a stairwell, or opens a door with a police wanted poster on it? The whole campus is covered with anti-rape stuff but she's the one it happened to just 2 days ago. Can she even bring herself to go back to campus? Is she attending classes like it never happened, just another face in the sea of people wafting across campus everyday...perhaps a casual friend asked her if she heard about it not knowing that this was the woman who was the victim. Does she have partner that she won't let near now? How long will it be until he/she can touch her again without her flinching away?

I wonder where the man who did this is? I'm especially curious if he was a student...what he must be thinking and feeling as he walks across campus seeing signs up everywhere asking for any witnesses or leads, or when he flips on the TV in the evening to hear the report on the news. I wonder if he was anywhere near the quad today, listening to all these people speaking out against what he did and all the supporters for stopping the violence. I wonder if he's afraid, as I believe he should be, of the hundreds of people that would probably tear him limb from limb if they knew who he was. I wonder how he can live with himself after he hid in the bushes with a skimask, gloves and knife waiting for some poor woman to just happen along that particular pathway past the parking lot.

I almost wanted to get up and speak during the open mic, but couldn't get myself to do it (I'm terrified of public speaking). As a woman I live in fear of men. I don't know if other woman feel the same way or if men realize that women feel this way. I am terrified of being raped, moreso than of being killed. When I'm walking by myself in a non-crowded place, like a parking lot or down a street or even across campus sometimes, most especially when its starting to get dark and less people are nearby, I'm always watching my back. Ever man I see, I keep an eye on. I'm always trying to figure out what I would do if that guy over there sitting in his truck tried something, or that guy walking near me (in my direction, behind me, or even having just passed by) decided he would try grabbing me or even pulled a weapon. Basically I'm living in fear and every man is a rapist. I doubt most men realize that the girl they're walking past on their way to class is keeping her eye on him, gripping her keys in her pocket to use as a weapon (yes, I hold my keys in my pockets when going out to my car at night/in the evening so I can stab people with the nice long car key), and hoping to god that he will just keep walking.
I shouldn't have to live with this fear. No woman should. And no man should have to be feared.
Its not fair.
...but....1/3 of women have been victims of sexual assault. Just think of the three women closest to you, mothers, aunts, grandmothers, best friends, sisters, wives, girlfriends, daughters...statistically one of them has been a victim of sexual assault. Its scary to think about, especially since so many women keep silent about it.
Men can be victims too though...it has been estimated that up to 1/10 of men have been victims too, although they are even less likely to admit to it.

Take Back the Night is next Saturday up here. Take Back the Night is an event that happens in many cities and campuses across the US as well as internationally. Its about educating men that It Is Not OK to assault women and about reaching out to women that need help. It's about changing the world so women won't have to be afraid and so that women can stop being victims and start being survivors. Silence = Violence. Speaking out can only help. It can help heal. It can help heal others. It can help others realize that they are not alone, that it wasn't their fault, and that they should report rapes and assaults rather than keeping silent. The silence allows them to continue happening. Silence = Violence...let's Break the Silence
www.takebackthenight.org

Happy St. Patrick's Day everybody!!!
Go out and get a Guinness and don't forget to wear a little green! :D

I was just talking to a friend online and showing him some old (scary old) drawings in my sketchbooks when I ran across the signature and doodle of one of my all-time favorite fantasy artists, Keith Parkinson. I'd met him at the San Diego Comic-con in 2001. He'd been autographing prints/posters of his artwork but I didn't have any money so he did a little doodle in my sketchbook. Well, I was telling my friend about him and was going to his website to point out some art because my friend should be able to recognize the art (which he did). On the front of the website there was a memorial......Keith Parkinson died October of last year after fighting Leukemia for almost a year and a half. He was one of those artists I really look up to and I'm glad my friends made me go up and talk to him at the Con or I'd have really missed out on meeting this wonderful artist. So, if you have the time, go check out some of what he will be remembered for: www.keithparkinson.com . I just wish they had all of his art up on the site...some of my favorites are missing :(