Merry Christmas!

Ah Christmas-time. This week I did all those traditional things that make you feel all twinkly and filled with cheer. You know, attended a party where Die Hard was playing in the background, attended a menorah lighting ceremony, ate waay too many cookies, wrapped presents poorly, drank wassail, went to the liquor store, stayed up late watching movies with old friends, and of course made a gingerbread Tardis. Here are a few photos of those happenings.

My dad is super classy, picking his nose in my firetruck mittens.

Hipster pups

Nick doesn't dress warmly enough

The humble beginnings of a Type G Tardis

Tardis Blue icing

These York Peppermint Patty pieces were perfect!

Made some stars to be the Time Vortex

These were lighthouses originally, but I shortened them and made them Daleks

Daleks attack the Tardis while it is flight in the Time Vortex

The Doctor confronts the Daleks

Very proud (also, these are my 'Woodland Creature Eyes'

See, my mom does it too!

Tomorrow and Sunday will bring more fun traditions, food and lots of BBCAmerica on the television. But I don’t know what could top making my Gingerbread House and making the Tardis! Oh wait, my sister comes home tomorrow! Hope your Christmas is as wonderful as mine!

Merry Christmas!

Another crafterevening

This weekend it’s more of the same, mod podge and Wonder Woman and book pages! Why mess with success?

I can wear them!

 

Candleholder, yes it is about Batman..

Watching Leap Year. It’s so odd seeing actors who play some some of my favorite tv characters acting very unlike those characters. Sweet Dee not swearing? Ben Wyatt being super slick? Weird. Also, I was worried it wouldn’t pass the Bechdel test, but then Anna and an Irish woman talk about chicken. Before moving onto talking about men and marriage again…so whew! Still it’s a stinking cute movie.

A Rainy Crafternoon

Today it rained and Bonnie and I went to Michael’s. I found some neat boxes in the Impulse Buy Section and I’ve been cutting up old graphic novels/comics books sooooo…..

Wonder Woman!

 

Classic Wonder Woman

Newer Wonder Woman

Not pictured, Yellow Ws on sides of case..

Bartlet got a bath today, he was not happy

Unhappy puppy

But he *does* like to hang out under the Christmas tree with a treat, so I think he forgave us.

Venn Pieagram Birthday!

Like I mentioned earlier, I asked my mom to make me a Venn Pieagram instead of a birthday cake this year. And she did not disappoint! It was so much more amazing then I even expected. Below are a few pictures of the pie itself and the pie pan my parents modified to hold the pie(s)!

Cherry and Blueberry!

Pie pan(s)

So, basically, it was an awesome Birthukkah!

Can’t we wear costumes everyday?

I really wish we could!

I’ve been meaning to blog about my much-talked-about Halloween costume, but I couldn’t find a photo that showed all the details until now. So here we go! There’s a list below to describe all the little bits/everything about the costume. I got really into my theme, which was Steampunk ‘Book’aneer, or just Book Pirate as I told all the uninitiated.

Arrr

1.  Book page eyepatch with Jolly Roger reading a book
2. Book page earrings (not pictured- book page bracelet)
3. White shirt from my mom’s closet dyed with tea
4. Quoth the Raven (with a book page speech bubble “Never more”
5. Hollowed out book that holds pistol which unfurls the word ‘Bang!’ when fired
6. Corset made (by Kat) from strapless minidress
7. Collar from a men’s shirt (tailored to my neck by Kat), vintage cameo
8. Tiny paper books tied to my corset strings wrapped around my waist
9. Old bridesmaid skirt ruched in front (by my mom) and bustled in back (by Robin)
10. Steampunk-hacked nerfgun made for me by one of my kids
11. Witch Halloween decoration, not a part of my costume

Not noted: the writing on my stockings (a book on one leg, Walt Disney quote on the other), the metal bustle frame my dad made for me that I couldn’t/wouldn’t wear to work, YA Halloweeny book display behind  me, aaand  the blue stuff on my wrist is my tattoo…

My kids and coworkers did a good job with the theme as well!

Arrr

 

I am probably going to keep/modify/add to this to wear to Comicpalooza in 2012…

My Bucket List

This is my entry in the Just Ask Bucket List Getaway Giveaway. Just Ask offers a breast and ovarian cancer screening and is encouraging people to share 15 things that I want to enjoy in my lifetime as a reminder to be aware of my health. Want to enter? Head over to TodaysMama.com to get the details.

I’ve been really lucky and healthy in my life so far, and a couple things have already been crossed off my bucket list. I hope it still counts though!

1. Go to Australia
2. Jump out of a plane
3. Get a tattoo of something that is special to me
4. Become a notary public
5. Meet Neil Gaiman
6. Be an auctioneer for at least one auction
7. Learn to play the harmonica
8. Visit my sister in Spain
9. Get my Master’s Degree
10. Have a job I’m passionate about
11. Travel to Bhutan
12. See Jane Austen’s house
13. Swim with a sea turtle
14. Be a godmother
15. Run a half marathon
16. Go on a transatlantic cruise

I think 7 out of 16 is pretty accomplished for 26 (almost 27 years), isn’t it? Perhaps I should be adding some new things to the list! Also, a lot of things I want to do before I die aren’t really list-material. They’re ongoing things like making and keeping great friendships, challenging myself to be creative etc.

 

So there’s my entry and a blog post for today. Hopefully I’ll also, finally, blog about my Halloween costume tonight!

 

Prepare Yourselves

If you know me, you know I love two things. Actually, if you know me you know I love lots of things. Lots and lots of things. And that I’m fond of hyperbole. But anyway, if you know me, you know that two things I dearly love are Halloween and my Birthday (lovingly referred to as Birthukkah).

Now that Halloween is nearing (don’t worry, I will blog about my ridiculous costume in all it’s glory) and I’m pretty prepared, my mind naturally moves on to plans for Birthukkah.

There are two things in the works for it so far.

One of them is a surprise (though if you follow me on twitter, not much of one) and very in keeping with the holiday season with which my birthday coincides.

The second is, I have decided what I want to have in lieu of Birthday Cake!

 

So hopefully my mom, the piemaker extraordinaire can pull it off..

Also, that photo prompted this frankly hysterical exchange with my coworker Keith.

Me: I want that in my mouth now.

Keith:  i’m pretty sure that can’t exist

me: It has to, or my life is not completeI’m going to ask my mom to make it for my birthday

Keith:  it is a paradox of pie pleasure no man could possibly create, let alone consume

me:  I’m saving that quoteto describe it when it happens. what types of pie should it be?

Keith:  hmmm…my first instinct is two berry pies, because they would probably blend really well, but now i am thinking two opposite ends of the spectrum pies for maximum juxtaposition of tastes

me:  So, like apple and pumpkin?

Keith:  i was thinking coconut cream and key lime or you could go lemon and lime…lemon meringue and key lime lol or go all out and do cherry and meat pie lolme:  Oh god, I may have just vomited a little.

Keith:  you could end the pumpkin pie vs. pecan pie debate forever and simply combine them into one mega thanksgiving piegasm

me:  Oh good lord. Piegasm.

Keith:  that’s a good quote for a T-shirt “I have achieved piegasm”

me:  I dare you to wear a shirt that says “I have achieved piegasm”

Insert dirty Ned joke here.

If you run, you are a runner

“If you run,  you are a runner. It doesn’t matter how fast or how far. It doesn’t matter if today is your first day or if you’ve been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run.” -John Bingham

For the longest time, if anyone mentioned running I would say there are only 2 reasons I would ever run.

Zombies, can you blame me?

And more importantly

When the Doctor tells me to run

But apparently there’s another reason.

This girl

When I last saw Brittney in March, she had just gotten engaged to Peter and she mentioned that, rather than go on a ‘wedding diet’ she’d like to train for and run a half marathon 2 weeks before the wedding. She also said she’d like to have some of her friends run with her. Since I was already training for a 5k, and I’m incapable of saying ‘No’ to my friends, especially if they’re a bride, I said I would train for it too.

So Keith helped create a training schedule for me and I’ve actually been running in a consistent and sustained basis (something that has never happened before) since then. Our friends Jen and Leah also took on the challenge and Jen even used my training schedule.

All during training, I’ve thought of the race as an inevitability. I was never afraid that I would finish it. I wasn’t out to run the entire way, I knew I’d walk large portions of it. I’m not terribly competitive, I knew I wouldn’t be winning. It was my first race, so whatever time I got would be my personal best. I mostly just wanted to say that I’d accomplished it. A lot of people asked me beforehand if I was nervous or excited, nope. Just determined.

This weekend, Jen and I drove up to Austin and Brittney and Leah drove down from Fort Worth. The weather was a little gloomy (rare, as we’ve been in a severe drought, especially in central Texas) but we were all excited as we tucked into our carbo-loading Italian dinner. When our 5:00am alarm went off, we looked out  at a soaking wet Austin skyline backlit by lightning. Lovely. We drove to the starting line just in case, but just as we feared the race was cancelled.

However, due to my aforementioned determination, I demanded that we run a half marathon anyway. Lightning and possible flash flooding made running outside impossible and unsafe, but 24 Hour Fitnesses are open and safe at 6:45am. I insisted suggested that we run our 13.1 on treadmills, depressing as that may be.

So we did.

Exhausted but triumphant on our treadmills

 

We even had a fan cheering us on!

So the race was cancelled but we ran a half marathon. And we still got swag, free champagne and chocolate, and soon we’ll get our finishers medals. The rest of the day was spent showering, napping, eating, and drinking (not necessarily in that order). And we all felt a little like Barney after he ran the NYC marathon…*

There’s been talk of trying another race in the near future, but I’m not sure. Going to have to think about it.

All in all, I’m really proud of myself. And a little amazed that my body could do something that I had always thought it couldn’t.

 

 

*today I’m good, but I’m worried about being sore tomorrow. It’s always the second day that’s really awful, right?

Buen Viaje!

[Insert usual apologies for lack of blogging here]

Many new things happening in my life.

Yesterday my little sister, Katie, left to live in Spain for 10 months. To clear up the common confusion, I have two younger sisters. Katie who is 22 months younger than me (That means for part of the year-like right now-we’re technically only a year apart, I hate this!) and Robin is exactly 6 years and 1 week younger than me. Not confusing, right? Well, most people can’t tell them apart. No joke, they’ve convinced strangers that they are fraternal twins.

Really, there's a 4 year difference!

Anyway, Katie graduated in May and was accepted to a program to teach English in a school in Estepa, a small village outside Seville. She was very excited but nervous when she left yesterday, but I’m confident she’ll be fantastic. Her plane was due to land in Malaga about an hour ago and I’ve never felt the need to text her more than I have since we dropped her off!
Since she’s been home most of the summer, we got to spend more time together than we have in the past several years. We kept each other sane during our trip with our grandmother, I helped her gather things she needed to take with her and got her a new camera, and she came to see Maureen Johnson with us which led to meeting a fellow nerdfighter who had also lived in Seville and was able to give her lots of advice. The past two weeks have been particularly intense because her birthday was the 22nd, and we had a going away party that lasted till the wee hours of the morning. So I’ve been at my parents house 10 days out of the last 14… All this means I’m going to miss her more than when she just lived 3 hours away…which is logical I guess. But I’m planning on visiting her in the Spring, probably in April, so who knows what that means for BEDA…

In other news, it officially Halloween! I mean October. Hopefully that means cooler weather will arrive soon AND Halloween is mere weeks away. I’ve been slyly making people work on my costume for me. I am very sneaky about it. But seriously I would not be nearly close to done as I am without some major help (you know, since I can’t sew). Today, my mom will hopefully be able to work on the skirts and then it’ll just be a question of accessories! I’m going to be a Steampunk ‘Book’aneer, it’s been very exciting, especially after Kat made me a corset and my dad constructed a bustle for me. I just hope everything looks good when it’s put together…

On the doggy front, we’ve (my roommate Bonnie, and I) had some rough times with our dog Bartlet. He’s a sweetie but has some sever separation anxiety when we leave him alone during the day. After a near-disastrous run in with a neighbor we finally settled on a solution that we should’ve used from the beginning- crating. He doesn’t like it but he’s much calmer when we leave the house now. And our neighbor isn’t going out of his mind either! We’re also teaching him some new tricks, including “What does the President say?” (after which he barks-it’s awesome) (because he’s named after President Josiah ‘Jed’ Bartlet, from the West Wing)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, I guess that wraps things up until my next blog when I write about…a half marathon! *Gulp*

TARDIS Laptop Case

So, earlier this week I referred to a craft I’d made using puff paint and someone (Nick) pointed out that I hadn’t blogged about it before. So here it is! One day I realized my laptop case is TARDIS blue so I whipped out a ruler, a sharpie and some silver puff paint. And voila!

It's (say it with me now) bigger on the inside!