+ books books books books BOOKS. finished 'seabiscuit' without actually crying, only getting suspiciously hoarse* and stuffy manyseveral times throughout. amazing, amazing book. now onto 'uglies' by scott westerfeld, thanks to halfdreams for the recommendation (and steph, i almost just typed your twitter name as your LJ name, haha, OOPS) and after that 'small wonder' by barbara kingsolver and a reread of 'at swim, two boys', which i am SO looking forward to.

+ this is a strange thing to admit, but perhaps other writerly types will know what i mean. the other day i wrote something, just a couple hundred words for a meme on TR, that was... and i mean it... the best thing i've ever written. it snuck up on me-- i finished it, reread, didn't edit a single thing, posted it and then went ".....omg did i actually write that shit?" ashkitty's reaction to it was exactly what i'd wanted, which was awesome, and hearing stuff from other people helps me know i'm not crazy and/or making it up, lol, but like... i have *never* finished writing something and just known it was right, like, completely right, start to finish. felt fucking awesome. now if only i can do it with characters *i* make up, ahaha.

+ on the other writing note, however, i have been working a lot on stuff. a short story, bits of a novel, and it's actually working. like, right now a lot of what i'm doing is just going over old notes and reworking them, but it's happening, i'm not hitting road blocks, and i can see where i want to go. it's.... terrifying, actually, ahaha, but in an awesome way.

+ the bsg finale. i still haven't figured out what i thought of it. that'll probly get its own cut/filtered post at some point, after i re-watch it... it's strange, i don't feel as sad as i did after the west wing ended, but i've realized i think that's because to me the finale left a lot of room for me to pick and choose what to focus on, a lot of room to interpret. and i like that.

+ this weekend i'm making the dummy dress for my friend meghan's wedding dress. :} it's going to be interesting-- i'm making the dummy, in 2 weeks when she's here she'll try it on and we'll fit it and figure out what she wants changed or altered, and then i get started on the real thing. i'm scared, but also really excited. it's a very simple pattern, but it's going to be f'ing gorgeous when i'm done (if i do say so myself, lol) and heeeeee i'm so excited. two of my best friends are getting married in september (and thank god they didn't schedule it for the same day, ahaha), it's very bittersweet. we're f'srs grownups now. :x

+ i really want to watch a silly movie tonight. like.... night at the museum, or something. >.>;;;; either that or a scary one, but i'd be watching sth scary by myself, so mebbe not.

+ for those who partychat on gtalk.... apparently partychat is run out of some guy's basement? i've heard this like, fourth-hand, but apparently the reason pchat has been fucking itself in the face these past few days is b/c this dude who runs it (manages it? whatever) is having issues w/his server/connection/whatever. total non-sequitur, but whatevs. sketchy news is fun news.

+ i'm still LOLing over things from last weekend. like... MY FAAAAAAAAACE.

* that was not intended to be a pun, but now that i saw it, i feel i have to acknowledge it lest people think i did do it on purpose. wouldn't be the first time. >.>;;;;

there's about five minutes until the finale starts. and there's so much i want to say, but honestly there's no need to wax on at length.

this show has meant so much to me. not only catapulting itself almost instantly to the position of my favorite TV show, but also for the ways it's surprised, impressed, intrigued and touched me. i'm sure any other fan will agree; this show has something special. it's different. i don't think anyone ever expected it to be this good, but for anyone who's doubting whether or not it's worth it to pick up, don't doubt. watch it. you will never, ever regret it.

i'm so, so happy i'm able to watch the finale tonight as it airs. that's only ever happened to me with one other (the west wing) which meant about as much to me as this does, but nerdy as this is, it's a milestone to me. tv will be different after tonight.

sigh. it's about to start. aim chat bsgfinaleflail for anyone who wants to come in and share the madness.

♥

changed layout and default userpic. i haven't seen this layout before, it might be new, but it is *perfect*. the picture reminds me of kurt halsey (who incidentally, i've been meaning to make icons of his art for just ages now, ugh) and it is just love. but the lengthy style-selection process did remind me of the layout i'd planned and begun oh, god, back last summer maybe, and i'm going to get my ass in gear to finish it.

both scifiwire and knitmeapony's twitter feed provide me with zillions of little fun things / stories throughout the day. like these - steampunk cylon gallery, Extreme Sheepherding (yes, they're Welsh, ahaha, marisa's mad), pouring sheets of lead for pipe organs, and gallery games. thanks guys. :D

bsg tonight. i'll make a flaily post later, and there'll be a chat for those as are interested.

finished the 2nd locke lamora book. really can't handle how awesome it was, how totally gripping. it's been a long, long time since a book really sucked me in like that-- the first law trilogy did, but none of the characters in that really stole my heart-- stole my head, sure, but not my heart, not the way locke and jean did. (the fact that they are, essentially, bert and alain, has not escaped my notice either. :P) but yes... these books are a must-read... basically it's like danny and rusty from ocean's 11 set in an 18th-century-italian style semi-steampunk world. iiiincredible.

ok. day almost over. then is weekend of amazingness with lheena, douxquemiel and the other usual suspects. it's gonna be fucking amazing... and hot_jupiters just gave me her # so i can drunkenly harass her tomorrow night. XD oh yeah, it's gonna be a good weekend.

man, my ipod is loving me this morning. maroon 5, the servant, the bsg cover of 'watchtower' (which i absolutely did NOT listen to three times in a row.... nope...), outkast, elefant, alanis, the chili peppers, the cure, the smiths, and now cobra starship. obviously it missed me these past several weeks. :} it's really annoying that the sound on this computer is broken-- like, it's not just that there aren't speakers attached, i plugged headphones into the tower and still couldn't hear anything.

i've really been missing music lately... i joined pandora and would really love to be able to actually listen to it at work. the prospect of having new music suggested to me is extremely exciting; i always feel like there's music out there i'm missing, like i hear these songs sometimes and love them, then find out they're actually sort of popular and am like, how did i not know this band existed? i guess i need to listen to the radio more... i just hate the commercials so fucking much, it makes me insane. that is the #1 reason i don't listen to radio other than NPR, honestly-- like if i hear one more commercial for a local accountant or car wash place, i will blow my brains out. idk why they bother me so much, lol, but i really can't stand it.

the other thing that's like, a weird computer glitch that i cannot explain, is that limewire on my desktop flat-out refuses to connect to the server. like it starts up, and i can search stuff, but then it just comes up with no search results. even for things like ...idk, like panic or fallout boy that i know should have 80billion results. i guess i should start torrenting stuff instead... which reminds me i also need to start DLing some tv shows. i need to catch my ass up on things... prison break, the shield, ugly betty and heroes especially. i actually almost miss working at blockbuster when i realize how behind i am on shows i really want to know wtf has been happening on, lol.

( brief tr musing / note to selfCollapse )

also, speaking of tv... idk where i'm going to be during the BSG finale, but if i'm at a computer, i'm thinking about having a chat room to flail with other similarly-minded people... any takers? :D

an update. one that's not comprised of a few hundred twitter musings, that is. :}

but first, some humor: some of you know that i love someecards.com with unrestrained ferocity. if you've never been, go now. today on their user-created cards forum i found the perfect e-card for chuck bass. with a picture of a woman looking thoughtfully into an empty glass, the caption said, "i never understood economic recession until i saw a bottle of smirnoff where the grey goose should've been." aaaaand i LOLed. XD

so, somewhere over the past few weeks i decided it was time to apply to graduate school. like, actually time, not just time to think about it. i knew i didn't have time to put together a creative writing portfolio (since i don't have anything current with which to assemble one) so i decided to set my sights on something that would- gasp!- actually find me employment. (something i've found difficult thus far, as ardavana and gloriouselysium so tactfully reminded me during their radio show on my last night of classes at MHC by playing 'what do you do with a BA in english' from avenue Q... thanks guys ;)) i've always thought seriously about going to school for library science, and what with lauralyrics and my oldest family friend having gone thru simmons' library science program and unreservedly raved about it, i'm applying. best library science program in the country, wot? :D i'll be going for a masters of library science with a concentration in school librarianship, since i love YA lit and have often also considered getting certified to teach high school english. anyway. so. barring a few tiny minor obstacles (mhc won't release my transcript b/c they claim i owe them money, one of my would-be reference-letter-writers hasn't gotten back to me about whether or not he can write-- you know, trivial shit like that x__x) by the end of next week everything'll be in. quite possibly within the next few months i could actually have some FOCUS to my life! :D

oh yeah, and i'm taking the GRE next wednesday. if it wasn't for ceilidh having sent me her GRE for dummies book i'd probably be sitting under my desk gibbering right about now. >.<

so wish me luck. i think i might treat myself to 'taken' tomorrow if i can get through an entire GRE practice test tonight. good reward, i think, no? :D that's if my combination PMS-onset-of-the-flu double whammy doesn't take me out at the knees.... why, body, why do you choose to hate me at the most inopportune times in the world? -.-;;;;;

also..... anyone wishing to commiserate on bsg... i have been wholly without people to rave and flail to after the past few eps, and tonight i think i'm gonna need it. :P

seriously.... and i only cheated a little. XD

day 3 of unemployment is treating me pretty well. slept till 10:30, ned made me a mocha for breakfast, have been photoshopping most of the day with occasional sidetrips to lose myself in the internets. have only thought ruefully/frustratedly/angrily about lost job about four times, which i think is a good round number. when i lost my job at shelburne falls i thought about it constantly; here i'm just sort of like meh. whatevs. though i suppose that's mostly because i know i have a very strong job prospect now. still no word on honda; will post when i find anything out.

cheers, y'all. back to photoshop; ugly betty icons being posted tonight. ♥

though actually today was blissfully sunny and warm, almost 60 degrees. it can stay like this, please and thanks. also, new default icon in preparation for new starbucky layout coming soon. *dance* i have a pretty sweet design and i just have to work out the code before i put it up. i'm quite excited not to have penguins or the generic city skyline anymore. :)

also i have to say, few things in life have been more amusing (but not in a mean way!) than walking my mom through figuring out how to download battlestar episodes from the lj comm. over the phone and internet, i mean, cus doing it in person is fine, but trying to describe how to navigate megaupload and changing file extensions, to someone who is serene in being completely unfamiliar with such things..... pretty freakin' funny. but mom if you read this, i'm not making fun of you. too much. ;)

at lindsay and steph's behest, i need to go play guitar hero now. i suck at those coordination games. did me sucking at DDR not teach us this? come on now.............

♥

so, kurt vonnegut is dead. i can't pretend this is a big crisis for me, as i've only ever appreciated him in a passing way (not that i dislike his work at all, just that i haven't read enough to really call myself a fan) but it does make me think about passing and leaving your mark on things. as i muse so often these days; what am i here for? what am i doing with my life and how am i going to find something to do with it that feels productive yet not enslaving? linds was saying the other day how she really wants to see me make time to write more, and i agree. i really did like my job at honda, but wow, did i not have *any* time to myself, like ever. i'm looking forward to having a job with more flexible hours... i also realized i *like* working early, being done early. i even like getting up early when it's part of my routine like that. i like seeing the sun come up, or just being able to go out and taste the day when it's still new.

anyway. that's my random thought for today. been going through bsg with sekala and wow, i missed this show. i can't wait to start on s3... i've seen enough of it to know what happens, and basically spoiled myself for the rest (and have watched the finale, i couldn't resist) but i am *so* jazzed to actually watch all of it. i'm also feeling the urge to icon some stuff, probably bsg but maybe some other things too... i'd like to do an abc set for sex and the city, or maybe just a set all done in similar styles, i can't decide. in any case it's SO time for a new lj layout.... i had the frigging penguins up till today, and the bsg layout i had before that was up for almost a year, if not more than. i reeeeeeeeally need something new to look at. i have a few ideas in mind, so we'll see how that pans... depends on my inspiration i guess, i'll have to look at the pictures and think about colours. this is all clearly fascinating to my friendslist and not just me babbling into the nearest blank text box that presents itself.

i'm sitting in this tiny coffee shop in southern RI waiting for my mom to get out of surgery (minor thing on her knee but it means i'm playing nursemaid for 2 days, woohoo). i just noticed the clock on her laptop is still on non-daylight savings time. good job, mom. also the sign on the wall says "children are a blessing and a joy to behold. please be holding yours while you are in our shop." veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeery clever. >>;;;;;

overall my life is very good right now. i'm excited about this. aside from the fact that i only have a little bit of money and have dropped to a job that will essentially only make me enough to live on and not enough to pay bills with, i feel really good about things. why is it that it seems i can either work enough to pay my bills, or be happy with my day to day life? i just need to accept that i am going to be poor for a while, work a job i enjoy, and finish my novel while i do it. that really just needs to be my plan. and i think i can do it. i was planning to have the ms done by christmas, but life interrupted that way beforehand... now i kind of feel like i might be in a good enough headspace to pick it back up again. i certainly have collected enough of a library of books about writing that i shouldn't be too strapped for inspiration and/or exercises to get me thinking. we'll see how that goes... keep your fingers crossed for me. :)

okay, this is my last spammy thing for the day. or, well, for this awake period, as i've not gone to bed yet. but either way.

so i have this snazzy new computer, right, and it's awesome, except that for the goddamn life of me i can't remember how to tell it that i don't want those 2398752 hidden programs starting everytime i start the damn thing. i've bashed my head against the proverbial wall for like 45 minutes now surfing the XP help stuff, and i just can't make it work. anyone? bueller? i will pay. i'm so sick of the thing having a brain freeze every time i try to run photoshop and mozilla concurrently just b/c half its head is being taken up by stupid shit. thankyouuuuuu in advance. XD

also, some youtube for you.

courtesy of delicfcd : the world now has giant robot suits. i really want one.

and because everyone wants it : the house s3 trailer. O__O with me, people.

aaaaaand the bsg s3 trailer. when i showed this to my mom she turned to me with a horrified look and said "emily why did you show me this? i can't wait until october!!" yeah, welcome to my life, mom. XD

and here, have lost s3 as well.

that's all. i think maybe i'll sleep now. XD

[[except eta -- jesus shitting christ i am so tired of reading wanky entries that are trying so hard to be poetic and deep. for fuck's sake people, take a creative writing course and get over yourselves. at least my wanky wannabe poetic entries are mostly highly filtered. :P]]

[[eta2 -- i should add the disclaimer that the "%@*#$&!" tag usually means it's a rant that you can safely ignore, because i'm just venting and you don't need to argue with or placate me. sometimes i just have to yell at things. XD]]