V-for-Veronica

With everything I’ve accomplished this past week, I now realize that I can and will have an exciting, adventure filled life. For years, I’ve watched as family members and friends do so many fun things, take amazing pictures, and tell the best stories. “Will I ever live a life as happy as theirs?” I wondered, “Will someone ever envy the life I live, as I do others’ now?” Yes.

When I put my mind to something and focus, I really can get things done. I don’t have to play a video game to have my own garden, house, friends/family, adventures, etc. These things already exist in my life; all I have to do is reach out and grab them. Make something of myself, do something with my life. Such a wonderful feeling: my heart is light and my dreams dance so merrily in my mind.

And, I have had a good life. I spent a year in Florida and had a great time, going places and meeting people! I rafted down a river, for crying out loud! I went to Disney World for FREE! I have been 6 feet away from manatees, and got sunburns while fishing with family. My best friend got married, and I was in her wedding! That’s not even all I did. Some people may have done more and bigger things, but as far as I’m concerned, my life has not been boring. I need to learn to appreciate this much more than I do at times. There are people all around the world who have absolutely nothing.

In the end, I look forward to the rest of my life. No matter what comes my way, I want to live my life without any regrets. There’s no place for regrets ever.

Today I feel like I haven’t gotten much done. I couldn’t go walking because my legs are too terribly sore. I probably should have rested yesterday instead of today, but I pushed myself too hard.

I woke up extremely late this morning (10am, I think). This left me with one of those groggy migraines. I don’t know if anyone else gets them, but it’s like a migraine as far as sensitivity to light and sound etc, except not as sever–just mind numbing with my next being all stiff and achy.

I had so many plans for today, but because I felt like this I didn’t do any of them. Thankfully, I stuck to my diet at least and didn’t over-eat like I normally would have. However, all this downtime gave me plenty of opportunities to think about all the things I want to start doing.

I have such a huge list of new hobbies that I feel overwhelmed. I tried to look at some crochet patterns, but I couldn’t understand anything at all! The people on raverly were very helpful, though. I created a playlist on youtube with guides that I’ll try to work on next week.

I also read up on gardening guides: that’s going to be a lot of work, but I really want to start. I want to be able to look out my window and see a pretty garden that I designed and tend. With my head like this, I don’t think very optimistically, though. Maybe tomorrow I’ll feel better. I have an appointment for Poochie’s grooming at 7am. This will be a good test to see if I can make it to my 7am math classes when school starts.

Yay! My brother just walked in with my first belly dancing DVD in the mail! Yay! That makes me feel better, but now it’s sleepy time.

I woke up this morning, fully intending to write about my resolutions for this new year. Those plans changes a few minutes ago after a phone call with my boyfriend of 2 years (Feb 03, 2010) who is going to be deployed to Iraq some time before the sun rises tomorrow morning.

When thinking about what I’d say in those last moments to wish him well, I never thought I’d cry. But when he explained the last few things he’d be doing in the next three hours, I realized how very far away he will be when I wake up tomorrow morning. I wanted to tell him that I’ll be praying for him and that I know he will be safe and come home to me when he’s finished. I wanted to reach through the phone and hold him close.

Instead, I said not a word as I tried to keep him from hearing me cry, but I think he could tell. A few sniffles escaped me and he reassured me that I would always be on his mind and he will come home safe. My throat tightened even more and my vision blurred behind my tears. Finally, I didn’t care anymore if he heard me cry, I had to say something. The words weren’t as poetic as I’d rehearsed them, but there they were.

The last minute forced our goodbyes and for a moment, I thought he would forget our phone kiss. My heart strained, but he remembered.

I love you. Mwah.

Dear 2010,

Thank you for my first New Years kiss! It was so much fun that I can’t wait for next year’s, but that may be jumping a bit too far ahead of myself.

You are bringing me around 8700 hours to play with and learn to manage wisely. I have one great goal and many new projects to explore. Hopefully this will bring much more for me to write about. Sadly, for many of your months, I will be much farther from my love than usual as he will be deployed to fight in some country with more sand than sky. I still don’t know how often we will be able to talk, but I’m going to keep my hopes up.

I don’t have much more to say because I’m working on a new layout, but break time now so I can watch Little Nemo with Steven. Then sleep because we leave early to drive back to his house in North Carolina.

My best wishes for everyone in this new year.
God Bless us all.

Crunch Time: a phrase my mom always liked to say when she had more to do than time to do it. Yes, I’ve heard others use the phrase as well, but my mom gets the credit for teaching it to me.

This month always seems to go by fast because there is so much to do, but this year it’s going by faster for me because I’m taking up more responsibilities. Not only am I decorating like I have past years, but I’m also cooking, taking finals, sending out Christmas cards, and learning to crochet. This extra workload is actually stimulating in a way. I am proud that I am actually using all of my time to a positive outcome and not wasting it away on something else. My thoughts spin with new things to write about in my blog and new ideas for my website design. Of course, that only adds more to my list, and even though it does add more stress, I am trying to see this all as an opportunity. If I can meet this challenge, then I will be ready for bigger and better things in the future, and that is was I am always longing for in my heart–to grow, be, and do more.

The house looks wonderful. I’ve got most of the decoration leftovers put away. I made Pozole Soup today with pork; spicy and warm, perfect for this time of year! Shame on me for not taking a picture of it. I’ll make it again and share my altered recipe with you along with photos. Please check out my first guide on Christmas decorating and tell me what you think. I’ll be making more and hopefully adding pictures to it later.

When decorating for the holidays, it’s best to begin with some idea of what you want your home and tree to look like. If you are new to your home or this will be your first Christmas out on your own, I have a few tips that may help you get started, especially if you are feeling a bit overwhelmed.

1. It’s okay to copy. The best thing you can do before buying your Christmas decorations is to take a drive around and see what others are doing. You will find that some things you see, you like, while others make you cringe and drive away quickly. Take note of these things and you will be well on your way.
2. Follow a color scheme. There are plenty to choose from: red and white, blue and white, green and red and white, multi colors, and even just plane white. As you probably already know, white lights are a staple and go with anything. You should avoid having mostly two colors and throwing in a random multi color bush, for example.
3. Map it out. Draw a simple picture of your yard and use crayons to kind of flesh out your ideas. This will save you time and money, not to mention frustration. Also, having a map will let you easily show anyone helping you what goes where, so you don’t have to micro-manage.

I’d also like to leave you with a list of tools/tricks I’ve picked up from experience–the painful kind… So please take note:

1. Wear long sleeves and gloves- not just because it may be cold, but because when wrapping trees and bushes, you tend to get lots of scratches and cuts that leave you itchy afterward.
2. When wrapping your lights into a ball, either to use or store for next year, be sure that the male plug is not on the inside of the ball. This has many benefits that I will get to later.
3. Avoid the plastic stakes. They break much too easily. Go with the metal ones because they will last you many years to come and are also useful for pushing loose extension cords into the ground.
4. Don’t buy all your decorations at once. Save money by getting a few things each year and taking advantage of the after Christmas clearance sales. I always get new lights, garland and Christmas cards around December 27th -29th. These are usually over stocked and easy to get the days after, but sometimes you may get lucky and grab yourself a beautiful tree-topper, wreath, ornaments or other special things.

I will write more soon (Christmas tree decorating, how to wrap bushes and trees, etc.)! Merry Christmas and happy decorating!

I have developed a plan for my blog. V-for-Veronica will be updated with 2 new posts each week. The first will be something of genuine interest: guides on cooking/gardening and other experiments or crafty things. The second will contain personal experiences and thoughts worthy of mentioning from that week. In this way, I will not feel the need to rush my guides or personal entries to fit them both into one post. Furthermore, my blog will not feel cluttered or confusing. Users will be able to refer to guides without having to sift through pieces of my daily life, and stalkers will not be bothered with new ways to screw in light bulbs.

On a more personal level, my life is a mess. Organization, time management and self-discipline are traits I was not taught to develop as a child, so now, when I need them the most, I fall short. This week starts my latest and hopefully final attempt to better my life by–basically–growing up. The main areas I will be focusing on are fitness, cleanliness, and productivity.

For fitness, I will be going on daily walks: any time, any place, and at least 15 minutes. Today I worked in a 30 minute walk. Yay me! I’m well on my way to looking much better in my Threadless Tees, and doing so will develop my time management and self-discipline, not to mention the other multitude of benefits of exercise I’ll begin to experience.

When I say cleanliness, I am not meaning the basic things like showering and all that. ^_^ I’m already good with that stuff! The house, kitchen and my room, however, are a different matter. When I lived in an apartment with Sierra, we were able to keep the house clean. Living with my dad and brother is much more difficult because my brother doesn’t clean up after himself, so it makes it harder for me to do so. But that’s no excuse, and one day I’ll have kids of my own, so I need to figure out something that works for me.

Oh, productivity. Procrastination and OSS (“Ooo! Shiney!” Syndrome) are your fiercest enemies. I must stop wasting all my time and actually do something with myself that’s of worth. Art, music, blog posts, social activities, other hobbies: if I can do some of these and more every day I will be much happier with myself.

It’s V-Day, everyone! My favorite day of the year! Sadly, I haven’t gotten my own Guy Fawkes mask yet, but one day I will!
I’m not really a political person at this time in my life, but I do see that lots needs to be changed. At this point, however, I do not see that enough people would come into agreement for the changes that need to be made. Each time I watch V for Vendetta, I remember to keep my ideas alive because they are all that I will be able to leave behind when I’m gone. Even if my ideas aren’t political. Most of mine are social anyway: such as the way people should treat one another.

For you, I have compiled my favorite V quotes:

• Voilà! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of Fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin van-guarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition. The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it’s my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V.
• I’m not questioning your powers of observation I’m merely remarking upon the paradox of asking a masked man who he is.
• The people should not fear their government. The government should fear their people.
• Beneath this mask there is more than just flesh. There is an idea, and ideas are bulletproof.
• Truth be told, if you’re looking for the guilty you need only look into a mirror.
• God is in the rain.
• Remember, remember the 5th of November. The gunpowder, treason, and plot. I know of no reason why the gunpowder treason should ever be forgot.

My last few Halloweens have been very different from each other. This year: no decorating, no costume, just one bag of candy to share with my classmates in Oceanography. Actually, there are those things, but only in Pet Society on Facebook. teehee!

That’s alright though, I’ve been thinking about bigger things. My boyfriend is going to visit for Thanksgiving! He’ll be meeting my dad and brother for the first time. I am so excited! I’m going to invite over a few friends and cook my mom’s dishes for dinner and… well, I will explain more next month when it’s more appropriate. ^_^

If you’re wondering what’s with the horse picture, well, earlier this month I went to visit an old friend who has herself a ranch with over 20 horses! I love braiding horse hair, so while everyone else brushed her down, I did this. ^_^ I also brought Poochie to the ranch, so he had a good time getting scared by the horses. Ever since that day, I’ve been daydreaming about living on a ranch with my own horse or two one day.

Let’s see… The last thing I will mention in today’s post is that my friend Sierra is preggers! She didn’t want kids, but she decided to go ahead with this one. And she’s engaged now to the baby daddy. lol He’s a good guy. I hope I can fly over there for the baby shower or birth–she still lives in Florida, where I met her and roomied with her for almost a year.

Okay, I lied, the last thing I will add is that Melly.me is going to be relaunching on Halloween with a new layout and a contest and lots of other exciting things, and I’m very curious as to what that girl has planned. So if you haven’t already, go check her page out for more information!

Hey there! It’s me, Face! Bur-bur-buurr! (jk. not really, but I miss Face. Anyone even know who that is?)

Anyways, I have something important to share. I slept in the Jacksonville, FL airport last night. Yep. Got in just before midnight and found a couch with a 2.5” cushion and cuddled up for the night. Anyone else have a hard time sleeping when it’s cold? I had to pull my karate gi from my suitcase and wear it to try to warm up. I’m currently still here, having brushed my teeth, hair, and all those other normal morning do-dahs, getting pieces of the movie, Terminal, flashing in my mind. Luckily for me, my flight leaves at just after 5pm, so I will only be here for 17 hours total.

Please pardon my dust, if you see parts of my website that are incomplete or appear bugged. I had to take a break this weekend from working on it while I was at the anime convention. I hope to get back to it this week, as I’ll be starting a big project that I’m really excited about (more info later)!

Speaking of the anime con: it was Anime Weekend Atlanta 09. I had two little prints to sell, but no one bought any. lol If they were stickers I would have sold one. That’s okay though, it was a slow weekend for all the artists, and I enjoyed talking with the others there. My favorite artist of the artist alley is Schin (Luciole) Loong. Do go check her out! Amazingness. She’s also a very intelligent and funny girl to chat with.

The image in this post is the single commission I did. I don’t really know who the characters are, but I thought the idea was cute. ^_^

That’s all for today!