The Rad World According to a Tall Drink of Insanity

I'm surprised I haven't posted these...

2009-10-23T18:39:00.000-07:00

Ever since the beginning of time, I, Kathy, have been in love with cats. I love them. Really. And there is this guy named Simon Tofield who makes these amazing animated shorts that perfectly encapsulate some of the most hilarious cat moments that I'm sure just about every cat owner has been through. So, without further ado, here are the videos to the entire Simon's Cat series, because I love them.

I've got to admit - I'm in love with the line quality of this next one:

Ta!

Ugly blog

2009-10-15T20:36:00.000-07:00

Hi Blogworld!

So I get headaches when even thinking about my blogger layout. The ones that they offer either have an aspect ratio that cuts off all of my pictures and videos, or they're butt-ugly. So I've decided to design my own layout. I'm in the process of teaching myself a little CSS in order to organize the site correctly and such, but if anyone out there has tips or links that'll help me out, I will love you forever. Though, let's be honest, I'll love you forever anyway.

Recent Work!

2009-10-15T20:07:00.000-07:00

I'm blowing off the dust of this thing! I've been able to do a lot of fun work lately for classes, and I want to show it off. I've also resurrected my deviantart account, so I'm just going to use the embed links from that, rather than up them to something else. Click on the picture to go to the page, then click on THAT picture to get a closer look at things! If you DO want to cruise my deviantart page, be warned that I post a lot of my figure drawings. Yes they're naked. That is all.

I'm going to be making a 3D animation! I'm surprised that I haven't posted this before, BUT here is the animatic version of it. An animatic is an animation without all of the 'tweens' in the movement. And yes, I did all the voices:

For the class I'm in this term, we're making our main character from the animatic in 3D! For any one who's curious, I sculpted the base mesh in ZBrush, topologized him in 3DCoat, and tweaked him in Maya.

Billy Front by ~bowtothetallone on deviant ART

Billy Quarter-front by ~bowtothetallone on deviant ART

Billy Side by ~bowtothetallone on deviant ART

Billy Quarter-back View by ~bowtothetallone on deviant ART

Billy Back by ~bowtothetallone on deviant ART

Billy Wireframe by ~bowtothetallone on deviant ART

I rendered this sucker for my Creative Industry Techniques class. We've been working with a way to render a scene using what are called mentalray nodes. Our assignment was to take a scene that we had textured in Texture and Lighting 1, and place the character that we modeled in Modeling 1 into the scene. Here are my results!

Jiggly Puff at the Bar Wide Shot by ~bowtothetallone on deviant ART

Jiggly Puff at the Bar Close-Up by ~bowtothetallone on deviant ART

Then in the other half of this class, we've been learning MEL scripting, which means that instead of using Maya's user interface directly (like clicking the buttons, moving everything with the tools, etc etc), I can go under the hood and program Maya to do the same things. What makes this cool is that I can have this code affect an unlimited number of objects at the same time, where if I did it by hand it would take ages. This next video was a lot of fun, and a lot of headaches to put together. If you want a little of the explanation about it, go directly to the youtube page and you'll find it in the video description. I like making things go boom!

I do cool things on the weekends.

2009-08-20T21:05:00.000-07:00

I did some cool things on the weekends this month that I meant to blog about at the time, but am finally going to get to now. First, I went sailing on a boat! It was amazing!!! It was a 19th century sailboat. I'll tell the best part in a glorious mix of words and pictures.

We:
<

pulled on these:

to lift these:

That's right - I, wimpy Kathy of Coloradian suburbia, proved my radness by helping to hoist sails on a 19th century skiffer. Suhwheet.

The next weekend I did more cool things. I hung out with these people at this place:

and this place:

and other places I don't have pictures of. My favorite part of the trip was seeing this girl:

I got to watch her for a couple hours and it was AMAZINGLY fun. She's such a cute little babeh.

Then the NEXT weekend, I went with a lot of these crazies:

to this place:

for this YSA conference:

which was super happy fun times.

My work so far

2009-08-01T23:46:00.000-07:00

I'm FINALLY posting more of my work! I hope you're excited.

My first assignment from Intro to Animation. We were supposed to make it feel like a bowling ball.

A wave cycle

Walk cycle 1

Walk cycle 2. His arms are crazy. Next time I'll be more careful.

An exercise with squash and stretch. I love that little guy!

This is a project I worked on with a group. Hooray for Pixellation, AKA Stopmotion!

That's it for Intro to Animation. Now for Animation 1!

This was our 2nd assignment. The goal was to have the lamp do a 'take' - AKA change from one emotion to another. I chose from curious to scared.

For this one, we had to have Norman sit in a chair in an interesting way - AKA with some emotion. I chose intrigued.

If you haven't seen it, you can check out my final for Animation 1 in the previous post.

Now for Texture and Lighting 1!

This was my environment I chose for my midterm. What do you think?

And this was my project for my final. My goal was to make her Steam Punk.

Wah Waaaaaaah

2009-07-18T01:42:00.000-07:00

It's late, but I've been reading other blogs and it's been fun, so I figured I'd make a quick post. Besides, I stupidly had some Joe Joe's when I got home, and the sugar rush still hasn't worn off.

This makes me laugh. If I get married, I'd really like to have random goofy photos instead of the conventional cookie-cutter everyone-looks-perfect ones. It makes life more hilarious.

Also, I want to be more crafty, like the guy who made this video:

I was about to harp on Harry Potter 6 with my third item, but I don't want to leave this post with such a Debbie Downer, so watch this and impress all your friends! And definitely watch the Debbie Downer link -- so hilarious! It's my favorite when the actors crack up.

Finally...a post!

2009-06-19T22:35:00.000-07:00

So I'm bored, and it's been a while, so here's my final project for my beginning animation class! Well, at least the current version. I sent it in to my professor to see what I can improve on and I'm waiting on the changes.

And I saw this on someone else's blog, and thought it'd be a fun waste of a few minutes.

Kathy's ABCs

A - Age: 25

B - Bed size: Tall Twin

C - Chore you hate: Eek. Dishes.

D - Dog(s) name: Chip's my roommate's dog. He's a sweetie. Then Norm's my Aunt's dog, and he's a little scamp and cracks me up!

E - Essential start your day item: Phone. I really can't go anywhere without it.

F - Favorite color: Red

G - Gold or Silver: I look good in both, but I prefer silver

H - Height: 6'2" but I typically tell people 6'3". It just sounds better.

I - Instrument: Tons. Guitar, Baritone, Trumpet, Tuba, Trombone, Pinano....and more that I'm not as proficient at...

J - Job title: Student! Hooray! Hopefully future animator. :D

K - Kid(s): Someday :D

L - Living arrangements: I live with 4 roommates in the hills of El Cerrito. And there's a doggie, Chip, who's 14, and a SWEET kitty, Squeaky, who's...not 14. Probably younger, but I haven't asked yet. He's amazing though...he gives me lovings.

M - Mom's name: Eileen. She's amazing. You should meet her.

N - Nicknames: Kitty, Kit, Kathy, Hey you tall girl...

O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth of child: Not yet. Knock on wood.

P - Pet Peeve: Acne. I hates it.

Q - Quotes you like:
We have it within our power to speak to hundreds of millions of people, two hours at a time, in the dark. No single person before has ever had that power: no emperor, no saint, and no individual, however powerful. So we have a tremendous responsibility in what we say...As artists, we have a wonderful tool...to do away with hate, bigotry and war, and work for the brotherhood of man.
- Frank Capra, Director, "It's a Wonderful Life"

R - Right or left handed: Right

S - Siblings: 1 brother and 1 sister

T - Time to wake up: Eek it's been super late lately. Like 12. It's ridiculous. I'm on a weird schedule.

U- Underwear: Yes, I wear them.

V - Vegetable you dislike: Buk Choy. I want to like it so badly, but it's just gross.

W - Ways you run late: Sleeping in. Surprise, surprise.

X - X-rays you've had: Hrm...most recently my wrist. I fractured it back in January.

Y - Yummy food you make- Zebra Brownies. They're divine.

Z - Zoo favorite: I loves me some tigers.

LOLbabies

2009-04-18T14:59:00.001-07:00

I made most of these a couple months ago, and they still make me laugh, so I'm finally posting them! This is my version of the response for this post.

Now I just have to make something for Mom, Ang, and Mel!

(Click for larger images)

Holy Crap, and Update!!!

2009-04-17T01:19:00.000-07:00

I want to write an entry for several reasons. The least blog-motivating BUT most exciting is that it's my birthday today!!! I'm 25. It's pretty much increderific. A second reason is that for the first time all week, I've had a chance to do something other than drawing! My new classes are from 4pm-12am and that's been driving me pretty crazy. It's meant that my evenings are shot, and that's when I get to spend time with my friends from church, which, to some extent, is my whole social outlet. It's also meant that by the time I get home, which is usually anywhere from 12:30am-1am, I'm so wired from drawing all day that I can't get to sleep for HOURS. This is the third reason that I'm blogging...insomnia sucks. Enough background!

It's time for....

The List-o-things I'm Looking Forward to!

My birthday potluck! I really, REALLY enjoy eating food I didn't make myself. This is going to be fun!
Going to the temple this weekend! I missed out on Ward temple night this Wednesday for class, and I had too much homework to go during the day. I REALLY want to go tomorrow, and will do everything I can to go before the day gets away from me.
Bethany Dillon's having a free concert on May 2nd. I love her music to the moon and the stars. And it's only half an hour away! It's perfect! Lunch starts at 12:30 and the concert starts at 2, if anyone's interested in coming with me.
Stake Women's Conference! We're doing all sorts of rad sounding service projects that I want to help out with! According to the flyer it ends at 12:30 on the same day of the concert. My plan is to stay through the end, and miss the concert's lunch, but get there in time for the show. However, there's a possibility that Stake Conference will be longer than that. If it is, I'm cool with not going to the concert. She'll be back next year.
The neat projects that I'm going to do for class! I was going to update my blog earlier today because I realized that I had my Maya files could get some screen shots of last term's work via school computers, but time ran short. BUT this term's going to be fun. I already love my classes - they're lots of work, but it's extremely satisfying!
Going to the gym! I've been trying to be more active in my off time. Animators do a lot of sitting, and I want to keep my health as best I can.
UP! I'm SUPER excited for Pixar's new movie to come out. Every time I think about May 29th, my heart skips a little beat!

Up Exclusive Featurette

And now for...

The List-o-things I'm Glad are Over!

Healthy Living Lunch! I was in charge of planning and coordinating a free lunch given at school. It was fun, but I'm really glad it's over and that I don't have it on my shoulders.
My 24th year. You know, life has just been getting better and better and better. It's been magical, and I'll remember all the neat things that happened over the last year with fondness.
The 4th season of LOST! Man, the writer's strike sure messed up that season. I'm liking season 5 a bunch.
TODAY!!! I had a BLAST in class, AND I even got 2 free pieces of delicious carrot cake PLUS a free dinner, but this was a really long week for me, what with the late nights and the friendless existence.
Puberty. Do I really have to explain?

This looks like fun!

2009-02-15T22:43:00.000-08:00

The first five...

The first five people to leave a comment on this post will receive something made by me.
However there are some limitations:

1. I make no guarantee that you will like what I make.
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It will be done this year. (might take a while)
4. You have no clue what it is going to be, poetry, shoes, bags or a little invention of my own. I may bake something and mail it you . Who knows? Not you that's for sure!
5. I reserve the right to do something extremely strange. It may blow your mind!
Here the catch, if you choose to do this. You must post this on your blog and be ready to make something for five people too. This will be fun! When you receive the fabulous item I make you, you must post a picture of it on your blog.

Projects of late

2009-02-06T00:03:00.001-08:00

My plan is to toss a few things that I've been working on up here. My friend, Mindy, totally inspired me to finally get around to updating. I'm planning on it being small, just so I can finally finish something.

I made this today in my compositing class using Adobe After Effects. It's based off of one of my favorite memories with my sister. We were out in the backyard tossing styrofoam airplanes back and forth. One got caught high up in one of the pine trees - so high we couldn't even knock it down with a broom. We gave up on it and kept playing with all the other planes, and about 10 minutes later, we glanced over and lo and behold, our cat, Loki, was climbing up the tree! She was too high to reach her when we noticed. With gargantuan effort, Loki shimmied up the tree and crawled out to the end of the branch, knocking the plane down for us! We were stunned! However, when she went to turn around and climb down, she had a bit of a mishap, as you can see.

I hope to post more of my stuff later - for now, I gots to go to bed!

Radness as of late

2008-12-17T22:50:00.000-08:00

I had a few rad things happen to me lately, and wanted to jot them down.

Things that are amazingly rad:
* Attractive bank tellers. Especially when they're at banks that are open later than usual when you really need some cash.
* Getting asked to dance. I got asked to dance 4 times tonight!!!! Holy cow!! Hooray for going Contra dancing for the first time, ever.
* TEMPLES! I'm so excited to receive my endowment on the 27th! CRAZY AMAZING!!
* My awesome family! I GET TO SEE THEM IN LESS THAN A WEEEEEEK!!!!!!
* Finding an extra quilt by accident RIGHT when the weather gets super cold.
* Bethany Dillon. I loves her musics. They're quite radtastic.
* My lovely Carmen San Diego coat that I wear FREAKING EVERYDAY!
* White Elephant parties. Oh boy, I'm stoked for this year's Sorensen Bash.
* Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie. It's pretty much the most Homer-sound-worthy substance known to man.
* AMAZING Christmas parties thrown by neat people at church! The party on Saturday was probably the best non-Sorensen party that I've ever, EVER been to. That's saying something.
* Kitties.

And I don't count this with the rad-list, but I'll give it an honorable mention. Remember The Princess Bride? I TOTALLY saw an R.O.U.S. in downtown Oakland. What's an R.O.U.S., you ask? A Rodent of Unusual Size. I was on my commute home a couple days ago when this freaking possum the size of my aunt's dog goes waltzing across the street. It was freaking disguisting. Anyway, I'd show you a Fireswamp clip from youtube, but there seems to be a dearth of them. So here's a few of my favorite scenes:

Gratitude Week Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday!

2008-12-11T22:57:00.001-08:00

I'm grateful for friends. I've said this before, but I truly, TRULY am surrounded by phenomenal people wherever I go! Whether we're going to Denny's, making paper cranes, or watching TV, there's nothing that compares to being with people I love, and who love me!

I'm grateful for silly t-shirts. They crack me up!

I'm grateful for my Carmen San Diego jacket! It makes me happy on the inside of my heart. And my face.

I'm grateful for my teachers. They really care about all of our education, and help me out a TON.

I'm grateful for the scriptures! It's wonderful to be able to flip them open to the perfect passage that I didn't know I needed to hear right then. There's so much in there that I've been finding lately that's absolutely blown my mind with the awesomeness.

I'm grateful for Bethany Dillon, India.Arie, and Switchfoot. I really admire what they stand for and what they do.

I'm grateful for Thoroughly Modern Millie. It really, REALLY makes me want to dance in an elevator. Really badly.

I'm grateful for the Beatles. I haven't appreciated them much until recently, and I've only just scratched the surface of their radness.

I'm grateful for all the leaders in my church, whether they're Prophets, Apostles, Bishops, Relief Society Presidents, or my Tutoring Committee Co-chair, Paul. When I follow their council, things work out for me. It's increderific! :D

Gratitude Week part Monday

2008-12-08T23:40:00.000-08:00

I'm grateful for the power of optimism. It's a law of my life - when I believe with all my heart that things are going to work out, things get better and work out. That's been happening all the time this week - kindness from friends, calls from my family, charity from teachers. I'm loved in so many ways!

I'm grateful for my health. I've had great health through all my life which has allowed me to follow my dreams, so I'm grateful!

I'm grateful for sunshine! Things always seem better after sitting in the sunlight for a few minutes. I'm grateful for people who are sunshine in my life. I'm also grateful for people who see sunshine in me! That's come up a lot this year and it's a kick!

Gratitude Week Friday, Saturday and Sunday!

2008-12-08T00:16:00.000-08:00

After a delay, I want to continue my gratitude week!

I'm grateful for the power of Jesus Christ to heal without a scar. I'm grateful that even when I act in ways which don't work for me, and even when I represent Christ in a way that he would not act, he forgives me and gathers me under his wings. I'm grateful for the chance to change, for the chance to learn who he TRULY is, not just my arrogant portrayal.

I'm grateful for my family! They never give up on me. I'm grateful for my mom, who lets me be whoever I want to be and loves me no matter what. I'm grateful for my dad, who supports me through thick and thin, laughs at my jokes, and makes me feel like the beautiful, empowered, rad woman that I am. I'm grateful for Mike, Laura, and Ella and the beautiful time it was my privilege to share with them. I'm grateful for LIZ!!! She looks out for me. She always, ALWAYS has and I'm grateful to her! I'm grateful for my wonderful aunts and uncles who have watched me grow and have given me so much love along the way. I'm grateful for cousins who are as close as siblings, who laugh with me, cry with me, and blow up snowmen with me.

I'm grateful for friends! Holy cow. I'm grateful for people who could hold a grudge who choose not to. I am SO GRATEFUL for people who believe in me when I choose to not believe in myself. I'm grateful for New Era Trainings. I'm grateful for what it stands for, and the world of possibilities that I've been able to reawaken in myself from my experiences there. I'm grateful for what my family and friends have been able to experience as a result of me going through this so far. I'm excited for new possibilities for the future!

I'm grateful for dancing! For YEARS I told myself that I can't dance, but I finally, FINALLY have begun to give myself a chance, and I really LOVE DANCING!!!

I'm grateful for strength, courage and wisdom. I've recently rediscovered that I'm chalk full of all of them - even when I think I'm not.

I'm grateful for the healing power of art, in all its forms. I'm SO grateful for music, oil pastels, paint, clay and pencils.

I'm grateful for my computer! It's taken some hard knocks over the last couple weeks, and it's still standing strong.

I'm grateful for being able to hang out in a tank top and feel freaking sexy.

I'm grateful to be beautiful.

Things I'm thankful for!

2008-12-04T11:03:00.000-08:00

I was reading a friend's blog, and got inspired by her entries before Thanksgiving where she talked about things that she's grateful for. It's time for....wait for it....

GRATITUDE WEEK!

I'm SO GRATEFUL for all the awesome, wonderful, BEAUTIFUL people that I've gotten to meet this year! Holy cow, I've been so blessed, especially lately! People love me, and through their love I have grown TREMENDOUSLY and I've had SO much fun! It really amazes me that I haven't quite been here for a year yet. With all the people I've met and the experiences I've had, it feels like it's been enough to fill up lifetimes and novels.

I'm also grateful for all of the wonderful friends that I've been able to keep in contact with from before this year - My beautiful family including my WONDERFUL cousins, MY NEW BABY NIECE, Best friends, old roommates, old bishops and friends from church, friends from High School, friends from college, etc. etc. have supported me SO incredibly well not only this year, but through all my life. I love you all!

I'm grateful for my talent in art. It's been downright therapeutic to reawaken my artistic expression. I've been able to create pieces that have literally changed my life and go to museums that have helped me heal from old battle scars that I've picked up along the way. Through this I've learned that there is truly meaning in everything.

More tomorrow.

Posted by one who often complains of the cold...

2008-11-10T15:08:00.000-08:00

I found this on a friend's blog, and it seriously made me cry. Neal A. Maxwell's so rad!!

Let us not then complain of the heat.

In the 1979 February Ensign, Elder Neal A. Maxwell wrote:

"Make no mistake about it, brothers and sisters, in the months and years ahead, events are likely to require each member to decide whether or not he will follow the First Presidency. Members will find it more difficult to halt longer between two opinions. President Marion G. Romney said, many years ago, that he had 'never hesitated to follow the counsel of the Authorities of the Church even though it crossed my social, professional or political life.'

"This is hard doctrine, but it is particularly vital doctrine in a society which is becoming more wicked. In short, brothers and sisters, not being ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ includes not being ashamed of the prophets of Jesus Christ. . . . Your discipleship may see the time when such religious convictions are discounted. . . . This new irreligious imperialism seeks to disallow certain opinions simply because those opinions grow out of religious convictions.

"Resistance to abortion will be seen as primitive. Concern over the institution of the family will be viewed as untrendy and unenlightened....Before the ultimate victory of the forces of righteousness, some skirmishes will be lost. Even in these, however, let us leave a record so that the choices are clear, letting others do as they will in the face of prophetic counsel. [emphasis added] There will also be times, happily, when a minor defeat seems probable, but others will step forward, having been rallied to rightness by what we do. We will know the joy, on occasion, of having awakened a slumbering majority of the decent people of all races and creeds which was, till then, unconscious of itself. Jesus said that when the fig trees put forth their leaves, 'summer is nigh.' Thus warned that summer is upon us, let us not then complain of the heat."

Here's the full article if you're interested:

http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=1846d0640b96b010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1

Yay!

2008-11-06T14:00:00.000-08:00

Well, the election's over, I'm done with my homework, and my tummy's actually full, so that means that I have *dun dun DUUUUN...* LEGITIMATE FREETIME! Wow. This has been long awaited in the world of Kathydom. So I'm using it to show you some things that I did in my class:

(This one's inspired by the fanTASTic Lolcats.

I made this guy in class today. I loves me some Calvin and Hobbes!

Prop 8

2008-10-24T22:05:00.000-07:00

I want to post a few things about how I feel about Proposition 8, but before I do, I wanted to warn any readers who I know this is an extremely sensitive issue for. If your mind's made up on this issue, then I'd like to congratulate you and I encourage you to go out and vote for what you think is best knowing that you absolutely have my full blessing! However, if you would like more information about the Yes on Prop 8 side of the issue, then I encourage you to read on.

I'd like to start with a funny overview that I found tonight on a friend's site:

My institute director at my church in Berkeley, Brother Celaya, composed a couple of really incredible entries on his blog about Prop 8. I'd like to refer you to there also. Here is the first entry and Here is the second. Brother Celaya is one of the most kind, sincere, and intelligent men that I've ever known.

Finally, WhatIsProp8.org is pretty much the webular guru in regards to information about this Yes standpoint. Please check it out, it's EXTREMELY useful.

Now that you have access to many references, I'd like to just close by saying that I care deeply about this issue, and I care deeply about my friends. I have friends who are straight who feel so incredibly troubled about this issue and I send them my love and support. Many of my best friends are living a gay and lesbian lifestyle. I love them deeply and will honor their God-given right to choose whatever lifestyle that they'd like to choose, and hope that they will honor the life that I have chosen for myself.

I love you all, and thank you for taking your time to read my blog!

Poke me enough and you get a response!

2008-10-24T02:02:00.000-07:00

Hi guys!

I've had 3 people talk to me about wanting me to blog again in the past week, so I get to give you guys an update! And it's going to be a good one.

First the Big News! I have a film that will be appearing in a film festival on the 25th, so less than 48 hours away! Don't believe me? Go to this site for the proof. The film's called "You Should Watch This" and you get to watch it by clicking on the video below!

Also, I've completed a SECOND film since that one, and it was definitely a lot of fun. The story behind it is that I sat next to a practitioner of Falun Dafa, and we wound up chatting for the entire plane ride, which was 4 hours long. She told me about the persecution that followers of the practice have been forced to endure in mainland China which are lightly touched on in the film, so let me show that to you:

There's a lot more information about the persecution that is going on at faluninfo.net. The stuff that these guys have gone through is just absolutely wrong and we need to do something about it. The best solution would be for the American government to put more pressure on the Chinese Communist Party to put an end to the persecution. If we were in a similar situation, I'd only hope that someone would do the same for us. So write your congressman. Get whatever wheels turning that you can.

And the final news I'm going to share even though there's much, MUCH more to tell is that I've completed my first website! Check it out:
http://studentsites.expression.edu/~kcarlsto/

Oh, My Turn on Earth!

2008-07-26T00:14:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid, my parents had a lot of LDS videos, books, and CDs lying around the house. We had our favorites, like some of the Living Scriptures series (those things were rad), Tennis Shoes Among the Nephites, or Saturday's Warrior. I was perusing through things at Seagull Book today, and found the absolute classic, My Turn on Earth!

We had a movie night at institute tonight, and this was one of the movies I brought to be voted on. I was really hoping that it'd either be this or Spice World. Instead, we wound up choosing a very heavy drama, The Interpreter, which is a movie I love, but like I said, it's a pretty significantly heavy drama. I think our night could have been significantly more filled with laughter at the campy and hokey goodness that this musical provides. I got home and couldn't sleep so I turned this on and it's playing in the background. I haven't watched this for literally 15 years, and I'm so surprised: I TOTALLY can sing along to all of the songs still! And they're better than I remember! So here are some lyrics to sing you to sleep, and hopefully make good use of YOUR time on earth. This movie really makes me want to get a ginormous pencil to write My Story. Bigger is better - My 'large in stature'ness is enough proof of that.

Eenie Meenie Miney Mo, you can choose the way to go, but if you choose right you will see just how happy yoooooou can beeeeee!!! *groovy 70's beat*

Music Gear I

2008-07-16T23:51:00.000-07:00

After a very long leave of absence, I found myself reading 3 very competent blogs, namely this one, this one, and this one, which has gotten me sufficiently bitten with the blogging bug. The pun's intended, and to get what I'm referring to, check out this post on theChung's blog. Ouch!

I'm going to put a disclaimer on this post up front: Though I'm CERTAINLY interested in music gear in all of its forms, I'm self-taught, and inexperienced in most of the musical world. I like to play around, sure, but I am by NO means a professional. In fact, there are 3 Chinese kids who I've been tutoring in piano for less than a month who already play better than I do. So this post is the opinion of a n00b. I'm someone who's figuring this stuff out for herself, and I have no more expertise and credibility than you do. Be prepared, and take it for what it is. kthnx<3. The first piece of gear and the whole of this post:

Takamine's EG523SC - Acoustic-Electric Guitar

Kind of a funny story behind how this lovely guitar came into my possession. I was doing temporary work for the county's HR department over in Martinez. They gave us a whole hour for lunch, which was absolutely unreal for me, as I take 15 minutes for lunch, tops. Lucky for me, the county offices are mere blocks away from Martinez's adorable little downtown area, so I'd take walks up and down Main Street to pass the time. The third day I did this, I bumped into a really nifty guitar shop, where the owner let me goof around on this beautiful little guitar that I'm talking about and let me ask him millions of questions about all things music - especially live looping. I spent the whole of my next day's break there also, talking his ear off and jamming to my heart's content. As I left, I was resolved to purchase this guitar as soon as I had saved up enough money from my job. I returned to work after that break, where the office had been run by all of the temps while the full-time employees were at a mandatory retreat. 3 o'clock rolled around, and the full-timers came back, exhausted from the day. Three of them, one of them being my boss's boss, went into a spare office behind my desk to chat and unwind from the day. I was at my desk working on a massive and mind-numbing project, listening to a book on tape in one ear. A few minutes after they started talking, I hear someone say "Neil Diamond." Then a couple minutes later, someone says "Rod Stewart," and I couldn't help but smile to myself. After yet a few more minutes, my work hit a snag. I got up to ask someone in that office a question, and as I reached the doorway someone in the room said a sentence that had the word "generation" in it. I couldn't help myself. This just came tumbling out:

"At the extreme risk of getting fired and speaking of generations, only people in your guys' generation would be sitting around in the middle of the afternoon talking about Rod Stewart and Neil Diamond."

Needless to say, I got fired the next day. I still stand by my joke, and were I to have the chance to do this all again, I would've done the exact same thing. However, this change of events left me jobless, and without fundage to pay for the guitar that I was madly in love with.

Later that night, I was talking to my sister, and she got it in my head that I should start getting serious about making art my career. I jumped on CraigsList, and within that first week, I made 2000 bucks worth of deals in exchange for commissioned artwork. My sister's a real smart lady. Anyway, after that week, I decided to go back to that guitar shop in Martinez. While I was there, I mentioned that I have some experience in web design, and wondered if we could strike a trade - a website for the guitar. He was not only down with the idea, but he was really excited about it! I'm still working on the site, but he let me take the guitar in advance.

Whew! That was a really long, really rambly story! It's late, and I tend to ramble on little sleep.

Now on to talking about the actual guitar! All of the guitars that I've played before this little baby were the crappy $30 variety. This is a mid-range guitar ($800), with a built in tuner and a 1/4" amp output. It has a jumbo body, which gives it a gorgeous, round tone which I am ABSOLUTELY in love with. It's also a dream to play. There are a couple of key things that I really appreciate - the main one being that the fret board is slightly bowed out, which makes bar chords RIDICULOUSLY easier to play than any of the guitars I've played before. Also, it sounds great whether it's plugged in an amp, or generating its own sound. Plus, it's pretty, and that makes it awesome!

VW Key Hack

2008-05-21T00:22:00.000-07:00

For anyone who doesn't know, I have a 2002 VW Passat. His name is Wilson, being named after the volleyball in the movie Castaway. Back in 2005, I had the bad habit of falling asleep with my carkey in my pocket. I know, I know, it's weird to sleep in jeans in the first place, but bear with me. It didn't take long before I had slept on top of my keys, and had depressed one of the buttons on my car key all night, thus draining the battery. The next day I called the dealer to see if they could fix my key.

"No ma'am," they said, "you'll have to buy a new one."

I confidently asked "How much will it cost?" I expected a figure around 20 or 30 bucks. It's a laser-cut key, so it's not like they're making a replica at home depot, so I was thinking high end.

"$150 dollars for a key without buttons, and $250 if you'd like it with buttons."

Needless to say, I've made do with the key that I destroyed.

In 2006, I got a job at RadioShack. One of the routine scenarios that often plays out is helping little old men replace the batteries in their valet keys. There would always be a little door at the back which I could easily pop open. I looked at my key, and couldn't find anything like that.

Jump to yesterday. I was playing with my key, and found something. There is a small groove which I popped a flathead screwdriver into that I had never noticed before. This opened the key right up. First I separated the half with the blade from the half with the buttons, and then I split the half with the buttons along the seam and lo and behold, what do I find inside but a CELL BATTERY! I went to RadioShack today, got the correct battery, and viola! Good as new! Now if only I would've been smart enough to figure that out 3 years ago! Sheesh!

Dizzy Gillespie

2008-05-20T23:46:00.000-07:00

Dizzy Gillespie. Say it out loud. It's fun to say, huh? Well, he's even more fun to listen to. All day I've been working on my computer and listening to Mr. Gillespie among others, like Mr. Davis and Mr. Crosby. And I haven't said the best part. I've been listening on antique RECORDS! WOW!!! If that's not rad enough to blog about in allthingsrad, then nothing is. Anyway, I HIGHLY recommend picking up any and all of Dizzy's albums to anyone with a pulse. Seriously. Go to Borders. NOW!

Better watch out for your kids!

2008-04-01T17:18:00.000-07:00

Oh, this makes me laugh.

Batteries not included

2008-03-31T12:06:00.000-07:00

Being the former RadioShack employee that I am, nerdy hacks of any sort are always a big hit with me. These videos were definitely interesting to the nerdy part of my soul. Enjoy!

6V Battery Hack

6 Volt Battery Hack! You'll Be Amazed! - Watch the top videos of the week here

As fascinating as the above video is, a word of caution. Usually the cheaper 6V batteries have these awkward D-battery-ish monstrosities. The following illustrates what you can do with those suckers.

The TRUE 6 Volt Battery Hack. Save Yourself $$$ Not A Repeat! - Click here for the most popular videos

12V hack:

12 Volt Battery Hack! You'll Be Surprised... - Watch the best video clips here

12V hack parody:

It's A Parody! - More bloopers are a click away

9V hack:

9 Volt Battery Hack! You'll Be Surprised... - The best free videos are right here

9V parody (my personal favorite):

9 Volt Battery Hack Spoof - More amazing video clips are a click away

SPARTAAAAA!!

2007-10-31T14:35:00.000-07:00

I've never seen this movie, but I about lost it here in the library when I saw this picture on facebook:

Striving to get a larger image of it, I let me fingers do the walking, matey, and ar be finding these (why is that said in PirateSpeak? 'cause I wanted to.):

This almost makes me want to see the movie. Almost.

New Method of Extracting Wind Energy

2007-10-19T18:58:00.000-07:00

I'm a LINK to a rad video, and YOU should CLICK ME!

After failed attempts at jimmying up code to embed the linked video to ze blogge, it's apparent that however nerdy I may be, my nerdy skills are not quite on that level as of yet. But the video really made me think. Love the concept, and I think it'd be freaking rad to implement, what with power problems that we're going to have once fossil fuel is gone. ("But Where's the Fossil Fuel Gone?")

And I have a question to ask the infinitely deep void of the internet. I'm wondering how natural power sources like this stand up against EMP's. I don't know enough about how either phenomenon actually WORK and what apparatus is actually altered in each respective process to answer my question. What does an EMP actually destroy in electronic devices? Is it just things that can be soldered back together, or is it more the gunk inside the chips that are soldered to the motherboards? Power sources like these seem simple enough, mostly magnets and friction. So anyone have a guess as to whether an EMP will make building these things impossible, if that EMP were big enough to affect the whole country? Anyway, I hope they do stand up to it. Then, if some nutter EMP's America's brains back to the 1800's, I'll at least have a method of getting a gnarly bolt of static electricity that I can use to fight off the impending zombie revolution. My other plan was to capture and train a Pikachu. I should upgrade to Raichu, you say? Pshh whatevs. They're sooo not as cute as Pikachu. Wouldn't want to be seen on the streets with a Raichu, would I?

Sheri Dew Rocks my Socks

2007-09-30T23:16:00.000-07:00

So I've been listening to a LOT of Sheri Dew's books and tapes in the past little while, and this has long been a thought that has stuck out to me and I want to talk about it:

When we fail to champion one another, we in essence betray each other.
- Sheri Dew, http://ce.byu.edu/cw/womensconference/archive/2000/dew_sheri.htm

There are so many times in my life where I haven't given people, whoever it may be, the benefit of the doubt. Sometimes all I can see is that they've "wronged me" or "hurt me," or (insert whatever you want here) ME. Me, me, me, me. I sometimes don't consider listening to their side of things because I am just too dang busy thinking about myself and thinking about how justified I am for being mad at them and taking things out on them in my own special way.

There are many problems with this. Does it help me? No, it doesn't, I usually don't feel better getting my revenge, I still hurt at what they did and now I've got blood on my hands. Does it help them? Do they want to change? No, they're just pissed at me now, and they've got a special look in their eye that tells me that they wouldn't be none too sad if they did the exact same hurtful thing to me again, 'cause now they're hurt too. Did anyone win? No, the war's just more entrenched now. So then what's the answer? It's relative, but to me, it's a matter of understanding. Getting at the true motivation behind someone's actions by ACTUALLY asking them is a good place to start. A lot of times people do things that hurt or tick me off and they either absolutely did not mean what they did the way I thought they did, or they had no idea that they did anything at all.

And you know what? Maybe that person just had a crap day. Maybe their cat died. Maybe they got in a car accident. Maybe they lost the prize spoon from their coveted spoon collection. Maybe their hormones are all out of whack. Understand before you judge. If you're going to assume, try assuming the best before you assume the worst.

Ingrid and El Consuego

2007-09-28T08:17:00.000-07:00

Ok, so since I neglected writing yesterday, today's an obligatory 2-for-1 special rather than a voluntary one. First to bat: Ingrid Michaelson. I like her musics. You should too. Hey, maybe you already do! As the post-ceding video will reference, she's been spotlighted on Grey's Anatomy, and I even heard one of her songs tonight on an Old Navy commercial during The Office's season premiere. So please, stop making her sell her soul out to over-rated TV shows and commercials with old ladies in big glasses. Help a girl out and buy her CD.

And speaking of selling someone's soul, the second spotlight is the raddest of them all. She's ME! Ya, I know, putting myself on the same post as the lovely Ingrid takes either a whole lotta guts, or a huge deficit in brains, but rest assure, dear reader, that I have both. I'll let my myspace do the rest of the talking.

Well, nearly the rest. Do you have a song that you want done? Anything you think would be hilarious fodder for the parody...er? Comments are welcome.

Scrubs and 'Phones

2007-09-26T21:41:00.000-07:00

This makes me want to watch Scrubs. I've actually never seen a whole episode. And I've never seen House, much to the chagrin of some people who may or may not read this blog. Back to the clip. Makes the rad-list. Woo to the clip.

And there's a little more. I got new headphones today. As much as I loved my old ones, the sheath of the wire detached just above the mini plug and the raw wire was exposed. I did a makeshift repair - a little hot glue and a lot of love - but I'm just too brutal to my headphones and the sheath is progressively freeing itself from the glue ever further. I've decided to make them emergency-use only and let them rest. I'll probably get some heat shrink some day when I'm not lazy, but finally this segways into why I'm blabbing about this (besides the reason of my love for my old headphones):

Meet the Sony Fontopia MDR-EX51LP. I'm really an impulsive buyer. Many, many of my things have been bought based on a feeling, and these headphones fall under that category. I saw them, had a good feeling about them, and plunked them on the register. I'm quite pleased with them. I'm not exactly an expert per se, but to me they sound great. They're comfy. They're pretty. They're mine.

Favorite aspect: They drown out my roommates singing show tunes.

All Things Go!

2007-09-25T16:24:00.000-07:00

You know, there comes a time in every rad blogger's life when they find, yes you guessed it, another rad blog. Go there. Seriously. Go there, peruse, and see the wonder and majesty of the radness thereof. Not only will you find intelligence, but you will find taste, and that, my friends, is priceless.

Oh, and one more thing, when you go, put on the acoustic version of Sufjan Stevens' "Chicago." And don't make a lot of mistakes.

Peace out.

Woot!

2007-09-24T12:12:00.000-07:00

Woot.com has long been one of my favorite sites, luring me to check it nearly every day. Here's the story: Every day they have an item that they have a special on. Take it or leave it. Not only do they have great prices on their product of the day, but the main feature (to me) is the brilliant and hilarious write-up on the product. Case in point: Today's woot: Roomba. Brilliant. Hilarious. Woot.

Limitlessly rad.

2007-09-23T20:20:00.000-07:00

I want to talk about something that's been preoccupying my mind this week. I see and interact with tons of rad people. TONS. Roommates, best friends, brilliant classmates, professors, deans, church people, etc. For the most part, I hear them talk about other rad people that they know and admire, who they love, appreciate, and aspire to emulate. Then I've known people (sometimes the same who totally admire others (and it's definitely been myself at points along my way)) who, when they talk about themselves, seem like they feel totally worthless, unlovable, and unwantable. They (and I) may feel like it's a fact - unmovable and unbroachable - that they are now, and forever will be someone who is not enough, someone who is not worth people's time, affection, or love.

Thank God I don't feel that way right now, or else I wouldn't be able to tell you this: That is the biggest lie. You. Are. Rad. You are a son or daughter of God, a God who is like the Ultimate Dad. You want a dad who will ride bikes with you or throw popcorn at the movie screen with you or wants to hear about your day? You got it, kid. He loves the CRAP out of you. Literally. He loves you so perfectly and thoroughly that He has sent His Son to make you clean. Here's what you've gotta do:

Sit down
Realize that God's rad. I mean, come on, He invented all things that are fun, rad, and filled with Awesome. He is Infinity out of 5. Inititely and limitlessly rad.
Realize that Mr. Infinitely Rad thinks that YOU'RE Rad.
Realize that He's never wrong, and He never lies. ('cause then He's not God (and not rad. Liars aren't rad.)
Realize that you are Rad, and that you are worth loving, fighting for, and appreciating.
Enjoy your state of limitlessness. (and don't put any more limits on yourself - that's the only place limits come from. The rest can be compensated for)
Tell your friends.

I heard a song today that I thought was rad, so I'm posting the lyrics. You want sheet music for it? It's free and it's right over here. Check out the rest of her site. There's lots of good stuff.

Miracles

Amid the countless blessings the Lord has given me
The light of truth and goodness; the Holy Spirit's peace
I see the many sorrows that his children must endure
So much hurt I long to heal. How can I change the world?

There are hands I cannot hold
Hearts I cannot comfort
Tears that only miracles can stay
So let me love and serve and teach
Those who come within my reach
For miracles begin that way

The Savior walked in Galilee, unknown in many lands
Yet touching every nation by the labors of his hands
Giving light to all the world by teaching but the few
He is my example in the work that I must do

There are hands I cannot hold
Hearts I cannot comfort
Tears that only miracles can stay
So let me love and serve and teach
Those who come within my reach
For miracles begin that way

I will bear the burden of my neighbor in his need
I will share my Savior's love in every kindly deed
He will magnify my efforts, and I'll understand at last
That by these small and simple things are great things brought to pass.

There are hands I cannot hold
Hearts I cannot comfort
Tears that only miracles can stay
So let me love and serve and teach
Those who come within my reach
For miracles begin that way

And the cuteness thereof was exceedingly great

2007-09-22T11:15:00.000-07:00

Two words: Holy. Crap.

Bat out of hell

2007-09-21T20:43:00.000-07:00

Ran across this today, and it's pretty much teh rad. I love looking at it and imagining to myself what the thoughts of each person is. My favorite is the man in black who's directly above the bat. He's just so smug and beautiful. I bet he's thinking to himself "Sure glad I didn't shell out the extra money for better seats." This picture makes me want to bust out my camera.

The Dig

2007-09-20T16:33:00.000-07:00

CLICK IMAGE FOR MORE DETAILS

So here's the gig of The Dig. (Can I get a wut-wut?)

Storyline: Asteroid comes up to earth and says, "Hey I'm an asteroid. You're all gonna die!" NASA says, "Pshh, heeeck no, we be blowin' you up, sucka!"

NASA sends a team of 5:

Commander Boston Low (voiced by Robert Patrick), the main protagonist— a retired astronaut and survival expert
Dr. Ludger Brink (voiced by Steven Blum), an archaeologist and geologist
Maggie Robbins (voiced by Mari Weiss), a reporter and linguistics expert
Ken Borden (voiced by David Lodge), expert shuttle pilot
Cora Miles (voiced by Leilana Jones), NASA technician and political candidate

Crew goes "Whammo Blammo!" Asteroid goes *dies* and crew goes "OMGBBQ, SECRET CREVICE!!!11!!1!" Crew invesitigates (minus the pilots, as they're being very pilot-y and very non-explore-y) and Asteroid goes "Mwahaha, I'm actually a spaceship!" *WHOOOSH!* Crew goes "HOLY CRAP! Abandoned alien world! How do we get home?"

Released: 1995 (a full 3 years BEFORE that cliché movie Armageddon
Directed by: Steven Spielberg (yes, video games have directors)

This game had me and my sister transfixed time after time after time. A little more tech-savvyness and a little less laziness, I'd jimmy up this game onto my compooper in a heartbeat. Any readers who may be blessed with both should do just that.

5 out of 5: Absolutely Rad.

Alanis Morissette

2007-09-19T20:28:00.000-07:00

Being the budding psychologist that I am, one of the most beneficial days of my life was the day that my old roommate let me know that Alanis Morissette was much, much more than a one-album-wonder. Yes, Jagged Little Pill launched her into the light, spending 12 non-consecutive weeks at the top of the United States Billboard 200 albums chart and selling 13.5 million copies, but I was honored to discover that there is much more depth to this artist than was displayed by the heartbroken and pseudo-violent lyrics that painted her portrait on the Pill.

Song in point: Everything. Off her most recent release to date, So-Called Chaos is a brilliant capture of her growth after a journey that has refined and honed her abilities as an artist, and her character as a person. I've personally gleaned many, many insights from this album. Check it out: It's a 5 out of 5 [ABSOLUTELY RAD!].

And this article was not even inspired by the above. Reason for writing: Guy Sigsworth. It has recently come to my attention that this talented gentleman, collaborator of both Björk and Imogen Heap, has been working on a new project: Alanis's upcoming album!

FIRE IN THE DISCO!! FIRE IN THE...TACO BELL!!

2007-09-18T23:18:00.000-07:00

This is the coolest thing that I've seen in a while...

[EDIT: 9/19/07] So I totally had a dream last night where I was with my family on a road trip, and I decided in my head that I was going to marry a guy whose last name was Sparks so that I could have 3 kids: Danger, High, and Voltage. I still think it's a brilliant idea. Danger Sparks? Totally wicked.

Want to know what the crap this is about?

Stardust

2007-09-18T20:47:00.000-07:00

CLICK IMAGE FOR TRAILER

I discovered this movie while having a small Michelle Pfeiffer Marathon this past weekend. I started with White Oleander, an old favorite, in the comfort of my apartment and decided that she was so rad that I would dedicate the weekend to her. First stop on my venture to the outside world: Hairspray. Rating: 1 out of 5. Totally Unrad.* Extremely well done, however, it was too contrived and manipulative while not having any real depth. I shouldn't be surprised. It's a musical, and that's their vehicle. It just didn't sit right with me. However, the next stop had me dazzled.

Stardust. I was quickly enchanted and charmed by this cleverly written and well-acted tale of a fallen star. Was it the irresistably innocent hero, played by Charlie Cox, that won my heart? Was it the brilliantly shining performance of Claire Danes? Or was it seeing the 78 year old David Kelly beat the crap out of our hero with a staff? I think it's safe to say that it was all of the above, plus thousands of moments filled to the brim with laughter, fascination and, of course, radness.

Rating: 5 out of 5. Absolutely Rad.

*Note to the reader: Totally Unrad is not as bad as Absolutely Unrad. This movie has not hit 0.

Maiden Voyage

2007-09-18T19:46:00.000-07:00

There should be a GoogleThought program that could connect a search engine to my brain. I'd just type 'deep thoughts' or 'rad thoughts' and all sorts of stuff would pop up in .0058588 seconds. However, I have a fleshy piece of brain instead of 450,000+ servers accessing trails of memory that have long since been buried and forgotten about.

I suppose I could be business oriented and state my objective in having this blog:

OBJECTIVE: To have a central location to post all things rad.

PARTICIPANTS: (note that I did not use the un-PC term 'subjects.' I should tell my colleagues) me, myself, and I. Sometimes I will invite a special guest. It could be YOU!!!

METHOD: Researchers (me, myself, and I, inclusive) are now compiling data and material from various forms of media, either produced by talented minds, corporate entities or by the researchers themselves in an effort to prove once and for all that there are people, places, things and ideas that are, have been, and forever will be unequivocally rad.

RESULTS: Results to come. Don't touch that dial.