Winter Semester Blues

Ugh.....*siiiiiiiigh* Where to begin...

I'm three weeks away from finishing up my winter semester at uni, and I can't hate it more. Oh well. I got a surprise visit from my best friend this week (got to keep her for a full 7 days!) and am now done with midterms. At BYU, unfortunately, "Spring Break" is nothing but a myth TT.TT I also have a terrible cold. It's really bad -.- (Just when I'd recovered from my stint in the ER! It's always something...)

On a lighter note, I have been introduced to the wonders of Cabin Pressure and Sherlock. The BBC is truly a wonderful thing =w= I also saw The Hunger Games today and absolutely loved it! It was fabulous!! I have also been rewatching (read as "re-becoming seriously obsessed with") the Star Wars movies. Of course, this means watching the movies, reading the novels and series, playing the Phantom Menace card games, watching YouTube tributes, playing hours and hours of Lego Star Wars...you get the picture.

I've had zero artistic inspiration lately and am feeling pretty dang depressed. All in all, I can't wait for summer break, where I can just relax, read books, listen to my music, and work on costumes and props.

College Update

I figure I should actually start posting about my LIFE again -.-

So this is the first full week back in college after the Christmas break, the beginning of my second semester. This semester I'm booked up with Japanese 101, Film, Irish Dance, and American Heritage (bleah!). I'm not that happy to be back, but it sure beats sitting around and doing nothing, so I guess I should enjoy it or whatever.

Sigh. Anyway, I haven't been getting ANY writing done lately. I have ZERO inspiration or motivation for my fanfics (my poor readers! TT.TT I'm trying, really!) and I'm totally stuck on my novels (both, unfortunately). My best friend was SUPPOSED to come out to UT and hang out (and help me write!), but unfortunately...she went to Disneyland instead. Can I blame her? No. Can I try? You betcha!

In other news, we got a puppy! Her name is Liesel and she's about 2 1/2 months old. She's a border collie mix and VERY cute.

Props, Props, Props!

Awright! So for some of my costumes this year, I'm going to making some serious props. These be them!

Lightning Farron (Final Fantasy XIII) AKA my dream costume

Survival Knife

Used mostly by Hope (squee! such a cute lil angst muffin! XD). A gift from Light's sister Serah.

Pauldron

Lights up, issued by GC (Guardian Corps), who Light used to work for.

Necklace

Actually omitted from some cutscenes; forgotten? Shouldn't be too hard!

Blazefire Saber

*siiigh* holy &)(_*^%%&^%&^. That about sums it up. Because I'm an overachiever with this stuff, my friend Alyssa and I (thank frickin heavens for physics majors with interests in prop work!) are trying to make it so it actually transforms. It'll be a real challenge!

Juvia (Fairy Tail) She's such a riot!
Umbrella

Yeaaaah, I can't imagine me using this either -.- Oh well! In cosplay, nobody cares about who you REALLY are! XD

Maka (Soul Eater) The one I need the quickest!
Scythe

Yeah, this one shouldn't be too hard. I've already got it planned out, actually ^^;

Costumes? Ugh. One thing at a time TT.TT

2012 Cosplay Plans

Sooooo, I know I just barely did a cosplay post, but this is my serious list.

ANIME SALT LAKE 2012: Maka Albarn
Maka is a meister, a fighter at the DWMA (Death Weapon Meister Academy/Shibusen) who wields the magic scythe Soul Eater (the guy in the first picture with the white hair). She's really awesome!




Non-Event Planned:
FEM!PRUSSIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I. LOVE! PRUSSIA!!! Fem!Prussia? TOTAL WIN!





Madam Red (Angelina Durless)
SUCH A BOSS! She's from Black Butler/Kuroshitsuji, and is actually Jack the Ripper :3 I love her!



Rin Okumura
My first actual crossplay. RIN IS SO AWESOME!!!! If you've never seen Ao no Exorcist/Blue Exorcist GO WATCH IT!

Anniversary

Soooo as of today, I have had diabetes for TEN YEARS. Very weird...

I was diagnosed in the third grade, and this is my freshman year of college. I remember the doctors saying "oh don't worry, we'll have a cure by the time you get into high school."...I was a skeptic even when I was eight years old. Good thing, too, since I don't see a cure coming out any time in the near future. *Sigh* Oh well, it did get me out of six years of P.E! And serves as a very good excuse for many things.

So in honor of having diabetes...Imma gonna go eat chocolate now.

Writer's Woes

Well, I'm going to finish up all the fanfics I started in the past. People have started begging for new chapters ("hey, Batali, you haven't updated in two years! What the crap?!"), so that's the new goal. From most popular downwards is the order I'll finish them.

Steampunk!

Okay, so I've begun writing a steampunk novel! It's very cool! If you'd like to know more about it, go to the official blog!

Cosplay

It's been a year since my last cosplay post, so here's a new one! Cosplay Plans: 2011!

1. Belle (Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: the Crystal Bearers)


2. Madame Red (Angelina Durless)(Kuroshitsuji/Black Butler)


3. Yui Hirasawa (K-On!)


4. Haku Yowane (Vocaloid)


5. Eruka Frog (Soul Eater)


6. Lovina (Fem!Romano) (Hetalia: Axis Powers/Hetalia: World Series)

*She's the one on the left

7. The Courtesan (Fiora Cavazza) (Assassin's Creed Brotherhood--Multiplayer Mode)


8. Lavi (D. Gray-Man)


9. Tifa Lockhart (Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children)


10. Yin (Darker Than Black)

PANDA!!!

Blog has now been redesigned--with 300% more PANDA POWAH!!!!!!!!!!

I love pandas~! ^^

Steampunk Apocalypse

My summer project is writing a steampunk novel! It's titled Steampunk Apocalypse,and it's a lot of fun! So, as a special treat, here's the character profiles!

http://www.polyvore.com/steampunk_apocalypse/collection?id=941502

Enjoy, my minions!

Brand New AMV!

This is my newest AMV--enjoy!

Top Ten Must-See Animated Movies

1. Tangled (2010)

As a general rule, I hate and despise all things Disney. But Tangled was amazing; I've seen it three times already--in theaters. It details the adventures of Rapunzel and thief/guide Flynn Rider on their way to see the lantern festival in the capital city. On the way, they are pursued by Flynn's enemies (both within the law and without) and Rapunzel's adopted mother, Gothel. It's a musical, I know, but it was so well-done that I really don't mind.

2. How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

How to Train Your Dragon is my new favorite movie of all time. I love it to the point of unreasonable-ness. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III is a hopeless Viking teen; he can't lift a hammer, he can't swing an axe, and he can't kill dragons. But as he becomes the first Viking to ride one, he discovers a whole new side of dragons that Vikings have never seen before.

3. xxxHOLiC the Movie: A Midsummer Nights' Dream (2005)

I'm not gonna lie--my love for xxxHOLiC biases me slightly on this issue. But I love this movie; as in the series, the movie deals with human vices and their consequences. Kimihiro Watanuki works part-time at a wish-granting shop owned by the eccentric Yuuko Ichihara. As part of their work, they travel to the mansion of a collector.

4. Howl's Moving Castle (2004)

Based on the book by Diana Wynne Jones, Howl is about a plain young hat-maker named Sophie Hatter who is cursed to be an old woman. Leaving behind her home, she acts as the cleaning lady for the exotic wizard Howl in his moving castle.

5. The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

A puppet-animated comedy about a fox who can't stand to be second-best. I've never read the book, but I love this movie. George Clooney acts as Mr. Fox with Meryl Streep as Mrs. Fox. Mr. Fox decides that he wants to pull off one last heist--against the three meanest farmers in the state.

6. Toy Story (1995)

I'm not a fan of the sequels, but the original Toy Story is amazing. It's funny, it's dramatic, and it's just plain GOOD. You can't beat the original here. Woody and Buzz and toys of a kid named Andie; but Buzz is quickly replacing Woody as favorite, and Woody has a few things to say about it.

7. Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (2009)

The sole fact that Mr. T is a main character in this movie settles the issue of greatness here. Flint Lockwood is an inventor in a town where nobody wants to deal with him. But when he invents a machine that turns food into water, it's a different story...

8. Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children

A group of whack-jobs is trying to resurrect the most dangerous lab rat in Midgar's history. Standing in their way is a group formerly known as AVALANCHE. The key player in AVALANCHE, Cloud Strife, is nowhere to be found as he works out his own issues on the side. While Cloud annoys me, Tifa is amazing. Tifa Lockhart, Cloud's childhood friend, is now the proprietor of Seventh Heaven, a bar and meeting place for AVALANCHE. She cares for two orphans named Denzel and Marlene and has an awesome fight scene (she's a martial arts expert). The music is great, the animation is superb, and the fight scenes rock.

9. Robin Hood (1973)

Come on...it's a classic. You know you love that fox.

10. Princess Mononoke (1997)

Outcast Ashitaka travels to a village of iron where the animals in the nearby forest are revolting. Caught in the middle of the two (humans and animals), Ashitaka must bring peace between the two before they destroy each other.

JDRF

Hello all--

I'm hosting a JDRF Diabetes Walk this year (next month, in fact). I would be eternally grateful to anyone who were to donate or join (or both)!!!!! If you can, register here. It's in Scera Park in Orem, Utah.

Click on "Register For Walk", then sign up; when it asks for a team name, click on Team Temari (oh yeah! Burnage!). We're happy to have anyone!!!

If you can donate, go here. Under "Donate to Walker", put Team Temari, in Utah. I'm listed under Isabelle Anderson, so donate there.

It'll be really great, and I hope you're all interested at least a little!
HB