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Probably skippin' the con

old hat — Sun, 20 May 2012 02:54:29 GMT

Originally, I had planned to go to Fanimecon this year. It's next Friday through the following Monday. Then I found out that I had no one to go with this year. Then I started looking at the numbers and wondering if it would be worth it for me.

At first, I thought I would just go two days instead of all four. I would see the band on Saturday night and then go home. I may still do this but I am leaning away from it mostly because of this

Hotel Thursday and Friday night - $140 if I stay in a cheap motel 2 miles away and walk.
Registration - $65. Registering just Friday and Saturday is actually more expensive than registering for all four days.
Gas - Easily $50
Food - Easily another $50

Now I am $305 at a conservative estimate and I haven't bought a thing at the con. I could easily spend another $500 between the dealers room and artist alley.

It's not that I don't have it. I could go if I wanted to and I still might. I just wonder if it is worth it. There are just a lot of things I could do with that money other than go to a con for a couple of days, see a couple of panels and a band or two and get some merchandise especially since I would be on my own this time.

Photo of the...

old hat — Sat, 19 May 2012 22:15:44 GMT

irregular time period.

Deviantart prices are absurd

old hat — Sat, 19 May 2012 02:56:18 GMT

Does anyone actually ever buy any of the art they sell? The prices are crazy.
http://www.deviantart.com/print/18733256/
It's cute and colorful. I like it. $21.61 for a single 12x18 print?
http://www.deviantart.com/print/26162553/?itemids=20
$39.98 for a 16x24 print? I can get 11x17 prints directly from the artist for $15.
http://shilin.storenvy.com/products/...ers-carciphona

I'm generally not particularly price sensitive but these prices seem crazy to me. I can commission an original one of a kind just for me piece and have it canvas printed for maybe $70. They are charging something like $110 for a canvas print of an existing piece. I checked several artists. In each case, it would be less for me to commission a new piece made just for me and have it canvas printed at Costco than it would be to buy a canvas print of an existing piece from DA. The artist only gets 20% of that too. No wonder I never sold any prints...

well that and the fact that I put everything up with download enabled and under a creative commons license so people don't have to pay for non-commercial use.

Also, their policy about fanart is a joke.

http://help.deviantart.com/743/
Can I sell fan art as prints?
deviantART does not allow the sale of copyrighted characters or works.

While artists can upload fan art as a deviation in their gallery, they may not make fan art available for purchase as a print without violating copyright and trademark protections.

How many minutes will it take me to find fanart being sold as prints? Not even one.
http://www.deviantart.com/print/13157508/?itemids=185
Looks kinda familiar...by which I mean it was obviously lifted straight from the opening.

Bleach fanart
http://www.deviantart.com/print/11292607/?itemids=181
New Avatar series
http://www.deviantart.com/print/26821155/?itemids=81
Obviously no one is actually paying attention.

Don't assume, It makes an Arse of you and me.

Old Ape Face — Fri, 18 May 2012 23:35:01 GMT

Everyone has their own thoughts, memories, lives, and opinions of their own business.

You're thoughts will most likely always be different from someone else, you can not possibly expect everyone to agree with you. No matter how right you may think you are even if it is the honest truth.

However, being among many different kinds of people, as there are too many different kinds to even conceive. One can understand many troubles and misconceptions at once, and only then should you place judgment on anyone if you deem it necessary.

In other words do not assume anything until you have seen nearly everything, or you will always be thought of as a fool in my mind.

Mini-contest?

old hat — Fri, 18 May 2012 20:12:56 GMT

Ok so I had the impulse to do a mini-contest. It's a bit silly but I had the impulse. I actually know exactly what it would be.

So I started looking around on DA to see what kinds of prizes were generally being offered for these things and

holy **** these people are cheapasses

A 3 month premium membership? What? That's $7.95. I was thinking a year was being pretty cheap. 3 months?

Another one had 300 points as the first place prize. What? That's $3.75. You can barely get a happy meal for that much.

I was thinking

4,000 points + year premium membership for first place
2,000 points + 3 month membership for second
2,000 points for third

I was also thinking that was maybe a bit cheap.

Lazy photographer

old hat — Fri, 18 May 2012 05:06:05 GMT

I'm so lazy about this it boggles the mortal mind.

I have two lens. I have an 18-55mm zoom and a 55-200mm zoom. I hate carrying both lenses or swapping them in the field. I never take more than one. I take the one attached to the camera. I can get whatever shots I can get with that lens.

I have a bag with accessories but I hate carrying the thing. I never take it with me. I have things like an 8x neutral density filter but I never have them with me.

Most of all, I hate carrying a tripod around. Hate, hate hate. Did I mention I hate that? If I can't get the shot handheld then I don't get it. If my camera didn't come with VR lenses, this would happen even more often.

I should go up to Glacier Point to get some photos. It's the perfect time of year. I could get there before dawn and catch the light as the Sun rises. There would be almost no one there. I could get some good pictures. I haven't gone though. It's an hour up there and an hour back and I would need my tripod and et cetera. There's the gas money but it's mostly just laziness. I just don't want to drive an hour there and then an hour back to take pictures. People come from the Bay Area to take pictures here.

I should be more industrious but at what point does it become an unpaid second job?

Ramblings of the various kind

old hat — Fri, 18 May 2012 00:41:01 GMT

I have an irrational impulse to have my own mini-contest on DA. Apparently, it's all the rage and the cool kids are all doing it. All I need is some points and...something to have it about...and maybe a point. That last thing seems strictly optional though.

There seems to be a lot more people on DA selling commissions than there are people buying them. There are also a lot of people selling commissions who should....work on their technique a bit more first.

You might be an idiot if...

you have ever whined about reading your anime. If you refuse to watch anything subbed because you don't want to read your anime, it's a near certainty.

you make the same dumb mistakes over and over again. If you have had them pointed out to you and continue to make them, you are defiantly an idiot.

you keep coming up with the same fallacy over and over even if it has been shot down over and over.

you pepper your posts with lol randomly especially if you aren't saying anything even slightly funny or clever. If you think you can refute an argument by repeating it and adding lol, you are an idiot and annoying...and possibly buzron/atticus

you keep having the same alarmist reaction to everything, keep being completely wrong but keep doing it anyway.

Maybe I am just getting crochety but I don't remember people being this stupid before. I don't remember seeing so many people who think allot means to a great degree and that they should put apostrophe's in their plural's. My guild in SWTOR doesn't have officers. It has officer's. I am not one of the officer's.

So, my back still sucks

Shiroiyuki — Wed, 16 May 2012 03:40:51 GMT

Yeah, fun times. Loving this old, lumpy couch and the sad deflated pillow I've been laying on all day.

Just getting up to use the facilities or to get food is murder. I don't know what I did to myself but goddamn it, my whole lower back is in agony. I shuffle. I actually old-man-with-a-cane shuffle.

It's terrible. Should have seen me try to get into the bottom of the fridge earlier. Think I might have shaved about ten years off trying to bend over far enough >_<

A Fox Among Wolves 5/15/12

Gatomon — Wed, 16 May 2012 03:26:51 GMT

He looks the class over and Brandychan is even slightly bigger than some of the men. Practice ends and he looks the class over. �Today we have our ranking tests. If you feel you have improved enough to move up in ranking then you can issue a challenge. I�m certain that all of you have noticed our new student Brandychan. From my guess at her skills I�ve ranked her. You have five minutes to decide on who you want to challenge. Challenged matches are non lethal does everyone understand?� He said. �Yes Sensei.� The class said in unison.

Brandychan knew her defense skills were not up to the Sensei�s standards. But, the lesson had her go through all of the basic defense moves. She felt confident about her skills now. She wanted to challenge the number one seed. She also notices that many of the men point at her and whisper among them selves quietly. She wondered how many would try their skills against her. It surprised her that many were taking bets on who would be first seat. Then she realized that most of them had her dropping as far as the last seed. She walks up to the man running the pool.

�What are your odds that I�ll be the first seed?� She asked. �Almost one hundred to one for you to be the first seed when it�s over are you wanting to bet?� He asked. �I�ll bet one gold coin that I�m the number one seed.� She told him. The man holds his finger up to his lips for quiet. �You do realize that most of us do not bet a months worth of wages like that?� he hissed. �Ok then one silver coin to whoever beats me.� She said out loud. The man sighed and looked at her. �You�re asking to get hurt. Most of the class would have been easy on you. Now they will not.� He explained. �I do not want everyone to pamper me. I want to be treated like the rest of the class.� Brandychan said.

Random picture day, hoohaaaahoohaahaa

Shiroiyuki — Wed, 16 May 2012 01:58:17 GMT

Yeah, my camera really freakin' sucks. The lighting is TERRIBLE. Some came out really too dark, others too light...some the wrong colors were present completely. I need to get a new camera bad but..alas, won't be for a long time.

Anyway, enjoy the ugly mug!!! :P

Oh, and yes, I'm just a random girl today. Been having a lot of fun sitting here on the couch with a sore back. Currently propped up by a pillow. *shrugs* Figured I'd put some fun in my life.

Something... Anything

Nutmeg — Wed, 16 May 2012 01:21:27 GMT

I'm just tired of seeing the Hentai ID request every time I load AN.... So hence, this blog.

Thanks for reading!

Hentai Series Identification Requests Thread

whyisit — Mon, 14 May 2012 00:07:03 GMT

Anybody got something on this?

Trying to get the feeling again....

Shiroiyuki — Sun, 13 May 2012 17:53:37 GMT

So, I've decided to get back into my old diet and nutrition routine again. I've finally FINALLY gotten back into exercising. Small steps, people. I also have to maintain my job so I can't push myself too hard...otherwise it's gonna be LOA all over again *sigh*.

Since my back problems started I've fallen from the healthy lifestyle I once knew and it's making me sick.

I eat whatever the hell there is in the house that's easy to grab because I don't feel like cooking. This needs to end.

Sometimes I don't even do that. Sometimes we both get lazy and he goes to get a pizza. And we freakin' eat the hell out of that pizza.

>_<

So whatever the old-man-to-be picks up (and he is NOT a fan of healthy foods, believe me. Mostly processed whatever the **** he wants to eat foods -- burritos, chicken nuggets, fast food...whatever) I eat, too.

I go shopping myself once in a great while, when I finally get paid and all the bills are paid off, and I tend to get veggies and whatnot, but **** don't last and I end up eating a ton of nasty stuff in between that I know is bad for me but I can't do anything about.

So I had a conversation with him about how terrible I feel all the time and how the food he's getting is affecting that, and he's agreed to just give me the money he would have spent so I can go shopping myself. This is probably the nicest thing he's done for me in a very, very long time.

It also happens to coincide with my getting fatter, which he apparently DOES NOT LIKE, which also means he spends less time at home and gets offended if I ask where he's going.

But that is something for a different blog.

Anyway, I've literally gained like....25-30 lbs over these long terrible months. Maybe more. I don't know, I stopped getting up on the scale because I'd start to feel suicidal. When I'd have to go in for regular checkups at the doctor's office it was murder.

It just makes me feel awful and sad to look at my body and think, ****, I used to be hot. What the ****? Like, I literally used to be small enough to fit into anything clothing wise and look good. Hell, I looked damn good, okay? Trim, lean, long....those words used to describe me. Short, pudgy, fat...those words describe me now.

Now I feel like nothing fits me and I just hate myself.

So, anyway, on to my plan:

Keep in mind this is based on a day where you'd wake up around 8am and go to bed at 10pm or later. Not much later, because sleep is good for you.

Six smaller meals a day, with time between to digest, at least eight glasses of water (which I usually do anyway, gotta love that water), and no food after 8pm. Water is fine.

Your body is not going to process the calories from whatever you eat after this time since it is settling down for the night. It just stores it as fat which I have enough of, thank you very much.

Morning meal(s) -- remember I usually split it into two smaller portions to make the six meals a day rule fit -- consisting mostly of whole grain, fruit, maybe some veggies (depends on my mood), and either yogurt (greek and unflavored, to be mixed with fresh fruit) or something equally healthy on the dairy menu. Make this your biggest meal, the most for your money. You want to get a lot of your nutrients and proteins from this meal.

I'm not much for eggs because I hate the way they taste, but I might make a hard boiled egg and eat half of it with some pepper, save the rest for later, sort of thing. It's protein and it's good for you.

My rule is if I can't fit it in my hand, then I shouldn't be eating it. Basically this means that if a portion is too damn big that it doesn't look like it would fit into my tiny hands (not that I'd actually pick some of this stuff up and test it out, that would be silly), I need to cut back to make it "fit".

Do not judge each food individually by this rule, but your plate as a whole. Does it look like you're eating too much? Hell yes? So cut back.

You really shoudn't be eating much more than a fist-sized portion of whatever your meal consists of. Drinking water to ebb that "uncontrollable" hunger helps balance you out, keeping you full and not prone to binge eating. Just an FYI to those looking to diet.

DRINK WATER.

You really don't need as much food as you think. People eat WAAAAY too much. They GORGE on food. That's not healthy. Look around you at all the obesity. That's because of their bad lifestyle choices and food selection, yes, but also because of the portion sizes they eat.

Middle two meals should focus on lean proteins, veggies, complex carbs and the like. This would usually be the time I'd eat some turkey or fish, etc. and that other half of the egg I mentioned.

Last two meals (the very last one being the lightest of all my meals) would be fruit, veggies, maybe some brown rice...maybe. If I was feeling like I needed something a little more substantial to tie me over. Nothing large or heavy though. Nothing that would weigh you down.

You want to eat like a king in the morning, a prince at noon, and a pauper at night. Sounds corny, kinda is. But completely true.

When you wake up your body needs food to start plowing on to the rest of its day. It's been through a lot at night, sans food, and you need to start rebuilding your energy levels so you can have a long, healthy, active day.

The afternoon hits and you need food as well, but you're onto that middle point where you won't need as much food as you did in the morning to sustain yourself. You want to keep your stamina up with proteins, make sure you're eating your vegetables and getting the nutrients you need.

Dinner is such a laughable notion in America. SOOOOOO many people think they need to eat a whole freakin' plate and a half (maybe more) because dinner is perceived to be the meal you sit down at and spend with your family, yada yada, yada. It's got some sort of weird social stigma around it that has been ruining this country for years and years.

Dinner, ask anyone, is your biggest meal of the day, right? You got your steaks, your potatoes and gravy, your corn on the cob...your meatloaf. Stews, pastas, pizzas... Whatever. Big meal.

This is so wrong, it makes me want to cry. Dinner is your LAST MEAL OF THE DAY, guys. You know, before you go to bed. Before your body decides that OKAY, I've had enough, thanks for feeding me today, this was fun...and...sleep. You don't need nearly -- not even half -- of the calories that most people eat at dinner time because you don't use them. Not at all.

You literally shove your body full of these wasted carbs and calories, go to bed, and they get stored as fat to use later if you ever come across a famine. Think you'll be starving tomorrow? NO. Don't make dinner your main meal. It shouldn't get the sort of shebang it gets.

Dinner is a light meal to end your day. A small frothy touch on the top of that cappuccino of life.

You did good, you kept up with your diet and stayed true to your body's needs. You get a small little send off, a little tasty fanfare, and that's it.

Heaping a giant portion of sausage and pasta onto your plate is not only unhealthy, but stupid. You think you really will be using all that tonight? Really? It's like, what, nine o'clock? And you will be so tired from dumping all this food into your system you'll sit on the couch and go to sleep in the next hour or two.

Ugh.

Sorry, think I deviated somewhere in there....

Anyways, so here is my diet plan. Not really a diet but a lifestyle revamping. I used to do this all the time, which was why I looked hot. So...yeah, I'm getting back into the swing of things.

Oh hey, if anyone wants to diet with me feel free. I know, it's almost like that annoying Jesus Freak who comes to your door selling bibles. Do you have a moment to let Jesus Christ into your life, sort of thing. I'm not trying to sell you anything. If you want to diet, this is your choice and yours alone.

But if you do, hey, join me. I'm a good workout buddy. I'm like the diet cheerleader.

So much beauty...

Old Ape Face — Sun, 13 May 2012 00:37:39 GMT

Quote:

Originally Posted by Modest Mouse

Out of breath and out of cash,
find yourself watching M.A.S.H.
Every night
on the couch.
Woman says let's take a drive down south,
roll down the windows and open our mouths
taste where we are and play the music loud.
Stop the car, lay on the grass,
the planets spin and we watch space pass.
Walk a direction, see where we get.
I never knew nothin' so there's nothin' to forget.
Get real drunk and ride our bikes.
There's so much beauty it could make you cry.
The rich get money but never what they want.
Find ourselves a new place to haunt.
Climb up the fire escape
do it 'til the ground looks far away.
Go night swimming, leave our clothes on the ground.
When we get busted we just stand there proud.
It's the truth we all been wrong
make it up and let's move on.
Playing cards we all get to act sly
There's so much beauty it could make you cry.

I know many people have heard me say Modest Mouse is one of my favorite bands, and it's the truth, but it's more than just simple fandom.

I listen to music with heart in mind and I read every word that goes into the lyrics, becuase they are something I can relate to.

The song "There's So much Beauty in Dirt" strikes me in particular becuase it tells me that I don't need to hear rules or lectures.

And right now I feel it's appropriate for people to understand because beauty is subjective between person to person.

I understand I don't write the best on these forums, but I don't care becuase to me I am content with the way I write.

I am not proud of the fact that I suck at being coherent, but I don't need to be, I can be happy no matter how bad I write.

The more I think about trying to be coherent the less coherent I am. So I've stopped thinking about it.

I'm tired of people complaining, and I know that will never end so I have to live with it, but I am strong, I have great deal of patience.

If my words can't be fixed then I will have to settle for what I got and live with it.

And if you have a problem with it, then you will just have to live with it like I am. Shut up and be happy with what you've got, there's no reason to be an arrogant ***** over little inconsistencies. Life is more exciting than that.

I may be an idiot.

Old Ape Face — Sat, 12 May 2012 16:31:11 GMT

But a war on stupidity, is just balls.

There are some things you just can't fix no matter how much of an Arsehole you are.

But for the sake of trying to deal with the little people, thinking is the best weapon I have, whether I put it to good use or not.

And it takes a bunch of Aresholes to make an Arsehole, so, we're all Arseholes in our own line of thinking.