never see a crash 'til it's dead on

Alaska will not leave me alone, guys. And the people I've talked to have all been like "yeah, it just leaves this hollow place inside you that never actually goes away. Isn't it great?" Ian just finished it as well, so the other night we all made bufriedos and shared a bottle of Strawberry Hill and played Best Day Worst Day and truth or dare and it was a great time. But the hollow place is still there and it's awful and wonderful and just *keels over*

Also, the other day we built a blanket fort in the lounge and flailed around in it all afternoon, and I drew pictures.

And then Ian and I slept in the fort. Well, that's not what we actually did. We actually just sat around and talked about everything we could think of until 6:30am and then I slept from then until 11:30 the next day. He woke up before me. Somehow. That kid doesn't actually sleep ever. It was a fantastic time.

Also also, my Anna came back from England! *dances around gleefully* We've just been spending our interim break eating all the food and sleeping all the hours and telling each other all the stories and listening to all the Amanda Palmer.  She was impressively jetlagged upon her return, and woke up at like 5am that first night, just bolted awake, and was like "LEMME TELL YOU ABOUT LONDON" and talked at me about immersive theatre until I fell back asleep. It was awesome. I missed my Anna.

Now real school starts tomorrow and our other two roommates aren't back yet because snowstorms and planes don't play nice. I am not ready for real school. I need like one more week of break. But that's too bad. *girds loins, or something*

More pictures for you later. Meanwhile, song that just exudes Alaska.



Commander Kip
"Do I... bite?' "No, don't bite!"
Normal is overrated!

Braving Alaska

I finally worked up the courage to read Looking For Alaska. 

Oh God.

I read the first forty pages silently to myself, and then I read everything but the last forty pages aloud to Matt, Alex and Mads. I think the reading aloud gave me something to focus on and kept me from becoming a sad puddle, but it was still rough in a few places. It was fantastic. So good. In a different way than The Fault in Our Stars, which I read last year; that one was like getting stabbed in the gut repeatedly, while this felt like slowly starving to death. So, different kinds of pain. But so good.

Also, I kept picturing Alaska with the same haircut as my friend Amelia, longer in the front and pretty short in the back, because the two of them are remarkably similar in personality and mannerisms and also because Pudge talks more about Alaska's curves than anything else. I think it's more than halfway through the book before we find out what her hair color is. Teenage boys, whaddaya gonna do.

So that was a struggle, but I really enjoyed it and will certainly read it again (once I've had some time to recover.) I don't think I can read another book for a while. This one still hurts.

Meanwhile, I've been spending my weekends barricaded in the art building. This weekend I'm making a tree stump fairy house out of cardboard and zip ties. The plan is to put a live video camera in the bottom, so when you crouch down and peer in the front door, your eye is projected up to a monitor in the upper half of the stump, so whoever looks at the monitor sees what the fairy would see if she was looking out of her house.

Cheers all. Read Alaska. She's worth the emotional trauma, I promise.

Commander Kip
"It's my fox hat."

Normal is overrated!

THIS IS ART

Today my Expanded Media class is spending six hours (9am to 3pm) on four-foot-by-four-foot pallets. We're allowed to do whatever we want, but it has to be the SAME activity for all six of the hours. I'm working on Birthright, which feels good. I furnished my pallet for long-term comfort:

 

Some of the other crazy activities going on. My professor is cutting a pair of coveralls off of himself and stapling them down to his pallet.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=295791717212688&set=vb.270541553071038&type=2&theater

This is such the best. I'm so glad I'm in this class.

Loving my life right now.

Commander Kip
"A... meat... dagger."
Normal is overrated!

winter in the Surlinds

We haven't really planned out the seasons in the Surlinds at all, but it is certainly feasible that the nuclear destruction of the Mer could have an effect on the weather. Actually, I just wanted an excuse to draw Suvoi in the snow.

 

The loose panels on Suvoi’s copperwain clattered in the sharp wind. Clumps of snow mixed with grey ash whirled around Suvoi as she perched on the high driver’s bench, squinting into the unfamiliar white world. Her unbound hair tore about her head like a lick of dark flame. Weather’s all knackered. Snow in the Grey – there’s something I’ve never seen. Huiva, clinging to the low back of the bench, looked positively grouchy, the feathers around his neck and shoulders fluffed up against the cold. Suvoi felt much the same, tucking her chin deep into the thick scarf swaddling her neck. Neither of them had ever liked the cold, and now their home was a frozen wasteland instead of just a wasteland.

The front end of the wagon lurched down, throwing Suvoi forward almost off the bench. She threw the brake lever, gripping the long handle with numb fingers for balance as the wagon shuddered and teetered to a stop. Swinging down from the bench, Suvoi landed with a crunch in a mess of ashy snow that had melted and refrozen multiple times. The copperwain had tipped over the edge of a sudden but shallow slope. Suvoi held her hat onto her head and narrowed her eyes, trying to determine how far the slope went. It grew gradually steeper before disappearing into the whorls of snow. Ice stung Suvoi’s cheeks and brow; she could feel her eyelashes stiffening with it. This is the blast crater, she realized. The outermost edge of it, anyway. Stretching into my Grey. Those bastards.

She began picking her way down the slope, her boots punching through the crust of ice, dust, and ash, leaving her copperwain half-lodged in the raised lip of the crater. She didn’t call Huiva. He wouldn’t go anywhere near the Silver Forest. 

So yeah, no one has talked about developing that part of the story, but that doesn't mean I can't play around a bit outside of canon, right?

New Sherlock up online!! *freaking out*

Commander Kip
"Why are you being so nice to me?" "I can be nice. Sometimes."
Normal is overrated!

Round 21: FIGHT

My apologies, normally you would get a Christmas post, a birthday post, AND a New Years post, but I skipped the birthday one this year. You guys, I am so done with this bloody sinus infection. It just keeps rearing its ugly, snotty head. I completely lost my voice on my birthday, and today the fever came back and I slept through most of our family New Years gathering. I've been taking all kinds of herbs and enzymes and probiotics and I still can't kick it. The hell is the matter with my immune system? Seriously.

So yeah, I did in fact turn 21. Egad. And my resolution is never to drink, not even once. I just don't wanna. Can't make me. Did go to the antique mall with my grandma, and found a few cool things. Watched Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World with Brenticus last night. Want Ramona's hair.

Also, Brennie got me Mass Effect 2 for Christmas, and it is such the fun. I can't get enough of Garrus. Not sure how they managed to make a battle-scarred alien with mandibles attractive, but they did it somehow and I just want to give him a big hug. And maybe have his human/turian hybrid babies. What.

I did draw things this semester, I promise, and before I got really sick I scanned some things. Here, have a new character in honor of the new year.

Remember the hippie chick I drew for fun a while ago, intending on making her into a character eventually? I did it. This is Razma, a nomadic fire dancer from Magical Steampunk Gypsies.

An early design. For the Invartí (traveling dance troupes)of the Grey, I wanted a sort of post-apocalyptic earthy look; ragged, billowy clothes, sturdy boots for walking, and lots of fun shiny bits.

Did some more playing around with her and decided to give her white hair.

And then I decided to just go all the way and make her albino. She is known as the White Rose to other Romonians, which is ironic considering that she has a lotus tattooed on her shoulder. The rest of the arsura, or fire dancers, worship the sun god Solon, but Razma identifies more closely with Selen, the moon goddess. Self-conscious of her colorless eyebrows and lashes, she darkens them with kohl.

Razma dances with flaming poi, which can also be used as weapons if necessary, though Invartí are generally expected to be peaceful.

And then I had the urge to draw her in a thick cozy scarf. Because it was cold in Minnesota at the time and I couldn't help it.

So that's Razma. Her mother left their troupe, the Sovrana, when Razma was young, intent on making it through the twisted and evil land that was once the Silver Forest to the alleged paradise on the other side. When she left, she took the sacred fire of the arsura with her. Razma grew up ostricized for her mother's betrayal, mastering the poi and formulating a desire to follow her mother's path. She's sullen and withdrawn, but very good at her craft.

I have more stuff for you, but I should prolly sleep first. I have not gotten nearly enough things done on this break, largely because I have not spent much time out of my bed. I have got to kick this infection before I go back to school, or interim is going to suck.

I did, however, read both House of Hades and Clockwork Princess while bedridden. Both quite enjoyable. I liked Nico as a character before, but House of Hades made me really seriously love him. He just needs so many hugs. And a cute boyfriend. Meanwhile, all of the angsty problems in Clockwork Princess could have been solved by two words: hot threesome.

Also, Misfits continues to be delectably sordid. I will never not want to see Simon and Alisha being gorgeous together. My god, why are they so pretty?

Kay. Bed now. Maybe less snot tomorrow? Here's hoping.

Commander Kip
"You can't kill me, I'm lactose intolerant!"
Normal is overrated!

Merrytimes

As is traditional with me, you get a drawing of one of my characters in an anachronistic Santa hat. Andra again this year. She is not pleased. 

She didn't mind as much the first time, but that was because I did it to Nath too. 

So it's Christmas. Wow. That happened all of a sudden. I feel like I just got home yesterday. This break is going by way too quickly, and not just because I've been manically watching Misfits with my brother. It's just going too fast. Slow down, break. I need you.

Got some shinies from the fam, mostly gypsy jewelry. Also an awesome hat. I asked my brother to get me Mass Effect 1, but he couldn't find it in stores. Anybody know where we could get it for Xbox or PS3? I want to play it so bad.

Haven't seen the Doctor Who Christmas Special yet. Putting it off. Don't want to watch Eleven regenerate. Know it's gonna hurt. 

Turning 21 next week. Oof. 

Now, more Misfits.

Commander Kip

"I think I've just seen Nathan stealing a baby."

Normal is overrated!

How did I not know about this?

Because I don't have a tumblr, that's why. Figures. Thank you, kitty, for enlightening me.



It looks fantastic. Teenage Hiccup. Homuhgod.

Just got home last night. Will work on scanning doodles from my notes this semester. Then there will be artses here again.

Perhaps now I will go back to bed. Either that, or roust my brother out of bed as well so we can watch more Misfits. Oh dear, it's so crass but so funny and sad at the same time. Nathan's home life breaks my heart, but he's just so frickin' hilarious.

Commander Kip
"Maybe you can do something. You just don't know what it is yet." "Yeah. Right. What if... what if I can't feel pain?" *punch* "OW!"
Normal is overrated!

Thing of the Day: Nando Lauria's Gloria

Hey dere erebody. Bet you thought I'd died again. Lucky for you, I returned from the grave specifically to share this song with you!



This is one of my all-time favorite pieces of Christmas music. I just love it.

Also, we're going to Christmas Fest tonight! Should be quite a party.

Saw Catching Fire over break. So good, you guys. I started bawling when Katniss addresses Rue's family and didn't stop until the end. Finnick and Johanna were awesome. (Though I might just be biased cuz they're my favorites.) I do sorta wish Johanna had been a little more sullen and a little less insane, though. Oh well, she still rocked hard.

Now I don't get to have fun until after finals. See you on the other side.

Commander Kip
"Sure, you can pray for me and I'll... dance naked in the forest for you."
Normal is overrated!

kitty

Yes, I know it is deplorable and disgusting to have soppy pet names for your significant other. But seriously, if you met this kid, you'd agree with me. He purrs when you pet him, and he bats at ponytails, and he makes disgruntled cat noises when he wakes up and realizes you were drawing him in his sleep.

I need more life drawing practice. I can do faces all day long, but god forbid I have to attach a body to them. I should take a life drawing class, but all of them are at 8am. Eeeeeeeew.

Oh, so last weekend we did a Savage Worlds one-off set in the Inception universe. It was pretty trippy. We started in the middle of a firefight in Columbia, everyone got killed, and then it turned out we were in a dream and we'd failed our objective. So we took this other job where we were supposed to get the plans for this phone app from a dude, and we had a crazy Russian ex-Mafia dude on our team who wanted to skip the whole dream thing and just torture it out of him, but luckily we convinced him to do the torturing in the dream instead. Poor Matt had to play the guy's Chinese girlfriend and get very realistically tortured in front of the guy, who held up remarkably well and just refused to break, but we did get it out of him eventually (turns out he was much more susceptible to personal injury than psychological torture. Always go for the kneecaps.) And then it turned out that the app was for mind control and the guy we'd stolen it for was going to sell it to China so they could control the world, so we got into a messy firefight with his bodyguards in the penthouse office of a skyscraper in... Dubai, was it? Anyway, my character got shot in the leg and still took down four of the six guards (two of them with a double butterfly kick) while everyone else was flailing around and Matt's cowardly scientist character was hiding under the desk. It was a good time, and I really like the Savage Worlds system - much simpler than DnD.

In other roleplay news, Magical Steampunk Gypsies is going swimmingly. Alex is finally participating again, which means that he's forcing us fussy writer types to slap down some words and move the plot along. We've started three new threads in the last two weeks, and everyone is posting with some regularity. I made an antagonist character, one Enderos Thorn, to interact with Marcus and Suvoi in their origin thread. He's a Crimson Hand pilot who's getting too old for the whole mercenary thing and just wants to go find his two daughters in the Ratways. He's a pretty easygoing dude, but he's also capable of laser focus and split-second decisions under fire. (In other words - he might seem like a softie, but he can still mess you up.)

little things/big things

I have some doodlies for you, as well as an announcement.

First up: Kunan from the Avatar D&D campaign, the ultimate grouchy old lady! We had such a great Halloween sesh this year. I chose the costume Mikasa from Attack on Titan, so I got 3D Maneuver Gear and swords and +10 to Teenage Angst and +15 to Dead Parents. Andrew made us crawl through a horrible Temple of Vaatu. Matt and I got trapped in this puzzle room yoinked straight out of Amnesia (the one with the fountain full of blood with the legs coming out of it) and I thought it was a good idea to climb into the fountain, which then swallowed me in the manner of a GIANT SQUISHY ESOPHAGUS. It was friggen awful. At least Andrew let me fire my maneuver gear at the ceiling and pull myself out before I actually drowned in blood. I still win, because I'm the only one who didn't get horribly cursed! (Matt's character is now a vampire for the rest of the campaign.)

And now, Birthright things. I feel bad abandoning these guys. It's Fidelio doing what he does best: reading.

And Andra looking vaguely pissed, as per usual. I think I'm getting closer and closer to a practical outfit for her. Also, I find it interesting that I tend to gravitate towards characters who have so many character flaws that they're almost unlikeable. Using Andra as an example: she's angry, bitter, sarcastic, violent, lazy, and slow to trust. (Of course, all of this is largely situational; her father tried to kill her and then her mother abandoned her. Her adopted parents just sort of ignore her. She has this physical disability to contend with, as well as emotional trauma stemming from past sex abuse, not to mention that almost everyone in the city hates her.) God, I love this girl.

Now some random doodles. Because this is what happens when I get bored in class.

Oh look, it's Clary! (Pre-City of Bones Clary, apparently. She looks about fourteen here.)

Teensy Mako doodle. Good god, his eyebrows. They are actually dragons.

Teensy Beast Boy. What a cutie.

And some not-fanart. This is Severine's mother Oriana from House of Arcane Treasures. I dunno what happened to her and the daddy, but neither of them are in the story anymore, so probably something bad. I peeked into Severine's nightstand drawer a few days ago and discovered a portable casette player with an old tape inside. The tape contained a recording of Oriana begging an infant Severine to "protect the House" while windows shatter in the background, telling her how much they loved her and that Hawksmith would keep her safe. It was all very exciting. I considered doing this story for NaNo, but then quickly realized that I'm in college and have papers and just nope.

Also from House of Arcane Treasures, it's Abigail the trigger-happy American! She looks so deceptively sweet and even-tempered, doesn't she? Well, it's a trap. She will mess you up. With her machine pistols.

Drew this chick with dreads in my Great Con notes, and now I want to make a character out of her. She looks like she's got personality. Dunno where to put her though.

Liked her so much I even turned her into a real drawing. I think dreadlocks are fascinating, but I don't think I ever want them on my own head.

You knew this post would devolve into Magical Steampunk Gypsies if we waited long enough, didn't you? Well, you were right. Have some sultry Suvoi. (E'rebody wanna piece o' dat. Unfortunately for her.)

Everybody except Marcus, that is, despite all her efforts to the contrary. As it turns out, he did like her originally, but then he remembered that everyone he's ever loved has died, so he pushed her away. Being her stubborn self, however, she decided to stay with him anyway.

This is what happens whenever she tries to seduce him. OHGODOHGODOHGODHOWDOIGIRLS. (Ian really appreciated this picture.)

D'aaw, look, it's Gideon the gypsy sky pirate! My god, he's adorable. And apparently he's also the incarnation of one of the mythological heroes of the Surlinds, known as Constellations. So this should be good. (He is also hopelessly in love with Suvoi, as is EVERY MALE, along with some of the females, in the story. Except Marcus.)

Speaking of Constellations, a few weeks ago, we sat down and hammered out a new (very ancient) species called the Progeniteans. It would seem that Gideon's Constellation was a Caelian man who fell in love with a Progenitean woman and then went off to fight the Vile and got himself martyred. More on that later. Meanwhile, have a generic Progenitean lady.

And while all of the shenanigans in Guaren are going on and everybody's biting off way more than they could ever hope to chew by invading the Asylum with a bunch of loony professors (oh god Anna), our Meran characters have massive catfights and the plot goes nowhere. Have some gloomy Verdigris, reflecting upon her past sins. (After all, she did participate in the conversion of Ashes' sister Chiara, who then proceeded to go feral at four years old. God forbid we ever put Ashes and Verdigris in the same room.)

So that's all the billions of doodles. On another subject entirely, this is mah boyfriend. I am showing you his picture because he is a sexy, sexy Vulcan and because today is our one-year anniversary.

Thanks for being so awesome, love.

Whoof, now I must go put on a dress and go to dinner. Bye dudes.

Commander Kip
You are a terrible. But you're my terrible.
Normal is overrated!

the useless one

So this is my sketchy sketchy Attack on Titan cosplay. There is no chest harness and there are no swords and the jacket is the wrong color, but considering that the only thing I spent money on for this costume was duct tape, I'd still call that a pretty solid win.

The gear actually didn't bang around as much as I was expecting, although I did have to carry my books under my arm instead of wearing my backpack, and sitting down was quite the adventure. Also, people kept asking which character I was, so I finally decided Armin, because I am useless and I have no swords. (I like Armin though. He's a cutie and he reminds me of Mana from Magical Steampunk Gypsies.) In any case, Ian and I were quite popular and got lots of "for humanity!" salutes from random strangers, which is always the best.

There will most likely be more pictures of this costume eventually, because Ian and I want to drag Alex and his fancy camera down to the Natural Lands and leap around in our 3D Maneuver Gear like a bunch of badasses. 'S gonna be great.

Commander Kip
"So sorry... to attack... from... behind..."
Normal is overrated!

that sort of night

You know what's awesome? Well-timed fog.

This is my college campus, as of last night, October 30th. Are we winning at weather or what?

I love creepy fog. Happy Halloween, dudes!

There will eventually be pictures of my costume, because Ian and I were both Survey Corps soldiers from the delightful anime Attack on Titan, and people recognized us, and it was brilliant. (I use the word "delightful" in the sense of blood spatters and wrenching angst, but y'know, for us writer types, that sort of thing is actually delightful.)

On the subject of blood, we also went to a haunted house in the basement of another dorm, and it was an insane asylum full of screaming people in bloodstained hospital gowns. It was quite good. I enjoyed it immensely. Haunted houses are way better when you go with people you know well, rather than near-strangers. Duly noted.

I just love Halloween. I think I will always love it, even when I am an old grouchy lady. It's just the most spectacular crazy holiday and people don't look at you funny when you go to all your classes in costume. I love it.

Commander Kip
"Look at Ian. He's stabbing absolutely everyone."
Normal is overrated!

funtiems

Just got done with Fall Break here at St. Olaf College. What a party. (By which I mean we sat around and watched tv and woke up at noon all the time.) Although I gotta say, Bastion is a gorgeous gorgeous game. Also, Attack on Titan. I need to see more of this. Also, Ian and I are totally building 3DM gear for Halloween, and it's gonna be awesome.

We did take a break from sitting on our butts to take a walk in the Natural Lands. And Alex remembered to bring his fancy camera.

Yes, we are all five-year-olds. It's fine.

Now, back to all the homeworks.

Commander Kip
"Kid just rages for a while."
Normal is overrated!