leanne | Entries tagged with life

Lots and lots and lots of work on Mark's STARSHIPS game. It's debuting at Kingdom-Con next week. I have been rather swamped. I think we have one last thing to take care of for that, and it will be all done except the printing.

I have an application in as a background / wallpaper artist for http://www.recolor.me -- that necessitated updating my portfolio in order to have some decent backgrounds to show them.

Still playing around on GaiaOnline, but much less than I have been. It is still my game-baby, though. Playing hockey either once or twice a week (thank goodness for knee braces). Writing letters, and getting them back. Expecting an online friend to visit me in May. Watching summer barrel down on me like a Mack truck. Occasionally playing Pokemon when I have time -- ahahahaha.

Very slowly working on the yard. Very slowly working on the house. More projects in the pipe for Mark, if nothing else. Hoping to get back to working with Point of Descent at some point, if that gets off the ground again.

How've you all been?

Current Mood: chipper

After having the consultation with the fertility clinic, we've basically come to the following conclusions:

* There's nothing wrong with me as far as we can easily tell, aside from me being older and less-fertile than me-of-25, probably. (Follicle count: 7-8, not the 10 preferred.)

* We don't know if there's anything wrong with Mark, because no tests have been done for him.

* The cost of fertility treatments is completely bugfuck insane, and we'd rather spend that kind of money on a child in need than on a roll of the dice for a pregnancy.

We are probably going to discuss this a bit further over the next few days, but most likely we will be applying to an adoption agency or foster agency within the next 3-6 months, while continuing still to try on our own without further medical assistance. If we are lucky enough to have our own children, great. If we don't have biological children, that's fine. There are many kids out there who need mommies and daddies.

I am currently looking at http://www.angelsfoster.org as a likely starting candidate.

Current Mood: calm

Dear little one, I want to let you know -- yes, I kept your dolls. I kept them for 28 years. They spent a lot of time in a big luggage box, which you wouldn't have been happy about. I wasn't very happy about it either, but they were safe, and they stayed with me.

I'm much older now, married to the the best man ever (and you'll never believe how I met him), and we have a nice house with lots of room. We're hoping to have our own little one, which I know you hadn't really thought of as an option at that age. He helped me put up a shelf in the room where our future little one will live, and all five of those dolls are on that shelf, where I can see them every day and play with them if I want to. And maybe our little one will play with them too.

You took really good care of your dollies, sweetie, especially since I know how much you played with them. I changed out their rubber bands, because they didn't last thirty years, so Angie and Rennie and Pauline all have nice new ponytail elastics. I see where you carefully sewed their fingers and wrists back together, because while your dollies were very expressive, they didn't always hold up to your enthusiasm for making them hold things and talk with their hands.

I am amazed that you were so careful with their clothes and their clothing patterns. The only things that are missing are hair ribbons, and we both know how easy those were to lose. All the shoes and socks and even the little beach towel are still in the box. Maggie still has her pacifier, and every one of them still has their original diaper, though Marty's is scotch-taped together. I think all the pattern pieces are there, and I know you used them, because there are two outfits that you sewed yourself in with the rest of their clothes.

When I get a chance, I'm going to hand-wash their clothes, because they were well loved, and see if I can find a way to clean up their faces a little bit, because they were well loved too. And maybe I'll get around to making some of those outfits you never did, because you were wise enough to save those patterns for a later time, when you could afford more fabric and understand sewing a little better.

You did good, little one. I'll carry that forward for you. *hugs and love*

Current Mood: peaceful

House is over 50% unpacked. Mostly at the point of unpacking books and games and doing a secondary cull. Mostly failing on culling books. I keep finding things that I'm glad I saved.

Debating what to do with the box of Re-Ment, as I like having it around, but it's a thing. The LEGO is likely to head to Bricklink. A bunch of the miniatures games will probably go, too.

Also need to redo the emergency kit, as I discovered that the big emergency kit is really not well designed for me to move, back when we were moving out of the Pegasus house. Most of it is heavy. /:

Still need to install more shelving in the garage and get the garage organized, but it's moving along, slowly.

Today's mission is to get my home business moved to my new home, get groceries, and actually maybe get some work done. I'm being frustrated by wanting to get back to Saijiki Stories, but without the Modbook, that's becoming problematic. I don't have quite enough money for a Cintiq. So ... back to work, hopefully with great alacrity and lots of hours, so I can afford one, and then hopefully back to Saijiki Stories too.

Been tired in the mornings. Would like to not be. Been going to bed on time, so not entirely sure what's wrong. Maybe just that it's socked-in with fog these past few days.

I have found a couple of resources for artists and graphic designers, for business models and so forth, that I am checking out of the library.

Right now I am feeling overwhelmed at "so much to learn, so little I know, so not wanting to screw up, so not wanting to waste my time." Agh.

I know I can produce art that I like and that other people like. I just really need to figure out the whole business end of things, and it's scary and intimidating and frustrating and hard to chunk. Hence the books, and the hoping it helps. (Hat tip to boygirlparty for having this stuff up on her website.)

Current Mood: anxious

Beginning Firearms Safety, taught by a couple of SDPD retirees. Awesome gentlemen.

Tonight was the first night with live ammo. We shot just 10 rounds at 50 yards. I'm using a Smith & Wesson .45, on loan from the PD. Everyone's using handguns.

I am pleased to note that all 10 of my rounds were on the paper. Two were in the 9, and another two were off the target but shot in such a way that they overlapped (good repeatable form, probably shaking when I shot). The remainder were in two mostly-horizontal lines across the paper.

I have never shot a gun before in my life.

Current Mood: accomplished

I do not need another project! Stop it stop it stop it.

(This post brought to you by the fact that Giacomo Castelvetro's book on the fruits and vegetables of Renaissance Italy is in the public domain, but not on Gutenberg. Arrrrgh.)

Taking it easy today because I suspect a virus is trying to eat me. Only overt symptom is the usual swollen lymph node. I am suddenly very suspicious that the tooth sensitivity might be related, given that I've gotten the *weirdest* viral symptoms over the past year or so.

Re: the tooth sensitivity thing -- been having cold/heat sensitivity in upper right second premolar for the past week. It branches out to the first premolar and the first molar. Annoying as heck, but nothing immediately visible on the X-rays. I'm having to use Sensodyne (blech -- thank goodness for generics) and it's supposed to go away within a few weeks. We'll see. My hygienist claims that gum recession is basically non-fixable, only treatable. I am hoping that she's wrong, because this seems pretty minor. /: (I don't expect her to be wrong. But I can hope.)

Been working more on learning InDesign. About halfway through the InDesign book that I have, which is good. Pretty straightforward, but I needed the review.

Just got back from the nursery, where I picked up some seeds for my mom-in-law for her birthday, and Joann's, where I restocked my sewing machine needles (desperately needed) and found some inexpensive black denim and red-and-tan striped cotton remnants that I'm planning to use as part of my bow sock. Should be nice. Pix at some point. Yes, I know I always say that. Sometimes I do actually post them. (:

Commencing finger-tapping, foot-tapping impatience in 5, 4 ...

I'm hoping to have it by Thursday, as Kristina is going with us and I expect she'll want to be shooting the same bow I've been using. We determined that she is also left-eye dominant.

Olivewood was good today. Only one class -- less than 30 kids, even, and they were really good and really smart and really enjoyed what we made. Excellent stuff.

The house is now clean, and I'm about to work on a letter that I've been meaning to write for a couple of weeks, and then cook. The weather is dreary as heck and it's making me blue. I am avoiding playing Pokémon for the moment, or it will eat the rest of my afternoon, and yeah.

Current Mood: blah

Went ahead and ordered the Firefox 32#. I figure -- there's no way I can shoot a 40# reliably, and if you're supposed to be shooting at 3/4 your max draw weight, 32# is a good place to start. I have plans to go shooting twice next week. Debating whether or not I'm insane enough to try to garb up for St. Artemas Anniversary and compete. (Not sure on that -- it's right before we're supposed to be running Tin Stars, and chicken-sans-head may be occurring at that time.)

It occurs to me that SCA is probably more fun when you are older and really grok the whole research-and-persona thing better. I am definitely more interested -- and more capable -- in that angle now than I was before.

I am running Tin Stars. I am ridiculously happy about this. I have plans. Mwahaha.

Earthdawn went well tonight, gotta really plan for next session as it's going to be totally different from the last two.

The new Pokémon games come out on Sunday, and I am ridiculously excited by those, too. Generally, I'm just in a pretty good mood right now. And I made cookies. And worked out. And stuff.

I am rambling, but life is good. (: