Day 30... i need to not forget these things.

Day 30 – Mar. 6^th, 2012

            I completely forgot last night. I’m so lame lol. Anyways we didn’t do a whole bunch yesterday. I started my career assessment review in college success course and that was cool. We went over some possible majors I fit other than Psychology like English, art history and Sociology. It also showed even more job options for me as well. Today in English I am reading up on the academic discipline and will start my proposal on my project for English on the graphic novels. I got 2 of my requested books about them from the library at Chandler-Gilbert CC and I’m very excited about them. The one has a whole chapter of essays about how librarians feel about comics and their rise from being basically shit. I find this interesting since one of the career options I have was to be a librarian so I may have to use this in the future if I was comics to be in a library I were to run. I got the movie Return to Oz from Amazon today and the other day I received Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas so I really would like to watch those soon whenever I have some free time. I also received Women of Marvel Vol. 1 and Wreck This Journal which was recommended to me by my friend Lindsay Story. She has been posted her entries on Facebook when she does one and it looks absolutely fun! The book encourages you to get creative, destructive and crazy within it pages! There are specific ones that tell you to wash it, ruin it and basically have a creativity explosion. I can tell it’ll be a fun little experiment. Today is my dad’s 57^th birthday and he had to work which is no fun. I sent him a card but I forgot to send it till today but I’m sure he will like it. Mom’s birthday is coming and I have a good idea of what to send her. Jeana, Carl and I also had Hawaiian BBQ for lunch today. My entrée was shrimp with white fish and a crab Rangoon. Carl got Spam sushi grossness lol. Very chill day indeed. I finally finished Ultimate Xmen Vol. 1 which I’ve been reading off and on since around the beginning of October 2010 when I still lived in Oklahoma. I just kept forgetting about and I’m sad because it was really good. In the Ultimate Marvel universe everything is a bit more streamlined and character backstories are altered slightly. Over all very good and entertaining read. I started Gerald’s Game by Stephen King again. It another book I started in OK but never finished. I’m already farther than I was out there. I like to read a print-only book and a comic at the same time for some reason. I’m not sure what my next one will be, I still have a lot of options I haven’t caught up on yet. Anyways I have a headache so have a good night folks!

Day 28: I am the Walrus...

Day 28 – Mar. 4^th, 2012

                        Well I skipped last night because I was up till about 315 am finishing my annotated bibliography for English class concerning my research project. Yesterday was finishing my reading on research and bibliographies. We also went to Savers where I found some old Sandman comics which are pretty awesome. We got sweet tea while we were out and it was yummy. Jeana, Carl and I went to Fascinations as well to look around. They are a couples-friendly kind of sex shop and they have a good selection of everything one could be looking for in the sexy department. I found a purple and black corset which I bought for rather cheap and wore it to the Renaissance fair today. We came home later and I finished my English research. I found a great many articles on graphic novels in therapy, education, its history and some criticisms. I had to find seven sources and I found quite a lot of material to turn into a great research project for the rest of this semester. One of the articles explains how over one summer, two teachers helped failing deaf students get excited about reading and learning through graphic novels. I think this article is an excellent example of the growing genre and how incorrect people are when they say graphic novels are not “real” books. Carl and I ended up with about 3 hours of sleep last night which sucks because we got up around 7 am to get ready for the fair. We got all dolled up; I was a gothic pirate, Carl was a pirate and Jeanette was a gypsy-pirate. We got there a bit after it opened at 10 am and saw some Scottish bagpipers first. We saw a lot of good shows and looked through all of the lovely shops. I got a pair of earrings that are coffin-shaped with a skull on the outside and they open to reveal a skeleton. I also got two little statues which was a skull with tribal symbols on it and a blue fair sitting on a blue gem. The fair is TARDIS blue and looks like the woman who played her in the episode “The Doctor’s Wife” on the newer Doctor Who. We all tried fair food but some of it wasn’t expected. I had a Monte Cristo which was basically a sandwich deep-fried. I’ve never had it like that! When I've had it before, at a place like Denny’s or what not it was just slightly fried but this was a heart-attack. I couldn’t even finish and I think it made my stomach hurt later. Jeana and I also had alcohol; she had a Mudslide and I had a Daiquiri which made us both very nice. I was very bold and tried the Jacob’s ladder thing even though I fell off, but it was silly fun. Lastly we got our turkey legs which one cannot possible leave any renaissance fair without munching on. We got them to go to eat later for dinner. Today was a rather good day even though I’m exhausted now. I found out the one in Irwindale, CA (www.renfair.com) that I used to go to is having their fiftieth year of the fair from April 7^th to May 20^th. I hope we can get out to California and go to that one because the events look amazing and the celebration will be crazy. I am close to the 32^nd day of this blog and while it would technically end, I think I will continue but on an “as important stuff happens” basis instead of every single day… or maybe every day until the end of the semester. What do you guys think? Also why does all the pam email I get ask me if I want to enlarge my penis? I don’t even have one, let along need to enlarge it! Well have a good night, loves!

Day 23: Social-ENFJ Type

Day 23 – Feb.28^th, 2012

                        I had a nice day today. I did some English homework and read about searching the web about research questions and using the Rio Salado library. We reviewed how to judge the accuracy and authority of a website as well as the differences between the ending part of the URL .edu, .org, .com, and .gov mean. I have to write an annotated bibliography on seven online sources for one of my research questions. I am leaning toward the graphic novels one as it is so relevant to my interests at the moment. I’m definitely keeping the other two in mind though as I see them as being good future topics for classes further down the road in my education. I finished reading Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 Volume 8 in less than an hour earlier. It was really good and really sad as well. I like that the writer/creator can do so many things now without fear of a budget due to effects. I also got my Career Test back from my College Success course and it was 25 pages long! It includes the Strong Interest Inventory and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. It was very revealing as well as specific in what I should lean towards as well as what kinds of things I would excel in. According to the SII, the top ten occupations listed for my type (Social) were: (1. Special Education Teacher, (2. Speech Pathologist, (3. Foreign Language Teacher, (4. Librarian, (5. Social Worker, (6. Translator, (7. College Instructor, (8. Occupational Therapist, (9. Psychologist, and (10. Technical Writer. All of this sounds pretty amazing but there is a slight problem with #3 and #6 as I only know English. I suppose if I did know another language, I would be great at helping others learn it as well as explaining what it means. According to the MBTI, I am an ENFJ type which means the following: Extraversion: Getting energy from and attuning to the external environment, iNtuition: Focusing on the big picture and future possibilities, Feeling: Making decisions based on person-centered values, and Judging: Being organized and decisive. Finally, my top Career Fields are: Psychology & Counseling, Teaching, Health Care, and Educational Administration. It even went so far as to suggest what things I could do in my leisure times that I might enjoy due to my personality type, such as volunteering at a counseling/crisis center; staffing a suicide prevention hotline; helping out in a special education classroom; reading self-help books; or taking classes in psychology/counseling. I find this stuff very interesting and it leads me more down the path to the correct career choice for me and hopefully a brighter future! Jeana, Carl and I also went to Coldstone tonight which is my favorite ice cream place. I got “Gotta Have It” size of black cherry and strawberry ice cream with white chocolate and regular chocolate chips as well as pineapple mixed inside. It was very delicious and a good way to top off the night. J

Day 20: Midterms Part 1 and Carl(s)

Day 20 – Feb. 25^th, 2012

                       Hello kiddies. Today I did my College Success Midterm and my final Journal summary. I talked about the strategies I’d learned since the beginning of the class and how I would use them to keep myself on course to my dreams and goals. The midterm paper took the longest and ended up being about 6 pages so I hope the teacher likes it. I thoroughly explained how I have been doing my 32-dya commitment, using how I learn to apply it to other situations, posting up my personal affirmation as well as my personal rules for success. My English research questions came back with 100% on it. She really liked all of them and even told me about a class that Rio offers specifically for graphic novels. I have to decide which topic to choose though I’m really rather fond of the graphic novel subject. Carl and everyone went to the Renaissance Faire today but he brought me back so cool things. He got me some gorgeous kitty/silver earrings and two Goblets that say AZ Ren Fest 2011 because that was the 2^nd time we ever met was last year there. It was so fun and he’s super sweet to remember these things. We tried the Big Carl at Carl’s Jr today and it was pretty filling and cheesy. There is a lot of Carl going on in this entry! We are watching Rum Diary right now and the story is interesting but I think Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas has a faster pace to it but the comedic parts are similar. Good night folks!

Day 19: Sweet tea 3.14 = Sweety pie

Day 19 – Feb. 24^th, 2012

                        I didn’t do all that much today. I was just super tired on and off but I got more medicine so that’s a good thing. We had Jack in the Box for breakfast because it sounded delightful. I did reading for English 102 and made up my three research questions in detail for the assignment. I really like the one about the graphic novels being used positively. Here are my questions: 1.) How can graphic novels be applied positively in an academic setting and why are some educators against their use? 2.) How has the representation of women in the Sci-fi genre changed positively over the decades and how can this be a good influence in women’s lives? 3.) Why does a celebrity’s death affect us so much, even though we don’t know them personally? Are some of these deaths more meaningful to society than others? Do different types of deaths influence us differently like suicide, drugs or old age? Hopefully I can form an interesting essay project from one of these and my instructor will like it. If there are any opinions from my friends on these topics, please let me know! Carl made a delicious chicken soup tonight with potatoes and carrots but without the actual chicken meat. So yummy! Also, while I hate Mc Donalds, I love their sweet tea and with it being only a dollar, it’s a cheap addiction. Tonight I leave you with this:

"Life isn't a mountain that has a summit. Nor a game that has a final score.
Life is an endless unfolding, and if we wish it to be, an endless process of self-discovery,
an endless and unpredictable dialogue between our own potentialities and the life situations in which we find ourselves."

-John W. Gardner

Day 17... Samra the Explorerer

Day 17 – Feb.22^nd, 2012

                        Today was a fun day of some English homework, lots of shopping and exploring around the area. First of all, Jeana, Carl and I went to Name Brand Exchange which is a used clothing store. One location is close but we went there a few days ago so we went to the one in Mesa. I found some cute and cheap low-heeled black shoes, a cute head band with zipper teeth on it and some random pretty postcards to send to pen pals. Jeana got a gray dress that looks cute on her. Then we went to Buffalo Exchange in Tempe but couldn’t find anything good. Also their prices have gone up quite a lot which sucks! Then we went into Ash Comics and we nerded out. I ordered Tales of Wonderland 3 to catch up on my dark Alice series by Zenoscope. Then we decided to eat at Fibber McGee’s in Chandler, which is an Irish pub with authentic food and lots of Guinness. We got there just in time for Happy Hour. We had mussels and different flavors of flatbreads. We also had some delicious Ace Pear cider which tastes much better to me than most beers. Lastly we checked out the place next to it called World Food and got baklava and some foreign snacks that have REAL sugar and not high fructose corn syrup in them. We got home and I did some English on research questions for the semester project. I’m trying to decide what I should research. I need to come up with at least three and NOT to use something cliché like abortion or death penalty. I’d prefer it to have to do with my major which is Psychology or my minor Women’s Studies. I was possibly thinking of research how graphic novels have more positive representations than most people assume. Normally people think they are so full of fluff and crap when many of these stories are very in depth and can actually teach something. Examples of those kinds of graphic novels would definitely be “Watchmen” and “V for Vendetta” and possibly less obvious ones that cause emotions to stir such as “Spiderman: Reign” and “House of M”. I would need to think of 2 other questions about different topics by Saturday night. One I had thought of earlier in the class was, how women are represented in strong roles it seems only in the Sci-fi genre. Are strong women are the stuff of fantasy? Another topic I’ve thought of is how a celebrity’s death affects their fans. Does it depend on the death such as suicide versus drugs versus old age? This project lasts for the rest of the semester so I really need to consider this when I choose the topic. That’s all folks!