~k-ee-ran

First of all, props to any of you who get the reference in the journal title there.

And then… well, it’s very true about life. You have your good times, your hard times. And nowadays seems to love to jump back and forth between the two.

For example, I can’t go on the Lady this summer. They have a spot for me, aye, and I saved up just enough money to get on board for the two weeks, but I have no bloody transportation. Gas prices are WAY too high to drive out there. Flights are full and booked, and besides, even if I could fly out there, I’m too young to rent a car and it would cost $200-ish to get a one-way taxi from the airport to the seaport. Another 200 to get back to the airport afterwards. And that’s just… well, way too much for anyone with any form of budget.

So yeah. No Lady for me this summer.
I’m going to send in my forms early for 2009, and hope that by then, I’ll have enough in the ol’ bank account to manage the trip next year.

[And yeah, Capt, I knew that we decided that I wouldn’t go into details about it… but once again, I just felt the need to get it out there. It’s a bit of a relief, actually, being able to write about it. ]

And also, I got my first job… but I’m leaving already. It turned out to be nothing like what I expected, but I felt pressured to say yes while I still could lest someone else take my place. So I got accepted to be a salesperson for Vector Marketing. And now, I’m going to call them today and tell them it’s not for me. After all, I never signed anything. I just filled out an application, so I’m not breaking any contracts. Just backing out of something I never wanted to be a part of in the first place.

Only problem? That leaves me unemployed, once again.
*sighs*

Um, anyone think my art is anywhere close to good enough for commissions? Because that seems to be my only option right now. That, or hurry up and write my little derriere off and somehow crank out a publishable novel. And hope that people like it enough to buy it. Yeah, because seriously NOWHERE else is hiring nearby where I live. Well, except for RadioShack in some city on the fringe of the Metro, and the Hot Topic in Mall of America. Both are just a bit of a commute. Just a bit.

But, then again, my work at Driven Youth Ministries [I volunteer there, but I take it seriously, so I call it my job. ] is going great. I’ve been in charge of the Audio/Visual team for about 6 months now, and I’ve also recently been accepted into the adult [volunteer] staff.

And, tomorrow I’m heading off to Lake Itasca [aka, headwaters of the Mississippi River, for those of you who don’t know Minnesota geography] for a 3-day course called Nature of Life. Sad though it is, I’m actually vaguely excited to go back to school this fall. Something about the University of Minnesota is just… well, it’s a challenge. But it’s one that I’m pumped to take up. Savvy? And besides, I get to go to school with me sister, best friend, partner in crime, and undead monkey ~bloodyjackfaber. What could top that?

And… there’s a chance, chance mind ye, that I’ll get to go up to the Duluth Maritime Festival this year. Which won’t be nearly as amazing as crewing the Lady… but it’s something.

And then there’s Breaking Dawn, coming out next week!
I’m actually uber-excited to cosplay as Alice.

So there you have it. Things are looking up, looking down. But either way, life goes on.

to all of ye!
-Kyra


=======================================================

quote of the day::
"What would you have me do?”
“Endure.”
-Bruce & Alfred, “The Dark Knight”

AMV recommendation of the day::
TMNT – “Headstrong” - AMV
by LeoPrimeMaximal

Cosplay -- [link]
Summer To Do List -- [link]

Hatashijou [Table of Contents] -- [link]

The KTTC Crew -- [link]
The Rangers -- [link]
The AWEsome -- [link]
The Clubs -- [link]

The Calendar -- [link]
100 Theme Challenge -- [link]

My Photoshop Fanart (avatars, banners, etc.) -- [link]

My Devious Info -- [link]

hey, mates! guess what?

I'm going to be on the Lady Washington this summer from August 4-15!!


[if any of you live near Anacortes, WA, we're going to be making port there around the 9th-10th...]

But anyway... I didn't get on official crew this year, because I didn't send in my volunteer forms on time... But, luckily, they still have room on the Family & Youth expeditions, so I'm blowing a good chunk of my grad money to do both of them. I'm going to get three free days of crewing, though! And I've heard that we'll be taking Deception Pass again this year -- maybe our captain will let us sail it [not using motor] again... that'd be freakin' awesome.

So, anyway, lesson learned: If I'm going to crew summer 2009 (which I'm 99% sure I am), I've got to send my forms to Greys Harbor in December. [but hey, at least I know now!]

So anyway... letting ya'll know that the 4th-15th I shall be gone. Meaning that I probably won't be able to post my Alice cosplay pictures until after that... I'm going to help a friend move on the 2nd, and the 3rd is when I'm flying out to Washington... But anyway, I'll post the pictures [as well as ones from the Lady] after I get back.

Oh yeah, and I'm also going to be gone on July 23rd-25th... stupid class that incoming freshmen have to take... But I'll still be around. My summer might get a little hectic from here forward, but I'll still be here!

Anyway... sending hugs to all of you!
-Kyra


=======================================================

quote of the day::
"No, not by yourself, Raphael. We're a team. And as a team, let's go kick... some... ASS!"
-Leo, TMNT vol. 6
[only my favorite line of the original TMNT comic books... ]

AMV recommendation of the day::
Mitternacht - AMV
by MilitaryDog

Cosplay -- [link]
Summer To Do List -- [link]

Hatashijou [Table of Contents] -- [link]

The KTTC Crew -- [link]
The Rangers -- [link]
The AWEsome -- [link]
The Clubs -- [link]

The Calendar -- [link]
100 Theme Challenge -- [link]

My Photoshop Fanart (avatars, banners, etc.) -- [link]

My Devious Info -- [link]

What is it about thunderstorms that makes them so amazing?

Is it the crashing thunder, the flashing of electricity that screams of untamed and irrevocable power? Is it the torrents of rain, bringing both life and death to the world beneath them? Is it the unleashed awesomness and awfulness of nature, the clash of majesty and devastation that brings us to respect, even for just a few fleeting moments, the amazing planet we live on? Maybe it's because thunderstorms are unstable. They're wild, living things, seemingly with a mind of their own, like a forest fire, or the sea. They're proof that, although man might think he can predict nature, he can never fully control it.

So, yeah, just a few random thoughts to throw at you. Just sitting here, typing away, enjoying the rain and nature's own show of power. It all reminds me a lot of the sea, actually. Try as we like to tame it, we never fully have. Never fully will. And yet it calls to us -- to the sailors and seamen that try to take it on, despite its dangers. I believe that some of us are born seamen, even if we never see the ocean in our entire life. Or, as in my case, only if we see the ocean but once a year... it's in our hearts, letting us break free of normal boundaries and sail away from the norm. The ocean lets us be free.

I can't tell you how many times I've gotten strange looks for saying that I'm a tall ship sailor, or that I want to live on the sea someday, if not permanently then at least for some stretch of time. They look at me with that "I know best" look and say, "Kyra, you have such talent, you could be anything you wanted! Why would you choose to do something as low as that?" I say, it's because where my heart is. And besides, writing is already my planned career. Writing is what I do and what I've done since I could barely scrawl the alphabet, and before I could write, I told stories in my head. I came up with characters and had adventures with them. Telling stories is always what I've done, so why not make a career out of it? And if I'm going to be writing, who says I can't write in the foc'sle of a ship? It's just as good as any other place...

So yeah. Today's quote of the day is not something I picked arbitrarily. It's something that, when I first read it, totally and utterly hit home. It's proof that I'm not crazy.

Not that I would mind being crazy. Me against the world, and all that.

Anyway, hope that you all are having an amazing week. Me, I've been working on cosplay and other such projects. In fact, I'm hoping to finish Ed!Wolf's "Animal I've Become" banner/avatar set today. ^^ And then there's a metric butt-ton of scanning I have to do... Reilly-chan knows what that's for. XD

Take care, ya'll! Don't be caught outside in any thunderstorms, but if you happen to, enjoy it while you can!

Hugs & love!
-Kyra

=======================================================

quote of the day::
Chengi Li nodded, pausing in her tracks. "There's an old saying. Perhaps you've heard it? The saying asks, how can you tell a true pirate?"
"And what's the answer?" Connor asked.
"Because when you look in their eyes all you see is the ocean."

~from Vampirates: Blood Captain

AMV recommendation of the day::
Fullmetal Alchemist - Headstrong
by XSoulOfADeadRoseX

Cosplay -- [link]
Summer To Do List -- [link]

Hatashijou [Table of Contents] -- [link]

The Crew (KTTC) -- [link]
The Rangers -- [link]
The AWEsome -- [link]
The Clubs -- [link]

The Calendar -- [link]
100 Theme Challenge -- [link]

1. GRAB THE BOOK NEAREST TO YOU, TURN TO PAGE 18, AND FIND LINE 4.
"Sixshot... no survivors!"
-from Transformers: Devastation

2. STRETCH YOUR LEFT ARM OUT AS FAR AS YOU CAN.
hey! there's my puppy!

3. WHAT IS THE LAST THING YOU WATCHED ON TV?
The Punisher, I think...

4. WITHOUT LOOKING, GUESS WHAT TIME IT IS.
2:03 PM

5. NOW LOOK AT THE CLOCK. WHAT IS THE ACTUAL TIME?
2:11 PM

6. WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE COMPUTER, WHAT CAN YOU HEAR?
my mom talking about recipes

7. WHEN DID YOU LAST STEP OUTSIDE? WHAT WERE YOU DOING?
about ten minutes ago. taking the boxes of paper out of my mom's trunk and putting it in my dad's office

8. BEFORE YOU STARTED THIS SURVEY, WHAT DID YOU LOOK AT?
~CaptTreasureTroveTi's journal

9. WHAT ARE YOU WEARING?
sweats and my Death Note shirt

10. DID YOU DREAM LAST NIGHT? IF SO, WHAT?
Well, my OMGAA fastpitch team (from about two years ago) was traveling to play some hardcore and undefeatable team. But, when we got to that team's hometown, we started finding clues about why they were just so undefeatable. For one, rumor had it they were fighting amongst themselves... and then we started finding little red stones everywhere. Eventually, it all clicked in my brain. This softball team, Lord knows why, was comprised of Homonculi. (It ended up being the FMA Homunculi, plus two extra ones... Pride from the manga and one that my subconscious must've come up with on the spot, since I didn't recognize him.) But, the Homunculi were not too fond of their secret identities getting out, so they decided to put their own squabbles behind them to not just beat us in softball, but kill us. And thus, my team has to band together and restort to guerilla warfare, collecting red stones to fight the Homunculi. Strangely, I could use alchemy. And the ones on my team that know how to fight (myself included) taught the others how to do it. Mostly we used our bats and cleats as weapons, but since I was working on my cosplay costume at the same time, I had my (sharpened) wakizashi with me. And I never found out how the whole battle/hunt/fight ended, since I had to wake up...

So yeah. Homunculi playing softball. Don't know where my subconscious came up with that one...

11. WHEN DID YOU LAST LAUGH?
when my dog did yet another stupid stunt this morning

12. WHAT IS ON THE WALLS OF THE ROOM YOU ARE IN?
shelves and a few paintings

13. SEEN ANYTHING WEIRD LATELY?
my entire family is pretty weird. but I love them.

14. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS QUIZ?
better than most.

15. WHAT IS THE LAST FILM YOU SAW?
Wall-e
It was cute. ^^ But the futuristic humans scare me....
And the robot psycho ward! I love those guys!

16. IF YOU BECAME A MULTI-MILLIONARE OVERNIGHT, WHAT WOULD YOU BUY/DO?
wonder how the heck THAT happened! 0.0

17. TELL ME SOMETHING ABOUT YOU I DON'T KNOW.
at Reilly's fact. XD

I'm going to be in the Maple Grove parade today, with my karate school.

18. IF YOU COULD CHANGE ONE THING ABOUT THE WORLD, REGARDLESS OF GUILT OR POLICIES, WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
Give everyone good, ol' fashioned common sense.

19. DO YOU LIKE TO DANCE?
yup, but in my own style and form and when nobody's watching.

20.GEORGE BUSH:
Granted, I don't like what he's doing, but at least he's trying to make this country better, in his own way. I can give him that.

21. IMAGINE YOUR FIRST CHILD IS/WILL BE A GIRL. WHAT WOULD YOU CALL HER?
probably Brigid. maybe Alice. ^^

22. IMAGINE YOUR FIRST CHILD IS/WILL BE A BOY. WHAT WOULD YOU CALL HIM?
Aiden, Jack, maybe David.....

23. WOULD YOU EVER CONSIDER LIVING ABROAD?
YES!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'll probably get to do it, too, my junior year of college!

24. WHAT DO YOU WANT GOD TO SAY TO YOU WHEN YOU REACH THE PEARLY GATES?
"I'm proud of you, Kyra. You did a fine job down there."
or something along those lines.


=======================================================

quote of the day::
Chengi Li nodded, pausing in her tracks. "There's an old saying. Perhaps you've heard it? The saying asks, how can you tell a true pirate?"
"And what's the answer?" Connor asked.
"Because when you look in their eyes all you see is the ocean."

~from Vampirates: Blood Captain

AMV recommendation of the day::
Fullmetal Alchemist - Headstrong
by XSoulOfADeadRoseX

Cosplay -- [link]
Summer To Do List -- [link]

Hatashijou [Table of Contents] -- [link]

The Crew (KTTC) -- [link]
The Rangers -- [link]
The AWEsome -- [link]
The Clubs -- [link]

The Calendar -- [link]
100 Theme Challenge -- [link]

Calling all Risembool Rangers!
It's your time to shine, mates, and this is your place in my journal where I can honor all my fellow Rangers. RED DAWN!



& on other websites:
[link]
[link]


& in case any of you are wondering what sort of order ya'll are in... I started out with the three Rangers I already knew of, and from there, I just went down the list on the DA thread on the forums. I'll keep my eyes on the thread and add any more names as they pop up. ^^