raloria

aka My brain won't shut off when I need it to. :P

:: Got lots of new friends from that friending meme. *waves* So now I've got a question: Do you want an intro post from me? Seems like a lot of people are doing them. Yes? No? Maybe?

:: Got a fanfic stuck in my head that I'm tempted to type up and post. It's very short, but intense (I think). Fits right into Season 9, at least what we've seen so far. I'm not that much of a writer, but is anyone interested?

:: So sick of my LJ userpics I could scream. Seriously thinking of pulling a milly_gal (yes, you're a verb now LOL) and completely overhaul the lot of them. I mean, Milly's been making so many awesome icons. You should see the folder I've got of them on my laptop (over 300 strong). Plus, there's some of mine I'd still like to use. Of course there's always those few you simply can't NOT use. Decisions, decisions...

:: I need to get back to capping episodes. Life is so chaotic and exhausting though, it's tough to figure out how to work it into my non-existent schedule. I'm toying with the idea of asking you all which episode you want capped the most and doing them that way.

Good grief! It's been nearly a year since I've done a Quickies post???

♦ Feel like I pretty much wasted this entire week/weekend. Didn't exercise, didn't do any crafting stuff like I'd planned. Just puttered away online. Bleh. :(

♦ Anyone gonna watch the Oscars? I used to watch them every year, but now I simply can't make time for it. Besides, it's not like I keep up with the current movie scene anymore.

♦ Still terribly behind in watching my TV series. Still have all of H5O, Arrow, & Chicago Fire, half of Fringe, TVD, Parenthood...and I can't remember the rest. Oy. :P

♦ Been working on fanarts from my VanCon 2011 pics and while my photos from that year totally suck, it's at least nice to look at the boys for hours on end and I'm really enjoying myself. Got the Sunday Breakfast pics done and today I'll see if I can start in on the panel ones. I'll begin posting them (in the Daily Fanart posts) starting tomorrow (Monday).

♦ I'm trying to get back to work the SPN Revealed posts. Need to get the caps for 2x12 "Nightshifter" next before I can finish prepping the caps from "Playthings". I am going to make myself work on this project today. I keep putting it off. Darned procrastination.

♦ Haven't capped an episode in weeks. That whole MediaFire fiasco really took the wind out of my capping sails. :( But I'm recovering from that and moving on, so I hope to resume capping episodes this week. Meanwhile, I've still got the bluray caps from 5x03 to sort/delete...and I over-capped it, so that process is gonna suck. Big time. Bleh. I'll do it. Just need to push myself.

♦ Still need to make some new icons to use on my journal. This batch is so old. Where to find the time though? *sigh*
Which reminds me, I still need to post a bunch of icons here...

♦ Got a fun idea planned for unveiling on positively_spn tomorrow that I hope people will enjoy. :)

♦ Think I'll also resume some theme weeks for the Just 'Cause posts starting tomorrow, since I've got some new ones ready to go.

♦♦♦ Still feelin' crappy. Sneezing/congestion. Got the added fun of sinus pressure in my head/ears. Ow. Switched OTC meds since the stuff I was taking before didn't seem to be helping anymore. Hopefully this other stuff will.

♦♦♦ Cannot get an mkv file download of SPN 7x20 to work! I've downloaded it twice now, tried both PC and Mac, different players...still nothing. Yet the file is over 1GB like you'd expect. I don't get it. I'm trying one more time this morning. It's all I can do. *frustrated sigh*

♦♦♦ Been enjoying all the Tweets and pics coming out of JIBCon. Can't help but be a little jealous though. They get the guests all weekend long and double the panels. Plus, the guys seem...I dunno, more loose and open to things over there that they aren't here at the US cons. Maybe it's just my perception? After all, JIBCon gave us that awesome moment of Jensen & Jason singing "The Weight". That's something that would never happen at a Creation con. *sigh*

On a side note, this has to be one of the best pics from the weekend. *flails&dies*

♦♦♦ Now that I've got the 7x13 caps posted I need to get my capping-fu back. I'm all capped out right now. :P I believe 4x03 and 7x14 are next on the roster.

♦♦♦ Going to spend today downloading TV eps that I've missed - and there's a lot of them. I'm behind on 5 shows: Fringe, OUAT, New Girl, H5O, & TVD. So much catching up to do, but when will I find the time to do it?

♦♦♦ Going to try and work on the LL (Locations List) some today. I feel bad that I haven't worked on it since last Tuesday. Really should finish the FanFic I was working on, too. If I can get my Crazy Muse to work past this bug I've got. Meh.

:: The eyes have it
Mom & I got our eyes examined Tuesday. We didn't really plan it that way, was just going to look at more frames at Lenscrafters, but the Dr. was available so we went for it. I haven't had my eyes examined or new glasses in 17 years and it's been even longer for my mom. The whole process took over 3 hours, but we got good news. Mom's eyes aren't showing any effects from her diabetes and her cataracts are minimal. The doctor said my eyes were healthy and in fact my prescription hasn't changed much. Yay! We're hoping to pick up our new glasses before we have to leave for VanCon on the 25th, but if not they'll still give us lenses in the frames so we'll still have workable glasses to wear on our trip. But here's hoping we get the full deal in time. *fingers crossed*

:: VanCon Prep
Car's going in the shop for routine maintenance and a full inspection Wednesday (today).
Mom & I still plan on getting our hair cut...probably next Monday.
We've got food that we'll be taking up w/us to shop for on Friday.
Gotta find some duckys to buy. :D
In among all that we need to start packing. Yeah, haven't started yet. lol :P

Meanwhile, I'm still working on the LL and I need to figure out what other pics to print out for possible autographs. Still considering the Comic-con bag, but it's so friggin' big. Might not be practical to take to VanCon for 3 days. Besides, what kind of shape will it be in by the end after being folded and unfolded repeatedly? Still, I think it's a cool idea. *ponders*

:: LJ/Flist woes
Been working on getting caught up replying to comments before we leave and I'm still hoping to make it.
Been so busy that I'm now behind on making some birthday icons. Fail! I'm sorry my friends. I'll try to get to them in the coming days and at least have a big birthday icon post by this weekend sometime.

At the same time I'm still thinking of doing a friends cut. Was planning on it before and now, well...there's no time.

:: Locations List
Speaking of the LL, it's coming along, but I'm definitely feeling the crunch of getting it done in time. The Google Map is done and I'm nearly done pulling Season 6 location caps.

Next I need to:
* Add the new locations to the old LJ posts
* Make new LJ posts for the Season 6 Locations
* Update the old PDF files and re-upload to MediaFire
* Make new Season 6 PDFs and upload those to MediaFire
* Make a new list of the locations based on area

That's all. Easy peasy, right? LOL
*whimpers* I'm never gonna make it.

:: Sucky Saturday
Got up early, which was a miracle in itself, but then I had several sneezing fits. No doubt from the the allergies my mom & my aunt have been suffering from lately, but which I thought I'd avoided. The sneezes ended up injuring my tonsils, which is an old problem. For most of the day they felt larger and tender. They're still not quite back to normal, but they're better than they were. Top that off with lots of sleepiness after I had a late breakfast and a very wet, soggy weather day. Bleh. Pretty soon I wasn't feeling so peppy. So I didn't get much done at all outside of napping a lot, watching MASH eppies on the TV, and puttering around online. Even now, heading into bedtime I feel tired and drained. I hope Sunday is better.

:: Organizing
Saturday evening I did muster up enough brain power to organize some of my to-do lists and try a new system of keeping it all organized. Pretty new file folders that I haven't used yet were a good motivator. Time will tell if this works or not.

:: Family Update
Mom's doing fine. She's still having the hot flashes from the hormone pill she's on because of the breast cancer and while they bother her a lot at times, she refuses to take up the doctor's offer of medication to ease them. A little frustrating for me, but my mom's very stubborn. Meanwhile, my aunt is currently undergoing her own cancer treatments. You'll recall she had a hysterectomy a few months ago. It indeed was cancerous (endometriel cancer), but it was a rare version (like my mom's breast cancer was). After weeks of hearing what the doctor had to say, treatment-wise, and thinking it all over, she finally agreed to go the quick and easy route and have the radiation treatments. Unlike my mom's there's only 5 sessions for my aunt. It's internal, through the vagina, which is a little uncomfortable, but the alternative treatment if the cancer comes back from her not doing anything now was so much worse. The one drawback is that her treatments are about a half hour drive away. But luckily, after the 2 last week (the one on Friday was at 9 in the morning!), there's only 3 more. We'll both be glad when it's over and outside of being a little sore, my aunt is taking it just fine. After she's done there'll be a very tiny chance of the cancer coming back. Anyway, this contributed to my busy week and will be the same this coming week since I drive her to and from the appointments.

:: Events
I missed one earlier this month when one of the films I worked on back in 2008 had a 2nd premiere in Seattle. I would have loved to have gone, but parking was almost non-existent and I have no other way of getting into the city. So I skipped it...again. *sigh* I missed the first premiere too. I've never seen the finished product. The next big event is my 20th high school reunion on July 23rd. When I first heard about it I was all excited to go....now, not so much. What have I accomplished after all? I still live at home, take care of my mom and my aunt, have no job, and no boyfriend/husband. From what I've seen of some of my former classmates on Facebook, they're all working, married, and with kids. Normal, good lives. I've got nothing that can compare. If I had a job, I might feel a little better about the whole thing, but with circumstances the way they are, it hasn't been possible. I feel I'll be sorry if I don't attend, so I really haven't decided yet.

:: Father's Day
There was a tentative plan to go put flowers on my dad's and uncle's graves today, but my aunt declined, so we're staying home. I feel much the same way. After the week she and I have had going to her treatments, we need these 2 days off. Meanwhile, everyone online is posting this and that for Father's Day. Up until now, it wasn't bothering me all that much. I thought maybe this year I was going to skate by without feeling too bad, but I guess not. I got to thinking about it this evening and realized this is not only the first Father's Day my mom and my aunt will be without their dad, but also another reminder that practically all the men in our immediate little family are gone. My dad, my uncle, and my grandpa....all fathers and all gone. As much as I thought I was over it, today is still a reminder that my dad is gone and that I wish he was here.

Haven't done one of these in months!

:: Goodies on the way!
Going to be mailing off all the Goodies (Xena calendars & Lost Mags) this afternoon. Hopefully they'll all arrive at their destinations in a timely manner. To 1_rhiannon_1 & blogbunneh, I hope your P.O. boxes can handle the big envelopes I'm using for the calendars. I'm re-using the ones Creation used to send me my calendars.

:: *sniff* It's spring?
You sure wouldn't know it by our weather. Damn it was cold yesterday and still is right now. It's only in the upper 30s and today is supposed to be quite the wild day with wind, rain, thunderstorms, and yes....even snow in some of the foothills. Crazy! Meanwhile, the spring flowers are dumping out a load of pollen into the air and I'm feeling it. Been blowing my nose a lot, only a little sneezing, but tonight my tonsils are swollen. My tonsils have always given me problems, so they're super sensitive. And of course, we happen to not have any Claratin in the house, so we'll be picking up some of that this afternoon. I've felt the effects of the pollen a lot during my walks when I end up breathing through my mouth instead of my nose. Plus, you go outside and the car is coated in the stuff. Yuck!

:: Family update
Mom is doing fine, just dealing with the hot flashes from the hormone drug she's taking as her final treatment for her breast cancer. At least it's not quite as bad as when she went through menopause. My aunt is still recovering from her hysterectomy surgery a month ago today. She still has a little pain, especially if she does too much, but she's getting better and slowly is able to do more. The bladder infection she got is now cleared up and she's been diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure. I guess it runs in the family...my grandma had it. My aunt is now learning she's not as healthy as she thought she was. I'm still helping her a lot, but it's with certain things that are still difficult and too much exertion for her now.

:: No more room!
We just got home a couple of hours ago from my grandparent's place. Brought a bunch more things back home, filled up the trunk. This was the first time my aunt went with us since her operation. Mom & I have been up twice by ourselves. Anyway, we're running out of room in our own houses for all this...stuff! We still have too much of our own junk to go through and get rid of and adding stuff from another house doesn't help. I'm hoping we can get a lot of this at least stored away better by August. Meanwhile, there's still a long way to go up at the house, plus we've had a little problem with theft. There's some storage outside in the carport and someone broke into them and took a few things (it was all just garbage that my cousin has been keeping there to put out for collection week by week). They also took a dead battery! LOL I dunno...why take just garbage? Weird. Thankfully they did not get into the house or any of the vehicles. Anyway, we're looking into putting up some chain link fencing because none of us can be there all the time. We're also trying to make our trips up a little more frequent, but at the same time, there's things to be done here at home.

:: VanCon 2011!!!!
If you haven't heard by now, yes! I'm going!!! Very excited to be going again. *happy sigh* No more depression over passing freeway signs that say Vancouver. :) Looking forward to Creation adding some more guests (Friday is kinda sparse). On my wish list? Samantha Ferris (Chad & Alona are already going...c'mon Creation!), Matt Cohen, Richard Speight Jr., Kurt Fuller, Mark Pellagrino, Traci Dinwiddie, and hell, anyone else from the production, but those are my top choices atm. Just heard where director Guy Norman Bee will be at Nashville Con. Lucky ducks! I hope they'll get him for VanCon too! Can you tell I'm a little excited? I wake up each day and almost have to pinch myself. I'm really going again. *squee* There's a lot to do: make a bunch of posts, including finish up posting things from the last 2 VanCons *sigh*, and then it'll be time to update the Filming Locations posts! But I'm thrilled to be heading back to my home away from home...Vancouver. :D

:: Grandpa
So the viewing wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Actually the drive up north was more emotionally draining than actually being there. Mom was a bit frazzled before we left (& we left late) and there was some yelling & swearing involved which left me feeling very upset. But I did manage to keep it together during the drive even though I nearly lost it a few times and was very quiet. By the time we were at the funeral home I was calmer. We went into the little room and I took a quick look at him from afar, but the rest of the time I spent watching the video they'd put together of the photos we'd provided. They even played the music I'd burned on CD. Only one of grandpa's "breakfast buddies" stopped by while we were there (which wasn't long). Truth is, he's outlived just about everyone he knew, and I think most people are just waiting to attend the funeral services on Sat.

Thanks btw, for all your comments & love to my previous post. *hugs flist*

:: Can I have normal back?
These long days are so draining. We're often not getting home until late at night and I'm just beat. I catch up w/things online as much as I can, but I'm still behind and I know I'll never catch up completely...there's simply too much. Meanwhile, I'm pretty sure I'm missing on some really cool stuff and that's bugging me. I'm missing all my TV shows too. Watched all of last week's shows on Saturday and this week I haven't even gotten one download. Was happy to at least watch the other night's Parenthood live on the TV. There's also LJ posts I haven't had time to do and so much for keeping up with the LJ comments in the new year. Total fail in that area so far. *sigh* I keep telling myself that after Saturday it'll get better, that there will be maybe a small semblance of normal returning. I sure hope so.

:: I've done it again
Why is it when I'm super busy I get inspired to jump into another area online? Why do I do this??? Anyway, I'm putting together another (yes, another!) LJ comm. I've been uploading pics and doing the prep work. I'm excited about the idea and I think (hope) it'll work. It'll just be me doing the posting. I know what you're thinking..."Is she nuts??? She posts so much now, is involved in so many places already....how can she possibly keep up with another comm?" Good question, but I'm going to give it a go anyway. I think people will like it. I'm not going to make it a heavy pressure situation for myself, but I've got some good ideas and I think as long as I keep it simple, it'll be do-able. I don't want to spill the beans about it quite yet, but I will say it's about SPN. What a shocker, right? *g* Stay tuned!

:: Facebook
I've alluded in the past about having a Facebook account, but I wasn't ready to add any of my LJ flisters. Well, I decided to finally take the plunge and add some of my friends on Facebook. I figure I'm not working any indy films now anyway, plus some of those people I've worked with have posted on their walls about their TV/movie interests, so why should I be afraid of showing my SPN colors? I love this show! Why hide it?

This is me!

Keep in mind, I do not talk about my LJ there, nor do I link to it any way on Facebook. I'd still like to keep that part of myself away from other relatives & past/potential future working contacts. Other than that...I'd love to friend you there. I did my best to find who I could, but some of you are kind of elusive. Please point me in the right direction with a link if you want me to add you over there. Thanks! :)

Oh, and I found I've gotten very addicted to the games over on Facebook. Been kind of a welcome distraction from real life right now when I can spare a little time to do something totally different. I think FrontierVille is my favorite. ;)

:: Mini To-Do List (for after Saturday)
* New Year SPN Friending Meme - Promised wynefred I'd do one of these & I still want to make it happen.
* VanCon 09 & 2010 Reports - Still a few things left to post, like 2010 autos & photo-ops, location pics, etc.
* First Impressions for 6x09, 10, & 11 - My notes are still sitting in my email, waiting for some caps so I can get these done....with any luck before the show resumes on the 28th.
* Season 6 Screencaps - I've gotta work out a schedule for getting my caps done & posted. I've got a plan, it's just a matter of seeing if I can implement it. I'm all caught up with capping S6, but they're not uploaded which takes some time. We'll see how things go or I might just wait until summer hiatus to begin posting Season 6 caps, okay?
* Season 6 B&W Fanart - Haven't even begun on this, so it might be another candidate to wait until summer hiatus to begin on. ATM, I'd like to get some of the before-mentioned items done before I tackle more fanart.
* Flist Gifts - Some of you already got some little surprises during last month. Haven't gotten to everyone yet, and I still intend to. But now they'll be for your birthdays (if I know them) and everyone else will get their's as I come to your name alphabetically on my list. ;) Keep your eye on your LJ inboxes for a PM from me. *g*


And with that, I think I'm done with this Quickies edition. I'm sure I'll think of something I should've added later. *sigh*
Thanks again for your patience, your comments, messages, gifts....for simply being such a wonderful group of friends with your caring & love during these past few weeks. Sometimes I wish we could all gather for one big group hug, but I guess this will have to do for now.

:: Creative Brainstorm
Last night as I went to bed, I got this infusion of ideas into my head. I realized I wanted to get back to drawing, especially with charcoal, which is a favorite of mine. Luckily, I can still get to my art class supplies, even though they're partially buried in a room. I've already got some ideas. Also decided I wanted to stretch my writing and try my hand at some drabbles or ficlets. This all came at me so fast, that I actually got out of bed to quickly write all of my ideas down.

I've already written my first ficlet & I'll be posting it this evening. ;)

:: The elderly can be frustrating
My aunt, mom, & I went to visit my grandpa yesterday and we had a nice time, but OMG that man can be exasperating! He's got some really bizarro ideas about how doctors are. He seems to think that he doesn't have to contact the doctor and tell him he's been having trouble with his left knee, that he fell on it before he ended up in the hospital over the summer. Why? 'Cause his doctor should know all that from looking at his info. on the computer. Grandpa: "He's got my number, he can call me." The impression the 3 of us got is that he expects his doctor to be a mind reader, that his doctor is going to call him and check up on him! *facepalms* Um, no. We tried to explain that he has to call his doctor and let him know something is wrong. He also told us how he basically insulted his doctor the first appointment he had with the guy. Gee, and he wonders why the doctor isn't too concerned about him? Sheesh. We went 'round and 'round with him on this, but my grandpa is very stubborn. Gah! Doesn't help that he can't hear well and contradicts himself all the time. So crazy having conversations with him. *sigh*

:: Hate the cold!
I really do. Once we get into fall and winter I just wanna hibernate, be somewhere warm, and not come out until the spring. LOL The temps are dropping and I keep jacking up the heat in the house. I know it's not the greatest thing to do and our heating bill will suffer for it, but once you put on all the layers you can and you're still cold, you gotta do something, right? It's not even all that cold, really. Highs in the 50s, lows in the 40s or high 30s. From what they're saying we're in for a rough, cold, wet winter. Could mean snow, even in the lowlands...oh goodie.

:: My other Tumblr
I've held off posting about this, but I finally decided what I wanted to do with my first Tumblr account. Originally I was going to use it to showcase my photos, professionally, but I found a better site to do that. Instead, this one will still be for posting my photos, but for fun. So I thought I'd share the link to this Tumblr with my flist, in case any of you want to follow me.

So I have 2 different Tumblr accounts. Feel free to follow me on either or both:

My Photography Tumblr: Visual Passion (only for my LJ flisters)
My SPN/Jensen fangirling Tumblr: On The Road To Shambala (public)

:: To-Do List
* Finish SPN Locations List (with any luck, by the end of this week or next week)
* Finish posting my VanCon 09 Reports (I am GOING to get these done before this yr's Con!)
* Post some icons (I've got tons just waiting around)
* Make collages to print out for VanCon autographs
* Start packing for VanCon
* Resume making S5 B&W Fanart (if I have time before VanCon - Ha!)
* Post S5 Picspam (Yep, I've got another one all ready to go)

:: Comments
With all my work on the Locations List & RL keeping me really busy, the comments are fast getting out of control again. To avoid the mess I had last year, I might say to heck with it, forget about the old comments and start fresh once I get to VanCon. We'll see.

:: Personal Messages
Yes, I do get them. Yes, I have read them. Like with the comments, I'm a little slow on replying back. I try my best though. I know I have a bunch of PMs to get back to and I'll try to do that ASAP.

:: Reading
I'm still working on that Singin' In The Rain book. *points to sidebar* Honestly, it's not that great of a book, but I still feel the need to read it to the end. The thing could've used a good editor. In one paragraph they stated something very briefly, in one sentence. A little ways down the paragraph they give the same info. in several sentences. o_O Wha??? Irritating. It also goes into a lot of technical stuff that really wasn't necessary. Do I really need to know when the production stopped on any given day to have lunch? My plan is to finish it before VanCon. Really looking forward to reading something else. While I avoid that book, I still fit in SPN fanfic reading. ;)

:: FanFic
Speaking of fanfic...as far as my own goes, I still have some plot bunnies rattling around. If I had the time to write them down, I would. There's still the 2nd & 3rd parts to my "Dean goes to hell" fic from a while back. A few ideas are kinda lost since the ending of S5. They're really not relevant anymore. Still wanna do my "Dean gets tortured by a demon he tortured in hell" fic. I also got a plot in my head a week or so ago that practically wrote itself sentence by sentence in my head. Too bad I wasn't near a computer at the time. *sigh* It's a fic about what happens to Sam in hell. It was quite vivid...and interesting.

:: Hanging Up My Vidding Hat
There was a time when I really enjoyed vidding, even made a few. I can see now where it's unlikely that I'll ever go back to it. One, it takes forever to make a good vid and Two, there are tons of people out there who are far better at it than I am. And for the record, I also don't make animated icons (don't have the right software & patience to do so) and I don't make mood themes (again with the patience thing). Everything else, I'm into: Capping, Fanart, Fanfic, Picspams, etc.

:: The Cough From Hell
Will this stubborn thing ever go away???? >:[

:: Yesterday (Friday) I went to Barnes & Noble and picked up the latest SPN Magazine. The best part was that the clerk turned out to be a SPN fan as well! She was positively gleeful to find a fellow fangirl and I have to admit, so was I. :D We gushed about the season finale and I could tell she was a big Castiel fan (she said she cried when he exploded). It was fun to meet a SPN fan so random like that.

:: First there was the Jensen & Danneel Wedding Photos and now the SPN Summer Hiatus Friending Meme and all I can say is...Wow! Normally, my journal gets anywhere from 200-250 visits a day, but over the past 6 days (since last Sunday) my LJ has exploded! Wheee! :D

<--- Check out the evidence. o_O The 2,523 on Monday is the most visitors I've had...ever! :: As for the Friending Meme, I can't thank everyone enough and it's so wonderful to see so many new friendships being made. I've been so busy the past couple of days, that I haven't really been able to check everyone out for myself yet (and there are so many!). In fact, even today I won't be online until late, so I hope those who've asked for me to friend them will understand that it might take me a day or two to get caught up. Thanks! :) :: Speaking of the wedding, I saw the little pic & blurb about Jensen & Danneel in the latest issue of People magazine. However, I couldn't justify spending $4 for that alone. I hope someone else will buy and made a scan of it. I've seen one online, but it wasn't very clear. Goodness, but I'm tired and I've got a busy Saturday ahead. Gotta be going to bed soon.