Let me blow the dust off this blog...

Hello. It's been awhile. I've obviously disappeared for like a year and I'm sorry okay? It happens. I mean just look at the title of my blog. (That thingy at the top of the page...) 

So I wrote this the other day and I don't know, I'm feeling adventurous after playing Bioshock Infinite (NO SPOILERS. I'm not done yet.) and I felt that it was time for me to do something again. Brief catch up- I'm engaged and I've got a job!

So without further ado- allons-y:

I have no idea what I’m doing. Sometimes I think I do, but then I don’t. It seems like as soon as I get myself together something else happens and I start to fall apart. Or I get bored. Or stressed. Or bored again. I just don’t know what the hell I want to do with my life.

I know a few things, sure. I’m engaged, to a man that I love to infinity. I have my faith. My dog… the internet is a stable thing. Pinterest, Youtube and various blogs eat up the majority of my free time. But when it comes to my job, my creative pursuits – I tend to fall flat. I question myself and doubt myself. I know that I have ability when it comes to drawing, writing or just making quirky observations. I've tried to do all of those things in a format that would allow me to de-stress and perhaps support myself without having to go to a soul-crushing job every day. (Seriously, this whole waking up and 45 hours a week thing is horrible) But I lose interest, or self-doubt comes in and I give up on myself. I feel like if I could at least apply myself to something and stick with it I would be fine, but then I think “Why? What good is it? I can’t do this.” And then I fall into some sort of depressive pity party and watch TNG or Doctor Who all day. It’s bad. At least when I wasn't working I had more frequent bouts of effort, but once I tried to be an adult it got worse.

I work as a manager at an indoor trampoline park that shall not be named. Let’s call it ITPTSNBN. Or not, since that really isn’t much of a time saver. So ITP. ITP isn't a bad place, however the ownership and operations leave much to be desired. No one needs a boss who tells you that you should come to work in a tube top. Especially not while his wife (and the president of the company) sits in the next room. (Sleazy much?) So add that to the 1,500 screaming kids who walk through the door each Saturday, bosses who watch our every move in the office real time via the “security cameras” and my $10 an hour paycheck and you have a recipe for job hate. I've realized that I just can’t remain emotionally stable while I have a middle-aged woman screaming at me over a misunderstanding about a pair of $3 socks. I’m not expecting work to be easy or even tolerable all of the time, but when you’re at the point of dreading your next shift- you need a change.

What change I don’t know yet. I've been looking for jobs, but as mentioned before I don’t know what I want to do or why I would want to do it. I’m hoping that I will gain the motivation or courage to pursue something that I not only enjoy but can feed myself with. Until then, back to hiding in the office at ITP as much as I can.

To moving forward. 

Here's a post!

Pfft hasn't been a month. Don't look at the dates.

Anyways, adventures in gaming continues! Check out Seenontabletop.tumblr.com, a site that Wil Wheaton himself set up for fans of the show Tabletop to share gaming stories. Here's mine!

http://seenontabletop.tumblr.com/post/28275116077/about-5-years-ago-i-was-part-of-a-group-that-got

Don't we all wish we were Superheroes?

So as I have mentioned before, my blogging typically means I am procrastinating in some form or another. (Right now it is the fact that I need to take out the trash...) Thus, here we are updating my blog!

As I write this I am watching Tabletop, Geek & Sundry's awesome gaming show with @WilW. I love that they have couples on this show, this episode in the form of @YuriLowenthal and his wife @TaraPlatt. Gaming is definitely something that can bring people together, and I love to see that being portrayed. Which is a perfect segue into the gist of my post today!

Over the last couple weeks I have been nerding out like nobody's business. My Fiance and a group of our friends have taken up playing Heroclix! It's a tabletop game where you each make a team consisting of your favorite DC, Marvel, or Indy Comics characters. (There are also Halo Heroclix, Street Fighter, Lord of the Rings, Assassins Creed and Neca has plans for more to come.) And then you fight. Hellboy vs. Master Chief, who wouldn't wanna see that? Despite being a bit of a money-hole, (if you aren't careful, there are plenty of cheap ways to get clix) the whole game is really fun. The rules are a bit intimidating at first, but after a few rounds you figure it out. It seems like each Friday we are all playing, and every week at least one or two new people join. 


The thing I love about this is that it's getting several different groups of friends together. We're playing with people who under normal circumstances I may not be inclined to hang out with. The game is really the glue to it all. It makes me think of all the people who claim that gamers are not social, or that they all live in their parents basement eating Cheetos and grinding on WoW all day. Gamers come in all types. Included in our group are 3 couples, parents, people in their 30's, people in their early 20's, people with full time jobs, people in school, people who party and people who are more laid back. The common factor is that we all love superheroes, and we all like pretending for a little while that we are one. 


Which brings me back to nerding out. In addition to my excitement about Heroclix, I am also catching up on some comic reading. Particularly in the DC universe. I was always a Marvel girl, growing up around my dad's old Iron Man comics, but DC is growing on me. I've taken up Suicide Squad (possibly my new favorite), Catwoman, Birds of Prey, Teen Titans, Batgirl, Batman and Robin, and I am also reading the Gotham City Sirens from a couple years ago. It's been really exciting to have both the game and the comics going at the same time, since the understanding and love of both feed off of each other so well. 


Anyways, I definitely recommend checking out both Tabletop and Heroclix! A must for any gaming or comic fan. 

Damn Internets!

So, I thought that I would share some of the things that are causing me to procrastinate today. Here are a few links to awesome things that will totally make you put off those dishes and that car that needs its oil changed!


The Tardis Towel! 
This is pretty fantastic. Thinkgeek now has a Doctor Who Tardis beach towel, and for only 20 bucks! Perfect for losing that wintery computer glow. 
http://www.thinkgeek.com/tshirts-apparel/miscellaneous/ec65/

Also: GIANT GOOGLY EYES. http://www.mcphee.com/shop/products/Giant-Googly-Eyes.html

Next up, for your viewing pleasure, Geek & Sundry's show Tabletop has a new episode up today, with Wil Wheaton (as always), Felicia Day, Sandeep Parikh and Steve Jackson. They play the awesome tabletop card game Munchkin, and I must say it was one of the funniest episodes so far. You can watch the episode here, and check out the new Guild Munchkin expansion pack here!


If you haven't already heard Neil Gaiman's inspiring address to the graduating class at the University of the Arts, go watch it right now. For anyone with any creativity in their body this will in some way inspire, encourage or compel you to "Make good art." Check it out at http://vimeo.com/42372767. 


And lastly for the Twitter junkies out there, for Friday's #FF, check out @WilWheatons_Cat, who has the greatest conversations with @WilW and his wife, @AnneWheaton. "I wear a bow tie name tag. Bow ties are cool!"


Okay, I'm off to try and get something done! I banish thee Internets! 

Balancing Your Writing

Wow. That was super-procrastination time. Yiiikes. Well last night I was up and managed to be super productive so finally I'm finishing this post! Ridin' the wave! (I've had too much caffeine and not enough zzzz's...)


As you may well know, I am currently working on a new novel. At this point, I have put a considerable amount of time into it, and I am trying to really focus on on getting it finished. Way too many of my projects get started but end up collecting dust, and completing a long project like this is a huge goal for me. 


So tonight (and by that I mean last week sometime), while I was driving home and came up with a great idea for a story I was a little perplexed as to what to do. I didn't want to forget the idea, so I wrote it down with the details I wanted to really remember. However now I am having trouble redirecting my thoughts on my current project. (That's kind of gone now too but for the sake of this post...)


This led me to wonder what other writers and authors do to keep their ideas and projects balanced. So with the wonderful advent of Twitter I asked for their opinions, and here is what I got back:


Steven Montano, (@Daezarkian) author of the Bloodskies series, said "I'll usually find a way to force that new idea into my current project. It isn't always clean, but for me it usually works great."


Michael R. Hicks, (@KreelanWarrior) author of the series In Her Name, "For myself, I have to stay focused on the current project or won't get anything done! I write notes about other ideas for later."


I also brought this up with few of my friends who like to dabble in writing, (nothing published, they do it purely for themselves) and the response was pretty much a slight variation of the old write it down and get to it later. A few however, did say that they worked on multiple stories and various types of writing when they are confronted with writers block. The change of pace and subject freed up the mind a bit and allowed the ink start to flow again, even if it was just in the form of a short story, poem or a personal blog post. 


I find that when I don't procrastinate and keep up on this blog or on my novel, the words come much easier than when I take a break. I didn't let myself think about my new idea too much, because I didn't want my mind to stray any farther than it already had. In the end I just had to force myself to write a bit until my brain found it's way back to the story I was working on. I am going to attempt Mr.Montano's method and try working future ideas in, just to see how it goes. 


I have to imagine that there are many talented writers who are able to work on multiple things at once, but for me I think that I just need to follow Ron Swanson's advice... 


How do you balance writing? Let me know!

Super Fun Weekend Times!

Lot's and lots of excitement, folk. (I say folk cause there is maybe one other person reading this...)


Today there is a super new Tabletop, with one of my absolute favorite games, Ticket To Ride. Anne Wheaton, Wil Wheaton, Colin Ferguson and super-friend Amy! 


Tomorrow I go to Motor City Comicon, to meet Colin Ferguson!! Eureka, be still my heart. 

This shirt ^^

I have still been a super-insomniac, however I have been getting a lot done. I have passed 12,000 words on my WIP novel (Insert confetti here) and I got a 50 dollar rebate in the mail to buy this shirt ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~>
Okay, I used 17.50 with shipping. Which means more cash to spend on things I do not need but c'mon how do I not buy it it's a limited offer and amazing and red and it's got the ship on it????


And if luck should have it I may win something from Geek & Sundry for a Tabletop trivia thingy that I answered right but the winners are random so maybe I win maybe I don't. 


Okay, clearly going... 27.34 hours without sleep does not do my body good. Off to eat Jimmy John's and watch Dr. Who and maybe sleep some but not too long cause I don't wanna be up again tonight...


Rambling finished... Now. 

Updates and Dealing With Insomnia!

Hello all!


So over the last week I have been writing like a fiend, reading a ton of books, online wish-listing and dealing with a ever so fun bout of insomnia.  Maybe I just really wish I was on the West Coast, or even Australia/NZ because for some unknown reason my internal time-clock has decided to give me the middle finger and do whatever the hell it wants. 


It's not like I'm new to insomnia, I've always been a bit of a night owl. (I blame my mom, she worked midnight shift while she was preggers with me and apparently I kept the schedule. Born at Midnight baby!) And at least I get things done at night, like throughout high school (I home schooled from 7th grade on.) I would complete most of my tests from 10pm-3am, sleep in, and do whatever in the afternoons.  The schedule worked well for me, I got everything done early and was efficient with my time. Unfortunately, I am currently on a sleep schedule that rocks from 7am to 2-3pm. Good if you're a Vampire, not good when you need to do normal person things. 

Thus, I at least try to utilize my time while I am awake. I get some household chores done, write a lot. I have been watching Dr. Who (My first time through, I know I know I'm behind on it...) like crazy since I like having something going on in the background while I work. 


I feel that if I can at least be somewhat productive while I'm up then I'm not as horrible a person. This week though, I am aiming to work my clock back. So here's a few tips for those dealing with night-time sleep troubles. 


Have a Nighttime Routine! - I know that when I do the same things before bed - drink a cup of tea, take a nice hot shower or bath, turn off the screens and read - my body starts to get ready for sleepy time. So I try to implement that about an hour before I actually try to go to sleep. 


Work Slowly! - It's ridiculously hard to try and go from falling asleep at 3,4,5 in the morning to falling asleep by 11.  Work you're way back slowly, even if it's just by 30 minutes. The same goes for waking up. Aim to get up just a bit earlier each day, and eventually you're body will start to get the idea, working with you. 


When that fails... - Make yourself tired as crap. Do whatever you have to do to fall asleep at a normal time. Sometimes you just need that kick to put you back into a normal schedule. For me, I always know I am about to go Insomniac for a few days/weeks when I have 2 bad nights in a row. If I can't find a way to sleep normal by that 3rd night I am screwed.  So I will just do everything that day- work out, do some housework I was putting off, call that person who you really need to call put have been putting off cause they are just really mentally exhausting to deal with - by packing my day full I ensure that I will be ready to pass out come time. 


Hopefully that helps you, if not well, lookup some cat videos. At least you can be a happy creature of the night. 


<3