.:This Girl's Daybreak:.

Man, today ended up being a lot better than I'd expected it to be. <3

First, I found out yesterday that we get personal days at work. One each year, that don't carry over. (I've been there five years and I'm just learning this now?) This is awesome, because K said I could use my one from this year today. So not only do I get paid to stay home on my birthday, but I get a three day weekend! <3

And it's been a pretty nice day off. I got to go for coffee with Mom and Dad, then we had a nice dinner. And Mom made me a cake, which is always awesome. <3 Heck, Rich even came by for a while. It's always nice to get to see him. I don't usually get to, since he generally comes by for dinner, when I'm at work.

I got another Amazon gift card, so more e-books for me! And Rich got me a copy of Skyrim. I'm looking forward to trying it out. It sounds pretty neat. ^^

Plus, I got my remastered SKU sets earlier this week. And OMG, they are so shiny! *_* You can really tell that they've been cleaned up. It's pretty awesome. I haven't gone through all the extras yet, but what I have seen is pretty neat. And the replica signet ring is gorgeous, though it's a little too small for me. (Which is weird, 'cause I could have sworn my ring size was 7) Oh, well. I'll probably string it on a chain and wear it that way. Or else, keep trying it on my finger. XD I can get it on without any real trouble, but getting it off is another story. ^^;; I think sometimes my fingers must swell a little, since I've noticed the same thing with my emerald ring; some days, it's tighter than others. So maybe I'll be able to wear it some of the time. XD

And happy holidays! =D I hope you're all having a good one. I know I am. <3

I got to spend time with my family, and we had a lot of fun. Mom made a nice dinner, and we exchanged gifts. I think everyone liked what I gave them. I was a little surprised how much Dad liked his; I got him the complete set of James Bond novels. I figured he'd like them, but he was seriously thrilled. So, I'm glad. And of course Mom liked the coat I got her, and the gift cards to the local wineries. ^^ Rich was happy with his gifts, too.

And I'm definitely happy with what I got!

( The loot~! )

Man, tomorrow's already Monday. I don't want the weekend to be over! XD Oh, well. At least I'll have a lot of fun things to play with while I'm at work. <3

I'm in a seriously good mood right now. Considering that this the last day of my vacation, and I have to go back to work tomorrow, that's a little surprising. XD

First off, Witch Hunt posted their complete patch for Umineko Episode 8 yesterday. So, I'm seriously psyched about that. It may be a little while before I'm able to read it, though. Holidays, plus the fact that I want to start at the beginning and go through to the end...and I don't want to have to stop in the middle for anything. Still. Yay!

Then, I just checked RightStuf's website. I ordered the complete series of Shoujo Kakumei Utena, the shiny new remastered sets. (Happy Birthday to me~!) And they're doing a promotion now that if you order all three sets from them, you'll get a replica of the rose signet ring that the duelists wear in the show. (Here's a picture they posted.) Of course it's a 'while supplies last' thing, and I was afraid I wouldn't get one since I waited so late to order. (The third set came out on 12/6.) But I just checked my order on the website, and I am getting one! So, I'm kind of thrilled. <3

And now, I'm off to find some dinner. Ja~!

I've censored the following, in protest of a bill that gives any corporation and the US government the power to censor the internet--a bill that could pass THIS WEEK. To see the uncensored text, and to stop internet censorship, visit: http://americancensorship.org/posts/7877/uncensor

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I swear, I've been such a slug this weekend. =P I spent the majority of Saturday in bed. I wasn't feeling well, so I ended up napping quite a bit, and then watching TV when I was awake. Then I went to bed early. Today was a bit better, but still not very productive. I've been tinkering around on the computer for a little while, but I can't seem to manage to really do anything. I'll open Word or PSP, planning to work on something, but I can't seem to get started. =P

So, this weekend was pretty uneventful. I'm almost finished with my Christmas shopping, though, which is good. I just have one more thing to pick up, and hopefully I'll be able to do that this week. Then, I'm done. Well, I'm waiting for a few things to come in the mail, but everything's ordered. And I did it early enough that it should all be here on time.

...Yeah, I have the attention span of a gerbil today. That's it for this post. I'm off to have a snack, then go to bed, I think.

Well, last night I was fussing about not having any of my Christmas shopping done. Luckily, I got to go shopping with Mom today, and I was able to pick up a few things. I got something for both Mom and Dad. I'll still need to get Mom something else, but I think I know what it'll be, so I'm not too worried about that. Dad's good....now, that just leaves Rich. I don't know what I'll get him, yet. I'll figure something out, though. ^^

So, I'm in a pretty good mood right now. <3 This has been a nice weekend. Now, I'm off to tinker with a few more skins. Hopefully I'll get this update posted soon...there are a few more things I want to get done before I do. Ja~!

Seems I spoke too soon...Semagic decided to be a bitch and not work like it should. I've gotten all sorts of different errors, and there's no apparent rhyme or reason to it. I think it's working now...this post is just a test to be sure of that. So, um...carry on.

Ugh, I'm so glad it's the weekend. I'm tiiiiiiired.

Got my hair colored today, which was nice. Had to get up early to do it, which was not. And, my stylist isn't going to do hair anymore, so this'll be the last time she'll do my hair. =( She recommended a couple of people that she thinks would be good for me (and my mom), but still. I like her. She's the only one I've ever let mess with my hair much at all. Plus, she's just a cool lady. We're a lot alike, and I always enjoy talking with her.

Read the new chapter of Pandora Hearts...and all I can say is WTF? Seriously, these last few chapters...MochiJun is awfully fond of the mindfuckery. I'll hold off on posting opinions until I actually understand what all's going on. I can haz next chapter nao?

Also watched this week's MLP. It was okay, but I wasn't that impressed. Plus, two Rainbow Dash episodes in a row. =P She's not my favorite to begin with, and seeing her being kind of obnoxious two weeks in a row is a bit much. Luckily, next week's episode is centered on Rarity, so hopefully it'll be a nice change.

I've been trying to come up with ideas for Christmas gifts for my family, but without much luck. I seriously suck at gift buying. =P Honestly, I kinda just want to get it over with...Get my shopping done, so I don't have to worry about it, y'know? But I want to get things that they'll enjoy...and that's what's taking so long. Bleh.

On a brighter note, I finally got my DW all set up, and the content transfered. I've added it to Semagic, so this entry should show up on my main journal, plus my backups. We'll see if it works. =)

I've also been tinkering around with some Winamp skins. I'm trying to do some more for Pandora Hearts now, but I'm having a heck of a time with both Lotti and Vincent. I can't think of a title for either, and Vincent just won't cooperate at all in the general design process. Bleh. I am surprisingly pleased with my Sharon skin, though. I hadn't expected it'd turn out well. <3

...Damn, this entry was really random. ^^;; Well, I'm off to go raid the kitchen. I'm starved!

Bleh...it's been a long week. I'm glad it's Saturday...though I kinda wish it was next Saturday. =P

Coming back after a week off is always a little tough, but damn. Things...just kinda sucked this week. Plus, it was a longer work week than usual. Thanksgiving is next week, so I had to work today. Kind of annoying, having to get up early and go to work on a Saturday...but I'll be getting overtime for it, so I don't mind as much.

...Plus, Starbucks had a two-for-one deal on their holiday drinks. So I got two Caramel Brulee lattes to carry me through my shift. Coffee makes everything better. <3

I get tomorrow off, which is nice. Too bad this isn't one of those holidays that fall on a Monday, so I'd still get a 'weekend' of sorts. XD I'll get Thursday off, of course, but still. I'm tired...I'd like two in a row. Oh, well. I'll get next weekend, as usual.

I haven't really done much, this week. I bought the last book of the Inheritance series when it came out last week, and so I started rereading the other books at work on Monday. I just started on Brisingr tonight, which is kind of fun, since I've only read it once. Dunno how long it'll take me to finish them all. The later books are fairly long, plus I get Netflix disks each week...and I'm inclined to take a break every now and then to watch them.

Did you say you watched Law & Order: SVU, amelia_seyroon? I can't remember...I'm watching it now. I was surprised I liked it as well as I did...honestly, it's just because of the characters. The basic subject matter would have put me off, but I saw some random episodes on TNT, that dealt with other types of cases, and I came to love the characters. So I had to go back and start from the beginning. I'm up to season 10 now, I think.

...This post turned out a little random, didn't it? ^^;; Oh, well.

I made another icon post over at visionarygrafix. And so soon after my last one! Shocking, I know. XD This time, I've posted some icons for Slayers and Magic Knight Rayearth. Direct link is here, in case anyone is interested. <3

Well, it's official...I am finally on vacation! Ugh, I swear...these last couple of weeks have sucked in various ways, so I'm really glad to get some time off. And luckily, M is the one covering my shifts, so I don't have to worry about coming back to a huge mess. He's always done a good job. Unlike some of the others who've tried to do it. ^^;;

I don't have any plans, as of now. Honestly...all I want is to just veg. Relax. Play online, work on my projects, watch TV. Actually get to have some decent coffee and not have to cook for myself all the time. <3

...And fuck, it really turned off cold tonight! I came out after work, and my windshields were both iced over! Not a thick layer, thankfully, but still. That's the first time I've had to break out the ice scraper this fall. Of course, it is November now. I guess it's to be expected. ^^;;

And now, it's about time for bed. Ja~!

1. Reply to this post with "TRICK OR TREAT!", and I will pick five of your icons.
2. Make a post (including the meme info) and talk about the icons I chose.
3. Other people can then comment to you and make their own posts.
4. This will create a never-ending cycle of icon glee.

amelia_seyroon picked these:



Haha, rainy-day!Roy. I always thought Hawkeye's quip about him being useless in the rain was funny, plus his expression here is amusing. It's a good 'argh, today sucks' kind of icon.



Ed and Al making an adorable 'omgwtf?' expression. Everyone needs an icon like this, for there are some truly strange things lurking on the internet. XD



1st-anime!Ed is an adorable little angstbucket. I think I've had this one for as long as I've had a paid account, now that I think of it. It's a pretty icon, though!



I'm totally in love with Pandora Hearts right now, and Lottie is awesome. This icon is very pink, and a little crazy, but hey...that pretty much describes Lottie. XD



I ended up a Beatrice/Battler shipper, though not because of the anime. (The VN is so much better, it's not even funny.) This is probably my favorite piece of anime art of them. Now, if only the complete patch for Episode 8 would be finished soon~!

Man, it's been way too long since I posted any icons. So, here's a little batch featuring Sailor Moon and NYPD Blue.

Direct link is here, if anyone's interested. ^_^

I may be going to a Star Trek convention at the end of next month! I've never been to one, but it sounds pretty neat. I looked it up on the convention center website, but it didn't give a whole lot of details. Any of you guys ever been to one? If so, what sort of things do they do, usually? The website listed things like meeting and getting autographs from cast members, but surely there's more going on than that. Too bad Kate Mulgrew isn't going to be there...she's the main person I'd like an autograph from!

I haven't decided for sure if I'm going or not, but I'm really thinking about it. I'd have to take a day off work (maybe two, depending), and the tickets aren't exactly cheap. But still...I've been a Trekkie for a long time. <3 We'll see, I guess!

...And I'm still tired and draggy. This time, I have a reason, though! XD I had a hair appointment today, and it ended up being a lot earlier than I'd have liked. I originally scheduled it for 2:15, but my stylist rescheduled it to 10:00. Considering that I didn't get to sleep until something like 5:30-6:00, I didn't really get enough sleep.

I am pretty happy with how my hair turned out, though, so I guess it's worth it. My mother goes to the same stylist, and for the last few months, she's been getting her hair colored and highlighted. It really looks good on her, and I've been meaning to get mine done similarly for a while, but it took until now to get around to it. I got different colors than Mom, though. (Our complexions are different, so her colors wouldn't have really looked right on me.) I wanted something a bit lighter than my natural color; originally I was just going to go with a lighter shade of brown, but I decided to go more auburn at the last minute. (What can I say, I've always loved red hair!) Then she did some subtle highlights in a golden color. I've never had highlights before, so that was kind of interesting. XD The sound of tin foil crinkling against your ear is just weird!

Now I'm just hoping that I'll be able to maintain it. That was always my problem, when I tried dying my hair before. The color would fade out a lot faster than it should, and I was just generally not happy with it. Though, before I was trying for a really bright, vibrant Irish red. This time, the color is more subtle, and not such a drastic difference from my natural color. So, I'm hoping that it won't fade as much. (I know Mom's hasn't.) And my stylist said that all I could really do is use a shampoo for color treated hair, which I already knew to do. So I guess I'll just have to cross my fingers and hope for the best, ne?

And on a completely different note, I'm getting a little pissed off at the Zutara fandom. I've been looking for fics, and I've found a few long ones. Which is good, normally. But I swear, every time I find one that I like from the beginning, it ends up getting derailed in some way, or otherwise sucking before the end. =P So I end up giving up on it, and I get annoyed that I wasted that much time reading it in the first place. Bleh. I'm sure there's good fic out there, but I'm just not having a lot of luck finding it. Oh, well. Maybe I'll try again tomorrow. I'm thinking I may try to turn in a little early tonight.

Ugh, this week is just dragging. I have no idea why...nothing's really different, or any more stressful than usual. But ever since Monday, I keep feeling like it should be Friday. =P Plus, I keep feeling bored at work, which doesn't help. I have trouble staying focused on anything, so my shift doesn't pass as quickly as usual. Bleh.

...Yeah, there's really no point to this post. I'm just feeling whiny and bored, so here I am.

Yes, I'm finally watching the new My Little Pony series. And it's more entertaining than a children's program has a right to be. I tore through the whole first season in less than a week. It's just so freaking cute~! =D This is largely your fault, amelia_seyroon. You and your memes and cute art! XD Thank you for finding me another awesome series!

As usual, I don't have just one favorite character. I loved Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, and AppleJack from the get-go. And I ended up really loving Rarity, too, which was a surprise. I didn't expect I'd get that attached; she's the girly fashionista type, and I've never been that type of girl. But I ended up loving her all the same. <3 And I like Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, too, of course. Rainbow Dash more than Pinkie, but still. They're all cool!

...And now I want that second season! Anybody know when it's due out?

EDIT: Also, this? Is more fun than it should be, srsly. Great time waster, this.

...I'm sitting here at work, midway through my shift, and suddenly the lights go out. My computer's still running, but our department's set up so that the essential stuff (computers, servers, etc) gets at least some battery time. So, I called K to tell him, and apparently there was a water main somewhere close that got broken earlier, and they were working on it, so that's probably why they killed our power. It would have been nice if someone had told me that earlier! =P

So now, I'm just sitting here...in the dark...alone...waiting for them to turn the power back on. Yeah, that's fun. =P It's creepy, seriously. I'm hoping they'll get it back on soon...my shift doesn't end for another three hours. I need the cash, so going home early isn't something I want to do. But sitting here in the dark until then isn't such a great choice, either. So, I don't know. We'll see, I guess.

...And now there's something in here that's beeping, like consistently. Every couple of minutes or so. I don't know what it is, or where, but I can hear it and it's starting to bug me. Total darkness, except for my monitor's glow, and yet something has enough power to keep beeping at me? Ugh. Plus, like I said before...creepy!

I mean, this big, empty building with no lights, and it's so quiet. I don't know if there's anyone else in the building just now or not. The janitor may still be here, but I don't know. (And he's kinda creepy all by himself, so that's not much of a comfort.) I swear, I feel like a little kid, afraid of the dark. =P Every so often, I hear things. I'm sure they're totally normal noises that I just usually don't hear because I'm not usually sitting here in the dark and quiet, but still. I don't like it.

Seriously, the power needs to come back on. Like, now.

EDIT #1: Well, so much for that. I just got a call from K (and just about jumped a foot when the phone rang). Apparently, the power's going to be out for something like 12 hours. Yeah. Oh, and my desktop will probably go out in another ten minutes or so, since the battery is only good for a half hour, roughly. So, now I'm debating how long I want to stay. I mean...it's creepy here, and my laptop battery will only last so long. But I hate to lose the hours, and I don't really want to have to stay late to make them up, either. So I don't know.

EDIT #2: So now, K calls me back and says that they're going to try something, and maybe the power will be back on shortly. Okay, I say. I'll wait. Guy comes in, needing to get into the server room. Only way I can get in is with a key card, which obviously won't work without power. So he calls K to see if he knows the combination. He can't think of it, but he's on his way in. Maybe fifteen minutes later, K gets there and with a little fussing around, he gets the door open. Cue more fussing with the electrical stuff. Finally, they manage to get something working. Thing is, the only things getting power are the computers and servers. (No lights or air conditioning.)

At this point, I figure I'll hang around until the end of my shift. If I have my desktop, plus my laptop, I can keep myself entertained for that long. But, as it turned out, I didn't have to. Before I really started doing anything, K told me that I could go ahead and leave, if I wanted. He'd make sure I still got paid for my usual eight hour shift. Awesome, I said. So I got my stuff together and headed home. It was kind of a pain to fuss with all this, but hey...I got to go home early, and still get paid for my full shift. Did I mention that I love my boss and my company? <3

Here's hoping that things will be back to normal tomorrow!

Well, after last month's chapter, I was pretty excited to read this one. And it didn't disappoint. Yay! I swear, I'm so glad I found this series. It's just awesome! <3

( Spoilers, as usual )

Man, now I'm really curious to see what's going to happen next! I want the next chapter~

I doubt many people read my journal, but I figured I'd give this a shot, anyway. I need some music recommendations. =D I want fast paced, bouncy music...something you can dance/work out to. I prefer vocal tracks to instrumentals, generally. Any language is okay. If it's in English, I'd prefer it not to have really vulgar lyrics. Any recommendations? Thanks! <3