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Duh....

I just realized I have 2 entries about custom scents that start out almost exactly the same! I totally forgot I had already written about that. *smacks forehead*

December 18, 2007

Toasty Blog

I'm alive . . .

I was going to post an entry about why I've been MIA, but really, I just don't feel like it. I'll just say that I'm ok now, but I wasn't for a while. I'm really sorry if I let anyone down or made anyone angry. I'm doing what I can to fix things, so pm me if I can do anything for you. I hope everyone is managing to enjoy the holiday season. It's been snowing here, finally, so I'm starting to get in the holiday spirit. So far everyone has been so incredibly nice and understanding. I wonder, what is it about BPAL and this forum that attract such wonderful people?

kwsix

December 17, 2007

The Custom Scent

DSH Perfumes makes custom scents and ooooooh, how I'd love to get one. However, it's almost like getting a tattoo......it's kind of a big commitment and I would want to be sure I was getting the best one for me. [this is all hypothetical since right now I don't have 4 or 5 hundred bucks to throw around] My favorite scent is Djinn, but I wouldn't want another Djinn. The obvious choices would be resins, woods, musk.....smokey and incense.....perhaps opium. But really, do I want something obvious? Maybe I'd want a cleaner, fresh or spicey element in there. Ah dunno..... I even pulled up the questionnaire from DSH that she uses to get a handle on your scent personality. I like it because she asks some more abstract questions like what's your favorite color, what time of day/night do you like best. The questionnaire alone made me insanely curious as to what she would come up with for my scent. Then they send you 3 samples and go from there, I assume fine-tuning and whatnot. I know CB does the same thing, but after trying just a few samples from DSH I think I might like her style better. Nothing against CB but his scents are so light! I like them at times but as for a signature scent, something my very own, I think I'd want something stronger, more emphatic. Someday.....maybe........

December 16, 2007

Lit Chick's Blog

Finn's Birth Story

On 11/29, I woke up at 3 am feeling odd. Not in pain, but I just felt something. I went to the bathroom and I had bloody show, slightly. Now, according to the midwife and all the books I have, that means labor is on it's way - but usually not in any hurry. I decided to stay up, since I wake at 4am anyway for work, and see what happened. Nothing much did. By the time I left for work, I was having contractions, buyt they were of a Braxton-Hicks type. On the ride into work, they got stronger - feeling like menstural cramps. They were very regular, about every 10 minutes, but very short duration. I thought nothing of it, because my best friend gave birth on the 20th, after weeks of similar symptoms. I figuired that I had a day at least, if not more. At 7 am I called my midwife and doula to let them know what was going on. By that point, the cramps were getting a little uncomfy, but still nothing at all bad. Both of them said that it would likely be a very long while, and just keep them in the loop. Wendi (midwife) said to leave work when I started getting distracted, or after a half day so I could rest before labor really got going. At 8 am, I decided that I would leave at 9, since things were really going places. Still no pain, but each hour there was a very noticiable increase in intensity, and since I live an hour from work I did not want to get stuck someplace. I left at 9 and and my parents drove me home. I kept trying to call my husband, but the phone just rang and rang - I was not pleased. He knew about the show, and knew we were on baby watch that day - so why was his phone off? I ended up having to call other people in his company to track him down -he was working at a different account that day and it was in a dead zone for cells. We chatted, and he like my midwife and doula thought it would be hours and hours before anything real started happening, so he did not leave work. It's funny - I knew that I was on my way, but since this was my first time I didn't want to be silly and insistent. So I let other people tell me it would take a long time, and I did not make them come to me when I needed them. I did not want to be a silly needy 1st time mom who thinks she's in active labor and then has the baby 48 hours later. We arrived at my house shortly after 10, and by that point I was truly in labor. I was very distracted, and could no longer talk through the contractions. Agian, not painful, but uncomfy. We got home and I desperately needed to go to the bathroom, but my father had my car. With my keys. And the garage door opener. And he was nowhere in sight. Turns out he stopped for Starbucks! STARBUCKS! Can you believe it? Just as my mom and I were driving away to find a bathroom, he rolled up. If I was not so in need of the facilities, he would have been in trouble. I sorted out the bed, with the waterproof tarp and the extra sheets, and tried to settle down for a nap. I laid down and it was instantly wrong. So complely uncomfortable, and wrong. I gave up on sleep, and sat on my birth ball. Ahhhh. Instant releif. I again called my midwife, and she asked if I wanted Stephaine, the assistant, to come over. Hell Yes! A few minutes after that call, my water broke. Good times. It broke over a series of contractions - not a huge gush, more like I wet myself repeatedly. It's funny how little you care about stuff like that in the moment. All over the bathroom floor? We'll deal with it later. Wiped it up with my good towels? Eh, I'll buy more some other time. Bryan arrived just before noon, and even though I do not remember it being an event, my mother said labor really amped up then. I was very relaxed and very happy to see him. He has the most wonderful look on his face. Fear, excitement, awe, love. He was so visibly moved, and so tender with me. He tried to caress me, but he's a chef - and he stank to high heaven of food. I made him shower before he could touch me. I remember the early moments with him - he was so adorable. He did everything right, perfectly. A little after that, Stephanie arrived and checked me. 5 cm, 100% effaced. On the video, you can see her leaving the bathroom and texting like mad with this "holy crap" look on her face. Now, my mom had very fast labors, and I told them all about that - but still, no one really expects a 1st timer to be so aggressive. Especially since I was only moaning and such. It did not hurt, it was just crampy and uncomfortable. An hour later, I started making different noises - the gutteral grunting that is a red flag for pushing time. Sure enough, I was there - but nobody else was! Stephanie did have all the emergency equipment, but all the other midwives and the doula had yet to show up. They got there about 30 min later, after much speeding, just in time for my pushing. I remember asking Stephanie if I was in transition yet, and she laughed and said I was already past it, and that it was time to see my baby. Whoo! I was so worried about transition, but mine flew by so fast. I do remember a time when I wanted to give up, but I was just so tired and it seemed like there was no break between contractions. They had gotten to a somewhat painful point, but pain is such a wrong word for it. It was not a hurt feeling, just a full-body intensity. Sort of like if you have multiple orgasms, and the point when you have to make it stop because you body is just short-circuiting. It was very much like that - just too much sensation, but not pain. It was exhausting. During that part, I remember wanting to ask for my mommy. I wanted someone to make it stop so I could rest. But every time I opened my mouth to cry, I stopped. I thought "no, you must go forward". I see on the video that I was not 100% successful - there were some moments of sobbing and saying that I didn't want to go on - but overall it was not too bad. It was just the most tiring thing ever. I moved all over the place - toilet, ball, floor. At one point, they asked me to get up on the bed, thinking it might be a good position for me. Oh my god, no. I see why labor is painful for so many women. I was on my side on the bed, and that hurt. It was awful. I had to ride through one contraction like that, and then I scrambled back down to the floor and leaned againt my husband in a squat. Instantly better. It is SO important that a woman be allowed to move durinbg labor - I truly had a nearly painless experience, and it was because I could let my body lead me. Another thing that helped was my mental state. I was very well prepared to birth this baby, I had no fear. At one point, Stephanie said "open up for your baby", and afterthat during a contraction I just said "open, open, open" and I did. Everyone was saying how strong I was, how powerful I was. I kept saying "thank you". Bryan thought it was funny, and asked why. It was because it was more polite than saing "I know". I felt all the power, I knew I was doing an amazing job. It was incredibly hard work, but I knew everything was flowing through me just as it should. And whenever someone said that I was so strong, Bryan nearly cried. Every time. He was so in awe and so proud. When it came time to push, I faltered a little. I never felt the urge to push at all. I gave a few attempts, but they were little and like pooping - not going to get the baby out. Stephanie applied some pressure to give me a target sensation, and after that we were rocking. I thought the contractions were tiring, but pushing was worse. Since I never felt the urge, pushing did not come as a relief. I also did not get any break from transition to the pushing stage - I think there was maybe 10 min of calm between the stages. Steph really had to talk me throuhg it - and it was really funny. At one point she's telling me to push push push, and I broke out of my labor bubble at said "I got nothing" totally in my normal voice, just stating there was no contraction. Pointless. And then a few secons later I say "Here we go!" and give a massive crowning push. I was prepared for a ring of fire, and Steph said "you'll feel streching and burning" but I only felt the stretch. It was not bad at all. Intense, but I was braced for much worse. The crown was easy, but the face - oh, how odd did that feel! His bumpy little nose coming out - so strange. I did not like that. After the head, I thought I was done. I thought one more easy push and his body would slide right out. Wrong. Shoulders. How awful! Now, that is the part that hurt. I did not want to push, so I was a little PO'ed, and then it was like another head when I expected easy slide. I screamed for the shoulders - it was hard work to push him out! I think that's the point where I tore as well - I had a very minoir tear on my labia of all random things. Better that then the perineum though! Bryan caught the baby, and gave him to me. We were both in such shock. I thought we'd cry, but we were both struck completely dumb. I looked at my boy's face, but nothing else. I was scared to examine him. Later, when he was weighed and all, I asked the midwives if he was ok - and he was. Phew. Then I looked him over. It took a while before I connected with the baby - not in a strange depressing way, but I thought that I'd be filled with this huge love right away, and I wasn't. I was a bit empty. I did love my little boy, but I was so shocked! I felt a little detached at first. Very hazy. It took a few hours before I came back to myself and started processing things again. That emptyness was very scary. I see how women go into post-partum depression. During pregnancy, I had an amazing sense of creative power. I felt fertile and glorious. During labor and delivery, I felt a terrifying power run through me. It was amazing, but extremely scary looking back. I was very aware after he was out that the power that birthed him could easily have been the death of us both. If you resist and fight the power of birth, it can be destructive. I did not fight it, and during labor I felt connefted to the force, but when it was gone I felt drained and empty. Like a huge storm had swept through me. I felt extremely small and vulnerable, and scared. I started thinking about the aches and pains, and the body that had been so strong for 9 months felt broken. It was very difficult. But that night, as I was falling asleep, I started to process all those feelings. After I thought about the fertile goddess feeling and the powerful birth/death force of nature, I thought about the triple goddess concept. And even though I was never very religios, it truly helped. I realized that I was not emptied out by that force - not at all. It's just that what was in me now was quieter, gentler. I was now filled with healing. The aches were not evidence of injury, but of my body knitting back together. I pictured myself being cradled in the arms of Motherhood just as I was cradling my infant son. Then, everything fell into place. I felt myself become a mother, and I was able to sleep and be calm. Now it's 2 weeks later, and we're all getting the hang of life as a family. The first few days were tough - I thought breastfeeding would be a simple matter that would come just as naturally as everything else did. Nope. I tried to feed Finn, but he did not seem interested - he'd suck a little and then fuss, and then sleep. The first full day, he slept for a very long time - he had no energy to wake up. Stephaine showed me how to latch, and we started feeding. But it was hard the first day, and I was upset and so was baby. It took a few days before we got the hang of it. Both Finn and I had to learn what to do - but once we got it, it was wonderful. Now, he's still a big sleeper. His usual routine is to drain both breasts and then top himself off on a third go, then sleep for a long time. 3-5 hours at a stretch! I was terrified about that, because that first day, they said do not let him sleep that long - but that was because he had not fed well yet. Now, I let him stay asleep. I found out that if a worried mommy wakes him up, Finn gets very very cranky. It's really helpful though- we all get a pretty full night of sleep, and I have the time to shower and do chores and nap if I want to. He is such a wonderful baby! Finally, our midwife loaned us the best video every - "The Happiest Baby on the Block". It teaches you how to calm an upset newborn, and it is like magic. I was already doing a few of those naturally, but swaddling was tricky. Finn loves to be swaddled, but I could never get it to stay put - the video shows you exactly how to do the wrap. Now we all sleep in the same bed and nobody fusses! And the one time Finn got truly horribly upset (we had to wake him up and put him in a carseat - angry baby!) I was able to hush him back to sleep within 10 min. Amazing. Finn and his daddy are the best things that have ever happened to me. I am loving motherhood!

Lit Chick

December 15, 2007

Do you have a flag?

yow.

Was I really gone for that long? My sales post went to the dead area. Whoops. I didn't think I was away for that long. Stupid school sucking up all my time.

filigree_shadow

December 15, 2007

Precious things

More SW help

A more traditional-style SW help post! Here are things I love, but I don't add to my wishlists because they're general wants (like doll materials) or, in the case of the etailers, things that look interesting but I'm not motivated to buy for myself. Adult package warning I'm 19 and I live alone or with other people over 18, and we're all pretty liberal folk, so an R-rated package (or higher ) would be okay in the sense that nobody's going to be offended by it. But... I'm afraid I might not get bawdy/raunchy gifts. I'm really rather disinterested in and ignorant about sex, so while some naughty stuff might make me laugh, most of it is not really my style. Doll materials and accessories I love to make itty bitty felt dolls (the current generation is 6" tall) and would love to find clothes and accessories for them! I have a gallery for them at my LJ. I also have Uriel's measurements. Clothes and accessories that suit the character would be welcome, but so would random things that are the right size! Useful supplies would include swatches of fabric (solid colors are lovely - very nice, subtle patterns would be nice too,) thread in various colors, tiny buttons and beads, etc. Tea I love tea, but I am very picky. I like black, green, and oolong tea; I really don't like chai and herbal/other non-tea plant tea. Other favorites... Earl Grey, genmaicha, Ti Kuan Yin oolong, jasmine green tea... You can get a sense for what I like from my LJ tea tag. I now have a teapot so I can make loose tea, yay!! Menswear I love crossdressing (I do it so regularly it doesn't really feel like crossdressing anymore) but my family is a little bit disturbed by it, so I don't like to put suit-type things on my wishlists. I love neckties (silk preferably, in solid colors or subtle stripes,) pocket squares (don't really need any more, though,) and SUITS *_* and sport coats. I really want a pocket watch -- currently trying to find one that looks nice, is functional, but also not too expensive. I also like cufflinks! O'course a lot of these things are way too expensive for Witching, but accessories or just, like, fashion tips would be awesome! Bath & Body I am an extremely unglamorous girl -- I almost never use makeup and don't know what to do with most bath products. But I'll take anything that is useable in the shower, and I might be persuaded to try things for the tub while I'm at home. In general, I just use shampoo, conditioner, and soap in the shower, occasionally a fragrant body wash. If you send me one of those four things, it will be used. I also like alcohol-free lotions (cocoa butter especially) Other things may require written instructions. ! I have an LJ soap tag but there isn't much under it, mostly just SRTC. I went around looking at some different sites and found a couple of items that looked like they might be good matches for my scent preferences... Because I am not a really enthusiastic bath person, I probably won't be motivated to buy these for myself... which probably makes them good Witching goodies! Black Phoenix Trading Post (might buy these for myself): Miskatonic University Soap, TKO Soap Silk Road Trading Company (actually I just went and bought all the ones that appeal to me ) Villainess: Antihero things spotted on Soap Box Company: Magic Hands Workshop - Turkish Mocha Soap, Magic Hands Workshop - Spiced Mahogany Serpentine Hair: Forbidden Fruit, Kahlua, Medusa (maybe) Wylde Ivy: North, Tough Guy, White Lavender, Quince & Currant, and from the Deli Soaps I liked the looks of Deja Vu and Green Apple Peel Bathed and Infused: something like lotion or body wash, in Lilac & Lavender, the Playwright, Clean for Men, Clean Laundry, Black Coffee, Feng Shui Wood, Bamboo, Full Moon, Honeydew Melon, Lavender Bouquet (this one sounds amazing), Leather, New England (omg) General guidelines for scented products: Good: lavender, fougeres, non-sweet citrus, woods, tonka, "snow" scents (my favorite winter holiday is the BPAL Yule update ), gentle leather, mild woodsmoke, frankincense and myrrh, -- shop for me as if I were a man Bad: ROSE! VIOLET! sweet vanilla, sugar, white florals, florals in general, heavy patchouli, alcoholic/booze, butter (oh gods no), foody scents in general (except coffee scents, which I LOVE) For more details, refer to my note notes. See also my favorite things

kuroitsuki

December 13, 2007

more switchwitch help

Books: Reginald Hill Dalziel and Pascoe mysteries, books on the philosophy of housecleaning (I have a book called Home Comforts, it is my grail and I love stuff like that), books on art (doing -- visual journaling as art, ATC cards, DIY stuff; seeing -- voodoo arts in Haiti book, copies of magazine Juxtapoz or other in print art/painting mags), poetry (modern, not so much archaic, I prefer Barbara Ras over Emily Dickenson), books on running or training or traithalon and fitness for women, third wave feminist stuff Music: I love indie stuff, dark stuff. I would love some more Rasputina, Black Kids, LADYTRON, Elvis Costello, THE THE (!!), 80s cheese pop (bring on the Madness and the Men Without Hats, oh yeah!), really I like a lot of stuff but am not big on fluff pop, e.g. American Idol winner-type songs/James Blunt/Train/etc., and really dislike country and rap. OH! I would love more Rammestein too. And more Kitaro, I only have Silk Road. Oh hell, if it isn't country or rap, I'll probably like it a lot. Movies or DVDs I would love to have: 13/Tzameti, All About Eve, The Women, Event Horizon, actually I like a lot of movies that are scary (but not teen slasher films like Halloween, otherwise scary or even bloody is ok even to the point of 10000 corpses), anything with Bette Davis, almost any movie from 1930s-1950s but prefer they NOT have been colorized. I just saw Hitman and loved it and will need it on DVD when it comes out eventually. I like most movies really, and am getting a better appreciation for 'bad' movies with my husband now because he will watch literally anything. (he's a fan of Ready To Rumble, my people, and that is a BAD movie, can I get a witness?) ETA: Got "Bottom" for Christmas from the husband, yay!

December 13, 2007

a dorky reason to want a bottle

I want Ivanushka REALLY BADLY, in no small part because it has the cutest label I have ever seen. (Plus I want to smell like fur.)

December 13, 2007

Considering some TAL

I used Aunt Caroline's Money Bag and saved a TON that same day, the only day I annointed with it. It was great. I have also had some good luck with others, but I don't seem to get much from Perpetuum Bonum? Maybe I am not using it with enough regularity. I am considering a decant of Aunt Caroline's Money Draw. I wonder if I could swap for one, it is almost never up on the forum. For future TAL purchasing/my records To get in bottle: Milk and Honey, Aunt Caroline's Money Draw (prob, if decant works like Bag did!), Charisma? (if it smells better than Brass Balls, which I got rid of my bottle because it stank SO bad I could not bear it, it was nauseating to me), Crown of Success To get more decants of: Hand of Hermes, STFU, Flying Devil, Fiery Wall, Determination Conjure bag -- wish there were more reviews. Maybe prosperity one, Hand of Hermes? Wish there was a protection and uncrossing one.

December 13, 2007

book stuff for my switchwitch

Hello Witchy! You asked, so I answer! Anyhow, the "type" of books I like? 1. I was really into mysteries but it is hard to find ones that I either haven't read or that I would like. I do the patricia cornwall ones (Kay Scarpettas) and I haven't read the most recent. I have read maybe 1/3 of the Reginald Hill books, and some of the Nora Bonesteel books. 2. I am interested in reading more mysteries by someone I forgot who (ACK!) but the main character is an Irish woman lawyer in the middle ages. I know, I know, how impossible is that? 3. I liked the first Bolyn book and would read others by Phillippa Gregory. I guess now that I think of it I am a sucker for authors who have a series. 4. I loved American Gods! Am interested in other books by him but I don't know if I am so interested in the Good Omens funny ones, but I could give it a go. 5. I love books on homemaking. I try my butt off, and am not always great at this, but I enjoy trying and do love to read new tips and such. Not at this point so much the basic "organizing for dummies" books, or "Don Haslett" cleaning books, but like the ones on my amazon list, one is on kaboodle too. I also love write-in books (notebooks, registers, etc.) for organization/record keeping. 6. Self-help books on emotion and money, fear of money, prosperity etc. I suck at money. Sometimes it feels like money only comes and visits me briefly before it flies off to the pockets of more capable folks. 7. REALLY interested in books on visual journaling or ATC making. Prob visual journaling is the better of the two if possible 8. Sometimes essay books. I think Neil Gaiman has one but I forget what it is called. Also, memoirs by feisty interesting women. 9. Books (beyond the basics tho) on training/fitness/running for women (these are harder to buy for me though. Right now I am looking at ones on sports psychology, performance and the mind, 'zen' running -- tho this might be bunk, etc.) It is late, I can't think of more right now but lord, I can always find stuff in a bookstore so I am SURE it would be fine whatever I get.

December 13, 2007

Is Anybody Out There?

Still looking

Do you ever really get over that person who evokes the first exhilirating burst of love? Not your first crush, nor the first person you went out with whenever that began, but the first person you could actually feel in your soul; the one you could see yourself with, growing old together, the very first person to take your breath away and make you rethink everything you've ever heard about the concept of love? Does that one ever really heal? I love my husband with all my heart, truly I do. I don't want anyone else. So why do I find myself still looking for this other person? Actively looking. It doesn't make sense.

smallvoice

December 12, 2007

きって

another daycare...

It's my second year in college and nothing has gotten better about it. I feel like a frustrated girl having to put up with being in a huge daycare~ the atmosphere of tons of other young people, loud & puffing away at their cigarettes right outside dorms and classes simply makes me want to hide out in dorm room and never, ever leave. I'm not sure if I just have social anxiety or if I just simply hate being around people my age all the time... Either way, I hate it here and have no idea why I ever thought getting into college was going to solve all my problems. Sometimes I think I might not be built for it... The whole sitting-down-and-poring-over-textbooks thing. I know exactly what I'd much rather be doing! Fiddling away time with writing letters, postcards, leveling up on World of Warcraft, carousing the internet for treasures, making my life more "green" and just... other things. I want to be close to all my loved ones - so I'm taking the first step by going back home to Charleston, SC. I have been *incrediably* lucky having Justin come to school with me, and both of us being each other's support through the shitty times we've had here at this school... but even with him here, I feel like I'm slowly going both crazy and horribly unproductive. Even now, there's only about a week left of school, and I've got FOUR papers to write!! That's a shit-ton TOO MANY FOR ME! And I just don't understand it either; I used to popped out papers like it was nothing back in high school, and even first semester here... but now I just absolutely refuse to do them... what's happened to me? Literally. What the fug is going on?? My short-term memory is going, my work ethics are blasted, and I can't even do simple, crappy bull-shit papers. *sigh* Am I technically going through an early mid-life crisis? If so, does anyone know any remedies? ^^ All I know is, as soon as my ass is back in Chucktown, I'm going to party hard (& I'm not even a party-person! Ha ha ha...!) and I'm going to pray, pray, pray that next semester works out at C of C. If not, I'm shit outta luck.

Alarm

December 12, 2007

The Salon

Since it has so many of my favorite scents, I think the Salon is my favorite of all the scent categories in the Lab's general catalogue. In light of that, I went back over the reviews and picked out a few that I want to try again. Some of them I even gave unfavorable reviews.....but still, I dare say that my nose is a little more seasoned now, and I may actually like them more now. And there were a couple that I traded or gave away and now I'm kicking myself....especially since they were the nice Lab labels from the imp packs. I even considered getting more imp packs! But I think what I'll do is continue going through my current (huge) stash of imps/decants, pick out the ones I don't want, and try another swapping post. This one will focus on the un-impables on my wish list. I figure since they are slightly harder to come by, it will be more of a challenging hunt. I also still think I would do well to just get decants from now on, and only get a bottle if something is just screaming at me to love it. With the sheer number of decants I already have, it's absolutely silly to buy more bottles since it would take forever even put a dent in them. For example, I traded for a bottle of Midnight On The Midway, which I hardly ever wear, even though I do love it. It's a scent for very particular moods.....when I'm feeling somewhat confident, sexy maybe, but also classy and refined. I could never wear it to work, it's just too emphatic. At work I've been wearing F5, Usher (bpal's Usher, not the commercial cologne), and sometimes CB I Hate Perfume scents......although now I can't remember which ones. Accords, I think....Snow and maybe Lava Rock. Tonight I didn't wear any kind of scent to work. I don't want to offend anyone so when I do wear something, it's very lightly applied.

December 11, 2007

Precious things

SW Help... maybe

First of all, my wishlist! thethingsiwant - the password is "Ethan" And here's a list of my favorite things, so perhaps you can get an idea of what new things I might like My favorite things... Favorite webcomic: 9th Elsewhere http://www.9thelsewhere.com/ and others I like: Inverloch http://inverloch.seraph-inn.com/ , Mind Flayed http://www.mindflayedcomic.com/ , Order of the Stick and Erfworld http://www.giantitp.com/ , Yet Another Fantasy Gamer Comic http://yafgc.shipsinker.com/ Favorite video games: Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth & Silmeria, Suikoden II, Shadow of the Colossus, ICO, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Angelique Etoile, Team Fortress 2 other games I enjoyed, roughly in the order that I played them: Final Fantasy VII, the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time & Majora's Mask, Final Fantasy Tactics, Pokemon Blue-Silver-Crystal, Dynasty Warriors 3-5, Final Fantasy IX, Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy V, Neverwinter Nights, .hack//GAME, the Sims 2, Suikoden III, Suikoden I, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, Xenogears, Katamari Damacy, Radiata Stories, Final Fantasy III DS, Neverwinter Nights 2, Pokemon Pearl, Bioshock Favorite anime/manga: Angel Sanctuary (the manga, vol 4 or so on), Slayers NEXT, Ouran High School Host Club I also liked: .hack//SIGN, Fruits Basket, Excel Saga, Magic Knight Rayearth Favorite books: Universities of the Italian Renaissance (Paul F. Grendler), la Vita Nuova (Dante), the Divine Comedy (Dante), Good Omens (Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett), the Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Luo Guanzhong), the Importance of Being Earnest (Oscar Wilde) Favorite Shakespeare: Merchant of Venice (for how it maps onto my Italian characters...) Favorite sci-fi/fantasy: Harry Potter (J.K. Rowling) Favorite old dead guys: Cao Cao, Zhang Liao, al-Jahiz, Dante, John Dee I also like: Seondeok Yeowang, Giovanni Boccaccio, Leonardo, Galileo, Francis Bacon, Isaac Newton, and probably a lot of others I've forgotten. Favorite time periods to study: Almost anything before 1700, including Three Kingdoms in China, Three Kingdoms in Korea, Golden Age of Islam, European Renaissance. And some European Victorian/Edwardian stuff, and the Scientific Revolution. I do like some steampunk in my fantasies, but Apologia is more "magepunk". Favorite characters from other people's work: Zhang Liao (Dynasty Warriors, Romance of the Three Kingdoms), Lezard Valeth (Valkyrie Profile) Other characters I love: Pesmerga and Yuber (Suikoden), Gremio (Suikoden) Martin (TES4: Oblivion), Luva (Angelique), Vincent (FF7), Vivi and the Black Waltzes (FF9), Citan (Xenogears), Yoshimitsu (Soul Calibur 2), Genius Weissheit (Radiata Stories), Arc (FF3 DS), Sand (NWN2), Zelgadis and Xellos (Slayers NEXT), Uriel and Zaphkiel (Angel Sanctuary), Lina and Zelgadis (Slayers), Haruhi and Nekozawa (Ouran HS Host Club), Akito and Shigure (Fruits Basket), Snape (Harry Potter), Eiji (9th Elsewhere), Elan (Order of the Stick), Claude Frollo (Notre-Dame de Paris), Crowley (Good Omens), the Spy (Team Fortress 2) ... and Abra and its evolutions in Pokemon, and black mages in Final Fantasy I prefer to play mages in video games. Favorite class in D&D video games is sorcerer. Favorite living artists: Kristina Gehrmann: http://www.mondhase.de/ Stephanie Pui-Mun Law: http://wwww.shadowscapes.com/ Linda Bergkvist: http://www.furiae.com/ and other I like: Natascha Roeoesli http://www.tascha.ch/ , Linda Tso http://www.stickydoodle.com/ , Jason Chan http://www.jasonchanart.com/ , 北原 http://mmy.parfe.jp/lg/ , Eloisa Scichilone, Yoshitaka Amano, Amy Sol Favorite long-dead artists: Painters: Raphael, Michelangelo, Leonardo, Caravaggio Illustrators: Edmund Dulac, Warwick Goble, Arthur Rackham, Charles Robinson, Anne Anderson, Aubrey Beardsley, Harry Clarke Favorite music from my iTunes: "Song For Bassanio" and "Bassanio's Palazzo (Tarantella)" from the Merchant of Venice 2005 soundtrack by Jocelyn Pook, "La Serenissima" from the Book of Secrets by Loreena McKennitt, and "Revived Power" from the Shadow of the Colossus soundtrack some favorites of other genres: "Evolution" by Hamasaki Ayumi (J-Pop), "Black Is the Color" by Cara Dillon (Folk), "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" by Andrew Lloyd Webber (Musical Soundtrack), "番場の忠太郎" by Hikawa Kiyoshi (Enka) other favorites from special playlists: "Up Is Down" from the Pirates of the Caribbean III soundtrack (Cosimo's playlist), "How Wicked Ruler" from the Valkyrie Profile: Silmeria soundtrack (Eschaton's playlist), "Suteki da ne" from Final Fantasy X soundtrack (Uriel's playlist) Favorite smells: lavender, bergamot, eucalyptus (in essential oil form) Crowley, Dee, Talvikuu, Vicomte de Valmont, Hunger Moon, House of Night, Casanova, Bow & Crown of Conquest, Theodosius, Villain, Herr Drosselmeyer, Sloth, De Sade, Incubus, Herbert West (BPAL) Eucalyptus Spearmint, Black Currant Vanilla, Lavender Vanilla, Cool Citrus Basil (Bath & Body Works) Favorite colors: browns, grays, lavender, desaturated violet, desaturated blue, mint green, white, soft peach (in general and for art) black, white, dark jewel tone red (for clothes) Favorite tea: Foojoy Monkey-Picked Ti Kuan Yin (oolong), Yamamotoyama oolong, Yamamotoyama jasmine green tea, Twinings Earl Grey, genmaicha What I like in... Movies: Sheer beauty -- an incredibly beautiful scene, or a scene of really intense emotion, will reduce me to tears. I generally to prefer cleaner, Romantic-type beauty to abject-beauty, but there are exceptions. Examples of scenes that moved me - from Whale Rider, Pai's speech, and the shot of the longboat after the fade from white; from V for Vendetta, the last fight scene; from the Lord of the Rings, the aerial shots of the massive battles and the wedding; the statue-carrying sequence from Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring; the last parts of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind; and, like, ALL of Hero. I like decent plot and acting, but beauty is the most important. Music: Similar to movies, intense emotional charge and eerie beauty (good examples from "favorite music" above would be "Revived Power" and "How Wicked Ruler".) I don't like lyricy music; I focus on the sound. Anime, manga, and (fiction) books: Intriguing, deep, and pitiful characters with an intellectually stimulating (but not pompous) plot -- AND I like very silly humor. Video games: The qualities of BOTH my favorite movies and books -- beauty, good characters, good plot -- with some degree of "moral freedom". I really hate being forced to take a certain moral position (especially when I find it WRONG) or to take only one interpretation of the plot. Freedom in general is also good, but I can love a one-storyline RPG if it gives me the freedom to interpret. And the game should also be fun to play -- fun and engaging in general, easy controls, leisurely and sensible level of challenge or ability to customize difficulty levels, etc. I'm a "casual" gamer. Imaginary boyfriends: Gentleness, intellectual orientation, compassion, honesty, loyalty, but some serious, pitiful weaknesses -- personality weaknesses or physical weaknesses (I am rather attracted to physical weaknesses ) that can be healed or transformed with help. See the "favorite concepts" section. Favorite concepts/the conceptual side of Apologia as all my favorite concepts are a part of Apologia. I really like a particular... "narrative"? "emotional trajectory" in fiction? of healing that begins with a pitiful wounded one who then has a sublime and mind-opening experience and emerges from it majestically. He is aided by another character for whom the reader/player (hopefully) feels empathy; she changes from pitying the wounded one, to merging emotionally with him at the sublime moment and sharing his pain and happiness, and finally to a sense of awe and peace at seeing how he has grown beyond her. Healing and growth founded on a loving relationship. The ultimate noble character in my stories is someone who is weak but chooses, not out of duty but free will, to suffer grievously in order to lessen the suffering of others. This self-sacrifice can be melodramatic, or much smaller and simpler -- it's most commonly an awakening to the suffering of another and a small act to help him, which is shortly followed by someone else sacrificing to help the helper, and so on and so forth, the formation of a chain of compassion and helping. Most of my stories focus on the desires, emotions, and interactions of characters (rather than "plot.") The interconnectedness of characters is very important. Some of the biggest concepts probed in Moon's Apologia: the formation of meaning, knowledge, morality, and identity; existence, relationships and relativism; the nature of thoughts and emotions. The theme of "Am I human?" comes up a lot... there are a lot of androids, demihumans, and imaginary half-beings running about in the story. I'm generally interested in delicate and ephemeral things. The emotions I'm most interested in are pity, tenderness, sadness, empathetic suffering, love, affection, eudaimonia, and sublime ecstasy. The main characters from Apologia, who are extremely important to me. An example of how they could apply to Switch Witching: I'm generally not interested in trying perfume from other companies than BPAL (I already have so many more GCs to try!) BUT if there's a scent that perfectly matches one of my characters, I want to try it!! Moon - A half-Dream gynoid, an ethereal magical construct. Extremely gentle, subtle and nearly invisible, shaped by those who care about her. Uriel - An intelligent, gentle, dignified professor and alchemist-perfumer. Outwardly cynical, inwardly romantic. Cosimo - A selfish, energetic, nerdy young intellectual, a magical and mathematical genius. Outwardly aggressive, inwardly shy and jealous. Isaac - An android (bioroid) on a quest for justice. Outwardly coolheaded and suave, inwardly anxious and sensitive. And others... Light and her Incubus, Jin, Seondeok, Tenran, Eschaton, the Bard, Izumi/Reisen/Setsushi, Ante, Yshayya, Arazari, Seri, and so many others Go here for pictures and descriptions of them, and what they would smell like! That's all for now...whew!

kuroitsuki

December 9, 2007

miss daae's blog

hey, why not?

Hooray for blogs! (I have about a frillion, why not one more? )

Christine Daae

December 9, 2007

Toasty Blog

Need to test

WORK IN PROGRESS Here are the blends I either need to test or re-test. Most of these I've had in hand and even tested on my skin, but swapped or frimped away before I could form a good opinion. I really need to take better notes. The ones that are actually on my active wishlist are starred. Bewitching Brews Belle Epoque Bess Black Forest Blood Amber Brimstone Cathode Calico Jack Chimera The Coiled Serpent Delirium Epherma Event Horizon Fae Grand Guignol Grog Hamydryad (looking for non-wintergreen kind) I Died for Beauty Intrigue Kubla Khan La Bella Donna Della Mia Mente La Bella Dame Sans Merci Leanan Sidhe Lightning Lurid Mary Read Morgause Ode on Melancholy Omen Ozymandias Penny Dreadful Phantasm Poisoned Apple The Raven Schrodinger's Cat Seance Shattered Tempest Ulalume Ultraviolet Veil Wilde Yggdrasil Zephyr Ars Moriendi Danse Macabre Darkness Epitaph Eternal The Ghost Haunted House of Night Les Fleurs du Mal Midnight Nocturne The Phantom Wooer The Reaper and the Flowers Sheol Shroud Thanatopsis Twilight Wings of Azrael Dark Elements Burial Hurricane Sin and Salvation Envy Greed Lust Sloth Death on a Pale Horse Anathema Black Dahlia Dorian Fallen Faustus Hymn Languor Les Infortunes de la Vertu Magdalene Nero Oblivion Penitence Roadhouse Rose Cross Seraphim Tzadikim Nistarim Love Potions Ave Maria Gratia Plena Bathsheba Bien Loin D'ici Brisingamen Debauchery Depraved Desire Forbidden Fruit Golden Priapus Jezebel La Belle Au Bois Dormant La Petite Mort The Lady of Shalott Le Serpent Qui Danse Libertine Lilium Inter Spinas Loralei Maiden Muse Nefertiti O (This was one of the first BPAL scents I tried, and it failed horribly. I'm curious to re-test it.) Psyche Rapture Ravenous Saturnalia Satyr Sed Non Satiata Siren Succubus The Temptation Suspiro Vicomte de Valmont Wanda Wanton Whip Diabolis A Countenance Forboding Evil Baobhan Sith Black Annis Blood Countess Bloodlust Bluebeard Catherine Dracul Goblin Hell's Belle Horreur Sympathique Incubus Kitsune-Tsuki Loup Garou Maenad Malice Marquise de Merteuil Masabakes Medea Nephilim Nocnitsa Nosferatu Pain Phantom Phantom Queen Phobos Rage Serpent's Kiss Szepasszony Troll Wicked Neil Gaiman/The Carousel Spider* Mad Tea Party The Caterpillar Cheshire Cat Croquet The Dodo The Dormouse Drink Me Jabberwocky The King of Hearts The Knave of Hearts The Lion The Mock Turtle's Lessons Mouse's Long and Sad Tale The Pool of Tears Queen Alice The Queen of Hearts Tiger Lily Two, Five & Seven The Unicorn White Rabbit Illyria Antony The Apothecary Caliban Cordelia Goneril Helena Hermia Juliet Katharina Lear Lysander Oberon Ophelia Othello Regan Robin Goodfellow Rosalind Titania Titus Andronicus Viola Wanderlust Île de la Tortue Windward Passage Ars Draconis Dragon's Reverie Ladon Rappaccini's Garden Asphodel Belladonna Black Hellebore Black Lotus Black Rose Blood Lotus Blood Rose Cobra Lily Death Cap Dian's Bud Devil's Claw Hairy Toad Lily Hemlock Love-in-Idleness Love-Lies-Bleeding Moon Rose Opium Poppy Shadow Witch Orchid Slobbering Pine Squirting Cucumber Strangler Fig Sundew Voodoo Lily Wolfsbane Yew-Trees

kwsix

December 7, 2007

I smell glorious

Isle of Eden: Enthusiasms and Reservations

So I placed my first order with Isle of Eden today. I've been wanting to try their stuff for some time, particularly their shampoo/conditioner since theirs get really good reviews. I signed onto the forum and had a good look through some of the review threads and the photos, and while I'm certainly excited about a lot, I'm not sure their stuff will become a staple for me. Little things are important. I appreciate when people pay attention to detail; it shows pride in one's own work, and respect for one's clients. IoE's scrubs are coloured, and in the photos on the website the colour is always bright and pretty and appealing. After a peek through peoples' photos, a lot of scrubs seem to have colour that's really poorly-blended, marbled, or just not very true at all. Also, the same item will be packaged several different ways -- sometimes even in the same order! Three 8oz bottles of shampoo will come in three different containers. But it's the content that counts, right? Well, as far as the colour is concerned, if you're not bothered enough about it to do it right and the content is all that matters anyway, why add colour in the first place? Either blend it well, so that it looks appealing (that's the only purpose the stuff serves after all) or don't put any in at all. And as for the different containers, I just don't get why you wouldn't buy one sort of container and stick to it. If you're changing how you package your product, tell your customers -- it affects how your products are used, especially for slippery hands in the shower. Stuff like this does matter. Compare this to the way the Lab does business -- or even to Villainess soaps. If there's a packaging change, or the thing-to-be-shipped doesn't look like the thing-in-the-picture, Brooke lets us know. If a formula is experimental and subject to change, Brooke lets us know. Everything in your order looks and feels like what you were expecting it to look and feel like. IoE's stuff may work just as well as I'd like it to. But the care that goes into BPAL or Villainess isn't apparent, at least from what I've seen. So I'll enjoy what's coming in the mail, but that's about it.

myoubi

December 7, 2007

LieanaIylea's Blog

humph.

i'm tiered. i had to stay up real late last night just working on a stupid world geos project. it wasn't even due today!!! grrr i'm so mad. but oh well i'm almost done with it, so oh well. i just wish that the stupid school compys didn't have SO MANY FREAKING BLOCKS ON THEM!!!! RAWR!!! i can't even get to my personal website!!!! i'm so angry. i haven't updated it for days. my poor readers are probably thinking iv'e died.... T_T

LieanaIylea

December 4, 2007

aged Snake Oil

Today I broke out my first bottle of Snake Oil, since it's officially a year old now. What I noticed most is an increased sweetness. Also it smelled different on one forearm than on the other, like I didn't roll the bottle enough or something. It reminded me a lot of frankincense, which I don't think I've ever noticed about Snake Oil. But basically.....it just smelled really good!