Heeeeey, long time no see!

Let's be honest: It's been a while. This blog is kinda dead. It happens.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

On the bright side, I have a brand new site to check out! Never fear, I'll be keeping this blog up for archival purposes (just in case you want to relive that time I saw a real life UFO or when I subjected you to weird tree pictures), but if you want to follow some more recent exploits, come visit me at my new home!

squidinksarah.wordpress.com

On superhero storyline reboots

There's something that the comic book industry has that isn't really prevalent anywhere. And no, I'm not talking about the superheroes. Comics books aren't afraid to break continuity and start over. Which I find pretty interesting.

You don't even have to read comic books to know what I'm talking about, just see Batman. Remember all the silly movies from the nineties and how Christopher Nolan took that material and made it dark and gritty for the newer movies? Better yet, did you know that there are plans for yet another Batman reboot in the future? And what about the new Spiderman that's coming out this summer? Or the two different Hulk movies?

And that's only the movies. If you start looking into the cartoon franchises and the source material itself, you'll notice that this is a trend. Comic books are all about rebooting the same characters and the same ideas, but giving them twists.

Which is fun, in a different sort of way. If you had a history with comics and watched the first season of Young Justice, you knew everyone's darkest secrets before they became an issue. You understood why certain characters were paired off and you knew what the future held for some of them. But that anticipation wasn't bad--it was awesome because not everything was the same.

Now, the reasons these reboots exist is for money. The idea is to keep an interested audience without losing what got them interested in the first place. But I guess what I'm wondering is, why don't we ever see this outside of comic book stories? I'm sure that everyone would jump on an alternate universe re-telling of Harry Potter. So why don't writers or filmmakers or video game producers reboot their stories? The profit is there, there are talented writers who would love to play with previous franchises, and the possibilities are infinite.

So what do you guys think? Would you love to see a reboot of your favorite book or tv show, or is that what fanfiction is for? Would you be willing to take your characters from your own writing and create new stories for them? And what about superheroes--why do these reboots work for them, but not anyone else? Tell me what you think in the comments.

JOURNEY

Okay, I've tried to write this post three times without any level of coherency. First it was going to be part of another 5 video games writers should play post. Then it was going to be another ost lowdown post. And now it's just a ridiculous mess and to hell with it.

Uhh . . . Journey?
Journey is a video game designed and developed by thatgamecompany for the PlayStation 3. And I love it. Irrationally, irrevocably, and, uhh, irresistibly.

thatgamecompany describes Journey as "an interactive parable, an anonymous online adventure to experience a person’s life passage and their intersections with others" . . . which just sounds weird. And Journey is more than that. While there's a plot, this is a game you experience instead of just play . . . so there's a huge emphasis on atmosphere and mood and what you as a player put into it.

This isn't your standard shoot-em-up. This is a game about feelings.

And if that's not enough to hook you, there's singing and scarves and magical carpet things and ruins and sand and glyphs and mysterious other players and a mysterious history to uncover. *flail*

Let me tell you how lovely it is
Because it's really lovely. Just look at these pictures. Tell me they aren't epic. I dare you.

Okay, MAYBE I'm biased. And MAYBE I'm like a crow with something shiny . . . but still, you've got to admit: pretty! thatgamecompany may have picked a fairly simple aesthetic, but it works.

And the visuals are only half the package--the score for Journey is some of the best music I've ever heard in a video game. Yes, it's that good. I just . . . there's no way to describe this without sounding ridiculous. But if you like sweeping, epic glory, you'll love it. And if you like writing to sweeping, epic glory, you'll really love it. Seriously. And if you need one more push, you might be interested to know that all 18 tracks are on iTunes (or the PSN) for only $5.

You should care
Yes. Yes you should. And here's why: as writers we are trying to create stories that make people feel something. We want our writing to have power.

Although Journey is simple, it achieved that goal and made freaking waves in the gaming community. Not only has it become the fastest selling game on the PlayStation Network ever, but it freaking moves people (including the tough dudes playing those aforementioned shoot-em-up), and the reason you can buy the soundtrack is because fans demanded it. Craziness!

So I guess my point is that I've learned things from Journey. And it was beautiful and heartbreaking and wonderful and I want you to learn them too. So play the game if you can, or at least give the soundtrack a quite listen. You won't be disappointed.

Okay, now that I've babbled like a fangirl and italicized half of the words in this post, I want to hear from you. How do you feel about video games? Have you ever played one that moved you, or are you mostly familiar with Angry Birds? Give me a heads up in the comments!

It's all in the presentation

There are times when one spends an entire hour writing heartfelt blog posts. And then there are times when one stares at the computer screen for an hour trying to figure out what to say. In that second case, squid videos are always a good copout. *shifty eyes*


Actually, I want to talk about this video. Yes, all of the deep sea critters are nifty and fabulous . . . but the real question lies behind the editing. What's up with the shaky cam and the floaty letters? I don't know about you guys, but it reminds me of the title sequence to some a vaguely creepy, sci-fi-eqsue tv show, like Fringe or X-Files.

So, a little challenge, if you're interested: let's pretend this really is the title sequence of a TV show. What's the show about? Are all of the deep sea creatures the "characters" of the show? Or is there some kind of paranormal exploration going on underwater? Tell me your thoughts in the comments!

The nails on FIRE

I made a completely frivolous purchase the other day. I bought a few bottles of the official Hunger Games  nail polish. Yes, you read right. There is Hunger Games nail polish.

Oh yeah.

There are 12 colors in all--representative of the 12 districts, don't cha know. From left to right these are: Luxe and Lush (District 1), Stone Cold (District 2), Riveting (District 3), Electrify (District 5), and Smoke and Ashes (District 12). *thumbs up*

I, uhh, originally was only going to go with, like, two bottles . . . but then I got sucked in. And seriously, when was the last time I could buy book themed fingernail polish? Oh wait, that's right. NEVER.

So yeah, because I know you're all dying to know about my mani, let me tell you.

I am incapable of taking nice pictures. Sorry.

I was going for a "girl on fire" look . . . because if I'm going to own Hunger Games nail polish, I might as well amp up the ridiculousness. So yes. Smoke and Ashes on four nails, Riveting with a topping of Electrify on the accent nail, and Electrify on two of the Smoke and Ashes nails to create "burning embers."

Yes. I may have put too much thought into this.

Anyway, I was wondering: what's the weirdest book paraphernalia that you've ever picked up? Just a Harry Potter scarf . . . or maybe something weirder? Would you grab some Hunger Games nail polish? And what do you think about my mani? Huh, huh? Tell me in the comments!

OVERSIZED LOAD

As many of you already know, strange things happen to me on road trips. So in lieu of anything relevant, I'm am going to tell you a story.

To set the scene: It was late at night in the middle-of-nowhere Montana. Boyfriend and I were in the last legs of our 12-hour car ride and were ready to sleep forever. Then we saw flashy, orange lights in the distance.

Now, I'm sure that many of you who've been on road trips before are familiar with "Oversized Load" vehicles. In general, they are miniature convoys that usually consist of two flag vehicles and a semi truck hauling anything from half of a house to parts of a wind turbine.

This, however, was not your standard "Oversized Load" convoy.

We passed a flag vehicle vehicle with rather prominent lighting that said, "Oversized Vehicle Ahead SLOW DOWN." Then we passed another one with a sign that read, "Be prepared to stop." The next truck was not only driving in the middle of the road, but it was strapped with a gigantic light-up sign that was reminiscent of the glowy communication helicopter from Independence Day.

Which we then followed at 35mph (as opposed to the actual speed limit of 75mph) for the next ten miles.

Luckily the road curved nicely, so we could see the entire convoy. Which included two more flag vehicles, a pilot truck, a two unmarked cars (which ended up being a police car and a flag vehicle without lights) . . . all of which were behind the actual "Oversized Load" vehicle. In front of it were two more unmarked cars (another cop car and unlit flag truck), and two lit flag vehicles.

The real question is, of course, what in the world did these people need to transport that 1) required 12 different support vehicles, 2) needed to be transported in the dark of night, and 3) had to take up the entire road?

Obviously it was a UFO. *nods*

In all actuality, I can't tell you what it was. When the convoy finally pulled over to let the block-up of cars past, all I could see were metal bars and tanks and valves . . . and I couldn't get a picture thanks to the whole pitch-black-middle-of-the-night thing. Alas. Maybe it really was a UFO. *shrug*

So have you ever witness such a large "Oversized Load" convoy? Or, better yet, do you have any other good road trip driving stories? I'd love to hear about them in the comments!

I'm a Platform-Building Campaigner!

Well, after some hefty consideration, I've finally decided to participate in Rachael Harrie's 4th Writers' Platform-Building Campaign. Woo!

If you've never heard of it, the Platform-Building Campaign is a pretty big deal. I've never participated before, but from what I've heard, it's a great way to meet other writers online and forge friendships. There are a ton of people participating (including my peeps, Brenna and Daniel), so it looks like it'll be pretty exciting.

Registration is open until the 15th of February (that's this Wednesday people), so if you're interested, take a look at the information page. I hope to see you participating by my side!

Have you ever participated in one of Rachael Harrie's Platform-building Campaigns? If so, what'd you think? And if not, well, why not? Tell me all about it in the comments.

Local libraries and e-books

Okay, remember last month when I talked about my feelings on the Kindle 3 after having one for a year? Well, something has changed since then and now. Something that is worth telling you guys.

My local library started lending e-books. And I love it, for several simple reasons:

• It's easy. You think pirating books is easy? Well, checking out an e-book is easier and 100% legal. All you do is select the book of your choice, and, if you're using a Kindle, download it through Amazon like any other e-book.
• You don't have to go to the physical library to check books out. As long as you have a computer and wi-fi access for your e-reader (3G is apparently out for now), you can check out books from anywhere and at anytime your heart desires.
• As such, you don't necessarily have to live near your library of choice, as long as you have a library card. Maybe your nearest library is over an hour away? Well, it's not a whole lot easier to support it. Maybe you're going on vacation? Well, support your local library from across the world!
• Your library books expire on their own. That means no more worrying about getting your books back on time and no more overdue book fees.

Of course, several of these things are a bit troublesome for the future of libraries. There's a lot of debate going on about whether libraries should have to pay for multiple e-book licenses, whether they should have to buy new licenses after a certain number of lendings in order to compensate for traditional book "wear and tear," and how they are going to survive without the funds provided by overdue book fees.

I don't have any solutions for these problems, but I can definitely say that I love the convenience of checking out an e-book via my local library. It doesn't seem like a feature that would be going away anytime soon, so I guess I'm curious as to what you guys think.

So how do you feel about the e-book revolution in regards to the traditional library? Should libraries be treating e-books the same way they treat normal book checkouts? And, of course, have you ever checked out an e-book from your local library, or are you still waiting for it to offer the service? Tell me your thoughts in the comments.

The requisite crafty!squid post

You know what, I haven't posted anything squid-related in a while.

. . . and Keito is eating the hammock. Yessiree.

And that would be my giant squid pillow, Keito. Don't we all need random crafty squid creatures in our lives? Why yes, yes we do. So if you're feeling the need to sate that urge, why not take a look at some of these great squid projects:

• 8-foot giant squid pillow. Yes, this is the pattern I followed to make Keito. It's a bit nightmarish at times (especially if you overstuff your squid and have to hand-sew large sections), but definitely worth it. A playful pillow and a great conversation starter.
• Adult knitted squid hat. Knitting is the bane of my existence, but this hat is nice and silly. And with a little modification could be easily transformed into a blooper. :D
• Deep sea diver and squid amigurumi. This one's pretty cute. I imagine that it would make a good centerpiece if you wanted to put together a fake fishbowl . . . you know, with all of the rocks and plants, but no actual fish. just the diver and the squid. Yeah?
• Realistic crochet squid. For those who are looking to make a hardcore squid. I haven't made this one yet, but I really love the accuracy put into it. Definitely looks like it would be quick to whip up, and there's a companionable octopus pattern!

Now weren't those adorable? There are a ton of squid patterns out there (including a spectacular mitten one that you can only see with a Ravelry account), but I tried to pick out some of my favorites. Either way, I really need to get my hands on that realistic squid pattern . . .

So how do you guys feel about crafty squid projects? Have any desire to sew your own 8-foot squid pillow? Or are you working on something a little more, uhh, normal? Tell me what crafty endeavors you're up to in the comments!

A particularly kreativ and versatile post

Something exciting happened to me last Friday. I got nominated for two different blog awards from two different people! Woo!

So thanks to two fabulous ladies: Krista over at I Take the Pen for the Kreativ Blogger Award and Julia at Life As it Is, Dreams As I Make Them for The Versatile Blogger Award! Take a moment to go check out both of their blogs, as Krista runs some fantastic flash fiction challenges and Julia is archiving her adventures with dreadlocks. :)

As per being nominated, I have to do a couple things:

1. Thank and link to the peep that nominated me.
2. Share ten (kreative)/seven (versatile) random facts about myself.
3. Award some other nifty bloggers.

Like last time, I'm going to combine these and give you ten facts instead of seventeen, okay? So voila:

1. I'm pretty musically inept. Looking at sheet music makes my eyes cross. I played the piano for about three months, and the only reason I survived is because I memorized the songs.
2. I'm one of those people who likes cleaning if it involves organizing something. Packing boxes seriously appeased my inner Tetris queen.
3. Speaking of Tetris, I love it. A lot. Playing helps clear my mind.
4. I'm madly in love with superhero cartoons. They're a nice combination of action and ridiculousness. Some favorites would be Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, Justice League Unlimited, Teen Titans, and Young Justice. But the list goes on.
5. I also enjoy superhero movies (maybe I should just say that I love superheroes in general?). A recent favorite was Thor because it was essentially a movie about sparkly space vikings. It can't get better than that.
6. I have long fingers and slender hands. When I was a little kid, my parents' friends who own sheep used to tell me that I had good hands for helping sheep with difficult births. I was, understandably, horrified.
7. After much deliberation, I've decided that peanut butter M&Ms are the best writing snack ever. Cheez-its and homemade Crispix mix are a close second.
8. I've officially gotten to that point in my crocheting career where I can completely wing a project or alter a pattern and it'll still turn out decent.
9. After using Spotify for a couple months, I would have to say it's one of my essential computer programs. I love how easy it makes finding new music.
10. I'm a big fan of card games, if only because a single deck of cards can equate to so many different things. Favorites include pinochle, euchre, oh hell, and cribbage (though you need a board for that).

Wasn't that thrilling? Anyway, time for some award nominees:

1. Brenna at Blissfully Brenna - For once, I actually get to nominate her first! She's one of my fabulous CPs and you should all annoy her until she updates more. >:D
2. Daniel at Daniel Todd Noyes - One of my IF writing buddies. He knows his stuff and has got a great sense of humor, which shows its face on his blog.
3. Jessie at Little Bonobo's Book Cafe - All of her posts are interesting and she magically says everything I feel . . . also, she writes about magical binturongs.
4. Kirstin at SqueezeBoxPharm - Because now that she's actually updating, we've been regaled with exciting accordion videos! On a semi-regular basis!
5. Thea at Thea's Writing Asylum - She's all about zombies. Writing about zombies, reviewing about zombies, crocheting zombies. Just go visit her. 
6. Kate at The Queen of Creativity - You know me. I've always gotta pimp my mother when it comes to blog awards. Plus, she does pretty art.

Alrighty, that's all from me for now. But here, because I know you were all waiting for it, my standard "I know award posts are boring" video to entertain you guys:

On the road again

If you've been a longtime follower of Squidink, you might remember when I went to Portland, OR last spring. If not that's cool. All you really need to know is that that trip was all about apartment hunting and that, uhh, I didn't end up getting an apartment.

But I finally have an update: I'm officially moving to the Portland area!

I don't have too many details yet--most of them still need to be ironed out--but I'm heading over there on Monday. Thus, I've been packing all week . . . which sucks . . . but I'm almost done and moving definitely makes up for cardboard box hell.

Boxes are more plentiful than they appear.

Anyway. Do you guys have any good news to share? It doesn't have to be anything big--sometimes you have to set aside some excitement for the little things in life. So tell me what you guys are up to in the comments!

Guest Post: The quest for the crochet zombie

It's been a while, but today is a day for a guest post! Woo!

So Thea Gregory, one of my lovely Twitter peeps, is currently doing a blog tour for her Zombie Bedtime Stories. I've only had the opportunity to read the first installment, Locked In, but it was definitely a treat. Envision your standard zombie apocalypse . . . but written from the POV of a victim. Yeah. That's right. Our main character becomes a zombie. It's fabulous. Go check it out. Now.

Anyway, being that Thea and I bond about crocheting all the time, today she is going to regal you all with her adventures in crocheting a zombie. Enjoy!

---

When I was 9 years old, I started making teddy bears. Pictured is the only remaining relic (that I know of) from that time. As you can see, I had a very weak grasp of proper stitching and pattern-making, but a strong appreciation for the macabre. Perhaps Bear simply came before his time. 

During Bear’s almost 20 year stay in a basement, I received a book for my birthday, Creepy Crochet by Christen Haden. It contained all kinds of marvelous wonders, like how to make your own crochet Trojans, zombies, vampires, robots, and even Chuthlu. I was fascinated, and my quest to create a crochet zombie began.

I hit one immediate snag—I didn’t know any of the stitches! As the granny square queen, I can basically make a giant square blanket. While this is amazing, useful and a great way to spend the winter months, it doesn’t help me create my zombie empire, or re-enact the Zombie Bedtime Stories with little dolls. Because, who wouldn’t want to act out zombie fiction with crochet dolls?

So, my old friend Google and I teamed up for yet another adventure. I made many attempts to start at the logical source—the head. What’s a zombie without a brain? I tried, again and again, but eventually I was sent back to the drawing board. So, I started with an arm, a project that was a bit less ambitious. At first, I thought it would just be a finger hat, and posed accordingly.

But, miraculously, the arm came together properly. Afterwards, I fashioned another arm, in green. I made the arms different colors, because he’s my crochet zombie, thus he needs to be special.

Emboldened by the success at creating two almost symmetrical arms (zombies don’t need symmetry, they need brains) I decided to return to making a head. Despite forgetting to count my stitches, I pressed on, eventually coming to a roughly spherical shape.

But, disaster struck.

My arm had cramped up, and I could no longer continue. Not wanting accept defeat, or to deprive Bear of his new little brother, I cobbled the old, discarded attempts into a mouth and hair. Then, I added buttons for eyes, and stitched on his little arms. I used a sharpie to give his eyes the proper bloodshot effect. No cutesy giggly eyes for my zombie.  Bear would be jealous, after all.

Thus, I created a crochet zombie. Not in the fashion that the book recommended, but he’s made of crochet, cute, and obviously a zombie. For the moment, that’s good enough for me!

The quest for the perfect crochet zombie shall continue! 

---

THEA GREGORY
Thea writes zombie stories and science fiction. She was raised in rural Quebec, where her imagination was often her only friend, and this upbringing also engendered a fanatical love of reading and books.You can stalk her at her blog, Thea's Writing Asylum, or on Twitter as @TheaIsis.

2011

I don't really make New Year Resolutions. Partly because I can never come up with specific things I think would make for good resolutions, and partly because I don't see the point of waiting until a new year to make yourself goals. Not that there's a problem with resolutions--they kinda rock--I'm just too wishy-washy.

Despite this, I made a resolution for this year. Do you remember it?

The idea was to blog every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday of this year. Technically I've succeeded, despite some lame posts. I've also subjected you the depths of my geekiness, everything I've crocheted, and, of course, my trials with writing. But the best part? I made some rocking new friends! *double thumbs up*

Now, on the matter of 2012 . . . well, I guess I just want 2012 to be better than 2011. And maybe to survive the apocalypse and crochet a cute squid-lett and finish my freaking book. You know, the important things.

But what about you guys? What kind of things are you looking forward to next year? Have you made any concrete New Year Resolutions? If so, what kind of things do you resolve to do or, uhh, not do? And, of course, how do you think I did on completing my resolution? Tell me in the comments!

Some holiday recipes

One of my favorite things to do during the holiday season is mail munchies to people. Not only do I get to eat the leftovers (that is, after all, the chef's prerogative), but you can't really go wrong with giving people food. There's blood and sweat and toil in those goodies!

Right. Now, since I can't possibly gift munchies to all of you guys, I thought I'd at least share the recipes I used. Sound good?

The only picture I took. And it was to update my cookbook.

• Melt in the Mouth Caramels
  This is a recipe I'm pretty familiar with, as I've made these caramels about five times. I prefer softer caramels though, so we only cooked the mixture to 235ºF on the candy thermometer. It might just be an elevation thing though, so make sure to use the cold water test.
  
  
• Molasses Chocolate Chip Cookies
  One of my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes. The molasses and sea salt really bring out the chocolate flavor, and the recipe makes a lot of cookies. We used semi-sweet chocolate chips because, uhh, we just did.
  
  
• Peppermint Bark
  Definitely my favorite peppermint bark recipe--I think the puffed rice cereal adds a necessary crunch. We we drizzled melted almond bark over the top of our finished bark, which was pretty and tasty. Just check that picture!
  
  
• Peanut Butter Balls
  Which are delightful and easy to make. But it's Boyfriend's recipe . . . and I'm not sure if I can share it. Sorry? O_O They look like this though:

This picture is actually from last year. Also for the cookbook.

ANYWAY. What treats do you guys make around the holidays? My family also whipped up sugar cookies, lemon bars, horns, and Russian teacakes. ^_^ Tell me what you munch on in the comments.

Arrrrrr! Pirates! Arrrrrr!

I wasn't sure what to blog about today, but then I remember that I like pirates.* I was a pirate for Halloween, FYI. Here's my skull-handed proof:

THE HEADS OF MY DEFEATED ENEMIES.

Anyway, as I was saying, pirates are pretty cool. And what's even better? Why, pirate jokes! So here, friends, let me tell you all of the best (and only) pirate jokes that I know:

What happened when the red pirate ship and the blue pirate ship collided?
Both crews were marooned!

What did the pirate with the pegleg say when he sailed down to Antartica?
Shiver me timbers!

Why do pirates do so poorly in school?
Because they prefer the high seas!

Why is being a pirate so addictive?
You lose one hand and then you're hooked!

How much do pirates pay for their piercings?
A buccaneer!

Speaking of which, how much did the pirate pay for his hook and peg leg?
An arm and a leg!

And what do you call a pirate with no eye?
A prate!

Have you heard about the pirate that took up boxing?
He had a mean left hook!

Why are pirates pirates?
They just arrrrrr!

What is a pirate's favorite school subject?**
Debate, because then he gets to arrrrrrgue.

Did you hear about that new pirate movie?
It's rated arrrrrr!

What is a pirate's favorite fast food restaurant?
You'd think that it'd be Arrrrrrby's, but it's actually Long John Silver's.

A pirate walks into a bar with a roll of paper towels on his head.
The bartender asks, "What's up with the paper towels?"
The pirate says, "Arrrrrr, I've got a bounty*** on me head!"

See, weren't those hilarious? Yes. Yes they were. Unfortunately, those are only the pirate jokes on hand, and I'm certain that there are dozens--nay, scores!--of other pirate jokes that I don't know. So, I'm curious, do any of you know of some fabulous pirate jokes? If so, tell me in the comments!

*Also, I might have written this post at three in the morning.
**Yes, this is my joke. I made it up just for you. Because I love you. <3
***Bounty is a, uhh, brand of paper towels. FYI.

Last minute NaNo inspiration!

Today is the last day of NaNoWriMo! So if you're not quite to 50,000 words and need some NaNo music videos to spurn your creativity . . . well, watch these:







Okay, so you might have noticed that all of these videos are by the same guy. Well, uhh, I think he's made some of the best NaNoWriMo music videos . . . I mean, Mulan parody . . . so, yeah. Unless any of you have some favorite NaNo videos that I've missed? If so, tell me in the comments!

50,000 words

Last night I crossed 50,000 words and became a 2011 NaNoWriMo winner. Then I got Winning Pie:

Victory pie from a fellow wrimo? Why yes!

*throws confetti into the air* It was all rather exciting. And delicious.

Anyway, now for some fun stuff, as I can't help but create a Wordle and throw some stats at you (like I did last time I felt prolific):

Pfft, from this Wordle you might think Rey's the main character. FYI: He's not.

Working Title: EPIC
Genre: YA Fantasy
Total Word Count: 50,225
Completed Manuscript: Hahahahaha . . . no. This was definitely more of an extended free-write than anything resembling a fleshed out story. Should be fun to re-write though. :)
Different Point-of-Views: 4
Days Worked On: 15
Awesome Songs That Helped: Heartlines by Florence + the Machine and Save Me by Royal Bliss. Yes, I listened to single tracks on repeat a lot.

And there we go. I wrote a lot and it was mostly a mess. Of course, that's part of my process . . . maybe I'll talk about it sometime. :) Until then, how are my fellow wrimos doing? Do you have a special victory event planned once you hit 50,000 words? Any pie in your future? Tell me in the comments!

Some of my favorite things

You all know I like NaNoWriMo. It's not like I've been subtle. So today I'll be a little more specific.

For me, NaNoWriMo is all about challenging myself. And collecting little plastic soldiers and knights. Meeting new people. Weekly write-ins at Shari's and The Villa and the library. Encouragement en masse. Competing with other people's word counts. Lemon sour cream pie. Commemorative t-shirts. Word sprints. 50,000+ words. Silly webcam settings. The inspirational stickers. Chatting on Twitter. Complaining on Twitter. Super productive weekends. Discovering a new story. Writing, writing, and writing some more. Wonderful MLs. Google+ hangouts. Talking about stories. And, ultimately, the purple winner bars!

So are you participating in NaNoWriMo? If so, what are some of your favorite things about it? Tell me in the comments!

The long-belated crochet post

Well, this week has been serious. Time for something lighter!

Crafty-times! Now, unfortunately, the last time I did a crafty-times post was back in June. Which is a bit unacceptable. And is also an explanation for why this post is a bit . . . long. *shifty eyes*

Right.

So, back in July I started working on one of these awesome tartan potholders from the September/October issues of Crochet Today! Unfortunately I wasn't considering yarn thickness, so my potholder turned out huge. It's more of a trivet than anything else. But here, observe anyway:

See . . . it's a potholder bigger than my head!

The backing is supposed to be felt, but it's been a bit impossible to find any felt that's an appropriate color . . . which means I might have to dye it. Or just crochet an entire back . . . which sounds kind of nightmarish, considering how much I despise working with cotton.

And, uhh, as long as we're talking about things that need backings, I'm sort of making myself African flower coasters. Why? Well, I have a lot of random yarn leftover from my awesome blanket, and decided to make an african flower. It happened to be the size of a coaster. See:

African flowers are kinda like granny squares . . . only different.

A lot of people make blankets and stuff from African flowers, but I'm not sure I could handle that. It's a lot of stitches for a rather small space. Which is why I'm going for coasters. :) However, on the blanket front, I'm seriously considering this sexy, plaid blanket. I love the red/white/blue yarn combo, but I might go with Green Bay Packers colors too . . . because I need a football blanket. This is important.

Anyway. At about the same time I was working on the "potholder," I made myself a quick case for my portable harddrive. It was super cute until I decided to correct a small mistake and accidentally ripped out the chain stitches and destroyed EVERYTHING.

It's more of a "sleeve" right now.

Yeah. Haven't quite figured out how to fix this without it looking crappy. But I'm sure I'll figure it out. Eventually. Just trust me when I say that it looked better when it was in one piece. Speaking of pieces . . . Totoro is close to being finished! I just have to sew all of his pieces together!

Limbs, limbs EVERYWHERE!

Of course, sewing pieces together is my least favorite part of the entire process. Which is why you aren't getting a new, exciting picture of the mouse crobot . . . since, uhh, I still haven't sewn him together. *fail* And I, uhh, guess I should admit that I haven't worked on the dragon scarf either. *even more fail*

But let's talk success now, shall we?

First, remember that yellow birdie from so long ago? Well, I spruced him up a bit!

He's totally ready for a night on the town!

Yeah, okay, so the sprucing wasn't 100% intentional. I'd made a top hat for a project mentioned below and it was waaaaay too small . . . so the bird got a classy upgrade. I think it gives him the character that he was seriously lacking.

And now you want something better than the bird? Well, let me tell you about the Cathulhu I modified from this pattern. The story goes like this: I crocheted a Cathulhu for my friend Kirstin's birthday. What's a Cathulhu? Well, it's a pun on cat and H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu. The most important part is that it's adorable. Observe in the (relatively old) pictures:

Note the red cat collar hidden beneath the tentacles.

And a back shot so you can see the awesome wings and tail.

Kirstin, btw, adored it (and you can see her indulgent post on the matter here). :3 And now I've been teaching her to crochet . . . which has been entertaining. We're both making the dragon from this Chinese Zociac amigurumi set. Kirstin's still working on hers, but since I have speed and experience on my side, my dragon is currently in pieces:

Me and pieces? We're like this: *crosses fingers*

How did I start talking about a project with pieces that need to be sewn together again?! Jeeze, moving on . . . again . . . and for good this time.

Now, it you've ever perused my Tumblr, you might have noticed that I have a bit of a love affair with calaveras skulls. Well, it's really all kinds of skulls, but calaveras skulls are my favorite. There's just something cool about that aesthetic . . . the Mexico/Dia de los Muertos levels on LittleBigPlanet were some of my favorite in the game. Anyway, several weeks ago I decided to modify this skull pattern and create my own Dia de los Muertos bride and groom!

They're . . . nowhere near done.

The groom is the skull with all of the designs. I also have a top hat with a purple hatband that I haven't attached yet, and after that he'll be finished!

The bride is the difficult part. She'll be getting eyes along with similar designs on her, uhh, face, along with a veil. The veil will be made from crocheted roses and white tulle. If you're curious, my experiments with the crocheted roses have been kind of nightmarish, but have thus far produced these two specimens:

Still deciding whether the small rose is STILL too big. >_>

The big issue here is getting things the right size . . . which is actually how the yellow birdie ended up with his top hat. Hopefully I'll manage to get these done by Halloween.* Wish me luck?

And that's all for now. What do you guys think? I'm partial to the skulls . . . but that's me. :) Also, have any of you worked on any exciting, non-writing related projects in the last few months? Tell me about them in the comments!

Let's talk commercials

Whether they're on your television, prefacing your Hulu video, or interrupting your Livestream feed--there's no way to escape commercials. They're annoying. No one likes them . . . unless it's the Superbowl . . . but we Americans are crazy and you'll have to forgive us for that.

Ahem. Anyway. Like all things in life, some commercials are better than others. How about Volkswagon's "The Force" commercial for the 2012 Passat or the Old Spice "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like" commercial for starters? These are the kinds of commercials that are memorable. That started internet memes.

Well, today I'm sharing with you another pretty awesome commercial. It's for the PlayStation 3, but I think everyone can appreciate the idea that's being presented. Even if you don't play video games.


So, what do you think? I love how the commercial is selling gaming itself. Now, I'm curious . . . do you guys have any commercials that you're particularly fond of? Anything that stood out for its narrative or humor? Tell me about it in the comments!