Stockholm Project, Day 7

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Lazy day today.  Don't really feel like trying.  So I'm wearing my favorite comfy pants (too big, but in a trendy way, right?) and a sweatshirt.  But this sweatshirt ends in an elastic band at my waist.  So it's still a comfy sweatshirt, but I'm not completely hiding in it.  Also, I tend to think that most "regular" outfits can be made more "trendy" with the right accessories.  Hence the hat and the necklaces.











Speaking of the necklaces, I want to recommend the companies who made them:



This one is made from an old typewriter key by the people at Monkapaws.  They recycle vintage typewriter keys, china pieces, and buttons to make awesome jewelry.  They also have some very cool collage pieces.  There are a few companies I've come across that make this kind of jewelry, but I'm attached to Monkapaws because I met them first and because their company is named after their dog.  I mean, anyone who loves their pets as much as I love mine has to be good people, right?


The other necklace I'm wearing is one of my favorite piece of jewelry.

It's a silver medallion made by the fine people at Ye Olde Quicksilversmith.  The information on their homepage and the video at the bottom are really cool.  I'm not sure if you can order medallions from their website; I got my necklace on my last Faire trip (and I'm excited that they're apparently going to be back this year).  Honestly though, watching them make the medallions is the most exciting part of it for me.  Seriously, watch the video.  It's so cool.

The image on the left is the Animal Interlace: "The inter-woven nature of all life, the inner weave of body and spirit. This design is one of the Celtic ‘Zoomorphic’ decorations from Manuscript art between 500 A.D. and 900 A.D."  And the image on the right is a fox (of course):  "Important in many cultures, though with different meanings.  In Japan, the white fox is ridden by Inari, the Rice God and carries the key to paradise. In China the fox is a symbol of eroticism and seduction. In European heraldry the fox represents shrewd cunning."

Monkapaws and Ye Olde Quicksilversmith are both California based companies, but Monkapaws has an online shop and Quicksilver travels all over the country (take a look at the schedule on their website).  If you're shopping for cool gifts for mother's day or are just interested in awesome handmade stuff, I totally recommend both companies.


Anyway, on to food.  Slept through breakfast this morning, so breakfast food was had for lunch.

Lunch:  Slice of sourdough toast with butter
Estimated calories:  185  (Toast: 150, Butter: 35)

Snack:  Three sugar cookies and can of coke
Estimated calories:  280  (Cookies: 140, Coke: 140)

Dinner:  Turkey sandwich and small glass of Santa Cruz lemonade  (organic, less calories than Simply, and just as delicious)
Estimated calories:  550  (Bread: 200, Turkey: 100, Swiss: 100, Mayo: 50, Lemonade: 100)

Late Snack:  Dried apricots and dark chocolate  (really good combination, by the way)
Estimated calories:  100  (Apricots: 50, Chocolate: 50)

Estimated total calories (so far):   1115

So far, still under my 1900 calories.  But we're making port brownies and microwave soda cake tonight.... First time for both for me, so I'll let you know how they turns out tomorrow.

Also, movie with Nenny tonight, so I may end up with a soda, hot dog, and candy tonight too.  Because who can resist crappy movie food?

edit:  As expected, I grabbed snack food for the movie last night.  I had one port muffin (will do a whole 'nother entry on these later), a banana, and 1/3 of a Gatorade.

Estimated calories:  400  (Muffin: 250, Banana: 100, Gatorade: 50)

Bringing total calories for the day to 1515, within my 1900, despite my late night snacking.  Go me!

Exercise:  Yeah, no. 
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A Project Other Than Stockholm

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My current (non Stockholm) project is what I'm calling the Cradle Project.

Now, before those of you who know me start freaking out, no I haven't decided to have a baby.  I'm still undecided, but leaning towards no on that one.  Interesting side note, though:  Last night I met Challenger's parents for the first time and they told me that in five generations of their family, there have only been four girls.  And the girl for this generation has already been born.  Challenger's oldest brother got the girl, so apparently the girl quota has been filled and 'it would be a miracle' if Challenger or his other brother had any daughters.  Good to know.  ...Did I mention it was the first time I'd met them?

Anyway, the Cradle Project.  It ties in to that whole, if you want it, ask God/the universe for it and then act as if you already have it thing; the philosophy central to The Secret and represented in several ancient religions, including Christianity.  The Secret is an interesting book, by the way, and definitely worth reading, but takes the ask/receive philosophy a little too far IMO*.  So what is the Cradle Project?  The Cradle Project is the first of a few projects I will be doing that focus on creating furniture for my new apartment.

Matthew 7:7-8
 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

You see, following the outlines of The Secret and Matthew's gospel, I've asked God for a job.  And corollary to that, a new apartment.  So if I am to assume that because I've asked, I will receive, I need to get packing.  Not a problem, really, since most of my stuff is still in boxes.  But I am opening them up, going through them, and repacking everything I still want/need.  Everything else is going to Mission Solano, a charity based in and focused on the community I live in.  I'm not sure about other philosophies and religions, but getting rid of old/unused/tired things is a big part of Feng Shui.  The idea is that if you get rid of the stuff you don't use or the stuff you hang on to because you have some sort of weird guilt complex about it, you create better energy flow in your house and your life and make room for new things that you will use/love.


So, how does this relate to furniture?  Once I've got my life repacked and I know that everything I want to have in my new place is ready to go, I of course need to think about furniture.  Now, asking God for a job because you need some cash, doesn't mean that you should assume it will magically show up in your checking account the next day and go out and buy a new TV.  But to assume that because I have no cash, I can't prepare for the apartment that is undoubtedly coming my way shows a lack of faith.  So instead of spending money (coughcoughthatIdon'thavecoughcough) on furniture for the apartment, I'm doing what HGTV calls "repurposing".

Over the next few weeks, I'm going to convert this:

An old cradle.  I think it was my grandfather's from when he was a baby.

into an ottoman with storage.  Probably snack storage.  What?  I like snacks.

It'll probably take a while because it's got some special issues that need to be dealt with.  Problem one; it's raining again.  I'm sure as hell not doing this inside, so I've to wait until it clears up again.  Problem two; the cradle is old, which means that the paint chipping off of it is lead-based, so I can't just sandblast the bastard.  I have to specially dispose of the paint that I need to chip off by hand.  Problem three;

some of the loopy side pieces broke off at some point and have been reattached with wire.  Which means that in order to fix it, I need to find someone who can weld them back into place for me.  Anyone know any welders in the San Francisco Bay Area?

So that's the Cradle Project.  Thoughts/concerns/comments appreciated, as I'm still not sure an ottoman is where I want to go....even if I do love snack storage.   

*IMO = in my opinion.  Watch out for gamer slang and abbreviations in the Den.  They'll getcha if you aren't watchin'.
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The Stockholm Project

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Yes, I know I don't exist anymore.  But as I said a while ago, until my life gets interesting again (i.e. I have a job), every day is the same for me, so there's no point in posting 800 posts that all say "I'm stuck on this new chapter of Icewind Dale* and I'm frustrated because this game is too old to find relevant guides online" and then immediately following, create 800 more equally depressing, self-depricating posts that say "Hey, I figured it out, now if only I could use my gaming strategy genius to land a job".

On the job front, I did interview with a law firm in San Francisco yesterday, and I feel pretty good about it.  So keep your fingers crossed for me.  Seriously.  Do it now.  Other job front news includes an upcoming contract signing for the stage management of the next season of Ivory Arts Inc. shows.  I'm really excited about working with my friend, the Director (will probably update the DP with an entry about him later...probably), again, but auditions for the first show won't start until late October.  So for now, I'm kind of stuck in Limbo (and not the fun, but not always fun, Hawaiian-themed party game kind).

Anyway, the point I'm trying to get to is about a project started Temerity Jane.  She's calling it 'Stockholming Myself' and her latest entry on it can be found here.  The basic idea is that she's taking a full-body picture of herself every day in the hopes that she will see the effects of her new diet & exercise plan or, "failing that, will learn to like what [she's] got based on continual, unrelenting exposure".  It's an interesting idea and a project I'm considering doing.  If I do decide to do this, though, I don't think I'll be posting a picture every day.  More than likely, it'll be once a week or a couple times a week.  And my goals will probably be less about changing how I feel about my body than learning to be comfortable in front of a camera.  Because let's get one thing straight: I am not photogenic.  There aren't a whole lot of pictures of me that I like that don't involve me making a silly face.  A prime example:

 This is me and my bestest friend.  I'm the one on the left.  

I love this picture, but note the silly face I'm making.  This is because attempts at a normal smile in pictures don't turn out well.  I either looked stoned, or way oh-my-god excited, or like I want to rip your soul out through your nostrils.

And then there's the the dreaded full-body pictures.  My problem with full-body pictures is, again, not because I have any problem with my body.  I apparently have a problem with posture.  And not just, 'Oh look, I'm slouching a little bit there, damn' kind of a posture problem.  If someone points a camera at me from far enough away that my legs are visible, my spine decides to attempt to jump into the fourth dimension.  The fourth dimension being time, and jumping into the fourth dimension meaning an attempt to fast forward to a pregnancy filled future than I'm not sure I want.  Don't believe me?  Here, one a few full-body pictures that don't look completely awful.
 

Again, me with my bestest friend.  And again, I am on the left.

I'm clearly drinking some form of adult libation (what else does anyone put in those red plastic cups?) and I look like I'm really, really, really oh-my-god excited to see you.  As a picture of my face, this is fairly typical.  As a full-body picture, it isn't.  My posture isn't great, but this picture would not lead you to believe that in a few months I will deliver a baby with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.  A typical full-body picture looks like this:

Yes, those tights are just as amazing in person.

What the Hell?!  Seriously.  It's the same night, the same place, the same clothes.  And yet in the time it took the person with my camera to move from in front of the couch to the center of the room, I managed to consume a six month fetus.  What can I say?  I guess when I see a camera, babies sound tastay.

./sigh

So I am considering participating in the Stockholm Project.  Because I need to get to the point where if someone points a camera at me, I don't have to go through a mental check-list that includes "stand up straight and suck it in, smile with your eyes, stand up straight and suck it in, don't grin like an idiot, stand up straight and suck it in, don't make a silly face, and stand up straight and suck it in".  Also because it might be a nice incentive to actually keep up a good diet & exercise plan, instead of just starting the same one every few weeks and getting bored.  Also also, it'll give me something to write about while I wait to hear about the job in San Francisco.  (You are still crossing your fingers about that one, right?)


I guess you'll be seeing more of me then.  Both literally and figuratively. 

'Til tomorrow. Cheers.



*Since I can no longer afford my World of Warcraft subscription, I am limited to single player, non-online games. Which would be fine, if I could afford new games.  But I can't.  So I'm replaying all of the old games that used to keep me up until 3a.m. in high school.  Some of you might be saying that I could just stop playing games (coughcoughNennycoughcough), but then I'd jut resort to watching television until my eyes dry out and I get a headache.  Also, I really am super stuck on this chapter of IWD and that's pathetic, but I'd still like a magic guide to drop out of the sky and tell me how to kill the Ancient Guardians in the caves of Dorn's Deep.  Yes, Nenny, laugh at me now.  I am a giant nerd.
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