skybound2

08:00 pm: 48-Hour Film Time!
Obscure Reference Films presents: F.iG.M.enT. (Fairy God Mother in Training)! Co-written and Co-edited by yours truly, and directed and produced by emmmitt. (I also have a fairly convincing cameo as a Bumblebee ;-P)

ETA: Our requirements were: it had to be a fantasy, have a character named "Eve Pagoda" (who had to be a coach of some kind), feature an ID card, and the line "We're hoping things will change".

03:36 pm: Zzzz
It's possible, that I may have - just for a moment - fallen asleep at my work desk. Only 1.5 hours before I can go home and take a much needed nap. *sigh* Apparently, this weekend took more out of me then I thought it had.

09:53 am: 48-Hour Film Weekend & Dreamwidth
We made a movie! Again! And I think it came out awesome. There was definitely some frustration (the one actress treated the script as a suggestion, and barely even that - which made the editing process HORRID for page5grrl and I (not too mention our director emmmitt). (In that vein, inmostlight, be thankful you weren't on set while she massacred our script. It was truly painful at times.)

Last year I assisted with writing, and acted. This year I split the writing and editing duties with inmostlight and page5grrl respectively, and I gotta say, it was so much more work then last year. But extremely rewarding in the end. You tube link will be forthcoming, just as soon as I have the go ahead to post the sucker online ;-P

---

On the Dreamwidth front, being the good little sheep I am, I have opened an account (under the same name as here). Just like my Insane Journal and my JournalFen (and previously my Greatest Journal before it went belly up), the D-Width account will just be a back up journal for this one (meaning I don't anticipate using it regularly for anything else). If that changes, I'll let you know. Regardless, feel free to friend away over there :-)

If anyone here is planning on jumping ship entirely for there, let me know, and I'll be sure and follow you over there instead. I haven't yet backed up this journal to that one, so currently, the place is filled with tumbleweeds, but that will change soon. All that said, I still prefer LJ over everything else, so this will remain my primary journal.

12:40 am: 48-Hour Film Project Take 2!
So we've successfully made it down to DC and begun work on our 48-hour film. *bounces*

This year, our genre is FANTASY! Which is frankly, simply fantastic. We've completed our first script write (Some of the ideas that ended up on the cutting room floor where absurd and yet COMPLETELY AWESOME. 'tis a pity that we can't do them all). Now it is in the polishing stage, with pro-boards to be completed shortly. Tomorrow our production time is scheduled for 9 am, and will go til (I would think) at least early (if not late) evening.

The hats that I am donning for the project this go round include co-writer, a brief no-dialogue extra, and co-editor with. I might squeeze in some other random production work during the day if needed as well, we shall see.

Color me excited :-D

Wish us luck folks!!

P.S. we totally tried to figure out a way to work zombies in (including the use of a Dead Abe Lincoln (courtesy of our illustrious director)), but alas, it was not meant to be. *sigh*

08:45 pm: 42 (It's an answer, not a question)
Several things in no real order:( Behind a cut because its a bit long )

08:42 am: It's Earth Day, do something nice for your planet :-D
Now granted, everyone, everywhere should try and do something nice for their planet every day of the year (it being the only one we have and all), but at the very least on this day try to keep it on the forefront on your minds. Cool?

Cool.

So, to kick off, we have the Earth Day Network; which provides lots of good information about the happenings surrounding this Earth Day (and next year's big 40th anniversary Earth Day extravaganza). They also have lots of links to Earth Day events and happenings round and about the US, Canada, Australia, the UK, and several other European countries. Lots of info there to be sure.

Next up, we have the ever useful and popular Treehugger and their Earth Day page. There is an insane amount of content at that site folks. With links to just about anything environmentally-related that you can imagine. Need a green buying guide? They have that. How about info on sustainable design and architecture? They have that too. Be sure to check out the links on the sidebar as well, as they are just full of useful sites.

Then there is Global Stewards, which provides a whole slew of "environmental tips and sustainable solutions for a healthy planet." Highly informative and useful.

And you can always find information and activism activities at places like The Audubon Society, Oceana, the World Wildlife Fund, and The Nature Conservancy.

And that's my Earth Day sales pitch for this year folks :-)

10:41 am: New Community
In preparation for the release of Caprica on DVD/Download tonight, I've started up a new icon/graphics community for the show:

capricaicons capricaicons capricaicons
Join. Pimp. Post.

That is all :-D

04:53 pm: This post may be more appropriate for Facebook but...
I don't care.


IT'S FRIDAY!!!!


*throws confetti*

02:19 pm: More Phoebe News
Phoebe's bite wound reopened during the night (meaning, it popped a few stitches), and I had to bring her back to the Vet this morning. They were forced to completely redo the wound closure, and they had to place a drain in as well. Because the procedure was more involved, they had to use full anesthesia for her this time. Then she went and freaked the doctors out, because her temperature spiked to nearly 106 F (Normal temp is between 101-102 F)! This is the complete opposite reaction that most greyhounds have under anesthesia (wherein, their temps normally drop), so they had to giver her a full liter of fluids to help bring it down. Which it did (temp at time of discharge was 102.5 F).

She was given a second (much stronger) antibiotic to take along with the one she is already on. The drain needs to be removed in about 5 days, and the sutures will come out in two weeks (assuming everything goes fine). We were given strict instructions to limit her movement/exercise, because her skin has to be pulled very tight in order to be resutured, so there really isn't any give right now.

All in all, today's little visit cost more then the other visits combined, with a tally of more then $700. Guess who I'll be calling about cutting me another check tonight? *sigh*

And in case you couldn't tell, I'm working from home today...

01:33 am: How I Got Scammed by a Girl Named Orpha (True Story)
So, one of my most long-term and dearest friends is getting married next month. We aren't as close as we were when we were kids, as we have grown up and don't run in the same circles anymore, but still, we love each other dearly. So when one of her Bridesmaids (whom I had never met, but who I had heard my friend mention, and who is named Orpha), calls up with the details for my friend's Surprise Bachelorette Party, I'm super excited.

Until I hear the date.

Which, as I'm guessing you might be able to surmise, was for tonight. I.e. The night before Easter.

Now, I may not be religious, but that doesn't mean that my family doesn't take every possible opportunity to get together and have a good time all under the guise of "a holiday" just like the next person. This particular Easter weekend, Magus and I had plans to go visit our family in Western PA. When I mentioned all of this to Orpha, she apologized for having things being booked this weekend, but said that she honestly didn't realize it was Easter, as she was Jewish, and didn't keep track of those things (I thought that this was odd, because Passover fell at the same basic time as Easter this year, but I handwaved it, because who the hell would lie about THAT?!)

After some discussion, Magus and I both agreed that NOT going to tonight's bash was not an option for me, as I know that my friend has been looking forward to getting married for a VERY long time, and I had always promised her that I would go to her Bachelorette Party. So, off Magus goes (with our niece and future SIL in tow) to his brother's for the weekend, and here I stay (which worked out decent, since Phoebe needed more care then my Mom could comfortably provide).

Now, I think some details are in order. ( Cut because this gets LONG folks, but trust me, its worth the effort )

And that, my dear friends-list, is the incredibly true story about how I (and 12 or so other people) got scammed by a girl named Orpha.

11:13 am: Updates
I took Phoebe back to the Vet yesterday, as she had some fluid buildup along her side and her underbelly, and MASSIVE bruising (she's all purple and red!) and we thought there was a chance she could have some internal bleeding. Luckily, that turned out not to be the case. Rather, she has a seroma. They double-checked her clotting factors just to be sure there wasn't a bleeding issue, and everything came out fine. Now we just need to warm compress her underbelly, along with her wound, twice a day to help the healing process. Sadly, this is not very comfortable for her.

She started eating again this morning, and I made sure to giver her her pain meds a couple of hours before we did the warm compress treatment, so that they would be in her system already, and that seemed to help a lot as compared to yesterday. I actually let her stay home today, because she REALLY didn't want to come with me, and she is some much stress free at home then she is here. However, I really want to check up on her, so I might have to have my SIL go over and say hi before my nerves get the best of me.

The owner of the other dog did drop off a check last night, and we talked for a bit. I'm concerned that she thinks that this might have just been a completely one-off incident with her dog, and it doesn't seem like she's going to be taking any other precautions with her pet besides being more conscientious when they are out for walks. *sigh* Apparently her dog is normally a very timid, hide her head in the sand type of dog, that goes running to a corner when ever anyone comes over that she doesn't now, and is scared of the Dachshund that lives next door. Whatever, I just don't want her dog to snap out of nowhere again.

In other news, my sore throat has returned, complete with gunk. Second round of test results should be in today, so I need to call the Doctor and see what's up.

10:17 pm: Just got back from the Vet
Phoebe got bit by a 100-pound German Shepard as we left the house for her walk this evening. She got about 20-25 stitches, and is now resting on our bed. We are going to be taking the couch tonight.

My poor baby. :-(

The other dog was walking towards us as we were heading down the sidewalk, Phoebe (as she usually does) went around to the other side of me and onto the neighbors yard to put as much distance between her and the other dog as possible (she doesn't like meeting strange dogs), and the German Shepard literally LEAPED across the sidewalk and onto Phoebe's back. She bit down, but didn't get a real good grip as I whacked her across the face in order to dislodge her, and Phoebe jumped into the air to get away. Still, she left several puncture wounds and a laceration about 4 inches by 3 inches on the Phoebe's back and side.

The owner of the dog, for her part, was extremely apologetic (she was on her cell phone at the time and not paying any attention, so it came as a complete shock to her when her dog jumped), and is dropping off a check tomorrow to cover the nearly $600 in expenses.

Phoebe will be coming with me to work the rest of the week. I'm not letting her out of my sight.

*sigh*

I'm going to go play "Oblivion" until I fall asleep now...

02:16 pm: Icon Meme
I can't even count the number of times that I've done this meme now ;-) I like it so...

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

( Read more... )

09:10 am: Seen today on the back of a Toyota Sequoia:
Three conservative bumper stickers that had me blinking and going: "wha-? What!?" ( Behind a cut to spare you )

11:12 am: The Weekend Recap: An earthquake, a bachelorette party, a baby shower, sleeping w/wires, & SPN 4x18
Stuff occurred this weekend. Lots of stuff. First up: the earthquake in Italy. My niece, and her family are doing just fine, although the shaking did extend to their home. Here's hoping that everyone else out there that is either in Italy or has family/friends in Italy is doing well also.

Secondly, my SIL's bachelorette party was Saturday night. We went to Buckheads in Philly, which meant that we all got a chance to ride a mechanical bull (freakin' hilarious!), afterwords we hit up a Jersey club, before finally getting back home at about 3 am. I have nothing more to say on this topic, but fun was had ;-P If any good, non-embarrassing photos show up (I forgot to bring my camera) I will be sure to post.

My other SIL's baby shower was yesterday afternoon. It was held outside in absolutely PERFECT weather. This little boy has some of the cutest outfits already. He will be well dressed until he is at least 6 months old. I'm honestly getting quite excited to meet him ;-P

Last night was my sleep study. I gotta say, nothing makes you feel more relaxed or provides for a more contented sleep then being hooked up to a ridiculous number of wires, and then connected to a bunch of machines. It totally doesn't make you panic slightly everytime you try and turn over, because your brain KNOWS that its connected to a bunch of cords, and proceeds to wake you up everytime you move an inch. I was completely wrapped in a cocoon of the blanket and sheet when I woke up too. It was kind of hilarious. Removing that gunk from my hair afterwords was not fun though. And despite washing my face three times, there is still some left over glue in places. *shrugs*

Magus and I (along with my Mom) watched SPN 4x18 ("The Monster at the End of this Book") on Saturday ( Spoliery-thoughts ahead )

12:01 pm: Weather & Stuff
There is a smallish monsoon happening outside my office window. Complete with high winds, tons of rain, lightning, and thunder. Its dark, and desolate, and absolutely miserable looking.

I kind of love it ;-P

This weekend's activities consist of going over my brother's tonight for TV and game-type stuff, getting the car inspected tomorrow morning, my sister-in-law's Bachelorette Party tomorrow evening, my other sister-in-law's baby shower on Sunday afternoon, and my sleep study on Sunday evening.

I'm thinking that I'll be able to fall asleep fairly easily by the time I get to the sleep center. o_0

At some point this weekend (probably Sat. afternoon or early Sunday morning), I'll squeeze in a watching of this weeks SPN. *sigh*

Happy Friday, all!!

06:42 pm: Medical Happenings
Okay, so I had a follow up visit with the Doctor today, wherein I got the results of my bloodwork, had more bloodwork drawn, and got a prescription to get a Sleep Study done.

Results of the bloodwork so far are thus:

1. I do not have Lyme's Disease.
2. My cholesterol is AWESOME.
3. I'm still slightly anemic (always have been, always will be. Thank you Beta Thalessemia).
4. I also, possibly, have a slightly overactive thyroid.
5. All other standard blood panel items are within normal operating parameters.

The new batch of bloodwork is going to include a test for Epstein Barr/Mono; double check my thyroid hormone count; and get my levels for B-12, Beta-Carotene, and Vitamin D. I let him know that I am very good about taking my B-12 (and my Glucosamine) every morning, but that I'm piss poor at remembering my multi-vitamin as I have to take it on a full stomach, and as such often forget to do so.

Finally, all of our chit-chatting about my ridiculous sleep patterns, and the high levels of fatigue I'm now experiencing (seriously, I fell asleep at the dinner table very briefly yesterday), he conluded that I should have a sleep study conducted. Something about "Polysomnia." The hyperthyroid issue could be the reason for the insomnia I've experienced, but he isn't convinced that it would explain the fatigue and falling asleep at the drop of a hat that I am now experiencing. The mood swings I've been having could ultimately be explained by some sleep issue though. Although none of this explains the flu-like syptoms I've been getting (including the severe body aches). That COULD be EBV, or it coud be, you know, the flu. Often. And repeatedly. Hard to say.

I'm waiting on a call back from the sleep center. Hopefully they'll be able to fit me in soonish. I'd really like to know what the hell is up.

02:28 pm: I'm feeling droopy in the head
It feels like my brain is being turned into slush. I can't focus on anything that I'm working on, which is somewhat problematic, and nothing that I'm surfing around for on the internet is engaging my interests either.

I think I need absurdly cracky things directed my way in order to help ease me out of this slump. Be it fic, or macros, or fic-macros. Or some other as yet completely undefined type of cracky thing.

So, consider this me begging and pleading and all other manners of self-deprecating actions in the hopes that one of you lot will take pity and send something this way. PLEASE!

I may be forced to engage in pointless acts of polling if nothing is forthcoming, just to pass the time. YOU DO NOT WANT THIS TO HAPPEN PEOPLE.

Also, I totally passed the 1,000 journal post mark 6 posts back and didn't even notice. Hrmph.

10:46 am: Recooperating
My life in a list:

• Skipped out on work (again) on Monday.
• Went to the Doctor' office and had bloodwork done.
  • No clue when the results will be ready.
  • I need to schedule an appointment for next week at the very least.
• Was given RX strength Robitussin.
  • It's not doing jack-shit.
  • I'm going to avoid taking it while at work today, and see how I do.
• Still feel like I've been run over.
  • Am mobile now though, which is an improvement.
  • Odd pain showed up this morning in my right bicep and won't go away now, though.
• Magus loved me enough to make me a chocolate tort.
  • One can infer from this that my appetite is returning now.
  • Sadly my metabolism has not yet.
• I'm irritable, despite the chocolate.
  • Seriously.
  • I'm finding myself itching for a fight.
  • Hell, I've contemplated seeking out wank over at Journalfen, just because.
    • Lucikly, I'm not quite that far gone yet.
    • My head may explode if I get to this point.
• My poor nose has been torn to shreds.
• I look forward to being able to breath easy again.

05:41 pm: BSG, Immune system = Fail, & Winchesters are made of Awesome
Okay, first up, has to, has to, HAS TO be the fact that "Battlestar Galactica" has come to a close. *sniffles* ( Spoilers, but as I'm not really up to a big thinky post (never seem to be in the mood for those these days), they aren't that detailed. )


On the immune system front, mine is still taking unscheduled vacations. It's being a real bastard at the moment. I'm sitting at home, hyped up on DayQuil, and STILL only functioning on a moderate level, while Magus is off visiting friends. I missed work on Thursday, and left early on Friday. And I think that I have finally hit the point where I'm going to stop whining about it, and go see a Doctor and find out what's up. Because this shit? Totally not cool.


And lastly (but never least), Supernatural! Magus and I just finished wathcing this about 3 hours ago, so it's kind of fresh in my head. ( Some short talky talk inside about Thursday's episode )