Halloween: Taking it to the Next Level

Guys....

Okay, it's hard to read but...LINDSEY STIRLING TALKED TO ME ON THE INTERNET! Okay...I am breathing again. And yes, I'm going to respond to this. I just had to get a screenshot for proof of this awesome event.

So, what am I being this year for the illustrious day of All Hallow's Eve? Take 3 guesses. And here's a clue: imitation is the sincerest form of flattery....

Yep! I'm Lindsey Stirling, without a violin because I don't know anyone who has one to borrow. And I don't think I could draw a good enough violin to cover for my severe lack of violin.
This is my first time "cosplaying" as anyone, and I think I did a pretty good job. I would have done Lindsey's signature peacock, but I lack the proper layers for that awesome of hair.

Also, I don't know when I'll get my version of Moon Trance done (hopefully today, before Halloween's over!), but I'll give you guys some teasers!

So here we have me (in a proper Lindsey Stirling costume no less) leading my merry band of people into the woods. Obviously, Luigi is freaking out at the random dude filling in a grave, and everyone else is rather worn of his attitude. To the far right, a cloaked figure watches...

Here you can see a better shot of our cloaked figure. This is where the violin comes in, in full, and naturally, me being a fairy and all, I'm much more susceptible to magical things...like music. To the right, I drop my violin prop and Link looks on in worry. He knows me well enough to know something  is wrong.

Can you imagine one of your good friends turning around to face you with completely blank eyes, that's the kind of look i'm going for here. Link is obviously shocked. The little pencil note says that personality is still intact. Meaning I'm still very much there...

But the music is calling to me, and I have to go. The shot to the right...I can see it so clearly. A girl standing in the middle of a path, full moon shining down on her as the woods loom ominously around.

I switched to pencil here, because pencil I can fix if I screw up. And the mysterious cloaked figure is none other than Lindsey! I made a costume based off her Phantom of the Opera video. The girl on the right, in the dark dress, is my human version of Princess Luna from Friendship is Magic. You can't have a Moon party without the Moon Princess, now can you?

This is later on in the piece, when the violin is being kind of lyrical. Lindsey is trying to charm Zelda, Princess Celestia, Samus and Twilight, the last four who are (somehow) resisting her musical prowess. I mostly just love Lindsey's frustrated expression in this. Also, I changed her costume because she couldn't rock out in that big fancy gown I had her in.

Here, Lindsey notices the people who are resisting (gotta love that label). I love how, even though I'm not the best artist out there, I can still pull off expressions like the one Lindsey has on. The reason these four are resisisting: I'm highlighting their responsible-streak that they feel needs to go on. Also, I consider these four the smartest (in different ways) of my characters. Zelda and Celestia both are wise princesses; Twilight is a genius, and Samus is just stubborn like that.

 

Hopefully I'll get the full thing sketched out before today's over, and I'll probably make a video so my pictures and their actions sync with the music. Agh! Exciting day for me! Happy Halloween!

 

I'll walk you home....
Me:OKAY! :D

 



It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like HALLOWEEN!

Yes, I'm slightly obessed with her. And, yes, this is Thriller-esque.

However, I'm working on my own version of this (mostly a bunch of doodles that, if I had any talent in animating, I could call them a storyboard, but I lack such skills so it's just doodles synced with the music) and I'll probably post that soon-ish. This song gave me such a concrete image of what happened that Lindsey's version kind of disappointed me. (Probably because I repeated it so much it broke my mp3 player multiple times) But hey, she's the creator. She gets to do what she feels is best for her music.

Anyways, let the countdown to All Hallow's Eve begin! I'm slowly becoming more and more of a Halloween fan the older I get. Maybe my inner child is crying out for starving it of candy for the past five years. Wow. I feel really old just thinking about how many Trick-or-Treating sessions I've missed.

My parents didn't approve of teenagers Trick-or-Treating, and I see why. If a bunch of big kids take all the candy, what's left for the little kids? But there's something so rewarding about going from house to house and getting a bucket full of candy. And then there's the weeks after where you get to devour said candy at your own leisure. It's great!

Being a nerd as well, you start to see the exciting aspect of the scary. After all, you can't have a world that's perfectly sunshine and rainbows. You've got to have the dark and scary stuff. Which always leads to That One Level/Dungeon. The one where when you turn the lights off to go to bed, you're positive that the boss you just killed is lurking right under your bed to exact his revenge on your weak, non-heroic self.


I'll just leave this here for you guys...pleasant dreams....

Lethargy

So, this week I was graced with a pretty severe case of hives. Don't worry, I was breathing and well the whole time...just minus giant red, raised, welts all over my body that itched like no one's business. It was really bad because all I wanted to do was rest so I could focus on getting rid of them so I could get better. Let's just say that, nope, that wasn't the case. Thankfully, yesterday and today have been spent doing as little of anything productive as possible. No seriously, I spent most of today just sleeping and I have no idea why. (I blame the allergy meds) I think now I'm on the upswing of this, and I can resume normal school activity and attendence without feeling like I'm sort of freak with red itchy splotches on my hands.

Yeah, this past week I skipped so much class it's kind of not funny. This week, I'll make it up. Yay.

I Should be British

I was talking to my roommate the other day, and it dawned on me that British people are extremely creative. Don't know what I'm talking about? Let's see...

• Harry Potter
• Doctor Who
• Lord of the Rings
• Chronicles of Narnia
• Shakespeare
• Peter Pan
• Alice in Wonderland
• The Beatles

Just to name a few. These books/shows/band have been super influential in fantasy aspects (and musical things) all around the world. I mean, name a recent fantasy series that doesn't have dwarves, elves or some form of a fantastic creature in it. And it all comes from Britain.

Maybe I should move over there and then I'll be influential! Yay!

I solemly swear I am up to no good

Yup! It's that time again! Time for more random nerdiness. Obviously, today's theme is Harry Potter!

This is one of the best book series I've ever read. I can't recall reading other series that made me laugh out loud, tear up, and keep me reading because I have to know what happens next.

I didn't start out with Sorcerer's Stone. I starte with Goblet of Fire. Which in some ways was better than others. GoF was the half-way point of the series, and it introduced Voldemort as a serious threat. But I was confused as all get out about somethings. Like why Sirius was called Snuffles; or why he was on the run, for that matter. I had no idea what Quidditch was, and a whole sort of other things. So I had to go back to the first three books to answer my questions. And then, I was hooked on Harry Potter.

A good friend of mine suggested I share this, since it's nerdy and all and totally hilarious. This is a ABC poem I wrote waaay back my senior year in high school.

The Last Chapter

ABC Poetry

 

As Harry walks

Back into the forest, I

Clutch my book

Dearly, begging him not to.

Everything has led to this moment in the

Forest; I wait, maybe

Grawp will come.

“Harry,”

I whisper through the pages,

“Just wait a minute.” But he can’t so many  have been

Killed, fighting for freedom.

Leaving everything he loves, he

Marches into the wood,

Not knowing the final ending

Of his story.

“Please,” I beg. “Let Harry be okay.”

Quietly, the Death Eaters plan genocide.

Rowling is a genius.

She’s got me, completely ensnared at Hogwarts.

Too soon, Harry makes his last stand.

Understanding it must happen, I think of the

Various betrayals that brought Harry

Where he is now.

Xenophilus, Quirrell, Wormtail, Draco, Snape.

Yawning, I force myself to close the book, seeing Harry’s

Z-shaped scar, peek between his hair.

 

And now, the seven part saga has reached its end.

Mischeif Managed.

Inspiration

It's fall break, and I'm home for this lovely little break. I was contemplating what to talk about since I'm in the planning stages of this here webby comic. And then, I remembered my biggest source of inspiration: my trampoline.

 Here it is!

 



So, a little backstory on my trampoline: this was one of my best friends growing up. I have a lot of good memories of me and my best friend on my trampoline, making up dance routines to song from Shrek and Comin' to America. So, naturally, when I needed to get to my fantasy world, my trampoline was my first go to place.

 

Nessa, in her natural habitat.

 



The trampoline I'm sitting on is actually the third in a line of trampolines I got within years of each other. I first broke our oldest trampoline after having it for about 13 years. We bought a cheap one at Wal-Mart to replace it. That was a mistake. The frame rusted and broke. Clearly, they hadn't counted on a serious jumper like myself. Truth is, I don't actually jump; I bounce. I walk around the edge, unconciously bouncing harder the more intense my thoughts get. So, my loving uncle who lives in Alabama donated his old, hexagon trampoline to our backyard! I was happy! This time, the frame couldn't rust away. But the springs and the thick thread binding them to the mat were weak. A whole side was missing its springs, but I still jumped on it anyways.

 

Me, contemplating life. Also, me without make-up. You guys should feel proud.

 

Finally, on my 16th birthday, I was graced with a brand new trampoline, sturdy frame, and nicely sewn mat. I had never been happier. Forget about driver's lisence, I could back to my fantasy world!

 

I have often considered my trampoline the portal to my fantasies. And if I could just jump high enough, I would slip between the barrier between this world and my own. But gravity always brought me back down, so I took another step, hoping this time, I'd break through. Being up at college, there is a severe lack of trampolines, and thus, a severe lack of me being in my own head. I can tap into my fantasy world pretty much anywhere, but the clarity is best when I'm on my trampoline.

 

I was trying to get one of me in mid-air, but, this works well, too..

 

 

I have enabled myself to be able to jump in almost any weather. That includes scorching hot summer afternoons, and, after clearing away the ice and snow, barefoot in winter. Why do I do this to myself? One, its excercise; two, I love it. I love my fantasy world. I love the connection and the freedom of thought that happens there. I don't know why it's here, and only here, that I'm able to think so fluidly. Maybe it's the perfect blend of motion and thought, simple enough that I can easily get lost in my thoughts, while still keeping somewhat grounded in reality.

 

This is how hard I am on my trampoline. :( I'm a trampoline killer.

 

As it's been four years, my trampoline has seen better days. As from the picture above, you can tell that the mat is slowly being ripped away from the edge. And...

 

The first spring is gone.. I still have it somewhere

 

Yeah, my trampoline is a little worse for wear. Funny story, actually, last year, on December first, there was a huge windstorm in my hometown. The one thing I was worried about was my trampoline. Had it flown into someone's house? My house? Was it lost, and ruined beyond all repair? Nope, it was all safe. And that was a huge relief to me. Never mind that our siding got ripped off like a sardine tin, my trampoline was safe.

 

See those black marks on my toes? That's a sign of a good jump.

 







So, I want to know, readers, what's your inspiration spot? Where do you go to get that access to your mind? What's your mind-portal?

An Introduction to my World

Seeing as I'm about to drop kick you into a universe I created back when I was six or seven, I should probably explain it a little bit.

Ultimately, it was born of a dream I had after playing Smash Bros. All  I remember was Link and Kirby working out together. That was it. But that lone idea grew into something I wasn't expecting. I began chosing characters from my favorite games and cartoons that I watched while growing up. Eventually, a solid cast was formed, and the adventures began. Initially, it started out as a super hero training place where I was the head of a newly formed league of super heroes...or rather, the head of my ragtag bunch of people from different universes. As each individual universe revealed more plot details for me, I would take that and apply it in new adventure.

Eventually, I slowly lost this world, as I started to create my own universe with my own characters. It wasn't until Brawl came about, (as I said before) that I found that world again. My fan-universe and my own, personally created universe were able to coexist side by side now, though I definitley made up for lost time with my fan-universe.

Instead of being captain of a newly formed "super squad," I was now a fairy, though I still have no idea when or why I settled on this to be my avatar in my fan-universe. Maybe it had something to do with me sporadically popping in on my characters, and that attitude fit a fairy more than a stern captain. Maybe it had to do with my maturity (or lack thereof). Either way, my universe stuck, and it slowly found its way into my notebooks....

Still on a High

Yeah, sorry about that....I'm on a high still. More importantly...I OWN THIS MUSIC NOW!

Anyways, I'm still kind of reeling from last Thursday, and it's in all the good ways. Watching her...well, you guys already know how impressed I am with her.

So, I'm starting a new project. For years, I've had my own little nerdy universe that has accompanied me ever since my sophomore year in high school. There have been plot twists, randomness, and generally good times all around. And now...I'm finally getting brave enough to start chronicling these adventures.

Right now, I still have to design characters in my new form of drawing (you all saw my stick figure people. That's not gonna work for a serious comic), and then I have to draw everyone multiple times so that the design sticks. Yay.

But I'm excited to do this, mostly because I'm going after something I want. And I'm telling my stupid, nagging voice to shut up and go to her room because I'm the one in charge here. It's exciting to finally be able to tell her to shut up. I'm not sure where or when I'll be posting this thing, but I'll definitley share my works in progress with you guys. Which means....I want feedback. Please understand that I'm still starting out, so things won't be quite as good as they one day will be. You are, however, free to comment on how it looks and potentially what the plot is going to be.

This is gonna be fun.

Meeting My Idol

It was any other Thurdsay for most everyone else. But not for me. For me, it was a day that I had dreamed about, something that would occur in the far distant future, not something that would occur mere months after I had gotten that desire. I was about to meet a person I knew only through Youtube and Facebook, a girl whose music inspired me to go out and try to do things: I was going to meet Lindsey Stirling.

We had to check in at 3:30 to get our VIP passes to meet her. This meant I had to skip class. And I mean, legitimately skip class. So after my first class of the day, I beelined it back to my apartment, grabbed a few things that I would need, and headed down for home.

A blissfully uneventful drive later, I hurried into my house, dropping off everything that I didn't need and hurried into my dad's car. Another successfully uneventful drive, and we arrived in darker part of Salt Lake. It wasn't as polished or refined as the inner city, and most every other building around us was abandoned, or had broken windows around. We also were buy the central hub for the busses and TRAX stations. We got in a line full of people, and it surprised me to see that I wasn't the only Lindsey Stirling fan here. I knew Lindsey had tons of other fans, but I had always seen Lindsey through my screen, usually alone. Now I was in a line with a bunch of other people who loved her just as much as I did.

Yeah, I was excited.

We went over to Gateway for a quick lunch/dinner/food trip before heading back over for the Meet and Greet. The line wasn't too long, but every step closer to the door I got more excited. She was in there. She would see me. I would see her.

Agh! I'm going to meet her!

And then, my dad shuffled me around and then...I saw her. Judging from how far away we were, and how I could spy her signature Peacock hairstyle just barely above/around the raised flooring, it hit me that she wasn't very tall. Score another 10 points on the awesome scale.

We were given our neon orange writst bands and I headed straight for the merchandise. I knew exactly what I wanted. Her album, and a pretty awesome poster of her in her Zelda costume, which was the first song I ever heard from her. Then we got in line to have our pictures with Lindsey.

I could feel the butterflies in my stomach, and I just wanted to run around screaming, "OHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH! I'M MEETING LINDSEY STIRLING!" Instead, I got brave and asked a few girls ahead of me how/when they first found Lindsey. Most everyone I talked to were musicians in some way, and then there was me who just loves Lindsey.

Then, the moment arrived. After talking with her keyboardist, (which helped me calm my brain so I wouldn't spout out stupid half-sentences) we walked up to Lindsey.

She gave me a hug. And in a geinuely sweet voice said, "Hi!" while hugging me.

That was more than I ever dreamed would happen. We didn't even know each other, and she was still hugging me like I was her best friend.

Yeah, we're the same height. Short people unite!

 

Finally, it was time for the concert to begin. The opening act cleared out, the audience began chanting, "Lindsey! Lindsey" at every available moment. When the background music finally became muted, everyone knew it was time. She appeared onstage, like a little musical nymph, and began dancing and playing her violin, just like in her videos.

But it was different than watching her through a screen.

While her smile and general demeanor shows that she's having a grand time in her videos, in person, she radiates this joy. In every action that she does, you can feel her passion for this. I didn't want to yell and cheer.It almost felt irreverant to do so, even though everyone around me was doing the same.  I just wanted to watch her play. I could have done that for hours, because she loves what she does. And to see her, in person, doing exactly that, it made me want to do the same.

So today, I'm feeling inspired. I have a sudden burning inside me to go get what I want. And who cares what everyone else says or thinks? I have that inner spark to go and do, to prove those naysayers wrong, even if it's only me. If she can achieve her dream, then I can sure as heck get mine.

Thanks, Lindsey, for being an inspiration for so many people. Mostly to me, because I one day hope to do the same.

Squeee!!

Squee refers to the noise a fangirl make when she's in close proximity to something cute or something that she's a fan of. In this case....

I'M GOING TO MEET LINDSEY STIRLING!

Tomorrow night, she's going to have a concert in Salt Lake. My dad bought tickets for the show when he asked me, "Do you want to meet her?"

Ever since I discovered her, it's been my dream to meet her. But my brain suddenly went into overdrive, thinking of all the stupid things I could potentially say, embarrassing myself in front of my idol. After all, she's amazing! I told my dad I needed to think about it, essentially confirming my denial of having a meet-n-greet session with an artist I admire.

But my brain wasn't done thinking yet. It told me, "When you tell your kids that you had a chance to meet Lindsey Stirling, and you say you wussed out, what are they gonna think?" That thought alone spurred me to wonder, "What am I gonna think?" Instantly, I felt regret. Regret that I had a chance to meet with a person who inspires me to go out and get my dream. Regret that, in a moment that probably is once in a lifetime, I turned it down because I was afraid of looking stupid.

I texted my dad back, saying "Let's do it." After that, I had a silent fit of screaming with joy. I began to dance around, the realization that I was going to meet my idol sinking in.

Now that I'm a day away from the big event, it's even more present. What makes it better is that my 9:30 class isn't being held on Friday, which means I can spend the night at my house and drive back to Logan safely without fear of me nodding off on the side of the road.

It's meant to be.

Friday I'll be fangirling like crazy. :)

I have no idea right now

Hmm...I'm not sure what music to share with you all today. I'm not normally at a loss of ideas, but I feel like now that I've divluged my secrets about being a nerd girl, I don't know where to take this. Should I talk about what I'm looking forward to most, nerd-wise? Should I start blogging about me and my drawing, showing you all my works in progress? I feel like I was following Google directions and now I've run into somewhere GoogleMaps doesn't cover. I don't know where to take this right now. To my lurking followers out there (I know you're out there), what would you like to see more of? Talk to me people! I need your sagely advice! Or at least feedback. Talk to me! Seriously, don't pull a Link/Mario where I have to select Yes or No and never hear your voices. Speak to me!

Bleeeehhhh

This is gonna be short because I'm tired, and I'm home for the weekend.  So, you kinda now know my whole backstory of how I became a nerd. This is kinda weird for me because normally I can't shut up about stuff. And here I am, 11:07 on a Friday night and I'm ready to drop down dead and sleep until noon tomorrow. Except then I would miss Saturday Morning cartoons...except those suck nowadays. It's either the fifty-billionth incarnation of the Power Rangers, or cheap Pokemon/Yu-gi-oh!/really crappy quality cartoons that just make me cringe. Whatever happened to shows with actual plots? To traditional, handdrawn stuff? To shows that actually made you laugh? To shows that made you want to pull a Calvin and Hobbes and race downstairs at six in the morning so you could spend the whole day watching cartoons?

I think the problem is that there's not anyone seriously geared towards making good quality shows anymore. All they have to have is a basic, I'm sorry, stupid, plot, throw a few potty jokes here and there, make all the characters act like brain dead morons and voila! We have most of the cartoons on nowadays.

This is part of why I became a Brony/Pegasister. Because the show was well written, and the characters weren't stupid. They were actually pretty smart, and more importantly, the lessons they learned in every episode weren't forgotten by the next one. It makes me miss the 90's, when most of the cartoons were very character driven, and people weren't worried about kids being scarred or offended (that should read, the parents of children). I mean, don't they realize teenagers watch Saturday Morning cartoons too? That girls watch cartoons too?
*incoming soapbox feminist rant*
Most cartoons are geared towards boys. Not saying that girls can't like boys' cartoons, but I miss the days of the Powerpuff Girls. I miss girl leads. I miss smart, witty humor that the 90's shows had. I'm sick of this brain dead stuff that people seem to think children like.

I recall one cartoon where, after explaining how there's a multiverse and there's a bunch of bad guys trying to take over the world (what else is new?) the ONLY girl character replied, "Tyrants must be stopped." Excuse me for a second while I blow out my brains. So, after hearing from one of your guy friends that there's trouble in another universe that you haven't seen at all, you automatically agree to join this guy on his quest? Where's the skepticism? What is spurring you to say this? AGh!

This is the problem with being a writer: you analyze other characters because they're not acting the way you want them too.

Why I Hate Being a Girl Sometimes

"Video games are such a waste of time."

One of my biggest pet peeves among other non-nerd girls is when they pipe up on how horrible video games are, as if they're this Satanic thing that crawled out from under a rock and possessed their boyfriends. What makes it worse is how other girls agree instantly, as if video games are a fashion choice or someone to be excluded from the group.

Really? You're gonna call out video games when you spend hours on Pinterest, read overcliched vampire romance books, and watch television with little to no plot except for how Mary-Sue is gonna avoid getting caught cheating with Tall-Dark-and-Handsome? You're gonna call that something worthwhile, while my getting inspired to become greater than I am is a waste of time?

Video games are only a waste of time if that's all they do. If they never bother to socialize or do anything besides game, then it's a problem. But if it's just a hobby, there's nothing wrong with it. The same could be said of everyone's hobbies or passions. Smart people know there's a balance in all things. I have a personal rule: if it's games or socializing, socializing wins.

Hey, why don't you learn how to play video games? Then you and your boyfriend can do it together, and you'll be spending time. Besides, boys love to teach girls how to play. They think it's cute when you don't know what you're doing.

Me? I'm gonna go save the world. See you later.

My Life Needs a Soundtrack

Just thought I'd give you all something to listen to while reading today. Now I'm missing Pres and my Skyward Sword...

Anyways, I find it interesting in movies how there's almost always music playing, just to underscore the emotions that the scene is portraying. Whether it's a break-up scene, a reunion scene, an epic battle sequence, the music really helps push that theme through. So I was thinking, why doesn't life have that? A soundtrack so people know we're feeling epic or scared or heartbroken.

Wait, that would be a bad thing. Then we'd be overwhelmed by everyone's soundtracks and we'd never be able to listen to one another. Guess it's a good thing we don't have a personal orchestra trailing us.

Also, whenever the music gets amped up in a scary part of the movie, I know that the second the music calms down, the scary monster is gonna leap from the shadows and scare the pants off everyone. Seriously, watch any scary movie where the music builds up. 9 times out of ten, the scary part will happen AFTER the music has calmed down. Just a fun fact I noticed.