The New Years Post

Well. Here it goes. New Years Eve. New Year tomorrow.

This year really flew by. It went by so fast that it is hard to even tell what happened! Lets see...

I did my very first tattoo, I started tattooing, I went to the Crack Alley for the first time, I got two new tattoos, had a blast the Comic Expo and bought so much stuff, Lost ended, some times were not so good, we visited a good friend, I saw an amazing show, I had the chance of a lifetime, drinking is dead to me, I went hunting for a certain Lake Serpent, I almost met Steven Tyler, I can't believe I did this.., but I do believe I saw this!, I did the unthinkable, the tattoo convention whizzed by (but at least we got a new awesome Mayor!), felt a little under the weather, finally bought my new computer, was forced to sing karaoke, got sick again, remembered a dear friend, I can't believe I did this!, I had a wonderful Christmas with friends and family, and now I'm sick. Again.

Well. I guess a lot has happened this year. I'm sure there's more, but I think I got most of it. It has been a good year, but it had it's ups and downs. I look forward to what the new year will bring. Until then, I'm going to try to make the best out of today (even if I feel like crap!).

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Shopping Extravaganza

I haven't been shopping (for myself) in such a long time! It was about time, I'd say. Erin and I trekked onto the mall yesterday evening, and I was ready to speeeend! And oh boy, did I spend. What did I buy? Well, we went to one of the most amazing stores put on Earth for a woman; Forever XXI, and bought a few awesome articles of clothing, which I am sure will make their way into some pictures someday. I also bought a wireless router for my MacBook. I did not know, however, how much trouble this little thing would cause me! I spent all last night and this morning trying to set it up but it just didn't want to! Finally, after the help of some online support, I got it to work. Never again. Along with everything else, I bought a few amazing books. One; a collection of pictures from the making of Michael Jackson's Thriller, and two; a book of Star Wars inspired artwork by various artists. Such a good shopping trip!

After our long haul of a trip, we went and saw Black Swan. It was incredible. And very scary! There were so many parts where I had to look away, cringing. It also had it awkward moments as well, definitely not something I would see with my mom. But I highly recommend seeing this one!

Well, It's good that I got my wireless working now, so I can update my bog while laying in bed. Especially now, cause I'm sick AGAIN. Yes, the third time within three months. There are lots of nasty things floating around these days, and I'm only hoping I caught the nicer one. I guess only time will tell.

Christmas Aftermath

Christmas has passed, and I am still recuperating from all the food and crazy children crying and running around, but it was a fantastic one! One of the reasons why I'm still tired though is because I had to work boxing day at 10 am, and my body did not agree with that.

Now the dust has begun to settle, and life will be getting back to normal after this week. I know I sound like I'm complaining, but I was getting so bored of everyday life that I don't want it to go back. My best friend is only here for another week, so I need to enjoy it while it lasts. Either that or move out to the west coast with her. Trust me, I have been considering it!

Anyway, here are some Christmas pictures, just as I promised. They always end up being mostly pictures of my little siblings and cousins, but who wouldn't want to see their cute little faces?

Delicious NINJABREADMEN!!

My mom and I baked a whole army of ninjas.

My cousin Holly playing her version of pool.

Little brother Cooper playing ye olde organ.

I remember playing this thing when I was his age!

Twin sisters! In their fancy seats that I wish I had.

My Nana helping Holly, who cannot contain her excitement, open a big present.

Troy and his Crystal Head.

I didn't have the heart to tell Rory that she was reading upside down.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! Next up, New Years!!

Twas the Night Before Christmas..

...and my old, crappy computer caught a virus! At least I have my new laptop to save my sanity. I warn you, if you use Google Maps, you might get a virus, so watch out! But other than that, today has been an amazing Christmas Eve!

I woke up quite early (or, at least, early for me), and moseyed over to my friend's house for breakfast and board games. I know, we are a rowdy bunch. It was such a fantastic way to start the day! Then I came home and helped my mom cook a quick (but amazing) Christmas dinner. I don't care what anyone thinks, stove top stuffing and mashed potatoes are the bomb! Anyways, We watched Elf and we reminisced about that awesome Muppets Christmas special from the late '80s. Once again, luckily I have my fancy shmancy laptop so I could look it up on Youtube!

Now, in conclusion, I am very full and quite tired, and I have a long Christmas day ahead. If I don't update tomorrow (maybe due to being kidnapped by my kid siblings and cousins), there will definitely be a MASSIVE post-Christmas update in the near future.

Merry Christmas!!!

Pretty in Pink

Christmas is two days away! But what makes this even more exciting is that my friends from the west coast (and one from the east) are back home for the holidays! I have friends now!

My best friend lives in Vancouver, and I haven't see her since June, so I'm ecstatic that she's here! Along with my good friend Kat. They had a 'We're Home!' party last night, and I cannot express how much I have missed hanging out with those two. And they are some of the few people that actually like to play board games, so we played a game called Quelf, the most random game you will ever play in your life. I do have a few pictures of these board game adventures, but I am going to leave those for another day.

Since it is almost Christmas, I took some pictures of my mom's awesome decorating! She likes to choose a different color scheme every year for Christmas, so this year she chose pink and white. It's so pretty!

Don't you wish you could smell this? mmmm

My mom also likes to make things, so she made some of the ornaments for the tree!

Season of Giving...or Getting?

It's almost Christmas! One way I know this is because I am eating waaaay too much chocolate, and I only do that at certain points of the year. There is still a little bit of shopping to do, but I've started wrapping presents last night so I feel less stressed out about it. I just feel so Christmasy now, since I went to a Christmas concert with my mom the other night. It's amazing what a little bit of philharmonic orchestra will do to you.

On a work note, I find it very strange that it started to pick up a little bit in the studio. November was a complete shit show, but this month people are getting tattooed. And not just small tattoos either, big ones! Or at least stuff that takes awhile. Don't you people have shopping to do!? This is the season of giving, not getting! Unless you're planning on giving your grandparents a heart attack, then well, you've got the perfect gift! I'm doing two cool tattoos today, so there will more on that hopefully tomorrow, as well as a few that I worked on last week!

Until then, eat chocolate!

Cameo

For those out there that are as easily excitable as me, I did my first chest piece today! A friend of mine came to me with a really sweet idea. Now, we all know I salivate over anything that has to do with ornate frames, birds, and ribbons. At first she only came to me with a picture of a cameo necklace. She sort of dabbled in the idea of birds, a girl, and anything else that would tie it together, and when she sent me a picture of a cameo, I had the perfect, yet simple, idea. And voila! This is what I came up with and she loved it. I also love it. So much that I would get it done on myself, if it were my tattoo. Either way, I had a lot of fun designing it, and we just did the outline to start, but I cannot wait to shade it in! My friend, on the other hand, did not have the time of her life, but she was a trooper! It was well worth it.

Zombified

Today an old coworker came by for a consultation. She brought in two classic portraits of a boy and a girl (not sure exactly who they are, but I've seen them before), in these awesome ornate frames. My initial reaction was, "Awesome! This is going to be cool!", then she said that she wanted them on either thigh, and she wanted them to be zombified. FINALLY! Someone comes in with a kick ass idea! This is totally up my alley; ornate frames, vintage portraits, and zombies!? Too good to be true. So I sat down and immediately started sketching, and I must say, this is going to be a fun challenge! Here is a sneak peak!

I hope she wants to get them done soon, cause I can't wait! In the meantime, here is a Kirby tattoo I did on our piercer Christian yesterday.

Doesn't Hurt Any Less

A year ago today, I lost a dear friend. Cayley and her three friends were driving back into town when their car lost control and hit another car. The only survivor was a baby in the other car.

I have never lost a friend before, so it has been a pretty rough year, but not only for me. My friends and I at work have been supporting each other since the accident, and Cayley's best friend has become a part of that family. She is probably one of the strongest people I know, and I'm sure the girls couldn't be more proud to have such an amazing friend. My heart definitely goes out to her and Cayley's family, especially today.

It was hard not to love Cayley. Right off the bat you could tell she was the sweetest thing to ever walk this planet, but she was also a little firecracker. She would make wise remarks when needed (also when they were unnecessary, but they were hilarious), and she would never fail to make you laugh. Her smile was the biggest, brightest thing, and she had the most beautiful big blue eyes. She could seriously sell clothes to you just by smiling at you. I never understood how she did it. Now I know that no one else could ever match her, she was truly one of a kind.

It has only been a year, but just thinking about it makes it feel like it was yesterday. It won't get any easier anytime soon, but we just need to stay strong and appreciate the time we had with this very special girl. Cayley, you are truly loved and missed (but you already knew that! Obviously!), and I can't wait to see you again someday. Always thinking of you. Love you baby girl!

Gorgeous girl

The Return of the Sickness

Winter never fails to make me sick. More than once. Right before Halloween I became very ill and couldn't make it to work for a couple of days, and now I'm sick again. Thankfully I have two days off this weekend, but I have to go back to work tomorrow. I really hope I feel better by then. Today seems to be a bit better so far, so we'll see.

As I think I have mentioned before, I never go to a doctor when I'm sick. Unless I feel like it's something totally out of the norm, and I might die, then I'll go. But honestly I haven't gone to one in years. They terrify me. And usually I just catch a cold or a common flu. I feel like it's just a cold this time, and it's making my body all achey (which I think it the worst thing ever). I would rather be all stuffed up and coughing than to feel all achey and feverish. I hate being immobilized and stuck inside, on my days off! So frustrating. At least I just get to sleep and drink lots of tea and read or play video games. Now it doesn't sound so bad. Especially when I have my fantastic mug collection to drink tea out of! And by collection, I really mean my two awesome mugs; my Robot Attack mug and my vintage Batman mug. They make being sick a whole lot better.

You can tell I'm not feeling well. I also just rolled out of bed!

Oh yeah! Tattoos!

It has been awhile since I have posted any tattoo pictures! I haven't done anything quite as epic as that sleeve since, well, the sleeve, but I have done/started a few cool ones! It has started to snow here, so business has been pretty slow for us, but I am expecting at least a few people to make appointments for December. Let's hope! For now, here are some recent tattoos!

I had to re-outline this one because it did not heal very well, but all that's left is some more shading and we're throwing some red in there!

First script piece that I had a lot of fun designing and tattooing!

I was obviously so stoked to do this one!

This is on an old friend of mine, Mel. Her friend lined the top part in her basement, and she wanted it fixed/added onto. Of course I was more than happy to. So I added more (below the banner) flowers, some butterflies, and we started shading. This is going to be one colourful piece!

And this is probably one of my favourites so far! It turned out better than I had expected, and it's totally my style (which people don't get enough of these days!)

The Long Day Adventure

Yesterday was an extremely long day. Usually, for me, I consider a full day to be from 12pm-1am. Yesterday was 8am-3am. I am so tired. What happened? Well, let me tell you!

I got up for work at 8, because it was an earlier day than usual on a Sunday, and did practically nothing at work all day. I had nothing to do so I just watch Wall-E. Sometimes, having no appointments can be fun. Anyway, then we had a staff meeting that went until 9pm. I love staff meetings, so that's ok.

Then I somehow got dragged out to karaoke night with everyone from work. First of all, I don't ever go out, I'm more of a hermit. Secondly, I especially don't go out if it's karaoke! I don't sing. Not in front of people. I have huge stage fright. So I was going with the intent of just watching, laughing, having a good time. Then I asked our piercer, Christian, if he would sing Purple Rain. He said, "Yeah! You and me!!". Just a moment before he was refusing to sing just as much as I was! So he put our names down, along with coworkers Manuela and Britt. I was terrified, I have never done this before. At least I was going up with more people. As we were nearing our turn, I decided that we should change our song. The one I was really hoping to do, if we were doing Prince, was When Doves Cry. Everyone said they didn't know that one as well, but what the hell! Then I started getting really nervous, and really wanted to back out. But, what can you do? Our turn came as I was in the bathroom, making sure I wouldn't pee my pants on stage, and I just ran out there without a second thought. Then we were doing it. We were singing karaoke. And everyone knew the song as soon as it came on. It was actually a lot of fun! I'm glad it's over, but there may be more chances in the future to sing, oh, some David Bowie perhaps?

After karaoke, Sarah was driving me home, when the lights inside her car started dimming out. She thought it might be because her car was almost out of gas, so we stopped at a gas station a few blocks away from my house. Thank goodness we did! She filled up her tank, but her car wouldn't start. Yikes. So we got the guy from the station to help jump her car. It worked! At least, until we got to the exit onto the road. Then her car just, died. We sat for awhile, trying to figure out what to do, until a very nice man came to help us push the car back into the parking lot. I had to steer the car while Sarah and the man pushed, but I have never been behind a wheel before (sad, I know) so this was terrifying. I almost steered the car into the curb, because it was in reverse and it was confusing. This is why I should never drive! But we got her car in a safe spot, and she called her service and they sent a tow truck. Luckily I was within walking distance to my house, but poor Sarah was not. It was 2:45 am by this point, so I decided to head home. Plus it was pretty cold, so I didn't make the walk at all pleasant, and I'm sure Sarah's ride with the tow truck guy and her poor car was the last way she would want to spend her night.

Needless to say, it was a very long, and sometimes grueling, day. But it was an adventure! Now I'm off to work again!

Crafting Bonanza

Today was my only day off this week, and instead of spending it with my boyfriend like I was supposed to, I spent it shopping for craft supplies with my mom! It was fantastic.

There is a local art market, called the Market Collective, coming up next month and my friend and I are planning on participating. I have done this market a few times, and every time it has been a huge success. Of course, that was a couple of years ago when it was just getting popular. Now it's huge! Instead of one day, they do it for a whole weekend. And in December they do not one, but two weekends! It's so awesome being a part of something that used to be nothing but a small group of artists under one roof, just trying to get the community involved in local art. The Market Collective has rapidly spread, almost like an epidemic, throughout the community, and even to other parts of the country. Being able to put yourself out there in an easily accessible local market; whether your are a painter, photographer, vintage collector, baker, or a musician, is such a great opportunity within itself. I can't wait to do it again!

I just made a tonne of hair flowers, and I will be making a crap load of magnets. I also have some prints of some paintings left over from the last market I did a couple of years ago, so that should be enough! The market isn't until December 11th and 12th, so there is still time, but I will definitely be taking some pictures! Until then, it will be non stop crafting.

The Walking Dead

On October 31, AMC aired a new original series called The Walking Dead. It is based on the graphic novel by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. I was beside myself when I heard they were making this show, although I have never read the graphic novels (which I have been planning to do for a long time!), but because I am such a zombie nerd. When I found out that I did not get the AMC channel, I was very upset.

But not all hope is lost! Since I have my brand spankin new laptop, I can now successfully watch it online! Joyous! And, yes, this is what I am currently doing as I am typing this post. It keeps buffering every 10 minutes, but otherwise I am quite satisfied with both the show and how my computer is playing it.

Well, looks like another good chunk has appeared on the loading bar! I must disappear now to see how this concludes! I recommend you watch this show!!!

Brand Spankin New

If you have wondered where I have been, the answer is on my brand spankin new Macbook Pro!! But I can only connect to the internet if I plug in my cord from my living room, and sometimes I am even too lazy to do that, so there is my reason for delayed posts. Whoops! Not to mention that have been extremely addicted to the Sims 3. I will seriously play that game for hours on end, I will even bring it to work and play it if there is nothing else to do. That is my sad but awesome life.

Needless to say I am loving my new (and most expensive, EVER) purchase. I've been trying to save up for once since last year, but more important things kept popping up. This time I just said 'fuck it!' and went for it. Now I am next to broke, but I am ever so happy.

Just so you can get a taste of how much I am loving my new laptop, here are a few of some amazing pictures that Troy and I took in photobooth.

This one totally reminds me of Spongebob and Squidward!

Skeleton

Things have not been going well the past few days. I have come down with what seems like the flu (hopefully nothing worse), called in sick twice, along with some personal issues. In the past three days I have barely eaten what I usually eat in one day, so at this point I am a skeleton. A very weak skeleton.

When I get sick, I get very frustrated. Especially when it lasts for more than a day. Or when I'm fine for one day, then the next day it's back to square one. I usually never go to the doctor either, unless I feel like I might die. If this thing goes on for much longer, I might actually go. I hate doctors, of any shape or form. I'm just terrified of the truth and I don't want the to tell me something I don't want to hear. So I just don't go. I know that's bad, but fuck, a fear is a fear. I know one day I'm going to have to face it. It might as well be sooner than later.

This weekend is Halloween, and if I don't get better by then I'm gong to hurt someone. I don't know why but whenever I get really sick, it's always around a holiday. Many many years ago I got a horrible flu for two weeks the day after Christmas. That was the worst time ever. I couldn't enjoy the time that I had off school, or the cool gifts that I got. I just stayed in bed, and wept, for two weeks. Horrible, horrible memory!

Well, hopefully I start to regain strength and will be able to eat properly soon, if not then you can just assume that I am dead. Just kidding!

And the fog rolled in..

It's Sunday morning and it is extremely foggy outside! I love weather like this, it's just so eerie and mysterious. And it's also perfect weather for a zombie apocalypse. But it's also starting to get cold, as it usually does in autumn, but we have been pretty lucky so far with how nice it's been lately.

Anyway, enough about the weather! My Halloween costume is almost complete! It's been almost a year in the making, because I'm crazy about my costumes and I start planning my next one right after Halloween, but I never finish them until about a week before! This year I'm being a post-apocalyptic person, losely based on characters from the video game Fallout 3. I just bought an authentic gas mask yesterday, along with plenty of other little things to add to it. I'm all about the little details and accessories, and I can easily spend at least $150 on a full costume. I will have to post pictures of it soon!

And now I have to get ready for work, which is sweet because today I get to do a quote from Michael Jackson's Thriller! I will post pictures of that too!

Came and Went..

So, the Tattoo Festival this weekend kind of came and went a little too quickly. It was also a bit of a dissapointment. I hate to say it, but to me it was. I went on the Saturday, so excited to buy some new equipment and awesome new prints, maybe some knick knacks and such. What did I end up buying? Two prints and a t-shirt. I really wanted a new machine, and I talked to a friend who works in one of the best shops in the city, and he informed me about how rotary machines are the current craze. I looked around for a good reputable supplier, and everyone was sold out. So I guess they are good! I was going to buy a conventional tattoo machine, but decided against it. I'm going to save my money and order a rotary. I also did not get tattooed, as suspected. I didn't have much time, since Troy had to go to work, so I didn't get to look at everything or spend much time watching people tattoo. Ah well, there's always next year!

Aside from that, today was our municipal voting day! That is another thing that kind of came and went, although the campaigns ran for months, it all goes by so quickly. I honestly didn't do too much research on all of the candidates, because there were so many of them, but I am confident on who I voted for. We will just see what the next couple of days brings us!

Robots & Ray Guns

I'm freaking out right now!

The Tattoo and Arts festival is this weekend, so it has been a crazy busy week of 7 hour seminars, plus work, and soon-to-be exploring. I was supposed to go today but I was so exhausted, so I'm going tomorrow! And the reason why I am freaking out, is because I am considering maybe getting a tattoo done. I bet you anything that I won't though.

What would I get tattooed? Well let me tell you! One of my loves, and greatest possessions, is my collection of tin robots. I love ANYTHING that has to do with a robot, but especially the old 50's kind. I have been thinking for awhile of getting one of my tin robots tattooed on me, but recently I also thought it would be awesome to get a ray gun tattoo! I'm a huge sci-fi nerd, so I figured that would be a good symbol for that. Plus it would compliment a possible tin robot someday. It wouldn't be big at all, just a little guy. So maybe? I have NO idea where I would put it though. And I am a huge wuss, ooooh maaan. So I don't like to think about getting anything like my feet or ribs tattooed. There is something reserved for my feet anyway, if I do decide to get them done one day.

Anyway, I am currently skimming through pictures online of ray guns and robots, and I found something that I MUST have in my collection someday. Batman + Tin robot = my life complete.

The last straw..

That's it. I can't take this anymore. This computer is the biggest piece of shit, I can't even easily upload my pictures onto it anymore. In a few weeks, I will have my new laptop and my world will be significantly better.

As you can probably already guess, I easily get frustrated with things, especially technology that doesn't work. I find it funny that we rely on such things when they seem to cause us more agony and frustration than ease. Then again, what would we do without technology? A couple of weeks ago there was a blackout in my neighborhood for almost 2 hours. My mom and I sat on the couch with a few candles and a flashlight, unable to do anything to pass the time except to sit an wait. It's times like those where you realize how much we depend on technology and electricity for the simplest of things. Our apartment was pitch black, so there really wasn't much we could do. It was too dark to read or work on art, so we just sat and listened to everyone else wandering out in the streets trying to figure out what was going on. Not like they had anything better to do either.

It is just weird to think about. What if we never had technology? Our world would be almost alien compared to what it is to us now. I know sometimes I say I hate it, but I really don't know what I would do without it. So, sorry computer, but I'm going to have to replace you because you are so old. It's been fun and all!

Tale as old as time

I'm going to come right out and say it. I love Disney movies. Who doesn't? If you don't, then you have obviously had a lack of a childhood. I remember watching them almost everyday, over and over when I was a kid, so they have really stuck with me. I love watching them now and feeling like I just watched them yesterday, when really it has been years. I still remember the ones I was obsessed with; The Littler Mermaid, The Fox and the Hound, Alice in Wonderland, 101 Dalmatians, The Lion King, the list goes on. But the one that I could not stop watching was Beauty and the Beast. And luckily for me, it was just re-released on dvd!

I just finished watching it tonight and I loved it just as much, if not more, than when I was little. The story is just so tragic but so happy at the same time, it's just one of those ones that makes you want to be in a fairy tale. I am also a girl and my heart melts for that kind of stuff. But it really makes me miss classic fairy tales. Now it's all about technology and action, and everything is so cheesey, and not even a good cheesey. A total different generation, that's for sure. And I just wish Disney movies would be a little longer sometimes. They seem so long when you're a kid, but when you're older it's over in and hour and a half. And I also wish they still drew all the animation instead of using computers. It's such a lost art. And stop putting movies back into the stupid Disney Vault! I don't want to wait years and years for the next classic to come out!

I thought this was a very cool depiction of the classic story.

Wardrobe Malfunction?

Ever have those days where you just don't like anything you have stuffed in your closet? Yeah, I've been having those days lately. Usually I fix it by cutting up a really awesome vintage t-shirt that a 10 year old boy would have worn, but it does the trick. But I have recently decided that I have enough cut up T's , and I need to start wearing real grown-up clothes. I already look like I'm 16, so it's hard for me to step forward and look, dare I say, older and 'presentable'.

Not that I care about looking 'presentable' in everyday life. I mean, let's face it, I'm a young tattoo artist/sales associate that works in a basement all day and goes home to play video games. That's not exactly the presentable kind of lifestyle. But don't get me wrong, I like to dress up nice, wear skirts and dresses and cute shoes. You know, all that girly stuff. But on the other hand, I also have a giant rip in every pair of tights I own, and I make cut-off shorts from my old jeans that I never wear. As I have said to myself many times, "Taylor, you look a bit like a hoe bag today." Oh well! I love ripped clothing, what can I say?

In these little slumps I sometimes get myself into, I usually make impulse decisions. Like the other day, I bought a hat. Now, if you know me, even just a little bit, you would know that I do not wear hats. It's a definite no. Like, never. So why did I buy a hat? And, well, what kind of hat anyway? I have never hated hats, I've just disliked them on me because my hair is always so big and they usually look ridiculous. But there has always been one type of hat that I will sort of tamper with. The floppy knit beret. It is the one and only hat I have ever kind of liked, and for some reason the other day it won me over. I think it's because I'm just getting to lazy with my hair (which I am also in a feud with right now) , so I thought, 'Why not for a crappy hair day?' Makes total sense. And I think I can get used to it. In fact, I am wearing it right now. It is a little restricting on the scalp, but other than that I think we can be good friends in the future.

After this I'm a little afraid of what else I might get into, but at least I hope it's not another hat! Be prepared!

The Circus

Last night my mom and I went to the circus! Well, Cirque du Soleil, not the shitty Shrine Circus that uses (and abuses) animals. We Saw Kooza, a performance that revolves around traditional circus acrobatics and clown acts. It was unbelievably amazing.

I have seen Cirque four times now, and I have never been so tense or so much at the edge of my seat for any of them except Kooza. I swear I almost had a heart attack a few times during that show! Acts like the High Wire, and the Wheel of Death were just so intense. Sometimes a performer would slip or almost not make that jump, and the whole audience would gasp or scream. But aside from the death defying acts, there were the more subtle but awesome ones. My favorite, ever since Alegria, is the Hoops Manipulation. It's just so beautiful and fluid, it really mezmorizes you. But they also had a Unicycle Duo, which was very impressive, and three contortionists, which I find very captivating but freaky at the same time. But don't get me wrong, all of the acts were incredible!

The other part of the show was based on traditional clown acts. They did more than the other shows I've seen, but these acts were some of the most hilarious and entertaining. They really interact with the audience, even if you don't do anything, you just feel so involved. They would call up volunteers, they would throw things into the audience, and they even made one of the seats elevate with an unsuspecting audience member stuck up high. I hate clowns, of the usual kind, but these clowns were awesome. They didn't have any big red noses or terrifying laughs so I was ok.

Another thing that was awesome about this show, was the costumes. In any Cirque du Soleil show the costumes have so much attention to detail, and a little bit of quirkiness, that the people look like something out of a storybook. This show, I found, was more rock and roll/Bollywood influenced, and the costumes reflected that. The women acrobats had really awesome hair that I wish I had, and there was even a jazzy skeleton dance! But my favorite character of the whole show was Heimloss, who lives beneath the stage and takes care of the mechanical parts of world of Kooza. His costume was so cool, almost like an old bell diver, but with glowing eyes.

Well, once again I am very satisfied with the performance, it is now my second favorite Cirque show! Maybe next I will save up to go to Vegas and see the Cirque du Soleil shows there. Just maybe...

First Sleeve

It's doooone!! I finished it around mid-August, but I haven't had time/energy to post it.

It turned out better than I thought it would, but it was definitely a lot of hard work that I won't do again for a little while now. It was a very good learning experience though! Some spots are still healing in the picture, because we worked on it almost every week in order to get it done before he left. Crazy, I know, and I promise I will never do something this big that quick again! And so does he!

Dude looked like a lady

So. Troy and I went to the mall yesterday so he could exchange his crapped out headphones. We walked into the Sony Store and whilst exchanging said headphones, the clerk asked us, "Did you guys just see Aerosmith?" Troy and looked at each other, confused as to what he meant. I knew they were playing a show either that night or tonight, but then he cleared it up for us, "Steven Tyler was JUST in the store about 5 minutes ago." WHAT!? Troy and I must have just walked past him on our way in. Darn! It would have been so cool to meet him. Then I could brag to my dad about how I met one of America's greatest rock stars. But to honest, if I wasn't particularly looking for him, I probably would not even notice if I bumped into the guy. But now that I know that he was there I wish I did.

I guess there is a cupcake place that just opened up yesterday, and the owner walked up to him and asked if he would try one of their cupcakes. He followed her to the store and ordered a bunch and said he would share them with his band. Not long after that he started to get swamped with people so he escaped the mall.

I told my dad, who works for the local newspaper, about this exciting event (he has been a fan of Aerosmith since a while back), and he saw to it that an article was put in today's paper about it. I bet I made those guys from the Sony store's day after that. Steven Tyler coming into the store AND being in the paper. Definitely not something that happens everyday.

Excuse me? Who?

This is so embarrassing for whoever made this mistake...

The Quest for Ogopogo: Part 3

Ok. Here is the last installment of our trip to Okanagan Lake. Days 3-5 kind of got blurred together with the pictures. The weather got kind of cold so we didn't do a whole lot the last two days. I didn't really want to take pictures of my friends reading and napping. But we did go mini golfing! It was Jungle mini golf! So awesome.

California Dream

I did not partake in this activity. It was too effn' cold!

Hammock!

Jungle mini golf!

Snow White? In the jungle? Alright.

We all got candy from this machine.

We also went on a few rides!

I'm a little big..

Kelsey's boat!

Last dip before we left.

Bye lake! Or maybe jazz hands?

I cannot wait to go back next year. Ooooh man!

The Quest for Ogopogo: Part 2

Day 2 of our epic adventure on Okanagan Lake..

Early morning stretches!

I didn't have a hat...

...so I wore my dress on my head instead!

Gwen gearing up for tubing!

Tubing!

Gwen prevails!

Kelsey about to fall into the lake.

Everyone, except for Troy, just hanging out.

Kelsey's a mean machine!

Glen climbing the enormous vines that engulfed the tree!

BAT!!

Boys and their wizard staffs!

Gwen and I teaming up for a dance off.

This is why Keaton shouldn't drink.

Troy. Beer. Cheese stick. What else?

I'm not sure what happened to the other eye...

To be continued...