CROSSFIT!!!! *bleh*

DO YOU KNOW WHAT I HAVE BEEN DOING?!! I HAVE BEEN DOING CROSSFIT! RAHHHH!

:-)

For those who are unfamiliar with Crossfit, it is an... exercise philosophy? There are Crossfit gyms. The basic idea is that no day's workout is the same, and the muscle groups worked are  more universal than running or weightlifting alone. A typical workout has three parts: the warmup, the weight work, and the WOD or workout of the day.

The warmup changes too, but it usually has running or jump roping, calisthenics, and stretch/exercise combo thingys. (<that's a technical term)

The weight work is weightlifting (did you know that puny, chubby me can deadlift 265 lbs? I didn't either!) and we do a variety of lifts (deadlift, strict press, push press, squat snatch, power clean, power snatch etc. etc.)

The WOD is extremely variable. In general, it is either as many reps as possible (AMRAP), or a specific set of reps that you do as fast as you can (I call them chippers, because you chip away at them but I don't know if that is what the trainer people would call it). Of course, what you do reps of depends on the workout. Once it was 150 wall balls. Another time it was box jumps and pullups and hand stand pushups. Sometimes it is squat snatches and other stuff. It is totally variable. The only unifying factor is that you work as hard as you can. Seriously. How many squats can you do in a minute before you pass out? Now how many pushups? Now how many pullups? Whew, go ahead and rest a minute. Now do it all another two times.

It does have tremendous benefits. I am way more confident, happy, and peaceful. The testosterone increase that goes with this has been great for just balancing my life better. Also, I am getting stronger, more toned, and thinner. :-)

Now, since I am writing this for a scheduled post and therefore writing on a Monday, I am headed out to Crossfit. Today's WOD?

For time (a chipper)
21 Thrusters at 65# (for girls)
21 Toes to Bar
21 Hand stand pushups
400 meter run
15 Thrusters at 65#
15 Toes to Bar
15 Hand stand pushups
400 meter run
9 Thrusters at 65#
9 Toes to Bar
9 Hand stand pushups


I go now to die in puddles of sweat and blood on a rubber mat. RAHHHH!

Jan 9th- what is up

So I am trying out scheduling my blog posts. Which means I am actually writing this on the 4th. Not sure how that will work out for accurate posts, but so long as everything is in the past tense then I guess it will be fine. :-)

Current projects include a lot of weddings.

Danielle, my cousin, is getting married on the 10th. I did some of the bridesmaids'  dress alterations, which made a great warm up for the other work I am doing.

LeeAnna, another cousin, is getting married in February. I am sewing her *gulp* wedding dress. It is so exciting and a little intimidating. We designed it to her ideals, and we have draped the pattern to fit her perfectly. I will put up pics when I have them.

Pretty cool, huh? But that isn't all folks.

I am going to be sewing a wedding dress for our very own Jessika. *Passes out from happiness and excitement*

Miss Mouse's Breakfast with Santa

Miss Mouse's Breakfast with Santa

I wrote this. I was feeling Christmasy.

Once, in a very small hole in a wall in a very large kitchen, lived Miss Mouse. She was a very small mouse, with a very small nose, and very small paws, and her very small hole was just the right size. She loved her little hole, because it was right near the big, black stove, where all the good things were baked, boiled, fried, and steamed. Every day new delicious smells would come from that great big stove, and every night the fire was banked up so that the coals would smolder until the morning. On the cold winter nights, Miss Mouse loved to curl up under the stove with her favorite shawl, and feel that warm stove and smell the memories of the feasts it had made.

On one particularly cold winter night, when the wind blew around the corners and the eaves, making sad sounds, Miss Mouse was curled under the stove when the big door to the kitchen opened and a gust of wind came in. The door shut again, and two feet came over in front of the stove. They were peculiar feet, rather small, and covered in wooly green slippers. The slippers stood on tip-toe and the little person took a big pot off the stove. This pot was making heavenly smells, and Miss Mouse desperately wanted to see what was inside it. It was such a big pot that you couldn't see much of the person carrying it, except the feet. The feet walked back to the door, and let in another gust of wind as they went through. Miss Mouse hesitated, then pattered across the floor as fast as possible to go out the door before it closed.

Outside, it was just beginning to get light out, but Miss Mouse couldn't see the pot or the feet. The snow was deep on the ground, and the air was full of crystal flakes. It was very blustery, and the cold cut right through her little shawl. She looked around and around, until she saw the foot marks in the snow. She jumped in the first one. Blasts of wind tried to squish her or pull her out of the little hole, but she kept on going, right into the next three foot marks. When she jumped to the fifth mark, a big white owl swooped down out of the darkness and tried to snatch her up. It grabbed with its big feathery feet, but she burrowed into the snow, and waited. The owl hopped around on the snow for a while, but the wind was fierce and the owl was not hungry enough to hunt around in a heap of snow. Miss Mouse was very cold now, soaked to to skin, and her little shawl was drenched. She climbed out of the hole, and hopped to the next foot mark, and then next, and the next. By now it was dawn, and the snow glistened and sparkled as it swirled around. She saw the pot again now, and the little person carrying it was just going through a door into a big wooden house, with chimneys smoking everywhere. Miss Mouse darted through the door at the last second, and it shut the cold and the wind out behind her.

Now she saw that the feet had belonged to a little man, who gave the pot to a little woman. The room was vaulted and spacious, but filled with little people like the man and woman. A wide wooden door, with knobs low down, was thrown open then, and a whole crowd of little people then trooped into this other room. Miss Mouse followed them and the big pot, and the great room she entered was so bright that she had to look at the dimmest things first. There was a dark wooden table with benches on either side, covered with a feast fit for a king. There was turkey, and ham, and fried eggs, and heaps and heaps of bacon. There were jugs of milk, and cream, and wine, and cider. There were platters of apples piled high, heaps of oranges, fried mushrooms, piles of toast with pools of creamy butter. At the end closest to Miss Mouse, there was a jolly woman, taller by twice than the little people, laughing at their antics as they closed around the table and filed into the seats. At the far end of the table was an even fatter, jollier man, laughing and waving for the little people to come and sit. But the biggest, most dazzling thing in the room, was a tall fir tree, standing upright behind where the big man sat. It was covered in glistening orbs of glass, and delicate ornaments of gold and silver. Under the tree were colorful packages covered in bright paper. At the top glistened a great gold star, and all over the tree magical lights floated, blazing white and yellow all around. It filled the hall with blazing, cheerful light, and made Miss Mouse forget for a moment how cold and tired she was.

Now all the little people were seated, except the first little man she had seen and the little woman with the pot. They ceremoniously gave the pot to the jolly woman, and as they bowed the little man caught sight of Miss Mouse. “Hello! Who have we here?” He exclaimed, “ I do believe it is Miss Mouse from the kitchens!” Miss Mouse gave her best curtsy. The little woman was very kind, and said, “Miss Mouse, would you like to join us elves in a breakfast with Santa?” Miss Mouse was very glad to do this, hanging her wet shawl by the fireplace and coming up to the table. The little elf lady made a place for Miss Mouse on the table (for even very polite mice may sit on tables to eat). Santa, that great fat jolly man, bowed his head, and they all did the same. He said grace, and then carved the turkey. Miss Mouse ate until she could hold no more, and all the elves and Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus had eaten their fill.

Now the table was cleared off, and Mrs. Claus ceremoniously went to the blazing tree and gave Santa the first present. Then everyone brought out their gifts, one by one opening and exclaiming over them. Santa gave Mrs. Claus a beautiful comb for her white hair, and she gave him a new pair of rabbit skin gloves. The head elf gave his wife a neat little green coat with beautiful designs on it, and Santa gave him a new sledge. Finally, every present had been opened. Miss Mouse had enjoyed herself immensely, and was just getting ready to slip away when Santa turned to her and asked, “What do you desire for Christmas my dear?” Miss Mouse paused. She knew exactly what it was that she wanted, but it seemed to big a thing to ask. “Anything at all my dear.” She decided. “What I most dearly want is a little kitchen of my own, in my little hole, with its own warm stove to make delicious smells of my own.” Santa looked very wise, and winked at the head elf. The head elf winked back, and then helped Mrs. Claus to put the big good smelling pot on the table. Then she opened up the lid and the delicious smell filled the room. She started scooping out heaps of popped corn, buttery and delicious. Miss Mouse ate three whole pieces, before she was too full to hold another bite. Sighing with happiness, she sat back for a moment, but now the party was breaking up and it was time to go home.

She took her leave of Mr. and Mrs. Claus, and the head elf and his wife, then she got her shawl and scurried back to the door, over the fresh new still snow, and into the kitchen. She looked at the big stove, and then her hole. The stove was so warm and delightful that she couldn't resist going under it to curl up, warm and cozy, for a snug nap after her delightful breakfast. She slept and slept, and when she woke it was quite dark outside. She pattered to her hole, but it was different. Instead of chill and shadowy, her hole was light up with warm golden light, and quite warm. She looked around, and there in the corner was a brand new stove, with a little stove pipe and a little wood stack. In the fire box was a little banked up fire, and on the warming box sat a little note. “Merry Christmas Miss Mouse, and thank you for joining us for breakfast -Santa Claus”

How it all turned out

Wow, what a cool costume dance!

We had so much fun and I got it all done! Whew!

I spend all that time making the costumes, and all that work is really worth it, but what really makes or breaks a costume is the person that wears it. This year, everyone was so fantastic, and made their respective costumes come to life

Jolena was the most amazing Danielle deBarbaroc: so elegant! So amazing! She totally stole the night! (She also won the best women's costume prize)

My armor ended up really nice. I wish I could have made it better, but my fist attempt at armor was, on the whole, a ripping success.

Becca made an amazing viking, and it was so much fun copying the large scale work on Stoick's outfit. I even convinced her to wear the fur cape. :-D

I only did the vest for this costume, and a little advising, but she rocks it, dontcha think? (plus, she is dancing with Barbossa!!!)

And last but not least, there is Cori as Bellatrix Lestrange; this one speaks for itself. :-)

It was great! Good times were had, so many cool costumes were there! 

What is up:

I have been doing nothing but costumes and watching The Flash.

I like the Flash. It is like the Spiderman character of DC, in many ways. I have mostly dismissed DC as dark and depressing and unworthy of my time, because of their characters like Superman and Batman. These characters have dark stories, full of unhappy endings and the futility of goodness. However, the Flash has been surprisingly upbeat.

I finished the Ever After costume, the Jack Sparrow vest, the Jane Foster costume, and the Stoick costume. Now for Bellatrix....

Random stuff

Why is everyone talking in poetry? *Left brain rebels* :-)

I have been sewing like mad, and doing other things. Like, I learned to make armor. And wings.

Mostly costume work for me nowadays, although I am also working up to a wedding dress for a cousin.

My costume list includes:

Danielle DeBarbaroc from Ever After, the Breathe dress she wears to the ball.

Jane Foster from Thor 2, an obscure blue dress with armor

Stoic the vast, but turned into a girl ("gender bent")

Jack Sparrow, also gender bent 

Bellatrix Lestrange

Hmmmmmmm, I think that is it. Most of them are undone as of now, but they need to be done pretty quick now....

What I have been thinking about recently

What I have been thinking about recently:

What I got when I looked up "pretty pictures"

Has anyone else experienced that tangled-brain that comes from trying to think about too much at once? When your circuits go haywire and you can't logic anymore? It usually happens to me when I am tired, or when I take too much on at once, or when I consume things I am allergic to. For a person who thinks all the time, this is a really hard state to function in. Also, it usually produces really bad ideas.

How much stuff does a person actually need? I am narrowing down my possessions, as I redo my house, and I have a lot of books and do-dads that I probably don't need. If I was sentimental I might keep them. Is a set of 3D puzzles going to get used? How much historically-accurate clothing do I need for my work? How many pairs of shoes do I need? So many decisions.

Loneliness is part of being a grown up. An immature person goes around begging for friendship and for their needs to be fulfilled, a mature person realizes that they must stand on their own two feet. Everyone outside of you has their own lives to live, and if you are strong and wise enough to understand it, you will... "mind your own business" in the best of ways.

 No one else can actually make you ok. That is why God does it. Making you ok is the whole point of our faith. So in a very real way, God IS a substitute for people, in that he has provided for it. I don't think he is the same as having people. It isn't like you are going to take God to lunch or play frisbee with God, or even have a back and forth conversation out loud. And I think humans do need those physical things. God is more core than that need.

Discipline or something. Mostly an interesting picture to break up the monotony.

Leading a disciplined life is something I need to do. I am not doing it. Darn. What is a disciplined life? My awesome definition was this: a disciplined life is when you curb the most destructive desires of the flesh, and moderate the desires that are good and fulfill them in proper proportion. As such, it is in accordance with walking by faith, and is not inherently legalistic... I think. How you actually do the curbing and moderating is a work in progress. Theoretically it is different for everyone. For me I think it is making my body do stuff. At least that is what my parents tell me, and I think I agree. There is, at least, an 85% chance that they are right. Also, going to bed on time and getting up early and doing chores regularly and brushing my hair daily and washing my clothes and stuff. :-|

I am working on armor for a costume (!) and it is going well, but the planishing takes FOREVERRRRR. And the original in the movie had a front and a back out of metal, but in real life the costume was made out of some sort of foam or plastic, so the back actually would have to be more flexible than the stainless I have. Hence, I am not making the back, or (for that matter) the double shoulder armor ("pauldron") because of the planishing. I am going to do a good job on the etching though, and my version is better than any other version I have seen on the internet so far. And it is my first time making armor, so it is all awesome. :-)

I have three sisters, a brother, myself, Jolena,and Cameron to sew for, if nothing else comes up, when it comes to costumes. And I am making two for myself if possible, because the folk dance costume with the armor is cool, but I also wanted to make a Spiderman dress, and there is a costume swing dance so now I am totally making the Spiderman dress. Booya.

Also everyone I know (<exaggeration) is getting married. Or they have beaux. Or interested parties. And I get to sew some wedding stuff! Like a whole wedding dress! ISN'T IT JUST THE MOST EXCITINGEST THING EVER?! 

That is the most macro things. I am also doing school. Lots of school.