sadistikdolly

Yes, I'm back after a long, long absence.

It went something like this:

school play
computer crash
stupid school competency tests

I've missed you all! 

~~~~A List of Important Things That Have Happened Lately~~~~

Gordon B Hinckley, the president of my church, passed away last week. Today I went to a broadcast of his funeral service. At the end, they played an old talk of his where he urged the youth of the church to be better, be stronger, be more faithful, just do better. I'm not sure how well I can explain it, but even though I've never met him, well, it's like Jesus. You may have never met him, but you just know he loves you. I miss him, and I miss knowing that I won't listen to him speak again. But, I'm not extremely sad, because in our religion death isn't really death, it's moving on.

I'm a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. A Mormon. :D

I got my braces off. My teeth are beautiful now, but I hate my retainers with a passion. I've had the braces for years, and I'm glad it's done with. I'd forgotten how life felt without a constant headache and a bruised mouth.

This weekend, I'm having a birthday. I'd rather not share my age, I think, but I usually hate my birthdays. They tend to be miserable. This year, I will be excited. I'm sick and tired of being depressed on days everyone else enjoys. And, if you love me, write me birthday fanfics! Oneshots are loved. :)

I think me being happy and excited about life in general is Mood A.

Me being sad and hating myself and acting like a victim is Mood B.

Me hating everyone and everything around me and scratching at the ugly bumps on my arms is Mood C.

Moods A and B are the most common, but C is a progression of B. Can anyone else give me feedback? This is normal, right?

Other:

I've become a little occupied with learning to sing "Green Finch and Linnet Bird" from Sweeney Todd... A lot of the notes are really high, especially in the first verse, and I can't hit them very well, but I think if I practiced I might be able to. At lunch the other day I finally listened to some of the songs from the movie (I've only ever heard the original cast) and I have decided: Well, obviously they simplified all the music. It was fun to listen to, but of course nowhere near hearing an actual musical-theater or opera cast perform it. Helena Bonham Carter's voice is adorable. (Um, it's her singing--how is it going to be anything but adorable?!) Alan Rickman's voice was really soothing. He sounded way too nice to be the Judge. And....well...Depp was rather unimpressive. In a review of another actor-trying-to-sing that I read recently, the writer commented, "Well, at least he carries a tune better than Depp!" and it's true. XD MIss Nancy and I have also decided that "Pretty Women" is uberly sexy but probably sexist...eh, go figure. (Even in the movie version, where it sounds like it's being sung by Jack Sparrow and Snape!)

I finished Miss Nancy's cosplay coat! Well, it's not totally finished, but once she gives me the zipper and tries it on I can finish it. Miss Nancy--are you going to wear the hood down all the time? I'm assuming the answer is yes. I've also got the fabric for my Dante dress laid out on my sewing table. As soon as my Okaa-san is available to help me, I'm gonna start cutting and piecing.

I'm supposed to be taking actors'  measurements all this coming week for the school play (A Midsummer Night's Dream) and so I guess I'll take the Dante dress to school and work on it in the costume room....or maybe I just won't sleep this week. Our school machine is devilspawn and I hate changing the bobbins. And the threads break every ten seconds. T___T

Miss Emmy, start doing your laundry! You're still scheduled to visit this weekend, right? (In that case, I probably should go clean my room....)

Today I was convicted of heresy against the Catholic Church by Pope Urban V. Or was it Pope Urban III? I can't remember...

In my history class we're putting on a mock trial of Galileo (the Italian astronomer) versus the Catholic Church. I was Galileo. My defense attorneys suck, and the prosecutors are really smart, but the jury likes me...so I'll keep you posted. :)

Galileo really was tried in 1500-something and put under house arrest until he died. He went blind--turns out you really shouldn't stare at the sun!

He was only an astronomer because he wasn't cool enough to do alchemy.

----totally unrelated----

A new person joined Thelastalchemists! And their user is "dante"!!! *dies*

I've decided that everything would be way cooler if I put the appropriate honorifics in front of everyone's names, okay? <3<3<3


So...

Miss Emmy
Miss Caitlin
Miss Soup (aren't you Samantha? Can I call you Miss Samantha?!)

*just realized that she only has THREE lj friends but oh well I love you all<3!!*


Um, I guess if that offends you somehow I don't have to, but it'd make me happy inside, so please?

Oh, and by the way--my journal is not pretty! Anyone have advice on where to find a pretty journal layout thingy? I'm notoriously stupid about this kind of thing.

So, my break is just about over, I'm back from all my lovely vacations, and I'm hoping you guys all had great holidays!

Me, I am not looking forward to returning to normalcy, but..... All good things come to an end, right? The weird thing is, I still haven't seen my grades for the semester, and I know the school should have mailed them by now....but I'm not brave enough to actually look at them online.... *shiver* Still, I kinda want to know how I did on my English and History finals (probably not as awesome as Miss Soup but oh well... *laugh*)



Wow, that was raaaaambly. I think I'll go sleep now..... 0.o

So, I've been very lonely while my net is disconnected, but it's worth it because we had to install some new floors and they're just gorgeous. I love them! My house is so prettyfancy! Emmy will be so surprised when she comes--it's all very new and exciting, darling!

In other news...

Our Christmas concert is tonight! (I am play ze cello <3) and I get to count off a song in Show Orchestra. I'm sitting 2nd chair in Chamber Orchestra (grr freshmen!) and once again, Show is playing right after Chamber so I have to leave my cello backstage and then franticly change into my Show uniform. Have I mentioned that I love the Chamber uni? The one for the orchestra I was in last year looked like a fancy anime uniform, but Chamber girls get to wear these black ballgown style dresses with puffy sleeves! My Show dress is my favorite, though. I loooooove my prettyfancy Show dress!

--a quick note-- at my school, Chamber is the intermediate orchestra, the last all-strings one before you're good enough to play in the symphonies, which are all the top music classes. Show is an extra class. We rehearse before and sometimes after school and often during lunch. We learn music and choreography and people hire us to play at parties and stuff....it's really hard but it's fun! I wish I could play in just Show and not Chamber, but I have to have a "technique" class and Show isn't one...so...it's a performance thing...

Anyway, wish me luck! :D

I've been meaning to post about  my family. Because I love them. And I'll probably talk about them A LOT. So, here's they are!

((BECAUSE MY OKAA-SAN <3s CONFIDENTIALITY THEIR NAMES SHALL BE DEEP DARK SECRETZ :O))

Otou-san: My Otou-san is my hero and rolemodel. He works a lot, so I don't see him much, but he drives me to school and picks me up from my clubs. Otou-san is a very patriotic American. Our personalities (and POLITICAL OPINIONS) are oh-so very similar. I'm super conservative, in case any of you are wondering. A Republican.

Okaa-san: She's been oddly happy lately. My Okaa-san is neat and organized and OCD about having clean floors and pretty and I love her. She's been oddly happy lately. I mean, maybe I just notice it more now. I think it's because of Christmas. We read all the same books. I'm in the process of reading Harry Potter aloud to her. I'm working on getting her interested in manga, but so far nothing's worked. I have inherited my Okaa-san's temper. It can be scary.

~~~~~My siblings! All younger!~~~~~~

Tai-chan: She's super picky and seems to think that she's the Biggest Sister. She can be bossy. She's always talking about boys, and she tells me everything, whether or not I care. Dance is her life. Two of her choreographies (both lyrical/modern dance, both beautiful) were picked for the school dance team's show.

Miu-chan: She's a brat. I mean, I love her, but she's a brat. Miu-chan loves to pick fights. She's gonna grow up to be a lawyer, I think. She loves cats, though, and Edward Cullen. She used to watch Yuugiiou and Inuyasha with me. Miu-chan is a very determined person. If she wants something, she goes out and gets it. Also a dancer.

Sho-kun: My one and only baby brother. I don't like his friends, but he likes anime and manga, even though he's not happy about having to learn to read and reading in general, and he's fascinated by sewing. I hope he always shares my interests, since neither Tai-chan nor Miu-chan really do.

Dii-chan: The baby of the family. Sweet, a little annoying, and worships her big brother. Seriously. If Dii-chan were born a boy I'd call her and Sho-kun Ed and Al. They're just like that.. Sho-kun acts like she annoys him, but he's really a great older brother.

I also have two kitties, but if I start talking about them I'll never stop because they're my babies and I love them and they're gorgeous and sweet and....




I really should be doing homework! ^___^;;;

I seem to have lost my Greed cosplayer! He says that he might not be able to come to the con after all, and so I'm really, really sad....

I don't particularly care that we don't have a Pride cosplayer (although there is a slight chance that....) but a Greed would have been so much fun! And then we would have had almost everyone!

Well, I shall keep the Internet updated. :D

Right, so, I'm going to keep you all updated on my first attempt at *real* cosplay.

The *real* is in there because I do a lot of costuming stuff already, but I've never tried to do actual, strictly character-based cosplay. So, I'm starting out with Fullmetal Alchemist, mostly because (almost) none its characters wear particularly crazy outfits. I figure just about anything from it should be relatively easy to do, right? I mean, it's all fairly simple sewing, right? I really, really hope I'm right... Anyway, if you've had any experience doing any of these characters (or any cosplay experience AT ALL) leave me comments! And pictures if you can!

So, I'm going with a group of six people, and we're doing basically all the FMA villains, meaning, Dante and her homunculi (obviously it's the FMA anime, not the manga...although I love the manga...). I'm going to be Dante, (for those of you, which is like, basically all of you, that are on Thelastalchemists) Jelly and Pokey are going to be Envy and Wrath, and then two other friends are going to be Lust and Greed. For Gluttony, I made a really cute plushie for our Lust to carry around. I have pictures of him on my camera--I'll have to put them up. We're not doing a Pride cosplayer because no-one wanted to cosplay Pride.

So, cosplay rant time! Just Envy for now...

I already had a skirt-thing for an Envy cosplay I almost did a few years ago, so Jelly and I got a shirt while we were shopping for Halloween costumes (Alice in Wonderland!). The only changes that have to be made are to the sleeves, so they look Envy-ish, and I have to take the whole thing in a little 'cuz Jelly is too skinny (if you're skinnier than me, you're too thin! <3). Pokey made her a headband, so we just need gloves and legging-things and she'll be good. We'll probably use her natural hair (rinse, blow dry, separate with styling goo and add some almost-visible green tint) instead of a wig, because I don't like wigs very much. The issue here is her shoes----what do we do about shoes?! I've seen too many gross Envy cosplayers in sandals or tennis shoes and it looks crappy! We're not doing that! So, I was thinking flesh-tone flats with the leggings fitted around the bottom? Or, if I can make it work, we might take flesh-tone or black flip-flops, take the plastic thong off, and then attach the legging around the bottom and add clear elastic straps over the feet and around the heel. I think that would look the best, but I'm not sure how well it would stay on.

Well, if you have any advice, please help me!

Love, Dolly