The ugly side of losing weight

     In today's body-obsessed society, it seems like everyone is concerned with losing weight and being thin. Fortunately, for a lot of sensible people, it's not a big thing- just that little "society voice" in the back of their head, reminding them that really, they shouldn't have that extra brownie for dessert. As long as that never gets out of hand, I think that's probably a good place to be. You can enjoy yourself and your food without guilting yourself or being overly concerned about having obsessions. Except tacos. Tacos are ok to obsess about.
     Anyway! For some reason, I've been losing weight this year. I don't have an exact number, but as of two months ago, I'd dropped thirty pounds off of my winter weight, without even really trying. Considering that I'd already come down another thirty pounds from where I'd been two years ago, I feel pretty good. I will be keeping track of it, just in case I've done something silly like picked up a resident tapeworm or something

One of THOSE people...

     You know what I'm talking about. Those people in classrooms that will always raise their hands, open their mouths, and release a simple statement or question that leaves the entire rest of the class with their mouths hanging open at the absolutely inanity of what was just said. It doesn't matter if you're in a general education class or an elite upper-division specialty class, there is always one of those.

    At first, the teacher tries to be nice. After all, it's entirely possible that no one in the class knows what Newton's Law of Gravity is about, or that 50 people who made it into college are unclear on the concept of what a noun really is. So the first couple days, possibly even weeks, you get to sit back and watch this

Job and school starting

     With the onset of both school and a new job or two, the time I have available to devote to posting and pictures is going to be rather less than before. Does that mean you get no new rants, off-the-wall explanations or pictures? No! Of course not! They might just be more compact and less ramble-y in the future. Moreover, since I'm going to try to use some of the drawings for my Russian class, as well as for here, I'm debating making the writing in my little doodles be computer text instead of hand-drawn. That way, I can devote more space to the drawing, and not have to make two copies. And, finally, you guys might be able to actually read

Internal landscape

     As I'm sure you've noticed by now, most people in the world can be classified, more or less, into the categories of "neat" or "messy". Naturally, there are gradations within these categories, but in general, people have a tendency to lean towards one side or the other. I tend to fall on the neat side; I like to keep my house in fairly good order, because if I don't, I end up misplacing things and not finding them for a few days, weeks, or years.
     What I find interesting is that, many times, I will let things slide a little bit until something inside me says, "No, no more slacking, it's time to do something about this situation!" And it's not just that way about cleaning either. I'm sure everyone can think of a time where they saw something start to get a little off-kilter, and

Too many cooks

     I recently announced to a friend that I am the queen of analogies (pictures coming soon). With that in mind, I'd like to talk a bit about relationships. Yes, I know that was terrible, but I am not the segue queen, so bear with. I didn't date in high school, which I thought was a fabulous idea at the time, I suspect, however, that combining that with my first relationship being eight years long and rather negative, I missed out on some rather formative experiences in life. 

     One of the things I am horrifically bad at is knowing when to end things. I am horrible about giving people not just second and third chances, but even 156th and 398th chances, all the while quietly sinking into the quagmire of my self-contempt and their abuse. Terrible, I know, but it stems from wanting to believe the best

Delayed

There will be a new story here eventually, I promise. Today, however, has been given over to utter relaxation, lack of worry, and eating whatever I want. Moreover, having been a lazy butt all day, I am now going to go on a walk for some fresh air and exercise. Everyone needs a day off, even when they're unemployed (a state I intend to change soon, so better get that relaxing in!). Cheers!

Bad amazement

    It is entirely possible that I had an unusual upbringing. I have come to realize, over the years, that not everyone's family would allow you to get up from the dinner table for only two things: to go to the bathroom, and to check the dictionary. Not everyone's family encouraged reading the classics at the age of 8. It is not common for families to have arguments of the etymology of words on a regular basis. Add to this the fact that I went to school for four years in a school system that was positively rigorous about spelling and grammar, and you get an idea of why my background might be slightly unusual when it comes to words.
    Regardless of these factors, however, one would still hope that the general public had managed to pick up enough basic usage of the English language to prevent me from having a permanent bruise from banging my

Cranky day

   Today is one of those days. Not necessarily a day where nothing goes right, but rather a day where nothing feels right. You wake up in a grumpy mood, and just unconsciously decide to be contrary. Nothing is right, you don't want to do anything, everything is just slightly off. Not enough to anger, just enough to miff. Or possibly tick. Definitely something that ends with "you off".
    My day started with poor sleep and crummy dreams. In them, someone I know very well was being a jerk, and, despite there being no possible way it was their fault, I still woke up feeling very put out with them.

A more serious note.

     Yesterday, for the first time in my life, I quite simply told someone that I did not want to pursue the possibility of re-opening a friendship. As simple as it seems, this was quite possibly one of the hardest thing I'd done in my life. I don't like hurting people, so I usually end up hanging around until things reach absolute breaking point, and I just walk away from it all. In this case, however, I felt it best to step up and just be honest.
    Brief background: I grew up as a military brat, so I never really had to deal with having people around who don't like how I grow and change. Every three years, there was a new batch of people, a chance to explore new things, and grow into a new person. While this does wonders for one's sense of adventure and willingness to accept different ideals, it leaves one slightly gimped in the area of how to deal with change-