Super Specific Sunshine Award (& Tags)

Thanks a bazillion to Megan of A Geeky Gal for nominating me for this really fun award, featuring SUPER SPECIFIC QUESTIONS! I really appreciate it, community is what makes blogging fun, and I’ve met so many cool people through blogging!

And also thanks to Matt of Normal Happenings for creating this award! It’s an interactive and engaging idea.

So! Here are the rules for this award:

The “Rules”

You control your own destiny. If you desire Normal Happenings Super Specific Sunshine Award, the nomination process is as follows.

• Respond to at least one super specific question in the comments.
• If I like your answer even a little bit, I shall dub you “Nominated,” and exchange some witty repartee.
• Respond to all questions on a blog post of your own, then come up with ten more super specific questions.
• Link back to this post (or not, doesn’t bother me).
• Encourage others to do the same, henceforth propagating an internet macro for centuries.
• Bask in the glory of your newly earned Normal Happenings Super Specific Sunshine Award!

 

Super Specific Questions from A Geeky Gal

• It’s Karaoke Night! What song are you singing?

I LOVE KARAOKE! I usually go for soulful songs or powerful rock ballads from artists such as Journey, The Cranberries, KISS, The Cars, Ozzy, Genesis, Fleetwood Mac, and Led Zeppelin.

• If someone really wanted to understand you, what would they read, watch, play, and listen to?

Read: Transgressive fiction

Watch: Vampire movies and epic fantasies

 

Play: Otome games

Listen to: Diabolik Lovers drama CDS XD

• What movie made you so sad that you could never watch it again?

When I was a little kid in the 90’s my parents rented this vhs from blockbuster and sat me down to watch it. They still fondly recall sometimes the story of how, when the movie was over, they asked me “So what did you think of the movie, Shauna?” and I turned to them, tears streaming down my lil’ face, and bawled “IT WAS HORRIBLE!”

It’s about a boy and his dog lost in the woods together. There is a scene *spoiler alert* where the kid and his dog are finally found and a rescue helicopter comes to save them but they can only take the kid. They have to leave the dog behind, and the kid is screaming, held back by the rescue crew as the helicopter raises higher and higher, noooo my dogggg, I can’t leave my dogggg! and I was pretty much scarred for life.

• If you dropped everything right now and went on a road trip, where would you go?

Japan isn’t really accessible by road so….. Banff! I want to soak in some hot springs and see the beautiful scenery. I would also love to visit my friends in Calgary and Nanaimo.

• You can play match maker with any two characters of any genre, what characters would you pick and what would their first date be like?

I want to see InuYasha take Kagome on a proper date with no alternate context. YOU CAN’T RUN AWAY FOR EVER, INUYASHA!

InuYasha has to take the initiative. Window shopping, fancy dinner in a restaurant, an evening at the theatre. Who knows where the night will lead?

It always drove me CRAZY that InuYasha was obviously so in love with Kagome but always hid it, CRAZY I TELL YOU.

• If I were a billionaire and I wanted to hire you to be make my life better/easier, what would I hire you to do?

Hmmmmm good one….  I’m pretty good at cleaning, and I could maybe entertain you with some very basic ukelele songs?

• How many pillows do you sleep on and why?

I have one pillow, and I am VERY particular about my pillow! It must be squishy enough to wrap behind my neck and around my ears- not too firm, not too flat. Sometimes I even take it with me when I am traveling if I know that a hotel has crappy pillows.

The worst kind of pillow for me is one that’s too firm >.<

• You die. Credits start rolling past you. What are some of the strangest roles other people have played in your life?

WOAH this is such a great question!

-First Kiss Boy: Kevin Bacon (no relation)

-Mutually Johnny-Depp Obsessed Girl

-The Coolest Woman You’ll Ever Meet

-Racist Jerk on Public Transit

-Loud At 2AM Roommate

-Very Sexually Active Roommate

-Drug Paraphernalia Roommate

-Shawol insta-friend

-Witch at the Bus Stop

 

• What’s worth the wait?

Happiness is worth the wait, though I wish I’d known I needn’t have waited.

🙂

• What kind of people do you hate the most?

Hate is a really strong word that I don’t use often, but I think it’s safe to say that I hate animal abusers.

 

Super Specific Questions from HideNGoShauna

• You’re at a geek convention. You’ve got $1000 to blow. If you could only choose one of the following, which would you rather spend your money on: plushies, posters, or figurines?
• What fictional character do you look up to as a role model or inspiration, and why?
• Explain an outlandish belief or misconception that you had as a child.
• What is a profession that you’ll probably never do but think you would be good at and/or enjoy?
• Do you have any special or unique traditions with your family or friends?
• What would your catchphrase be if you were a 90’s hero? (Example: In the Name of the Moon, I will Punish You! – Sailor Moon)
• If your life was made into a movie, who would you want to play you?
• What was your favorite childhood toy?
• Do you prefer city life or country life?
• What’s on your bucket list, and have you completed anything yet from it?

I nominate:

BizarreBrunette

The Geek at Heart

Crazy Disco Stu

The Animessenger

and if anyone else wants to do this, I will nominate you too 😉 leave me a comment.

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Lose Yourself In the Magic of Artistic Creation

I’ve previously written about my hard times completing my Bachelor of Education. Yet, there were also some beautiful times amidst the struggles that I experienced during that time.

One such ray of light was a class my cohort took together, a course on teaching art to kids. In this class we explored the basics of artistic composition and art history, as well as playing around with various mediums and styles.

The class was EXTREMELY polarizing- people either loved it or hated it. Happily, I was one of the ones who loved it. Our teacher, a wise young woman named Tessa, exuded an air of calm, whimsy, and a hint of rebellion. I looked forward to her classes very much- she was flown in from Edmonton regularly to our small northern municipality.

We did things like unrolling a giant roll of white paper, circling it like a group of witchy practitioners in a chant, loosely dripping black india- ink from large brushes. Later we ripped off pieces from the resulting scroll which we turned into landscapes filled with strange creatures and bugs. I kept an additional scrap and made this cat:

For the class, each of us had a large black sketchbook, and Tessa encouraged us to draw in it at least once a day. Again, for some of my classmates this was torturous, but for me it was the first hint that art was something I needed in my life. It had been a long time since I’d carried a sketchbook around or devoted myself to playing with art, and it turned out to be very cathartic and calming for me.

One project was to create our own personal emblems through a print stamping process- I was stuck on what to design for myself, but ended up creating something that incorporates hints of sun rays, book curvature, flower and pawprint.

At times many of the class, including myself, became caught up in the particulars of their art, feeling inadequate or not ‘good enough’. I now realize though that the act of creating something is its own reward.

Playing with colour, mixing and dabbing, moulding and sketching- you don’t have to hold yourself to some imaginary standard to enjoy making art. If anything, enjoy it as an opportunity to incorporate play into your life and let the colours awaken your sight and boost your mood, regardless of what the end result is.

^ I remember making this weird slapdash thing thinking ‘wtf am I making’ but I just went along for the ride and had fun with it. I’m not particularly fond of it, but nor do I dislike it.

Another approachable way to have fun with art is to reinterpret or play with parts of a work you admire. This piece, inspired by Munch’s ‘The Scream’ aims to portray the technological fears and intense panic attacks I was experiencing back in those days.

The entire course felt different from the rest of our studies. It stands out in my mind as colourful splash amidst an ocean of grey lecture rooms. We were so used to sitting at tables diligently discussing theories and studying facts that in contrast the freedoms of learning about art in that sunny room with Tessa felt like a spiritual journey.

One day she told us to find an elevated area like a table or counter and lie on our backs. I lay there, expectant. Tessa noticed me fidgeting and staring up at the industrial roof.

She asked ‘what do you see up there that is so interesting, Shauna?’

I replied ‘Im looking for an interesting angle. We’re painting the shapes on the roof today aren’t we?’

Tessa laughed and smiled at me, ‘Oh, no! Close your eyes. We are going to do a guided meditation’. It was lovely.

Something very strange happened as the course came to an end. We did a sculpture project in which Tessa directed us to create a mask that represents a different side of us- perhaps one that we don’t show to people, one that represents the monsters pulling at us each day.

My mask design, with pinhole eyes reminiscent of a Dave McKean creation, represented my anxiety and narrow focus, something that I was struggling with increasingly at that time.

This was before my “hell practicum”, but even then I was in a bad place mentally.

Tessa advised us to take our sculptures, which represented our anguish and pain, and take them into the woods, leaving them to succumb to the rain and return to the earth.

I thought it was a beautiful idea, so on a sunny day I took my dog Tegan with me for a walk on the nature trails.

I gave my sculpture to the earth, hiding it behind a memorable tree with a spray-painted face.

A mere couple of days later I returned to the spot, fully expecting to see my sculpture still there in the bush. It hadn’t rained, and I placed it somewhere out of the eyesight of a casual passerby.

Yet, it was gone…

Even more strangely, something was left in its place. Right in the very spot that my mask once lay was pile of…Lentils? Seeds? To this day I’m not really sure, but I keep thinking that fairies made off with my statue and left me a little gift in return.

Geek Style (?) Snapshots

Last night I saw an Instagrammer’s art depicting how her style has changed throughout the years. I loved the idea, so I made one of my own:

Throughout the years, my “style” wandered from what Mom dressed me in, to a sort of rebellious “who cares what is on your body” phase, to a memorable teenage spell of (mostly) manufactured darkness and woe. I didn’t usually spend money on clothes, but if I did I would just buy whatever was cheap, or shirts that featured a character or series I was fond of.

It was only after I graduated High School that I started working in jobs that I cared about, and began dabbling with purposeful, intentional style choices.

That’s not to say that I am well versed in the means and vocabulary of fashion- far from it. I often don’t know if an outfit would work well with tights or not, and I only recently began collecting useful pieces like slips, strapless bras, and hair mousse. I’m 28 and I still haven’t mastered the smokey eye, or tried fake nails.

What I’ve learned though, is that clothes and accessories are just another hobby, another means of expression, and another tool in your toolkit.

The first person who made me excited about playing with style was YouTuber BubzBeauty.

^ via http://www.bubzbeauty.com/

Lindy, or Bubz as she is known online, has been vlogging for years, and in my late teens I began watching her videos. I don’t remember how I found her- probably trying to learn how to braid my hair or something- but I began to enjoy her videos as they came out, learning new tips and tricks for clothes, hair, and makeup.

What I especially love about Bubz is that she shares not only style advice, but also messages of positivity and self-care. She is a genuinely kind and funny person who helped me learn some basics of style and makeup, and begin to build up my self-confidence.

Bubz got married a few years before I did, and I even referred to her wedding videos when planning our wedding.

Now she and Tim have two adorable kids- i’m sure if I have a baby someday I will turn to Bubz’ videos for help!

Another style inspiration of mine is Kim Kibum, SHINee’s Key.

Key’s playfulness and individuality with style is so fun, and really taught me that style is for YOU; it’s not for anybody else (unless you want it to be!). Key occasionally wears statement pieces that are not my style, but the confidence that he rocks them in makes it clear that he is owning the clothes and not the other way around.

Whether it’s graphic pins, bold socks, neutrals, patterns, whatever- Key dresses to impress. He has nudged me into looking at clothes and fashion in a new light- as something fun to explore rather than a world that I fail in and know nothing about.