Indefinite Hiatus

So, I did the worst thing a blogger whose blog is centered around photos can do--I dropped my camera in the ocean. Not my important one, but since I don't currently have access to my processing chemicals, a darkroom, OR a scanner, it means I can't do a whole heck of a lot over here anyway. Mom sent me one of our old ones to use in the meantime, but clearly no one had used it in a while since they sent it with no batteries and I don't have any or the kind of spare cash that would permit me to buy any (those things are expensive!)

So, perhaps in a couple of days I'll post some pics I took before that unfortunate circumstance occurred. For now, I'm beat. I had a rather sucky day today.

Exciting times await

I received word recently that I have been accepted into the University of Hawai'i at Manoa for the fall semester. I am eagerly preparing for this and for my Japanese placement exam. I'll be moving down with a dear friend from Cottey who I haven't seen in two years. Because of my preparations, it may be more difficult for me to update. I will still do my utmost to post when I can, but I have a lot of studying to do. Although, if there's one thing that I collect more than any other, it may be Japanese textbooks! Maybe I'll do a post about them!

This week has been exciting for other reasons too

Feeling: Productive with a hint of butterflies

I've had a fair amount of drama, productive moments, and lord knows what else at the moment. I'm sorta dazed at the moment. Last week a beautiful vintage maxi dress arrived at my door with a few glaring flaws so I had a bit of a "verbal" sparring match with the seller but ultimately decided to keep it. The day I wore it out, the seams began coming apart and the hem came unstitched. The worst part was I was out with my mom and we couldn't go home, so I was left fearing my dress would fall apart around me. I haven't felt that vulnerable in many a moon.

I found some of my classmates from my school in Japan via Mixi (the Japanese myspace/facebook/wherever) and messaged them. I was unsure as to whether either was who I thought they were (names were strange) but both were! Today, though I stumbled upon Minma's public diary and he posted about my message to him. It was hard to read (literally). He seems to be a good storyteller. It kinda seemed like he was unhappy about it at first, but then when he says what the message says, he sounds like its a very good thing. At the end, I think he said that if I didn't accept his friend request, he won't come to America his whole life. Very puzzling. Then all the comments were from other classmates about me and one used the term, "yabai," which I'm used to being a bad thing, which wasn't nice to hear! So I sent him a message and got a few things off my chest I've needed to say for a long time; I apologized. It felt good but it's a little nerve-wracking--to wait for a response.

(RL Alert!) A snippit from now and the future

Just a disclaimer up front: I am in no mood to put up with close-minded people on this particular issue, so if you do not believe in the metaphysical either don't click or please don't comment. I've debated on whether to post this and if it looks like this is better suited for my livejournal or something, I'll delete this then but please just indulge this wish.

Is there no hope for this poor Cooperette?

I'm not gonna lie, or mince words. I listen to awesome music. I'm not the only one who thinks so. This is largely because, back when I was twelve, my favorite karate instructor played Hey Stoopid by Alice Cooper in the car on our way to a tournament. I was blown away by the song "Wind-up Toy." I asked for a copy of the tape and listened to it non-stop until one day my dad presented me with a brand new copy of the CD. I treasure this still to this day. I feel all warm and fuzzy just thinking about it. Prior to this, I had not heard rock music.I grew up in the 90s, when the airwaves were flooded with shiny pop music. Alice introduced me to the macabre and I have never looked back. After I saw my first concert (in a tiny club) I swore never to attend an arena concert. I loved the freedom of not being restricted to a seat. I lamented that this would mean I'd never get to see my beloved Alice Cooper live, but just yesterday I decided that I should go see him while I still have the chance. So I checked his site and... no Texas stops. How is that even possible? The nearest stops are in Kansas and Missouri next month. I'm willing to go that far to see him, but the person I would normally ask to accompany me has made it abundantly clear that she does not like Alice Cooper. So I am at a loss, what should I do?

Well, moving on to today's topic...

Many apologies for the long break!

I've been cleaning! Big big feat for me. I can generally keep my room clean once it is clean, but the second I slip up it just goes downhill--fast. It doesn't help that I'm a college student and I've got roughly 2 1/2 rooms worth of stuff crammed into that room or that I'm a habitual shopper. As anyone who shops as much a I do knows, after a while you have to get rid of some stuff, so I've taken this as an opportunity to do just that. There's more to it than that though. In the past I've compared my room to my head, it's cluttered but it's full of wonderful things. As some of you know already, I'm in therapy right now, trying to straighten out my head. It's time I straighten out my room; really make the commitment. I can't take this on half-hearted. I haven't finished either yet but I'm working on it!

As my apology, please accept my gift of photos m(_ _)m

Not a real update--EGL Meme from non-loli to vintage

Sometimes life happens... (warning! LONG!!)

After all that hype surrounding Friday's concert, you must be wondering why I have not posted on it since then. Well, it was certainly a crazy ride for me and my comrade. We got a late start, as I was teaching her to cross-stitch, and we got lots of attention at the restaurant for our outfits. I wore my beautiful modern floral jumper circa 1975 (handmade by yours truly) and Naomi wore her pleated vintage ribbon minidress (probably also 70s era). I tried to get photos of us in our outfits but the lighting was very poor in the venue.

Marquis of Vaudeville Special Acoustic Show

Tonight is Marquis of Vaudeville's Acoustic Live! I've been looking forward to this event since I saw them rehearsing last week. If you live in the DFW area and you are free tonight, I highly recommend coming to see this show! Especially if you are interested in eclectic sounding music. They will be performing special arrangements of their songs including a sitar player. When I saw them, it was only their second day practicing with the sitar and it sounded amazing. I promise you won't be disappointed!


To see more about Marquis of Vaudeville, check out their Facebook
If you haven't heard them yet, try "An Ordinary Day." It's my personal favorite (that they have recorded ^_~)

Guide to shopping for vintage gloves--Part 2

I just saw the cutest crabs ever on Survivor! Non sequitur for the win. I received a very exciting phone call today. Ami, my best friend from Cottey, called out of the blue from Switzerland and it was just so wonderful to talk to her. We talked about everything--from nostagia and future plans to catching up. I can see there are wonderful things on the horizon. Nothing concrete, but wonderful, gossamer possibilities.

Before we get started, I would like to reiterate that I am no historical expert on gloves (does such a thing exist?). I don't know which construction techniques are older, or more sought after, or valuable but I know what I can see with my eyes and, well, feel with my hands. I am passing my knowledge on to you.Warning: very image heavy!

A thousand apologies! orz

I swear, I didn't forget you guys! I had every intention of finishing my tutorial today and even had a very restful, recuperative, and productive day and my dress came and everything was wonderful. And then it happened. What was it? The FAFSA, that's what. I got it all filled out, and the one thing I screwed up on is the one thing they won't let you change. I have to start all over again. *sigh* Starting tomorrow I'll have a cache of photos so even when I have a setback like this I'll still have a post for you guys but for now I'm gonna eat a popsicle and find out what Cristina's mom is going to do now that her daughter's abusive boyfriend died cause she hit him with her car. And here I swore I'd never get sucked into my mom's soap.

Guide to shopping for vintage gloves--Part 1

Okay! So I learned the perils of announcing the upcoming subjects ahead of time. Or at least of not taking my pictures ahead of time. Yesterday when I was getting ready to take my pictures I discovered my battery was completely dead. Sorry for the delay, but here it is, my personal guide to buying vintage gloves!

Happy Easter!

Yesterday, I took a trip with my mom to one of my favorite antique stores to buy a beautiful pair of gloves that I'd seen when I was there with Naomi last. I had actually found two pairs, but unfortunately one pair didn't meet my most important standard for vintage shopping. They didn't fit. I hope that they find a good home with someone who can actually use them. It is my personal opinion that these things were meant to be used, and they should be. To keep them stowed away is a disservice to the piece.

Onward!

I really meant to do this earlier *sweatdrop*

Don't really know how long this will end up being, as I've already taken my evening meds and they knock me out. In the interest of time, I will make this a news post and do an extra big picture post tomorrow for Easter. Look forward to a very special entry for the arrival of a brand new (figuratively speaking) gunne sax that I won on ebay on Thursday. Hopefully it will arrive this week! 

Today I added an event ticker to the blog for promoting the events held by my friend Toby's band, Marquis of Vaudeville. I do this for two reasons. Number one: they are very talented and Number two: my best friend (and partner in crime) Naomi and I are working on a very exciting project--designing costumes for the band! For those of you who don't know, the two of us are planning on having a business together in the future. The costumes will not be ready for this event (not even close, but be keeping an eye out closer to the end of summer for that) but we were at their rehearsal on Wednesday taking measurements and they were practicing with the sitar and, trust me, this is going to be an amazing show that you won't want to miss.

Okay, I better go now before I totally crash. See you tomorrow!

Primus

Wow. I've been thinking of making this blog for some time now. It's amazing that it is actually real. I hope the atmosphere is quaint and not terribly kitschy. This is my first blog so please be kind, as I am still very inexperienced and unsure of what's going on! I will try to update frequently when I acquire new pieces and share older pieces when I haven't.

A little about me to get us started and a treat from my collection.