The Steno Notebook

Long Time no Update

2010-03-23T19:54:00.002-04:00

Well, sorry all. Its been way to long since my last post...but in my defense, things have been insanely busy.

For one, I (dont remember if I posted on this earlier) got the internship at the CFZ. After working through the original 3 months (September-December) I applied for a second internship, and was invited back. I'm currently working through that, which runs from January until April.

I will be finishing classes on the 29th of August, and will be heading back to Auburn on the 30th of April. Summer classes do not begin until the 20th of May, which will give me plenty of time to get settled in my apartment, and start the job hunt.

It's rather bittersweet for me. I'm looking forward to going back, especially since it means I will get to take some very exciting classes, like Herpetology and Wildlife Dieseases, but I will be sad to leave my friends at the zoo. I will miss everyone there terribly. If only there were a way to transport the zoo to Auburn, or Auburn to the zoo.

I have been trying, without luck to find places to aquire venomous experience. Unfortunatly this is not working as well as I would like. I've been really hoping to get an internship with the Reptile Discovery Center in Deland, FL, but unfortunatly, Carl says they're booked on interns for the next 3 years or so. I'm still hoping to find a way in, and Carl said that I should keep checking back, just in case something opens up.

Other than that, classes are going well. I finally passed calculus (second time's the charm) as well as passing micro econ, 18th/19th century humanities, and Chem 1 (second time is also the charm here as well). At the moment I'm currently in Chem 2, philosophy and western civ 1. I'm definitley passing the latter two, but struggling a bit with chem 2. I think I have a 65, which is still passing. As long as I pass, I dont care what I get. And its the last sciency-math class that I have to take. After that, its all fun and games (like biologies and wildlife courses).

I've been giving more thought to my 'park' that I've always wanted to start when I reach 'retiring age' (which means 40-50s). Its evolved from a Wolf Park to more of a small zoo. There will be wolves there, as well as having a herpetarium. I believe the herp will be the first thing I build, since I plan to move my own personal collection into the building. The wolves I will probably have to aquire.

My plans are for it to be run by myself (or husband if there is one). We will take care of the expenses, but the animals as well. Since I plan for it to start out as family owned, I dont see there being much trouble in that. I am planning on building the exhibits, so I dont see how taking care of the animal's on top of that will be so different (then going home and taking care of them there) plus most of them will be, as stated, my own personal collection. Though there are some I will probably have to aquire after the herp is established, as I would not feel comfortable keeping a taipan in my home.

Other than that, not much else is going on. I've returned to my original Roman Catholic faith for the time being, and plan to stay that way at least until I'm confirmed. After that, who knows. I was hoping to be confirmed this May, but unfortunatly, I will not be in the area when the bishop is, and since I'd determined to get confirmed at St. Stephens (the church of my childhood) I will have to wait until next year. Which I'm fine with. It means that much to me.

20th Birthday was on Friday. Just got all 4 of my impacted wisdom teeth out yesterday morning. I have a short blurb on it below:

^^ Well I survived.

I was nervous as heck when I got in there, but
they
sat me down in the chair and put the needle in the side of my wrist,
which
didn't bother me as much as back or hand, or crook of elbow. The heart
monitor
was maig me nervous, cause my heart was racing, and I'd try to take
some deep
breaths, and calm down, but then I'd think about it all, and my
heart would
start racing again. ^^ After a minute or two, it started making
me nervous,
being able to hear how freaked out I was.

But one of my
favorite songs
came on the radio, so I sung along with that (I never sing in
public, tone deaf)
to take my mind off things.

Then they hooked me
up to the drugs. They
said it would be slow, and I'd feel dizzy, and maybe a
little tired. I remeber
feeling dizzy almost instantly. when I lay my head
back, all the tiles on the
ceiling started dancing and stuff, moving all
around.

After that the
next thing I remember was them trying to help
me into a wheelchair, and me just
sorta falling into it. Dad says I fell
into the car as well.

Didn't wake
up till we were halfway home,
about an hour drive, was in Orlando for the
surgery. Overall, the surgery
only took ~45min, to remove all 4 impacted wisdom
teeth.

I think
there was one point where I tried to growl, but dad
couldn't have realized
it, because I couldn't talk AT ALL, so I was like
'humming' and growling and
stuff, trying to communicate. Eventually wrote on a
piece of paper with
pen..

I might have howled in the car (not loudly,
but like...humming
a howl). If I did, no one noticed or said anything.

But otherwise,
everything's fine now. ^^ Drugged up on oxycodone. Its
semi-annoying. the
pills put me out almost as soon as I take em, so I end up
napping for an
hour or so, and then do as much talking, movie watching, or
reading as I
can, before I need to take them again, and fall asleep again.

I wasn't
until maybe 5 or so hours after the surgery that I finally
regained feeling
in my entire lower jaw and tongue. But I did eventually, and
can talk now
just fine.

Definitley will not be going to school
today...or
tomorrow most likely. Will -have- to go back on thursday though.
Can't
afford to miss another chem class or lab, since I already will have to
make
up what I miss today.

Thanks all for the advice and well wished. ^^
I really glad everything went well. And maybe, in future surgeries, I'll be
less
anxious about the whole thing.

-Ice

I also vaguely
remember
hearing my dad's voice when they wheeled me out in the chair, and
felt...relief?
I still to out of it to even realized I was nervous until I
heard dad. Then I
sorta had this packmate-alpha impression in my mind, and
went back into la la
land. Dad said I was flopping around in the chair, like
I was trying to wake up.
I dont remember much of that at all, but he also
said my eyes were closed...so I
guess not remembering anyting makes sense.
^^

That's about all I can think of for now. Will try to keep up with this for now on, and possibly write more later.

-Twitch/Ice Blitz

New Snake

2009-08-23T14:59:00.003-04:00

Well, yesterday was the reptile show. We were a little worried about the turnout this year. It seems that since breeders have discovered all the ball python mutations, they have taken over the show. Its hard to see anything else there.

The expo was bigger than we expected, which was good. It was still ~70% ball python mutations, and probably ~15% corn snake mutations.

I was keeping my eyes peeled for the perfect Western Hognose. I wanted one that was at least a year old, male, and that the breeder could gaurentee a diet of mice on.

Hognose snakes in the wild eat toads, and it can be very difficult to get them to eat mice. Most breeders, to switch them over, keep pinkies in a container with toads, until they smell like the amphibians.

Finally, I found the perfect one, and one of the more pretty ones, with a beautiful orangy coloration.

The breeder was willing to hold him whilst I collected other various things.

He now has a happy home in my room and has been dubbed Smaug.

Smaug's Introduction: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBqttSlGgvs

Smaug's First Feed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N15MfuK0OAk

For more info on Smaug see his journal/blog at: http://smaugthesnake.blogspot.com/

Rant-ish

2009-08-20T17:16:00.002-04:00

I guess this could be seen as another rant. Whatever. There's actually less cussing involved in this one, probably because I'm tired, and annoyed and on my period. Plus I haven't eaten today, so that just makes me want to pout and sleep. >.<

I was happy. I found a freakin Fender Stratocaster, and I bloody wanted it. I really REALLY wanted it. And it was/is a good price too.

I've wanted a black electric guitar for AGES. Or at least ~6 years. Dad said "Where will you get the money?" I informed him I'd sell my games. Hell, I'd even sell my Nintendo DS I secretly bought last year for christmas. I wanted that guitar.

So, me, being the naive fucking child that I am, I went to GameStop, thinking they were AMAZING and with ~7 games worth $20 bucks new and a DS worth $120 new I'd easily have enough to buy my guitar.

How fucking WRONG I was.

They wanted to give me $21 for all 7 games (~$3 per game, and they aren't even that used. Some were only played once or twice). And then they only wanted to give me $20 for my DS. WHAT THE HELL?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

So of course, I decided not to sell them to GameStop. But then that left me with a problem. How to get my guitar money?

Well, my darling father suggested Ebay. So I made my PayPal account, and my Ebay account and spent the rest of the afternoon listing games to sell.

The shitty part is, I don't know how long the guitar's going to be available. Which means by the time I finally get the money, the guitar will be gone.

>.<

Sometimes I really hate life. I mean, sure, it's just a guitar. But its something I've wanted for a LONG time.

And now its right in front of me, and I can't have it.

How cruel.

Twitch

P.S. - if anyone is interested, my Ebay account name is blacknightwolfen. Feel free to check it out. I haven't listed the DS yet cause I dont want to sell it unless I have to. Which is most likely going to happen anyway. >.<

New Blog

2009-08-13T21:07:00.003-04:00

It's late and I'm tired, so this wont be long.

I just wanted to let everyone know that I finally made that wildlife blog. Feel free to bookmark it, I'm sure there will be constant updates.

http://wildlifebytwitch.blogspot.com/

Lemme know what you think of the picture (title) for there and here. I made them both myself. I also shot the wolf photo on the wildlife blog.

Twitch

Warning, Rant and Foul Content Below

2009-08-13T13:40:00.002-04:00

Okay, so I decided to go to the zoo. I even got up early because at 10 they were having a cougar show. I got up at 8, showered, did my hair, and left.

When I got there I discovered that even with a $1 coupon the entrance fee was $18. That’s fucking unheard of unless you’re like, the San Diego or Australia zoo. Most zoo’s aren’t good enough to charge that much.

So, I get there, and look around on my way to the cougar show. They only had one white tiger, and he was so far back you could barely see him.

The cougars were unimpressive. A guy just stood there and talked about them, telling me nothing new. The cats took meat off a stick through the fence. Really anti-climatic after you’ve been licked and nipped by one.

I walked around and was very unimpressed by the animals. It was hotter than Hades and I was in a navy shirt, but I wanted to see the animals. Little did I know they had a piss poor collection. They didn’t even have a reptile exibit. The only way to see then was a show later on.

The shows were relatively boring and the keepers didn’t seem to want to talk much. The girl with the tigers told me they are wild animals and are not tame. They WILL kill you if you go in with them. I’m sorry, but if I ever run a zoo, you will go in with your animal. Yes there is danger, but the benefits outweigh the costs. For example, if a vet needs to give a shot, the keeper can assist and the animal may not have to be tranquilized. Which means less stress on the animal, and less health risks.

And the worst part is, the AZA tells people DON’T GO TO PLACES NOT SPONSERED BY US CAUSE THEY DON’T CARE ABOUT WILDLIFE. HOWEVER, the AZA does not support human-animal contact. Well you know what? FUCK THEM. I dont NEED them. I'll start my own zoo/park and it'll be the best fucking zoo around. The equivalent of the Australia Zoo. Steve loved his animals. I dunno how many clips I've seen of him playing with the dingoes, or running with the camels. That's why my zoo will be like. Its not about the people, its about the animals, and zoos these days just dont seem to get that. But back to Naples...

Even the alligators weren’t impressive, though the keepers fed them by hand, they had large sticks in case the gator tried to come up to far on the bank. ooooh, gators. Come on! I fucking canoed with them, AT NIGHT!

Finally they had a snake show. This I went too, and it was nice to see some snakes. They had a ball python (OMG, REALLY?! *snorts*) a huge 5ft milk snake, a copperhead, a cottonmouth, and an eastern diamond back.

Of course, when an idiot (trust me, they were dummer than shit.) asks if the ball python bites, they answer his question, but when I ask something intelligent like “If you’re holding a copperhead or a cottonmouth by the tail do they have the ability to come back up over their own bodies and tag you” it doesn’t get answered. The keeper either didn’t have any idea what I was asking, or didn’t know the answer.

Then he gets quite rude and insulting when I ask if they have any of the big diamondbacks. You know, 8 footers or something. He insults my sources and tells me that there never has been a 9ft eastern db and the only 8 ft one died back in some date I don’t remember.

THE FUCKING GIFT SHOP HAD MORE ANIMALS THAN THE DUMBASS ZOO! And even the gift shop sucked. MY GOD, how has this zoo survived for 40 years? It fucking sucks. Gatorland was better. Montgomery, little old piss ass Montgomery zoo was better. They had tons of animals. I loved Montgomery. and the Sanford Zoo.

Biggest waste of my time and money ever. I should have just slept in this morning.

FUCK!

Hot Dogs and Love Bites

2009-08-10T17:19:00.007-04:00

Well my friends, today marked a turning point, or at least a major landmark in my life. For the first time since my existance started 19 years ago, I have been granted the ability to do something I've always wanted to do. I got to touch and hug a wolf.

The Shy Wolf Sanctuary welcomed me with open arms and seemed to be very impressed with the fact that I came all the way down from the Sanford/Orlando Area and rented a hotel room for a week just to volunteer with them.

I was immediatly introduced to Charlene, who took me around and showed me the animals there. the first two I met were wolfdogs, and they were Shy and Shadow.

Shadow in the foreground, Shy in the background.

Me hugging Shy, who is anything but.

As we walked, she explained to me the history of the animals that had come to be there. The majority of the animals there have been taken in from homes that no longer want them, and over half of those came from abusive homes.

But I enjoyed getting to meet some of these wonderful animals. They were really something else.
Everyone was fairly hot and they immensly enjoyed hotdog treats. Oh, and I thought I should mention, these lucky critter get chicken, and all I have to do is cut the fat off. Much easier than rats and scissors. XD

Here are a few last pictures of the wolves:

After meeting our canine companions, I was introduced to a carnivore of slightly larger standing. The cougars. Now, for technicality, the only cougar known as a panther is the Florida panther, otherwise the name panther refers to leopards. Out west, cougars as known as pumas, but they are still the same species.

I got a few pictures, but not really any good ones, so here's a video of our introduction. The first cougar shown is a male, the only one at the sanctuary, the other two later in the film are both female, and though they are referred to as sisters, they are not.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VThCPI7Kxls

And that was really it for the cougars. One of them did pinch me, and it hurt a bit, but we stopped her before she did anything else. When they pinch you, they come up to you and kinda bite/nibble you. One of the cougars also considered pouncing on me from a rather high perch, so its quite obvious they thought I'd be tasty.

And last but not least, I got to meet the smallest residents of Shy Wolf Sanctuary. The foxes. There was Dickens, an arctic fox. He's black because it's summer. In the winter he'll be white again. The others were two small fennic foxes, who were cute, but annoyed at having to be away during the day.

Fennic Fox (Ricochet or Joey, can't tell), sorry its blurry.

Dickens the arctic fox trying to steal a beer.

And once again, the oh so cute Dickens.

And now, at last, I leave you with one final video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0VeXAhmVww

And yes, they do this everytime they here sirens.

What the hell?

2009-07-23T19:44:00.002-04:00

Well, many points to address in this post. I guess I'll start with my first thoughts/questions and go on from there.

I was contemplating the other day, the idea of destiny and fate. It was shortly after watching an episode of The Crocodile Hunter where Steve and Terri had discussed the first time they met. To them, it was love at first sight. And when you look at the circumstances of their meeting, it is hard to see it as anything other than fate.

Now, me, being a girl, I want a boyfriend. I'm always bitching about how I'm lonely and whatnot and really, sometimes there's comfort only a guy can give. However, the interesting part is, that no matter how desperate I am, I can't stomach the thought going out with a random guy. I want a boyfriend, but if I think about going out with someone I dont really know (even if they are good looking) I get kinda weirded out. So I'm wondering, am I just nuts? Or is there a possibility that there's some fate going on here? Maybe I'm supposed to be single for a reason?

Or maybe I just have too much free time.

The other topic I'd like to bring into the open is communication with the dead. Yeah, I can hear the groans already. but I'm curious. After my mother died I started having dreams with her in them, and I dont know why, but I got a feeling that it was really her in those dreams, and not just my subconscious.

Now there's someone else in my dreams that's been coaching me and giving me instructions. Its almost creepy. If there's something I'm unsure about I'll discuss it with them in my dream and they will relay personal experiences. I also got a feeling from one of these dreams that I had to see a particular movie. I gleened enough that there was some kind of message that I needed to see in the movie. So I got the movie the next day, and low and behold, there was a fucking message in it, and one I needed to hear. Granted, it wasn't a blunt as "Hey, Lindsay" but somehow I knew there was some kind of communication going on.

Now, if you're following that, there's the influence. Lately, I've picked up the dreams/aspirations, goals and even most of the personality of this person that's been talking to me in my sleep. Even my sleep cycle is changing to fit theirs instead of mine. So what the hell is up with that? I even like different things now. Wishfull thinking? You tell me. If I didn't completely trust this person, I'd be freaked out. As it is, I'm honored.

Now that all that crap is out of the way, life is fine and boring. I've got set dates for volunteering at the Shy Wolf Sanctuary and I've sent in my application for the internship at the Central Florida Zoo. I've also been looking for jobs, and have very little luck. The little luck I have had got me an interview today with RadioShack. I'm going to be getting a call later for a secondary interview. Hopefully, it'll be a job. I need one. Or, my dad wants me to have one, so for my own health, I need to have one.

Fanfic writing has commenced full steam ahead. Hopefully I'll finish the stories I've started and begin some new ones along the way.

Otherwise, life is dull. I'll post more when something intersting happens.

The Road Goes On

2009-07-07T09:48:00.002-04:00

Well things seem to be passing along as usual. Classes are going well, though I can't wait for them to end. The "alligator" video is almost complete, though I may not display it like I origninally planned to do. I must admit, I'm slightly embarrased by it, though I did it for conservational purposes and meant to show it from the start. Maybe I'll display it by request only. Regardless, it will probably still go up on youtube, mainly because not many friends follow me on there.

The most recent footage for the gator vid came from Blue Springs, which came from 3 straight hours of canoeing, 2 of which were against the wind. My hands didn't blister quite as bad as I figured (mainly because the blisters came, and then I wore them off) and the pain the next day was not quite as bad either. I did get to see some interesting wildlife, so it was well worth the frustrated tears that made an appearance everytime the wind blew my canoe backwards, or a boat speeded by me, leaving me to face its wake.

However, while I saw some awesome animals, I did not get the chance to see any alligators. Well, I saw one, in the water, and not very well. So, point in being, once my sun burn heals and the scabs are gone from my palms, I'll be back out again, looking to bring to you all the best gator footage I can get on my pathetic little camera. And if I have to get up close and personal, I will. They are not dangerous animals, and what better way to show that, then to put my own 'safety' at risk. Well, correction, they can be dangerous, but they are not considered dangerous to humans (unless your a drunk idiot that goes swimming at night with lots of thrashing). They are usually scared of humans, and swim or run away when given the chance.

In other news, the black racer that lives by my house has been uncovered, and showed agression and fear in being tailed. He actually bit me, which caused me to drop him in utter shock. I laughed later. There's a very tiny little dot or two on my thumb from his teeth. Its red, but its too small to bleed. :D I found it very humerous, mainly because he thinks he's a tough guy, and I'm determined to get him on film. I'm thinking on doing my next video on 'the wildlife around you'. The basis on it will be, you dont have to go far away to see neat animals, you can see some of the coolest things in your own backyard. There will definitley be some snakes, and I know a guy who has a cougar on his property, so I might try to film that as well. I'll let you know as the 'doco' progresses. There will of course, be gators in that as well.

Well, that's about everything for now. The internship deadline is next week, and the essay is all I've left to do. I'll keep updates going on that too, and of course pictures when I get it.

I'm also thinking of starting a new blog, with pictures and information on various wildlife I've seen. What I want to know, it what do you all think? Would it be boring? Interesting? Do you even give a shit? Wondering who I am? :D Let me know!

-Twitch

Barking up the Right Tree

2009-07-01T01:29:00.003-04:00

Well my friends, it finally seems as if a good change of events is taking place. And I'm quite tickled about it. And no, it wasn't another random call from New York telling me I'm pregnant (that poor Lindsay somewhere).

There's a wolf sanctuary in FL that we've been planning on visiting since last summer. The only problem is, its in Naples, so Dad's been putting it off. Naples is a good 240 miles and a 4 hour drive from our house.

Now occasionally I visit their website and wish that I lived closer by so I could volunteer. During one of these moments, I was hit on the head with a meteor. Well, maybe it wasn't a flaming rock, but it was an Irwin.

I've read Terri's book several times now and in fact own a copy, and one of the parts that really stuck with me was that when she was vacationing in Australia and met Steve, she ended up spending the rest of her trip helping out at the zoo. So she basically showed up out of the blue, and volunteered for a week. See where I'm going with this?

So I emailed down there the other day saying that I was a wildlife student and I wanted to specialize in wolves and blah-de-blah-de-blah. I informed them that I'd love to volunteer and learn more about working with wolves, but I lived 4 hours away, and therefore couldn't come down daily.

I did mention that I'd be able to rent a room in a hotel for several days leaning on a week, and would they have an issue if I volunteered for only a shot while.

I really didn't think they'd be able to say no. That's like being told you can't shadow to learn more about the profession you want to go into. Only ass holes say no to that.

And, I was right. In fact, they seemed more than happy to let me come down and get "down and dirty" with the wolves.

My dad found me a hotel tonight, and as soon as we find out their address, I'll be in contact letting them know the exact date. Don't worry, there will be lots of pictures. And they've more than just wolves; big cats, foxes, coyotes, and gopher tortoises too!

So, I'm beginning to think that between that, volunteering in sea turtles and education at the marine science center, auburn's raptor center, the few vet clinics, and the zoo internship (if I get it) I'm going to have one kick ass resume.

Now all I need to do is land an internship with WERC (and these folks pay, unlike the zoo) and I'll be the happiest person ever. Though that's not even a possibility until Summer 2011. And I graduate that december, so I could always go after college.

And eventually I'd like to go to grad school, but as they say, Rome wasn't built in a day.

Ta,
Twitch

Links:

http://www.shywolfsanctuary.com/index.php
http://wolfcenter.org/default.asp

Busy as Bees, if Bees are Busy

2009-06-24T14:05:00.009-04:00

Okay, well, every story needs a place to start, and this one no exception. First I must apologize, for have not updated this in almost a year (wow, has it really been that long since CWE?). Second, my excuse, is, frankly, a lame one. I've sat down numerous times to write, and come up with nothing to say.

Until now, that is, when I find that I've enough information and pictures to feed the hungry word eaters out there who seem to have some estranged intrest in what I write.

So, skipping out on much that would bore any sensible person, I shall blatently jump the the better and more memorable activities of mine.

Chewacla exploring was a fun task that I dearly miss now that I've been re-confined to my boring prison state of FL. It presented me with many animals, and sights to behold, some of which I will of course, share with you.

Water Moccasin

This is a picture of took of a baby water moccasin that I accidentally stumbled upon, thinking it was a harmless (as in, wont rot off your flesh and kill you) copperhead, I proceded to poke it with a stick. Of course, it continued to bother me that while everything about the copperhead fit this snake, there was no mention of the horizontal eyestripe, and his "bands" were not hour glass shaped. Later I realized the truth of what this snake was, and that I had tailed a very naughty little bugger. Luckily, the snake was calm and only gaped at me after removing himself from my poking stick was unsuccessful. I was a bundle of nerves, playing with an 'unknown' snake and I felt bad about the harassment, so I let him be on his way. What a beautiful snake. Too bad the cottonmouths down here are blackish, and lack his pretty colors.

I saw several other animals there, including a red fox and some beautiful very reddish white tailed deer. I'll upload their pictures later.

Since my journeys at Chewacla, I have since returned to the sunshine state of hell and taken up the job of turtle rescuer. And yes, its almost a full time postion. And no, I'm not getting paid.

It is now nesting season for the turtles, and for some reason, unknown to me and hundreds of other folk, these darn turtles seem to feel the desire to cross the road. And unlike the chicken, not all of them are making it to the other side.

Which left me to save their slow asses. :D Although I feel I should mention, they arent very slow. Most of them run quite fast.

I have pictures of some of the turtles, but there were two that I've saved that weren't photographed, mainly because I didn't have my camera with me. One was a very large river cooter, and the other was a very very large florida softshell.

Well here are the pictures, and in case anyone gets bent out of shape over the gopher tortoises (which are an endangered species that live in FL) I called FL Fish and Wildlife and got their okay for the emergency rescue. There were originally 3 tortoises on the road, but one was already dead when I got there.

Gopher Tortoise

Red-Earred Water Slider

And oddly enough, I've come to the end of my little rant/story. Sure there are lots of other things going on, classes, the futile search for a job, the horrific smothering heat--have I mentioned how hot it is down here?!?! Weather reports say its only 99 but it "feels like 106". What. The. Fuck. ?!?!

Otherwise, I'm also suffering through homework, and the occasional bordom, which is actually nice.

And speaking of homework...I should probably go do mine.

Oh and in case my public speaking class kills me, feel free to fight over my crap.

-Twitch

War Damn Eagle!!!

2008-07-10T20:22:00.007-04:00

Well, this is a little late, but what the hell.

For the weekend of 29-1st I went to Auburn, Alabama for Camp War Eagle.

CWE is Auburn's freshman introduction program. I got there, safe and sound and as we drove around in the pre-rain haze I caught a glimpse of the place that would be my home for the next 8 or so years of my life.

A huge clock tower greeted me, in beautiful red bricks. And below it, was a freshly cleaned sign.

I was really excited for CWE, but since we were early (time change my friends, AU is CST) we decided to stop my Wittle Dormitory. It was a nice place, and if I don't have an apartment next year, I might try for a single room. The ones on the 4th floor are really nice and they have CARPET!!! :D

Anyway, after that it was off to the parking lot, and of course a picture and goodbyes before I was on the Tiger Transit and off to the Quad. On the way there we got our room assignments (I was in Dowdell--or whatever it was--Hall). We weren't there long though. Before I knew it we were off have Tiger Talks, Dinner and our almost-rained-out pep rally.

I went to bed a lot earlier than 12am because I didn't really feel like staying up (8 hour trips really are exhausting) and Toomer's was closed. The next day was just as busy, but we did have a nice tour and I learned that the amazing clock tower that had greeted me when I first arrived was called Samford Hall. It also used to be Old Main, and guess what? The have a Miller Dr. Talk about coincidence.

Anyway, they took us around and told us all about the school and stuff, and the traditions, and, of course, the curses.

They've got a curse just like us. Step on that beauty and kiss graduation goodbye. The only way to break it (there were two ways, but I only remember one) is to drink water out of this little fish pond they have.

Now the fish has to be the most interesting thing there. Apparently China rated AU as having the best fishery in the WORLD and gave AU 100 and something of these rare fish. Yeah, maybe 100 ain't a lot, but when you consider that there are only 400 of these fish in the entire world?...yeah.

Well, the rest of it was busy and fun. I wasn't too sad about leaving, cause I was pretty tired. Getting up at 6 for 2 days to NSYNC and going to bed at midnight or later can really wear a person down. Alot.

Anyway, that went well, and I got to register for my classes. So far, I have world lit at 11 MWF, then Chem at noon MWF, Calculus MTWF at like 1 or 2, and I did have Biology TR at 8am, but that's going to transfer, so I'll have it at 8am MWF. I don't really care about it being early. In case you all haven't noticed, the "ingenious" way that my classes are arranged, I have only 1 class late Tuesday, and none on Thursday. That leaves me plenty of time for homework. :D

Anyway, that's about all the news reporting for today.

Oh...I should mention. A few stickers and money well spent, later...

And my T-shirts. Front and then back. I have 2 others, a CWE one and an AU bookstore one, but I was too lazy to find and photograph them. :P

And Dad's getting me an AU frame for my license plate!!! YAY!!!

WAR DAMN EAGLE!!

2005 Dodge Neon SXT

2008-06-21T20:03:00.003-04:00

Here's the pics of my new car. The insides are a charcoal, almost black and the outside is 'electric blue'.

I'm a PASS

2008-06-17T21:47:00.002-04:00

Took the driving test today. I was nervous as hell. I'm not gonna lie. But the lady that sat with me was nice. I messed up a bit on the parking. I parked in between the cars, but I was crooked. I forgot about turning your wheels when parking on a hill. A few times I forgot to sigal (like during my 3 point turn) and didn't signal at the end when I pulled in a parking space. I also missed one stop sign. Well, I stoped, but a bit past it.

Overall, she says I need more experience. I've been driving on and off for a year, and I agree with her. I think my mistakes however, can be put down to nervousness. I was so worried about missing things, that I missed things. Some of you may understand that, others may not.

Tomorrow is my mid term exam for Statistics, and Thursday I start Biology and English Composition 2. I'm gonna make a run out to Publix, Walmart, and Petsmart tomorrow to see if they have any openings. I know once you fill out the online app. you are supposed to wait to be contacted, but that's stupid. I refuse to be lost in some database out there. I need a job too badly. I cant just sit back and hope something will drop in my lap. I'm going to find a job. I have to.

Also, we're going to Mr. Repo on Saturday to look for a suitable Dodge Neon SXT. I hope I cant find one that both dad and I like. I'm pretty easy to please, but dad is a lot harder. He looks at things like the mileage, and tires, yada yada yada. I know its important, but I'm starting not to care. I just want a car, and frankly, I'm sick of waiting. Anyway...

I'm going to have to go study in a few minutes. Pup is fine. He took a trip to the doggy bathroom again today so he must be drinking something. Anyway, he's a pretty good dog, very friendly. If I had the time and money I'd try and fix him up well enough to sell him, but I don't. Hopefully we can find a good home and we don't have to put him down. If the neighbor wont, and the Humane Society wont I'll have dad take hime to the pound and let them do it, cause I know deep down, he really doesn't want to have to do it himself.

Anyway, off to study before we go out for dinner.

Ta,
Twitch

Its a Doggie World Out There

2008-06-16T22:48:00.002-04:00

Stepmom brought home a dog the other day. A beautiful border collie/australian shepherd mix. He's got white blue eyes and is almost completely deaf.

We believe he was abused due to the way he acts around us. He'll only eat when hand fed or when he's not being watched. So far we have not seen him drink in 2 days, but he is urinating, which is a good sign.

Anyway, we're hoping to give him to a neighbor, or if not take him down to a humane society near us that does not "put animals down".

I believe he's been on his own for at least a year. He had horrible mange and fleas, but we bathed him and put some medication on him so he should be alright.

Might go to get my license tomorrow and hopefully a car soon.

Ta for now. I'll update more on the dog's condition later.

-Twitch

Paint Shop Can Do It Too!!!!!!

2008-06-13T19:28:00.003-04:00

So I happened to remember a certain photoshop tutorial on planets and decided to give it a try with my new tablet. It wasn't long before I discovered that there are a lot of things photoshop can do that Paint Shop Pro 9 can't. But that's okay. I still love my program and after laboring for several hours I finally finished. So I didn't get to take the short cuts that photoshop offers. That's okay, mine's still better. :)

My Planet

The bigger version looks better, but its like 2000x2000 and poor little blogspot can't really handle that, so I uploaded a small version that it can handle. Anyway, if you wanna see the bigger and better version, just drop me an email. Or better yet, post a comment! :D

well well well...things are heating up

2008-06-06T18:29:00.002-04:00

Incase you haven't heard, there is a huge confederate flag set to go up in Tampa, FL.

And who else would be a co-conspirator other than the dutiful father?

You can see his interview with ABC news here: http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=4978568&page=1

I will say a few things on it. There has been a lot of controversy about it being a racist symbol. Personally I do no think it is, or that it is intended to be racist. If we can honor americans dead in the vietnam war, a war dispised by half the country, then why can we Not honor the confederate dead? Honoring your ancestors is not racism. If that were the case then whites would not be able to honor any dead and only minorities could have war memorials.

I say leave 'em the hell alone. We got tons of lawyers jumping on us to take the case anyway.

And besides, do your history work (although most of it is biased). The Civil War was 1)not a civil war, the confederates had all ready left the union and 2)it wasn't about slavery, it was about rights. Otherwise, how the hell can you explain the sheer amount of blacks that fought for confederates.

Show me a handful of blacks who detest the flag, and I'll show you 20 more handfuls of those who love it.

In other news, we're going to go look at a car tonight. I might get to test drive it this weekend, but I'm trying not to rush things. I had to sell some shares or whatever, so it'll still be awhile before I get the money.

Its a nice car though. A 2005 Dodge Neon SXT Sedan. Only 63 hundred. But dad wants lower, so I'm not really sure what we're gonna do.

All packed up for Auburn. One of my movies was missing, Princess Mononoke. Dad got it through Amazon for me. He also got me 12 ink cartrages (no, I can't spell to save my life), a wi-fi thing for the house and a 9x12 tablet. I knew I'd win him over, eventually.

Well, that's all for now. Hope everything is going well for people. Catch you later.

and the diagnosis is...

2008-05-28T12:07:00.001-04:00

feringitis caused by strep.
Apparently I gave it to my father. HIS only symptom was a sore throat, while I got a fever and everything else. *pouts* Anyway, they started us on the "Z pack" yesterday and it seems to be working pretty good. Everything that was stopped up in my head has suddenly decided its time to leave, so the tissue box got to sleep with me this morning. :) AND I get to take tons of them little pearl things..tesslon or whatever. 200mg. They actually work now that I got a higher dosage, but I guess the cough I had last time I used them didn't require so much.
The good news is, we have an appointment schedualed for the medical forms right before CWE (Camp War Eagle) and then we have a later one (before school actually starts) for a uhh...what're they called...meh...they just want me to come back in to make sure that I'm "aive and healthy" before school starts.
That's about all that's going on here. We've unloaded and returned the UHaul. Sometimes later we're bringing down everything from the attic. Wich means I get to have ALL my books and ALL my movies in the SAME place, as opposed to scattered about.
And here comes the scariest news of all. I'M GETTING A CAR!!!! *does the happy dance* And sooner as opposed to later. My father actually had me thinking that I'd be using his car until I was about to leave for Auburn, but a little questioning on my part yesterday (we went from sports cars, to buying cars) got me the info that I'll have my car by the time I start Principles of Biology and English Comp. 2 at Seminole Community College. Luckily I'll be getting a fairly nice car and maybe, if I'm really lucky, a VW Jetta. Of course, if I had money (and lots of it) I'd probably get a Delorean or a Vette, but that's me.
Anyway, this obtaining of a vehicle also means that I'll be free to visit you all up there, though I'll probably make it a 2 day trip and stay in a hotel cause being in a convienence store right before its roobed is really NOT fun.
So here's the boring update of my life. You all asked for it. :D You might not get another one for awhile, but then again, you might not want one for a while. This could be the most boring thing you've ever read in your entire life.

Anyway, I'm gonna stop now cause I have other things to attend to. My father wants me to actually eat something (which would be fine if it didn't feel like I was swallowing glass).

-Twitch

Its A Hard Knock Life

2008-05-10T15:24:00.003-04:00

Here's the promised link to the video of me nearly killing myself during the Horse Show.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5dIcHjFRW8

I'll have another update later with some in-progress views of my current WIP monochromatic painting of my dog, Charlie. Till then.

ta,
Twitch

Travel Updates

2008-04-29T21:27:00.002-04:00

Well, since I've run out of other interesting things to say I thought I'd share a few pictures with y'all.

The first one is of a friendly wolf we met at the park "Les Loups du Gevaudan" in Gevaudan France. They let you get fairly close, and she (the wolf) was actually nice enough to come six or so feet close when she saw me walk towards her. So, this was the resault, and possibly the best out of all of em.

Alpha Female wolf at Gevaudan

And then there was the Busch Gardens trips this past Friday, where I managed to snap this picture of a lovely young Harris Hawk. She is fed a variety died, and is kept at flying weight, which, of course, is good. I'm afraid I've forgotten her name, but she was a very nice bird, and fun to pet.

Harris Hawk at Busch Gardens

And of course, we can't forget these handsome boys, now can we? There were also taken at Busch Gardens. Both are brothers, and arctic wolves, not timber wolves.

Arctic Wolf 1

Arctic Wolf 2

I did have pictures of the other wolves there, and of a ferruginous hawk, but sadly, the majority of my pictures were lost in a misunderstanding between my computer and myself.

That's all for now.

-Twitch

All My Children

2008-04-29T17:17:00.002-04:00

Well not really, but my mother was OBSESSED with that stupid show. Jeeze. I think its still going too. *shakes head* Pathetic.

Anyway. A brief blurb/intro to my books that I'm currently working on. I'm not sure which one will be completed first, but they are moving along at a rather surprising rate and should be done, by the latest, at the end of the summer. But enough with my talk, and to the books. Note, I will post the first couple chapters later this week if I have some time.

THE ROOK- Harry's life has never been normal, most of his time being spent taking care of his schizophrenic adopted son. However things start to get really crazy when his best friend turns up horribly slaughtered and he nearly drives himself insane trying to second-guess the killer. Harry is willing to do everything to stop the killer and to fix his own life except see that the only way to help others is to help himself, and he can only do that by letting go. This is a story of hardships and triumph, a story of how things move on, how time never stops even if you do.

GRYPHON LEGEND - Keshaar the gryphon has been pulled completely into a war that has also swooped up the entire continent of Shalarith. Now he finds himself fighting for his life against none other than his twin brother. Will he be able to get out of this alive and bring his brother with him, or will he die defending those few things in which he believes? What is known for sure is that both of their lives are heavily intertwined and their true destiny is inscribed on a mysterious stone hidden far away in the mountains.

For other updates and things involving my books, you can find me at:
https://www.authornation.com Just search for Ice Bliz

Introduction

2008-04-29T16:39:00.002-04:00

Well, here I am, jumping on the bandwagon. Golly gee, you'd think I'd learn to pave my own roads by now, but I guess we all gotta be sheep every once and a while. Otherwise we wouldn't be humans.

So hello, I'm L. Adams. You don't need to know my first name, unless you already know me, and then there's no point in telling you. Most of what's important is in the About Me section located to the right of this post, but I've still got a few things left to say.

One, I LOVE YOU MS. KENNEDY!!!! You are amazing, and a great art teacher. I'll have you know, that I ran out and made this stupid thing, right after I left your classroom. There's a few more things I'm going to do for design, but otherwise, I quite like the template. I'm a black background sort of person. Feels 'homey'.
Ms. K-> http://www.art-rageous.net/index.html

And to Lily, the best freakin artist ever (other than Nambroth that is).
(I don't have her site at the moment, but I will later)

Anyway, I ride horses, I draw, I read, I write, I pick my nose...nah, just kidding. I wanted to make sure you were paying attention. :P I have a terrible sense of humor and I'm sarcastic. But I try to be nice and goofy and kid-like. Also, I'm obsessed with wolves, werewolves(duh), vampires and raptors. One day I will be a wildlife vet/falconer. Just you wait and see.

I'm going to Auburn, so Alabama fans, leave. Right now. Bye.

I have really strange things around my room that I draw for homework. I adore fanfiction. Yeah, that's about it.

Ta,
Twitch