Trip to Las Vegas: Day 1

Some of you may or may know that I and my Mother took a trip to Las Vegas last week.  I had planned on doing a more up-to-date blogging with the trip, but issues with internet access caused me to be unable to do that, much to my disappointment.  When I started blogging again, I wanted to keep more current in it to keep interest.  But as my Mother says, "Man plans and g-d laughs..." 

Having said that, I am going to try and play catch up here. 

The reasons for the trip were varied, but first and foremost was a vacation, which I haven't done in years, nor has Mom.  It was very needed and a wonderful break for both of us.  Our work schedule made it so we worked the night before we left, getting home at 11 p.m. and since we were leaving for a 6 a.m. flight at 5 a.m. we chose to just stay up through the night and sleep on the plane, then catch up on the rest in Vegas.  This probably wasn't the best plan, but that's what we did.  Unfortunately, we didn't take into account the 2 hour time difference (we thought it was the same time zone - don't ask me why).  We flew Southwest and while there was no assigned seating (they have you in lettered and numbered groups that board as called) it was rather pleasant.  I really wanted to take pictures of our flight out, but the light wasn't great and I was over the wing where a light was, making that rather difficult.  Still, it felt like the dawn was chasing us.

You can see the light of the rising sun hitting the wing here.  That was the best I could do.

By the time we woke up to our arrival about 4 hours later, the sun was up and revealed an amazing sky over the desert.

Landing in McCarran we were greeted with more amazing views of the mountains and the clouds in the vast Nevada sky.  Little did we know this would be due to the weather and not just a lovely sight to greet us with. 

After our arrival we got ourselves to the Luxor hotel and casino where we would be staying.  Years ago, when we traveled to Las Vegas more frequently, we almost always stayed at the Monte Carlo.  Due to it being slightly less expensive and having always wanted to stay there, this time we chose the Luxor.  I remembered visiting the Luxor when it first opened and it had been a very beautiful and exotic hotel, all done in Egyptian styling of course (considering it is a great black glass pyramid) with a fascinating exhibit of an Egyptian tomb, towering statues and beautifully modeled interiors.  The thought was for it to feel like you were one of the ancient kings and would be treated as such.  It was rather high class feeling.  The years have passed and there have been changes to the hotel as it reclassified itself to gain its share of visitors.  At this point, it is just a nice hotel, but nowhere near what I remember it being when it first opened.  It is still very cool, since you are inside the pyramid and the rooms are all along the outer edge with elevators that go diagonally up and down the sides, but it is clear the edges are wearing on the decor. 

MGM bought about 15 of the hotels on the strip, taking them over and making changes.  The downside to such a situation is that they homogenized the hotels to an extent.  Now, all the stores are pretty much the same, offering about the same items in each, as are the places to eat.  Starbucks was EVERYWHERE, which was both positive and negative.  Positive was that there was a place to get coffee; Negative was that it was all the same place!  I definitely missed the unique imprint each hotel had before where you were stepping into a whole new world with each place and each offering unique items for sale that you couldn't get anywhere else.  Definitely a loss in my opinion. 

Carrot Top, one of the permanent shows in the Luxor, was plastered everywhere on posters and signs and that got... a bit tiring and disturbing.  His picture was even on our key card.  Whether you like Carrot Top or not, I didn't need to see his image almost any place I looked while staying at the hotel.  Especially since many photos of him looked weird.

Anyway, we went to check in and were informed that we couldn't till 11 a.m. unless we wanted to pay extra for early check in.  I looked at my watch and since it was only 9 a.m. according to it, I figured we could wait the 2 hours while having coffee and a snack at - you guessed it - Starbucks (we only just got there and didn't realize this wouldn't be anything singular to enjoy).  At 11, we walked up to the counter to check in and were told that we couldn't check in yet.  It was only just 9 a.m.  Confused we then realized there was a 2 hour difference and hadn't set our watches back.  Both of us were exhausted by now and only wanted to sleep (remember, we'd been up since the morning before).  To continue to kill time we decided to walk around the hotel and stroll through to the connecting tunnel to Mandalay Bay.  We window shopped and relaxed as much as we could, though it was hard to fully enjoy it being as tired as we were.  I will say we were really sad that so many things we liked about the Luxor, like the shops and stores and exhibits were gone (the Egyptian tomb exhibit had been removed and donated to a museum), but realized that time marched forward and this wasn't the Vegas we remembered - that would be made clear further on in our trip as well.

FINALLY, the real 11 a.m. came around and after a quick check in we dragged ourselves up to the room.  Both of us crawled into bed and zonked out.  By the time we woke up, the reason for the amazing clouds in the sky came in the form of rain.

Because the time difference though, we did almost have a full day to do something so we decided to walk along the strip and see the new City Center area and what else there was.  Most of the big hotels were pretty much the same, though MGM was rebuilding their front.  Our shuttle driver had said that was a good sign since there had been so many projects halted in the last few years with the economic down turn.  Nine major projects lost funding either before they were finished or right after they started, leaving them to sit till money could be found.  Also, many unions had invested in Madoff and lost money, leaving many people out of work or without their retirement funds.  Trump built his tower but hasn't been given the ability to put in a casino.  When the driver said he didn't know why Trump was being blocked I said, "Because Steve Wynn said so," though as a joke, I'm guessing this isn't far from the truth since the Vegas big cats probably feel that Trump is an interloper into their territory.  Vegas is recovering from the losses, slowly but surely and investors are coming back, but it will be a while I think before it gets fully on track like it used to be. 

The gray skies cast a bit of a pall on the bright lights and as we walked, but we saw City Center which had been much hyped about over the years since it was finished.  I have to say, it wasn't as nice as I had thought it was going to be, mainly because it just looked like a bunch of crowded buildings set right to the edge of the street.  We also saw Planet Hollywood's hotel and were very sorry to see what had happened to the previous Aladdin hotel and casino.  Sad for a few reasons too. 

Our very first trip to Las Vegas, we stayed in the original Aladdin hotel.  It wasn't the most fancy place, but the strip was much different back then (not nearly as built up as it is now) and it also had a lot of things from the Disney Aladdin movie which was a favorite of mine since seeing the movie so long ago and loving it (along with my friends from Savannah College of Art and Design).  It got torn down and rebuilt to fit more in the style of the fancier hotels, but still retained the Arabian feel with the Caravan shops and the imaginative decor.  It was fanciful but lovely and pleasant. 

Planet Hollywood bought it and what they did was make it a horrible eye sore, the same way the changes to Time Square made it a commercial eye sore.  They built right up to the street with neon signs, video boards and scrolling text all over a huge long wall in front of the casino.  And its all chain store things like McDonalds and such.  There is even a HUGE neon set up for Ross' Dress for Less.  This was a killer for me because really?  Ross'?  Nothing against the store but this is supposed to be the Las Vegas strip here... and THAT is being shoved out there like its a great exciting place to go?  The whole display was really horrible and left a definite bad taste in my mouth.  I know Vegas can be cheesy and cheap and what-not, but this was just so terrible to see.  Like I said, if you remember the old Times Square and hate what it is now, you'll understand my feelings on this. 

The only upside was that our favorite buffet called Todai was still at the Planet Hollywood hotel (it had been there when it was the Aladdin).  We stumbled upon it once while walking through the shops years ago and it is a charming place that I highly recommend if you enjoy sushi and seafood.  Its all freshly made and tasty! 

They have a bunch of wonderful little character mascots all throughout the restaurant and the staff is friendly and very pleasant.

After the long day, we were really glad to sit down and just relax.  We were feeling a bit let down by the first outing along the strip and all the changes, along with the rainy weather, so having a familiar place with good food and pleasant atmosphere was a great little turn around.  By the time we left, we were ready to get back to the hotel and finish unpacking and get ourselves to bed so we could get going on our next day.

More of our Vegas trip to come!

The Cold Weather is Seeping In

Today was the first day in a long while where I remember getting up and feeling cold.  Its not freezing mind you, just the low 60's.  Its easy to forget what this weather feels like after so many days of 80's and up.  I miss the slow easing of weather from one season to another, but I wonder if there was ever really a time when that happened.  It always seems so sudden.  One day its hot, the next its cold and you need a sweater.

Luckily we have pumpkin... EVERYTHING to keep us warm and toasty.  I spent a few days having as much pumpkin stuff as possible and might have pumpkined myself out.  So far though, the winner has been Dunkin' Donut's Pumpkin Latte which has the least bitter taste and wasn't overly sweet.  Pumpkin bagels goes to Einstein bagels as well as their pumpkin cream cheese.  No pumpkin donuts though - all of them were over sweet or had no real taste at all.  I'm looking to have my one bit of candy corn to eat and then avoid till next Halloween.

As we continue to prepare for our little 'vacation' away to Las Vegas, it seems I've gotten a little sick with something hanging around in my throat.  It is more annoying and a nuisance more than anything else as it lingers about, threatening to get into my chest and be a full blown something annoying.  I'm hoping not since I don't want to be sick while away.  So... lots of Vitamin C and cough drops.

The other day I attempted to make my first ring.  I used the instructions from a book because it was wire work, which I don't have a ton of experience doing.  I admit, I don't have all the right tools for wire work because it can start to get expensive and I am not ready to full on invest on all the neat things out there for jewelry makers.  Especially since I am trying to save up for that new laptop that I do need.

My first wire-work ring!

It is sort of sized for my finger, but I don't have a time to wear it because I know it will get caught on things at work.  Last thing I want to do is damage it after I made it!  I'm pretty proud of it, but I don't know if I would sell it since it is my first try and its a little wonky in some places, but not bad overall.

Now to turn to some other items:

What is the purpose of this blog?  Well, aside from keeping tabs on my life and the creative turns it will take, I am trying to broaden my experiences and those who decide to follow me.  I'll be trying to find out what you, my readers are interested in and want to see more of (from me and this blog) as well as spotlighting other artists and their works.  I'm hoping that some of you will contact me with interest if you wish to be spotlit in this blog or would like to do something together.  I'll be trying to hold contests and such to win free items (jewelry, prints etc...) if there is interest in that as well.  While a lot of what I post about will be about me, I don't want it to always be that!  You guys are important to me because you're my audience and art doesn't live in a vacuum.  At least, if it does, it doesn't thrive.

So, how about you guys shine some light on what you might like to see here?  I'll try to always post pics of things, whether its items I've seen, or works in progress.  Feedback is always great!  Is there any particular piece in the Etsy Shop that you  like and would like to see more of? Link it in the comments and let me know! All of those can be found here:

A New Chapter

As many of my friends and family know, I am beginning a new chapter in my life, or at least attempting to.  I have been working on art of different sorts and themes and types for the last thirty years or so, trying to find my way using the talents I have been blessed with.  There have been starts and stops in this search and I don't know what the future will bring, but I am still searching none-the-less.

For the last few years, I have been making jewelry.  It started off as a sort of hobby that was a sideline of my actual art, like knitting is for some people to do while they watch television.  As the traditional art slowed to a stop and I was only doing some graphic design for work, the jewelry became more of a creative saving grace.  I began to include it at the anime conventions I was attending and people liked it.  I would describe my original works as "Steampunk light".  There were cogs and clocks and what-not, but nothing so extreme as to have to be considered costume.  It was steampunk for the everyday.  I continued to explore and moved from steampunk to other fanciful designs and ideas and found I enjoyed the process very much.

1 of my most popular earring pieces & one of my favorite designs.   http://www.etsy.com/listing/105580780/gear-earrings

I then decided to try and sell some of my jewelry on Etsy to see if I could reach a wider audience once I was no longer able to attend conventions and I sold more - to my surprise since I wasn't sure if people outside of my circle would like what I did.  If you haven't seen it yet, you can check out the Etsy shop here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/StormwolfStudios

This last year I discovered a new path for myself:  Pre-production Game Design.  I am currently looking at some schools that have a good game design program and even went to Vancouver, Canada for a week long game intensive at Vancouver Film School in August.  It was a great experience and made me more sure of what I wanted to do.

 My Summer Intensive Game Design Class - the only girl there was me! :D

Next week I'll be going to Las Vegas with my Mom, but we will be heading over to Hollywood, CA to check out Gnomon to see their facility and program.

The future looks exciting on a lot of fronts with hundreds of possibilities.  This blog will track as much as I am able to write about and I hope you will all come along with me.  I hope you will also comment on anything you read in the blog and I am always willing to hear any advice on what I am doing; the art or jewelry I post about or even working in game design.  Thanks for reading and just know that there is more to come!

Employees Guide for Work

I recently moved and while going through hundreds of boxes and things, I found this and decided to post it here. I didn't come up with this but I find it amusing, so I'm sharing it.

Employees Guide for Work

1) Never give me work in the morning. Always wait until 4 p.m. and then bring it to me. The challenge of a deadline is refreshing.

2) If it's really a rush job, run in and interrupt me every 10 minutes to inquire how it is going. That helps. Or even better, hover behind me advising me at every keystroke.

3) Always leave without telling anyone where you are going. It gives me a chance to be creative when someone asks where you are.

4) If my arms are full of papers, boxes, books or supplies, don't open the door for me. I need to learn how to function as a paraplegic and opening doors with nor arms is good training in case I should ever be injured and lose all use of my limbs.

5) If you give me more than one job to do, don't tell me which is the priority. I am psychic.

6) Do your best to keep me late. I adore this office and really have nowhere to go or anything else to do. I have no life beyond work.

7) If a job I do pleases you, keep it a secret. If that gets out, it could mean a promotion or raise.

8) If you don't like my work, tell everyone. I like my name to be popular in conversations. I was born to be whipped.

9) If you have special instructions for a job, don't write them down. In fact, save them until the job is almost done. No use confusing me with useful information.

10) Never introduce me to the people you are with. I have no right to know anything. In the corporate food chain, I am plankton. When you refer to them later, my shrewd deduction will identify them.

11) Be nice to me only when the job I'm doing for you could really change your life and send you straight to manager's hell.

12) Tell me all of your little problems. No one else has any and its nice to know someone is less fortunate. I especially like the story about having to pay so much taxes on the bonus check you received for being such a good manager... Or the expensive dinner you had to eat with a client.

13) Wait until my yearly review and THEN tell me what my goals SHOULD have been. Give me a mediocre performance rating with a cost of living increase. I'm not here for the money anyway.

Saturday... Musing

So, its a Saturday and I'm not running off somewhere or doing anything specific. Its actually nice. Oh, there's tons I probably should be doing right now... Work, art, job search, work search, portfolio stuff, obligations and things... But I'm not. For good or bad.

I'm starting to get eager again to do some artwork. Ideas are bubbling in my brain. I hopefully will get motivated enough to work on them. There are things going on around me right now that sort of put walls up and of course, I have to work extra hard to get beyond it.

Regardless, its a Saturday and I'm enjoying not doing anything. I was ill on Thursday evening - my body ached tremendously. It was like the flu though no sneezing or coughing or congestion. I hurt all over and down to the bone. I was going to be glad that I wasn't working on Friday, but then at 8 a.m. the boss called and asked if I could cover for work. Thankfully I wasn't hurting so much Friday morning and more hours never hurt... But I wasn't planning on staying the whole day - and of course I did. And whenever I work on days I'm not supposed to, it seems that stuff falls apart and I'm left running around. It never fails. I hate that. Just another reason to want something better right?

Every weekend for the last month or so, I've had stress about facing the things on Monday that will be waiting for me after I leave work. I get tense all weekend thinking about it. I don't like that at all. It takes a lot for me to try and leave it behind because all I think about are mistakes I made or might have made... things I should have done differently. Its very stressful and makes my chest tight. I hate that feeling.

On the other hand, I did get good news this week. Hopefully will be able to share that news with everyone next month - I'm waiting and seeing how it pans out and if things go according to plan before sharing too much. The other good news that I can share is my joy for my friend Bill and his wife Jill who welcomed their baby girl Athena to the world on the 18th of this month. I send them love and best wishes and tons of blessings! I will hopefully be able to visit with them soon, before our mutual friend's wedding though I'm not sure when exactly.

I'm glad Spring is here. The good weather helps to lift my mood. Don't get me wrong, every so often its nice to have a cold dreary gray day, but I need some sunshine and sweet breezes to lift my spirits again. I need hope and possibilities and nice weather certainly helps me feel that way.

So... that's about all... Happy Spring everyone! May hope and possibilities be all around you!

Movies and Childhood

Yeah, been over a month since I posted last. Sorry. I did keep meaning to, but I don't know if my mental state was up to trying to write something that wasn't just me whining about things.

Since making the decision to really look for new work and moving my career forward into something, I've been up and down. Mostly down. Because I never focused on one ability or style, I left myself open to being able to do a lot of different things. This was something I thought would make me more able to be used, but it also left me floundering. It isn't conceit when I say, I can do just about anything. I've done video production, I've worked on toy design, I've done storyboarding, I've done graphic design, etc... I've done a lot of different things. And I know I am capable of learning quickly and doing more.

When I started going to job sites on the internet, I was getting tense and freaked out because they were asking me what kind of work I was looking for. It made sense because if I am specific, they can suggest the posted jobs for me. But... I had never been specific and when looking at posted jobs, it was hard to focus because I didn't know. People tried to help with suggestions but the first thing they would ask was "What do you want to do?" and I could only give a frustrated, "I don't know!" answer. It was the truth.

Then there was the fear. Looking at my resume of work, my freelancing, I wasn't sure what it all amounted to and whether it was anything that would get me a job somewhere. Was it enough experience? Was it the right experience? What was it the right experience for?

And of course, the all time favorite: The pressure I placed on myself.

I have responsibilities and people that while they don't say anything, depend on me. Where I live and how I live is dependent on my job and salary. And of course, I have my own desires for my own success... and a direction. My age has become an issue for me. Before I felt like, I always had time to do things and figure things out... But I don't feel like that anymore. I had thought that things would work themselves out, something would come along, a situation would pop up, an opportunity arise... But for the last 4 years, I don't know if they have and I missed them, or they haven't. Whatever it was, my life has not unfolded to some grander plan.

This isn't just with the work aspect. It is also with my personal life. I'm still single. I still really haven't had a relationship. Granted, I'm not dating either so I know that sort of brings the possibility of it happening waaaaay down too.

I partially blame my childhood and movies for this (Ah, you were wondering where the title of the blog would come in, weren't you?)

I grew up watching the same movies as everyone else did... And they screwed me the hell up. Movies told me, the ugly duckling would blossom and the handsome popular guy would see the true beauty inside her. Movies told me, the cute outcast would see that girl over there and woo her till they were a couple. Movies told me that it was easy to change your life and follow your dream to happiness and everything would fall in to place. Movies told me a lot of things. And then I started created fantasies in my head of how things would go in my life. Big surprise... they didn't.

Things didn't happen the way they did in the movies and I realized recently that a lot of my depression and pressure was that I thought I was doing things wrong because they weren't working out the way I thought they were supposed to. I'm not the independent working woman who is living in an apartment that is kookie and cool. I'm not catching the eye of that other cool guy or whoever and he isn't wooing me in silly ways... or we aren't meeting... or however I was thinking it was supposed to happen. My friends were meeting people and dating and doing things - following their dreams and making things happen. Of course, I'm sure it wasn't all 'movie-like' for them... but it felt like it in my head. And if it was happening for them... their lives and careers, their love... then it was me that was screwing up - right? I was doing things wrong and that's why I don't have the life I had dreamed of having.

But I have to move forward, no matter what my life has been. There are things ahead of me, waiting for me to discover, see and do. Whether I get a new job or my freelance career becomes something that supports me, things are going to change. I see opportunities. I see possibilities. Before where I felt trapped, I now see openings. I have to hold on to that and keep it in my hands.

My life CAN be good. My life WILL be good.

I just have to remember that.

Not The Way I'd Like to End the Weekend

This past weekend I went up to Connecticut to see some friends from college that I haven't seen in a long time. We only seem to be able to get together like... twice a year. I took the train to Philly, then got on AmTrak to Penn Station. Bill came and met me there and we waited for Ken to arrive then headed up to Connecticut and Bill's home. It was really great to talk to them and just listen to them talk.

Mike, Mandy, Adrian and Ray all came and overall it was great time. Ken and I talked to the wee hours of the morning, though we did try to get to sleep at reasonable times... We learned what a 'cord' of wood is, the definition of a gelding and that one might want to avoid going down by the river. I learned I can hypnotize babies.

There were a lot of great moments over the weekend and I'm really glad I went. I have to send a special thank you to everyone for the weekend really. Each person made it fun. A big huge thanks to Bill and Jill for having us all as their guests for the weekend. You guys were awesome hosts and I really appreciate your kindness and the lovely food you provided. I'd also like to thank Ani and Niel for being such lovely hosts as well - the cake was delicious and Olivia is a lovely sweet baby. Thank you Mike and Mandy for the drive home, thank you Bill and Ken for all the help and advice and of course your words of friendship and logic. And Ken, thank you for Lion-o. :D Thank you to Adrian for the game and fun and thank you Ray for being such a fun character.

It is hard to really thank all the specifics for the fun of the weekend. I needed to get away and it is always great for me to reconnect with the people who help inspire me and keep me balanced in their own special ways. I always feel better after seeing them and I hope desperately that it won't be too long before I see these people again.

On the downside... Sunday after Mike dropped me off, I realized that I wasn't feeling well... And there was no mistake in it... I got sick. So, now I'm sick. I'm not sure exactly what it is I'm sick with but I figured I was fighting something off all weekend and after the amount of junk food and lack of sleep, my immune system just didn't fight enough. Hopefully it will pass, but I just want to curl up in bed and sleep sleep sleep and sleep.

The weekend was worth it.