W.I.P. Back at it Again...

 With the start of classes on campus three weeks ago (just the one really, 1/4 but we're all thinking it'll go online soon too due to the virus running amock), I began what I do best while taking notes in class. Which is to say - I began writing little bits in the margins/extra spaces of my notes!

Here are some little bits of what I've been having run around through my head while studying up on Tennyson and Rossetti.

What else can I say to this?

Poetry is no longer

underrated. It never has been

unless, to a philistine mine they seem

unrevelant. Don't they realize

these predated the

novels we so richly

love? Bring back

the Poetry! Or

else, hide it with-

in the novel you create.

Surprise the reader with a

little rhyming in reason.

****

Back Again

Back again, in a seat

Taking notes, precise, and neat

Finding Rhymes

While listening for a long time

Learning anew,

Reading lessons in a queue.

Time to finish finally,

Back Again.

****

There you are.

Poetry.

Feel free to leave a comment if you so choose. (At this point I'd be surprised if anyone was actually reading this blog anymore.)

New Month - I'm not Around

 I decided to do two posts today because I missed last week and this one as well.

So - here we are.

School is still ongoing. I'm treading water.

I've got to take my Cozette into the vet for the first time in years because's she's lost a lot of weight. She hasn't been eating regular food. I've opened a can of tuna for her. At least she's been eating that. I'm worried.

No job still. There's a virus.

Also: PSA. I wear a mask for school because it's mandatory (and I don't want to be that person in case I am a carrier), but let me tell you. For someone with anxiety and claustrophobia, it's not that easy. I tried taking a drink (through a straw beneath the mask) and nearly had one of the worst attacks in my life. So, if you see someone with their nose showing, don't patronize. I understand we're all worried, we're all concerned, but some people just can't wear them. (I.E. people with asthma.)

So....there's that.

Have a fantastic week and be awesome to each other.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the 2019

We have now entered the final month of 2019.

This year has been a whirlwind of learning, growing, progressing.

And severe lacking int his blog writing.

My re-cap of the year is a little crazy. I honestly never in my life thought I'd be in a completely different state by the end of it, yet here I am.

Here are the basic highlights of my year so far.

First:
     Last year I went back to school, I continued with a semester from January to May

Second:
     In February I was accepted into the Disney College Program

Third:
     Summer brought more changes in my personal life

Fourth:
     I moved to Orlando Florida

And now until May of next year I'll be working in Disney's Hollywood Studios.


Living and working down in Florida is a big change. I've now lived in the two extreme opposites of the United States. Well, extreme North West and extreme South East.

Alaska to Florida.

Hopefully in the coming years I can visit the extremes of the South West and the North East.


While every job and situation has its ups and downs, I've enjoyed this new experience in my life. I've been able to meet people from around the world. I've been able to walk in parks I'd never been to. I've been able to try so many new things it's been a rather breathtaking experience.

I would love to send a small gift (likely a pin) to anyone who actually reads up on this little Fickle N'Freelance Forever Blog. You pick out your favorite pin and I'll ship it to you (or a box office). A little something for those who follow or even stumble across and read this. The deadline to let me know will be the 15th of December.

Hope you have a fantastic week and let me know what you're you to!

OMD: An Idea

Name some of your favorite films (preferably PG-13 and under) that you'd like to see me review.

I've got finals coming up and about four or five papers due (one that's has a page minimum of 25) - so this week is short and sweet.


Hopefully I'll see you after this madness is over!

WIP: Poetry in the Raw

Welcome back to another week!

I was somewhat confused (and honestly, please) that the first post of this month has a bunch of read through's. I'm uncertain if it was due to content or something I may have mentioned (I'm betting on the latter). Whichever the case - hello Readers!


Today is Work In Progress day!

As you can tell I'm a bit behind in most of my personal projects. Being back in school means I have about twenty new ideas for stories and other such schemes, but little time to devote to them. (I am an avid believer in sleep. And being a night-owl. And the prospect of being a highly-functioning-slacker.)

Regardless, I've been doing some other work for class that I thought I'd share with you this week.

As mentioned before I am in a Poetry class - creative writing: poetry. It's a workshop course where every few weeks we each write 2 poems and submit them for peer review and feedback on how to make them better. At the end of the semester everything will be submitted as the final portfolio.


Please feel free to post any critiques/comments/issues about these poems. I appreciate feedback of any kind.

When Life Was Good

Tell me something I don't know

A story of when life was good.

Back when the evenings were full

of laughter. Of smiles.

A time when love never thought of dying.

Of saying hurtful untruths.

Words to demean.

Words.

Life use to be filled with kind words.

A morning of frenzied eating, lunch packing,

running for the door. The bus.

Home once more to loving hands

To a full house of those who protect

Tell me a story once shared,

When life was good.

Autumn

Nighttime comes, I dream

the world is how I imagined.

Bright-lit streets, small, comfortable

house. Easy, soft, living.

Books fill the air,

the scent of parchment and ink prolific.

Mixed fragrances of honey, pumpkin,

cinnamon; spice.

Old burned furniture.

Scarred wooden panels.

Blaze of light, cackling away.

Chocolate: hot, steamy, white clouds

floating on the surface of foam.

Complete. Relaxed.

Home.

Mansion Fire

Haunted high

Ghostly wails

Tightening shadows

Footsteps

Lingering echoes

Spinning Darkness

Grim and Grinning

Ghosts

~

Older Than Time

A tune, a melody

older than the time

around it.

Long, golden, bright

shimmers like silk.

Spinning, high on

toes.

Melodies play

around the room, deep

tones that resonate.

Night darkens,

turning the sky to ink.

Pinpoints come,

littering the ink with

gems of the universe.

A tune, a melody

older than the time

around it.

Let me know what you think. Also - anything you're working on that you want to share? Leave a comment below.

WIP: Ideas

Back in school and I've had some amazing ideas for stories.

The trick will be writing them all down before they leave my mind, but I finally feel as though some sort of progress in those regards is coming to fruition.

It's been great so far this year. I've already written two poems (and learned that the first time apparently isn't the one you should publish, as they need to be re-written over and over and over (and often over and over and over) again).


I will post the first two I wrote here below, the first drafts, that is.

Tell me what you think. Leave a comment and let me know your critique.




[EDIT: I will post them tomorrow. Gotta get some sleep!]


"When Life Was Good"
Tell me something I don't know
A story of when life was good.
Back when the evenings were full
of laughter. Of smiles.
A time when love never thought of dying.
Of saying hurtful untruths.
Words to demean.
Words.
Life used to be filled with kind words.
A morning of frenzied eating, lunch packing,
running for the door. The bus.
Home once more to loving hands
To a full house of those who protect.

Tell me of a story once shared,
When life was good.



"Autumn"
Nighttime comes, I dream
the world is how I imagined.
Bright-lit streets, small, comfortable
house. Easy, soft, living.
Books fill the air,
the scent of parchment and ink prolific.
Mixed fragrances of honey, pumpkin,
cinnamon; spice.
Old burned furniture.
Scarred wooden panels.
Blaze of light; cackling away.
Chocolate: hot, steamy, white clouds
floating on the surface of foam.
Complete. Relaxed.
Home.


(Leave a comment below with your thoughts or criticisms.)

College - Bachelors

Going back I school starting tomorrow. Trying not to panic today.


Tips? Comment below.

Book Nook: Fangirl

This past week I finished another book. (14 so far this year, woo!)

I found this book on one of the may "YOU SHOULD READ THIS" lists that circumventilate the internet though the year. You know the ones - "Christmas Reading List", "Books to Read Before You Go To College", "Teen Books", etc.

Well, this one had some elements that I was familiar with:
   - College Freshman
   - Writes FanFiction
   - Ignores Everyone
    - Introvert


While I am no longer a college freshman, and the others may or may not apply, I decided to check out this book.

.....

I think I just made a bad library pun.....


Book Title: "Fangirl"
Author: Rainbow Rowell
GoodReads Site: Fangirl - Rainbow Rowell


My brief little synopsis/opinion:

Cath is a twin.

She and Wren used to do everything together, including writing fanfiction for their favorite book series, "Simon Snow".

Now that they're in college, they live separately, and don't talk as much.

Writing fanfiction helps Cath to sorta stay grounded. It's the thing that's constant in her life as everything is changing.


Experience your freshman year of college all over again through they eyes of a girl who's just trying to write her story while taking classes, ignoring boys, writing stories with boys, keeping her sister from passing out, keeping tabs on her dad, and trying to make sense of where she stands in the world.


I would recommend this to anyone who love to write; who's been on the nerve-wracking side of dealing with new roommates; who's lived in the dorms; who's ever had that sliver of doubt about life.


Go check out, "Fangirl".

Time Off from Class

In my final post of August - the final post centering around school - I'm going to discuss something school seems to miss:

Time off.

While you get 'vacation days' every few weeks or so, it's good to take a few extra days off.

Keeping yourself fit and healthy is a great way to ensure that your grades don't slip, your on time, and you are continually looking your best.

There are dozens of things you can do on your Day Off:

1. Guiltless Netflix
     We all have friends that guilt us over how much we binge watch. If you are taking a 'You' day, don't let anyone tell you it's bad. Not only is it relaxing, but you can catch up on all those episodes. :)

2. Cookies
      Who doesn't love cookies from scratch? Or from the package. Fire up the oven and make up some of your favorite flavors, grab milk and hunker down with #1.

3. Music
      Have a Music Hour. Find that album you've been meaning to listen too, set up, and just let the music flood over your. It will be relaxing and fun.


What are some things you'd love to do on a Day Off? Leave a comment below.

Study Abroad

There is nothing like traveling the world to make you feel alive and well. Walking the paths people from thousands of years ago traversed; visiting monuments that have been around for centuries; eating food made from fresh market produce.

Pitfall One:Traveling is expensive.

Pitfall Two: Being a student and wanting to travel.

Solution: Take a month and go with a school group.

Traveling with a school group ensures that you're traveling safely, have transportation to all the places you need to get too, and have lodging covered. While it is expensive, it's well worth the money spent.

It's a great way to go about seeing the world.


This week is a shortie, but a quickie.

School Size

First off - so terribly sorry for the delay in this week's post. Life got super crazy, hectic, and I was out of it until today. Thursday.

Hopefully this will be a decent post to make up for it.

School.

This is the topic of the month. Last week I covered a few of the basics of getting to know your University/College.

This week I'm going to cover a few things about how to make life a bit easier.


1. Take at least 10-15 minutes a day for YOU.

    You need a breather during the day. Classes go for all hours, you're rushing around the campus figuring out where things are, how to make it there faster. Take. A. Break. Find a spot, close your eyes and breathe. It will help keep you relaxed for those long days.


2. Friends can be found Everywhere.

    You might be lucky enough to sit next to them in class, or at meal time. They could be your roommate. Or they could be the one person that you routinely pass on your way to classes or other places. A friendly smile, a passing wave, can make a great new friend.


3. Know when you Don't need it.

    Nine times out of ten (or ten out of ten) - you don't need the thing you really want to buy at the store. You can always get it later on when you actually have money - or not. Money is a luxury, try not to spend it on things you'll have to lug around later.


4. Walking.

     Use your two feet - they can get you places. Bikes or mini scooters are helpful too, but walking is highly recommended. You can get exercise while hiking across campus to various classes and other activities.



Disclaimer: I am not paid for anything I write here.

Back to School

Yesterday morning was the first day of regular school. College classes for others begin tomorrow.

Last week I posted about a generalization of school (and I'll admit, that one was hurried and scattered).

This week I'd like to focus on the College/University side of it. I know there have been other blogs listing various great deals for the poor student and thought I'd give it a shot myself.



1. KNOW THE CAMPUS

   I know this one sounds a bit redundent, but it's easy to get lost. Especially when you're at a huge University that has at least thirty buildings. Make a priority to go a few days early - map out your route to each class. This way you can plan an easy route if you only have 10 minutes in between classes. (I had four classes back to back like this - luckily only one was in a different part of the campus, the other three were literally right next to each other.)




2. FIND FRIENDS

    This one should be easy. The more friends you have in a class - the more people you can study with, and you can share books (this might sound difficult, but it's possible). Friends help: with tough assignments, with moaning over crazy labs, and with light venting about hectic conflicts with other classes. Oh - did I mention they are also good for coffee breaks? (Or hot chocolate.)




3. SIGN UP FOR ACTIVITIES

   Only focusing on homework and classes all semester long with drive you crazy. Take it from someone who tried this - it doesn't work, and it's terrible for your health. Find an activity or club that piques your interest. Typically they only meet once a week, which is a great chance to shut the books and take a break. It's also another fantastic way to meet new friends.




4. TALK TO YOUR PROFESSORS

    Contrary to belief - they actually want you to pass. While there may be some rather terrifying teachers, every single one of them wants you to succeed. All you have to do is talk to them - it's quite simple. And, if you get to know your teacher, you might get special access to upcoming assignments (don't quote me on that, this varies by location).



5. MEAL PLANS

    I never did one of these. I commuted to and from each day. However - should you be living in a dorm this can either be a great idea, or totally tank you. If you are one to eat a lot in one sitting, then I highly recommend this. If you are more finicky and don't eat a lot, save yourself the money and spend it on things you will actually eat. Food is important to your educational career - choose, but choose wisely.



College/University can be a terrifying ordeal when you're first starting out and know no one. If you find yourself out there alone, shed some of your Introvert-ness and meet some people. It will do wonders for your social life, your health, and your classes.

What was your biggest fear when starting Uni/College? Leave a comment below.

(Copy right where necessary - I am not paid for this blog.)

School - YAY! ..... ?

With the beginning of August, I figured I'd take this month to do some school posts.

Or posts that talk about going back to school - getting into college the first time - or figuring things out.

Firstly:

Any form of school is hard. That's just how the pie crumbles. So - be prepared

Secondly:

I am going to quit the first and second crap because that's too formal for me.


Going back to school is equal part fun and part terrifying. Do you have all the right books, the right clothes, the right thing...blah, blah, blah, blah.....

Pointedly - there are some things that you can get away with.

For college students you can now RENT your books for classes. It's super effective, fantastic for your budget, and easy to do online (half.com).

Down in the South we also have Tax Free weekends to help off-set the cost of back to school supplies. (Ours was last weekend.)

Also - if you do need a book, MAKE A FRIEND IN CLASS AND SHARE!!

With all the ways there are to save money but cutting corners, it's easy to make things work out. If there is anyway you can make it, then you can save yourself

Also - if you are commuting to college (or school) CARPOOL!
    This is a challenge, because if you have a car, then you want to drive everyday. I carpooled the majority of my school years - it was fun because I was with friends, and we all shared the gas costs. Driving solo is fun too - I also did that - and it gives you time to think, but if you're running low on cash, then fill up your car with people headed to the same location.


What sort of things do you look forward to when school starts?

What things/classes do you dread?

Leave a comment below.

A Little Random

So I realized today that none of my posts to date have had much in common.

Well - they've been me ranting about various things in life and society, so I suppose that is the commonality of them all.

This past week I've been thinking a lot about people who work more than one job. People who spend, quite literally, their entire days working. Bouncing from one job to the next to the next, only getting home for a few hours to sleep before heading out and doing it all over again.

Then there are those who are not only working more than one job, but who are going to school on top of it - so now there's studying and assignments and commuting time.

How do they do it?

I mean, I've done the 6 classes thing. I didn't have a job though (unless you count SMing our college's production of "Hamlet").

I've also done the full time work thing - only in the summer.

However, when I tried mixing the two I bombed it.

Alright when I had Intro to Web Business and was switching between jobs and states (yeah, I moved for the summer) I managed it quite nicely. I even scored a B+ out of the class! So I thought I could do it again. I signed up for an online Intro to WebDesign.

It killed my school average.

Twice!

Not only did I bombed it once, I went back to try again, even taking Intro to Programming. Not only did I realize Web Design and Development were no longer as fun and easy as I'd thought - I got a crash course in how much math goes into programming!

(I spent most of the assignment inputting the data verbatum to the book, and it still came out wrong! How does that even happen! I was following it word-for-word! Why!!!)

Okay, so aside from all that - how do people work multiple jobs at a whack and not just fall over at the end of the day?

Today is my second day of double shifts.

From 10-2(or 3, depends on the day), I work at a music store. It pays $8.75, which isn't bad. It's quite amazing, really. I'm a part-timer, which means I'm working between 8-18 hours a week though, so it became boring quite quickly.

So I picked up another job. One that I swore up and down I would never be caught dead at because the pay sucks and you're relying on others to help cover costs. I thought I was going to become a bartender - which I was okay with. I served drinks last summer. Apparently I wasn't listening correctly. I guess I muted out the title of the actual job -

Server.

Yup. Glorified waitress.

When that finally sunk in I felt the bottom of my stomach drop from under me.

The extra job I'd gotten to help offset what I was barely making at one store was now basically me working for free.

What the crap had I gotten into?

There is no shame in being a server. It's a position designed to help people get 'experience' in the work field. It's not meant to be a career job.

I was starting to be okay with it. Sure, I complain when I'm not there, but when I am there: I don't stop. It's a job where I'm on my feet, but I'm constantly moving around. I'm not just sitting in the back room reading (to which I will never complain about - cause Books. 'Nuff said).

Then last night, I felt like I was finally grasping the whole, take order, place order wait for food, engage the guests without spending too much time at the table, take food out, check in on them and all that jazz. And that's when I got my first big hit.

No tip.

I sorta stared at it. I was honestly confused.

I thought I'd done a great job at the table, I mean we didn't have orange slices that night for a particular drink, but everything came out as they'd asked.

So - what did I do wrong?

I had another realization when working last Friday.

I over-analyze everything I do.

"Did I say enough?"

"Did I make too much eye-contact?"

"Did I accidentally respond to something I shouldn't?"

"Did I get their drinks right?"

"Was that a joke?"

I know that - with more time - this job will become easier.

I also know that - being an introvert - this is going to be one of the hardest things I've done. I feel like I'm intruding on their dinner/lunch.

I suppose it's all in how you present yourself. The best you can do is the already the Best.

If I take it one day at a time, then I can breathe.

So - to all those who work double-triple jobs, add school on the side, or are balancing both:

YOU ARE DOING YOUR UTMOST BEST. DON'T LET ANYONE TELL YOU OTHERWISE.

Otherwise, let them do what you do for a day. I guarantee they won't be able to handle it.