Talk of fundraising in the newsletter has made me think about the 2011 National State Games.

Once Grad School is done, that will be my next big goal, besides earning my First Dan. I’ve never been to a National Games in my *life*. It’s going to be damn exciting, and I can’t wait to begin seriously preparing for it in place of droning away at the computer cranking out some paper.

Bring it on!!!

1. I have a wonderful boyfriend. (;
2. I have a great little cockatiel. (:
3. I have awesome family.
4. I have a steady job. ^_^
5. I get some really great students.
6. I can still play video games.
7. I’m moving up in Tae Kwon Do.
8. I can wake up with positivity!
9. I stay connected with my friends. (:
10. I have a place to live of my own. (:
11. I can still draw.
12. I have an good, functioning computer.

Just felt like being thankful this morning, and picking up my positive mood even more so I shine! ^_^

So, I got to have an unexpected Halo: Combat Evolved marathon this weekend. *griiiiiiin*  Lots. Of. Fun. Because I really had yet to use my PPKs for video gaming (of which they were intentionally conceived for, along with headphone usage), I thought I would try ‘em out.

TV: HD set

Lighting: One 60w bulb, with a lamp shade. Natural light during daylight hours. After 4h30, only the light from the TV and the lamp were available.

Game Mode: Co-op Campagin

Total Play Duration: I estimate anywhere between 4-8 hours. (Very nearly finished the entire campaign mode in a day!)

Pros: Excellent with lots of light. In playing HCE, in the lighted environments in the game, the glasses were awesome!! No eye pain or strain, and the enlargement was pretty helpful. Great for flippin’ around in the Warthog!

Cons: Absolutely horrible in dark game environments (at night, in ships, in the Halo, etc.). Even with purple or blue lighting, the overall darkness was hard enough to see through on its own, but the glasses made it much worse. So, I would take them off when we were in dark settings.

In a nutshell, that’s pretty much it.  Did it help me to nail more aliens? Ehhh… probably not, seeing as my aim deterioated steadily throughout the hours of game play. I’ll probably reserve these for computer use, for now. (Until I get a more comfortable pair.) I do have to say, though, they’re rather snug under a hairband! LOL

1/11/10, 5:15 PM, First Evening

Wow… they DO make everything bigger! (Perhaps an even bigger lens would have been more beneficial?) I really noticed this when I looked at the items around me, compared to my computer screen. (Lupin looks like a fattie! XD)

The size is a mite large…. the arms of the glasses go WAY past my ears. I’d estimate there being a good half an inch past my ears if I wear them as close to my face as I can. However, with the size of the lens (I prefer to look down at the screen), I wear them perched on my nose. (Like so.)

I don’t think I’d advise walking around in them, though. As they do make things bigger in perspective, it’ll mess you up right quick. Take a walk with these babies off.

The amber shade isn’t really that bad, either. I mean, the pages aren’t white, but they’re not bright yellow, either. More like an off-white, which is fine to me. I’ve got no problem currently looking around at the screen. Looking down is rather a habit, though…. so I may need to do something about that. So far, there’s been no additional eye pain or strain as I sit here and type with these. The rest of the night will see, as I continue to work on the computer as I normally would for Grad School.

So far, commenting on facebook is easier…. I like that. Reading everything easier. (:

I wonder how the comfort of these will work out. As the PPK’s arms are rather… skinny, sliding them back and forth on my ears might be a bit of a pain. *shrug*

As the evening has worn on, I’ve noticed a few things:

1.) Moisture does seem to build up on the lens close to your face. It doesn’t interfere with visual acuity.

2.) Taking them off makes my eyes feel like they got a breath of fresh air. I can really see how blue the light from the computer is.

3.) My eyes were already hurting a bit when I got home- this has not increased. Nor has it decreased.

4.) I don’t mind looking around with them on at non-electronic items.

I can’t wait to try them after my eyes have been refreshed (read: a good night’s sleep). It should be interesting using them at school tomorrow, in an overhead fluorescent  lighted environment.

*****************************************************************************

1/12/10: 7:59 PM

Well, I took the PPKs to school today, and received many questions from my students about them. Mostly, “Are those computer glasses?” and, “What’s with your glasses?” and, “You’re wearing glasses now?” So, I explained to them the purpose behind the glasses, and the additional benefits of wearing them for computer work and gaming. Plus, I dropped the Gunnar name and website a few times. I’m tempted to make a J’*heart* Gunnar Optiks bumper sticker for my desk or something. (;

My eyes were in no pain from doing any work at the computer at school or from looking at the white board with them on. Now, I was diligent with them at the computer, but shifting from IWB to student gets a little difficult. As your perception is distorted (read: enlarged), when turning from the IWB to face a student immediately (in the relative dark, no less), that task was difficult to do. So, I had the glasses on and off at points during 6th period, when the students wanted ALL of the lights off (UGH). But I still managed, anyways. I think, that…. if you’re literally nose-to-nose with an Interactive White Board, you won’t need the glasses. Staring at it from a distance is a different story. (Actually, I wonder if the glasses have the same effects with watching the TV in the dark? I’ll have to see during the next class movie.)

The glasses came home unscathed, and I put them on (still pain-free), and got down to work. Now, I’ve noticed that they definitely don’t take that end-of-the-day-tired feeling away (chuckle), but neither do I have the excuse that “my eyes are too sore… I’m gonna’ take a break from grad work now…” and slack off for a few minutes. :/  As a matter of fact, it’s 8:06 right now, and I’m still staring/typing/working at my laptop in my regular lighting and bird conditions with my eyes feeling as good as if I’d had a restful night’s sleep! (Wow!) Okay, well… at about 8:20, I’m feeling tired eye-wise, but that’s normal after a full day’s work, and then some. I’m still physically going strong at the computer here, banging out my first assignment for Practicum II.

So far, the only complaint that I have about these glasses are the arms. They’re a wee bit too thin. As I tend to slide them back and forth as I see fit (I still think I’ll go for a pair with larger lenses next time), they hurt the corner of my ear where it attaches to my head (if that makes any sense). So… either the material could be thicker, or softer.

And a post, of course.

*contented sigh*

A few AWESOME things are happening this month. ^____________^

1.) Second-to-last Grad Course (Practicum II) begins!

I can do this, I can do this! We’ll just walk right through the project- all of the preliminary work has been done since September!

2.) Return to Advanced Class!!!  

I am SO looking forward to this!!! (This is due to the fact that the above assignments are due on Tuesday nights. Makes Mondays a bit more painful, but I’ll get through it.)

3.) Six-month Anniversary!

We’ll have made it this far, mon bien aimé et moi. (: I can’t wait for the rest! (;

4.) My Birthday!

Wow…. 28 years on the face of this planet…. some days it really feels like it, where as other days, it doesn’t. Heh.

5.) Brown Stripe…?!

Potentially. With the cementing of Chima Cho Dan, I could quite possibly test if I’m approved by a SWAT member. REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!! (This may be the calmest month, grad-work wise to do it in, too!)

6.) Short week next week!

Yay, MLK Day! Thank you for giving us the day off… as long as we have no snow days. (:

Now, it’s off to get me some Weezer. ^_^ (I owe it to this video, where the Kermit icon is from.)

****** 未来へ。。。かんぱい！！******

I GOT IT!! (As long as I walk myself through it slowly at this point, that is.) Maybe I can test this month! ^_^v

Now, I’ve realized, that the National State Games are only in a YEAR. IN A YEAR!!!!!!!!

Guess what that means after Grad School is done this year (HELL YEAH!! >:D)??

TRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!

Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!

Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!

Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!

Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!

Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!

Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!Train!

That’s about all I’m going to be doing, really. Yep. I am SO fundraising. *nodnod*

Looking forward to that new sparring class on Friday. Hopefully I can make it. (:

So, I woke up this morning with a surprising amount of positive energy and hopefulness.

Then, I beat it down with a stick and slept in a bit.

Could be ’cause I was up later than I should have been (I blame CLAMP), or could be that I just didn’t want to leave vacay-land.

Either way, today didn’t end up being so bad! *grin*

I did 40 push-ups this morning, after not having done them every morning since God knows when.  (:

Even though I stayed late to make my first awesome flipchart, I treated myself to some pizza and shared it with the brother-unit. The beeb was happy to see me when I got home, and that was really nice.

I fried some grad work fish (should be all done with Nat’l Board Cert course tomorrow! YAY!), hung out on facebook, and finally took the plunge and bought a pair of Gunnar Optiks’ PPK glasses in Chrome. Apparently, they’re Neo-Scopic, even though they’re gaming glasses. We’ll see if these glasses will do what they’ve advertised themselves to do- reduce eyestrain. (Will it help with any of my mild bloodshotness going on, too? Hmm…)

So, only time will tell. And, yet again, I have just enough to pay rent, and will be waiting breathlessly for payday. (Paying for TKD and other necessities on Friday. D:)

*looks up & thinks*

Good thing I already went grocery shopping. XD

The winter sun after a storm.

A foot of snow to make things picturesque.

A finished sock (or soon to be finished sock!)

Good neighbours.

A cute cockatiel. ~:>

The peace and quiet of one’s own home.

Snow right before Christmas.

A nice cup of tea.

:3

So, I went to the LYS last night and took advantage of their little “First Friday” shindig. I got 20% off my entire purchase! WOOT! Got some yarn (Lace Malabrigo) for some cool Phoenix Mitts I plan to crochet over break, “Not your Mama’s Crochet” book, and a cool Zauberball!

Then, I sat down, and proceeded to rip out all of my heel and work down to about three rows before I had left a space in the main foot of the sock. T____T But I had people, so I was okay. (;

Then, I took a 4.00 mm hook (F) and crocheted a few rows. It felt infinitely better!! I’ve done six rows so far, and I think I’ll make it about seven or eight before I try the heel gap again.

So, TKD this morning… followed by a shower and dishes. (UGH!) Then, I’ll spend some QT with the beeb, then go snag some apple cider, a 1.75 mm hook from Michael’s, Carley’s Christmas present, then I’m off to relax with mon bien aimé. :3 Yaaaay. ^___^v

Ranting ensues…

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