Things, more things, other things

Well, it's October now. September went poof, and I am listening to Christmas carols periodically THREE MONTHS early. No big deal, I've just fallen off my rocker.

Things that have happened in the past while: I've succumbed to student loans, joy of joys. I guess this will keep my mind off money for a little while. Job hunting's been a little difficult here, I've been told numerous times it's because of the economy, but because I don't understand the economy, I just take out my rage by swearing loudly at Craigslist. I think I've killed my ficus by repotting it. It just... dropped all of it's leaves and now it's this tremendously sad skeleton of a plant.  Two of my fish, Leonard and Androcles, turned a year old a couple weeks ago. One of my fish, Julian, died before he made it to a year (sad panda). Starbucks and I have developed a love/hate relationship.

On Wednesday, I had the most super day! I started at the Vancouver Aquarium - where I volunteer! I got to pick up a tortoise, which was all kinds of amazing! I sort of made up excuses to pick them up; like 'Oh, you're standing on a piece of lettuce I need to take out - I GUESS I'LL HAVE TO PICK YOU UP NOW!'. I also saw red tree frog eggs, which, turns out, are the most bizarre colour of seafoam green. I can't wait until they hatch and wee tadpoles emerge! Then I went to spend time in Victory Park downtown before class - soaking up the sun! I had a shifty fellow come up to me and ask me, 'got any weed, darlin'?' which makes me laugh because I look like the biggest square in town. I also had to shift my position every little while, because jerks kept sitting upwind from me and lighting up cigars or doobies. But generally, it was a magnificent couple of hours spent sitting on the grass. THEN I went to my film lab, which is always tremendous. The mysteries of 16mm film, exposure meters and the nature of all things film production are slowly unraveling before me! Anyways, on this particular lab day we were paired up and sent out into the city with a Bolex and a 100 foot roll of 16mm film to shoot whatever we please! We're always told that it's awesome we're shooting on such old cameras - in a digital age it's always a topic of conversation. We also had a weird lady come up to us and give us contraceptives - which was awkward, but Hastings has a weird sort of local colour that I love despite everything.

Favorite things of the week: 

Kunstformen der Natur by Ernst Haeckel

The images in this book are amazing. I have Stumbledupon it a couple of times and have just found it tremendously inspiring. I have always loved naturalist drawings - and these are top notch. Please have a look here for zoomable, gorgeous, full pages of the book. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have!

The new season of The Venture Brothers

Favorite television of the time being:

Breaking Bad and Star Trek: Next Generation. I can't seem to stop watching either of them.  Breaking Bad just breaks my heart. It's such a good show - so emotionally devastating! I feel like I need to either scream or cry into a pillow after watching a couple of episodes. I highly recommend it, two whom in particular, I don't know... but it's about a high school chemistry teacher who turns to cooking meth with a former student to make money so his family can sustain itself after he dies of terminal lung cancer. Yeah, it's an emotional well. Seeing Bryan Cranston NOT being the weird, whimsical dad on Malcom in the Middle is bizarre. I don't like it. But then again, I totally do. Just watch the show.

Via Fuck Yeah TNG

I seriously spent most of yesterday watching Next Generation. Now, this is the science fiction show that my mom always would watch, and I would always find outrageously boring as an eight year old. But the seeds of science fiction fandom were planted (well, in addition to the ritualistic watching of Star Wars on VHS every time I was home sick from school), and I got into Deep Space 9. And now, all things have lead to me watching Next Generation from the very beginning. It's very interesting to see everything in context, as opposed to random walk by's of "Whacha watchin'?" "Engage. Make it so. Those aren't muskets." "Oh. I'm going to go stare at a wall instead."

Favorite Artist of the day!

Shuichi Nakano! Supremely surreal gigantic animals gracing cityscapes! Check it out! I'm a big fan of the humungo fish in the sky!

Via Empty Kingdom

Via Empty Kingdom

Next thing I intend to bake: 

These absolutely amazing looking Rhubarb Oat Muffins from Shared Sugar!! I think I'll make a ton of them before my aunt comes to visit and freeze a bunch, so then my dad can also have some when he comes to visit! SO MANY VISITS.

Via Shared Sugar

Anyways, sorry for the lengthy/link heavy/photo heavy/video heavy post. It's late (early) and I probably should be going to bed (but will instead lie in bed playing gameboy for like... two hours instead). All of my VIFF tickets are purchased, including Cold Weather, The Ugly Duckling, Rubber, Armadillo and R. I was really hoping to see Feathered Cocaine, but it would seem all of the screenings have been canceled. I may try to pick up a screening or two if I have time. Maybe Cold Fish or Psychohydrography. WE SHALL SEE.

Via Fuck Yeah TNG

Hope everyone has a FUNtastic October!

PS. Check out this frigging huge pepper I picked up at the Main Street Vancouver Farmer's Market last week. It blew my damn mind. Then I cooked it into a curry.

PPS. My new, most favorite rhyme: WEIRD BEARD.

Today is Tuesday!

Hey everyone! Just some updates, I suppose. Did some shopping and some sewing the past few days. Today there was some thunder, some sunshine, some pouring rain. Good ol' Vancouver!

This swell fellow here is up on my Etsy site!

Radishes, greens, tomatoes and shrimp!

Shrimp you say? Oh yes. Meet Jacques. He is a Japonica Shrimp and his soul purpose in life is to pick things off aquarium glass and eat them. Perfecto! These are amazing little creatures to watch, and I was really happy when I found out freshwater cleaning shrimp existed. They have so many tiny legs! With two tiny arms, with two wee claws, he picks things daintily off the glass and stuffs them into his mouth. I would have liked to get another, but it was recommended at one per ten gallons, so that's what I've got! It's really hard to find him when he doesn't want to be found. I've been terrified of the other fish trying to eat him. But it  hasn't happened yet, so here's hoping!!

On the 21st, I planted a bunch of seeds! Radishes, mescluns, lettuce, spinach and carrots! I picked up some Jiffy strips and Dutch Treat starter mix from work. These photos are from today! The mescluns and radish are growing like weeds! I love it. What else do I love? The packaging for West Coast Seeds. Compared to the other seed packets at the garden center, these ones are very pleasing to the eye, not to mention functional! Not like the stark whites and neon yellows of other brands.

Almost Catfish babies.

On March 8th, I woke up to the most curious thing. Catfish eggs! Of course it took me an entire day to figure this out, as I was severely confused as to what happened. None of my fish are of the same species, but as I soon found out, some kinds of catfish can breed with other kinds of catfish!

I had been noticing this fellow, Leonard, getting a little more corpulent than usual. Leonard is also the dominating mass in the tank, a peppered corydoras catfish. So I determined that he (now a she) was responsible!!

This here is Samson, a panda corydoras catfish. I guess he's the father!!