I just used Photoshop to create the gif below. Just look for the animation menu. It was a bit complicated, actually, cuz I was trying to make it easier on myself, and I basically did some importing a folder as an animation and then rearranging and deleting layers, and then turned the layers into frames. And then I had to figure out where I can upload an animated gif and link to it cuz Blogger won't let you upload animated gifs. It took awhile, but tinypic.com worked wonders!

Anyway, on the news front. Good new all around!

1. I am "this close" to getting a job at Borders, which will help pay the bills for the time being.

2. I got an internship at that visual effects company! I start next week, and I'll go more into details as soon as I can. I'm pretty sure I can talk about it now, but I don't want to jinx it, so I will wait until I've at least been there one day. It's unpaid, hence the job above, but if I play my cards right, this internship can turn into a real job afterwards. Yay!

3. Whateley got a new (and better) job!

4. Wedding plans are good! Things are progressing at a good rate!

Regarding #4, yeah, we were definitely procrastinating. We should've done all this months ago, but we finally buckled down and took a scouting trip to Vegas these past three days. Here's what we found out: chapels in Vegas are cheesy. And many are scuzzy. And they are in crappy neighborhoods. And they are small.

After looking at a couple of old Strip hotel chapels, we decided to check out the Luxor for the heck of it. Well... the chapel there is bee-yoo-tee-ful! Not a hint of cheese anywhere! And it's encased in really thick walls that keep out the casino sounds, so you forget that it's in a casino! And the color schemes are gorgeous. So... even though it'll make our budget a little higher than we want (we were hoping to go as cheap as possible without getting cheesy because we want to save up for a house for the long term and TiVO for the short term and Whateley will need a new car in the medium term) but... well, if you compare the Luxor to the independent chapels (or even the old Vegas hotel chapels) they just blew them out of the water! In short, the others blew! You can't help but see how cheesy and scuzzy they were!

Anyway, so we got a game plan, we got a date (which I will not reveal at the moment because I want to make sure we can book the chapel at that date), and it's just matter of calling and setting things up. So, wish us luck!

Because I have no life, I created this animated gif of the national flu report:

Okay, say what you will, but the best $13 I spent was on a flu shot last October.

How else can you explain that in our household, Whateley and our two roommates got sick (not at the same time, but as soon as one ended the other began) and I alone did not get sick? It's not like we're the cleanest people in the world, and because of my eczema I touch my face a lot (I shouldn't, I know, but when it itches, I do it unconsciously), and yet, I alone did not get sick. I even kissed Whateley while he was sick, and I did not get sick. I tell you, IT'S THE FLU!

But the others were convinced it wasn't the flu because they weren't getting any nausea. Well, I found this excerpt on weather.com (emphasis is mine):

What are Symptoms of the Flu?

Influenza, also known as the flu, is a contagious disease that is caused by the influenza virus. It attacks the respiratory tract in humans (nose, throat, and lungs). The flu is different from a cold. Influenza usually comes on suddenly and may include these symptoms:

• Fever
• Headache
• Tiredness (can be extreme)
• Dry cough
• Sore throat
• Nasal congestion
• Body aches

These symptoms are usually referred to as "flu-like symptoms."

What about "Stomach Flu"?

Many people use the term "stomach flu" to describe illnesses with nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea. These symptoms can be caused by many different viruses, bacteria, or even parasites. While vomiting, diarrhea, and being nauseous or "sick to your stomach" can sometimes be related to the flu – particularly in children – these problems are rarely the main symptoms of influenza. The flu is a respiratory disease and not a stomach or intestinal disease.

In fact, I remember from the food handling class that there is no such thing as the "24-hr flu." Those are actually cases of food poisoning. BTW, food poisoning = not much fun.

So, here's my message to you, if you get a flu shot, you will never regret it.

I'm a bit tired, but I'm glad of it because it means that the regimen of sleeping and waking earlier is working.

I have some interesting stuff to blog about regarding the free clinic system, but I'm so tired, I can't go into it now. So, I will blog about that later. But I'm posting a non-entry just to post and say that I'm not dead.

I'm MIA for a week and no one care? Dang. No love. (I'm just kidding!)

This week has been hectic, for once. Well, comparably hectic. I was helping Whateley out with his resume, updated mine, and then went to a "schmooze-session" at a studio in Culver City on Tuesday. I had no shame, I basically went around begging for an internship. Well, I schmoozed so it didn't look like I was begging, but I did. And I think it's working, though no definite news 'til next week.

Thursday, of course, was spent beating traffic, then homework, then class, where the teacher liked my animation, so I think I might actually have a bit of talent in this area.

I heard back from another studio I applied to, and since I'm not all joyous, you can guess I didn't get a job. I panicked and e-mailed my teacher to see if there were hidden meanings to the e-mail, and he just said it's standard. It seems his studio won't be hiring trackers 'til the summer, though this one might have openings next month if or when they fire all the people who's contracts are up. All I can say is, one guy got hired after two hours of experience with Maya Live. Two frickin' hours, while I took a 16-week class. But then, I found out, it's all because he had contacts.

So back to the schmooze-fest. I really don't like networking (though the food was good!) because it makes me nervous, I don't know what to do (although, I didn't seem to have much trouble on Tuesday, which might mean I'm better at it than I think, or else it's not as hard as you think). But the industry I so desperately want to get in to requires networking... a lot. A whole lot. I'm looking at job listings on the internet, and they all want 2-5 years of production experience, and I'm thinking, they're not going to find a lot of people that way! Well, they'll find a lot of people, but not ones with the qualifications they want. Cuz that's one thing about the industry, if you have 2-5 years experience, then you're not going to look online for a job, you're going to use your contacts. Anyway, maybe that's what I gotta do, apply to those online postings and imply, hey, you ain't gonna get much better, so maybe you oughtta give me a chance.

Okay, I'm gonna be late for Superlefty's birthday day, so... sorry Lefty!