Little Bird-"ness"

Who is Little Bird?  I've realized I've gone through a week or so of this blog without telling you much about the person behind the posts.  This week I've been quiet on the blogging front but I think I'll be tricky by introducing both more about myself while also providing a weekly update.

My Theme Song
This one's tricky because obviously theme songs should depict a mood, tone, and the pace alongside a story.  As my story changes of course my theme song changes.  It's well known that I have an unhealthy yet charmingly enthusiastic obsession with David Bowie.  Naturally you could assume my persona's theme song would be written by none other than the sexy Goblin King that stole my heart when I was 6.  Sadly I have not found a Bowie song that fits the ticket.  However, I did once have a friend that used Rebel Rebel as his ring tone for when I called in college.  I would say that's entirely appropriate.  :)

So WHAT is this theme song, eh?  What encompasses all that is Little Bird?  As this is such a difficult decision to commit to, I have chosen to drag out this entire process for the sake of suspense.  There are so many songs I could choose, but for this week's update I have chosen my personal theme song.  The song I imagine in my head every time I walk into a room is.....

Little Bird's Theme

Work
What is it that I do?  How do I have all of this time to blog and bake cakes and make crafts?  Well, for starters I was unemployed all summer, but before that I worked as a Deaf Ed teacher for a semester as a long-term substitute.  I have a degree in English and Education and a minor in Deaf Education.  I lucked out and got my first teaching job working with kids from pre-k through 12 grade as an itinerant Deaf Ed teacher (and at times interpreter).  Though I don't have an interpreting license, I was still offered a chance to interpret for a kindergartener, 3 third graders, and a ninth grader.  I think the most challenging yet fascinating student was a deaf/blind girl I worked with named Lauren.  She had so much working against her and virtually no language and yet she still accomplished so much in her day.  :)

Now I'm back to substitute teaching but in a more general capacity.  I have also started my application process for the Peace Corps, but because that takes from about 6 months to a year for an assignment, I  need to find a place to volunteer, take some form of creative class, and continue working on my blog.  I'm 26 and bear no shame in saying that I still have no idea where my career path will lead.  I only strive to find something I love doing and something that I can look back and say "Wow, never thought you'd do that, did ya?"  I intend on impressing myself one day.  :)

Things that make me go "Ooh!"

1)  When I hear a song on the radio that I love.  I love music so much, but the music that really makes my heart skip a beat are my beloved classic rock tunes. 

2)  Beautiful Fall Days.  The temperature in Texas has a very brief period that it's perfect and that's between mid October and late November.  I love the smell of the air, the clear sky and the gorgeous trees.  This is a picture of pre-autumn trees along the road I lived on nearly my whole life in my small hometown.

3)  Random acts of kindness.  Possibly a note that says "Thinking about you" or a text of your favorite joke because you thought it would put a smile on someone's face.  I love it when we use our most precious and rare trait of humanity: benevolence.

My nerdy little secret...
I am obsessed with Morgan le Fay from the legends of King Arthur.  I am going to the Renaissance Fair this weekend and I had to stop myself from buying a 60 dollar cape for a somewhat larp-esque experience.  I really wanted to be all dark and mysterious like I imagine Morgana is in the tales.  I like the many dynamics of her character depending on which version of the story is told.  One of my favorite portrayals of her character is in the recent sci-fi series called Merlin. It's a great family friendly version of the legends.  Also, Marion Zimmer Bradley's book Mists of Avalon really added depth to Morgana that hadn't been seen in previous legends, and remains one of my favorite books for that reason.

And as if it couldn't get nerdier, here is an edited snapshot I took of my character in the virtual world of Second Life.  This is my avatar as an interpretation of Morgan le Fay:

And I think now that I'm getting into my secretive life as a nerd that I should probably end this segment of looking deeper into the life of Little Bird.  I have a weekend of Uncharted 3 and Renaissance Fair ahead of me so it's safe to say that this weekend will rock!  Hope you all have an awesome weekend as well.  Love you much!

-Little Bird


p.s.  embrace your "-ness."

Happy Halloween!

Okay so my friend Tishi will be so disappointed when she finds that I didn't completely follow through with my Halloween costume idea, but I simply did not do anything eventful over the holiday weekend worth getting dressed up for.  However I will tell you my ridiculous (and very very lazy) idea of a costume I was going to do.

I don't know if you've ever heard of Teenage Mutant Ninja Noses but it is a website dedicated to an odd idea that peoples' noses make the perfect canvas for a Ninja Turtle face.  I found this hilarious and so unique so I wanted to create my own.  Had I done anything for Halloween, I would have painted my nose for the occasion.  However, instead I just drew on top of a pic of myself in gimp so that I, too, could have a Ninja Turtle nose. 

In spirit of Halloween and as an ode to nostalgia, I encourage you to turtle-up your nose and post a pic in my comments.  It's super easy to do and I personally am beaming with pride at my nerd street cred right now.  Kawabunga! 


In the spirit of Halloween I also want to share with you some of my favorite costumes I've seen this year.  There have been so many wonderfully creative ideas that I wish I had the time and energy to try myself.  Maybe next year... just maybe (but probably not.  obviously, I can't even commit to actually painting a ninja turtle on my nose. lol).


The Comic Book Character

The Internet Meme

AT-AT Canine

Cutest Baby Costumes

And finally, the flyest fairy princesses of 2011.  This girl can sing it!

So adorable!  Speaking of adorable, as a last tribute to all things Halloween, I want to share with you one of my favorite blogs of all time called My Milk Toof .  The link I just provided will entertain you with a cute Halloween story of ickle and Lardee.  You will also find the other endearing tales told by the adorable little toofs.  I absolutely LOVE the creative genius behind these stories and creativity in the way they are narrated.  The author personifies them so well that they are so easy to fall in love with.  I'm dedicating this section of the blog to my to favorite story blog characters.  Happy Halloween, ickle and Lardee!

Please everyone be safe this evening if you're planning on celebrating tonight (I know most people partied it up over the weekend).  I relaxed all weekend so tonight I'm actually going to go to a full-service dine-in movie theater just so I can feel like I did something.  I'm used to having massive parties and dressing up.  A couple of years ago we had a zombie party where myself and the other two hostesses dressed as zombies with fully decked makeup, and we would stand at the door and "bite" the guests who came dressed in "civvies".  We dragged each guest to the bathroom and I zombiefied them with makeup and gooey skin bits (squishy gel pieces that came with the kit) and then we had a dance party (as always).  Man I LOVE dressing up.  Hehe. 

I can't emphasize safety enough.  Don't drink and drive, no random midnight walks in the woods, and always, ALWAYS double tap.  Happy Halloween!  Enjoy your night and be safe!


-Little Bird

Bright as a Button

This weekend I had several crafts planned that involved yarn and lots of glue; However, some of the key elements needed to complete those projects were unavailable to me.  Luckily, I stumbled upon a cute lamp base while I was looking for the yarn, and I remembered a cute craft idea I saved on one of my Pinterest boards.

Mine didn't turn out near as cute as this lamp, but I still like the way it came out.  Obviously this craft is super easy.  You only need a lampshade and lots of fun buttons to deck it out with.  I used a multi-purpose craft glue, but pretty much any glue that is stronger than classic Elmer's glue will work.  I wouldn't recommend using hot glue because the glue dots will show through the buttons through the lampshade when lit up.

Here's how it all turned out:

I hope you all had an amazing weekend.  I had a great weekend watching a UFC fight and relaxing for the rest of the time.  I'm happy I completed at least one craft this weekend and I look forward to trying out some more ideas to show you.  Hope you had a safe and happy Halloween weekend!  See you tomorrow!


-Little Bird

Weekly wrap-up

I know the week isn't over but Thursdays seem like the end of the week to me because even if I'm working on Fridays, my brain is totally already on the weekend the entire day.  So instead of taking up one of my fun days to do a wrap-up, I think Thursday is a great day to do a re-cap on the week so far. Here goes:






1) Alleigh, my baby cousin turns 3 today!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY, beautiful girl!
I am so happy I got to celebrate her 3rd birthday with her in my hometown.  She had a huge moonwalk and slide there that all the "big kids" like my step-dad and uncle played on and she did such a wonderful time greeting everyone as they came in.  I saw her last on Mother's Day and she was a lot more reserved and shy, but this time she ran up to me and hugged me and said "You're here!"  I felt so loved!  Here is a picture of us at Mother's Day.  We were learning badminton at my parent's lakehouse.  Her mother said she would get me some pics of her birthday soon so when I get those I may post those later.

2) Jobs- I have a job!  I'm working as a substitute teacher again and I've also been asked to interpret for a 5th grade deaf/hard of hearing girl.  I'm nervous about that position because my ASL skills are decreasing by the day it seems.  I guess all I can do is try and hope for the best :)  I'm really excited to have some work though and do what I love doing which is teaching (but without all the bureaucracy and extra meetings).  I've also applied to a life-changing career position that I won't say much about until I have more progress on that front.  The job is something I've wanted since I was a kid and I'm finally getting an opportunity to live it out.  I can't wait!  :)

3) Old Friends- I had dinner with my best friend from high school tonight.  I had such a nice time and I love it when a friendship can pickup right where it started.  The same was true this past weekend when I saw my best friend in my hometown; We laughed and chatted just like yesterday was the last day we saw each other.  Anyway, in the dinner tonight I got to catch up with news from other friends and adventures that had been had.  I also realized my 10 year reunion is coming up rather quickly.  I'm hoping that I will have some really awesome excuse for not being there because I REALLY don't want to go.  Oy.  I feel old.

4) New Obsession- Pinterest.com is a fun website that categorizes images and videos into your own personal folders of things you like.  I have several boards already and have categorized them by crafts I want to do, Quotes I like, My perfect partner, and a couple of food categories.  I am absolutely in love with this site and have already found inspiration for this weekend's craft so stay tuned!  Click here if you want to see my boards.  If you signup add me as a friend!  I'd love to see what things you pin!

5) New Coldplay album has been added to my repertoire and put on repeat.  Here's one of the songs I really enjoy from the new album

6) Movie I watched this week at the theatre: Paranormal Activity 3.
I've always had an affinity for scary movies whether they are good or bad, thriller or horror I just simply get a kick out of scaring myself.

7) My top 5 favorite pics of the week

Tomorrow is Friday and also the day I reveal my halloween costume to you all *snickers*  I hope everyone has an awesome Friday, I know I am!  God Bless!


-Little Bird

Beauty in Today

Today is such a beautiful day and even though it is still quite warm outside to be the end of October (thank you Texas heat) the weather isn't the only beautiful part of today.  Today and for a few days now, I have been almost manic: smiling, laughing, being productive.  I understand these actions don't usually qualify for being manic, but in contrast to my disposition for the majority of this year, I almost don't know how to contain all of the positive emotion welling up inside.  I feel... happy.  And there's no particular reason really.  I suppose I've figured a few things out about my life, I may have found my place in this world, and I have recently found a career goal that will help me live out my dreams.  Okay scratch the for no reason part.  That's a perfect valid reason for being so immensely happy!  There is certainly lots of security and confidence in knowing what you want to do with your life.


On an entirely related note, I came to this realization about happiness when I saw this interview of Fiona Apple.  For those of you that know me you'll know that I have followed Fiona's entire career and am one of her biggest fans.  I have always related to her in that I too feel misunderstood in my view of the world.  People perceive her as angry or sad or spiteful, but really she is allowing herself to reach a level of vulnerability that when achieved, a whole spectrum of beauty is unlocked.

In this interview she talks about finding her place in the world and how she was able to become truly happy.  Before her first album she had no clue if this would be what she was destined to do, but she allowed herself to dive in because it felt right and she NEEDED to do it.  She trusted her heart and soul and it paid off.  She is a constant inspiration to me to continue to be who I am, even if who I am is not easily understood.

Today I just wanted to celebrate the beauty in being happy and in having another day to seek out my place in the world.  *cue series of inspirational posters*

Enjoy your day!  Be awesome and trust your heart.

-Little Bird

This week on Netflix

Here's a little something you may or may not know about me: I loathe cable television.  I haven't had cable television since 2007 and I don't plan on having it again anytime soon.  I am however grateful for Netflix for providing me with tons of shows to watch and I have the liberty to watch an entire season all at once.  I enjoy dedicating myself to a new show every few weeks or so or until I finish the season.  This past week's show has been Psych.  I love detective shows but the seriousness of most investigative shows become monotonous. I usually begin to only watch for the clues and the end result without ever developing a connection to any of the characters.  In Psych I really enjoy how James Roday's character, Shawn Spencer, solves crime while maintaining his obnoxious but loveable humor.

 I'm sensing that your resistance to me is futile...

I admit, throughout the first season his cocky attitude and seemingly omniscient crime solving skills grated on my nerves after a while.  However, each show usually ends on such a good note I either heartily chuckle aloud or smile wide and quickly press the 'x' on my PlayStation to start another episode.  I definitely recommend this show if you enjoy solving cases alongside tv characters and laughing intermittently as you do so.

    This week's new show has not been set in stone, but I was thinking of starting Deep Space Nine...   *waits for some dramatic movie sound effects*  (Wow!  Shawn really is good!)

When I lived in Austin I was introduced to Star Trek: Voyager and shared a very special nightly ritual of eating dinner over an episode or two of the show.  I haven't been able to bring myself to finish the rest of the seasons without my trusty Voyager sidekick.

(We'll call him Chakotay).  

Ooh! Ooh! Oh!  Can I be Janeway??

Wait a second...  

Eyes up here, Commander.  You cheeky bastard you.  *grins*

Even though Chakotay isn't here to enjoy a new Star Trek series with me, I thought Deep Space Nine would be a good start.  Well, I started the first episode and the first 5 mins broke my brain.  I have so many questions!  Le sigh.  I guess I should watch the rest and figure it out but it just isn't the same without a tried and true Treky at my disposal.  I'll give it another shot I think when it isn't 6 am.  I woke so early; I think I went to bed at 7 pm...   Something's amiss.

Anyway, I really enjoy watching shows with others and discussing them or nerding out with fellow fans.  If you have a show you really geek out about, please let me know and I'd be glad to check it out!