Convulsing Enter

The internet is working superbly now! Hooray! Now I can make posts with photos and used a proper keyboard! Granted, it's got a European layout, and I forget where the @ symbol is all the time since it's not above the 2, but that's okay.

Now on with the good stuff!

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While out and about in Milton Keynes, Michael and I stumbled upon this awesome mural in one of the pedestrian walkways:

I really love the weird cute style, and the drips from the spray paint. I wish I'd gotten a better picture.

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Speaking of finding things while in Milton Keynes, we were in T.K. Maxx (T.J. Maxx in the States) and ran across this tennis racket for kids in the toy section. Nothing weird about that, right?

It's also got oddly translated phrases on the packaging. Take this for example:

EVERY STYLES FULLY WONDERFUL!

The best welcome gifts for the children.

Okay, so that's not really that bad. It's just a bit awkwardly phrased. But then there's this:

CONVULSING ENTER

WHAT convulsively enters? I'M SO CONFUSED!

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We did manage to get out of the Milton Keynes area, and headed down to Bedford for wandering and shopping. We didn't really manage to buy much, but it was really nice to walk in and out of shops that weren't in a big mall. We also got to see this rad sculpture:

I didn't realize at first that I was looking at it from behind! I liked the shapes of the silhouettes, though. Here's a shot from the front:

 

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In other life news, I've ramped up my job hunt. I'm heading into town to register with another agency on Monday, and have applied for about ten jobs this week Here's hoping I find something soon!

I've also been updating my weight loss blog a tad more than this one. The good news? I'm up to five pounds lost so far. It's slow going, but that's better in the long run, really. 

That's all for now! 

Quick Update

Because we're in the middle of moving, I haven't been able to work on paintings or anything (though I did make a some magnets over the last week or so, and will post a picture of those later this week once we're done). I do have my sketchbook though, so I'm doing some thumbnails for comics when I can.

The big news though, is that I've started a separate blog to track my weight loss. I figured that was a bit easier than fiddling with tagging and cuts in case some people didn't want to read it. If you're curious, though, you can find it here:

http://shrinkingsteph.blogspot.com/

That's all for now!

Health, weight loss, oh, and arty stuff too.

Let's talk about the art stuff first. I've been working on a buffer for a webcomic I want to launch in February. That's really where I've been lately and why I haven't blogged much. I'm about half way to my goal of halving two months completed, which I'm happy with. I'm in the middle of a painting for the Etsy shop at the moment, involving Goldilocks and the Three Bears. And I've started playing around with some fimo, so there will be magnets up in the shop soonish as well.

But that's not really what I wanted to post about. After my appointment with the doctor today, it has become abundantly clear that I need to do something about my weight. I'd already started eating a bit healthier, but I need to go a step further. I'm only about 10 pounds shy of what I weighed at my heaviest (though it may be more than that, as I'm taking it from the only time I remember looking at a scale when I was that big), and that scares the shit out of me. I knew I'd put on weight since I moved here (partially owing to a few bouts of depression), but I didn't realize just how bad the situation had gotten.

I've had enough, and finding out how much I weighed (plus the doc really sort of sticking it to me this morning) was the last straw.

So begins my current venture into a healthier lifestyle. I have a "lifestyle" appointment with a nurse next week, as suggested by the doc, about nutrition and exercise and the like. We'll see how that goes. In the mean time, I'm eating more healthy foods and smaller portions.

Starting to Pack (not so) Early, and other things

I've held off on posting because I thought I might find out about my visa a bit early. I hired an expediter after the fact to see if they could pull my application and resubmit it, thus shaving of some waiting time and reducing my growing stress levels. Sadly, the consulate had already opened my application and had begun processing it, so expediting was a no go. I will get some of my money back, and it's nice to know something's being done, but I'm currently at the mercy of the consulate and however long they take to process things. I should hear by sometime next week with any luck, and by the end of the month at the latest. So I'm going to be flying out a bit later than planned.

I have started packing. The vast majority of the clothing I'm taking is currently sealed in those vacuum space bag things to help save space. I'm still sorting through my art work and art supplies, and I'm going to pick up some flat rate boxes from the post office on Monday to send off a chunk of my books in.

I've been really stressed out lately. I've cried a LOT. I don't like not being in control of things, and the whole situation with my visa had me almost tearing my hair out. I've also been doing a lot of stress eating, and I swear I've gained at least seven pounds in the last few weeks. (Probably exaggerating a bit on the number, but I have gained weight.) And even though I'm joining a gym when I move over and I'm going to eat better and really make a stab at taking control of my body and my weight, I felt really terrible because I'd been eating loads of junk lately. It was partially because I thought I might be leaving really soon and didn't want to buy groceries I wasn't going to eat.

But now I know I'm not leaving for at least another week or so. I made the decision to pick up a bunch of veggies and fruit and such. And even the simple act of buying that stuff and knowing it's in the fridge makes me feel better. I'll still have some junk (need to get in one last California burrito before I go), but obviously in moderation.

This has, in part, been brought on by getting into the Biggest Loser again. I forgot how much that show inspires me to work hard and do better by myself. I just finished rewatching the first season of the Biggest Loser Australia on YouTube (found it last year when I couldn't find full episodes of the American one). It was a great season, and I totally recommend watching it if you're into that sort of thing*. My plan is to have a weight loss update post once a month, with progress and a photograph. But that comes later, after this moving business is over.

Today was my roommate's** birthday, so we went out and did things! And stuff! We went to IHOP with a former roommate/friend (not so healthy but very yummy... I recommend the Harvest Grain and Nut pancakes), and followed that up with seeing Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (which was so much better than I expected). Go see it if you're in the mood for light-hearted and slightly nerdy fun. We came back home for a bit and then rounded off the evening by seeing our roommate/friend's improv group perform, which is always awesome***. This was preceded by a quick duck into the UK Corner Shoppe (which is right next door) for some treats from my future home. (Really, I've been dying for a Violet Crumble for the last month or so, and I figured a Cadbury Crunchie would satisfy that craving.)

So a lot has been going on. I'll continue to sort and pack tomorrow (and maybe watch season two of Biggest Loser Australia, which I haven't seen before). Now that I'm over the disappointment of not getting my visa as soon as I'd hoped, I can really push to get everything done so that I'm ready to go when I can leave.

I'm not sure what my next post will be about, or when, but here's hoping the gist of it is: WOOOOOO! MY VISA GOT APPROVED! YAAAAAAAY!

*You can find the first part to the first episode here.
**She's the sister I never had. I'm going to miss the crap out of her.
***If you're in San Diego and you want a fun night, check out National Comedy Theater. They're always a blast.