Sunday, January 30, 2011

Sunday Derby Sunday - tips for Fresh Meat


image from we♥it


From Queen of the Rink, here are seven tips for roller derby "Fresh Meat," aka rookie players. Censored by me, because derby girls tend toward the foul mouthed. :)

1. Take off that garter-belt-tutu-thing and pay your f----- dues. Lay track, keep score, haul water, stamp hands. There will be a time for semi-nudity and obnoxious self-promotion. And that time is after you’ve actually proven yourself on the track. Teams don’t draft rollergirls. Teams draft roller derby players.

2. You don’t always get drafted right away. Even if you do everything right, maybe you’re just not what a team needs. Maybe a team needs a jammer and you are clearly a blocker. Maybe you just need more time. Don’t throw a diva fit and don’t disappear. Ask if can help with reffing or NSO duties or whatever. Keep practicing and keep driving yourself. You can be awesome! But it doesn’t happen overnight.

3. Watch the game. Watch as many bouts online, on TV, or in person as you can. Have the rules on hand so you can check to see and familiarize yourself with all the penalties and procedures. Watch with a vet and ask questions about everything. If you get a penalty during practice or scrimmage, ask the ref about it afterward. You don’t sound stupid. It’s a very complicated game. Most the players I know (including myself) say the average amount of time it takes to really understand what you’re doing on the track is one year. One. Year. Of being on a team. Ask and listen all the time.

4. Wax on, wax off. Does a drill seem easy to you? Then you are being a lazy, sloppy, no count, time wasting, dumb b----. The best skaters in the game do hundreds of laps and basics til they puke. Get lower, engage your core, add a power option. If anything is comfortable or easy you are not making the most of the drill.

5. Learn the difference between hurt and injured. Injured means you can’t skate. Broken bone, torn ligament, concussion, loss of limb. Don’t ever skate if your doctor tells you not to or if you are only 75% healed. Tell your coach and captains if there is anything wrong with you before hitting the track. That said, DERBY F----- HURTS. You don’t get to stop or skip practice because you are “hurt.” Being sore, having a bruise the size of a skillet, a little sniffle, or a black eye are not excuses to stay home. Nobody wants to draft a player who is always too “hurt” to be there for her team.

6. Perfect your stops. You do not need a drill or a lot of space to work on stops. Whenever you have a few seconds alone work on stopping as quickly and as low as possible. T-stop with your left and your right skate, plow stop, hockey stop, backwards toe stop. Dragging a toe is an invitation for an opposing blocker to floor you and probably snap your ankle. Don’t ever, ever do it.

7. Derby skating is not session skating. There is never a time for coasting during roller derby. At any given time you should be actively speeding up or slowing down. Read that sentence again- it was a derby epiphany for me. When you are skating fast there is never a need for gliding. Speed does not come from wheels rolling; it comes from pushing off the edge of your wheel. Crossovers, duck walks, juking, choppy, running steps. Get it?


Any questions?

Friday, January 28, 2011

8 track Friday - secret side

I made this mix to give one of my co-workers a sampling of some gothic music. I was explaining how I'd been a goth in high school and told her that was one of the genres of music I still listen to, and she'd never heard of the genre before.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Girls that glitter love the dark

January 24, 2011
Cardigan thing: Ross
Embellished shirt: Old Navy
Skirt: Target (Merona)
Tights: We Love Colors
Shoes: Target (Merona)
Necklace: Forever 21
Watch/Bracelet: Walmart


According to Ashley Falcon, "A head-to-toe black ensemble screams, Don't look at me!"

Or it could mean you just really like to wear black.

I got those black suede wedges that everybody has! The Mika wedges. I grabbed them when they were on clearance back in December, wore them around the house for a few times, and then tucked them away.

It didn't make sense to me to have shoes that I never wore, so I tried wearing these to work today.

I got a few compliments - you can see from my other posts that my attire is usually pretty casual - but man, my feet hurt. Nobody said they were uncomfortable. Maybe I just need to break them in.

I ordered this necklace from Forever 21 - I don't know why, I think because it was so cheap - and they sent me a spider necklace instead! It's the exact same design, with the big rhinestone as the body, but it's just a spider instead of a fly. I'm not going to complain, I vastly prefer the spider.

♫: Hannah Fury - Girls that Glitter Love the Dark

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Boosting the signal

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image from etsy


Just passing on the message...

As some of you already know, one of our cousin's sons has been battling a brain stem tumor for nearly 9 months (DIPG--Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma; long term survival rates are dismal). Unfortunately, Mason (age 9) is starting to lose his battle. He very much enjoys geography, so his mom had an idea--to try to get Valentine's from all over the country/world for him.

Because the postmarks are somtimes impossible to read, his mom is asking that if you send one, to please either write the city/state/country it's coming from or to write that information on the inside (maybe 'Happy Valentine's Day from ______, in _City_, _State_').

If you want to help, here's the address:

Mason Kempf
7700 W 96 Ter.
Overland Park, Kansas 66212

If anyone wants to pass along this info to family and friends that might be able to help, I think they would love that. Please be aware, though, that time is of the essence.


Mason already got to have an excellent Christmas... let's make his Valentine's Day even better!

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Oh come child, In a crossbones style

January 21, 2011
Camp shirt & jeans: Just My Size
Flats: Steve Madden, secondhand
Necklace: Eclectic Outlet
Drugstore hair clip


These are the shoes I was wearing back here that you couldn't see.

This outfit was inspired by this one over at Gretchen's Closet.

Inspired? But it's so simple! And that's the point.

I feel really intimidated by other people's fashion blogs sometimes, because I don't have a lot of clothes and I don't have a lot of money to buy new things. And because I'm larger than "average," it's really hard for me to find things even when I'm thrifting. Sometimes I get frustrated with my limits, sometimes I worry about rejection. Then I see someone else looking really chic in something basic and I think, "I can do that. What was I getting all upset for?"

I could have added a bracelet and a ring though, I guess. I'm still not used to this whole accessorizing thing.

Italian Cat Tarot necklace


I have purchased a few inexpensive trinkets on Etsy recently and this was one of them. I was really tickled to find this necklace on Etsy because I actually own one of the limited edition copies of the Italian Cat Tarot from 1990. It was one of the first things I ever got on eBay and I just love it. The chain was originally really long, but because it's a ball chain necklace, it was very easy for me to cut and make shorter.

♫: Cat Power - Cross Bones Style

stop before someone ends up getting hurt

January 20, 2011
Sweatshirt: Fashion Bug (old)
Skirt: Dickies (secondhand)
Boots: Vintage via Ebay
Leggings: Forever 21 +
Scarf: Torrid, I think.


This outfit is based on the same inspiration as this one. Crazy how two outfits can come from the same photo, isn't it?

I made sure to tuck this scarf in because the pattern is skulls and crossbones. This was from Friday when we watched Peter Pan, though (the live action version), so if anyone had asked, I would have said it was my pirate scarf. The kindergartners don't seem to mind my occasional odd accessory choice (spider necklace, dinosaur necklace, green sparkle spider web socks) so I'm sure they would have been okay with it.

I'm doing all right, and I appreciate the support some of you have given. I didn't grow up with my dad, so we're not super duper close, but it's still really hard now that I'm handling his expenses, being reminded every day that he's gone.

We're not? We weren't, heh. I keep forgetting to use past tense. I understand that's common.

I've gained weight since the last time I wore this skirt, can you tell? You can click the "dickies pencil skirt" tag to compare the photos. I don't think I'll wear it again until I drop a few pounds. It fit okay but to me it doesn't look like it fits okay.

♫: Charlotte Gainsbourg - Little Monsters

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Give me these moments back.


image from we♥it


I mentioned here briefly about the passing of my father in November. Some issues have come up recently that I have to deal with that seem to be extraordinarily painful and difficult for me. Maybe I just haven't let myself fully deal with what happened until now. Either way, I just need to take a little break from blogging.

If you have somebody to love, love them. Kiss your significant others and hug your babies.

And for heaven's sake, call your parents. Visit them if you can. Ask them about their lives. Swap stories. Even if you don't get along well with them, you'll never realize how much you love them until they aren't there anymore.

Etsy Tuesday - gothic wedding

Not that I plan on getting married any time soon, but I guess I've been feeling a bit nesty lately! And with the trend these days toward "offbeat brides," I suppose you could guess that any ceremony I would be involved in would be anything but traditional. So I put together this treasury for lovebirds who are looking for something a little darker.


'gothic wedding' by vespersparrow

til death do us part


$799.00

$47.00

$100.00

$13.95

$85.00

$99.00

$15.00

$1.50

$140.00

$1000.00

$22.00

$70.00

$25.00

$135.00

$54.00

Generated using Treasury HTML code generator by Whale Shark Websites.


Sunday, January 9, 2011

Sunday Derby Sunday

Since a few of you have expressed interest in my roller derby exploits, I decided that I was going to use Sundays to post information about roller derby in general and about my training and progress and whatever else happens to be going on.

So here's the first post! Back during the Great Depression, roller derby started out as a race between teams to see which team could keep skating for the longest. Since then, however, it has been revitalized and re-imagined as a whole new sport. Here's Rob Lobster explaining how derby is played these days... using donuts.


Saturday, January 8, 2011

Pay it Forward 2011



I'm already participating in this via Facebook, but Carla started it rolling in the blogging world... and Rai made this cool graphic.

I'm a notorious procrastinator, but this falls right in line with my resolution to be creative.

Ha! If you guys had ever seen my artwork, you'd be more excited about this. ;)

1. Stacey Kay of Goodwill Huntingg
2. Christina of Randomness, á la Mode
3. Aura(?) from heavy aura
4.
5.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

But everybody thinks I'm weird

January 06, 2011
Cardigan: Avenue
Tank: Target
Skirt: Target
Tights: Walmart
Shoes: Urban Outfitters
Scarf: Claire's
Bracelet: World Market


Another visit from the skirt that I never would have bought if not for the influence of fat fashionistas in the blog-o-sphere! And roller derby, which made me feel better about my body in general. So thanks, blog-o-sphere! And thanks, roller derby!

See, my legs are fat. The bulk of leg fat is in my thighs and starts at my knees. So anything I had to wear had to be knee length or longer, because I didn't like my fat knees. But my knees are going to be fat whether you see them or not. So why not wear a skirt that's a little shorter?

This outfit was inspired by a look I saw on Clothed Much when Elaine did her end of the year round-up. Of course I don't have a sweatshirt (I really don't) or lacy tights so I had to change it up a little bit, but the idea is to be inspired, not to copy.

I didn't tuck my scarf in like she did, either, because it has buttons on the fringe and I wanted to show that off. At the end of the day I think I should have, though, because my kindergarten kids kept coming up to me and grabbing and pulling my scarf.

My kiddos are super cute but this whole personal space issue is part of the reason why I prefer to work with older children.

January 06, 2011


I was a little noisy today, because of the jingly bracelet and the buttons clicking on the scarf. I love that the pattern is cute and a little sinister at the same time - the little stitched-together animals almost look like voodoo dolls. Eek!

Maybe that's the style niche I'm going for. Cute but creepy. I even picked a cute but creepy song to go with this post today.

This guy is my favorite:

January 06, 2011


♫: Kate Nash - Skeleton Song

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Do you hear me? Do you care?

January 05, 2011
Cardigan & tank: Old Navy
Trousers: Lane Bryant, thrifted
Shoes: Pink Duchess via Urban Og I think.
Necklace: from high school, probably Hot Topic.


Nothing special today. The pants I brought back from my mom's house - I actually had thrifted them years ago and left them there. How old does something have to be to be vintage?

You can't really see the shoes but they are pointy toe oxfords. They're a little too narrow to be totally comfortable and they're made of some kind of manmade material which is kind of smelly.

I have a really nasty head cold right now, so I'm going to bed early. Goodnight!

♫: Missing Persons - Words

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

I wanna be her... so do you

January 04, 2011
Jacket: Old Navy plus ($20 I think)
Tunic/shirt: Just My Size
Cropped jeans: Avenue
Boots: Vintage Grime via Ebay ($50)
Belt: Coldwater Creek
Necklace: Asos


Here it is, the jean jacket I've been wearing almost every day in Texas in lieu of an actual winter coat!

This outfit features two items that I can't figure out how to wear, yet in a fit of temporary insanity I decided to wear them both at the same time. I bought the boots because of their color - and I never wore them out in public before, because of their color. These pants are shorter than I thought they'd be and don't taper at the ankle like I'd hoped. But when I was coming back from Ohio, I saw a lady at the airport who was wearing cuffed jeans and lace-up boots and I thought, Eureka!

Check it out, I even have detail shots:

teal vintage Justin roper boots

January 04, 2011 detail
necklace: Asos
pins: Needlings on Etsy, free with my owl brooch, and a pin from a promo pack I got when ACRD was promoting Whip It.



Do you think I should keep putting the prices on things? I didn't price a lot of this stuff because I've worn it before and I think I mentioned the price previously. I think it's interesting when other bloggers do it but... um... I'm kind of lazy. :)

♫: Peaches - Boys Wanna Be Her

Etsy Tuesday - An Unkindness of Ravens

If you hadn't noticed, I happen to like birds. And I've been on a bit of a raven kick lately. I'm still pretty upset about never again being able to find that awesome "Omnivore" raven lunch bag I liked so much, but these other things I found while searching are pretty cool too.

Yes, I know some of them are actually crows. Shh!



Take to the Wind - 5x5 ...
$15.00

Reverence For Raven Cha...
$3200.00

Nevermore Raven Wax Sea...
$

SALE Raven Crop Jacket
$75.00

CROWS (4) - Wall STENCI...
$34.99

Raven with Black Spruce...
$530.00

The Raven... a white de...
$

3D Bronze Raven Claw Pe...
$49.00

FOUR Bird on a Branch S...
$

Raven Messenger Bag
$

Nevermore Tie
$24.00

Neo Victorian Woodland ...
$

Baby raven among forget...
$12.00

Leather Raven Tail Feat...
$

Raven Soul Totem Goddes...
$95.00

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