Noumena @ B52

Noumena celebrated their new album and 15 years in metal by playing a gig @ B52 in Ähtäri. That happened May 10th, 2013.

I went, I enjoyed the gig, I drank too much beer and tripped in the stairs coming out. Yay. 

So. 

Noumena was formed in 1998 in Ähtäri. Their new album, Death Walks With Me, was released in April under their own label. DWWM offers us melodic, doom inspired death metal, and introduces a new member to the band. 

It's been about a year since I first saw Suvi Uura sing with Noumena, and on Saturday, she really proved herself as a singer. Not only does she kick ass with her angelic voice, she growls like a demon from Hell, too. 

If you're not familiar with the band, I suggest you check them out. 

Here's their latest video, Sleep. 

As mentioned before, I went to the bar. 

It's always a bad idea to make me go to the nightclub here... I'm not a huge fan of the place, so I compensate by having too many pints. 

I figured Saturday would be no exception to the rule of "morons fill the club", but I was mistaken. An ice-hockey match kept morons at home, and the club was blissfully crowded with metal heads. They even played metal all night, so I wasn't that ticked off. 

Actually had a nice time. 

Until I had too much beer and landed on my bum. 

I wore my Victorian-inspired satin skirt paired with a simple lace top and a leather corselet. 

I make. 

For footwear, I settled for my sensible Vagabond heels. 

Taking photos via a mirror is generally not a good idea, but... well, we postponed (why? I don't know) taking pics until we got home, and I don't look presentable in those shots :D 
Had to settle for the snapshots I took before going out. 

So. The "falling down the stairs"-episode. 

Outside the club, there's two flights of stairs. Concrete stairs. I looked at them, swaying a bit, and very calmly, in a collected fashion, descended. Step by step, slowly and surely, until there was five steps left. At that point, I made the mistake of sighing "I made it", my concentration broke, my ankle twisted, I stepped on my skirt, and fell on my butt, and then there was two men at my arms, helping me up and carefully escorting me to the car. 

How embarassing. 

Anyways. I promise more outfits-photos in the future. Until then, listen to Noumena. 

Love,

Heather

Labour Day

1st of May, and the night before, are regarded official Drinking Days in Finland. 

To honor the time-long tradition, I wore pretty clothes while getting rid of a bit of a hangover. 

Y-day, we stayed in, and had a sauna. Today, we went out to see if we could catch a parade of old, fancy cars. Well, they drove by too fast, and skipped following the predetermined route, so we only say a few pretty rides. Better than nothing, though :) 

After, we had pizza (ate too much, oof) and came home to drink some sparkly wine. And then husband retired at 7:30 pm :D 

At first, I thought I'd go super-goth, but after trying on my Victorian inspired satin skirts, I figured it was a bit much. 

We live in the country-side, after all. 

I settled for my new fav skirt, and a matching top hat. Completed the look with a lace blouse, and lace tights. 

And for the first time this spring, I got to wear purdy heels <3

Skirt, top hat: Heather Wielding Originals
Lace blouse: second hand (peppercorn)
Shoes: second hand

The top hat is a story on its own. 

I made it just a week ago, and broke some rules with it to make it weather-proof, comfortable and long lasting. 

I made another one, and am currently in the process of making a little tutorial on them. 

I'm really pleased with the results: the day was windy, and my hat showed no sing of wanting to fly away :D

Made husband take a few photos after we came home, and he said all sorts of silly things while taking the snap-shots, so... giggles all around :D

 

Spring has officially sprung, and I hope to make the best of it. Hope you'll do the same :)

Explosions in Windows-Land

About two months ago, I switched from Ubuntu to Windows. 

Lucid Lynx to XP. 

Everything went fine for a while. Of course, I had to install twice because of a .dll-error, but that happens. Played Oblivion and Skyrim (didn't like Skyrim, too playstation) and enjoyed having everything so easy. 

Well, this morning, I turn on my computer and get a black screen. 

I was, like, WTF, if you catch my drift. 

Google to the rescue, turns out it's a major something-something. Virus or humongous error or what-not. 

If I had hard liquor in the house, I would have spiced up my coffee. 

Looks like the only solution is re-installing Windows. Yay. 

I'm remembering now why I don't really care for Windows. Sure, it's easy to use and easy to install and everything is compatible, but... it eats things it's not supposed to eat and explodes. 

I've got loads of stuff on my harddrive in dear need of rescuing. Not very happy right now. 

Guess I won't be playing Oblivion on my own computer any more. Or anything else for that matter, other than Mahjongg. Back to Lucid Lynx for me, thank you very much, Windows. 

If liveCD can't help me rescue my files, I get to re-do a months worth of work. So unbelievably happy. 

not. 

EDIT Sunday, April 28th

Managed to salvage all my important files from windows. Installed Lucid Lynx, updating it as I write, and everything's fine again. Feels like I can trust my computer again. With windows, there was a constant "what if it'll crash"- cloud hanging on my head. 
Maybe I can get some work done now, and actually get some tutorials published next week :D

Dragons

I finished Dragons this morning. 

It's the first draft (which I hardly ever change), and I can't remember if I've gotten all the scenes done. 

But still, I finished it. Put down the final dot, so to speak. 

I don't like finishing books. Every time, it's saying goodbye to characters I've grown to know and love. Every time it breaks my heart to let them go. 

That's why Sha-e-Fa got both a sequel and a prequel... I just couldn't bring myself to part with old friends. It was my first fantasy-novel ever, and I still feel like something is left untold. 

With Dragons, there is no such feeling. The story is told, the book closed, and I know I'll miss it for a long time. 

I didn't cry today, like I did after Jay. I've shed my tears for Dragons a long time ago. 

Why, you ask? Read the book, and find out. 

To bring myself solace, I've played a lot of Oblivion... funny how a game published nearly a decade ago can be so intoxicatingly :::homer-drewl

Just found out yesterday there's mods for it! 

Yes, I'm a bit slow... Anyways, hair was the first thing to change. Lorelei, my third hero, got a brand-new do. 

Now she looks like the mental image of her creator <3

Dragons. 

I dont' know when Dragons will be published. If it were entirely up to me, I'd say tomorrow! But for the first time, I'm not alone to blame. 

My Husband's sister is an artist. She paints enchanting, alluring water colors and oil paintings. I asked her if she'd like to make a cover for Dragons, and she said yes. So I'm sorta waiting for the final artwork to arrive. I'm really exited, I've never had a cover custom-made before! 

So. 

Dragons. 

Tomorrow I'll get to go on a wicked typo-hunt (I have a fresh installation of WindowsXD and my OpenOffice is having hickups on the typo-whatchumacallit, so ugh), and for next week I have lovely treats planned out. 

They've got to do with garments, so be sure to watch my other blog, webshop, and facebook page ;)

April 1 Theme: Vintage

I've never regarded myself as a vintage girl. 

I do love the scent of past eras, but wearing something from an age past makes me feel like I'm about to destroy a legacy. 

I'm clumsy. I drop things. 

I break meaningful items without planning it. 

I don't own vintage items. No priceless paintings, books hand-bound in leather, no antiquitity of any sort. 

Except... 

 Gloves. Simple, durable fabric gloves found from UFF, I think, dating back at least two decades. 

They're perfect for my chilly hands in the spring (sometimes summer, too) and match gothic inspired outfits beautifully. 

Jewelry is hard to break, too. I feel safe with thick silver bands and pendants. 

Mom, knowing my disposition with breakable items, decided to trust me with something she'd gotten when she was young. 

In the sixties, that is. 

Mom watched me bloom from a strange child to a baby-bat, and rewarded me with a ring. 

I remember going through the drawers of her dresser as a kid, trying on make-up, marvelling over her jewelry. 

This ring was always the center-point of my fascination. It's big, it's heavy, and back then, I'd never-ever seen anything like it. 

As I grew into the ring, Mom said it looks better on me. 

 

I still treasure it. 

It still is the most beautiful piece of jewelry I've ever seen. 

 

Look, I'm smiling! :D

Lately, things don't irritate me as much any more. Funny how much getting rid of something negative does to you :D 

Anyways. Yesterday, we went shopping! 

Didn't find much, but I though I'd share an outfit photo for a change. 

And ramble on incoherently for a while... 

So. Shopping. With friends. And husband. 

One of our new friends here in the middle of nowhere, is a Spanish girl. She's a dance instructor at an adult education center, and since I've been sorta gagging to instruct a course, too, she took me there, and showed me around a bit, and pointed toward a lady who manages courses. 

I talked to the lady a bit, with a big smile and not much sense, and she said she might get back to me. 

Before, I would have been out of my mind with dread over the meeting, but now I was just a bit nervous. It was so nice, being able to smile and chat <3

And I wore clothes. 

Had a reason to dress up for a change, to show off my mad skills. 

 

Skirt, waist corselet, hat: Heather Wielding Originals
Top: Only, second hand

The hat I wore is way old... I got it when I was in high-school (still don't know how lukio translates exactly), wore it a couple of times, and forgot it in my closet.

After a few years, I found it, dusted it off, and turned it purdier. 

I've been thinking about updating it a bit, but... well, I've been a bit preoccupied :D 

 

Lovely mess in the background, sorry... 

Bookwise, Dragons is, for a change, coming out nicely. Not long to go, I've already written the ending, and now I'm just filling in some gaps. 

I'm getting a wicked-cool cover for it, too. My sister-in-law's making it <3 

Oh, and I came up with a really cool idea! 

I know there are a lot of craftsy people out there, and some who want to get their hands dirty with altering clothes and stuff, but don't know where to begin. To help them along, I'm thinking... tutorials! 

Simple, illustrated tutorials for quick, easy projects for a small compensation. Love it? I do! 

Phew

So. 

Had X-rays done today. 

I've had a bit of a long day, so forgive me if I trail. Also, internet is really slow today, thanks to a huge snow storm outside, so I can't check the correct form of writing words. And stuff. 

Long day. Woke up @8ish, after about 5 hrs of sleep, and allowed my computer to take my mind off things waiting in the near future. I've been an ubuntu-girl for years, but Y-day, as I upgraded to the latest distro, I got a really nasty surprise. 

They'd switched to unity-based things, and ubuntu was super heavy and quite difficult to manage. 

So I installed windows. 

It was easier than I remembered, and my computer turned out to be a wicked source of POWER ;D 

I get to install Oblivion next, and play when I'm bored <3

So. Trying to stick to the subject here. 

I was dreading the day a bit, had to ask husband what I should wear. He always picks pants, so I wore pants. And a blouse. And shoes. 

You probably get the idea. Clothes. 

The hospital (I haven't been to hospital since I was born, other than to visit people) was an hour's drive away. Too much time to think. 

We were early, and after I'd announced myself, a nurse came out, like, straight away, and told me to come on through, please. 

They took X-rays and an ultrasound. I haven't had X-rays done on my breasts before, and oh boy, it was not nice, not one bit. The nurse frowned upon me smiling tightly and telling her it was a tad uncomfortable, and made me feel like a bit of a wimp. 

The ultrasound was a breeze after that, the gel was cold and it tickled, but hey, no problemo. 

The doctor was a man. A tall man with a rough handshake. He was clinical, treated me like I wasn't really a real person, and I kinda like that in a doctor. 

Anyways, I was lying there on the table, trying to see the screen, and it took FOREVER for the doctor to say anything. 

It took so long I was starting to panic, and then he just sorta blurted out that it's most likely a fibriosomethingortheother. I forget. 

Anyway, I repeated the word, and asked what the heck that is, and the doctor said it's a benign growth, quite common. 

I didn't cry. Or faint. Or anything. 

Had to bite my lip, though, to fight back tears of relief ;D 

So. He studied the screen for a while more, and then he said he'd like to take a sample just to make sure. 

I wanted to say no, but didn't. 

So out come the needles, the big, pointy things that go SNAP. 

It was a bit scary, but not really, not after hearing it was just a precaution. There was a pinch, and a strange sensation of anesthetic flowing in, and then a strange sensation of a needle moving around inside. Not nearly as horrible as the X-ray :|

So. After, the nurse (there were two, actually) told me i can't have a shower in two days, and I was like OMG what am I going to do, and then we all laughed that shaky, relieved, almost hysterical, a bit too high laughter. 

Just a cyst. Nothing to worry about. 

So. Husband was nice enough to drive me there. He was waiting in the car so we wouldn't get a ticket, and I had to make my own way back. Didn't get lost, didn't even faint from not eating all day. I found him, and told him they took pictures and said it's benign and THEN they took out a needle and now leftie's all numb and I can't have a sauna for two whole days and now I'm thirsty. 

So we went to buy snacks and lemonade, and ogled at lizards and bunnehs at the petstore, and then we went to flea markets. I bought a top and a skirt and fabric, and now I'm thirsty again. 

Last week was a bit horrible. Glad it's over. 

I didn't know, actually, that I'd get the results straight away, so I'm a bit, like, huh? what just happened? Not in a bad way, though. It's like waking up from a nightmare, in a way. 

Of course, there still is the slight chance of everyone having misdiagnosed me, but I'm not going to start fretting about that. As far as I'm concerned, it's nothing but a cyst. 

There was a deep hole of pitch-black terror in the pit of my stomach. 

It's gone now.  

EDIT 20.3.2013
Got a phone call from the health care center this "morning". I called in on Monday to get my results, caught a nurse on her lunch break, got an irritated "I'll call you back", and today I learned they'd been trying to reach me since then. They'd written my number down wrong, and they had to call Husband TWICE to get it. 

Turns out it's not fibrioadenoma like the doctor at the ultra sound said. 
In stead, it's just ligament having an identity crisis or what-not. 
There's no need to remove it, no need for follow-up X-rays (I get to keep an eye on it, of course, and if it starts acting up, I'll have to get it checked out again) and no need to worry about it anymore.The nurse said it might even go down on it's own.

What an anti-climax. Here I was, thinking I'd die, if not because of lumpy, at least on the operating table, and turns out all I get is a tiny little scar from a very big needle, and a valuable lesson on what it's like to be really-truly afraid. 

Then again... I love it when things like this end in an anti-climax <3