Rats! Episode 115 – How to prevent mistakes

Rats!

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The only way to ensure people don’t make mistakes is to make sure they can’t do anything at all!

My right knee is slowly improving. I still have to go to physical therapy three times a week and it’s exhausting as well as time-consuming. It’s also Girl Scout cookie season, and of course every weekend between now and the end of the school year I have some sort of Girl Scout event to participate in or run. It’s crazy, but it’s also fun.

I’ll do my best to keep up with the blog schedule. I think starting this Friday I’ll start posting current works in progress. No guarantees on that because I’ve got a lot on my plate this week, but I think I should be able to put up something Friday morning. See you then!

ACW Episode 196 – Beware the donuts!

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I've been crocheting weird little toys for a few months now. Right after my ACL surgery, I made a zombie sock monkey and a creature I call Funky Chicken. Now I'm making Deadly Donuts and a sort of abstract duck character I call Mr. Squishy. Yes, I am selling these. No, I do not have an Esty page. Yet.

Right now, if you want one of these crocheted oddities, you'll have to catch me at a convention. I'll be bringing my creations to Farpoint in Cockysville, MD, on 15-17 February. I'm hoping to bring some to Ravencon in April too, but don't know if I'll be able to get a table or if I'll put some of the more elaborate pieces in the art show. Either way, I'll post more info about that here later on.

And yes, you will be seeing more of my crafty skills. I'm going to be adding posts about those as a regular feature on the blog as soon as I recover more from the surgery. I'm off crutches and the knee brace now, but still not back to full strength. I've been told it will be end of May at the earliest before I can really get back to my old routine. Until then I'll just keep doing whatever I can!

 

Rats! Episode 113 – With Great Responsibility Comes Great Headaches

Rats! webcomic

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I still remember the name of the guy who was the head new cadet for my group – Don Shannon. He came into the VTCC as a sophomore and was an engineering student. Don was both responsible, reliable, and incredibly snarky/funny. He knew the whole “rat” process was just a mind game and he had fun with it, I think. Although I can remember this one time when all the rats had to gather in one room in the company area to get ready for SRC (Supper Roll Call), so we could march out together to evening formation. Only evening formation got cancelled, which annoyed Don because he’d gone to all the trouble to make sure we were all there, our uniforms looked good, etc. So Don started swearing and ranting and stomping around the room, and right in the middle of it all, the company commander walked in. All the rest of us immediately snapped to attention but Don was so busy swearing, he didn’t even notice until he turned around and came face to face with the CO. And THEN he immediately snapped to attention like the rest of us. The CO thought the whole thing was pretty funny, so he let Don off the hook, but after he left the room, Don turned to the rest of us and said, “And not one of you morons could tell me that the CO was in the room?!”

Poor Don. But he did an excellent job as head new cadet!

My right knee is doing a lot better, though I use my crutches and knee brace from time to time, usually just when I’m really tired or I’m surrounded by a lot of screaming kids (i.e. any time I’m working with Girl Scouts). I have at least one more month of physical therapy, and another month after that before I can even think of going back to karate. However, I am doing much better and I climb that second set of stairs to get back into my office now, so blog posts should be on a regular schedule now.

Don’t forget, I will be at Marscon this weekend! I have a table in the dealers room and I will be doing several panels on webcomics and speculative fiction erotica and other topics! Be sure to stop by and see me if you’re there!

ACW Episode 194 – The most wonderful time of the year!

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So, it's that time of year again. This time, we've got 8 girls itching to see who can sell the most cookies. Princess and Pixie are in two separate troops, but I make them sell together and I split the orders right down the middle between them. It's just easier that way, especially when you consider that I'm also handling all the paperwork for 7 other girls.

I'm hoping that this year will be easier than last, which was easier than the year before. With experience comes wisdom. At least I hope so, because this year I have other moms calling me asking for advice!

Anyway, enjoy your Monday, and be sure to buy Girl Scout cookies from your local troops!

 

ACW Episode 193 – We made a pact!

Mich and I made a pact to go to the Y together. We made this pact about a year ago, and we've stuck to it off and on as our schedules have permitted, but when I screwed up my ACL, we both stopped going to the Y for a while. When the doctore finally gave me the go ahead to get back in the pool, I still wasn't ready to drive yet, so Mich offered to pick me up at 5:30am on her way to the Y. The result? We've both been going regularly to the Y for the last 3 weeks. And we both have the above conversation every night before. And I'm oretty sure we both have the same thought as soon as we've agreed we're going.

Then we have another conversation first thing in the morning when we wake up. I tweet Mich to let her know that I'm up and getting ready. She tweets back that she's doing the same. By the time I'm dressed and have eaten, Mich is in my driveway and off we go!

We spend between 45 minutes to an hour in the pool doing deep water aerobics. Then we head back to my place for what I fondly refer to as “Second Breakfast” and then I get changed for physical therapy and Mich drives me to that as well. After an hour and a half of grueling physical therapy, she brings me home and then I turn into a vegetable because lets face it, I've had two and a half hours of very intense physical activity for someone who's still hobbling around on crutches.

Anyway, by the tome you read this, I'm probably already at the vegetable-on-the-couch-state. And I intend to stay there for as long as I can.