New Blog!

Hey guys! Just wanted to keep you updated that I have started yet another blog.

Granted, I'm not a fan of having three blogs now, but that blog will be chronicling any/all adventures/mishaps that occur before and during my Mission Year in Chicago (which I'm so excited about. You have no idea.).

I'll still be posting on this blog every once in a while, don't you worry (I'll just be doing it far less frequently). The other two blogs I have [Wym (poetry) and Utterly Changed into Fire (Mission Year)] are about specific subjects and should be taken slightly more seriously. I originally created this blog to record my adventures in China, but then it turned into my "let's see what random things I can rant about" blog, hence the title.

Have fun with your life and stuff people. Until next time.

Cappuccinos vs. Lattes vs. Inadequate Knowledge of the Two

Ever since I started my job as a barista, it has come to my attention that many people don't know what the heck they're ordering. So that's the purpose of today's post: an informational guide to aid YOU in your quest to understanding the difference between a cappuccino and a latte (personally, I hate making cappuccinos. I can't always find the sweet spot to make it super foamy, so it turns into the love child of a cappuccino and a latte. When I tell people this, excluding the love child metaphor, they look at me weirdly. Don't be afraid to ask your barista about what it is you're ordering.)

*To condense the amount of poorly drawn diagrams I have to draw, we're going to stick with the 16oz requirement for drinks here. For the record, where I barista the requirement is 1 shot of espresso for smalls, and 2 shots for mediums/larges. Also, the foam I refer to is from the steamed milk. I digress.

Latte

 A latte has significantly less foam than a cappuccino.  Remember that.

Cappuccino

Please, for a moment, notice the foam to steamed milk ratio for the cappuccino, then look back to the latte, and compare the two. There is a difference. A cappuccino will feel significantly lighter than a latte. You are not being ripped off. Foam is just lighter. If you ever feel full or just want something that will be easier on the stomach, get a cappuccino.
[Personally, I like lattes better.]

Caramel Macchiato

This is one of my favorite drinks. Well, my second favorite. If it's too sweet for you, then ask for less flavoring. All the sugar from the drink comes from the 2 pumps of vanilla and 2 pumps of caramel. There's a guy who comes in everyday and gets one of these, but I only give him a pump of each flavor because he likes it less sweet. But if you're really into contracting diabetes,  I can also put whipped cream on top with a bit of caramel drizzle (sometimes when I make it for myself, I also add a bit of white chocolate drizzle) and it's frickin' delicious.
The sugar and espresso combined will wake you up.

Mocha Latte

 

A mocha is basically like a latte, just with chocolate in it. When you make it though, you want to first put the chocolate in, then the espresso, then maybe fill the cup halfway with steamed milk and stir everything together so the chocolate doesn't stick to bottom. Then you pour the rest of your steamed milk, add foam, and presto! You have yourself a mocha.

Add whipped cream for best results.

Chai Tea Latte

Personally, this is my favorite drink. Especially when adding some vanilla flavoring to it (although I could also add cinnamon flavoring or pumpkin spice... next week people). I also like adding a shot of espresso (which is called a "dirty chai") for for an extra burst of caffeine. Chai already has some caffeine in it... but I'm not sure how much. Also, if the barista asks you if you'd like some cinnamon sprinkled on top, say YES people. You won't regret it.

(Also, just to clarify, there is a difference between chai tea lattes,
and just plain old chai tea that comes in the form of a tea bag.)

Americano

An americano is the same idea of coffee, just with espresso beans. You want it watered down, because plain espresso is mad gross. I don't want to grow hair on my chest,
because I am a female and that is revolting.

Steamer

A steamer is just flavored milk, essentially. I've never made myself one, because it doesn't have caffeine in it. So I don't see a point in consuming it.

Café Au Lait

Half coffee and half milk. We only charge 50 cents plus whatever size of coffee you get. I've never had one of these, but I'm sure it's good. Some places might not have this on their menu, but you could probably ask them if they'd do a half coffee half steamed milk thang.
They should be able to figure it out.

London Fog

My old roommate from college, Melinda, made me one of these. And dang. It be good. Our coffee shop doesn't have it on the menu, but I make it for myself if I don't feel like drinking coffee. You're supposed to use Earl Grey Tea, but at work I just use the Numi Breakfast Blend and it's pretty good. As long as it's black tea it should still work fine. Also you can put some extra vanilla flavoring in it if you want. I just put 2 pumps because that's the norm.
Do what you want man.

Granted, that's not everything. But these next few items I'm not even going to bother drawing. I hate using paint sometimes. My hands cramp up, and I my face bunches up, and I hate it. I'd rather have a tablet. But I'm not going to get one for just this one instance, cause that's a waste of money.

Frappuccinos vs. Smoothies
They're both cold, the difference is frappuccinos have an espresso base while smoothies have an apple juice base. We have tons of different flavors/kinds, and that's why I don't feel like drawing it. It'd be too confusing with the flavors and mixtures and stuff. Just typing this is far more pleasing to my uncramped hands.

Espresso
If you just order plain old espresso, props to you. It's far too strong for me. I have to add coffee (which would be called a red-eye. I forgot to draw it. But I really don't want to battle with paint again guys), or water to it or something.

Macchiato
If you order this, you're getting espresso, with a dollop of foam on top. So it's not a huge drink you're getting. More like a sample cup of jacked up coffee.

Well guys, that's all the time I have for now to drop knowledge on you all. Until next time.

<3 Brittany

P.S. Also, I wish to apologize for not posting for the past THREE MONTHS. I have two jobs now, and I'm busy fund raising for Mission Year, and netflix has destroyed my life, aaaand I actually started another blog called Wym (which you should totally check out: wymsicallyyours.wordpress.com) that I post to every Monday. My friends and I started Wym in college under pen names, and printed/stapled all the booklets ourselves, and delivered them to professors offices when they weren't there, and mailed them to our friend's CPO boxes... yea. Good times man. We decided to continue our endeavors publicly with a blog. Check it out. It's pretty cool.

P.S....S? If there's a coffee drink I missed, or I messed up some sort of info shenanigans on here, please let me know. I'll be happy to add drinks to this post, or correct anything that I got wrong. I'M NOT ASHAMED OF MY MISTAKES.

So... did I manage to write a novel in November?

As you may recall, last month I was aiming to write a 50,000 word novel. Did I accomplish that goal?

No.

Why?

Well,
-the first two weeks I had no power/internet because of Sandy.

-I was working two jobs halfway through November. I quit Papa John's because I hated it and realized I will never again work for a large corporation. Independently owned businesses are the way to go people.

-I reached a breakthrough in the plot, but my computer crashed. Ironically, it crashed when I was laughing maniacally to myself, but the contents of that story are for my ears and my ears only.

-People said not to go back and edit... but I had to, for plot's sake. There were massive plot holes already, and my characters needed a better sense of direction.... so I had to edit this whole section involving a tunnel city out. I also had to take out a dragon... but I'll put him in as something different. Although he'll probably be evil... but that's still better than nothing, right? I also changed the setting a couple thousand words in which was... fun. So. Much. Fun. o_0

-I had this horrible sinus infection. I couldn't breathe through my nose at all, and got a horrible few nights sleep because of it and then I had this horrible headache that lasted a few days after that and I slept a lot basically.

-One of my co-workers lent me season six of Buffy, which is by far the best season. I couldn't stop watching it. I finished it in three days, and that's three days when I was working half that time.

Artist of this can be found here

-I suddenly remembered that time I bought Devil May Cry 4 back in October, and I didn't manage to progress further than Mission 1. I'm now proud to announce I recently beat the game, and am kind of confused as to why they're not continuing with Nero's storyline in DmC 5. Speaking from a writer's perspective, there's still a lot of potential. They didn't burn out all their resources. Also, I wish white haired demon hunters existed in real life. I mean look at that picture. LOOK AT IT. ARE YOU LOOKING AT IT.



Granted, I've only written 7,910/50,000 words. But you know what? That's way more than I would have ever written to begin with. I know that even though NaNo is over, and I didn't win, I at least got started on a story that I definitely want to finish (I'm already envisioning how it's all going to end... which isn't good cause I need that middle stuff too.)

I don't want to give away too much, because I don't like telling people about stories in my head that aren't fully formed, but it's almost like Alice in Wonderland, only completely different. What's been the real pain are the characters. Everytime I write a new character in, I feel like something's missing, until two days later when I realize what it is and have to change it. Oh, the pains of writing.

                                              

Also, just to remind you I've started fund raising for Mission Year, and the super cool thing about the month of December is that Mission Year will match whatever I make this month up to $2,000! Which is super awesome man! You can help support me by:
1. Going to be Etsy store and buying something. Everything goes directly to Mission Year. Can I afford to do it? For now I've had no problem, because people have been super awesome and have donated a ton of stuff to help me out. Access it by clicking here.
2. Or if you feel like donated directly to me, go to www.missionyear.org, go to the link that says "donate" and be sure to select my name from the drop box. It's not in alphabetical order, so it's sort of a pain, but it's near the top if that helps at all :)

Sorry for the long post, and the lack of posting lately. I've been super busy with a lot of things lately, so it might be a while until I post again. So have fun with your life and stuff until then people.

<3 Brittany

NaNoWriMo (or rather, the month Brittany decides to undergo massive amounts of stress and sleepless nights and consume far more caffeine than the average human body should legally contain)

"The most regretful people on earth
are those who felt the call to creative work,
who felt their own creative power restive and uprising,
and gave to it neither power nor time.”

                                                       -----Excerpt from Mary Oliver's essay "Of Power and Time"

Ever since graduation, I've found I no longer have an affinity for playing the piano, or writing, or drinking coffee, or eating sweet things, or reading... or doing much of anything I used to enjoy. Why? Well, it's a mixture of things, and this is a blog, not a diary. Sorry I'm not an angsty hormonal teenager people.

"But Brittany, aren't you technically writing right now?"

I've written a lot of blogposts, 60% of which you will never read because I deleted them into the netherworld of Oblivion. Also, I don't categorize blogging with writing, or at least the way I blog (because plenty of my friends have blogs, and their writing is far more focused and "writer worthy").

So... where am I going with this? Well, long story short I stumbled across this contest called "NaNoWriMo" (stands for National November Writing Month) and basically, during the entire month of November, I will be attempting to start and finish a novel.

Can I do it? Heck, I don't know. I already have a sort of story in my head, and if I don't manage to change my mind yet again in the next couple of days it's probably going to be fairly nonsensical (if my story doesn't contain dragons in some way, shape or form, so help me. I will punch myself in the neck). Honestly, I don't even know if it's going to be worthy enough to brag about when November comes to a close. At this point, because of how long it's been since I've managed to write anything, I'd rather have written a crappy 50,000 word story then have written nothing at all.

So what I want to tell you other "artists" or "writers of words" or "creators of crafts", if you haven't created anything for a good long while, and are legitimately bothered by this fact day in and day out, do something about it. You're the only one preventing yourself from doing what you love to do. Sometimes words flow through your mind like electrical currents, and other times it's more like an electrical shortage. Figure out what helps words flow better, like listening to music, or napping. Naps are a big help. Especially when you feel you can't write anything and want to sob into the night.

Do what you love people, you other awesome creators you.

[Also, I'd like to thank my friend Bethany Fonda for sharing that quote from Mary Oliver with me when I saw her during homecoming weekend at Houghton College. Thanks lady dude! For you people who don't know, she's a pretty cool person who writes music and stuff, and you should totally check out her website by clicking here.]

What I'm doing Fall 2013

When I was young, I would always make believe my bed (sometimes even the couch) was a giant boat about to sail off somewhere far away. The thing is, I had more fun packing my things in my purple caboodle, pretending I had less material wealth, than I did pretending I was sailing out into the world.

There's a part of me that always enjoys packing up my things and leaving somewhere. Granted, when I studied abroad in China it was somewhat of a pain only because I wasn't sure what to expect/pack... but there was something satisfying about traveling to the opposite ends of the earth with only the things on my back.

All this is to say, I wish I was traveling to some distant land - seeing new faces, experiencing new smells, eating food I would never find at home (milk tea how I miss you T_T), missing home for stupid reasons like sitting on the couch watching trash television like America's Next Top Model... you get the picture.

Am I ready to leave? Yes. I will always have this desire to leave home for some strange new environment. Not because I hate home, but because I want to expand how I view the world by expanding my world from just boring old Flemington to something so much bigger.

Am I going back to China? No. Probably not for a while. I haven't found an overseas program yet that seems to fit, so for now I'll just wait it out.

But what I'm really trying to get at here is another opportunity I came upon. It all happened when I started reading Shane Claiborne's "Irrisistable Revolution" (which if you haven't read, you should), and I went on his website to see if there were programs or something he gave the thumbs up on. The Simple Way was one group (located out in Philly) but they said if younger people were looking to sign up, they should probably check out Mission Year.

It's so peculiar, because I applied to a lot of different programs beginning from last semester senior year throughout summer. I never thought it would be so difficult just to do work with Americorps, or a similar program. But it was. And it was discouraging. Very discouraging. But when I was at my lowest point of the summer, that's when I found Mission Year, and realized how very much I wanted to sign up for it.

Anyways, in case you are wondering yes, I just found out last week that starting in Fall 2013 I will be working (if you can call it that, because I'm being funded for this, and "freeloading" carries a rather negative connotation) with Mission Year! I'm not sure about what city, but at this point I could really care less. I'm just truly thankful. For so much.

I wish I could tell you more, but for now I think it's best to wait until I have all the facts and THEN give you all the details. Consider this a sort of prologue? Maybe? That's weird. Don't call it that. Please. For my sake. Even though I told you to call it that and have all authority to go back and delete what I just wrote. Whatever man. You're the one still reading this.

Before I end this post, I think now would be a good time to mention two of my Houghton friends who will be going overseas in the near future and doing super cool things like saving the world and all that jazz. If you can, you should totally fund/pray for them! Every dollar counts. And even if you don't have money, prayer is just as helpful, if not more so.

First, there's Emily Rinehart who graduated a year before I did, and dang we had a lot of homework parties. A lot. And believe me, they were more like stress parties, or "Let's-see-what-weird-unnecessary-thing-we-can-make-off-of-stumbleupon" parties, or "Hey,-three-in-the-morning-is-always-a-good-time-to-start-playing-mario-kart" parties. She's working with One Mission Society,  and you should totally check out her blog and ways you can help her out by clicking here.

Then there's my other friend Chelsea Ellis, who I actually lived with in the same townhouse Junior and Senior year. Technically we were roommates during Mayterm in 2010... but on paper I had a single. (Ha. Whatever Houghton.) She's pretty crazy and awesome (mostly because one night, during a crazy all nighter stress party session at Emily's, I came back to my townhouse at four in the morning to find Chelsea strapping on roller blades. I mean, what else would you do at that hour). She's going to start traveling with the World Race this coming January, traveling to 11 countries in 11 months - so please check out her blog by clicking here. She also has an etsy account to help raise money by selling various kinds of jewelry which you can check out by clicking here.

Well, that's all I have for now. I'll be sure to update you about what's to come (and I'm sorry for this long post. It's annoying me there aren't more pictures, but the pictures I wanted to add weren't co-operating... so blame it on blogspot. Not me.) so for now I'll leave you with this:

You're welcome.

The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place

Remember that blogpost where I was ranting about how the future may be uncertain, but at least I'd be living with my friends?

Well, forget that.

Forget all of it.

You see, I still don't have enough money to live on my own. And although I tried desperately to find a job in Rochester, people either didn't get back to me, or told me they'd "call back". Right. So basically, I'm not living with my friends - I'm living at home for however long it takes for life to rewire itself.

What I'm trying to get at is, I'm not sure when my next blog post will be. Like I said, my life's at a weird moment right now, and my head's nowhere near a "blogging" mentality. My room's still a mess since I got back from college, and it doesn't help that - due to the largeness of my room- it has become a storage unit for my family. I'm also still in the process of finding a second job in NJ... and in an effort to have some sort of social life I've tried applying to various volunteer opportunities in my community... only to never hear back from people ever again. Which is nice. Whatever.

So until next time. Have fun with your life and stuffs people.

Origins of a Muse Fan

Alright, before I delve ANY further into my story, I need to get something off my chest.

I'm fairly certain allergy pills give me bizarre dreams.

For example, a few nights ago I dreamt I was Katniss Everdeen trying to lead a rebellion, but no one knew what I looked like. Before I could escape, the city I was in forced everyone onto a boat (why? I am the wrong person to ask). In order to hide my identity and leave at an appropriate moment, I allowed myself to be captured and herded with the others. Since I was captured willingly, I wasn't imprisoned like the others. Finally, as the time arose for me to make my escape, I realized first I had to find Batman (I mean, I'm pretty sure I would so this in real life so no surprise there). Then of course, when I went to the room where all the prisoners were sleeping, everyone happened to be dressed either as Spiderman or Batman - so it took me a while to find the real one. He wanted to keep his costume on because if people found out Bruce Wayne was on the boat, people would figure out his identity.

I can't remember if we made if off the boat, but I do remember packing earplugs in my Totoro backpack of escapedness.

Anyways.

With the release date of Muse's The 2nd Law looming ever nearer (It's based on the second law of thermodynamics. Click here to read up on it), and since I just pre-ordered their CD and received a free video download of their newest song Unsustainable (which might I add is splitting fans left and right. I didn't realize how many people hated change. Personally, I respect people's taste in music, but if you don't like it you don't have to listen to it people. It also happened when Muse released their song Survival- but what makes me love Muse even more is how they LIKE how they've stirred up such a commotion.) I figured now was an appropriate time for me to tell the tale in which I discovered Muse in quite an unorthodox manner.

Also, might I add that if this album makes enough people hate them, maybe they'll start performing at smaller venues. Haters gonna hate.

Alright. Enough nonsensicalness.

If you didn't already know, I am an introvert. College helped me come out of my shell, but before Houghton came into my life I honestly didn't have very many friends and was a bit of a loner. It didn't help that my highschool was massive (3,600 students),  and I didn't really know how to make new friends.

This meant I spent a lot of time playing videogames (Tales of Symphonia took up so much of my time. When I first got that game, I didn't bathe for 5 days straight. My dad threatened to hose me down. This of course was during Christmas break, so I never went to school like that. Cause that'd be gross.) as well as a majority of my time perusing the internet. I started reading manga online and watching various anime shows (I think a part of me still believes some asians are secretly super heroes in disguise), and one of these shows I watched and fell in love with was Last Exile. If you've never heard of it/watched it, please do so now. It's got airships people. Airships.

After I finished Last Exile, I felt like I had lost a friend. I didn't know what to do with myself. As any sane fan would do, I turned to watching AMV's (anime music videos. Don't judge me, because believe me I have judged my self countless numbers of times). Some AMV's were terribly made (I don't understand why so many people feel the need to synchronize anime clips with Linkin' Park).

Eventually I stumbled onto one video title "Malevolent Skies", and I enjoyed it immensely , mostly because I loved the song the creator used. It was Muse's "Stockholm Syndrome", and soon after I began listening to their music on YouTube... and the rest is history I guess.

Also, in case anyone is wondering, yes. Muse DID play at the closing ceremonies. However, NBC decided to hack them out of it, as well as some other performances. Believe me. I was/am outraged by this. What's even more unnerving is they were cut when the song they played, "Survival", was chosen as the theme of the London 2012 Olympics! Muse could fill up a stadium twice the size of the Olympics stadium if they wanted to. Judging by the clips I've managed to watch on YouTube before they were deleted for copyright infringement (which is understandable. I'm just outraged that NBC felt the need to censor something that was pre-recorded), their performance was awesome (My comment on the first video uploaded to YouTube, "NBC. Never have I held so much hatred within the depths of my soul. Until now." was actually the top comment with 17 likes before it was deleted into the abyss. So that was kind of nice knowing how many other homo sapiens were also harboring immense hatred within the depths of their hearts. Maybe I should start a group on Facebook).

Yes. Their performance had fire. But what do you expect? It's friggin' MUSE, of COURSE
there's going to be flames shooting out of the stage.