Trying To Keep My Head Above Water.

In case you're noticing my absence of late, I'm still off navigating the churning sea I like to call end of semester exams. It was a tough semester. It felt like I was barely able to stay afloat this time. The good news is I'll be free and clear of them by the end of the week. YAY!

Of course, you know I couldn't leave you hanging. That's why I left you a little something over at Sprocket Ink to tide you over until I get back. You know the drill by now, right? Just click on the official Sprocket Ink badge over to the right and prepare sail away to a happier place. Enjoy!

As for me, it's back to the books before I get totally submerged. That, and I'm out of ocean metaphors.

Because Everyone's Doing A Willy Wonka Meme...

This will only make sense once you read my post at Sprocket Ink today.

Click here.

Oh! Also in the news:

Click to enlarge...

A Step-By-Step Guide To Almost Failing A Class.

1. Miss a major percentage of your classes due to demands of job.

2. Two-thirds of the way through the semester finally realize you haven't been receiving notes and updates from your lecturer because you just had to use the student email account the school forced you to take and it hasn't been working properly.

3. Fail to get required text books from school library because other students got to them before you did.

4. Miss group presentation day because you have to work late (worth 30% of overall grade).

5. Get fired from said demanding job less than two weeks before final assignment is due, spend first week in a funk (even though you promised yourself wouldn't let it get to you) and do absolutely nothing during that time.

6. Get make-up assignment from lecturer to help give you a fighting chance after missing the group assignment, wait until last possible minute to finally get started and panic because you only have two days  to research and prepare two presentations.

7. Instead of working on assignments, write a blog post explaining steps you took to very likely fail a class you should be passing with your eyes closed.

New Post Up At Sprocket.

Just click here.

The Five Scariest Words.

Bonus day!!! I'm here and on Sprocket Ink with two full posts. You are quite welcome. So click the link, go, read, enjoy and then come back here for desert. It'll still be fresh when you get back.

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It was a Monday morning like any other Monday morning. I was at my former workplace, The Paper. As I always do, I went to the kitchen to get a cup of coffee. As I neared my destination, I should have sensed there was something wrong. Had it been any other day, my senses would have been sharper. Perhaps, had I already had that cup of coffee, I might have noticed that nature was slightly off-balance. But I didn't. Not until it was almost too late.

I walked through the kitchen door and immediately it hit me. There was indeed a disturbance in the force. There, in front of me, stood Joy and Fitz (not their real names, obviously). They were locked on a stare reminiscent to when a gazelle looks into a lion's eyes and knows he's just breathed his last.

I didn't know what was going on, but every instinct I had screamed at me to get out of that room. Which, of course, I did.

The tension in the air was thick. Soon, Fitz tried (unsuccessfully) to speak.

Fitz: That's not what I meant! I mean- Um... All I was saying was- I didn't mean that you were... Please don't kill me.


This was bad. Whatever he had said, Fitz had crossed a line. A line no man should cross, and now his end was near. Poor Fitz. I almost never spoke to him, but he seemed nice enough. If only I had the time, maybe we could have even been friends. But it was too late now. I decided it was best I get to a safe distance before Joy decided to make me seconds.

After the funeral Later, I found out what had happened. Joy and Fitz had run into each other in the kitchen and were chatting. That's when Fitz said the words that would seal his fate.

Fitz: You must have had a fun weekend. You look fatigued.

I. know. He actually did say that.

Then Joy - the woman who always smiled, the woman who prefers to hug you instead of telling you 'Good morning', the woman who pouted for three whole days because management refused to let her put up decorations in the office at Christmas... Yes, that Joy - stopped. The smile which seemed to be etched on to her face was still there, but somehow it seemed twisted... EVIL. Her eyes froze in a deathly stare and she said the five words that will reduce even the surliest brute to a blubbering puddle of fear.

Joy: What's that supposed to mean?

Even I was rendered speechless just imagining the conversation. Fitz did manage to survive, but he was a shell of his former self. He spent the rest of the day lumbering around the halls, refusing to make eye contact with anyone. Though it takes only a few hours for the spine to return to it's solid state, it would be several days before he could face Joy again.

We can only hope he learned a valuable lesson from his encounter and never makes that mistake in the future.

In Case You Hadn't Noticed...

I'm AWOL again. Landlady forgot to pay the nice internet people again so, like Neo popping that red pill, I've been once again forcibly ejected from my warm and cozy metallic pod, confused, scared and, yes, naked.

Don't ask.

I'm still working on getting my own internet but that's taking longer than planned.

But while that may limit my presence here in the ol' interwebz, it's not enough to stop me. Being exhausted from the crazy hours at work and the assignments heaped onto by my lecturers at school, that might be enough.

Nah! Not even all that.

So I'm here. In whatever limited capacity I can show up in. But I do come bearing a gift: a brand spanking new post over at Sprocket Ink! Thought it wasn't going to happen, did you? I know this isn't one of my usual days but I thought I'd mix it up a little. Keep you on your toes.

As always should you choose to accept this post (honestly, there's no reason not to) just click the link or the SI badge to the right and you're all set.

The Return Of Anime Catgirl.

I'm not really here today. I'm over at Sprocket Ink where I made another drawing of my anime catgirl. Just one, but she's there.

Plus, there's a story there that I wrote too, fyi. It's sort of a disturbing one, but I won't give anything away here.

You know the drill. Follow the link and get your read on.

Multiple Sightings.

We have received numerous reports of multiple sightings of the blogger known as Vinny C.

Eyewitnesses have claimed that he has been simultaneously sighted on his blog as well as on Sprocket Ink and Studio 30 Plus.

While some call it an invasion, AVCI contacted various experts of the interwebz to provide a possible explanation to this phenomenon.

"We think he may have mutated due to over exposure to a highly concentrated combination of caffeine, internet and free time," one scientist said.

Authorities are urging the public to not panic, stating that following the the various links to where he was sighted seems to keep the spread at bay.

"Now-now! There's no need to get all worked up here people. Our advisers guarantee that Vinny's intentions are friendly and he means us no harm." a senior political figure stated as he (and several prostitutes) were being quickly escorted into his bunker.

AVCI will be monitoring the phenomenon and will update you on any further developments.

Finding Love Online... The Fun Way.

Once upon a time, long, long ago, I was single. I try to forget about those days. Let's just say I wasn't known for my swagger and smooth moves back then. Actually, I'm still not known for them. Sigh...

The dating world was tough. You needed money to take a girl out. You had to wade through all the obsessive psychos, liars, control freaks, and so on, and so on... It also involved having to do two things I've never been a fan of: going out and meeting people.

I much preferred staying in and playing video games, instead.

Online dating wasn't around yet and, luckily, I met Mrs. C before I ever had my turn at that roulette wheel, so I never had to go through that. I've heard more than a fair share of the horror stories people have told about their adventures with that though.

Nope, video games worked just fine for me.

When I started playing World of Warcraft I actually made a few friends there. A guild I belonged to even had a married couple who met playing WoW and another pair who eventually decided to meet and start dating.

Somehow, it just seemed easier to find compatibility with fellow gamers, I guess. Plus it was easier to avoid the freaks. Just don't go into Goldshire late at night. Trust me. There's just something really unnerving about a horny druid in bear form talking dirty to you.

To show you what I mean Tony Shin and his team from the Online University  went out, compiled the stats and put together this cool retro-game themed graphic that shows you why it's better to stay locked in your room, playing online video games instead of staying locked in your room trawling online dating sites.

Created by: OnlineUniversity.net

What more needs to be said. So stay home and take your death knight up to level 85. Don't worry about finding love and it will find you... probably in the form of a peppy Gnome priest who makes sure she heals you first during all your raids together.

Vines.

Vines grow everywhere in our backyard.

They spread quickly and can thrive in the worst conditions. And, of course, they're hard to get rid of. When I think I've pulled them all, there's this one tiny root stuck in a crack in the wall that's waiting until the coast is clear to spread again. It's a never ending fight.

Vines can only feed off the strength of others. If there no other plants or anything else to cling to, no matter how far they spread, they're stuck on the ground. But when they find a plant, or wall, or anything that rises above them, they grab onto it, hold it tight and follow it up as far as it goes.

Some people are like vines. When someone starts growing on your own strength they try to latch onto you and climb as far as your efforts will take them.

But vines are smart. They've learned they can't totally choke you out. They've realized they can't reach the heights they want to if you're not there to keep them up. They need you. So they let you continue to grow. But your growth is slowed now because your vines are weighing you down.

The irony is, when vines do reach as high as they need to, they actually have the potential to achieve something, in their own small way and finally get the attention they want.

Vines are survivors. You can't argue that. But it's a sad existence. They can only shine if they can climb up on the shoulders of others.