My Perfect Imperfections

I found this meme while wandering the internet like some sort of e-vagrant and decided that I simply must do it. So, here we are.

~MY PERFECT IMPERFECTIONS~

*Flaws*

1. I have a horrible lisp. I'm not even that sure if anyone else notices it, but somehow, it seems an almost debilitating impediment to me. I hold the "s" sound out about a half second too long in the middle/start of words, and it becomes almost a "sh" at the end. For instance, if I were to say "Soul Evans and Dave Strider went to Subway for sandwiches" (ignoring how absurd the sentence itself is), it would come out "Sssoul Evansh and Dave Ssstrider went to Sssubway for sssandwichesh." 

Okay, maybe it's not THAT bad. But that's what it sounds like to me. I also stutter a bit, but I'm counting it with the first.

2. I am uncomfortable with how hairy I am. I shave every day, arms included, so that I'm not a gorilla. And God help us all if I skip a day.

3. I have a slight double chin. Not that much, really. Actually, MOST girls have this, I've noticed. But I despise it.

*Likes*

1. I have incredibly green eyes. Not hazel, not blue-green. Green like a crayon. I am very, very proud of my eyes.

2. I have very pretty feet. Odd, I know, but I could seriously model them.

3. My complexion is PERFECT, especially for a teenager. I don't need makeup.

All in all, I'm a relatively attractive person. Not disfigured.

My Journey to Ginger (A Feria 74 review)

I've been suffering from some dreadful version of the common cold since last Wednesday, so I decided that it would be a good idea to stay at home and ginger myself.

I have long dreamed of red hair, but with my fear of bleach and naturally almost black hair, that dream always seemed a hopeless one. However, I had two whole days and no plans other than a South Park marathon, so I decided to try one more time.

After looking at several reviews I decided that my best best would probably be Loreal Feria 74 (Copper Shimmer/ Mango Intense Copper). The girl on the box has delightfully vivid orange hair (even if she doesn't look too happy about it).

You may notice that her hair is somewhat reminiscent of Amy Pond. Indeed, as I went to buy the stuff at Ulta, I was chanting "Amy Pond, Amy Pond, Amy Pond" in my head. Her color was exactly what I was looking for.

So sorry that I don't have a picture of the "before". I'm a bit camera-shy, and this review was done on a whim out of sincere happiness with the final result.

When I went to dye my hair, I was a little concerned that the stuff in the bottle turned PURPLE once I mixed it up.  I was looking for a more natural, orange-red. NOT burgundy, as I have dyed my hair such in the past and it did not suit my skin color. If you decide to use this product, do not let this worry you; it goes on a very dark red. I guess the red looks so dark in the bottle that I only mistook it for purple.

I was a little worried that it would stick only to my roots, so I made SURE that I COMPLETELY covered my ends with the stuff. That may be how I got it on my door somehow....

I turned on Dylan Dog: Dead of Night on Netflix and waited almost 30 minutes. I then remembered that I had recently tried dyeing my hair light brown (and failed, by the way), and that I should have waited longer before doing so again. Oh well, I told myself, too late now. I decided that if it fell out, I had more high-quality cosplay wigs than I would ever wear in real life. (I KNEW being a wig-snob would pay off eventually!!)

 Fortunately, however, my hair didn't fall out. It actually felt a lot softer than I thought it would. And while I did not get the lovely copper locks I wanted, I am EXTREMELY happy with the results. Here is a picture.

I'm not smiling, because I'm rather unhappy with how little of my actual color is shown on this god-awful school-issued Macbook. (Oh, dear, I've spoken out against Apple! I hope Steve Jobs doesn't rise from the grave as a vampire and get me! /sarcasm)

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed my review and will consider using this product in the future. Remember to make sure you cover your roots and aren't frightened by the purple dye!

How I became Stuck on Homestuck

I am going to tell you a story, like it or not, about the single hardest opinion I have ever had to form: what I thought about Homestuck.

Sometime around the fall of my junior year in high school, I was wandering about the internet like the young derp that I was and still am, when I came across these guys:

My expression was the same as Karkat's here

My initial reaction to this was, "Dear God, who are these people and why are they grey?! Do they have a skin condition?!" Someone was then kind enough to point out to me that these were the Homestuck trolls. The conversation went something like this:

Me: So.... They're trolls, who are stuck at home?

Them: No, no, they're TROLLS, FROM Homestuck.

Me: What's Homestuck?

Them: A web comic game.

Me: Is it a web comic or a game? 

Them: Both

Me: Oh..... Did the webcomic come first, or the game?

Them: It's not like that.

Me: Then how is it?

Them: It's............... I can't really explain.

Me: *cries out in confusion and despair*

I then began a journey to discover what the mysterious "Homestuck" was. The result? More confusion, and not a single question answered. So I simply gave up and crawled back to my little hole in the Hetalia fandom where I felt safe.

That is, until this year, when I was yanked forcefully from my little hole like a ripe turnip and made into a multiple-fandom borscht. Many of my newer friends were fans of different things that I have long enjoyed but never quite fell headfirst into the fandom. In addition to talking about Hetalia and Valve games, I now discuss old favorites like Pokemon and Dr. Who, as well as newer ones such as Parks and Recreation, and yes, the illusive Homestuck.

My "Homestuck" friends kept trying to suck me into it with them. My "Non-stuck" friends, who seem to hate Homestuck, told me I probably wouldn't like it. A friend of mine who was a fan of both Hetalia and Homestuck convinced me that while the storylines were different, the fandoms were pretty similar, so I eventually looked it up and read it.

My reaction to the very beginning was:

The art style wasn't exactly my cup of tea, and I felt that the introduction could use some work. Was the point to be ironically bad? I couldn't tell if the problem was me or the comic. Still, I couldn't accept that my friends were idiots just yet, so I read on.

It didn't speed up as quickly as I would've liked. Now, though, I realize that it was just my own impatience, as the storyline progressed quickly after the point at which I gave up.

After that, I decided to stalk the wiki to see if it got much better. In doing so, I discovered this wonderful, blonde god of kawaii.

I don't think I could have gotten a more epic picture, sorry.

So I began reading a little, using the excuse "Well, I'm not really a fan; I just like the Dirk guy." I slowly discovered that I enjoyed the characters and the dialogue's quotability, but I did n't know enough yet to truly call myself a fan. If people asked, I replied with "Well, I love the characters, but I'm not sure what I think about the storyline."

And so, this became my response:

Then I read on. I found myself liking the characters more and more, and the storyline eventually kept getting less confusing. I discovered that the odd, small, armless versions of the characters were actually more like chibis, used as a secondary, "I-don't-have-time-for-art, I'm-just-trying-to-get-a-point-across-in-a-simpler-way" style, not actually to be used as the only one. That was good, because the lack of arms disturbs me in a way that I can neither explain nor justify.

I've found that anyone's feelings towards Homestuck are very much like people's feelings towards Spam. You either greatly enjoy it, or you hate it and wonder why anyone could like it. It may take awhile for an opinion to form, but once it does, it's permanent. That opinion usually also comes as a sudden epiphany, a moment in which one either says "Yes, I love this" or "No, I hate this".

My epiphany came after reading many fanfics and viewing many amazing fan arts, when I discovered that I was completely, irrevocably in love with the Dirk/Jake pairing.

Isn't it lovely???

Anyway, I just loved it. However, like most fans of slash, I never actually thought it would be canon. The secret is and always has been that authors use this to tease their fangirls and gain more popularity. They tease away at us, making it seem like our little shipping dreams will come true one day, only to rip the magic carpet of hope out from under our feet so that we fall on our faces for their amusement. That's exactly what happened with all the Hetalia pairings, and I was almost 100% certain it would happen with this one.

Until I saw THIS.

That's CANON. Not speculative. Not "canon enough". Jake is KISSING Dirk's head. After talking about how he "didn't want to do it like this". And now they're actually dating. Canon-ly. Of course, now it seems that they're having relationship issues, but no one cares about that.

The point is that the creator actually cared enough about fangirls to stop teasing them. It's just that it was one that I actually like; the fact that a writer actually cut the crap for once almost brings tears to my eyes. And that made me decide to like the series.

My reaction to Homestuck now is:

Literally. And I'll have you know that I'm not one to throw literally around. I ACTUALLY flail.

However, at the risk of sounding defensive, I am NOT one of "THOSE" fans. You know the ones. The ones that shove Homestuck down people's throats, never stop talking about it, and shun those who don't like it. I understand that Homestuck is hated by a lot of people. That's OKAY. It's not a crime, and I will happily talk about something else with anyone who makes it clear that that aren't interested.

No, This is Rain.

Hark, thy name is Rain. If you'll notice, "Rain" is a homophone of "reign"; subsequently, I should like to see you all bow down to me, for I am a bloody princess.

Perhaps not the most hospitable way to introduce myself..... Shall I start over?

I call myself Rain. I hail from the South, a rather wonderful place to be, but only if you don't mind the occasional heatstroke or living in constant fear of being oppressed by morons that have no idea what they're talking about. That being said, I personally don't mind the occasional heatstroke, as I am well used to harsh weather, and as for the oppression, well.... That's everywhere in the world, isn't it?

I am of Scottish, Irish, and Native American(Comanche, I believe) descent, with family ties to people from Cambodia and China. My mother is Scottish, and not that "Oh-I'm-part-Scottish-haha-I'm-so-diverse" kind of Scottish. Scottish as in she lives in Edinburgh (Well, technically in a smaller town NEAR Edinburgh, but close enough). My great-grandfather was from Ireland, and my other great-grandfather was born on a reservation in Ohio. So when I say I'm "part this" or "part that", I mean that I actually have met and had extended contact with my relatives of those origins.

I am a very odd bird. So odd, in fact, that if I were indeed a bird, I would be something like a pelican or a kiwi. I have very strong feelings about things; I never call anything "Okay" or "So-so". It is either magically awesome and majestic, or it is simply dreadful. It is for that reason that I rant very often, and it is because no one ever asks me what I like, only what I hate, that the rants are often negative. However, I happen to be a very upbeat, positive person, minus my natural snark and horrible temper.

I go to a wonderful school with my wonderful friends, then I occasionally go and pick up my wonderful best friend (who lives in a slightly less wonderful town) for a wonderful weekend. Wonderful.

As for my interests, I enjoy writing, translating songs from Japanese into singable English versions, watching hockey, debating, learning languages, amusing myself and others in odd ways, cosplay, and doing special effects makeup. I also have found myself semi-obsessed with the horror genre, especially zombie survival movies and creepypastas. Never go to the creepypasta wiki if you ever want sleep or have free time again, by the way.

I am a fan of many things, but there are very few fandoms that I actually have gone headfirst into and devoted a lot of time to. These include Hetalia, South Park, Invader Zim, and Fullmetal Alchemist. Very recently I have become quite invested in Homestuck, as well. I understand that many people dislike it, but there are two words that make the series worth reading. The first word is "Dirk", and the second is "Strider".

But at the end of the day, I can be described in two brief sentences: "I don't really do much other than read horror stories, drink tea, and give eloquent, emotional speeches about why I hate things", and "I am the future crazy cat lady in your apartment complex".