.:reflections of twilight:.

Tuesday I experience my first snowfall in several years. Unless you count the brief foray from last year as an aftereffect from Sandy in the higher elevations. Which I don't, really.

None of it stuck to the ground, but there were snow flurries for the majority of the day and it was pretty neat to watch actually.



I took a lot of pictures of it since I was a dork.



Mom even took a picture of some of it in my hair.



I thought it was rather neat, myself.





Let's throw in some random cat pictures for the fun of it!

I took my GRE today. I didn't really feel all that nervous about it. Actually, I'm more nervous as to what the results will mean than I was about taking the test itself. I don't know what the score expectancy is for the program I want to apply to. I guess I'll have to wait and see...

I did feel like I was entering a high security office building though. We got to the testing center and before signing in, I was given a sheet of paper that had the regulations and stuff on it. Then I had to write an entire friggin' paragraph IN CURSIVE at the bottom! I haven't written in cursive for decades, actually. It showed too. It looked like a third grader wrote it.

Then, I was given a key to a locker for me to put my stuff in since we're not allowed to bring anything except for testing center supplied scratch paper and pencils (which we HAD to return when finished). Next came the 'official' check in. I sat in front of a desk where the proctor sat, and he asked me a few questions, like verifying my address and my email address. I had my picture taken to make sure it matched against the ID picture (which, coincidentally, I wore the same shirt). And then I had to stand up and be 'wanded'.

Yes, I had a metal detector run over me to make sure I wasn't smuggling in anything. I had to check my pockets and under my pants legs and up my sleeves. I'm surprised I wasn't full on frisked while they were at it.

They did this when we got finished with our breaks as well.

The testing room is set up like a cubicle farm. There were about three per side for a total of six. Not all of them were full. I sat on the farthest end away from the door. The proctor sat behind a large window watching us and the computer monitor where we were being recorded.

There were these large earmuffs like the kind you wear at a shooting range. I think I was the only one who wore them since there was a loud-ish thrumming sound in the room, probably from an air conditioner of some sort.

It didn't take me the full three hours to take the test. The Quantitative part I basically guessed at and got a 135 on. You get 130 points for just showing up. Yeah... But I knew I was gonna fail that part, and I told them so at the Graduate Office a week ago.

The Verbal wasn't too bad, except for the two essays I had to write. Essays are not my strong point, especially on subjects I have no real interest in. I got 152 on that (not counting the essay scores, which get added up later). So all total I got a 287, again not counting the essay. Utter failure is 260, so I barely passed. I just hope it's enough to get me accepted into the program. I'd rather not have to take it all over again.

Mom has a job interview on Monday with the large medical corporation that's here locally. We both hope it leads to something since we're tired of being broke all the time. I'm holding out for a little while until I find out what happens with school. I'd like to be able to see the movies that are coming out for the holidays, like Thor The Dark World, The Hobbit The Desolation of Smaug, Catching Fire, the new Disney film Frozen. And I'd like to get some of the DVD's I've been wanting, like Iron Man 3, Monsters University and Man of Steel.

Here's hoping!

I hope everyone had a pleasant Thanksgiving (those of you who celebrate with the rest of America. You Canadians had yours already).

I did. It was smaller than usual since a few family members were missing. One due to having to work and others due to illness. I think Christmas will have most of everyone back.

We went to my aunt's like we usually do and the food was good as always. Whenever we move to Tennessee (which, like I mentioned before, I hope to be next year at the least), I shall definitely miss the food and company, but maybe we can have our own traditions.

I was planning on putting up my small purple fiber optic tree in my bedroom this weekend, but I never got around to it. Mostly I was distracted by our new kitty! She's mostly for mom since our established cat, Moon, is glued to me most of the time. She said she wanted an older cat (not a kitten), female and that would get along well with other cats.

She called a lady who does cat rescues and fostering and she had the perfect cat! She's a three year old tortie and she's very quiet and gentle. She does have her front claws and so we have to make sure she uses her scratching post and not the couch. But she's spayed and had all of her shots and flea treatments.

Her name was originally Angel, but mom didn't like that name so she's renamed her Tor-T. My mom has a thing for unusual names. I myself was leaning more toward Tortle, but it is what it is.



So far, her and Moon have been guarded toward each other, but Tor-T seems to be making herself at home, so that's good. I told Moon that she can't keep hiding out in my room, so when we leave for work tomorrow, mom and I are cutting off all hiding places so that they'll be pretty much forced to be in the same room together. It may take time, but I think eventually they'll mellow toward each other.

Yesterday, mom and I went to the beach to take some pictures since the waves were numerous over the weekend. We got a couple of good shots of the waves rolling in, as well as a few of some surfers taking advantage of the opportunity.



I will say, that when we do move away from here, I will probably miss a few things about Florida, like the sound of the ocean and walking along the shore, but I think the mountains of Tennessee would more than make up for it!

In fandom related news, we went to the bookstore yesterday, and naturally I had to buy stuff. I bought the December issue of Vogue since it had an interview with Anne Hathaway and some pictures from Les Miz that I wanted. I also got a collectors issue of Star Wars Insider as well as a film magazine about The Hobbit. I got two volumes of manga Sailor Moon Volume 8 and Bakuman. Volume 16. I was also able to find the first two volumes of the color version of Scott Pilgrim, so that was a nice find to say the least. Thank God for Membership cards!

I saw Rise of the Guardians earlier today and I must say, it was well worth the hype. I have a feeling it's going on my 'Must Have' DVD list. And I will say I think Jack Frost is a cutie, but even though Chris Pine is pretty awesome, he doesn't sound like an 18 year old...

I've been rereading the High School Debut series and I almost forgot what a cute series it is. I think, even though I just finished rereading it, I may read it again I love it that much. I might read a few other things in between, like the stuff I just bought as well as another series I've been wanting to reread called Beauty Is The Beast.

And another reminder that I need your address for Christmas Cards. I'll be ordering them soon, so I want to get a count of how many I'll need, so be sure to reply to this post so that I can have your info. Even if you don't plan on sending out any cards yourself this year, I'd still like to send you one so I'd like your addresses. :D

So, as any of you who follow me on Twitter or are friends with me on Facebook may now know, we had to put our oldest cat, Missy, to sleep this afternoon.

She was having some problems with her left eye. It turned out to be glaucoma. There was nothing to be done about it, but she didn't seem to be in any pain and wasn't too terribly inconvenienced by it, so we just left it be.

This morning, we noticed that her eye had drastically changed color and shape. It was awful looking. Mom was staying home today to wait for the exterminator to come again, so she decided that she would take Missy to the vet to get her eye checked out.

She called me later on at work and said that her eye was worse than we thought. She apparently had bleeding in her eye and it had built up pressure. Her cornea was basically dissolving in on itself. The vet told her that there was nothing that could be done to help her and that the pain would only keep getting worse. Plus, she'd been steadily losing weight and she was looking very ragged. So they made the decision to put her down.

It's not a decision that was made without a lot of thought behind it. I knew it was coming eventually, but it's still hard to fully digest.

She had a good long 17 years and she will be missed, but she's now at peace and without pain, and that makes things a bit better.

I am such a bad mommy. I accidentally locked my kitty in my bedroom yesterday all day while I was at work. I know, I know! I feel so bad. I was in a bit of a rush and I didn’t see her in my room, so I thought she was already out in the living room. When I got home, I didn’t see her greet me at the door like she usually does. So I was curious. Then, as I got further down the hall, I heard a tiny pathetic mewling from my bedroom. Then, horror struck me. She was in my room! All day!! HORROR!!

I opened the door, and there she was. I made sure to scoop her up and give her some loving and apologize profusely for shutting her up all day. She didn’t seem to be mad, because she wouldn’t leave me alone, like she missed me. So hopefully she won’t have too much psychological damage from my error. Poor baby…

Saturday mom and I are going to see into looking into volunteering at the local wild animal hospital to try and get out of our hermity tendencies. Looks kinda cool!

I went to the License Bureau earlier today. I thought I'd be there until doomsday, but I was lucky enough not to have to wait too long. I also went to the library to turn in my book.

I pre-ordered Furuba 11, 12, and 13. I'll probably get 11 relatively soon, like within the next few weeks. Tokyopop says 12 isn't coming out until December. Yeah, it's a mite disappointing, but it's just as well fundage wise. I also checked to see when TriMax 6 is coming out and it's coming out August 3rd. I think I pre-ordered it, but I don't remember exactly. Hellsing 7 is coming out in October, so I'll wait awhile before pre-ordering it. It's just as well since that volume is totally gonna kill me emotionally.

I have to get the kitty carriers down for the kids' trip to the vet later on today. I know they're just gonna be so thrilled.

Maybe I'll get around to scanning that article and upload it onto YouSendIt or something like that. It's only two pages, so it shouldn't take too long.

Quote of the day: "A cheerful giver does not count the cost of what she gives. Her heart is set on pleasing and cheering the one to whom the gift is given." -- Julian of Norwich"