Jane's Journal

I still suck at sketching.



Imagine the elf ears, y'all.

I'm experimenting with the kind of candles I can make. I've one good mold for it, which I got from sjuuls. Outside that, I am without molds. So I tried glasses. I have one glass that creates a conical candle that gets wider towards the top. It's desperately ugly, but it works in a way (i.e. a romantic night in the bedroom only requires light from flames from various candles, and I don't care the ones on the bookcase are ugly because there's a klamboe in between anyway).
But today I was experimenting on my so-called "blood'n'bones" candles. They're made from pieces of old white candles (like the stuff that remains in the bottom of tealights when the wicks die out on you), crumpled up. And then I pour liquid red wax over it. Works like a charm in the mold I have.

I figured if I took a longdrink glass (tip from my stepdad) I could make a long narrow candle, in this style. But since there's no seeing whether the inside of the glass is suitable until you make a candle with it, I sort of didn't know what to expect. What I got was the most godugly candle I've ever made.

XD


It can't even stand up on its own for more than two seconds, it has to be poked on a pin, or molten on the underside.
So that longdrink glass is out. Next please....Let's see if I can create some more "A-Wizard's-Staff-Has-A-Knob-On-The-End"-like candles.

I've got a sore shoulder, from sleeping too long on my side, cocking up the pillow, or something. You can't believe what kind of feeling that gives me. It's relief, because it's an innocent strain, in stead of the ache in the lower back that has been haunting me. My back is getting better, but slowly. I hardly feel it during normal actions any more, but long walks and trips to the supermarket do make me remember what it's like. Where I stand. But there is - if slow - progress.

This week, a teacher was shot in Den Haag by a seventeen year old boy. It's the first time in Holland a person was shot in a school, and the social impact this is having is immense, beyond belief really. On radio Rijnmond, the local station, there was a show where callers could give their opinions, and I heard about a demonstration saying terrible things about the boy who shot the teacher. The boy happened to be someone who originates from another part of the world; we have a nice word which is often used in foul ways for it: allochtoon. I am very sad because of the man being shot, and I can not justify what the boy has done, but I do think he needs some protection. We can't jump on him like a pack of wolves and tear him apart, and everyone else who happens to be an allochtoon. Yesterday on the news I saw that the kids from that school were mostly allochtoon, and okay, maybe it was wrong for the reporters to not ask a single autochtoon (someone of dutch origin), and they all had definite opinions, were very well spoken, and all had significantly more brains than the dutch male who won the big lottery prize in Kinderdijk two weeks back.

But after all, we all judge on looks. I realized, after I came back from Veenendaals confinement to the big city with its diversity, that I wasn't used to be surrounded by people of different nationality and looks anymore. In Veenendaal and Ede, people are either autochtone christians, autochtone riot-youth, or allochtone riotyouth. That's all you ever hear about. Here, there are so many more 'classes' and I feel ashamed I think of this that way. After all we are all only human and everyone deserves a chance. Still, I do not feel safe on the streets, and the incident with the smoker in the metro a month or so ago didn't help at all.
I also discussed this with my mother, and she thinks the main problem isn't so much that the kids play video games, but more that the parents don't have time for their kids anymore.
Respect and discipline are all gone, and the police often can't or won't do nothing when they see someone. If someone tries to smuggle coke, and they have two kilos on them, they get to go free with the statement 'if you had 2.5 kilos on you, you'd have been in big trouble'. Yeah, that'll teach 'em!

Closely connected to this: Bowling for Columbine. See that. It's gooood.

I went to Lekkerkerk with my mom yesterday, after discussing stuff like this during eating french fries. She wanted me to come along to pottery class, and indeed did I have fun! When it comes to clay, turns out I can be a very patient person. First we kneaded the bubbles of air out of the clay, and then you throw (actually we used the word 'smijten' pr: smite-uhn) the clay on the turning disc. I had the non-electrical one (which suits be better than one you just flick the on switch which just takes all authenticy out of it. It's a disc of wood below a stool, connected to a stone disc at stomach-height). You never kick the disc around and use your hands at the same time so this avoids tight muscles I think. If you touch the clay, the disc will slow down, and before your muscles cramp up, you have to kick again, but you can't kick and work the clay at the same time, so you relax a bit.
First you try to center the clay, by placing your elbows on your legs or pressing them to your side, and then you fold wet hands around the clay. It will wobble your hands around but if you keep those in place, slowly you fold the clay to the center of the disc. After this, with your thumbs close together you start making a hole in the middle. If you make it too wide, it will surely become a dish or plate. So I kept them close together. After this you lock your thumbs together in the hollow between thumb and index finger, and use your index and middle finger of both hands to 'pull up' the clay, so the thing you're making becomes higher, and the walls become thinner. You have to be really careful, if the clay is too wet, or the walls to thin, or it's unbalanced, you'll lose control over the clay and you must start over.
When you're done, you carefully loosen the clay from the disc, and put it on a wooden plank. Then it dries up for a week, and you equalize the bottom and top, scraping a thin layer off it. Then it gets baked the first time 'buiscitbake', and the finish can go on. Then it gets a second bake. So it will be four weeks until I have it back.

I made something looking like this. The foot isn't so narrow, but the inside goes on a long way down, into the foot. I hope to be able to use it for larp.
I'm very satisfied about what I made, even if my trousers look like I've been remodelling someone's appartment.

Okay! That’s IT!

No more woodcarving for me.

At least until my thumb has healed again. Right next to my last cut. Slice and dice-like. *disgusted grin*

It seems I have been slacking the last few Saturdays. Not making any entries. Tsjeeesj!
Well, I had my reasons ofcourse and for yesterday it was another Dutch Elfwood meeting. I pleased me to find Mousetail (to translate her nickname accordingly) willing to meet up early to visit a market filled with fabric in the morning.
After a easy night working in the kitchen at Gonzales on Friday (it was so quiet I cleaned some of the kitchen cupboards) I was in bed at 1.30 and up again Saturday morning 8 o’clock sharp.

The train trip to Utrecht flew by instantly and I met up with Mousetail. She knew more or less where the market would be and we found it without trouble. There were many stands with fabrics of 1 euro per meter. Which is way way cheapo. We sniffed around the stands and fondled more fabric than a greedy dwarf does his treasure.

I called ozjish because I had promised to make him a tunic and I needed to see what would look good on him. Hearing him again was good, I could picture him well, and I bought 2 types of fabric for his tunics. They’ll be pretty.
And for myself I bought some hairy (fake) fur-like fabric for a barbarian tunic. Something I’ve, deep in my heart, always wanted to have. That was 1 euro per meter. *Greedy Grin*

Then we had lunch at the V&D. I noticed Mousetail tried to eat very neat, just like me. Like we were trying to make a good impression on eachother or something. And the sandwiches we had just couldn’t be eaten neatly. So when I noticed we were both trying hard not to spill or look sloppy, I firmly set my elbows on the table, took my sandwich in both hands and bit deep. I’ve known her for over a year. Mousetail and I are in larps together, where she plays a man transformed to a woman, and I play a man-like city guard, so trying hard not to be messy is so…illogical!

She followed my lead, glad to say, and after we ate we started drawing already. We drew one pre-meet drawing and then shopped for pencils. *evil grin* Pencils gooood!

“Teach me passion for I fear it’s gone”

The second part of the day was filled with Dutchelfwood. In the main hall of Utrecht Central Station, we met up with other Dutchelfwooders. Wouter and Henning and Sebastiaan were discussing Shivers larp, and more and more DEW’ers were gathering around the flag.
It was fun meeting Shu, Okke, Emanuel, and Cindy, and fun seeing them all again. Once in the Florin and Firkin, we started drawing. I lost count at two (even though I really wanted to keep count of how much I drew, I forgot to count after two…silly me). I drew a lot of good things. I had my day. I am most proud of the drawing I made for Okke, I guess. It’s the one I made last, and has a crying woman, with beautiful shading. A real tearjerker emotion-filled picture. Ofcourse joy and tears go hand in hand.

Wouter tricked me into making the tunics for Shivers for him (5) and he got everybody else and me really enthusiastic about larp again. The passion for creativity (in making costumes and props) has been awakened by Wouter and Henning and Okke and not least Arjen, who brought a self-made dagger. I asked him what his prices were but he didn’t tell. Said he wasn’t ready to start making stuff for sale. I guess I have to ask XB to make me one then. I guess a ranger must have a dagger. And I’ll be playing a ranger in April, at Shivers.

Drawing count:

1. Mousetail: mouselady trying to find something useful to say
   
2. Arjen: Inferno ‘In nomine sanguinis’
   
3. Cynthia: Mindflayer
   
4. Petra: Dragon
   
5. Okke: Sad orc
   
6. Merrick: Bird
   
7. Coen: Stallion and Rider trying to find a strategically placed bush and castle
   
8. Eline: ‘Nail and Hair’
   
9. Merrick: Tribal
   
10. Okke: Floating Vampire
    
11. Mark: ‘Nail and Hair’ : Woman with palantir.
    

Niiiice.
To explain #7, I drew a horse in Eline’s dummy. (stupid, because Eline considers herself to be Mistress Of Horsedrawings). I hid the front legs behind a Strategically Placed bush, the ass (of the horse) behind a Strategically Placed cloak, and drew a Strategically Placed castle to draw the attention away from the horse and rider, and a Strategically Placed tree next to the Strategically Placed castle to draw the attention away from the castle. It raised quite some laughter.

I’m really looking forward to next weekend, not just because the exams will be over by then, but also because I’ll see Henning and Shu (craaaaazy woman) again on the workshop. Yupyup. Passion’s back.

Just spent plusminus 2 hours on and off manipulating my picture for Elfwood. I made 4, 2 of which I am really fond. Those have 2 poems in the foreground (Torn and Undreamt). the other two have an ecoline background.

Worried about my pictures. I wonder if they'll be accepted. My fairies will, of that I am sure. Second fairy is as good as done! Will scan tomorrow.

Murmurment: [something I was dreaming about]:
How about when I stand near the coffeemachine in school. My bag near me, just standing there. Then, this guy just walks up to me and gives me the most tender kiss...just like that. Sigh.

Yes. That is why it's called a murmurment.
I saw a great picture of Maarten (the guy who played the piano for me) in the school paper. He writes for it. I didn't have the chance yet to let him read 'Inspired', that poem of
mine.
And yes, I do associate that particular murmurment with Maarten. Call it wishful thinking. *Wink* * Giggle*