Vacation's Beautiful!

      I can't believe Christmas is almost here! And I have totally failed at keeping my blog up to date. I've been crocheting so much that I'm doing it in my sleep. LITERALLY! Sometimes I feel my eyes close and I wake up and I'm still going! It's insanity. But that also means that business is going good and I have lots of orders to fulfill. I never thought things would be going this a year ago when I tentatively decided to try and sell hats. The funniest thing is how popular they've become! I guess I really got the jump on this, but all the other ones I've seen elsewhere look like someone took a stuffed animal, cut it in half, and stuffed it on someone's head. Lets compare below...way below since I can't get it to let me write underneath the slideshow.
        I've gotten to spend a lot of time with my mom which has been great. It's funny how much more important it is for me to spend time with my family now that I hardly ever get to see them. I wonder if I'll still live in So Cal when I do decide to have kids. But NO KIDS FOR ME anytime soon.I'm just fine with only being an Aunt.
        I'm pretty excited because I just realized I have health care for another 3 years after I turn 23. What that means for me is I'm going to have a chance to follow my dreams and actually try to dance. I had nearly given up on the idea of joining an agency or trying to be a back up dancer or anything like that. But I feel like, when you ask the universe for something and you really mean it, the world works out in your favor. I'm going to keep this dream alive for a little longer. ^_^

Listening

           Yesterday, after walking out of a class I nearly knocked out in, I ran into a friend who looked about 2 seconds from jumping off a bridge. I sat down with him and asked if he was okay and ended up talking to him for a while just about the difficulties of being a dancer. His issues were more specific, but as a friend, it's not my place to disclose them all over the internet. The point is, being a dancer is a lot harder than most people think. Yes, you love what you do, and it's less like a job and more like fun. But in the end, you face constant rejection, never-ending self efficacy, and next to no social life outside of your passion. You lose a hell of a lot of friends because of your inability to participate in the real world, and keeping up a relationship is some kind of miracle. So is it worth it? For me, yes. If I couldn't dance every day, I'd probably be the one sitting on the bench looking like I was going to hang myself.

               The hardest part is when you hit a slump. You feel like you're never getting better, and everyone around you is racing to their dreams, and here you are, unable to even get to step 2, let alone pursue any long term goals. For choreo dancers, I think it's even rougher. If you don't make the team you want to be on, you're temporarily family-less. Your team or company is like a huge group of brothers and sisters who understand you better than anyone, forgive the faults you share, and push you to become better. Without that, it feels like an endless monotony of classes that don't have any discernible purpose. This is one of many reasons I'm thankful to be a freestyler too.

                 When I hit a slump, my solution is to try working on things unrelated to what is currently frustrating me. If I hit a slump in Bgirling, I may focus on my Waacking for a while. If I hit a slump in choreography, I might push myself to do a style I'm not as comfortable in. I'm fortunate enough to have the ability to work through the challenges by doing other styles. I say fortunate, but really, I worked hard for that ability. I see the value in versatility, and yes...I may not get as good at any one thing as someone who focuses soley on one style, but I also never feel completely backed into a corner. The best advice anyone ever gave me is to "just listen to the music." The music tells you what it wants you to do and your body just interprets it. You can't dance for the people around you, or to prove something, or to win. If you just listen to the music, and dance for yourself, you will naturally achieve all those other goals. I hope I can keep learning to listen. I hope he can too.

~Keiko

Coffee Keeps Us Sane

                     So this morning on the Ryan Seacrest show (the only reason I listen to radio music), he began ranting about how his coffee tasted like crap today. People started calling in saying he was over reacting, that it was just coffee, that he shouldn't let it ruin his day. A few people spoke up in defense of coffee addicts and I agree completely with them.

                      I get up around the crack of dawn every morning, and if I don't have coffee or tea will seriously be cranky the rest of the day. I don't think it's even the caffeine in it! It's like most addicts where it's more about the action than the substance. You could probably give me a hot cup of orange juice and it wouldn't make a difference to me as long as I could peacefully sip it. Given...I don't think it would taste nearly as glorious as coffee. So for the poor sad souls who are forced up at 4 AM every day, I feel for them. I can only imagine what it must be like to have a terrible cup of hot flavored water given to me as a substitute for the good stuff. I would probably be threatening to fire my staff too...(if I had any staff). I would at least be very rude to the patrons walking in to work, or asleep on the floor hoping when I woke up it would be the next day and I could try for a decent cup of coffee all over again. Let us compare good coffees:

               This coffee fully expresses my feelings towards it each morning. How can anyone say this doesn't look amazing????

                     Now this on the other hand looks like horse saliva. I don't think I need to say any more.

                     Fact is, like addicts of all kinds, coffee makes me happy. Coffee doesn't hurt you if not taken in excess, and it makes me much more alert and willing to do work. Dissing coffee is like a personal stab at my soul. So lets just all rejoice at this marvelous creation. ^_^

~Keiko

Bboy Summit, Roscoe's, and Group Projects

            So I got to go to the infamous Bboy Summit on Saturday. I heard the cyphers on Friday were totally raw, and I heard the battles on Sunday were...alright. Saturday was fun I suppose. I'm kind of surprised to be honest at the way it was organized. They kept breaking up the cyphers that were going to have 15 minute workshops in various styles. I mean, having workshops is dope, but when you get a good cypher going, breaking it up kind of kills the vibe. Got a lot of dope t-shirts though!

             We went to Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles afterwards. Apparently it's some kind of sacrilege that I've lived in Long Beach for four years and I've never gone to this restaurant. We went to the one in LA, and it was pretty damn good. But seriously, how can you really go wrong with roughly 3 million calories drenched in syrup on a plate? I never thought fried chicken and syrup would taste good together, but I have since been corrected. Would I eat there every day? Hell no. Only if I want to become a hippo. But it was quite tasty.

              Now I face the joy of a group project. I hate group projects as it is. I mean...I can usually do this stuff much better by myself and I usually get screwed over in one way or another with group projects. Looks like I shouldn't try getting a job at a team-based company like Google. On this particular project, our professor has done next to nothing to explain it, given us the most minimal of directions, and put us in to groups too big to be feasible for something like this. On top of all that, he refuses to let us use conventional methods of communication. Which means, Google Docs. Not a bad application or anything, but seriously a pain in the neck if you don't want to use a google email address. So when I'm the one who has to put this whole dealio together and I can't even get into the damn group, it gets a tad frustrating. F*** group projects.

~Keiko

Christmas is Coming!

             Well, only for those of us who have to plan our businesses accordingly. I just know what's going to happen already. I'm going to get about 20 people asking for orders about a month before Christmas. I know it's hard to figure out what the hell to get people for Christmas, but this is one time when I wish everyone would just plan ahead for my sanity at least. haha. I sure as hell am NOT pulling any all nighters for an extra $25.

              Basically, I'm trying to start my own business. I'm not positive how serious I want to get about it because it is a lot of work, but I love doing it anyways. Plus, it's a great thing to have on my resume. I've been going by K.O. Designs since last February, but I recently decided to do a name change once I officially get things going. One reason is because there are several Graphic Design companies and one other person who does what I do with the same name. The other reason is...my new name is so much cuter...*hint.* ^_^ I shall not disclose what it is because I don't want someone to steal it, but it's going to be awesome! Here are some pictures of what I do! >_<

~Keiko

Training New Things

               So...*knock on wood* ... the new job I've started training for is really not that hard. Thus far it's basically like a cross between being a secretary and an intern with a lot of extra time to read. Seriously, I nearly finished about 150 pages of my book yesterday. Yay for mind cultivation! I'm hoping it gives me a lead into something better eventually that can get me experience in my major.

                The last weekend was absolutely incredible. From the benefit show to Battle Swagger, I pretty much felt a state of bliss. Benefit went amazingly well. When we rewatched the video, everything was so in sync and you could tell we were all really into our parts. I can really see the difference between how I dance now vs. how I was dancing a year ago. Saturday night we had the end of the year banquet. Most of us were pretty drunk by the time we started giving awards, but that just made them even better. I feel really honored to get the "Unsung Hero Award." The last year was definitely a crazy amount of work, but I would gladly do it again. It makes me hella stoked for next season!

                   Sunday, I battled with my girls Lacy and Duck-e at Battle Swagger. After watching the videos, I see how much more I need to train. I was so much weaker than I could have been. But in the end I'm super proud of us. We advanced to top 16 and got to battle Last For One. Think I kind of died and went to heaven there. I know, fan girl moment, sue me.

~Keiko

P.S. I cut off my hair. I now have pretty short hair above my shoulders. I'm not sure I like it so much anymore. Oh well. It will grow back.

Ending Summer with a New Journal Spot

          So I have succumb to Blogspot. Really, it was only a matter of time seeing as Xanga was pre-Myspace, and we all know Myspace is the graveyard of social networking sites. Besides, what better time to start writing again than right before starting my last year of college? School is officially one and a half weeks away. I say that that is total bullshit considering I don't recall getting to enjoy a summer. What with working all day and dancing all night...I'm really confused as to what this summer thing actually is. Don't get me wrong. I love my life and its non-stop "I'm going to collapse at any moment"-ness, but it does get a bit exhausting.

           At any rate, this should be a pretty interesting year. It should be exciting, starting new jobs, trying to get an internship, graduating, and desperately hoping that the job market gods are rallying in my favor as I head into the world of the post grad.

            But today is just an ordinary day at the school library. We have our usual crazy people who either try and hit on me or assault me. Tons of incoming freshmen. And my awesome coworker who keeps me awake, as I have only gotten 4 hours of sleep. As much as I look forward to Friday because it means Culture Shock finally gets to perform the show we've been working so hard on, I'm probably even more excited for the fact that afterwards I'll get to be reacquainted with my bed. I have a message I would like to send to my bed: "It has been a while. I miss you terribly." But like all things that require a lot of hard work, this will be totally worth it.

~Keiko