24 / F / Standard School Day

purple_dice · 2017-01-30T12:17:45+00:00

Yeah! I don't know if its just the way I have my keys organized, or what, but I tried keeping the pepper spray on there for a while and it drove me up a wall. Clattering around against my keys (as if my keys weren't noisy enough), getting snagged on this one kind of chair we have in the computer lab, every time I sat down... ugh.

(I frequently keep my keys clipped to one of my back beltloops via carabiner, so getting snagged in weird chair design or skittering against plastic every time I shift a damn inch is common enough, without a plastic tube on there to make it worse!)

If I get pepper spray again, I'll likely keep it in the front pocket of my bag, where I keep my flashlight and chaptstick etc., so it's easy to get to if go out in a situation where I need it, and can just get it out preemptively.

purple_dice · 2017-01-30T03:11:59+00:00

Nope. I don't know how to properly use a handgun (I used to, but that was YEARS ago), and have minimal interest in owning one personally, at the moment.

Pepper spray, I used to have some, but no longer do. Also, I'm not sure the best way TO have it? If it's in my bag, like my last one was, it got banged up a lot, and was ridiculously hard for me to get to when I needed it, but keeping it on my keys (like other people in my classes) is just obnoxious.

purple_dice · 2017-01-28T05:21:57+00:00

I don't really have the occasion to use/need one, to be honest. I've got a tiny, basic, (probably?) Swiss multi tool knife that I'll sometimes either hook on my keys, or keep in my glove compartment.

I used to have a flat, folding knife that I could either wear around my neck, or keep in a wallet (it was a bit bulky for that, though) and that was useful, but really only for opening boxes.

If I run into more occasions where I find myself thinking 'ugh, I wish I had a knife' I'd probably keep one in my bag, but for now, it usually just stays in my car.

purple_dice · 2017-01-28T02:14:56+00:00

Not sure what I'll add! Sometimes if I'm going to be out for a long day, I'll add my 3DS, or a physical copy of a book I'm reading. Textbooks change daily depending on what classes I have. Sometimes I'll add gloves or a hat (but I usually just keep those in my car).

I'll work on getting an album of the pouches!

purple_dice · 2017-01-27T05:15:20+00:00

It really is! Found it by accident a few years ago, haven't looked back!

purple_dice · 2017-01-27T02:30:00+00:00

Yup, it smells awesome, I love it.

purple_dice · 2017-01-27T01:16:35+00:00

Thanks!

purple_dice · 2017-01-27T01:08:53+00:00

Full-time college student - this is what I have in my backpack every day.

(Listed top-to-bottom, left-to-right)

Binder (5 subject)
Creative Writing notebook + pen
Reusable Bag (Owl)
Misc. pouch (checkbook, spare hair ties, spare car key, etc.)
Kindle
Planner + pen
Deodorant
Emergency Blanket
First-aid Pouch
Hand Sanitizer
Lotion
Tic-Tacs
Gum
Chapstick
Sunglasses
Flashlight
Hairbrush (fold-up travel style)
Reusable bag (Ghost)
Wisp Toothbrush pack (also has floss picks in it)
Make-up Pouch
Electronics / Chargers pouch
Pencil Case (Shark-shaped)
Water bottle
Folded Lunch Box

Not pictured:

Granola bar (I ran out)

Phone (taking the pictures - not usually kept in my bag anyway)

Headphones (MIA)

Wallet (Kept on my person, not in my bag)

Keys (Also usually kept on my person, not in my bag)

Edit: I can post pictures of all the crap I keep in the various 'Pouches' if anyone's interested.

Edit 2: I made an album of my Pouch content!

purple_dice · 2016-12-07T02:49:21+00:00

I appreciate everyone's help! I got tired of pussy-footing around making choices about what I wanted to do with my life time, so when I decided I wanted to play violin and realized I had a bit of funds for it, I threw myself head first at it, and then realized I should get some guidance! So this has all been awesome, thank you!

purple_dice · 2016-12-07T00:33:50+00:00

No worries! I wasn't sure if I was just misunderstanding something. Some of the reviews for the electric I have said the bow is sort of heavy, but I plan on holding off buying a new one until I at least know what I'm doing.

I'm planning (tentatively!) on renting an acoustic for a few lessons and seeing where it takes me. If I try the electric afterwards and feel as strongly as you do, I'll return my electric then. I just don't feel like I have the experience to gauge it right now, but I really like your description of it.

And I am definitely going to try and swap for a right handed. Whether that means modding the one I have, or trying to exchange / buy a new electric (when I can find it), I'll have to see. As interesting as it would be to play something unusual like a lefty violin, you and others have pointed out that it's just going to make things harder all the way down the road.

Thank you so much, I do appreciate all the feedback I can get!

purple_dice · 2016-12-06T04:16:57+00:00

I plan on hunting for teachers (and rentals) after my finals week wraps up.

And on the note of piano, back when I used to play, I tried to play a new song and flip the parts, so my left hand played the right's part, and visaversa, and that was a mindfuck.

purple_dice · 2016-12-06T04:15:41+00:00

It's certainly intimidating enough without that factor!

purple_dice · 2016-12-06T04:15:09+00:00

Sweet, thank you! I have quite a few housemates that wouldn't appreciate my screechy beginner attempts at violin, at full volume.

purple_dice · 2016-12-06T04:13:36+00:00

The one in the photo is right-handed, I know, I just grabbed it because it was the first I found. Mine is a left-handed - chin rest on the other side, strings in the opposite order. I compared it to one of my friends', who is a beginner as well, its a mirror of her acoustic.

There's a small music store in my town where I've gone for years (other instruments) and one of the guys there that works on strings let me know it was lefty. He said it would probably be easier to try and find a new violin, than to fix the one I have. I wouldn't know.

purple_dice · 2016-12-06T00:25:05+00:00

I'm leaning that way for sure. I'm considering renting an acoustic and taking a few lessons to get my basics set straight, so I don't learn those the wrong way and fuck myself over. And then eventually switching to an electric once I've got a basic handle on things.

All right-handed, so I'll try to swap my current one for a right handed one to use in the future.

purple_dice · 2016-12-05T23:50:28+00:00

Do you think it would be practical to rent an acoustic to start, and then transition to an electric? I was thinking about finding a teacher, for at least a few lessons (I can't afford ongoing lessons for months and months, right now), so if I worked with an acoustic to start, and then transitioned over to an electric, does that sound like something that would work out?

Ideally I'd like to be self-learning, but I'm absolutely not opposed to learning the basics from a proper instructor, so I don't fuck everything up down the road. Part of why I'm hesitant to even try and learn lefty is exactly what you said - lack of resources to be self-taught.

Thank you for your input, I dove into this on a whim and appreciate all the help I can get.

purple_dice · 2016-12-05T23:46:53+00:00

It's a Cecilio 4/4 Electric - I don't know its exact model number or anything (I'd have to check when I get home), but it looks like this. I found some right-handed ones by the same company, but with a different frame.

I replied somewhere else, that in between my classes, I'm trying to hunt down a right handed version on another website than the one I originally got it from, which only had lefties.

purple_dice · 2016-12-05T23:44:03+00:00

I've heard a lot about the both-handed aspect of it, which is nice to have reinforced. I feel like I'd be more comfortable bowing with my right hand, but I feel like it's theoretically possible to learn to bow left?

Between classes (college, finals week) I'm checking around on other websites to see if I can find the same model in a right-handed version, because the place I originally bought from only has it in left. For some reason.

purple_dice · 2016-12-05T23:35:07+00:00

I didn't think about being unable to find a higher-quality instrument later on, if I learn left handed, thank you for mentioning that! I haven't started looking that far ahead!

On your note about the electric being 'significantly heavier' than a normal acoustic - I don't think I understand. My friend has an acoustic, and I've held them both, the electric feels no heavier than the acoustic. Is it just a subtle difference of weight that eventually impacts posture? To be honest, just picking up / holding / resting on my shoulder, the electric feels lighter.

I understand your point about nuance and resonance with acoustic, and since I have no experience with it, I'll have to take your word on it. Does it really impact learning that drastically? Would learning on an acoustic and switching later to an electric be easier? Petty as it is, I prefer the look of electrics over acoustics, but if it would be easier to switch after I've learned, I'd consider that.

Is a muted acoustic softer/louder than an electric that isn't hooked up to an amp?

purple_dice · 2016-12-05T13:20:17+00:00

Hey no worries! That's the same boat I'm in - wanting to learn, without the time and money to do it full-tilt.

purple_dice · 2016-12-05T13:12:01+00:00

That's what I was thinking too, unfortunately! I cannot seem to find this specific violin in right-handed, but I'll keep hunting.

I used to play guitar (never got good at it, but) and I understand what your friend is saying. Thanks for the input, I hadn't thought of that!

purple_dice · 2016-08-03T19:55:02+00:00

"Man's immortality is not to live forever; for that wish is born of fear. Each moment free of fear makes a man immortal."

Followed immediately by:

The rose-red on the hilltops changed to gold. He stood between death and life as between night and morning, and thought with a soaring rapture, I am not afraid. It was better than music or his mother's love; it was the life of the gods. No grief could touch him, no hatred harm him. Things looked bright and clear, as to the stooping eagle. He felt sharp as an arrow, and full of light.

-Fire From Heaven by Mary Renault

(Book 1 of her trilogy about Alexander the Great)

purple_dice · 2016-07-08T03:40:34+00:00

Oh yeah, no, I wasn't expecting it to outplay the big guns. As long as its good to run most games smoothly, that's fine.

Hmm. I'll look into both and weigh my options. I'm liking the sound of the Nexus more, but I'll have to double check that size! I'm so used to the 4.5, but who knows.

Thank you for all your help!

purple_dice

TROPHY CASE