Look! A rare post from me! Catch it, it's getting away!

Sarcasm aside, I do have something new to post about. I've always considered myself to be a night owl, always feeling more active at night than during the day. And since I've been working from home the past year, my schedule has slipped to be even more nocturnal. I tend to wake up these days around 2-4pm, up all night and in bed around dawn. And to be honest, I'm tired of it. But I haven't been able to change my sleep schedule. Going to bed early simply means I toss and turn, unable to sleep for hours. But due to what I'll call a happy accident, I think I can fix these bad sleeping habits of mine - and hopefully for good.

The 'happy accident' was deciding to pick up an old video game I hadn't played for 4 years: Fallout 3. I started playing two nights ago at around 3am, and when I decided I was done it was...1030am. Ouch! But, my sleep-addled brain realized this may be an excellent opportunity! I just had to wrap my sleep schedule around - stay up later and later each night, until I am awake and fall sleep at the right hours once again. I figured it was worth a try.

Yesterday, I woke at 6pm, and stayed up until 3pm. Today, I woke at midnight and will hopefully stay up until 6pm or later. If this works as expected, in a few days I should be falling asleep near midnight and awake at 8 or 9am. We shall see.

(x-posted to Google+ and LiveJournal, so if you've seen this title then feel free to skip)

For those that don't know, I own a 1995 Mustang GT and I like to do my own repair work if I can. I've done so long enough that I can handle most repairs myself, saving me a small fortune in mechanic fees. I've had a weird flutter in the Mustang that I haven't had a lot of luck tracking down. Nothing really serious, but it's been an annoyance and my gas mileage has suffered for it. I took another shot at fixing the problem tonight after work. Bad part about working on an engine after driving home from work: it's HOT! Got a couple of minor burns I'm nursing now. Replaced the part and went out for a test drive. Car is already running better, but I want to get it up to freeway speeds just to be sure. So off I drive to the nearest on-ramp. This is where things went wrong, and I'm not talking about the Mustang.

For those that don't know, I live in Los Angeles; right at the intersection of the 10 and 405 freeways. My usual freeway test drive is: hop on the 405, exit on to the 10, and take the next exit back to surface streets and home. A quick jaunt, but it's more than enough to test things out. So I get on to the 405, and suddenly traffic starts slowing down. At 11:00pm, traffic should at least be moving smoothly even here in LA. Nope, I forgot that there's construction going on at night when the fewest people are (theoretically) driving. The exit to the 10 freeway is blocked off. No problem, I'll bypass the 10 and take the next exit off the 405 and turn around. BAM! More traffic. I sit through that and find out the exit I want is ALSO closed. I begin to wonder what deity I annoyed today. The following exit is open, but all the cars that wanted to use the last two closed exits are using that one AND the next two. I'm not familiar with all these exits, so I skip ahead to the next one where I know has an on-ramp nearby that goes back in the other direction - back home. Exit is completely empty. I turn left from the light at the bottom of the ramp, turn the corner and SHIT!! MORE construction! I am livid at this point. To make it worse, the ramp I wanted I can't use! It's open, but the construction won't let me turn left. Fine. I keep going, figuring to turn around as soon as I can. No such luck, there aren't any places to turn around. The street runs parallel to the freeway, so I eventually give up on turning around and just look for the next on-ramp. I find it, take the corner and...IT'S CLOSED TOO! AAARRRGGGHH!!! Resigned, I keep going and cross over the freeway I've been trying to get on to for a while. Still no place to turn around. I am finally able to turn left, which takes me back over the freeway again - and I find myself on the Mulholland Drive bridge, the one that closed down the 405 for a weekend so half of the bridge could be torn down. I forget my frustration temporarily as I drive over the bridge, there's not much to see but it's kinda neat anyway. I keep driving down Mulholland Drive, figuring it will meet up with Sepulveda Blvd and get me headed back home.

Oh, I was so wrong.

I admit, I'm not familiar with this area of Los Angeles. After a bit of driving, I don't see Sepulveda Blvd so I pull over. Time to use the GPS in my phone to get me home....and realize I left my phone at home. Just a quick test drive, right? Sigh. I reach for my Thomas Guide (a really excellent and highly detailed local map) and find where I am. I see it intersects with Sepulveda a ways up (wrong, I misread the map - Mulholland Drive goes OVER Sepulveda), so I keep driving forward. And drive. AND drive. I get to the scenic part of Mulholland Drive, a nice winding, twisty road with a beautiful view of the night lights of LA. Foolishly, I keep going. The road heads upwards; I get worried when the road narrows and the yellow lines are so faded I can't see them anymore. Eventually, the road takes a sharp right and is now in better condition, so I figure I must be close now. Downhill I go, passing some really nice and expensive homes. I already knew something was wrong, but I was enjoying the nighttime drive. Now I know I've gone WAY too far. I pull over again and read the map VERY CAREFULLY this time. Obviously I've screwed up, and I'm not sure exactly where I am now. So I turn around to retrace my steps. Another fun drive back down Mulholland Drive, across the freeway, all the way back to that one on-ramp I couldn't turn left into. It was open (THANK GOD) and in about 10 minutes I was finally home.

The part I replaced seems to have fixed the flutter in the Mustang. This whole mess of a trip was about 20 miles round-trip, and I hardly made a dent in the gas gauge. So I think I fixed that problem too. And I got one heck of a story out of it, so it wasn't all that bad in the end.

YOU JUST WOKE UP NAKED IN BED NEXT TO ME...

While using only three words, what would you say if this were to happen?

Note: If you comment, please copy and paste this as your journal, so I may comment on yours as well. Be a good sport. ;3

http://www.flickr.com/photos/391345.....7624687332466/

Not bad, not bad. The guy's got talent.

http://www.damnlag.com/mewtwos-disappointment/

*can't stop laughing*

A nationally syndicated radio station had their annual concert the same weekend as Califur, and we shared the same hotel. Check out my LJ for more info:

http://chythar.livejournal.com/34044.html

..that I'm going to Midwest Furfest this year. I've been meaning to go for a while, honestly. And since I missed both Califur and Anthrocon (due to not having a job and money), I need a con to go to before Further Confusion comes around again. I think my furry sanity (such that it is) depends on it. So, I need someone to stay with. Anyone got space for a black kitty cat?

Fursona Meme

What is the name of your fursona?
Chythar

Where did the name of your Fursona come from?
It kinda evolved. The feline that would be Chy originally came from a Star Wars roleplaying session. This was before I knew what Furry was, but I really liked reading about anthropomorphic cats in various sci-fi books. My friends in high school started up a Star Wars RP, and I asked the GM if I could make up my own race. He said sure, just come up with a basic race description. I had just read C.J. Cherryh's Chanur series and really liked the main female character, Pyanfar. So I changed the name slightly to be more masculine, Pyanthar. He was a black cat, whose fur was a mix of black and really dark gray so he could hide in the shadows.

Now, this GM would dole out experience based on how well you acted as your character, not how many things you killed. I remember one moment very fondly, one of my friends was playing a Han Solo-type, and he was teasing Da Kitty. I started growling as I spoke to my friend in-game, and finaly stood up and started shouting at him! My friend looked all scared of me, and stammered out "It's only a game, man!" I broke character, smiled at him and said "I know." I then immediately went back into character and started shouting at him again. My friend wasn't quite sure how to take this, but the GM was grinning from ear-to-ear. I got a lot of XP that session. :)

Chythar got the "Ch" several years later. I had discovered Furry Fandom and was going to my second Confurence. I had used an old nickname of mine the first year, but it just didn't fit me. I thought of ol' Pyanthar, but the name didn't roll well off the tongue. I had recently started reading Fred Perry's Gold Digger comic, and was very fond of the character Cheetah. I messed around with the two names until the one name sounded right. And thus, Chythar was born (so to speak). :)

What species is your fursona and why did you choose that species?
Black house cat. I've always loved felines, but it seemed that so many others were choosing exotic or other wild species. I didn't feel the need to choose something so powerful, Chythar already had plenty of confidence in himself. So I deliberately choose a house cat.

What color is your fursona and why? Hair/fur/eyes/etc
Hair: No hair
Fur: all Black
Eyes: a mix of green & yellow

What is your fursona's personality and how does this compare to your irl personality?
When I first started RP'ing as Chythar on IRC, Chy and I were similar but not identical. Chy was who I wanted to be - confident, powerful and comfortable with who he was. I felt I was none of those things, and I was kinda shy too. Chy was also in good physical shape, nice and trim with a good amount of muscle. I was badly out of shape and fat. However, over the years Chy and I began to merge. As I RP'd as Chythar, I guess you could say I got plenty of practice in being who I wanted to be, and that eventually carried over into me. Eventually, my online presence became my RL personality. I'm still not as trim RL as Chythar is, but I'm getting there. I certainly have the strength. :)

What is one item your fursona owns that is significant to you irl?
Nothing, actually. He doesn't wear any sort of jewelery or anything I'm attached to in any way.

What is one thing you think you would say to your fursona if you could meet?
"How much can you bench press?"

What is one thing your fursona would say to you if you could meet?
"Don't you get cold, without any fur?"

How has your fursona changed over the years?
Chythar hasn't changed from when I first created him, it's his player that's changed to fit him. I did make a fursuit of Chythar, and that suit has changed a decent amount. When I first made a suit of Chy, I had to add a muscle suit underneath to make him appear muscular. Over time, I started going to the gym and putting muscle on my human form. So the padded muscle for Chy had to go. Then I had to open some of the seams and add more fur, because I had too much muscle to fit inside the suit anymore. And again, and again.

Would you like to be more like your fursona?
Of course! I would absolutely LOVE to be a furry for real! I'd love to have a tail, or at least have his trim yet muscular physique.

OK, I have to give in to this one. And for those I've seen that have low bar tabs, you need to go out and live some! :p

The only catch is that you can't ask the person who posted it anything about it!
Just read the "offense" and if you've done it, you owe that fine.
Keep going until you've read each "offense" and added up your total fine.
Title your response "My Bar Tab is$........"
You don't have to confess your answers, just the amount of your fine.

Smoked pot -- $10
Did acid -- $5
Did some X -- $15
Did cocaine -- $20
Did meth -- $25
Ever had sex at church -- $25
Woke up in the morning and did not know the person who was next to you--$40
Had sex with someone on MySpace -- $25
Had sex for money -- $100
Ever had sex with a Puerto Rican -- $20
Had sex with members of the same family -- $50
Had sex with 2 different people in the same day -- $50
Vandalized something -- $20
Had sex on your parents' bed -- $10
Beat up someone -- $20
Been jumped -- $10
Crossed dressed -- $10
Given money to stripper -- $25
Been in love with a stripper -- $20
Kissed some one who's name you didn't know --$10
Hit on some one of the same sex while at work-- $15
Ever drive drunk -- $20
Ever got drunk at work, or went to work while still drunk -- $50
Used toys while having sex -- $30
Got drunk, passed out and don't remember the night before -- $20
Went skinny dipping -- $5
Had sex in a pool -- $20
Kissed someone of the same sex -- $10
Had sex with someone of the same sex -- $20
Cheated on your significant other -- $10
Masturbated -- $10
Cheated on your significant other with their relative or close friend --$50
Done oral -- $5
Got oral -- $5
Done / got oral in a car while it was moving-- $25
Stole something -- $10
Had sex with someone in jail -- $100
Spit in someone's food --$25
Made a nasty home video -- $15
Had a threesome -- $50
Had sex in the wild -- $20
Been in the same room while someone was having sex -- $25
Stole something worth over more than a hundred dollars -- $20
Had sex with someone 10 years older -- $20
Had sex with someone under 21 and you are over 27 -- $25
Been in love with two people or more at the same time -- $50
Said you love someone but didn't mean it -- $25
Went streaking -- $5
Went streaking in broad daylight -- $15
Been arrested -- $5
Spent time in jail -- $15
Played spin the bottle -- $5
Done something you regret -- $20
Had sex with your best friend -- $20
Had sex with someone you work with at work --$25
Had anal sex -- $80
Lied to your mate -- $5
Lied to your mate about the sex being good --$25
Been raped -- $500
Have raped -- $200
Had sex with some one under 16 -- $300
Had sex with a dog -- $25
Had sex with a horse -- $50
Had sex with a cat -- $75 (add $50 if you tied it up so you didn't get scratched)
Have you ever had sex in a fursuit -- $100
Have you ever had sex while your partner wore a fursuit -- $100
Been spanked by a lover -- $50
Been whipped by a lover -- $ 100
Been fisted -- $150
If you know what "CBT" stands for -- $250
Used whip cream in bed -- $25
Used handcuffs in bed -- $50
Used a whip or paddle in bed -- $75
Ever imagined the person you where having sex with was some one else -- $100
If you have had a butt plug in for more then an hour -- $75
If you ever used any vacuum cleaner attachments -- $100
Had someone come climb in your bedroom window for sex so your parents would not find out -- $100
Used a blow up doll -- $50
Drove away from a car accident you caused -- $500
Cut yourself on purpose -- $100
Cut someone else on purpose -- $150
Pissed on some one -- $10 (Add $10 if they drank it)
Been pissed on -- $15 (add $20 if you drank it)
Shit on some one -- $20 (add $25 if they ate it)
Been shit on -- $25 (add $50 if you ate it)
If you have ever been shot -- $300
Dyed your hair -- $10
Dyed your pubes -- $20
If you ever ate your own cum (vaginal fluids for females)-- $20
Smoked while having sex -- $20
Ate a sandwich while having sex -- $50
Slapped someone across the face while fucking them-- $100
If you ever shoved a candle up someone's ass and lit it-- $200
Fucked someone while they were crying-- $300
If you have ever fucked a girl on the rag -- $100
If you ate her out after -- $200
If you have sucked your own cum out of a guy's ass -- $200
If you took this test and were completely honest add -- $500
Didn't use a condom -- $50
Got an STD -- $ 25
Have an STD -- $ 100
Planned to kill some one -- $50
Killed somebody -- $1,000
Add $5 for each tattoo and piercing you have
Add $10 for each scar over an inch long that you have

Tally it up and title it..."My Bar Tab Is $...."