I have actually done a hands feature before; apparently, I like them.

I'm desperately trying to spread Lyme Disease awareness, but I want to do it in a way that doesn't just say, "Hey, this exists!" Lyme Disease is a very, very serious and painful illness - so I'm going to do a series of features related to some of its symptoms.

Hands are so important. We do so many things with them.
My hands suffer from Lyme. The palms of my hands swell and hurt; the tops of my hands, between my joints, swell and are sensitive to the touch. The joints in my fingers ache, and my fingers swell so that I cannot get rings on and off. Sometimes my hands tingle, like I have lost circulation. Sometimes they burn. When I first got sick, my hands would become suddenly so weak that I couldn't press a button on the television remote control, or I would drop what I was holding. Sometimes when the palms or joints swell, I still can't hold things. The swelling and pain is random; it comes and goes, and there's no way to predict it.

:thumb160474326:


  
  



    

I hope you like the feature!

Previous Lyme-Related Feature: [link]
Previous Hands Feature: [link]

I found these in my favorites.

I think I've mentioned before that I have Lyme Disease, and that it causes swelling around my joints, particularly in my back. In the last 6 hours, my back went from being just fine - I could feel my spine all the way up and down - to being completely swollen. I could feel it change, and I felt like crying. I've been using ice packs for hours trying to bring the swelling down. This is putting a cramp in my schoolwork/school/work/life.

I feel like an old building breaking down. From the moment of birth, our bodies begin to decay. I'll be 24 next month - almost two years of Lyme Disease.























:thumb252133393:

:thumb252520345:




lyme is an ignored wordit's not worrying, to the doctors;
that grinding of your thumb into your hand
like a nervous tick, the shifting
from foot to less swollen foot. fear burning
like the hot steering wheel massaging your palm
bringing pain to relieve pain; temporary
scars on the lifeline, swollen:
back, hands, feet, knees. brain
bugs crawling in imaginary directions
aching to get out
stretch
move, dance
like you feel human. a small thing,
parasite, darkness, just
a day on skin still twenty-three,
even if twenty-three is a struggle like eighty. Abandoned HouseWarped old bones, bowed knees curve
to age, nature's way of breaking down
everything that's been built up;
arthritic old body, aching with the
cold and sleepy with the heat – still here.
Gray and bleary-eyed, windows
battered by storm, mind collecting dust
and tidbits of all of the lives lived here.
An extra creak from the roof as it sags
with its own weight, like a man who's seen
too much of the wrong thing. Timeless,
not like a classic car or an old movie, but china
cabinet trinkets played with by grandchildren
who never really forget. Every year, something
new: shutters, tile, wallpaper over
wallpaper, garage on th


    




I hope you've enjoyed the features! I love all of these wonderful artists!
Yes, I do realize I began and ended this feature with my own art, but I made this feature to try to make myself feel better, and it kind of worked (emotionally, not physically). So I just hope to share the love.



Lyme-themed Blog Entry (an overview): [link]
2nd Lyme-themed Feature (Hands): [link]

Hi!

I got this from ~scorpiandoll
I'm not going to tag someone else but if you want to answer these question, feel free to do it

1. why are you here on DA ?
To share my art and expose myself to others' art
2. did you came to DA because of somebody else ?
My best friend, ~sorgie, and a few other people I knew were here
3. do you like the " Pirates of the Caribbean " movies ?
Random, but yes. I've seen them all, and I love them.
4. do you have the feeling too that everybody is leaving DA ?
I don't, actually. I know a lot of people disappear for a while, but there are a lot of reasons for that, and sometimes they come back. Like me. I do that a lot because I'm sickly. Sorry, guys.
5. did you knew that Philips made " Zelda " video games ?
Don't tell anyone, but I've never played Zelda... <.<
6. Laser or Ink Printer ?
This is interesting. Please tell me the difference between the two!
7. how many languages do you speak fluently, and which ?
I speak American English, and everyone always asks me about my accent. It's from all over the country. My Spanish is terrible, but I speak a little, and that's about it. Language is sadly not one of my strengths.
8. for Christmas: classic halogen lightbulbs or modern modern LED technology?
I like the ones that don't give me headaches. Old school.
9. do you think DDs are always well chosen ? do you want one ?
I usually enjoy the DDs, and I think they are * often * well chosen, even if I find myself scratching my head over some of them. I would love to have a DD, but I couldn't think of a single work in my gallery that deserves one.
10. do you want to be married ? will be soon ? are already ?
I don't want to get old and die all alone, but marriage is a questionable thing for me. I like the idea of two people loving each other forever, but in practice, I think it's really just a financial contract. I guess I'll have to find someone I like well enough to date let alone to marry.

Okay...and now this;
RULES

1. For each of the 20 first people answering this journal, I will put their avatar and the three deviations I like most from their gallery on the list!

2. If you answer, you have to do the same in your journal, putting the tagger on the first place. The idea of this is not to get a free feature, it is to spread art around for everyone!

1)
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Okay, I'm stuck in this Jane Austen paper funk, and I'm not really sure how I got into it (aside from taking far too long to decide what I wanted my paper to be about). So! To remedy this, I'm starting a little holiday project for myself and my watchers. As you are all either artists or art appreciators (or dArama queens, who knows), this might be pretty fun.

I've already gotten #LoveYourBelly with the random poetry bug, so I'm now spreading it to you, watchers. You may feel free to spread it around to your watchers, too, and maybe there could be a big poetry thing, but I might be overreaching.

Here's your mission!
Leave a comment on this journal like so (keep it clean):

1) 1-5 words describing your favorite activity
2) 1-3 words describing how you feel when doing this activity
3) Describe your favorite smell or sound (as many words as you need)
4) 1-3 words: What is your favorite household object?
5) What is your LEAST favorite household chore?

See, once you post this in the comments, you'll have made a poem! And then I'm going to put all of your answers into a hat and draw them out at random and make a big group poem! Yaaaay.

And no, I don't know why I chose those five things for my list. But I hope the result will be interesting!

Greetings and salutations, ghoulish fiends.

It has been many moons since I updated my journal, so here you go!

I still have Lyme Disease, but I'm doing much better. I found out that the medicine that treats it (that I'm not allergic to) also treats things like sinus infections (which I have... a lot) and bronchitis and other common annoying ailments. So I don't have to go to the doctor and beg him to believe that Lyme Disease exists and I have it. I can just go for something he knows I have, and I get treated for both. :gasp: It's kind of exciting. Also, it means the doctors hate me less. But treatment for Lyme is a painful thing (it causes my back to hurt and swell more than usual, and I'm not going to mention my feet or knees, or - dear Gods - my hands).

I did replace my hard drive over the summer (so proud), but my dearly beloved laptop is starting to fall apart. The monitor is coming detached, and there's a crack on the back of it that's been spreading for weeks. THUS, I have purchased a brand new laptop! Yes! It comes with Roxio Creator, and I got a Correl Paintshop Pro to go with it, too, so I'm super excited to try out new photo editing stuff. It's been so loooong. I've been going through withdrawals, and let me tell you, picnix is not helping. (Yes, I've been using picnix... so blame the sepia overload on them). I can't even describe how excited I am about this laptop. I've had butterflies in my stomach. It's a Dell with an I7 processor, 8gb memory, a 760gb hard drive, a damn good graphics card, and like I said, it has photo editing software, too. Oh, and Office Professional (the one with Publisher AND PowerPoint). Seriously, I might go mad between now and when it gets here (which is ostensibly between now and Tuesday).

I am very sad that I'll be giving up Lord Doomington and his brand new hard drive, but I'm donating him to my mom, so I'm sure he'll be well appreciated, if not loved as much as I love him. I hope he lasts a while for her. With school and stuff, I just can't have him dying at some inopportune moment.

I'm in college again. I'm going to a university only have an hour from my house and five minutes from the department store where I work, and even though it doesn't have Creative Writing as a major, I'm okay with it. Thus far, I'm working on an English Major with a Creative Writing Minor, and I just added a History Major and a Theater Minor. I'm insane, but I'm loving it. This school is ridiculously friendly! This semester, I've got: general English, Intro to Programming/Computer Science, Intro to Theater, Logic, and Contemporary Health Issues, and in the short time that I've been here, I've made more friends (at least to wave to) than I did at U of I.

I also just joined Google+ (seriously, just now, while I was writing this). I seem to be all alone on there, though, so you should come join me! I have absolutely no idea how it works, and I probably won't for a while, so help is good. =3 My profile is here: [link]

I've got class in 15 minutes (the computer science one), so I'm going to head out. Thanks for reading, and especially, thank you for being my watchers!!!

Love!

Hello, lovelies!

I just got back from vacation at the Lake of the Ozarks (super fun), and I have a sunburn and some faded freckles to show for it. Also, a couple of photos for you.

I've vanished because a couple weeks ago, my laptop power cord literally exploded, flames and sparks and all, while I was holding it. I'm not exactly sure when I'm going to get another one, but hopefully it's soon because I NEED my laptop. :lol"  I'm writing from a sad, sad computer that I have to sit in the cold basement to use (and my poor Lyme Diseased back isn't happy about it).

I'll give you what photos I can now, and I'll bring you a new update when I have a functional laptop again!

Love!

Hello, my watchers! I hope today finds you well. This is a nice, short journal for you!

A while back, I joined a #Elite-Bellydance, and they do a really cool thing for their members: they interview them. They ask all sorts of interesting questions, and they make you feel very special. I expected the interview to just be in the group journal, but I got a message a minute ago, and it's actually in the news feed, so if you want to read it (or favorite it), check it out!

Here is the interview featuring me: [link]

Check out my new facebook page as well: [link]

Thank you very much!

How are you? <-- Leave a comment; I would love to know.

Spring has come to my little part of the world, and it makes me very happy! I do apologize for an influx of flower photos... I LOOOVE flowers, so naturally, I'm going to photograph the heck out of them (when I can find them, which isn't as often as I'd like).

My Lyme Disease drama continues, but I just got a referral to Mayo Clinic today, so hopefully, they'll let me in and figure out how to help me. I'm so excited. At the moment, I have a cold, too, so my voice sounds fantastically obnoxious. My family keeps hoping it will keep me from talking. Nothing keeps me from talking!

I think I've forgotten to mention this before, but I got to model for a fellow deviant (and very good friend). She is fabulous and super fun, and since I'd never modeled before (with the exception of my grandma's photography endeavors when I was little), it was a great experience being in front of the camera. She actually gave me a HUGE framed print of one of the portraits as a present. Please go check out her work - She is ~SkyNight, and these are the photos that I had the privilege of modeling for: [link] [link] [link] [link] [link] The last one is the one I have in print, and I LOVE it.

I made a facebook page! Please like me on facebook! I've only added a few of my photos on there so far, but I'm going to add more, and I would be honored if you'd like me. Find my page here: [link]

Anyone who wants to donate points to help #LoveYourBelly become a supergroup may do so in my donation pool. We might even get there one day.

Okay, I think that's all for now. Thanks for reading, and HAPPY SPRING!

Snake Arms, that is!

At long last, I have mustered up the energy to write a new journal. Huzzah!

I am very proud of the group #LoveYourBelly, which is a group created to celebrate all things belly dance. We have some fabulous admins, and we've had great art coming into our galleries. But we could be better! We'd love to get our members more involved in the group with polls and features, and to do this, we need to be a super group. To be a super group, we need POINTS. So, at risk of bending backwards to beg for points, I would like to let you know that I have a donation pool up on my profile (yay!). Secretly, it's been there for a while, I just haven't told anyone yet. X.X And yes, I will dance for points.


General updates in the life of a Tracy:

February is almost over, which is rather horrifying (I feel like it's still December), but we've been having nice weather here in the Midwest, and that makes me happy, if a bit restless. My birthday is coming! March 21st for anyone planning on getting me a present (kidding - I expect nothing more and nothing less than smiles).

:dohtwo: I broke the thing in my computer that lets me transfer photos from the camera card in my Kodak. Mostly because I wasn't paying attention and stuck the Sony's camera card in backwards. It went IN fine. It just wouldn't come OUT. Well, it did, eventually, come out, but not without a sickening crunch noise (and looking inside, I could see where it pulled up some little metal bits). The Sony's memory card still works in my computer, though! I think it's because when I put it in (correctly), it pushes the metal bits back down. The Kodak, not so much. The card is smaller, so my computer ignores it (and then, if it recognizes it, it only lets me look at the folder and contents and not touch). But that's OKAY! Because I like the Sony better than my cheap little buddy (the Sony isn't mine, it's my mom's, and I do so like having a reason to use it).

My Lyme Disease is still pretty bad, but I have ANOTHER doctor's appointment (this time with a rheumatologist, which I can't spell). If I didn't mention the outcome of the previous appointment, it's because my brain wants to explode when I think about it. One must not call oneself an expert in something which one does not either understand nor care about. Also: naming the symptoms and telling the patient to treat those is NOT the same as naming the disease and treating that (btw, if you cure the disease, you don't need to treat the symptoms because they'll be gone). I'm going to cut this rant short because if it goes any further, I'll be too angry to sleep. And sleep is good. Fuming about a small minded old fart of a doctor who used to work for the CDC and probably contributed to the trouble Lyme Disease patients go through to get diagnosed and treated (how is a tick-born disease political, I ask you!?) is NOT going to make me better.

My future is cold! I volunteered for a Polar Plunge, which, I believe, should benefit the Special Olympics. Someone decided we should all wear kilts, so on the 26th, I'm going to run into a lake wearing a pseudo Scottish girly Halloween costume with some of my coworkers. I'm super excited about it. I've never done anything like this before (my mom is convinced I'm going to die, but I get free food, so I'm okay with that).

I MIGHT be in the St. Louis Mardi Gras parade this year (likely wandering next to a car throwing beads). I'm so excited!


Thank you, my dear and darling Watchers! I love you mucho!

Footnote: My apologies for an excessive use of emoticons, but they make me very happy (and I like using them as bullets instead of,  you know, bullets).

I hope you all have a wonderful day!

My lyme disease symptoms are getting worse, and I've had to cut my hours at work, but I get to go to the doctor on January 4th. If you want to learn more about the disease, the Lyme Disease Association is very cool: [link] and there's a group dedicated to it here on devArt: #LymeDiseaseSupport that's nice and supportive. Chronic illnesses are horrible, and my sympathies go out to anyone who has one.

Next: Happy Solstice, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, etc. I am quite excited. I have a hard time not giving away what presents I got for people right away. I love getting presents for people. ...I could do with fewer cheesy Hallmark holiday movies, though. My mom likes them.

Finally: SOMEBODY keeps demanding I show him my poetry, and that's something I'm a little shy about because I'm never happy with it. But, I figure there's actually no harm in it, and I may get a little feedback about them, which is always helpful in the long run. So, if you don't mind, I'm going to start submitting some of my poems here. I do have another account, so if you think I should submit my writing on that one instead of this one, let me know.

Thanks!

I can't believe it's November! My year has gone by so fast! (Yay chronic illnesses...)

Anyway, I wanted to know how people feel about my recent animal photos. Animals are something that, aside from my kittens, I really have never been able to photograph well, but since I've kidnapped my mom's camera, I have gotten better quality images, and I am super excited.

Mostly, I was wondering how people would feel about a kitten calender. My family suggested it, and I think it would be cutish, but I'm not sure if anyone would be interested. I, personally, am more interested in a horses calender (though I've only thus far submitted a couple of new horse photos, so I'm sure you're scratching your heads about that one). I might make calenders anyway just for the fun of it, but I would always appreciate feedback.

Finally: PUMPKIN BARS. Not pie, not cookies. Just fabulous. I freaking love this season. I baking.

I have a horde of zoo animal photos, a horde of horse photos, AND a butt ton of freakishly adorable kitten photos. Which probably don't matter to you, unless you like those kinds of photos. Horses and wild animals are a new subject for me (since I've been using a better camera, I have had more luck with them).

I have overwhelmed myself with animal photos, which means I'll have to break up the Cats & Creatures folder. So now (unless I change things again in the future, which is entirely possible since I fuss with my gallery when I'm bored), there will be a Dogs & Cats folder and a Various Creatures folder. Just to make things simpler. Mostly for me (and anyone looking for specific kinds of animals).

In other news, either my lyme disease is back, or I've got some sort of flu bug. I've been in a little bit of pain for a week or so, especially in my hands when I work at Subway because I wash them often. And last night I ached so bad I had to take pain meds PLUS I kept waking up to vomit. That's my favorite. Up at all hours of the night puking my guts out. I feel a bit better right now, but that's cause I took pain meds, so I'm thinking it might be my lyme disease. Which makes me allllll kinds of sad.

Anyways, I my watchers. Thanks for all of your support. I hope my new photos bring smiles to your faces.

Much love!

So, we finally jerryrigged a way for my laptop to get online at home (yay), but only after all of our desktop computers went belly up (in the same month, too). The problem is with our internet provider, not my laptop, but we've connected a LAN to the wireless thingymergig, so I've got internet.

I no longer have lyme disease! I do still feel it a little in my hands and feet now and then, but I'm not complaining. I also have TWO jobs! I got them in the same week. I'm a sandwich artist at Subway, and a cashier at Kohls. Apparently, fall is the unofficial hiring season for everywhere around here. Life is good.

My best friend left for some missionary trip for like two years, which is incredibly depressing since I can't talk to her on the phone all the time anymore, but I've started hanging out with a friend I went to high school with who lives relatively nearby. I even modeled for her! It was a super fun experience, and it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside that she even considered using me as a model for her photography project.

Next: PHOTOS. I HAS MANY. I've been essentially offline for a long, long time, so I have this massive backlog of photos that I am going to have to share with all of you very soon before I implode. There are horses living in the field behind my yard and I went to the zoo, so I have some nice naturey/animally photos that I'd love to share, especially since I've been hijacking my mom's camera (which is infinitely better than my own) and experimenting with it. Can we say bokeh? Yes, yes we can.

My apologies to everyone for ignoring you or not sending you llamas or not viewing your artwork or reading your journals. It wasn't intentional - I was just not around. Well, I was; I was just not able to get online.

I love you all.

Here's some fantastical advice from someone who knoooows. Lyme disease is not something I would wish upon anyone. I currently have it.

Symptoms include:
Tick bite (precedes all symptoms).
Rash (which may precede or follow other symptoms) that looks like a bulls eye around raised bump of what's left of a tick bite.
Headaches.
Fever.
Joint PAIN and swelling. AHHHH! This one is a nice, shiny red flag. I'm walking around like Igor right now... It's hilarious. Really.

...apparently, those are just stage 1 symptoms. I'm afraid of asking about any of the further stages.

So, aside from the fact that looking at a computer screen for too long actually makes me motion sick (which is strange ), I'm doing a lot better now than I was when this stupid disease first set in. I'm hoping I'll be symptom-free by next week. Until I'm symptom-free, I'm insanely bored and laid up. It's actually very tough for me to get to the computer (which is in the basement), and when I'm on it, like now, I start feeling ill, so I can't upload anything until I'm better.

But never fear! Today, I can BEND MY KNEES!!!! You have no idea how satisfying that is.

I do have new photos. I went to a Ren Faire and an aquarium with my best friend, ~sorgie, in Wisconsin last week. The faire had some lovely tribal improv dancers, and a fantastic silk ribbon acrobat... I'm not sure what to call her, really. I forgot to ask. But there will be photos! Bwaha!

---

My love and well wishes to all of my fabulous watchers.

---

Check out these groups!! (They are fantastic )

A group about sharing the art and love of bellydance.

A group about bike-related art.

Ah, another journal update because I've gotten tired of the old one.

So, I've been pointedly not wandering around the countryside doing very little. I've applied to a couple of portrait studios for a job (no word yet), and I've been watching movies with my cat, Sherlock. Btw, it's just him now. Watson was hit by a car a while back. If you don't remember Watson, he was the fluffy orange kitten with the blue eyes that turned tan when he grew up.

There are adventures afoot! I'm going to Wisconsin to visit my best friend ~sorgie next week!!! I'm so excited! I get to see her like, once a year (if that). We're going to go to a renaissance fair up there. Awesomeness.

My laptop still refuses to get online at home, sooo I'm uploading my photo backlog (sorry!) on a desktop. And I'm applying to get a booth at a small town art festival in October. I'm having a hard time figuring out which photos to print and how to print them, but I'm super excited and hope they let me in.

---

Dear Watchers: I love you all. If I don't thank you on your wall, it's because I check out your galleries instead.

---

I founded these groups (and they desperately need members ):

A group about sharing the love of bellydance.

A group about bike-related art.

Oh, the things I do. Sometimes they make sense. Sometimes they don't.

So, this week in the EPIC Adventures of Tracy's Life, she has discovered two things: 1) that she had become an emotional black hole, and 2) OMFG I have to withdraw from the spring semester at school because of it. But that's okay. Because I can go back next semester. And I still get to go on spring break with my friends.

Realization #3: How my drama relates to you.

I'm at home now, and for those of you who don't know, I'm a country girl. I live in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE. Which is nice when you want to have creepy midnight dance parties barefoot around a fire, but kind of annoying when it comes to trying to find a nice, reliable internet connection.

My laptop REFUSES to get online while I'm home. It just flat out tells me no. ...Actually, it tells me that there's something wrong with my IP address. Even though there isn't anything wrong with my IP address when using different wireless connections. The other computers in the house don't have a problem.

If anyone can tell me how I might fix a wonky IP address, I'd really appreciate it. Otherwise, I can't submit photos to devArt, and that will not help that whole "i'm secretly a black hole" thing.

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Dear Watchers,
I don't write thank yous on your walls because I check out your galleries instead. I love you all.

---

I founded these groups (and they desperately need members ):

A group about sharing the art and love of bellydance.

A group about bike-related art.

Wow. Time flys when you're wasting it. It's March, spring is coming (just in time to save me from complete insanity), and I'm going to be 22 soon. March 21st, in case anyone was wondering.

I really, really, really, really want to do a feature, but do to my complete lack of funding (and therefore lack of subscription), a feature would not turn out very well.

In OTHER news -- I have news!

I'll be performing with my troupe at Bellies for Life at the High Dive (if anyone's in Urbana/Champaign). It's an all bellydance event to raise awareness and money for breast cancer research. It's gonna be awesome. Here's a link to the website for info: [link]

Thanks for everyone's support for my recent submissions. It gives me a lot more confidence to go with styles I'm not really used to.

---

Clubs I'm currently a member of:


Clubs I founded:

Oh, yes. I have gone mad.
Well, no... I apparently decided with at least some part of my consciousness that my gallery was way too full of crappy photos, and this was UNACCEPTABLE. So, I fixed it. And now only 40% of my gallery is left. Which is good news for people trying to navigate through it.

Here's a link to my facebook, in case I haven't gotten around to responding to anyone's "add me" request (just mention you're on devArt): [link]

Hi everyone!

I dropped off the map for over a month because I went home for break, and I don't really get an internet connection while I'm at home. Also (and more exciting), I had my gallbladder removed! This is awesome because I've been sick for eons, and I couldn't figure out why. It was done laproscopicly (meaning instead of cutting me wide open, they poked four holes into me and pulled my gallbladder out through  my bellbutton), so I'm super sore, but I should be able to go back to dancing and other normal stuff soon. Weird stuff going on with my bellybutton, though. I'll never see it the same way again.

Despite the lack of any kind of activity I had over break, I did manage to take some new winter photos. They're different from what I've done before, and I rather like them. You'll have to let me know what you think.

I realize that you probably don't want to read my journal (PS, if you want a link to my youtube account where there are bellydance videos, keep reading)., but I haven't updated my journal in eons, so I thought I would.



My youtube account: [link] - There you will find belly dance videos and the occasional cute pet video. But, mostly, BELLYDANCE. I am a dancer, and I'm in some of the newer videos (I'm the tallest, widest, and whitest girl in the troupe). We just had a performance tonight, so new videos will be online tomorrow if you want to see them. If you have a youtube account, link me to it or add me as a friend, and I'll check out your videos and whatnot. I really have nothing better to do (except for homework, but who does that?).

It's November, and I have a week and three days before I get to go home for Thanksgiving (US). I'm super excited. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. Actually, I really like holidays (except maybe easter, which makes me a little uncomfortable).

As far as devArt is concerned, I know I haven't been here a lot recently, so I'm sorry for not replying to comments/favs/etc as I should. I really do appreciate my watchers and everything they do for me. You guys make my day. So, hugs for all: