The Kittens - Part I

Dear Readers,

I'm so terribly sorry for not having written so far this week. However, I promise that I have five very good reasons for falling behind on my posts - and here they are:

These are the five orphan kittens I've taken under my wing. Here's the back story: My family and I went to Petco because we wanted my little sister to see the animals they had up for adoption. While we were looking around, two frantic women came up to the temporary adoption desk carrying an old cardboard box. Inside? These five, teeny-tiny kittens - not even a week old - huddling for warmth. The women had discovered the poor dears somewhere outside UNO's campus. They had been feeding them all night, but could not keep them due to allergies. A friend had recommended they go to the adoption center to try and give them away, but the adoption lady had to refuse them.

"The best thing to do will be to take them to a shelter and have them put to sleep. It's the most humane thing to do..." One of the women (who I later found out had recently lost a cat of her own) began to cry. I couldn't help myself.
"What are the options for foster care?" I inquired.
"Well someone would have to take care of them; feed them, make them pee, keep them warm..."
"What if I did that?" The women looked me over.
"That's between you all," the adoption lady said warily.
The rest is history... After taking down the numbers of the two women, promising to keep them informed of the kittens' health and such, I brought the five little tykes home with me. My sister was thrilled. I've been hand feeding them every four hours, and since Saturday they've learned to eliminate by themselves.
I took them to the vet today to have them checked out, but the doctor couldn't do much since they're still so young. They have yet to open their eyes...
I'm a bit worried about finding homes for them, but my primary concern at this moment is keeping them happy and healthy.

I'll have more time to post after this coming weekend. The kittens require my attention, and I'm going to try and get as much of my school-work done early this week because my parents are visiting for my birthday on Sunday (10-10-10!). Next week the kittens reduce their number of feedings per day and will be slightly more self-sufficient. I promise to make up for lost time and all the missing Halloween costume ideas then. In the meantime I will be posting sporadically to keep you up to date on the kittens as well as any other snippets I have time for.

If you happen to live in the New Orleans area and would be interested in adopting one or more of the kittens, please email me!

Blog Update and Halloween

Dear Readers,

Bear with me, I promise there's some more interesting stuff after some administrative stuff... which might just be interesting to you as well!

Not much of a costume, but still adorable!

You may have noticed some changes to the layout of the blog. If not, here's a basic low-down of what's different:

1) I've added a link gadget specifically for my segments to the left sidebar, as well as the Human Calendar. Click on the link to find out more - very interesting project, if you ask me.

2) You'll notice a new "Share" gadget at the bottom of each post. I like this one better because of the shortcuts to Facebook and Twitter. With this gadget you can also share my blog posts on almost 300 different websites - feel free to test this feature out as many times as you'd like!

3) Finally, the right sidebar also has some changes - I've updated the links list as well as the "Friends of the Blog" list, and added a list of books I've read or am currently reading. Below that is the latest Blogger gadget, "Popular Posts".

Kids: Don't be like Snow White!Never take apples from a witch... even a pretty one!

Now, on to the interesting portion of this post! I have a big announcement regarding October (which starts tomorrow, if you didn't know). In honor of Halloween, I've decided to feature a new costume idea every day until the 31st! Music Mondays and my Project Runway reviews will still remain throughout the week, on top of the costume posts, but as usual, there will be no posts on Sundays.

Don't worry, my costumes will be much more modern than these...Unless you don't want them to be?

I'm trying to arrange these chronologically in descending order of complexity, so as to allow enough time for each costume. Next week will also be couples week, where I hope to feature some more original ideas for couples costumes - don't worry single readers, you can always use these costumes as separates.

I personally highly recommend against cliche and "type" costumes in general.These are culpable of double Joepardy.

I'm also trying to balance the ratio of male to female costumes, as well as the ratio of costumes referring to current events to those that are a bit more nostalgic in appeal. I also welcome any and all suggestions to my e-mail at nostalgically_yours@hotmail.com

...They got a rock.

Can't wait to see what I come up with? Subscribe or follow to get updated on all my costume ideas throughout the month. You can also follow me on Twitter to get instant updates and extra thoughts on just about anything!

Only one of these folks planned ahead.The rest show you what happens when you wait 'til the last minute.

Happy Halloween!
Nostalgically Yours

Blog Update

Dear Readers,

Today we reached (and broke) the 1,000 visitor mark! Thanks to all of you readers for making this possible. It might not seem like much to you, but it means a ton to this blogger who never really expected his blog to go anywhere.

In honor of this exciting event, I've decided to unveil my blog's new logo, based on a drawing I did. Here is my process for you:

My original pencil and ink drawing

I isolated the desired elements and pumped up the contrast

Then I cleaned up the lines and added the name

Well, readers, what do you think? Before you make your decision, check out these color combinations:

These logos are based on my new glasses, which I will feature in a post later this week. I hope you like them, and I can't wait to hear what you think.


Thanks for reading!
Nostalgically Yours

Back by the Indelible Power of Patience

Thanks to wonder of home shopping I am able to write to you all from a full-size computer. Though it is not my personal computer, I hope to have one soon - which isn't too much to expect considering I start my online classes on the second. Anyway, I want to finish up a bunch of stuff this week, like the "About Me" page. I'll also have the first installment of my advice columns up this week, and I'm still working on the project I mentioned in this post. Lots to look forward to this week! Please check in often!

Don't forget to comment to tell me what you think, or you can e-mail me at nostalgically_yours@hotmail.com

A Brief Hiatus

Dear Readers,

Some recent complications with my surgery from last week mean that my recuperation will take more time than expected. This also means that I'll be unable to post regularly over the next week. Hopefully you'll check back starting next week for more, and in the mean time perhaps you could use this as an opportunity to look around a bit, read some of my older posts, etc.

See you next week!
Nostalgically Yours

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes

Dear Readers,

You may have noticed some significant changes to my blog. I think they're a great improvement, but I still have a couple of minor tweaks to finish up, but things won't be changing very much for now.

You probably will also have noticed the tabs I've added: About Me, two Portfolio pages, and two "Ask" pages. Here's a brief overview:

The Portfolio pages are now home to a sample of my artwork and sewing portfolio. I'll update it every so often and keep you posted when I do.

The About Me page will soon contain a more detailed description of myself and my motivations for writing this blog.

The Ask pages are the new feature I wanted to talk to you about: Starting today, I will publicly answer your questions in two arenas: Etiquette (Ask a Gentleman) and Costume Design or Sewing (Ask a Costumer). You can e-mail your questions to nostalgically_yours@hotmail.com, and please specify whether it is a question about Costumes/Sewing or Etiquette. Every two weeks I'll answer one of the two columns in turn. Please see each individual page for more details!

Hope you like the changes!
Nostalgically Yours

Update

Just letting you know I've posted some relevant (and irrelevant) pictures on my Facebook Group. Check them out, join the group, and check back often for exclusive content and updates from yours truly.

Thanks for Reading!

Nostalgically Yours

Readers! Opinions Please!

Dear Readers,

I've recently been looking into the possibility of posting some "pages" as extras in my blog - things like "About Me" or a "Portfolio" page... Perhaps even a new "Ask Me Anything" column! I wanted to know what you, my readers, would be interested in seeing. Please comment below, or contact me via my new blog e-mail: Nostalgically_Yours@hotmail.com!

Any and all comments are appreciated!!

Nostalgically Yours

Stayed Tuned all this Week!

Just a reminder that I've still got some pics from New Orleans to put up, so don't forget to check in every day!

Nostalgically Yours

Apology for my Absence

Dear Readers,

I just wanted to apologize for my absence from the blogosphere since last Wednesday... As much as I enjoyed posting on my iPhone, I just had to take a break from the tiny screen and keyboard. Since my return to Northern Virginia, house guests, doctor's appointments, and packing have all but entirely consumed my time. Thus, the lack of posts since Wednesday. Some of you may not even have noticed, but I still feel the need to apologize in the form of a lolcat:

More today,
Nostalgically Yours

Just a Quick Note...

...to say thanks for the responses to yesterday's post. I wish to state publicly to you readers that photos for this past week's blog entries will be uploaded by this weekend. I return "home" tomorrow evening to finish packing for the move down here to NOLA. I'm truly bummed out about going back, but I'm ecstatic at the amount of visitors I received today, breaking the record for most visitors by about 20 people. This leaves me to womder why only three of you actually commented, but I shan't be ungrateful for your readership. Being back in DC brings the good fortune of having a computer with which to create more fully-rounded posts, including pictures. Of course blogger allows us writers to blog via email with pics, but I couldn't quite figure that out this trip- there's always next time!

Nostalgically Yours

I'd Like to Get Your Opinion Readers

Dear Readers,

Seeing as I seem to have two dovetailing themes on this blog, sewing and everything else, I was considering starting up a new blog to dedicate to sewing, millinery, design, and other such items. I would then continue this blog and focus more on talking about New Orleans and everything else going on in my life and in pop culture, etc...

I'd really appreciate your opinions
Nostalgically Yours

A Quick Shout-out to my Readers

Dear Readers,

This is just a quick note to say thank you for reading! I'm glad you've found me interesting enough to stick around this long. I'd also like to take this opportunity to remind you that you're my best form of publicity. If you know anyone who'd be interested in reading my blog, please feel absolutely free to share!! The best way for me to know I'm doing something right is to see more hits on this page each day. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you!

Remember, I'm always thrilled to get feedback on my posts, including your thoughts on the matter- that's what the comment box is there for! You don't have to have a Blogger account to comment, and don't worry, it won't bite!

Warmest Regards,
Nostalgically Yours