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Phantom-Kat

Needs to catch up on fanfiction
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I passed my BTLPT exam! That was the last exam (out of four) I needed to be completely certified as a Generalist Bilingual Teacher in the state of Texas.

The BTLPT (Bilingual Target Language Proficiency Test) is an exam that tests Listening Comprehension, Oral Expression, Reading Comprehension, and Written Expression in academic Spanish. Sure I had an advantage with Spanish being my native language, but living in the US I had zero chance to actually practice academic Spanish since, what, the 3rd grade. It's one thing to talk to my parents about what I did with my friends by talking or text message. It's another thing to defend my position in an essay and analyze late 19th century poetry. 

Ironically I got a perfect score on the written portion, the part I skipped during the practice test. I am super proud of that. (My lowest was oral expression. I guess it has something to do with the fact that I'm pretty sure I have some kind of lisp, no matter the language.)

I'm just glad I don't have to waste five hours of my life again.

In another news I caught myself up on Gravity Falls. I can't wait for the final episode on the 15th. I'm planning a fanfiction with werewolves because I was quite disappointed there were no werewolves. Also expect fanart.
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Taking a stroll down memory lane is pretty interesting, so I decided to go through the account I made back in middle school.

PhantomKat7

Reading my journals and comments is like trying to make sense of my students' long-winded explanations: entertaining once you get the gist of it.

I only have eight deviations on there, but I can tell through my descriptions that creating those pieces were the highlights of my day. The satisfaction of finishing something and putting it out there is contagious almost nine years later. Drawing was fun, and I didn't know anything about techniques and expectations. I also had very little to worry about in terms of schoolwork.

What are my plans this semester? I just graduated with a bachelor's in Bilingual Education this December, and I just have my final certification exam on January 9th (the Bilingual Target Language Proficiency Test (BTLPT) Spanish). I'm learning how to drive so I can get my license and substitute teach until August, where I want to get a full-time teaching position at a nearby elementary school. I did get offered a 4th grade teaching position, but with the school under "Improvement Needed" by the state and the spring semester being state testing time it was no place for a first year teacher. (The prospect of teaching Writing and Language Arts was extremely appealing, however.) 

So suffice to say I have a lot of spare time on my hands. I want to get better. With the plethora of resources available on the web I have no excuse.  I'm been practicing human anatomy daily for a few days now. Already I can see how daily practice gets me more familiar with how the human body works and moves. Just knowing that I'll have months to work on it with no scheduled job to worry about (living with your parents after graduation is not as bad as they make it out be, folks!) is extremely exciting. I can finally devote serious practice to a lifelong hobby.

And so far it's just as fun as it was back in middle school.
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Feature!

1 min read
I'm taking part in :iconlive-love-write:'s Synenergy!

My partner is :iconvargensaphia:, and the piece I want to feature is I heard he can't take the sun. This short piece based off a dream has some nice supernatural elements that will keep you guessing with every scene change.
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Life Update

2 min read
(Don't pay attention to the Mood. I'm just sick with fever.)

So it's about time we have an update, right? Well, it's been about a month since college began again. The main reason I haven't uploaded anything is because I've just been hanging out with my roommate (when schoolwork doesn't get in the way, obviously). It's been ridiculously long since I've hung out with a friend, and I've really missed it. While I love drawing, I've been rather friendless for far too long (since graduating high school, basically) to make that my priority right now. Sorry, guys. I know that's a bit pathetic, but it's the truth. *shrugs*

I've also been having terrible problems with my laptop and the internet access here in my dorm rooms, so I was forced to just use the computer lab. However, yesterday, I wiped my laptop clean to its factory condition after trying everything under the sun to get it to work, and now it's working with no problems (I do have to use an Ethernet cable, but that's cool.) Unfortunately, I have to re-install my tablet drive and Photoshop, and I have to wait until the weekend to go back home and get those CDs. All my PMD-E stuff and other important arts are in my USB (I don't trust my laptop), so no lost data in regards to Mission 6.

Speaking of Mission 6, I plan to have it finished by the time Mission 8 is about to begin, linearted, colored, shaded, and all that good stuff. I do have future plans for my teams, but there's no rush for that. Expect the next page in about a week due to the whole "re-install tablet thing".

That's all for now, guys. Have a beautiful and non-sicky Monday! :D
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Tagged

7 min read
Tagged by: :iconsparradile:

Rules:

1. You must post these rules
2. Each person must post 11 facts about themselves in their journal
3. Then answer the questions the tagger Set for you to post, and create eleven new questions for the people you tag to answer.
4. You have to choose 11 people to tag and post their icons on your journal
5. Go to their page and tell them you tagged him/her.
6. No tag backs
7. No stuff in the tagging section about "you are tagged if you are reading this". You legitimately (A.K.A, really, truly, with honesty) have to tag 11 people.

Read on to see which ones I actually follow.

Facts about me:

1. I am nineteen, turning twenty in September, but I look a couple of years younger. This leads to funny assumptions a lot of the times.

2. The fandom I am currently obsessing over is BBC's Merlin. I am so hyped over the Series/Season Five that you have no idea. I've been reading fanfiction in anticipation.

3. In my house, there are currently fifteen cats and four dogs. Oh yeah, there's my family visiting, too.

4. One of my biggest pet peeves is people leaving the bathroom sopping wet. This includes the sink, toilet, mirror, and doorknob. This is the main reason I would never have a private/connecting bathroom in my dorm. I don't trust people with my cleaning habits.

5. I sleep with the television on, volume 20, and on the channel either on TV Land or TBS. The remote and my glasses go beside my pillow. I also put my laptop case and my backpack against the door to stop any light from coming in.

6. I really like stuffed animals, and I always ask that for souvenirs from my sister.

7. I talk to myself when I'm figuring out certain plot or character developments. It mainly consists of rationalizing certain things and asking myself questions. This tends to happen late at night or while in the shower.

8. I always add captions to everything I watch, whether be it English or Spanish. My sister always asks me why, since I'm not "English-impaired" like her.

9. There are three shirts I wear a day: the shirt I wear outside my room, the shirt I wear in my room, and the shirt I sleep in. They must always be used as intended.

10. I such a believer of karma that it's not even funny. Whenever I'm faced with a choice or a decision, I think of the possible consequences that might happen if I don't do the right thing. This happens almost every single time.

11. I was talking with Sparra on Skype while doing these journal. Yay for multi-tasking!

Questions:

1. Pachycephalosaurs or Iguanodonts?

You lost me at "1." After discussing it with Wikipedia, I'll go with Iguanadonts. I don't particularly like either, to be honest. I rather much go with Diplodocus. Those are pretty cool.

2. Do you like tomatoes?

I like it on pizza, but slices, nah, I skip on those. On occasion, my mom still asks me if I want ketchup on my fries.

3. Favorite kind of flower?

Mhmm, that's a toughie, since I've never given that much thought. I will have to say that the Texas bluebonnet is gorgeous when it blooms. You just see blue dotting the fields. It's a deep, rich blue that kind of borders on purple. Back in south Texas, I always liked how sunflowers were on the edges of almost every road. Even though it was considered more of a weed, they still looked rather pretty.  

4. What's the furthest place you've traveled to?

In the United States, Washington D.C. In Mexico, I think it was Reynosa (in my home state of Tamaulipas). I have a faint memory of being in a city that wasn't my hometown, but I'm going to have to double check with my mom about it. I would love to go to the Federal District (the violence isn't a big deal there at the moment). It basically houses a lot more culture than northern Mexico, which is pretty dry and boring in comparison.

5. Favorite fairy tale?

Off the top of my head, I'll go with The Ugly Duckling. I guess it's because on some level, I can relate. When I was young, I never considered pretty, but now I can appreciate my features and deal with the ones I'm not fond of.

6. Do you ever feel creeped out by cephalopods?

I've eaten calamari and crab, and I'm okay with that. I think the only thing I'm creeped out about are Giant Squids. Oh my gosh, I would have a heart attack if I ever saw one alive. I saw a dead one in a museum, and that was enough to give me goosebumps.

7. What's the best thing you've eaten so far today?

A (homemade) tortilla with beans and quesadilla cheese. It also usually has avocado in it, but there wasn't any. It's no surprise because avocados are hella expesive lately. Why anyone would waste it on face masks is a mystery to me.

8. Do you speak or are you learning to speak any foreign languages?

I speak native Spanish at home and native-like English everywhere else, although that's obvious to anyone who's glanced at my profile. I study Finnish in my spare time, and you'll always see my grammar book in my bag whenever I go out somewhere. I've also taken a semester of German and dabbled in French a couple of years back. Somewhere in the future, I would like to learn Italian and Portuguese just because I already know Spanish. However, before I consider doing that, I need to polish up my Spanish as much as possible.

9. Do you prefer endurance running or sprinting (supposing you have to run for some reason)?

Sprinting, definitely. I have no endurance for running, at all. I used to be able to jog a smile under eight minutes back in middle school, when I was in Athletics, but after I got out, that went straight downhill. I would much like to avoid running all together and just do pushups.

10. Do you play many card or board games?

My brother is suddenly in a card phase, so I've been playing a bit of Poker and Texas Hold 'Em recently. Cards games were very popular in my high school band (a deck of cards is easy to carry when on trips), and aside from the regular Uno, I learned about two other fun card games. I really like board games, but the people I know aren't very much into it, unfortunately. My sister loves Monopoly, and we play that whenever we see each other. I've played Clue once and really liked it.

11. Have you ever ridden a horse?

Once, when I was in preschool. I have a picture of it. I'm so small and the horse is so big! I think horseback riding would be really cool to try, though. Maybe someday!

Tags:

.....? Do it if you want.


And that's it, I think! There were fun to do. It got my brain juices flowing.

- Kat
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Featured

Last exam done! And Gravity Falls by Phantom-Kat, journal

Looking Back and Moving Forward by Phantom-Kat, journal

Feature! by Phantom-Kat, journal

Life Update by Phantom-Kat, journal

Tagged by Phantom-Kat, journal