Roofing and my new favorite thing.

Well, this vlog is basically about my day. But, I mean, some cool stuff happened...like I got to pretend to be a mountain goat and I got a sweet new geeky-gadget thing.

All in all, a good day.

Oh hey, my bed is calling for me...

Changes to the blog.

Howdy friends!

I wanted to point out a couple of changes that are taking place with my blog. First and foremost, it's honestly going to serve as a much more personal portal to let my family and friends back home know what's going on in my life as I transition from here to CA.

However, with that said, I promise once I get a little less crazy (whew! Packing and laundry!! Ahh.) I'll also do some other fun vlogs completely unrelated to my trip...and mostly just to entertain all of Shelli's friends who bug her about having me make some more. (Sorry guys, I had no idea, ya'll were such loyal followers.)

Other than that, you'll notice on the right hand side, I added a "skype button." If you're interested, add me to your contacts and I'll try and  either video/phone/chat with you guys while I'm in California. I want to be careful to keep my phone-bill down... so if you want to call me...let's mostly try calling through skype instead, so that way I can keep my minutes for business calls. etc :)

Other than that, I updated the prayer request page, because for some reason...it wasn't working properly anymore. I would love to still be able to keep ya'll in my prayers anyway I can...so just leave a comment on the page, or shoot me a fb message if you feel comfortable.

One last thing! I made my blog header much prettier. Kee! I love code...when it does what I want.


Lots of Love,

I'm leaving on a jet plane...in 3 weeks.

Hi friends and family,
I promised I would let you know when I was leaving for California...watch this vlog, it'll fill you in on all the details.





Oh, and this is the bike my uncle gave me:
Isn't she pretty?

Lots of loves.

Eenie meenie miney moe...catch my life-path by the toe...

First off, I want to apologize. I feel as though “CPthatsme” has turned into more of a personal blog as of late. It’s become a place for me to share my rambling mind with cyber space and whoever else stumbles across this thing (apparently quite a few of you? 193 of you checked out my resume…soo….)

Anyways, I’m sorry for drifting from wacky shoes and pointless vlogs. Heh.

I’ll blame it on the craziness of life currently.

I must admit, it’s been a nice outlet, a place to organize my thoughts into letters, then words, then sentences, then paragraphs... Somehow it helps me feel a little bit more in control of the chaos I seem to be currently surrounded by.

I guess I have a lot of decisions to make. There are quite a few “life paths” I could choose from and quite a few directions which look appealing for one reason or another. 

Last week, I was 100% set on going to California; today I’m not so sure. 

Maybe I’m scared? Maybe I’m starting to feel the heavy dose of reality. Maybe I’m just overreacting. Maybe I just have too many gosh-darn awesome dreams. Gah! All these “maybes” are making me feel like I just stepped off of a gut-jostling fair ride.

I’m barely in my 20’s. Jeepers Creepers, I should chill out and be more worried about finding a good eye cream. Or something.

But, that’s not what I’m freaking out about. Nope, forget the eye-cream…today I’m freaking out about wanting to be an animator.Over the past few years Ive had multiple conversations with people about going back to school for animation. It’s no secret I have a love affair with Pixar (and OK, any well-done animated film…Yes, that’s right, I’m giving a shout out to How to Train Your Dragon.) I mean, come on, Ive applied to Pixar 17 times and google searched; “How to get a tour at Pixar studios”, “How to bribe the guards to let you into Pixar animation studios”… “How to sneak through the security at Pixar animation studios” and “How to use tear gas on security guards.” Maybe I have an unhealthy obsession? Naw. This is pretty normal…

”Pixar” would make a cute baby name, eh?

I’m kidding, mom.

I want to tell stories. Underneath it all, I just want to tell amazing, inspiring stories with my life. I enjoy using the medium of filmmaking to do this and I’ve really liked learning about how it’s done using filmmaking techniques at Cornerstone. However, I don’t know if I could dedicate myself to that mode of artwork for my whole life. Sometimes, it scares me to realize how monotonous I occasionally think filmmaking is. The camera, the release forms, the live actors, the over-emotional director…

Somebody tell me, is it something you ABSOLETELY have to love? Should you absolutely adore waking up to your craft? And if you don't...is something wrong? I look around at my fellow classmates and sometimes feel inadequate next to them when it comes to movie-making interest and out of classroom knowledge. Most of them are enraptured by an emotionally stirring short-film, or delighted to hear about the new-current-trend. That’s not me. I don’t seek things out as much as I should, or wish I did in fact. I wish I could be completely in love with my chosen craft. I wish something would just go off in my head and I would spend hours upon hours studying and analyzing different lighting techniques, cameras, or even producer programs. But… I don’t. Instead I watch behind the scene films about how many facial anchor muscles “Woody” from Toystory has in his face.

(In case you were wondering he has over 200 articulated facial muscles in his face alone. Moreover, he has over 700 different controls in his body that let you rotate his arm at the elbow or the wrist, bend and rotate his hat…and so forth…)

See? That stuff amazes me. Animators aren’t bound by what they can and cannot put into the frame. They aren’t bound by locations or bad actors…it’s just completely, pure imagination and artistry that goes into each frame.

That is the pure creativeness I long for.

I’m AM happy with what I’m doing now. I’m happy telling stories through standard filmmaking and video techniques…but…but...

And I guess I’ll leave it at that...the cliff-hanging, "but". 

Cliff-hanging. "but"? That sounds disgusting. I should have thought through a better analogy. 

Whatever.

Anyways, yesterday I stumbled across a program called Animation Mentor. It’s an online, 18 month, animation school started by a couple of current Pixar/Dreamworks animators. I’d give my right arm to be able to do the program. It’s just too bad my right arm isn’t worth $18,928, a one time registration fee of $175, the price of a new computer, and the price of Maya, combined. (However, in the grand scheme of things, it's a WHOLE lot cheaper than going back to school for four years.)

Time to start collecting Pop cans.

Oh, as a side note, I would like to point out that popcans are called popcans…not sodacans.( <  that was for you, boyfriend.) 

If I could get a full time job in Grand Rapids, which allows me to be able to make small payments and afford this Animation Mentor program; I’d consider pushing California back…again. The sheer thought of staying in the area any longer than I already have…instantly starts to make me feel claustrophobic. However, I know if I had an amazing creative outlet like Animation Mentor, I could do it. I could stay. For a bit. For 18 months… 

At the same time though, my grandparents are healthy (I would be staying with them while in C.A, at least to start out with), I’m not married, I still have some time before loans come due and I have the ache to be in the sunshine state. But I don’t have a set-in-stone-job out there. I’d be a giant leap of faith, one that might not pay off...and one that might end up seeming monotonous to me, over time.   

Sigh. 

 I’m done rambling. At least this gives you a glimpse into what in the world my brain is thinking at the moment. I’m a confused person with way too many options. Maybe I’ll just forget about everything and shop around for that eye-cream. Anybody have any good suggestions for ones that prevent stress-lines? :) 

-Christi 

My Resume

Well, I figured it couldn't hurt to post my resume on my blog. So, here it is. 

Most of you know by know, that I'm headed out to the L.A area soon. I'm looking for a job (specifically in the film related industry) however, for now I'd be happy just being able to pay my bills. Pass it along to any friends you might have!

Thanks!

Click on the link to download:

ChristinePraniewiczResume.pdf

Cake and Exams

Today is my birthday and today is my last day of exams- Ever.
I’d say it’s a pretty good day. Right?

Wait, maybe I should hold my judgment until after my exams…

Yesterday Kemp man asked me what I wanted for my birthday; I told him: “I’d like to go antique shopping for a pair of vintage earrings.” That sounded delightful at the time. Now...Now...it just sounds like absolute torture. Are you kidding me!? Spending hours in a claustrophobic store with little breakable knick knacky salt shakers, while being constantly greeted by the pungent smells of old people and books wafting into my already-stuffy nostrils?

I think not.

I’m going to bed. For an hour. (Yes, I've got my grumpy pants on) Don't worry though, I’ll wake up and once again be excited to be a college student for 24 more hours. But for now, I secretly just want to sleep through my exams and have Roberto come and serve me birthday cake… in bed.

Nom. Nom. Nom.


Dangit. Cake in bed is messy. *brushes crumbs under pillow*

Weekend Rant- (even though it's not the weekend) - Straws.

Read and share with me in my journey.

I've had a reaccouring dream for awhile. 

(No mom, not the one about the giant rat, wearing a purple shirt, chasing me around the backyard of our old house on Elmdale...) 

In fact, this dream isn't really a literal dream at all. It's a figurative dream, I guess we could call it a wish, or a hope, perhaps?

I hate goodbyes, most people don't know that, but I do. Goodbyes wreck my soul. I act like they don’t, but they do. So, because of this it's a struggle for me to get close to people, or even to sometimes maintain friendships. It's quite sad, know. I think it's a weakness I'll always struggle with.

Why does it matter if I don’t like goodbyes? Well, as I already stated above, I have a dream. It's a thread of a dream that started a long time ago...I can now clearly see it woven throughout every single facet of my life. There's a story my mom often tells about little me- Apparently I was quite fearless when I was a squirt. To my mother’s dismay, I'd often march on ahead of her- head held high, reaching out to random strangers hands to help lead me along. I guess you could say I didn't really bother me to wander off ahead...to make a few adventures.

Fast forward a few years- when I was 14 (some of you will remember), I made up my mind I was going to go to the country of Panama on a mission’s trip. So I did. The funny thing is, I was about three months late signing up for the trip and was told I wouldn't have enough time to raise support. In a little over 3 months, I raised the needed 4,000 dollars to go. Now, obviously, a lot of thanks goes out to my Savior, family, friends and supporters...but still, I see the thread of the dream throughout this story.

I'm going to fast forward again; this time to late high school. My junior year of high school I decided I wanted to attend college in California. I wasn't sure what I was going to major in...but I just knew I wanted to go to California. When senior year rolled around and I turned 16, I started counting down the days until graduation. Literally, I had a countdown that exceeded 200 days. Pretty insane…

When graduation rolled around, I was happier than a clam. My dreams weren't yet a reality, but I was definitely tossing all of my eggs in one basket. Whatever it took, I was sure I was going to attend school in the Orange County area.

Well, the summer after graduation, my mom and I took a trip to California (to visit family and a few colleges). I was hooked. I was captivated the minute we stepped foot off of the plane. Don't get me wrong, I had been to CA plenty of times, but for some reason, this time was different. I felt more comfortable in my skin than I had in a long time: the bustle, the palm trees, the sun, the vibrancy- I was home. I definitely didn't look like a Californian woman, but my little gangly fair skinned self, was home. For the first time in a long time, I felt like I could say "hello" to people without feeling like I would be saying "goodbye" soon. I wanted to start college, right then and there. This was it. I was ready to go! Spread my wings and fl...

It was too expensive.

Reality slapped me across the face like a very ornery grandma. 

Without a God ordained miracle, my little butt was going to go back to, MI. To sit, and wait, and dream, and tear myself up inside. But that's what I did. I went home. I went home because I didn’t have the money and it would put me so far into debt, I would be struggling to pay it off for decades. I went home with a broken heart and an ache...an ache for my dreams, stronger than I had felt in my little 16 yr. old heart, before. Reality was so cruel.

I had only applied to one school back home, Cornerstone- and so that's where I went. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to attend. Or, at least, I wanted to do something...to move forward in some sort of direction. I've loved my time at Cornerstone, but, I haven't always made the best of it and I do regret some things. I've struggled, I've been absent (in mind and body) and I haven't made a lot of friends, mostly because I'm so future focused...and afraid of saying goodbyes. Because I've always known that this place is temporary. However, I cherish the few close friends, teachers and mentors that I have had...and I laugh at the memories we've shared. You know who you are- and I'm forever grateful you took the time to get to know me (even if I didn’t seem approachable), invest in me and help shape me into who I am. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Graduation is next Saturday. 

I've made it. I've made it in three years, with a B.A in media/video production (emphasis in Producing). I'm proud of that, I'm proud of my hard work and dedication. However, I'm mostly glad I'm done, simple because if I would have stayed any longer- I don't think I would have made it.

There were so many times I've broken down throughout these past three years. So many times I've wanted to quit simply because I've felt so out of place- There were so many times I felt like I could just stand up in the middle of a class room lecture and yell: "WHAT AM I DOING HERE?!" It's been a rough journey and I've felt very lost and alone at times- and the worst part is...nobody has known that. I should have told someone, I shouldn't have tried to do it alone. 

I owe a lot to my mom. She's a superhero, and I can only hope to be half as great as her someday. She's been the one to help me through most of the tough times...she's been the one to encourage and push me forward when I've been at my lowest low. She's been the one to remind me of my dreams and to let me know that I AM getting there...even if it doesn't feel like it. I wouldn't have made it without her. Besides my mom, I owe a lot to my other moms- Robyn and Aunt Deb. Thank you for being constant encouragers and strong women of faith. I look up to you both more than I will EVER be able to put into words. Thanks for believing in me :)

…And obviously, I can't name everyone- but each and everyone who probably reads this has been an encouragement to me at some point in my life, Thank you.

And so, why am I writing this? Maybe I just needed to journal it out. I have a few friends who I admire, who say journaling is good. But, I also wanted to share it...I don't want to keep myself to myself anymore. I want people to know what's going on in my life and to be able to understand me a little bit more. I want to have accountability, I want people to pray for me, I want you to know that I don't have it all together- and that at this very minute in my life...I'm more scared than I have been in a long time.

I'm scared of the future. I'm scared of my dream- yes...the dream that I've held on to for so long, mostly because more so than ever, it's a reality…and it’s snuck up on me. I’m leaving for California soon. Very soon. I'm scared of the unknown. I'm scared of getting out there and not making it. I'm scared I've invested too much into this one thing and I won't like it. I’m scared of saying my “goodbyes” to people here, that I don’t want to say goodbye to. I’m scared of hurting people and being hurt. However, if there's one thing I'm not scared of...it's trying. I know I have to try. And so, here I go. I'm going to pack my little giraffe print suitcases, put on my big girl pants and put 110% into this...because for the first time in a long time...I feel purpose, I feel alive and I feel the adventure and dream I've been waiting for, for so long.

I know this is just the beginning and in 10/20/30 years I’m going to look back on this blog post and laugh- but the difference is, I want people to laugh with me this time. I don’t want to be alone. So, share with me in this journey of…well, self discovery and adventure I guess.

I’ll keep you posted on when I’m leaving. 

Thank you SO much, from the bottom of my heart for your prayers and encouragement through this time.

Lots of Love,