Indulging my vanity since 1998

August 2007

The consensus of the general public is that this is the absolute happiest, the most full of glee, the by far most radiant, that I have ever, ever looked in a photograph. Because I am exactly THAT much of a GIGANTIC NERD. Which is why I'm diverting from the standard practice of having just-me shots on here.

June 2005

I got all dressed up in a silly outfit, complete with silly hat, and for what? So that I could huddle in the rain and feel completely ridiculously awesome. June 11th, 2005, and this picture, mark the end of eight years of school, three degrees and a professional certification, and the first full chapter of my life. Goodbye, education: you were good to me.

December 2003

This picture (and the two below it) was taken while I was in Japan in 2003, taken only a day or two before I came home in late December. Picked for the rumpled at-work look, the glimpse of the uniform I had to wear while working there, the fact that my hair is down as opposed to up as in the previous two, and the fact that I'm being an idiot on camera once again. I'm holding a piece of mochi (dough made out of pounded and sweetened rice), with a strawberry inside, that I made at a labor union event at work. I am pleased to report that my mochi was damn tasty.

I actually have TONS of pictures from Japan (six months with a digital camera plus friends with cameras yields lots, after all), so for more, check out the Japan galleries. Far be it to pimp my looks when Kyoto is much prettier.

December 2003

This one was taken the weekend before the one above it; I almost only chose this one and the one below to represent my time in Japan, but I figured I should show that I wasn't wearing ponytails the entire time. Only when I was hot, sick, or dirty. Which really, was more of the time than I'd like to admit. Anyway, I wasn't expecting the picture to be taken (I was smiling at dolphin antics and completely unaware that Ishibashi-san was snapping away), so this is probably the most "realistic" picture of me on here. I don't have my Jenface on, although if you squint through the glare, you can still see the dimple on my cheek. But hey, I look happy. Looking happy is good.

July 2003

I picked this one to be a representative one of what I looked like, miserably, during the ridiculously hot summer in Japan. I took it in July, after having gotten some sort of horrible flu and having been stuck in bed for three days. I was BORED. And dehydrated; I lost about 8 pounds during that spell (all water weight), and I look it in this picture. Not being horribly sick is generally a good thing, but if I could have LEFT those 8 pounds off, I'd be more pleased. The stark white background reflected in my mirror is the wall of my corporate dorm room in Toyonaka, Osaka, Japan. It was... spartan.

June 2003

Leaving for Japan in two weeks, I decided to get my hair cut to help beat the heat in Osaka. I think I distracted the stylist a little too much; I could feel the correction cuts as he made them, and this is probably the shortest my hair has been in years and years and years. Notice the super (cough) self-portrait action; it's nice to actually have my own camera. (Oh, and if you didn't guess, I switched the order - newest pics are now at the top... innovation? yes!)

Winter 2002

See! I have a domestic side! This is me learning how to make my grandmother's stuffing from my dad. I don't know really what to say about this picture other than I liked it, so I put it up. It's one of the more normal ones of me that I've got. Because I'm totally normal.

Summer 2002

Certainly not the most flattering picture of me ever taken. I guess I can defend that I wasn't aware it was being taken. That's one of my oldcats, Lars. I think we must have been psychically connected in our sleep. Jim claims that Lars and I slept there, in more or less the same position, for approximately two and a half hours. My legs were extremely cramped by the time I woke up, let me tell you. Larsimus reports no ill effects.

Late 2001

I like this picture because it is probably the geekiest one of me ever taken. I mean, look at me. Using a computer, with computer books and roleplaying stuff behind me... I will point out that it's not my apartment (it was Jim's), but still. It's brilliant.

Spring 2001

This is a picture that my (most wonderful awesome great) conversation partner, Yumi, took of me one Spring Quarter. Nothing particularly special about it other than I like the fact that I look genuinely happy in a picture for once. Boggle. For those who wonder about the "R" on my shirt (that shirt gets me more questions...) : The shirt I'm wearing here was the team shirt for my high school (Roosevelt High School) Ultimate team my senior year. It was supposed to be a play on the Superman "S" with our school name and colors. It's got my name on the back and everything. Yippee.

Fall 2000

I will keep on lying if I ever say that any particular picture is the newest one here, so I will no longer say it. Here's a candid picture that I wanted to swat Patrick for taking. I charitably took Monika out of it, as she was sick that evening and believe me, she looks it in that picture. Plus I want to spare John ever seeing the you-know-whats again.

September 2000

This is a rare picture of Jen... I seem to be actually engaging in that activity called "smiling," while in a photograph. I'm not particularly fond of the angle of the picture, but this is the one that's on my nametag at work now. People complained to me about the fact that my old picture was a smirking one, and all my others are kind of glaring, so I tried, I really did. It didn't turn out too dreadfully bad.

April 2000

I may have some pictures of myself from sophomore year, but I couldn't dig any up, and I'm lazy, so we'll just jump to some more recent ones. This picture was taken by Richard the night we went to see Phantom of the Opera at the Fifth Ave Theater (I had to rotate the crazy one he took at an angle better not described), and is part of a set that could theoretically prove that Jen has worn a dress... except that you can't tell in this one. Yes, I know I'm not smiling, and I know I look like I'm 30 (according to Darrick). Look how long my hair is again! Wasn't like that all of sophomore year!

Summer 1998

One of the same batch that my brother took over summer, this is one of my other well known pics, because I had it up on my very first index page and have been refering people to it to see what I look like, as well as it being my picture on my staff profile at work. I wish I really looked like this - I think I look a lot better in this picture than I actually do.

Summer 1998

This was taken by my brother during Summer Quarter between my freshman and sophomore years. What's scary is that that's now a long time ago. I'm becoming more and more of a relic as each minute passes.

Late 1997

This is the infamous Twink Bitch picture, by which just about everyone I played Quake with knew me. It was taken by my brother sometime during Winter or Spring Quarter of my freshman year of college, when I was living in that hellhole of a dorm called Haggett.

September 1994

My high school picture from sophomore year. I look pretty much the same, and I only include it here for the fact that it was the very first picture of me ever scanned. Yippee.