bubblessoc

These entries are cross-posted from my weblog at bubblessoc.net :) Feel free to add me as your friend. If you would like for me to add you as a friend, just leave me a comment on this entry to let me know!

This is just a sticky post... read below for my most recent entries.

(Cross-posted from my weblog, BubblesSOC)

Thanks so much for the outpouring of concern after the storm. It’s nice to know that I was in so many of your thoughts. I really appreciate it ♥ I feel very blessed to be alive and to have suffered no damage despite being literally down the road from the tornado. Sadly, many others were not as fortunate. A large chunk of my home state is suffering right now. Please keep Alabama in your prayers and help if you can

Some of you are probably confused as to why I was in Tuscaloosa instead of Atlanta. Well this January I re-enrolled in the University of Alabama to finish my undergraduate degree. I had to take care of two medical incompletes I received due to my surgery. Since 4 years had passed I opted to retake the courses. And yes, that means my husband, William, and I have been living apart for 4 long months

When I was young I was terrified of thunderstorms. My parents and I never really knew what brought about this phobia but I managed to overcome it by college. After last Wednesday I’m pretty certain the fear will be returning…

I was running back and forth between the tv and the front porch since I was determined to catch a good ol’ southern twister on my iPhone. I assumed this was just like any other severe spring thunderstorm and wasn’t taking it seriously at all. That’s when I saw the scariest image on tv I’ve ever seen: a massive tornado sitting atop downtown Tuscaloosa. The next words from the voiceover made my heart stop: “Kicker Road, Hargrove Road, it’s headed for you.” My house is a block away from that intersection. The power immediately went out. I grabbed my Shih Tzu and a dingy antique feather bed and headed for the closet under the stairs. Once inside I pulled the bed over our heads. I’ve never been so scared in my entire life. As I heard the tornado approaching I prayed that God would spare my life so I could see William and my family again. Then I was struck by a comforting realization. Although I heard the winds spinning violently outside I repeated to myself, it’s not loud enough to be on top of me. Everyone says that a tornado sounds like a freight train. Well this sounded like a freight train in the distance.

I emerged from the closet after a few minutes of silence. I checked my backyard to see if the towering trees behind my house were still standing, which they were. My cul-de-sac had minimal damage. Tree limbs were down, a portion of a fence had been blown away, and some siding was stripped from my neighbors’ home. My neighborhood was extremely lucky. The location of my house is marked on the tornado path map below:



All of my family and friends are safe. My friend Mike’s apartment was in the path of the storm and suffered damage but he’s still here, and that’s what matters. President Obama toured the area Friday. He remarked that he had “never seen devastation like this.” My heart aches for the city I called home for 7 years

• Alabama tornado relief: How you can help


• GiveTuscaloosa.com


• Follow @tuscaloosanews and @thecrimsonwhite for updates on the aftermath


• Video of the tornado on 15th Street in Tuscaloosa


• Photos of the Tuscaloosa tornado damage


• Aerial view video of the damage in Tuscaloosa

An ounce of happy news — the university cancelled finals. Students have the option to take their current grade or a makeup exam at a later date. I took B’s in both of my classes. That means that after a lengthy college career I’m finally a graduate of the University of Alabama! No more school until I decide to return for my Masters

(Cross-posted from my weblog, BubblesSOC)

Last night I bought some cute Christmas cards for the annual Quilting Bee exchange Would anyone else be interested in exchanging Christmas cards with me? Don’t be shy, I love making new friends! And of course, old pen pals are welcome, too ♥ Let me know ASAP so I can get them to you by Christmas.

So what is Santa bringing you this year? I’ve made my list…

• iPhone 4 – I wanted to wait for the white one but my iPhone 3G was rendered practically useless by the software upgrades Oh yeah, I also want this case in Baby Pink.


• 2 Hello Kitty Tees:
  


• Hello Kitty 2011 Planner


• Black touchscreen-friendly gloves


• bareMinerals Blush in Velvet


• Visit to the Salon – I had my hair dyed dark brown in August. It was fun but I’m ready for a change. I’m still deciding if I want to go darker or back to red. Also, my bushy brows need waxing.


• Wii & Animal Crossing: City Folk


• Boring stuff like a water filter and sink faucet


• Perhaps a couple of HTML5 and CSS3 books


• Pre-order of LittleBigPlanet 2

I suppose that’s more of a general wishlist since Santa won’t be able to afford all of that

Before closing I wanted to thank Hanna for brightening my day last Saturday She photographed some octopus candy that was made for me!



If you look closely you can see BUBS printed above their legs. You can read more about them on her blog ♥

Happy holidays everyone!

(Cross-posted from my weblog, BubblesSOC)



Wanna trade Animal Crossing: City Folk friend codes with me? ♥ My town is young since it was founded only 4 days ago.



Last weekend my parents bought us a Wii as an early Christmas present



Now we own all 3 gaming consoles Are you a gamer? If so, add me as a friend!

• Xbox Live: QueenSiD


• PS3 Network: QueenSiD


• Wii: 4753-2286-4412-6615

In case anyone is wondering, I will soon publish Part 2 of my Dragon*Con summary. I wrote most of it but Thanksgiving distracted me

(Cross-posted from my weblog, BubblesSOC)

Almost three months later I finally get around to writing my Dragon*Con 2010 summary. Well, that's the story of my blogging life these days. Better late than never I suppose

Dragon*Con 2009 was my first fan convention experience. I felt like a 6 year old visiting Disney World for the first time. Thousands of people were dressed as their favorite characters from sci-fi, fantasy, anime, etc. An army of nerds like me from across the country had invaded Atlanta.

I dragged my poor husband throughout four different hotels forcing him to take photos of me with wizards and Klingons. Surprisingly enough William seemed to enjoy himself but I knew that other arrangements were needed for 2010. See, my husband is an overworked corporate accountant, and Dragon*Con happens to fall in the middle of his busy season. William is also only a budding nerd (he hadn't seen a Star Wars movie until we started dating 8 years ago) who would prefer to attend the season opener for the Crimson Tide than a panel discussing Lord of the Rings.

I didn't want to attend the con alone so I started recruiting some college friends. I also started hanging out on Cosplay.com and dragoncon in hopes of making some new friends. Some D*C twitterers expressed interest in a 'tweetup' so I offered to organize one.

The aspect of the con I enjoy the most is the costumes. I knew who I wanted to dress as, but since I can barely sew on a button I needed to commission my costume. I discovered Erica last year via a group of BioShock Splicers I met who were wearing her creations. Although I contacted her a bit late, she agreed to make my costume and worked with my tight budget

My costume was lined up, badge pre-registered, schedule highlighted, entourage assembled. I thought I was prepared for the 4-day geekfest. However, I made a fatal mistake. I assumed we would be completely moved into our new apartment by the week before the con. Instead, I was still moving junk the day before the con Luckily I still managed to pick up my badge Thursday night (after waiting in line for 2 hours) and meet Erica with my costume.

Friday morning I had intended to be at the con by 10am. Instead I was wading through the chaos that was downtown Atlanta to drop off my costume with Erica for her to make some critical adjustments (thank goodness she offered to do this for me ♥) I didn't make it back to my apartment until after 2pm, and I needed to be in costume and at the Hilton by 5pm for the D*C Tweetup I organized. I somehow managed to leave my apartment by 4:30, which normally would be more than enough time. But alas, I sat in traffic for an hour and wasn't inside the Hilton until 5:45. Needless to say my Tweetup had fallen apart since the hostess was nowhere to be found

Despite the insanity and lack of sleep, I had a good opening night William even stopped by and people-watched with us for a while. I also got to meet a lovely lady from the Westeros forum. We talked A Song of Ice and Fire for an hour which put my weary mind at ease.

We were exhausted Saturday morning so I missed the parade again but the highlight of the day was attending the Star Trek: The Next Generation panel with my dad. I'm not a big Star Trek fan, but I did grow up watching TNG with my dad. He records all the reruns on SyFy for us to watch when I come to visit ♥ The panel, featuring Riker, Geordi, Troi, Data, Tasha Yar, was hilarious. My dad had a blast! He even got to shake hands with Q at the Walk of Fame. He's coming back with me in 2011 so I hope there will be a good selection of Trek guests again. I overheard my dad telling one of his friends over the phone all about the day So cute!

I've rambled way too long so this is the end of Part 1. Part 2 is dedicated to my costume (Daenerys Targaryen from grrm's A Song of Ice and Fire series) and my first cosplay photoshoot:

After 6 years of dating, Will finally popped the question <33

I need to reinstall my WP-Livejournal Crosspost Plugin...

Originally published at BubblesSOC. You can comment here or there.

I’m always terribly grumpy on the last day of a Florida vacation. Additionally, I was pouting because William forgot to purchase a promised purple Maneki Neko for me from a local giftshop (my birthday is this weekend and Nekos are hard to find.) My BFF Rachael ousted me from my mood by introducing me to a squirrel she met while packing the car.

She said he came right up to her, so she fed him some peanuts. I wish I had a video of him burying the nuts in the nearby landscaping. He’d pat the pine needles with his tiny hands… it was adorable! I’ve never interacted with a wild animal. I felt like a Disney Princess

If you’re interested, you can see more photos from our trip on my Flickr account

Originally published at BubblesSOC. You can comment here or there.

Tracy, Louise, and Holly tagged me to list/describe five of my vices. I’m gonna pass this one up, however, since I have other business to discuss

I’m not going to be online much for the next couple of weeks. I have 2 projects due and a makeup exam next week March 14-23 I will be visiting my parents then heading to Destin, Florida with my friends for Spring Break. After the break, the semester will be wrapping up.

Mail

I mailed my pen pals their Christmas and Valentines gifts last week. Too bad they won’t be hearing from me for a while. My bill at the post office was over $65!! I didn’t even realize that was possible.

Mollusk

After visiting Ashley and Rachael then taking a couple of months to relax, Enid is on her way to visit Rin in Cali! Last night I created a Flickr group so that you can follow Enid’s adventures

And More

Lastly, thanks everyone for the support regarding my previous entry