Monday, May 23, 2011

Armchair BEA: Day 1

Hi there! This is my first post for Armchair BEA and I'm so excited to be participating--I just decided today that I would! For those who may not know about Armchair BEA, click her for more information. If you're visiting me from the Armchair BEA site, welcome! It's always nice to meet new people, and say hello again to those I already know.

Today's topic is: Who are you, and how do you Armchair?

My name is Kristyn, I'm a graduate student studying English at Tarleton State University, in a tiny little town in the middle of nowhere Texas. I also earned my BA in English with a minor in history from TSU in December 2009, so Tarleton feels like home to me (I've been attending since 2004 and now, as a graduate assistant, I work there and teach classes). Let's see, I've been married for 11 1/2 years to my husband Matt, the most fantastic guy! Here we are just a few weeks ago...

Believe it or not, Matt and I met online in August 1998, before internet dating sites were a big, safe thing. We met randomly, on ICQ, a chat protocol that was once quite popular but has since fallen from favor amongst internet crowds. With ICQ, you can set the program to randomly search for people who are open to random chatting. I struck up a conversation and, in February 2000, we were married! We've been together ever since.

We don't have any kids, but are the parents of two sweet, cuddly little fur babies (read: evil furry demons) we love unconditionally...

This is Anakin, he's a shih-tzu. He just turned 6 years old on May 12th! He's naughty, terribly high maintenance, but is the most lovable little critter you have ever met. Oh, about the name... Matt wanted to name him "Darth Vader," but who could really name a shih-tzu Darth Vader? So, we compromised on Anakin. :)

Galileo loves it when we get packages from Amazon!  He's a 7 1/2 year old tabby cat and though you can't tell from this picture, needs to go on a diet. He's somewhere around 20 lbs, about the same size as Anakin. Pardon the slightly possessed look in his eyes, he hates having his picture taken!

A few random facts about me...
  • I'm a gamer--both table top RPG & MMORPG.
  • Half of my master's thesis will involve using Alan Ball's True Blood, the first four books of the Southern Vampire Mysteries series by Charlaine Harris, The Twilight Series, and the Twilight movies. I am so excited. Clearly, I love the Gothic!
  • I grew up in Southern California & will move home next year.
  • I've been a blogger since May 2003 when I started my first personal blog. Now, I personal blog at Pretty Pessimist.
  • I enjoy sewing, though I'm still a beginner and am not terribly adept. Lately, I've been obsessed with making these little bags...
Maybe not the best picture ever, but it's an Origami drawstring bag. It has little pockets on the outside. I have yet to perfect it, but I'm working on it. I use mine for dice and will probably soon try to make on with slightly larger dimensions to fit my Kindle--ooh, a fun day project!

As for how I armchair, I must admit, I don't even own an armchair. Therefore, I "armchair" from my sofa and my desk. I do most of my reading on Kindle now, snuggled up on the sofa. My favorite reading is paranormal, romance, YA, and steampunk. I also love the classics and am about to start reading Ann Radcliffe's The Mysteries of Udolpho and Regina Maria Roche's Clermont, which I will likely be talking about as I'm reading them. My favorites are Dracula, Jane Eyre, and anything by Jane Austen, but particularly Pride and Prejudice. Ooh, speaking of, check out this amazing Christmas present my husband got me this last year...

It's Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen, but rather than starring Elizabeth Bennett, it stars yours truly!  He got it from a company called U Star Novels who specialize in remaking your favorite novel with you as the star. Best Christmas present ever!

Alright, it seems like I've gone on enough for one day. I hope that you've gotten a better feel for who I am from this post, as I think that's the whole idea. I'll be around to check out some of your Armchair BEA posts, can't wait to get to know some of you better!

11 comments:

  1. I would LOVE to read your thesis when it's finished. I am quite intrigued.

    ♥ your fur babies!!

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  2. Thanks for stopping by Smash! I'm so excited to be working on my thesis, I'm sure everyone will hear about it when it's finally written! :) Thanks for the compliments on my babies, I adore them!

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  3. It's so great getting to know you too, Kristyn! :)

    Awww! Your pets are so cute! Anakin is an awesome name. Great compromise. I love that Galileo is peeking out from the Amazon box. My kitty loves when I leave boxes around,too.

    I love the picturee of you and your husband! You guys are cute together.

    That's a really cool present! I want to star in a book! LOL

    Jennifer of Little Shelf

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  4. Hey, thanks for stopping by today! I love your pics, and I have to say, your thesis sounds really cool! I look forward to getting to know you more through armchair BEA!
    BookSavvyBabe

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  5. Heather & Jennifer, Thank you both for stopping by and saying hello. Also, for the compliments on my babies! I hope you're having a great Armchair BEA so far.

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  6. It makes me very happy to hear the topic selections for your thesis. My undergraduate senior thesis was written on World of Warcraft players. /snicker *power to the geeks*

    ★ Leila

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  7. Glad to meet another Austen fan! What a fun gift idea, I've never heard of U Star books before :)

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  8. Not gonna lie, your master's thesis sounds awesome. Also your pets are adorbs. So glad you're participating in Armchair BEA!

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  9. Hey! :)

    Wow, you've been married for quite some time! And that's so cool you met at ICQ! Sometimes, things just work out great. :D

    Happy armchairing!

    Rebecca @ kindle fever

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  10. Leila, that's an awesome topic! /cheer!!

    Danya, I've been a fan since reading Pride & Prejudice in a Women's lit class as an undergrad. Now, P&P is my favorite book!

    Amy, Thank you!

    Bex, It has been a long time and I still wonder at our luck, finding one another in such a random way!

    Thank you all for stopping by!! :D

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  11. What a very cool and fun present! I had a couple books like that when I was little, picture books where you were the main character. It's awesome that they're doing stuff like that with novels now.

    Sounds like your thesis is very interesting! It's great when people can write academically about the things they love.

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