(no subject)
ETA: I forgot to put the biggest change to the journal itself: I changed my username! It used to be buildingamagic. That might help anyone who is confused by what this random entry is doing on your flist!
It has been a year since I promised alabastard that I would start posting in my journal again. It has been THREE years since I updated at all. How do I even start again? It's so strange...I look at my old posts and part of me wonders who the hell that girl even was!
Of course, I'm still the same person in many ways. But, it is unbelievable to me how many life altering things have happened to me in this three year time span. If I hitched a ride in the TARDIS to June 2007 and told that Amanda what would happen....I wouldn't believe any of it. If I did believe it, I probably couldn't handle half of it. Or, maybe I could? That's probably the biggest thing that has changed inside me since then- I know my own strength now. I am stronger than I ever would have thought.
When I last posted in this journal, I just ended a brief fling with a friend's brother. I was living with my mom in our house in Lynn and trying to help her keep the house. My mom, grandmother, and dog Sheba were still alive. Deathly Hallows had yet to be released, and it was still two months until I attended my first HP conference- Prophecy. My involvement in the fandom was limited to LJ and online lurking, and the occasional meetup with the meetup.com Potter group.
Since that day, my life has changed in major ways.
In November 2007, my dog Sheba passed away and five days later my maternal grandmother lost her battle to lung cancer.
In August, 2008, I went to Terminus and there I met my boyfriend, John and began a long distance relationship. This coming August, he is moving to Boston to be with me permanently.
In November 2008, my baby sister was married. They gave birth to the first of two beautiful baby girls on May 14, 2009. Her name is Eva aka Princess. On June 7, 2010, their second daughter Julianna was born. I love my nieces to death and talk about them often.
In April, 2009, mom and I decided to give up the battle to keep her house. We move into a beautiful new apartment. We felt like we were on vacation everyday. Life was pretty wonderful.
At the end of May, 2009- www.hp-ma.com went up. We have 102 members now, and we meet frequently. I love my group even thought sometimes it feels like I have another full time job! I couldn't be happier that I decided to start my own Potter group.
In September, 2009 my mom was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. The same exact cancer that took my grandmother away at the young age of 62. My mom had shown no signs or symptoms before August. She passed away on December 26, 2009. She was only 47. She was my best friend. I miss her terribly and am still reeling from the loss. Watching the two most important women in my life die in such a short amount of time has changed me. I talk about lung cancer a lot. I am an advocate for more funding, more research, more everything.
After mom died, I moved in with some family for a few months. Now I am on my own in the apartment I will soon be sharing with John. I am also back in school full time (online at Thomas Edison State College) finishing my BA in English. I should hopefully finish up within two years. I am also planning a Harry Potter conference of my own- www.aeternitas2011.org.
Those are the biggest things. The most major. I have experienced so much good and so much horror over the past three years. That brief little recap can hardly describe any of it. I am sure I will write about a lot of it in more detail here...
I've missed keeping a diary/blog. I sometimes post notes on facebook, and I am sure I will cross post some of my LJ entries there if they are something I feel like sharing with my other friends and family. But, it's not the same on facebook. I miss LJ. I also have a lot more "RL" friends who use LJ now. LJ definitely attracts the fandom crowd!
Anyway, those of you who have been on my flist for years and who I only know through LJ- feel free to delete me if you like. I would COMPLETELY understand. I disappeared for three years. But, if you do decide to stick around, that is wonderful!
Now that I have this awkward post out of the way, I look forward to writing in here again.
It has been a year since I promised alabastard that I would start posting in my journal again. It has been THREE years since I updated at all. How do I even start again? It's so strange...I look at my old posts and part of me wonders who the hell that girl even was!
Of course, I'm still the same person in many ways. But, it is unbelievable to me how many life altering things have happened to me in this three year time span. If I hitched a ride in the TARDIS to June 2007 and told that Amanda what would happen....I wouldn't believe any of it. If I did believe it, I probably couldn't handle half of it. Or, maybe I could? That's probably the biggest thing that has changed inside me since then- I know my own strength now. I am stronger than I ever would have thought.
When I last posted in this journal, I just ended a brief fling with a friend's brother. I was living with my mom in our house in Lynn and trying to help her keep the house. My mom, grandmother, and dog Sheba were still alive. Deathly Hallows had yet to be released, and it was still two months until I attended my first HP conference- Prophecy. My involvement in the fandom was limited to LJ and online lurking, and the occasional meetup with the meetup.com Potter group.
Since that day, my life has changed in major ways.
In November 2007, my dog Sheba passed away and five days later my maternal grandmother lost her battle to lung cancer.
In August, 2008, I went to Terminus and there I met my boyfriend, John and began a long distance relationship. This coming August, he is moving to Boston to be with me permanently.
In November 2008, my baby sister was married. They gave birth to the first of two beautiful baby girls on May 14, 2009. Her name is Eva aka Princess. On June 7, 2010, their second daughter Julianna was born. I love my nieces to death and talk about them often.
In April, 2009, mom and I decided to give up the battle to keep her house. We move into a beautiful new apartment. We felt like we were on vacation everyday. Life was pretty wonderful.
At the end of May, 2009- www.hp-ma.com went up. We have 102 members now, and we meet frequently. I love my group even thought sometimes it feels like I have another full time job! I couldn't be happier that I decided to start my own Potter group.
In September, 2009 my mom was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. The same exact cancer that took my grandmother away at the young age of 62. My mom had shown no signs or symptoms before August. She passed away on December 26, 2009. She was only 47. She was my best friend. I miss her terribly and am still reeling from the loss. Watching the two most important women in my life die in such a short amount of time has changed me. I talk about lung cancer a lot. I am an advocate for more funding, more research, more everything.
After mom died, I moved in with some family for a few months. Now I am on my own in the apartment I will soon be sharing with John. I am also back in school full time (online at Thomas Edison State College) finishing my BA in English. I should hopefully finish up within two years. I am also planning a Harry Potter conference of my own- www.aeternitas2011.org.
Those are the biggest things. The most major. I have experienced so much good and so much horror over the past three years. That brief little recap can hardly describe any of it. I am sure I will write about a lot of it in more detail here...
I've missed keeping a diary/blog. I sometimes post notes on facebook, and I am sure I will cross post some of my LJ entries there if they are something I feel like sharing with my other friends and family. But, it's not the same on facebook. I miss LJ. I also have a lot more "RL" friends who use LJ now. LJ definitely attracts the fandom crowd!
Anyway, those of you who have been on my flist for years and who I only know through LJ- feel free to delete me if you like. I would COMPLETELY understand. I disappeared for three years. But, if you do decide to stick around, that is wonderful!
Now that I have this awkward post out of the way, I look forward to writing in here again.