day 7 of the meme: LJ
1. your middle name, and how you feel about it.
2. talk about your piercings or tattoos, if you have any.
3. your favorite television program.
4. write about your closest friend(s).
5. tell us your three favorite colors.
6. your favorite season, and why.
7. how you came across tumblr, and how your life has changed since joining.
8. are you a fitness guru or a couch potato? talk about your exercise habits.
9. favorite meme at the moment.
10. talk about your pets, or the pets you would like to have.
11. your top three favorite bands.
12. your thoughts of opinions about Harry Potter.
13. your thoughts or opinions about Mean Girls.
14. do you have siblings? talk about them, or talk about what it's like to be an
only child.
15. tell us your favorite junk food.
16. your favorite disney princess movie.
17. your thoughts on Ugg boots.
18. do you drink soda more often than milk?
19. the initials of your crush(es).
20. do you wear glasses? if so, what are they for?
21. your favorite subject to study.
22. do you play a sport? tell us about it. if not, talk about a different hobby you
may have.
23. your opinions on Lady Gaga.
24. tell us about the last movie you saw in theatres.
25. tell us about the last book you read (for leisure or for school).
26. name one place you would love to visit one day.
27. list your three favorite girl names, three favorite boy names, and your three
favorite names for a pet.
28. your first celebrity crush.
29. your opinions of the television show Glee.
30. take a picture of yourself right now and post it, or post the most recent picture you can find.
7. how you came across tumblr, and how your life has changed since joining.
Since I'm not on Tumblr and I didn't find this on Tumblr, I'm going to proceed as if the question asked about LiveJournal.
I made my first LJ account in June of 2004 (my username wasn't "phoenicis" back then). People from the journal site I was on at the time, Blurty, had started jumping ship for LJ, and I decided to follow the trend. It was the summer before my senior year in high school and I was seventeen. My parents had separated (but not divorced) a few years before. I was a diehard fan of "The X-Files" and the Clash. I had a tumultous best-friend relationship with a girl named Dria, which had lasted pretty much since we met, after she transferred to our school in sixth grade. I'd had a boyfriend for a couple of months the previous summer, but after that ended had remained single, and I was desperately lonely (as emo teens are wont to be). Here's a picture of what I looked like then.
I think it's accurate to say that my life has been in constant transition ever since then. But there have been three particularly serious, life-changing developments since June 2004.
So, it's been six years and a few months since I joined LJ as an awkward, highly sheltered teen. I'm now in my early twenties. I have a bachelor's degree in literature, a professional certificate in editing, and a pilot's license. I work a (nearly =P) full-time job, own a car and a pet, and pay my own bills. I've lived abroad and I speak a second language. I've got several close friends and a great boyfriend. I'm much more comfortable with who I am, and a much more attractive and capable woman because of it. Here's a picture of what I look like now (although my hair is now shorter--I haven't taken any pics since getting it cut again). And so even though I sometimes still fall prey to self-loathing and despair, and sometimes I'm still not certain of what I want or where I'm going, I wish that the me who joined LJ at seventeen could have seen who she would become at twenty-three. It would have given her hope.
2. talk about your piercings or tattoos, if you have any.
3. your favorite television program.
4. write about your closest friend(s).
5. tell us your three favorite colors.
6. your favorite season, and why.
7. how you came across tumblr, and how your life has changed since joining.
8. are you a fitness guru or a couch potato? talk about your exercise habits.
9. favorite meme at the moment.
10. talk about your pets, or the pets you would like to have.
11. your top three favorite bands.
12. your thoughts of opinions about Harry Potter.
13. your thoughts or opinions about Mean Girls.
14. do you have siblings? talk about them, or talk about what it's like to be an
only child.
15. tell us your favorite junk food.
16. your favorite disney princess movie.
17. your thoughts on Ugg boots.
18. do you drink soda more often than milk?
19. the initials of your crush(es).
20. do you wear glasses? if so, what are they for?
21. your favorite subject to study.
22. do you play a sport? tell us about it. if not, talk about a different hobby you
may have.
23. your opinions on Lady Gaga.
24. tell us about the last movie you saw in theatres.
25. tell us about the last book you read (for leisure or for school).
26. name one place you would love to visit one day.
27. list your three favorite girl names, three favorite boy names, and your three
favorite names for a pet.
28. your first celebrity crush.
29. your opinions of the television show Glee.
30. take a picture of yourself right now and post it, or post the most recent picture you can find.
7. how you came across tumblr, and how your life has changed since joining.
Since I'm not on Tumblr and I didn't find this on Tumblr, I'm going to proceed as if the question asked about LiveJournal.
I made my first LJ account in June of 2004 (my username wasn't "phoenicis" back then). People from the journal site I was on at the time, Blurty, had started jumping ship for LJ, and I decided to follow the trend. It was the summer before my senior year in high school and I was seventeen. My parents had separated (but not divorced) a few years before. I was a diehard fan of "The X-Files" and the Clash. I had a tumultous best-friend relationship with a girl named Dria, which had lasted pretty much since we met, after she transferred to our school in sixth grade. I'd had a boyfriend for a couple of months the previous summer, but after that ended had remained single, and I was desperately lonely (as emo teens are wont to be). Here's a picture of what I looked like then.
I think it's accurate to say that my life has been in constant transition ever since then. But there have been three particularly serious, life-changing developments since June 2004.
- In August 2004, my father died. It was sudden; the only person who saw it coming was me, and in a way, that made things harder to deal with afterward. He was an intelligent, artistic, witty person and the most wonderful, loving father; I thought the world of him and we were extremely close. I still think of him every day. His death pushed me into a deep depression, some of which I'm still dealing with to this day, six years later. But--and I've always felt like this is thanks to his influence in making me how I am--I've come out of it all a stronger person, better able to appreciate in life what truly merits appreciation, and more determined to follow his example and make of myself someone he would have been proud of.
- In September 2005, I met Nathan, and in May 2006, we became a couple. Nathan is the first--and the only--real boyfriend I've ever had, and I don't think I'd be too sad if that's the way it stays. (To be fair, there was the short relationship I had with Jeff in high school, but that was just awkward puppy love. It's so different with Nathan.) I was really somewhat broken, and I knew nothing about how to be in a relationship, when we first got together. He was patient, understanding, and supportive as I figured it all out (and I fancy that I've helped him in similar ways). Both pre- and post-Dria (more on that later), he's been the best possible influence on me...I've become a much saner, happier, more secure person on his watch. We just work, and we make each other lol, and nearly five years later we're still together--so we must be doing something right. Not bad for a first relationship!
- In July 2006, I ended my toxic, stifling friendship with Dria. For the seven years we considered ourselves BFFs, the relationship grew more and more draining, rife with passive aggression, jealousy, and emotional manipulation. When I look back on it now, I don't know why I allowed it to go on as long as it did; it really was like an emotionally abusive romantic relationship, just without the romance part. And I would be lying if I said I didn't still feel some bitterness about the whole thing. But I've since found friends who celebrate my successes rather than begrudging me them; who encourage me to pursue other friendships; who are there for me as much as I am there for them. They're people who are supportive the way friends are supposed to be, and they're the kind of friends I always wished to have. And it's fantastic. (It was after this incident that I changed my username and began writing as phoenicis.)
So, it's been six years and a few months since I joined LJ as an awkward, highly sheltered teen. I'm now in my early twenties. I have a bachelor's degree in literature, a professional certificate in editing, and a pilot's license. I work a (nearly =P) full-time job, own a car and a pet, and pay my own bills. I've lived abroad and I speak a second language. I've got several close friends and a great boyfriend. I'm much more comfortable with who I am, and a much more attractive and capable woman because of it. Here's a picture of what I look like now (although my hair is now shorter--I haven't taken any pics since getting it cut again). And so even though I sometimes still fall prey to self-loathing and despair, and sometimes I'm still not certain of what I want or where I'm going, I wish that the me who joined LJ at seventeen could have seen who she would become at twenty-three. It would have given her hope.
