Find Your Perfect Valentine's Day - Quiz!

Hi folks,

This post is going to be fun and you know it, because it's a quiz.  I made it because I'm part of a great group called the Geeks & Beauties Community.  Some of us are going a collaboration this month where we all write a post with a Valentine's Day theme, and link to each others posts.  So if you'd like to check them out please scroll to the bottom of this post!  I'll be adding each post as they go up this week.

So I've been wanting to make a quiz for a while and this was the perfect excuse.  Are you wondering what to do for Valentine's Day?  Maybe you just don't want to think about it.  That's ok, take this quick quiz and maybe it'll decide for you.

Geeky Valentine's Day Date Planner

The day is coming, and no I'm not talking about the zombie apocalypse - Valentine's Day. No mater whether you're single or with a significant other you need a plan. Maybe it will even involve prepping some weapons to train for surviving in a dystopian future. Let's take a look deep into your soul and find your perfect fate in 7 easy questions.

1. What's your immediate thought when someone mentions that Valentine's Day is coming up?

Ugh, what an excuse for spending money!
I guess I should do something so I'm not alone.
I just want someone nice to spend the day with this year.
I can't wait to plan something fun.
Flowers, chocolate, and fancy dinners, this will be the best year ever!


2. Pick your poison...

The dark antihero story.
I like all kinds of stories!
A lighthearted comedy.
Anything with David Tennant, or {insert other geek crush here}.
A romantic story.


3. What's you favorite kind of Con

Conning someone into paying for a free dinner...that person on Tinder has no idea.
I'm happy going to the one my significant other wants to go to.
I'm up for an Anime or Comic convention every once in a while.
Can I please go to all the ones near me?
I'm not really into cons, too many people for me!


4. What's you favorite holiday

Valentine's Day
Christmas
New Years Eve
Halloween
Thanksgiving


5. You have Saturday free so you:

Take a trip to the farmer's market and cook up something tasty with a friend.
Have to finish reading this fantastic book or binge watching another season of that awesome show.
Get some shopping done and head out on the town all evening.
Want to try that great new ethnic restaurant your co-workers told you about.
Have a game night at your place with friends; grab your dice/controllers!


6. How much planning do you want to put into this?

A bit I suppose.
Meh, I'll think of something...
Why bother, it's just another day!
I'm down for planning as long as it's worth it.
I'll take care of everything!


7. When all things are said and done you'd really like spend the day:

Having a romantic day with that special someone.
Keeping myself occupied to take my mind off the depressing stuff.
Having fun geeking out with a person I love.
Doing whatever I want!
Going on a unique adventure.

A score of 7-15 = This just isn't your kind of day, put on some headphones, dive into something you love, hit ignore and do your own thing.

A score of 15-29 = Maybe you're single, maybe you're just not into big shows of affection, either way you should get together with a good friend or two and do something fun without any pressure.

A score of 30-50 = You like to keep things light and don't want something fussy. Whatever you do keep it simple so you can enjoy it without worrying about plans too much. Dinner and a movie is a classic that works well for you.

A score of 51-69 = Whether you're geeky or not you want to do something special and you're willing to put some effort in to make it memorable. Head out to a late night cult classic after hitting a foodie hotspot, or surprise your favorite person with tickets to that con or event they've been eying during your dinner date!

A score of 70-84 = Do you even need to read this? You know you want the most romantic day ever! Maybe that means it'll be a little sappy, but that's ok, the person you're spending the day with loves you. Just don't get too obsessed with planning that you can't enjoy each moment of the fun you have planned.


After hitting the button above if you follow the "Give Me More" link you can enter my giveaway for an Enchanted Beauty Box, or just go here to enter and hear more about this new Disney themed beauty box!

Thanks for reading, and be sure to tell me if you liked this quiz in the comments below.

Other Valentine's Day Posts From My Friends

From ZombiieeNinjjaBeauty we have this post on what shouldn't be on your gift list this year.

A great makeup look and giveaway with Realby Lamona.

From Bethany Summer we have a Valentine's Day date look the goes from head to toe!

Zainey Laney has another installment in her amazing Makeup & A Movie Series.

And finally Southeast by Midwest is here to share a great makeup tutorial.

Comics of Many Kinds

Hi  everyone,

I'm back with some more comic reviews!  We'll start off with Lumberjanes Volume 1 by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis, and Brooke A. Allen.  This is a fantastic comic that's great for all ages, and follows the adventures of a group of five girls at their summer camp.  The woods are full of mysterious stuff, and this camp holds both secrets and excitement as the girls start exploring.  They're a very diverse group in both looks and interests/talents, which makes them great role models for younger readers and a pleasure for those seeking more realistic characters.  I can't wait for the next one!

Bride of the Water God Volume 1  by Mi-Kyung Yun, is a Korean graphic novel about a yound woman named Soah who is chosen to be sacrificed as a bride to the water god.  She is indeed taken to him, but who he is and the place she now lives is more complex than the villagers might have assumed when they sent her off.  She begins to meet the inhabitants of her new home in the first book.  This book was a harder read, because Korean books are harder to translate to English.  Supposedly this is one of the better translated ones and I still find it hard to follow at times.   If you're experienced reading manga and want to branch out I think it's a good start, but it's not for beginners.

Bride of the Water God Volume 2 picks up with more of the delicate art and Soah getting to know and starting to fall for the man who might be her husband?  It's rather confusing for her, but she's starting to find her place within the house of the gods, and the story starts to pick up.  It's no easier to read, but I find it interesting enough that I'll be sticking with it for at least another volume.

The Ancient Magus Bride Volume 1 by Kore Yamazaki  I know the title of this is a bot similar to the one above however they only have a bit of plot that's similar.  Chise has lived a hard life and she makes the choice to change her circumstances.  She ends up bought (weird, but voluntary) by a very powerful old wizard.  She's whisked away into a world full of magic, and if you love Harry Potter it's likely you'll enjoy this!  Her master teases that she will be his bride, yet she is also his apprentice and a powerful magic wielder in her own right.  This book is Japanese, and mostly set in the UK.  I loved this and am eager to get the next volume.

Avengers & X-Men: Axis by Rick Remender, Adam Kubert, and Leinil Francis Yu is a Marvel event book that I've heard had mixed reviews, but I really enjoyed.  I think part of the problem was how the situation was set up, but most of that is in another book, so I didn't worry too much about it and took this arc for what it was.  And it's a fascinating look that brings out dark in the hearts of our best characters and brings morals to the ones we thought the furthest from them.  I agree with some of the reviewers who would have liked more in depth stories with some of the characters....like Loki for instance.  I really enjoyed it, and recommend it heartily if you're familiar with the basic cast of characters in the Marvel universe.

Secret Wars by Jim Shooter, Mike Zeck, and Bob Layton is a volume we read for last months Word Balloons meeting at Fight or Flight Comics.  I tried so hard to read all of this one, but the dialogue was so bad.  It was written mostly in 1985 (it's a pretty big volume) and was the first big Marvel crossover event.  So it's a big part of their history as a company and all, and many people around my age get nostalgic for this sort of classic comic feel.  And the art isn't particularly bad, it's just more the classic style rather than the more realistic paint colors we see in recent comics.  I'm glad I read what I could to see some of the history, but I'm glad we've made progress too!  I can't recommend this one unless you have a kid who likes comics (it's pretty tame) and won't mind the corniness or you have a nostalgia you need fulfilled.

On another note I really need to get these posts written ahead of time so when I have a health issue I'm not up late trying to write when I don't feel well.  However, this one's done and I'll see you again Friday!

Love,
Lydia

I am a Nerd

Hi everyone,

I have a confession to make, I am a nerd, or maybe you'd call it a geek, either way it's about the same.  I love things that are boring to other folks and though I haven't talked about it much here I am unashamed in my passion for them.  I just thought it was time to say that here too.

Today Bryan and I had a conversation about how a being would theoretically evolve with two hearts and how those hearts would function. Many animals with multiple hearts probably had them evolve along with gills.  Would one control blood flow to the left side of the body and the other the right?  If so when a heart failed the individual might lose a leg and arm, but still go on living.  Perhaps the second heart was there to give the individual more energy reserve for purposes of something like the regenerative abilities.  #TimeLords #Centaurii #Science?

We recently discussed how a roleplay system we really enjoy (Hackmaster New) has neglected to introduce information for all the various cleric faiths they promised in the rulebook.  We want to play another campaign, but we may have to adapt the information we have to make something new.  Since we have the opportunity we can put a trinity of gods in place, perhaps sun, moon, and star/void and use that instead of the usual alignments.  Add in another element to craft them by classifying the themes into color families to mimic the values of Magic the Gathering's colors to create the flavor of each cleric's personality.  I have a feeling everyone in the party may be itching to play a cleric character.

We play with ideas like these often, when we're not playing games of Civilization V together, or gathering with brothers for Pokemon roleplay nights (yes we pretend we're trainers, trying to be the very best), or over at Bryan's parents for Sci Fi Night, making art about time travel, going to a LEGO convention, talking physics with Davey, or history with each other, meeting with comic book discussion groups, and playing Brain Dots on our phones in bed together when we should be trying to sleep.

As a result my personal fashion is more Felicia Day than Coco Chanel, though I do love some vintage style.  It may just be influenced by the 1950s as well as steampunk Victorian worlds.  I end up being so eclectic, and I hope I can make that work in a more minimalist way.  It's taking some time to put things together for my fall capsule wardrobe, but I'm excited to see what happens.  And I'll finally have managed to go through all my clothes and can actually go sell stuff (I've been putting this off for the summer) and donate slightly more loved items.

So this is just a bit of my personal love letter to all the geeks out there, and there's probably more where this same from.  For now I'll wait until Wednesday to share more, when I'll be back with another installment of graphic novel reviews.  See you then!

Love,
Lydia

A Bit of Reflection

Hi everyone,

So, I know it hasn't been long, but that's exactly what I was hoping for as I work towards making good habit in writing and life in general.  Here goes.

One of the things on my mind lately has been having kids.  Frankly a lot of my thoughts stemmed from contemplation of a couple posts here on Feathers in Our Nest.  Aliesha talks about how she's having another wonderful baby join her family, but knows that can be hard to hear for some folks, and writes about the loss she has experienced herself.  And it's fantastic to hear more and more bloggers be open about their experiences surrounding having and attempting to conceive children.

I know, a bunch of you out there are probably wondering why after two years a couple like Bryan and I haven't produced progeny yet.  Well, we'd love to.  In fact it's been one of our goals for quite a while, but it just hasn't happened for us so far.  And why is a good question I suppose.  We haven't found much in the way of medical reasons, and after 20 months of trying we're still in the testing phase.  We're not really looking for advice, but it's something that we know people will want to give us if the subject comes up because the natural response is to try to help in any way.  However, we're healthy and blessed to have our needs provided for enough we can support kids if we chose to have them or eventually adopt if it comes to that.

And for now we're buying a house, I'll be starting a garden, continuing to build my business, exploring, creating, and developing all kinds of wonderful things.  And I don't want to take any of this time to ourselves for granted, and as introverts we value it.  So I want to use my time wisely.

When I was in high school I wanted nothing more than to get married and have kids, babysitting and childcare were what I was good at.  I didn't really want to go to college, thinking my family couldn't afford it anyway.  Sure I had other goals, writing a book, making music, reading all the books I could get my hands on, and traveling too.  Then after a little while working I realized I could at least try a bit of college at the local community college.  And things changed, I didn't find the right person to marry right away, I fell in love with photography, painting, and Ireland first.

And when the time was just right I met Bryan, who knew he wanted to settle down and have a family; I was 27, things were good.  For now we're building a home (literally!) that we hope to raise our family in.  Some days it's still depressing for my own part, but I don't ever tire of seeing all those who are happy with kids and babies of their own.  I only get tired of having to answer the same questions about myself because I can't give the happy answer people are wishing for.  On the bad days I take it personally, as if there's something wrong in the depths of me.  But there are more than enough who need love in this world to go around, and I'll give it to whoever I'm blessed with.  And I wouldn't change a thing about my life so far, even if it's not what I expected.

Love,
Lydia

Two Years and a New Year!

Good afternoon everyone!

This past Tuesday, December 30th marked the second anniversary of my marriage to Bryan.  I can honestly say neither of us had any idea of the changes both good and bad that would be in store for us over the first two years of our marriage.  However, both of us knew we wanted to meet whatever challenges might come with the other, side by side, as best of friends, and deeply in love.  That love has only deepened since, and I know I don't talk about it too often, but that's mostly because I'm private, and have no complaints!  I am ever so glad to to have him in my life.

He may not read my blog much, but I wanted to do a little photo recap of our past two years.  Hopefully you all will enjoy it too!

December 30 2012

We had a small ceremony, with mostly just family.  Photos taken by the fantastic Arielei Kinzer!

Bryan and I headed to Florida for our honeymoon, spending time in Savannah, GA, St Augustine, FL, and Orlando, FL.  You can see we're really just big kids at heart!

After the honeymoon, in February Bryan lost his job at ACHC, which was really an old internship from when he was in college that had let him stay on after graduation.  This led to a tough month for us as he searched for a new job and in March happily started working for the NC Dept. of Agriculture as a programmer.

In May we moved out of the little apartment we were sharing with Bryan's brother Stephen and into a little rental house of our own.  We got to paint and decorate a bit and have really enjoyed living close to both Bryan's job downtown and his parents in North Raleigh.

We went to the beach with family and friends that August, where I tested out a new lens for my phone's camera.

During the fall of 2013 I worked on my domestic skills, making chili (recipe for that here), growing my own tomatoes (everything else I tried to grow that year died), and working on my computer out on the screened in porch as Carolina Wrens occasionally visited.

Bryan and I headed to our first concert together, Switchfoot! And not soon after saw Neko Case, though no photos were allowed at that show.

In October Bryan was rear ended, totaling our old Buick, so in early November we got a little Honda Civic hybrid, which was a huge improvement in gas mileage and our first car of our own.



We also went to the NC State Fair together and made silly faces while enjoying ourselves.

As part of our Thanksgiving week that year we also went to DC for a couple days to visit the Smithsonian.  On day one we went to the National History Museum.  We didn't know my friend Samantha was going to be there, but we ended up meeting with her to go to the Natural Science Museum the next day. The butterfly house was amazing!

And we celebrated our first Christmas as a married couple!

Throughout 2014 we spent lots of time with family.  Some of it was at home and a bit at the family reunion, the beach, and the weekend in the mountains.  We spent our time having friends like Stuart over to visit, road tripping with brothers, exploring caves, playing board games, and fixing flat tires!

So you all have mostly heard about all that has gone on with us this year.  However, in October Bryan heard he'd soon be laid off from his job with the state.  He had enough notice that he was able to get a new position at a great educational programming company in Durham that he started immediately after his job at the state ended.  I couldn't believe how hugely blessed we were by that one.  I tried working for Anthropologie for a bit after attempting the Kickstarter in January, but am now simply working as an artist.  I had my first local show in December, and we also got our lovely pet rabbit, Scarlet, which has made the last month of the year exciting.

And finally, our next big announcement is that we'll be buying a house this spring!  We need to move closer to Bryan's job in Durham (it's 45 minutes to an hour each way!) and the new job has allowed us to afford buying over renting.  So we've found a new neighborhood that's being built and will be getting a house with some custom features built for us.  We're currently starting the design process, and are really excited.  I can't wait to share more with you all as we make the journey to home ownership!  Here's a shot of the rendering of our home (top image), plus the siding and door colors, Thistle Green and Tuxedo Gray respectively.  Any advice and such is welcome as we're learning along the way and love hearing the stories of others as we work our way through the process.

I'm looking forward to all 2015 has to offer, and can't wait to share it with you all!  Each weekday I'll be working on Pinterest projects and sharing the results with you all.  To start things off I'm doing a January Photo Challenge where each day I'm taking pictures which I'll share here.  Today's shot is "new" so you get to see the new home plans above.  More soon!

Love,

Lydia