Dia dhuit, my fellow man.
I am Ophiucha or, as I was named at birth, Alexandra Victoria. I am a New Yorker, born and raised, though I've spent much of my time traveling to England due to my father's family, who (mostly) live in Surrey. I am a writer, a chef, a linguist, an art historian, a fan of the oldest of speculative fiction,
a newbie blogger, and an appreciator of the arts. I find little interest in dressing up or DIY mechanics - goodness knows I'd cut off my finger with a sewing machine, somehow, and I'd look rather silly in anything of Victorian origin. Though I do wear a corset (beneath my clothes) for the sake of a little trim. I am currently living in Vancouver, BC and I am a student at the University of British Columbia; undeclared, but considering art history, classical studies, romance studies, and medieval studies - my intended language (as it is required I learn one) is Italian, but I may switch to Latin. I've taken classes in Gaelic, German, French, Latin, and Japanese, but the only one I know with any proficiency is Latin. I'm also well read in regards to Scandinavian literature, both the Viking sagas and more recent stuff. After all, biased though it is, there have been an awful lot of Nobel Laureates in Literature who were from the area, so they are certainly worth reading. To summarize my personal tastes in the arts, my favorite composer is Tchaikovsky (though anyone Russian or Romantic is worth listening to, in my opinion), my favorite period of literature and painting is the Romantic period - literature, in particular, had the Gothic subset worth noting, and I find no period more fascinating than Heian Japan. Though I love the Victorians dearly, there is something to be said of the arts and aesthetics of the Heian court.
All the classicism aside, I spend most of my time headbanging at a local metal concert, contemplating what to write without ever actually writing it, and playing RPGs. I have a passing interest in science fiction and fantasy cinema, as well as the old noir and silent films. Some of my favorites include Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, Inglourious Basterds, Pan's Labyrinth, Babe, Shadow of the Vampire, and the Dreamworks Animation: Road to El Dorado. Oh, and anything with Jason Isaacs or Alan Rickman is worth watching. I have a passing interest in anime and manga. My favorite series right now is Real Drive, but some persisting favorites of mine are Fullmetal Alchemist, Loveless, Baccano!, and Saiyuki. And anything from Ghibli, obviously. Regarding literature, my interests (unsurprisingly) are mostly old. Lord Dunsany, Jules Verne, E.R. Eddison, William Hope Hodgson, George MacDonald, Kenneth Grahame, William Morris, Edmund Spenser, H.G. Wells, etc. Special shout out to Vonnegut, Heinlein, and Asimov. Music-wise, other than Tchaikovsky, my favorite musicians are Eisbrecher, OOMPH!, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, Frank Sinatra, Hans Zimmer, Igor Stravinsky, Epica, Within Temptation, and Black Sabbath. My favorite artist is - no question - Caspar David Friedrich, and my close followups are Hieronymous Bosch and Giger. I don't watch much TV, so I won't elaborate on that beyond saying I watch the History and Discovery channels.
And now I've written an overly long introduction, and I shall depart. Adieu.
