Heh. Put my real name on the Internet? Yeah, right! So why "Garnet"? That's the nickname I use on Usenet and in chat (mainly #rassm and #wedgechat and in the Qui-Gon Discussion List chatroom). I'm fond of the gemstone, partly because it happens to be the stone in my engagement/wedding ring, and partly just because I like the color. And I was completely lacking for inspiration the day I first logged on to mIRC, and happened to choose "Garnet" because that's what I saw as I was staring at my hands. The nickname stuck. Go figure.
Noticed that e-mail address, huh? That's my Internet persona. She's named for one of my Star Wars role-playing characters. If you get to know me, I'll tell you my real name. I'm not 100% paranoid, merely cautious.
Duh. Hint: Look at my family pics on the main page. I was 14 when Star Wars: A New Hope first came out, but I didn't see it until my 15th birthday. It was a science fiction/fantasy universe the way I'd always envisioned one in my mind, but had never seen translated successfully to the big screen until that day. Is Star Wars the bright center of my existence? No, I really do have a life. But it is my favorite mental vacation spot.As for my favorite movie in the original trilogy...that depends on my mood, but more often than not I'd have to say The Empire Strikes Back . How did I like Episode 1: The Phantom Menace? Well...as I told one friend, "IT SO TOTALLY DIDN'T SUCK!!!" Ummm, yes, I've been hanging around the college age crowd far too long...why do you ask? My favorite new character is Qui-Gon Jinn, who I think is the epitome of the ideal Jedi. Though Obi-Wan's not too hard on the eyes either, and Senator Palpatine just oozes slime. I was also very moved by Pernilla August's performance as young Anakin's mother, Shmi Skywalker, probably because I'm the mother of a young son myself.
RASSM stands for rec.arts.sf.starwars.misc, the primary Usenet group I read and post to whenever time permits. (Another favorite newsgroup is alt.fan.wedge, a newsgroup for the Star Wars version of "Everyman", Wedge Antilles.) Many of the RASSM regulars also frequent the chat channel #rassm, located on the StarLink server. (Note: this is not the same server as StarLinkIRC!) You can either use the Javachat option at the StarLink website, or access #rassm using mIRC or other chat software. The #wedgechat has recently changed servers, but I'll try to post the new information as soon as I can find it. I'm also now participating on the Qui-Gon discussion list, and chatting with those folks on Friday nights. You can find our webpage (with a link to register for the mailing list and another link to our chat site) at The Qui-Gon Discussion List Homepage.
I love to read anything I can get my hands on...primarily fiction, but I've been known to read bottle labels if nothing else is available. Hello, my name is Garnet, and I'm a word addict. This extends to e-mail, which is probably my most serious vice. (O.K., so I lead a sheltered life.) I also enjoy collecting the SW novels, action figures, and assorted memorabilia, so if you want to donate some to your favorite charity, you can reach me at evian_delacourt@hotmail.com .... Other interests include relaxing with my husband and kids, going to the occasional SCA event (more on that below), and trying my hand at creative writing. Or simply daydreaming...I'm really good at that. Just ask all of my former elementary teachers. I don't watch TV all that often, but when I do, my favorite shows are "Babylon 5", "Dharma and Greg", "The Practice", "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", and "Ally McBeal". "B5" stimulates my imagination and it's great mind candy. (JMS, the creator of the show, also understands the "lived-in universe" concept I find so appealing in Star Wars .) The other shows appeal to my rather warped sense of humor.
SCA is short for Society for Creative Anachronism , a non-profit, educational organization devoted to the study and re-creation of the more fun elements of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. I'm not as active these days in the SCA as I used to be (having two kids and an active life takes its toll), but I met my husband in our local SCA group, so that's kind of special to me. For more info you can click on the "Barony of Iron Mountain" link on my main page, or check out the Official SCA Webpage.
That depends on what you mean by the question. I was born in Florida, but haven't lived there since early childhood. I was a Navy brat, and my family lived in various places throughout the U.S. as well as Italy and the Philippines. However, I've been living in Alabama since 1978, and in the Birmingham area since 1982. I consider Birmingham my home.(And for those who ask that because of my appearance, I'm Scots-Irish and Cherokee on my dad's side and Spanish-Filipina and Chinese on my mom's, so you could say I'm a walking U.N.)
You wouldn't believe how often I hear this question! Just call him the Recessive Gene poster child. He's my little Scottish throwback, sharing the same shade of red hair with my paternal grandmother's sisters (and some of my husband's ancestors too, I think). I get this question almost every time I show people a picture of him. My favorite variation was "What color is your mailman's hair?" She's a blonde. No relation.My daughter's hair is a sort of caramel colored brown with golden blonde and reddish highlights. And here we thought dark hair was supposed to be dominant!
I just finished Aaron Allston's X-wing books (Wraith Squadron, Iron Fist, and Solo Command) and his latest, Starfighters of Adumar, and they are my favorites of the lot. Besides those, I loved I, Jedi and the X-Wing books by Michael Stackpole (basically if it has Star Wars and Stackpole or Allston on the cover, I'll buy it!) and the Zahn books. I also liked the Black Fleet Crisis books fairly well, though the Lando scenes dragged a bit for me, and I wanted to slap Leia upside the head a couple of times by the end of the first book, but she got better. (There, that got my point across with no spoilers, I think.) I also loved the Han Solo trilogies by Brian Daley and Ann Crispin (2 separate trilogies spanning different periods of Han's life, but both set before the first Star Wars movie, if you're unfamiliar with the books.) I liked several of the other novels, but not enough to make special mention of them.I haven't read most of the TPM era stuff yet except for the Jedi Apprentice series of books about Qui-Gon and young Obi-Wan at the beginning of their partnership, but that series is quite good so far. As far as the novelizations go, I liked the "junior" version (by Patricia A. Wrede) much better than the Terry Brooks version, though Brooks gives some nice insight into young Anakin's background and also some of the conflict between Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan when they disagree over Anakin.
I've just started following Shadows of the Empire: Evolution , though my interest in that series is primarily due to the artwork. My other favorite series is the X-Wing Rogue Squadron comics, which unfortunately were discontinued mere weeks after I discovered these treasures. So if you have back issues, feel free to send them to me at....(Don't I wish!) Actually, I'm only missing issues #2 and #3 now. The Mara Jade series was terrific too, and I'm looking forward to the upcoming story arc about her wedding. (Won't mention to whom, since some of you might not want this spoiled.)
I've been pretty busy lately. In my not-so-spare time, though, I'm working on a fanfic for my fellow Qui-Gon fans on the Discussion List. It's posted to the website (see link above). I'm also at Jedi Council discussing personality type theories and how they relate to Star Wars and Star Wars fans, on my Star Wars and Personality Types thread on the Miscellaneous Forum.