Unfurling.

*Warning: the following post will most likely bore and/or horrify you. Read at your own risk, and as Heather says, love me through this.

Many of my traits and quirks are established and well-defined. I am Southern by birth, Georgian by the grace of God. I love my southernisms--sweet tea, Gone with the Wind (both the novel and movie), slang (y'all, fixin' to, reckon, etc.), monogramming anything that'll sit still long enough, growing flowers, raising vegetables, making cornbread, fried green tomatoes, fried squash, and fried okra in my grandmother's 100 year old cast iron skillet, wearing pearls with t-shirts, and always remembering to say "ma'am" and "sir," to my elders. To name a few. I am predictable in my love of all things pink, my devotion to the Georgia Bulldogs, and in my conviction there is no other area on the planet I'd rather reside than below the Mason Dixon line. Perched on my front porch in one of our rockers I could live happily ever after with a plate of fried chicken, cream potatoes, butter beans and cornbread, a big glass of sweetened sun tea, Patsy Cline's glorious voice on the CD player and my family rocking right beside me. As Scotty and I like to say, "This makes me happy."

Throughout my blogging life (all 5 months!) I've mentioned my fangirl status and devotion to certain genres of entertainment that don't necessarily fit my "typical" mold. The more I think on it though, we all have certain areas of our life that would surprise the outside world were we to go public. So here I am, going public.

Hello, my name is Leigh Anne, aka Lula, and I am a Sci-Fi freak. A Southern Belle Sci-Fi Freak would be a more apt description. I recently told Heather that living in a small, extremely rural town where everybody knows way more than your name makes it somewhat difficult to let my freak flag fly. Well, poop on it...I'm raising the banner. Love me, hate me, or find me even weirder than you ever imagined (see my tampon missive below!), I am what I am and there ain't no going back. Yes, some educated southerns still speak this way. Get past it. I know it's not proper English. Move on.

I am a nerd. I know it, I accept it, I lovingly embrace it and I revel in this status.

He is smokin' hot. Don't deny it.

We all know of my complete devotion to the hour of perfection that is Lost, or what I refer to as The Show I Believe Everyone Should Worship With All That Is Sacred Within. (I mean no sacrilege. Promise. I fully accept Lost as a gift from my gracious God.) But Lost is adored by fans across the spectrum of genre preferences. So that one doesn't count. Let's go deeper and reveal some of my other loves...

I am a Trekkie. Not William Shatner (I'm not that old!), not any of those late 90's, early '00s knock-offs. No, I am a Star Trek: The Next Generation Trekkie. I love Captain Jean-Luc Picard (the brilliant Patrick Stewart), Lt. Commander Data (the almost-human droid), and star of PBS's "Reading Rainbow," LeVar Burton, as engineer Geordi La Forge. I've seen every episode of the series' 7-year run, as well as the 4 silver screen offerings: Generations, First Contact, Insurrection and Nemesis. When Generations first premiered I convinced my mother to stand in line with me at Parkway Cinemas (woo, a Warner Robins shout-out!) while toting a bag full of canned goods. The movie opened the weekend before Thanksgiving, and we uber fans who donated non perishables received the movie's marquee poster as a party favor. Which I still have in my closet back home. Because I'm a geek.

The crew of the Starship Enterprise. Boldly going where no one has ever gone before. They are rock stars...awwwwwww, yeah.

Do I even have to mention how stoked I am for the latest Star Trek offering, from none other than J.J. Abrams? (The creator of Lost. 'Nuff said.) It's set for release in early 2009 and while it's not a TNG version, it does feature a pretty impressive cast, including Karl Urban, better known and loved by me as Eomer in The Two Towers and Return of the King. (Yes, yes, yes...while not Sci-Fi, I am a Ringer. Full-fledged, hardcore, totally sold-out. Love me some Lord of the Rings.) Karl's pretty easy on the eyes, too. I'm just sayin'.


A couple of weeks ago I began watching Battlestar Galactica. The new version, not the original offering from the 70's. Over the past few months I've read review after glowing review of this Sci-Fi channel show, and when critics continually offer high praise (that's not about tampons) I generally take notice. I've just finished season 1 and will begin season 2 today, and I've gotta say...I am in love. No big surprise here. I'm a nerd, remember? But what I am really enjoying about this show is that it's not the least bit cheesy. Admittedly science fiction works tend to be over-the-top and/or smothered with a thick, gooey sauce that makes it unpalatable. And predictable. Not Battlestar...the writing, the acting, the story lines...oh wow, I've been hooked from the start. I have very little patience, and I am not a huge fan of waiting for the good stuff, so having this show available on DVD (thank you, Netflix!) is truly fabulous. I just watch, watch, watch 'til I'm satisfied (tired), then start all over again the next day. Brilliant!


While I wouldn't necessarily categorize Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off, Angel, as science fiction, Netflix does, so I'm including them here. Briefly. Because both are on my list of all-time favorite shows ever. And if I were delve into my devotion to these two programs, this post would be 5 pages long and then Kelly would never read it. If she's even read this far. I'll make it short and sweet. I am the psycho fan of Buffy and Angel. I will challenge any of you to a game of trivia concerning the 7 seasons of Buffy and Angel's 5. Are y'all a little worried that I'm a nut job? Well, clearly, yeah. I am.

One of the most romantic moments EVER on the small screen...Buffy and Spike. Remember, these are the two I lauded in TV Guide. In print. (Not this particular scene, though.) Oh yeah, you're getting it now...aren't you? I'll also mention that James Marsters ("Spike") is my backup boyfriend and I've been a fan of his for years. Being a closeted Goth, I have a thing for vampires. But that's a whole other post.

Star Wars, the BBC's Torchwood, the X-Files (the new movie comes out in July!!!)...need I further prove my nerd status? I'll close (cheering erupts!) with this:

More from the wondrous mind that is J.J. Abrams--his latest program, "Fringe," which begins airing this fall. Check out the trailer--it looks beyond fantastic. Oh, and please don't get me started on Joss Whedon's latest, (creator of Buffy & Angel--I dig him the most!) "Dollhouse," which premieres January '09. These are the two shows I'm most looking forward to next year (Season 5 of Lost goes without saying, of course). And yes, both are science fiction. Of course. Nerds of the world, unite and rejoice!