Too much excitement!! OMG. *breathes*
Okay. *giggles* I need to calm down. I am so giddy. I should just start at the beginning…
This was definitely the best *night* I’ve had in a while. I had a bit of a shitty day – PHYS midterm, graduation nuisances & disappointments, and then a disappointing internship interview.
But, then, Fate intervened. I was walking out of the union, trying to decide if I’d bus it home or call for a ride, when I saw a large crowd… and D from Costume Construction. It was Take Back the Night tonight at the UO. D and I paired up and (well I) had a great time! There was all sorts of free stuff, the rally was amazing, and then the actual March. OMG. The march was huge. The largest yet, everyone guessed.
It was hilarious. One of the speakers ran from Sorority to Sorority, dragging sisters into the March, when we walked past their Houses. People gathered on their porches and decks to watch us as we passed. Then, on the corner of Alder and 16th we met up with an giant African drum band/ team. After that, we started dancing thru the streets. It was just amazing. I was so hoarse from chanting and cheering and singing. OMG.
I just can’t even explain it. As a survivor of sexual assault, this was such an uplifting experience. Other survivors were there, and men and women who supported every person’s right to live unmolested and happy.
*deep breath*
So. We marched all the way to 8th and Oak (at the Saturday Market Square) where there was free food and stuff. The best was the fire dancers. And a DJ. The drummers and the DJ decided to work together, which was just plain cool. I’d never heard African drumming and club trance mixed, but it works really well. Then other survivors got up and spoke. The most notable speaker was our State Senator(!). But, at a certain point, I knew I needed to go somewhere and calm down. It gets to be too much after a while. So, Dad had offered to pick me up earlier, when I called and told him I’d be busy. In the end, we gave 3 other girls a ride back to campus.
Here’s all the things I got at the rally and March:
I love the t-shirt and am already thinking of modification possibilities (D and I were discussing the 4-thread serger earlier…). The buttons are cool, and the goody bag and noise maker (which D compulsively fixed every so often). Oh, and my “survivor” blue ribbon. Just because of this, I was excited and happy and so unbound for the first time in months.
But, the BEST was yet to come. “Your package-thing arrived today,” my Dad says as we walk in the front door. “OOOOOH,” I reply.
Lemme tell you, “ooooh” doesn’t even COVER it!! (I promise not to run around squealing until I finish this post, I swear). *another deep breath*
I tried to be good and read Pumperthedinosaur‘s (my Princess Bride Swap partner) letter, but, erm, I caved when my brother asked (for the 3rd time!) “what did you get????”
We-ell… THESE!:
(which of course caused me to squeal and bounce and make my father think I was crazy. My brother had to explain it to him. Well, some of it.) “Where did you get those? How much did you pay for them?” My Dad kept asking. Silly man. Money cannot buy goodies as cool as these.
At the top of the box was the “Vizzini Bag” (Okay, Classicists, you can totally appreciate this):
Which made me shriek (c’mon, I am a Classicist). Clickie on the pic to see the tag she attached. Even BETTER, this bag is the PERFECT size to carry my digicam and 4 batteries in! I’m bringing this thing everywhere with me!
So, cooing while I looked it over, I opened the bag and found THESE!!!
Princess Bride STITCH MARKERS!!!
I just, can’t even explain the coolness of these to the non-initiated. Seriously. There are, I swear, in the pack: 1 MLT, 1 ROUS, 1 Book, and 3 Quotes (“Bye-bye boys, have fun storming the castle!” “You see, no one would surrender to the Dread Pirate Westley” and “Never go in against a Sicilian when DEATH is on the line!”) *deep breath* Just too *fricking* cool for me. Ohman. I had to explain what “stitch markers” ARE to my family, but they thought the beadwork was impressive (OMG!)
Then! (yes, there’s MORE!!), underneath my favorite-est bag were these:
A CHIBI Dread Pirate Roberts who “magically transforms” into Westley when you remove his mask! How clever is that? He was kept safe in a Princess Bride VHS box. And, as you can see, holding him up the best soap idea ever – Miracle Pill Soap. That’s right, chocolate scented (and flavored, prolly) soap! (which my brother tried to steal). I’m keeping him by my laptop, and plan on putting the soap to use. I might want to be careful about that, smelling like chocolate might be a safety hazard ;)
I should have known, I suppose, now that I think about it. When we were lining up to march, D and I were right behind this girl who was wearing a Princess Bride t-shirt (totally a good omen!). Just, wow. I swear, CLICK on the pics to see close-ups of her tags and stuff – any true PB fan’ll love ’em.
I immediately sent Pumper an ecstatic and fragmented email, detailing my love for my goodies, her, and crafting in general. Then, posted my luck to Craftster. This is the best swap I’ve participated in EVER (remember, I was a Girl Scout). I felt a bit bad when I thought about the goodies I made and sent, but then recalled that my ROUSes were handspun and knitted (using Elektra’s precious fleece) – actually, Pumper swears she’s using them as sewing machine guards. Parfait.
Okay, now that I’ve been good, I get to squeal a bit more and stuff. I HAVE to take these into Costume Construction with me tomorrow. OOOOOH. I’m also bringing my camera (in my new camera bag!) so I can get a photo of Puck’s pants.
Oh. just. wow.
I really am so glad I blog now, because now I won’t lose this. What a perfect night.
Sara Morris Design 