raloria

Alright, it was actually yesterday (Saturday), but I was busy and LJ was down. Thought I'd mark the anniversary anyway.





Completely forgot that back for the first challenge I'd post 2 caps to guess on! But then back in 2007, we only had 2 seasons of caps to work with! LOL

Anyway, I'd like to thank anyone who ever played in the challenge over the years. After all, your participation is what makes the whole thing work. :)

Not sure when I'll have another SPN Name That Cap Challenge, but I hope to.

He may be dead, but certainly not forgotten!
My TV boyfriend, my hero. Dean Winchester. ♥



( More caps... )

Hey! I almost forgot about this anniversary!

Way back on this date in 2008 (hey, it rhymes!)...I shared my first complete set of SPN caps...for the Pilot.
Sadly, PhotoBucket has since watermarked them & the MediaFire account the zipped folders were uploaded to is now out of commission. It really doesn't matter. I mean look at the size of the caps. Icky small ones compared to what I do now. So you're really not missing anything. And I've since re-capped and re-uploaded much better caps from the Pilot anyhow. ;)

But it's nice to look back on my humble capping beginnings.

We lost two great talented entertainers last week & I realized right away I wanted to make a special post just for them. I grew up watching both of these legends & hope you enjoy these few clips.

One movie I watched from childhood was "Calamity Jane" (1953) and I can't imagine anyone else portraying this character. So many great songs & scenes, but I decided on the opening of the film which jump starts you right into the action with "The Deadwood Stage".

Something I just noticed with this sequence - from the time she enters the Golden Garter until she shoots her guns - it's one long take! No cuts at all! For like a little over a minute (which is huge in film) Doris not only jumps up on the bar twice, she's also dragged backwards in a chair, & lip-synching to the song the entire time. Amazing!



Years later, I discovered another of Doris Day's fine films, "Love Me Or Leave Me" (1955). It was the first time I'd seen her in a role that was somewhat dramatic and I thought she did an incredible job. Of course, there's also wonderful songs to showcase her singing & dancing. My favorite is "Shaking The Blues Away". Gotta love that fabulous blue dress!



Again, I grew up watching The Carol Burnett Show (I even distinctly still remember watching the very last show). What a great ensemble cast! And Tim Conway just killed it all the time, especially when he was trying to break up Harvey Korman. Here is that classic outtake (unedited) of Tim telling the Elephant Story during the Mama's Family skit. He just wouldn't let them go on with the scene! :P

I realize I missed the big anniversary of SPN first airing on September 13th back in 2005.
Truth is I was having an awful day on Thursday and by the time I realized what the day was, I was still feeling so sucky that I didn't care.

Honestly, I look at it this way...

I celebrate SPN here (and on Twitter) pretty much every single day.
So...mission accomplished, right?

If not, well here's an old ad gif. And sure, I could wax philosophical about how I love the show and what it means to me, but...if you don't know that I'm obsessed and love SPN by now...you're just not paying attention.

My gif. ♥

What can you say about one of the most perfect male specimens on the planet?

Jensen is super talented (really, what can't he do?), super handsome, beautiful inside and out, kind, generous, caring, humble, funny, hard-working, dedicated to his craft, and a true blessing to everyone he meets. I've been lucky to meet Jensen numerous times thanks to the SPN conventions, so I thought I'd take a look back at my photos of him. I was going to post pics from all the cons, but I just ran out of time, so instead we'll look at a few photos from my first con - VanCon 2009 and my last - VanCon 2017.

Happy Birthday, Jensen, and thank you so much for touching my life, for making me truly starstruck by the gorgeous person you are when I see in person, and for being such an inspiration! ♥

I will say, when looking through my VanCon 2009 photos I'm so shocked how bad they are. LOL
There's hardly any good shots at all! Well, my camera was new and I was way back in row H and of course, totally new to this whole convention experience. So I did what I could with these few Jensen photos that I could salvage.

// Click to view the images at full-size. //


Of course, looking through last year's con photos is so much easier. More photos and more photos that are actually in focus and have the proper exposure. Lessons learned! Jensen, is, as always, stunning. ;)

// Click to view the images at full-size. //

Today we celebrate the birthday of one of the kindest souls and generous people alive. Before SPN, I watched and loved Jared on Gilmore Girls. As Rory's first and sweetest boyfriend, Dean, I always felt he was the best match for her. Jared made Dean likable right from the start and that didn't change in the recent GG Revival. As the cursed-by-demon-blood Sam Winchester, Jared shines with strength and compassion and wisdom.

But what I appreciate is Jared himself. He's so sweet and kind in person and he gives the best hugs! I so admire how he opened up about his struggles with depression and created the AKF campaign that has helped so many, myself included. I sort of threw this little picspam together, so I hope it does our birthday boy justice.

Happy 35th Birthday Jared!!!




( Caps this way! )

I first saw Jensen on Dark Angel in Season 1 when he played the out of control, Ben. Even then he had something special. You couldn't wait to see what he would do next. Then they brought him back as a regular in Season 2, as Alec. He was rough around the edges, but totally lovable. After that I sort of lost track of Jensen until SPN began. He was the whole reason I started watching the new show, but I was intrigued by the story and these 2 brothers. By the time Dean was fighting for his life in "Faith", I was totally hooked. Jensen has made Dean Winchester one of the most interesting characters on TV. A lovable jerk, with a fierce family loyalty, and heroism running through his veins, who will do anything to save the innocent from the evil things in the darkness. Constantly self-tortured, Dean never feels he's good enough or worth saving, but his pride and joy is equally his brother, Sam, and his beloved Impala.

Of course, once I became enamored with SPN, I went back and watched Jensen on DOOL, Smallville, and a few other early roles. His talent is undeniable, but then you toss in his perfectly gorgeous good looks, devilish charm, wicked sense of humor, and gentle, caring way, and you've got a guy who seems to be just about the most perfect male on the planet. Plus he sings and plays guitar! An amazing husband and father, a great friend, a brother, a son. He's a gifted director and whether behind the camera or on a stage he commands attention and easily steps up into a leadership role. On top of all that, when he's speaking or listening to you it's as if he's looking right into your very soul. And his smile lights up a room! How can you not love him???

I could fill a book with all the praise over Jensen, but I'll digress to the pretty of the man himself. *g*
Below the cut is a big collection of my photos of Jensen from all the VanCons since 2009 and SeaCon from 2015. I feel so fortunate to have seen Jensen in person so many times. Like me, my camera loves him and it's always focusing on his physical beauty, while showing us what a beautiful person he is inside.
Happy 39th Birthday, Jensen! ♥ :)





( Lots of images of our birthday boy! )