Hi everyone.
Not sure yet who all has registered here so far, but since I have already seen a familiar name, some of you may already know or remember me from past incarnations of the official Nightwish forum or from the Oceansouls of America (OSA) forum. Since my signature is not showing up in my posts, and I cannot hyperlink anything for another 7 days, I will just have to hope that you'll find the sites either through looking at my profile or following one of the links at the TLJH page.
My name is C., and I'm the webmistress of the Oceansouls of America site; we are an independent fan community based in North America, and have been spreading the word about Nightwish in our part of the world for nearly 10 years. I also moderate at the OSA forum and take care of the other various day-to-day chores at the OSA. We have a "social network staff" to man our Facebook/Twitter/Google+/Tumblr pages, but I have been known to give a helping hand over there from time to time as well.
Contrary to popular belief, I am not the "leader" or "head" of the OSA; we are a democracy run by a council of 3 (myself and two other people), as well as a "junior council" of 4 other people who help with things like the social networking sites, the chat room, and promoting the OSA throughout other corners of the web. I am probably the most "visible" representative from the OSA, as I have been there since the very beginning (I am one of the original group of people who first formed the OSA in 2003); but there are many other people behind the scenes that are just as responsible for keeping it all together. This is definitely a labor of love and I could never do all of this by myself!
We are lucky not only to have so many devoted fans to help keep our community going, but we also have an extended family of Nightwish fan communities and fan clubs who have been supportive of us, just like this one; as well as other fansites and fan communities throughout the web. We are glad to have formed a friendship with the TLJH site; we recognize a kindred spirit when we see one and there is no denying that the staff at TLJH puts as much love and effort into their community as we do into ours.
That being said, we hope you will visit us and we welcome all Nightwish fans from around the world. We hold a weekly chat every Friday night starting at 8 p.m. Eastern time, so you are always welcome to join us. And of course everyone is welcome to post at our forum over at the Ultimate Metal site. We'd love to see you there!
A little about me...I've been a Nightwish fan for nearly 12 years; I first discovered them in the summer of 2001 when I came across a copy of
Angels Fall First at one of my favorite metal record shops in San Diego (which, sadly, no longer exists). I was first made aware of the name "Nightwish" through the Stratovarius forum, when fans there would constantly recommend them to people looking for other music from Finland, or new music in general. Seeing their CD in the store, I remembered the name and bought the CD right then and there. I had never heard a note of their music and was only going by the good things people had said at the Stratoforum about them. I always say it was the best impulse buy I ever made! I was immediately drawn to the symphonic/operatic elements of their music, but I would have to say that the crossover from "interested listener" to "die-hard fan" happened when I bought
Wishmaster a couple of weeks later; from the moment I first heard "She is my Sin", I knew there was no going back! It is still my favorite Nightwish album.
I joined the Nightwish.com forum in September of that same year (I think, at the time, the only other fan on the forum from North America was Canadian) and it was there, 2 years later, that I would ultimately meet a Nightwish fan named "Snowy Owl" who wished to start an American fan club; between he, myself, and 6 or 7 other American Nightwish fans, it was there that the OSA first began.
I have seen Nightwish live a total of 7 times so far, and am one of the few American fans who has had the opportunity to see them with all 3 singers (Tarja, Anette, and Floor). I also used to moderate at two versions of the official Nightwish forum for over 7 years (from 2004-2011); I was one of the two first Americans to ever be made a moderator at the official forum and that is an honor I will always remember with fondness.
And since this is a Tuomas fanpage, I should probably mention that I have also met Tuomas in person 4 times, and he is so nice and sweet. I cannot say enough good things about him. I have even met Tuomas' mom! It's easy to see where he gets his kindness from, because she is also a wonderful person. I actually got the chance to meet her last year when the band played in Anaheim on my birthday; that entire day was the best birthday I ever had. A dream birthday for any Nightwish fan, that's for sure. I feel very lucky and am glad I was able to share such a memorable occasion with so many of my friends at the OSA who were there that night, so they could have this wonderful experience too.
I would post a picture of my meeting(s) with Tuomas, but there are other people in the photos with me, and I do not like to post pictures of those other people without their permission. I hope you will understand.
A few things about me that are unrelated to Nightwish...I'm from California, and would probably be considered old compared to everyone else here! Music is not just a hobby for me, it's a way of life. Since I cannot play music, I do the next best thing and write reviews at the Sonic Cathedral site. I love to read; it is strange, but as a writer, I am more influenced by musicians than by authors. When I'm not writing reviews, going to concerts or updating the OSA sites, I can be found hanging out at home with my dog and my boyfriend of nearly 18 years.
I consider myself to be a pretty easygoing person with simple tastes and do not need much to make me happy. I do not care much for "drama" or conflict. I look forward to making some new friends here among my fellow Nightwish fans! Thanks for taking the time to read my long and boring story!
Thanks TLJH, for your support of the OSA!