I gave you the basics on my main page, but for the sake of reading them all in one file, I'll go through it all for you... =)

My name? Well, in full -- Jessica Ann Maria Gustafik. Sorry, but I do happen to be Catholic, so my confirmation name goes in there too... =) Most of my friends, though, call me Jess -- which is usually at my request; I've never really liked my name. Isn't Jessica always that stuck-up girl in the story who always seems to have her nose in the air? I don't like gaining that rep before I have a chance to prove it right... =) Seriously, though...

This be my family. The older one on the right is Kurt, and the one on the left is Phil, and those are my parents in front... and me (with LONG hair, when I had it well near my waist) in back. I'm quite the family girl... I'm the oldest of the three kids, as you can see :) and my family is very tight-knit. I can talk with my parents about anything. My brothers, however... :) Seriously, I love my family very much. We've always spent a lot of time together, and I have fun when we're out doing something or just spending a day at home (or a night playing pinochle... :) ). I miss them quite a bit while I'm at college... you get to be a little homesick when you're that close.

How old am I? Welp, like I said, nineteen -- my birthday is November 7, 1977. I came into college at seventeen, which sucked in a way -- no clubs for a while. :) I'm the young'un among many of my friends here, but I've learned that with my real friends, I can be as young as I want and they won't much care. The downside to having older friends, though, is that they'll be graduating way before I am -- some, like Jason and Jay, as early as next year.

On the topic of birthdays, I'm a Scorpio and proud of it, hehehe... I don't believe in horoscopes, but it's funny how much the description of my sign's personality matches mine. Intense, emotional, passionate, strong-willed to the point of stubbornness at times, and even some of the devious streak... =) but also thoroughly loyal to the ones I love.

Loyalty. That's a big thing with me. I put my loved ones first in all; I don't really much care what people do or say about me, but when it's my friends (especially my closest ones) or my family that are the ones getting hurt, it brings out the lynx in me, claws and all, in their defense and protection. It's a reflex bred in me -- "You can insult me, you can hit me, you can do what you want to me, and I'll turn away; but hurt the people I love and you'll get the fight you want."

Physical description? The pics should do a pretty good job, but here goes. I'm 5'8", brown hair and brown eyes, and like so many, a contact lens/glasses wearer... and you think I'm going to tell you how much I weigh? I'm female! Please! =)

Any nicknames? =) Well... a few. Two, though, that I like. The first is my IRC nick. I had no idea when I came up with "Lynxcat" to go on IRC for a brief first time that it would be the one I liked so much and stuck with -- figured I'd never use it again. :) Well, now I'm an IRC regular, and it's all I've ever gone by -- and I love it. Though most people shorten it to "Lynx" or "Lynxie" to talk to me, it's who I am there... and I even use it as a part of my signature on my drawings.

The other is a nickname only one person calls me, and it's his special nickname for me... and it's special to me as well. It's from my cousin Kenny, who's like my big brother. When I was younger, he wouldn't call me Jessica -- it was always Ja-heeka. When I got older, he stopped calling me that for a while. One Christmas Eve when I was fourteen, he called me by that name again, and I realized how much I loved it. That's all he calls me now, even though I'm eighteen and he's in his mid-twenties... I know I'm growing up fast, but in my heart I'll always be your little sister, no matter what age I am. I love you, Kenny, and I miss you.

Me and my two "older siblings" during my visit to Chicago this past summer, June 1996 -- from left to right, Jo, me and Kenny...

Along with Kenny, there's another special "older sibling" in my life -- my cousin Joanne, who also happens to be Kenny's sister. She's been my big sister for many years now -- I remember when I was younger, I'd always ask for her to baby-sit when she could (and she still remembers peeling grapes for me when I was four -- she teases me about it all the time =) ). Unfortunately, she's also in Chicago with the rest of my family, but the cool thing is that her number is on my calling card, so besides my mom, she's the most frequent long-distance call I make. =) Whenever I need advice ar just a great listener, Jo's been there. I know who I want to be my matron of honor for my wedding (in however many years -- not anytime soon... ;) ). =) I love you, Jo, I miss you, and this summer was awesome! Thanks, big sister, for all you've been to me...

Personality? Well, I started to describe it... I'm a thoroughly emotion-based person, as my friends can tell you, but don't let that get you thinking that I'm not rational -- because I am, damn it! =) Seriously, most of my actions will have a motive behind them -- I'm not much for spontaneous moves... I do, however, like to do something crazy every now and again. =)

I put a lot of emphasis on genuineness. I'm the type of person who thinks, "I trust you until you do something to lose that trust." Unfortunately, that attitude has a bad side, especially when coming to new places... :P I have an intense dislike of two-faced people, and try not to be one. I don't trust evasiveness -- I've been taught to be honest about my feelings (to the point of heart-on-my-sleeve sometimes), and when people hide things from me or say one thing to me and another behind my back, they lose a lot of the respect they have in my eyes... and when done repeatedly, all of it.

Where am I from? Well, Chicago originally. That's what I consider my native city. I was born there and raised in the North. The weather really bit, I can tell you... =) I miss the people and the sports of Chi-town. The city itself can now give me claustrophobia because I've gotten so used to all the open space I live in... But for me, it'll always be Sweet Home Chicago, even though I love Florida.

I moved down here my junior year of high school. I now live in a little backwoods town near Tampa -- with all the retired people... It's so far in the boondocks, you have to drive twenty minutes to get to civilization on US 19, which can be a problem for someone who doesn't have her full license, much less a car... what's funny is that though I lived in the North for so long, I've started picking up a hint of a southern accent -- along with the word y'all, something my family teases me incessantly about.

I'm also thoroughly a tomboy. I love sports -- was raised on them. I'm not the world's best by any means, but I love to play, and as with any competition, I throw myself into it. Especially basketball... I'm not wonderful at playing it, but I love my NBA. =) And you think because I live in Florida that I'd like the Magic? NOT!!!! Remember, I'm a Chicago girl -- lived there for fifteen years. So my team is DA BULLS... no matter how much a certain friend of mine wants to convert me... (NEVER!!! =) ) I was in the Windy City for all three championships -- even went to the rally for the third one and got my fifteen seconds of fame on TV... never forget Johnny Pax burying that three! And look at what they've done now... =) DAAAAAAAAA BULLS!!!!!!

Along those lines, the clothes I wear can reflect my tomboy side. I love loose clothes, and you'll find me in a t-shirt or flannel and jeans or jean shorts most of the time. I make a concession to my sex and tuck them in when I do wear them. I've found I can still be comfortable and look like a girl at the same time. =) What's funny is that many of my shirts and flannels are men's; I don't look in the women's section any more when I want to find those! :) Lately, though, I've started wearing a lot more feminine clothes, like crop tops and short dresses... one of these days, I'll have to get back to my roots. ;)

I love to sing, and have been told I'm pretty good at it. Whether I'm riding my bike, walking on campus, doing chores or yes, even in the shower, I find it to be a powerful release. Mostly, you'll find me singing either songs from some animated movie or something spiritual. Since most of the animated movies now are musicals, I don't have any trouble finding something. :) Actually, I love singing the songs from a CD that's related to one of my favorite movies -- Rhythm of the Pridelands, from the movie The Lion King. One thing: most of those songs are in the Zulu language, so it's a bit strange to see me walking around campus singing in African. I get a lot of weird looks. ;)

Animation. My love -- and my life, sometimes. I love to draw and write... I hope some day to be involved with animation some way -- I don't have the speed to animate yet, though my pictures come out with a good quality to them, so I may have to find a different route, like cleanup animation. But you can bet you'll find me someday in Disney or Bluth.