Who I am:
My name irl is Helen-Louise Windsor. Note the hyphen - calling me "Helen" is a good way to seriously offend me. h-l or the whole thing does irl, or simply shout "astra" - I've been called astra since I was about 9, so it's nothing new. Also, if you try phoning me at home and forget my real name, it doesn't matter as everyone I live with knows perfectly well who astra is.

Where I am and what I do:
I am 23 years old and live near London, UK, with my boyfriend and my mum. Sometimes, I also live with my dad - it's a bit complicated. I've been at Imperial College since 1994 - first doing a degree in chemistry, then a PhD in atmospheric physics.

What I look like:
fairly short, long dark hair, brown eyes, a bit overweight 'tho not actually fat, skin that would be dark if I considered myself white and light if I considered myself brown (I'm mixed-race). Owner of dodgy leg.

Of course, you could just look at the picture.

Generally seen wearing:
predominantly black, otherwise bright dark colours. You think bright dark is a contradiction in terms? I mean things like dark red and bottle green - colours which are bold, rather than drab. I hate drab colours, brown and pastels, and I don't think too much of bright light colours either unless I'm wearing sunglasses :)

What I like doing in my _copious_ *cough* free time:
Things I like doing on my own include reading (all sorts, mainly fantasy), music (gothic, rock, metal, industrial etc...) and writing (fiction and non-fiction). Some of my favourite books are "Brief Lives" by Neil Gaiman (and indeed all of the Sandman series), most of the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett, "Lost Souls" by Poppy Z. Brite and "Dreamsnake" by Vonda McIntyre. I tend to read fantasy-type books, but I like believable plots and characters you can relate to. Some of my favourite bands are: the Wildhearts, Mega City Four, 3 Colours Red, the Merry Thoughts, the Sisters of Mercy, Star Industry, Paradise Lost and Nine Inch Nails. I also like old Aerosmith, 80s bands such as a-ha and a lot of gothic bands that no one's ever heard of :)

Things I like doing with other people include vaguely social things like belonging to clubs. I belong to icsf, the Imperial College Union Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror society, and have organised our annual convention two years running. I also do stuff with IQ (the lgb soc), the union and the RCSA - our alumni organisation. I go to the London Bisexual Group most Fridays. Sometimes, I go to the gym and do healthy exercise too. This is however negated by my fondness for food. I'm vegetarian but otherwise not -too- fussy about food, and I love most Oriental food. And Ben & Jerry's ice cream.

I like exploring London, and travelling by train, tube and DLR. No, I'm not a trainspotter.

My proper web site is here.