Hello world!!!
I hope you and yours have been doing well. I'm doing great, thanks be to God! This morning, I participated in the 2013 Virginia Tech Homecoming Parade. The Homecoming Parade is a Hokie Nation tradition, and I was very honored to have been given this opportunity to participate and this platform to reach out to the people of Blacksburg. The Parade started at 9am, but my vehicle check-in time was at 8:20am. However, I woke up at 6am to start getting ready and meet with my friend that was to drive me at the Parade; three locations in a T-shape where involved in this morning schedule, so we had to be very cautious of time, traffic, and "
εni
כla" as said in Krio ("be prepared for surprises" in english).
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| Miss Sierra Leone USA 2013-2014 Ruby B. Johnson |
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| Miss Sierra Leone USA 2013-2014 Ruby B. Johnson with Hokie Bird |
Before the start of the Parade, I had the opportunity of taking a picture with the Hokie Bird. The photo with the Hokie Bird above was taken at 8:30am, it was a a cold and misty morning, hence the reason why the photo is blurry. However, the Hokie Bird is the BEST and coolest mascot in the world. That's all.
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| Miss Sierra Leone USA 2013-2014 Ruby B. Johnson |
Special thanks to Shelor Motor Mile in Christiansburg, VA for providing me with this 2013 Jeep Wrangler for the Parade. The staff are such warm and welcoming folks, as well as helpful.
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| Miss Sierra Leone USA 2013-2014 Ruby B. Johnson |
This was my first time being part of a Parade but I have seen lots on television and always thought they looked cool and fun. Being that I had to be in the Parade and not in the audience, I thought it would be smart to look up videos online of past VT Homecoming Parades as well as ones that have involved beauty queens. I'm happy I did that, and the videos gave me wonderful tips on what to do, what to wear, what types of transportation can be used, etc. Thank you,
Youtube! Being part of the Parade was such an amazing and exhilarating experience. One of the reasons I say this is that me, the other Parade participants and organizers, as well as street audience share one thing in common: our love for the Hokie Nation. Knowing this, it was great to share the excitement with each other and being part of the Hokie Nation in one way or another and just having a good time.
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| Miss Sierra Leone USA 2013-2014 Ruby B. Johnson |
I loved waving to the little girls watching the Parade standing next to their parents and/or guardians, and seeing the excitement in their faces. I'd hear the little girls and boys and/or their guardian say "look at the Princess," "wave to the Princess," or "show me your Princess wave;" some of the little girls were even imitating my "beauty queen wave." Just like the girls, the boys would also get excited to see the "Princess," and I blew kisses to all the little boys and they would start blushing afterwards. So adorable! However, smiling and waving continuously for 40 minutes is no easy task, and I've gained a new respect for titleholders/public figures that do this more often; my cheeks were so sore afterwards and my mouth felt like when I had my first root canal; I'm also convinced I've gained muscles in my arms from all that waving. In addition, I found it tough to wave equally on both sides of the street, but I did my best in equally acknowledging the crowd and being alert for photos. Even though I felt uncomfortable sometimes during the Parade, I told Dr. Fuambai Sia Ahmadu (CEO of MSLDC, Inc.) that all the pain was worth it just from seeing the smiles and joy in the eyes of the kids and other Parade viewers. I love my job as Miss Sierra Leone USA! People in the crowd were very excited to see me part of the Parade, especially since I was the only crowned national titleholder that participated; the members of this year's Homecoming Court were part of the Parade. However, I could tell that few people were unaware of where exactly in the world map Sierra Leone was located; I have a strong feeling that most of those people will do a Google search on Sierra Leone afterwards. As an ambassador of Sierra Leone and positively promoting my country, I consider my presence at the Parade as mission accomplished!
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| Miss Sierra Leone USA 2013-2014 Ruby B. Johnson with friend, Aurelia |
Special thanks to my dear friend, Aurelia. This amazing, smart, and beautiful lady volunteered to be my driver for the Parade and was willing to wake up at 6am on a Saturday for me. See, I told you she's amazing. Thanks doll, you're the best! Special thanks to my awesome friends and neighbors, Alisa and Jen, for creating this beautiful poster for me to use. You ladies are amazing!
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| Miss Sierra Leone USA 2013-2014 Ruby B. Johnson |
I absolutely loved my dress and how it accentuated my curves, and yes it is intentional that I chose blue as the main color. The theme I went for was Sierra Leone flag colors, therefore the dress (blue), accessories (green, white, blue culture bracelets I got in Koidu Town), poster has the flag colors for the text, and my eyeshadow was a blend of green and blue, but you'll only know this if you
follow me on my new
Instagram account.
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| Miss Sierra Leone USA 2013-2014 Ruby B. Johnson |
After the Parade was over and I finished taking pictures, I changed into my Maroon Effect gear and headed over to Lane Stadium to watch the Homecoming Football game against University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, the Tar Heels. To my surprise (but then again it is Blacksburg), a very cold morning turned out to be a very HOT afternoon. Under the scorching sun, myself and thousands of Hokies and fans of the Hokie Nation watched our Virginia Tech Hokies play a good game and won with a final score of 27-17. Always a great day to be a Hokie and rocking the orange and maroon. Go Hokies!!!
P.S.: If you were wondering what's a Hokie?
I AM!!!
Ruby B. Johnson,
Your Miss Sierra Leone USA.
