No Strings Attached

Posted By Kathleen David on November 26, 2018

According to Facebook, eight years ago Caroline was not in school because she was sick. I have a photo of her with her cat snuggled up next to her. This morning Caroline was very sniffy and running a fever so she is home from school and her cat is sitting on the couch watching over her.

The weather is also a repeat of the weather a number of years ago. The dark grey clouds with a hint of precipitation to come but the form will be determined by the temperature.

I find that I tend to write in my personal diary about the same things around this time of year. Repeating patterns of behavior and promises to myself broken over and over shortly after writing them down. At least I can reference when I tend to go off the rails during different points of the year.

My computer is slowly slowing down to a crawl when I try to do something on it. Yes, it is an older MacBook Pro but it still works all be it slowly. Downloading takes a lot of time. Mail can take most of the day to load completely. Now part of it is our Internet connection with a very slow router but I can take it to places with modern internet and it still takes its sweet time getting things onto the computer. I want to replace it before I can no longer get a computer that I can plug things into. I am, at this point, willing to lose the CD rom drive but I don’t want to lose my ability to attach things to the computer.

Figuring out the day since the sick child takes priority over all. She is sleeping now and I am hoping that helps her. These are the times that I wish I had magic powers to make her feel better. Instead I make her tea and cover her with soft blankets.

I am grateful for Figaro the cat who still keeps an eye on her human especially when she is not feeling well.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on November 24, 2018

I keep expecting to wake up and it is Monday but we are at Saturday.

Caroline is having a very relaxing holiday having gotten her homework done on Wednesday. Her report card arrived and she got one high B in Honors Chemistry and the rest were A’s with most of them high As. I am so proud of my smart kid.

Yesterday I did get things cleaned but I still have a few things that I want to do so I am declaring this cleaning day two. I have several things I want to get in order before I can give myself the time to be creative. I almost got the laundry done but there was one load left at the end of the day, which I am doing today.

Yesterday was also the 55th anniversary of the airing of the first episode of Doctor Who. I am enjoying this season a lot and look forward to what we have to see. Dr. Who has been a touchstone for me for many years now. I have many adventures in my life that can be attached to my love of the program.

I feel another list on the horizon with a timeline that will be adjusted for real life.

I have agreed to be a guest at a one day convention on December 1st, 2018 called Squee Con being run by my friend Hansi. It is a celebration of the female in fandom. Hansi is a documentary film maker who has been doing a series on women in fandom that I participated in.

Today Caroline and I are going to go to the gym before it starts to rain because we like walking to the gym and talking. It gives us some mommy/daughter time.

I think tonight is going to be leftovers to clean out the fridge.

I am grateful for Doctor Who fandom for so many reason.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on November 22, 2018

Hard to believe that we are heading for the end of the year.

Fun fact this is the earliest that we can have Thanksgiving in the calendar year because the first day of the month was Thursday. Next year it will be the latest that we can have Thanksgiving in a calendar year. This does not change the number of shopping days between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

We are not going anywhere this year. We are staying at home. We have the larder stocked so we don’t need to go anywhere until Monday. We are figuring that Saturday is going to be the earliest that we will venture out. Gives us some time to get everything off the DVR along with some household projects that need to be done. Might even get a creative project or two in there.

I have much to give thanks for this year.

First off my health, which is not perfect, but I know two things I didn’t know this time last year. I have control of how this goes and it’s not cancer. The not cancer is the biggest relief I have ever felt. I didn’t know how dark that cloud was until it went away. My health is back in my hands and it feels great.

My puppet adventures have been very interesting this past year. I think it was record year for getting puppets to people that I wanted to get them to. I have a few on the calendar for next year and I have a few I just want to build because I want them. And there were a couple of sales this year. I think I want to sell more of them next year.

Our convention adventures were a lot of fun. We made new friends and got to see a lot of old friends. I still enjoy the look on people’s faces as they try to figure out who the heck we are and why is (fill in the blank) so happy to see us. Then there were those that got to be there for the puppet hand offs, which became a very special thing indeed. I would like to thank all the people who ran conventions or worked conventions we went to this year. From the owners to the volunteers to the convention center/hotel personnel, I thank you for all the hard work that you do that allow us to have so much fun at your conventions.

I would like to thank all the people who taught us things this past year. I learned a lot from cosplayers this year. Some tricks I will be using on puppets and costumes for Caroline. For Caroline’s teachers who recognize that Caroline needs to the challenged and she rises to the challenges given her. To my fellow puppeteers who have given me their solutions to various problems I have had, I thank you.

Thanks to everyone who entertained us this year. To everyone who makes the movies, television, theater, games, and apps that we enjoy, thanks. We are entertained.

I am thankful for all my friends. I have a very diverse group of friends but what I find interesting is that cross over between my various groups of friends. I have found out about mutual friends that I have with people that I had no idea that they knew each other.

I am thankful for my family both the blood relatives and my family by choice. It is nice having people in my corner no matter what and know that I am loved unconditionally. I am thankful that I have a good relationship with my parents too.

I am thankful for some downtime. This year has been a bit of a whirlwind with all the various things that have happened. Months have been packed with travel and the like. I now have some time to breath before traveling again for the Christmas holidays at my parents’ house.

Finally I am thankful for my readers. When I started this web log, it was for my immediate family to keep up on Caroline who was growing up so fast. Since then I found out that many people read this for various reasons. I know that some have even found help within my rambles. This motivates me to write and post this stuff.

I am grateful for all the things I have to be thankful for this year.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on November 13, 2018

I first encountered the works of Stan Lee in my local library when I was a child. I found a copy of Origin of Marvel Comics and Son of the Origin of Marvel comics. I read my way through them and came out with my life long love affair with Doctor Strange.

Later I started reading Marvel comics with the X-Men written by Chris Claremont but managed to read my way through friends collections and some reprints all the original issues of the X-men. Doctor Strange took me a little longer but I also managed to get my way through that and the Defenders.

My first encounter with Stan the Man was at an Atlanta Fantasy Faire where I participated in X-men vs. the Hellfire Club sketch in the Masquerade. I was faceless goon #2. My faceplate was made out of friendly plastic. I now know about half a dozen ways I would do that mask again if I wanted to recreate that costume. I had Stan and Chris sign the mask and they told us how much they enjoyed our sketch.

Years later Peter and I got together and he was off bowling in his league when the office phone rang.

I picked it up and said, “Second Age.”

A voice that I instantly recognized said, “Hello Peter?”

“No, this is Kathleen,” I replied.

“Ah, this is Stan Lee. Do you have any idea when he might be back?”

“Well it’s his bowling night so…”

‘Bowling?!?! Peter bowls? Really?”

We ended up talking for about half an hour about bowling, Peter, and the question he had for Peter which I had the answer to and he told me he appreciated my help.

I hung up the phone and hyperventilated just a bit.

I was Peter’s fiancée by the time we met in person and Peter introduced me to him.

Over the years we would run into each other at this or that convention or event.

We kept running into each other in elevators. It got to the point that it was almost a running gag between Stan and me.

I remember when Peter presented the Julie Award to Stan. He hopped up from the table and proceeded to jump up onto the stage while the rest of us rushed to make sure he didn’t fall backwards. He gave an amazing speech.

Stan and I talked about Peter. I caught him up on what happened after the stroke and how Peter was doing at the time. Stan expressed some concern that Peter’s writing skills might not be a sharp as they had been. I told him that was the least Of Peter’s problems. His ability to write and create was intact. He was so happy to hear that because Stan believed in Peter’s ability to write.

So much so that Peter was tapped to script the graphic novel “Amazing, Fantastic, Incredible: A Marvelous Memoir”. Stan trusted Peter on that project all the way.

I remember being at NYCC where they had advanced copies of the book for sale. There was a signing by Stan, Peter, and Colleen where they signed a lot of copies of the book. I think it was 250. They gave the book to those who pre-purchased at NYCC. Before hand Peter and Stan were clowning around as they always did when they got together. The fans were eating it up. It was a good morning.

Stan was a good man. He adored fans and was one himself in some ways.

He was great with children. I liked watching him talk to a child about super-heroes. There was a magic there.

Everyone, I think, that met Stan has a story about meeting Stan.

I was luckier than most that he was a friend of the family and a Peter David fan.

He will be missed but his legacy will live on through the Marvel Universe and in the hearts of his million of fans.

My deepest sympathies to his friends and family.

There is a Stan Lee sized hole in the world and it hurts.

I am grateful that I got to know Stan.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on November 7, 2018

Hard to believe that we are down to a little more than a month and a half until 2019.

It will be nice to stop getting automated calls to go vote or about a candidate. Also the volume of mail that I am recycling will reduce. Not great for the US postal service since they get money for this.

I have a couple of projects that need to be done in the next two weeks. I need to measure Caroline today for one of them.

I am going to remove the Halloween decorations today leaving us with the fall lights before I switch it over to our holiday display.

Also need to get the holiday card together.

I would also like to get one or two other things done before the end of the year. I need to find my sculpting tool box which has vanished off the face of the earth.

It is fun to watch the cats settle in for their first nap of the day. Currently Mewlan is watching the starlings on our lawn. Fig is in her usual spot in the sun. Inky is stretched out by me with a paw on my leg. Yesterday all three cats were hovering around Caroline getting absent minded pats and comforting her in their strange way.

I am glad that Caroline had yesterday off. She had homework to do but it gave her a day to sort out her feelings and deal with what happened with her friend. She is on an even keel this morning and I think she will be OK at school.

I think I am going to start in the back of the house and work my way forward after getting things picked up in the yard.

I do need to go get more cat litter and cat food. Our grocery store stop carrying our favorite kind of little called Sweetscoop, which is made with wheat and bio-degradable. The cats like it so it is a win/win.

Tonight is bowling. It is nice bowling with another couple around our age.

I also need to finish putting away the leftover comics from Halloween and restore the living room to pre-Halloween. I need to put up my toys that I used in my Halloween card.

I had a thought and a cat crashing something to the floor just knocked it right out.

I am getting very easily distracted which is annoying to me. My stage manager brain has not kicked in the way it should.

Ah remembered what I was thinking about.

I love standard time. It makes sense to me and my body. I swear I have gotten more done since the time switch than I have in a while.

Best costume I saw this Halloween had to be the Grammar police with the phrase “To Serve and Correct” on the back of the shirt. I am thinking of a costume for a convention with a red pen to correct bad grammar and a copy of the Elements of Style for the rulebook. It’s just an idea that I am going to cogitate on.

Between that and the fanfic puppet show, I have some ideas to work through.

Onto the next thing I want to finish writing.

I am grateful for Caroline having some time to breath before having to deal with school again.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags: