No Strings Attached

Posted By Kathleen David on March 27, 2021

Both the near future, an hour or so, and the far future, this time next year.

I have, for the most part, been living in the now for the past year.

Partially because I didn’t really see anything changing week to week as we were in our stay-at-home phase and toilet paper crisis.

Even with a job, I stayed in the moment being so very careful not to bring the virus home.

I am still going to be careful and observe all safety protocols.

There is a change that has made me start thinking past the pandemic.

Peter is fully vaccinated now and, as of Friday, will be safe from the virus.

That makes me happy, but the moment of change for me was when the needle went into my arm this past Thursday and I received my first dose of the Pfizer vaccine and I have an appointment on April 15^th for my second shot. That means by the end of April, I will be vaccinated.

Now we just have to get Caroline in the shooting match. We have her on the waste list at CVS and we are going to add her to a few more around the area pharmacies. I want her to be vaccinated before she goes to Prom.

Then the family will be vaccinated with little cards to prove it.

After that, with safety measures in place, parts of the world are our oyster.

I can think about travel again although I know that is in a couple of months.

I can think about what I want to do down the road because I am not worried about getting deathly ill or Peter catching something from me because I am asymptomatic. 

It is hope in a bottle.

I can contemplate what I want to do for conventions again.

I can think about going to see my parents and siblings again.

I was talking to Caroline during our daily walk the other day and realized that I have not hugged my parents in more than a year. She gave me a hug for support and hopes she never has to go this long without hugging me. She missed hugging her grandparents too.

There is a future ahead of me that is not stuck in the now anymore.

And that makes me feel good.

I am grateful for the vaccine.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on March 23, 2021

I did get one thing done last week and it was a birthday present to a friend.

I give you the Fairy God-Monster

(For the VI: This is a furry puppet with pink, purple, and blue stripes. The eyes are ping pong balls on top of the head with black iris and purple and pink pupils. The antenna on top are blue/)

(For the VI: This is the back of the puppet with orange fairy wings)

(For the VI: the same puppet with his mouth open)

It was one of those screwy ideas that came to my head that I quickly executed.

I think I will be making more of these because they are just so darn cute.

I am grateful for my imagination.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on March 22, 2021

I did the first one of these about this time last year.

It has been a rollercoaster.

This past week was not one of my best. 

Even though I got a vaccine appointment, and some other things went right, I have been having just a feeling of dread and anxiety, which puts more stress on my body. This turns into a vicious cycle that spirals me downward.

I am frustrated that I am unable to get things done and can’t seem to step back and take a breath.

This is all OK.

We have good days and bad days.

This past week was not my week so I will pick myself up and try again.

It is when I throw in the towel and give up, I know I am in trouble.

I am going back to what works for me to get myself moving forward.

This means making lists so I can see that I am making progress especially when I don’t think I am.

This means making sure I am taking proper care of myself because I can’t take care of others if I can’t take care of me.

I can do this.

I am grateful for what I have learned to get me through these kind of things.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on March 21, 2021

Today is World Puppetry Day where we celebrate all things puppet.

This is the 2021 poster done by UNIMA to promote the day.

(For the VI: This is a poster with various shades of brown. At the top is “Together we create the MOVEMENT. World Puppetry Day 21/03/21” The middle of the poster is a very stylistic marionette loosely based on the Vitruvian Man. It shows the movement in the left arm and right leg with right hand holding the head then several heads leading to the main head)

The Jim Henson organization has posted www.jimhensonsfamilyhub.com/home-1/2021/3/12/celebrate-world-puppetry-day Build Your Own Clod based on the characters from Earth to Ned on Disney+.

I am proud to be a puppeteer. It is what I say when asked what do you do?

I love building puppets and sharing how I build puppets.

Puppetry has led to some lifelong friendships for me.

I met Neil at DragonCon when I showed him a Sandman puppet I made. He loved it so much, I made him one. It was the beginning of a treasured friendship. That is also the first time I met Esther Friesner as well who has become a great friend.

(For the VI:On the left is Neil Gaiman with black hair, sunglasses, and a leather jacket. In the middle is a Neil Gaiman puppet with black hair, sunglasses, and a leather jacket. On the right is me wearing a blue sweatshirt and holding the rods of the puppet)

I gave Clive Barker a Pelequin puppet from the film Nightbreed. Little known fact, he is also a puppeteer. This is one of my first puppets that I had to learn a lot of new skills for.

(for the VI: This is a pink puppet with dreadlocks and glittery symbols painted all over his body wearing a white shirt. The sharp teeth in his mouth are foam and compress when you close the mouth.)

Since then, I have given a number of people puppets as a Thank You for all the entertainment they have given me. I also have my set of ‘all fans are not áššhølëš’ apology puppets to actors who got lambasted by a vocal set of fans.

Puppetry has given me opportunities I would not have had otherwise.

Puppetry introduced me to my husband. Peter bought one of my puppets at a convention and it came with a half hour lesson. I taught Shana and him the basics so they could operate the puppet he bought which was Ralph the Klingon. Without that puppet, I would not be here typing this, nor would my daughter be sleeping upstairs.

Thanks to the puppetry track at DragonCon, I have made many more puppet friends and I appreciate each and every one. Each DragonCon I return with renewed creative energy and new ideas of what is possible.

It is both an exclusive and inviting club to belong to.

I am grateful for all my puppet experiences.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on March 19, 2021

Peter is going into NYC to the Javits to get his second shot of the Pfizer vaccine. 

I have an appointment on the 25^th for my first shot of the Pfizer vaccine.

Caroline is going on the waste list at a couple of pharmacies in the area.

I feel like I can almost breath again.

Once we can get all three of us vaccinated, I think we will all feel better.

My parents are fully vaccinated which I am very grateful for since they are in good health but also in their 80s.

Today is errand day along with some other things that MUST BE DONE.

This weekend Caroline has a number of social events she is going to attended under the CDC guidelines.

I have a couple of projects I want to get done.

The big one right now is sorting puppet patterns since I have found three bags of unsorted patterns I have accumulated over the years. It is time for me to figure out what I have and, I hope, find some missing pieces.

I am grateful for the various vaccines that will protect my family and friends.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags: