No Strings Attached

Posted By Kathleen David on October 22, 2014

Yes, I know it is Wednesday but this for whatever reason didn’t fire on Tuesday on one journal and I forgot about the other due to things happening around the house but I thought this was important to say

I was reading through a craft board for something and someone said that they weren’t creative just able to do a craft well. A bunch of us informed them that they were selling themselves short and they were very creative in how they take the craft and turn it into all kinds of fun things.

Everyone is creative in some way. Let that one sink in. You, dear reader, are a creative person.

There are people who tell other people that they aren’t creative or they aren’t very good at (fill in the blank). And after a while they start to believe it. I was told at a young age that I wasn’t good at art so I stopped for a while but that itch wouldn’t go away and I found ways to express my creativity.

In college I was well know for my parody plays that we did at the cast party. A couple were done more than once. I was very proud of those.

Part of being creative is practicing your creativity.

I have been making puppets for over 30 years. My first ones were OK but as I did more of them, I learned how to make them better. I learned how to pick out the important details to make the puppets look the way I wanted. I also figured out that puppets don’t care about seams and button holes. I still have a couple of my first puppets including my Sandman puppet that was my introduction to Neil Gaiman.

One of the reasons I write a web log, besides keeping family and friends up on things is to make me write.

I know I can write. I know I can write both fiction and non-fiction. I have had people tell me that they enjoy reading what I write. Now I haven’t pursued it like I should. Part of it, I think, is fear of rejection, which I need to get over. I have a voice and I want to use it to entertain others. Yes, being married to someone who finds creative writing as easy as breathing does give one pause about how good their work is but again need to get over it.

I can make things with my hands. I am very good at it. I have been told as much by a number of people.

I am saying that everyone who reads this is a creative person. Take some time to find it within and then express it without.

I am grateful that creativity was encouraged by my parents.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on October 20, 2014

Still cogitating on this one.

I liked it and I think I understand what was going on but I am still a little unsure.

The effects were nice and creepy. Bonus point for the Addams Family shout out that might not have been but I see it that way.

I am assuming that the title is a take off on Flatland, which is an interesting story about how we look at things … which this episode was sort of.

And we are back to the rules of the Doctor that never made an sense anyway. Let’s just throw that book out already.

(more…)

Category: Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on October 17, 2014

We had a lot of rain yesterday and we needed it but not the flooding in the area.

Peter made it home and safe. It is nice having him back for a short time since he is off to LA shortly.

Harlan can move his arm and there are signs that his leg is coming back too. All good news and I hope it continues this way. HE seems to be going through what Peter did but about three times faster.

I think it is going to be Royals vs. the Giants. And I think the Royals in 6. Giants pitching is good but everything seems to be coming together for the Royals.

Pats and Jets game was fun to watch just not the outcome that most of us in New York wanted. They keep getting sooooo close but just can’t get it done.

Has Basketball started? I do agree with LeBron that the games need to be shorter. The wear and tear on the players is as bad a football these days if not worse.

I am enjoying Once Upon a Time. My current question is why does Belle look so unhappy or dower these days in public? Is it because she has to carry a womping big handbag to carry the Dark One’s dagger?

I like Forever but feel it is going to be cancelled. Nice mix of several tropes without him being a Vampire sort of Forever Knight without the blood drinking.

Dear TV producers/writers/directors if you are going to use the text from a cell phone as a major plot point, can you remember that some of us don’t have eagle-like vision and need to be able to SEE what is going on? I am getting frustrated with some shows because I can’t read the text because it is too small or vanishes from the screen before I can read it. Yes, I know I can pause it and read but not the point.

Might be time to get the Halloween decorations out.

Going to see Aladdin on Sunday. We are looking forward to it. I have heard lots of good things about the musical.

Inky is settling in. She is still a big o’ scaredy cat but she loves pets. She is exploring and playing rather than cowering. She uses the little box. We are giving her time to get use to us.

Trying to figure out if my nose is stuffy because of allergies or a cold. Feels like allergies.

Knee seems to be on the mend from wrenching it tripping on the Hulk. Insert your Hulk joke here.

Rambling Kath is rambling.

It is possible to love and hate fandom at the same time. Right now I am none too happy at certain segments.

I am grateful for Caroline’s ability to self-start in the morning.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on October 16, 2014

I have just caught up on the latest on Gamergate and I am appalled on so many levels. Just to add to the mess is what happened at Utah State University and Anita Sarkeesian

When it is become OK to threaten people with bodily harm or wishing that they would off themselves?

And free speech doesn’t cut it here as an excuse. Most of these threats are anonymous individuals who are real surprised that they are in trouble when their true names are discovered. The excuses are myriad and really don’t matter because they threated someone with harm. ‘I was just kidding’ is not an answer to the cost of what they are doing.

I have dealt with this kind of carp all my geek life. Not the death threats but the ‘you’re a girl what are you doing here’ part of it along with the ‘having a girl here ruins it for us’ club.

I love to game. I started with Chainmail back in the day. I played Car Wars and Traveller. I had a group of friends that I would game with and we had a lot of fun. It was at a convention when I wanted to play Car Wars that I found myself on the outside looking in because why would a girl want to play that game. That annoyed me a lot so a couple of us started another game of Car Wars but were informed we couldn’t do that because we weren’t with the convention and it is confusing to have two games going at once.

The owner of one of the comic book shops I worked at got a lot of flack that he hired me rather than the two other guys that applied for the position. Why would a girl want to work in a comic book store? I dunno maybe because I like to read and discuss comics? And I know for a fact I knew more about comics and retail than the other two guys did. I showed up ready for an interview rather than a meet up with a buddy. Now funny thing that happened after a while, there started being more female customers in the shop especially when I was there.

I have held my own in debates about various topics. I thank my parents for instilling in me that my opinion was just as important as my male counterparts. Recently I was on a Sherlock Holmes panel that was covering the ACD stories and current media. I got into a rather heated debate with one of my fellow panelists, all of whom were male, about Elementary vs. Sherlock. We agreed to disagree and shook hands at the end of the panel. As I left the panel a woman not much younger than me came up and expressed how surprised she was that I could take on the boys and win. That I let my voice be heard and didn’t back down from my point. She was amazed that I shrugged this off as just another day at a convention. I have done the same online.

I have been dismissed or minimalized because I am female and therefor can’t be a (fill in the blank) in fandom. I have never been scared to voice my opinion on a topic and I have used my name to what I say both in real life and on the Internet. What I say here is what I would say to your face. Which makes me all kinds of bad words to certain segments of the population.

Guess what kids, girls like things that boys like and boys like things that girls like. Build a bridge and get over it.

My sympathies to all the women who are dealing with these threats and the turmoil that speaking out has brought into their lives.

I am grateful that my parents raised me to speak for myself.

Category: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags:

Posted By Kathleen David on October 15, 2014

Short version

We went to New York Comic Con and had many adventures.

Harlan Ellison had a stroke but is doing well. His intellect is intact just like Peter’s was after his stroke.

Caroline got sick with a virus, which made her feel very miserable on Monday but she was back to fighting form by Tuesday and went to school.

My Father in Law was admitted to the hospital and Peter went up to Connecticut to help out and is still there now.

I am grateful for modern medicine.

Longer version with pictures after the cut.

(more…)

Category: Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Tags: