No Strings Attached

Posted By Kathleen David on April 6, 2013

I think I know what I need to do first and how I am going to do it.

And anticipate what the distraction or other thing that MUST BE DONE instead of what I want to get done.

Right now the first thing I have to find is my motivation….Ah sheer panic, there we go. Not the best place to start but if it gets me moving, then so be it.

I hope everyone has a good weekend. I am waiting for my Spring weather to show up and warm up the place. I can’t open the windows still.

I am grateful for things that help me clean quickly.

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Posted By Kathleen David on April 4, 2013

I found a cane I thought Peter would like and got it for him since it was on sale at a good price for a solid cane. It is jazzier than the one he has been using. He loves it because of the balance and the handle.

(For the VI: This is a black cane with a brass handle. The handle is in a T shape with the front of the T being shorter than the back of the T. There is a design in the brass.)

Ariel found for Caroline something I knew existed but I had never seen one. She found it at Hot Topic and it was the last one they had there. When the character showed up on My Little Pony, I couldn’t believe it. They gave it the name “Time Turner” but that didn’t last long and now he is known as Dr. Whooves. The only thing they could have done with the packaging that would have been an even bigger wink, wink would be to make the box blue.

(For the VI: This is a My Little Pony Figure in a black box. Above the pony it says “Vinyl Collectable”. To the left is the My Little Pony logo. Below the pony it says Dr. Hooves with a picture of the pony to the left of the writing. The pony in the box is brown with a brown mane and tail, a white collar and tie and an hourglass on his rump.)

Waiting for my allergy meds to really kick in. I am so tired of the drip in the back of my throat. I have been on them for a week so if it holds true to form, I should be a lot less sniffy in the next couple of days. I should buy stock in Kleenex.

Caroline is dealing with some issues that are leaving her very confused. It has to do with kids that she had been friends with but things changed for all of them and there have been some difficulties. All of the adults have told all the kids to keep away from each other. Caroline just wants to know why she lost her friends. I had to sit down with her and explain that people change and situations changed and both her situation and these kids’ situations have changed rather radically in the past three months. She is in the same Girl Scout troops as these kids and I have talked to the troop leader as have the other parents so they are up to speed on the whole thing. I am hoping that in the future this will all get sorted out but right now I have to explain to Caroline why things don’t stay the same.

Peter can finally touch his right thumb to his right pinky. He has also been typing more. Not as fast as he had been but he is typing again along with using Dragon Dictate. The shoulder is still an issue. I am going to ask his primary Doctor to have another look at it because I am starting to think there is more to this than it looked at first. I think he damaged it in one of the falls he took after he had the stroke. But he is progressing and is still improving and I am thankful for each and every one of them.

I am doing fine. The neck is pretty much as good as it is going to get. Now I have to deal with an inflamed tendon on my left ankle. It happened during bowling on Monday night and it is really not getting much better right now. I did my usual approach and came down on my right foot and felt pain shoot from the ankle to my head. I hopped off the lane and sat down. The problem was that I had to pin left. So they gave me some time to recover and I shot the pin. I tried to finish the game but it was not happening. I need to find my ankle brace and put that on for some support. I really don’t have time for my body to continue to break down piece by piece.

I really hope what happened at Rutgers and the exposing of the coach’s behavior will tell all student athletes that this sort of bullying is not how to coach. Motivation my ášš. What I saw was straight up abuse. And I have a feeling that this is the tip of the iceberg. The NCAA is going to have some serious explaining to do along with the schools as we find out that this sort of bully behavior is going on at other colleges.

Well onto the next project and the one after that. Life goes on. That and I need to find another box of tissues. If Spring is here, why is it so doggone cold? It doesn’t seem fair to have allergies without the warmth of the Spring.

I am grateful for any part of Peter’s dexterity that is returning. The sooner he can type again, the happier he will be.

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Posted By Kathleen David on April 3, 2013

I found out a couple of weeks ago that Jane Nebel Henson had taken a turn for the worse. I had heard through the grapevine that she wasn’t doing well but I didn’t pry because it was being kept quiet. I found out the details when she took the bad turn. Yesterday she passed away.

Taken at the Opening of the Center for Puppetry Arts on September 23, 1978
(For the VI: This is a very grainy Black & White Photo of a lot of people crowded around Jim and Jane Henson. Jim is in the middle of the picture and Jane is to the right)

This was the first time I saw Jane. In the middle of a crowd at the opening of the Center for Puppetry Arts. I managed to worm my way up the stairs and got this and another couple of photos. I didn’t realize until years later who was standing next to Jim at the time. It wasn’t until we talked about that day that I figured out who the lady in the picture was.

I don’t remember who introduced us to each other. I do remember I was introduced as the museum carpenter and go to person for the Center’s Museum as well as a puppeteer in my own right. We talked about the puppets in the museum, the opening of the Center, and the condition of UrAc the Ur, which was quickly deteriorating.

Over the years we would bump into each other at one or another puppet related thing. Once I mentioned the Museum, she could place me and we would talk about puppets, puppet preservation, and the problems you don’t think about when you bring a puppet in from somewhere else (think bugs esp. those that eat wood).

The last conversation I had with her was at the Huntington CinemaArts Center during the Jim Henson retrospective.

Jane was so giving of her time and talents to the puppetry community. She took the time to talk to young puppeteers and give them advise. She listening to Muppet fans talk to her about her husband and what their work meant to them. She was very knowledgeable about puppets and puppetry and could talk about many subjects. She encouraged me to continue to educate people about puppets and puppetry.

She had a quick wit and always seem to have a twinkle in her eye.

She will be missed by many.

My prayers and sympathies to her family, friends, and colleagues.

I am grateful for the time I got to spend with Jane.

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Posted By Kathleen David on April 2, 2013

I can’t tell you how many times I have heard people say to Peter, “I have this great idea for a novel. Why don’t I tell it to you and you write it and we’ll split the money.” Peter usually stops them at that point and asks them not to tell him the idea. We have legal reasons if nothing else.

Ideas are easy. The execution of the idea is the hard part.

I tend to mull ideas in my head for a long time before executing them. I contemplate materials for the project. Figure out how it is going to go together. Anticipating what might go wrong. Researching how others have done things like what I want to do and materials that I could use takes some time. Learning techniques from others that help me do what I want to do is an on going process.

But there comes a time that I have to stop thinking and start doing and I am at that point. I have done the geometry in my head. I have obtained most of the parts I am going to need. I have worked with these materials before so I don’t expect much for surprises. I think my biggest problem is going to be the smooth finish I need but I think I have that sorted out too. I have my reference material ready to go when I need it.

Time is what I am still sorting out. Right now my free time is in short supply. I have things that must be done for the good of the family and the continued recovery of Peter from his stroke. I have been dealing with a few health issues of my own probably due to stress. Constant stress on the body is not a good thing. I will say that things are starting to ease up a bit so I have hope that I will be less stressed in the future.

Today I will start up the next project. I plan to take pictures and next week I’ll show y’all what I have been up to.

I am grateful for free time.

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Posted By Kathleen David on April 1, 2013

But first Happy 130th Birthday to Lon Chaney Senior. Turner Classic Movies is showing a marathon of Mr. Chaney’s films.

Second the rules of the NWR. Above the cut is spoiler free/general knowledge review. Below the cut and in the comments there be spoilers up to and including this episode. Any future spoilers are not allowed. Speculation is allowed.

Overall it was a perfectly acceptable “introduce the companion” episode. I did see the short that went before it and I thought it did add a bit to the character dynamics.

Acting was fine over all. I am looking forward to what Jenna-Louise Coleman brings to the table this time since she has been one form of Oswin or another in two other episodes (Asylum of the Daleks and The Snowmen) and I have enjoyed both of those performances.

The writing felt a little off and some things were shoehorned into the show. There was a bit too much “ooo aren’t we clever” running through out.

Moffat said he started out to scare kids about something else that seems normal. Didn’t work with Caroline. She was on the computer this morning playing Club Penguin.

Next week “The Rings of Akhaten”

I am grateful for new companions and new situations.

(more…)

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