What a way to stick my toe back in the water. Over my head more like. LOL!
Enjoy:
Dear All,
I wanted to post a message to say a huge thank you for your generosity of donations to the Christchurch fundraiser on 22nd May, I gather there was a considerable contribution from members of our little community, which is gratefully received to help a rather larger and damaged community ‘rise up’ get back on its feet. I am so grateful and proud to see such support from so far away, you really are hugely reliable when it comes to those in need. Thank you. I hope our little teaser want too much of a tease, it is so difficult to give anything away, of the movie we are making but we had to do something; I have resisted signing anything ‘Hobbity’, until the film is finished (just a little bit superstitious) but I was very proud to add my name to the book for Christchurch.
I had a belated request from a certain Wizard about some cello playing, now as a music lover, and particularly that instrument, I can see how that might be a real possibility and perhaps a joy to hear…if Yo Yo Ma were asked. However, raising money for charity by simulating the sound of a strangled cat whose claws are clinging onto a chalkboard for dear life, whilst someone in another room tries to tune a radio in, would result in a charity deficit, with demands for refunds and compensation to boot. So I may have to decline for now, until I have had time to practice a bit more.
With regards for requests for social media, blogs tweets etc. I have always worried that I will reveal something about the project I am working on that I am not allowed to, added to the fact that I am just about up to e mailing and little more, I may have to abstain for now.
So were are about to depart for our short hiatus and I will be sorry to say farewell to Wellington and NZ, one of the most exciting places I have been lucky enough to live and work, not just a magnificent landscape but a warm, friendly, generous and really cool community, which has welcomed us with open arms. Seriously this place has to go to the top of the Bucket List.
Much Love
RA
I don’t know if Richard Armitage reads all of the stuff on these blogs, and really, I’m not writing this blog for him, but if he ever does, I hope he knows how much fun he’s afforded us and no need for a tweet or blog or Facebook or any of that from him. Frankly, the fundraiser was a blast. It was especially a hoot on Twitter (pardon the pun), and I wish I could have participated more. Coincidentally, I was drafting a post about my own receipt, which I hope to receive soon, and my angel did receive hers. I’ll post all of it when I get mine.
Contrary to the belief of some, I was not taken in a rapture, but I have a disclaimer: I am currently on drugs, don’t really feel like editing this piece, so please don’t hold against me anything I say below. And you can sue me for the title, but that about sums up where this blog is at the moment.
A few weeks ago my clever hat was consigned to the dustbin without my consent, or to be clear, real life intruded on my little idyll here. In the meantime, I’ve been trying to get back in the mood of blogging. I figured the best way to do that was to review my previous posts to pick up the thread of what I was doing. My first observation is that I have some typos which years ago would have made me want to crawl under a rock, and even a few months ago would have made me cringe. Now? I got a good laugh out of them. Well, I did cringe just a little at first. Second, I really have had fun with this thing, whatever it is. Third, I’ve got a lot more to say, but no, I won’t lay all of that on you here. Fourth, I need to do some serious editing on some of these old pieces. Am I allowed? Oh, yeah, I’m allowed. Fifth, I’m lousy at being cryptic. I just read two of my diary entries that get a lot more reading than some, and I grew weary at how they go on and on and on and on and don’t essentially convey what I wanted. I edited out the parts that really held them together, and in the doing of that, they lost something that dare I say makes them compelling.
Oh, well, that was the point of this exercise of blogging — to learn how the heck to say some of this stuff — so I’m not going to get too irritated about it. Maybe just a little irritated. I do make the disclaimer in one of the pieces that I had not taken the hatchet as much to it as I did some others, but therein was the problem — it either needs more taken out or to be completely left alone. I think I may break out something to deal with it. A machete? Oh, and I finally let SO read it, and he said, “I liked the stream of consciousness.” LOL! I appreciate his encouragement, but then he had to smile a little as he said it. Whatever. If that’s how my brain works, no wonder I’m tired. Fighting through all of the winding around and pontificating and cryptic cuteness was work, and if there is anything I don’t want to happen here for the reader it’s work. Come to think of it, I may put the ‘public service’ tag on that post once I’ve cleaned it up.
Haven’t been online much this week and had to make up for it by inhaling as much of my Reader as I could. What does that have to do with maintenance? Well, it’s part and parcel of what goes into this blog, a type of maintenance if you will. Oh, you thought some of this just sprang from my head fully formed? I couldn’t think up all of this innervating junk. Thank God.
Some of what I found:
Summer is coming. Yes, it comes every year like clock work, and you would have to be deaf, dumb, and blind not to know that you have to get ready if you’re going to be a part of it. Um yeah, the arbiter of worthiness is whether or not you can wear a bikini successfully.
For those who are feeling less than at their best, some of the beautiful were slumming to make the rest of us feel better.
There is hope if you’re still not feeling better. Supposedly men like women who have “guy humor,” so you can leave the bikini at home. Yes, the bikini is really about the guys. No, don’t try to bullshit me with a feminist treatise. It’s about men. But if you can’t wear that bikini, your mouth might make up for it, and before I read this piece, I assumed it mostly meant girls are attractive who can appreciate crudeness, and yep, I was right. Sadly, no one will read that this was a flawed study. Aren’t most of them? Although after living with a man for quite a few years, I believe embracing some crudeness is a must.
And I guess I’m not the norm, since I’m not as attracted to brooding men possibly filled with shame (the characters of Richard Armitage aside :D) as some women. My thumbnail on this is that women are attracted to men like that because many of us have a bit of a savior complex, which could lead to some worship. Don’t we all want to be loved, adored, cherished (take your pick) and what better way to know than to be worshipped? Meantime, I couldn’t get this out of my head:
No, not those dweebs, but they do make a point about the crudeness that’s just part of that Y chromosome. And this is the reason some women will almost kill themselves to get a bikini body? When really they just need to crack some crude jokes and maybe perform some crude acts.
Perhaps the only reason I didn’t fall into the normal pattern of being drawn to shame filled men is I knew I really wasn’t worthy to be worshipped as a savior. Therefore, a confident, at peace, smiling man, was my choice. I’m happy to report that he’s still smiling although he’s had his obstacles, and had his moments of introspection, anger and yes, some villainy (he is a human being), but still loyal. May my daughters be drawn to such a man.
I do sometimes worry about the male society my girls are going into. People are not loyal. That is the great dichotomy of this world. Many want loyalty but don’t want to give it. That’s why commitments don’t happen for most. In some cases the need to shuck it off is understandable. Maybe their driver will lose them over there. Unfortunately, there is a line to take their place. So glad I’ve never watched those shows, and I hated that I even spent any of my time watching that clip. Hopefully, the next paragraph will redeem the erroneous investment.
Back to the point. Commitment is the key, and of course I understand a piece of paper is not necessarily indicative of commitment, but this is how I’ve put it to my girls: do you want to make a commitment to someone who is not clear about their commitment and is not willing to declare it to others? I never have understood how a nebulous arrangement was edifying. No, don’t fill me in, the drugs would keep me from really receiving it right now. It just seems that it’s really about f*cking (of course enjoyable f*cking), but when did that ever get a firm commitment? Really? I don’t think so. It’s just f*cking unless someone’s heart is engaged, and out of the abundance of the heart someone will speak. And yes, God yes, take an accounting of their character before the witnesses are present. Speaking a few words at a hyped up ceremony designed to put the bride and her momma in a euphoria are not enough. Never have been. I laugh when I think my mother got married in a brown suit with spectator pumps while standing in front of the fireplace of her future sister-in-law’s living room in a service that was planned by my Dad and her mother was not there, or if I think of SO’s mother who got married in a blue tea length dress (her best dress at the time) at The Hitching Post wedding chapel, which was the first one on The Strip and no mother there. And no f*cking was necessary from them before hand. Just a man of character who loved them. My father passed away after 40+ years of marriage and was still committed to my mother on his way out and she to him. That was after all the hard times they weathered. Piece of paper my ass. The commitment was clear from the start, and I don’t believe my mother has ever owned a bikini nor has SO’s mother.
If I’ve thoroughly depressed you, well, you may not have to live with it long. If someone really does succeed in hacking Lockheed Martin well enough, they might be dropping those bombs soon.
In the meantime relax and maybe watch some “So You Think You Can Dance.” It’s going to be on a little longer. Where are those drugs?
Oh, and I was going to put in a line about missing Nat, and then she showed up! Good to see you posting again, Natalie. You are a ray of sunshine.
Last, did you catch Amy Poehler’s speech to Harvard’s graduating class? Well, it’s viral now, so I’m sure you can find it easily. I’m too lazy to post a link. She didn’t say anything that really hasn’t been said a thousand times at graduation speeches, i.e., LIVE! but she really did understand the humor in them choosing her. I’m not sure the class got that, and I find myself not really caring.
Found the drugs. See ya later.
edit: for those who asked, yes, I’ve worn a bikini many times, so this is not my angst about inability to do that. I just think it’s crap that women still see their worth as almost totally equated with their bodies and their ability to give some. Hate that.
A hearty thanks to everyone who participated in the Informal Fan Challenge, which ended this morning. At this moment I don’t know how much was raised. Servetus will fill us in when she gets a break from graduation “festivities.”
And thank you to everyone who donated to RiseUp Christchurch. Calexora made an early challenge that was a blast to contemplate. If Richard had taken her up on playing the cello, my gut was telling me he would have made it funny, so I’m not surprised that he did indeed do something funny. Dare I say that he really did remind me of Dorf? I don’t feel badly about my post now. Oh, you thought I really did feel badly about that post? You haven’t been reading this blog very long have you? :D
This was wonderful fun, and I hope much money was raised for Christchurch through whatever avenues you chose to give, and may it help Christchurch be forever strong!
New Zealand is in need after the devastating earthquake to Christchurch in February. Servetus has issued a wonderful challenge on her blog to help with the effort occurring this weekend. I will also match whatever she raises up to $200. See her blog piece (below) for details on how to participate. No donation is required from you, but if you’re inclined, she has information in that regard as well.
edit: I’ve just had someone request to match this anonymously. Anyone else want to join us, jump in. The water is great. :D
[Still grading. Second third of grading done and grades submitted. Last third of the work was due at 5 today, so there's a big stack of papers here still.] In honor of the Rise Up Christchurch – Te Kotahitanga Global Telethon to take place Sunday, May 22, Servetus will donate $1 (USD) for each comment on this post by a unique commentator / IP address up to the first 100 comments. After that 0.25 USD (twenty-five cents) per comment up to a maximum … Read More
This is a tangent post, which means little or no Richard Armitage, so you can skip it if you’re only here for Richard. :D But this is also a reply to the readers who have sent me notes wondering why I have cut back on posting regularly about RA. I really appreciate your interest. It makes me want to get back to posting regularly much sooner, but please know that I’ll be back posting about our favorite guy in the next week.
In the meantime, I just thought I would share a little about what takes me away from this blog at times. I have two other favorite guys — SO and this one (aka son of SO):
The boy in the front is how I think of him. That’s his usual position on the track. Of course I’m not proud. ;-)
Seriously, this kid has run his backside off, and he doesn’t have much backside to begin with. He has earned first position, but more than that, he is just a great person. Yes, I’m biased! I admit freely that I’m proud he’s my son. It’s hard not to be proud when I consider his stellar character which has influenced his peers for the good. He in no way puts himself in first position when he’s off a racecourse. Kindness just pours out of him — the sort to quickly come to the aid of old women, and his friends have followed suit. This is the part of him of which I’m most proud, and his friends are not the only ones affected for the good. He’s made SO and I and several other adults I know want to be better people.
I’ve now spent over 10 years going to track and cross country meets and seven of those years were to watch my son. I should have known this was my fate when I took up with SO, who was a serious runner and now a phenomenal coach. But the regular meets are about to come to an end next weekend, and I have to confess part of me is relieved. The other part of me doesn’t want to think about it. By mid-August, my son will be gone from home, and SO and I are grieving this. It’s really hard for us to even talk about it without breaking down, but I guess today I can’t help but talk about it hence this post.
Thanks for letting me indulge my maudlin self, and I’ll be back next week to talk about Richard.
I don’t think I’ve ever felt something was a teaser so much as this:
Perhaps I’m changing my tune with respect to spoilers. I find myself wanting to know the ending to Strike Back II. When I watched the promos for the first series of Strike Back, I had a sense of hope and confidence that Porter was going to kick ass and get out of something that might even stump MacGyver, and it was so easy to think that since the series wouldn’t exist without him. So no need for a spoiler. But now? I look at this:
and I’m fully aware that this show is not where Richard Armitage’s future lies. But more than that, I’ve witnessed how his face conveys the truth of a character, and that looks like the face of a dead man. I could be wrong, and I hope that I am, but my gut is screaming that my plea was for naught.
All of that may sound pessimistic, and I guess it is, but perhaps this is just how it’s going to be for now with RA’s portrayals. If you know the story of Thorin Oakenshield, you know why I say that. And I would have to be deaf, dumb and blind not to realize that he keeps playing characters who go nowhere — kind of like music that doesn’t resolve. More on this later as my pseudo psychoanalyst is almost throttling me to take over, but I’m too tired tonight to run with it. Yeah, I’m sparing you.
Video courtesy of RichardArmitageNet.Com, and my screencap. There are some caps on the site, but I had to make my own. :D If you’ve never made screencaps, you don’t know the pleasure of really mining those microexpressions of RA’s. If you ever want to know how to make caps, let me know. It’s pretty easy. Anyone with a computer can do it, and there is no cost other than time. LOL!
Oh, oh, bccmee also put the SB2 promo up on YouTube, and if you haven’t had a chance to see her month long slide show, Graphic a Day in May, go look. She’s done some really cool stuff with photos many of us have seen countless time, and I love that her sense of fun is so apparent. I need to go over there and comment soon.
I’ve been campaigning Netflix to give Richard Armitage a profile picture, and I must celebrate their response appropriately.
So Netflix responded today
And hopefully we’re now on our way
To seeing Richard grace
His profile page with HIS face
And not the gray blob of dismay.
Thank you, Netflix, for acknowledging my request. Actually, I was having so much fun that I hoped you would wait a little longer. LOL! I do understand about potential problems with photo rights. The photo below is the one on his IMDb profile page, so perhaps it might work, or do I need to lobby his agents for a picture?
Psst! This is the reason I’m anonymous. I would never do this under my real name. Are you kidding me?! No, it’s better this way. Plus, I’m blaming it on Nat. :D
Off to write an email to United Agents. Muhahahaha.
See Diary Part 24 here, or to access all entries, hit “The Diary” tab above.
Entry — a day or so later, Fall 2008:
I’ve almost fully immersed myself in the Armitage Army forum, and I guess I didn’t realize until today that Richard Armitage communicated so intimately with his fans. Don’t know how I missed that, but I am loving his messages. This guy, if he’s for real, is a sweetheart. Then again, part of me wonders if he’s real. I wish I could just enjoy this without my bs detector getting in the way, but the cynic will not let me alone.
And my appetite has now been whet to read/listen to as many of his interviews as I can get my hands on. If I’m being manipulated by a publicist, I’m not sure I care. Yeah, I can ignore my bs detector ’cause this feels too good, and it helps that my gut is screaming Richard Armitage is genuine. Maybe I just really want to believe that. I honestly don’t know what to think, but maybe the cynic in me is being challenged, and I love that. I always love it when I’m met with someone who seems real, and ironically, Richard Armitage spends most of his time in public playing someone else. Yet there is something about him, the person, that makes me think he’s genuine. He’s got a kind of purity, and how I can think that after watching ‘Between the Sheets’ is beyond me. But his characters certainly have a thread of innocence, and he does too. I don’t think it’s immaturity. I’m not sure what it is, but he does effect a very intelligent but naive demeanor. If he’s having everyone on, man, he’s one of the greatest actors of all time.
I don’t know that I’ve ever run across a person who was both intelligent and naive so overtly except SO, and it was such a powerful combination in him that it fairly had a lot of the women on our college campus falling all over themselves for him. I remember cleaning out his car one time before we were really together, and he told me to get rid of all the junk, “Just toss all of it if you don’t mind.” Well, I did toss it, but I was so curious about a few of the envelopes with ornate script on them, that I opened some. I had never read anyone’s mail before that, and I felt so awful that I’ve never done it again. But I defend myself with the fact I was “a kid.” No, there really is no defense. I did it, and I wish I hadn’t. I read those notes from a few girls who were madly in love with SO, and not a one had he ever dated or really had much to do with them. But I resolved then never to be one of those gushy women even though we were already serious about each other, and I was already so far from gushy that I’m sure he would have laughed at that vow.
The net effect is that I was too aloof in our first days together because I had eavesdropped on something I never should have done and my self-consciousness kicked in. Wish I could take it all back. Wish I had never let my curiosity get the best of me, and mostly I wish I had not been focused on myself. It did some damage to my relationship with him, and for a long time he didn’t have a clue what was going on. Thankfully, I finally told him what I’d done, and as only he can do, he laughed and made a joke of it, and told me, “Don’t you know by now that I never cared for anyone but you?” He is so earnest that yes, I know it. I know he’s for real, and yet my early training with seeing how awful people can be still has me applying that jaundiced filter too much. I really do have to take my thoughts captive a lot when wondering where some people are coming from. I hate that I’m so distrustful, but the truth is that I am, and I wonder if the idea that to the pure all things are pure will ever describe me.
Later:
It seems Richard Armitage has already ceased his messages. I guess there was a problem. Damn! I don’t know what happened, but people are such a pain in the ass. No, women are such a pain in the ass. Yeah, men are too, but I can’t even get past all the shit women do to get to an indictment of the men. Why can’t people just enjoy something for what it is instead of nitpicking it to death. Damned selfishness! It causes so many of the world’s problems. Oh, well, that was fun while it lasted, and if I’m in denial about Richard Armitage and he’s not really a nice guy, I’d like to stay there. LOL!
Much Later:
Alright! Richard Armitage is going to be in the next season of Spooks. Yes!!
I really enjoyed that show when Matthew MacFadyen was in it, and then I hated how they wrote him out and haven’t watched it since. I guess I’ll have to break down and watch those episodes before this starts, and I don’t have much time! Maybe I should just skip it. Not sure, but I am really looking forward to Richard Armitage being in the show. He is so fantastic with character development that I can’t wait to see what happens. I just hope they keep him more than a season or a couple of shows. I know how they do these characters, and I hope he’s not a Lisa Faulkner. Oh, please don’t let him be a Lisa Faulkner. Surely, they won’t do that!
Present day:
When I read this comment by Richard Armitage, I was intrigued and wondered what it really meant:
I’m ten years behind, but I’m finally growing into myself now,’ he says.
Read the rest here. I think this is the fourth time I’ve linked to this interview, and I’ll probably link some more. Lots to chew on. :D
If there’s an audio of this interview, wouldn’t it be great to hear it! Wonder when Richard Armitage makes it really big if Allison Pearson would ever post such a thing — edited of course so that nothing uncomfortable is revealed. I’m a big fan of Allison’s and may have to actually write her a note about this. LOL! And no, I don’t agree with everything she’s ever said in an article, but I’ve agreed with a lot. I was so bummed when she left the Daily Mail and with such a downer of an exit, but then I realized she’s at the Telegraph. Yea!
And Allison, if you ever read this, I like your picture at the Telegraph, and I’m glad you’re there.
I’m not even going to promise this is my last piece on the Royal Wedding and no mention of Richard Armitage, but this is actually a geek post and not so much about the wedding. In keeping with all things tech that fascinate me, I had to bring this for your edification. The picture may not seem all that fascinating on first glance, but just click on it and see what comes, and be sure to let yourself play with it. :D
No, there is no Richard Armitage in this piece either.
I was in the middle of writing my next post about the Royal Wedding when I realized I had a new follower on Twitter: @wisebirdswords (aka Marcy Jay). So I went over to check her profile and realized she has a blog. The first piece I read is below, and after I read it, it was clear I had no need to write anything myself. This says it all:
The inescapable truths of the Royal Wedding:
Many of us are in a happy state of post-wedding euphoria here in the UK. Even the ‘republicans’ and ‘not interested’ became swept up in the tide of good will and sheer joy surrounding the happy couple.
Today the newspapers are full of interesting and amusing commentary about every aspect of the biggest event in the UK for decades and in my home town of Amersham in Buckinghamshire we are no different. Amersham is a lovely small town nestling at the foot of the Chiltern Hills, a stone’s throw from where the Vicar of Dibley was filmed and proud home of the 16th Century coaching inn where Four Weddings and a Funeral was filmed. ‘Grass roots England’ which today provided a good snapshot of the happiest of post mortems. Of course, everyone agreed that Kate was as serene, beautiful and Royal and William as adoring, dashing and ‘surprisingly nervous and normal’ as we could have possibly wished.
Here are the other matters of great importance that have occupied us:
Love the blog; hope to read more. Just got done with the piece about men’s listening abilities. Fascinating, and perhaps the men who read this blog will read it. No need to ask the women; I know they’ll read it. LOL!
Take care and thanks for following me. I’ll definitely be responding in kind.
Sincerely,
Frenz (and I would tell you my real name, but then I would have to kill you. :D)
RAFrenzy 