Various ramblings by the small hobbit

Talk about an unexpected joyous moment you experienced last year.

Going to The Daughter's graduation from Birmingham City University at Birmingham Symphony Hall.

Which might sound like a normal experience, but:
Instead of taking A-levels (the academic post-16 route in England), she went to college and gained a BTEC National Diploma in Outdoor Activities (with 3 distinctions)
She then trained as a paediatric nurse, getting a 2:2 degree from Coventry University
Then, eleven years later, having changed career and taking a block release degree, so working as an Ambulance Technician/Student Paramedic at the same time, she gained a First Class degree in Paramedic Science.

Hence the joy!

Today's Challenge is to talk about what has improved in your life thanks to fandom.

That has to be the number of friends I've made.  Some have moved on, but I remain friends with them.  Some I see in real life, some I only ever contact via the internet.  

Because of those friends I've read some different books, and learnt about life in different parts of the world - not just the bits which are featured in the news, but the more mundane everyday lives which most people live.  I've received more cards than I would have received, for Christmas, birthdays and at other times.  And I've shared good times and bad times.

Without fandom, the Ferret would never have strutted his stuff on the stage, and werewolf!Lucas would have missed out on all the parties.  

Tell Us about a Personal Win. Share whatever wins you’re comfortable with telling us all about. Found a new fandom that makes you light up? One of your creations has earned more kudos than you dreamed of? Wins from life, new job, new school, new adventure? You have a couple of wins you want to celebrate, we want to hear about them. Share a win or two so we can cheer for you.

First up, I successfully applied for £50K worth of grant funding for Gloucestershire Bundles, which makes a significant difference to the charity.

Secondly, I cross stitched 24 cards for people this Christmas - some of which you can see here.

Rec us your newest thing

This year I've decided to use some of the questions stonepicnicking_okapi has created on a semi-regular basis and which I'm tentatively calling Three Questions and here are my first three answers:

2 Jan: World Introvert Day: How introverted are you? Does it change based on your surroundings?
I'm definitely an introvert, although many who know me in real life are surprised when I tell them. Yes, I talk to people, I even give talks in front of groups, but that's all the clothing I put on. Too many for too long and I retreat.

6 Jan: Sherlock Holmes’ Birthday: If you have one, what’s your favorite adaptation of Sherlock Holmes?
My favourite has to be the original, as created by ACD. I like the Granada version and sometimes use parts of BBC Sherlock, although I abandoned the main story part way through. And of course, there's my own adaptation, involving Ferret, Mouselet, Aemelia Vole, Ocelot, Sloth and Poley the Moley.

10 Jan: Houseplant Appreciation Day: What kind of houseplants do you have in your home?
We have a large umbrella plant, which lives on the sideboard and is aiming for the ceiling.

Have a photo:



1. Something your favorite character would like: Chocolate
2. Something that makes you laugh:  We flooded the church hall kitchen this afternoon, splashing through the water made me laugh
4. A fandom creator (pro or not) you'd like to meet:  Clearly stonepicnicking_okapi 
5. Something you find comforting:  My bee throw
7. A piece of clothing you love : The dark blue top which was a Christmas present from The Daughter
8. A book or song with a colour in the title:  The Red House
9. Something only someone in your fandom would understand:  My Sloth cookie cutter

Set yourself some goals for the coming year. They can be fannish or not, public or private.

I don't set my major goals in January, but April, so I'm using this as an occasion to do an eight month review of my 2023/24 goals.

My minor goals are my Goodreads Challenge of 75 books and Writing wordage of 115K-120K for the year.

Looking at the equivalent post from last year I see that I also aimed to complete my cross stitch of J H Dearle's Golden Lily and start Klimt's The Kiss.  So here they are:

   


Goal review:

1.  To complete all FutureLearn courses on my wishlist
Going really well, there are only three remaining, none of which are currently available.  I have added two since, but that's okay, as I'd like to keep doing some.  However, my OpenLearn list is now growing with eight courses now on the list, including one I've just started.  As five of these are badged courses they will take me to the end of 2024.  I don't think this is quite as bad as it seems because I'm looking at the back catalogue and new courses aren't added that often.  Also, I've discovered an interest in science so I've branched out from history/languages/literature and therefore there is more to choose from.

2.  To reduce the number of tours on my Leger wishlist, either by having been on them or by having booked them
Two are booked for May and June, and the only other one doesn't appear to be running at the moment.

3.  To do something slightly different each month
November I took an online course over Zoom and December has to be the various church activities

Today's snowflake_challenge says: Talk about your favorite trope, cliché, kink, motif, or theme.

I have, as many of my friends know, a competency kink.  I don't expect my characters to be perfect at everything, but I do like them to be good at their job.  (I also like people in public office to be good at their job, but that's another matter entirely!)  They don't need to be wonderful at all aspects, being competent means recognising when another member of the team can do something better than you and letting them get on with it.  However, my kink also requires not just my character, but some of those around to be able to do their job, rather than the drama coming because my character is the only competent person; the drama should come from external causes.

I used to volunteer as a Brownie Guide leader (retired last summer) and within our pack (unit) we all had our own strengths and weaknesses.  But we were competent and worked together and the girls had a good time.

It was with competency in mind that I created a new character when I was writing Lewis fics.  DI Garrett first appeared in The Last Man Standing Just Got Felled By A Lion and I liked him sufficiently to let him stay and progress to a DCI.

I also transported ACD's Sherlock Holmes stories Stanley Hopkins into BBC's Sherlock, where Hopkins is a DI with the Met River Police.  He's a stickler for health and safety, not unreasonably given the nature of the River Thames, plus the fact that that police force is responsible for abseiling down buildings when required.  River Police

Today's snowflake_challenge is for a fandom scavenger hunt.

The categories are:
1. A favourite character - Crochet Sherlock Holmes
2. Something that makes you laugh - Holmes Detective Agency notebook, a present from a friend
3. A bookshelf - Upstairs!
4. A game or hobby you enjoy - Cross stitch I'm in the middle of, it's a mermaid for Mini Hobbit's birthday card
5. Something you find comforting - Pooh Bear
6. A TV show or movie you hope more people will watch - Matthew Bourne's Romeo & Juliet postcard top right
7. A piece of clothing you love - warm green hoodie with Pooh Bear
8. A thing from an old fandom - Matthew Bourne's Car Man postcard top left
9. A thing from a new fandom - Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty postcard bottom middle

I adore Sir Matthew Bourne's New Adventures dance company and their productions.  It's not traditional ballet, although it incorporates certain moves.  It's highly professional (in a positive sense), the dancers, costumes, set and lighting all combine into the production, so it's enjoyable just to watch of itself.

But above all, it's story telling.  Maybe not everyone in the audience takes away exactly the same story, but that's what good story telling is all about, speaking to each person as an individual.  And it is the dance equivalent of fan fiction - it takes a well-known story: Swan Lake/the Nutcracker/Sleeping Beauty etc, and retells it, in the same way many here write AUs - only on a considerably grander scale.

On top of which the company is keen to develop young talent, and has various schemes in place, works with both school children and older people in homes, because their view is that dance is for everyone and is first and foremost to be enjoyed.

And here is the official promotional footage of their current production of Sleeping Beauty:

Share a favorite memory about fandom

Fandom is all about friends - online friends who distance means I'm less likely to meet, and those who I have met.  So a shout out to all of you!  These are friends who I've met because of a particular fandom and yet the friendship has progressed well past the starting point and I value you all the more for that reason.

My favourite single memory will be the one I always mention, because it's unlikely to be surpassed.  Going to Meiringen in Switzerland at the beginning of May one year with seven other Sherlock fans.  We visited the Reichenbach Falls and commemorated Sherlock Holmes' death at the hands of Professor Moriarty.



It's the only time I have been to Switzerland and I really loved seeing somewhere so different - snow in May!  Mountains.  Waterfalls.