Hello Kitty!

Armand Marseilles Doll

We kidnapped Mariann on Saturday and took her to the Enchanted Doll shop in old Fort Worth. It was a short adventure -- the ladies had never seen Asian BJDs "in the flesh," so they got a quick tutorial in how very different these dolls are. Peggy reminded us that the antique European dolls did have strung joints -- I've only seen them once at a show in Waxahacie. The smaller show here in Dallas had antique items, but no Armande Marseilles dolls ... As you can see, this lovely is awaiting restoration -- but she has the joints, wig, and set-in eyes that shared by Asian BJDs. The "American Girl" and other vinyl dolls are based on this model -- the 6-10 year-old little girl (and occasionally boy), about 18-24" tall. I suppose if you wanted to dress this doll in modern clothes -- a mistake since she's a real antique -- you could use the Simplicity or McCall patterns for the AG dolls. Personally, I prefer the Asian BJD look -- plus, there's a wider range of "looks" that these dolls can adapt. After all, I've never seen an elf vampire doll from the 19th or early 20th century.

While at the shop, we met a lady & her husband who are from the Irving Doll Club. She's presenting a talk on the vinyl dolls of the 1960s -- shades of my Chatty Cathy doll! -- and was looking for representative pieces ... Her husband, Mar and I discussed the club; it turns out that we ARE acquainted with some members; the Irving librarians who sell items at the cons are also members of the club ... and there may be others that we've seen at local "doll meets." We were reminded that some folks do not take kindly to the influx of Asian BJDs into the club. They argue that the dolls are not "collectibles" ... well, they should check out eBay and the conventions. The people who buy BJDs (of any sort) discover that the dolls like new clothes -- and new companions. Perhaps they mean that the Asian dolls may not accrue market value. Still, who knew that the Barbies whose pony tails were butchered in 1961 would be worth hundreds of dollars in 2010?

We took a leisurely drive northward on Highway 161 to return to Carrollton ... It cuts through the wooded suburbs that used to the farmland, and I spotted way too many "ticky-tacky houses that all look just the same." It's quite different watching the road as a passenger/ navigator instead of the driver. I remember when I-20 cut through the same area, totally empty of people and malls ... I'm not sure that we could do the drive to Arlington and back to Dallas in the same time that we did back in the 80s ... and I still miss the mini-Stonehenge that marked the spot where the "Scottish Highlands" subdivision is today.

Once ensconced at Mar's house, we watched Supernatural Season 2. When Mar confessed that she saw the cliffhanger ending for the season and rushed out to buy the (overpriced) DVD so she could continue watching, we had to tease her ... "You're not a fan, huh? You're in denial, you know." She confessed that was the case; worse, she was planning to "rip" images in order to have art scrap to draw ... I'm sure she'll be searching fanfic.net to find more stories about the Winchester boys. Just no slash, Mar. When writers put family members into scenes in which they have sex with one another, it pushes my "ick factor" to the max. And, yes, it's been done before -- the title "Hop on Pop" takes on new meaning when a slash author uses it.

School started last Monday ... the different schedule will take some getting used to. My feet hurt most of Saturday, and my back still isn't happy. Core teachers have 6 classes, plus an enrichment class, which makes 6 1/2 classes. Monday -- C-day -- we meet with all classes, for a grand total of about 150 kids; on A-days -- Tuesday & Thursday -- I meet 3 classes with about 50 kids, plus my 25 enrichment kids; but on B-days -- Wednesday & Friday -- I meet 3 classes with 80+ kids and the 25 enrichment kids ... They claim that they'll try to level classes so my numbers are more equally distributed, but I've worked in the district long enough to know that they look at the overall numbers. As long as they're at 150, then nothing will get done ... except that my department chair AND the 10th grade house mother walked into my 2 biggest classes, when we're wall-to-wall people ... so, we'll see.

Dance Quote: "Remember, Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but backwards and in high heels." ~Faith Whittlesey

The Evils of PC Gaming & Other Addictions

Doctor Hoo & Dalek Wormy

Last night I spent waaaay too much time solving the endgame for "Jewel Quest: Heritage." It's a match-3 game attached to a story line. Joy and I have worked our ways through the other quests in the series. Sunday, Kim persuaded me to play the Hidden Object game on her Nintendo. I'm not a big fan of HO games, but this one worked for me ... especially when I recognized the villain Sebastien and the hero Rupert. It did hurt that this quest was set in Valley of the Kings in Egypt. I'm sure there are Doctor Who-inspired games, but those are tough to get in the good old US of A unless you have the techie hook-ups with friends overseas. If you're curious, check out the official BBC web site -- unfortunately some of the best video bits are not available in Texas. SIGH!!

The heat wave finally broke last night ... and the kids complained all day that it was cold -- on the first day of school, the high was 107. We were warm, but relatively comfortable. So, they get no sympathy from me. If you're cold, bring a sweater -- the alternative of no AC is unthinkable. Monday if you stepped outside about 4 o'clock, you felt as if you were melting into a puddle of pink goo. Summer isn't over -- on my birthday, the temp is supposed to top out about 98 degrees; still, that's not as bad as 107. (Or the dreaded 110 -- in 1980, we had 30+ days when the high temp hit 100 or more.)

If you haven't read Andy Runton's comic Owly, give it a try. It's nonverbal, for the most part, but the plot and theme are clear. Owly helps his friends with their problems -- and they help him with his. It's touching without being cloying or over-the-top. Kids as well as adults can get into the stories ... and I enjoy Andy's gallery of Owly costumed as various media characters. The "Wolver-owly" is hysterically funny. http://www.andyrunton.com/ will introduce you to the world of this "bird of play" and his friends. He's even animated now! The illustration at the top of the blog is borrowed from Andy's site as an homage to both Owly and the Doctor.

Dance Quote: "To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love." -- Jane Austen

Is There a Doctor in the House?

Doctors 2 & 3

The final weekend before the kids returned included various movies and lots of food ... I think a diet is in order ... However, we enjoyed most of what we saw. First on the agenda was Wallace & Grommit, "A Matter of Loaf & Death," with a murderous "cereal" killer who's eliminating bakers one by one ... and Wallace is next on the hit list. Then, we indulged in some old school Doctor Who with "The Three Doctors," the first -- and arguably the best -- of the "reunion" shows. The interplay of the three Doctors highlighted the very different ways they approached a problem -- and lead to the final solution. The Time Lords even make a cameo appearance, although this group is nowhere near as colorful as they become later ... Maybe the working Time Lords can't afford the robes with big colors & silly headcaps. Even Pertwee's idiosyncracies work in this episode -- and no eye crossing when his Venusian aikido doesn't work and he's down for the count. Each Doctor has his own style -- and these three set the bar high.

Later, the girls watched the first season of Supernatural, AKA the Winchester boys chronicles. The first season isn't as dark & convoluted as later seasons -- I've totally lost track by now, including remembering the boys' names. Joy follows it still ... which reminds me that we need to clean house & upgrade the satellite receiver before the new season starts. While they watched invasions of bugs on cursed Indian land (it looked like no real estate development I've ever seen in Oklahoma.), I created a pair of purple seed bead earrings, a OOAK pair for the theater teacher at SHS. Luckily I found two other pairs in the colors she wanted; I haven't beaded in a long time, and I forgot how long creating & making a pattern can be ,,, but they turned out all right -- except for 1 little missing white bead. If she misses the spirit bead, I'll make her a new earring; otherwise, I get to make a pair for myself. They're perfect for Spirit Fridays when we wear school colors ...

Time to prepare to meet the kids on the first day of school ... and I'm still tired & achy from moving so much stuff last week, Carpe diem!

Dance quote: How can we know the dancer from the dance? ~William Butler Yeats

... But You're Drowning in Paper

Colette & D'arcy, August 2010

When we were going to school, I'm sure we didn't question how all the desks and equipment got into the room. I don't know whether we thought there were fairies or gremlins or custodians who did the physical labor, but we just plopped down on the chairs or stools, determined to get through the year ... But that was many decades ago, before PEDs (personal electronic devices) and the ingrained belief that school is mainly a social activity. Now I know the truth -- for 8 out of 10 teachers, we must decorate our rooms and make them a "print rich" environment -- even though we know that, unless we press the point, the kids really don't look at the stuff that the powers-that-be insist should be posted.

This week, we had 2 days in our room and spent 3 in meetings ... oh, the joy of meetings. The English Dpt. is 15 people strong, so we fill a room -- and several members get quite vocal when they're bored. At lunch, I grabbed time to eat and decorate on the room ... but my room is still a work-in-progress. There are boxes to check, empty (if possible), books to label -- windows to cover and decorate -- and we have only 8 hours (officially) to finish the job.

Just to make life more interesting, the powers-that-be removed the computers in our rooms. Back in the day, that wouldn't count as a major inconvenience, but now teachers post student attendance and grades on the computer ... hence, no computer means unsubmitted attendance reports (a bad thing that gets your name called out by the principal on the PA) and late grades (also a bad thing by the end of the 6 weeks). On Monday morning, I walked into drama -- one teacher's husband was ready to call the cops because they'd removed personal equipment. Shoot, two weeks ago, we had been at SHS working on curriculum, so these guys moved fast ... and stored the computers in the downstairs men's restroom. CPUs, monitors, wires, cables, mice (mouses?), all jumbled together higher than the stall doors ... It was not a pretty sight.

Mr. T finally lost his temper & called downtown about the insanity ...he told the district that his teachers needed computers, so when would we get replacements? All of us know that once the equipment is gone, you don't get new stuff if you're not a magnet school ... DISD couldn't give a timeline, so he gave the word to go get our computers. I lucked out: the yearback teacher recruited some cheerleaders, so I followed the flatbeds to the restroom. One young man -- who had been in my summer school English class -- climbed all over the bathroom, over the commodes and stall doors, to help us locate our stuff. Oh, and that was my lunch time on Wednesday ... I had meetings after I set up the computer. I did get a new (well, new to me) flat-screen monitor. And non-teachers wonder why we get stressed ...

Obviously this week I haven't had much time for dolls ... but I did get an order for 3 pairs of beaded earrings from the theater teacher. Like me, she is a child of the 70s -- long, dangly earrings are part of her personal style. Plus, she likes the chokers. When she placed the order, I was working on "SMART Goals" for our team. (Don't ask -- it's an education thing.) Without thinking, I asked if she liked chokers. Yes, she did ... now my dpt. chair & evaluator (and team) are all around, but I couldn't resist. I pulled up this blog -- and got an order for a copper & purple crystal choker. I've got work to do this weekend ...

Last weekend we celebrated Joy's birthday. Colette, my Obitsu 60 cm SD) tried on the "Movietime" clothing set from BJDC Austin 2008. (I may be wrong about the year.) With the red wig, she looks like Amy Ponds, the current companion on the British SF show Doctor Who. Mar re-did her faceup in pastels (The original was done in human makeup.) on Saturday night while I re-dressed D'arcy. When Joy bought the Dollzone doll for me, he had an Egyptian set of clothes -- a white kilt, headband, armbands ... I played with names -- one was Yul or Ramses, after Brynner's star turn in The 10 Commandments. My mom tells me that I loved the "Moses movie," but I don't remember liking Charlton Heston all that much ... Still, the name didn't quite fit; his expression made me recall Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy in Pride & Prejudice, so the kitty boy became D'arcy Fitzwilliams. To his chagrin, like many of Mar's boys, D'arcy occasionally wears dresses. This little number came from Enchanted Dolls in Fort Worth ... The frills lessen the "pissed pussycat" expression that D'arcy has when he wears his Egyptian set or Scottish kilt (a plaid Barbie skirt).

Dance quote: "You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life ...

See that girl, dig that scene, you are the dancing queen."

-- ABBA

And You Thought They Hired You to Teach

Vampire Lishe, Pash't & friend

... but you also become an interior decorator, computer data person, psychologist, and -- after all is said & done -- the "guide on the side." Right now, most teachers have no computers in their classrooms; the district, in its wisdom, hired an outside company to remove obsolete computers. Now it's true that many CPUs are dinosaurs in tech terms, but anyone who's worked in public education knows that if the equipment leaves the building -- it won't be replaced any time soon. Since we post attendance and grades on the "student data system," next week -- and subsequent weeks -- will be quite interesting ... I may have to return to the old overhead projector, unless the library -- sorry, media center -- can check out one to me ... I hope the media center has lots of ink cartridges, because those of us without printers will be printing our student data, roll books, and more on their machines.





Enough kvetching about school ... This is year 35 -- and the more things change, the more they stay the same ... we'll make it, unless the TEA changes the rules that determine our school's rating.

The featured dolls are a Vampire Lishe & Pash't, taken in front of Mar's manga library. Ariadne, the vampire Lishe, is a Dollfie Dreams doll that Joy bought long ago ... she's our bad girl in the picture stories that will appear soon. Our friend in Oklahoma enjoyed the story in which Mar's boy Jace strays from his magical lover Catsandra for a tryst with Ariadne; Catsandra turns the rat into a rodent and her cat awaits his supper ... Pash't is our mascot doll, an Obitsu with a OOAK look by Joy. Pash't often travels to the out-of-state conventions ... not overseas (yet), but who knows where this kitty girl may roam? These two dolls are reasons why the "resin snobs" reluctantly allow 60 cm Obitsus into their hallowed halls; for anyone unfamiliar with the on-going debate on what defines a ball-jointed doll, most collectors agree that a BJD should

• have a fully jointed body -- neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, waist, knees, ankles
• usually be strung; Obitsu dolls have "mechanical" joints
• have changeable eyes (Pash't breaks this rule; Obitsu does have an eye-hole head)
• usually wear different wigs
• Some collectors insist that BJDs should be made of resin, not plastic -- but Volks manufactured the Lishe, so mainly purists insist on this "rule"

The editor of Doll Costuming pointed out that many of the 19th century antique dolls fall into the BJD catergory ... although I'm not sure whether most Armand Marseilles dolls had jointed bodies in the same way that Asian BJDs do ... I recall a cloth body with compo or porcelain arms, legs & head. The "newborn" babies definitely do NOT fit into this category ... although they seem to be the latest DIY doll fad. Sorry, I just don't see the appeal of multiple versions of bald-headed, squinchy-faced infants -- and don't get me started on the ones that have been tinted slightly purple in order to duplicate the "just born" look. If I can get my hands on my grandfather's christening gown, I might buy or make a reborn in order to display my great-grandmother's handiwork; other than that, I shall leave the babies to the ones who adore them.

The big bison summons me back to SHS ... Meetings are so much fun!!

Dance Quote -- "We should consider everyday lost in which we don't dance." -Neitzsche

School's In for 2-10

Sunset HS (1925) -- My classroom is 3rd floor, over the archway.

Okay, Pink Floyd it's not, but I couldn't resist a bad pun ... I went to Sunset HS this morning -- and found out that the AC was NOT working!!! (No surprise -- I've worked in public schools long enough to know that they turn off the AC for the weekend, then crank it up around 7 AM when the head custodian arrives ... and then we wait to find out whether the old building's units have come on line. By lunch, the temperature on my side of the building was tolerable, if not comfortable ... and I brought Joy up to work while I prepped the classroom -- decorate is not quite an accurate term since I have to set up the desks, the bookcases, the file cabinets ... and then I get to deal with the bulletin boards and covering up cracks in 85-year-old walls. I've only just begun (cue Carpenter music) ... and the kids haven't entered the classroom. Oh, the image comes from a vintage postcard of Oak Cliff buildings.

This evening Joy and I looked -- and found owls all over JoAnn Fabrics and Hobby Lobby. Only the organic grocery store Sprouts didn't have the bird of the night peering from the shelves ... We found little hats that we can adapt for cavalier hats & girls' chapeaux; Joy will try to adapt some full-sized hat patterns for her pirate boys ... She made a new necklace set from ruby components & beads while I taped and stapled butcher paper to the walls & boards. The simple chain can be fitted to an SD or MSD neck ... pictures later.

If Sunday night is Food Network night, then Monday night belongs to the drag queens ... We've watched most of Ru Paul's "Drag Races," and now we're checking out "Drag U," in which the most popular queens return to teach "biological women" (their term) how to empower themselves by finding and dressing as their inner divas ... One of the most interesting episodes involved Ru Paul's 3 sisters; the kindergarten teacher graduated with the highest DPA (Drag Points Average). Joy has decided that she's stay a pirate -- though perhaps with a fuller wig to give her a dramatic look. I'm not sure what image the "Dragulator" might give me -- a Mae West look with a corseted body and tight gown? a mini-skirt and bustier? The possibilities are (almost) endless ... there are a few looks that a woman over 25 should no longer attempt, unless she's had major plastic surgery. Nip and tuck, darling!

If the Spirits Move You

Sande's Faith in a necklace set by Joy

Saturday we gathered together to celebrate Joy's birthday in Carrollton; Mar took Karen and us to "Tasty Greek," a small restaurant located on Belt Line Road. Mar had described it as a "hole in the wall" ... It was quite small, yes, but the food was great -- the owner/manager wears several hats. He was our waiter and cashier, although I don't know whether he also worked in the kitchen ... Karen and I enjoyed the Patichio, ground beef with pasta under a bechamel sauce, while Joy & Mar fig into huge gyro plates ... even our picky eater had to agree that "Tasty Greek" lived up to its name and deserved a "Best in" award for good food. Then, Mar took us to an evil place -- evil, I tell you, because her liquor store had adopted the practice of allowing customers to taste test the specials of the whom am I to turn down free liquor?

Spirits were willing, the flesh was weak, and we spent an enjoyable time wandering up and down the aisles. We spent a bit of time with the pre-mixed liquors -- and returned with Kahlua B-52s ... Joy found some chocolate wine when an owl on the bottle ... Karen got rum (no surprise there -- she and Captain Morgan are old acquaintances.) ... Mar got cherry lemonade with vodka ... the terrible temptation, which I confess we did little to avoid, came from the discovery that we could get 15% off the total purchase if we bought 15 bottles. They had tiny "airline" bottles of liquor -- perfect for stocking stuffers -- which made our final selections quite simple.

After we emptied the bottles, we could use them as props for the dolls ... our poor innocent resin children, introduced to the "demon rum." Well, MY girl Colette is generally innocent, but I'm not too sure about Mar's larger male dolls -- and Joy's Yancy drowned his sorrows over his love life down at the hotel bar last weekend.

Back at Mar's house, we watched live action Sci-Fi anime -- if you'll excuse the very mixed-up metaphor ... Doctor Who remains one of my all-time favorite series, although my "main men" remained Tom Baker and David Tennant. As they say, you never forget your first; in Houston I stayed up after midnight to watch the Doctor. The first shows were "Mask of Mandragora" with Sarah Jane ... then I missed the 4th show that finished the episode and returned to "Face of Evil." When I moved back to Dallas in 1980, no station showed the series ... I had to wait until I went to O-Kon to see my first complete adventure: Underworld. Donna Fraser and Joy told me it was not worthy -- they were right. Until the "reboot" in 2005, the BBC was famed for horribly bad special effects. Cheezy, some said, and rightly so. I did take one good line from "Underworld:" The quest is the quest ... and the line has stuck since we still collect objects, and the quest for costumes, dolls, and books continues unabated.

Tom Baker, AKA the 4th Doctor, is an amusing performer; he can declaim lines -- usually with a straight face -- that would shame lesser actors; however, even he would have to admit that David Tennant is the superior actor ... After all, Tom played the bear in Shakespeare's play while David was the great Dane himself.

We went back to the 9th Doctor, Christopher Eccleston, to watch the events that led to his regeneration into Tennant ... and the death and rebirth of Captain Jack Harkness (later of Torchwood). As you watch the eps, you can see the huge crush -- romance? -- that will keep the Doctor and Rose together across time and space. Personally, I think Rose might have stalker tendencies; when she strides into Donna Noble's universe to battle the Daleks, you can tell she's a girl on a mission ... and it's not just to exterminate a danger to humanity. Sarah Jane Smith dealt with Doctor-separation a bit more gracefully; still she was older, if only by a few years, when she traveled with the Doctor -- and got left behind when he was called back to Gallifrey. But she never got married ... and didn't officially have a family until after she made peace with her past life as the Doctor's companion ... I wonder how she and Jo Grant (Katy Manning) will react to the current Doctor. Matt Smith is young enough to be their grandson (or at least their son). The meeting won't have quite the same dynamics of having the current missus meeting the ex (to paraphrase Micky) since Doctor 11's companion Amy Ponds married her childhood sweetheart Rory ... Now there's a shift in the group dynamics in the TARDIS since the Doctor seldom has two companions -- and never a married couple until 2010.

Amy Ponds (at her wedding) -- "Something old, something new, something borrowed ... and something very blue!" (Deep thrumming of materialization)

In Search of ... Dolls & More

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vz4UM9zk5Rg This is the link to a slide show for BJDC Austin 2010

Today Joy & I decided to go on a little adventure for my last official day of summer vacation. We'd wondered if there were any doll shops left in North Texas -- we knew there weren't any shops that sold BJDs; however, we thought there might be one somwhere that sold the usual American run of collectible dolls ... we were wrong. According to Google, there are about 10-12 shops that sell dolls; I knew that NotJust Dolls had closed their store years ago ... and her web site is listed on line. She sells out of Canton Flea and Antique Market on First Mondays. The Enchanted Cottage, located in Richardson, mainly caters to kids' tastes; plus, her hours vary ... and considering the lack of walk-in foot traffic, I can't blame her.

Still, we wanted to check out someplace new ... and not just another Toys R Us. I finally found one place over in Fort Worth -- not in Dallas County, but not so far that it would take hours to get there. (Well, depending on which road you took, it might take longer than you'd think!) The store's name is Enchanted Dolls ... and it's located in the Handley Antique District. To tell the truth, it's an area undergoing gentrification ... it's an older section of Fort Worth, near the railroad and power plant, with several small upscale shops near it ... and two rooms crammed floor to ceiling with dolls dating from the 1930s to 2010.

No, no ball-jointed dolls, but she had just about any American-made doll you might want ... and for very reasonable prices. As we were checking out, a reporter from Channel 11 came into the shop; he wanted to film a feature story with her ... then she started to protest about meshing their schedules ... We had trouble remaining silent: free publicity, and she couldn't open the shop for a few hours! They worked it out ... and she asked how we had found them. I had to tell the story of checking the Internet -- and calling ahead because most of the doll shops in our area had closed after the mid-90s. The building dates back to the mid-20th century, with the original architechtural details ... we'll be back. She has my Muffy Vanderbear!

In Search of ...

Mar's Court of Fey & Humans, BJDC Austin 2010

Fantasy & Faerie ... Mar's dolls wear OOAK clothing designed & sewn by Lady Fayre ... We spread the word about Sarah's lovely clothing at the convention. Alas, we didn't have any clothing for sale this year. Hopefully, we can create the stories for the court -- and keep them going longer than the "Cerberus Academy" series that we posted on Mariann's site ... if I can access the NTXBJD page this weekend ... Otherwise, you might see them on "Dancing Doll Cats."





Colette & Namu, Halloween 2007

Dolls ... There's a dearth of brick-and-mortar shops for the intrepid doll collector. Most of the doll shops from the 90s have closed; 1 still exists as an on-line presence that appears at the Canton Flea Market ... but the others? They have melted away -- and, no, Googling them on the Internet doesn't help since the updates never quite appear. Still, we can call and check to learn whether the store actually exists. After all, the British Emporium won #2 British speciality shop -- and it was the only brick-and-mortar shop in the top 5. Mariann loves to browse on the 'Net, but I like to see (and touch when possible) what I'm buying ...



Cool Weather ... That won't materialize until Monday, or so the weather gurus tell us. Now I know why the rich "snow birds" travel up and down the East Coast ... The heat hasn't slowed the kitties down, except for Skittles who watches the younger ones zipping around from a safe perch. As you can guess, Joy and I are feeling the heat ... and yet we're planning a "road trip" to Fort Worth in search of a doll shop.





School ... It's almost that time of year when the little ones return to the supervision of their CTUs (classroom teaching units). Luckily we did some summer planning, so English II has a battle plan ... although the DISD curriculum people may not like our taking their "managed curriculum" and tweaking it to our liking ... The first story is a lame one about a shy boy deciding whether to pursue a fish or a pretty girl; you can imagine how intrguing inner city kids would find THAT plot. We chose to begin the year with "The Monkey's Paw." Zombies can be a teacher's best fiend -- uh, friend. I still lurk in the upper halls of SHS, my home away from home. My previous abode for over 20 years was RHS, on the other side of I-35 ... the differences between a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood and a mainly Black 'hood would startle the young whitebread boys in the English Dpt. ... When they complain, some of us -- who HAVE taught in the real 'hood -- just laugh and shake our heads. But the battle of education begins for real on August 23, so we'll have to enjoy the last weekend of vacation, even if it IS way too hot to think straight.





Still More Dolls ... Grapevine, Grand Prairie, Duncanville, and Fort Worth -- the city of Dallas is big, but I guess it just doesn't feel much dolly love ... except for twice a year when the vendors pull out their stock at the anime conventions. In 2 weeks, we'll see what new surprises emerge from the other collectors in the area ... Hopefully, we can put on a show (shades of Mickey Rooney & Judy Garland) that's sure to please.

Dance Quote:
“God is a DJ
Life is a dancefloor
Love is the rhythm
You are the music”
- Author Unknown

Random Birthday Thoughts

Red Gryffin, AKA Joy, at 4 Winds Faire

Wednesday was Joy's birthday; Mother Nature gave us a hot present ... so hot, in fact, that we stayed inside as much as possible until the sun went down. Luckily, we had made a book store stop on Monday, so we had mind candy to keep us diverted (more or less) from the heat ... although you wouldn't believe how much body heat felines and a canine can emit when they insist on sitting right next to you. Here Joy stands inside our booth at 4 Winds Faire, our home-away-from-home during the weekends of March & April; we'll be back there for Celtic Music Festival in September ... She wore her pirate garb to BJDC Austin -- since the theme was Carnivale, her garb stood out because it IS clothing to us, not a special occasion outfit ... and ladies asked whether she still had her tail. Of course! everyone needs a bit of tail to follow them about ...

When the sun lowered in the western sky, Joy decided that Outback Steakhouse would be a good choice ... until we learned that they had changed their menu. She liked the kebobs over rice with grilled peppers and pineapple; teriyaki steak medallions were a barely adequate substitute. I had their special -- I preferred their salad with steak strips, but I never found a description in the salad menu ... But the food wasn't bad; it just wasn't exactly what we desired ... and once you're seated in a restaurant, you feel trapped. Unless the service is egregiously awful, it's hard to find a reason to get up and go before you've ordered ... and going out in the heat to find another restaurant near Lancaster required more energy than we cared to expend.

Sorry to whine, but the heat tires everyone out. Yankees wondered why Southerners moved and talked slowly ... if it takes this much effort to operate WITH air conditioning, just imagine living in the Old South, dressed in layers upon layers of petticoats and starched shirts ... I know why the belles undressed and had a lie-down during the afternoon. It's the only way to survive the heat.

Two more days of "summer vacation," followed by the weekend ... then the 2010-11 school year begins. Woo-hoo! Didn't we just finish an academic season?

BJDs -- The New Drug?

Yancy & Matthias fight over Ellowyne Wilde -- no ennui for that girl when the boys are around!

If you let them in, ball-jointed dolls creep into your consciousness. Like drugs, the collecting urge slowly takes over ... and you find yourself with a houseful of resin or vinyl dolls -- and they have a better wardrobe than you!! Worse, they look better in the most outrageous outfits than anyone -- with the exception of drag queens.





Maybe BJDs are more like vampires ... They put the bite on you (or your wallet) until, little by little, you become their thrall. (I may be mixing the vampire motifs here, but a true paranormal fan can follow the thread.) With the Internet opening the markets for clothes and wigs, you can have a closetful of doll shoes and outfits -- with the accessories to complement them -- before you know it.

So, what about Ellowyne Wilde? She's the vinyl girl in the middle -- sculpted by Robert Tonner, she's part of his BJD line (more or less). This doll line has expanded to include several versions of Ellowyne; her BFF Prudence Moody; her handyman/swain Rufus; and her arch-rival Amber. The outfits are beautifully detailed ... but the Tonner Company has written such an extensive back story for EW and the crew that all a fan can do is ... collect. I suppose you could create your own EW stories, but it would have to fit the "canon," to use fan-speak. By giving specific parameters of what Ellowyne thinks and feels, Tonner has limited collector input ... I might be wrong, but I don't see EW fans creating the bizarre fun that the BJD ladies do. We have all sorts of mini-dramas of who is "in love" with whom ... All in good fun, and none of it taken seriously. Plus, EW is all about her "ennui" -- with all those clothes, she ought to get more fun out of life! I was hoping the "evil Amber," her theatrical rival, might respark my interest in the line, but she looks too much like Ellowyne ... maybe if they do a "wigged out" Amber, I might get the doll ... or I might get a new friend for Colette. I did like the "Sushi for One" Ellowyne, with her black hair done in the Sailor Moon pigtails. That limited edition finally sold out; I think it took longer than the others because it didn't fit the standard EW look ... which is probably why I like it the best.

Back in the day (as my students say), fanzines had the nickname of "drug of choice" for many female fans; however, the Internet has ended most traditional fanzines. You might never have seen one -- a doushinji comes closest (if you're a manga/anime fan) with art and stories based on a TV or movie ... Fanfiction.net carries many stories; however, since there's seldom editing, the reader has to wade through a lot of muck before she (fan writers and readers are mostly female) stumbles upon a gem ... That sounds a lot like panning for gold, doesn't it? As one of the "Shady Ladies," I wrote and edited several fanzines based on Beauty & the Beast (ah, Vincent!), Night Court, The Real Ghostbusters, as well as Sailor Moon. You might find some of them on-line ... I know that Sheila Paulsen keeps her work available.

For many of my students, anime and manga eat up their cash ... although many of them haunt the free manga sites on the Internet. They're in for a major disappointment this fall because the Japanese publishers and American companies have forced several sites to shut down ... well, just because the material can be scanned, doesn't mean that the creators want readers to have free access ... As a writer myself, I sympathize; my only problem is that I'm not sure what series I'd like to purchase -- and unless I can visit panels during the cons (which I can't since I work behind a table), I'm reluctant to pay out $10 a manga ... So far, Joy and I found some winners; according to the panel at San Diego Comi-Con, two of our favorites made the "best" manga list: Cat Paradise, a horror series set at a private school; and Chi's Sweet Home, the slice-of-life story of a little lost kitten in his new home. Within reason, I pass along my manga to Sunset's library; however, the manga I'd like the library to own -- and the school and personal budget -- make it hard to expand the collection quickly ... The manga get checked out, but they don't always return ...

Today is Joy's birthday, so we shall eat Greek and go to Wal-Mart ...

Dance quote: “There are shortcuts to happiness, and dancing is one of them.”
- Vicki Baum

Oh, You Beautiful Doll, 3

Yancy & the Lady from Maryland -- and you thought only humans got some action at the con!


Saturday 4 women & 13 dolls, searching for wild things ... Show time in the sales room, at leadt for me. I let Joy and Mariann begin the quest for outfits while I sat behind the table and smiled at the lookers ... well, I did sell 1 jewelry set to Kathy from Oklahoma, as well as another jewelry piece ... Some folks came down from Dallas; we see them at every anime con in our area. I chuckled at the gentleman who claimed that he had driven a van-load of women from Dallas to BJDC Austin ... Brave man -- but he collects dolls, too, so I'm sure the ladies gave him a "legitimate" reason to come, like adults who bring a niece or nephew to a kids' movie so they don't feel out-of-place. I even got to pitch for 4 Winds Faire once or twice.



After the sales room closed at 3 -- and that seemed so early since dealers' rooms at anime cons close about 6 or 7, and even Intergem show rooms close at 5, we had to break down the table. Dolls back upstairs to return to their boxes, stones into containers, etc. Again, that hand cart came in very handy ... As we broke down, the hotel staff was breaking down the tables to transform the sales room into the banquet hall.



Afterwards, we adjourned to the room to check out the goodies. Marcia got out her Obitsu boxes, and we passed around wigs to see whether the color, style or size fit other dolls. Joy had bought the "Magician" by Paulette Goodreau because he reminded her of Harry St. Cloud, a character she created ... and Mariann had bought a forest goddess and fennec mini-fee. Both dolls are less than 6 inches tall, but the sculpts are as detailed as the larger dolls at the top of my post today ... In fact, she already bought wigs and clothes for them ... Myself? I enjoyed the show -- Colette had her new clothes from the swap meet.

The banquet proved that the ladies and gents know how to party ... Joy, as table hostess, provided party gifts; I contributed jingle bell earrings, while the ladies from Oklahoma gave goody bags with glow lights so we could do the "rock concert" thing at the awards presentation. The food wasn't bad, by hotel standards -- the pecan chocolate chip quiche soothed taste buds and kept everyone in a zen state of mind. Many door prizes -- Joy contributed 2 Obitsus -- and three people at our table got something, even Mariann who had opted not to come. (She had her own adventure down at the hotel bar, but that is her story to tell -- not mine.) The 2 hours flew by -- doll people were determined to have fun, meet and greet other collectors, so even 8 strangers parted as friends after the lights came up.

Well, 2 of us returned ... Joy stayed downstairs to hang with Jen and the others while Marcia & I wended our way upstairs ... and the slumber party continued until 1 by 1, we konked out -- Mar, then myself, leaving Marcia and Joy to talk about dolls until the wee hours of Sunday morning.

Sunday Mar had disappeared when I rose on Sunday morning ... so I got dressed & took a walk. Although the hotel is located near a warehouse/business district, the landscapers decided to line the cross streets with trees and build a gravel walking path under them ... the only danger came from the pigeons who populated the lovely trees overhanging the walk. Fortunately, they seemed more interested in peppering the cars than a moving target. I walked about a 1/2 mile circuit before I looped back towards the hotel ... nary a car or another pedestrian in sight. In some ways, it was a fairly safe choice, yet it could have turned nasty if any gangstas or muggers lurked in the area ... and I did have a strange encounter on 6th Street while going from the distant parking lot to the hotel back in January when we vended at Ikkicon. Maybe the Omni was too far from convenient mass transit to tempt panhandlers to the area ...

Mar decided to go for a swim, and the other two chose to sleep -- well, that's what happens on the morning after a slumber party, so we headed downstairs to enjoy the salt water jacuzzi and chat ... Then back to the room and the chores of closing down a hotel room and packing the cars ... a job that took 2 hours, since everyone was waking up and checking out between 10 and noon. Finally, after missing a 3rd elevator car filled with women and dolls, Mar and I decided to use an old anime con trick: you ride an empty car up, then you ride down with other people. It isn't nice, but a few times the car only went up one more floor -- then we were the only ones inside when it came down non stop. 3 cars, 2 filled to the brim (Marcia drives a van, so her vehicle looked empty compared with ours.), then we bid farewell to friends, in Texas and around the country, until the next meeting. I wonder if some BJD fans aren't beginning a countdown to August 2012. As the theater people say, "Another opening, another show."

I'd invite anyone to come to the BJD conventions, if one's in your area ... or go to an anime convention. Joy and I saw our first BJDs back around 2000 or so; he was a Volks that the girl had ordered from Japan, a 60 cm (SD) model ... we were fascinated that, unlike American dolls, he was anatomically correct -- and had changeable eyes and wigs. Over the decade, more and more BJD fans have come to the anime conventions since the dolls are considered part of Japanese culture ... In that way, you can meet other doll people -- and actually see the dolls depicted in the magazines and on line. Be warned: the dolls like company; and they like to have many clothes, wigs, etc. Shoot, Colette has more wigs, shoes, and outfits than I do ... but she looks a whole lot better in them! I guess she might be my avatar ... she's definitely my companion doll. You never forget the first.

Dance quote: "The people who do not dance are the dead." ~Jerry Rose of Dance Caravan

Oh, You Beautiful Doll, 2

Chi & Friends

We enjoyed BJDC Austin 2010 , but it took some prep work to make the experience an enjoyable one -- and even so we experienced minor drama. (Like that's a surprise? Those hotel rooms look large until you get 4 people and all of their stuff in the space.)

If you've ever coordinated a trip for multiple friends, located around the state, then you can appreciate the effort ... we planned for months, yet everything came down to the Internet and long distance phone calls during the final countdown to Austin. Who would bring what; who was arriving when; which cell numbers were good; etc. Even so, the fates twisted a few threads just to make things more interesting.

Tuesday night We drove to Mar's home to get her dolls. Many doll designers come to the BJD conventions, so we wanted to show off Sarah's costumes that she made as Lady Fayre this season ... Mar built portable clothing racks, so we drove across Dallas County in order to load the car with goodies ... I'd called Marcia earlier that evening to get confirmation numbers, etc., which caused us to roll up to Harbor Freight 15 minutes after it closed ... SIGH! another errand before we could depart ...

Wednesday Joy left first, since she knew many of the folks coming to the convention ... But before she could go, we drove to Harbor Freight to buy a new hand cart; the one that Karen had bought years ago had slowly fallen apart -- and none of us has the tools to fix it. In fact, I shamelessly played the "unhandy female" card because -- well, I have no rachets to fix the casters in place and we also needed to hit the road. The managar sold us the floor model --for less than it was on sale!! You know we'll return there for more tools ...

Joy arrived in Austin safely and hooked up with Jen and Marseille. They played dolls that evening ... and caught up on details of the doll world. Jen has a very large female doll that Jen decided was in love with Yancy (He's the redhead on the left.); Yancy presented her with a red crystal heart ... and Jen (and others) bought some of the doll jewelry, as well as the human wire-wrapped stones.

Thursday Joy worked on pieces at the hotel while I got things together in Lancaster. It is hot (about 100 degrees) -- so I work on stuff at home. The smallest kitten (the Fee -- Fiona) plays all over the place; she's so much help!

That evening, Joy goes to the swap meet ... many people have culled their clothing collections, so she gets some good buys. Colette now has a new outfit, as well as her Ian.

Friday Sales day at the BJD convention, so Joy gets to move about 8 boxes of dolls, plus assorted boxes of goods to the sales room ... I head over to my mom's house; I've promised to place film on her front windows to reduce sun glare ... just what I need to do on the day of departure! But the task is done, and I'm home before noon ... but Mariann has a "null" reading when she tests a program, so she has to stay at the office until the problem is resolved. Such is life, right?

Mariann arrives between 3 and 4, and we take off for Austin ... It's about a 3-4 hour drive; traffic slows us down a little, but there's nothing too traumatic -- no major wrecks, no serious stop-and-go. You just can't zoom along at 75 m.p.h. Still, the sun is setting as we go under the big loop where I-35 and 290 cross. (Years earlier, we had gone to a convention at a hotel near that location to meet A-Team friends.)

Yet Marcia has not arrived -- she had called Joy to tell her that she had left Flint about 6 P.M. Ouch! That means she's traveling most of the way after dark ... Joy departs for the meet-and -greet while Mar and I chill for a bit. She wants to swim; however, there's a bodybuilder convention at our location. All those ripped muscles are quite intimidating when you're a middle-aged, overweight female ... and so tan! Yes, the spray tanners made a small fortune off the bodybuilders -- all the better to see the muscle definition, you see.

We have a bit of a dilemma as the evening passes -- we call Marcia's phone, but it has no voice mail ... and we can't very well call her mother. I could imagine her reaction -- it would match my mother's: all worry and no ability to DO anything about it. So, we hang in the room ... and Marcia arrives safely about midnight. The Google map (or Tom-Tom) and navigator grossly under-calculated the drive time. Still, we're all in place, and all is well for the night.

But the convention hasn't truly began ... at least, not for Marcia and myself since we didn't buy memberships ... Saturday will be the big day.

Dance quote: "Dancers are athletes of God." -Albert Einstein

Oh, You Beautiful Doll, 1

Matthias & Yancy

Joy & I just arrived back in Lancaster after a whirlwind weekend in Austin for the ball-jointed doll convention. Joy went down on Wednesday to hang with out-of-state friends that she knows from on line groups; Mar and I drove down on Friday while Marcia arrived very late on Friday night ... We enjoyed the on-going slumber party with the dolls ... well, many dolls were displayed in the sales room, so we mainly talked about Marcia's small (27 cm) Obistu dolls that live in tiny storage boxes ... after all, no one wants Mom to know how many dolls make up the collection (and how much they cost).

Joy was surprised to learn that she and her dolls have fans ... Matthias and Yancy (above) are two AoD elves -- one's a vampire from Angel of Dreams. Yancy has a very large resin girlfriend to whom he presented a wire-wrapped heart ... and he spent the weekend in the hussy's room! Joy had to go up and fetch him down Saturday night. Some boys just shouldn't go out alone! There's no telling whom they'll meet. Matthias is the quieter one, but you know what they say -- watch out for the quiet ones!

My Obistu daughter Colette went to the ball with her Beast, Jurgis -- several BJD ladies want her to stay with him exclusively, but Colette enjoys a bit of a change ... and with a change of wigs and clothes, she becomes another persona. That's the fun part about BJDs -- they can change whenever you like. Alas, Tonner's creations Ellowyne Wilde and Evangeline Ghastly have good sculpts -- and great clothing -- but the writers have given them such a specific back story that the collector can't really create any new stories about the dolls ... and half the fun is making up a story to go with the fabulous outfit or look that you've developed for your doll ... Even ladies who didn't like Barbie get into creating scenarios for BJDs.

How does a BJD convention differ from an anime con? First, the con is very small -- about 100 people, with a few walk-ins for Saturday sales. Second, very few teens and children attend this conference -- and the ones who do have come with their parents -- so the energy level is very mellow. This is a relaxacon -- and no one thinks you're strange if you squeal over a lovely dress or gasp in awe when you see your "grail" doll in the flesh (so to speak). Third, the activities are very limited -- no video rooms, no speakers, only 1-2 workshops per day, and after the sales room closes, everyone heads for dinner and the bar ... well, we didn't most times since this con

had a strict budget -- but we had our own doll convention in the room. Oh, and Sunday's devoted to leaving the hotel -- the con officially ends after the banquet on Saturday night. I suppose the "dead dog" party will occur on line ... The cost? about the same amount as any 3-day convention, once you figure in the food and banquet for attendees.

Would I go again? This is my third ... and I'll be back in 2012!

Dance quote: “Ballet discipline:
only the true believer would suffer the rigors it demanded.”
-Author Unknown

When the Dolls Come Marching In

Dolls from BJDC Austin 2008

Today Joy drives down to Austin to meet with friends before the BJDC-Austin 2010 begins. Yes, the dolls will come out this weekend to shine in all their finery ... and we're hoping that their human companions decide to adorn them with Sarah's beautiful clothing and Joy's jewelry. Mar will sell portable racks for the costumes ... All these preparations have made life a bit hectic, since the phone line went out on Friday. It turned out to be a minor wire that we could replace easily -- but the first wire that I used was bad, so we thought it was the actual hard-wiring into the house ... luckily, we have cell phones. One of the few times I was glad to have the technology handy. For me, it's usually a fight to keep the kids' attention focussed on class content ... and they tell me it's worse in college since students bring their laptops. Of course, in college, profs don't have to worry so much about their failure rates and graduation rates; students must take control of their learning ... which is why so many freshmen fail their first semester.

This year's theme is "Carnivale," so the dolls will display their best costumes ... About 100 collectors, plus vendors, will meet in Austin to share their favorite hobby -- and cash cow. If you think collecting antiques can become expensive, you haven't seen these dolls! Many have a wardrobe that matches -- and sometimes exceeds -- their owners. Colette has many more wigs than I do ... and looks good in all of them. As Mar says, the dolls will always look young and never gain weight ... Her fey and human court will display Lady Fayre's costumes, so our table will be quite crowded on Friday ... and we forgot a table. That's what happens when you don't make a list ahead of time. I'll include the TV trays. They may not be large, but they can add a little space behind the table so she can extend the display a little.

The dolls at the top of the page are Claudia and the Vampire Lestat, based on the movie -- the theme of the last convention. Most collectors in our region look forward to the convention since few stores carry BJDs ... Worse, since 2005, most of the doll shops in the Metroplex have closed or returned to online status. Some people enjoy shopping online, but a picture doesn't match the experience of seeing the doll in front of you ... Of course, the costs to maintain a brick & mortar store have risen astronomically -- I could go on, but everyone who enjoys a specialized hobby has experienced the frustration of the search for goods and services. Hence, the conventions -- and Animefest will be next month; it gives younger fans a taste of BJDs at the meet-and-greet sessions, although those often become a show-and-tell around the topic of "see the new doll in my collection." Maybe we'll send Mar as our delegate; she's got the Court to impress the resin snobs as well as the newbies. For more information about BJDC Austin, go to http://www.bjdctexas.com/


"We're fools whether we dance or not, so we might as well dance."
~Japanese Proverb

May all your dances be happy ones!

Fine Feathered Friends

Yesterday we discovered that the phone line has gremlins ... On Friday, we found a gnawed line and replaced it -- but no evidence on Saturday of what's wrong. The internet still works, but we don't have an "interface box" from A T & T, so we can't run the first home test on their online tutorial ... Luckily, we do have our little "burn" phones so we can call others in an emergency. I guess that's why many people have cell phones, Honestly, my students have them to text -- I'd hate to know how much they or their parents spend, even with unlimited texting and family plans. Unfortunately, the ability to text has nothing to do with one's ability to communicate effectively in a composition. r u w me?

Before we could leave for our work session today, I called Mom and got word that she'd found a baby bird ... We took off on a mission of mercy, which didn't quite work out the way we thought. She'd put the little sparrow under a collander on her kitchen table ... he'd call loudly -- and she thought he was "just talking." Well, he was ... Joy checked him out, and we took him with us ...
This baby sparrow probably had fallen from thenest while he was "branching," and his wings were just strong enough to break his fall. His beak had the turned-down frown of the bird in the picture -- he reminded me of Joy's finch Coffee, although Joy says that it's cardinals who are related to the finches and not sparrows. He kept calling ... and calling ... when I went into Mar's bedroom, he just stared at me as if saying, "Are you gonna let me out so I can go home?" ... and called more until all of us decided that enough was enough. The little guy wasn't eating, wasn't calming down ... and Joy commented that we should've convinced Mom to let him take his chances in the back yard. So, we packed up our gear and the little bird and headed back to Mom's house.

When we arrived, the sparrow baby called -- and birds hidden in the trees called back. The parents were around, somewhere, if we could persuade them to come down. We found a shady spot near the bird feeder and placed him in a tree. He fluttered down, and Joy almost couldn't find him -- he was camoflaged among the green plants, and so still that you might not see him unless you were looking right at him. We put him into a second tree; he fluttered down on the other side of the fence ... and the calls from the trees stopped a while after. Hopefully, the parents found their lost chick. But this incident did convince Mom that little wildlings need to stay in the trees and not come into the house ... though we did leave the cage so she could place babies inside if she's worried that a cat might find a chick before the parents do ... The birds in the neighborhood come to her feeder and bird bath, so an open cage shouldn't scare them away.

Afterwards, we went back to Mar's house, where we built necklaces ... I re-wrote a short piece that describes the human/Fey court of Melene ... Mar mentioned that she had a story in mind that she wanted to write; she has enough in the outline that she has a good cast of characters and the beginning of a plot. She liked the subplots that the "letter" hints at, so perhaps we'll see a story later in the year.

... I have a chapter outline to work on myself. Like Mar's story, it's set in the Renaissance although (thus far) I don't have any elves or fae folk. However, that could all change as soon as they cross the mountains and travel north and east along the Silk Road . . .

Art credit -- ATC artist

And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music. ~Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche

May all your dances be happy ones.