After a lot of thought, I have decided to go on a blogging hiatus effective immediately and going through July. I know it’s a long time, but I think it will be good for me. In my 2+ years of blogging here I’ve never been on hiatus, and I have become a bit burned out on it. But my writing otherwise is slowly thriving, and there are things in my everyday life I am trying to figure out. The latter is nothing dramatic, but just the same, I think it’ll be good for me to not have to feel like I have blogging hanging over my head, because lately I’ve had thoughts like, Oh, I guess I ought to write at least one post this week.
I do intend to come back to blogging, and I’m hoping I will feel rejuvenated in August. And I’m definitely not falling off the face of the planet; you’ll still see me on Twitter, Goodreads, Tumblr, Pinterest, and commenting on your blog a week after your post, ha. (Except there are some I actually manage to read the day of. Don’t ask me to explain my methods because I don’t understand them either.)
My husband and I were talking about Lenoard Nimoy’s death, and he mentioned how Spock is probably the most iconic character of the original series, even more so than Kirk, and really even of all of Star Trek. I completely agreed with him. I told him that I thought his character is probably the main reason why the show was successful to begin with.
There’s just something about Spock. Ask any fan of the original series who their favorite character is, and I feel most of them will say it’s Spock. He’s just so different, but in the best way. He’s not like a normal human… he’s unemotional, calculating, logical… usually. Occasionally he surprises too though.
Captain, you almost make me believe in luck.
But he’s always intelligent, and he becomes a fiercely loyal companion.
I have been, and always shall be, your friend.
Celebrity deaths, as a general rule, do not really shake me. Yes, it’s always sad when someone dies, and sometimes it’s downright tragic. I was shocked and saddened to hear about Robin Williams, just like anyone else, but it didn’t devastate me the way I think it did for some people. I think he was a talented actor but none of his roles have made a big impact on my life or anything. With Leonard Nimoy, it has definitely been a different experience.
I first watched Star Trek The Original Series when my husband and I were dating, which means it was sometime 6-10 years ago. Spock was easily my favorite.
It wasn’t until we had been married for a little while that we watched the rest of Trek, and when I became a true fan. That’s when we started going to conventions together, when I started listening to podcasts, started pinning funny geeky things on Pinterest.
Becoming a Trek fan did not change my life in some dramatic way, like I decided to study science or any other number of things I have heard Star Trek has done for others, but it did still change it. It made me fall in love with science fiction, a genre that I generally liked when I was exposed to it in the past but never fully delved into it. It changed the way I write, the way I think, and the way I look at things. And I love it for that.
And the thing is, I do feel like it all goes back to Spock.
Spock: I felt for him, too.
Kirk: I believe there’s some hope for you after all, Mr. Spock.
I wanted to share a few of my favorite Spock moments and episodes, as a tribute to the man who made Spock into the character we love.
– Spock breaks down in The Naked Time. Being completely vulnerable to human emotion for probably the first time in the show, Spock weeps, feeling ashamed. It’s so… poignant… to see him in such a state. – Spock with Kirk in The City on the Edge of Forever. This episode focuses more on Kirk, but I love the humor (“obviously my friend here is Chinese”) and I love the serious moments too (“Edith Keeler must die”).
– Any time Spock has a connection with a woman that we normally don’t see, such as in “This Side of Paradise,” “The Enterprise Incident,” and “All Our Yesterdays.”
I hope that you and I exchanged something more permanent.
– Any time Spock has a connection with people that is surprising, like his connection with the space hippies Servin’s followers in “The Way to Eden.”
They regard themselves as aliens in their own worlds–a condition with which I am somewhat familiar.
– Spock’s secret affinity for Tribbles and cats. 🙂
– Any time Spock acted as a friend, like in “Amok Time.”
– Mirror Spock with goatee in “Mirror, Mirror”
And I know there are more, but those were the ones that immediately came to mind. Needless to say, he is memorable, and I’m so glad we have the shows and movies with him (even the ones I don’t love) to remember Leonard Nimoy by.
As Leonard Nimoy once famously said, he was not Spock. He was an actor with 134 acting credits on IMDB, many of which are not Star Trek. I also enjoyed watching him on Fringe as William Bell. He was also a friend, a husband, a father, a grandfather.
And, as Nimoy also said, he was Spock. That defined a lot of his life. Some people don’t handle typecasts well, but he learned to own it. There were many fabulous things about being Spock, really, experiences he would not have had otherwise. I’m so glad he embraced it. I wish I could have seen him or met him at a convention. And it’s that thought, that I never got to, but that his character and show really did mean something to me, that makes me more emotional about his death than many others. Maybe it isn’t logical, but I think that’s OK sometimes.
He will be missed. He lived long and he prospered.
We are assembled here today to pay final respects to our honored dead. And yet it should be noted that in the midst of our sorrow, this death takes place in the shadow of new life, the sunrise of a new world; a world that our beloved comrade gave his life to protect and nourish. He did not feel this sacrifice a vain or empty one, and we will not debate his profound wisdom at these proceedings. Of my friend, I can only say this: of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most… human.
Wow, this really sneaked up on me! I can hardly believe that I have blogging here for two years!
I love the interactions I have on here with all of you; I especially love coming up with posts for my feature Bookish Wedding Inspiration, interacting through discussions, and sharing my favorite episodes of Star Trek. So a big THANK YOU to everyone who has ever left a comment or read a post on here, and even more thanks to my most frequent readers/commenters. You know who you are, and so do I, and I really, truly appreciate that you spend your free time on my blog. I’ve discovered so many awesome books and authors and learned so much from all of you that I never would have otherwise!
Charlene @ Bookish Whimsy tagged me to do this Famous People Tag (like a million years ago, ha), created by Naomi @ Wonderland Creek.
The Rules:
Put up the ‘famous people tag button’ and link back to the person who tagged you
Answer the questions
Tag the ten last people who commented on your blog (excluding anonymytes or the person who tagged you) (NOTE: I personally also excluded people who are not frequent readers of my blog or that don’t have their own blog. This was also the last 4 commenters who fit the above criteria as of 9 PM CST on Christmas night. Did I just say 4? Yes, because I’m lazy. But seriously, you can do this even if you aren’t “officially” tagged!)
1. Who’s your favorite singer/group?
My all-time fave (meaning they’ve been my fave for YEARS) is Switchfoot. I’ve been listening to them since high school, and my husband and I go see them every chance we get (which is usually about once every other year). Their music really just speaks to me in a way I can’t fully express.
I also have a couple of newer favorites that I’m really into these days, particularly Needtobreathe and Phillip Phillips. The latter’s second album, which released back in May, gets so much play time in my car because I just love every single song so much. His songs make me want to go on road trips and write great books.
2. If your favorite male actor was in the same room as you right now, what would your reaction be?
First, I’m trying to decide who my favorite male actor is… probably Christian Bale. So, it would probably take me several minutes to psych myself up to talk to him, freaking out silently to myself, “Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, it’s Christian Bale, I have to speak to him, breathebreathebreathe.” Then I would hopefully have succeeded in psyching myself up enough to approach him, casually introduce myself (though I would probably be really shaky with nerves!), let him know how much I love him in Nolan’s films and Little Women (ha ha), and ask for a picture. And then I would probably die after it was all over.
3. Is there a famous person you used to love but (due to something they have done in their life) you’ve suddenly changed your mind?
I do sometimes like celebrities a little less when I learn things about them, but I learned well over a decade ago to not put any human being on a pedestal, because they will disappoint you. So yes, there was a time when that happened, but not recently, and not with anyone super famous.
4. Name a famous person you like who’s name starts with a V.
Vin Diesel? First person to come to mind… don’t love him but I like him well enough.
He is Groot. (couldn’t resist)
5. What’s one of your favorite red-carpet dresses?
Like Charlene I had to do a search, and I rediscovered this classic beauty of a dress that Emma Watson wore that I remember seeing before. The back of the dress is my favorite part.
6. Who’s your favorite Royal person?
Could it be anyone other than Kate? Maybe little George; he’s cute. But I love Kate. She’s like the epitome of every girl’s dream.
7. Who’s your favorite child actor/actress?
This is a hard question because you think someone is a child, you blink, and suddenly they’re not a child anymore! As far as someone who was a child actress, I thought Dakota Fanning was always amazing as she was growing up on screen. For someone who is a child now, well, I don’t actually know, but I’ll go with Mackenzie Foy who played 10 year old Murph in Interstellar because she was great. Oh, or the little girl who played Cossette in Les Mis. Adorbs.
8. Are there any actors/actresses whose private lives you like?
I don’t think I know of any of their lives well enough to have much thoughts about them, though it looks like RDJ has fun with Tony Stark-esque cars.
9. Do you think that the actors/actresses have improved these last 100 years?
I’m just going to quote Charlene’s answer because I think she said it well: “Like Maggie talked about in her post, I think our perception of the quality of acting has changed over the years as our perception of quality writing and production values have changed. What was amazing back then, wouldn’t cut it now, but it was still quality at the time. And actors are still wielding the same kind of skills, but it might come across differently now. There is subtlety and nuance in performances regardless of time.”
10. What’s the weirdest famous-people name?
A lot of famous people give their kids weird names, but one of the weirdest names of a celebrity him/herself that stands out to be is Topher Grace. I mean, his name sounds like Gopher. Apparently his name is actually Christopher but he didn’t want to go by that or Chris so… there you go. Actually, now that I think about it, the weirdest is Ochocinco. Really, dude?
11. Do you think you look like a famous person? Which one(s)?
Not really.
12. Share your favorite famous-person quote.
Does C.S. Lewis count? He said so many of my favorite things. I don’t think I can choose just one.
13. Who’s your favorite dancer?
I’m afraid I don’t have a favorite famous dancer…
14. Why is your favorite actress your favorite one? When did you decide that she was your favorite?
Looks like I’m deciding right now, because I’m not sure who to pick, HA. *Thinks* *Puts this post in drafts* *Opens post and thinks more* I stil l don’t know, honestly. It used to be Keira Knightley, largely because of Pride and Prejudice. I still like her pretty well, I just feel I don’t watch many of her newer movies these days. Lately I have been liking Hayley Atwell, or basically just Peggy Carter. 🙂
15. Have you ever met/seen/been close to a famous person?
Did you see my Leigh Bardugo post?! That was exciting! I’ve been to some Star Trek conventions so I’ve met/seen/been close to some Star Trek actors, the most well-known being William Shatner (though I did not meet him). And I met a well-known Christian artist, Michael W. Smith, at a wedding once! That was a neat experience because it was so unexpected.
The last 4 people who have commented on my blog and met the above criteria, and thus are tagged, are Kayla @ The Thousand Lives, Kelley @ Oh the Books, Alise @ Picture Us Reading & Those Who Geek, and Val @ Innocent Smiley. And anyone who is interested! If you feel so inclined, fill this out and share it on your blog!
And to say that…
