Flu-ent.

So, here’s how it happened.

I went to Comic-Con. It went pretty well, I worked A LOT and didn’t see as much as I would have liked. But somehow I managed to talk to every damn person in that convention center, touch their money, shake their hands and lick their netbook keyboards. That’s all I can figure. Because I got the nerd flu. And I got it pretty bad.

Well, ok, look, I TRIED to eat right. I had fresh fruit and tea and veggies everyday. I avoided soda. I had a few cocktails here and there but…nothing like I normally would. But then…then there was the tacos, or maybe the it was the late nights? Could have been the air conditioned room. Could have just been all that breathing. But I did try. I washed my hands, I used that sanitary spray stuff every once in a while…but…welll… by the time I got back from San Diego I was exhausted and had lost part of my voice. Then I got a cough, then the aches…and you know how the rest goes. Nerd flu. It could have been worse, I am sure, but it was bad enough to keep me home from work for several days. And then, of course, even after much rest, hydration and vitamins and whatever, there was still the lingering weariness that the flu gives you. Oh and the nausea…there was that one day where I was getting ready to go to work and suddenly couldn’t.. Too weak, too feverish…too…sick. Out of the shower, back into the pajamas, call in sick and then collapsed on the couch. Woke up three hours later.

I am better now. Still a little tired. But hey, this is a hazard of hanging with 140, 000 nerds and I guess I am willing to…hazard it.

So, the convention went well. BFF came along and, I think to her own surprise, enjoyed herself a lot. She got to see David Tennant while I worked. And she was a huge help at the Tired Girl table, writing up sales and fetching beverages and veggie burgers. The table was, once again, very well received and a pleasant time seemed to be had by all.

Sadly, I didn’t have any celebrity customers this time, which is something I get a kick out of. But I did get to see a few famous-ish folks on the floor (Deborah woll, of True Blood, very briefly and Matthew Gruber Grey of Criminal Minds on crutches…some others I don’t remember at the moment…).

I sold some new art and it did pretty well. I did a series of pin-up girls that were inspired by various Doctor Whos. I chose to do girls for the fifth, ninth and tenth doctor and I hope to do girls for the other doctors eventually, and possibly even some BOY pin-ups inspired by some of the female companions. I did these for Comic-Con because…well…geeks…you know. And the ninth doctor pin-up did sell out (OK fine…I didn’t take that many, but I came back with…NONE! Yay!). So it was a good show. I sold plenty of cards, some prints and lots of flirt cards, I had a good time. I saw a lot of people and then I got sick. That pretty much brings us up to date I think.

Here are some "parts" of my girls. I'll show you more and tell you a little bit about them later. But for now...nekkid girls!

Beginning.

Getting back to normal here..slowly. I had a nice Christmas visit with my family, a safe and uneventful trip back and now I am here..raring to…yeah…not so much. But hey, it’s a new year and there are new things to do and…sleep. I slept plenty at my mom’s house. Yeah, I know that the EMFs from that electric blanket are bad for me but man do I love a cozy bed! And it’s really cold in my room, so it’s kind of necessary.

New Year’s Eve was spent showering, kissing the cat at midnight and going to bed. The husband represented at a party that I would have liked to attend but just couldn’t. Too exhausted (got in from east coast at 10:30 pm).

Oh and hey, the new year has started off nicely in a different way. I made it into my first etsy treasury. That is, for those not in the know, a “curated” selection of items that the curator finds particularly interesting. My bee cards were listed in a bee themed treasury. The cards were originally designed last year as Valentines and are still available in the shop. They are…well…kind of goofy. I have a fondness for bees and puns so…you know..there you go.

OH! For those of you playing along, a NEW DOCTOR has been named. I have seen him in a few things but at this point, I don’t really have an opinion on him. I was pulling for an older doctor but what do I know? If you've seen the Phillip Pullman adaptations done for the BBC starring Billie Piper...one was called something like The Ruby in the Smoke, then you've seen Matthew Smith. He was fine. He's a stage actor primarily and he's 26 years old. So...there you go. We'll see.

Gossip.

Well, hello there...

Some small things of note:

If you have been following the Doctor Who saga of “who is the next who”, you may be interested in some things I have read, which I won’t link, because I am lazy…

James Nesbitt is not currently “the one” but apparently, David Tennant thinks he should be and tells reporters to go congratulate Nesbitt on his new role. Mean boy!

Robert Carlyle is amazing…but I don’t know if I want him as my new doctor. On the other hand…Robert Carlyle. He is, however, signed to be on a new Stargate show, so I'm thinking no.

Rumors abound about the first female doctor. It is my understanding that it has already been established that Time Lords do not change sex when they regenerate. But I could be wrong and anything is possible. Billie Piper has been mentioned as the first female doctor but that’s just silly, and now, everyone is stumping for their favorite girl. Jennifer Saunders? Nah. Joanna Lumley? Nah, although, she did play the female doctor in a one-off, charity video a number of years ago. Sophie Okonedo? Hey, wait a minute…that’s interesting. She's already a part of the team as she's done some voice acting for...Scream of the Shalka, I think. But it gets better. Russell T. Davies has mentioned his interest (although he no longer really has a say) in Catherine Zeta Jones (meh) or…Lesley Sharpe. HOLDIT! If I’m gonna have a female doctor, you have just found her. Lesley Sharpe, if you have watched the most recent season, appeared in the “Midnight” episode as “Sky Silvestry” who was inhabited by the alien/presence that mimicked everything? Remember? Remember how she was creepy as hell? Well, yeah, that’s what she’s good at. And I love her. So if you gotta go for a lady, please do go for her. If you ever see her series "Afterlife" playing on BBCAmerica...dude, it's awesome. So, you know, if we gotta go female, let's do it right. (Also, she has a history with these guys, so that's good).

I think the current buzz is David Morrissey (again, someone with connections to the show and the writers and producers) and you know, that don't hurt, that don't hurt at all.

Oh, ok here, here’s one link with some (fake) info.


Ok, enough of that…well, one more thing. In my humble opinion, despite my deep love for the last two doctors (nine more than ten), I think we need a less sexy doctor for a while. Remember, he started out as an older man. There’s no reason he can’t be that again. It brings a different dynamic to the show and one I think is sorely needed at the moment.

OK, what else?

Pecan pie truffles. Done. Haven’t tried one since they got coated in chocolate but they seemed ok. They aren’t true truffles and I had to adapt the recipe a bit to make them work but…we’ll see what people think.

Chocolate mint brownies. Done. To be gifted this evening.

Gingerbread Cupcakes….
Yeah…I ran out of sugar. I don’t know why I was so underprepared but there you go. No sugar. No cupcakes. But I will be making them in January because dammit, I really want them!

Shopping? Done.
West Coast Christmas? Done. I got a Roomba! Groovy. And lots and lots of books and cds. Excellent. And the complete Nero Wolfe series with Timothy Hutton. THANK YOU!

East Coast Christmas? Leaving on Sunday. Wish me luck.

Have a happy whatever and a merry new year. See ya on the other side…I hope.

Blending in.

Answers.

OK, I admit it, I am a dork, but you already knew that. I got a comment on an older post that made me all squee because someone who created something cool stopped by to say hi!

Jeremiah Jones is the guy who does the recordings for Lisztonian. He stopped by here and that is most excellent. If you haven’t checked it out, Lisztonian is an excellent collection of free downloadable mp3s of classical piano music . I have my itunes set as a subscription and I listen to them when I need some soothing. Thanks Jeremiah, you done good!

And since I often forget to answer anything in comments, here are a few answers to recent questions: yes, no, maybe and OMG WTF?

Kidding!

Sassy Priscilla: Yes that his Col. Brandon from Sense and Sensibility that will be appearing on Doctor Who at chistmas time. And yes, DO watch Doctor Who because if you think David Morrissey is a cutie, I am betting you will love our darling doctor too (And I know that there are a few fans here who will chime in…)

And Ambitious Hamster: I do agree with you, the Voyage of the Damned episode was a bit “soulless” but I think you will get a kick out of the Doctor’s newest assistant. She’s not the shiny young things that Rose and Martha were, she’s a little bit older and a little bit wiser and a lot more sarcastic. I was surprised at how much I like Donna since I didn’t love her as the bride.

Anonymous (who I know is Donovan’s Mama): Yesh, you did make mushroom soup once, it was…earthy. Also, a “tag” is that little thing at the end of a post that will take you to other posts with the same themes, or mentions. Snarkydork has a tag because…well, she does.

Fond of Snape: "...chocolate filled with strawberry balsamic caramel"

Captain Blogger: I don’t know where you have gone, I hope all is well, but I wanted you to know, Midnight’s Children showed up today and I started reading it over lunch…interesting.

And finally, Cakespy: my impromptu icing consisted of whipped cream, a little sour cream, powdered sugar, cocoa, chocolate and vanilla extracts and a tiny dab of butter, which I had hoped would provide a little extra structure. It was actually very good and a nice, less sweet icing. And I think I will tinker with it and make it a staple!

Any other questions? Because now I am in an answer-y mood!