Fandom Origin Stories: Star Trek

Star Trek has a very special place in my heart because I consider it my first fandom. I have several family members who are Trekkies and it has always been a part of my life. I was basically born a Trekkie. In fact, some of my earliest memories are about Star Trek. My brothers were always talking about it, my aunt would tape episodes for us and we’d binge-watch TNG even before binge-watching was a thing, and my very first celebrity crush was on Leonard Nimoy’s Spock. (Yep, even at a young age, I appreciated logic!)

Watching TNG and DS9 made me happy and by the time VOY came out I was ecstatic! This was the first time a Star Trek show aired on my tv regularly and each week I would catch up with the Voyager crew. The strong female role-models like Captain Janeway, and later Seven of Nine, were encouraging to watch as a girl and it helped me to navigate the rocky teenage years that lied ahead.

More recently I have thoroughly enjoyed the new iteration of films and look forward to Star Trek Beyond, coming out later this month. I also am very excited and curious to see what the new series has in store. Although I have been disappointed by Trek in the past (Enterprise, I’m talking to you!) I choose to remain optimistic and eagerly await the premier next year!

I love that Star Trek is all about looking to the future with hope, positivity and unity. Even though there is plenty of conflict in the Trek universe, they always try to work together to solve whatever problem comes their way. The technology is also mind blowing – things like holodecks, transporters, replicators and tricorders make me yearn to live in a future where science fiction has become science fact. What’s cool is that we’ve already seen a lot of advances in science actually inspired by Star Trek.

Gene Roddenberry was truly a visionary and his timeless stories continue inspire both fictionally and in real life. I am proud to be Trekkie and can’t wait for more stories to take me to the final frontier and beyond!

Live long and prosper!

Advertisement

The Awkwardness of Being Awkward

Modern society has a tendency to take a perfectly good word and run with it until it’s so overused it loses it’s meaning. Take awkward for example. People frequently describe situations by saying,”That’s so awkward,” or simply just, “awkward.” But when I describe myself as “awkward” it’s not just a cliche, I really mean it.

But what does it mean to be awkward, anyway? Here are a few definitions:

not comfortable, relaxed, or confident

embarrassing or inconvenient; caused by lack of social grace

lacking grace or ease in movement

Ok, well…I think you get the picture…

I find it fascinating to pinpoint what exactly makes me feel awkward. I think it’s a combination of nature, nurture and my own unique “I just don’t care” attitude.

So what does being awkward feel like?  It’s an awareness that I am different but constantly attempting to try to fit in despite that. It can be exhausting, frustrating but sometimes wonderful. Although I often feel out of step with the world around me that’s not always the case. Technology has found a way to bring all of us “awkwards” together and I find great comfort knowing I’m not alone.

Maybe this all sounds a bit familiar to you. If so, great! We can be awkward together. But if you’re one of the “normal” people out there and this all sounds foreign to you then take this post for what it is, valuable insight into the inner workings of someone very different from yourself.

Update

Pressing the “Publish” button on that previous post was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I’ve written about this before, but never had the courage to publish anything. When you’re already insecure about something there’s always the risk that broadcasting it to the entire world will intensify an already obviously sensitive topic.

But fortunately that didn’t happen. In fact, for me this has been an overwhelmingly positive experience. It’s hard to describe how good it felt after I posted it. It was a relief for me personally, but I also quickly realized that what I said struck a chord with others who feel “less than perfect”.

Writing about self-image didn’t magically make my problem go away, but it drastically change my perspective about things. It helped me to realized that I do have a unique perspective and can really help others who struggle. So what does this all mean? Well, now that I’ve opened the floodgates I’ll probably never shut up about it! So expect more writing regarding important topics like beauty, self-image, inner-beauty, self-esteem, perception ect. And, well, if I run out of things to say about this issue, there’s about a billion more I have to choose from!

Words are incredibly powerful, they can hurt and they can heal. So I’ll do my best to use them for good and to use them to help others.

Thanks for reading and for your support, everyone.

Goodbye for now, you beautiful people.

 

 

Sticks & Stones

Whoever said, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” was most likely a liar. Words can and do hurt. I was reminded of this earlier this week when a coworker carelessly made a remark about my appearance. I don’t feel like he was trying to be hurtful with what he said, but when you’ve struggled with self-image issues your entire life, even the littlest thing can leave a lasting impression.

Just to clarify, we’re not talking a bout a sexual harassment situation here, or even any harassment at all. It was simply an observation, that might have just been brushed off my an average person. But I’ve never been average. Due to nerve damage on the right side of my face I tend to be very sensitive about any comments about my appearance. It’s the reason I actively try to not smile and usually hate having my photo taken.

It has affected the way I view myself my entire life, but I rarely talk about it, even to my closest friends. But I feel compelled to write about it now. It’s my hope that externalizing my insecurities will lessen their power over me, and at the same time, help anyone else out there who’s faced similar issues.

It’s hard to be less than perfect in world where perfection is idolized. I struggle with it constantly, but over time I’ve begun to realize that it is ok to be different. Not only is it ok, but in many ways it is preferable. It literally makes you one of a kind. It can give you different perspective. And it can also give you a sense of empathy that others simply don’t possess.

We all have struggles and life can really suck sometimes. People will say things that hurt, sometimes on purpose and sometimes not. But in the end, we must move forward and focus on the good.

So, there you have it. Now you know a little more about me and my inner struggles. And I feel like I’ve just scratched the surface. Maybe another day I’ll tell you more. But for now, I think I’ll call it a day.

Until next time…

An Open Letter to HitchBOT (and family)

Dear HitchBOT (and family),

I was so saddened to hear of your vandalism and subsequent demise. In your short life you touched so many lives and I know you will continue to do so.

When I first heard about your trek across Canada I was delighted and intrigued. Your family and the strangers who helped you make your way across the country represent the best in humanity. Wide-eyed curiosity, neighborly love, and a passion for the unknown are all things that make humans (and robots!) great.

It’s appalling to think of the inhumanity that led me to write this letter, but here we are. Yes, bad things do happen to good robots, but please know how many of us would have preferred to *never* see a bad thing happen to you. I sincerely hope that your family is able to construct a HichtBOT 2.0. If that’s the case, I’ll be watching for you when you get to Arizona!

Much Love,

Kate

Top 5 Movies I’ve Seen in the First Half of 2015 – RANKED!

As we head into the second half of the year I thought this would be a good time to rate the 5 movies I’ve seen at the theater so far this year.

Starting off with number five:

5) Cinderella

Fresh while still paying respect to the original Disney animated version, this film was a lovely adaptation of the classic story. This was the first movie I saw this year, but there was still more awesome movie magic to come.

4) Inside Out

This movie has all the great things we’ve come to expect with a Pixar film: endearing characters, incredible animation and feelings in a quite literal way. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I felt like there was something missing and as a result I didn’t connect as much as I have with past Pixar movies.

3) Avengers: Age of Ultron

This darker, bleaker chapter of Avengers was a fantastic summer blockbuster! It gave us more of what we love – beloved superheroes, non-stop action, state-of-the-art effects and super cool artificial intelligence. Bring on Civil War!