tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77952721929922057262024-03-13T21:36:18.058-07:00Fairy Tale Footnotes- from the journal of a Fairy Tale News HoundGypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-80929879016263867422019-09-26T17:06:00.001-07:002019-09-26T17:06:08.086-07:00Rewriting 'Brave' With Arktoi and Goldilocks<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bear Cubs by Terri Windling</td></tr>
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I wrote this note (below) to myself a few months ago and was inspired to hunt it down again, now that I've started reading Sophie Anderson's wonderful, Russian fairy tale-based novel, <i><b><a href="https://sophieandersonauthor.com/books/the-girl-who-speaks-bear/">The Girl Who Speaks Bear</a></b></i>. There's something happening right now with empowering girls to be, not only strong but a certain type of wild - and it's frightening the patriarchy. Wild girls, bear girls, are appearing more and more... I think it's high time they did.<br />
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Transcribed below is what I scribbled down, back in July:<br />
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* * * * * * *</div>
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Inspired by this article (<i><b><a href="https://overland.org.au/2019/07/the-wildness-of-girlhood/">The Wildness of Girlhood</a></b></i>) and the Arktoi ritual of Athens in which girls aged 5 to 10 go live "as little bears" for a period of time, completely wildly - I'd like to see the story of <i>Brave</i> (with Merida and her bear-mother) rewritten and interwoven for YA or adults with this concept/idea of Arktoi.</div>
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The article begins:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="background-color: white;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Emily Bronte wrote in Wuthering Heights, 1847: ‘I wish I were a girl again, half savage and hardy, and free.’</i></span><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i></i></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Catherynne Valente wrote in Deathless, 2011: ‘She knew herself, how she had slowly, over years, become a cat, a wolf, a snake, anything but a girl. How she had wrung out her girlhood like death.’</i></span><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>There is a period in many little girls’ lives, around the age of ten, where they go completely wild. Not in the sense of 'Girls Gone Wild', which depressingly clogs up the search results, but in the most natural sense of the word – feral and free.</i></span></blockquote>
And a little history of the <i>Arktoi</i>:<br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Every four years or so, the young girls of Athens between ages of five and ten would go into the woods to make sacrifices to Artemis, run races, dance and live like bears. Literally. They were called arktoi, which means ‘little bears’, and they were supposed to run around pretending to be bears, wearing special bear skins or – following one of those periodic Athenian budget cuts – saffron-coloured robes. At the end of the festival, they would remove the robes and return to the city where, as women, they could look forward to not being able to vote, not owning property but rather being property – of their fathers, future husbands or other male relatives. But before that, for a moment, they got to use their legs to run fast and their voices to growl, while their bodies danced, and leapt, and were bare to the sky – belonging to no man.</i></span></blockquote>
It would be interesting to a look at Merida versus her mother, one delayed wildness (the mother), one almost wild (the daughter), then layer that still further with the variations (old and young) of Goldilocks...<br />
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(added for this posting)<br />
Reminder to self: in the meantime, be on the lookout out for bear-legged girls.Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-61281370406984931562019-09-02T00:58:00.000-07:002019-09-02T00:58:26.842-07:00Threads<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qR_BMRg5ZxA/XWy0IKrAEYI/AAAAAAAAqLA/D9O2rsM-PJkHB5DAWy-RK9yTFwCdkJ5-ACLcBGAs/s1600/And-Other-Fairy-Tales-C-011-800.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qR_BMRg5ZxA/XWy0IKrAEYI/AAAAAAAAqLA/D9O2rsM-PJkHB5DAWy-RK9yTFwCdkJ5-ACLcBGAs/s640/And-Other-Fairy-Tales-C-011-800.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Reading about <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Polish?src=hashtag_click">#Polish</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FairyTales?src=hashtag_click">#FairyTales</a> & various translations today I saw this proverb:<br />
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<i>Jezeli kazdy w wiosce ofiaruje jedna nitke, to nagi otrzyma koszule</i> </blockquote>
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(If everyone in the village donates a thread, the poor man will get a shirt.) </blockquote>
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The fairy tale book next to me was open at <i>The Juniper Tree</i>, specifically the section where the sister tied up the bones with a silken thread. (Or handkerchief. Or scarf.)<br />
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I got goosebumps...<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">♪</span></span><i>My mother, she slew me<br />My father, he ate me<br />My sister, Marlene,<br />Gathered my bones,<br />Tied them in silk,<br />For the juniper tree.<br />Tweet, tweet, what a fine bird am I!</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">♫</span></span></blockquote>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7UFg6DmDPDo/XWy0H3EtJ4I/AAAAAAAAqK4/lFvsh9C4hT4zYYYwJo5tIv43TrvdL8IhgCLcBGAs/s1600/And-Other-Fairy-Tales-C-009-800.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7UFg6DmDPDo/XWy0H3EtJ4I/AAAAAAAAqK4/lFvsh9C4hT4zYYYwJo5tIv43TrvdL8IhgCLcBGAs/s200/And-Other-Fairy-Tales-C-009-800.jpg" width="200" /></a><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N6rg23MTdXw/XWy0IKlh3aI/AAAAAAAAqK8/6ZgUc584QR4qx87ATRlYjWXQHerfrmkVQCLcBGAs/s200/And-Other-Fairy-Tales-C-010-800.jpg" style="text-align: center;" width="200" /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qR_BMRg5ZxA/XWy0IKrAEYI/AAAAAAAAqLA/D9O2rsM-PJkHB5DAWy-RK9yTFwCdkJ5-ACLcBGAs/s1600/And-Other-Fairy-Tales-C-011-800.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qR_BMRg5ZxA/XWy0IKrAEYI/AAAAAAAAqLA/D9O2rsM-PJkHB5DAWy-RK9yTFwCdkJ5-ACLcBGAs/s200/And-Other-Fairy-Tales-C-011-800.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
No leads on where it originated, other than as part of the adaptation by painter Philipp Otto Runge. And also that Goethe, an 'almost-contemporary' likely knew of this tale (probably the Almond Tree, rather than The Juniper Tree) too since Gretchen in his <i>Faust,</i> sings her own version to herself while she's in prison:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;">♫</span>"My mother, the whore,<br />She slew me!<br />My father, the rascal,<br />He ate me!<br />My tiny little sister<br />Took my bones<br />To a nice cool place;<br />I became a beautiful bird;<br />Fly away, fly away!"<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;">♪</span> </i></blockquote>
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Later Gretchen again refers to an old Marchen or folk-tale she identifies with. (Is it the same one? A different one?)</div>
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<br />Maria Tatar's <b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Maria-Tatar-Their-Culture-Childhood/dp/B008UB3UI0/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=off+with+their+heads+childhood+tatar&qid=1567410498&s=gateway&sr=8-2">"Off with Their Heads!: Fairy Tales & the Culture of Childhood"</a></b> was helpful, but there are gaps...</div>
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Threads and fate; souls and birds.</div>
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The fate of poor men often hangs by a single strand.</div>
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No wonder we imagine our souls have wings.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Art: Woodcut images by <b><a href="http://thepf.co.uk/and-other-fairy-tales/">Carolyn Trant</a></b>, from "an anonymous folk rhyme", based on Grimm's The Juniper Tree.</span></div>
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Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-51597785353348795462019-08-30T18:59:00.004-07:002019-08-30T19:07:38.852-07:00A Ruin of Red Shoes<br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">
The great hall is filled; rows and rows of ruined shoes, all in shades of red. Blue-red, yellow-red, pink-red...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">His lip curls. "You're under enchantment."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">She adds another shoe. The blood's still wet.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">"I'm not the one who can't dance."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
(For #tellatalltale 2019)</div>
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<i>*Louboutin, creator of the infamous, red-souled, high-heeled shoe, which became his signature (and entry to a fortune), got his start designing shoes for the showgirls at Folies Bergère (see the poster, advertising the cabaret, at left), a famous "dancing hall"/cabaret in Paris. The color was inspired by the red-lacquer nail polish worn on the talon-like nails of his assistant one day. Inspired, he painted the bottom of his heels in the same color. When interviewed about it, Louboutin said: “I selected the color because it’s engaging, flirtatious, memorable, and the color of passion.”</i></div>
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Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-22140212482861727502019-08-22T16:53:00.000-07:002019-08-22T23:00:54.171-07:00Twelve Dancing Maenad Princesses?!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><img border="0" data-original-height="1199" data-original-width="1600" height="478" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LbNo9QfIS0g/XV6Xflfzn2I/AAAAAAAAqI0/7H4ynpjeGYUBs8a3Q1ps6rXI2ONYLfKzgCLcBGAs/s640/profile_88795_0c6de09c375c77ab7813fb691d463449.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><h4 style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 15px;">
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Dance Of The Wild Women: Dionysus And The Maenads by <a href="https://www.gallery247.com.au/richard-payne">Richard Payne</a></span></span></h4>
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From a #FolkloreThursday exchange, August 2019 on the subject of wild women, wild men and wild places:</div>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/TarkabarkaHolgy">Dr. Zalka Csenge Virág</a><br />
<a href="https://twitter.com/TarkabarkaHolgy">@TarkabarkaHolgy</a><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Researchers trace the tale of the 12 Dancing Princesses to the Ancient Greek myth of the Proetides. The three girls were driven mad by the cult of Dionysus and ran wild. Legendary healer Melampus was hired to find & purify them - for two-thirds of the kingdom.</span></blockquote>
<a href="https://twitter.com/inkgypsy">G. Thornton<br />@inkgypsy</a><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So... the 12 dancing princesses were maenads?? No wonder all those unsuccessful suitors were drugged via drink then killed! 😱</span></blockquote>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/TarkabarkaHolgy">Dr. Zalka Csenge Virág</a><br />
<a href="https://twitter.com/TarkabarkaHolgy">@TarkabarkaHolgy</a></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I KNOW RIGHT?! It makes so much sense.</span></blockquote>
I immediately scoured my shelves for <i>Fairy Tale In the Ancient World</i> by Graham Anderson. It's been about twenty years since I read the book but this exchange jogged my memory and sure enough, there was the exploration of Grimm's <i>Twelve Dancing Princesses/ The Shoes That Were Danced to Pieces</i> compared with a number of mad princesses, possessed by Dionysus, roaming the countryside and needing intervention. There is more than one myth that dovetails with the fairy tale but each shows it to be a dangerous undertaking. If <i>Dancing Princesses</i> came out of these myths, which the evidence suggests, it accounts for the harshness of the unsuccessful suitors being put to death, something I always thought was extreme, even as a child accepting fairy tale logic.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://www.gallery247.com.au/richard-payne/australian-art-for-sale/the-joy-of-marsyas/43240/?q=1&k=myth&sort=2&order=DESC&pg_old=1&c=&find=&nor=1&s=&collectionid="><img border="0" data-original-height="414" data-original-width="555" height="297" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OvL6lo-dOdI/XV8j9tVEO2I/AAAAAAAAqJA/i2FN_fWsUFErd1P5PkobRbtlgN1axMncQCEwYBhgL/s400/richard%2Bpayne%2Bjoy%2Bof%2Bmarsayus.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.gallery247.com.au/richard-payne/australian-art-for-sale/the-joy-of-marsyas/43240/?q=1&k=myth&sort=2&order=DESC&pg_old=1&c=&find=&nor=1&s=&collectionid=">The Joy of Marsyas by Richard Payne</a></td></tr>
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It's also clear to me now why I keep looking at the world the princesses descend into as a sort of underworld and that there's a madness to the ball below. I remember reading Juliet Marillier's <i>Wildwood Dancing</i>, set in Transylvania with a vampiric curse key to the story, and feeling it was inevitable for someone to retell the story this way. The only question was why no one had done so till then. I read as many interviews with Marillier as I could find, trying to see if she knew of the ancient myth connection and while she is a lover of myth, fairy tale and folklore, apart from delving into Romanian folklore for <i>Wildwood Dancing</i>, the maenad connection isn't one she ever alluded to being aware of.<br />
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Re-reading <i>Ancient World</i>, though, something else caught my eye - discussion of the shoes. While there is always speculation on shoes being a metaphor for sex, which fits with Dionysus and the Maenads, the 'shoes left behind' or abandoned after being used was linked to the ancient origins of <i>Cinderella</i>, which brings us back to the ball...<br />
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And then there are those branches of silver, gold and diamond the successful soldier suitor breaks off as evidence, which corresponds directly to a golden bough needed to traverse the River Styx, golden apples to distract or calm the maenads and magic laurel trees for providing cover (cloaking), all being key to uncovering the mystery and ultimate success... the paraphrased French version in the Red Fairy book mentions aspects of these though I don't remember making the connection before. (The French also mentions the delicacy of the princesses by alluding to them being uncomfortable should a pea ever be placed in their beds..!)<br />
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And the helper who gives the soldier insight? Aphrodite. In the French version she is still a radiantly golden dream goddess (in the Romanian version she is a <i>zina</i>, a fairy) but the Grimm's have her more akin to a wise woman, or a witch. Which begs the question: in our more modern times when no one believes in the old gods anymore, has Aphrodite finally aged and become a crone? Or is it just the least distracting, or most trusted disguise, since we are more aware than ever of the fabrication that can create beauty?<br />
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And is it a coincidence that all this tap-dancing through tales and myths had me going to bed at sunrise and rising at noon, just like those princesses? Of course, the answer is yes, but it is uncanny. If I were so inclined it might be enough to nudge me toward thinking the old gods were messing with me...<br />
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We seem to be going around in circles! Storytelling is fascinating. I can also see how it could be considered maddening. Not a coincidence, I'm sure.<br />
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On with the dance!Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-16043027547081849232019-08-13T18:27:00.001-07:002019-08-13T18:27:37.931-07:00That Fairy Tale Logic...<div class="post_title small" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 7px; outline: none 0px; padding: 0px; text-indent: -7px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qBgNtUvqCBY/XVNiuK9EvTI/AAAAAAAAqEw/jwsOG9Nwl4wRfmLRQiEo1SluH_c6r8qUQCLcBGAs/s1600/galendora%2Bmonsters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1224" data-original-width="792" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qBgNtUvqCBY/XVNiuK9EvTI/AAAAAAAAqEw/jwsOG9Nwl4wRfmLRQiEo1SluH_c6r8qUQCLcBGAs/s640/galendora%2Bmonsters.jpg" width="414" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: 13px; text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Illustration by Galen Dara for "The Right Sort Of Monsters" (Written by Kelly Sandoval)</span></span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fairy-tale Logic</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">BY </span><a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/ae-stallings" style="font-size: small;">A. E. STALLINGS</a></div>
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Fairy tales are full of impossible tasks:</div>
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Gather the chin hairs of a man-eating goat,</div>
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Or cross a sulphuric lake in a leaky boat,</div>
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Select the prince from a row of identical masks,</div>
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Tiptoe up to a dragon where it basks</div>
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And snatch its bone; count dust specks, mote by mote,</div>
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Or learn the phone directory by rote.</div>
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Always it’s impossible what someone asks—</div>
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You have to fight magic with magic. You have to believe</div>
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That you have something impossible up your sleeve,</div>
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The language of snakes, perhaps, an invisible cloak,</div>
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An army of ants at your beck, or a lethal joke,</div>
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The will to do whatever must be done:</div>
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Marry a monster. Hand over your firstborn son.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Source: <a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/53377/fairy-tale-logic">Poetry (March 2010)</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; text-indent: 0px;">Yeah - this "hand over your firstborn son" business is a problem. Magic - or religion - that requires you</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; text-indent: 0px;">do that for trade or allegiance, or privilege, is a lie. There is always another way if you know where to</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; text-indent: 0px;">look. Thankfully, there are MANY fairy tale heroines, who did just that and saved their sons, their</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; text-indent: 0px;">daughters, themselves. I choose that magic.</span></div>
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Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-52145905146984058222019-08-12T11:59:00.003-07:002019-08-12T11:59:41.653-07:00Aschenputtel's Evolution From Soot Girl to Grounded Woman<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0vMuk0O0mXw/XVG2vlL72MI/AAAAAAAAqD8/AAZuaio2T_0ic5TQHxDcJIvBmin2izD7QCLcBGAs/s1600/tumblr_pslt5lfmNZ1s4h016o1_1280.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1210" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0vMuk0O0mXw/XVG2vlL72MI/AAAAAAAAqD8/AAZuaio2T_0ic5TQHxDcJIvBmin2izD7QCLcBGAs/s640/tumblr_pslt5lfmNZ1s4h016o1_1280.jpg" width="484" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: start;">Kafka's Apartment — A modern Cinderella, 1875. Louise Jopling</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">But the biggest surprise of “Aschenputtel” [Grimm brothers version of the Cinderella story] is that it’s not about landing the prince. It is about the girl herself: her strength, her perseverance, her cleverness. It is a story, really, about her evolution from child to woman.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It is Cinderella herself who plants the magic tree and requests the finery for the ball (which is celebrated over the course of three days). She walks to the party each night rather than traveling by enchanted coach. She leaves not because she has some arbitrarily imposed curfew but because she has danced enough. Then she escapes both the pursuing prince and her own father by hiding in a dovecote or nimbly scaling a tree.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">When the prince finally comes a-calling, shoe in hand, Cinderella greets him in her sooty rags. He may be looking for the beauty with the dainty foot, but, as Joan Gould, the author of <i>Spinning Straw into Gold</i>, notes, she demands that he witness the woman she has been, dirt and all, not just the one she will become. So while he provides the occasion for her transformation, he is not the one responsible for it– she can only do that for herself.</span></blockquote>
from <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2F0061711535%2Fref%3Das_li_tf_tl%3Fie%3DUTF8%26camp%3D1789%26creative%3D9325%26creativeASIN%3D0061711535%26linkCode%3Das2%26tag%3Dfdunlimited-20&t=MzAwMTViMTA1MjU0ODVlOTRlNTE1YjZlYzg2MTc3ZThlMzg3NmYzZCxIYlpWa1pRVA%3D%3D&b=t%3AN0JWTB72ja-70HA6dNOhQg&p=https%3A%2F%2Ffeministdisney.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F46526767968%2Fbut-the-biggest-surprise-of-aschenputtel-grimm&m=1">Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture</a> by Peggy Orenstein.Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-10231594630349873012019-08-08T07:00:00.000-07:002019-08-08T07:00:02.316-07:00Raiponce, Raiponce... How High Did Your Tower Grow?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<img border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="364" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2fzpni9xxwc/XUthPAHhuQI/AAAAAAAAqDU/0NzKfdF1Fy0XIwt4G1jdAJxzzeaXJ6dJQCLcBGAs/s640/Elitist%2Bfairy%2Btale%2Bsalon%2B-%2BRapunzel.png" width="456" /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
In reading an extract from <i><b><a href="https://www.itergateway.org/resources/enchanted-eloquence">Enchanted Eloquence:Fairy Tales by Seventeenth-CenturyFrench Women Writers </a></b></i>(edited and translated by Lewis C. Seifert and Domna C. Stanton), I came across this right at the end. It was frustratingly cut off at the end but has made me very curious about the fairy tale influences on the salon women and how their elitist attitudes ultimately informed their writing, despite having roots among the 'common' and 'lower class' folk. </div>
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I mean, you'd think women would stick together - especially women who loved fairy tales! But nooooo... I guess the progressive feminism didn't make it outside of their closed circle. 😑 :</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>In her dedicatory epistle for Histoires sublimes et allégoriques (Sublime
and Allegorical Stories, 1699), <b>Murat draws a clear distinction between
lower- and upper-class women storytellers</b>. Deploying the rhetorical
figure of syllepsis (the use of a word with both literal and metaphorical
meanings), <b>she contrasts the “lowly and childish” occupations of the
“ancient fairies,” whose “sole concern is to keep the house well swept,
put the pot on the fire, do laundry, rock children to sleep, milk cows,
churn butter, and a thousand other lowly things of that sort,” with the
“great feats” performed by the “modern fairies,” who are all “beautiful,
young, attractive, elegantly and richly dressed and lodged,”</b> and who
live in “the courts of kings or enchanted palaces.” Still, try as she
may, <b>Murat cannot deny how much the “modern fairies” owe to the
“ancient fairies.” Without their “forerunners” (as Murat calls the “ancient fairies”), the “modern fairies” would have had nothing to refine.
Theirs was a debt to be disguised, but a debt nonetheless.</b></i> </blockquote>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Rut10aDYaTc/XUtqAmKIYHI/AAAAAAAAqDk/g_Nd5ljE6f83d1boYZEbko8I3a-L3syVwCLcBGAs/s1600/company_of_wolves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="412" data-original-width="620" height="265" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Rut10aDYaTc/XUtqAmKIYHI/AAAAAAAAqDk/g_Nd5ljE6f83d1boYZEbko8I3a-L3syVwCLcBGAs/s400/company_of_wolves.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From the film adaptaion of Angela Carter's "The Company Of Wolves"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i>Aside from the distance the conteuses put between themselves and the “ancient fairies,” the lack of documentation about popular storytelling at the time makes it difficult to know how much they
actually relied on oral folklore. <b>Some, but not all, of their fairy tales
bear resemblance to folktales subsequently transcribed by ethnographers.</b> Whether or not the conteuses deliberately rewrote what they
knew to be oral wonder tales recounted by lower-class storytellers,
several of them were familiar with French translations of the probably pseudonymous Giovan Francesco Straparola’s Le piacevoli notti
(The Facetious Nights, 1550–53), a frame narrative with fifteen wonder tales...</i></blockquote>
Having been so very intrigued with everything I had learned about the French <i>conteuses</i> to date, to the point where I dream of setting up a fairy tale salon myself for to talk and write fairy tales, this whole revelation of elitism is jarring. It just goes to show you that you can hold to opposing ideas in your head at the same time... and it's something to be aware of, and something to guard against. It's so easy to assume people hold similar values to you when you share a love of fairy tales. History clearly has proven that's not the case at all...<br />
<br />
Yep. The book is going on my wishlist.Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-14934221686433195132019-08-07T14:33:00.000-07:002019-08-07T14:33:03.711-07:0030-50 Feral Hogs In The Fairy Tale Yard<div style="text-align: center;">
<img border="0" data-original-height="508" data-original-width="868" height="374" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZsqKMl0kHks/XUtBho2WG5I/AAAAAAAAqC8/mPXW6dTW7WYc6_dBduzaX3Qtrj7Qva1GACLcBGAs/s640/Wait%2521%2BYou%2Bforgot%2Byour%2B30-50%2Bferal%2Bhogs%2521%2B-%2BEdited.png" width="640" /></div>
like hundreds of others grieving and despairing over the hideousness of the news that weekend, I was relieved to have a bandwagon I could happily get on and run with.<br />
<br />
(If you have no idea what the 30-50 Feral Hogs memes were all about on Twitter at the beginning of August 2019, <a href="https://www.themarysue.com/30-50-feral-hogs-in-the-yard/" style="font-weight: bold;">here's a quick overview</a> on how it began and the many directions it went afterward. )<br />
<br />
Since it was #FairyTaleTuesday, and folklorist-types really should be all over memes, I created the one above and those below. I really could have kept going all day...<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="645" height="506" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9FCeQb_K_3U/XUtBcrJbx9I/AAAAAAAAqC4/HMRZLU_pbJ8QJQzeCYJjKnpF8YVh_-hXACLcBGAs/s640/Fairy%2BTale%2BFeral%2BHogs%2B2.png" width="640" /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="373" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sesTJdOUXF4/XUtBYQvcEVI/AAAAAAAAqC0/V8Fsv5sZGMMgmkU38BY0fDMBIfL7EIlEwCLcBGAs/s640/Fairy%2Btale%2Bferal%2Bhogs%2B3.png" width="466" /></div>
I was really pleased to see someone post their take on this meme below. Although just meant to be funny, it got my brain running in directions of Miyazaki's insightful fairy tale-like stories and thinking about creating a new fairy tale...<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QsdKO2VTtaM/XUtBj3a-naI/AAAAAAAAqDA/YIzfmfE-8QkCYp-WNZ06rSiHEVLsz8hAwCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2019-08-07%2Bat%2B2.17.16%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="632" data-original-width="776" height="520" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QsdKO2VTtaM/XUtBj3a-naI/AAAAAAAAqDA/YIzfmfE-8QkCYp-WNZ06rSiHEVLsz8hAwCLcBGAs/s640/Screenshot%2B2019-08-07%2Bat%2B2.17.16%2BPM.png" width="640" /></a></div>
Screencapture above is from Twitter (obviously) but all fairy tale comics here are by me. I really should have stamped them with fairytalenews.blogspot.com - oh well. They're out there now!)<br />
<br />
Just another day on social media with a fairy tale brain. Yay for memes!<br />
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Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-59727419686198005652018-04-15T01:51:00.000-07:002018-04-15T01:51:07.881-07:00Audition: Swan Maiden<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6up6ASAlwu8/WtBu_olBUPI/AAAAAAAAoi0/gCj8IFj6Wekzgk2wk1zaSjm9paVjT7Q0gCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/700440d27631f807d5d3d669f902eb0c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6up6ASAlwu8/WtBu_olBUPI/AAAAAAAAoi0/gCj8IFj6Wekzgk2wk1zaSjm9paVjT7Q0gCK4BGAYYCw/s640/700440d27631f807d5d3d669f902eb0c.jpg" width="438" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sarah Daykin by Tim Walker*</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">"Hot.."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>(Don't say it.)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">"..chick! Talented.. looks." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>(My eyes are up here.) </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">"I can help you be seen." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>(By making me invisible?)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">"Just sit. Here." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>(No.)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">"Ooh, wild thing! Bite me." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>(OK.) </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">They never found all the pieces.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(GT - March 2018)</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">#MeToo</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">*</span><span style="font-size: 11.2px; text-align: center;">‘Vogue Pantomime’, Sarah Daykin by Tim Walker, Vogue UK 2004. </span><span style="font-size: 11.2px; text-align: center;">John Galliano Fall Winter 1998 Ready-to-Wear ”</span></div>
Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-45775894482833779282018-04-13T01:40:00.000-07:002018-04-13T01:56:02.571-07:00Your Hair Is Silver Now. Again.<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pst4zhoDd1c/WtBsWHjvnnI/AAAAAAAAoiM/n-XbCNu7Nyc5sLlU5uV8cHsnuAr3qILzACK4BGAYYCw/s1600/a08fe239b843b42e2cdd38fff18d75d9--teddy-bear-toys-teddy-bears.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pst4zhoDd1c/WtBsWHjvnnI/AAAAAAAAoiM/n-XbCNu7Nyc5sLlU5uV8cHsnuAr3qILzACK4BGAYYCw/s400/a08fe239b843b42e2cdd38fff18d75d9--teddy-bear-toys-teddy-bears.jpg" width="253" /></a><b style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"></b><b style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"></b><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></b> <b style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></b> <b style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hey Old Goldy</b><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: large;"><b>Sitting there,
In your just-right chair,
Your fingers in claws
Cringing at a memory
You still run from.
Did you know
Your ancestor had silver hair?
Just like you.</b></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span> <span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: large;"><b><i>(GT - March 2018)</i></b></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I had a sudden mental flash one day, in which an old Goldilocks, hair now silver, was looking back on her life and not having it sit well with her. Even in cleaned-up, little girl form, she couldn't hide her vagrant, law-breaking past, when she was a smelly, bad-mannered, foul-mouthed, law-breaking, silver-haired old lady. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span> <span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The original trespasser of the Three Bear's Lair is most commonly thought to be an old woman*. Twelve years after the old she-vagrant's escapades were published, the character was changed to a pretty, young girl with "Silver Hair". A decade after that she became Silver-Locks, a decade later again she was changed to Golden Hair, then finally, around forty years after that, the name Goldilocks was born, and stuck. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span> <span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">She was always a delinquent though. Always.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">*(Or possibly a vixen - not just as in "malicious female trickster" but </span><i style="color: #14171a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">also</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"> an actual fox. The tale "Scrapefoot" may be the earliest told of all of them with this she-animal-villain but </span>clearly<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"> she was not a good person - not ever.)</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f_mp2qnPQzs/WtBsjQEIeQI/AAAAAAAAoiU/LjGvOajepo864Qpj5nVGsbWLzrIuOOIeACK4BGAYYCw/s1600/The_story_of_the_three_bears_1839_pg_38.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="229" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f_mp2qnPQzs/WtBsjQEIeQI/AAAAAAAAoiU/LjGvOajepo864Qpj5nVGsbWLzrIuOOIeACK4BGAYYCw/s320/The_story_of_the_three_bears_1839_pg_38.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span> <span style="background-color: white; color: #14171a; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">From the Joseph Jacobs version - reportedly taken from the earliest known recording:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>... And while (the Three Bears) were walking, <b>a little old Woman</b> came to the house. <b>She could not have been a good, honest old Woman; for first she looked in at the window, and then she peeped in at the keyhole; and seeing nobody in the house, she lifted the latch.</b> The door was not fastened, because the Bears were good Bears, who did nobody any harm, and never suspected that anybody would harm them. So the little old Woman opened the door, and went in; and well pleased she was when she saw the porridge on the table. <b>If she had been a good little old Woman, she would have waited till the Bears came home</b>, and then, perhaps, they would have asked her to breakfast; for they were good Bears — a little rough or so, as the manner of Bears is, but for all that very good-natured and hospitable. <b>But she was an impudent, bad old Woman, and set about helping herself...</b></i></span></span></blockquote>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iBuPlWdeki8/WtBskjezDMI/AAAAAAAAoic/FAVuNU9TJI8ecoy0HAhYizWOr9OnkNUbwCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/three_bears_oldwoman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: "helvetica neue", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; white-space: pre-wrap;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iBuPlWdeki8/WtBskjezDMI/AAAAAAAAoic/FAVuNU9TJI8ecoy0HAhYizWOr9OnkNUbwCK4BGAYYCw/s320/three_bears_oldwoman.jpg" width="320" /></a>After the little old woman said "bad words" about every version of the porridge...<br />
( - and that's a quote by the way -<br />
"F@*#! this is too hot!"<br />
"F@*#! this is too cold!"<br />
"F@*#! that porridge pot didn't have enough of the just right stuff!")<br />
... and tucked herself into the Wee Bear's bed, the Three Bears arrived home, saw the spoons stuck rudely straight upward (!) in their porridge and started investigating, They finally find the impudent, dirty, greasy-haired and foul-mouthed crone and wake her...<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">Out (the window) the little old Woman jumped; and whether she broke her neck in the fall; or ran into the wood and was lost there; or found her way out of the wood, and was taken up by the constable and sent to the House of Correction <b>for a vagrant as she was</b>, I cannot tell. But the Three Bears never saw anything more of her.</span> </i></span></blockquote>
We kind of wish she'd been eaten.**<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">**At least she wasn't impaled on the steeple of St Paul's cathedral as she was her fate in another early variation. </span>Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-82974660837376782002018-02-07T11:19:00.000-08:002018-02-07T16:15:57.231-08:00'Fire'<div style="text-align: center;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pLIhoKa8C14/WntQhbPfMiI/AAAAAAAAnuo/7giSozLhMe85ikoKN8Q9N43lICOvUQySgCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/42c1d0bdcaf8eceee9fe772a7d91917a-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pLIhoKa8C14/WntQhbPfMiI/AAAAAAAAnuo/7giSozLhMe85ikoKN8Q9N43lICOvUQySgCK4BGAYYCw/s320/42c1d0bdcaf8eceee9fe772a7d91917a-1.jpg" width="311" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>by Harold Robert Millar</i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: large;">Crack! My </span><a href="http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/babayaga/index.html" style="background-color: white; font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;">flaming skull</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: large;"> is freed by shaking hands. Then hesitant, chicken-footed steps; wary of having her back to Her, Her iron teeth, Her walking hut. Courage glows, her grip tightens, we turn. Aloft, my sightless sockets light the way as she strides out of the forest, to destiny.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://yeahwrite.me/microprose-writing-challenge-356/"><img src="https://yeahwrite.me/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/micro356.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*<a href="https://www.blogger.com/the.host.blog.com" style="text-align: center;">Microprose Challenge HOST</a></span></div>
Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-43708607674625607642018-01-02T17:54:00.001-08:002018-01-02T17:54:38.714-08:00An Auspicious Beginning for 2018 with 'The Shoemaker and the Elves'<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f02oaF0cjuc/Wkw2Z4ZyRhI/AAAAAAAAnSM/rXbmGnIGq1Y86ypXOYv_oE1VFoHV0Rd6ACLcBGAs/s1600/elves_shoemaker%2Blisa%2Bhunt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="330" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f02oaF0cjuc/Wkw2Z4ZyRhI/AAAAAAAAnSM/rXbmGnIGq1Y86ypXOYv_oE1VFoHV0Rd6ACLcBGAs/s1600/elves_shoemaker%2Blisa%2Bhunt.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Elves and the Shoemaker, from <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.foolsdog.fairytale&hl=en">The Fairy Tale Tarot by Lisa Hunt</a></td></tr>
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I have the fortune of being in possession of <i>The Fairy Tale Tarot</i> deck, as illustrated and written by the talented Lisa Hunt. I love to see the layers of meaning and possibilities that Lisa has put into the illustrations of the many fairy tales she's included in her deck (with so many lesser known ones too - so it's always a treat to visit), and for New Year's Day, the card of the day was from 'The Shoemaker and the Elves', a story perfect for Yuletide.<br />
<br />
Here's the symbols and meaning, as related by Lisa Hunt:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>The moon basks the scene with its mysterious glow, illuminating the unseen through a window of the subconscious. The shutters have the ability to open or close these channels of psychic communication. The gold thread is symbolic of fate, destiny, and magic. The shoe is associated with freedom and humility. The scissors have the capacity to sever ties and therefore change destinies. The spherical buttons connect with the moon and the stars. The elves are figments of the unconscious; they are symbolic of the wild, uninhibited spirit.</i></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Many opportunities for acquiring financial stability may present themselves to you. You may receive help in surprising ways that will enable you to make plans for a more viable future. Be open to unexpected possibilities as you map out your immediate and long-term goals. Hard work will pay off. (<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Fairy-Tale-Tarot-Lisa-Hunt/dp/0738708666">Lisa Hunt - The Fairy Tale Tarot</a>)</i></span></blockquote>
This is such a welcome and positive way to view the New Year - and much needed after a very stressful 2017.<br />
<br />
May you see possibilities and recognize help from unusual places in your own lives and goals in 2018.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Happy New Year!</span></i></b></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9TU0LQAS_CA/Wkw2d5iP5WI/AAAAAAAAnSQ/aluijd8tTEMzsHBjZeE5SgN2oMwwTQHBACLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-01-02%2Bat%2B5.47.28%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="471" data-original-width="624" height="150" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9TU0LQAS_CA/Wkw2d5iP5WI/AAAAAAAAnSQ/aluijd8tTEMzsHBjZeE5SgN2oMwwTQHBACLcBGAs/s200/Screenshot%2B2018-01-02%2Bat%2B5.47.28%2BPM.png" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: x-small;"><u><b>Note:</b></u> You can get your own copy of <i>The Fairy Tale Tarot</i> <b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Fairy-Tale-Tarot-Lisa-Hunt/dp/0738708666">here</a></b> and there is an <b><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.foolsdog.fairytale&hl=en">app available</a></b> as well. The deck is useful just as a great collection of tales, but if you want to look deeper into possible meanings and interpretations, it's a great and user-friendly tool to do that too. Lisa retells each fairy tale wonderfully in full, and the artwork is lovely and unique. Interpretations and symbols are added for your consideration and also give a glimpse into Lisa's creative process in building illustrations for each included tale, and indicate the wonderfully wide variety of ways to view a tale that can be considered in one's own life. Recommended for fairy tale folk for a unique collection that includes many lesser known tales, and for those who appreciate tarot. </span>Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-64266544783637848182017-11-14T08:30:00.000-08:002017-11-14T08:46:07.304-08:00Toonful: Sleeping Beauty Mannequin Challenge<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oRmmzYV3t2Q/WgqdKO0CsfI/AAAAAAAAmF0/V2BDbc6Bcnwkx9tqZ6AojlNTJnTksZpCwCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/Sleeping%2BBeauty%2BGT%2BToon.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oRmmzYV3t2Q/WgqdKO0CsfI/AAAAAAAAmF0/V2BDbc6Bcnwkx9tqZ6AojlNTJnTksZpCwCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/Sleeping%2BBeauty%2BGT%2BToon.png" /></a></div>
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Remember a year ago when the hottest meme was to pretend to be frozen in time (or '<b><a href="https://www.inverse.com/article/23752-why-people-love-mannequin-challenge-memes-black-twitter-viral">play dead</a></b>'), video it (with breath held) and share it with the internet? #mannequinchallenge And then we got a rude awakening? #November2016</div>
<br />Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-60703406365644672902017-07-22T10:30:00.000-07:002017-07-22T10:30:13.401-07:00Does a D&D Monster Lurk At Baba Yaga's Door?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Be4ZWT56xRk/WXFm2LwfHZI/AAAAAAAAltY/2CrkF1a1gUIe6IlXnzAxVezqM40seIhkwCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/Baba-Yagas-House-Concept-Art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="628" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Be4ZWT56xRk/WXFm2LwfHZI/AAAAAAAAltY/2CrkF1a1gUIe6IlXnzAxVezqM40seIhkwCK4BGAYYCw/s640/Baba-Yagas-House-Concept-Art.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.tabletopgamingnews.com/tgn-sunday-snippets-21/baba-yagas-house-concept-art/">Tabletop Gaming News</a></td></tr>
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I am currently being introduced to the wide ranging and crazy world of Dungeons and Dragons (aka D&D) monsters. As expected, there are many folkloric and fairy tale overlaps in the NPCs (non-playable characters - both monstrous and non), but every now and then I'll read a description I can't shake as being inspired by a tale. The Lock Lurker, seems to me to be inspired by - or strongly related to - the toothy lock on Baba Yaga's chicken-legged hut door.<br />
<br />
Here's an extract from one description:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9fT2AHZao5k/WXFm-I8binI/AAAAAAAAltg/s4mm5UbV7489nRudhKf8WkIWIsszFdy1wCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/ms_010.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9fT2AHZao5k/WXFm-I8binI/AAAAAAAAltg/s4mm5UbV7489nRudhKf8WkIWIsszFdy1wCK4BGAYYCw/s200/ms_010.gif" width="166" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>The tiny lock lurker is the bane of thieves and is often placed as a guard against such infiltrators. Lock lurkers are so named because they are often placed as guards on chests and doors, to strike unwary interlopers through keyholes. Assassins have placed them under inkwells and pillows, in boots, and in other places convenient to a strike (usually so the paralyzed target can be slain easily, with no alarm being raised). A lurker’s teeth can bite through hide, hair, or leather armor, but not metal. </i></span></blockquote>
And there's a whole lot about the lurker being able to shift between the ethereal plane and the 'prime material plane'.<br />
<br />
<span style="text-indent: 16px;">That usefully explains some of the hut encounters the less fortunate seem to have had in various Baba Yaga tales.</span><br />
<br />
The story ideas began spinning rapidly at that point. And then there was this very intriguing - and useful - little lore addition:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span style="text-indent: 16px;">Lurker venom is valued as an ingredient in inks, potions, and processes concerned with </span><span style="text-indent: 16px;">slow</span><span style="text-indent: 16px;"> effects. Their bodies are a preferred ingredient in </span><span style="text-indent: 16px;">oil of etherealness</span><span style="text-indent: 16px;">, too...</span></i></span></blockquote>
Oh my goodness: blue roses restoring, walking huts, flying pestles, blood red sun horses, flaming skulls, transforming combs (& handkerchiefs), magic dolls and toothy locks. Is it any wonder Baba Yaga tales remain a constant fascination and inspiration? (Or that I see parallels everywhere?)<br />
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And here is a selection of Baba Yaga cards being used in various card and RPG games, though I have yet to see her appear <i>overtly</i> in D&D. (There are a few suspiciously similar characters but nothing obviously related - yet. Early days in my investigations!) It will come as no surprise that I am already working on creating my own adventure which involves a lot of fairy tale characters, creatures and challenges - something which should be a lot of fun, once I get my 'DM wings' (aka the Game Master screen, which hides all the storytellers secrets to continually surprise and challenge the players).Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-14709988840183106372017-07-20T18:45:00.001-07:002017-07-20T18:45:40.937-07:00Sleeping Beauty's Prince Was Trippin' - Legend Tripping!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xtNrcIHe6JM/WXFa7LN5EXI/AAAAAAAAltI/KPtHEvq9scsOlJtXRnuWdQuYvkgIIlODACK4BGAYYCw/s1600/Story%2Bof%2Ba%2Blegend%2Btripping%2Bprince.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xtNrcIHe6JM/WXFa7LN5EXI/AAAAAAAAltI/KPtHEvq9scsOlJtXRnuWdQuYvkgIIlODACK4BGAYYCw/s1600/Story%2Bof%2Ba%2Blegend%2Btripping%2Bprince.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Talk about genre bending -- I like the Charles Perrault version of Sleeping Beauty because it's a kind of legend-tripping prince. He's in the woods, sees the castle, and hears all the stories/supernatural explanations around the abandoned castle. When he hears the story that the castle may contain a beautiful sleeping princess, he decides to go check it out. (Carterhaugh School comment)</i></span></span></blockquote>
I couldn't resist. Had to make the concept into a little comic - and then Brittany Warman created her funnier and more succinct, meme-worthy image below. So I - with all due credit to her - used her tag line to finish mine. :P Brittany's Disney version - with a very similar expression on Sleeping Beauty's face to to the one I chose - is below:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KRgs1jqIhg0/WWCrOp42OgI/AAAAAAAAlj8/q0vv7A3nO6AfKc_LfbV2xNW-dxndP1DygCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/19748647_885295344157_1812995802299160291_n.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KRgs1jqIhg0/WWCrOp42OgI/AAAAAAAAlj8/q0vv7A3nO6AfKc_LfbV2xNW-dxndP1DygCK4BGAYYCw/s640/19748647_885295344157_1812995802299160291_n.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Never thought about this before a Legends long-course participant (name not mentioned for privacy) brought it up on the course forum/board but Sleeping Beauty's prince was totally legend tripping!<br />
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<i>(<u>Legend tripping (def):</u> also known as ostension, is a name recently bestowed by folklorists and anthropologists on an adolescent practice (containing elements of a rite of passage) in which a usually furtive nocturnal pilgrimage is made to a site which is alleged to have been the scene of some tragic, horrific, and possibly supernatural event or haunting. See <b><a href="http://www.paranormal-encounters.com/wp/legend-tripping-what-is-it/">HERE</a></b> for more info.)</i><br />
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Needless to say, many of the participants, as well as the professors, are still in glee over this concept!<br />
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And now I'm wondering what other fairy tales reference local tales and have incidents of legend tripping...Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-1939888873804278872017-07-01T18:20:00.000-07:002017-07-01T18:20:08.625-07:00Let There Be Storytime...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UR5inksSe2E/WVWm6UH9kJI/AAAAAAAAlfU/dbmFsXieKgY-ZDrGktvcZr3BOk26WXL8gCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/86c83fe1583caaa19b21933ae4e53f5b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UR5inksSe2E/WVWm6UH9kJI/AAAAAAAAlfU/dbmFsXieKgY-ZDrGktvcZr3BOk26WXL8gCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/86c83fe1583caaa19b21933ae4e53f5b.jpg" /></a></div>
Can you imagine if this became the norm? It would change the world... (Thank you Chris Riddell for illustrating this quote so wonderfully!)Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-58347452252860629622017-06-29T16:59:00.001-07:002017-06-29T16:59:19.380-07:00'Folklorists On A Plane' <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NysasBizuXQ/WVWSI7wgm2I/AAAAAAAAleo/cJuDrZ6NW1UqrgNlNn_yAvWtkSj0lMkpgCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/8058700.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NysasBizuXQ/WVWSI7wgm2I/AAAAAAAAleo/cJuDrZ6NW1UqrgNlNn_yAvWtkSj0lMkpgCK4BGAYYCw/s320/8058700.png" width="280" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9s_KCIghYhw/WVWSKtHIwuI/AAAAAAAAlew/pCIzBBF9u9EYUPEtcSOt2thL0fVA5fYSgCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/5313380-1.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9s_KCIghYhw/WVWSKtHIwuI/AAAAAAAAlew/pCIzBBF9u9EYUPEtcSOt2thL0fVA5fYSgCK4BGAYYCw/s320/5313380-1.png" width="279" /></a><br />
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This has more potential for a movie than might at first appear...</div>
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And here's a fairy tale writer, honored by the airline, to throw into the mix:</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SE_gwTc38dA/WVWT-ZH2dfI/AAAAAAAAle8/1lc915mXXVMbdyY3dJzWSY2a7_tHz0o4gCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/34333076792_846f9a7a83.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SE_gwTc38dA/WVWT-ZH2dfI/AAAAAAAAle8/1lc915mXXVMbdyY3dJzWSY2a7_tHz0o4gCK4BGAYYCw/s640/34333076792_846f9a7a83.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">*Norwegian Air Shuttle 737. Other famous Norwegians on plane tails include Jenny Lind (opera singer and inspiration for Andersen's The Nightingale' and Edvarg Grieg (Peer Gynt composer/writer).</span></i></div>
Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-83726864979867944912017-06-28T01:50:00.001-07:002017-06-28T01:50:09.200-07:00Toonful: The Shoes Which Were Danced To Pieces<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XpFsTJLpBz0/WVNtZddN6HI/AAAAAAAAlcQ/mVSm2GSf4V4iEB9hE5AP6w70emJcb9m3gCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/Shoes%2BDanced%2BTo%2BPieces%2BGT%2BToon.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XpFsTJLpBz0/WVNtZddN6HI/AAAAAAAAlcQ/mVSm2GSf4V4iEB9hE5AP6w70emJcb9m3gCK4BGAYYCw/s640/Shoes%2BDanced%2BTo%2BPieces%2BGT%2BToon.png" width="603" /></a></div>
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(Invisibility cloaks don't guarantee freedom from insecurity.)</div>
Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-59856884586816548112017-06-15T19:16:00.002-07:002017-06-15T19:16:14.089-07:00All Cooking Is Now Magic<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a_CIShCD4l4/WUM7xj7qB5I/AAAAAAAAlZk/Kjbgk64EWgM6_OSPqXlasGkcScT80FbjwCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/img5727660f2337c_l.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a_CIShCD4l4/WUM7xj7qB5I/AAAAAAAAlZk/Kjbgk64EWgM6_OSPqXlasGkcScT80FbjwCK4BGAYYCw/s640/img5727660f2337c_l.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Nothing quit like making magical food for your family with the help of your favorite fire elemental every day. #levelup</div>
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Now if only our house would obligingly walk around to wherever we needed to go... and we still had wi-fi, power and air-con...</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ejnocsvE6Zc/WUM-7aCYEUI/AAAAAAAAlZw/eMScCFz_E14ZLCae4EpYEY1Y9L9IeSI1ACK4BGAYYCw/s1600/64076.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ejnocsvE6Zc/WUM-7aCYEUI/AAAAAAAAlZw/eMScCFz_E14ZLCae4EpYEY1Y9L9IeSI1ACK4BGAYYCw/s200/64076.jpg" width="128" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TyCn2bBUqas/WUM-990CRfI/AAAAAAAAlZ4/wuDZzqOFxYA2UEUFftNhgnPLz1_zafskQCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/8921904_gal.jpg" imageanchor="1"></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OTz1gGYnvFc/WUM_BNVttuI/AAAAAAAAlaA/q1oLFgcyS4Mlw2VUm73S3HswP66r7N1YgCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/Cal.jpg" imageanchor="1"></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Mzf0pRReYRg/WUM_EPU6dAI/AAAAAAAAlaI/QtarvKiw3T4L1LGbTou-xCkae6NagsoEACK4BGAYYCw/s1600/tumblr_maxf2fMMlJ1rda5s8o1_500.gif" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="170" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Mzf0pRReYRg/WUM_EPU6dAI/AAAAAAAAlaI/QtarvKiw3T4L1LGbTou-xCkae6NagsoEACK4BGAYYCw/s320/tumblr_maxf2fMMlJ1rda5s8o1_500.gif" width="320" /></a><img border="0" height="115" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OTz1gGYnvFc/WUM_BNVttuI/AAAAAAAAlaA/q1oLFgcyS4Mlw2VUm73S3HswP66r7N1YgCK4BGAYYCw/s200/Cal.jpg" width="200" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">Calcifer</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;"> is a </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">Fire Demon</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;"> in a magical contract with Wizard Howl. He was originally a falling star, whom Howl was able to catch before he fell to earth and extinguished. ... </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">Calcifer</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;"> is Howl's resident </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">fire demon</b><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222;">. As the result of a mysterious </span>bargain with Howl some years ago he agrees to heat and power (ie move) the castle. (<b><a href="http://howlscastle.wikia.com/wiki/Calcifer">Wikia</a></b>)</span></span></span></div>
Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-67078652317910139292017-06-08T20:17:00.000-07:002017-06-08T20:17:12.357-07:00Parenting with 'Journey To The West' & 'Fantaghirò'<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #121516; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small; margin-right: 115px; zoom: 1;"> Journey To The West (or Monkey Magic) by <a href="http://joewierenga.deviantart.com/art/Journey-To-The-West-or-Monkey-Magic-364280941">Joe Wieregna</a></span><span class="username-with-symbol u" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: x-small; letter-spacing: 0.02em; white-space: nowrap;"></span></h1>
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I'm always grateful when I have an excuse to expand on fairy tale and folktale 'learnin' for my kid.<br />
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Yesterday <i>Plants versus Zombies</i> led us into 'Journey To The West', aka 'Monkey Magic'.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8BmZlXSTPOw/WToQO0hbLSI/AAAAAAAAlYw/uDVjj4toIzsXPMe68p85bBJ3meLWNAxVgCK4B/s1600/hqdefault-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="text-align: start;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8BmZlXSTPOw/WToQO0hbLSI/AAAAAAAAlYw/uDVjj4toIzsXPMe68p85bBJ3meLWNAxVgCK4B/s320/hqdefault-6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jLDOdgR3Qjk/WToQO1ffzJI/AAAAAAAAlZM/qy50K6JYlRolvt5sAJEOaJmU-gw-yVpEwCK4B/s1600/hqdefault-5.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jLDOdgR3Qjk/WToQO1ffzJI/AAAAAAAAlZM/qy50K6JYlRolvt5sAJEOaJmU-gw-yVpEwCK4B/s200/hqdefault-5.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MTzSVdozYhw/WToQOxEq4wI/AAAAAAAAlZI/ut1g7PX1p0I6voe4yXt0UoGh219XN88kACK4B/s1600/hqdefault-2.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MTzSVdozYhw/WToQOxEq4wI/AAAAAAAAlZI/ut1g7PX1p0I6voe4yXt0UoGh219XN88kACK4B/s200/hqdefault-2.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oSh6SZht_aA/WToQO-IszVI/AAAAAAAAlYo/ftIJv4LE9NYAideU_8EQjd6CRylegrwWgCK4B/s1600/hqdefault-4.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oSh6SZht_aA/WToQO-IszVI/AAAAAAAAlYo/ftIJv4LE9NYAideU_8EQjd6CRylegrwWgCK4B/s200/hqdefault-4.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tNTGJ-aGElc/WToQO1WQcVI/AAAAAAAAlY8/3uXwzOB1h8kH0Dugq5USSEH3ENI_UpKJACK4B/s1600/hqdefault-3.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tNTGJ-aGElc/WToQO1WQcVI/AAAAAAAAlY8/3uXwzOB1h8kH0Dugq5USSEH3ENI_UpKJACK4B/s200/hqdefault-3.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gMTacs__KO4/WToQO7lbAtI/AAAAAAAAlY0/GHSu7bE3_TEc8mgmajCf-H0zM_GD-P8MQCK4B/s1600/hqdefault.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gMTacs__KO4/WToQO7lbAtI/AAAAAAAAlY0/GHSu7bE3_TEc8mgmajCf-H0zM_GD-P8MQCK4B/s200/hqdefault.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-S0kFDpHzkEk/WToQOy8jisI/AAAAAAAAlYk/5ilUpBWESrsl2W3cXcAo0a8ZLKOviwBiQCK4B/s1600/hqdefault-1.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-S0kFDpHzkEk/WToQOy8jisI/AAAAAAAAlYk/5ilUpBWESrsl2W3cXcAo0a8ZLKOviwBiQCK4B/s200/hqdefault-1.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
See 'Journey To The West's Bull Demon King as 'boss' comparison.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Monkey King 2014 (released in US 2016)</td></tr>
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He instantly linked his Yokai lore knowledge to the tales and began to write possible storylines for new iterations of the PvZ game ("and a movie too!"). We also took some time out of 'alphabet math' (aka algebra) to watch this lovely animation made for the Olympics in 2008:</div>
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Today, Twitter conversations led us down the path to <b><i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantaghir%C3%B2_series">Fantaghirò</a></i></b>, which I have never seen all episodes of, but was the ideal introduction to exposing him to the fairy tales of Italo Calvino.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6QoIdNh_WYg/WTn5KfVn15I/AAAAAAAAlXY/ThecOBpl6fwdOzAaumMVE2SaF-x9GFLmACK4B/s1600/guidance_by_depingo-da4bgor.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="448" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6QoIdNh_WYg/WTn5KfVn15I/AAAAAAAAlXY/ThecOBpl6fwdOzAaumMVE2SaF-x9GFLmACK4B/s640/guidance_by_depingo-da4bgor.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Guidance (showing the title character Fantaghirò, a Princess Knight) by <b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><a href="http://depingo.deviantart.com/art/Guidance-611915067">depingo</a></b></td></tr>
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In between describing interesting characters, intriguing creatures and having him make connections to tales he already knows, he busily drew his own magic kingdom. Must track down that series with an English dub!<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VcD1PQddhK4/WToPcZmsAnI/AAAAAAAAlYI/JNVwB1uEAK4Ii2aH93D3qhIQnsO0qgPxwCK4B/s1600/Fantaghiro%2B1.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VcD1PQddhK4/WToPcZmsAnI/AAAAAAAAlYI/JNVwB1uEAK4Ii2aH93D3qhIQnsO0qgPxwCK4B/s200/Fantaghiro%2B1.jpg" width="134" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iydQKZyjPgA/WToPcQfkmuI/AAAAAAAAlX0/XcLw7GT6t2AabQERZox9Yn7ntU3Oyfu3QCK4B/s1600/Fantaghiro%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iydQKZyjPgA/WToPcQfkmuI/AAAAAAAAlX0/XcLw7GT6t2AabQERZox9Yn7ntU3Oyfu3QCK4B/s200/Fantaghiro%2B2.jpg" width="134" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aNj0Id-1ckQ/WToPcaLLlII/AAAAAAAAlX8/KteKJhbrHdQZd-9-ZNqSsamTjB3zEvNbQCK4B/s1600/Fantaghiro%2B3.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aNj0Id-1ckQ/WToPcaLLlII/AAAAAAAAlX8/KteKJhbrHdQZd-9-ZNqSsamTjB3zEvNbQCK4B/s200/Fantaghiro%2B3.jpg" width="134" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RlZY3kj0pw0/WToPcfvRdFI/AAAAAAAAlYA/gVfqFJ5MEEcxQLBSzHIGvgP3c4__MzeKgCK4B/s1600/Fantaghiro%2B4.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RlZY3kj0pw0/WToPcfvRdFI/AAAAAAAAlYA/gVfqFJ5MEEcxQLBSzHIGvgP3c4__MzeKgCK4B/s200/Fantaghiro%2B4.jpg" width="134" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kIG6kldZS3A/WToPcRtAXmI/AAAAAAAAlXo/U5WSoDvYWy0UO8DVtkQ6UW1_b8lunlfZQCK4B/s1600/Fantaghiro%2B5.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kIG6kldZS3A/WToPcRtAXmI/AAAAAAAAlXo/U5WSoDvYWy0UO8DVtkQ6UW1_b8lunlfZQCK4B/s200/Fantaghiro%2B5.jpg" width="134" /></a>Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-26531757244329393382017-06-06T20:29:00.000-07:002017-06-06T20:29:03.812-07:00Oriental Fairy Tales (2017)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x5ySTHoXXH8/WTdwsZi8tQI/AAAAAAAAlU4/Mjjkg6rU7HIhYBq-qEFivq6r0D6mUSoogCK4B/s1600/Oriental-Fairy-Tales-2017-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x5ySTHoXXH8/WTdwsZi8tQI/AAAAAAAAlU4/Mjjkg6rU7HIhYBq-qEFivq6r0D6mUSoogCK4B/s640/Oriental-Fairy-Tales-2017-1.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
This movie, judging completely by the poster and title, looks amazing.<br />
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Look at all the characters - animals, mythological and human!<br />
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Unfortunately, I can barely find any information on it. (I've even tried searching in Mandarin!) I'm even suspicious that this illustration is from something else, but either way, I'm keen to learn more.<br />
<br />
Here's the total info available via my current google-fu skills:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Oriental Fairy Tales (Also Known As: Tong Ling Bao Yin)<br />Director: Tony Ching<br />Country: China<br />Language: Mandarin<br />Release Date: 2017 (<i><u>except</u></i> I've also found a 2018 date at a different site...)<br />Runtime: 90 minutes<br />Genre: Action, Fantasy</blockquote>
It will be on my radar.Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-24215050621563130392017-06-05T17:41:00.001-07:002017-06-05T17:41:20.738-07:00Toonful: Frog Prince<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zOatkSyhmlg/WTX5fruuEKI/AAAAAAAAlTA/Um0rIOBJJxUhwtR4MP8n7gcpDTTVxJt0gCK4B/s1600/Frog%2BPrince%2BGT%2BToon.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zOatkSyhmlg/WTX5fruuEKI/AAAAAAAAlTA/Um0rIOBJJxUhwtR4MP8n7gcpDTTVxJt0gCK4B/s640/Frog%2BPrince%2BGT%2BToon.png" width="545" /></a></div>
1) Work on multiple issues of a fairy tale magazine<br />
2) Source, sort and use hundreds of public domain illustrations for each<br />
3) Realize some of these illustrations have a hidden commentary<br />
4) A new fairy tale cartoon is born<br />
5) Will never look at old public domain illustrations the same way ever again<br />
[Happy about it.]<br />
<br />
* Note to self a) keep creating 'toons after magazine duties completeGypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-70557556761135452802017-06-02T17:27:00.003-07:002017-06-02T17:27:49.360-07:00Eco-Knights, Arise!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ySDV47n4hhs/WTH9dEjOJkI/AAAAAAAAlRI/o0C2G3sQzvEkJc-Be0Rw4ZHiXSz8p88lACK4B/s1600/thorns_by_weremoon-d5yd1qz-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="450" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ySDV47n4hhs/WTH9dEjOJkI/AAAAAAAAlRI/o0C2G3sQzvEkJc-Be0Rw4ZHiXSz8p88lACK4B/s640/thorns_by_weremoon-d5yd1qz-1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thorns by <a href="http://weremoon.deviantart.com/art/Thorns-360046619">Marta Sokolowska (aka weremoon</a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Yesterday became a dark day. The US President pulled out of the Paris Climate Accord, much to the dismay of most Americans <u>and the entire world</u>. It now joins two other nations - of all the nations on the planet - that are not on board. (And it should be noted that Nicaragua hasn't signed <i>because they think the Paris Accord isn't radical enough.</i> The other nation not on board is Syria, <i>due to their Civil War.</i>)<br />
<br />
On reading the news I found myself wishing I was Maleficent the Faerie Queene (of Spenser's <i>The Faerie Queene</i>). Why? Admittedly I had a bad reaction. I wanted the ability to encourage, no, force, nature rise up in active, noticeable, terrifying response to such a ridiculous and backward decision that harms the entire planet and everything - and everyone - on it. I wanted a giant hedge of thorns to burst out of the ground and surround our National Parks, guard our waterways and other natural resources, only letting those past who were earth stewards, not exploiters. I wanted trees to find their inner-Ents, pull their roots out of the ground and stomp across to the White House. I wanted all things green to rabidly take over the polluting manufacturing plants and wall in all the nuclear arsenal so it wasn't accessible or useable... you get the idea.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LXiznw3ktbc/WTH66L0odVI/AAAAAAAAlQ4/CfITcdhcI8sXsFGqznJnNjwlIQAHkyONACK4B/s1600/342182b766c2881f2ade1a9169753492.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LXiznw3ktbc/WTH66L0odVI/AAAAAAAAlQ4/CfITcdhcI8sXsFGqznJnNjwlIQAHkyONACK4B/s1600/342182b766c2881f2ade1a9169753492.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From Briar Vol 1 by Benjamin Read, illustrated by Chris Wildgoose (an Improper Books graphic novel - May 2016)</td></tr>
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But even as I imagined, I knew my reaction was ridiculous - and not because I was imagining a very dark fairy tale scenario. (Do I really want apocalypse-via-trees a la <a href="https://thereadingdesk.wordpress.com/2017/06/02/book-review-the-trees/">Ali Shaw's recent fairy tale-esque, yet frightening novel</a>, <i>The Trees</i>? No and nope! Not even if I and mine survive.) One of the worst things you can do is force nature in any specific direction by manmade design. It might take a generation or two for the fallout of messing with Nature's design to become known, but it's inevitable (it used to be about one hundred years [!] but that reaction timeline is shrinking). For all our advances in science and technology, there is so much we still don't know about the nuanced interdependence of every living system on the planet. Mother Nature - whomever, wherever, however She is - rises up in response to whatever we do to alter her, and a healthy respect for nature is not only good for the soul, but should be considered a survival tactic for our species.<br />
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As if underlining the importance of protecting nature, because it literally protects us, I came across a photo of a refugee family, protected by a wall of thorns, this same day.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-17EstoZ5ENs/WTH2l3V_NqI/AAAAAAAAlQo/ACASQtX855MDXbg8IN8iTySsp9QDIfSbACK4B/s1600/091002jahi-wallofthorns.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-17EstoZ5ENs/WTH2l3V_NqI/AAAAAAAAlQo/ACASQtX855MDXbg8IN8iTySsp9QDIfSbACK4B/s640/091002jahi-wallofthorns.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Wall of Thorns" (2004) -- Hawa Oosman Adam rests in her temporary home of thorns and twigs where IDP's (internally displaced people) have made an impromptu camp on the outskirts of Nera, Sudan. Some families, including Hawa's, have had to move six times during the course of this 20-month-old conflict where African settlements are being attacked by the government with the help of militias known as the janjaweed. Photo by <b><a href="http://copiousnotes.bloginky.com/2009/10/01/podcast-pics-jahi-chikwendiu/">Jahi Chikwendiu</a></b></td></tr>
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<div>
We're in it together. We need nature and nature needs us. Fairies and fairy tales remind us of that. Trees start to speak when we're no longer listening to their needs, flowers rise up and fill the spaces arrogantly claimed by people, leaves choose to heal or poison, depending on the traveler's heart and roots unearth themselves, revealing a host of darkest secrets they've been hiding for us.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
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While we ignorantly sleepwalk through life, Nature's various hedges of thorns protect us more than we know, even as we rail against the inconvenience every now and then. Now that Nature is more than ever under threat, it's time to wake up. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Kudos to the 84-and-counting US governors, mayors, state leaders and more, for immediately taking a stand in opposition to the terrible news, by proclaiming their solidarity and promise to abide by the accord, despite the President's wishes. Kudos to foreign leaders who responded by announcing their welcome and open borders to all the dismayed Americans and scientists who are even more motivated to work for the betterment of the planet. The day was not so dark after all.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Dear Mother Nature,</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Go get some beauty sleep.</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Don't worry - we got your back.</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Sincerely,</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>The Majority</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
#resist</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z8v-ZDc7m84/WTH89uJZylI/AAAAAAAAlRA/Q9oGsTlrAF8eqlctsKQd8zPxyf0DN117wCK4B/s1600/cierniowy_na_da_by_weremoon-d63hn6k.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z8v-ZDc7m84/WTH89uJZylI/AAAAAAAAlRA/Q9oGsTlrAF8eqlctsKQd8zPxyf0DN117wCK4B/s640/cierniowy_na_da_by_weremoon-d63hn6k.jpg" width="502" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://weremoon.deviantart.com/art/Hollowed-368659100">Marta Sokolowska</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-85762701941987884902017-05-31T17:27:00.000-07:002017-05-31T17:27:15.300-07:00Fairy Tale Freudian<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gw20Q6d2v7E/WS9eskO0M5I/AAAAAAAAlN8/Dnc-Zo2EYRU9W50XvPFf0RQ9JAK3OQE-gCK4B/s1600/Bayros-Der_Gartner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gw20Q6d2v7E/WS9eskO0M5I/AAAAAAAAlN8/Dnc-Zo2EYRU9W50XvPFf0RQ9JAK3OQE-gCK4B/s640/Bayros-Der_Gartner.jpg" width="414" /></a>Busy typing equals inevitable typos, including this:</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
"The prince discovers the princess and wakes her with a kids..." </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Oops.<br />
<br />
Actually... that's sort of correct, if grammatically (and morally) dodgy*.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>*AKA wrong-wrong-wrong</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Image by Franz von Bayros for <i>The Gardener</i> (aka <i>The Punished Pride Day - 4, 10)</i>, from Basilé's <i>Pentamerone, very like King Thrushbeard.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Synopsis (Wikipedia expanded): A beautiful princess is cruel to every suitor. A wounded king, dressed as a gardener, attracts her with a beautiful dress, then a matching undergarment, and finally the bodice, all of which he places beneath her window. In exchange for the dress items he asks to sleep in the drawing room, the in the hall outside her door, and finally in her room. She gives him a corner and he rapes her in her sleep. Finally, she becomes pregnant and has to flee with him. At his court she lives in poverty, without knowing that he is king. He deceives her three times for a (set-up) theft, where he then catches her in his unrecognizable king-form and humiliates her. Only when she goes into labor with twins does his mother, complicit in the deception till now, take pity and stop the revenge. The princess has learned her lesson, puts aside pride and they marry. (Ed. - Nope. Just nope.)</i></span>Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7795272192992205726.post-34762728582236310502017-05-30T13:37:00.000-07:002017-05-30T13:37:17.718-07:00There Was An Old Lady...<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC-XzEm5nBo/WSteqYCuG6I/AAAAAAAAlBs/JLlO2wWL6UYNn49cjwpa6leT28XmnhiggCK4B/s1600/dolls%2Bfront.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC-XzEm5nBo/WSteqYCuG6I/AAAAAAAAlBs/JLlO2wWL6UYNn49cjwpa6leT28XmnhiggCK4B/s640/dolls%2Bfront.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">by Zier</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I adore matryoshka dolls that use their form to tell a story - layers within layers, till you get to the heart of it. The concept begs for live storytelling. I wasn't surprised when I found this story had been immortalized in nesting doll form and I love the wrinkles. Stories with wrinkles are very interesting...<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xwNFwmSyO0s/WStesFWdfyI/AAAAAAAAlB0/TrhmJKki10EcsTjadY2Onym-Sa1E7JpawCK4B/s1600/dolls%2Bback.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xwNFwmSyO0s/WStesFWdfyI/AAAAAAAAlB0/TrhmJKki10EcsTjadY2Onym-Sa1E7JpawCK4B/s640/dolls%2Bback.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Gypsy Thorntonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05376146830985305127noreply@blogger.com0