Dementors vs. Weeping Angels

We've been having a discussion at our house. And maybe we're flying our geek flag by even having this debate, but so be it. We are a family that enjoys science fiction and fantasy. Our discussion...the worst of the baddies. The creepy creatures that give us nightmares. Specifically which would you least like to run into, the one that would do the most damage to you, the creepiest, scariest, most horrifying.
So here it is: Which would be worse to deal with: Dementors or Weeping Angels?

Dementors being the creatures that guard the wizard prison Azakaban in the Harry Potter universe. The horrible, skeleton like creatures who glide (not fly like in the movie...they got that so wrong) towards you with their horrible rattling breath and rotten flesh stink, making you feel like you'll never be happy again. In fact they feed off your happy thoughts and eventually you go mad with despair. Not to mention, if you're really unlucky they may "kiss" you and the Dementors kiss is apparently worse than death because they basically suck out your soul leaving just a shell.




Weeping Angels are alien creatures from Doctor Who....stone angel statues so named because of their tendency to keep their hands over their eyes so as to not accidentally look at each other. This makes them look as though they are crying. They feed off their victim's time energy. They constantly come ever closer every time you blink and to keep them at bay you have to stare at them...it's the only way to keep them "quantum locked." (Which is why they cover their eyes from each other as well.) They are creepy and scary...their faces serene and bland until they get closer when their features become more demonic with vampire teeth and clawing hands. They can move very quickly and silently and also through images. Their aims...to touch you and send you back in time to live out your life in the past while they feed off the time energy you would've had in the present. However, they have also been known to snap your neck and rearrange your brains if it suits their desires.

So which is worse? I'm not sure we ever decided. Running into a Dementor seems to be the least desirable the two. However if you know how to produce a patronus charm, you can definitely fight them off. Weeping Angels will indeed get you if you are the one that have set their sights on. It's pretty hard to escape a Weeping Angel...I mean really, eventually you will lose the staring contest. Weeping Angels always win, but most likely (you know, if they don't decide to rip your head off) you'll just get sent back to live your life in the past.

I have had nightmares of Weeping Angels. More than once. But never nightmares of Dementors. Does that say anything? Maybe Weeping Angels are the creepiest but the Dementors are the most dangerous? I'm not sure. But there you have it. A discussion for a Wednesday afternoon.

FanX-Comic Con

Bryan and I attended the very first Salt Lake Comic Con back in September 2013. We enjoyed ourselves thoroughly...or rather, I enjoyed the crazy forms fandom takes while Bryan enjoyed watching me geek out.

Though Comic Con has come to Salt Lake City on average every six months since then, (why is that, by the way? Isn't once a year enough?) we haven't been back, even though I've wanted to. (Oh, how I regret not being there for the big Star Trek: The Next Generation reunion when all the actors from the show were there together.) But when I heard this time that not only Karen Gillian aka Amy Pond and Billie Piper aka Rose Tyler were attending but Matt Smith, my very favorite Doctor in the Doctor Who universe, I decided that come hell or high water I was going to make this happen!

(The Ghostbuster noticed that Lilian was sporting a Doctor Who sonic screwdriver and asked if he could swap her the sonic screwdriver for the P.K.E. Meter...)

Much to the disappointment of my other children, Lilian was the only one who could come with me. Bryan and Brandon were in Texas that weekend for a gymnastics meet. Julianne had opening night for her One Act Play Festival at the high school. And Rebekah was of course up in Logan.

(Weeping Angels are some of the freakiest Doctor Who alien baddies and Lilian has had many a nightmare of the stone monsters. Heck, so have I! I think maybe that is why she is so obsessed with them that she requested a Weeping Angel t-shirt...and followed this Angel around the convention floor for quite awhile getting up the courage to ask for a picture.

Also...despite the fact that we were going to be seeing Matt Smith in person, Lilian informed me that her favorite Doctor is actually number 10, David Tennant.)

So Lilian and I decked ourselves out in Doctor Who attire and joined the fandom going strong at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City. Lilian wore a weeping angel t-shirt ("Don't Blink!!"), a weeping angel necklace and TARDIS hair bows. I wore TARDIS earrings, TARDIS socks, a "bow ties are cool" button, a red fez and a Van Gogh exploding TARDIS dress.

Two things...
1. I couldn't keep count of how many times I overheard people talking about my dress or was actually stopped so someone could look more closely at it, compliment it and ask where in the world I had bought it. It was "unique" and "epic." Yay me.
2. If you are completely lost at my description of our Doctor Who wear, then clearly you are not a Whovian and need to get on Netflix today and start watching.

We were sad to miss out on the opportunity to have a photo op with the Doctor, Amy and Rose. Despite the ridiculously high price, they were sold out. Do I even want to admit how seriously I was considering it? My wallet and my husband are very thankful, I'm sure. But we were able to score some tickets to the Doctor Who panel with the three of them. (Nowhere near as expensive, thankfully.) And the panel was ridiculously fun! Lilian was a little tired and bored by then, but I sure had a great time geeking out with my fellow fez and bow tie wearing Doctor Who fans.

Lilian's favorite part of the Con was the Creature Encounter booth. Lots of snakes, big and small and other such creepy crawlies like tarantulas, beetles and scorpions to hold. I tried to get my courage up to wrap the huge snake around my neck. It's no secret that they are my worst fear. But I liked the adventure of it all and wanted to be able to say, "I did it!" Also to creep my dad out because he hates snakes even more than I do. But I couldn't. I could not do it. Lilian had no such problem. She held every snake, the big and the small. And I'm proud to say I got close enough to actually touch them which didn't even result in the heeby jeebie dance. So those who know me can be impressed that I am getting better.

I couldn't hold the snakes, but I could hold the huge tarantula. Which apparently is equally impressive if not more so than holding an enormous snake? It wasn't a big deal to me, but I'm discovering that people who mock me for my fear of snakes tend to have an equal fear of spiders. To each his own, I suppose. So there! I am brave!

Bingeing

We signed up for both Hulu Plus and Netflix this week. And yes, I realize that we might be one of the very few families left in the country who hasn't had Netflix already installed. But wait, maybe I need to back up a step.

In February of 2013 Bryan got tired of the hassle that is DirecTV. He's not much of a TV watcher on his own and despite the presence of a fairly large TV in our basement, he tends to watch anything he is interested in on his admittedly fairly large computer screen, on-line. Realistically, no one in our family watches a lot of TV. You're more likely to find us with book in hand rather than in front of the television. But there are a few random shows that the kids and I like to follow. When we cancelled DirecTV Bryan said we could install Hulu Plus for current shows and Netflix to wipe out the need for renting movies or buying TV on DVD.

But then we never did it. And that was okay. I gave up on one of the shows I follow. And found different ways to watch a couple of others. (Though Hulu without the Plus is frustratingly limited, just saying.)

So this week I finally pushed the button on the whole deal. Why was I waiting for Bryan to set it all up? I mean, really...how hard could it be. Not very, it turns out.
(This is what happens when you are married to a computer genius...you tend to leave any and all technology related issues to him.)

But here is now my problem....and one of the reasons why my television adverse husband says he procrastinated for over a year and a half, installing Netflix in our home.
My admission:  I am binge watching "Scandal."
There, I said it.
Six episodes on Wednesday. Four yesterday and five today.

So now I'm trying to decide if Nexflix is a blessing or a curse.
I've been a fan of "Grey's Anatomy" for many years. Call it a guilty pleasure if you must. "Scandal," in its 4th season, is written by the same writer and I heard that if you liked one, you'd like the other. So when experimenting with my newly installed Netflix, I decided that "Scandal" might be just the thing to try it all out with.

All hail to Netflix for allowing you to jump from one episode immediately into the next when you find yourself at a gasp-inducing cliffhanger. Unfortunately for me, the writers at "Scandal" tend to put those in nearly every episode...

But now I am rushing through the episodes so quickly, so desperate am I to find out what happened, that they are all starting to merge together in my brain. No anticipation, having to wait for a week to discover "what the heck????"

And being productive around the house? Seriously?
(I did actually pull myself away long enough to vacuum, dust and do laundry yesterday. Brandon continues to get to gymnastics daily and I've made dinner the past few days. So hey, I'm not totally slacking.)

However if I'm being entirely truthful, I've been known to binge read books as well. (Ever hear the phrase "it's so good I can't put it down..."? That would be me.) So yeah, maybe this is more about my lack of self control rather than about Netflix...

Comic Con...

...proof that adults do still like to play dress-up.
For the uninitiated, seeing as this is the first time Salt Lake City has played host...Comic Con is a fan convention of all things sci fi, gaming, and comic books to put it simply. We're talking guest star appearances, a convention hall full of booths of stuff to buy and goggle over, games and performances, and then of course my favorite...cosplay. You'll never find a place quite so ripe for people watching as Comic Con. And a big part of that is the cosplay aspect.

Though Bryan is a big sci fi fan, he had no interest really in visiting Comic Con. But the more I thought about it, the more I really wanted to see what it was all about. Curiosity more than anything....everyone was so excited about it. And as I've documented before....I clearly have a sci fi streak in me as well, manifesting itself right now as a Dr. Who obsession. So I convinced Bryan we should go check it out and call it date night. He agreed and I ran around the house collecting odds and end Dr. Who paraphernalia to wear. Not a costume, per say...more like homage. Knee high TARDIS socks, an exploding TARDIS necklace ("Vincent and the Doctor" episode...meaning Vincent Van Gogh) and a Keep Calm I'm the Doctor bracelet. I even curled my hair in tight little curls reminiscent of River Song's curly hair. And I made a quick jaunt to the mall to buy a t-shirt. (We had some at home but they were Brandon's and a little on the tight side....) I got lots of compliments on my t-shirt actually, along with my socks that apparently are "epic." The t-shirt was rather clever....

YOU ARE THE BOW TIE TO MY SUSPENDERS

YOU ARE THE FEZ TO MY STETSON

YOU ARE THE SONIC TO MY SCREWDRIVER

YOU ARE THE FISH FINGERS TO MY CUSTARD

YOU ARE THE EGGS TO MY SOUFFLE

YOU ARE THE CENTURION TO MY PANDORICA

YOU ARE THE KEY TO MY TARDIS

THE SWEETIE TO MY RIVER

YOU ARE THE DOCTOR TO MY COMPANION

And of course all of that makes so much more sense if you are a Dr. Who fan. As does probably most of this post. But I digress.

All jazzed up and ready (Bryan in a Superman tee) we headed into town. And wow, what an experience we had! It is a people watcher's dream come true and I couldn't wipe the grin off my face throughout the entire night....even when my high heeled feet started screaming at me from walking around so much.

(Oh hello there Han Solo and R2D2! And the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation? Nice to make your acquaintance!)

After buying our tickets, the first door we peeked into as we started to feel our way around the event, was a huge room with a question and answer session going on with none other than Dean Cain! So yes, I will admit to being a very big fan of Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman back in the early 1990's. My eyes must have been very big because Bryan smiled and asked if I wanted to go in and listen for awhile. Ummm....YES! Dean Cain did a great job by the way...fun and engaging, intelligent in his answers.

And though I feel a bit guilty for admitting it, I found him much more interesting than the session we went to later with William Shatner (aka Captain Kirk from Star Trek) and Adam West (aka the original Batman). Because supposedly Shatner and West were the biggest names at Comic Con. But all they wanted to do was philosophize and discuss getting older and the things they have learned....blah, blah, blah. I wanted to hear Start Trek and Batman stories. All the same...I did find myself geeking out just a little bit to be in the same room with them. (Even if they wouldn't let us take their pictures...)

At one point we saw Darth Vader walking towards us. I don't care who you are, there is just something about Darth Vader that makes you jump, even if you know it's just cosplay. He looked so realistic that I whipped out my camera....only to have the person with him ask if I wanted a picture with Darth Vader. Well....okay? Bryan insisted that it be me in the picture. Maybe because I was geeking out more than he was? Or maybe because he was a little worried about Lord Vader's very famous throat grip. Lucky for me Vader was the perfect gentleman.

But even more freaky than Darth Vader, if you can imagine such a thing....this Weeping Angel. And my favorite picture of the night. We had a nice little conversation about my "clever shirt" and how my 6-year old daughter has nightmares of weeping angels. And then she pulled her pose and oh my, if it wasn't a little bit unnerving!  Because truth be told....Lilian isn't the only one who has had nightmares about weeping angels....

The rest of the time we spent wandering the booths and goggling at people's very elaborate and creative costumes. We didn't come close to seeing everything as we only could spend a few hours. But what we saw made my night. Such geeky fun!

Our flock of birds

Meet the two newest members of our family...

It took us days to actually name them.  Ideas flew fast and furious but we couldn't settle on anything until last night.

Bryan picked out this one so we offered him the privilege of naming her.  He decided on "Dren"...after some sci fi movie he once watched.  I looked up the movie on-line today...and discovered that not only does Dren = Nerd backwards but apparently our bird is named after a character that appears to be a deranged DNA mutant experiment gone bad.  I can only assume that Bryan just thought the name was cool.  If Dren starts murdering all her fellow birdmates in her cage, I will really start to worry....

In keeping with the sci fi theme, this bird was officially named "River"...as in the character River Song from "Dr. Who."  River herself is also somewhat of a mutant...having Time Lord DNA and therefore having the ability to regenerate.  River has also killed her fair share of alien baddies.  So we'll be watching our River closely for any evidence of time traveling or imminent regeneration.  

Pepper, Titi, River and Dren

(We're wondering if Dren and Titi have a thing for each other.  They sure seem to spend a lot of time making out.)

We think Max (the grandfather of the group) had a stroke.  He spends all his time down on the floor of the cage.  He walks funny and looks pretty hammered.  He can't fly anymore and I don't think he can see, poor thing.  He gets flipped over with his wings stuck in the bars of the cage daily.  We come running when we hear a frantic flapping sound, untangle him and cuddle him till his little heart stops pounding.  I'm always surprised when I get up each morning, to find him still alive and waddling around.     

So that's our little flock.  Or, as a friend commented, our very own "angry birds."  :)  Realistically they are all happy little things making all sorts of high pitched cheerful noises... in increasingly higher decibel levels now that there are five of them.   But we love them and are endlessly entertained by them.

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Update 10 November, 2011

Max died today....just two days after writing this post.  It doesn't come as a surprise but is still sad all the same.  He seemed fine this morning.  Well, not fine really....seeing as we've watched his quality of life deteriorate dramatically over the past couple of months.  But he was up and moving around when we took the cover off the cage this morning.  Around noon I found him laying on his side on the bottom of the cage, clearly gone.  In a way, I'm relieved.  I have no idea how much pain he might have been in.  I'm glad he doesn't have to suffer anymore.  But oh, how we will miss our Max!