Happy Thanksgiving...

[fajrdrako]

To all my American friends¹:


I like Thanksgiving. I like the psychological concept of being thankful. I am thankful for the following:

1. Living in a great apartment. I love my place. It's set up the way I want it, it has enough space for me, three budgies, many books, and a zillion comic books; it's friendly and bright. I've had fannish friends walk in for the first time and say, "You can tell a fan lives here." I like that. I love my tasteful fandom-du-jour decor in the bathroom. My decorative harp in the living room. My view of a maple tree outside the window.


2. Living in a great city. I might prefer London or New York for the theatre, or Italy for the art, and anywhere for the weather, but Ottawa is a lovely place to live: enough of a city to have whatever I need of libraries, bookstores, areas to walk, with decent public transport and a sense of history. Besides, I live right beside the prettiest canal in the world.


3. Living in a good country. Canada isn't exactly perfect, but it's got a lot of the right ideas.


4. Having enough to eat and a roof over my head. Basic.


5. My friends.


6. Fandom.


7. Books. Especially the world of slash. Especially Torchwood, Doctor Who, Dunnett novels, Bujold novels, The Professionals, The Lord of the Rings, and all those other joys.


8. The net, including LJ and the Dunnett mailing lists. They keep me sane when they don't drive me crazy.


9. Certain actors, writers, and artists. If you've been reading this LJ, you know their names.


10. Being who I am: human, female, Canadian, bisexual, a writer, a fan, a history-lover, a budgie-owner.

~ ~ ~

¹ This picture was taken from this site.

Comments

[wijsgeer.livejournal.com]

I can intellectually mention several things to be thankfull for, but right now I find it realy hard to feel it. (just makes me cry, thinking about it).

Good to see you're having so many good things.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

When I was depressed thinking about thankfulness just made me feel worse.

I could think of lots of bad things in my life, too. Like money worries. But that would just depress me to dwell on. So I don't.

[wijsgeer.livejournal.com]

I am presently well enough to to dwell on the bad things (like lack of money and the state of the world and that I never ever seem to get better and that I can't help my sister and my close friends who are depressed themselves and so on). But good things, they just don't feel good, even though my mind tells me they are. Guess you know what I mean. I am very fed up with myself, mood going down once again like that. Doing my best to hang on.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Yup. Sometimes all you can do is hang on. I remember well when the good things weren't good.

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

The good things feel good, but are not as good as they could be. I still have no job, no material security, &c., and I feel pretty sick when other people (in the guise of "thankfulness" – to what?) go bragging how much better their lives are. I'd like to smash their faces in. Another LJ post made me feel almost homicidal at its smugness. it reminds me of a time when I was very low, and a friend was phoning me up about how well she was doing, and how she'd got her own TV documentary series on Scottish history. She was too self-absorbed and insensitive to understand why I would burst into tears after we'd spoken.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

For myself, a sense of thankfulness makes me feel better - even though my life, in many important aspects, is pretty rotten. I don't do it to hurt others (and I'm sorry if I did), I do it because it's a good thing psychologically.

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

I don't do it to hurt others (and I'm sorry if I did), I do it because it's a good thing psychologically.

It wasn't you: I know we're not in too far different circumstances (save you, at least, have a job, though not one worthy of your talents). And I agree, it can be good to combat a tendency to depression. No, what I hate is people who seem to rub your nose in your own failure without thinking about what they're doing.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

we're not in too far different circumstances

Yes; I rather feel we are suffering similar fates in parallel.

Thoughtlessness is never a good thing; it nevertheless seems to come easily to some people.

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

When a festive occasion more or less demands outbursts of smugness, it's time to duck and hide, I think.

The main things I had to be smug about today were getting a pair of shiny black ankle-boot wellies and (for 50p!) a Mercedes-Benz logo'd double-walled travel-mug (like a flask, but large mug-sized) from charity shops. The wellies are cute and practical; the mug is also practical (especially as I have a long train journey coming up when I go to my parents'), and also fits one of my fandoms.

Welcome to the Doctor Who & Torchwood - Themed Writing Prompts Community (dwtwprompts)!

[thegabbster.livejournal.com]

Welcome to the dwtwprompts community!

Can't wait to see what you claim!

If you have any questions or whatever, feel free to ask!

- Gabby (owner)

Re: Welcome to the Doctor Who & Torchwood - Themed Writing Prompts Community (dwtwprompts)!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Yes - see you there.

Mmm, nice icon.

[acampbell.livejournal.com]

Happy (U.S.) Thanksgiving! Even though we're in different fandoms, now, I'll treasure your friendship forever!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I feel the same - and think about you often. Enjoy your turkey!

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

The only version of it I like was the Addams Family Values one, in which Wednesday turns it into a rebellion by the outcast kids who had been cast as the Native Americans. I don't like pious nationalistic beanfeasts.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

That sounds funny! I've never seen any version of The Addams Family - I think - but it's one of those things whose images are part of our cultural consciousness so much so that I know what the actors look like. And Christina Ricci was in it, wasn't she?

Anyway, I feel quite happy enjoying and appreciating the Canadian Thanksgiving, which is really just a harvest celebration - not nationalistic at all, nothing to do with Puritans and Natives.

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

Christina played Wednesday. She was wonderfully deadpan throughout.

Harvest Festival I recall at school: we had to bring in tins of food to be given out to the elderly. At the Brownies/Guides, it involved having to go along to a church service, and again, donating tins & c. It all struck me as a bit weird in an industrial/post-industrial society. Harvest doesn't mean anything to most people any more, and frankly, I've found some of the Thanksgivings postings from some US folk online insufferably smug: "Isn't my life wonderful?" & c. After coming in from signing on at the JobCentre, I really don't want other people telling me how f***ing wonderful their life is, with jobs, and their own homes, & c.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Christina played Wednesday.

Now, that's a name.

We never did anything called Harvest Festival in school, or donated anything to anybody. Not that I recall. In the earlier grades, I'm sure we drew Thanksgiving pictures or something - not that I recall - and what would they be? Pictures of food? Mainly it was just a holiday, and a very welcome one, too.

I haven't been reading the American Thanksgiving posts, I think. It probably says something about my flist, though I'm not sure what.

Anyway, I'm sorry if I made you feel worse. I could make a list of 'reasons my life sucks right now' if it would make you feel better - !

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

No, no! I wasn't referring to you, my dear! I know your situation isn't all that much better than mine. No: it was an American acquaintance, doing the "I have a wonderful husband, exciting new house and baby – aren't I lucky?" spiel. Not that the last is something I'd want ever – unless it was another baby plant, and husbands aren't on my wishlist, either. But it was just the whole preening smugness of the thing…

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

"I have a wonderful husband, exciting new house and baby – aren't I lucky?" spiel

Right.

Speaking of baby plants: My plumbago seems to be withering away and I don't know why. Poor thing! My orchid, on the other hand, is flourishing with aplomb. I'm currently down to two plants: the orchid is a delightful and serenidipitous find from the last trip to Costco.

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure what a plumbago is. The orchid sounds fun (but then, I too have them! Eight of them!). What family is it? I wasn't sure when you first mentioned it whether you were talking about a plant or a cut-flower. The thing with orchids is, they thrive on benign neglect: not being watered too often, and not being repotted until they're actually trying to climb out and make a break for freedom.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Plumbago (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plumbago) is a flowering ground-cover (and wall-cover) plant that grows in profusion in Malta. Beulah and I both thought it was utterly beautiful, and she managed to get her hands on some seeds somehow and grow me a little plumbago plant for my apartment, which she gave me for my birthday.

I've been doing my best to keep it alive, poor thing. I see this wikipedia article specifically mentions that it is "native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the world" so it may simply be taking offense to be forced to reside in snowy Ottawa.

In any case, benign neglect is my gardening specialty, and I'm getting along fine with the orchid, who is leaning artfully over a few of my history books on the living room writing table.

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

Poor thing! I hope it recovers! It should be warm enough indoors: after all, the budgies are also from sunnier climes!

The orchid sounds lovely.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

It should be warm enough indoors: after all, the budgies are also from sunnier climes!

That was my reasoning. Fingers crossed! Beulah will be over tomorrow, and we can confer on care and treatment.

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

Good!

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

Have looked up "plumbago": it's pretty! I hope it gets better!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Yes, it's a gorgeous little flower, and so pretty in the Maltese sunshine!

Here (http://www.flickr.com/photos/azurite/60397368/) is a picture I took myself of plumbago growing in one of the Maltese parks.

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

That's lovely! Is it the same colour?

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I don't know what colour my plumbago is or will be because it hasn't flowered yet. All the plumbago I saw on Malta was blue - though possibly I saw the non-blue variety and didn't recognize it? Anyway, vast quantities of blue plumbago, so it was a surprise to see in wikipedia that it can be all sorts of colours.

[silverwhistle.livejournal.com]

Four of my triffids haven't flowered yet in my care, so I don't know yet what colours they will be. It's exciting!

[raissad.livejournal.com]

Thanks.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

You're welcome. All holidays are precious!