January, 2003, LOS ANGELES - A festive bow was tied on the final month of last year with my annual winter trip to London. This time, however, it was tied with a shiny double bow because the trip also included a Christmas party with Star Trek friends in Mannheim, Germany. It was a month filled with delights - a perfect December.
London is like opening an enticing Christmas present before Christmas. Goodies abound - great museums, fun restaurants, and, of course, the theater. At the British National Portrait Gallery there was a special exhibit of American portraits on loan from the U.S. National Gallery. "Madame De Pompadour, Images of a Mistress" was next door at the National Gallery. Somerset House, the magnificent palace on the river Thames, which became the former Royal Navy Office, and then partly the offices of the tax collector, Inland Revenue, has also become a handsome museum. The art collection of Britain's first Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole, was the special exhibit there.
The courtyard of Somerset House had been magically transformed into a festive ice skating rink spinning with happy skaters.
The great treat of London, for me, is its rich theater offerings. Classic revivals or exciting originals, London's West End in winter is a bejeweled theatrical Christmas tree. The new hit play of the season was David Hare's "The Breath of Life," starring two brilliant Dames - stalwart Judi Dench and the fabulous Maggie Smith. They play women who had both been in love with and been abandoned by the same man. Dame Maggie had the more interesting role and she inhabited her part completely. An uproariously funny new comedy titled, "The Lying Kind" by Anthony Neilson opens on a frosty Christmas Eve. Two English policemen have the unpleasant task of informing an elderly couple that their daughter had been killed in a horrible auto accident
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And from there, if you can believe it, the comedy begins! It was hilarious - an amazing comic achievement. Classic revivals are always interestingly done in London and often rise to perfection. There was Noel Coward's drama "The Vortex," Oliver Goldsmith's restoration comedy, "She Stoops to Conquer," and, the best production I saw on this trip, George Bernard Shaw's "Mrs. Warren's Profession" starring Brenda Blethyn in a towering performance as Mrs. Warren and a luminous Rebecca Hall as her daughter. This is the kind of theater that makes a trip to London more than worth the jet lag and airport trauma.
The grand treat of this trip though was an undreamed of experience - dinner with the Dickens' Pickwick Club at the historic George and Vulture. The Chairman of the Club is none other than Cedric Charles Dickens the genial 85-year-old great grandson of the great Charles Dickens himself. He was the spitting image of Mr. Pickwick. Indeed, a goodly number of the members seemed to take on a similarly cherubic Pickwickian look. The George and Vulture, founded in 1600, where Charles Dickens used to dine regularly, was festooned with holiday decorations, the air was effervescent with good cheers and the table laden with savory Silverside of roast beef, winter vegetables followed by treacle tart and Stilton cheese - a proper Dickensian feast.
There were a series of Pickwickian toasts. My host, theater producer, Dennis Babcock, rose to introduce me. As I got up to acknowledge the applause, I sensed a slight breach of the Dickensian atmosphere as a few welcoming hands were raised in Vulcan salute made famous by Mr. Spock of Star Trek. There were Trekkers even amongst the Pickwickians! All these gentlemen however, exuded their love of Dickens from every pore of their bodies. I opened mine wide and happily absorbed in every wonderful moment. It was an indescribable experience. As a matter of fact, more than a few of the members asked me at the end of the dinner, "Isn't this an absolutely indescribable evening?" I agreed. This is only my feeble attempt at describing the indescribable.
I owe this treat beyond description to Dennis Babcock, an American member of the Pickwick Club. He was in town to prepare for the London opening of his comedy with music, "Triple Espresso" in January at the Arts Theater in the West End. I saw the production last summer in Minneapolis and enjoyed it thoroughly. I told him that I was planning to be back in London in February after the Starfleet Ball in Bournemouth, England, and would love to see his fun revue again. Quick-thinking producer that he is, Dennis immediately suggested that he make the night I see the play "George Takei Night at Triple Espresso." What a great idea, I agreed. Can we give my friends who come that night a break on the ticket price? He offered half off. It sounded like a good deal. We settled on the evening of February 13, 2003, for the George Takei night. So, if any of you should be in London on that Thursday night, I hope to see you there at the Arts Theater right off busy Shaftsbury Avenue. Just tell the box office people that you are a friend of George Takei to get the half-price tickets.
Then, I was off to Mannheim, Germany, for the Star Trek Christmas Party with other friends of George Takei. This event, organized by Sylvia Strybuc and Roger Hofstetter, was a charity benefit for Children with AIDS. It was a joyful gathering of friends and fans from Germany and Switzerland with actors who were the German voices of the many generations of Star Trek characters.
I was able to recognize almost immediately the actors that were the German vocal counterparts of Jean-Luc Picard and Katherine Janeway. Both were at once the very personifications of command authority combined with the warmth of genuinely gracious people. Of course, Father Christmas, or as we say in the U.S., Santa Claus, visited the party with presents for all. I even got to sit on his lap and serenade him with "Santa Claus is Coming to Town." It was all cheerful good fun. And it raised needed funds for a vital charity. The Christmas Party was a great way to celebrate together and, at the same time, support a humanitarian cause in the true spirit of Star Trek and Christmas. After the celebration, Sylvia and Karl Heinz took us to a Christmastime tradition all over Germany - the Christmas market in the center of the city around Mannheim's historic Water Tower. The Christmas market is a festively decorated village of temporary huts selling food, drinks, and colorful folk crafts of the holiday season. With frosty breath puffing, I bargained for tree ornaments, gift decorations and other holiday crafts. Christmastime in Mannheim 2002 will forever remain a bright, sparkling memory. Thank you Sylvia, Roger, and all the friends of George Takei there.
Back in Los Angeles, Sachie Kubo of Osaka, Japan, flew in for her winter vacation on Christmas day. Having crossed the international dateline, her Christmas was extended even longer than the normal 24-hour day. I invited her to join us for our family Christmas dinner but - poor thing - she was too jet-lagged to enjoy the festivities. She dozed fitfully throughout the dinner. Jet travel does extract an exhaustingly soporific price. Still, as sleepy as she may have been, she contributed an international feel to our Christmas of 2002. We live in a wonderful world where we do truly inhabit a global "infinite diversity in infinite combinations."
Facebook user Betsy Reyes busted her dog Princess who was out moonlighting as a stray in order to play on the sympathies of strangers. It seems Princess likes to wander off to her favorite hangout, the local McDonald's, and work the drive through lane like a pro.
And that's what she did right up until Reyes busted her scam. Reyes, who lives in Oklahoma City, took to Facebook and outed Princess in the most hysterical way, saying:
"If you see my dog @ the McDonald's on shields, quit feeding her fat ass bc she don't know how to act & be leaving the house all the time to go walking to McDonald's at night. She's not even a stray dog. She's just a gold diggin ass bitch that be acting like she's a stray so people will feel bad for her & feed her burgers."
Lots of scammers out there.
It's an adorable story, but maybe get the dog a collar with identification?
Not everyone thought the story was cute.
Of course, when a girl's gotta eat, a girl's gotta eat.
Let's hope Princess has learned her lesson and stays home.
H/T: Huffington Post, Mashable
The MobiLimb was created by researchers in France and is made up of "five servo motors, an Arduino microcontroller and a sensor, and it can do a number of unsettling things that are straight out of nightmares," according to Engadget.
Marc Teyssier, a PhD student and one of the researchers behind the project for the dismembered limb, legitimized its existence.
"In the spirit of human augmentation, which aims at overcoming human body limitations by using robotic devices, our approach aims at overcoming mobile device limitations (static, passive, motionless) by using a robotic limb."
Th MobiLimb can prop itself up so you can watch a video, or provide an alternate way to grip your device.
But there's one function that is really disturbing.
The articulated digit can be skinned to resemble a human finger, and it can stroke your wrist while you're using your phone.
Someone implied that single people could benefit from this invention as a companion.
What would the next-generation MobiLimb offer consumers?
The attachment could come in handy should an unfortunate life-changing incident were to occur.
But the gadget is still giving people goosebumps.
Others saw a more erotic potential.
Now here's a function not advertised by MobiLimb's creators.
Feelings are mixed. But the jury is in.
As to why such a creepy gadget was invented, we can't quite put our finger on it. But then, when it comes to consumers' needs, these guys may be out of touch.
The campaign is part of the Scottish government's One Scotland project in an effort to reduce hate crime.
One letter reads:
"Dear transphobes, do you think it's right to harass people in the street? Right to push transgender people around in clubs? Right to humiliate, intimidate and threaten them online? Well we don't."
"That's why if we see you doing harm, we're reporting you. We believe people should be allowed to be themselves. Except if they're spreading hate."
"Yours, Scotland."
(In another letter, the country says it has a "phobia" of homophobic behavior.
"If you torment people because of who they love, shout word that we are not going to write, or use violence because you don't like who someone is holding hands with, you should be worried."
"If we see or hear your abuse, we're calling the police. That's because love lives in this country, not hate."
"Yours, Scotland."
(One Scotland's website describes the organization as one that aims to continue building an inclusive society while recognizing the significant strides made so far towards equality.
"One Scotland embodies the inclusive society we want in Scotland, where equality and human rights are respected and every individual and minority group feels valued."
The website defines hate crimes as abuse that "can be verbal or physical and has hugely damaging effects on the victims, their families and communities, and we all must play our part to challenge it."
"Police Scotland takes hate crime very seriously. In the last year there were over 5,300 charges of hate crime reported to the Procurator Fiscal in Scotland1."
"However, there are many more incidents that go unreported. We all have a responsibility to report hate crime if we witness it – it's the only way we can challenge it, and put an end to it for good."
Justice minister Humza Yousaf is familiar with being a victim of a bigotry and is encouraging people to call out and report any incidents involving harassment.
"As somebody who has faced Islamaphobic and racial abuse over the years, I know how upsetting being a victim of hate can be. Hate crime and prejudice are completely unacceptable and we are absolutely committed to tackling it."
"We all have a role to play in stamping out prejudice and I would ask anyone who witnesses a hate crime to play their part and report it. Justice agencies such the police and Crown Office will deal sensitively with reports made and people should have confidence in how they will be treated. Last year there were over 5,300 charges of hate crime reported to the Procurator Fiscal in Scotland but there are still many incidents that are going unreported."
Henrietta Mochrie identifies as transgender and has been the victim of repeated harassment and abuse. She emphasized the importance of speaking out against the hatred.
"I'll often get street harassment, sometimes this has escalated to the point where I've been followed by people shouting abuse at me, just because of who I am."
"It makes me feel really down and scared to leave the house. It's important that if you witness hate crime that you report it to take a stand against hate."
One Scotland's ad campaign officially launched on Wednesday.
Hopefully, it won't take too long before other nations follow suit in this bold, yet necessary fight for equality.
H/T - OneScotland, PinkNews, Twitter
Twitter user @Rich_Cooper stated:
"Dear feminists. You either get equality or chivalry. You can't have both."
One user responded:
"I'll take equality. I don't need special treatment."
Cooper's rhetorical question did not go over so well. Both women and men expressed their disdain for his message.
One male user observed that chivalry was irrelevant and treating everyone with kindness and respect was compulsory.
"What people care about is caring, empathic [sic], considerate, thoughtful people, NOT whether THEIR door is held for them or THEIR meal is paid for them."
"Are there gender stereotypes in het[erosexual] dating? Sure. But that's separate from being a warm, giving, caring, grounded person."
Some women got right down to the point.
The notion of chivalry and equality are mutually exclusive and not a lot of people thought it was a major priority for feminists.
Common courtesy is not chivalry.
This user pointed out the fact that chivalry stems from a history of men outdoing other men. The concept had very little to do with women.
"Chivalry is a medieval concept of men dressing to impress other men. It has little to do with equality."
"Some men were on top, other men were beneath them. Historically, women were rarely invited into the process."
Neil Bradley described the outdated concept of chivalry as one that implies men being superior to women in a September 8, 2017, article for Medium publications.
"Examples: opening the door for a woman, paying for a woman's meal, gesturing for a woman to go first. The justification is either that women are not physically as strong (to open the door), able to provide (pay for their own meal), or are more deserving of compassion than men (allowing women to go first)."
Bradley also added that he wants to treat others the way he wants to be treated and asked if that approach should be motivated by chivalry or equality.
"If the genders are to be considered equal and treated equally, how a man treats a woman will essentially be the same as how a man treats a man."
"The obligation to open the door, pay for the meal, and let women go first vanishes. Men do not do this to other men, therefore why do it for women?"
His final take was that the two concepts can't co-exist. Either one is chivalrous or treats everyone as equals.
At the end of the day, people were happy to show chivalry the door.
H/T - GettyImages, Twitter, Indy100, Medium