Happy Birthday to My Mother the 2014 Edition

Today is Ash Wednesday but it is also my Mother’s birthday.

I remember sitting around in some convention green room with a bunch of people with one of those wandering conversations going. You know the ones that go from point A to point B only with many side trips to the rest of the alphabet. Some how the topic drifted to complaining about parents. Everyone was venting about parents and how they didn’t understand them or how they outright abused them. The conversation got to me and I said, “I got nothing.” Some people said that couldn’t be true but those who knew my parents said, “She is telling the truth.”

I really don’t have anything to complain about from my childhood. I am sure at the time I could have given a laundry list of little complaints but they were the usual things children grouse about. I had a good childhood. I was warm, fed, and clothed. I knew I was loved. I knew my parents loved each other. It was a really good situation to grow up in.

My mother made me things like clothing. I had these really great jumpers she made me for the summer. She made me a sit-a-upon for Girl Scouts that I can still use to this day and she was clever creating handles that one could loop through a belt so that you didn’t have to carry it. She did craft projects with me. She baked me the best birthday cakes ever. She kissed boo-boos and explained the world to me.

She taught me the basics of cooking and eventually had me cook dinner once or twice a week so I could learn that magic formula of how to get everything done on time. If we wanted to learn something, she was willing to teach us.

She taught me that women could do anything that they put their minds to. She kept the monsters away at night.

I had minimal sick days during the school year. Hard to pull something over on a nurse but when we were sick, she took care of us and made sure that we knew that this too shall pass. She taught me how to deal with nicks, cuts, and scrapes. And how to know if it was something that needed more than what we had to home. I learned how to wrap a sprain and other first aid things from her.

She is a shining example to all my siblings.

She loves her grandchildren and they love their Baba.

Happy Birthday Mom! I love you.

I am still grateful that my Mom is my Mom.

After Much Thought and contemplation, I toss my hat in

And will be participating in the last season of LJ Idol.

I have made a lot of friends and learned a lot from previous seasons so I am going to give it a go.

Welcome to My Rabbit Holes

Be careful the first step is a doozy.

Hello gentle Reader,

Welcome to the 2014 edition of “Who the heck am I?”

My name is Kathleen David. I am more commonly known as either Puppetmaker or Puppetmaker40 or Kath. If you knew me before 1987, then you might call me Kathy which was the last time I was Kathy due to the Yale School of Drama where I became known as Kath because we had a Kathy, a Kathleen and a Catherine in the Stage Management program.

I grew up in Atlanta and was very involved in the science fiction community. I was a member of the Terminus TARDIS and the Might Rassilon Art Players along with the Androgum Society. I worked at Oxford Comics for a time too. I am well versed in many forms of Fandom. Current favorites are Dr. Who, Sherlock, Elementary, Once Upon a Time (and in Wonderland), Supernatural, Arrow, Agents of Shield, and too many other shows to count.

I am married to Peter David (click here for his Wikipedia entry and here for his website). I have three stepdaughters who are all adults (Shana, Gwen, and Ariel) and out of the house and we have our daughter Caroline who is eleven. We live out on Long Island but go into the city quite frequently.

My jobs over the years would take pages. I have had a rather eclectic work history. I am still an Equity Stage Manger, a Book Editor, a Writer, and a Master Puppeteer along with the title of Mom. I also make dolls and costumes among other crafty activities.

Puppetry is my main calling. I have been “wiggling dolls,” as the Great Gonzo says, for fun for as long as I can remember. I have taught courses in puppetry all over the United States. I do puppets I am interested in and I create commissioned pieces for various people and venues. My puppets are in private collections all over the world.

I can converse about a variety of topics and will do so during this season.

So feel free and ask me any questions you have. There are only a couple of topics I either don’t talk about or can’t talk about.