Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Hearts and flowers

Yeah, it's that day again.

I dunno. I was doing okay with the whole "I love my friends, I love my relatives, I try to love all of humanity" thing, but working too hard over the weekend kind of broke me and also some stuff on the local news kind of made me long for fifth grade and getting silly little punny cards from the kids in the class. (And the tradition was, if you gave to one person you gave to all, so there was no kind of "I have birthday party invitations for every girl in the class EXCEPT YOU" which yes, happened to me once). And for getting the afternoon off from class and getting a cupcake and a cup of red Hi-C punch.

I really think Valentine's Day is best if you're a little kid, or part of a really long-term couple that understands each other and have figured out what to do (which in some cases is nothing, I know lots of people who are disinterested in this day). I wish there were something that was more of a deal for those of us who are alone because it is kind of a long holiday-less slog from New Year's* to Easter**

(*Yes, I know: Martin Luther King, Jr. day, but that's more just a civic holiday and it's more centered around doing volunteer work)
(**And yes, I know: St. Patrick's Day, but that's never that big of a day for me because I don't drink beer)

But at least I have hobbies I love, I guess.

hearts and flowers ponies

Three of my My Little Ponies in a valentiney color scheme - Parasol, Posey, and Heartthrob. Heartthrob has little winged hearts as her cutie mark but they're badly faded so they don't show up well.

And I have been knitting a little:

everyday sock

This is the beginning of yet another pair of Hermione's Everyday Socks in  an Ancient Arts sockyarn in a colorway called "Mineral." I can't remember now if this was a Loopy Ewe purchase or if I got it from Quixotic Fibers.

And I did buy myself a little valentine's day gift.

TTGAP

Yeah. It's the 4DE plush version of Trixie (aka Trixie Lulamoon, aka Trixie The Great and Powerful). I have a pattern to crochet one, but I never got it started, and this one was awfully nice (and available from Amazon).

I think the 4DEs are even nicer than the Auroras - more expensive, but the minky is nicer and softer, and they are more detailed.

And yeah, I know I once said that I thought of Trixie as the classic "mean girl" and therefore uninteresting but in the past couple seasons she's been transformed a bit, and one also gets the sense that maybe she's somewhat insecure, and that's why she acts out, and one feels  a bit sorry for her.

And yeah, I think that's the fundamental GOODNESS of Ponies: that some of the low-level "villain" characters are redeemed through the power of friendship/love: Gilda, and Starlight Glimmer, and Nightmare Moon (getting changed back to Luna), and Trixie, and I would even grant Discord, though I don't fully trust him still not to backslide.

And yeah. Starlight Glimmer. Who is apparently now Trixie's best friend:

Trixie and GlimGlam

That also allows a comparison of 4DE and Aurora (and GlimGlam is one of the ones with the dolly-hair, which is hard to keep neat). The other weird thing about the Aurora Starlight Glimmer is that her eyes are purple (like Twilight's eyes) but in the show they are blue. Either that was a mistake on Aurora's part or maybe the animators changed the color from an earlier model, I don't know.

Also, obligatory webcam shot to give a better idea of Trixie's size. (The hat and cape both take on and off, they aren't just sewn on).

And I see, checking my archives, buying myself a pony for valentine's day isn't totally without precedent.

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