Thursday 19 January 2012

FanstRAvaganza 3 - 2012 (Announcement)

 (Image created by the unimitable bccmee with her wonderful blog FanVideos.)



FanstRAvaganza is coming
from 12th - 18th of March, 2012.
Be prepared and watch out.



The following 'anchor blogs', including this one, with a wide range of further RA-bloggers will share in Fan-ExtRA-vagance around the actor Mr. Richard Armitage in March.

Anchor blogs of the event are:

Me + Richard  (by Servetus)

FanVideos (by bccmee)

RA Viewers Perspective  (by Mulubinba)

The Squeee!  (by Traxy)

RA Frenzy  (by Frenz)

The RA Fan Blog  (by Nat, the founder of the event)

Confessions of a Watcher (by Judiang)

CDoart  (by CDoart)

DistRActed Musings of One ReAlity (by Fanny/iz4blue)

Jonia's Cut (by Jonia)


Invitations go out right now to include all RA-bloggers and make this an open and collective fan-event. Should you like to participate and did not get an invitation (we most likely could not find your contact details, so please excuse that), please get in contact with Servetus (refgeek[at]gmail.com) at Me + RichardArmitage, who kindly will co-ordinate all participation.

A list of the articles of last year's event can be found here: FanstRAvaganza 2011

You can follow current events and the posts on a collective Facebook page: FanstRAvaganza

The related Twitter Hashtag is: #FanstRA


So have fun and enjoy a relaxed and wonderful FanstRAvaganza 3 !



Can you tell me, how I should possibly be able to select one announcement banner, when bccmee made such a wonderful variety?








I already think about further possibilities, how best I could use those banners as often as possible ;o)



Monday 9 January 2012

Fandom and What it Means to me


You will most likely have found the message, which has triggered the following blog post, much earlier than me.
Calexora is leaving RA-blogging.
She received just absolutely wonderful and encouraging comments and I want to add my encouragement, like
RAFrenzy already has done in a wonderful post.

But first of all, 
I want to thank Calexora for lovely to read and wonderfully enjoyable blog posts.



I found Calexora's blog posts lighthearted and full of humour. Not at all like an obsessed fan, thinking only with the one remaining 'grey cell' focused on the chosen idol. [Forgive me, I have watched too many Hercule Poirot films in my childhood ;o) ]

Someone who can laugh about himself is not obsessed. Obsession starts, where the humour ends. So in my view, Calexora never was in danger.
Though, I understand, that Calexora feels uncomfortable right now and needs to find her way again.
I am waiting for her to come back to bloggosphere again, in whatever form she decides to do so and am looking forward to her new writing ideas and blog.

Her decision also made me think about my own attitude towards fandom.

I know that I draw back from for me uncomfortable situations and if I cannot draw back, tend to get quite fierce about the things I think are right. So in case something goes too far for my comfort zone, you wont find me around, as it is better than the other option.
I for myself would have never watched the TV interview, which triggered Calexora's reaction to extreme fan-following. For one, I have no TV set, but still I could have found the show on the internet. For another, I am no fan of GB [I am, of the storage space, but not of the actor who is shortened here, as I am in general no fan material] and normally not that interested in finding out about actors. RA is the one exception, where I do read some information which is provided openly. But as soon as it goes into private details, I most likely bow out of being interested and far from searching for more. [Sorry, if you erroneously follow me to find some revealing news. Here I absolutely must disappoint you, as this will never come forward here on this blog.]

Fotunately, I am convinced, as RAFrenzy also writes, that RA does not read our blogs.
So I can continue to find out more about the one thing, which really motivates my blog. The healing, soothing and encouraging effect, RA strangely has on me, which helps me through life, encourages me to be brave, when I would like to draw back and to discover new things in and around me.
The general rule therefor here for me is, the blog is not so much about RA, but about what he does to me, what effect he has on me. In the end that somehow means, the blog is in some way about me [though I normally don't like to talk about me].

Is RA the catalyst, the method to reflect upon and cope with myself, as a kind of therapy and medicine or more in a way of engaging the 'grey cells' like Hercule Poirot would have done to train his mental abilities?


I must research some more about those aspekts of fandom.
For example, would I need to consult a doctor for RA as medicine ? The last medicine I got from my doctor had exactly the opposite effect as it should have and I got the illness the doctor tried to cure. Fortunately symptoms slowly fade by not taking the medicine any longer.
RA's effect in that case is much more healing and effective, so quite a medical remedy ;o)
Also RA's effect to encourage creativity of all kind is undenied, so a certain aspect of encouraging 'grey cell' activity is present as well.

Richard Armitage - Powerful Remedy and Inspiration