Originally posted by SWMBOTGSG
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I am so with you on this one. (Rant in spoilers so folk can avoid.)
Mumsey - not bovvered what others think!
Spoiler:
My sister has never been able to come to terms with fandom of any kind. Our mother was a Mario Lanza fan who helped to run his fan club. Remember, this was in the days before the internet, but she had pen-pals all over the world. She had rhumatoid arthritis and was housebound most of the time. That club was her escape, and kept her 'alive'. She was very aware that her obsession would not be appreciated by her family, and kept her activities with it to the day time, and ran her house as best she could given her disabilities. I personally never suffered through this, and was pleased that she had this diversion to help her through the years of pain she bore. My sister, who is 8 years my senior, never complained to me, but I don't know if she felt in any way deprived.
She is learning to live with my obsession with Stargate and RDA. I know she doesn't like the time taken up with GABIT, and I am aware that she does resent it. I am getting very strong vibes from her about my forthcoming sojourn to Canada in August. Three weeks on the other side of the Atlantic is going to be quite a trial for her. I try not to feel guilty, but it's hard. I have my life to live. She still has her husband - mine was lost to me four years ago. Gatecon is going to be hard. He loved going to Vancouver and joining in the con. He would have loved being involved in GABIT.
My point, in this lengthy rant, is that some folks have a very narrow view of what it is to really get involved in something - anything. My sister has never (in her adult life) been 'into' anything (although as a teenager she would follow Doris Day's fashions and hairstyles very closely, being a natural platinum blonde). Her life has revolved around work and her husband (they have no kids - their choice). Holidays were always spent in very few venues in the UK. In retirement, she spends a lot of time in her garden and on her hobbies of photography and painting. I, and my kids, are all she has as a family, and she has very few friends. The internet terrifies her and she won't have anything to do with it. (Our Mum would have LOVED it!) She is tied to her way of life and I am 'out there' giving it all I can and living it all I can, and trying very hard not to feel guilty about it. (And succeeding to a degree!)
She is learning to live with my obsession with Stargate and RDA. I know she doesn't like the time taken up with GABIT, and I am aware that she does resent it. I am getting very strong vibes from her about my forthcoming sojourn to Canada in August. Three weeks on the other side of the Atlantic is going to be quite a trial for her. I try not to feel guilty, but it's hard. I have my life to live. She still has her husband - mine was lost to me four years ago. Gatecon is going to be hard. He loved going to Vancouver and joining in the con. He would have loved being involved in GABIT.
My point, in this lengthy rant, is that some folks have a very narrow view of what it is to really get involved in something - anything. My sister has never (in her adult life) been 'into' anything (although as a teenager she would follow Doris Day's fashions and hairstyles very closely, being a natural platinum blonde). Her life has revolved around work and her husband (they have no kids - their choice). Holidays were always spent in very few venues in the UK. In retirement, she spends a lot of time in her garden and on her hobbies of photography and painting. I, and my kids, are all she has as a family, and she has very few friends. The internet terrifies her and she won't have anything to do with it. (Our Mum would have LOVED it!) She is tied to her way of life and I am 'out there' giving it all I can and living it all I can, and trying very hard not to feel guilty about it. (And succeeding to a degree!)
Mumsey - not bovvered what others think!
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