Health update

No diagnosis yet, of course, but I did have the lumbar puncture done and it was not the hellish experience I was expecting.  I did have to lie on my stomach, which was difficult because I have a large chest.  If any of you ladies out there have large bosooms then you know what it's like to try lying on your stomach.  I call my breasts "Patty" and "Selma," LOL.  Back on topic, my hips kept spazzing out and moving in positions that they are not supposed to, which is bad because you've gotta hold still for a lumbar puncture.  A lot of praying and squirming later, I was able to hold still.  As to the procedure itself, the worst part was the lidocaine shot, and even that wasn't all that bad.  The actual puncture was...oh, it was a bizarre feeling, kinda like someone very gently rubbed my spinal cord with a fingertip, and even then only for a second.  Very difficult to explain, but nowhere near the horror stories I'd read and heard.  The worst part of the whole trip was when Uncle Man-Child cut off a utility truck at a red light.  Yeah, we nearly got T-boned, on MY side of the car.  Mama and I would've taken the brunt of it had that truck hit us.

I kid y'all not though, the Lord is good.  He got me through the lumbar puncture and got my family home and safe, and He didn't smack me down when I cussed a blue streak after the cats made a huge mess in our bedroom.  Seriously, I'm ashamed of some of the things I said during that blue streak, and I later learned that it was all over a stupid horsefly.  Tommy and Adric are my bug-chasers (Tommy brought me a live cockroach once), and I figure this time Jethro was in on it too.  They did NOT catch the horsefly, but they scattered my dolls from hell to breakfast and I had to pick all that mess up.  I was not happy, but that doesn't justify a blue streak.  Still, I'm grateful to the Lord and to my mama, who was by my side for most of it all.  Heck, I didn't even have any side effects!  Not yet, anyway.  The nurses told me to take it easy for a couple'a days, so I'm going to do just that.

To keep this from being a completely dull, pictureless post, here's Joyita Emilia, sitting atop the box that my cats upset yesterday.

Mama thought that Joyita Emilia belonged to one of my friends!  Indeed, I do have friends on Failbook who have Cabbies of their own, and one friend in particular who has a large selection of Jesmar Kids (said friend lives in Spain).  But no, Joyita Emilia is mine!  I took the picture this morning, after Mama left the room.

So...uh...there, I guess???  Now y'all know what a lumbar puncture can be like.  CAN, mind y'all; one of my Failbook friends had a horrible experience, so if y'all have to have it done make sure your technician knows what they're doing.  Mine was...oh, I'd say she's my age, maybe a little younger, and she was slick as a ribbon.  So just know that if you're facing such a procedure, it has the potential to be no big deal.  Keep still, don't be afraid, and if you're of faith, pray.  As to the results...well, it may be a week or two before I know, depending on what test they run.  But I'll let y'all know as soon as I find out.  

Cheers,
RagingMoon1987

I finally heard from the doctor

Yep, heard from him this morning, and it's scary.  The MRI showed lesions on my spinal cord, so now I have to have a lumbar puncture done.  The doctor suspects multiple sclerosis, which Mama and I were both kinda suspecting as well.  It goes without saying that I am terrified, both of the puncture and of a future being disabled.  My gynecologist wanted me to go on disability, and that might mean quitting work.  I DO NOT WANT TO QUIT!!!  And if it's MS then that means my mobility isn't going to get better.  Remember that my gynecologist won't do my hysterectomy until my mobility gets better.  So right now I'm screwed in that respect.  Sigh...it's a lot to take in right now.

Life COULD be worse, though.  My Mama's ex-student is still paralyzed from the neck down, and he's having horrendous spasms.  My friend from the library still has bone cancer.  It's stable and she's doing well right now, but I don't think it's curable.  So I could be them and I'm not, and I'm grateful for that.  Oh, and meet Jethro.  Cat #7, named after Jethro Tull.

Jethro came traipsing up to us in the library parking lot on October 5th.  The little snot jumped into the car with us, and he's been terrorizing our house ever since.  Seriously, he's a little hellion.  He thinks EVERYTHING is a toy, even the flyswatter.  He gets along relatively well with Tommy, Chessie, and Adric, while Callie, Lily, and Bobbie hate his guts.  Bobbie REALLY hates Jethro, which is out of character for her.

Then the next day was Mama's and my birthday.  We had a chocolate cake and I got some books and a Frogg Toggs poncho (I'd been wanting one).  I also received this doll, representing Thailand's Akha people.  She's a beauty!

Since I'm here now, I may as well update dolly news.  Treesa sent me a couple'a boxes for birthday/Halloween.  The smaller box contained this little cutie, a mini Kooky Spooky Kitty, from Build-a-Bear's Li'l Furry Friends line.

There were Cabbage Patch Kids bloomers, always welcome. 

There was a tiny baby, and I mean TINY!  He will likely live in my dollhouse, when and if I get that done.

The last item in that box was a Real Littles box...

...and what was in it?  Oh sweet Lord, a frozen strawberry rhubarb streusel pie!  I haven't had strawberry rhubarb pie since I was a little kid!

Here's the Shopkin that was hiding inside.  I'm so glad Shopkins aren't 100% gone, 'cause I thought the little goomers were cute!  This is Stella Streusel Pie, by the way, from the frozen pies category. 

Very nice!  I've learned from a very reputable source that these little minis can also fill out a dollhouse nicely, so Stella is appreciated.  

The other box contained another friend for the dollhouse, a little clothespin doll.  Again, I haven't seen one of these since heck was a pup.

This large rag doll is about the size of a Cabbage Patch Kid and will need a dress.  Her tag says "Friends 2B Made," and Treesa says that Build-a-Bear once offered these.  She's cute!  And freckles, baby!  Treesa named her "Cassie/Cass," and I'll stick with that.  I'll pretend that she's a singer, like Cass Elliot.

Cass would've been the star of the show, were it not for this young lady, an example of whom I was considering buying and now don't need to.

Bead Blast Barbie!  The brunette, no less!  Treesa even sent her tools and instructions!  LOL, somehow I knew this box would have a Barbie in it, and Treesa jovially warned me that receiving this particular doll was my own fault.  Oh well, these are consequences that I'll happily live with.  Seriously, I was browsing eBay for this doll, waiting for pay day.  Anywho, Bead Blast will love being reunited with that blonde ponytail Barbie.  Ponytail Barbie sends her love, Treesa, as do I.  Thank you for another lovely gift!

Last but not least, here's a few owner pics of Illusion Barbie, like I promised.  Mama loves the snot out of her...and admittedly, so do I.

Here's a closeup of her pretty face.  She's got the Mackie sculpt, as I've pointed out multiple times. 

Here's the shoes.  They're plain black pumps in the mold that all Barbie shoes once came in, just like Barb said they'd be.

Oh well, her skirt will hide 'em.  LOL, if I were the one in that ballgown, I'd be hiding combat boots and fishnet stockings!  I grew out of a desire for high heels around the age of 22, when I had to walk everywhere at college.  Okay, I didn't have to.  I chose to.  I loved to walk.

Sigh...will I ever walk unassisted again?  Deep breath, Moon...focus on the positives.  Focus on Jesus, on Mama, on the phone call my sister says she's gonna give, on Jethro, on the new dolls.  It's gonna be okay.  It's gonna be okay.

All of my love,

RagingMoon1987 

Dolls I want but don't need: Barbie's upper tiers

If you've read this blog enuff then you likely know that not all Barbie dolls are the same.  There's your playline dolls, toys meant for kids and kids at heart, and then there's your collector dolls, items meant for the pleasure of teens and adults.  Today is for the collector dolls, the ones that have set my heart a-flame-a at various times in my life.

MASQUERADE GALA ILLUSION BARBIE
DESIGNER:  Robert Best
YEAR OF RELEASE:  1998

No, still no owner pics yet.  If I don't hear from the doctor by closing time on my birthday, her post is going up.

WATER RHAPSODY BARBIE
DESIGNER:  Not listed
YEAR OF RELEASE:  1998

Water Rhapsody was a dream come true for my ten-year-old self.  She was dressed in blue velvet with pearls, and she had the Mackie head, which for me was perfection.  I wonder what her shoes look like?  I wonder that for just about all of the dolls in this post, as most of 'em are wearing long dresses that conceal their shoes.

THE FABERGE TRIO
From left, these are Imperial Elegance, Imperial Splendor, and Imperial Grace.
DESIGNER:  Robert Best
YEARS OF RELEASE:  1997, 2000, and 2001

I credit these three with inspiring my love for the Faberge eggs, as all three of them are based on one or more of the bejeweled Easter eggs.  Splendor is based on the Imperial Spring Flowers Egg, which doesn't appear on Mieks's list and may not be a true Faberge egg.  Grace and Elegance appear to be based on the eggs in general, and all three carry egg-shaped handbags that have little Swarovski crystals concealed inside.  This too is a nod towards the Faberge eggs, many of which have smaller trinkets concealed within.  These girls are porcelain, by the way, just like Charleston and Tango are from yesterday.

MILLENNIUM BRIDE BARBIE
DESIGNER:  Guess who?  Robert Best!
YEAR OF RELEASE:  1999

This one is my favorite example of dolly hubris, as when she was available she cost over a thousand bucks, and it was predicted that only a fraction of collectors would get their hands on her.  Now it's possible to get her, in-box with her papers, for between one and two hundred dollars.  That's still more than I want to pay for a Barbie, but it isn't a grand and some change like the original catalog wanted.  Millennium Bride is a feast for the eyes though, with all that sparkle and beading.

MAIKO BARBIE
DESIGNER:  Katiana Jimenez
YEAR OF RELEASE:  Late 2005

It's hard to see in a low-res stock image, but this Barbie is a knockout.  Memoirs of a Geisha was a thing right around this time, and I...I had never even heard of geisha, so I was intrigued.  I ended up learning a lot about the history of geisha and oiran, and about what they're like now.  Geisha no longer have to auction off their virginity, for example, and modern-day geisha often have a lot of trouble with foreign tourists wanting pictures.  Seriously, the harassment got so bad in parts of Kyoto that authorities had to put up signs warning visitors to leave any geisha they saw alone.  Geisha are humans too, after all!  They're pretty, but they're humans.  Anyway, this Barbie is one that I had a hard time not begging Mama for, as she was expensive and we had bigger fish to fry in 2005.  But she's still a favorite, with her pretty face and all those details in that outfit

TARINA TARANTINO BARBIE
DESIGNERS:  Bill Greening and Tarina Tarantino

YEAR OF RELEASE:  2008

C'mon, y'all knew there'd be a Steffie in the mix!  That, plus the doll's pink hair and cute green dress, were what sold this one for me.  I didn't know until last Friday that Tarina Tarantino has pink hair herself, LOL!  I also liked the innocence of this one, compared to the other dolls in the catalog with their saucy expressions and somewhat vampy clothes.

ELTON JOHN BARBIE
DESIGNER:  Caroline DeMersseman; Sir Elton John also contributed 

YEAR OF RELEASE:  2020

As with Tarina Tarantino this one is kinda predictable, as I'm an avowed Elton John fan.  I thought I read somewhere that Sir Elt liked dolls, but that may have been my sixteen-year-old self stepping out of the past and hoping that she and her idol had something in common.  My sixteen-year-old self wore platform shoes like Elton John did, even though she was already five-foot-eight, LOL.  My sister and I agree that those shoes may be part of the reason why I'm crippled now.  Anyway, I love just about everything about this doll, though I kinda wish she had red hair and brown eyes, like Elton himself does.  Oh well, she's BARBIE, and Barbie is almost always a blue-eyed blonde.  I freaking love this doll.

TOKIDOKI BARBIE

DESIGNER:  Simone Legno
YEAR OF RELEASE:  2011

2011 was already crazy enuff without Barbie making a stir, but she managed to do it anyway with that full sleeve tattoo.  I thought she was cute, particularly with her pink bob.  It isn't every day that Barbie has short hair, and it looks particularly becoming on the Steffie head.  Since Tokidoki and Tarina Tarantino are both Steffie heads with pink hair I pretend that they're sisters, the stereotypical punk/girly pair.

PERUVIAN BARBIE, SECOND EDITION
DESIGNER:  Not listed

YEAR OF RELEASE:  1998-1999

There really wasn't a loser in the Dolls of the World bunch, but of them all the second edition of Peruvian Barbie has always been my favorite.  She pairs the Kira head with a lovely outfit, and I've always been a fan of the combo.

PINK IN PANTONE BARBIE
DESIGNER:  Linda Kyaw

YEAR OF RELEASE:  2011

Oh, I loved how clever this one was!  I always loved those little paint swatch cards, but it never occurred to me that they could be used as an inspiration for a dress, let alone be part of the dress.  Since this doll is on the Model Muse body the asymmetrical dress looks particularly flattering.  I just like this doll...except for the bow on her chest.  I'd have put that in her hair, LOL.  But I adored the originality of this one.  She's wearing her signature pink, but in a whole new way.

DIA DE LOS MUERTOS BARBIE
DESIGNER:  Javier Meabe

YEAR OF RELEASE:  2019

I'm so glad Mattel has made this a yearly thing!  This year's Ken is to die for.  But so far my favorite one has been the debut doll, from 2019.  She's about as Day of the Dead as they come, with nothing Barbie-fied or anything.  Oh, and she's got a gorgeous face.  The others are pretty awesome too, though.

Oh sure, I could probably add some more, but I think thirteen is a good place to stop.  These are the ones that immediately came to mind anyway, so they're the most memorable.

Love,
RagingMoon1987

Dolls I want but don't need: the Mackie edition

Treesa wisely suggested that I do a post about either my favorite Mackie Barbies or my favorite collector-level Barbies.  Either/or, right?  Well, it's been a long time since I posted anything worth reading, my MRI results STILL aren't in yet, and all I really need to do for a post like this is nick a few stock images.  So here we are, in no particular order, my favorite Bob Mackie Barbies.

NEPTUNE FANTASY, 1992

This is the first collector doll that I died and went to Heaven over, because...well, she's wearing teal!  I also went wild over all those beads, since my dad did beadwork (I later learned, LOL).  I can remember a time when this doll cost nearly a thousand bucks, but nowadays...well, they're still pricey, but one can find a nice in-box example for significantly LESS than a thousand bucks.

THE CHARLESTON, 2001

From the halcyon days before 9/11 (seriously, that year had been awesome up 'til then) comes the Charleston, who inspired my love for flapper dolls.  The Charleston is a porcelain doll, something I didn't oft like because porcelain Barbie dolls are more figurines than they are dolls, but this one looks like she's actually moving rather than just holding a pose.

THE TANGO, 1999

This one actually came out BEFORE the Charleston!  But the Charleston is the one I remember best, and then after I'm through thinking about her I go "Oh yeah, the Tango was gorgeous too!"  As with Neptune Fantasy, I love the colors and the beadwork, but dang, I wish those awesome shoes came off!  One of my dolls could steal 'em!  The Tango is porcelain like the Charleston is, and both belonged to a collection of dance-themed dolls that Mr. Mackie designed.  To my considerable disappointment they were the only dolls in the collection!  No ballet, no waltz, no cha-cha, kinda a bummer, but the two that collectors did get are epic.

BRUNETTE BRILLIANCE, 2002

Mama was looking over my shoulder when I put this post together, and she liked this one a lot.  I like her too; she looks...welllll...she kinda looks like Mama did when she was young!  Mama never wore her hair like Brunette Brilliance does, but the overall look is there.  The hairdo also reminds me of Liza Minnelli, if any of y'all like her.

MOON GODDESS, 1996

Barbie?  Lots of beads?  A blue dress?  The moon?  Yes, please!  This one has a sister, Goddess of the Sun, but I've always loved the moon.

FANTASY GODDESS OF THE ARCTIC, 2001

I think this one is my favorite of the Goddesses.  She predates Queen Elsa by a country mile!  That open-front dress looks kinda cold, though.  Maybe the Goddess is like Elsa, and the cold doesn't bother her anyway.  But despite my hatred of winter I love winter-themed dolls.

QUEEN OF HEARTS, 1994

This one is another that Mama liked a lot, and surprise, surprise, she's got dark hair like Mama once did!  I like that eye-catching shade of red, meself.  She's just a pretty doll.

HONORABLE MENTION:  BEAD BLAST BARBIE, 1997

Bob Mackie did NOT design Bead Blast Barbie, but she does utilize the Mackie sculpt so I'm giving her an honorable mention.  I love Bead Blast Barbie, with her colorful clothes, her long, lush hair, her kid-friendly gimmick, and of course, that soft, closed smile.  

Y'all may have noticed that I omitted Illusion Barbie, and it turns out that she was NOT designed by Bob Mackie, but by another of Mattel's brilliant designers, Robert Best.  Like Bead Blast Barbie, she utilizes the Mackie sculpt, and she'll appear on the list of my favorite collector dolls...or sooner, if the doctor calls today (which I doubt).

All my love,
RagingMoon1987