Came across Wil Wheaton’s Instagram post about the anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation and the impact that show had on his life. (His story is quite a tale, BTW.) I remember when TNG was announced and the most prevalent thing I heard was the complaint that it wasn’t the same as the original series. <Sigh>

TNG was the first real foray into other areas of the Star Trek Universe and it opened up a lot of doors for additional shows and movies. Personally, having lived for decades between any Star Trek show, I welcomed it back with joy. There are many aspects to the franchise that I enjoy – much to the frustration of the group who seem to have to have something to complain about.

One thing that has slowly (very slowly) become clearer and a bit more understood in my corner of the universe is the world of cosplay. Truthfully, I had no understanding of the whys and hows of this phenomenon. Thanks to some gifted folks who share their love of history, fiction, and vintage (all in various combinations), I’m starting to get an understanding and appreciation of the effort to create a character or re-create a version of a character in homage to the original work.

In its own way, it is Time Travel on a vastly different stage.

Diana Gabaldon posted a <cough> ‘snippet’ on her Facebook page that (as is usually the case with her gifts) brought out the wistful, will-you-just-hurry-up-and-finish-the-thing! in me. It is bad enough her books take at least 2 years to complete, but when there are additional delays and not much else to fill in the gaps, the wait becomes interminable.

Speaking of books, Audible has expanded the membership extras to include unlimited free works in addition to the monthly credits. I’ve been indulging in some vintage Ellery Queen. Part of the free listings include podcasts. Something I’ve been tempted to try out, but so far haven’t quite gotten organized enough to indulge in.

Heading into October has brought a reminder that the year is actually slowly coming to a close. Imagine that!

As I worked on my new calendar today, I thought about all the things that we used to do without thinking. Things used to be so much less complicated. A few years back, for example, giving food gifts was a no brainer. Now, with food allergies and health issues lots of options are (forgive me) taken off the table.

Allergies have created havoc across the spectrum. I had one friend who was deathly allergic to perfumes. For her, a short elevator ride could be hazardous – this was back in the day when some folks apparently either poured the scent bottle over their heads or filled a tub with it. Thankfully, I haven’t encountered that phenomenon much in the past few years.

I think back to the year 1999 and the trepidation as we headed off to January 1, 2000. Would the world come to and end? How would things be once the clock/calendar flipped?

Who would have thought that 2020 would be the year that we literally started looking back (hindsight) at what we used to do and begin the process of rethinking what we thought we knew?

I think this has been especially difficult for folks who tend to live their lives on automatic pilot.

One thing seems to be certain, as we move forward in our lives, we find ourselves encountering change, growth, experience, understanding along with a host of other issues. How we maneuver through them and if we choose to embrace them or not is an indicator as to how well we will survive life’s journey.

Like Wil’s Star Trek journey with his ST Family and the Time Travelers that look at cosplay, history and such, the journeys are complicated, simple, profound and interesting.