Apr 21, 2009

BEDA Buddy Episode 2 - Meet Cassandra

Maureen Johnson is 2 for 2. Tonight I want to introduce (drum role...) Cassandra, another gal pal in our BEDA 2.0 chick-posse.

So, now that I have had a virtual bowl of chili with Rafia in Texas while watching vintage episodes of Wonder Woman, I am going to go to some nerd's house and play Dungeons and Dragons with Cassandra. Here we are below as "Specialist Wizards" (original artist Emily Fiegenschuh).


Man, we are two, too hot sorceresses! I think the strange thing between us is the guy whose D&D party we are crashing and the guy behind us tried to tell us that D&D, Fantasy Fiction, and reading is for losers.

So, Cassandra and I love Fantasy Fic. We really love YA Fantasy. I love Cassandra because she actually used the phrase "speculative fiction" in her BEDA Buddy classified add. When someone does this, I know they possess very strong Magik indeed.

We have another very interesting thing in common. We both had a thing for X files. In one of Cassandra's blog entries (which is at http://phoenixrune.livejournal.com/GO FOLLOW NOW!), she has this awesome entry on X files and railroad spikes. (note to educators and LMS's --PhoenixRune's entry on X files is THE quintessential example of how true free inquiry based learning should happen!).

Well, B'B, I have a X files story for you. It has become and always will be a favorite family story.

Back in the mid to late 90's I was pretty much obsessed with X-files. I would put my daughter (who is now 16) to bed and then run back to the family room to switch on X-files.

One night, she couldn't sleep and came out to sit with me on the couch. I wasn't paying attention to the show much (probably writing a paper or something) and my daughter was traumatized by what is now called the "Popsicle" scene. In this episode, a lady takes her daughter and her little girl's scary doll to the grocery story. Everyone in the store starts mutilating themselves. Back in the frozen food isle, a worker stabs himself in the eye with a Popsicle, INSIDE the freezer case.

About the time my daughter witnessed this, I realized what was going on, turned off the TV, and put my daughter to bed again. A few minutes later, she was crying because she was scared. I told her that after I turned the TV back on, the guy pulled a joke Popsicle out of his eye and said in a funny voice "Just Kidding!" Yeah, it was lame and she didn't believe me, and she was only 5 years old." When she was 14, she admitted to me that from that night on, anytime she heard the X-files opening music, she would hide under her covers. And man, I watched that show forever! Bad, bad parenting...

I remembered at the time that I thought this episode was a bit scary and horrific even for X-files. After doing some research tonight, I discovered that Stephen King actually wrote this episode! No wonder... I couldn't find the Popsicle scene, but here is the trailer. The episode title is Chinga:



The good news is that my daughter seems to be OK and has not suffered long term trauma. She does like to give me a hard time about it still. It is a source of great pleasure for her :).

So, I am thinking that Cassandra and I will get along just fine in our virtual fantasy world. If you Tweet, follow her at @PhoenixRune.

Tomorrow, last but not least...

5 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness, that episode must have been so terrifying that I BLOCKED IT FROM MEMORY... I watched every episode until they got rid of Mulder and Scully and I just can't remember that one. I know what I will be watching after the sun is up!

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  2. Maureen, you are awsome! I love the story. I have things like that I hold over my mom's head. For example, my mom thought it would be okay to let me watch Poltergeist when I was four years old, and let me just say, I have truly NEVER been the same since. I was scared for two years. Literally, I would not leave a room unless someone came with me. My sister hid pictures of Casper the Friendly ghost around the house so I would see them and not be scared. Frankly she only did it because she was tired of accompanying me to the bathroom. However, I have grown up to be extremely, almost strangly obsessed with Halloween, scary movies, and all things Buffy the Vampire Slayer. So maybe instead of tormenting my mom for damaging my psyche as a child, I should be thanking her for making me the strange human I am today!

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  3. Karson,

    I also had an experience as a youngster but with the Exorcist! The original, not the poopy remake. My older bro and sis teased me about being too scared to watch it on TV. I was 7 years old! I slept with my mom forever and was terrified of being possessed until I was out of high school. I also had a love for horror movies at the same time. Interesting...

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  4. hee. There was an episode of the X-files with a MOST UNFORTUNATE escalator incident that I still prefer not to think of.

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  5. WOAH, I guess everyone gets scarred for life by movies... mine was ALIENS. You would not BELIEVE the hollering my mom gave my dad for that one.

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