It's not easy to write a blog post about the passing of the actress who played the Greatest Princess of All Time.  Even more so because that role was, in some ways, the least of her accomplishments.  It's not like there won't be anything else written: undoubtedly there will be plenty of articles, memorials, and tributes published in every form of media.  But I'd be doing a disservice to myself as a woman and a nerd if I didn't say something.
      Carrie Fisher was a complicated woman.  Some people only know her as Princess Leia, and certainly that was I how knew her for the majority of my life.  I remember the first time I saw her in another film - a cameo as a group therapist in "Austin Powers" - I was actually shocked.  It wasn't just that Princess Leia was an iconic role, it was that she played it so completely, utterly convincingly.  Whether wearing cinnamon-bun hair-dos or strangling giant slugs in a bronze bikini, the character of Leia remained consistent: a fierce woman, both quick-thinking and quick to act, flexible to meet any scenario, and unafraid to do what needed to be done, but never losing her natural kindness.*

A rebel from the first moment she appeared on screen.

      This was a critical character at a critical time.  In the late 70's & early 80's, princesses were more sugar and less spice.  Disney Animated Studios had thus far only provided Snow White, Cinderella, & Sleeping Beauty.  Other sci-fi films of that era - such as Starcrash, Krull, & even the original Star Trek movie - had weak female roles at best, hyper-sexualized roles at worst.  Growing up, I craved female characters to whom I could relate.  Princess Leia was the whole package--she was a whole woman.  She helped me understand I didn't have to trade my power and independence to earn a man's respect or affection.

"Buck Rogers in the 25th Century" came out the year after "Return of the Jedi."  I'm pretty sure this image says it all.

      But Carrie Fisher was much more than an actress.  She was an outspoken advocate for mental health and addiction treatment.  She struggled with both, and as a psychotherapist I can say in many ways she was the poster child for triumphing over each--which, in the real world, means living with it every day, struggling to keep balance, and living a full life regardless.  She struggled with drugs and alcohol as early as her teens, and almost died from an overdose at age 31 before going into inpatient treatment.  This was complicated by the fact she also suffered from Bi-Polar disorder, a severe and often misunderstood mental illness that requires consistent care and medication to manage.

Nobody should be ashamed of having a mental illness.

      Many people would consider these things as shameful secrets.  As a psychotherapist who specializes in working with people struggling with co-occurring addiction and mental illness, I can tell you how devastating the combination can be, and how challenging and complex it can be to get proper care.  Both carry their own bias, and together they can make people feel utterly alienated.  ButCarrie Fisher used her own story as a way to help others.  In an interview with "People Magazine" in 2013 she said: "Well the only lesson for me, or for anybody, is that you have to get help."  With simple humility, she was living proof that asking for help is not an act of weakness, but a feat of remarkable strength.  I admire that about her most of all.
      She shared her talents as an entertainer.  She shared her real life as a means to inspire.  She was a woman who lived with her heart on display, and suffered all the slings and arrows that such public existence makes one heir to.  The payoff was that she has touched millions of lives.  And she will be missed.



*Frankly she would have made a kick-ass Jedi.  But if they had let that happen, she would have eclipsed every other character, and the last movie would have been called "Return of the Best Jedi Ever."

      With the snow well and truly in the foothills, my hiking spree comes to an end.  I hiked a total of fourteen different trails this year, totaling approximately 74 miles.  I've got one more lined up.  And if I get any reasonably dry weekends this winter, I'll probably try a few more.
      On my first hike of 2016 I picked up a nice, natural pole of maple off the side of the trail.  It's about four feet long, approximately 1.25 inches in diameter, and still pretty green.  This has served as my walking stick on every hike this year.  I'm pretty happy I've been taking it along.  I get a lot of positive comments, and it's nice to have this practical memento that's been with me literally every step of the way.
      I've seen a fair percentage of people on the trail using artificial hiking sticks, the kind that look like ski poles.  Apparently they're called "trekking poles," and some of them cost over $100 each.

That's a pretty high-tech stick ya got there.

      I don't see the appeal.  Even if someone got me one as a gift, I'm not sure I'd ever use it.  I'm rather fond of nature.  That being said, any hiking stick is better than none.  Here's my rational:

#1) They're free.

#2) Good hikes wear out the legs long before they wear out the arms; give your knees a little love and brace your steps with a hiking stick on the way down.

#3) You can pretend you're a wandering wizard!

#4) Use it to fend off over-enthusiastic wildlife, like hungry raccoons and aggressive squirrels.

No, seriously: people feed squirrels, and the squirrels start to expect it from everybody.  If you don't deliver, they WILL attack you!  I've seen this happen!

#5) In the summer months, the first one on the trail for that day WILL encounter numerous spider webs.  Unless you LIKE walking through those, use your hiking stick to take them down as you go!

#6) Perfect for testing the reliability of footing when fording streams or going through rocky patches.

#7) People who didn't bring a hiking stick will have major stick envy.  (I've actually had random people ask me for my hiking stick.  In the middle of the woods.  Surrounded by other sticks.)

#8) Unlike the store-bought ones, the supply, manufacture, and distribution of sticks on the side of the trail have zero carbon footprint!

Made in America!  In fact it's made right here!  Like, actually right here...it just...y'know...grew on this tree.

#9) When you're done with it, you can just throw it on the side of the trail, and you're not littering!

#10) Don't act like #3 doesn't apply to you, because it totally does, nerd.

Everybody wants a wizard staff.  You are no exception.

      I was perusing the newspapers online today, and found this excellent article from the New York Times explaining just what the heck is going on with the Electoral College.  More than any other time in my life - including the tension-strapped presidential election of 2000 - I hear people talking about the Electoral College this year.  Most of them are like me: they have a vague recollection of learning about it in high school, none of which made sense because they were either a) experiencing panic triggered by the very word "college," or b) snickering about the nonsensical pun "erect-oral college," depending on their maturity level on that given day.

I think I still have my old U.S. Gov text book around somewhere....

      Although I am increasingly politically active these days,* my first reaction to this article was actually: "Wow, that's complicated. You can't make this stuff up."
      Then I realized: yeah you can.  People do it all the time.  Any mature, imaginary world has a made-up system of government, including mine.
      Plenty of good novels never bother going into politics in any way, shape, or fashion.  But many others - from spy thrillers to science fiction epics - touch on it with a certain level of confidence.  The more unique the world, the more essential a well-planned system of government, even if it's never fully explained.  The Harry Potter books are a great example.  Then you get Game of Thrones, which is entirely based around the complex intricacies of politics and government.  Even the Chronicles of Narnia rely on a hefty, if simplistic concept.
      Pondering this leads me inevitably to Star Wars.**  I probably saw the original Star Wars trilogy as a toddler, when "Return of the Jedi" came out.  Which means I was enjoying the heck out of it long before I could grasp a lot of what was going on.  In fact - and it embarrasses me to admit this - it wasn't until Episode One that I actually understood all the political nuances of the original trilogy.  (It also embarrasses me that I saw Episode One at all, but how could we have known what we were in for!?!)  I remember thinking, "Oh, I get it now, there's a senate!  And the empire wanted it gone!  And THAT's how there can be a princess who's not related to the emperor!"
      Don't judge me.  Toddlers get interesting ideas and can hold on to them for a really, really long time.

Although frankly I don't have high hopes for the government when the senate floor literally looks like particles being sucked down a drain.

      In my early attempts at fantasy writing, I went for very basic monarchies as governments.  They were character driven, and I didn't have to think too hard about how they worked.  I'd like to say I've come far since then, but the truth is I still tend to lean towards simplistic governments.  When I do got for something more politically complex, I usually pull a George R.R. Martin and base them on history (although not nearly as intricately as he).  This is a challenge for me, to be honest.  I don't have a very scheming mind.  I suck at chess.  But if I have a mature story that calls for any reference to the government of my worlds, I try to have an outline, because I need to know what the heck is going on even if it never gets fully explained to the reader.
      I'd love to know what other writers - and readers - think about this.  When your story takes place in an imaginary place, do you think the politics are important?  Do they add to a story, or detract?  And how the heck do you keep them straight?



*Gettin' mah social justice on!  Woot!

**Incidentally, if you haven't seen Rogue One yet, go see it!  But re-watch the original Star Wars movie first; unless you have it memorized like me, you'll be glad of the refresher to get all the awesome bits and references.

      Everyone's got that Thanksgiving leftover that lingers...and lingers...and lingers.  For some it's the turkey: the first three sandwiches were good, but by the time you get to the fourth you are so ready to never eat poultry again.  For some it's the veggies, which always lose some luster upon re-heating.  But more often than not, it's whichever dish turned out - shall we say - less than optimal.

This is a yam.  But most people in the U.S. call it a Sweet Potato.  Real sweet potatoes have a more dusty brown outside, and a creamy white inside, and taste a little less sweet.  I love real sweet potatoes.  But they don't make good Sweet Potato Casserole, or bread, or pancakes, so...yeah.  Stick with these.

      For one of my friends this year, that was the sweet potato casserole.  He didn't drain the sweet potatoes quite enough, so the casserole wound up rather runny.  The flavor was good, but the texture was kind of like baby food, and the topping didn't crisp.  Hence a half a pan of casserole sitting in the fridge for a week straight.
      I said, "Turn it into something else."
      He said, "Like what?"
      I said, "I dunno, like quick bread, or muffins."
      He said, "That's baking.  I don't bake, I cook."
      He gave me 1 & 1/2 Cups leftover sweet potato casserole the moment I got home.  It was a dare, a thrown gauntlet to my kitchen know-how.  I divided it into two portions, and made two things.  I got the pancakes, he got the bread.  I delivered it to his office, and ten minutes later I got a text saying: "DAMN, that's good bread!!!"
      Two hours later, another co-worker said, "That was good bread, by the way."
      Another hour after that, yet another co-worker said, "Hey, that was some gooood bread!"
      Z.D.: 1, Leftovers: 0.  So here you go:

Leftover Sweet Potato Casserole Bread
Ingredients:

• ½ Cup granulated sugar
• ½ Cup packed brown sugar 
• 1/3 Cup unsweetened real cranberry juice (NOT cranberry cocktail)*
• 1/3 Cup shortening
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 Cup leftover sweet potato casserole
• 1 & 1/4 Cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 & ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp ground cardamom

• 1/2 Cup leftover sweet potato casserole
• 1 large egg 
• 1 Cup buttermilk (scant)
• 1 Cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda