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“My friend told me a story he hadn’t told anyone for years. When he used to tell it years ago people would laugh and say, ‘Who’d believe that? How can that be true? That’s daft.’ So he didn’t tell it again for ages. But for some reason, last night, he knew it would be just the kind of story I would love.
When he was a kid, he said, they didn’t use the word autism, they just said ‘shy’, or ‘isn’t very good at being around strangers or lots of people.’ But that’s what he was, and is, and he doesn’t mind telling anyone. It’s just a matter of fact with him, and sometimes it makes him sound a little and act different, but that’s okay.
Anyway, when he was a kid it was the middle of the 1980s and they were still saying ‘shy’ or ‘withdrawn’ rather than ‘autistic’. He went to London with his mother to see a special screening of a new film he really loved. He must have won a competition or something, I think. Some of the details he can’t quite remember, but he thinks it must have been London they went to, and the film…! Well, the film is one of my all-time favourites, too. It’s a dark, mysterious fantasy movie. Every single frame is crammed with puppets and goblins. There are silly songs and a goblin king who wears clingy silver tights and who kidnaps a baby and this is what kickstarts the whole adventure.
It was ‘Labyrinth’, of course, and the star was David Bowie, and he was there to meet the children who had come to see this special screening.
‘I met David Bowie once,’ was the thing that my friend said, that caught my attention.
‘You did? When was this?’ I was amazed, and surprised, too, at the casual way he brought this revelation out. Almost anyone else I know would have told the tale a million times already.
He seemed surprised I would want to know, and he told me the whole thing, all out of order, and I eked the details out of him.
He told the story as if it was he’d been on an adventure back then, and he wasn’t quite allowed to tell the story. Like there was a pact, or a magic spell surrounding it. As if something profound and peculiar would occur if he broke the confidence.
It was thirty years ago and all us kids who’d loved Labyrinth then, and who still love it now, are all middle-aged. Saddest of all, the Goblin King is dead. Does the magic still exist?
I asked him what happened on his adventure.
‘I was withdrawn, more withdrawn than the other kids. We all got a signed poster. Because I was so shy, they put me in a separate room, to one side, and so I got to meet him alone. He’d heard I was shy and it was his idea. He spent thirty minutes with me.
‘He gave me this mask. This one. Look.
‘He said: ‘This is an invisible mask, you see?
‘He took it off his own face and looked around like he was scared and uncomfortable all of a sudden. He passed me his invisible mask. ‘Put it on,’ he told me. ‘It’s magic.’
‘And so I did.
‘Then he told me, ‘I always feel afraid, just the same as you. But I wear this mask every single day. And it doesn’t take the fear away, but it makes it feel a bit better. I feel brave enough then to face the whole world and all the people. And now you will, too.
‘I sat there in his magic mask, looking through the eyes at David Bowie and it was true, I did feel better.
‘Then I watched as he made another magic mask. He spun it out of thin air, out of nothing at all. He finished it and smiled and then he put it on. And he looked so relieved and pleased. He smiled at me.
‘'Now we’ve both got invisible masks. We can both see through them perfectly well and no one would know we’re even wearing them,’ he said.
‘So, I felt incredibly comfortable. It was the first time I felt safe in my whole life.
‘It was magic. He was a wizard. He was a goblin king, grinning at me.
‘I still keep the mask, of course. This is it, now. Look.’
I kept asking my friend questions, amazed by his story. I loved it and wanted all the details. How many other kids? Did they have puppets from the film there, as well? What was David Bowie wearing? I imagined him in his lilac suit from Live Aid. Or maybe he was dressed as the Goblin King in lacy ruffles and cobwebs and glitter.
What was the last thing he said to you, when you had to say goodbye?
‘David Bowie said, ‘I’m always afraid as well. But this is how you can feel brave in the world.’ And then it was over. I’ve never forgotten it. And years later I cried when I heard he had passed.’
My friend was surprised I was delighted by this tale.
‘The normal reaction is: that’s just a stupid story. Fancy believing in an invisible mask.’
But I do. I really believe in it.
And it’s the best story I’ve heard all year.”—Paul Magrs (via
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(via geekerypeekery)
It’s a fantastic story – nothing but what I’d expect from Mr. Bowie. And also for those who have read Nameless it will ring very familiar :)
(via goodstuffhappenedtoday)
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elphabaforpresidentofgallifrey:
*does laundry but like in a punk way*
*does laundry but in a musical theatre way*
*does musical theatre but in a punk way*
*does punk but in a musical theatre way*
*does musical theater but in a laundry way*
this is my favorite post
i can’t not re blog this
(via popculturebrain)
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What’s the best piece of love or sex advice your grandma ever gave you?
Sometimes the best relationship advice comes from those with the most experience — and who has seen more than our grandmothers? If yours imparted a memorable or indispensable piece of wisdom about love, please feel free to leave it below! Thanks everyone!
Note: Please leave answers here and NOT in our inbox.
I’ve learned a lot in my 90 years and I’ve changed my mind about a lot of things. I don’t care if you and your boyfriend ever get married or just live together. You are just a great couple and I want you to be happy.
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Winners of The Great Tumblr Book Search (The Third One)
The results of the third Great Tumblr Book Search are in, and we have our winners! Competition was fierce, with more entries than ever before, but here are the entries in each category that grabbed the editors’ attention:
Art
Winner: Since 2013, The Best Costume for the Day (@costumefortheday) has been documenting with watercolor sketches the thoughtful components of the author’s outfits. Inspired by the sustainable fashion movement, The Uniform Project, and Grey Gardens, this “anti-fashion” blog features “actual worn clothing with stains and holes,” charmingly presented.
Runner-up: Finn Lee (lostboyartwork) has illustrated one of Yoko Ono’s tweets every day for a year. A noted visual artist, Ono is also a master of the medium of Twitter—alternately inspiring and challenging—and these detailed, emotionally evocative drawings do her words justice.
Food + Drink
Winner: TF: Journaling and Journeying (tplusf) is a beautifully photographed collection of recipes that are so well documented that they could even tell the story of their making with images alone. The author happens to be a psychiatry resident who is interested in exploring the concept of “baking therapy.”
Runner-up: Sssalt and Pepepper: The Art of Speaking and Cooking Boldly (terminatetorkitchen) is an entry from a 19-year-old self-proclaimed “food blogger, homemade chef, wannabe author, satirical writer, lover of food and a person who stutters.” The blog has a Southern Gothic style and a big concept—blend together the story of the strides he has made in the kitchen with the experience navigating his challenges with speech.
Humor
Winner: You’d think that the name of this blog by Luke Burns and James Folta would be most of the joke, but The Encyclopedia of Hypothetical Police Procedurals (hypotheticalpoliceprocedurals) more than fulfills its promise. Take CopCop, the story of Alex Steadman, an “ordinary beat cop, until a horrifying clerical accident led to him being entered into the police department’s employee database twice.” Sample tagline? “Part Cop. Part Cop. All Cop.” And this vast database even includes scripts!
Runner-up: Joey X’s Daily Dose (joeyx) proposes a rock-and-roll take on a page-a-day calendar and “lighthearted approach at the standard almanac with compelling quotes, ill-advised tattoos, suggested soundtrack, screenings, photos dug out of the darker corners of the Internet.”
We had such fun seeing your creative Tumblr blogs! Congratulations to the winners and to everyone who submitted their art, jokes, photos, and other amazing ideas.
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The 39 most important feminist moments in 2014
In 1998, TIME Magazine declared feminism dead. Nearly 15 years later, it wondered if instead, perhaps feminism should be banned. Constantly on attack from all sides, feminism has spent the past few decades proving its importance and relevance over and over and over again. If there’s one thing history has taught us, it’s that the backlash against feminism will always be a measure of our success. That’s the thing with progress — it is far too often perceived as a threat by those who benefit from the status quo.
Indeed, as we head into December, it’s clear that the year 2014 was a historic one for feminism. Across the Internet and the world, women stood up for their rights, challenged stereotypes, fought for recognition and took control of the dialogue.
The following is a list of some of the most iconic feminist moments this year.
(via goodstuffhappenedtoday)
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(via nprfreshair)
