We're all mad here.

Queen Alice

White pawn to 8th row/rank! Congratulations!
You have officially completed all the challenges and tasks and can now wear your crown proudly.

Write a final blog entry (or static item) to commemorate this event including all you’ve learned (or not) with this process.

Oh my. You really like me! *bowing and blowing kisses and doing a royal wave*

You know, this reminds me of a couple of friends I had in my twenties. We made nicknames for each other--Amy was Charlie (because she was in charge and we were all angels, so Charlie's Angels . . . it made more sense then). Bri was Margot (because she's a tad bit prissy). And I was Alice. Because I'm spacey and crazy and weird. So, Alice has finally gotten her crown.

Oh, you need a speech? Well, I've loved my journey through the madness that is Wonderland. It felt familiar, of course, because Carroll was one of the voices of my childhood. Dad used to read Carroll's poetry to me when I was very young. Not just Alice but “The Hunting of the Snark” and “Phantasmagorica,” so entering parody country was an easy place. Not so much for some of the other challenges.

I think my hardest was posting to people's notebooks, which rather feels like knocking on a door. I can do that. I just have a hard time with it. And I know that most people don't mind people who write them notes, especially if they are personal, so I wasn't really afraid, just kind of hesitant. I am shy. I know, you wouldn't see it by looking at me or reading what I write, but in person, I'm terribly shy. And antisocial when I can get away with it.

Having this challenge hasn't made it easier, but it did make me realize that sometimes I need to reach out. When I was looking through my lists of friends and fans, I was aware, suddenly, of how many of them I don't hear from anymore. And that's worrisome.

I liked the portmanteau exercise, although it was a bit frustrating as I started because I don't think in terms of that. I think my favorite was the “clamtter” but the easiest to come up with was “tyrangantic.” It also took me a bit to come up with something to say for the sports question, and I couldn't think at first what to write for the battle one, mostly because at first I was researching Saratoga, and there's not much more that you can say about Gentleman Johnny that hasn't already been humorously dealt with.

I enjoyed the song. I didn't think I would, necessarily, because I tend to prefer unrhymed poetry. I'll have to go back and see if I still like it now.

And I enjoyed getting to know some new characters. I like Fia and Reia. They deserve someplace better than wonderland to roam in. I also enjoyed the sisters. I think they may have more future stories that I could play with.

So, I'm not going to say I learned a lot. But I am going to say doing this consistently for the past few weeks has stretched my writing muscles in good ways that I appreciate. I'd do it again. Keep me in mind for the next journey into our childhoods.

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