Thursday, November 22, 2012

The Liebster Award


Ana has kindly nominated me for the Liebster Award. Thank you, Ana! Since the rules seem to be quite funny, I decided to play along. So, here we go.

The Rules:
When one receives the award, one posts 11 random facts about oneself and answers the 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you.
Pass the award onto 11 other blogs.
One writes up 11 NEW questions directed towards YOUR nominees.
One is not allowed to nominate the blog who nominated one’s own blog!
One pastes the award picture into ones blog.

11 Random Facts about Kaelah
1. When I was a child, I had my hair cut very short once on holiday. Afterwards many people thought I was a boy. I hated that at the time.
2. Today I would love to play a male character (or a least a woman who has disguised herself as a man) in a spanking scene / video.
3. I am a passionate tea drinker.
4. I would love to have a pet, preferably a huge dog, but I wouldn't be able spend enough time for its well-being.
5. I have a stuffed animal which I got (took?) from my Mum when I was very small and which still means a lot to me.
6. Ludwig also gave me a stuffed animal as a gift to look after me when we are apart. It's a wombat, and it came all the way to Germany from Australia.
7. I don't believe in an immortal soul.
8. I am having difficulties to find clothes and especially panties which fit me. Therefore shopping can be quite a frustrating experience for me and I think I like it less than many other women.
9. In real life I am grumpier than Ludwig.
10. I would love to make an outdoor spanking video one day.
11. For many years I didn't wear any skirts or dresses because I neither felt womanly nor sexy enough.

Here are my answers to Ana's questions:
1. What food(s) did you dislike eating as a child?
Brussels sprouts. Still don't like them very much.

2. What is your favorite Christmas song?
Having developed into an atheist, I don't celebrate Christmas any more. But one of my favourite Christmas songs was and in a way still is: "O come, all ye faithful". "In the bleak midwinter" also touches me because of its special melody, I think I heard it for the first time at a performance of “A Christmas Carol” which I visited with my Mum.

3. Who is your favorite Disney villain?
I have to admit that I haven't got one. I much prefer characters who have a dark side but decide to use their energy to do something good.

4. Do you like, dislike, or not care about hearing spoilers for a story?
I think I don't care too much about hearing spoilers, except for cases where knowing about certain unexpected developments kills the whole suspense.

5. What is your favorite reading position?
Sitting on a chair or couch where my back doesn't hurt (yes, I am that old).

6. How many books do you currently have on your want-to-read list?
I used to read a lot as a child and teenager. Then I had to read so much as a student and then for my Ph.D. that I stopped wanting to read in my free time. But maybe that will change again.

7. Have you ever "forgotten" to return a book to a friend or a library because you loved it and wanted to keep it?
No.

8. Describe one of your spanking (real life or story) fantasies in 11 or fewer words.
Kissing the gunner's daughter.

9. What is one of your pet peeves about spanking stories?
The "men know best" or "women know best" approach.

10. Hulu, Amazon Prime streaming, TiVo, DVR, or Netflix? (or whatever else you use…)
Ahem, I have to admit that I learned many new words here. In my defence, several of these services don't seem to be available from Germany. I don't use any of them.

11. Your (uncensored) first response to finding out that I nominated you for this award.
Oh, wow, cool, Ana really nominated me!


I decided not to nominate the same blogs again which I have chosen in earlier award votes, but to combine the Liebster Award with presenting you several blogs which I would like to add to our blog roll. I guess it won't be exactly 11, but I think that's okay. I will introduce these blogs to you in a separate follow-up post (together with my 11 questions), because I think they deserve a post of their own and this post is already long enough, anyway. If you have any suggestions for questions I could ask, you are welcome to share them!

10 comments:

Melly said...

Holâ, Kaelah!

Nice to learn that you don't like Christmas (I know many atheists (and agnosticians as well) who don't believe in god but like christmas as a festival for the family) - I even dont' like (or should I say: I hate) christmas. I dont't like people who lie, and I think there ist hardly more liing in the world but in the christmas time. Humm, okay, and there is the recall of the rod I often had to feel whe I was a child. Nowadays I like being beaten with a birch rod by my mate, but I strictly regret beating children for education.

And, funny enough, despite I dislike christmas I also have a fevorite christmas song (and the only one I like) - it's "Fairytale of new york" by the Pogues. Perhaps you already know that song? I like it very much.

Kisses, Melly

Melly said...

Ooops, I lost a whole sentence... Certainly it was father christmas, the german "Weihnachtsmann" who brougt a new rod every year... Just to understand that part of my posting...

sixofthebest said...

I love Brussel Sprouts, it turns me on. It always give's me strength, when I spank a naughty woman's bare bottom. I say this with tongue in cheek. Also a naughty woman's bottom cheek.

Kaelah said...

@ Melly:
Oops, I am sorry, I think I didn't express myself very well there. I'll try to explain it:

The thing is, Christmas has a very special and positive meaning for me, but I can't celebrate it as a Christian holiday any more since I am an atheist now and I would feel like a liar if I did. At the time I was a practicing Christian, Christmas was one of the most important times for me, though, and the message of a saviour being born as a little child was one that deeply touched my heart. Nowadays, I still celebrate, but not in a Christian sense. For me, Christmas is now a time to come to rest, to spend time with my family and friends (which I do all year long, but still this time is special), to watch all the lights in the streets and to feel the joy of being a part of this world. I know several atheists who celebrate in a similar way. In my opinion, people like me who don't believe in the existence of a higher being, an immortal soul or an afterlife still need (spiritual) rituals. The Advent season always was a special time in my family when I was a child. It meant reading stories together, baking, visiting Christmas markets and preparing for the feast. Since I have the wonderful luck of having been raised in a very caring family and a family that didn't only come together on Christmas, this is something that sticks to me and that I still love. I don't know the Christmas song you wrote about, but I guess I will find a version somewhere on YouTube.

I can absolutely understand why you don't like Christmas, though, since you obviously experienced it as a time where people only pretended to care for each other and a time of faked happiness. Unfortunately that is how many people experience Christmas and I can understand why they don't like it then. Sure enough, Christmas is used by some to make money and there are lots of false pretences, too. I try to stay away from that and from people who "celebrate" that way. And I am absolutely with you about beating children! In my opinion, even "just a little slap" is unnecessary and can cause harm. And scaring children with Father Christmas (or with religious beliefs in general) is horrible, too! Since you don't like the Christmas time, I hope that you have found other feasts or ways to celebrate the good things in life. Life definitely isn't always nice, but no matter what our beliefs are, I think our universe certainly has its beautiful sides! :-)

@ sixofthebest:
Thank you, now I can always say that Brussel sprouts are only for male tops! ;-)

Lea said...

I hate shopping too. Being very tall for a woman makes it very frustrating. It's always interesting reading some new things about you!

Mr Mentor said...

Interested about the girl acting as a boy idea. There is a story called 'Frank and I' where a runaway girl poses as a boy and is taken in by a gentleman on the old school. An awkward moment ensues when the 'boy' has to expose her bottom for a punishment. Hmm...I wonder if K would enjoy making a small video based on that? One can dream.

Penelope said...

Tea and cuddly toys! We are alike in at least two ways, Kaelah ;-)

Re fact #5, I too have a cuddly toy that I have had since birth. He's a blue rabbit (but I always thought he was a dog). He's down to one ear as I guess young me pulled the other one off at some point. But, just like Emily and Bagpuss, I think he's perfect and beautiful and I love him. Yay for stuffed companions!

Thanks for sharing so many personal things. It's nice to learn more about the people behind blogs you enjoy.

Oh, and sprouts are yummy!

Melly said...

Thanks, Kaehlah, for that explanation, I indeed got you wrong.

Well, I experienced christmas all the years from my childhood up to now as a time of untruth and hurry and espacially of being nice to another without liking them - lies over lies. I don't believe in any kind of godness, rather less in religion, perhaps that "background" made me interpretate your post in a wrong manner.

Nevertheless I like to spend time with a few very good friends on christmas, having a delicios meal, playing games, telling stories, drinking vine in front of the open fireplace and so on - but there is no christmas tree or any other kind of decoration and especially no christmas songs playing. Just enjoying a very nice evening without stress. I think it's similar to your celebration.

May I ask why you resigned from being a christian and becoming an atheist, believing in "there's nothing"?

bw
Melly

Kaelah said...

@ Lea:
It seems that there are many reasons why women (and I guess men, too) have problems to find fitting clothes. Being too tall or not tall enough, a hollow back or a hunchback, different waist-to-hip ratios and the like. There seem to be some lucky people, though, whose body size and shape fit to one of the standard sizes. Unfortunately, I am not one of them... ;-)

@ Mr Mentor:
Welcome, and thanks a lot for your comment! The "Frank and I" storyline certainly has a high appeal for me. And who knows, maybe Ludwig and I will make a clip based on it one day.

So far we haven't even managed to do a private scene with me as a boy (or a girl disguised as a boy), though. That's because this fantasy is so special for me. I am scared that a real scene wouldn't be able to come even close to my fantasies. That's why I would only bring this fantasy to life in an elaborate and well-planned scene (like our very first play). And we haven't found the time and energy to plan such an elaborate scene, yet. Once we have done such a scene in private, though, a clip that goes into the same direction doesn't seem to be very unlikely. So stay tuned! :-)

@ Penelope:
It seems like many stuffed animals owned by little kids have to suffer a bit. Mine learned swimming in a fountain (hey, it was supposed to have some holiday fun, too!) and also once lost an eye during play and so had to get a new pair.

Sprouts are yummy? Great, you can always have mine! ;-)

Kaelah said...

@ Melly:
It's great to hear that you enjoy a good time with friends on Christmas, despite of your negative experiences.

Why I became an atheist is a long story, but I'll try to explain it in a short version. I grew up with a church that was very open and inviting and not oppressive at all. The God I grew up with wasn't a threatening one. It was a caring one, a friend one could talk to. I liked the Christian ethics (the version of it which I learned about, that is) which involved respect for life, other human beings and nature, compassion and care. I became active in my local parish and found wonderful friends there. I liked the discussions about ethical questions, having a place to come to rest, all the fun we had and the structure of the year given by the Christian calendar. Critical questions were welcome and having doubts was okay. I had those doubts. Especially about resurrection and eternal life. But I figured that I couldn't force myself to believe certain things and decided that it didn't matter so much because my local parish simply felt like a good place to be.

Then my mother died and suddenly I couldn't push the questions about my beliefs aside any more. To be able to grieve for her, I needed a picture in my head of what had happened to her when she had died. Ludwig was an agnostic at the time and we talked a lot about different theories about God, body and soul, life and the like. And the more I thought about it, the more it became clear to me that I didn't believe in a dualism of body and soul, any kind of resurrection or an afterlife. But those are the central messages of Christianity. The more I learned and the more I opened myself to the idea that things might be different than I previously thought, the more it became clear to me that I didn't believe in a personal God who has created this world, either. I came to the view that this belief is not compatible with Darwin's theory (I had thought that it was), and looking at the history of our planet, it didn't make much sense to believe in a divine plan.

At first these realizations were very painful for me because living with the ideas of a caring God and of not losing loved ones forever is easier in my opinion than living without them. I think that's why Christianity has such a big appeal for many people, including me when I was younger. The changes also meant that I had to stop being active in my local parish because I didn't want to fake anything (it would have been disrespectful to the people in my local parish as well). The church isn't a social club, it is based on certain beliefs. I didn't lose my Christian friends because of this, though.

By now, I've come to peace with my new view of the world and it even feels more honest to me than the old one. I also had to realise that religion can be very dangerous and can be used in very bad ways, and that atheists are often in a weaker position when defending their views of the world than religious people (religious beliefs and feelings often seem to enjoy a higher esteem in public discussions than views based on science and reasoning, and are more reluctantly criticised), which has made me more critical about religion and religious groups.