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It’s been a tough year, and as we approach the anniversary of this pandemic (yup, it’s been almost a year of this) I’ve had some time to think about some of the things that have brought me joy. Obviously, my wife and my family have given me comfort but plenty of personal pleasures have made living in this new world a little bit better. Normally, video games and comic books serve as the ultimate form of escapism for me but lately, I’ve unexpectedly found comfort in my collection of statues, figures, and other nerd related memorabilia to bring me joy.
Humble Beginnings
I only started collecting statues and figurines about five years ago. When I think about how I got here, I honestly couldn’t tell you how it started. I had to really dig deep to think about all the other things I’ve collected in my life. If I look back to before my ridiculous amount of Funko Pops!, the only things that held up space in my life were comic books and various trade paperbacks, which brought me back to my high school years.
I’m not as big on my high school years as a bunch of others are, but this is a memory I hold dear. I had found a shop right on the way from school to the train station. One day I decided to check it out and before I knew it, I was there every day, after school looking for the newest issues of Ultimate comics or any of my other favorite Marvel books. I think the best part about buying comics was looking for the best variant covers and collecting books not just to read but for the art. Years later this would break my wallet as Marvel started dropping Hip-Hop covers.
Looking back even further to my childhood, I realized that I have always been collecting. Like most kids, toys were a thing to have. However, what really held a special place in my heart were my Pokemon cards. Pokemon dominated the 90s’ and beyond the games, the cards were everything. Buying them, trying to collect them all. I remember loving those cards so much. I never really got into playing the card game too much. No, I found that I had much more fun finding all of the rare and special versions of the cards.
I even had a binder with page after page filled with my favorite cards. I was proud of that binder, all the different versions of the same Pokemon cards or even the shiny holographic cards that were hard to get. The fun I had buying card packs, not knowing if I would be stuck with the same cards I had before or something rare. It’s a shame that my binder would get stolen later on, which left me devastated as a kid. I stopped collecting novelty items after and even collecting comic books didn’t feel the same.
Statues, Funkos, and Pops! Oh My!
I honestly don’t know what led to my ridiculous collection. What was once a collection of pins and giant dice turned into an assortment of more than 100 Funko Pops! and a few figurines. One thing led to another and soon enough I found myself shopping for just the right bookshelf to display the crazy amount of bobbleheads and statues I had gathered. Family members started even buying me Pops! as Christmas presents.
When we first got the bookshelf, my wife made fun of me. I had a habit of organizing the Pops! just the way I wanted them. The Spider-Man collection was the most important, so all of those needed to go together. Then next came the section of the bookshelf dedicated to my wife’s Pops!, which she called “her girls.” I insisted that those needed to be organized by DC and Marvel girls. The bottom shelves were dedicated to the random movie, television, and animation Pops! we’ve collected. Finally, the top shelf holds the statues I bought for my wife because those are some of her favorite kinds of presents.
This past Christmas I took a good long look at my bookshelf. A bookshelf that was barely able to fit all these figures on because I refuse to take most of them out of the box. I smiled. I thought about how over the past five years, how much fun I had collecting these things. Going to Comic-Con with my wife and collecting all the comics, swag, and toys we could. Dipping and diving into a Walgreens just to find super rare Spider-Man Pops! Talking with my uncle and comparing his collection to mine (he always had the better ones, ones that are worth like $300 +). I even got my wife into it, and we built the collection I have together.
Don’t Take Away Your Own Joy
I know my trophy hall has brought me many things. A community. Trust me, you’re not the only one out there. Sharing my collection with groups, friends, and family, especially those who share your love of the inanimate but well designed, is such a fulfilling experience. A bonding experience with my wife. We both love collecting figures together, it has brought us closer, and over the past couple of years, we’ve taken trips to Hot Topic just to find our favorite Pops!
We even had a laugh as we exchanged Pops! for Christmas. I bought her Inuyasha verses Sesshomaru and she got me the Spider-Men pointing at each other meme figures. We know each other so well. And as I think about adding more than just Pops! to our bookshelf, I think what I gained the most from collecting is joy.
There is a joy in the little hobbies that might feel insignificant to some but are important to you. I mean, yes, when you simplify it, I’m just buying figures and statues because they look cool and they are dope to show off, but there is nothing wrong with that. We all need personal pleasures. They are a form of self-care. If buying that statue of Punisher and Daredevil throwing hands will put a smile on your face, then do it.
Many of us look at life and just let responsibility take a hold of us. It can be mentally draining. I know I do. I skip out on so much because I feel like my money needs to be spent elsewhere or that if it serves no purpose, I shouldn’t get it. That kind of thinking stresses you out. As adults, no one is going to know what you want better than you do. In the words of Donna Meagle and Tom Haverford – Treat Yourself!
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The post Finding Comfort in Collection: Embracing Your Joy appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
It’s been a tough year, and as we approach the anniversary of this pandemic (yup, it’s been almost a year of this) I’ve had some time to think about some of the things that have brought me joy. Obviously, my wife and my family have given me comfort but plenty of personal pleasures have made living in this new world a little bit better. Normally, video games and comic books serve as the ultimate form of escapism for me but lately, I’ve unexpectedly found comfort in my collection of statues, figures, and other nerd related memorabilia to bring me joy.
Humble Beginnings
I only started collecting statues and figurines about five years ago. When I think about how I got here, I honestly couldn’t tell you how it started. I had to really dig deep to think about all the other things I’ve collected in my life. If I look back to before my ridiculous amount of Funko Pops!, the only things that held up space in my life were comic books and various trade paperbacks, which brought me back to my high school years.
I’m not as big on my high school years as a bunch of others are, but this is a memory I hold dear. I had found a shop right on the way from school to the train station. One day I decided to check it out and before I knew it, I was there every day, after school looking for the newest issues of Ultimate comics or any of my other favorite Marvel books. I think the best part about buying comics was looking for the best variant covers and collecting books not just to read but for the art. Years later this would break my wallet as Marvel started dropping Hip-Hop covers.
Looking back even further to my childhood, I realized that I have always been collecting. Like most kids, toys were a thing to have. However, what really held a special place in my heart were my Pokemon cards. Pokemon dominated the 90s’ and beyond the games, the cards were everything. Buying them, trying to collect them all. I remember loving those cards so much. I never really got into playing the card game too much. No, I found that I had much more fun finding all of the rare and special versions of the cards.
I even had a binder with page after page filled with my favorite cards. I was proud of that binder, all the different versions of the same Pokemon cards or even the shiny holographic cards that were hard to get. The fun I had buying card packs, not knowing if I would be stuck with the same cards I had before or something rare. It’s a shame that my binder would get stolen later on, which left me devastated as a kid. I stopped collecting novelty items after and even collecting comic books didn’t feel the same.
Statues, Funkos, and Pops! Oh My!
I honestly don’t know what led to my ridiculous collection. What was once a collection of pins and giant dice turned into an assortment of more than 100 Funko Pops! and a few figurines. One thing led to another and soon enough I found myself shopping for just the right bookshelf to display the crazy amount of bobbleheads and statues I had gathered. Family members started even buying me Pops! as Christmas presents.
When we first got the bookshelf, my wife made fun of me. I had a habit of organizing the Pops! just the way I wanted them. The Spider-Man collection was the most important, so all of those needed to go together. Then next came the section of the bookshelf dedicated to my wife’s Pops!, which she called “her girls.” I insisted that those needed to be organized by DC and Marvel girls. The bottom shelves were dedicated to the random movie, television, and animation Pops! we’ve collected. Finally, the top shelf holds the statues I bought for my wife because those are some of her favorite kinds of presents.
This past Christmas I took a good long look at my bookshelf. A bookshelf that was barely able to fit all these figures on because I refuse to take most of them out of the box. I smiled. I thought about how over the past five years, how much fun I had collecting these things. Going to Comic-Con with my wife and collecting all the comics, swag, and toys we could. Dipping and diving into a Walgreens just to find super rare Spider-Man Pops! Talking with my uncle and comparing his collection to mine (he always had the better ones, ones that are worth like $300 +). I even got my wife into it, and we built the collection I have together.
Don’t Take Away Your Own Joy
I know my trophy hall has brought me many things. A community. Trust me, you’re not the only one out there. Sharing my collection with groups, friends, and family, especially those who share your love of the inanimate but well designed, is such a fulfilling experience. A bonding experience with my wife. We both love collecting figures together, it has brought us closer, and over the past couple of years, we’ve taken trips to Hot Topic just to find our favorite Pops!
We even had a laugh as we exchanged Pops! for Christmas. I bought her Inuyasha verses Sesshomaru and she got me the Spider-Men pointing at each other meme figures. We know each other so well. And as I think about adding more than just Pops! to our bookshelf, I think what I gained the most from collecting is joy.
There is a joy in the little hobbies that might feel insignificant to some but are important to you. I mean, yes, when you simplify it, I’m just buying figures and statues because they look cool and they are dope to show off, but there is nothing wrong with that. We all need personal pleasures. They are a form of self-care. If buying that statue of Punisher and Daredevil throwing hands will put a smile on your face, then do it.
Many of us look at life and just let responsibility take a hold of us. It can be mentally draining. I know I do. I skip out on so much because I feel like my money needs to be spent elsewhere or that if it serves no purpose, I shouldn’t get it. That kind of thinking stresses you out. As adults, no one is going to know what you want better than you do. In the words of Donna Meagle and Tom Haverford – Treat Yourself!
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The post Finding Comfort in Collection: Embracing Your Joy appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
Job Coach Stephanie Heath Talks Why Soul Alignment & Facebook Groups Are Essential To The Job Search
Source: Delmaine Donson / Getty
Job searching is stressful already and doing it during a pandemic is more nerve-wracking. Some people are just looking for a position to pay their bills and get them by. Getting a dream job seems unrealistic to some people. That’s where job coach Stephanie Heath comes in. Heath is a job search coach who has been focused on helping people get the job of their dreams through her company, Soul Work & Six Figures. She offers a 10-week program called the “Career Catalyst” where she assists professionals in getting the position they always wanted.
One of the main focuses of Heath’s work with her clients is assisting them in finding a position that is soul-aligned. Heath explained to me that a soul-aligned position not only exceeds your pay expectations but also leaves you feeling fulfilled and your coworkers feeling like your family.
“Finding a position that is soul-aligned for you is one where your coworkers are like friends,” Heath said. “People have fallen out of love with that idea but there are people who work with their coworkers and it’s like a family. I found that for minorities, because we have our guards up we don’t find that as easily as others. A soul-aligned position is one that also pays right, which means you’re getting more than expected.”
When you don’t have a position that is soul-aligned, you could be cutting years off of your life. A lot of folks experience what Heath referred to as the “Sunday Scaries,” where a person feels dread and fear the night before they have to start a new work week.
“If you’re working a job and you have this gut wrenching fear where you don’t want to think about what’s happening on Monday, every time you think about that negativity you’re shortening your life,” she told me over the phone.
So how can you search for the job of your dreams? Heath recommended using Facebook groups of professionals in your field so you can create a virtual networking experience.
“It’s a goldmine,” she said about Facebook groups. “There’s a Facebook group for everything. There’s women in tech, Blacks in tech, and even for human resources people or people in marketing. There’s all these groups that are started by people like you and me that want a place to vent and share new tools. It’s a goldmine because they are in there talking about who’s hiring. People are just more friendly and open. That’s one of the first things I do with my clients.”
When it comes to networking, Heath added that it is imperative that a person’s view of networking is intact. Some people feel awkward about networking because it entails seeking something from someone who isn’t a friend or family. That may be the basis of it, but that’s not a negative thing because people actually like helping people. Heath said that it is important to know how to navigate networking opportunities with a direct approach.
“When you’re direct people respect it more,” she said. “When you come right out and say it people respond to that more.”
When it comes to talking to new professional connections, Heath recommended four tips:
- Don’t waste anyone’s time.
- Don’t ask about their family.
- Express how much you appreciate their time.
- Ask your questions and get off the call.
Heath’s clientele includes those who are good at what they do but are soft-spoken, people pleasers and “yes men/women.” By the time her clients exit her program they not only have the position of their dreams but they are know how to ace an interview, are more assertive, confident and have a job that they consider a safe space. Learn more about her work and programs here.
There’s something to be said about a television show using long form story telling to slowly doll out a mystery, allowing the audience to really think on it and follow the clues. This ain’t it. With only 9 episodes this season, possibly this series depending on what plans Marvel actually has, the mystery behind what is actually happening to Wanda and Vision has been revealed, or so it seems. It feels that there is a deeper level to what, and who, is behind everything. Pull out your magnifying glass as we review WandaVision, episodes 3 and 4.
Warning! There will be spoilers for these episodes.
Groovy Baby
When we last left our couple, a mysterious bee keeper man couldn’t spoil the joy of an immaculate pregnancy and technicolor. The sitcom style has moved into the 70s age a la The Brady Bunch and Wanda is not only pregnant but already months along in the span of a night. Vision is noticeably concerned, but Wanda just seems happy and aloof. More sitcom high jinx ensues such as trying to (poorly) hide the pregnancy, and Vision freaking out over the baby. The sitcom aspect is still quite charming and because they switch eras each episode it doesn’t get stale. The interesting part of episode 3 though is the mystery taking a bit more of a creepy form. More hints are being dropped but it’s super eerie watching Herb (David Payton) timing his hedges on second only to start blankly staring off and cut into the wall.
The crux of the episode is when Geraldine (Teyonah Parris) helps Wanda give birth to twins and absentmindedly mention Ultron. Geraldine was one of Wanda’s closest friends and to see how quickly Wanda dropped her fun-loving persona was unnerving. At the same time, Herb and Hagnes (Kathryn Hahn) try to warn Vision about Geraldine…and about something else it seemed. It seems that Vision is picking up that something is wrong, but it is possibly also being blocked somehow. We’ve seen hints of an outside world in the first two episodes and as Wanda ejects Geraldine from her home and town, we get our first real look at it when she ends up in a field surrounded but military agents. We don’t have to wait long to find out what’s happening here.
A Larger Universe
I was not expecting episode 4 to happen this early in the season but here we are. Not only does this episode truly connect it to the rest of the MCU, but they also bring in a couple familiar faces. We start out with Geraldine blipping back into existence in the real world from the events of Endgame. We soon find out that Geraldine is in fact Monica Rambeau, who we met as a young girl in Captain Marvel. She is a member of S.W.O.R.D. (Sentient Weapon Observation and Response Division) and her mother, Maria Rambeau who we also saw in Captain Marvel, was the founder. She is sent to Westview to investigate a missing persons case and comes into contact with Jimmy Woo (Randall Park) from Ant-Man and the Wasp. There they discover that not only is everyone in town missing, but also erased from peoples’ memories.
From here, we basically get an explanation for everything that happens since episode 1. We see Rambeau send in a small helicopter drone that we saw as the colored toy helicopter in episode 1, we see how Rambeau got trapped in the sitcom, who the bee keeper man was, who was watching the show from the outside (Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings) from the Thor movies), and more. We also see that whenever Wanda changed something within the sitcom that it was “censored” for those watching it with a quick cut. It makes it feel that there may be more than one person at play here, but Wanda is definitely keeping the town trapped.
We get an extended scene of Wanda ejecting Rambeau from the town, and it’s a lot more intense than initially shown as she throws Rambeau through multiple walls on her way out before repairing the damage to hide it from Vision. And now the question is, is that even Vision? The show makes a point to call out that Vision was not blipped, he died. “Like, dead dead.” And after Wanda loses her cool she sees vision as the dead infinity stone ripped out of his head version for a moment. Creepy
Keep ’em Coming Marvel
In these two episodes, the mystery deepened before a huge info dump. It doesn’t feel like a red herring or misdirect, but it also feels like Marvel has a lot more up their sleeves. Episode 4 felt like a more traditional Marvel property compared to the first 3, and while I liked getting more information, I hope they aren’t dropping the mystery angle. It was really working, and I want Marvel to keep experimenting. With 5 more episodes, I really have no idea where the show will go, but I can’t wait to find out.
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The post Mystery Solved!? Not Quite: ‘WandaVision’ Episode 3-4 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.