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famousbob · 2 years

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8 year old post

Just a note to say it’s been about 8 years since I was last here on tumblr (mostly too time consuming and fast paced for an old man like me). I recently finished ‘SpockLock” (now known as “An Ancestor of Mine . . . “ and in beta test!) and came back online to see that the following was a draft from many years ago which I never posted.

A few more answers to specific con-related questions you had!

You’re totally right that public photos are often shared publicly without asking for permission - the reason why it’s different with cosplay is precisely because we all make the costumes ourselves! Because it’s a creative work that we poured a lot of time effort and money into, it’s nice to be credited, same as I would want to be credited for writing or artwork or any other creative venture that was shared by someone. The Irene Adler you mentioned (the sheer green robe one?) is actually a commission I made for makokitten! There is creative work being represented - the Victorian costumes a bunch of us wore on saturday, we had been planning since September. If it were just a personal picture of me hanging out in ‘normal’ clothes, I wouldn’t care at all about credit.

I absolutely do not think that a photographer asking for the contact info of a cosplayer they photographed would be seen as invasive, it’s pretty common. A lot of cosplayers and con photographers who do this kind of thing frequently make and carry around business cards to make this kind of info-swap easier! Now, as has happened to me before, taking someone’s picture and directly afterwards asking them out? Deeefinitely inappropriate. But an info-swap is a very par for the course con interaction!

Blurring faces isn’t an action that there’s a lot of precedent for - in my experience, the best thing to do when there’s a picture you want to share but don’t maybe have permission/credit is to include a caption or note along the lines of ‘If you are the cosplayer, or know who the cosplayer is, contact me!’ This way the cosplayer can decide whether or not they want the credit, and it shows that the sharer is being respectful of the work! When I find an uncredited picture of myself that has some kind of similar caption, I’m happy, because it means the photographer liked my costume so much they wanted to share it but just lacked the means to get in contact with me! It happens all the time - cons are busy!

I’d disagree with you though that it makes things too complicated to apply some discernment to who you allow to take an image of yourself! It’s always a bit of a gamble of a decision, but far safer than instantly trusting all interested strangers. And let’s be honest, we make these costumes to share! We WANT pictures to be taken, we want like-minded people who ‘get it’ to feel the same joy seeing our costumes as we’ve had making them! At other cons, photographers won’t always wear nerdy gear, but they’ll usually at least have a badge visible. An example of a rare time I turned down a picture: at dragon*con, I was wearing a genderbent version of one of the dwarves from the Hobbit. This meant I was wearing a skirt and feminine make-up, but also had a beard! Out of context, to people unfamiliar with Tolkien mythology and the Hobbit movies, it can get some strong reactions. A man asked if he could get a picture with me, and I said yes. (He was drinking a beer, I was drinking a beer, it was dragon*con!) When he moved closer to get in frame, he said “So what exactly were you going for with this?” And I, in a very amenable, friendly way told him that I wasn’t going to take the picture any more, and we parted on friendly terms. Because I had given him the benefit of the doubt - you betcha Tolkien fans can wear polos and board shorts! But the way he asked that question made it clear to me that the image I gave him the power to take would be presented without context, not as ‘this awesome cosplayer I saw at a con’ but as ‘check out this crazy bearded lady!’ And I opted out of a situation that I thought would end with my image being mis-represented.

When PFG talks about who has power, she’s talking about the moment when someone asks to get a picture. In that moment, the person being asked has the power to say yes or no, and the person doing the asking does not have power. This dynamic doesn’t extend to the whole weekend, or even the whole conversation!! But when asking permission for something, the control of that situation lies with the person granting or withholding permission. This is true both of strangers and of friends who I’ve known for years!

I definitely should have clarified that when I referred to facebook, I meant private, personal accounts, and not on a public page. As far as I’m concerned, sharing images from a fun weekend with personal friends is always okay! That’s what I meant to refer to!

I’m a bit worn out talking about gender stuff, but I hope that can clarify some of the con/cosplay culture questions you had! Like I said, I’ve been part of the cosplay community for a very long time and these things are second-nature to me. Cosplayers also LOVE to talk about how hard they worked on their costumes - I guarantee you the next time you run into someone who sewed a costume from a series you like, they will talk your ear off about all the hard work and details! If you had a good time, I hope you’ll think about attending other meet-ups or conventions in the future!

Thank you for your detailed answer.

A good number of years ago a friend/colleague gave me a maxim I have taken to heart: “Never attribute to malice what can be explained by incompetence.” Or perhaps in this case, ignorance. I had no idea of the history of cosplay - any pictures I have glanced at I saw as either being obviously amateurish costumes or (what I thought) as professionally made (by a costuming company?). I am not ‘crafty’ myself and would look to eBay or google to find a costume. OTOH, as an audiophile I would rather build an amplifier kit than purchase one pre-assembled, so I do understand the joy of ‘rolling your own.’ (I did just re-edit my original IHOSE article to add the phrase ‘in their handmade costumes’ under the picture to at least credit your hard work.)

Being uninformed about 221bCon, tumblr, cosplay, comicon or other fancons, how some fans are wary of picture-taking (for their own valid reasons), and God-knows-what-else that I haven’t stumbled into yet, made it almost inevitable that my assumptions about a ‘Sherlockian’ event would be inadequate to explain what I was seeing/experiencing.

I needed context about many aspects of what was going on, just as you needed context of how I came to the con and published my article on IHOSE. And as I have remarked, in on-line interaction I miss the tone of voice and non-verbal cues that are present in person-to-person communication. Even your brief description of what happened to you at dragon*con makes the point. I do not doubt that you made an appropriate decision about changing your mind having your picture taken. You were there, you saw/heard not only the words you quoted, but how they were said in the context at the time. But if I came to that con as a first time attendee (especially at my first con in 35 years) I could imagine myself asking you something similar, though I might phrase it as, “You look really cool, but I don’t understand how this relates to the Tolkien stories.” (Is dragon*con only about Tolkien or dragon-stuff in general? - you don’t have to answer, I can google it and figure it out). Now that I have a context it is a lot more understandable. (Sometime I marvel that any two people can communicate relatively accurately most of the time!)

I recently did a paper on Holmes’ ‘you see but do not observe’ in which I quoted some research that says about 70% of our sensory experience is visual. Even if Sherlockian playboy bunnies were chosen to imitate the Marvel bunnies, I didn’t recognize any Sherlockian connection per se other than your names. OTOH, at a Marvel-con a green-skinned bunny could only mean a female ‘Hulk’ character even to me. You are all attractive young women, initially attractive because of your physical appearance which was the first thing I saw at the time. And playboy bunny costumes, to me as an older male, do have associations with sexuality even if your unspoken intent was more ironic and meant to challenge gender stereotyping. I hazarded a guess about ‘cumberbunnies’ because of my penchant for puns and my (unknown to you at the time) recent purchase of cumberbunds to wear with my tux.

Historically I am not usually outgoing in large groups. But on this occasion with little knowledge of what surrounded me, I just had to ask questions of practically everyone I met. I regret that I did not talk to any of you directly (though I did mention to one of you - to your sister? - that she could also be a very good Amy from Dr. Who - I am a fan of the show and noted her long red hair - don’t know or care if it was her own or not). As I learned about the x-rated fanfic, I could understand a little more about playful sexual references. I do have testosterone and try to keep it confined to my ‘naughty bits’ (as the Pythons would say) but reserve it for someone with whom I have a meaningful relationship and not have it take over my verbal behavior (though given an opportunity to make a wise-ass sexual pun I would probably risk it, especially amongst people who know me).

Anyway I do enjoy rambling on and interacting with intelligent people who have given a lot more thought to ‘things not dreamt of in my philosophy’ until now. In fact, and I mean this as a non-sexist compliment, because of these interactions you are more attractive in a most general sense than the visual representation I saw at the con. This doesn’t mean I want to date you or become your bff. I am more than old enough to be your father (my wise-ass Electra complex remark aside) and have the physical attractiveness of an old pudgy Steve Buscemi and not a Benedict Cumberbatch or Martin Freeman. I tend to think that the ‘attraction’ I provide for some women on tumblr who have made supportive comments is because I had a clever idea for a fanfic, I’m fairly intelligent, generally respectful and I’m open-minded (though maybe not so much that I’m long-winded!). You all have interesting ideas and experiences which until now have not been a focus for me.

So please you need not reply nor make this post public on my account (that is a pun!) but feel free to do so if you think it might be helpful to others in some way.

Best wishes,

Bob

#famousbob SpockLock

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famousbob · 10 years

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Response to frauleinninja, professorfangirl et al.

Sorry - couldn't figure out a way to easily/quickly cut'n'paste from your long and thoughtful comments, so anyone just picking up this thread will have to find that material on their own! (BTW, this all reminds me of why I prefer verbal discussions over blogging or message boards or similar venues: I am relatively long-winded and try to provide sufficient context to make meanings and intentions clear - something that in my experience is often lost with the quick short messages often seen in social media, especially if tone of voice and non-verbal cues are lost, and it takes me too damn long to write all this! I do find this all fascinating though, and for today it really allowed me to avoid the discomfort I feel actually writing my SpockLock fan-fiction!)

First - I just added the following to one of my original posts of several weeks ago. The first line was from the original:

Females with an unresolved Electra complex can message me privately - ;-)

5/9/2014 (several weeks after the above was posted) - just realized that these old posts are editable. My strong preference is to not 'edit out' comments that some, most or all people may find objectionable on whatever grounds. I said it, and I don't think it should 'mysteriously' disappear once it has been made public. Having been told that in this case, some have found the parting remark objectionable, I do sincerely apologize to those who feel that way. By way of explanation I am a psychologist who likes word play and 'idea-dropping' and I thought my emoticon was sufficient notice that the comment was tongue-in-cheek especially since the 'sexual agency' of women at the con was fairly self-evident to me. It also followed the comment that I hadn't been on tumblr long enough to be able to message others and conversely, that others could not message me. Hence there was little likelihood in my mind that anyone would take it seriously. I am now more aware that these postings are very public (duh!) and will be seen by many with different levels of awareness of social justice. When I err, I tend to think that it will be on the side of making what I consider to be a wise-ass humorous remark, even if that remark appears to be rooted in some antiquated misogynistic attitude.

Regarding the photo op: thank you for the explanation of the conventions of taking pictures and the sometimes stated but often unstated assumptions of those taking pictures and those in the pictures being taken. I was discourteous in not explicitly asking those whose pictures I took for permission to publish them publicly, and I apologize. But I was not aware while taking them that I would even write about the con - only after it was over did I think that that other Sherlockians would find it of interest. And it has long been a journalistic/publishing precedent that pictures taken in a public place are often shared publicly. It is true that I was aware that some cultures believe that photographs somehow capture their soul and in that case I wouldn't even take a picture without consent. However both when I took the picture and when it was published on ihearofsherlock.com, I was unaware of the discomfort of some cosplayers being identifiable in published photographs (as I read about on other blogs and sites about fancons). And apparently I made a similar though non-sexist faux pas in not acknowledging that the pictures I published in another ihearofsherlock posting (221b Baker Street in Reading, PA) though they were provided to me by and with the explicit permission of the person I was writing about (they did not show him or his wife). As a courtesy at least I should have mentioned that and not left the impression that I personally took them. (However he was not offended and was pleased that his faithful re-creation of Sherlock's and Watson's sitting room was given the publicity - but I digress.) Serious questions: would it have been preferable to blur their faces since I did not get their names and contact information for permission to publish? Would a male photographer asking for names and contact information of females he photographed been seen as possibly sexist? If my deerstalker and tee-shirt identified me as probably being part of the 'in-group' and therefore okay to take pictures, should the absence of Sherlockian regalia (on male or female photographers) be a tell-tale sign to cosplayers to question whether they should allow photographs by that person? Life in the 21st century has gotten complicated - no wonder some of us would prefer that it always remains 1895.

And interestingly I wasn't consciously aware that those women had more power in the situation than me. I honestly thought that they and I were equals as Sherlockians gathered together to enjoy activities together, even with different perspectives, ideas, values and experiences - we were all there to share our love of Holmes and Watson and their relationship, no matter how defined.

I do not believe that I change the meaning of an image when I publish it. People will bring to the image their own meaning. Yes, some of them (many? most? how do we know?) will have misogynistic views which are inappropriate. They would not 'get' the playful sexual agency in that context even if they read the non-sexist article that accompanied the photo. Personally I read ihearofsherlock.com for all the viewable and readable content (never got into listening to podcasts for some reason though). Depending upon my conscious level of social activism at the time, I might or might not ask myself, “Is this reinforcing or challenging existing sexist structures?” as you suggest. In this particular case you are doing a good job here on tumblr and your comments have made me personally more aware of the issue. I do not feel expert enough to make a similar case on ihearofsherlock.com.

I was not aware that many cosplayers design and sew their own costumes. That is a wonderful talent to have. Personally I can sew buttons on shirts, use iron-on patches for tears, hem my own pants, and do some light mending. I don't think I am being particularly sexist when I say that I am only slightly better at changing the oil on my car (though just once I accidentally started to drain the transmission fluid - oops!) or doing minor woodworking repairs - I am pretty much a klutz mechanically. If I were to seriously cosplay I would have to find someone with those talents to cobble together a costume for me. I regret not giving credit to those of you who worked so hard to make those costumes and provide us with some visual bling and entertainment. If any of those in the picture want to self-identify or ask me to identify them I would be happy to do so. I appreciated that Marilynne McKay added their 'bunny' names, but do not know if convention suggests that tumblr usernames (if they are different) or other pseudonyms or even 'real' names be mentioned as well.

professorfangirl - I'm sorry that I wasn't clearer. I was referring to 1) your quote from Rainer Maria Rilke, and 2) your blog title which includes 'Bordello of Learning.' I can't think of an instance where 'bordello' doesn't have a sexual connotation, whether used ironically or not. We live in a sex-obsessed culture and realistically it is part and parcel of our shared humanity and dealing with our own sexuality (and that of others' - even the sexists) is a lifelong affair (again, pun not intended).

Lizzy - I truly don't understand why posting the picture (especially without comment) on a personal blog or on Facebook is okay if posting the same picture on a blog like ihearofsherlock.com with appropriate comments is a faux pas? While some blogs and parts of FB can be private or restricted to friends, many offer more public exposure than the limited readership of IHOS.

I also don't understand when you said:

"But simply being open-minded does not, as PFG says more articulately than I, immediately categorize all of your actions as righteous. It’s very frustrating to see how cruel we can be to each other, in the online female-dominated space, how we can hold each other to such high standards of being wholly un-problematic in absolutely all things we say and do, not allowing anyone to mess up and make mistakes in vocabulary or nuance, and to then see everyone being so willing to let the problematic statements of a nice, well-meaning man slide because he is still learning."

I would like to put some context on 'righteous.' Merriam-Webster defines it as "acting in accord with divine or moral law : free from guilt or sin" and the Urban Dictionary as "A state of extreme perfection bordering on divinity that bestows moral authority upon the subject."

Is that what you perceive that all? most? some? of you in this female-dominated space do to each other? Monitor all the things you say and do to be sure that it is 'righteous' in regard to sexist language? What percent of tumblr Sherlock fandom is female?

The 'likes' and more specific comments about any 'problematic statements' of this "nice, well-meaning man" I just interpreted as politeness and conviviality. It felt pretty good and accepting.

I have prattled on. For anyone who likes to get in the last word, this is your chance because I won't be responding on this thread. I have spent enough time, enjoyable as it has been, in serious discourse. I have a lot of writing to do, and I do find fiction writing challenging enough. Onward and upward to lighter fare.

So I end with two cute items. Around 1970 I purchased a little 5x7 poster which quoted a woman affiliated with some activist religious order - let's call her Sister Mary Stigmata (righteous note: name stolen from The Blues Brothers I think). It said, "I would not like to have lived without ever having offended anyone."

Secondly, my mentor in graduate school at the University of Regina was Duncan B. Blewett who named a contagious outbreak, resistant to almost all forms of treatment, 'reginismus.' Initial symptoms include a suspicion that the Universe is conspiring to do something nice for you or that you may be following someone with loving intent. This can be accompanied by feelings of excited anticipation and joyous wonder. Often broad smiles are followed by uncontrollable fits of giggling, sometime resulting in full attacks of sustained levity. Advanced cases may include bliss or an unbearable lightness of being, often ending in terminal elation.

The contagion is easily spread by the exchange of fluid bodily motions such as handshakes, hugging and kissing - even seemingly innocuous cheek-to-cheek contact. Should you not be experiencing any of these symptoms, please seek out immediate attention from the nearest person with a smile on their face and open arms. A good way to infect someone without direct contact is to internally feel as good as you possibly can, aim your outstretched index finger at the victim, and as you press your thumb forward, simultaneously direct your compressed psychic energy at them with a sly twinkle in your eyes.

Many people report experiencing these life-enhancing symptoms for days, weeks, or even months, though often in less intensity or frequency . . . unfortunately. So be aware of people you don't know smiling at you or laughing with you - the bliss you experience may be your own.

Catch you on the flip side.

#famousbob #spocklock #221bcon #221b con #ihearofsherlock #professorfangirl #frauleinninja #etal

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famousbob · 10 years

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Stepping in it a little deeper

I tried to send some of this to intellectualfangirl privately but the messaging system apparently has some character limit. Wordy as I am, I have some questions and comments that wouldn't fit. Since her comments were posted publicly I'm assuming it's fair for me to post this here since for some reason I couldn't respond to her comment. I'm still not familiar enough with tumblr to figure out how to do some things and how things are 'normally' done.

So, intellectualfangirl said: "I’m especially annoyed that while he’s seen and recognized his error (in terms of confusing bunnylock cosplayers for “cumber-bunnies”) he hasn’t changed it. Fandom is definitely nicer to men—male characters, creators, and fans, in many respects."

First, personally I haven't reflected upon or even have enough data to comment about whether fandom is nicer to men or not. I am as new to 'fandom' as I am to tumblr. I'll take your observation as a working hypothesis, but my real question is addressed to your initial statement.

I don't know the history of the Baker Street Bunnies or bunnylock. From what I've learned so far, bunnylock (and/or bunny/lock?) refers to the romantic (sexual?) relationship between Sherlock and (I assume) Molly Hooper based on the word play Hooper-hopper. Is that correct? (A response from one of the cosplayers would be especially appreciated.)

And by 'hasn't changed it' do you mean editing it on the ihearofsherlock.com website? I suppose that it is possible to do that, but that would have never occurred to me. I suppose I have this value that once it is out there, it stays out there. If I offend someone I would certainly apologize but I wouldn't think of changing the source. I have been on the internet since before there was a world wide web, but I have only recently started using social media - FB and now tumblr. Must be developing 'psychosclerosis' - hardening of the brain.

Does 'cumber-bunnies' have a specific connotation here? I am an inveterate punster and love word play. Plus I wore a tux to the last birthday weekend for the first time and recently picked up three colored cumberbunds at a thrift store last month for use with the tux. I thought I was just making a play on words calling the cosplayers 'cumber-bunnies' combining Cumberbatch, cumberbund, and bunnies. Did I make a faux pas?

And now for something completely different. Since I stepped into gender equality issues, why not bring up race also. At 221bCon I was struck by what I considered the under-representation of black women (is 'women of color' more politically correct?). Being in Atlanta I saw many more black women outside the hotel than I saw attending the con. I wasn't counting specifically and should have approached one of them to ask, but I wasn't aware of more than a half-dozen (if that many) the entire weekend. Surely I am not the only one to have noticed. Is BBC Sherlock fandom predominantly white middle-class females mostly of a certain age (under 30? under 40?)? Does even tumblr.com know?

Being a data-driven guy (and I don't mean Brent Spiner) I would love to see stats about the Sherlock fandom and 221bCon. Was everyone at 221bCon (except me) on tumblr? I'm well aware that averages do violence to the individual, but summary statistics are nevertheless interesting to me.

#intellectualfangirl #famousbob #spocklock #221bcon #221b con

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famousbob · 10 years

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Thank you all, and a clarification of my name

Wow! I just saw all the tumblr traffic recently generated. When passions get inflamed, torrents of prose follow!

I was dubbed 'famousbob' by the folks at the three-patch hospitality suite. It was because of the small stir I caused at the "From Baker Street to the Holodeck' panel when I innocently asked about a fanfic plot idea I had 30 years ago. Apparently what I thought was obvious hadn't been explored by others, but tying together Spock and Sherlock in the way I suggested was seen as brilliant. People at that panel apparently spread the word, and some folk at three-patch asked me, "Are you that Bob, the famous Bob that had that fantastic idea?" They insisted that I join tumblr and write it. Highlight of the con for me was to have them and Lyndsay Faye and abundantlyqueer gush over the idea and demand that I 'write it up!'

#famousbob #spocklock #abundantlyqueer #roane72 #batik96 #toooldforthissh--stuff #andtherestofyoutoo!

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famousbob · 10 years

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Starbase 1, leaving Earth orbit - Stardate 7324.3

Captain’s Log: The Enterprise and shuttlecraft Dymaxion have been structurally modified and outfitted with experimental devices prototyped by Chief Engineering Officer Montgomery Scott with the assistance of Science Officer Lt. Commander Spock. We are now proceeding to the super massive black hole at Sagittarius A* to test whether it is possible to skim just above the event horizon, capturing Hawking radiation for analysis and possible reconstruction. Only the high energy subspace graviton flux of the super massive black hole at our galactic core makes the experiment possible. While orbiting the black hole at the minimum safe distance the Enterprise will route the high energy gravitons streaming toward the black hole through a funnel shaped collection field above it. This field protects the Enterprise as well as powers the modified tractor beam holding the shuttlecraft while the experimental pressor field emanating from the shuttlecraft protects it from being drawn into the black hole. The balancing of these forces will require the coordination of Chief Helmsman Sulu and Ensign Checkov at the Science Officer’s station while Commander Spock pilots the Dymaxion and monitors the experiment. This is possibly the most dangerous mission undertaken thus far by the Enterprise and her crew.

#famousbob #spocklock

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famousbob · 10 years

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Beginnings

Yorkshire, December 13, 1795 – 3:00 PM

It was a dark and stormy afternoon. The six passengers were uncomfortably crowded in the coach and the four horses were not traveling as quickly or as easily as usual as they passed the village of Wold Newton in the East Riding of Yorkshire. The driver could occasionally be heard over the wind and rain, cursing the weather in his county Cork accent. His son wasn’t old enough to be of much help, and he regretted bringing him on the trip to Malton from Scarborough. “Seamus, keep yerself covered! No sense in lettin’ the rain soak yer head. Yer mither’ll have me head on a platter if you catch ill. Be a good lad and see if ya can tighten the strap on Squire Holmes’ trunk. Always hold onta sumthin ‘fore ya go fallin’ off and breakin’ yer leg!”

Inside the coach the pleasant conversation that had entertained the occupants at the beginning of the journey had dwindled to mutterings about the weather and the slow progress the coach was making. “It’s a shame that Major Topham is away,” said Siger Holmes, speaking to his wife. “Your family knows the major quite well, don’t they, my dear?”

“My brother was involved in his newspaper venture early on, and the Major is familiar with all the Clarke’s,” replied Violet Holmes. “We are fortunate to know such a kind and influential gentleman.”

“Indeed,” interjected another passenger. “The Rutherfords are also proud to be numbered amongst his many friends from the North Riding.”

“Well,” continued Siger, “it would be most convenient if . . .” But he was interrupted by cries from both father and son outside the coach, and two seconds later a tremendous explosion was heard. Looks of alarm passed over the faces in the coach, and Siger Holmes tapped the roof with his walking stick. “Coachman! What was that? What is going on? Was there a lightning strike?” The coach slowed and stopped. The passengers peered through the side windows trying to see what had caused such a loud noise.

“Faith and begorrah! Faith and begorrah!” repeated the coachman as he and his son looked off into the near distance through the mist and rain. “I’ve niver seen anyt’ing like it in all me life! There was this dark t’ing, some dark shape just flying through the air from the east. I only sawr it for a second or two and then it hit the ground and exploded yonder in that field. Ev’ryone for miles around musta heard that – me ears are still ringin’. Seamus – are you all right?” the frightened driver asked his son.

“I’m fine, father,” said the lad, who nevertheless appeared somewhat shaken, “but what was that? It flew across the sky so fast. What could it be?” The curiosity of the young boy seemed to overcome any lingering fear or surprise.

Squire Holmes who had exited the coach despite the still falling rain answered him. “There are some who say that stones can fall from the sky. Some German men of science, astronomers and physicists, claim that fireballs seen in the sky sometimes land, and these meteorites as they are called come from the moon or even beyond. Perhaps the fireball was quenched by the storm. I am sure that the locals, even Major Topham himself, will look into this as I believe the fields around here are his, and no doubt we can all read about it in his newspaper soon. Now, driver . . .”

“Yessir, Mr. Holmes, ‘tis Marcas Moriarty at your service, sir.”

“Well, Mr. Moriarty, we are late enough as it is. Let us be thankful that no harm has come to us, and let us get on to Malton!”

“Yessir!” And the young coachman soon had the team of Cleveland Bays ready to go again.

Siger Holmes stepped back into the coach, assuring everyone that while something unusual had occurred, there was no cause for concern other than the few minutes lost due to their stop. Some moments of further discussion concluded that everyone was indeed fine, and curiously enough, that they all felt very much alert, and surprisingly well considering the dreary day of traveling and the unusual explosion that marred their otherwise unremarkable journey.

#famousbob #spocklock

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