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ZAPPED! Merlin works his magic yet again! (To be continued...?)

ZAPPED! Merlin works his magic yet again! (To be continued...?)

NutMeg

The Nefarious N.M.G.
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So once again, this zap appreciation post is waaay overdue and I feel super guilty, but as I said before, I just had jury duty, and am still dealing with strep throat and/or the flu. Yay! So hopefully y'all let me off the hook again.

Compounding my guilt even more so is the fact that this is now the THIRD zap in a ROW I've received that was, like, 12/10 on the emotional impact scale. Seriously, what the heck, guys?? Are you TRYING to make me cry???

So OK, who was my generous zapper this time?

Drum roll, please!!!

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......none other than @MerlinEmrys! Sooo yeah, you probably deduced that from the title alone, but hey, you got to see a gif of a cat doing a drum roll, so, like, you're welcome.

Yes, shockingly, it was Merlin. I KNOW RIGHT??? Just let that sink in. Merlin, of all people, going out of his way to do something nice for someone...

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(Another shocker: I am known to be sarcastic.)

Ok, so first up, I need to briefly mention the shipping label itself - specifically, my name on it.

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Ahem, I would just like to clarify that it's actually Sarah Hunter-NutMeg. As a feminist, I decided to hyphenate once I married into the DPF family. Not that it's necessarily un-feminist to do otherwise, as there are many understandable reasons to change your married name, as long as it's your choice. Thank you.

Ignoring Merlin's blatant sexism (OH GOD THE SARCASM IS A DISEASE), I opened the LBE and out fell a pin and a note. I obviously went right for the shinier thing, and even through the layers of bubble wrap, I could see that it was..............................

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....................................................

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.....................

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FOR REAL THO. When, where, how, and most importantly, WHY?!?!?! WHY ME???

I'M A WORM, WORTHLESS WORM!!!

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To put this in context, there are only 6 people trading this pin on PinPics, most of them inactive users. And on eBay, well...

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I honestly have no idea how Merlin managed to snag this for me - he better not have used up a valuable trader or spent a bunch of money, otherwise I'm flying all the way to Florida to throw hands. So for the sake of our friendship (and in the spirit of non-violence, which FL could probably use more of, JUST SAYIN'), I'm simply gonna go with "it was Merlin magic!" and be grateful for his super sweet sorcery, as usual. <3

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Anyway, the pin was a lot bigger and prettier than I had expected from pics alone!! Holding it up to the last vestiges of Northwest WA sunlight now that fall is upon us, I was surprised how cool the stained glass effect was.

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And if you know me, you know this is sort of a big deal: THE RED DRESS!!! YAAAASSS!!! I mean, technically you can't actually *see* the dress since that part is stained glass as well, but IT STILL COUNTS DAMMIT. The crown is visible! (Btw, can we talk about the fact that Es wears a dress AND a crown, and has an animal sidekick? OFFICIAL DISNEY PRINCESS STATUS CONFIRMED.)

Ok, so after my extremely dignified initial freak-out and the subsequent pin photo shoot (followed by a brief induction ceremony into my Esmeralda collection, very classy as always), I finally got around to reading Merlin's card (oops.)

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Ummm... what? There is a "more fun" zap on the way? This Esmeralda pin is just some second-fiddle zap to hold me over til the "fun" one is finished?

.........?

Actually, you know what? You've convinced me. Now that I think about it, this zap *was* pretty un-fun. /: I mean, look how unimpressed Gus was:

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Lol, jk. He's usually a total love bug/mama's boy, but some days he really lives up to his name and is a super Grumpy Gus. This was just one of those days, I guess.

In all seriousness, I'm so thrilled with this pin and I can't believe I actually get to finally mark it off my signature!!!! :O Having said that, though... idk man. Not sure how you're gonna top this one. This mysterious future zap better be pretty damn "fun," or you may have set yourself up for failure. And now everyone who reads this knows about it, so pressure's REALLY on. xD But hey, even if it bombs, there's still THIS zap to top it. Plus everyone already knows you're basically the Headmaster Dumbledore of DPF (or Prom King maybe? Do we do yearbooks? Lol.) So your reputation can take the hit. ;)

Lastly, on a very real (maybe too real? lol) note, to Merlin, @AshleyV, and @timeerkat: I just need to thank you all yet again for your recent trio of extremely touching zaps. They honestly made me feel so special and couldn't have come at a better time. In addition to being sick and everything, I've also been experiencing a rough depressive episode and have become very isolated in recent weeks. I'm bipolar, which is something I've pretty much always kept private due to the stigma surrounding mental illness, and the very real hurt this stigma has caused me in the past. But I've been *trying* to gradually open up about it, because now more than ever our country NEEDS to talk about mental health care. That's all I'll really say for now because I still have a lot of anxiety about telling people, but I just need you guys to know how much it's helped to get these super thoughtful, personalized zaps that make me feel like I really do have friends out there. Anyway, hopefully this information doesn't scare any of you off from interacting with me. xP Love you all.
 
Amazing Zap!

It takes a lot of courage to share your life with others. This is an amazing community of support. We are all connected in one way or another. Having said that, I would like to send you a “Zap of encouragement”. Keep being courageous, and never lose hope. You are a vital Member of this community.

We will never judge. Again, we are all here for each other.

 
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Love it!! I have the Simba from this series, and they are just such cool pins! Also I love seeing you get some payback for all your amazing zaps!
 
What a spectacular zap!! Way to go, Merlin.

Mme. Sarah Hunter-NutMeg (your official title, I presume), there is nothing you could do that would scare us off. You have some friends for life here. <3 Hope you feel better soon!
 
This a wonderful Zap and couldn't go to a more deserving person.

I'm sorry to hear you've been having a tough time and wanted to commend your bravery for sharing your story. If you ever need an ear about that stuff(I'm currently dealing with Postpartum depression and anxiety), I would be happy to listen or just send some encouragement along.
 
I'm glad it arrived and seemed to pop up at just the right time. :)

And don't get tooooo excited about the second part. It's not a pin--just some, er, flavor? Yeah, we'll leave it at that ;P
 
It takes a lot of courage to share your life with others. This is an amazing community of support. We are all connected in one way or another. Having said that, I would like to send you a “Zap of encouragement”. Keep being courageous, and never lose hope. You are a vital Member of this community.

We will never judge. Again, we are all here for each other.


there is nothing you could do that would scare us off. You have some friends for life here. <3 Hope you feel better soon!

Thank you for being so brave about being open about yourself! <3

This a wonderful Zap and couldn't go to a more deserving person.

I'm sorry to hear you've been having a tough time and wanted to commend your bravery for sharing your story. If you ever need an ear about that stuff(I'm currently dealing with Postpartum depression and anxiety), I would be happy to listen or just send some encouragement along.

Thank you all so much. I honestly have a lump in my throat right now and tears stinging my eyes after reading your comments. Your kind words are zaps in and of themselves. <3

I was originally really nervous about posting that part (if the tiny font didn't already clue you in, lol.) The only time I've ever explicitly said the words "I am bipolar" as publicly as this was 4 years ago, when Robin Williams passed away. My Facebook feed was flooded with posts about his death, and of course many of them were sincere, heartfelt, and powerful. But so many others just felt like those shallow, preachy, "look how much I care about this cause" posts. You know, the ones about how important it is to proactively support those in your life with depression, and that we need to start a movement to improve mental health care. Yet no such movement ever truly occurs, because these people who supposedly care just move on, until the next mental illness-related tragedy occurs and the same old posts are recycled.

That day, it just all really hit a raw nerve in me (probably in part because Williams' death was genuinely pretty gut-wrenching for me, as I believe it was for many of us Disney lovers.) I was compelled to write my own lengthy post wherein, for lack of a better phrase, I publicly "came out" as bipolar, shared my own emotional experience grappling with Williams' suicide, and challenging people to actually think hard about the words they've typed regarding mental illness, and whether they truly live up to them. Then I went to bed.

When I woke up, I suddenly remembered what I'd done, and had an incredibly rattling panic attack. Did I seriously admit to everyone I knew that I was a crazy person?? Are they ever going to look at me the same way again?? What was I thinking? I frantically grabbed my laptop and rushed to delete it. Fortunately I had posted it super late and it was only up for a few hours in the middle of the night, so it pretty much slipped under the radar. No one ever mentioned anything about it to me.

Anyway, sorry for the long story, but I wanted to illustrate the vast difference between that experience vs. this very positive one, and how truly moved I am by your compassion and support. I feel so much better after reading your comments, and I'm really glad now that I shared this here and didn't chicken out. :) It feels like a good first step in the process of trying to be more open and brave.

So yeah, just consider this tangent its own appreciation post for all your emotional support zaps. :p

PS: @summerskin, I'm so sorry that you've also been suffering. Thank you so much for sharing that; it always helps to be reassured that we're not alone. <3 Thank you for your kind offer as well, and please know that it goes both ways - my ear is here for you as well! ;) I'd like to PM you a resource that I think could be really helpful for you regarding PPD, if that's ok?

Mme. Sarah Hunter-NutMeg (your official title, I presume)

@AshleyV OMG ok, so on a lighter note, my family and I have started researching our genealogy, mostly because we descend from tribes in Maine, where Native populations are dwindling and centuries-old languages are dying off. We've been taking that a lot more seriously, especially in terms of discovering/preserving our ancestors' stories while we still can. (Ok, the lighter note is coming, I promise. Probably shouldn't have prefaced this with cultural genocide...) We recently did one of those DNA test things, and girl, I found out I'M 12-14% RUSSIAN!!! (I'm obviously going with 14%. Round up, right?) Needless to say, I plan to eventually research my Russian ancestors as well, and basically I'm already fully convinced that my lineage can be traced back to the Romanov bloodline and I am therefore distantly related to the actual Anastasia. :cool:

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So for the record, my full official title is now Her Royal Highness The Grand Duchess Sarah Simone Hunter-NutMeg. But I'm not one for formalities, so Sarah, NutMeg, Nut, or "miss, please leave this Chuck E. Cheese at once" are all fine.

Not that I've ever been kicked out of a Chuck E. Cheese. Like idk, for climbing up a skee ball ramp to cheat. That definitely never happened, and I definitely wasn't over 20 years old when it did not occur.
 
Needless to say, I plan to eventually research my Russian ancestors as well, and basically I'm already fully convinced that my lineage can be traced back to the Romanov bloodline and I am therefore distantly related to the actual Anastasia. :cool:

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So for the record, my full official title is now Her Royal Highness The Grand Duchess Sarah Simone Hunter-NutMeg. But I'm not one for formalities, so Sarah, NutMeg, Nut, or "miss, please leave this Chuck E. Cheese at once" are all fine.

Not that I've ever been kicked out of a Chuck E. Cheese. Like idk, for climbing up a skee ball ramp to cheat. That definitely never happened, and I definitely wasn't over 20 years old when it did not occur.

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HRHTGDSSH-NM(MPLTCECAO), got it.
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Rolls right off the tongue.

Also, wait, I'm sorry, you did WHAT in Chuck E. Cheese??? I feel like we're missing so many details here......
 
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