In a wonderful little neighborhood called Larchmont, there’s a wonderful little bookshop called Chevalier’s.
A friend of mine ran into Patrick Stewart there today, and when my friend mentioned that to me, I was reminded of the day a few years ago when Patrick saw my book there, and he texted me a picture of it, because he was excited for me. I’d misplaced that memory, and I’m so grateful that I found it today.
This isn’t Chevalier’s. This is Vroman’s in Pasadena.
I was going to post that on Bluesky, but it was too long. Rather than break it up across posts there, I took it as a reminder that my blog exists for a reason, and this is absolutely a lovely little memory that I can share on at Friday afternoon.
While I have your attention, I want to share some stuff that’s come across my event horizon recently. It’s on the other side of the thingy.
The eagles in Big Bear have finally hatched two of their eggs, with a third looking like it’s going to hatch, as well. I have been increasingly emotionally invested in these eagles and their nest for a couple of years, since a webcam was put up there, and I’m just so happy to see them welcome babies. I know it’s going to be thunderdome in there real soon, but right now it’s just adorable little chicks being fed by their parents.
Remember Katamari Damacy? I’ll wait while you sing the theme in your head real quick.
…la laaaa la la la la la lala Katamari Da-ma-ccyyyyyy
My friend turned me on to a game that’s similar, called hole.io. It’s 2 minute rounds against other players where you’re just trying to guide your hole around, suck everything into your hole to make it as big as possible by just stuffing it full of
Phrasing.
You want to have the biggest hole, because the biggest hole wins and
Phrasing.
It’s really fun, and I warn you it’s super addictive.
I’m nearly finished with The Ministry of Time. It’s taken me much longer to read it than I thought it would, but not because I’m unable to read like I was during much of the last five years. I’ve just been too busy with my own work to settle in and read for fun. I’m doing that trick where I tell myself that I need to read so I can write, I need to experience other people’s creations to inspire my own, so if you really think about it, reading for fun is kind of doing work, Wil.
And now I have this delicious conundrum, because I have a galley right here for a book I’ve been invited to blurb (it’s weird how I get so excited and honored when I am asked to do this, but I am SO UNCOMFORTABLE asking anyone to do it for me.) and this book, which comes out in June, is so entertaining and wonderful, I kind of want to drop everything and just read it.
Which, again, I could totally justify as work. Maybe I will.
Did anyone else feel like this week just flew by? Monday felt like a month, and I honestly don’t know where this week went. Maybe it’s just me.
Everything is terrible, the dumbest and most evil people imaginable are hurting as many people as they can, and I’m just not sure that holding up little signs is the best act of resistance in this moment of extreme crisis.
So I’m doing what I’ve done since Mister Rogers first said it to me as a little kid, and I am looking for the helpers. I’m also choosing to be a helper whenever I can. I truly believe in being a Helper. I even got the tattoo.
If we are going to get through this, if we are going to rebuild what they have destroyed and will destroy, we must take care of each other. We need to be the helpers. So as we go into the weekend, I challenge each of you to be a helper, at least once. I’d love it if you shared how you chose to help. Maybe that will inspire other people, and we’ll all feel a little less alone, a little less afraid, and a little more empowered.
Have a good weekend, friends. I’m glad you’re here. I appreciate you.
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Katamari Damacy! WOW.
I had to look up the word. It’s a video game. Something I don’t do.
Sure! I work at a library and I took extra time to help a family download legal forms to get notarized (for free at the library) so they could get health insurance.
Dude! I love that!
I admit, I try to BE the helper. I used to work at a gas station & it wasn’t uncommon for me to be really happy to see everyone. I’d see my regulars & check on how their day was or would be going. I’d see people in trouble & be the one to give them my air pump for their low tire, or need their phone charged & without a thought, hand them my battery charger so they could call someone to help get them home. I enjoy helping others more than getting it, which is my bad. Thank you Wil. I have ADHD, MDD, & AD-my own mental health alphabet. Thanks for making me more “comfortable” to be “bent”!
👏👏👏
Librarians and other library staff are the heroes we don’t deserve. Thank you for all you do.
I work as an intimacy director and as the chair of the intimacy department at an all-volunteer community theater? And I’m also a mom? I don’t know if any of that qualified as being a helper. I’ll keep looking for opportunities
I volunteer as an ESL teacher, mainly for farm workers here on temporary work permits. They work long hours under not great conditions, but they’re so enthusiastic and grateful for someone to talk to, and it gives me an outlet for my nerdy love of English and all its oddities.
My parents bought property in the Gulf Islands (the Canadian San Juans) in the late 80s. There was an eagles’ nest in one of the big firs nearby, and my dad started leaving out food for them. This morphed into a $50 a week chicken habit after he retired, and he refused to go on vacation during nesting season because he didn’t want the chicks to go hungry. Those eagles successfully fledged 2 chicks every year for 20 years (and only stole an entire rack of ribs off the bbq once).
Ohhhhh that song is permanently etched into my brain, between “Footloose” and “Monie in the Middle”
All I’ve been able to do is keep me and husband alive, but when my sister heard of a national park employee that got fired she reached out to see if she could hire her for a couple of months of landscaping. Part of her land is being used for reforestation/restoration.
Thanks for the push to be a helper. I have multiple friends that are (still employed for now) federal workers in DC, and I’ve been forwarding them notices of informational meetings and resource fairs being held in the area for former federal workers and contractors so they can share with their former coworkers and employees. There’s a lot of uncertainty here in the DC area, as almost everything connects in some way to the federal gov’t.
We donate $10 a month to Rooted for Good, a community garden organization in our county. It’s not much, but they can rely on it and I think that’s valuable. We also do $5 a month to Partners in Health. I thought one local and one global helping organization was best. I think we might find it in the budget to up our PiH donation now that they at suffering the loss of USAID funds.
My health restricts my activities, so I appreciate the folks at Vote Forward who enable me to write Get-Out-the-Vote letters from home. My husband volunteers to help DACA participants and immigrants; my elder (adult) child does CASA work and other volunteering; our younger (also adult) child spends a couple days a week at a local food pantry.
I also have been wrapped up in the saga of Jackie and Shadow, the Big Bear eagles. I am amazed at the way they managed to hatch their eggs this year despite the snow storms. Like others, I was concerned when both eagles had to leave the nest to fend off some intruders, but the eggs hatched out anyway. Whew. As I write, eaglet three is still working its way out of its egg.I love this sentence: "I’d misplaced that memory, and I’m so grateful that I found it today." It sounds like having a window unveiled in your mind.
I'm glad you're reading and blogging again.
I donated monthly to our Alternatives to Violence non-profit until I lost my job last October. My husband sent me a short list of its needs. Nail polish, seeing kits, hair conditioner were some of the items. With our diminished income, nail polish, the good and worth it stuff, was out of reach. I do have many sets of nail strips I’ve not used and have owned for a few years. I bought hair conditioner and sewing kits. I’ll add the nail strips to the rest and give it to them tomorrow.
If I may paraphrase, “I know [it’s only been] four weeks and three days, but to me it seems like nine weeks and five days. The first day seemed like a week and the second day seemed like five days. And the third day seemed like a week again and the fourth day seemed like eight days. And the fifth day you went to see your mother and that seemed just like a day, and then you came back and later on the sixth day, in the evening, when we saw each other, that started seeming like two days, so in the evening it seemed like two days spilling over into the next day and that started seeming like four days, so at the end of the sixth day on into the seventh day, it seemed like a total of five days. And the sixth day seemed like a week and a half…”
I ❤️ The Jerk!
He hates these cans!
The new Phone Book’s here!
My teenage daughter introduced me to hole.io. It’s totally fun and satisfying for your hole to grow as it sucks down everything in its path. Keep being awesome, Wil!
My favourite memory of Katamari Damacy was the character selection screen. ‘cos if you positioned yourself close enough to two of the characters, they would continually say “Hellooo?” and “Oi!” at each other…
My wife and I still say that to each other in exactly those tones. 😀
For a sad reason, we were helpers this week. A dear friend’s parent died, so we arranged the shiva and schlepped the chairs and food, and hugged our friend
May their memory be a blessing.
The Ministry of Time was so great.
My wife has been glued to the eagles for 3 years. She was devestated when their eggs didn’t hatch the last 2. This year has blown her mind!
MY COWORKERS AND I ARE SO INVESTED IN THAT THIRD EGG HATCHING C’MON LITTLE EAGLET YOU CAN DO IT BABY; SEVEN PEOPLE IN A BURBANK OFFICE BELIEVE IN YOU!
We have all been tuning into that and spent several minutes at work on Thursday worrying about the snow storm hitting them and hoping the eaglets would stay warm and their sibling would hatch and that their parents would find the food they and the babies need.
Only been to Chevaliar’s once and I should go again before I leave Cali this summer. I believe I was there to see Iain Thomas of I Wrote This For You poems/books fame. I remember it being a wonderful place and the people very warm.
And I appreciate you, Wil. This week and the last have felt like living in a dense fog. I cannot understand how the orange blob has so many under his spell. We need many helpers and I intend to do what I can to be one of them.
That is a bizarre and totally addictive game! Thanks for sharing!
I love your philosophy on being a helper and your make it so attitude! Kudos to Mister Rogers for touching so many hearts.
I live helping do much that by trade I’m a personal life coach. Who doesn’t need help navigating this world?!
Today I was reminded how mental health really isn’t important in this world we live in. Between pharma, lawyers, insurances, and government most are dependent or merely shadows in a sea of politics and bureaucracy. It sickens me!
Anyway, sorry about my mini rant. Wil, I want to personally thank you for your contribution in helping people and yourself on so many levels. If only we all had your celebrity status to reach thousands.
Deepest sincerity,
Holly K
I started a political support group at my bookstore. We share our fears and concerns, but more importantly, we share resources of groups and organizations that need help from personal to national levels. We’re educating each other on how to be helpers.
I am thrilled for the eagles as well. I hope the 3rd egg hatches too (last time I tuned in, there were two hatched babies and a 3rd egg).
It hatched! I thought I saw a glimpse of them last night, but I wasn’t sure until I checked this morning. Yay!
THIS IS THE BEST NEWS
I started a political support group at my bookstore. We share fears and concerns, but most importantly, we share resources of groups that need support from the personal to national levels. We’re teaching each other to be helpers.
Love all the positive energy in these comments!
Bad new on hole.io though. I played it a ton a few years ago and something seemed off about the “opponents”. Turns out they’re just bots. You can go into airplane mode and they still keep playing. I think the site is just a way to get ad money. Still a super fun game concept though.
Really? Ha! I’m getting wrecked by bots!
Thank you, Wil. Your blog always calms me and I can’t tell you how much that means to me. (((Hugs)))
Sandra
I’m not a Wil Wheaton “fan.” I’m a Wil Wheaton admirer!
You know, in my head, there is a meaningful difference between the two; it’s always been there, and I have always hoped that people would see me instead of The Guy From TV. And what you said makes me feel like you see the Me I wish my parents had seen, and that means a lot to me.
Remembering to look for the helpers can be so hard when so many horrible things are happening around you. But..this reminder just helped me to find a helper, and that will help me to remember to look for more and be one myself whenever I can. Thank you, Wil.
I’m not much of a gamer (except for Worldwinner.com-member since 2007) but I’m glad you found such joy in these games!
I wrote letters to my state senators this week urging them to support the Department of Education. There are so many people who will be negatively impacted not only by loss of funding but through loss of support, programming, access, and protections if the DOE is dissolved. Reaching out helped me feel like I did something to help, or at least that my opinion was represented.
Hi, I’m a walk-in Tutor in Hollywood and I try to : help people learn English; study for drivers tests when they speak Russian, and play walk in Jeopardy (I’m supposed to be able to answer and help with a lot of things. So I guess you can call me a helper
I had a coworker vent to me about working so hard this past year to just get an average review with unhelpful “feedback,” and very little appreciation throughout the year, from their boss. They were fuming. I shared with them how furious and frustrated I’d been in the past about similar things, how it led me to a mental breakdown (aka crying uncontrollably during the song “Surface Pressure” the first time I watched Encanto), and what worked for me. I suggested to him to work on truly letting go of what he couldn’t control and focus on what he could (ie don’t do good work because you’re hoping for a pat on the back that deep down you know will never come; instead do good work because it makes YOU happy/proud/etc.). I also told him how; after I provide a suggestion, opinion, or proposal to a higher up; I honestly add “but it’s up to you” and then let go of it. Would I like them to act on my idea? Sure! Do they have the option of not only ignoring my idea but actively working against it? Yep! I’ve come to recognize, however, that I don’t have the authority vested in me to make the idea happen, so I cross my fingers that the higher up will, while realizing that I’m still going to have a job either way.
My coworker thanked me, saying that he’s been putting this mindset to use over the past week and, as a result, he has felt much calmer.
TLDR. 😉
Thank you for sharing this on your blog instead of Bluesky. There, I might have seen it as all the content streamed past, but most likely it would’ve swooshed by unnoticed. But through the glory of RSS, boom here it is waiting for me. Long live the blogosphere!
Thank you Wil. Love the Patrick Stewart story. Rogers was right. The only thing we can do is try to help. I don’t have a platform like you do, but I’m doing the best that I can given the intensity of my anger at the cruelty.
I saw you mention the game on discord but I don’t know what I’m doing wrong but the play button is blocked by ads. 😡
Oh well.
Husband has interview 4 of 4 on Monday for a good job and please oh please universe we need this win. I’d like to give a way all the non perishable food I hoarded in my mental unhealthy state of protection. I’d love to pay it forward for everyone who helped us in the last year. In the meantime I hold my breath. My mini started leaking coolant so I have that unknown expense coming next week.
Today the sun is out and I’m going to go for a long walk and spend time with good friends. ♥️ hope you have a great day uncle Wil.
I spent yesterday with a friend who was experiencing panic attacks for the first time. I put little bits of dry cereal in her hand and nudged her to eat them, I paced around with her when she couldn’t hold still, and when the “I’m dying in agony” moments hit, I held her and whispered, “I know.” I have severe chronic panic disorder, and maybe the only good thing I can take from it is the ability to help other people get through it without being totally alone the way I was when I first experienced it. Even if it’s just whispering “I know how it feels” when the agony hits. Thank you, Mister Rogers.
Bless you.
Thanks, Wil.
It’s funny. I grew up with two older brothers who got computers (Commodore 64s followed by Amigas). Somehow computing was thought to be a guys thing so I didn’t get a computer. I got an electric type-writer and art supplies. The art supplies served me well. But really, I’m just as much as a geek as my brothers and now I spend a great deal of time on my computer (and a little bit of that time gaming). And even though I never used to think of myself as a gamer, I keep meeting kindred spirits who are definitely into gaming. So Vive Les Geeks and thank heavens for video games :D. My small piece of being a helper today – I was clearing snow from my front porch and looked out and saw a bit of purple paper sticking out of the snow in the front lawn that looked suspiciously like a CND $10. I didn’t loose any money, so I checked with my neighbour and sure enough, she had lost the 10 when she had been carrying in things from her car. The wind caught it and she couldn’t see where it had gone. :). It’s a small thing, but it makes me happy.
That is great
Not me but my wife, who is super cool, is helping organize a local SURJ group (https://surj.org/) here in Chattanooga.
One way I have helped recently is if someone is unloading their groceries in the handicapped parking area, I will offer to return their cart to the carrel for them
Last weekend, we went with friends to plant trees in a local park. Bonus: Our kids are doing a unit on salmon this month in school so we were able to link our contribution to clean air and water filtration to help with salmon habitats! Plus lending a listening ear to my trans buddies and working to support our school board in making good decisions vis-a-vis LGBTQ kids.
Just wanted to say I’m so glad you’ve been updating your blog again! I’m inconsistent on social media, but I’ve enjoyed reading your thoughts for …. oh no, about 25 years, that can’t be right …. and it has made me happy to see these posts appear in my inbox!
as a result of you mentioning it, I picked up a copy of The Ministry of Time to read. I am an avid reader, and was looking forward to delving into this one. It required a bit more intellectual investment, but I really, really enjoyed it. Very different kind of plot, but I thought it was fantastic. Thanks so much for putting it on my radar!
This weekend I’ve stumbled upon a new local Indivisible group (I’ve been trying to find a local group for a while) and signed up. Then I notified another loosely related group I belong to on the “Nextdoor” social media platform and provided a membership link to hopefully bring some of us together.
Go eaglets!
And I really try to be a helper – typically, working best through helping individuals we know (at least somewhat) from our community of nerdy/geeky friends. Last year, we helped a disabled friend by covering deposit/moving expenses so they could get a place where they didn’t have to negotiate stairs, and could actually leave their bedroom more often – which has really enabled them to get out more and improve their health.
Katamari Damacy brings up som many memories of that time period – I was obsessed with that game for a while.
I’m a definite Wil-admirer – so many props for trying to be a better person than our parents. I am definitely in the same mindset.
Your and Anne’s presence was sorely missed on NerdBoat this year!
Thanks Will – appreciate you too.
Argh, autocorrect. Thanks Wil 🙂
+1 to sharing memories in long form like this.
Katamari Damacy, man, that’s a fun little game that was seriously punching above its weight class in music terms. I used to listen to the soundtrack on my drive to work to get hyped up to Accomplish Stuff for the day, and shrug off whatever BS happened that day.
This weekend, I helped trap 4 stray cats in my backyard (technically, I’ve been letting them live in my unused indoor patio during the cold weather) so they could have TNRs done (spay/neuter & vaccination), and they’ll be re-released into my backyard today. I’ve missed them! And now they won’t be contributing to the population boom as kitten season starts, and I will keep taking care of the sweet babies. I’m doing what I can while looking for a job.
If I may, how were you able to trap them? A stray mother had 4 kittens in my yard last spring and now I fear there will be more. I’ve tried catching them without success. I’d sure appreciate learning how to capture them for sterilization, vaccination, and rerelease TIA.
i’m the librarian in a tiny little new england town, and i gotta say that, on way to many mornings, i feel like i cannot find the point anymore. but i go to the library, i hang out my “open” flag, and….lovely people show up! they come for books, of course, but also to learn about owls or to do science experiments, or to chat, peruse, see neighbors, do a puzzle, play games. this is what tethers me to the future, reminding myself every moment that this is worth keeping, building this community based on a love of community and learning.
Thank you for making a difference.
Thank you Wil. You make a difference too. Happy to see you writing again.
Writing letters to reps and senators more often than ever. Supporting Wilderness Watch letter campaigns to strengthen designated Wilderness protections that recreationists and pro-business groups keep trying to weaken. Helping friends who are frightened by what the current administration is doing to see that folks can and are fighting back. Getting them to speak up with phone calls or letters to their representatives in DC. Be informed, help others to be informed but not overloaded. Read Heather Cox Richardson daily on Substack. Dan Rather too. Keeping informed helps me help others so they can be part of the solution.