The work avoidance issue: dealing with the big black hole that is my research data entry slush pile. I'm always incorporating new data into my files, but not at the same rate that I research it. Then I find some unexpected lead, and off I am again on some other crazy topic. I think I'll probably spend most of my free time in the beginning of the new year dealing with the consequences of that foolishness. (In addition to working on the nascent hobby advocacy movement that seems to be coming into being – finally!)
The new year is almost here, and photos of the 2010 releases are already being floated about, and analyzed to death. I'm not going to be one of those people today: we should all know by now that it's not a good idea to judge a Breyer horse by its stock photo. Especially the new G4 Stablemates; it's pretty clear that a number of those photos are of prototypes, and not to be trusted. The two resin prototypes we had a sneak peek at BreyerFest this year looked just fine and dandy in person, and I suspect that most of the rest will be, too. There might be a clunker or two, but it's nothing worth fretting over until we have them in hand.
I'm glad to see a new Nokota and a new Peruvian, though – now there's a couple of favorite molds that might make me break my vows of model horse austerity. The Treasure Hunt Othellos are very nice – I like the mold a lot, but I'm not sure I like him enough to participate. I may reconsider, depending on the color and quality of the redemption horse. (Gloss Charcoal = YES! Another shade of gray = meh, not so much.)
I have a lot of reservations about the Breast Cancer Benefit horse. Normally I'd be attempting cartwheels at the thought of a mass-market transparent Traditional-scale horse; one of my few, true model horse grails is to track down and possess the Transparent Belgian I once saw in Marney Walerius's basement. I have all of the other transparent, or mostly transparent Breyer releases, except for the unaffordable Connoisseur Tortuga.
Benefit horses of any kind are good; I just wish it could have been targeted towards an orphan cancer that doesn't quite get the same level of funding or media attention.
You know, like pancreatic cancer.
Hell yeah, it's personal. Some of you may know, but others do not: I lost my Dad to pancreatic cancer almost two years ago. PC has a 5% survival rate after five years; we had 28 days, which is not untypical. There hasn't been much research done, because there's no money in it: there are virtually no survivors to campaign for it.
Now that they have the painting template for it, we can hope that maybe the idea will carry through to other causes, in other colors. (PC's color is purple.) And at least with PC, there would be a logical connection of the horse to the cause: Patrick Swayze was an Arabian horse breeder and enthusiast. I think there's even some footage of him competing at the Kentucky Horse Park on YouTube somewhere.
(And intriguingly, the Tempur-Pedic company is also doing a PC fundraising effort with a limited-edition teddy bear: their headquarters just happens to be in Lexington, Kentucky. BreyerFest attendees would much appreciate some comfy mattresses in a nap station in the Covered Arena, dontcha think?)
4 comments:
I completely agree about the cancer model. I worked at an oncology clinic for several years, and the less glamorous forms of cancer (like rectal/anal, colon, pancreatic, or renal) have almost no advocacy groups. It makes sense - butt cancer is a lot less palatable than boob cancer to the general public. Should I ever find myself with time not spent working or sleeping, I'll be seeing what I can do to help some of these less publicized diagnoses.
Agreed. Unfortunately BC has a better PR department. *sigh* It's about time some of the other cancers got the same sort of support.
(and this coming from someone who has an incredibly SCARY family history of BC!)
Ditto about the cancer horse.
(I don't collect non-realistic models in general, anyway). I'm seriously disappointed that the red dun Lady Phase--a mold/color combination for which I've literally been praying for decades--is glossy. I don't like gloss on the more modern molds. Running Mare, yes; Lady Phase, not so much.
I love the TH Shires, though. This is the first TH in which I'm actually tempted to participate. I figure if I hate the surprise model, I'll sell it and get some of that moolah back, right?
I wanted to comment on this entry after finding your blog & reading through the recent entries... Your entries are addictive, can't wait to see more in the future. :)
I agree about the breast cancer model wholeheartedly. BC isn't nearly the biggest medical danger for women, and it's not the most lethal form of cancer we face. Also, I feel like it bolsters the attitude that our boobs are our most important part by far, and/or that they're required in order for us to be "real" women & using them is mandatory for "real" motherhood.
I think it'd be better if Breyer focused on abuse, both donating to small orgs as funds go a much longer way with them, and putting basic-yet-useful info in RR boxes as part of letting collectors know about the SR. Something like that seems like it would help a lot more people than just yet another drop in the giant BC bucket...
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