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200 words, calm, chaos, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, grace, grief, kindness, Leonard Nimoy, life, logical, Mr. Spock, passion, Star Trek, Vulcan greeting, wisdom
“I am and always will be your friend” – Spock (Leonard Nimoy)
When I was a little girl watching Star Trek, I had a secret crush on Mr. Spock.
While alien women were throwing themselves at Captain Kirk, I was drawn to his first officer.
When the rest of the crew seemed to run around fuelled by passion and chaos, Spock, the ever logical, the always calm, stepped in with his wisdom and grace.
Even in my 20s, it was my 11:30Pm ritual to watch Star Trek in bed before falling asleep.
Here, I read that: Nimoy’s fame as Spock was such that both of his autobiographies, I Am Not Spock (1975) and I Am Spock (1995), were written from the viewpoint of sharing his existence with the character.
I am saddened by Leonard Nimoy’s passing but so grateful for the man he was, and the way he embedded himself into the character of Mr. Spock.
As seen in the video below posted by the NY Times, Leonard was also a wonderful story-teller. I invite you to learn the origin of the Vulcan greeting by clicking the link below.
~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~
❤ R.I.P Leonard Nimoy ❤
talktodiana 
He was a cool character. 🙂
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cool indeed Rachel. ❤
Diana xo
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Legendary actor Diana and will be missed. We named out kitten Spock because my husband and daughter are watching from the very first episode of Star Trek, right through, 99 disks I think. Turns out the kitten is a girl but Spock has stuck and she answers to her very famous name.
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Aww how sweet Kath. Love that the next generation (your daughter) also gets to enjoy Star Trek. ❤
Diana xo
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I used to watch it in Germany too and was impressed with his ears. I can’t do the greeting , my sister did… hmm memories…..
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Did they dub it with the German language Ute? I remember watching the Flintstones (Familie Fuersteine) in Germany and laughing at the voices! ❤
Diana xo
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Yes they did, like the flintstones. Original it sounds much better though! Like James Bond too! 🙂
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Like Smitty said, for a show that was only in production for three years (and even then, only became a success in reruns) Star Trek has had such a massive effect on society. Think of all the things we saw there first, only to have them become reality. I always thought that [I am/yet not] Spock – Leonard Nimoy was more Canadian than another – who shall remain nameless… (No big surprise really, I liked Jean-Luc better, as well; )
Live long and prosper, Diana.
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You mean the nameless William Shatner, Deb? haha
As I mentioned to Jennifer, I like how each episode taught us about human nature and made us think of integrity and what that means in our own lives. ❤
Diana xo
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That was a reference to all the chatter about why he decided not to attend Leonard Nimoy’s funeral yesterday…
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Yes. I caught wind of that too. I’m pretty sure Nimoy would have showed up for Shatner if it were the other way around.
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he was a big part of my childhood too.
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It was a great show, taught good morals. ❤
Diana xo
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Agreed, Diana. RIP Leonard Nimoy.
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So you had a crush on Spock too Mark? 😉 haha
Diana xo
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No, but I was a fan. 🙂
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What a wonderful man – love the clip!
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Isn’t the clip amazing? I love it too Julie. ❤
Diana xo
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Star Trek and Mr. Spock helped shape a generation and I’m grateful for the balance of emotion and logic that the show taught me. I feel for Leonard Nimoy though, as I’m sure it is hard to be defined by so many as someone you are not. But I guess that is one price of being an actor.
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I’m sure there was a lot of him in Spock and he did do other things as well, right Ian?
In the video, at the end, his laugh – I love that. One didn’t get a chance to hear that on Star Trek! ❤
Diana xo
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I was a great fan of the show also, Diana.
“LIVE LONG AND PROSPER.”
-Alan
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Live long and prosper Alan. 🙂
Diana xo
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My daughter had to tell me he passed away I didn’t see it on Facebook or the news but it is sad of course that he has passed away
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Everybody goes one day, right Jo-Anne? I’m glad we had the gift of him for five or so decades. ❤
Diana xo
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The end of an era.
A piece of trivia for you. When star trek started they would speak in imperial measurements as that is the units America uses (miles for distance, pounds for weight, Fahrenheit for temperature etc). However, the directors decided that in the future the world would all be metric and swapped to metric.
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I did not know that Elizabeth!
When Canada went metric, I was in grade 7. I was so upset. I wondered why Canada had to differentiate itself from the rest of the world.
As I got older, I realized that it’s the US that stands alone with the imperial system. 🙂 When you think about it, the metric system is more logical, Spock would approve. ❤
Diana xo
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Nice post. Yes, Spock would have definitely approved of the metric system.
Yet another downside to getting old: we lose all of these icons that shaped us as we grew up. But what icons they were!!! ❤
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So true Jennifer! I’m just remembering how every episode had ‘a moral to the story’ feature. Gene Rodenberry sought to entertain, yes, but also teach how one should live their life with integrity. ❤
Diana xo
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A show loved by many, and for good reason!
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Strange, isn’t it (with the American push away from all things to do with the Monarchy) that Imperial measurement remained? ; )
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Good point Deb – that is strange!
We still hang on a bit too. My Driver’s license gives my weight and height in kilos and centimeters, but I still say I’m 5′ 8″ and think of my weight in pounds. ❤
Diana xo
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We are a funny mix, aren’t we? I’m the same as you on the Licence info. Speed limits are firmly converted over to km/hr, but figuring out a vehicle’s mileage only makes sense to me in miles per gallon. Temps I can do in either format but mostly stay in metric and, while weights are pretty easy to convert in either direction, I still figure out whether meat is a good price when purchased by the pound… ; )
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Thank you for that. I’d never heard the story, and I love hearing it in his own voice. So much of our popular culture has a base in religious tradition.
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Thank you so much and welcome to talktodiana! It’s so true vanbytheriver! I love hearing it in his voice too. ❤
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A cultural icon, ensconced in the Smithsonian, instantly recognized (and beloved) to people all around the world. Not bad for what really amounts to three years work!
(For the record: I didn’t have a crush on either Spock or Kirk. But many years later, Dr. Beverly Crusher was a whole other matter! XD )
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Haha I knew about your Beverly crush Smitty! My brother had a thing for Deanna Troy. 😀 And I’m pretty sure I had a girl crush on Captain Janeway! ❤
Diana xo
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Reblogged this on Booksbyjameswnelson.
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Sometimes we forget what a renaissance man he was. Not only a very fine actor, but a director, poet, and photographer as well. But most of all his grace and charm will be missed. Sometimes we don’t know what we have lost until they leave us. This is very true of Leonard Nimoy.
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I agree Don. Soon after I hit publish, I was thinking about others who move me and writing about them while they are still living… ❤
Diana xo
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Reblogged this on Army of Angels and commented:
This is a beautiful tribute to Leonard Nimoy, who blessed a generation with Vulcan wisdom…
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Thank you for the blessing of this post, Diana. I love Star Trek and Mr. Spock, too.
I actually saw and heard what he did — in an Orthodox synagogue when I was a kid — but I didn’t pick out that visual detail of the men’s hands when I peeked. I’m so glad he did and passed it onto the world.
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Ann, that’s so awesome!
I was just remembering how as a child, it took me a long time to teach the muscles in my hand to form the Vulcan greeting. My fingers trembling, muscles spasming, I was determined to master it. ❤
I love Nimoy's laugh at the end of the video when he notes that people are blessing each other and don't even know it.
Diana xo
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I could always do that greeting easily, Diana. I wonder if it’s my heritage?
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I don’t know Ann, an interesting theory! I also practiced, as a child, sitting crossed-legged because my body naturally resisted that position and the lotus position, also getting up on, and walking on, my knees in the lotus position, and walking on tipped toes while moving my knees away and toward each other haha all of which I can still do at the ripe age of 52! 😉
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I loved Mr. Spock, too, and still occasionally give the Vulcan greeting. He was so logical, a trait I could identify with as my Dad was an engineer, mathematically inclined. Like Spock, he also was a wonderful story teller.
Thank you for sharing the video and the origin behind the Vulcan greeting. LLAP (Live Long and Propser) 😉
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You’re welcome Judy. Mr. Spock reminded me of my dad too, the calm part of him, the not panic and just do what needs to be done part… ❤
Diana xo
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What a wonderful story.
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Isn’t it? I love the way he tells it Colleen ❤
Diana xo
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I know, I had never heard that before. And I never get tired of that voice. 🙂
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