GrS 3:4:21 Naboo week

Haven't written in a long time, but had to share this. What a weird week. I've been glued to GNN for most of it.

First, some kid, a human kid no less, wins the Boonta Eve Classic on Tatooine. That was strange enough, but then I find out that I know this kid---Anakin Skywalker, the slave of that Toydarian, Watto, who I met at the Outer Rim Swap Meet last year. I saw last year that the kid had a gift for mechanics, but apparently he's a star podracer too. Whoever heard of a human podracing? Actually, I thought this kid might be a good fit for the Techno Union, so I gave Watto a call yesterday--ostensibly to discuss all the big news from this week. I worked the conversation around to Anakin, and boy, was Watto steamed. As a result of a bad bet, he's sold the kid to some "weird off-planet guy in robes." Man, that's not like Watto at all. If he wasn't a Toydarian, I'd suspect he'd been the victim of a Jedi mind-trick.

Then, the Queen of Naboo appears in the Senate, and claims that the Trade Federation has invaded Naboo, for reasons that have not been made clear, though some arm-waving was given to the "taxing of trade routes" reason. Next thing you know, she's calling for a no-confidence vote in the Chancellor so that Senator Palpatine from Naboo can become Chancellor. Gee, no high-level collusion going on there. What is this, Naboo week?

Oh, and that wasn't all that happened this week. The Trade Federation deployed a massive droid army against a bunch of Gungans and lost. Wow, I was being sarcastic about that a few years ago, and now it happened.

Actually, credit shouldn't go the Gungans. They should really reward a medal to the inept engineers at Baktoid Combat Automata, because the turning point in the battle was, big surprise, when the Droid Control Ship was destroyed and all the battle droids deactivated. I warned them this would happen! Idiots.

Oh, and get this, the destruction of the Droid Control Ship was, apparently, the work of Anakin Skywalker, the same kid who'd won the Boonta Eve race a couple of days earlier! What the hell is going on out there in the galaxy? How does this kid manage to get involved in two of the big news stories, a couple of days apart, one taking place in the Outer Rim, and the other above a Mid Rim world?

Oh, and here's the really weird thing. I saw some fan-shot footage from the Boonta Eve race, and guess who was watching the race from Anakin's family box? Queen Amidala of Naboo! And according to Watto, she'd only met him the day before. What... the... hell. Here's me, plugging away in my ordinary life every day, while a handful of people are influencing the major weekly events in the galaxy.

And who else did I see celebrating with Anakin afterwards but my very own little R2-D2! I'd know that little blue dome anywhere. I could even see the slightly bulging top panel where I'd installed the periscope. It's not enough that Anakin Skywalker gets to win the Boonta Eve Classic and save the planet of Naboo, but now he's swanning around with my astromech droid?

To make matters worse, R2-D2 seems to have made friends with one of those prissy protocol droids. Let's hope he didn't tag along when R2-D2 left Tatooine.

I'm doing all I can to find out where he's got to now. He was last spotted helping that Anakin kid pilot that Naboo Royal N-1 starfighter into the Droid Control Ship. I've tried calling the planet, but things are a little hectic in Naboo right now, and I'm having trouble getting in touch with anyone.