So, I’m going to be a LEGO.
I never thought I’d ever utter those words. Like, at all.
With the announcement that there will soon be a “The Big Bang Theory” LEGO set, it seems my children will get to taunt and torture me not only in real life, but in miniature now.
I resisted telling them that I was going to be a LEGO for a good week after the news surfaced, because it just was too darn surreal. I didn’t expect to be this “famous” ever. I started acting again after I had my second child, with a 3-year-old tagging along to auditions; I was teaching for several years after getting my PhD; I did not expect to be a full-time working actress, much less one who ended up nominated for Emmy and SAG awards and turned into a LEGO, for Pete’s sake.
Here are the top six things my kids (and my mom) said about it:
1. “It’s not a big deal.”
Said concealing a weird smirk, while walking away from me to no apparent destination of importance. Said as if it were a VERY big deal.
2. “Darth Mader.”
We realized my sons can now put “my” head on any body they want. The first thought Firstborn had was: a chicken! “I want your face on the chicken LEGO man.” OK then. Then we thought it would be cool if I could be Darth Vader, or as we call it, “Darth Mader,” since “Vader” means father in Dutch–with more of a German pronunciation, mind you–and “Mader” sounds like the feminine version of that to my boys. The thought of my head on Darth Vader’s LEGO body is sort of orgasmically awesome.
3. “Toilet.”
Not exactly sure why, and it’s not even like we have a LEGO toilet, but Firstborn thought it would be super cool to put me on the toilet. So… picture that.
4. “Free LEGO.”
Little Man was tickled that this would be the first–and only, I told him–LEGO set he didn’t have to save any of his money for. Then I joked that he has to earn the money to buy it. He looked scared for a second, but then I broke a smile. My mother declared she will be buying one at the LEGO store. I’ll let her pay. Hahaha. Just kidding, Ma. I’ll buy you a set.
5. “That other scientist set.”
Little Man noted that there is a female scientist LEGO set which kind of looks like me, but isn’t. He very deliberately described how people might think that was Mama, but it’s not. This set is Mama.
6. “Which face?”
Little Man knows that some LEGO come with “white colored” faces now as well as “black faces,” rather than the classic yellow. He wondered which I’d be. I thought that was a very interesting concern. I told him I think I’ll have “white” skin since I’m an outside of LEGO character first, not a LEGO person, per se.
I have tried communicating to the closest people in my life why this whole me-as-a-LEGO thing freaks me out. No one seems to get it. A few of my castmates do, I think.
Guess you kind of have to be there. “There” as in, existing as a person being turned into a LEGO.
So weird.
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