Having watched Turn Left and now the second part of the penultimate episode called The Stolen Earth from Doctor Who, I can only say wow. We have one more week to go when we get to see the finale with Journey’s End.
If you haven’t seen it, I’ll put it behind the wall, but I have to say, if this is Russell T. Davies swan song, he’s going out with a bang.
Spoilers behind the jump.
I watch television marathons because I want nothing to do with committing myself to things.
I don’t want to fall in love and have to wait week after week to build the story. I’m greedy and have no sense of responsibility or dedication (well, maybe to Lost) but seriously, I’m the perfect date. I hate getting “married” to something. I want to enjoy it and then go for a pizza.
I don’t waste the money these days on DVDs and I’m not organized or focused enough to deal with Netflix.’
Yeah, I’m groovy that way and at least I’m somewhat honest.
We won’t see Doctor Who until 2010 and it’s making me antsy. As I said, I’ll watch some tube, but I just hate the “attachment” to it all.
When I type 2010 for any reason, it kind of wigs me out. Where’s my damned flying car? I have a PT Cruiser named Steve Austin that I haven’t seen in three weeks. Seriously, I expected to be living in black spandex by now and my own personal jetpack with a robot that cleaned my house and talked to me about politics and robot gender identity.
Doctor Who is exquisite. It always has been. Due to nefarious although not illegal means, I’ve seen all of the latest season other than the Doctor’s Daughter. I loved Tom Baker. I loved Christopher Eccleston (and in some ways, he’s most tied to me for some reason. I love geeky, goofy, smart men and he hit it perfectly) but I’m smitten with David Tennant as well even when he’s most over the top. He does convey emotion and loss so very well and he’s like Macgyver on acid but so much cooler.
Next week, apparently it’s going to be everyone that we know in the 2008 finale. I’m hoping the swaggering Captain Jack from the Doctor Who/Rose seasons shows up and not the manchild who has his own show now. (By the way, Catherine Tate ROCKS the house. She’s just wonderful.)
As I said, as a kid from Hoots, we had four channels. One of them, my beloved local PBS channel, played Monty Python and Doctor Who (ahhh, Tom.)
You find joy where you can. I was an unusual child growing up in Hoots. I realize that’s not much, but it’s true and it’s all I have.
One thing I keep thinking is I reconnected with Doctor Who through the innertubes. I’ve had a couple of people say that if they had to choose between HD computers and digital televisions, they would go with a laptop.
Me too. I would in a minute. I wouldn’t even take a second to make the choice.
One of those reasons is Doctor Who. Because I have more options to watch it.
And, if you haven’t seen Blink, you should. It will scare the hell out of you.
For you Doctor Who-a-philes out there, this may be interesting to you. Here’s the scoop from over the pond, Russell T. Davis, the guy who brought Doctor Who back has stepped down and Stephen Moffatt has replaced him as executive producer. Moffatt is pretty awesome in his own right campers. Neil Gaiman’s, yeah that one, the one I really dig, name is being tossed around about writing an episode in the next series.
If you haven’t read Sandman, you should go out this very second and buy it. And when you are done, read it again.
I’m feeling all Pop-Culture Grrl today.
Tom Baker has admitted that he may be persuaded to make an appearance in the revived series of Doctor Who.
The 74-year-old actor, who played the fourth incarnation of the Time Lord between 1974 and 1981, told Kent News: “Perhaps I might make a guest appearance – perhaps. Providing they ask me nicely, of course.”
Oh, how I love PBS who gave me some Tom Baker and made life so groovy when I only had four channels to watch.
And then Sci Fi is bringing back more Doc Who and Sarah Jane Adventures. Sometime I cuss cable and satellite and then I think better of it.
Dang. The world moves fast.
From Sluggy Freelance via Behind the Sofa, today we are given the joy of this cartoon.
It’s been two years.
I think the government should give me a bunch of money to build a time machine. Yeah, that would be cool and it would have a keg and David Tennant on board, who would entertain me by pointing out all the cool things in history that I probably have forgotten. Here’s my first post.
In my time machine that the government will pay for because they sho’ do like spending money, I will head back to 1960 and have a groovy dirty martini as I contemplate the next 48 years and how funny looking Richard Nixon was (or is, I wonder). As I wasn’t even a sperm then, I might just spy on my parents, but then that would be gross. Or, I could head back to the nineties, when I made more money and was not as saucy as I am now.
Or, I could just tip up a lovely Bass beer today and celebrate myself. (No one else will, so I have to do it.)
Man, I haven’t changed much, have I since day one, have I?
So thanks. It’s been swell. I’ve enjoyed you guys more than you will ever know. Thanks for lifting a beer with me on occasion, sending me nice emails and even having a friendly debate from time to time.
Blogging. Yeah, it’s fun. Keeps me sane.
Do you get Blog Birthday presents?
No, you say.
Damn.
Anyway, happy day to you.
I work with a lot of people that are younger than I am, although that has little to do with what I’m about to write about. I don’t think that the word “fear” has an age limit on it. But I have heard them talk about the topic a bit on the subject that Shaun Groves addressed in a post this morning about this post, which is called “The Nasty Four-Letter Word that Keeps You From Writing.”
Fear affects us all more than we care to admit, and it’s especially insidious for writers. Writing online is one of those activities where you’re really putting yourself out there, and the critics are always waiting to pounce. But as we’ll see below, failure and mediocrity are not the only things we fear.
Most fear works at the subconscious level and manifests itself in the form of procrastination and writer’s block. We want to write that novel or business book, start that killer blog, release that article or white paper that boosts our business authority… and yet we keep putting it off.
I don’t like to waste time on regret, because, well, it’s a waste of time. But looking back, I see I’ve wasted so much time in my writing life because I let fear hold me back.
And the truth is, every time I push myself in a new direction, I’m still afraid. I don’t think that ever changes—it’s just part of the game.
The key is to not let it stop you
I’ve written a couple of books. I don’t let anyone read them, so I get the fear. I wouldn’t even know where to start to get them published. That’s why I respect Kathy T. so much as she just put her mind to it and has released one book and is looking on releasing a second. She’s fearless. I like that.
I actually started a blog in 2001 and I didn’t continue it because I didn’t think it was good enough. When I started this blog, I got through that. I would read folks like Aunt B., Sharon Cobb, TV on the fritz and think to myself that I couldn’t write or articulate like they did.
I didn’t think that anyone would give a damn about what I had to say. When I realized that I was doing this for me and was just as happy as a clam when I was getting about 15 hits a day, I realized I had denied myself a great deal of joy. Now that I have folks visit and then I go to visit them, I have been given a great deal of happiness that I would have never imagined.
Joy is a good thing.
With that said, over the years I’ve stopped myself because I didn’t feel “good” enough. But, as I’m looking at celebrating two years on this blog at the end of the month, I’ve realized that I really did deny myself so much. Those three people I read long before I blogged are now people I have met that I really like and enjoy.
I guess the thing is that deciding to be fearless is about one of the toughest things I’ve done. I am pretty transparent on this blog, although I admit that I’ve toned it down over time. I don’t vent about the job like I used to (which was pretty stupid but, of course, I didn’t know what getting Dooced was two years ago either.) I enjoy it more than ever because I’ve been able to be realize I don’t have to please other people, just myself.
About a year ago I decided that I needed to do something everyday that just scares the crap out of me. I try to do that, and it’s opened a bunch of doors. I’m writing this to you this morning because recently I took a walk out of my comfort zone and I just got my first regular paid blogging gig.
Yup, I’m getting paid to write at Teevieo. My first post went up this morning and I can read in it how nervous I am about it all. It’s just a side thing but it’s important to me, and I’m glad I walked through the fear and attempted to move forward. I hope you will come and visit me over there sometimes. I’ll be writing there about three times a week. Don’t worry, because I know you were biting your nails, I’m still here as well. Hopefully in the next little while, I can find some more cajones to get me to other new and exciting levels.
Fear is an amazing thing. Now that I’m older, I have found that I’m not letting it paralyze me like I did 20 years ago.
Now back to your regular scheduled Newscoma, already in progress.
LeBlanc, this one is for you and the School Girl.
It’s for me as well.
Last night on BBC One in the UK, the Corporation’s annual charity telethon, ‘Children in Need’ raised £19million for underpriviledged kids around the country.
This happened last night. Thank goodness for youtube goodness because we get to see it today.
If you like Doctor Who, the last minute will get to you. I promise.
If you don’t like Doctor Who, then go read this.
Don’t Blink.
For LeBlanc and The School Girl. I wrote about this one earlier this week.
Good scary television. Of course, from the UK.
Recently, I saw a really creepy hour of television. You have to understand, I don’t scare easily. I tend to get a major case of the wiggums over weird stuff (like that stupid talking dog in the Son Of Sam movie. Just plain asinine.)
Anyway, I watched Doctor Who and the episode was called “Blink“. I have to tell you, it was probably one of the best hours of television I’ve seen in awhile.
And damn it all if it wasn’t creepy as hell. If you blink, the monsters will get you. And the monsters are things that have always been there.
I also think that Amelia, which was the freakiest thing I’d ever seen as a child on the tube from the awesome “Trilogy of Terror” movie written by Richard Matheson (who also wrote the upcoming “I Am Legend” which is a great book but I’m not so sure about how it’s going to translate to film.) The doll who loses his necklace that just terrorizes the hell out of Karen Black. Totally rocked my world as a kid. I also got a bit chilled over the old Twilight Zone, especially the ones about people’s behavior (The Monsters are Due on Maple Street.)
Now, it could be debated that for an hour a night, Bill O’Reilly will terrify you. I just finding it terrifying that people watch him. But that’s just me.
So, which shows, on the good old fashioned telly, wigged you out?
I finally figured out why I love Doctor Who.
Because it doesn’t end. Like Buffy the Vampire Slayer did.
It just doesn’t end.
And, sorry if my nerd card is out, that is wonderful. I watched the Tom Baker Doctor Who episodes but it’s been, **cough, cough**, thirty years ago on the local PBS station when I was about 12.
I love it when I get things. Slow, but by golly, I finally get things. I’ll die eventually, but the BBC will let Doctor Who go on.
Yeah, there is hope in this world. Heh.
I’m cool and sad that way.
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