I've fallen behind in my French homework and my Through the Bible In Less Than a Year reading, and my apartment looks like I haven't cleaned it in weeks -- but on the upside, I've watched a bunch of episodes of Dr. Who, variously featuring Tom Baker, Matt Smith, and David Tenant.
Much as I love Tom Baker, I have to admit the special effects in his second-ever story, The Ark in Space, are ludicrously bad. You never forget for a moment that the aliens are played by adult humans. The wirrn grubs look like people in green velour sacks, crawling or inching along the floor as best they can. Noah, as he's taken over by the wirrn (after being infected by a small green smear on the epidermis) is engaged in an epic struggle with his own hand clad in a green glove. I guess he gets kudos for doing this with a straight face. Of course later, as his feeble efforts fade, his limbs get wrapped up in green bubble wrap. The adult wirrn look a lot like folk dressed up in paper-mâché wasp outfits. It's truly amazing. Have to say that the production values increased a lot over the course of the Tom Baker years.
The other thing that's interesting about The Ark in Space is the attitude toward violence. True, Dr. Who himself never actually fires a weapon. But he directs others to shoot. And he is very much OK with frying the aliens alive to save the humans. None of this tortured "how can I allow one bad guy to die" business. And of course, there's no sign of goo-goo eyes from Sarah Jane (even though she claims in the current serious that she was in love with him or something and that it ruined her for any other relationships). She's a bit of a feminist in the series, though also very much the damsel in distress. A product of its time, I suppose. And I'm sure they never expected it to become immortalized and iconified.
I tried and failed to see Merchant of Venice on Thursday, worse luck, but it was good to catch up with C. She and her friend have parted ways; she feels a bit stuck, torn and unmotivated. Sound familiar? But last night I saw South Pacific, which was really good -- despite my seeming detachment, I was wiping away copious tears in the final scene. The performers, including the musicians and the conductor, were loving it as well. Some memorable notes: The conductor popping up like a jack-in-the-box to see and acknowledge the audience's enthusiasm; musician with a bright red trumpet (a la Lang Lang, perhaps?). Interesting to have the moveable stage floor cover the orchestra most of the time. This way they aren't distracting from the action, but they - and the venue - get full credit (appreciation) for live musical performance. (The fear might be: If you can't see the orchestra, why not just play a recording?)
Just booked my flights for London in September. So now I really have to go hiking the Cleveland Way!! And that means.... I need to go on more hikes, and maybe do a bit of running in the park as well as rollerblading. Early morning would be a great time to do this... if I can bring myself to consider it a mandatory appointment.
The medical stuff will be over Monday or Tuesday, which is good. Parts of the process have triggered deep emotions, which I did not expect, but it looks like my mom will be here which should be nice. I have a meeting with a contractor this afternoon to get stuff done in the apartment and in the building. I have tracked down a former colleague in the trusts & estates world, and it's probably about time to get that stuff nailed down as well.
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