Trekking Subjects

I've taken some days off from blogging. The holidays overtook me. I really tried to make it a nice holiday for everyone, but Todd and Tate got into a fist fight on Christmas Eve. I was exhausted from shopping and cooking and cleaning, and I made the mistake of lying down for a few minutes. Big mistake.

I called 911, and I told them that I am calling 911 every time they start throwing punches from now on.

Apparently Tate had called his father a "dumb ass," and Todd responded with a swat, which led to the fist fight. This time when the police came out, I did not try to protect or make excuses for Tate. I have come to realize that it is not just his father that he has a problem with, but all authority, and he needs to get over that. So the police officer told Tate that Todd had every right to discipline him, and Tate had no right to hit his father. He told Tate that if he had to come out again, he would take Tate in. That seemed to sink in, because Tate did not make any smart ass remarks after that.

My friend Sandy called rather late on Christmas Eve and invited us over for Christmas dinner. She told us when we were at her house on Thanksgiving that she was going to Arizona for Christmas with her father, but apparently her plans fell through.

Now, I love Sandy, even though she has a tendency to be last minute. I suppose I do too, sometimes. Anyway, this time she was just a little too last minute. I already had the turkey thawed, and we did not have the gas to drive to her place. She lives over 30 miles away. She offered to come pick us up and bring us back home, but I invited her and her kids over here instead. She said she would come, so we got excited and started trying to get the place looking extra good, but they never showed up. When I tried to call her, I found the number I had for her had been disconnected. She is always changing her phone number, and I can't keep up with it. I sent her an email, but as far as I know, she has not yet replied. I am sure she has some good reason for not coming. Tate and Graham were especially disappointed.

Despite the problems of Christmas Eve and the disappointment of Sandy not showing up, Christmas Day went pretty nicely. I got some new dishes, some gift cards, a Christmas CD (I love Christmas music) and a Star Trek toy. Anybody who really knows me knows I love Star Trek.

The day after Christmas I slept late. Then I got up and ordered the new Star Trek movie on Demand. I tell you, the more I watch the movie, the more I like it. The first time I saw it at the theatre, I had very mixed emotions.

***SPOILER ALERT for those of you who have not seen it, you may not want to read further.***

Anyway, I was very disappointed that every episode of Classic Star Trek, The Next Generation, DS9 and Voyager is practically invalidated by the disruption of the time line, the death of George Kirk, the obliteration of Vulcan, have created an alternate reality, and forty years of Trek history have effectively been erased.

I understand how ingenious it was for the new writers. They can essentially write anything they want to now and not have to worry about silly little things like established history or time lines. I am still a bit upset about it, incase you can't tell. But that does not mean that I don't like the new movie.

I think that Zachary Quinto makes a fabulous Spock, and I can't give enough praise to Karl Urban's homage to DeForest Kelley. I don't think that Chris Pine fully captured the essence of Captain Kirk until the end of the movie, but I supposed that is because he was not "Captain Kirk" until the end of the movie.

I think the movie does a good job of showing why the seven main characters, Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, Sulu, Chekov, and Scotty are all bonded together. The romance between Spock and Uhura was unexpected, but it adds a unique flavor to the mix.

A point of irony that did not escape me is, in the original series, Captain Pike was "severely burned and paralyzed by exposure to delta rays during a maintenance accident aboard a J-class training vessel.... [He] is confined to a wheelchair operated by brainwaves. He cannot speak, and only communicates with a flashing light...." In the new Star Trek movie, Captain Pike ends up in a wheelchair too. Although, he is not burned and can still communicate, I found it interesting that he still ends up in the wheelchair, and am wondering if other events will play out the same way, ending in similar circumstances despite the disruption to the original time line.

Okay, so how many of you watched The End of Time, the new Doctor Who on Saturday? I have to confess, I could not wait for Saturday, I was watching it on youtube as soon as it was posted.

***SPOILER ALERT: Those of you who have not seen it yet may not want to read any further.***

I am always awed by how Russell T. Davies always manages to top himself.

I was amazed by David Tennant's performance. The things he says with his expressions alone are magnificent. He is such a great actor. When David's Doctor explained to Donna's grandfather how regeneration felt like death, I was hanging on his every word, every breath, every blink. We have seen his Doctor be solemn and sad before, but he conveyed a new depth of desperation that was beyond moving.

John Simm was equally as good in his wiping out all of humanity and creating a Master-race. I must wonder, though, will he now be able to get along with himself? It is my experience that we often butt heads with those who are too much like ourselves.

I am really going to miss David Tennant's Doctor. I did not have a hard time accepting him as the Doctor after Chris Eccelston's Doctor regenerated, but David is just so gifted. I hope that Matt Smith will be able to live up to the standard that Eccleston and Tennant set.

I must say that I was completely overwhelmed when Timothy Dalton's narration revealed the resurrection of the Time Lords. Brilliant, simply brilliant. I can't wait for the conclusion this Saturday.