An addition

I TOTALLY forgot... in my recitation of obsessions: Hamlet. How could I forget? How I loved the Prince of Denmark! His attire! His depression! His flashes of merriment, that were wont to set the table on a roar! Because of course Mel Gibson's Hamlet movie was what inspired my retelling of Hamlet - in space.

Ross and I have now watched two episodes of the second season of Doctor Who, with David Tennant now in the title role. I will quote a comment I read online - I think I can love David Tennant in the role, but it won't be the same. Who fans online are fond of saying that your first Doctor is YOUR Doctor... of course in my case that would be Peter Davidson, but he was very quickly supplanted in my feelings by Tom Baker, and that was all so very long ago that now Christopher Eccleston really feels like my first Doctor anyway.

So. David Tennant. There's loads more manic disposition, but he talks too much. Chris spoke words with a glance. David babbles. There's no brooding menace. Although as I ponder those two Tennant episodes, I find myself picking out sweet moments... nice bits among the action and the insanity and the alien invasions, that really tell a lot about the characters and the shifting relationships and the tremendous difficulty of us earthlings in getting used to the idea of a body-changing 900 year old alien. The way in which his attitude toward Mickey and Jackie has changed. Although I wish there had been lots more, the ways in which Rose grieves for the old Doctor AND accepts the new. The fact that, despite his manic disposition, the Doctor shows a ruthless and daring side. A man of action. In the second episode (New Earth), the intensity of his concern for Rose. The fact that he appears to accept her odd behavior, but then demands to know what the hospital staff have done to her. The sequence of his behavior here seems appropriately alien.

Just to show that I often think of things other than Doctor Who... heard a talk by Donna Brazil on the upcoming election, and she nearly spoke my mind. I felt a great affection for her no-nonsense demeanor and her message. "Let's get past the negativity." She stated her willingness to fight hard for either Hillary or Barack, to go to "all 50 states" for either one. I appreciate that stand. So tired of the infighting. The blatantly partisan position of Rolling Stone (the magazine) has got me wanting to cancel my subscription. Well, that and the fact that I leaf through it once and am done with it...

I got acupunctured last Tuesday, and it was good.
I've been going to this woman for over ten years now. Needless to say, I am a fan of acupuncture. I usually see her once or twice a year for a "tune-up". Her name is Diana and she exudes a calm that I will call zenlike. She has always seemed so profoundly grounded to me, with a gentle humor that manifests itself in a quirk of her mouth.

The needles don't hurt. The experience is so restful, like floating. She leaves me for a while - half an hour? and I drift. Then she comes back and I roll over and she sticks needles along my spine. I always leave with a gentle high; like a new ability to look at the world around me and take pleasure in the smallest things. The color of the sky. Air movement. Getting into a sunwarmed car. Sometimes I feel like I have a relapse, the day after. As if the muscles that finally relaxed have clenched themselves to protect me. Last week was not like that; I feel like I regained a level of happiness.