Why Do We (I) Write in the Fall?

I don't think you notice it, truly notice it, until you no longer have school jumpstarting your industrious period during the autumn. But there does seem to be a correlation in my observation between the changing of the season and a rise in "feeling like writing."

I got on Facebook today to see two totally unconnected friends talking about being in a "writing" mood. It reminded me that I'd been telling my husband over the weekend how I always write more in the fall. And of course, November is National Novel Writing Month (although they now have 'camps' during other months of the year).

Why is this? Is it something in the air, the pumpkin lattes, or the general feeling of "let's get something done" as the students and teachers around us head back to work?

So what makes autumn so popular for writing? A quick search of several connected terms brought no hits on Google for any explanations - or even anyone else writing about it. So am I imagining it? Am I and my two Facebook friends a minority - or just a fifth of the writing population? Do you feel inspired more at a certain time of year or is it the same all year 'round?

I'm very curious to know if I'm alone in this, or if there really is some sort of scientific reason for why my creative writing itch gets going in September and runs on high until Thanksgiving.

Further thoughts here.

The Doctor "Listens"

The teaser for Doctor Who 8.4 "Listen" was so creepy that I seriously considered letting my husband watch it first to see if I could handle it.

I'm glad I didn't. Spoilers to follow.

Finally. Finally we see Capaldi playing The Doctor.

Finally. Finally we see an episode that stars Clara, rather than featuring her.

Finally. Finally Moffat returns to some of that awesomeness that made us love him in Seasons 1-3.

Indeed, I might go so far as to say this is the best episode Moffat has written in a very long time, certainly the best episode of Season 8 thus far. But not for the reasons we'd think. What starts out as the scariest episode of Doctor Who since the Silence were introduced, ends on a very, very different note. Instead of introducing a new monster, instead of sending millions of children (and adults!) to sleep worrying about that thing under the bed, the episode instead sends the message "fear is not a weakness. Fear can be your superpower. Claim it, rather than letting it conquer you."

It's wibbly wobbly, timey wimey (as usual) as the Doctor's investigations to put a name to his fear lead Clara to his bed in a dark barn a long long time ago in a galaxy very far away, so that she both sparks the fear, and comforts him.

Which is a very unexpected twist, because the episode was set up very much like "Blink" to introduce a truly terrifying new monster. Instead, it is one of those very, very few Doctor Who episodes that has no aliens - other than The Doctor himself.

That's not to say there isn't science fiction, because time travel is very evident and serves a good storytelling purpose. This is both a self-contained episode in regards to "Fear" and also very much a story arch episode where we learn a lot more about the background of Rupert "Danny" Pink and both we and Clara see extremely strong hints that she is destined to marry Danny.

What's interesting is that adult Danny himself still is given little chance to do much on screen. His character is advanced through his childhood appearance, and through the implications of his descendant wandering around with some undetermined connection to Clara.

All I can say is that I hope we get a lot more of adult Danny very soon.

On a final creepy note, I want to point out (with apologies) that the episode doesn't actually ever say whether or not there is something hiding under the bed. Instead it does what every single incident in the episode itself does - gives a logical explanation... and a spooky one. Because it doesn't matter whether or not there is something in the dark, but it could be there.

As a Christian, for me, there is something there. But it's not scary and it's not hidden for those who look. I talk to myself, as the Doctor says, because I know I'm not alone. But I don't speak to fill the ears of some nameless ghost, but rather a Holy one.

In Which I Talk to Plants

We made the decision not to have any pets in our apartment. Too much $$$, time and pet hair over fabric that might bother my clients.

So I grow plants instead. It's great to have fresh herbs! They've been doing splendidly, even with a week away being cared for by my mother when I was in Illinois for the reception. I just got them back yesterday and was so excited to see them!

Hi babies! How did you enjoy your trip? Did you like getting to go outdoors?

Yep. Those were my thoughts. I might have a problem.

The Illinois Reception

Just when you thought we were done with all of the wedding posts... Nathan and I went off to Illinois for our "Southern" reception! Nathan's parents hosted a wonderful picnic at their house so that all of Nathan's friends and family who couldn't make the January wedding could celebrate with us.

It was a really beautiful event, attended by about 100 people. My parents came down for it as well, and it was really fun to show them the house where Nathan grew up.

(Thanks to Jake Hajek and Amanda Dominick for the photos!)

The food was FANTASTIC! My mother-in-law did it pretty much all herself (with some help from her nieces with the set-up and frosting).

There were some pretty awesome decorations, including several signs painted by my father-in-law (such as the one above).

Since there were a ton of kids at the event, my mother-in-law asked us to bring down our pirate costumes for the scavenger hunt.

Nathan and I ended up writing and leading the hunt as well, which was pretty fun!

People seemed to enjoy our costumes ;)

My dear friend Amanda and her family live pretty close to where Nathan grew up - so I get to see them pretty much every time we go down there. SUCH a blessing!

As you may have noticed, we had quite a few costume changes that day. Actually, I was supposed to wear my wedding dress as well, but in the seven months since the wedding I'd gained a pound too many and breathing was not going to be an option. But I put on my veil and wedding sash for the dance, and got to wear my specially designed dress even longer. (If you've followed me on Instagram for any amount of time, you'll know I had completed this dress before the original reception date in June.)

We got a special message on how marriage points to Christ by Nathan's pastor.

Then, after 7 months of waiting... our first dance!

Our song was "All I Ask of You" from "The Phantom of the Opera" which has been pretty much my favorite romantic duet since I first heard it at the age of 16.

Of course I had to have a special dance with my dad as well!

My father is quite sentimental and insisted we dance to something upbeat - Frank Sinatra's "The Way You Look Tonight."

Definitely the most fun I've ever had dancing with my dad - and we've danced a bit over the years! :)

Nathan and his mother chose to have their mother-son dance to "Sunrise, Sunset" from "The Fiddler on the Roof."

They invited any other mother-son duos to come out and join them. I dragged my father out as well. ;)

So we finally got our reception, our dances, and a pirate scavenger hunt to boot! It was a beautiful day and I am immensely grateful to my in-laws for working so hard to provide it for us.

The Doctor and the Legend (8.3.)

Clara Oswald, you are a girl after my own heart! Given a choice of anywhere in time and space, you pick Robin Hood... even though you know the Doctor will say he's not real. It's worth a try, isn't it?

I've been a Robin Hood fan for as long as I can remember. Seriously. One of my earliest memories is going over to a friend's house to watch their copy of the Disney version. We have photos of tiny me playing Maid Marian in a play we performed for our moms. I collect every version of the legend that I can, novel or film. (Okay. I draw the line at the newest Robin Hood with Russell Crowe which I have refused to watch for reasons I'm not going to drag this post down with.) My absolute favorite incarnations are the Roger Lancelyn Green version, Errol Flynn, the animated fox, and his supporting role in Ivanhoe. I utterly loathe Shrek 1 for it's depiction of Robin Hood as French. (I love Shrek 2, it's nothing against the franchise, just that horrible scene...)

So I came into this episode half excitement, half trepidation. Initial photos of Robin with the weird long hair and historically laughable costume made me cringe... but still, it's Mark Gatiss, and Clara's costume is great and... maybe it would be good.

I couldn't wait to find out, and considered myself extremely patient as my husband and I traveled 8 hours from his parents in Illinois (where we'd had a belated wedding reception) back to our apartment where we could cue up Xfinity and watch the episode. I grew decidedly less patient once we got home and my husband proceeded to make a hot dog instead of sitting down immediately with me. Horrors!!!

(Hopping around like a four-year-old may have occurred. Thankfully Nathan finds me amusing.)

BE YE WARNED - SPOILERS TO COME!

One of the biggest questions going into Robots of Sherwood was of course "How are they going to handle the fact that Robin Hood isn't (as far as we know) a real person?" This being Doctor Who, they could either have a really clever answer or...

... or the Doctor spends the entire time thinking that there must be a really clever answer. One of the funniest sequences of the episode was the scene of the Doctor taking samples from each of the Merry Men. Thankfully Clara stops him before he can insist on someone peeing into a cup! (This is a family show, after all!)

"You can't be real!" he insists over and over again. A legend cannot also be a real person. But, as Robin and Clara point out, the Doctor himself is a legend who is also real. Why cannot Robin also fall into those lines?

(And let's face it. If no one remembered the robot guards in Nottingham, they must also have lost all written record of the real Robin of Loxely.)

Robin himself starts out as quite cheesy, but as the episode progresses, the layers are stripped away. We see beneath his joking facade and witty banter to the serious, thoughtful man underneath, hiding his sadness with a jest. And that is, of course, who Robin ought to be.

He's quite immature at times, of course, as any human ought to be. I can handle him competing with the Doctor in a most juvenile fashion. What I cannot handle is the Doctor sinking to that level as well. Seriously. I don't understand why they would write him that way. The Doctor isn't petty. So what is up with Twelve? Why does he act so whiny and immature in this episode? The Doctor hates being wrong, of course, but this... this is new.

Of course, he is a new Doctor. But I don't think fans are going to enjoy this side of him, so I hope he manages to grow up quick. With Clara to keep him in line, we can hope!

And Clara is a companion worthy of any incarnation of the Doctor, with her quick wits managing a tough interrogation scene easily. It doesn't hurt that Jenna Louise's natural beauty was made to flirt in orange velvet and long curls.

All in all, I'd give this episode a "Good" rating. It doesn't rise to the heights of excellent Doctor Who, but it remains better than average. And it was quite satisfactory in Robin Hood terms, according to this fan!

(Am I the only one who finds herself hoping that Robin will be one of those characters who returns for a big finale episode eventually?)