16 years ago tonight (08-31-2013)

It has been 16 years since that awful night.  Whatever program I was watching that evening had ended.  I was channel surfing, planning on a brief view of what was on the television that evening, and then turning off the television for the night.  I happened to stop on CNN, which was my main news source at that time.  It was clear that they were on one topic and not the usual fare either.  It was shocking to hear that Princess Diana had been in an horrific automobile accident and was in critical condition in a Paris hospital.
The television stayed on.  We waited for updates of Diana's condition.  Previously there had been such extreme oversaturation of Diana news that we had stopped paying attention to all of it.  Now we were praying for her.

She was a lovely young woman pulled, unwitting, into the public spotlight.  Convinced to join in an archaic ritual of a hierarchical 'official' marriage to a royal.  The "last" princess in our lifetime.  Poor innocent, led into a very public life and having to deal with personal struggles privately.  Not an ideal situation for anyone.  I say shame on the 'royal' family for what they put the poor woman through! and good for Diana for seeing that she needed to find her own way in the world.

Now, we waited.  Late into the night word finally came: she had not survived the crash, died at the scene.  How awful!! Spellbound by the news, we remained in front of our television all night long, finally turning it off at around 6:00am.  Extremely saddened.

The thing, for me personally, was that she was a contemporary of mine -- near to my own age.  That was what really caused her death to affect me deeply.  I was sad for many, many days after her terrible passing.
And now, 16 years later, I remember that night with sadness.  Rest In Peace Princess, Rest In Peace.

There's a new Doctor (Who) in town....#12

Well, BBC has finally announced the identity of the actor slated to play the twelfth incarnation of Doctor Who.  His name is Peter Capaldi, and this is not his start in the Doctor Who series.  Peter Capaldi was Caecilius in the 2008 episode The Fires of Pompeii.  And true fans of anything remotely related to The Doctor will also remember him as John Frobisher in Torchwood: Children of Earth.  Peter Capaldi's acting credits go back as far as 1982, according to the Internet Movie Database (IMDb).

The thing that gripes me today is that people are calling Peter Capaldi "too old" for the role of Doctor Who.  (Peter Capaldi was born in 1958.)  This is patently ridiculous, because there is a long history to the Dr. Who franchise, 50 years worth of Dr. Who history.... The 3rd Doctor, Jon Pertwee was in his 50's and the 1st Doctor, William Hartnell in his 60's.  These are beloved portrayers of Doctor Who.  So you sissy, sassy, young punks who are calling people old may just be too young to even watch Doctor Who.  ;-)  and YES that is a poke at you young whippersnappers.

Who are you calling "old"?  Think about who might call you old!  Need I remind you: Doctor Who himself is over 900 years old!!

What I am ultimately saying is that age is only a number.  It does not need to be a state of mind, or to control your life or behaviour.  Mr. Capaldi has an impressive body of work coming into this role.  If he has energy and stamina he could well be an impressive Doctor Who.

I am excited to about the 12th Doctor, cannot wait for the episodes to be aired.  I love television programs that allow for an interchangeable cast, or, as in this instance, replacement actors.  But replacement actors who step up and take over the role they are cast, make it all their own, and take us to new places we never imagined possible.

That is the total and final essence of The Doctor -- he always takes us to a new place we never imagined.