Taking the Good from the Bad

My summer of travel is over. In June, I was telling everyone that I would be heading off to London for a bit, followed by a trip out to India for a bit longer. A little over a month ago, I returned from India and concluded what may be a recurring theme for my summers, in that I keep referring to them as "The worst summer ever" each year. I was to be in London for a few weeks training employees from my day job on our software product. Once complete, I was to travel out to India for an extended visit of about six weeks for training activities as well. I ended up being in each location for a couple weeks, while the mid-summer activities included being prepared for my impending India trip and tending to a project on fire. We use that term for projects which either have severe loss of resources unexpectedly or otherwise a deliverable date we would need a TARDIS to hit.

My day job had consumed my summer and my ambition of completing my book by now is a complete failure.

Out of the Bad, comes the good...

I actually started writing this blog the week of my return from India and I was a bit miffed, to say the least. When returning to this site, I also saw a blog in my drafts from June titled "What if you're a part-time writer?" The theme is the same, although my frustration is a bit greater these days. My dream job does not pay me enough money to live my current life. On the other hand, I really like my career in the software field. I guess the question is, 'How do I balance these careers?'.

I'm on vacation this week and so far, I've been able to write a chapter, return to my blog and sleep in a little bit. As any writer knows, you can't be a vacation writer because inspiration does not happen on schedule. I've been toying around with the idea of a Sorcerer who can travel through time in Alorya, but I can tell you that I've had at least three moments in which I had the biggest and brightest idea completely die in my head since I wasn't focused on writing at that moment. Oh well...

Keeping a positive mindset, I have not given up. I haven't picked up my bass in years. I haven't played sports in years. There are so many things that I love to do, but instead of doing them, I focus on my top priorities in life. Career, family and enough relaxation to survive. AND, I haven't given up on my writing either. Like an old friend, I can go to my computer and type a few pages without much effort. Conversations picked up midway from where we left off months ago. There's such a comfort in knowing that it's always there waiting for me whenever I can spare a few moments.

Doctor Who

In 2005, my friend Lee was so excited. We worked together at a law firm, in their IT Dept and sat next to each other. Lee being from the UK and I, from the USA, we loved to chat about things from the perspective of our native countries. X-Files was pretty much history, and at the time, I would only watch American sports on TV. This was actually quite boring, since sports had started to become unappealling to me. I really miss those days because it felt as though 2005 was a year in which I left my cacoon to be the person I am today. One of the TV shows he had been excited about was the upcoming return of Doctor Who. I had heard of Doctor Who, but only in a passing joke from Rowan Atkinson's skit at a comedy show from years back.

As time marches on, of all of Lee's suggestions, it was the one show that I did not follow up on.

Five years later, while flipping past channels, I came across BBC America and saw an interesting show was on. It was the 2010, Doctor Who Christmas Special. Michael Gambon played a scrooge in what seemed to be a bit of a steampunk world, in which fish could swim through the clouds. To say that I am obsessive, is an understatement. I had five years of catching up to do and I rushed to Best Buy to purchase my latest obsession. Season by season, I was enthralled. I even managed to get my sister into it.

To give a summary, Doctor Who is a Time Lord who uses a time machine to travel through time and space. The time machine takes the form of a 1950's era Police Box from London (see above). The main thing that gives the show longevity (1961 - 1989 & 2005 - Present), is the fact that the Doctor can die. If he dies, he regenerates into a new Doctor with all new personality traits and appearance. A new actor would take over the leading role of the show with an entirely different outlook. It's almost as if he's a different person assuming the identity of a Legendary Character, right? The Doctor is usually accompanied by a young girl and nowadays that the Doctor is played by younger actors, there can sometimes be an attraction between the Doctor and his Companion.

Doctor Who has everything when it comes to entertainment. Deep down to its core, it's a Sci-Fi television show and is good for all ages. This April, we'll begin the seventh season of the latest run of Doctor Who. If you have BBC America, it's worth giving it a look. Enjoy!