Barnegat

This past weekend I went to Barnegat for the first time. I wanted to test out my new ND filter with some long-exposure ocean shots. An hour into the drive...I remembered that I forgot my tripod. Oops. Since Dave and I like to go on adventures, I got over it and we had a good time, anyway.

Wheeee!

It's a quiet little town in the offseason. There isn't much to it except for the lighthouse and the rocky beach by the bay. It was great for walking and great for birdwatching. This weekend also marked a year since Dave and I got together. He considered this an anniversary trip, I found out later, but I just thought it was a fun outing at the time. We went to Sandy Hook a couple of weeks ago, and we regularly go all over when it's nice out, after all.

Dave took this one, of course. That's me ignoring the lighthouse for seagulls.

We ended up walking all the way down the beach, well past the walkway. We both wanted to take photos; Dave was giving my old DSLR a test run. We walked on the rocks, and when I was convinced that I was going to fall between them and into the ocean, we switched to the beach.

Dave sneaks pics of me when I'm distracted.

I pulled a classic Jen and almost walked right into a tidal pool. I was looking down at my camera and walking, and I just happened to notice that my next step was going to plunk me right in some water.

He isn't worried about falling between the rocks.

It was a little chilly for April, and down where the bay met the ocean, it was windy and freezing. Dave stood still long enough for me to torture him by taking his photo.

He usually hates photos of himself, but I think I get some good ones.

Then it was time to head back, and my hands were cold to the point that I could barely work the camera. Dave remedied that with his coat.

So Dave's coat fit over my down vest AND my camera bag. Note that the buttons don't line up. Now is when we met the mean heron. I like birds. Owls and seagulls and penguins and herons- all kinds of birds. We saw a heron flying overhead. We started to talk about how they hadn't been on the beach, and then one was ten feet away on the rocks. He was beautiful. I went to get my camera, under the coat in the bag, and it flew away. Repeat. The mean heron was taunting me. I eventually gave up.

Barnegat was fun. One day I'll get photos of a heron.

Doctor Who: The Massacre of St. Bartholomew's Eve

The Doctor and Steven arrive in 16th century Paris and promptly get mixed up in the strife between the Huguenots (Protestants) and Catholics.

The Doctor goes off by himself, and Steven makes friends with Henri de Navarre, who has recently married the king's sister in an attempt to make peace between the Catholics and the Huguenots. Incidentally, a French movie I like, La Reine Margot, also takes place during this time. It was interesting to note how the historical figures were portrayed in each.

Every single episode of this four-part serial is missing, so I watched reconstructions with photos and audio. Also, the Doctor isn't in most of the story. It's almost all Steven. The story is a buildup to the assassination of Huguenot nobles (directed by Catherine de Medici) and the massacre of thousands of Huguenots by Catholic mobs in Paris. Once the Doctor and Steven are reunited and the Doctor finds out the date, he rushes himself and Steven back to the TARDIS. He knows what is about to happen. They leave just as the massacre begins.

Steven is angry that the Doctor will stand by and let this happen, but the Doctor says they can't change history. Steven is determined to leave the Doctor wherever they land next. They land, and Steven walks out the door. The Doctor laments the loss of his companions. He even wonders if he should return home, but he can't. Then a young woman bursts in through the open TARDIS door (that's Dodo, a new companion), and Steven isn't far behind. They dematerialize, taking the young woman with them.

THE RUNDOWN

Doctor: First
Companions: Steven
Episode: #22, "The Massacre of St. Bartholomew's Eve," four parts- 'War of God,' 'The Sea Beggar,' 'Priest of Death,' 'Bell of Doom'
Adversary: Catherine de Medici
Classic Lines: the Doctor, after Steven leaves the TARDIS: "Even after all this time, he cannot understand. I dare not change the course of history...And now, they're all gone. All gone. None of them could understand. Not even my little Susan. Or Vicki. And as for Barbara and Chatterton, Chesterton, they were all too impatient to get back to their own time. And now, Steven. Perhaps I should go home. Back to my own planet. But I can't."
Tuck This Away to Impress Your Friends: Dodo's last name is Chaplet, which is the same as Anne's- a young servant Steven feared died in the massacre.
Next Up: "The Ark"

Doctor Who convention

I went to a Doctor Who convention! (Re) Generation Who. It was a couple of weekends ago. This one was special because it focused on Classic Who. The best Who. I went with a friend of mine, who blogged a much better, more detailed account of the day here. For some reason, our significant others didn't want to attend...but we're working on them for next year. Dave likes Doctor Who, but he prefers the new series. He hasn't seen much of the old show. Maybe he'll feel like coming along in 2016.

Because I will be going again next year. It was amazing. It was the best con I've ever attended, hands down. I didn't know what to expect because it was the first year of this con, but it was so much fun and very well put together. And the con was filled with attendees who obviously loved Doctor Who as much as I do.

K-9!

The woman cropped out of the above photo on the left- the one holding the remote control- she made this K-9. It was awesome. It moved around- even the parts on his head. Cool.

Programming highlights? Tom Baker, the 4th Doctor, Skyped in for an hour-long Q&A session. That was fantastic. He was funny and engaging and I was laughing out loud. Really, all of the guests were funny. My friend and I also went to a panel with the 6th and 7th Doctors, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy. They played off against each other very well. Then there was a tribute to the 2nd Doctor with one of his companions, Deborah Watling, who played Victoria. The last panel my friend and I attended was a panel with the 7th Doctor and his companion Sophie Aldred, who played Ace.

There were excellent vendors there, too. And of course the actors were around signing autographs. I didn't get any autographs, but it was cool to see them up close after seeing them on tv for so many years.

What a great day. I was basking in my nerdery.