Yeah, no bones about it. I have lost my focus. I have only been on the treadmill on seven of the last twenty two days. Ok, sure, on four of those off days I was in a yoga class, and that's not nothing, but the fact remains that I have kind of gone off the rails now that I have finished the initial project. I can so easily see myself just slipping back and blowing up to where I was a couple years ago and I desperately do not want to let that happen. Ugh. The whole emotional land mine thing goes both ways...

Four to Doomsday - Parts 1 & 2

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

This is pretty much my least favorite Fifth Doctor story. It's not actively bad, but I just find it pretty tedious. It is very much not helped by the fact that it was the first one Peter Davison filmed, and the writer deliberately left the new Doctor as a blank slate with the idea that the new actor would fill the role with business -- which didn't happen mostly because of the director, I am led to understand.

And as for me personally on this day, I went to write my blog post and the whole Time Treadmill website was jacked up. I had to submit a support ticket to get it back online, and then once it was fixed it has taken me ten full days to write this. So... oops.

STATS:

Doctor(s): Fifth
Companion(s): Tegan Jovanka, Nyssa, Adric
Episode(s): Four to Doomsday - Parts 1 & 2
Steps Walked: 7,286 today, 4,508,313 total
Distance Walked: 3.61 miles today, 2,360.46 miles total
Push-ups Completed: 0 today, 11,300 total
Sit-ups Completed: 0 today, 5,865 total
Weight: 265.70 lbs (five day moving average), net change -41.60 lbs

Four to Doomsday - Parts 3 & 4

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

It took me five full days to get around to watching the back half of this story. I will say that, despite the lackluster episodes I am fully enjoying the new season BluRay set. So that's nice. Although, theoretically this episode had some enhanced special effects that I turned on but I didn't particularly notice them. The enhanced effects back in the Tom Baker first season BluRay were leapingly obvious. I haven't bothered to look it up, but I expect the ones here are more along the lines of cleaning up bad green screen effects and such.

My only comment on the story itself:  Hey, look, Adric sides with the bad guys. Again. It seems like a bad habit. I hope someone drops a crashing spaceship on him, soon.

STATS:

Doctor(s): Fifth
Companion(s): Tegan Jovanka, Nyssa, Adric
Episode(s): Four to Doomsday - Parts 3 & 4
Steps Walked: 7,319 today, 4,515,632 total
Distance Walked: 3.66 miles today, 2,364.12 miles total
Push-ups Completed: 0 today, 11,300 total
Sit-ups Completed: 0 today, 5,865 total
Weight: 264.74 lbs (five day moving average), net change -42.56 lbs

Kinda - Parts 1 & 2

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

Ah, now, this is some properly good Who. I feel bad for Nyssa in that she gets sidelined for the entire story for no better reason than that at the time it was commissioned and written she was not intended to be a continuing character and they didn't want to rewrite the script to wedge her in. But holy cow does Tegan get a story she can really sink her teeth into. The TARDIS arrives on the planet Deva Loka (a name derived from a Buddhist phrase meaning "realm of the Gods"), which has apparently-primitive humanoid natives living in the forests while a small scientific expedition from offworld is performing a long-term study of the planet for potential colonization. As for poor Tegan, she has the bad fortune of taking a nap underneath some mystical WhateverChimes that infest her brain with (what will turn out to be) the evil Mara.

In this first half the Doctor and Adric spend most of their time with the three colonialists, of whom one is sane, one is a militaristic doddering old man, and one is batshit crazy and paranoid. It is really great stuff, and actor Simon Rouse is absolutely riveting as the insane Hindle. He takes what could have been a ridiculous pantomime maniac and gives him some real pathos. Meanwhile Tegan spends most of her time in the black void of a dreamscape going slowly insane until she is infested by the malicious Mara. Once she awakens in the Deva Loka forest she gets to play evil with great gusto. It is a real joy to watch.

I just love this story so much, and I am thrilled to be watching it again. I am genuinely looking forward to watching the back half tomorrow morning.

As for my workout plans, well... we are just in the midst of turning our garage into a livable space (we never park cars in there). In about ten days we will be having the garage floor resurfaced with a nice epoxy finish, and will give the walls a fresh coat of paint. After that the treadmill will be moved out there along with our new (to us) elliptical, and hopefully a rowing machine somewhere down the road. I will feel much better about working out early mornings when I am out there and not disturbing my wife and spoiling her sleep. So hopefully that will help get me back on track.

We'll see. I just recently found out that David Tennant and Billie Piper are going to be in town for Orlando MegaCon in two months, and I want to be looking as good as possible when I get them to sign my inspiration poster.

STATS:

Doctor(s): Fifth
Companion(s): Tegan Jovanka, Nyssa, Adric
Episode(s): Kinda - Parts 1 & 2
Steps Walked: 7,543 today, 4,523,175 total
Distance Walked: 3.98 miles today, 2,368.10 miles total
Push-ups Completed: 0 today, 11,300 total
Sit-ups Completed: 0 today, 5,865 total
Weight: 266.76 lbs (five day moving average), net change -40.54 lbs