The Princess Bride (1987) Dir. Rob Reiner

Okay, seriously, the wisest thing I think William T Sherman ever said was that, "If nominated, I will not run; if elected I will not serve" quote, because who in their right mind would choose to be president of the United States?

How many times is this tv show going to make me cry, damn it?!?!?!

Just once, when the Master is revealed to be The Master, I don’t want the Doctor to be all horrified and taken aback and be all like ‘oh my gosh it can’t be’. 

I just want an exasperated eye roll and a ‘fuck’s sake, you again, huh?’

You know what character in the Outlander series was shafted in the television show?

Duncan Innes. That's who. And it makes me really mad to think about the fact that this incredibly shy, loyal, hard-working, slightly-bumbling, flawed man was literally written down to nothing but a plot device to add drama between Jocasta and Murtagh.

Practically nothing exists of his backstory from the books, and none of the characters feel for Duncan in the show the way they do in the books. He's not a former inmate of Ardsmuir so he doesn't have any of the backstory with Jamie, nor the mutual respect that forms so much of their friendship in the books. He's not with the Frasers at all in S3 (Voyager), so he gets no time at all to bond with Claire and tell her his past of being a fisherman caught up in Culloden, and any of his visits he pays them in Drums of Autumn (S4) is given to Murtagh instead. He simply appears in s5 as nothing more than drama that doesn't need to be there, and the series writers even admitted that in the show Jocasta marries not for love for Duncan but out of fear of being hurt by Murtagh. The major difference shows in the exchange between Jamie and Claire in the episode 'Better to Marry Than Burn':

Jamie: It should be Murtagh at Jocasta's side.

Claire: If Murtagh isn't here today, then it's his own choice.

While in the books, while I wouldnt say it's true love between Duncan and Jocasta, there is mutual respect and fondness, and it's made very clear that Jocasta does choose Duncan of her own free will to finally marry for her own satisfaction and not by the machinations of others. What's more, Jamie gives his full blessing to the match, pleased to hear that Duncan has proposed marriage at the end of Drums of Autumn:

'"I've no claim on any of my aunt's property, Duncan-- and wouldna take it when she offered. You'll be married at the Gathering? Tell her we'll come, then, and dance at the wedding."'

There are so many other examples I could find in the books to further my case but I currently don't have the time to read through books 5 and 6 again looking for specific passages. So just know that Duncan Innes in the show is a pale imitation of the Duncan in the books, and I sincerely hope that we'll see a bit more fleshing out of his character in the upcoming season 6. He's not perfect by any means in the books, but he feels so much more real than he does in the show. I love Murtagh to bits as a character, but I feel like his survival after Culloden in the show takes a lot away from situations that happen later in the story, and certain characters, and adds a lot of unnecessary drama to an already dramatic story. Duncan is an unfortunate casualty in that way.

Jenny ran into the mysterious woman quite by accident in the streets of the planet Earth, which she had learned through her various journeys that her father often frequented. It was a busy, curious place, this third rock from the sun, and she thought maybe she could understand why he liked it so much.

“Oh! Excuse me, seems I lost track of where my feet were going. Entirely my fault.”

The woman was dressed rather oddly, with a long lilac-colored overcoat and a dark shirt with suspenders. But it was the large eyes staring back at her that caught her attention the most. They were old. Incredibly old. Old, and wise, and shining with an inner fire that Jenny instantly recognized. 

And the woman seemed to know she would run into Jenny, because she quite simply held out a hand and handed her a bouquet of flowers.

“Violets,” she explained. “They represent remembrance. And I never forgot about you for a day, Jenny.”

An electric shock seemed to shiver down Jenny’s spine. It would be too cliche to ask how this woman knew her name; besides, she began to suspect she knew already. She barely dared to hope. It should be impossible. 

Shouldn’t it?

“Who are you?” She asked anyway, because those eyes were too familiar even if they weren’t the deep brown she remembered. 

And the woman smiled, a wide unfettered smile. “I’m the Doctor.”

What’s the best time of day to write?

I’m a night-writer myself. What about you?

“As long as you are proud, you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see anything that is above you.”

— C. S. Lewis

Do you ever wish you could forget?

Trying to explain to people that it’s not a problem with your ears (I’m 24 and I’ve passed every hearing test I’ve ever been given with flying colors) and being told it must be all in your head then.

Auditory Processing Problems

• *someone says something* “what?” *repeats themselves* “sorry?” *repeats themselves again* “pardon?”

•"hey, y'see the red thing at the top of the shelf, will you get it?“ “Sorry, what?” “On the sh-” “oh yeah sure, I’ll get it.”

•*doesn’t hear teacher because someone’s pen is making a scratchy sound at the back of the room*

•*replays video 10 ten times to figure out what they’re saying*

•teachers asking, “why do you always stop writing in the middle of a sentence, just write down whatever I’m saying,” followed by the response, “I’m just processing it,” rebuked by, “we’ll stop processing it and just write.”

•*gets really focused on staring out the window and goes through four songs without hearing a single on*

Being an adult means first reading Sam's "Well, I'm back." quote at the end of LOTR as a ten year old and thinking it's a weird stupid ending, and then reading it again as a 24 year old and crying because it's the most beautiful perfect ending ever written in the history of literature.