Jamie Todd Rubin

Writer, Coder, Avid Reader

Est. 2005 • 20th Year 🎉

Dr. Who is stalking me

06 Dec 2011 » 1 min read

Many, if not most, of my science fiction friends have sung the praises of Dr. Who and I admit to being curious, but simply lacking the time to getting sucked in. (That’s already happened with Star Trek:Enterprise.) Nevertheless, without ever seeing a single episode, reading a book, or anything like that, I’ve managed to pick up a few terms from the show. And I now thing the show is stalking me, taunting me, trying to get me to watch it.

Yesterday morning, for instance, there was a TARDIS parked across from my house. And yes, I had taken my various medications when I saw it, but I tell you that I wasn’t imaging things. I even took a picture of the thing so that I could supply photographic proof. Here is what was parked in the visitor parking across from my townhouse at 8am yesterday and through most of the day:

photo.JPG

Now, I may not know much about the show, but I don’t think it is a stretch to imagine that 4 being an “A” and the 1 being an “I” and the 5 being an “S.” Doing so, of course, spells “TARDIS” and couple that with the legend across the windshield and I’d say that I was on to something.

What do you think?

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45 responses to “Dr. Who is stalking me”

  1. Fred Kiesche

    I think you need to start watching the show. Come over to the dark side, Luke…

    Reply
  2. Paul (@princejvstin)

    …We have jellybabies. Or, for NuWho, fish fingers, and custard.

    And yeah, that’s a Doctor Who fan’s car. Definitely.

    Reply
    1. Jamie Todd Rubin

      I’ve been told that even the fact that the car is a bright blue is significant.

      Reply
  3. Nomi

    It also says “Police Public Call Box” on the back window, as does the TARDIS (well, the TARDIS) has it along the sides, but same concept).

    Reply
  4. James A

    Good way to get himself pulled over for impersonating a police officer is what it is. I would NEVER put the word police on a vehicle I was driving. Most cops probably have no reference to the show and wouldn’t hesitate for a moment to haul his/her ass to jail.

    Reply
  5. Keith

    I suppose it wouldn’t be legal for him to install a flashing white light on the roof…

    Reply
  6. Melissa

    Except for the fact that cop cars usually aren’t blue anymore, and it says police on the sides not the back window…

    Reply
  7. Roxas

    @ James A….either they would get pulled over cause of having police on the car, or get pulled over because they cop wants to praise them for having a TARDIS car….

    Reply
  8. PaperbackGoddess

    Definitely a Whovian’s car. I have to agree with James though – there is no way I would put “police” anywhere on my car.
    Melissa – police cars are many colors and marked in many ways. You can get arrested for impersonating an officer just for shining a flashlight or spotlight at someone from your car. Its really hazy guidelines.

    Reply
  9. Christina

    I just don’t understand how you can write about science fiction but not be watching Doctor Who?

    Reply
  10. Nathaniel

    *Picks up a bow tie* Get over here!

    Reply
  11. Tom

    How can a sci-fi writer now have any idea about the longest running sci-fi show of all time? Surely that’s a bit like claiming to be a vet, but not knowing what a dog is?

    Reply
    1. Jamie Todd Rubin

      I get this question a lot. I don’t watch most SF tv shows or movies. I just prefer short fiction and books. And I barely have time to keep up with those let alone TV shows. Sorry to disappoint!

      Reply
  12. slee

    come to the dark side- we have jammie dodgers.

    Reply
  13. James A

    Melissa most cop cars aren’t usually blue, in my home town, it says police on the back trunk, and on the SUVs it says it on the top of the back window because the spare tire is in the way for the back door. The fact is it says Police on it makes it illegal in any of the 50 states of the US, and since it’s in Virginia, it’s Illegal. Cool or not they really shouldn’t be driving it they will get in trouble.

    Reply
  14. John Doe

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TARDIS

    Reply
  15. Anthony G.

    No, it’s not illegal. If the car was set up in police colors and the words were on the doors, then they might have a problem. A friend of mine has the Raccoon City STARS logo on the back of his car, and the most he’s gotten from cops is a chuckle if they knew Resident Evil, and a strange look if not. But no, there is nothing illegal about having Police Public Call Box on the back window, as long as it doesn’t interfere with the view out the back. On a personal note, this is epic, and makes me insanely jealous.

    Source: Personal experience with friend and 8+ years working directly with police.

    Reply
  16. Jamie Todd Rubin

    Christina @10: see my response to Tom @ 16. I just like my SF in short fiction and novels more than TV. It’s just how I grew up, I guess.

    Reply
  17. PaperbackGoddess

    There is no problem with not watching the shows. In fact, I think it would be helpful because it can prevent you from accidentally borrowing ideas without realizing it, and guarantee that your work is more original to you. There are plenty of sci-fi people out there who do not embrace particular fandoms.
    That being said, I still thing you would dig the show. 🙂

    Reply
    1. Jamie Todd Rubin

      I can’t say I haven’t been tempted. But I’m just afraid it will be as good as everyone says and I’ll get sucked in and nothing will get done. No writing. No reading. And then there’s the two kids. Someday…

      Reply
  18. Dawn T

    River must have gotten the Chameleon circuit fixed – partially anyway.

    If you only ever watch one episode – watch “Blink” – it stands alone as a epic story with excellent use of time travel as an integral part of the plot, not a convenience, contrasts moving through time artificially vs “naturally” – and has truly chilling monsters that will change the way you look at statues – forever.

    Reply
  19. Jamie Todd Rubin

    Things I wanted to add:

    1. Okay, okay, you’ve convinced me. At some point, I’ll start watching and sample the wears so to speak, but I’ll have to find a time when things are a bit slower. Not to open another can of worms, but: suggestions on where to start? Dawn suggested “Blink” and since I like time travel, that sounds interesting.

    2. Regarding the police thing: when I first saw the car parked there, it was the word “police” that attracted my attention. I wondered why the police might be in the complex. Then I realized that it didn’t look like an ordinary police car and that’s when I noticed the license plate and recognized it for what it was, thanks to learning though osmosis from friends who watch the show.

    Reply
  20. BlueBoxSpecial

    BLINK would be the perfect epi to hook you in! Promise you’ll see it first, PROMISE!!

    Reply
    1. Jamie Todd Rubin

      Since a couple people have mentioned it, I just purchased “Blink” from the iTunes store. I can’t guarantee I’ll get to it any time soon. Aside from already having a full load, I’ve been sick the last few days and the backlog has built up. But I promise to post a report once I have watched it. (Most likely, I’ll get to it over the holiday break when we’re on vacation.)

      Reply
  21. Samantha

    The only real way to understand the story of Dr. Who is to start at the beginning (I suggest the new series since a large chunk of the old series is missing) – Season 1: Episode 1: Rose, and go from there. Starting with Blink wouldn’t be too bad, since it’s a “standalone” episode that doesn’t have tooooo much to do with the actual Doctor, but it really doesn’t give you a good idea of what the show is like most of the time.

    Reply
  22. E. Brent Price

    I have a retired police car with rubber mats instead of carpeting. My bumper sticker says “Unmarked Police Car.” I’ve attracted attention and once looked out a restaurant window to see 3 cops discussing it among themselves and then they left.

    Reply
  23. EDM

    The fact that the mobile TARDIS is from Virginia means there is hope after all for the south. If only there was a flashing blue light on top. Might be against the law but if its a true fan car, who cares. Ghostbuster fans do it all the time. LOL.

    Reply
  24. EDM

    Haha, I love this reference. Great picture, thanks for posting man. And by the way… go ahead and check out Dr. Who already 😉 .

    Reply
  25. Trina Schilling

    A) It must be a TARDIS as it looks to be bigger on the inside than the outside. B) When you do start watching it start back at the beginning since it came back on the air with Christopher Eckelston as the Doctor. C) always remember”RUN” eat “Fishfingers and custard” wear a “Fez” and “Bow Ties are COOL”!

    Reply
  26. Scott

    What I don’t understand is how you write about science fiction and yet do not understand LeetSpeak (1337 5P34K).

    Reply
    1. Jamie Todd Rubin

      Scott, it’s even worse than that. Until now, I’d never heard of LeetSpeak. I should just tear up my geek card now, I suppose. 😉

      Reply
  27. Mark Stackpole

    Best method to increase traffic tenfold on your web site: Mention Dr. Who.

    Reply
  28. Paul (@princejvstin)

    In the case of my blog, it results in the equation 10 *0=0 😉

    Reply
  29. Tony F.

    I delivered a TV to the people who live across the street from the woman who owns this car. She lives in North Arlington.

    Reply
  30. Libby

    I want to be friends with whoever owns that car.

    Reply
  31. AdamCF

    I recently bought some Dr. Who DVDs from the Tom Baker years and have been enjoying them immensely. That is one awesome car. Congrats on your Whovian encounter! (I just hope the driver was wearing a very long scarf …. )

    Reply
  32. Fred Kiesche

    Start at the beginning with “Rose”? Hah! That’s not the beginning. For True Whovians, the beginning is “An Uneartly Child”!

    😉

    (I tried to introduce my daughter to Who with Rose, she found it too “noisy”. I then tried again with An Unearthly Child and the kid who hates all things black and white loved it. Go figure. Now we watch Old Who when new DVD releases come out and New Who when new episodes come out.)

    Reply
  33. Samantha

    I never said that Rose was the very beginning, but for someone who doesn’t know if they’re going to get hooked or not, the new episodes are better because there isn’t random chunks of the story lines missing. It’s a quick way to know what the general theme of the show is about without having to watch hours and hours of scratchy black and white serials that a lot of people might find boring because of how slow they are (not that I don’t love them, I do, it’s just that a lot of people might not appreciate the original cardboard sets).

    Reply
  34. jenny

    why not? best show ever

    Reply
  35. Michael A. Burstein

    Once you’ve seen Blink, let us know what you think.

    Reply

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