Since giving up cable TV three months ago, I've gotten into the habit of watching old episodes of Doctor Who on my computer. They're cheesy as all hell, but I still love them, especially the Tom Baker-era ones. When my sister and I were growing up, we'd watch them on the local PBS station on the weekends with my dad. They were usually shown on Saturday nights or at noon on Sundays. We'd have popcorn with the late-night viewings and lunch (usually hotdish or tuna hotdish**) with the Sunday afternoon ones. Occasionally they'd have Doctor Who marathons with several episodes back-to-back over the course of the day...loved those. We also had several dozen complete episodes on videotape to watch when PBS pre-empted them with something else.
It's hard to tell how much of my current affection for Doctor Who I owe to those weekends with my dad & sister and how much is due to the show itself. Not that it matters much...I just watch and enjoy and think about those good childhood memories with the Doctor.
** Hotdish, the food of my people, was also our shorthand for my dad's hamburger hotdish (hamburger + tomato sauce + macaroni + spices + (optional) onions & mushrooms). Tuna hotdish was basically canned tuna + Campbell's cream of something (mushroom?) soup + macaroni shells + S&P + a bit of grated cheese on top. Hotdish purists might argue that these dishes were not hotdishes at all because they were prepared on the stovetop and not baked in the oven, but who are they to mess with my fond childhood memories?
