My Awesome Patrons!

These are the fantastic, generous folks who support me and make this blog possible in its current form. Marvel at their fabulousness!

Steven Schapansky

Steven is my spouse, so you might think I’m biased when I say he’s pretty much the most amazing person ever. But in fact, I only married him because he’s the most amazing person ever, so you can just shush with your judgement. Anyway, he does a couple of deservedly popular Doctor Who podcasts: Radio Free Skaro and The Memory Cheats. If you’re a Who fan, you should check them out! He’s an incredibly talented drummer who rocks the socks off the Edmonton area in Glovebox. You can also read his (sadly) unfinished blog, The Chronic Hysteresis and follow him on Twitter @Legopolis. He’s very clever, and he posts lots of LEGO pictures. You won’t be disappointed.

Tim Budziszewski

Tim is a kickass rock’n’roller. I’m not just guessing here, I’ve been to many an amazing show with Tim at the helm. Please do me, him, and yourself a favor and check out his band Government Zero. If you like straight-ahead punk with catchy melodies and tight harmonies (plus more than a hint of social commentary), it’ll be just your ticket. I promise. You can also follow him on Twitter as @JRamoneWI.

Darren Radford

Darren (@InkyD on Twitter) doesn’t write a blog, and he’s a consumer of quality podcasts rather than a creator of them. He does have a cool accent though, apparently. He’s told that a couple of times a week at least. It’s because he was born in Portsmouth, England and moved to the USA in 2008, via Kentucky and now flat, flat Illinois. Proud to be a geek, lover of cats (did you know the Humane Society wants volunteers to come in and just pet cats? He signed up), player of chess, worker of mainframes, and with an embarrassingly high IQ, he is not actually a super-villain (yet). He fell in love with Big Finish’s Doctor Who audios years ago (for good reason).

Annette Bjorling

Annette Bjorling (@AnnetteBjorling on Twitter) is one of the most genuinely sweet, kind, nice people I’ve met through Doctor Who fandom. She’s a harpist for (m)any occasions–in the Chicago area and abroad. She provides Klezmer, Pop, Jazz, Classics, and more! She’s also a Doctor Who fangirl and an enthusiastic Chancer (supporter of The Minister of Chance).

Sean Homrig

Although Sean (@tardistavern on Twitter) is a practicing attorney by day, he recently started his own company, Murder for Hire, planning murder mystery parties for clients. I’ve been hearing about Sean’s prowess as a party-planner for years, so I’m thrilled he’s sharing that skill with the world. Someday I want to go to Texas just to attend one. He’s also host of four fab podcasts: The TARDIS Tavern, The Doctor Who Book Club, The Classic Horror Cast, and The 1001 Movies Podcast.

Renae Ensign

Renae is my mom, also known as Fangirl Prime. And I’m writing about her here even though she never responded to my request for info to include. Daughter’s prerogative, dontcha know? She’s now retired from many years of teaching music to elementary-school children. She’s an accomplished musician who can play a little bit of just about every band instrument, but has focused most on piano and bass guitar in the past several years. She’s been singing (beautifully) since she was old enough to speak, and she lurks on Twitter as @Renaeen.

Marsha

My aunt Marsha also didn’t tell me what I could/should say about her here. Niece’s prerogative isn’t quite as powerful as daughter’s, but it still allows me to say she’s one of the most positive and motivated people I know, and I’m intensely glad to have her in my life. Like my mom, she’s been singing practically since infancy. To hear the two of them harmonize is a treat I don’t get nearly often enough.

Mike Huberty

Mike, in addition to being one of the biggest Doctor Who fans I know, is a rocker, geek, and ghost hunter. His band Sunspot (whom I adore) calls themselves “Disco-Metal Rockers from the Cheese and Beer Galaxy”, you can download a song free at http://www.sunspotuniverse.com. (And you SHOULD.) In the little free time he has, he runs Madison Ghost Walks, a haunted history tour of Wisconsin’s Capitol Square.

Brandee C

Brandee is one of my favorite librarians! (Both in real life and in the fascinating world of True Blood Twitter RP.) And yes, saying “favorite” and “librarian” is almost redundant. Saying she’s one of my favorite people is less redundant, and every bit as true. You can find her on twitter at @branflakez, being lovely and positive!

Erik Stadnik

Erik (@sjcaustenite on Twitter) is the intelligent, well-spoken co-host of three excellent podcasts, The Doctor Who Book Club, Doctor Who: The Writers’ Room, and The Classic Horror Cast. His always erudite and insightful blog can be found at erikandhispointlessblog.blogspot.com.

Justin Peterson

Justin (@Startswithaj on Twitter) thinks he’s nothing special, but he’s wrong. :) He’s a scifi geek who enjoys way too much sci-fi/fantasy TV, movies & games. Firefly, Doctor Who, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Fringe, Star Wars, Stargate, etc. His biggest obsessions are Game of Thrones and Doctor Who. He’s relieved they’re not usually running simultaneously so he can obsess over just one at a time. Very sensible. He attends geeky pub quizzes, and hopes for a Doctor Who-themed one someday. He claims to be an “adult” student studying computer science (but I’m skeptical that 31 is an “adult age” #denial). He works as a night auditor in a hotel, which sounds kinda badass, but I suspect is not.

Elizabeth Lee

Elizabeth is an artist with a love of Doctor Who, sci-fi, feminism, and all things geeky. You can find her on Tumblr as eleeart, Twitter @lizleeart, facebook.com/eleeartau and Instagram as @eroselee. I highly encourage you to take a look. Her art is gorgeous.

Shelley Lee

Shelly (@tardisblue1963 on Twitter) is a fan of Doctor Who fans, and thus is a self-confessed Doctor Who podcast addict. She’s also one of the most engaging and supportive folks I know on social media. Go and follow her at once!

Chris Fone

Chris describes himself as a full-time Whovian, part-time Sherlockian and is a geek and real fan of (mostly) British sci-fi. Other properties include Hitchhiker’s and Quatermass. As you can probably tell he enjoys old TV shows, films, radio, comedy, and history programmes in general, but he’s also a great champion of modern programme-making and the BBC in particular. In his spare time he likes to draw and cycle and has an off-and-on obsession with 90s kids tv and Disney films. You can find him tweeting (not as often as he probably should) @2010_Eleven, but he hopes when he does it’s worth it. Recently he happened upon the greatest (in his opinion) podcast in existence, @VerityPodcast, and not two days go by where he can’t re-listen to a least one ep–may their podcast and their members continue for many years to come.

Flossie Peterson

My grandma, Flossie Peterson, is one of the coolest people I’ve ever met—and I’m not just saying that because she’s my grandma and I love her. (Though I really do!) One of my favorite things ever is when I get to take a vacation to visit her with my mom and aunt Marsha. I love having three generations of the ladies of my family together. We have a ridiculous amount of fun. Seriously, the ratio of laughter to non-laughter is probably the highest of any of my trips. Flossie was born in Cadillac, Michigan and later moved to Wisconsin. She and my grandpa moved around the Midwest quite a bit, as my grandpa was a Wesleyan Methodist preacher and supervised the whole district for some time. To hear the folks in their churches talk, Loring and Flossie Peterson were superheroes—on a grand scale, taking flagging congregations and building them back into the bloom of robust health. On an intimate scale, doing kind and important things for individuals and families in need. I couldn’t be prouder to have this kind of heritage behind me. Grandma is also an accomplished musician. To hear her harmonize (especially with my mom and aunt) is a transcendent experience. And she’s been playing piano in church for much longer than I’ve been alive. In fact, she still is. Her calendar is as full as mine is with all her volunteer work plus music practices and performances. She’s also my role model when it comes to health—or she should be. In addition to keeping a very healthy diet, she’s more active than I am, even in her 80s! Whether it’s a walk around the neighborhood or a trip to Gold’s Gym, she’s got me beat. I’m so proud to have her genes. For a look at another one of her talents, check out her guest post on this very blog!

Graeme Burk

Graeme Burk is a writer, podcaster, interviewer, and delightful Doctor Who man-about-town. The first time we crossed paths was at my first Chicago TARDIS, and I regret to this day that I spoke to him so little (if at all). Happily, I fixed that oversight at many a subsequent DW con. It’s a good thing I did or I never would’ve discovered his entertaining, in-depth, easy-to-read Doctor Who books. If you’re a DW fan (and if you’re reading this page, there’s a good chance you are), please let me point you to Who Is the Doctor, Who’s 50, and The Doctors Are In. There are tons of great DW resources out there, but these are my favorite. I also mentioned podcasting (surprise, surprise). Graeme hosts and coproduces Reality Bomb, a magazine-style podcast about (you guessed it) Doctor Who! I listen to tons of DW podcasts, but this is the one that constantly blows me away because of the amount of WORK involved in creating it. It includes interviews, essays, panel discussions, mini-documentaries, and even comedy sketches! Some of which, I’ve been in! So yeah, totally not biased at all. *whistles innocently while sauntering off into the distance*

Don Pettyjohn

Don is retired U.S. Army, assigned for a majority of his career at the White House Communications Agency, providing communications support to the President and Vice President of the United States. [Editor’s note: Wow!] He’s new to the Doctor Who world [Welcome!], finding out about Doctor Who in 2011 with the start of Series 6. “The Impossible Astronaut” hit his childhood love of Apollo moon missions, the White House (no surprise there), and the Southwest (he was born in Arizona). He fell in love with the show by the end of the episode and figured it was series 6, so he only had 5 seasons to catch up on. Boy, what a shock when he figured out it really started in 1963 (he was born in 1960). He’s managed to see every Doctor and every companion,  but not every story. Yet. Clara and the 12th Doctor are his favorite TARDIS Team, and he’ll miss seeing them together. [ME TOO.] He also discovered, and loves, Big Finish.

Judith Jackson

Judith is a Doctor Who fan (small “f”) living in London. I know this because I met her at the fab College Arms DW gathering where she set the tone for the evening by buying Steven and I our first drinks! She’s been watching Doctor Who literally all her life, having come into the world the day before “An Unearthly Child” aired. She was delighted when the show returned in 2005, and she could enjoy it with her own children. Since then she’s been a more active Fan, exploring books, comics, and audio. She also enjoys other SFF and genre stuff–plus drama in general–but she can’t always keep up with everything out there, especially when there are so many awesome podcasts to listen to as well. She hopes to one day make it to Gallifrey One. She tweets very occasional as @he11house.