Nevermind...

Okay, so it turns out - we didn't lose FOX. My program guide is just completely messed up. It's listing all the shows for the Wichita station as if it were a "My Network TV" station (which it says it is...) But, the shows are actually FOX shows. I recorded Fashion House tonight, hoping it would be Vanished. It was. So, the Cox people aren't idiots -- it's the program people who don't have it together. Oh well, at least I'll get House tomorrow. :-) :-)

Sittin' in the Bistro

I'm killing a bit of time before my class starts tonight. I should be grading...but I left my folders at school. Oh well... :-) So here are my thoughts on the new season:

Vanished - I'm liking it. This is one of those shows that grows on you. The first episode seemed rather generic, but it is getting more and more interesting every week. There is a mysterious conspiracy and I really have no idea where it is going. I also heard that they are killing off the lead character next week! The lead! (And this isn't Buffy. He ain't comin' back.) My understanding is that this was the plan from the beginning. Gale Harold has been scheduled to start rehearsals on a play in NYC for awhile. He was the reason I tuned in in the first place, but I might stick around after he leaves because I'm so shocked by the turn of events. (Then again, I might not. It sort of ticks me off that Gale is leaving. He's still the reason I tune in.)

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip - It's not as good as The West Wing. Okay, now that the inevitable comparison is over...I think it's going to be pretty good. I'm definitely interested in the character interactions. I think I'm going to love Matt and Danny, not to mention a few others. The first episode had some off-putting comments about conservative Christians (although a few of them were not wrong.) Before I got offended, I remembered that The West Wing started the same way. (Remember the whole Josh and Mary Marsh debacle on Capitol Beat?) Anyway - TWW went on to treat conservatives and Christians with a healthy measure of respect. It didn't necessarily agree with them, but the show respected them. I have enough trust in Aaron Sorkin as a writer to wait and see what he will do.

Criminal Minds - This is my favorite premiere so far. It was a nice conclusion to last year's cliff hanger. Talk about characters I love. This show is just head and shoulders above any of the CSI formula shows. You learn about the characters. Just as important, their strengths and weaknesses are significant. I think Spencer Reid is my favorite character on TV now that Josh Lyman is gone. :-)

Bones - I'm loving this one also. The characters seem to be a larger part of the story. Again, a crime show with interesting characters that actually change over time. What a shocker! (Can you see a theme with me?)

House, M.D. - Ahh, Gregory House. Don't you just want to fix this guy? I call it the "Han Solo Syndrome." There is a certain segment of the female population that is just irresistably drawn to broken men. "Hi, my name is Jill and I am an angsty-guy-aholic." Anyway - House brings it out in us. He certainly has a core of integrity that seeps through, even though he tries to hide it. And besides, the show has Neal from Dead Poet's Society. It's so fun to see Robert Sean Leonard in something.

C.S.I. - Thursday's episode was something of a question mark. I'm still pretty irritated that we don't get to see any of the development of the Grissom/Sara relationship. I feel cheated out of the story that I am most interested in. I only care about the murders and subsequent drama as they relate to the characters. When huge parts of character development are ignored, I feel as if the writers just gave me the finger. They were perfectly willing to explore Grissom's fear of relationships, but we get nothing of how he got over that fear. Irritating.

Smith - This is the first one to go for me. I hated it. I was looking forward to something like The Thomas Crown Affair or Ocean's 11. Instead, I got a cast of characters that are unabashed murderers. These are genuinely amoral people and I have absolutely no sympathy or interest in the rest of their story. Imagine The Usual Suspects with bad writing, no Keyser Soze, and no characters you like at all. Yuck. (And The Usual Suspects is one of my favorite movies.)

Justice - this is a maybe. I like Kerr Smith and Victor Garber. It's defense lawyers and crime. Hmmm.

Shark - better than Justice. This is prosecution lawyers and crime. It's got James Woods and Jeri Ryan (Seven of Nine, if you care about that sort of thing.) I like his interaction with the team of interns. We'll see. I'm waiting for at least another episode.

Men in Trees - I like it. And I'm surprised that I do. It's the quirky supporting cast that makes it fun. (Hmmm...Alaska? Quirky cast? Remind you of any show?)

There are several shows that I haven't had a chance to see yet. I'll let you know more as the season progresses. Note on the FOX situation...it's still AWOL. So annoying. Now I've got to download the Fox shows. Yuck.

Ummm...my channel disappeared!

Well, as of this morning, we no longer have a FOX affiliate in Manhattan. That means House, M.D., Bones, Vanished, 24, Family Guy, Justice, The O.C., Standoff and any other show on FOX...is NOT HERE. Instead of KTMJ, FOX 43 out of Topeka -- we now have KMTW, My Network TV out of Wichita. This is showing some experimental English telenovelas, Desire and Fashion House.

I e-mailed my local Cox Communication contact and guess what they told me?

"Dear Mr. Anderson:

My TV is the new fox station."

First of all, I love the fact that they think I'm a man!!!! (I sincerely hope that it was automated, otherwise I think a monkey replies to these e-mails.) And, please -- don't insult my intelligence. I wouldn't have written you if "My TV" was actually the new FOX station. It does happen to be owned by the FOX network, but it's a completely different set of programs! Agggghhhhh!

I'll write about the new season of TV when I'm less irritated at my cable provider...

Life's a Dance (and a song...and a really cheesy plot...)

Okay, I haven't laughed so hard on a Friday night in a long time! :-) :-) My roommates and I watched Disney's "High School Musical," and I literally almost fell on the floor, I was laughing so hard. I think this movie hits every single stereotype of acting, high school, and musicals! (And there is a delightful "Sing-A-Long" feature that you have to see to believe!)

Now, if only I could actually sing, my dreams of my life spontaneously breaking out into song and dance might not seem quite so far fetched...

The New Season Cometh

This week begins the marathon of new shows for the fall season. I'm guessing that I'll be doing a lot of viewing on Saturday. :-) My week is pretty crowded. I'll try to give you a recap of my favorites as soon as I get something written up.

So far I've been watching new episodes of House, M.D. and Bones. I enjoy both shows, but not with the fanatical passion I reserve for The West Wing and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. While Joss Whedon has left TVland for the delights of the new Wonder Woman film...Aaron Sorkin is back! Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip is definitely the show that I most anticipating. Aaron Sorkin and Tommy Schlamme are the dynamic duo of television, in my opinion. (Not to mention the show has Bradley Whitford and Matthew Perry. (Though, I confess, I sorta wish they were playing Josh Lymon and Chandler Bing. That'd be fun...) :-) :-)

Take care, and I'll catch you on the flip side.

Joining the eBay generation

Well - I'm late to the party, but I finally bought something on eBay. :-) I have looked for random stuff there for years, but have never been sufficiently motivated to bid. However, I recently found a RePlay machine with a lifetime subscription for SIGNIFICANTLY less than I paid for mine. If I bought it, it would double the amount of harddrive space I have. Well - I took the plunge. It was so fun to have the winning bid. (Although I find it interesting that we say "winning." Does that make it less like "buying?" I think not.)

It came yesterday and I spent some time setting it up. It works perfectly!! I can even record things in the living room and watch them in the bedroom. If you don't have a RePlay or a TiVo...it really does completely change the way you watch TV. I can't imagine going back to the ancient days of the VCR. It sounds silly, but I love my RePlay! :-) :-) :-)

How does my garden grow?

Here are a few pics I took yesterday. It had rained in the morning, so those are actual raindrops you can see in a few of the shots. :-) This garden has been such a blessing to me this year. I love to wake up, get my cup of coffee, and walk around looking at what the Lord has created since I last looked. I'm always struck by something beautiful.

Still here!

I know I haven't posted in ages. I've had little things to say, I just never got around to it. First of all, several people have asked me - yes, I liked the football movie. Invincible was a lot of fun and I even followed the football references. Of course, now that the pro season has started -- fantasy football is all I'll hear about during lunch. Oh. Yay. (there some dripping sarcasm, in case you didn't catch it.) :-) :-)

Star Trek turned 40 today. Thanks, Mom, for introducing me to Kirk, Spock, McCoy and the rest of the gang.

And finally! I bought my plane tickets to go visit my sister today! They were CRAZY expensive, but she and bro-in-law are TOTALLY worth it. Christmas in India. It has a nice ring, don't you think?