List : Best Shows on TV

I decided to make a list of the best shows currently on television. I tend to enjoy 30 minute sitcoms more than hour long dramas, but this list will include both for completeness sake:

1. How I met your Mother

The current season has vaulted this show into the top spot. It doesn't hurt that it drives Robyn crazy not to know who Ted married. The "countdown to slap" episode is one of the best I have ever seen.

2. Boston Legal

Greatest scene ever:

Carl Sack: Now, Miguel, would you first tell the jury what interests you about cockfighting?

Miguel answers in Spanish.
Sister Mary O’Reilly (nun translating for Miguel): It’s part of our Mexican culture. As little children, we’re raised to revere the noble cockfighting rooster. One of the reasons I came to America, the greatest country in the world, was because of its tolerance, its willingness to embrace the cultures of other lands. God Bless America.

Carl Sack: Okay, sir, but to many Americans… it seems cruel to threat chickens this way.

Miguel speaks in Spanish.
Sister Mary O’Reilly: The fighters love the competition. Mexicans, like Americans, honor the warriors. Like the troops fighting over in Iraq. God bless the troops.

Carl Sack: Okay. Um, would you tell us about your rooster in particular?
Miguel speaks in Spanish.

Sister Mary O’Reilly: His name was Ronald. I named him after Ronald Reagan, my hero. Ronald was like family. And they killed him. The police gave him a lethal injection. They murdered Ronald Reagan.

Carl Sack: You say he was like family, and yet you made him fight, possibly to the death?

Miguel speaks in Spanish.
Sister Mary O’Reilly: I don’t believe he would’ve ever have died fighting. He was a champion cock. It would bring me such joy to hold him, To hold that beautiful warrior cock in my own two hands.

3. Rules of Engagement

How can you not love a show with Puddy in it?

4. The Office

It took me awhile to see the brilliance here - but the "bouncing DVD screen saver" hooked me.

5. Lost

Another show that I was slow to get into. I was also slow to see that Evangeline Lilly is an uber-fox. I now see the errors of my ways. Great Show.

That's my top five - here are a few honorable mentions that are no longer on TV:

1. John Adams (HBO) - Great series about a flawed man who helped shape our history.
2. Rock of Love (VH1) - umm, yeah - this is pure trash - but.... um... I like it.

Now this is Religion I can get Behind

I see absolutely nothing wrong with this idea.

Woops

In my anger I forgot to include a fact and fun link in my last post. I'll rectify that now.

Fact: Mitt Romney is not an Olympic athlete.

Wouldn't it be awesome to own your own luxury submarine?

Hate

I hate GM (General Motors) vehicles. I mean, I really harbor a deep resentment to everything about these vehicles. It's not just the weak engines, poor handling, or substandard workmanship. It's the little annoying details that really piss me off. I travel along the east coast for work frequently and use our company vehicle, which is a Chevrolet Trailblazer. This week I am using this particular truck for a training class I am attending near Philadelphia, PA. Yesterday morning was the breaking point for me. It was cold out and the ground was a bit wet from some rain/snow we had gotten the night before. While driving a lot of dirt and grime from the road was deposited on the windshield. I thought I could use the windshield wipers along with the windshield washer fluid to clear this and allow me to drive safely. WRONG! This automaker has decided that the average American is too stupid to use his or her wipers properly. When you engage the windshield washer function it triggers the wipers to start. Fair enough. I was quite pleased up to this point. When I released the washer function the wipers continued. And continued. And continued. So much so that the wipers smeared the entire windshield to the point at which I could no longer see at all. I tried again, and it turns out that there is NO FUCKING WAY to turn off the wipers after washing the windshield. This is idiotic!!!

Rant over.

My "Five", A Fact, and Fun

A friend of mine and his wife have lists that they refer to as "their fives". It's basically a list of celebrities that they would be allowed to sleep with if the opportunity arose. Robyn and I have no such list because Robyn isn't allowed to sleep with anyone. But if we did have lists, what would they look like. Here are my estimates of their construction:

Mine (in no particular order)

1. Yvonne Strahovski - Complete with Australian accent
2. Katherine Heigl
3. Scarlett Johansson - Complete with Obama support (unlike my wife!)
4. Elisha Cuthbert
5. Nikki Cox - She was on a show with a talking bunny - how cool is that?

Now for my guess as to what Robyn's list would look like:

1. Brad Paisley - Crappy Music
2. Josh Duhamel - Crappy Actor
3. John Cusack - Too Old
4. Freddy Prince Jr. - no need to say anything here
5. Tony Romo - Crappy Football team (Go Giants!)

Now for a fact: Barack Obama is not a Muslim

Now for a fun link: Breaking stuff is better than sex apparently.

Owen Nuggets

Some nuggets of wisdom from my son Owen:

Owen to me during a nice father son walk: "Daddy, why are there people?"
Me: "hmm, I am not sure"
Owen: "I think its to drive trucks and put videos on youtube for me to watch; and stuff like that"

Owen on being scared on Monsters: "Daddy, are monsters real?"
Me: "Nope"
Owen: "Well, if they aren't real - then why am I afraid of them?"

Owen on Religion: "Momma/Daddy, how come we don't celebrate Hanukkah?"
Robyn: "because we don't celebrate that holiday in our religion"
Owen: "I wish there were no religions so I could celebrate Hanukkah"

Owen on kisses: "Momma, I don't like kisses anymore"
Robyn: "Why not?"
Owen: "Because, its just water from your mouth."

Book Review – The Road

The best way to describe this book is with one word: austere. It describes a post-apocalyptic America (kind of reminds me of another book on my future reading list) and is at its core, a father and son story. The father and son struggle through a journey along ‘The Road’ trying to survive starvation, cannibals, exposure, etc. Through it all, the father will not give up and pushes on to keep his son safe, a tale I can appreciate. I liked the book because it makes you think, how would I react in a similar situation? Would I have the will to keep going? I would like to think for my children I would do anything and everything possible but you never know until you are placed into that situation. So, a new feature here – a rating for books. 4 of out 5 Pultos awarded. I enjoyed the novel a lot, but without more characters or length (it was fairly short) it falls short of the highest honor. A movie is supposedly in the works, now that I would go see, just for the scenery.

Now a fun link: Be careful who you talk to in online chat rooms.

Book Review – American Pastoral

I recently finished Philip Roth’s American Pastoral. It has been listed as one of the 100 Greatest novels ever written according to time magazine and has won many awards. I am always looking for good novels and I picked this up from the Howard County Library hoping for a great experience. My thought: good, not great. The book itself was entertaining and intelligent, but I think a book has to be more than that to be considered an all-time great. The story line involves an American Family during the upheaval of the Vietnam War. The overarching theme however is more sinister. To me, it seems to say that no matter how hard you try to have the perfect life; it inevitably will turn to chaos and spin out of control. It attacks the suburban “nuclear family” in a not-too subtle way. It intones that basically no matter what appearances may be, that no family is as it seems, and that human instincts cannot sustain that lifestyle. I reject that. And the only reason I can’t reject it with stronger language is because my “nuclear-family” is still young in years. Life is long and things can happen, but I have every intention of writing a stronger response to the book after 50 years of marriage to my wonderful wife Robyn and life with my beautiful children.

Next book I’d like to read: Read this except – crazy ass stuff.