I have to be honest with you. I’m just spent. Between baking Christmas cookies, 3 sick boys (yep, including the big one), planning a gift wrapping party, trying (in vain) to keep the house clean for said gift wrapping party, stocking stuffers & a veggie tray for the pre-school Christmas party, my sister-in-law calling & asking if we could buy presents for our kids from them because she doesn’t have time (for the second year in row), & 5 nagging continuing-ed credits looming over my head for the previous incarnation of myself that I may someday go back to, well I’m just spent. Not to mention the fact that this is the first Christmas we are truly alone, with no family visiting, & I’m feeling a little far away right now.
That being said, I have a few random thoughts about TV right now (because there’s always time for random thoughts).
1. Is January never going to arrive?!?!? I’m not usually one to gloss over Christmas & even the whole month of December for that matter, but come on!!! January can’t come soon enough.
Just two of the many reasons to look forward to January. Lost returns January 21 for its penultimate season, & boy oh boy do we ever have questions. (Stop reading now if you are not up to date – spoilers ahead). Why is Locke in the coffin? How did he die? Is he even dead? Speaking of dead, is Jin dead? Does Hurley keep seeing dead people? Are the Oceanic 6 going to try to "go back" to the island, as Jack believes they need to. And speaking of that Island, where the frak (gratuitous Battlestar reference) did it go? Or maybe the question should be (as much of the internet speculation seems to point to), when the frak is the island? Lost certainly got its groove back last season & I’m hoping that it just continues along the same path. It will be a fun ride. Battlestar Galactica returns for season 4.5 (yep, that’s right .5) January 16. We got the first 10 episodes of season 4 last spring & we’ve been waiting around ever since to find out "what now?" now that earth seems to be no more than a nuclear wasteland. Oh ya, & there is that little, tiny secret as to who is the final Cylon. Just a minor thing though.
2. Is it weird that my hubby finds Caillou’s Mom to be a tiny bit hot?!? Or is it just more telling about the current state of our television watching?
3. Why do I repeatedly give reality shows another chance? I really want to hit my head against a brick wall or slam my hand in a book (maybe I should just read a few more of those & I wouldn’t be in this predicament) for getting myself hooked on another ridiculous reality show, even though I profess to hate the genre as a whole. The culprit? The Biggest Loser: Families.
What started out as a fairly honest & decent show about parents/children & husbands/wives trying to lose weight & get healthy has turned into an all out game. When I watched last week’s episode with possibly the most scheming (I wanted to say vile but that seems a tad harsh) "contestant" (Vicki) to ever grace the show & her totally duped cohorts jumping around on a bed (after they had just sent home a "great friend") as they screamed about making it to the final four, well I just wanted to vomit then punch the screen. All of the decent, honest people who went home, & these 3 are left??? I like the idea of this show, but the fact that it has turned into such a game is so disappointing.
4. How did I live before my Tivo/PVR? Well I’m getting a chance to find out. It died a few days ago (moment of silence, please). I never knew how much this was a part of my life until it was gone. Never having to draw straws to see who goes to check what the unexplained "thud" is from upstairs, shortly after both boys are in bed…just pause & go. If bedtime is running a little late, no biggie, just pause & its waiting there for you dutifully when you return (the only thing in my life that waits dutifully for me). Being a magician mom because I can seemingly conjure Caillou, Wonderpets & Charlie Brown out of thin air. So the last one is a bit of a double-edged sword, but it has allowed me to make many-a-dinner (relatively) uninterrupted. My only hope is that it will return to my life as soon as possible.
Catch the new season of The Biggest Loser Jan 6 on NBC (wow, that was fast!! Do they just have a constant rotation of people at the "ranch"??). They are billing it as the "biggest" season yet, with the heaviest contestant, the heaviest woman, & the oldest couple to ever compete on the show. Lost returns to Wednesday nights Jan 21 on ABC. If you feel so inclined & you have, oh say about 80-some-odd hours to kill, you can catch up on all 4 seasons at abc.com. If only I had 80-some-odd hours to kill!!Battlestar returns to Sci-fi (US) & Space Channel (Canada), Fridays at 10pm. Mercifully, the people at Battlestar/Sci-fi have created a 13-minute recap to get you up to speed. I think I have 13 minutes to spare!
i am so excited about Lost! i do find, though, that with the big gaps between seasons, i lose a little bit of the enthusiasm. This year, we watched “The Wire” – all 5 seasons back to back – on DVD, and it was by far, the best tv show I have ever watched. Now, we’re watching Deadwood, and it’s really good.
I know how hard it is to be alone for Christmas – just know we will all be thinking of you and raising a glass to your health and happiness.
And about the PVR – I know. I would be lost without mine!
I LOVE the Biggest Loser! I know, how pathetic. I swore I never would but…well.
And, by the way, we love you and will be wishing you were here around Christmas. xo