Good Crap

So I have this weird thing where I read the "Mormon" blogs (friends-of-friends, all linked on each others' pages). It's a bit stalkerish and I'm embarrassed that I do it, but lately, it's been an interesting insight into the opposition.

Well, my opposition. They are the supporters of Prop 8, encouraging the ban on same-sex marriage, as would be written into the state Constitution of California. I try to read with a patient eye, calm breath and understanding heart. But hypocrisy is hard to bear...
So I guess I'm confused by how one minority can argue for his or her own rightful place in the world, but would choose to deny it to another group based on a belief. What if I believed that people who looked different than me could not own land, run a business, get paid a minimum wage or cast a ballot?... That "belief" seems familiar and an all too clear reminder of a painful American past.


My throat is getting dry now because tearing up at work would be weird and inappropriate, but if your children are taught that everyone is a child of God and deserves to be treated as such, why deny fair and equal treatment to a whole group of God's children?

Find my other argument here: laurabreedlove.blogspot.com/

Please, please, please, join me in voting No on Prop 8. For everyone.

So I'm definitely trying to play off the fact that I'm absolutely obsessed with the coverage of the Olympics. Okay, maybe obsessed is stretching it, but I definitely am close to giving up the act of playing down the fact that I spend every evening watching the NBC primetime schedule and catching the neglected sports in streaming online form.

So let's talk Olympic coverage, shall we? It's frustrating enough that Beijing time is a billion hours ahead of Pacific time, so does NBC have to pretend they're showing me "live" coverage in primetime when they're really showing me tape-delay events from East Coast primetime? I'm not stupid, you know. And I'm also not immune to checking my email at a commercial break and catching a glimpse of a Yahoo headline telling me Michael Phelps has become the most-best-greatest-shiniest gold medal winner in an event that's not scheduled to grace my screen "LIVE" for another hour or so? Can we get a little respect out here, people?

Also, I don't really give a shit about beach volleyball. It's degrading to watch the women play in teeny-tiny bikinis while the men wear baggy tanks and shorts. So instead of showing me the entire match, plus a heart-string tugging story about current or future Olympians from the outreaches of China or America's heartland, could you show me some highlights from sports you pretend aren't happening? (Because they actually are, FYI.)

I get it, rowing is live (or "is" it?) in the European timezones where it's more popular, but do I really have to be relegated to streaming it at 2 am or watching clips from my desk at work to see a group of competitive boats make moves on each other? They're six-minute races people (or less!), I'm sure you can find the time in your primetime block to highlight a few 250 meter sprints.

I would also like badminton, table tennis and handball while we're at it, if you're open to suggestion.

So yeah, I watch compulsively, but that doesn't mean I like it.

In my head, I refer to the office's 2nd floor bathroom as a "freezing cupcake." Since I avoid the 1st floor bathroom for high-traffic and smelly reasons and like the extra movement (and time away from my desk) that the jog up the flight of stairs provides, the 2nd floor bathroom is the superior choice.

So it's basically an added bonus that it's kept at roughly 54 degrees and has a jet-engine powered vanilla air freshener for support. Freezing cupcake, I'm telling you.

No really, I’ve changed the direction I sleep in my bed. I’ve noticed a semi-permanent impression in the center of my bed (mostly due to the memory foam, I think), so I wanted to prevent any permanent damage and any sinking-into-the-mattress catastrophes before they occurred. So now I sleep at an angle. Like on the diagonal. It helps that I’m 5’0” and sleep on my side in a semi-curled position, but yeah, it was a little weird at first. It also puts me just out of reach of my snooze button, which is good or bad.

Hey! Maybe I should set a goal of an “X” impression in the foam before I finally convince myself to turn the mattress/rotate the foam/whatever. Could be kind of cool, yeah?

And yeah, in the philosophical/emotional sense, I’m heading in a new direction as well. Dropped some extra baggage recently that, while nice to have around because it held my personal belongings and rolled with ease (this baggage metaphor is lame), it was lazy and uninterested (baggage metaphor useless). Basically I mean I’m not making as many trips to Elk Grove anymore. Yay for gas savings! I actually feel better than I had been for the past month or so, so what good was that baggage anyway?!

I can also feel myself getting into a more motivated frame of mind (and after all these years – imagine!). You know, making lists of books to read, places to visit, things I’m interested in learning more about, etc. I’m hoping to continue the motivation and not just melt back into the TV when the fall season begins (after the Olympics – yay Olympics!), so we shall see.

Grad school anyone?

Blah blah, been forever, blah whatever.

First I must apologize to my laptop for my greasy, buttery fingers as I eat a tuna melt while I write this. Sorry (it's just so tasty).

Second, who's the most urbanest, hippest person in this very room?... Uh, that'd be me (Joanna won't be back from Europe for another few weeks, plus she's clearly not as urban as me). Anyway, I totally just rode my bike to the Safeway and rode home with a haul of groceries in my backpack and hanging from my handlebars. AND I didn't look like a complete spaz while doing it! Victory! Glad I saved some gas, happy I can still ride a bike with ease and coordination and pleased my bike hasn't gotten stolen in the 24 hours it's been in my possession. (I may be urban but that doesn't mean I'm not skeptical of other urbanites.)

Third, this isn't a list.

Didn't know what to do last night/this morning when opening the windows for a little A/C-free cool-down (compliments of my friend and yours, the Delta Breeze) proceeded to merit me a 53 degree apartment this morning. I was legitimately chilly trying to get out of bed and get ready for work. At least I haven't had to turn on the money-grubbing cooling unit this afternoon, as even a steady increase in apartment warmth throughout the day didn't overcome such a deficit.

I have a sense that, as a world, we're at this critical mass point where we MUST be green, we MUST work together, we MUST get healthy, we MUST stop the atrocities. And I mean that in a thoughtful way, not a crazy way. I think it's the overwhelming news coverage of gas prices,
Fannie/Freddie bailouts, endangered polar bears and whomever is throwing slurs at Obama this week, but I feel a little pressured. Maybe it's just the election year, but what if the next depression is right around the corner? We went to war to get out of the Great one, what happens if we're already at war for the next one?

Too philosophical, I'm going to go watch some frivolous TV now.

Today's reason that Laura is going to hell:

Phone exchange from non-profit education resource center job, 4:13pm PDT.

Caller: I'd like to register for the workshop in November.
Laura: Yes, please do.
Caller: I see the early registration deadline has passed, can you maybe extend the deadline for me?
Laura: No, sorry, the deadline was yesterday.
Caller: (slight whine, definite puppy dog face if this wasn't a phone call) But we were on fire. *
Laura: (awkward pause) Right, but registration has been open for more than a month and the early registration deadline was already extended, so it has passed.
Caller: But we're in San Diego. In fact, I'm not even at my office right now.
Laura: Yes, I'm so sorry, but the deadline has passed.

Heart of gold, eh? Black heart of gold.

*This is an exact quote, the rest of the conversation is paraphrased.

I have been a solid Heroes fan since the beginning (or "Genesis" as they are prone to call it). It's a well-written show with good mystery and characters. The mythology is cute, but as dashm pointed out to me, there is a lot of pull from other comics. Maybe I'm not mainstream enough to notice most of the references/rip-offs, but tonight's episode had a few glaring "homages."

• "Fire on. Sparks...Ugh" Hello, Spider-Man. The cutest scene in the first movie is Peter Parker trying to figure out how to work his web. Peter/Peter, I guess, eh?
• Thought I had accidentally changed the channel to Thursdays at 8 on The CW when West soared through the clouds with dear Claire "It's Clark and Lana!" someone in my apartment shouted. (Ok, it was me. I shouted it.)

It's not like this lifted storytelling puts me off of the show or anything. I still enjoy watching it (particularly when Milo Ventimiglia takes his shirt off) but maybe Lost has a teensy bit more originality for a mystery/science-fiction series?

Yes, the high school choir of the fictional Upper East Side prep school in Gossip Girl really did sing Fergie's "Glamorous." Classic (but not at all classy).

So Kid Nation is all about this "building a better world" business. And apparently building a better world means teaching the children how to take Irish Car Bombs as preteens. Sure it may be root beer and cream soda instead of Guinness and a shot of Jager, but you can see where it's heading. Also not at all classy. I continue to watch the show (out of boredom? fear of kid mutiny? not sure) but I also continue to be disappointed that they make so few decisions for themselves. Does the town council actually believe that the "frontier journal" is authentic? In its hearty condition and with such neat handwriting? And always so relevant too. They can't be that dumb: they use big words all the time (stupid prep schools). Leave the kids all the way alone, and then let's see what happens. That is a show I'd watch (and a show I thought I was watching, but false advertising gets you nowhere).

And finally, I came around. Hung is a good choice. He makes good food. He's not quite as assy as his buddy Marcel. Plus Casey spazzed out and fell apart in that final challenge. Dale came close but was too inconsistent. Now get me some runway competition before I forget the channel number for Bravo.

Remember that episode of Scrubs when Tom Cavanagh guest starred as J.D.'s brother because he and Zach Braff bore a resemblance and made them same goofy faces underneath their unkempt hair? Well, I would like to be the first to call Zachary Levi's (new sensation Chuck) appearance as Jim Halpert's brother, visiting Scranton for a spell, checking out his brother's life as a paper salesman and receptionist woo-er. Don't believe me? Check out the last scene of tonight's episode of Chuck and get an eerie sense of deja vu when Levi does the John Krasinski-patented "eyebrow stretch." I rest my case.

Ohhhh kay. Survived another night of new television (all coming from the alphabet network, how about that?). I really am reaching this kind of weird point. Do I continue to blog EVERY DAY about the shows I've watched (as most have already premiered), or return to the old ways of writing occasionally about stuff I find interesting or exciting? The daily thing is really a test of my discipline but I think it could get boring unless I come up with more interesting things to say.

I really liked the opening of Desperate Housewives tonight. It was a maybe/maybe not scenario that really was an intriguing way to answer to the question that was left, ahem, hanging, last season. And as always: not sure about the new neighbors. They've always got something to hide, now don't they?

One of my favorite new shows from last season was Brothers & Sisters, mostly from lingering jealousies of large, sibling-centric families. I also think the whole group of them can really act their pants off. Paired with great writing, you had yourself a fan. The premiere tonight was pretty good. Everyone was back up to their old tricks and new stories were introduced while continuing to follow through with arcs from last season. Nice. A little disappointed about the lack of Dave Annable, though. He's the other reason I watch the show (adorable). Maybe next week. And he better not be dead.

Note: I was getting tired of being tired, so here we are this morning. Five notes on television, let's discuss.

1. Survivor is settling in to its usual pace of bickering, whining, challenging and, as Probst called it last night, "tribal council therapy." Also, Leslie: don't sign-up for the show if you're not ready to "feel dirty." And as its been emphasized to the Amazing Racers and Big Brother house guests, God doesn't give a crap about you being on a reality show. He doesn't have a reason for you to be there. He's got more pressing things to take care of, mmmkay?

2. Oh, Betty. That was a lot of stuff to cram into a season premiere, but you did it in a good way. I think since the show established a short scene, quick pace structure last season (and then proceeded to excel at it), it wasn't such a jarring return to the plots. And even though I could sense where the Hilda/Santos story was going about midway through the episode, I still cried like a little baby when they showed her sitting there in the dark room, his vows still echoing off the walls. Also, random appearance from Illeana Douglas. Is she recurring or just kind of like a cameo? (Please say recurring, her talents are wasted otherwise, and I love typing her name because it's like three vertical lines to start.)

3. Big Shots was a little too proud of itself for me, particularly Dylan McDermott. The episode had its moments, but was very much a pilot episode. Hoping things get warmer and calmer next week. A little worried about the portrayal of women on the show, actually. Only Nia Long's character (who sleeps around a lot) and Duncan's daughter (who's pretty entitled and a little bitchy) showed any heart. Also, give Christopher Titus something to do besides whine about his wife. He's too loud to be a supporting character.

4. Still haven't watched all of Private Practice or Dirty Sexy Money. And now I have Grey's Anatomy on the tape too. Maybe that's what I will write about today, since nothing else happens on Friday TV.

5. And of course, a favorite from last night's premiere - Ryan: "I don't think you understand the meaning of 'double jeopardy, Michael." Michael Scott: "Yes, okay, I do... What is, 'it's fine'?"

Oh Top Cheffies, your heartfelt pleas to remain in the competition are so sweet and bordering on pleading. I like the idea that three chefs are going to the finale since that just means we'll see more nerves, more food and more freakin' out. (But: Malarkey! Nooooo!)

Kid Nation is not impressing me. Taylor is a whiny, entitled little brat. Perhaps this show is more about the parents of these children (do you teach your child how to kill and cook chicken and put together PVC or do you point at the dishwasher and tell them "that's where the help puts the dishes for cleaning"?). But seriously with the chicken slaughter. That's a little intense for me and I'm just a *little* older than those young'uns. I will applaud the show for not skimping on the actual slaughter (making the kids do it, not having some producer take the chicken away and it magically reappears without feathers and carved). I guess I will keep watching.

Gossip Girl was also not as strong this week. Last week's episode took place over the course of a week and tonight's episode happened during one Sunday brunch. Let's move a little story here, people. I understand there are a lot of places you can get back and forth from in Manhattan within a few hours but some dynamics across the plot would help. Work it out...

I also watched America's Next Top Model and Tyra just kills me. Also Tyra: Stop saying "The next name I'm going to call is..." It's not really grammatically strong and the sentence structure is also way too passive, to boot. Just say the damn name! Had to tape Private Practice and Dirty Sexy Money because the house sitting monster strikes again (this time without a DVR). We'll talk later.

AND: November 14th!! Make it work, bitches.

Does anyone else feel like this is getting a little prison-diaryish (what with the counting of the days and all ... when will it stoooppppp?)

Bygones: Reaper is the best thing to happen to The CW since...ever, the network's two years old. People should watch this show: it's cute, charming, funny, original, clever, fun and awesome. It's what I wish my social life was like. Bret Harrison is just dorky enough to appeal to most but not overly emo that Adam Brody thinks he's stealing his M.O. Tyler Labine (Sock, which: excellent sidekick name) is just so natural at stoner humor without looking overly stoned. Hilarious. And Ray Wise is delicious (that's such a girly adjective to use but he really does convey a child-like glee while emphasizing ironic morality as a devil with a conscience). So anyway: watch it, it's fun.

House! The real question is: was the show lacking without Chase, Cameron and Foreman around to counter House's shaky social skills? And the answer is: actually not really. And I feel bad for feeling that way. They are great actors, good characters and add a nice dimension to the show. But I felt that the episode was just as strong with the smaller ensemble (more Robert Sean Leonard every week!), if not more compact and streamlined. Would it get old if it was just three people diagnosing, pestering and enabling each other each week? Probably, so they'll probably be back and it will probably be good.

I also watched Beauty and the Geek (pure fun with some trashy and a little heart thrown in), parts of The Biggest Loser (work out, cry some, weigh in, cry more, vote off: I get it) and snippets of Dancing with the Stars (ugh, it pains me to be invested in this show, I'll just get my updates from Mom).

Lots of TV on the horizon and I've got nothing better to do than watch it.

So I was going to go to bed and post in the morning but as I was taking notes to jog the memory in the morning, I figured I might as well just write it down now. So, five notes on Monday night television, let's discuss.

1. How I Met Your Mother: Stunt casting was not overdone, and Enrique Iglesias is actually not crappy. Mandy Moore was good too, and the episode overall was a nice start to the season (p.s. jealous of Alyson Hannigan's bangs because she can rock them and I can't). Not its best episode (see: Robin Sparkles and the Slap Bet), but a nice treat to see a funny half hour multi-camera comedy on network TV. The genre is not dead.

2. The Big Bang Theory: Also serving to keep the genre functioning. It's not genius (oh god, with the unintentional puns already...), but it was decent. I only watched it because it was on after ...Mother and my brain didn't explode like sh*tty comedies are wont to do.

3. Prison Break: I may have lost interest in the show (and only the second week, I know!), but the appeal is wearing on me. It may have been the Heroes anticipation and snack preparation that distracted me from paying closer attention to story development but I couldn't tell you how tonight's episode advanced the plot, if pressed (though maybe it's not me?...). Luckily, I can fill the Monday at 8 slot pretty easily because

4. Chuck was awesome. Not exactly what I expected (way more spy/ass kicking than I expected), but it worked well. The show is original, cute and funny, and Zachary Levi is my new awesome. He's like Seth Cohen grew up and became slightly less emo but still not as cool as Ryan. (Evidently, creator Josh Schwartz likes to see himself in his characters.)

5. And, Heroes. Three words: double-you tee eff? Seriously, like a bunch of stuff was talked about but nothing happened. I get that a lot has to be set-up with a four-month story advance but where was the action? And I don't mean action with the random new characters who murder people in Central America. Get it together or this mega-hit train is in danger of derailing (what is that analogy? time for bed).

So I didn't actually watch any new TV. There wasn't any on, except maybe a Simpsons, which I've never gotten around to getting into, though I can catch an occasional rerun and laugh at it. Just have too many other plotlines in my life to think about.

I did watch the previous-season recaps for Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters, which got me all amped up for the official premiere week, which starts tomorrow. Jo, the roommate, and I are having a Heroes premiere party tomorrow (at which we expect *maybe* three people), so I'm getting excited for some new super-people. I've even hooked up my VCR (that's a pre-DVR recording machine, in case you forgot) so I don't miss Chuck if said party attendees would rather chat and snack than watch other shows (I'll survive).

So tomorrow is the real big day and I shall return to you then.

Not really. No network schedules television that they want to succeed on a Friday night (poor, poor Friday Night Lights).  Or a Saturday for that matter.

Back on Sunday (and we'll call it Day Five for reals).

This daily blogging thing is getting taxing...

I just watched an awesome special on the National Geographic Channel, or maybe it was PBS, about the beautiful landscapes of rural China. Such lush valleys and green bamboo forests; clear, flat lakes and crazy thunder/lightning storms; history everywhere... and a bunch of ugly Americans. Oh that's right, I was watching Survivor: China. It really was a very pretty episode with all the B-roll of "China scenery, including the Great Wall." The contestants were your typical bitchy, whiny, bossy, dirty Americans. Nothing new, but still a fun look at the prejudices and dynamics people carry with them, even in (or maybe especially in) the most extreme situations.

Side note: If you're a contestant on Survivor; like your flight is confirmed, your bags are packed, the cameras have showed up to trail you around your arrival in this season's locale; wouldn't you think you might want to wear an outfit that you could possibly wear for the next 39 days? Have you not seen the show? They don't actually let you bring that big rolling duffel bag into the jungle with you. It's just a prop to pan to when Probst tells you to abandon everything but the clothes on your back. So, for god's sake: wear a bra. And maybe something besides a dress. Or combat boots with fishnets. Or a suit jacket. Basically, if I was on Survivor, I would be like Joey in that episode of Friends where he puts on every article of clothing Chandler has in his closet. If the Boy Scouts can be prepared, so can I, damn it.

Oh, I'm such a girl. I can't resist good drama or pretty people making pouty faces. Therefore: I loved Gossip Girl. It was soapy, frothy, tart and other food adjectives. Plus, Rachel Bilson's little sister appears to be playing a lead role (crush much, Josh Schwartz? she looks just like her!). Not so excited about the creepy rapist who wear ugly scarves, but I like Dan and his sister, Jenny. And Blake Lively didn't bother me as much as I thought she would. Bonus points for Kristen Bell being on two shows this season after her one starring vehicle was yanked last season.

Top Chef: Oh, inappropriate French men. You made up for my lack of an investment in any remaining contestant. Bravo! (*plug*)

And of course, Kid Nation. It was like being a camp counselor again, except without the songs. You get that many excited kids together, adult supervision or no, and all that over-talking ensues. I was totally Sophia when I was fourteen, all "bitches please, you have to follow the recipe if you want to eat edible food. Now get out of my way." And then criticize the "leaders" later: absolutely. Gotta keep watching it, I've decided, since it's an interesting social experiment (that's what we call reality TV these days, so as to appear more cultured; some of those boys would have been on future seasons of Beauty and the Geek if they weren't on this show already).

Ooh, China tomorrow...

I don't have five notes. I barely watched two shows. That's the thing with premiere week, everything is bigger, better, looooonger. Two hour episodes of The Biggest Loser and Beauty and the Geek? Do we really need two hours from each?

Loser: Just work out and weigh in, whine a little about your buff and screaming trainer in between.
Geek: meet, greet and climb a lot of stairs (seriously, have you ever done some many activities centered around the stairwell in your house?).

I will say: The CW is not completely stupid in its programming. By running the majority of its premieres in the week before the other, more "popular" networks run the bulk of their premieres, the CW gets a chance to put something fresh in front of a delirious, fresh-television-deprived audience (me and like a dozen other people, bygones). I will end up test-driving the new Josh Schwartz (formerly the "real" Seth Cohen) show Gossip Girl, as I have nothing better to watch tomorrow before Top Chef. (Top Chef!! Yay tomorrow!! Sad face for CJ, though.) Blake Lively does the Drew Barrymore side-of-mouth talking thing, but in a more annoying way, but I guess if there's nothing else new on, I've got to watch something.

Side-tracked, sorry. The Biggest Loser just makes me eat healthier, which is nice, and you know I love a good makeover show, and this one is pretty ultimate. Sadly, my ADD gets annoyed that their "transformations" take longer than one hour of television.

Beauty and the Geek is a pretty great television concept or "social experiment" as Ashton Kutcher (executive producer: really?) calls it. Anyone in their right minds ends up rooting for the geeks because the beauties are such a disgrace to public education,  feminism and the human race as a whole. But it's nice to see them attempt to wash all that awkward away from their partners. New twist this season: one of the beauties is a guy and one of the geeks is a girl. But where the hell have I seen that guy before?! He's not just plucked out of your neighborhood Joe's Crab Shack for his good looks. He is in the IMDB, I'm pretty sure.

Alright, too tired at this point to recognize the poor, poor attempts at humor in this entry have utterly failed.

Let's get this season started. Five notes on (the first night of premiere week) television. Let's discuss.

1. I really only watched two premieres tonight. So I'm worried about this five thing.

2. Prison Break was alright. Not the most exciting thing I've ever seen. I understand the need to set up various new situations and dynamics now that the story has taken them to a prison in Panama (something new to break out of, Michael?). Still a bit of action to keep things moving, but a lot of talk and set-up and yawn. We'll wait and see. Also: stop showing Bellick in his underpants. GROSS.

3. K-Ville is the first new series out of the blocks this year, if I'm counting correctly. It was a typical cop drama: partner issues, revered-but-actually corrupt citizens and a little rumbling at home. I liked Anthony Anderson though, and Cole Hauser is just intense (but in a good way). Got a little distracted with all the back story (I will say I was drawn to the show because it centers on post-Katrina New Orleans, so I understand there has to be a significant amount of back story to explain everyone's feelings and attitudes toward the past two years), and maybe they didn't need to solve a crime in the first episode (like they solve a crime in every episode) so that they could have spread out the story a bit more. Too much for one hour, I guess. I'll see if they can iron it and slow it down a bit next week.

4. The Hills (not a premiere, just an episode) is trash. And so I watch it just to point and laugh and cry. Cry at the state of women in the world. Or at least those girls. Get over yourselves, ladies. And grow-up.

5. The Emmy's were pretty chill. Seacrest was an able host, knowing enough to leave the jokes to the comedians and the singing to the musical artists. The Emmy's always drag a bit since they just keep giving out awards. Enough already with the writers and directors and music, variety or comedy programs, just show us the cool kids holding their trophies up. Maybe next year the Daily Show "big 3" can co-host. Stewart, Colbert and Carrell were so cute during the Best Actor in a Comedy presentation. They did it!

See you tomorrow! (For uh... what the hell am I watching tomorrow anyway? I'll get back to you)