Saturday the 31st

Coffee Walk:

• A whole slew of Story of the Day podcasts. I especially enjoyed the piece on Kobe Bryant's former personal trainer, who is now a gym teacher at a charter school in New York. Where he works with the "legitimately immature". Oh, and all the teachers get paid $120K a year. Note to the world at large: I would gladly go back for $100K. Bargain, huh?

Daytime:

• Man vs. Food. I did not need one more reason to love Adam Richman, but he gave me one. He wore a "Carcetti for Mayor" shirt to his first stop in Baltimore.

Friday the 30th

Commute:

• Story of the Day, I caught up with a piece from last week about a retired football player who now suffers from short-term memory loss. When he was younger, the team had a drill where the boys would actively butt heads like rams. Who thought that would turn out poorly? One of the most moving elements was hearing the player describe his nostalgia for his high school team, even though he'd won a college bowl game and played with the 49ers in a Super Bowl season. I can't put my finger on what is so resonant about sports in our psyche - especially since I have played on so few teams myself.

Late Night:

• 30 Rock. Pretty good episode, and I loved the Kenneth clone cameos.
  
• It's Always Sunny. I think I may have preferred the South Park wrestling episode. Is wrestling having some weird renaissance, or is it just always dependable comedy fodder?

Wednesday the 28th

Morning Commute:

• An entertaining Planet Money podcast, featuring an interview with Elinor Ostrom, who shared the Nobel Prize for Economics this year for her work demonstrating the tragedy of the commons isn't necessarily tragic. She was very down-to-earth and practical and I enjoyed her take on human nature. Namely, that it's in our best interests to get along with each other.

Work:

• All Songs Considered. The most recent podcast featured the best in jazz this year. I've always meant to like jazz, but can't quite get there. I did really enjoy this podcast, though, and downloaded a really beautiful piece by Robert Glasper called "Open Mind". It has humming. I like humming.

Late Night:

• RW/RR Challenge. An OK episode. The vote that put Ibis in was pretty hilarious. I recently rediscovered the recaps on TVgasm and they have brought me great joy.

Thursday the 29th

Commute:

• Culturetopia podcast - featured part of a really moving and serious interview with Tracy Morgan. I downloaded the entire show to listen to later. He doesn't strike me as a "sad clown", but he certainly has channeled a great deal of pain into his work.

Nighttime Viewing:

• Survivor. Ugh. Getting bored.


• The Office. "I'm not usually the butt of the joke. I'm usually the face of it." I loved this episode. From the opening to the ending, this struck me as the show at its finest. The characters are still ridiculous, but they're genuine. Michael tries too hard, takes everything to personally, tries to hard to get over it, and comes out OK in the end. Pam finds Andy ridiculous, but still cares enough to put in a good word for him with Erin. Plus an opening montage with Darrell pointing out just how insane the environment is.
  
• Project Runway. Winning look? UGH! Are there NO BRAS on the Macy's accessory wall?!? I didn't like Althea's winning look the first time, and didn't find this companion piece any more flattering or interesting. And Logan's aufing? Overdue. In his own words, his designs are not for 90% of the population. That... is not really a good thing, dude. I understand that 90% might not wear your looks, but more than 10% should want to see them.
  
• Models of the Runway. This was almost interesting for about 5 minutes. Model controversy! Boob tape! But then it just got all dull and blew like it normally does.
  
• The League. I don't actually know anyone into Fantasy Football (or at least no one who tells me they are), but guy obsessions are very amusing when you don't actually live with them.

Tuesday the 27th

SYTYCD!

• I'm dubious about the judge's only selection process this week. I will either feel frustrated - or I will be glad they did it and annoyed when America votes next week.
  
  
• I would like Noelle to just go home bc of the headband. Not even kidding.
  
  
• From the "Your Top 20!" I was impressed with Channing and Russell.
  
  
• Phillip and Channing, Jive. The fact that Phillip does "spoken word" poetry (as opposed to "read quietly to yourself" poetry) does NOT make him less creepy. Technically, their feet looked good, but the whole piece seemed tttoooooooo ssssllooooooooowwwwwwwwww.
  
  
• Ashleigh and Jakob, Broadway. Jakob will surely go on about how he is gonna represent the spirit of ORLANDO! No? Floridians only do that for Miami? Hmm. Anyhow. He blew her AWAY. Even the cameraman agreed - I can't recall other moments when they've followed one dancer and not even kept the other in the shot. I am wondering what the hell wardrobe was thinking - and hoping that sweater was the result of a terrible backstage coffee accident that ruined what he was SUPPOSED to wear.
  
  
• Peter and Ariana, Hip Hop. This is a promising pairing - they are cute with a capital Q. I think the tension was missing in the dance because they just weren't very sharp.
  
  
• News Break. Holy crap, a cable snapped on the Bay Bridge! Yikes! It might not go anywhere as cool, but you don't have to worry about that kinda shit on the Dumbarton...
  
  
• Russell, Foxtrot. Wow, he is fantastic. Very graceful, and well-acted. Actually, one of the best foxtrots I think they've had on the show.
  
  
• Bianca and Victor, Contemporary. He is very good in his style. And this is an extremely promising beginning for Bianca! I wouldn't have guessed it was so far out of her style. Well done.
  
  
• Kevin and Karen, Cha Cha. Holy cross promotion, Fox. A song from Glee? Really? Eyebrow raised... and it didn't bother me. Because I was so distracted with how terrible he was. Clearly, the hip in hip hop does not refer to the body part. Yes, she was extremely good, but not so good that I didn't notice him. I noticed. Yikes.
  
  
• Ellenore and Ryan, Contemporary Jazz. Oooh, she should kill this. Yeah, this could be awesome. Any minute now, it's going to get crazy. And... oh, it's over? Huh. They were both good, and I think they did what they were supposed to do, but I just didn't find this all that interesting. I may just be over Sonya.
  
  
• Pauline and Brandon, Waltz. I missed the beginning due to more bridge coverage. Which is a shame, because I believe he's a local boy (Concord) and that means his friends and family missed the beginning, too. I can only assume that he said something like "I guess it's sorta cool that I'm on the show now". Anyway, it was a pretty waltz, and I wouldn't have guessed he had a more abbreviated practice schedule than the others. Pauline sold it pretty well, too - beautiful smile. (And I never say that.) Not sure why Nigel is crapping all over it when he thought Asuka and Vitolio were so good last year.
  
  
• Legacy and Kathryn, Hip Hop. Dave Scott is my favorite tonight. This was awesome. Their musicality was GREAT - I loved the way they found the beats. I am also impressed that it had a fantastic sense of humor without being goofy. The only routine I have felt like rewinding and watching again so far.
  
  
• Nathan and Mollee, Disco. Can we retire disco? I think last season was as good as it is gonna get (Jeannine! and Brandon, Ade! (and Melissa)) , because isn't it always gonna be kinda the same? Prove me wrong, show. Right after another news break?! Seriously, Fox?! Nothing is happening now - the bridge is CLOSED! And if people are driving, they are not watching TV news right now! Argh. So we begin with the dancers mid-run. And talk about prom dances. This was lame. "Adorable" in a best-looking kids at the retro theme party way, but... don't you also sort of hate those kids?
  
  
• OK, I wish they would send Phillip and Ashleigh home because I don't want to watch them. Before I fast forward to the end, I'm going to predict the bottom will be Peter, Ariana, Brandon, and Pauline. I am 3 for... WHAT???? RUSSELL??? Did they SEE Kevin? He was MUCH worse.
  
  
• Ariana. Typical contemporary solo. Meh.
  
  
• Russell. That headspin was sick. I totally heart him.
  
  
• Pauline. Most boring routine ever done to "Magalenha". Sigh.
  
  
• Brandon. Not bad, not thrilling. I hope they plan on letting him try again next season, because this seems cruel.
  
  
• Prediction: Adios Brandon and Pauline, bc they love to eliminate in pairs in the beginning.
  
  
• Ariana? Rats. Now I really wish they sent ol' dopey headband home. (After Ashleigh.)
  
  
• Brandon. And... they'll let him re-enter next year. Because that's good ratings.

Monday the 26th

SYTYCD!!!

• I love the idea of the Top 20 Showcase. I'm really looking forward to seeing why everyone made it this far, and it will also be a good comparison when we see everyone outside their styles tomorrow.

• Group Number - Well done, but sort of a throwback to the latin club number Taboleon did last season. Wade, you can do more. From the dancers, Nathan was a stand-out for me, and I'm concerned about Legacy.

• Hip-Hop. Yeah, still concerned about Legacy. I think the other 2 are going to adapt to learning choreo better. I do love threading, and thought it was a really cool way to show how these dancers can play off each other.

• Contemporary. Tyce. WTF???? Let's make their first dance about... SADNESS??? That's laaaaaammee. Save that shit for week 3 when people start going home. This one should be about joy. I'm glad they showed the slo-mo's of Jakob, bc I otherwise would have missed how spectacular his leaps were.

• Tap. I love their exuberance and confidence - these kids got heart! And moxie! The lighting for this number was distractingly awful - the black and white waterspot background made it look like they were trying to dance in a camouflaged background. Phillip creeps me out a little, and either he didn't get a break-out solo in that number or it was thoroughly forgettable. Bianca had great leg extension, and I think she's going to be just fine this season.
  
  
• Jazz. Still very excited about Ellenore, and Pauline is also very cute. But I think Mary Murphy was being too generous with Molly, because I see exactly what the judges meant when they said she dances like a little girl. Yes, they should pump everyone up tonight, but choose something they did do well. Don't lie to us. We notice.
  
  
• Contemporary. Bad news here, kids. Just read that Billy Bell is already out due to illness, which is a bummer bc his solo really was fantastic. And OMG NO MORE SHOTS OF GROSS INJURIES!!! BLECH! OK, the number. Wow, they had a LOT of synchronization problems. And the girls were utterly forgettable. I am now even more upset about Billy leaving early because he was by far the best part of that routine.
  
  
• Ballroom. I am already prejudiced against Ashleigh. I think she is mediocre, and the face pulling bugs. Her husband? Totally hot. So maybe that's why I hate her, too. Anyway. She was better than I expected. But I was actually rather bored by the whole number.

Weekend the 23rd-25th

Friday Commute:

• Listened to a slew of Story of the Day podcasts and NOT ONE was about health care! They were great.

Weekend Viewing:

• 30 Rock. This feels like it should've been the premiere - much better than last week. I love the GE tie-ins. Maybe I just have a soft spot for microwave ovens.


• The State - Season 2. From Netflix, and it is about damn time this became available. Terrific sketch comedy, and their exuberance is so much fun to watch.


• Fringe. Caught up on everything else from this season. Still a pretty satisfying series.


• The Simpsons. Also caught up on this season's episodes. The Halloween was a definite middle-of-the-packer, but I did enjoy the kick-punch-choke ultimate fighting league episode.
  
• It's Always Sunny. "The World Series Defense". I laughed out loud when Charlie pushed Dennis in front of the car. Typing that, it really sounds like something I shouldn't have laughed it. But trust me. Hilarious.


• The Amazing Race. I admit, I didn't think the Globetrotters would be able to do the math challenge after the watch debacle. But I don't really blame them for razzing the girl who freaked out at the water slide. One word. RACE.
  
• Mad Men. What a fantastic episode. It was fascinating to watch so many characters lash out at the people who had broken their hearts in such controlled ways.
  
• World Freerun Championships. I turned this on just to see what the hell that meant. And it meant awesome. Parkour! Parkour!

Thursday the 22nd

Nighttime:

• Glee. Man, I kinda want a grape slushee. I also can't wait to one day buy someone a kitten, let them fall in love with that kitten, then one day years later sneak into their house at night and punch them in the head.



• Survivor. This does look like a particularly physically miserable season. I actually can't remember anything looking this bad since season 2 in Australia, when Tina went into the raging river to save the rice. But two episodes in a row of nothing really happening? You're boring me, show.


• The Office. Pam freaking in the parking lot was too ridiculous, but the freak out in the conference room was pretty good. But my favorite moment was a quick shot of Creed tearing up when he heard the aria. Sometimes those notes just hit ya, y'know?
  
• Project Runway. Carol Hannah's dress was too Uli for me, and while Irina is bitchy she did put a luxe look together. I would not have had an issue with any of the boys going home. Christopher's southwestern look was just pathetic. It looked like an old McCall sewing pattern.

Wednesday the 21st

Commuting:

• A Story of the Day about Jewish delis - I totally want to try rolled beef, and agree that anyone requesting pastrami on white should be ignored.
• Planet Money - healthcare for hedgehogs. Hedgehogs do sound awful cute, but I doubt I would spend thousands to keep one around.
• World Cafe, and All Songs Considered with a new track from Vampire Weekend! Woo-hoo!
• Half of Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me
• Somewhere in one of these I heard a piece on Ben's Chili Bowl and the half-smoke in D.C., but I can't recall where. This was an odd coincidence because...

Evening:

• Man vs. Food, Adam goes to D.C. and his first stop? Ben's Chili Bowl! Now I must go. His next stop featured some woman named Big Momma who is now my favoritest cook Adam has met. She was funny, and natural, and looovvveedd her food.
• SYTYCD - this was a rather irritating selection show, and dragging all of the contestants to a new location (Hollywood) just to dump half of them right away seemed cruel. I am exciteed about Ellenore, though! And Victor! And Legacy! And the krumper! And tapping!
• RW/RR Challenge I only wish Tonya had hit Veronica harder. That girl is awful.

Tuesday the 20th

Morning Commute:

• Culturetopia podcast. I started listening to this because of Linda Holmes, who now edits the Monkey See blog for NPR and who I first became aware of as Miss Alli on TWOP. Her recaps of Survivor and TAR were hilarious, on-point, and thought-provoking. She made me feel better about being a tv-ophile. Kaela and I went to see The Frames at the Great American Music Hall just bc Miss Alli said she liked them, and I actually even sent her a fan email when she left TWOP.

Nighttime:

• Sons of Anarchy. They could probably bait me with Juice, too. Feels a little strange how immersed Tara is in her acceptance of the club now, and seeing her go all mean girl with Gemma seems kind of out of place. I suppose it's a good bonding mechanism for them, though.

Nightstand:

• Fordlandia: The Rise and Fall of Henry Ford's Forgotten Jungle City by Greg Grandin. South America has been a recurring theme in my reading over the past year or so - I read about Teddy Roosevelt and the River of Doubt and The Lost City of Z, both of which were mentioned in the introductory chapter of this book. Doesn't make me actually want to go to the Amazon, but it's good reading.

Monday the 19th

Morning Commute:

• Planet Money, something about economics that I tuned out but would probably be able to follow if there was a quiz. Maybe they should add quiz segments!

At work:

• I realize that "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" by Dropkick Murphys has been featured in many things, but for some reason I had to download it after hearing it on "The Debarted" episode of The Simpsons. I kinda felt like leaving it on repeat all day. And signing along in my cubicle. That wouldn't alarm anyone.

Evening:

• HIMYM. Aw, a Canada episode. This one actually felt a lot better to me than the last few. I could sympathize with Ted's feelings of loss -it's hard when your best friend is in a couple and doesn't realize that while you genuinely like their partner you still want to have your friend to yourself sometimes. I thought that storyline came off true but not overly sappy.


• The Simpsons. Catching up on the new season, starting with "Bart Gets a Z" - poor ol' Ms. Crabapple.


• The Big Bang Theory. Silly, but not noxious.


• Fringe. The one where the cop crystallizes and EXPLODES. Wait, that could actually be any episode, huh?

Weekend 16-18th

• RW/RR Challenge. Ugh, I wanted Suzy to go home. I think I find her particularly vile because she was so cute on her season of Road Rules in Australia, and now she's a self-satisfied patronizing sanctimonious little creep.


• Fringe. A whole bunch of these from the new season are languishing in the DVR. I still think the show is entertaining, but it isn't a "popcorn" show where I enjoy watching one episode right after the other.


• 30 Rock. I loved Tracy Morgan's man-on-the-street moment.


• The Office. Still not enjoying this season much.


• The Big Bang Theory. I haven't watched this show often, but Kaela told me it's worth watching for Sheldon alone. And he is pretty awesome. I may have to start watching, and can just fast-forward through all the other geeks.


• Man vs. Food Who knew Boise was a home for such ridiculously large quantities of food? It seemed crazy that the first stop offered DOUBLE one-pound patties with multiple cheese slices, and people seem to order it as just a regular meal and not a competitive eating challenge. One could easily feed a family of 4. A FAT family of 4.
  
• The Soup One of my sources of "news". I loved Greg Kinnear on this show, grew to enjoy John Henson, loved Aisha Tyler, and it took me a while but I now love Joel McHale, too. But they could have cut that Miley Cyrus rap waaayyy shorter. Knowing it existed was awful enough, actually viewing it was unnecessary. Actually, all the clips seem to be running way too long today. But I am very glad they mocked the brainiacs on TAR who couldn't recognize Jackie O.
  
• The Simpsons - a whole mess of saved episodes, from the early days (Lisa enters Little Miss Springfield) to the latest Sideshow Bob foiled murder attempt to The Debarted where Bart's group is infiltrated by a spy.
  
• TAR - I'm surprised that Boston couple went out as gracefully as they did, but it was nice to see them both accept blame for the bad leg and to end with reasonable cheer. BTW, I would NOT have gone for that snowman in s snowmound challenge. That had loser written all over it.
  
• It's Always Sunny - "The Waitress Gets Married" and "Intervention! Intervention!"
  
• Mad Men. I'm enjoying reading the critical analysis of this how on Slate and - believe it or not - the Project Rungay website.

Thursday the 15th

Morning Commute:

• Planet Money podcast, about the interplay between economics and children. Nowadays, they're luxury items. We don't want them in the workforce because they'd take jobs away from adults. Sneaky little bastards.

Nighttime Viewing:

• Survivor. I didn't understand the goal of this food challenge - basically, they wanted people puking bc that's entertainment? Why not impose a time limit, or make it a race? Dumb. Tonight's vote? Dull.


• Project Runway. I don't bother paying much attention until Tim walks in the workroom to make critiques. Ms. Aguilera's lipstick was a little Crazy Town, no? Overall, this challenge seemed like a rather dull bust. Nothing actually jumped out at me as "costume". (Except what the Hell was going on with the nipple clamps on Gordana's dress?) I think Christopher should've gone home first - he's confused "reinvent" with "reproduce" twice now.


• Models of the Runway. Fast forward, interview segment with Heidi (who cracks me up), fast forward, model picking, and... Ebony and her weird eyebrows head home. Whatever.

Wednesday the 14th

Morning Commute:

• Culturetopia podcast. Roller derby girls going to watch Whip It - very cute.

Before Band Practice:

• Whatever, Martha. This had been on hiatus in my DVR bc it kept recording the same repeats even though I asked for just new episodes. But I popped it back in the line-up to see if a new season started, and lo and behold it had. I do not care for the new set - it looks cold, and the lighting seems too sharp. I thought it was fun when the sets were less "professional kitchen" and "professional craft area", too, because it was more in keeping with the spirit of "why the Hell does Martha think people can/would do these things at home?"

After Band Practice:

• SYTYCD. These boys are weepy this season. It's interesting that Mia makes all the dancers cry whether she's mean or loving. What on earth position does she put their bodies in that unlocks that? I was about to download the music used for her choreography, "Walking on Air", and it turns out I already have it! Must've been a free single off iTunes or from Amazon. Woo to the HOO! In other thoughts, I believe it will work in that Billy kid's favor that Adam Shankman is moving up to regular judge status this season. This season looks pretty darn promising...
  

Tuesday the 13th

Commutes:

• Plowed through a whole bunch of Story of the Day podcasts. I remember that only one was about health care. How will I ever know what is going on now?

Evening:

• Saw Shawn Colvin at Yoshi's! She was terrific, and called Sting a pansy ass mo-fo for using an electric tuner. It was a very simple set - just Shawn and a guitar, and a backup singer for 3 or 4 tunes. Her voice is just as pure and true as it is in her recordings, and holy cow can she work a capo on the guitar.

Monday the 12th

Morning and Evening Commute:

• Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me podcast. Mildly entertaining, Ashley Judd was a guest bc she's currently a grad student at Harvard, and that's all I remember. Oh, except I totally missed the "Bluff the Listener" - turns out that a Denver weekly is actually hiring a marijuana critic. No, the outlet is not the Mile High Times. (See, I could totally be a Wait Wait panelist.)

Nighttime viewing:

• HIMYM. Start being funnier, show. I am growing even less tolerant of forced hilarity. I was actually OK with Marshall and Lily's over-the-top terrible hosting, but the ending was ridiculous. Robin and Barney? Too good for that.


• Mad Men. Don is not very likable this season. Not showing many redemptive qualities. It was thrilling to see Roger put him in his place, even though the point he had to make was that the agency has to find a way to keep themselves endeared to their horrible clients. They could take lessons from poor Carla.

Sunday the 11th

Morning Coffee Walk:

• NPR:Books Podcast. I loved the interview with Madeline Albright about her pins, and think she used them well as a diplomatic tool. There is a lot of wisdom in putting a point of view in a very obvious place where it can be noted and used to set a tone.

Between Things:

• Started catching up on Season 2 of Fringe. Who else was annoyed when they didn't check Charlie's palate from the get-go?


• HIMYM, "The Possimpible". I'm going to start channeling my visio-tivity right now.

Evening:

• Went to see Whip It, and was pleasantly entertained. Fun, cute, and rewatchable. Drew did a good job, and it was fun to see her give herself such a ridiculous rough and tumble character.

Late Night:

• TAR - and how was it possible only 2 of those teams recognized Jackie O?? Pathetic. I was very disappointed with the outcome this week, and don't really care who wins now. The dad & son, I guess. Or the Globetrotters. The rest of them are all grating.

Nightstand:

• Rereading Cat's Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut. It was my second nomination for book club - originally, I had said we would read Woman on the Edge of Time because I remember reading it for a fem. stud. class back in college and that it provoked interesting discussions. What I had forgotten is that it is stilted and unreadable, so I retracted it and suggested Cat's Cradle instead, because given the option? I would probably be a Bokononist myself.

Saturday the 10th

Morning Commute:

• Read the Spellman book. Polished it off at a coffee shop after work this afternoon. It was a satisfying read. Characters were true to form, and it was nice to see Isabel's developing self-awareness. I remain interested and excited about more in the series.

Afternoon:

• Thought I might actually watch a football game, and Stanford was already getting beat up by Oregon State. Yikes. Switched to...
  
• Fringe. It's time to polish off the last DVD of Season 1.
  
• Man vs. Food. Mmm... corn dogs... NOW I have a reason to go to Springfield, Illinois.

Evening:

• REALLY finished off Fringe. It was good, and the season wrapped up nicely without closing the mystery down entirely.
  
• Somehow I got sucked into watching an episode of Made on MTV, where they taught 3 random suburbanites to dance and put them in a hip hop contest. One of the judges was Twitch, so I stuck around, because TWITCH! He was very enthusiastic and supportive. You go, Twitch. I'm always thrilled to see dancers getting work after SYTYCD.
  
• Community. Terrific credits. Heehee - nice Seacrest dig. I love pop culture tie-ins.
  
• Glee. I am starting to love it. Sue Sylvester was in fine form, and it had TWO musical numbers - yay!
  
• SNL, and my finger is on the fast-forward button. Drew Barrymore usually proves to be an entertaining host so she got the show a 1-week reprieve (and Regina Spektor! I absoLUTEly love her), but after tonight - it's off the DVR record list.

Friday the 9th

Morning Commute:

• Read Revenge of the Spellmans.

At work:

• Claire reminded me this week's Office episode was the wedding, which had completely slipped my mind. She mentioned they spoofed the Forever wedding march from YouTube, which I had never heard of. So we watched it. It was very cute - but we both agreed if we were the bride we would have choreographed the hell out of our entrance.

Late Night After Work:

• So I watched The Office when I finally got home. Worst. Episode. Ever. I'm not sure if I find it the worst because of the lackluster content, or because of the missed opportunities. This one just felt like it was trying too hard, and one of the things I hate most in comedy is forced hilarity. I did not like the gross-out humor (what's with the new "show, don't tell" approach to vomit?), the lack of knowledge demonstrated by the secondary characters (Pam's best friend didn't know about Dwight?), or the reliance on ridiculous stereotypes (Grandma will be shocked the couple lived together and will disapprove of the match, Pam's Dad is dating someone really young). I did think the "mental pictures" were adorable, and the filming of Pam and Jim's actual wedding was quite sweet, but the way they arrived there just felt contrived. Pam is upset because her veil was supposed to be in her control? I get the concept, but the dialogue was weird. Which also brings me to the missed opportunity - wouldn't it have been great to hear how Pam feels about Jim for once? Wouldn't that have been a great thing to save for the special episode? Instead, we get the whole gang from the workplace dancing down the aisle with only a few actual friends or relatives of the couple.
  
• Then I plowed through The Soup, Models of the Runway, and RW/RR Aftershow. Who would've thought Johnny Bananas would be one of the few to offer insight into what it really feels like to be a participant in such a ridiculous environment? I feel bad for Ev for taking the whole thing too seriously, but do think it made sense that she decided she was not going to let people who had no respect for her feelings use her muscle to help them win.

Thursday the 8th

Morning Commute:

• Plowed through 4 Story of the Day podcasts - the best was an interview with Jane Lynch from Glee. The interviewer was terrific, too, and asked her if she had ever caught herself on TV in something she'd forgotten doing. And it turns out she was on an episode of Married with Children and had forgotten she could say she'd done that show. Which was especially funny when reading Playbill later...

Evening Outing:

• ...for RENT! At the Curran Theatre, featuring 3 of the actors who had been in the original Broadway production, including Anthony Rapp (who rightfully listed Adventures in Babysitting) and Adam Pascal (who included a guest spot on The Backyardigans. Um, really?) It was fun, and I loved the ensemble feel. I also loved the crowd support, and imagined it must feel incredible to be able to sing in such a powerful way and have a whole audience mesmerized.

Before Bed:

• Survivor, not because I feel terribly invested in this season, but because I hate finding out who got the boot on competition shows before I watch them. Which is why I also watched
  
• Project Runway. I was very impressed with Shirin's clever use of thread, but happy that Gordana finally won. Good for her! And I could understand why the divorce challenge kinda messed with her head. It's something a lot of people go through, and you can certainly move on without being haunted, but it's also something you don't want to be reminded of or forced to make light of. Anyway. I think Logan shoulda been auf'd here, especially since it's the second time he's tanked when interacting with a client.

Wednesday the 7th

Morning Commute:

• I have no recollection of whether or not I put my headphones on. Read more Spellmans.

Nighttime Viewing:

• Home late, kinda bummed, thought maybe SYTYCD would cheer me up. Then I realized - it's WEDNESDAY! RW/RR CHALLENGE!!! And it did not disappoint. I love ridiculous people drama. I cannot believe these jokers are making me feel sympathetic towards Wes. Who is still a ridiculous d-bag.
  
• THEN I watched SYTYCD. That Elinor girl was a dream, and I loved that other kid's bounce style all over again. I would totally sign up for that class at the gym. I am also very excited about Russell the Crumper, but that Yveta woman freaks me the hell out.

Tuesday the 6th

Morning Commute:

• I was actually interested in Friday's Planet Money, on why it seems socialism is not taking hold right now the way it did after the Great Depression. They had a guest talking about recent elections all over the globe, and I rewound it 3 times and still couldn't focus. Sad.

At work:

• Co-worker had me watch The Contract. I giggled.

Nighttime:

• Torn between booze, pills, or maybe just Sons of Anarchy. Went with the latter as my drug of choice this evening, and it was an excellent choice. Y'all, this show is good.
  
• SYTYCD - the auditions are finally ending! I was not in sync with the judges for the first half - I thought the first b-boy was AWESOME and I hope he has a crew so we can watch him on America's Best Dance Crew, and I had to watch that one girl's crazy backbend 3 times to figure out what the hell she had done. But the dancers the judges loved? Meh. While I am thrilled we didn't have to watch that attention-seeking long-haired goofball this year, I was NOT happy to see the "Nigel is a letch" montage OR extreme close-ups of the bloody dance accident. Ech. Also, it was kind of them to bring that guy's wife to Vegas bc she was really not impressive. He was, though.

Monday the 5th

Commuting:

• Polished off Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me and then watched the "Charlie Goes America All Over Everybody's Ass" episode of It's Always Sunny on my iPod.

Nighttime viewing:

• Watched the baseball park episode of Man vs. Food. Adam Richman is totally one of my TV boyfriends - I love his good-natured enthusiasm and appreciation for the ridiculous. The concept of the shore is, of course, appalling - food challenges no one should attempt - and yet it is done with such unabashed glee.
  
• HIMYM, something about Robin school. Total meh-pisode. Keeping the Robin/Barney relationship as a focus is dangerous, shark-jumping territory.
  
• Trauma. Episode 1 - First thought, is that first guy is a "That Guy". Turns out to be Herc from Friday Night Lights. (Thanks, IMDB!) And so far... not looking like this is gonna stay in the DVR recording list. Watching car accidents occur in places where you drive is creepy. Also, the set-ups and the characters just seem so artificial. I think the idea of first response medical teams is dramatic enough without starting the characters off with a flashback to give them a "Troubled Past!" and "Complicated Relationships!" or characters with nicknames who holler catchphrases. Fast-forwarding to see where they filmed... and... HEY! It's Buddy from Friday Night Lights! I love when that happens, when you see multiple actors from one show on another. Anyway... fast forward... and... we're done. That was dumb.
  
• Starting on episode 2... and... realize I do not care at all. I don't need to watch this to see where they film because I live here, and can also just GO OUTSIDE to see San Francisco. But I do find it funny that people are just walking by in the location shots and ignoring the paramedics. I kinda think that's more likely to happen with film crews than with actual paramedics. City dwellers are jaded, but still full of schadenfreude.

Nightstand:

• Might push through to finish off Alive in Necropolis tonight.

Sunday the 4th

Morning Run:

• Yeah, that's right. I went for a run. So Amazon has MP3 daily deals, and I've picked up some interesting stuff there. Recently, I downloaded Enjoy Every Sandwich: The Songs of Warren Zevon. My current favorite tracks are "Ain't That Pretty at All" by Pixies and "Poor, Poor Pitiful Me" by Jackson Browne & Bonnie Raitt.

Laundry viewing:

• The Soup. They made Wendy Williams up, right? That can't be real.

Mid-morning commute:

• Read Revenge of the Spellmans.

Evening commute:

• Polished off 3 Story of the Day podcasts - 2 on healthcare (enough with the healthcare!) and one on a children's orchestral program from Venezuela. Then most of Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me, which had a timely and unwelcome series of anecdotes for the "Bluff the Listener" segment - ridiculous legal stories. The true one was about a brief being tossed out for poor stapling, and the listener got it right because she used to be a paralegal. Yup. I got that one right, too.

Nighttime viewing:

• FINALLY sat down for SYTYCD, and that New Orleans Bounce audition was fantastic. It got me to wondering, what's my favorite audition ever? And one still stands out. Phillip Chbeeb, Season 3 (his first attempt). Now he did not turn out to be one of the best contestants - but what he did was so unusual and yet lyrical that I have never forgotten the feeling I had watching it. An edge of my seat, joyous amazement that made me want to scream "Did you SEE that?!"
  
• SNL. Checking IMDB now to remind me what Ryan Reynolds has been in bc I'm confusing him with... oh. He WAS Van Wilder. Which I didn't even see. He's like Dane Cook without the constant shouting, or Ryan Gosling without the indie cred. Anyway, intro over and I haven't laughed yet. 2 minutes into the Family Feud parody aaaannndddd... I am done. I am deleting this from my scheduled recordings. We are on a break, SNL.
  
• TAR (That's The Amazing Race, to you non-TWOP readers (and that of course is Television Without Pity). I'm not gonna lie - it makes me very, very happy that the loud-mouthed attorney is such a dumbass when it comes to figuring out the Race.
  
• The Office, finishing up "The Promotion". And this one has inspired me to coin a term - it was a meh-pisode.
  
• Mad Men. The Pete & Trudy moments were very well done - they captured that awful wordless exchange, where you go from feeling so optimistically close to someone to realizing things have gone very, very wrong.

D(VR)leted:

• Dollhouse. I just don't care. I had high hopes, because Joss Whedon's Firefly was fantastic, and I like Eliza Dushku - but the overacting in this show is horrendous. I will stare at Google images of Tahmoh Penikett (hhhaaawwwwtttt) rather than sit through this festival of meh.

Insomnia viewing:

• HIMYM, "Little Minnesota". Kaela had told me this is her favorite episode and it took me until the 2nd repeat to catch it. And it was pretty good, but I think my favorite is when Robin sits in as Barney's bro.
  
• It's Always Sunny, "The Nightman Cometh". He's a master of karate, and friendship - for everyone!

Saturday the 3rd

Morning Commute:

• Yeah, that's right. Morning commute. On Saturday. Sigh. And I left my iPod at work last night, so no podcasts.
  
• Read Revenge of the Spellmans by Lisa Lutz, the third in the Spellman Files series. I was turned on to this by my friend Mary, who works for the former P.I. that advised the author. I'm not a big reader of mystery series, but this one is funny, and light, and paints a very lovable, realistic picture of San Francisco.

Evening Commute:

• More of the Spellmans. I have been trying to stall starting this book bc I have a few others I need to get to or finish up, and I knew once I picked this up I wouldn't want to put it down. Light reading is my only speed at the moment.

Miscellaneous Reading:

• This month's Lucky arrived in the mail Thursday or Friday. First thought: Are retinoids all they say they are? Second thought: Did they need to waste their "under $100" section on workout clothes, since most workout clothes ARE less than $100? And then feature expensive stuff, like the $80 lycra tops and $65 workout leggings? The bargain stuff is at Target, my friends.

Nighttime Viewing:

• Disc 6 of Fringe: Season 1. Olivia's hair totally bugs me. It looks like it's always about to get caught in something.

Still Languishing:

• SYTYCD. How is that possible? How have I not caught up with this already? Sure, it's still just auditions, but this is unusual un-viewing behavior.

Friday the 2nd

Morning Commute:

• Planet Money, another healthcare report I forgot as I was listening to it. Story of the Day was about the swine flu epidemic hitting Austin, Texas. The reporter interviewed his teenage daughter, who said she was afraid it would be a really scary thing but basically she just felt stuffy and tired for 6 days. Now I want swine flu. It would be a chance to clean out the DVR.

Night Out:

• Live! Saw "Rumbache" at Cigar Bar, and danced with random folk. Plug: my friend Alan's band "Manicato" plays there sometimes. I imagine it's tight quarters for a band with a horn section, but fun!

Late Night:

• It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, something about the gang and the recession. The Dave & Buster's tie-in was a weird cross-promotion, but still hilarious.
  
• The Office - only made it through the intro and was too tired to concentrate anymore. Too tired to concentrate on The Office. Yikes.

Thursday the 1st

Morning Commute:

• Started listening to the Planet Money special edition episode of This American Life, but then ran into my neighbor Desiree and had actual human conversation on the bus.

Lunchtime:

• It was a long-ass work day, and I had a late lunch and sat outside catching up on a Story of the Day, about Obama and the war in Afghanistan, and then listened to most of the Culturetopia podcast. Aziz Ansari was on one of the segments, and he's hilarious. He said his goal on Parks and Rec would be to leave the show and have them replace his character with another bearded Indian guy actor, like the Darren switch on Bewitched. Heh.

Evening:

• Survivor. So I still don't like Russell, but his teammates DO seem kind of stupid so it's hard to hate him for running roughshod over them. Jaison's takedown of Ben at Tribal Council was very satisfying, and Jaison is now in the running for my favorite Survivor boyfriend. (Yul is still my number one, though.)


• Project Runway. I gotta hand it to them, a lot of those outfits looked like things INC would produce. And guess what color is coming to INC this winter? I'm going with blue. It's sort of odd how that line is always based on specific color schemes. Anyhoo... the winning dress was pretty, but nothing a girl with boobs could wear. So go ahead and enjoy your pretty clothes, flat-chested bitches. The ruffles were pretty icky - I like Louise's designs, but she's very locked into her specific style.
  
• Models of the Runway. I didn't mean to watch this, but I was intrigued when I realized it would give insight into what other people thought of the clothes and how they actually managed to put some of the looks together. Then it turned out to be kinda lame, bc models are actually sorta dull.

Nightstand:

• A little more Alive in Necropolis.

Wednesday the 30th

Morning Commute:

• Planet Money and Story of the Day were both about health care and I now recall neither.

Evening Commute:

• Read The Orchid Thief by Susan Orleans. Enjoyed the movie, book reads well.

Band Practice:

• Not exactly media, but we played my song Unrequited about a gajillion times and then worked on Rachel's song Hide Away about a jillion times.

Before Bed:

• Glee, which I like but do not lurve. It has touching moments, and the songs are fun, but I can't really picture how this could be entertaining for multiple seasons. Kristen Chenowith sure rocked the hell out of this one, though.
  
• I meant to go to bed right after. I did. I got sucked into a few minutes of Oprah, because Chris Rock was on, and they were talking about his new documentary Good Hair and I was intrigued. I drifted to the DVR button, and was reminded that the following premiered that night:
  
• Real World/Road Rules Challenge. I freely admit that this is the single-most shameful thing I watch. And I have watched them all. And I get extremely excited about the return of the challenge. Even though it is terrible. And the contestants are, as TWOP once put it, "Professional Shot Drinkers". I will not tell anyone they should watch it, but I squeal a little when I find another follower.

On the nightstand:

• Had to read a little, bc I was still wired from watching the Challenge. Yes. That is sad. So finished another chapter of Alive in Necropolis.