Bastet

Full House is my television equivalent of ambrosia salad. I am well aware there are shows I hate that others love, just as there is food I hate that others love; it's the inherent nature of subjective tastes. But ambrosia salad, I just can't wrap my mind around someone finding tasty, and I can't manage to fathom someone finding Full House appointment television, either. So Fuller House was the revival that had me scratching my head -- I never understood why people watched the series in the first place (or, dear gods, why Michelle was so popular when the Olsen twins were seriously ugly at that age and couldn't act for shit), so I was really boggled by bringing it back. I didn't realize it was still airing. So, yeah, definitely in the "I don't get it" camp.

Noel Let Bartlet Be Bartlet

Well, "Wellman is history" could just be her prediction of its impending failure, given the trajectory it was on, rather than a factual statement that it had closed, but even if it did shut down completely - and I always assumed it did at some point, since it kept getting smaller and smaller - the James Brolin storyline doesn't count to me as an inconsistency because it was just one of Roseanne's fantasies she put in the book, when she was writing about all these inspired-by-TV/movies fantasies she'd fulfill if she had all the money in the world. Playing hero to the remaining factory workers was just one of those fantasies.

I have no idea the context in which that actually occurred, but I pictured it like a movie scene, an old man's awkward yet adorable idea of an expression of support and an "if you mess with her, you mess with me" warning to fellow patrons.

Noel Game On

I love the reaction to Gruden praising the officials: "What did you just say? ... I don't even know you anymore."

Which must be eaten straight out of the container. (Which is how I eat ice cream, since I live by myself and see no reason to dirty a bowl, so no huffing that TV characters eating ice cream that way is unrealistic, just that it's a rule that all break-up ice cream be consumed that way.)

Gillian posted it, too. I love them.

Czechoslovakian actor Jan Triska, who settled in Hollywood in the '70s, died overnight, after falling off the Charles Bridge in Prague this weekend. He was 80.

Boo to WoQ being eliminated. Twenty Five Noel

Right?! I was just reading this article about Novick a short time ago, written by someone who worked on this series. It's a good one, about her in general, and her specific role as co-director of this film. In an article I read announcing this series, but that I cannot find now, it was said that after this marathon two-week premiere, PBS is going air it one episode per week.

Another far more common on TV than in real life thing is people learning the story of how they were conceived, and it always being A Story. Nobody's parents just had sex in their own bed and got pregnant, it's always some weird, wild, embarrassing tale.

That annoys the hell out of me. So does adding an extra syllable to triathlon (tri-ath-a-lon).

Didn’t Lizzie have a baby, too? Tia is suddenly surrounded by grandkids. I love how excited Tania is to bring another strong woman into the family. Bootstrap is so cute, and that scar on his face makes me want to hunt down whoever did that to him. Him hugging and kissing Lizzie good-bye was sweet. I haven’t watched the hounds special yet (gotta slot it in around football), but thanks to the all-day marathon I was able to record the one episode from this season that I’d missed (it didn’t re-air the next week per the usual schedule, because Animal Planet aired a special on Harvey animal rescues instead, and I’ve been looking for it in vain ever since). That was the one where they found Mr. Wags, who’d been mauled and whose canine tooth had been pulled out and twisted, so that it was lying sideways along his gums. Wow. No wonder those teeth can do so much damage; they’re huge! That poor dog. It was adorable to see how excited and wiggly he was after he felt better, compared to how hard it had been for him to walk with all the infection swelling. And I love that, despite how long she’s been doing this, Tia still marvels every time at how emotionally resilient these dogs are, that they can be so neglected or even abused, yet still trust people to help them. The adoption in that one was a nurse from Arkansas looking for a dog to fill her empty nest. She fell in love with Hustle, a nervous little guy scared of new things. I have a cat like that, so I was happy to see him get a home. He was just flying around his new backyard on the home visit. And that snaggle-toothed grin! As Tia would say, “super cute.” (Incidentally, Tia is pretty much the only person in the world who can use “super” like that without me being annoyed.) The episode also showed a lot of Darius, the new guy working for them via the work release program Country Matt was in. His face truly lights up when he talks about, never mind gets to do, any of the medical care. It was nice of Dr. Kristen to show him around, encourage him, etc. I hope he gets to pursue a career in the veterinary medicine field when he gets out. It was a great episode, and I’m glad I finally got to see it. I always enjoy the behind-the-scenes specials, when we get to hear Tia comment on what we saw and give more information, so it was cool to get not only an episode like that, but bookended with commentary from the live viewing at Tahyo. (I find it strangely endearing how nervous Tania is when she’s directly on camera, even after all these years of a crew following her around.) I really like how much Tia respects her daughters-in-law, as people, as rescue workers, and as partners for her sons; the way she speaks of them is wonderful. It was cool to see the surgery video when Dr. Kristen found that huge ovarian tumor in Gunn. And to see the segment on Dr. Kristen. I know the vet practice they used when they were in CA; it's not where I go, but I know people who do, and it’s well regarded. It was quite a drive from their Agua Dulce location, but worth it. So I can just imagine the “how are we ever going to find someone we’re as comfortable with out here?” anxiety they had upon relocating. And in the early New Orleans episodes, we saw them go to a practice in the city, before they found Cypress Lake. And they hit the jackpot with that place, so I can see why they’re making a long drive again. Dr. K is aces, and it was nice to learn more about her. Re-visiting the story with the parolee Mike made me sad again, just like the first time around. I wish he could have trusted that he could be straight with Tia, tell her what was going on with his family situation, and work something out, but his life experiences just didn’t set him up to have that kind of trust in an employer, even when other parolees assured him of it. He just seemed to have good potential there, and it’s too bad it didn’t work out. I hope this show gets renewed; Tia said on the VRC Facebook page it hasn't been determined yet. Updated now that I've watched the hounds special to say that as they were signing off from the Tahyo event, Mariah said there would be new episodes in January. Oh my, the hounds are a lot of work. I knew that, but watching a whole show about it really brought that home. You've got their innate hound characteristics, and then the fact most of these particular hounds were never treated as pets; they were "just" hunting dogs. They turned the hounds special around fast as compared to the rest of the show; I just went looking for some info and found out Country Matt and his wife got there at the beginning of August. It looks like he's still there, so I wonder if they're going to move. It's a big deal for her to leave her family, but if his daughter is in Louisiana, then it was a big deal for him to move. I'd love to see him back on the show.

Twenty Five Noel Game On - Because of the Toby and Andi shit, and the introduction of Will Bailey, whom I never took to.

Aww, sad news - Cheech died last week. I don't believe there's any sort of life after death, but if there is and Cheech and Chong are hugging each other once again, that would be fantastic.

Sure. We see the readout on the digital thermometer, and that temperature, not the color of the meat, is what matters, because the color is determined by numerous factors, not just doneness. Overcooked chicken is almost as bad as overcooked shrimp, and happens almost as quickly.

Twenty Five - Maybe my perception of it is unfairly colored by how the Zoey kidnapped/Jed stepping down story plays out, but this episode leaves me a bit disgruntled. Plus, the birth of those stupid babies (okay, the babies are not at fault, but I've hated the pregnancy storyline, and now they're here). Commencement - "You've told me numerous times you do not want to marry me, but I'm going to go ahead and ignore that and BUY US A HOUSE." Dammit, I do not want this disgusting idea that "won't take a woman's no for an answer" behavior is cute infecting Toby, too. Noel - I just don't love this episode the way it wants me to. It's a good one, with great moments. But I feel like I'm being told to regard it as a masterpiece, while I want to simply sit there and say, "That was very good, what's next?"

Stephanie Izard, my favorite Top Chef winner. I haven't been to the diner (I don't think it was even open yet when I was in Chicago), but I loved my meal at Girl and the Goat.

It's not; they're just making a play on "Jerry's Kids" (the kids with muscular dystrophy for whom his telethons were held) -- that he may have done good things for those kids, but when it came to his own children, he sucked. Second paragraph of the article:

I have literally never heard anyone (whom I know personally, professionally, or via a "friend of a friend" connection) say a good word about him, but have heard plenty of "god, this guy's a dick" commentary from them.

Like a bonehead, I completely forgot that this began Monday, and was hoping episode one would be repeated Tuesday, but no luck. However, all of this week's episodes will air Sunday, so I can get caught up (I know it's available on the website, but I don't watch programming online; I don't have my TV set up for that, so I'd have to watch on my little 19-inch computer monitor, and that's not happening). I was a child of the '70s, so the Vietnam War was always history to me, and murky history at that. I studied broadcast journalism in college, and watched a fair bit of news coverage of the time that way, plus some old documentaries. It sparked an interest, and in college I took a class on the war. Fascinating. A Ken Burns documentary isn't all that much shorter than a semester, heh, so I'm really looking forward to this; I'm glad to see the reaction is so positive. I've long had such a complicated set of feelings towards LBJ. I became very interested in the history of civil rights movements in college, too (and, many years later, became a civil rights lawyer), and it has always been hard for me to reconcile LBJ's Vietnam debacle with all his Great Society programs. Although he inherited a mess, I don't absolve him of responsibility for the choices he made that doubled down on that mess. But I sure wonder what kind of legacy he'd have left behind had the Vietnam War not happened.

We know they're erasing Dan's death, and that Becky was actually with David and Darlene with Mark, but other than that we don't what else from season nine will also be ignored/explained away. And we know Harris exists, but not yet anything else from season nine that will be included.

Twenty Five Commencement Evidence of Things Not Seen

Yeah, I'm not exactly riveted, but I am at least enjoying this game during my breaks in puttering when I pay attention to it rather than just having it as background noise. I spent so many years complaining about not having an NFL team in L.A. anymore, and then wailed, "But I don't like the Rams or Chargers!" when we went from zero to two; I have a close friend with a strong connection to the Rams' stadium in progress, so I'm trying to become a fan so I can enjoy my future tickets, but it's a slow process. Better this season than last so far, though! If the 49ers pull off a comeback and I get annoyed, that will be a good sign. Updated to say I truly enjoyed those final minutes, and did some wincing and cheering I did not at all expect out of this game. Go Rams?