FOX shows this week

There are many good shows, but I’m writing about just three of them.

GLEE – Tuesday 11/30 8pm

In their “Special Education” episode, New Directions goes to Sectionals which is always a big deal. Last week Carol Burnett was on the show and I didn’t like it as much as the older ones. And why did Jane Lynch marry herself? How weird can you get? I think GLEE is much better without all the guest stars – just have the cast singing and dancing. It started out that way and that’s the way it got so popular. Now everyone and his dog wants to be on the show and someone should say NO. It’s a great show and I think should keep on like it first started. Have Jane divorce herself and get back to her nasty, sarcastic self that we know and love.

RAISING HOPE – Tuesday 11/30 9 – 9:30PM

In this week’s “Burt Rocks” episode, Jimmy tries to give Burt a chance to sing with or just see Smokey Ford (Jason Lee) when he performs at the Grocery-Palooza concert in town. Smokey Ford is an entertainer that Burt always wanted to be like, but his chances of that were killed when he had a baby – Jimmy. So Jimmy wants to do this for his dad as he has felt so guilty for being in the way of his dad’s success in the music field. Like that would have ever happened with Burt! This should be a fun episode.

THE GOOD GUYS – 12/3 9PM

This week’s “Cop Killer” - Friday 12/3 9-10PM

A nasty Internal Affairs investigator re-opens an old case hoping it will end Dan’s irregular police practices. This leads to the release of a deadly gang who want to murder all the people who put them away. This causes a heck of a lot of trouble for everyone, and Dan and Jack have to stop them . . . and they do. Dan and Jack always come through in a pinch. Sometimes it’s by accident, but they always close the case one way or another. This sounds like a funny episode . . . but they all are!

The past week got off to a slow start but picked up as the days passed. I had vowed never to watch DWTS again because of how they let Bristol keep on performing even though she couldn’t dance her way out of a paper bag. So I didn’t, but I heard about it. I was so glad Jennifer Grey won. If she hadn’t, there would have been rioting someplace, possibly my living room. Bristol said on Tuesday that if she won, “it would be like giving a big middle finger to people who hate my mom and hate me.” What a sweetheart she is. I got a big kick out of one of the entertainment shows telling how much weight all the women had lost working out for the dancing. Only one lost no weight at all and we all know who that one is! Bristol was asked what her plans are now and she said she didn’t know but would just see what God has planned for “Tripp and I.” Maybe God has some grammar lessons planned for her – she could use some. Bristol never learned how to dance, never showed any excitement and seemed without energy in her routines. What a mistake she was on that show. And she is why I won’t be watching next year. ABC didn’t handle that situation at all well.

Friday night I watched on television the lighting of the Christmas tree in Pioneer Square here in Portland, not knowing someone was dialing up his cell phone down at Union Station, thinking it would trigger a car bomb that would kill thousands of people gathered in the square. It didn’t blow up as the FBI was all over it from the beginning. I guess we can’t be complacent ever – the good old days are long gone.

Saturday I went to Steve, my hair guy, and froze as I drove over. I’m not quite used to everything in my new car, and I thought I had the heat on. There was a blue section and a red section, and I thought I should turn it to the blue section as surely that would be the warm one as we are a blue state and I’m certainly blue. When I finally arrived at Steve’s shop, I was frozen and turned the dial to red and it was warm! I had had the AC on all the time in the blue zone! I doubt that I’ll ever get used to that.

After my hair appointment I went out to a market where I rarely shop as it’s so far away from me. But I wanted to get a piece of meat they had on sale so I made the trip. They have groceries that are cheaper than any other store, and I wish it were in my neighborhood. It’s a market where poor people shop because it’s so cheap, and also where wealthy people shop because it’s so cheap. We’re all after the same thing! I made it home with the heat on in the car this time.

Sunday I went shopping with Diane and I bought some Christmas stuff. We had lunch at a very nice place overlooking a lake. We left and walked out on the deck and saw a dog tied up in front of a window of the restaurant. I wonder if his parents were looking out at him. He was so cute I took his picture and put it on this blog. I hope his parents didn’t forget about him.

I’ll close with something I read but can’t remember where or who wrote it. But I like it. “People over 50 like to read about negative things concerning young people; maybe it makes them feel better about themselves. Young people don’t like to read anything about older people.” I find that very interesting!

I’m cold!

I just talked to my daughter, Teri, in New York. It wasn’t a long call. She was interrupted by a guy telling her to notify another gal about something. Teri said she thought he was going to do it, but he told her she was going to do it. So I heard her e-mailing the gal. I asked her about it and she said they were all going to someone’s house for cocktails and the guys wanted to walk and the gals wanted to take the subway. Then she said how tired she was because she had been to cocktails and dinner out with business people last night. It all sounded quite exciting to me, so I was going to tell her about my day. But then she said she had to go, so that was it.

I could have told her how I went out to empty the paper and garbage and my neighbor walked up to me and pointed at my pants. I looked down and realized I had on the pajama pants I had taken off only minutes before – the yellow ones with faces with big black eyes on them! I had put them on after I took my shower. I did dress my upper body properly so that should count for something. I could have told her how I was watching out my deck window, waiting for Charley, the squirrel, to come by so I could throw an empty milk carton at him. But instead two blue jays came and they scare more easily. A little bird finally came and tried to take a drink out of my garlic lid watering place, but she just pecked at the ice as it was frozen solid. I fixed it but she probably won’t come back until it’s frozen again. By then I was bored, so I played my yodeling pickle a couple of times. Cindy gave it to me – it’s from her Brownie Morrison store in Tacoma. It’s a green, plastic pickle and yodels really loudly – I love it! I didn’t do much else that was exciting as it’s so darned cold now. My plants all fell over last night in the freeze. I would have fallen over if I’d been out.

Cindy and her family are coming on Thanksgiving if the weather is doing all right. Teri bought us a Thanksgiving dinner at a nearby grocery store, and they’ll pick it up when they arrive. How about that? Everything will be ready to eat. Teri won’t be here with us as she was here quite recently. I’m so lucky to have the daughters I do. They’re so good to me and make me laugh. I have fun with them which I hope will continue a long time.

The picture is when I was just a little younger and there was snow. My mother dressed me well for that kind of weather. We don’t have any snow right now, and I wouldn’t be standing out in it if we did!

“Terriers” – FX show by Shawn Ryan and Ted Griffin, Wednesdays at 10pm on FX

I’ve watched “Terriers” from the beginning and have become a big fan. It’s a story about Hank (Daniel Logue) and Britt (Michael Raymond-James) who play unlicensed PIs in Ocean Beach, San Diego, California. Ocean Beach is portrayed as a city where Hank used to be a detective but was let go. Britt is a former criminal, but they’re best friends and make a good pair. They’re pretty scruffy looking, especially Hank, but it works. The show is interesting with crazy cases they’re on, but it’s also funny so it moves along quite well. Hank’s old partner at the police department, Detective Mark Gustafson (Rockmond Dunbar), is still a friend and big help to him as they work their cases. Hank’s ex-wife married a bad guy and Britt’s girlfriend (almost fiancée) got pregnant by another man after a drunken night out after night school. So things aren’t looking up for the two of them right now.

But I hear rumblings that possibly enough people haven’t been watching and it may not be picked up. That would be disastrous for me. FX has had so many great shows that I’ve loved and Terriers should stand among them. So, people, watch it Wednesday night at 10pm as this will be the finale for the first season. Don’t let it be a real finale.

DWTS causes a shooting!!

I’m just surprised it didn’t happen earlier. Seems a man in rural(where else) Wisconsin was enraged by Bristol’s dancing on the show last night and blasted his TV set with a shotgun!! I felt the same way, but didn’t have a gun as I reported on my last blog. SWAT team was called which caused an all-night standoff. They finally got him out of the house before he could shoot his wife as he had threatened. She says her husband suffers from bipolar disorder. I wonder if that came on before Sarah Palin and her family took over the spotlight or after.

There has been talk that the reason Bristol stays on the show even though she’s always at the bottom of the group is because the Tea Party people vote in blocs and manipulate the voting. I’ve thought that from the very first. Bristol can’t dance and everyone knows it. She’s fat and seemingly lifeless. When I’ve watched entertainment shows and they’ve asked people on the street whom they think should be let go, it’s always Bristol. But I wouldn’t be surprised if she won the whole darn thing. I think DWTS is going to lose viewers next year if they don’t revise the voting system. I think the judges should choose – they are the ones who know about dancing, not some Tea Party crazy back in Kentucky. I know I won’t be watching. Who knows what will happen in the next few weeks. It could be exciting!!

“Dancing with the Stars” – BAD
“GLEE” and “Raising Hope” from Fox – GOOD

I’ve been DVRing “Dancing” all this season just to see how Bristol Palin was doing. She never lost weight like the other dancers did, she never learned how to actually dance, her demeanor was vapid and lacked any vibrancy and her costumes were hideous which I think were intended to hide her pudginess. I was sure she would be kicked off very soon, but I kept my DVR going just to find out. It came to me early on that she wasn’t going to be kicked off. And now I have seen the instructions given to all the Tea Party members on just how to vote and how many times to do it. That damn Sarah Palin is even running “Dancing with the Stars!” Sarah is all over television, and I think her voice has become louder and even more grating which I didn’t think would be possible. She’s actually quite sickening. If she can use her twitter to throw the votes on a television show, think what she could do with it in her presidential campaign. The only hope is that the republicans will realize she’s really stupid and kick her to the curb. Can you imagine a presidential candidate giving a speech interspersed with “You betcha and refudiate?” After watching the show last night, I wanted to go out and shoot myself . . . but I forgot I don’t have a gun. I doubt I’ll be watching dancing next year unless they change the judging.

So, to get the bad taste out of my mouth, I watched “GLEE.” GLEE was great! It always is, and each one seems to get better. Gwyneth Paltrow sang and danced and did a very good job. It was fun seeing her in those circumstances. Mathew Morrison did a dream sequence where he danced to “Singing in the Rain.” I was flabbergasted by his dancing. I don’t think I’ve ever used that word before! I had no idea he could dance like that although I know he comes from Broadway. The show was the best.

And then to get some laughs, I watched “Raising Hope” which I thought was hysterical! I laughed out loud all the way through. It was the funniest one yet. I hope it gets picked up for more years as it makes me feel good. “Dancing with the Stars” didn’t make me feel at all good.

“Glee,” “Raising Hope” and “The Good Guys” . . . . Fox shows

GLEE is gearing up for a big one Tuesday this week. Gwyneth Paltrow will be taking over for Mr. Schuester’s Spanish class and the glee club while he’s sick. She sings and dances and wins everyone over with her performances. We all knew she could act, but dance and sing? Who knew? I can hardly wait to see this one. All of their episodes have been so good you wonder how they can get any better, but they always seem to come up with something. And it’s not just the guest stars. The cast itself is enough to keep me watching forever. Jane Lynch takes over for Principal Figgins and tries some funny stuff. But then doesn’t she always? So don’t forget to watch Tuesday night!

Directly after GLEE is the goofy show “Raising Hope.” I think this week Jimmy wants to take Hope out of her daycare because she’s imitating the dogs there. After all, it is a doggy daycare business. But when he tried to get her entered in a high-end facility, he runs into trouble concerning his dad’s police record. When the family tries to straighten that out, they run into more trouble. This should be a good one!

And then there’s “The Good Guys” on Friday night. I don’t know why I like this one so much as it’s absolutely crazy! Bradley Whitford(the one with the mustache) and Colin Hanks are two detectives that solve many crimes – some that they just sort of fall into and not on their schedule. Bradley Whitford is so unprofessional and rather crude, but he’s so funny and always seems to get the job done with his partner, Colin, who puts up with a lot from him. I like the graphics on this show as they are the same as the way it’s done on “Burn Notice.” Matt Nix is the creator of both shows and I like them both. So be sure and watch “The Good Guys” Friday night – that will make me happy!

Happy Birthday, Harry!

Harry is 15 years old today. Where did the time go? He lives so far away from me that I don’t think I’ve had time to teach him things he should know now that he’s becoming a young man. When he was a little person, I had so much fun with him playing little games we made up as we went along. We did goofy things together when we infrequently got together either here or in New York.

Now Harry is way taller than I and has probably forgotten the crazy things we did. I wish there had been more time for me to help him with a young man’s problems growing up. I could have told him about shaving but I don’t imagine he shaves his legs as I do occasionally. His dad probably showed him how to shave. I could have told him to always put the toilet seat down after he pees. Or maybe he sits down and pees – I don’t really know and don’t think I should ask. I could have told him not to shove food in his mouth and then chew with half of it hanging out. I could have told him to always give his seat on the subway to a girl, and not just the pretty ones. They may be skanks, and the better bet would be the ones in Catholic school-girl uniforms . . . but they could be skanks also. Just let that one go. And as far as sex information goes, I don’t think I’d be too good at that. I counseled Teri in a Dunkin Donut shop when she was young and it went quite well, but I’m probably not up to date on what’s new these days. After all, I am a grandmother. Probably Mark or Teri could take him to a Dunkin Donuts in Brooklyn where they live now. They must have them there and our tradition should live on.

So Harry, I hope you have a fun birthday like the one you had in the above picture . . . maybe not exactly the same, but you get the idea. And don’t forget, Grandma loves you very much.

I’m all charged up!

Last week I had a new pacemaker implanted and it’s working wonderfully – at least I guess so since I’m alive. Cindy came down from Tacoma and took me home from the hospital and stayed all night with me. I loved that! A couple of days later Teri came from New York and stayed several days with me. I loved that too! She cooked some delicious food that we ate for the next 3 days when Cindy came back. So I had them both here for a couple of days which was so much fun. We had our I ETA PI sorority meeting and watched both of the Betty Broderick movies – the first one when she’s married to Dan and is a real bitch, and the second one covering both of her trials for killing Dan and his new wife. Our sorority is based on Betty’s exploits – Cindy is president, Teri is godfather and I’m the housemother. Between movies we’d stop and have some wine (beer for Cindy) and give a toast to something. I can’t remember whom we toasted as Betty didn’t deserve a toast since she’s a bitch and a killer. Anyway, we had the wine and then went back to watch the rest of the movie.

I remember when they rolled me into the surgery room, someone asked me what kind of music I’d like to have going. That didn’t surprise me as I’d watched enough “Nip/Tuck” on TV to know they always had music going when they were doing boob jobs, face lifts, liposuction, vagina tucks, penile implants and other procedures that top-notch plastic surgeons routinely perform. I was fortunate that my doctor was a cardiologist and not the “Nip/Tuck” kind. I was already under the influence of valium so couldn’t come up with a name for the song. I tried to sing a few bars of the song I wanted – “Lyin’ Eyes” by the Eagles, but I couldn’t seem to make the right sounds. “Lyin’ Eyes” goes on and on so I figured it would carry me through the entire operation. But as I was trying to sing the song for the technician, they put me completely out! Guess they didn’t like my singing. And why would they ask me what song I wanted when they knew they were going to knock me out?

Cindy and Teri did housework for me while they were here. They moved so swiftly and accomplished so much in so little time. They were amazing. I’d like to have them every week, but I would probably have to pay them then.

The night before I went to the hospital, I had to put a new ink cartridge in my computer printer. I was a little worried doing it after all the talk about the planes flying to the US from overseas with ink cartridge bombs set to go off over our country. What if mine was one of those? What if I blew myself up and the entire condo complex along with me? At least I wouldn’t have to pay the condo fee anymore. Why does the fee go up every year? I finally installed it and then ran it and nothing blew up, but that means I still have to pay the condo fee. Too bad.

The above picture I took while the girls took a break from housekeeping. After the picture was over, they went right back to work. No slacking off for them!