Me? Sarcastic? Stop...

Cathode Rays & Power Plays

2007-04-09T20:51:00.000-04:00

The new permanent blog can be found here if you care to read on. Also, feel free to browse the extensive archives of this, my first blog. They're sure to delight.

Temporary Hiatus

2005-09-14T17:06:00.000-04:00

I know, you saw it coming. I've never gone eight days without writing. And without wanting to even emit the aura of complaining, the simple fact is, until I get my new schedule figured out, blog writing will be a part of my history and nothing more.

I just started my new Post Office job this week and it eats up the only hours that school and sleep do not. That said, go back and read some old posts if the spirit moves you. I plan to republish some of my favorite previous posts every so often over the next few weeks so the blog doesn't become too stale.

Maybe even a picture now and then. God knows you must love those.

2005-09-06T08:48:00.000-04:00

Today is going to be all about this particular DVD set. The best TV show possibly ever made. If you've never seen Lost, you really don't know what you're missing. And I'm not just saying that. Ask Jason. Or Brett. And go rent it or something.

2005-09-05T21:24:00.000-04:00

This is Urquhart Castle at Loch Ness on nothing other than a cloudy day. Some of my best UK pictures ended up being the ones I took at Loch Ness. Or that's what I think.

Meditation On An Imitation

2005-09-04T18:23:00.000-04:00

That Sound You Hear? » Fly Me To The Moon by Frank Sinatra
Days Until NHL Opening Night » 31
Big News » Chief Justice William Rehnquist died last night at 80. He had thyroid cancer. He served on the United States Supreme Court for 33 years.

Now, today's story...

From my admittedly limited perspective on life, one of the most fascinating concepts seems to me to be that of the coincidence. Irony, put another way.

I sometimes laugh at fiction writers who choose to take their cues from actual events. Yet obviously art imitating life is the simplest form of coincidence. When "ripped from the headlines" is voiced over a Law & Order spot on NBC, you're not surprised to see a story that strikingly resembles something you just read in the morning paper. (On the other hand, the disclaimer at the end is a little annoying.)

What grabs my interest is life imitating art. Two examples of television entertainment are coming close to being realized in the three-dimensional world. It's really quite strange to me.

One example is the recent hurricane-caused devastation on the Gulf Coast (when compared with this year's FX movie Oil Storm) and the other is the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist (if you saw a 2004 episode of The West Wing).

Oil Storm, which I actually wrote a little about, was a fictional movie shot like an after-the-fact documentary. It was about Hurricane Julia, a massive storm that destroyed Gulf Coast ports and the oil pipeline connecting them to the rest of the country, effectively cutting off the supply of quite a bit fo crude in September 2005 (the movie aired in June). Sound familiar?

I cringed every time they showed gas prices going up to four, five, seven dollars a gallon. And while the movie was on a more extreme scale than Hurricane Katrina, I'm still floored by the number of coincidences. I've listed some of them below (the work of fiction next to the top bullet, the real world beneath).

Storm names, landfall dates:
• Hurricane Julia, Saturday, Sept. 3, 2005 (Category 4);
• Hurricane Katrina, Monday, Aug. 29, 2005 (Category 4).

Human death toll:
• Nearly 1,500 fatalities;
• Predicted to be in the thousands.

Average gas prices days following storms:
• $4.29 per gallon (regular);
• $3.08 per gallon (regular).

Not only are those things true, but other parallels include the evacuation of the city of New Orleans, the opening of the Superdome for those stranded, and a direct hit by the storm on Port Fourchon, a primary hub for oil coming into the United States.

So who thinks FX will be airing that movie again any time in the near future?

Then there is the Supreme Court situation which, while not sharing as many direct parallels, is just as ironic.

In a fifth season episode of The West Wing, entitled "The Supremes," the Bartlet administration is faced with the opportunity of filling a vacant Supreme Court seat when an associate justice has a heart attack. There's a few semi-funny moments dealing with the declining health of the the chief justice and a White House aide sending flowers to the family under that assumption.

But the staff decides to completely overhaul the court if they can get the help they need. As Democrats, they want the most liberal judge they can find, though the Republican Congress will have none of that. So they talk the chief justice into retiring so they can name a liberal female judge as chief and let the Republicans choose their dream candidate as well. And so it was.

By the way, the fictional Bartlet administration filled a seat back in the first season also. But how often does an administration really get to nominate a new justice? Let alone two or three. For those of you who skipped during American Government class, Supreme Court justices are nominated to life-long terms.

Back in the real world, with O'Connor having stepped down several months ago, Rehnquist's passing last night now gives the Bush adminstration the chance to fill two seats, including naming a new chief justice. It's weird, right?

While neither of these situations exactly mirrors the fictional works, they are still striking to me in similarities. It's weird enough when art imitates life.

But this is just absurd.

Watch For Yourself: I cut together a two-minute video of scenes from Oil Storm that I thought related especially to the Hurricane Katrina situation. You can click here to watch it. Remember, this movie first aired June 5, 2005. Feel free to leave your comments below.

2005-09-03T22:38:00.000-04:00

I think I'm basically just switching back and forth between landscape photos from Iceland and North Carolina. Can you blame me though? I kind of wish I'd taken more pictures in New Orleans either of the two times I visited.

2005-09-02T22:41:00.000-04:00

Here's an airplane because I went to the airport today. I didn't take the picture today. I took it like five years ago. It was the Tampa to Baltimore leg of my trip to the UK. Tampa to Baltimore. Baltimore to Keflavik. Keflavik to Glasgow. And so on.

All Clean

2005-09-02T21:41:00.000-04:00

That Sound You Hear? » New Orleans by Toby Keith
Days Until I Own Lost On DVD » 4
Big News » Authority figures are predicting gas prices around here to top out at around $4 a gallon. That disgusts me. I'm getting in line for an Insight.

Now, today's story...

That post office job I've been speaking of for several months is inching ever closer. I'm afraid the hype is going to outweigh the thing itself. In fact, I'm sure of it.

But as you may or may not know (or care to know), my interview for the position of mind-numbingly dull data entry person happened last Saturday. At which point I was directed to schedule an eMAP appointment which, to the best of my knowledge at the time, had to do with a drug test.

Well that was this morning. In fact the clinic where this was to take place was in the Tampa International Airport post office. Why the post office at the airport? Why the post office at all? These are questions which no coherent answer could ever satisfy.

So I live in Brandon. So it's a relatively short drive, but consider the state of the roadways in the city of Tampa. For those of you not from around these parts, they are in utter disrepair. And by "utter disrepair," I of course mean "under construction." To say the least, it isn't a smooth drive. Never has been as far as I can tell.

But the important thing was I thought I was getting to go to the airport. I do love airports. It's a logical step up from a love of travel. If I could fly someplace right now, I would. Dammit, I would. Only not New Orleans. I don't care much for boating. (Forgive my poor taste. I honestly do feel for the people there and all along the coast.)

Urine test. Right. Digression is a villain to a narrative writer. So I got off I-275 and took Westshore to Spruce where I discovered the airport post office wasn't exactly where the Google map said it was. I drove in circles around west Tampa before deciding to give the road signs a shot. I followed them into the airport and all the way to the post office. Imagine that. Useful road signs.

My eMAP packet directs me to the second floor, room 202. But there was a problem with that too. For one thing, the elevators were hidden. But more importantly, no one answered the door I was told to knock on. However, a phone number taped to the door suggested who to call in such a situation. I did and Nurse Linda told me to meet her downstairs.

Before even getting around to finding out what my name was, her first question to me was, "Do you have to go to the bathroom?" To which I replied "yes." To which she replied, "Good, because that's the most important question of the day." (Look at that Lindsay, I've taken to stenography. Just like you've always wanted.)

I'd go on, but the dialogue gets even less-interesting (if that's possible). She handed me a cup to fill and away I went. (Details expunged here for obvious reasons.) Then Nurse Linda showed me how this fancy cup she poured my "specimen" into could actually tell if I'd be high recently within minutes.

Having little to no interest in science or anything like it, I couldn't really have cared less. But evidently there are these blue markers on the side of the cup (reminiscent of a pregnancy test — not that I'd know) under abbreviations that spell out jail time should any of them come up positive.

No worries though, I was completely clean. No amphetamines. No cocaine. No PCP. No morphine. No pot. All clean.

So that pretty much spelled my day. Taking a leak in a cup. And watching a few airplanes fly away.

Now if only we could figure out a way to get gas prices to go back down.

It's Almost Here: My number of the day above explains the reason why those who know me should expect, starting next Tuesday, little to no human interaction with me (like that's anything new). I'm stopping at Best Buy on my way to school and picking up the first season of Lost on DVD. The portable DVD player will be physically attached to me until I have viewed every second of every disc.

2005-09-01T20:51:00.000-04:00

Today feels like a foggy mountain picture day. It's from a couple years ago when I was in North Carolina. I sure seem to have a lot of those, huh?

The Beginning Of The End

2005-08-31T22:10:00.000-04:00

That Sound You Hear? » One More Day by Diamond Rio
Hit Count On This Blog » 1,341
Big News » It appears Katrina may eclipse Andrew in terms of lives lost and damage caused. Help out if you can.

Now, today's story...

It's been six days since I've written a real post. I am ashamed. The best way to rectify this problem is by just writing again. Wait, don't leave. It's a good story, I promise. It involves shuttles. And a woman named Bartlett who talks a lot about beer.

Yeah, I recognize that probably wasn't enough to hold my more educated readers.

Anyway. Nonsense aside, I started my senior year at USF on Monday. It's a little odd to think that at this time next year I'll be settling into a career path. (Or at the very least a job that pays the bills. God, I'm gonna have bills.)

So Monday. I was smart enough (read: lucky enough) to schedule all of my classes 11 AM and later. Living at home this semester, I figured I could live without the hassle of travelling through morning rush hour traffic. That's the good news.

The bad news is USF parking is still the disaster it's always been. (I recognize my problems, of which I have very few, are nothing when compared with the devastation suffered along the north Gulf coase this week. But let me tell my story.) I got lucky on Monday and somebody was pulling out just as I got to them.

Tuesday didn't quite fly like that. No, in fact, Tuesday was a bloody nightmare. We'll suffice to say that it's possible I walked ten miles from my car to my classroom — and obviously I was late. But if you don't find that funny, maybe the fact that I rode the USF shuttle for the first time ever will tickle you.

Three years I've been at that school. And for what? To be fair though, I have lived on campus all of those years. And housing is easily within walking distance of the main buildings where classes are held. But I had the task of meeting with a woman named Kathy about a temporary part-time job in the science labs. Don't ask.

Kathy tells me to "take the E" to the nursing school. I'm sorry, what? Oh, it's a shuttle. Well, it's a glorified bus. But the AC is nice on a 90-degree day. I accept. I rode the "E" to the Yukon, I think, before heading back to civilization. But during that ride I realized for three years I've been ignoring a valuable (free) asset. Of course it hasn't really come in handy until recently.

So with the parking dilemma I faced yesterday, I chose to park on Neptune and hitched a shuttle back to Earth. It was a nice ride. Comfortable seats and then there's the added perk of not having to dodge dangerous (read: college-age) drivers.

Not that you asked, but classes have been decent as well. I'm in a magazine design and production class with Liz wherein we, I guess, learn how to design magazines and such. The teacher's a trip but I feel a little out of place being the only television production major in the room. Everybody is journalism or public relations or advertising. But I'm fine with it. I understand uniqueness is a quality trait.

It's been an interesting start to the final year, here. The first three all seemed to run together in my head. Maybe this one will distinguish itself from the pack.

There is much more to say, but at the moment, most of it eludes me.

Until next time.

Breaking Out: In case you were wondering (and I'm well aware of the high probability that you weren't), I thought Prison Break was phenomenal. A lot of critics had their doubts, but everyone's entitled to their opinion. Even the wrong ones. Seriously, though. I thought it was very well written and the surprises promised at the end of each hour were, in my mind, worth the wait. I'm dying to see how they make the great escape.

2005-08-30T20:53:00.000-04:00

Big. Crater. In Iceland. Yes, back to that again. Swear I'll write tomorrow. It's been too long. Way too long. That's one big crater. In Iceland. Don't fall in.

2005-08-28T23:55:00.000-04:00

This is another panoramic I made from two pictures I took from Edinburgh Castle in Scotland during my 2000 trip to the United Kingdom and Iceland.

2005-08-26T16:13:00.000-04:00

I got to meet and get an autograph from Lightning captain Dave Andreychuk two years ago outside the locker room. He's 42 and he just signed a two-year deal with my Bolts.

Questions & Answers

2005-08-25T21:54:00.000-04:00

That Sound You Hear? » Ocean by Hanna-McEuen
Current Meteorological Threat » Hurricane Katrina
Big News » A hilarious Dallas gas station owner posted on his price sign, instead of the actual prices, an arm, a leg, and "your first born." Who knew gas station owners were funny.

Now, today's story...

I promised one more television-related post this week. And here it is. Shield your eyes if you can't handle it.

September is around the corner and that means shows that left off in May are going to pick up very soon. Some ended in huge cliffhangers while others — did not. So here's what I remember, what I know, what I expect to happen this fall.

Last season, ABC ended up being my "most-watched" network. Basically they had more shows that I was interested in than anybody else. One being Lost.

Lost ended with a huge cliffhanger yet barely answered any of the season's questions. The finale left us wondering what was inside of the hatch that Locke and Boone found and why "the others" kidnapped Walt. We also don't know (unless you read those horrible spoilers) whether Michael, Sawyer or Jin will make it back to the island alive, their raft having been blown to bits.

From what I understand, many questions will be answered within the first three episodes. Of course it wouldn't be Lost if more questions weren't raised. The ratio of raised-questions to answered-questions on this show is extremely high. You have to have patience and trust in the writers in order to really enjoy it. Which I do. The new season premieres on Wednesday, September 21 on ABC.

Alias also ended with a head-scratcher. The man we've come to know as Michael Vaughn for the last four seasons informs that that is in fact not his real name — seconds before the car he's driving is sideswiped, leaving us to wonder for three months whether he's dead and we'll never know his true identity.

Once again, the writers assure us answers early on. We appreciate that. Season five debuts on a new night, Thursday, September 29 on ABC.

Boston Legal sort of fizzled out with ABC sort of I guess forgetting about it when Grey's Anatomy turned out to be a viewer favorite. It's yet another David E. Kelley comedy/drama — only this time he hit the target. I've been enjoying the writing of Boston Legal very much. Nobody writes anything quite like he does.

The five episodes that didn't get aired last season will open this season, making it 27 long instead of the typical 22. It also premieres on a new night, Tuesday, September 27 on ABC.

Moving away from ABC leaves me with only three more shows to mention (one for each remaining network — and not counting the two comedies I watch). First is 24 on FOX. Only it doesn't return to the schedule until next January. I'll be looking forward to it.

NCIS is the only CBS show I even consider watching (aside from the occasional CSI: Miami). I'm looking forward to the third season premiere to see how they deal with Kate's murder in the final seconds of the finale. Not only that, but this is one of the only CBS shows that has actual dialogue, and you know, human interaction. NCIS is back on Tuesday, September 20.

Last but not least is one of my personal favorites for a long time. The West Wing enters its seventh season on a new night, Sunday, September 25. This will be a real season of change considering President Bartlet's term is coming to an end. Jimmy Smits and Alan Alda are running for president to replace Martin Sheen.

Everyone's been approaching this season as though it will be the last. But I'd bet a million bucks that if there's a ratings surge when the new president is selected, season eight won't quite be mere online "fanfic." And who knows? President Hawkeye? I'd watch that.

That's all I've got for today. By the way, I'm still contemplating a television blog to write my reviews in (not that you really care), but the likelihood is it will conflict too much with my Lightning game reviews over at Delay of Game — to say nothing of school and work.

Almost forgot about those.

Happy birthday, Elissa!

Eye In The Sky: Recently I posted some cool satellite pictures I found on Google Maps. I thought I'd share a few more today, such as Tampa International Airport, Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Empire State Building, the London Eye, The Kremlin and Red Square, USS Yorktown air craft carrier in South Carolina (on which I have personally spent the night), and the site where the World Trade Center once stood in Manhattan.

2005-08-24T23:46:00.000-04:00

Icelandic Week is over for now, but that doesn't mean I can't still post my UK pictures. This is Loch Ness at the ruins of Urquhart Castle. No signs of the monster but it sure was a rainy day.

2005-08-23T20:47:00.000-04:00

Today was another rainy day. I kind of like those. (Are you shocked the picture's not from Iceland? Me too. You'll be less shocked to find out I didn't take it here but rather in North Carolina. See?)

Americanish

2005-08-22T22:45:00.000-04:00

That Sound You Hear? » Change by The Warren Brothers
Days Until NHL Opening Night » 44
Big News » A European women's soccer team lost a big game against a major rival the other day because their goalie decided to take in a concert instead of minding the net. The score was 50-1. I'm taking bets on how long before said team decides she should be replaced.

Now, today's story...

I'm sure you read the title of this post thinking I'm nuts. Well I'm not. If anyone's nuts, it's Jeff Rubin. He's the self-proclaimed creator of National Punctuation Day. (Read about how to celebrate it. If you like writing, you'll probably laugh.)

I was reading about him in today's Trib. It may seem a little — what's the word I'm looking for? — crazy, but the fact is that grammar in this country is in a horrible state of disrepair. And sadly, most people just do not care.

Well I care.

Americans don't really speak English anymore as far as I'm concerned. We speak Americanish. It's a form of English that pays little to no attention to grammar, punctuation or spelling. But speaking Americanish is all right by me, as long as we don't all start writing that way.

I pride myself (with humility) on writing my blog grammatically correct, with proper punctuation and spelling. The few times when I sidestep that general rule, I am more or less trying (yet usually failing) to be funny or silly. That and I'm a bad proofreader when it comes to my own work. I usually have to have somebody else read over my work to catch my mistakes.

But aside from journalists and students, most people do not write in English anymore. For example, take a look at almost any blog here on Blogger. Most people write the way they talk. And I don't mean like the conversational style that I use to write my blog. I mean they write the way they talk.

And many of these people just shrug off their grammatical travesties by saying, "it's just a blog," meaning "merely a blog." In the four months I've been writing in this blog, I've come to a realization that this is one of the greatest tools ever invented. Afforded to every person with access to a computer (nearly every literate person on the planet) is the availability of sites like this for people to just write.

The privilege of having a blog is one many blog writers take for granted. Yes, you get to spread your opinion to the masses, but why not use the opportunity to practice using the language correctly? I take a piece of writing much more seriously if it is well-written and thought out as opposed to being something a 10-year-old might scratch out. The 10-year-old is still learning the nuance of the language.

One last thing that bugs me is people who say "that doesn't sound right" when a grammatical error is corrected by a teacher or editor. There was a time back in the late '90s when the Spice Girls sounded right to millions of people. Sounds can be deceiving. The fact is, if everyone would learn to speak and write coherently, the day may come when grammatical correctness sounds right.

But since no one cares, that day may be far off.

And with the odds highly favoring the notion that I am thoroughly unimportant to a world packed with six billion people, I am content to be ignored. In fact, I expect it. But for any ear that's listening, I encourage you to stop writing in Americanish. Speak in Americanish. IM your friends in Americanish. Please, though, for the sake of freedom or whatever gets you up in the morning, write in English.

Write in English.

Mornings On WQYK: ...will never be the same. That's how Tampa's biggest and oldest country station is touting its new morning show featuring recording artists Cledus T. Judd and Chad Brock. The singers bring a whole new dimension to radio that WQYK will be the first to pioneer. Frankly, I was curious. I caught a short segment this morning on WTVT-TV (our FOX affiliate) with Russell Rhodes who visited the new morning crew in the studio. You can watch that video here. The guys are a riot.

2005-08-22T12:59:00.000-04:00

More Icelandic geyser action. That's some hot water, too. It is.

More Small Screen Previews

2005-08-21T19:33:00.000-04:00

That Sound You Hear? » Small Town by John Anderson
Current MP3 Count » 5,214
Big News » Cledus T. Judd and Chad Brock are actually doing a morning radio show on WQYK here in Tampa. I can't believe it either.

Now, today's story...

Yes, I know, another TV-related post. But it's getting to be the time of year for that and hockey. And I already have a hockey blog. Though truth be told, I've contemplated a separate blog for this. And you never know, it may happen in the future. But until that future arrives, I'm writing it here.

The other day I picked three new shows to discuss my unbiased a priori opinion of. I plan to write a real review after having actually seen them all.

I thought today I'd choose a few more. And in no particular order, they are Invasion, My Name Is Earl, E-Ring, and Commander In Chief.

First is Invasion, which premieres Wednesday, September 21 right after Lost on ABC. The only thing that attracted me really was the setting and catalyst for conflict. A major hurricane blows through Homestead, Florida. The part that made me giggle/cringe is that this storm serves as a red herring for some aliens landing on earth. Yeah.

The only reason I'm considering it over Threshold (CBS' copycat attempt at alien contact), is that ABC has been on a good luck streak with new shows. I knew I'd enjoy Lost when it debuted last year, but I had no idea it would become the popular hit it did. If Lost, Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy and even Alias are any indication, I think Invasion has a shot at being worth watching.

For a few years now, NBC has been at a loss for new comedy. Twelve years ago they struck gold with Frasier and then Friends a year later. Since then, only one comedy series has made a lasting impression on television viewers — Will & Grace. That's pitiful. Especially when Scrubs is (without a doubt) the funniest show I have ever seen.

That said, NBC is introducing one (that's right, one) new comedy this season. The thing is, from what I've heard and read, it sounds like a keeper. My Name Is Earl hits your screen Tuesday, September 20. It stars Jason Lee as a loser who comes to the realization (by way of a winning lottery ticket) that karma will bite you in the ass if you're not careful.

So he makes a list of all the people he's wronged in his life and decides to make restitution to them to quell the fire of the karmic gods. I could see how that could sustain a series, unlike Invasion. My guess is this show will have the type of comedy we're used to seeing on Scrubs (and by we, I mean all three of us who watch it).

That isn't to say the sitcom is dead, though NBC might have you believing otherwise. Their desperation lead to the creation of a series on Bravo wherein two novice writing teams write a comedy script and produce a pilot presentation for the network. Things have gotten so bad, they just ignore the writers' guild now.

The series is called Situation: Comedy and I've been following along. I think the irony of it is the drama created by one team's desperate desire to do things their way or no way. Point is, things aren't going so well for TV comedy. The only two comedies I even watch are Scrubs and Arrested Development. I also keep up with Joey if only because of its novelty spin-off nature.

Before I wrap it up here, I figured I'd at least make mention of NBC's E-Ring and ABC's Commander In Chief.

E-Ring debuts Wednesday, September 21 at the same time as Lost, so its viewership will be considerably less. It takes place inside the Pentagon. The few things it has going for it include are Jerry Bruckheimer, Dennis Hopper and Benjamin Bratt. It's going to take a little more than that. Not to mention, I've mostly been reading that more attention is paid to effects and camera angles than to the writing. I'll take a look at the premiere but I can't see sticking with it even if it doesn't get cancelled.

Commander In Chief premieres Tuesday, September 27 and follows the first female vice president and her ascension to the presidency when the big guy croaks. Without Aaron Sorkin's writing I think I might find it hard to watch another show that takes place inside the White House, but from everything I've heard the stories are about the people, not the politics. I've also heard that the writing is uneven.

I won't know anything for sure until the shows actually air. So until then.

And I promise, only one more TV post this week and then I'll get back to telling my weird stories. I swear it.

Speaking Of Telvision (Live!): In the interest of winning back ratings (did they ever have them?), NBC is going to be airing an episode of Will & Grace live. And they're considering doing the same for The West Wing. The Will & Grace live episode will be the season premiere and I guess it's more of a random stunt than John Wells' idea for The West Wing. Wells wants to do a live debate in November during sweeps between the two candidates running for the fictional presidency. Just don't screw it up. That's all I have to say.

2005-08-20T21:04:00.000-04:00

Yet another Icelandic landscape. Think I'm running out of pictures? Think again. I got enough to last at least three more months. Ha! The joke's on me isn't it? You're never returning to my blog, are you?

Coming To Screens Near You

2005-08-19T22:42:00.000-04:00

That Sound You Hear? » Chances Are by Vonda Shepard & Robert Downey, Jr. (yes, you read that right)
Current Hit Count On This Blog » 1,275
Big News » Northwest Airlines mechanics are going on strike. Just so long as the Icelandair mechanics aren't doing the same. (I'm sorry, I'll stop.)

Now, today's story...

It's a sad state of affairs when I can go nearly a full week without having anything interesting to write about or having time to write about anything interesting. Indeed.

But I think the former is more my issue. On the other hand, the new television season is right around the corner. (That was the cue for you non-TV watchers to tunnel your way out of here. Sorry.)

Now, those of you who are still with me, either you're wonderful friends or you actually do like primetime television. Kudos on either. So I think I'll write my preview commentary chronologically by premiere date.

And now that I think about it, I'll discuss only the new shows in this post. We'll save returning shows for another post. Those shows I'll be discussing here will be Prison Break, Reunion and Surface. I may chat up some of the others in the future.

Anyway.

To begin, there's Prison Break, which debuts Monday, August 29 on FOX. That's just over a week from now. As I understand it, the series is about a man who is wrongly convicted and tossed into the big house. His brother Michael, an architectural engineer of sorts (or whatever), knows the ins and outs of this particular "big house" and pulls off a faux bank robbery in order to get imprisoned as well. Smarty pants.

That's all I know about it from the FOX promos, but it was the critics who reviewed the series in online articles that actually piqued my interest. Apparently, Prison Break lives up to the thriller FOX proclaims it to be. At first glance you think, once they make their big break, it's all over right? He'll be free. But people don't just escape prison, end of story. Somebody's got to come after them.

I'll be watching next Monday to see for myself if they can really pull off a decent show with such a narrow premise. I think it can be done. I don't think it will be easy.

FOX's Reunion follows the lives of six high school friends from the day they graduate until their 20-year class reunion. It premieres Thursday, September 8 after The O.C. and each episode is a new year.

Weaved throughout the series is a murder-mystery story wherein one of the buddies bites the dust and one of the others is the responsible party. It makes for an interesting story, but probably a goofy funeral scene in the pilot episode, since they can't reveal the name of the deceased (who, as I understand it, won't be known until the finale).

And while the story may seem a little far-fetched, I have hope that, like Prison Break, under the right conditions it could succeed. The problem would be meddling network canceling it before the season's over and us never knowing who was killed.

The only other series I want to mention before leaving you alone is Surface, which hits NBC for the first time on Monday, Septmber 19. At first, it looked like a generic mystery series. In seeing more promos and reading up on it a little, I'm intrigued. (I'm also a fan of Boston Legal, which Lake Bell left to take this job.)

Surface is basically the story of three people who individually discover an alien species that's been living deep beneath the "surface" of the ocean. I might point out as this time that the series was initially titled "Fathom," which I thought was more appropriate. It has a forboding connotation much like the promos NBC has been running.

Basically, these people have front-row seats to what may or may not spell the end of the world as we know it. If it's a mystery even half as good as Lost, it might just hold my attention. We'll see how it turns out.

Having said that, I think it's important to know that I have written all of this without having actually seen any of said shows. My seemingly baseless accusations are based on promotional ads I've seen on TV and others' accounts of what the shows were like. My informed opinions on each of these will be posted as soon as I've seen them.

Yeah, Yeah: I know I said I'd stop with the Iceland comments, but I felt compelled to inform you (and only you) that my Icelandic vocabulary has now reached over 230 words. How about that. If you can translate þessi, hjól, helgi, hætta, með, and bíó (and you're not a native speaker or an online dictionary cheater) I will give you — a nice, congratulatory message. Written personally by me. Customized with your name and everything. Seriously. No, not seriously. Grow up.

2005-08-18T19:24:00.000-04:00

Hey, don't judge me. I know I haven't written in a while. I've been busy trying to learn Icelandic. And it's not like you've read the other 153 posts I've written in the last four months. Have you? That's right. Oh, this is a panoramic snapshot from the top of the cliff in the previous post. (It's two pictures put together. Oooh.)

2005-08-16T22:53:00.000-04:00

Yes, more Iceland. I really can't help myself. I just feel compelled to share these pictures for some reason. Don't they make you want to visit? They sure make me want to go back — soon. These cliffs are in the coastal town of Vík. I have pictures from on top of them, too.

2005-08-15T22:51:00.000-04:00

Here's Myrdálsjökull (jökull means glacier) in the middle of August when I was in Iceland in 2000. We had a snowball fight up there, which, for native Floridians, was odd enough in itself, I guess. Still chugging along on my Icelandic lessons.

2005-08-14T23:50:00.000-04:00

This is another picture at Gullfoss. It's in western Iceland between Reykjavík and Geysir. Isn't it grand? My Icelandic vocabulary reached 90 words today. Yes, I know. Go me.