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GF4 – Week 29

Y4Week29A temporary return from the dead, as this program can’t decide if it wants to shut down or not.  It looked like curtains for sure two weeks ago, when the website went down for a day before returning in seemingly a read only state.  But then it started updating again, so we were able to eek another week out of things.  Last Monday, the check-in points in the cafeteria were removed, but the one on the bridge between North and South plazas was still up.  I’m pretty sure things will shut down for good soon, so plans are afoot for a new tracking mechanism to enter my life.

As for the week itself, things were looking pretty good during the work week, with 3 days over 7000 steps.  Wednesday and Friday, when I was pretty sure things were over and done with, were disappointing.  An special autograph session for White Sox season ticket holders at Chicago Sports Depot on Saturday got me out of the usual weekend doldrums, but Sunday returned right back to my poor normal.

Total steps: 37,860

Daily average: 5408.6

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Book 3 (of 52) – Mr. Kiss And Tell

Mr. Kiss And Tell - Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham

Mr. Kiss And Tell – Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham

Veronica Mars returns in this second novel following the events of last year’s Kickstarter-funded movie.  This time out, Veronica investigates the brutal rape and attack of the sister of an old friend while Keith works on a lawsuit against Dan Lamb and the sheriff’s department on behalf of Weevil.

With another movie likely off the table, Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham have been continuing the story of Veronica Mars in book form, and this second novel picks up some threads from the first while bringing a new A-story.  I am certainly enjoying the trip, which brings the characters from a favorite show in to the current day, allowing them to age and be adults.  Hopefully there will be more on the way.

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Top 200 Albums – #54 – 64

itunes_imageMy latest desktop computer arrived in late 2007, at which point I transitioned all of my music off of my laptop. 2 iPods, 3 iPhones, and an iPad later, that computer is still my main repository of music, with iTunes updating its stats every time I listen to something.

Having already gone through cassette tapes and CDs, and digital music, it’s time to roll everything up with the Top 200 albums whose songs I’ve listened to as of September 2014, according to iTunes. Today we crack the top 60 and look at the 11 albums between 64th and 54th place with 52-57 listens.

#54: Foo Fighters – The Colour And The Shape
iTunes stats: 57 plays
Many years ago, a few years after the album had been released, I picked this up for $5 at Best Buy on Black Friday. Since that time, 4 tracks have made up this total.

#54: Garbage – Garbage
iTunes stats: 57 plays
The debut album from the Garbagers, whose total would be higher if not for their greatest hits album, makes the list on the backs of 12 tunes.

#54: David Cross – Shut Up, You Fucking Baby!
iTunes stats: 57 plays
Every track from the first comedy album from David Cross makes up this total.

#57: George Carlin – Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics
iTunes stats: 56 plays
If I remember correctly, this special was my first introduction to George Carlin as a young man back in the late 80s. The whole album makes up its total.

#57: Various Artists – Monsters Of Rap
iTunes stats: 56 plays
10 tracks, from the likes of Onyx, Positive K, and 3rd Bass, make up the total for this compilation album.

#59: Garbage – Not Your Kind Of People
iTunes stats: 55 plays
The latest album from Garbage uses 13 tracks to make up this total.

#60: Bon Jovi – Cross Road
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#173 – Kenny Lofton

loftonName: Kenny Lofton

Rank: 173

Position: CF

Year With White Sox: 2002

Kenny Lofton joined the White Sox as a free agent on February 1, 2002.  “I looked at the different opportunities that I had and this was a team that won 83 games last year while they were banged up,” Lofton said at the time. “Cleveland lost four good players from last year’s team, and that’s going to be hard to replace. This was an easy decision.”

Unfortunately, things did not work out as planned, and the White Sox faltered.  As the trade deadline approached, they found themselves 6 games under .500.  So, they traded Lofton to the Giants in exchange for Ryan Meaux and Felix Diaz.  “It’s a great opportunity to get into a playoff race, and that’s always exciting,” Lofton said. “It was tough to leave Chicago, but sometimes you just have to go with your heart.”

Lofton’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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Midseason Review – Fridays

old-tv-set1It’s time to wrap up our look back at my thoughts on the new fall season’s slate of Friday shows.

8:00

Hawaii Five-0 – A fifth season of the show that doesn’t really impress, but doesn’t really disappoint.

Nothing new to say about this show at this point in its life.  It just keeps on keepin’ on.

9:00

Blue Bloods – The first family of the NYPD returns for a fifth season.

I wonder if the show will address any of the real life drama going on with the NYPD over the past few months.

Constantine – NBC gets in on the comic book adaptation game, making this show based on the Vertigo comic and not the 2005 film starring Keanu Reeves.

I think I lasted approximately 2 episodes before cutting bait.

Closing out the week with the shows returning this winter:

Helix – I recall very little about where this show left things off.  Things kicked off last week, so hopefully I can pick it back up.

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Midseason Review – Thursdays

old-tv-set1Thursday night is traditionally the busiest night of the television week. Here’s our look back at my pre-season thoughts on what’s on the slate for this season.

7:00

Grey’s Anatomy – The medical drama enters its 11th season with a move to an earlier timeslot.  There are cast changes aplenty this year, so hopefully the show can continue its recent quality upswing.

I noticed that episodes of the show started piling up on the DVR somewhat this season.  I’m all caught up now, but with the big logjam at this timeslot, who knows what will happen when the show returns.

The Big Bang Theory – The show returns to Thursdays in late October, following the midpoint of the NFL season.

The show is much more relationship focused this year, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but there hasn’t been as much interaction between the 4 original nerds without their new-found lady friends.

Bones – The show moves back to Thursdays for its 10th season.  Beyond that, there’s not much to say about the show that hasn’t already been said.

Well, the show kicked off the season by killing off John Francis Daley’s character, so there was a bit of a shake up, but the show is pretty much the same as its always been.

8:00

Gracepoint – FOX hopes that taking a successful British mystery, Broadchurch, and remaking it for an American audience while keeping the same star, David Tennant, will make lightning hit twice.

Tweaking the ending of the show ever so slightly did not make the previous 9 1/2 episodes being exact duplicates of their British counterparts a worthwhile watch.

8:30

A to Z – The pilot didn’t exactly reach out and grab me, but star Cristin Milloti, fresh from her turn as the titular mother in the final season of How I Met Your Mother, is exceedingly charming, so I will give this a longer chance to impress.

Well, the show should be wrapping up its 13 episode run soon.  If they have Cristin Milioti’s character die and have the lead guy hook up with Cobie Smulders instead, it would give the show a proper sendoff.

9:00

Elementary – Sherlock and Watson return for a third season of helping the NYPD solve their cases.

Sherlock returned from London with a new assistant, so there has been switch up to the status quo.

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Midseason Review – Wednesdays

old-tv-set1It’s Hump Day. Time to take a look back at my thoughts on the midweek offerings for the fall season.

7:00

Arrow – After a stellar second season, Arrow returns for more angtsy fun.  On tap for this season are DC stalwarts Ra’s Al Ghul and Ray Palmer.

Considering the main character was killed in the winter finale last month, the show will have to jump through a hoop or two to bring him back.

The Mysteries of Laura – Quite possibly the worst pilot I’ve seen ever.  What a waste of good talent.

I did not go back for any future entries after having suffered through the pilot.

8:00

Modern Family – The comedy, entering its sixth season, is starting to show its age.  It’s still fun, but the plots are starting to get a little out there.

I think it is safe to say that we are much closer to the end of this shows run than we are to the beginning.

Criminal Minds – The show returns for its tenth season with a new team member, the lovely Jennifer Love Hewitt.

I don’t know what else there is to say about this show at this point.  It is what it is.

Red Band Society – My initial instinct was to give this one a pass, but a few good reviews, plus an early premiere, made me decide to tune in.

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Midseason Review – Tuesdays

old-tv-set1We continue our look back at my expectations for the fall television season, and today we are focusing on Tuesdays.

7:00

Selfie – I love Karen Gillan and am quite fond of John Cho, but put them together in this loose adaptation of Pygmalion and, at least based on the pilot, you get a steaming pile of something or other.  I will give this a chance to improve due to the talents involved, but I don’t hold out a great deal of hope.

Well, the show was quickly pulled off the air and cancelled.  Hopefully, Karen Gillan returns to our television screens quickly, in something worthy of her talents.

The Flash – Spinning off from Arrow comes this latest forray from the CW in to the world of DC superheroes.  Hopefully it follows more from Arrow‘s example than Smallville‘s.

I don’t know if this has been the best new show of the season, but it has certainly been the most fun.  It has a sense of joy that neither Smallville nor Arrow had before it that brings a bit of levity to the DC television universe.

7:30

Manhattan Love Story – I’m not too sold on giving this new show, about the romance beteen two nuerotic New Yorkers, a shot.  But, I’m willing to try anything once.

Well, some show had to be the first one cancelled this season, which is about the only thing this show accomplished.

8:00

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – The show, which greatly improved following the events of Captain America: Winter Soldier, returns for a second season at a later timeslot and with a new status quo.

The battle between SHIELD and Hydra continues in a much improved show from one year ago.

Supernatural – For some reason that nobody can particularly understand, the show returns for its 10th season.  The show has been adrift for quite some time now and last season really started to drag.  I’m willing to keep watching, but I don’t know for how much longer.

Due to timeslot conflicts, I had to record this on a different TV.  To date, I’ve watched maybe 3 episodes of the new season and I’m not in much of a hurry to watch the rest.

Marry Me – Casey Wilson reunites with the creator of Happy Endings, who also happens to be her husband, for this new comedy.  Happy Endings was a tremendous show that ended way too early, so I will give this a shot and hope that it rekindles some of that magic.

This also needed to be recorded on a different TV due to timeslot conflicts.  I haven’t watched much of it, but I have enjoyed what I’ve seen.  It does seem to scratch, at least a little bit, that Happy Endings itch.

New Girl – The group returns for season 4, and less couples than we have seen in year’s past.  Hopefully, the funny keeps coming.

I think the problem is that they have too many characters that they don’t really know what to do with.

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