Sneezy, sniffy days

Friday as I was out and about I found myself taking deep breaths. Ahhh fresh cut grass smell. Unfortunately, with the fresh cut grass smell there was also pollen. Just last weekend I was thinking, "Wow, I haven't had itchy eyes or a runny nose at all this year. Usually it starts around April."

Yeah, if there's one lesson in life every one needs to learn early, it's never make that statement. You know the one. "Gee, XYZ hasn't happened yet (it usually does) or (I really expected it to)." By uttering those words (or even in my case, just thinking it), you just set in motion forces in this world that will ensure Condition XYZ will indeed happen. And most likely, in ten fold.

So now I'm sniffling and sneezing, taking allergy pills here and there. Yippee.

I ascended last night. It took a lot longer than I would have hoped because I haven't been able to get all my adventures in every day. I decided to go for Accordian Thief to pick up one or two skills before ... well, I'll tell you about that in just a bit. Doing an accordian thief run with my multi really was helpful. It's not that Accordian Thieves are incredibly hard, it's just that it's way harder without all the other skills from the other classes. As I'm adventuring, I'm always going for entangling noodles, or a reagant potion and the like. And there are a couple of really good buffs from the AT that I'd like before ...

Before, that is, NS13 rolls out. Now, I'm not going to bore anyone who doesn't care (though, I've probably done so already). So if you want to know what that is, or might be, GoodSearch it (or google it for you non-philanthropic types). Nonetheless--from the way it's hyped up, it's going to be big. More content, more items, more quests, more monsters----and a whole lot harder. So I gotta start pulling in the most important HP skills and mighty quickly b/c they announced NS13 rolls out in 29 days! So it's all no path HC runs so I can get the most skills I possibly can.

I need to finish a roll of film so I can get the rest of my New York pictures.

STUDIO 60 IS BACK! and the villagers rejoice

May has gone by so quickly. It feels like I was just in New York City and yesterday it feels like it was my birthday. But now it's Memorial Day Weekend.

I was generally unmotivated to write/blog this May, but I think I'm breaking out of it. I don't know what's worse: Being uninspired (not being able to write or write well) or or unmotivated (having ideas but not being interested in putting thoughts on paper/screen).

With May comes season finales. Apolo's the top dancer, Jordin gets the singing contract and everything but the damn hospital burned down in Grey's Anatomy. CSI:NY and Ghost Whisperer were suspenseful and exciting and Close to Home they were dropping like flies.

Lost ... Lost was completely confusing--I guess I should have watched more than that one episode this season.

OH! And I was disappointed with The Simpsons' 400th episode. 399 was great, but 400 was sub par--in fact because of the hype, it was so bad that it bombed.

Now that all the network shows are done they're moving into the various summer series--and I'm excited. I enjoy So You Think You Can Dance? and Last Comic Standing and all the other misfits that come about during our warm months.

NBC also brought back Aaron Sorkin's Studio 60: On the Sunset Strip. I love this show and was upset when it went on hiatus to showcase the dumb and pointless "Black Donnelley's."

Studio 60 is a spin on the behind the scenes of the late night variety sketch comedy show. Oddly so is 30 Rock. (I might do an Alec Baldwin rant sometime soon). DL Hugley and Matthew Perry are the most notable names on the show, but it's a great ensemble cast.

The show is about Matt and Danny two former writers of Studio 60 who are re-hired as Executive Producers after their iconic boss was fired. They lose most of the cast because they viewed Matt and Danny and traders, usurpers who couldn't make it in Hollywood so they came back and took (or stood back and let the network take the role of their former boss).

Matt has epic love pains for their star Harriet. They forever are the on-again off-again couple. She's too catholic, he's too liberal and on and on.

Danny lost his last job (director of a movie) when he was caught doing heroin and checked himself into rehab. He has fallen in love with the new and newly pregnant Network executive Jordan.

The writing is quick and witty. Very current with today's issues and relevant.

For some reason or another, low ratings, etc. etc. Studio 60 got the boot. I was devastated. It was the best new show of the season, the reason I looked forward to Monday nights.

When I went to New York, we stopped by NBC and I bought a Studio 60 coffee travel mug. If nothing else I would always have that.

I also heard that critics were complaining that the writing was too much about current issues and politics. They said they should do more jokes and less commentary about the world.

But that's why Studio 60 is so wonderful. Sketch comedy shows are about the world. I recently watched the 90's look into that *other* sketch comedy hit. One of the former cast members said the beauty of the show was it took everything going on in the world today: good, bad, ironic and funny ... and said the things about it that everyone is thinking, but no one wanted to say. Making fun of the president, trading kidneys for gas money and everything else we are subjected to on a daily basis.

Thank You! Studio 60 for telling the truth and bringing this witty, intelligent comedy when smart jokes are few and far between on other more blue collar comedy shows.

I hope others discover this gem of a show and tune it, so it's kept on the air!