Closer By the Day

We are now only 12 days from the opening ceremonies of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy!

Past Their Prime?

Over the past couple of weeks a couple of long running programs have been cancelled and will end their run this May. All of these programs served their networks well, though it could be argued for all that they have stayed past their prime. These long running programs are:








NBC's The West Wing




















NBC's Will & Grace




















FOX's Malcolm in the Middle


















FOX's That '70s Show

Cancelled Way Too Soon

After only four showings, what was one of my favorite new series of the 2006-2006 television season has been cancelled. The Book of Daniel is no more.

I found this mid-season program to be incredibly interesting and innovative. A minister addicted to vicodin deals with the daily trials and tribulations of his family, which includes a gay son, a drug dealing daughter, an adopted son from China who was sexually involved with the daughter of one of his parishioners, his highly emotional and heavy drinking wife, and a mother suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. In the first four episodes the minister dealt with topics from his daughter being arrested, to his church’s school fund being stolen, to his dealing’s with the mob. And to top it off, the minister often received advice from Jesus himself.

The writing on this program was exceptional and the actors did a wonderful job. I found each episode to be both fun and though provoking.

Unfortunately The Book of Daniel was plagued with controversy right from the start. Six NBC stations around the country refused to carry the program because they deemed it to be inappropriate for airing. This was very unfortunate because it really did deprive these areas from a wonderful show.

The death of the program can be attributed to this boycott and to the horrible time slot it was given: 10pm on Fridays.

It is a program that I know I will miss, and can only hope that something this innovative will be given more of a chance in the future.

China's Grand Slam

Today marked a first for China is the world of sports.

Tennis’ first Grand Slam event of the year, the Australian Open, is currently being held. Today was the women’s doubles final. The top seeded pair of Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur were expected to win the championship. However, they were defeated by the Chinese pair of Zheng Jie and Yan Zi.

In addition to winning the doubles championship and stunning the top seeds, this marked the first Grand Slam victory ever (either singles or doubles) for athletes from China.

It is believed that this win will assist in making the game a stronger presence in China, which may carry over to the popularity of the sport in China during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

This is a huge accomplishment for both the athletes and Chinese tennis that all should be very proud of.

Super Bowl XL is Coming

As I predicted, the Seattle Seahawks will be competing at Super Bowl XL. Once they got past the Washington Redskins I had no doubt that they would be the team to beat.

What did surprise me is the Pittsburgh Steelers making it to the final game. The Steelers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals, Indianapolis Colts, and the Denver Broncos to make it to the Super Bowl. In truth, I thought it would be a Seattle-Denver Super Bowl.

This puts a wrinkle in my original prediction. The Steelers are coming on so strong lately, it'll be a tough game.

I still predict it to be a Seattle win, but by a closer margin. My prediction will be Seattle over Pittsburgh, 20-17.

Out of the Blocks, And It's Gone

Though heavily promoted by ABC over the past month or so, Emily's Reasons Why Not starring Heather Graham was cancelled after ONE showing. The show may return at some point in the future to burn off the six episodes already filmed, but production has been ceased on any new episodes.

Sports History

American Olympic history has been made, and we’re still 22 days from the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympic Games in Turin. For the first time a competitor has been named to the U.S. Olympic Team for two different sports in the same Winter Games.

Sarah Konrad has been named to both the United States cross country skiing team and the United States biathlon team. Never before has a U.S. athlete had this distinction.

It is also interesting to note that, at age 38, Konrad will be the oldest female member of the United States Olympic team.

Regardless of how Konrad finishes in each of her events at the 20th Winter Games, she has made U.S. sporting history.

Woo Hoo!

I can't go into specifics, but yesterday afternoon I got some great news. It makes my semester much easier with many, many less headaches to worry about.

This news really did make my week. I'm sorry I can't say more here. If you want to know feel free to ask me. I just couldn't keep my joy bottled up so I decided to write something here! Hooray!!!

The Olympics are Coming

We are currently 24 days from the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.

The U.S. team is beginning to take shape, with the skeleton and bobsled teams being named. In addition, this past week saw the figure skating teams named (with Michelle Kwan actually nabbing a spot contingent on her being healthy by January 27).

Keep your eyes on this space starting February 10th. Since the Olympics are a bit of a passion of mine, I hope to be able to provide some pretty extensive coverage of the Games.

Another Great Film

Not too long ago I was extolling the virtues of what I thought was the greatest film of 2005: Steven Spielberg’s Munich. While I still think that Munich is a great film, I saw a movie Sunday evening that I believe equals it in nearly ever way.

Brokeback Mountain, the story of two Wyoming cowboys who fall in love, was one of the best films that I have seen in many years. I was unsure of the cast, but the acting was superb. Both of the supporting female actresses, Michelle Williams and Anne Hathaway, were awesome. But the two leads, Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal, just blew me away.

The scenes, which were actually shot in Calgary I believe, were gorgeous. Director Ang Lee did a great job.

I can’t stress enough in words how great this film truly is.

I would highly recommend that anyone going to the movies over the next few weeks choose either Brokeback Mountain or Munich. You can’t go wrong with either film.

The Team to Beat

Yesterday my team got knocked out of the NFL playoffs. The Washington Redskins lost 20-10 to the Seattle Seahawks.

While it was a heartbreaking game, I must admit that I thought all along that Seattle was going to prevail.

I do believe that this is Seattle's year. They will make it to Super Bowl XL. In my humble opinion it will be a close Superbowl match-up with the Seattle Seahawks taking on the Denver Broncos.

And in my opinion. the Seahawks are the team to beat and will win it all.

Add Another One to My Schedule

Add another reality show to my growing list of programs that I’m a fan of.

I watched the first season of the WB’s Beauty and the Geek and was pretty amused. I decided last night to give its second season premiere a shot, but I had to do so via video because it overlapped with Dancing with the Stars.

It was uproariously funny. The geeks are even geekier than last season. You have your requisite geek who spends his Friday night’s playing Dungeons & Dragons, but some are just downright out of touch with the rest of the world. Ankur, the 22-year old MIT grad has been quoted as saying that he is smarter than 100% of people in America.

Then we come to the beauties. How can a viewer not laugh when a producer asks one of these women what their IQ is and she says “C which is like a 3.5”? Or when asked where roast beef comes from they say “a pig, and some from a horse.” I had to pause the program I was laughing so hard.

But then there’s Tyson. I must say that I found him to be amazing. He brought a Rubik’s cube and had one of the women play with it and mix all of the colors up. When it was given back to him he took a minute to examine the cube. Then he realigned all of the colors while holding it BEHIND HIS BACK! That’s right. He looked at the cube for about a minute, memorized what it looked like, and then held it behind his back and realigned the cube colors back together quickly. That is just amazing.

Another great program that I recommend to all!

Is It Fair?

The U.S. Figure Skating Championships are upon us. One of the favorites to win, Michelle Kwan, has pulled out of the competition due to a groin pull. For this reason she is in danger of not making the U.S. Olympic Team to compete next month in Italy.

The winner of the U.S. Championship automatically gets a spot on the Olympic team. Many believe that the individuals (or pairs) that come in second and third should also get the other two slots on the team. This isn’t the case. In truth the committee that selects the team could pick the person that came in 20th at the championship event, or even someone that did not compete.

Michelle Kwan believes that she will be healthy in 28 days for the Winter Olympics. She is petitioning to be put on the team even though she won’t be competing in the U.S. Championships.

The question then arises if it would be fair to put Kwan on the team in this situation.

Many believe that Kwan’s endorsement deals will play a big part in the decision. She already has Olympic endorsement deals in place for Coca-Cola, Visa, and East-West Bank. Could this be the factor that gets her on to the team?

While Michelle Kwan is still one of the best women’s figure skaters in the world, should an injury that keeps her from the U.S. Championships prevent her from competing at the biggest sporting stage in the world? If she does get a slot on the team, is it really fair to those U.S. figure skaters that did compete at the U.S. Championships? Will money and endorsements be a deciding factor?

It will be very interesting to see at the beginning of next week which figure skaters do get named to the team.

Not a Resolution, But....

Today I started a new diet. It's going to limit me to between 2,200 and 2,300 calories a day. I am going to try to knock that down on my own to between 2,000 and 2,100. I'm not sure if it will work, but I really need to give it a try.

Everyone keep their fingers crossed for me. I'll need all the support I can get. Especially when you consider that I'm only two meals into the diet and I'm already hungry!

'Skins Win

Today the Washington Redskins beat Tampa Bay Buccaneers by a score of 17-10 in their first post-season game since 1999. Next up, the Seattle Seahawks!

Dancing with the Stars

Just about anyone that knows me, or reads this blog, knows that I am a huge fan of reality television. I particularly enjoy the shows that involve some sort of competition, no matter what the competition is.

I have even surprised myself, though, with my affection for one of the oddest reality shows out there: Dancing with the Stars.

I can’t even describe why I find the show fun. Why would I be interested in a program where I get to see rap mogul Master P do the cha cha, and both WWE wrestler Stacy Keibler and Academy Award winner Tatum O’Neal waltzing?

It’s a strange phenomenon. I ended up being glued to the television last summer as I saw General Hospital’s Kelly Monaco prevail in the first season over Seinfeld alum John O’Hurley. Both C-list celebrities evolved from looking a bit awkward at the beginning of the season to looking elegant and very skillful in their dancing.

And you know you’ve got a hit program when you spawn clones elsewhere on the TV schedule. Dancing with the Stars is no exception. On Wednesday, January 18 FOX will premiere Skating with Celebrities, which pairs six celebrities with professional ice skaters.

While I find myself loving Dancing with the Stars, I doubt that I’ll give Skating with Celebrities a try.

My Favorite Gift

For Christmas this year I received many great gifts. On DVD I received the fifth season of The Sopranos and the first season of Fame, a great pair of New Balance tennis shoes, a brand new Crock-Pot, and a chocolate fondue fountain. But my favorite gift by far is a Sirius satellite radio receiver and boombox.

I must admit that I was a bit reluctant to pay for radio. But, in truth, I am one of the million or so people who wanted Sirius in order to follow Howard Stern. Though I seem like an unlikely fan of Stern, most of the time I do find him very amusing. I was very disappointed when he was removed from Indianapolis radio a few years back. Sirius gave me an opportunity to hear him again, though at a price.

With Stern not hitting Sirius until January 9th I’ve had an opportunity to peruse Sirius to see how good the service really is. I have heard great music, tons of interesting news and talk radio (which is lacking on local radio), and some really good sports coverage. I've even found myself listening to Martha Stewart's two stations. I have become really impressed by what Sirius is carrying.

I asked for a Sirius radio receiver specifically so that I could listen to Howard Stern but have fallen in love with the entire package.

New Semester is Coming

At Indiana University we are officially five days from the first day of the spring semester.

Fortunately I got word today that neither of my classes will be held during the first week. It appears that my wish for a longer winter break has been granted. Though I still have to attend my AI assignment next week, my own studies can be put off an additional seven days.

Hooray!

Spring Semester is Nearly Here

One week from today marks the first day of spring semester 2006 here at Indiana University.

This will be my last semester of coursework as a student EVER!

I am anxious to have the semester begin. The sooner it starts the sooner it will be over.

But at the same time I find it so hard to believe that two of the three weeks in Winter Break are already over! Where does the time go?