Vancouver or Bust

On Wednesday morning I will find myself traveling to another conference.

At about 10 am on Wednesday I will begin my travels to Vancouver for the annual conference of the Society for Psychophysiological Research.

It should be a fun trip which comes at a time where I need to get away from Bloomington for a little while. I will have to take work with me, but at least I’ll be away from the daily grind that I’ve been subject to since late August.

Tag is No Longer It!

I think I need something explained to me. Maybe I don’t understand it because I don’t have kids of my own.

Last week I read an article about how yet another school has banned tag and other chasing games from being played during recess. The principal at the school in Attleboro, Massachusetts said that recess was a time when the most accidents happen, and by banning these games she hoped that fewer children would be hurt during recess and the school would not be held liable. The school had previously outlawed unsupervised contact sports during recess such as dodge ball.

Does this seem ridiculous to anyone else? Tag and other games seem to be essential parts of the socialization process children go through during elementary school. Without engagement in games such as these it seems to be that children will be missing out on a big part of learning what it means to be both competitive and to be social with the children around them. It’s something that I just don’t see them getting by being restricted to swings and other innocuous activities.

Again, maybe it’s because I don’t have any children. I just think some in society are going way to far in order to protect themselves from lawsuits.

They're Sticking Around Until At Least 2007

We’re nearly two months into the new television season and surprisingly only two programs have been canceled. As I’ve reported here previously, CBS’ Smith has been pulled from the schedule completely while NBC’s Kidnapped will be finished at the conclusion of their thirteenth episode.

However, more new shows from this season have already been picked up for the entire season. They now have 22 episode orders, enough to fill the 2006-2007 television season. I can also attest that nearly all of these programs are excellent shows, since I’ve added most of them to my viewing schedule. Those shows given full episode orders are:

ABC’s Ugly Betty











ABC’s Brothers and Sisters

CBS’s Shark

CBS's Jericho

NBC’s Heroes

CW’s The Game






In addition, NBC’s ER is seeing a surge in their ratings. NBC had previously planned to rest ER in January in order to give one of their midseason dramas, The Black Donnellys, a timeslot. Now ER will not only continue to air without a rest, but NBC is considering upping the episode order from 22 to 24. The Black Donnellys will still air this winter, but at a different time. Maybe in Kidnapped’s slot?

Now I just have to wait and see if 30 Rock, the Nine, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, or Men in Trees also get a full season episode order.

White & Nerdy

This music video was recently sent to me with the message that it reminded them of me. I'm not so sure that I'm this bad, though this really is a pretty funny video.

'Tis The Season Already?

I went today to my local Kroger to do some grocery shopping and noticed that they had already put out a display with a sign that read "Holiday Cards-50% Off."

Holiday cards already? I've accepted the fact that Christmas and holiday merchandise is now put out into stores well before Thanksgiving, but come on! We are still 23 days from Halloween!

First Show Cancelled and Pulled

I reported yesterday that NBC was pulling the plug on Kidnapped, but was allowing it to continue airing until all thirteen episodes show the solution to the show's big mystery. It will, however, starting airing in the wasteland that is prime time Saturday night television.

I've also reported previously that Fox has pulled the sitcom Happy Hour, but has reported that it will return on November 2nd

CBS' Smith, starring Ray Liotta, has the distinction of being the first program cancelled and yanked off of their Tuesday night schedule. It was averaging only 8.4 viewers a week.

It's timeslot will be filled with reruns of CSI: Crime Scene Investigations and Criminal Minds.

I'm sure that this isn't going to be the last program we hear about in the near future that has been cancelled.

First Official Cancellation

The news has come down from the powers-that-be at NBC. The first official cancellation of the new television season is Kidnapped. It is a star driven vehicle with great potential. However, it just didn't catch on with audiences. Last week it came in ranked 67th in the most recent Nielsen ratings. Even though it has been cancelled, NBC has committed to airing all thirteen episodes. They want to see the show's mystery through to its end, but after that there will be no more new episodes.

That's one new series that has failed. Any guesses about which one is next?