Lunch With the Telly

 Yeah. I watch TV. DEAL.

Many (not all)* of my generation were the first TV generation. With multiple channels (sometimes as many as FIVE!), the rise of prime time, local shows from Afternoon movies to children's shows like Bozo or jumping Kenny Rogers, Saturday Morning Cartoons, and the advent of LIVING COLOR, TV was spectacular! Especially for an imaginative introvert like me.

Now that I am retired (for the most part) and with dozens of channels and streaming services, I could turn to an Ursula with a remote.

But I haven't. I still have my prime time habit. The big difference is I no longer have to be at the TV at a set time, or I miss the show. I don't even have to record a show on a VHS tape (like I often had to do with Buffy). I can call up any of tens of thousands of programs when I'm ready to watch.

During the rest of the day, there is not much. I used to watch morning news, but they've all been swallowed by right-wing media moguls, blathering far-right talking points. Even MSNOW has the interminably awful Joe Scarborough.

About the only thing in the daytime now is an occasional soccer game.

And, of course, my lunch program.

I'm a den eater. I like to eat while watching something. Particularly when it's just me. So, I have my lunchtime program.

I rotate between watching three programs. They change over time, as I complete different series. These are the three I'm rotating between now -

Smallville, which I am currently in Season 9, is part of a broader Superman re-watch that I have been doing for several years. I started with the Max Fleischer cartoons of the forties and have been moving forward chronologically. This includes movies (Christopher Reeve Superman), cartoons (Superman: The Animated Series), and TV shows (The Adventures of Superman)**

Currently, Season 9 puts me in 2009 of my re-watch. I like Smallville. Tom Welling does a good job of portraying a young Clark Kent. Erica Durance is outstanding as Lois Lane, capturing her wise-cracking intensity and bold spirit.

Sometimes the storylines are repetitive, focusing too much on characters being possessed so that the actors can present a different personality. And the WB network made teenage angst a specialty. But over the years, they presented a good number of characters from the DC comics. Green Arrow is portrayed by Justin Hartley, who went on to some minor series like This Is Us and Tracker.

I usually watch half a season at a time, one episode each lunch hour.

After that, the next one in rotation is -

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, filling my mystery/anthology slot.

Before this, I watched Alfred Hitchcock Presents, a half-hour anthology that ran seven seasons. Any anthology series will have a mix of really great episodes with some meh episodes. It's amazing how many spouses wanted to kill each other.

For someone of my age, seeing some of the actors I recognize from that time is fascinating. Some are in their pre-movie star phase, such as Robert Redford.

I usually watch six episodes before rotating to -

The Avengers, filling my spy/SCiFi slot.

I'm in season 3, and Emman Peel isn't even in it yet. John Steed's partner is Honor Blackman, who played the Bond girl, Pussy Galore, in Goldfinger.

The episodes are ok, in black and white, with cheap sets. Sometimes the episodes are suggestive of what's to come as it veers more into camp and sci-fi. I'm patient, though. We'll get there.

Earlier this slot was filled with The Man From U.N.C.L.E, a favorite from my youth. I still have Season 4 to see, but I have to buy that. It's not accessible any other way.

This is all courtesy of the power of streaming.  

Happy viewing - whatever your cup of tea and crumpet!

**I mean, all of that generation were in that TV era - just not all became as absorbed in it as I did. In fourth grade, some of my classmates proclaimed loudly that they NEVER watched TV.  Then those same classmates did a skit in class based on The Jack Parr show (the forerunner to Johnny Carson). At the time, I didn't even know who the hell that was.

* Those mentioned are just examples of each category.  There are a number of others, such as The Adventures of Lois & Clark, where Dean Cain, the far-right extremist and short-lived ICE agent, plays Superman.  To be fair, I did not know that when the show was originally on.

Return of Wednesday Wanderings!

 

 Back in the Golden Days, when I would post almost every day, I had a feature called Wednesday Wanderings.  It would allow me to comment on multiple topics, things that I didn't think justified a full post of their own, or I was too lazy to expand.  Well, I'm back!

Health Update

I'm doing pretty good!  I had a follow-up rheumatology appointment, and I got my best analysis of the problem to date.  What I had assumed was primarily rheumatoid arthritis may be as much osteo-related (bones) as it is.  It has helped refocus my treatment, and I feel much better.  I should be going in for a bone density test very soon.

They asked me if I had broken any bones.  Uhh, just twice.  Once, around 8 or so, when a kid shoved me out of the garage window, I tried to brace myself with my right arm, and I about snapped it in half. The second was in high school, playing soccer, when I ran into a kid and bent my right-hand index finger back. Come to think of it, I might go back and make a whole blog about these incidents.

My Dad, who grew up on a dairy farm and chugged milk and dairy products, developed osteoporosis in his 80s. My mother, who was lactose intolerant and avoided dairy, had bones like a rock.

My son Benjamin has broken two of the hardest bones to break, his shoulder blade and femur.  He might ought to have a bone density test.

Talarico Tracker

Stuningly, last night, Texas Republicans selected Ken Paxton as their Senatorial candidate.  Ken Paxton is super corrupt from many different angles - financial, political, and sexual.  I mean, really, he's corrupt enough to make even Trump envious as to what he gets away with.

I saw an interview with a Texas voter who said he was going to vote for his incumbent Senator Cornyn, but he switched to Paxton after Trump endorsed him.  I mean, really? Can you imagine being that far up the butt of a cult?

Paxton should be an easier candidate for Talarico to defeat.  Unless Musk deploys his space lasers again.

Reading

Currently reading the second novel in the Beartown hockey series.  It's by Fredrik Backman, a Swedish writer, set in a small Swedish town, and rich with interesting characters.  Fortunately for me, it has been translated into English, which helps me immensely.

I'm also reading a collection of the earliest Supergirl stories, dating back to the late fifties.  I like reading about the early character developments of our most iconic superheroes.  

Movies

Not seeing too many. Looking forward to the Supergirl movie in June, and will soon re-read the graphic novel it is based on, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow.

Continuing my watch of the Top 100 Science Fiction movies of the 20th Century, I am stuck on The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms. A 1953 movie that helped start the giant monster trend has been difficult to find.

TV

Just finished The Boys.  Loved it! I've read the entire Boys comic series (some 60-plus issues), and yeah, I realize the TV show ended somewhat differently, but I'm more than ok with it.  I'm super tired of everybody whining about how series end on TV.  It's impossible for writers and others to come up with an ending that will make everyone happy.  The parallels between the series and our increasing drift towards fascism were incredible, especially since some of the storylines predated some of Trump's vile antics.

Well, I've wandered enough for one post.

Wanderingly Yours,

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

A Look Out the Window

 This is Scout, my kitty pal.  He's on the porch side of our kitchen window.  He can climb anywhere.

Actually, he's not really a kitten anymore.  He'll be one a week from now. That's our best guess for his birthday, and we're sticking to it.

I'm not a cat person, but I am a Scout person.  I've never had a cat want to be with me so much.

Personal Health

At 70, health can be like a game of whack-a-mole.

Diabetes? Bam! Under control! Blood pressure? Bam!  Better, but not teenager-like.  Weight? Bam? Lost about 30 lbs! Prostate biopsy due to slow rise in PSA? Bam! No cancer or abnormalities!

Arthritic flare-ups in feet, knees, and legs?  Bam! Went to a Rheumatologist in Valdosta and was prescribed a better medicine that has greatly reduced pain!  Enough where I can sit at the computer a little bit longer and write more!

Writing

Now I can return to The Strait Line more (now with over a million views!) and pursue some of my other writing projects.

For the second time, I am a runner-up in the Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine's Mysterious Photograph contest. Maybe I should expand and try some other contests.

Future topics for the Strait Line:

President Talarico

Top 100 Sci-Fi Films of the 20th Century continued

More stories from the Kingdom (near-future flash fictions that extrapolate into a darker future if we allow fascism to continue to grow and thrive)

More stories from the Stony Land (adaptations from my father's research into my family's history of the Straits in America, going back 13 generations)

Stop! In the Name of Democracy! How to fix the happenings with the Supremes!

More Scout, Pixie, Alison, Benjamin, and Retta! 

Television and Movies

I finished Season 3 of The Diplomat last night.  You would think that, given my personality and interests, I would love more political series, but I am often drawn away from them because of their lack of realism.  With THe Diplomat it's not so much that's not realistic, it's thast it's sometimes amoral.  Even the lead characters commit subtrefuge that I'm shocked thatthey're willing to do that. The acting sometimes is a little stiff or overreaching.  It had enough good moments though, thast I will watch Season 4 when it comes out.

Alsion and I started Season 2 of THe Pitt last night.  It's very, very good, but both of us are squeamish during some of the surgery scenes, and we turn to each other and ask, "Why are we eatching this?"  It's compleeing characters and important social commentary - that's what gets us through.

Not much to say about movies, other than i am really looking forward to Supergril.

Sports

I'll just list my favorites.

MLS: Atlanta United

NWSL: Portland Thorns

MLB: Detroit Tigers

NBA: Detroit Pistons (in the playoffs! Woot! Woot!)

NHL: Detroit Red Wings

NCAA any sport: Michigan Wolverines (my alma mater)

Can anyone tell by this I grew up in Michigan?

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

Return of the Wednesday Wanderings

 This may be for faithful followers only.

I used to do this type of post that would wander from topic to topic.

Well, as I re-anchor what my blog is for, I'll wander for a little while.  Some of these may be developed later.  Others may just sink into the ether.

HEALTH UPDATE

As some may know from prior posts, I am now struggling with type 2 diabetes. 

After they finally realized I couldn't swallow metformin, I started Rybelsus, which is the pill form of Ozempic.

Within a month, I lost 12 pounds.  Also, my first lab work shows a reduction in blood glucose from 133 to 86, and an A1C reduction from 6.7 to 6.1.  

They have changed my pill from 3mg to 7mg.  I thought maybe I would lose more weight, but instead it has stabilized.  I'd love to lose more, but the important thing is my numbers are way better.

A word about being on Ozemopic—it wasn't something I demanded.  I just needed a pill I could swallow.  It is a bit embarrassing to me now that MAGA idiots like Dr. Oz are promoting the drug so heavily, even just for weight loss.  I swear to you, my primary goal is not weight loss.  It's controlling diabetes.  

My blood pressure, on the other hand, has not made similar improvements. Weight loss, exercise, or diet will not get me down to teenage levels of blood pressure readings.  But I'm monitoring more closely, and time will tell.

POLITICAL UPDATE

The corporate Democrats caving on the shutdown and insisting that the ACA credits be preserved is heartbreaking, but, sadly, not unexpected.  You know they are gonna Lucy with the football that thing.  No surprise that any promise the Republicans make means s--t.

Things like this make me proud to call myself an Independent Progressive and not a Democrat.

By the way, you do realize that when the Republicans call it the Democrat Party instead of the Democratic Party, they are hurling an insult?  The press used to note this to Republicans who would slur this, but not anymore.  Now it flies unchecked so much that I think many of you don't know it's wrong.

ENTERTAINMENT UPDATE

I haven't given up on the Top 100 20th Century Science Fiction countdown.  It takes me a while to find and see them.  I'm using a dozen or more sources, including premium and free streaming services (I make no apologies for being a streamaholic).  I also use the library, and if it comes to worst, I am renting them.  It all takes time.

I'm also thinking of a list of my top ten favorite movies.  There will be individual selections, as well as categories.  I would name Blazing Saddles as a favorite, but I would also highlight all my other Mel Brooks favorites.

I may post about what I am streaming and my recommendations.  Right now, I am watching the third season of Invasion on Apple+ TV.  It's not bad, but some episodes move slowly, and the storyline sometimes diverges into things that make you want to go - Could you please just get back to the story?

RELIGION UPDATE

Yep. I'm still at Grace Episcopal. Yep, I still work part-time for the church.  It gets frustrating around budget time, but I'm hanging in there.

The image above is designed to draw in unsuspecting readers. It kinda speaks for itself.  There's some uproar about a woman who called religious entities with a plea for food and formula for her young child.  Of course, the mosques and Hindu temples were all in.  Of course, the Christian Right churches were declining to help. Of course.

The Christian Reich is a heretical embarrassment, and I just pray that genuine Christianity survives it.  We are making a very, very bad impression, folks.

WRITING UPDATE

It's frustrating, but I'll try to do better.  I need to re-establish a writing routine, but it has been fairly elusive.  Wish me luck.

I am not getting my Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine subscription in time to compete in the Mysterius Photograph contest.  That is deeply frustrating to me. I may need to find other flash fiction contests to compete in.

FAMILY UPDATE

Alison and I celebrated our 29th wedding anniversary with a stay on St. Simons.  It was brief but good to get away.

Benjamin has survived the shutdown, and his job is going well.  He likes the work and the people he is working with.

I've enjoyed soccer conversations with my two older boys, and get video messages from my Granddaughter, Retta.  I would love to show you pictures of her, but there is an understandable ban on any pictures on Social Media.

PET UPDATE

I love Scout and Pixie.  Scout and Pixie love me. Especially around meal time.

Wanderingly Yours,

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

The Legacy of Monday Musings

A brief return to a legacy feature of The Strait Line - Monday Musings. 

I usually have one show that I watch before I go to bed. Currently, that is Monarch: Legacy of Monsters. I have seen some Godzilla and Associates movies over the years, but I would not describe myself as a huge fan, nor would I say I thoroughly dislike them.

This one has its pluses and minuses. The biggest plus is that it has one of my favorite actors, Kurt Russell, and his son, Wayne Russell. Wayne plays the same part as his Dad at an earlier point in history. He does not have quite the skills and charms as his father, but he doesn't miss by much. The biggest minus is that there is a lot of focus on a trio of young adults whose storylines are not that interesting - suggestive of a CW show or a less-funny Scooby gang.

The monsters in it are huge, but somehow they don't seem too threatening.

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Generally, by this time of year, I am completely done with American football. But Michigan went all the way to the National Collegiate Championship (and WINNING it!), and even more incredibly, the Detroit Lions are in the NFL playoffs, and they WON their first game (first playoff win since 1992).

Could the Lions win the Super Bowl? Oh, my Lord, I can't believe I just wrote those words. Take it a game at a time, Son. A game at a time.

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The low-turn-out Iowa Caucus was held last night. There was terrible weather, and that helped diminish attendance. Only the most dedicated and crazed showed up. And guess who benefits from that? The Orange Insurrectionist got a bare majority, 51%, earning about 56,000 votes from fellow fascists; that represents roughly 1.75% of Iowa's population.

None of this gives me any comfort whatsoever. The fact that anyone is so far removed from American Democracy that they would consider voting for this misogynist racist chills me to the bone and keeps me up at night.

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I made good progress on my lifestyle changes last week. My weight edged down, and my blood pressure improved. Then the weekend came. Oh, well. I'll get the hang of this yet.

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Please keep checking out your public libraries. Besides wonderful books, many are always doing special programs and events that are fun to participate in.  And the price? FREE!

Musingly Yours,

T. M. Strait

All Kinds of Storytelling

 

I love storytelling. All kinds, all forms.

I read. Classics, history, biography, science fiction, fantasy, mysteries, thrillers. Just to name a few. In addition, I read comic books, graphic novels, magazines, current events, and blogs.

I watch. TV and movies. I don't binge hard - seeing full seasons in a day or two. But I slow binge and see a variety of stuff. I see an episode or two with Alison on most evenings. Recently we finished Season 4 of Orville, and when that was done, we saw the first season of Mayfair Witches (based on the Anne Rice books). Last night we started House of the Dragons, the Game of Thrones prequel. And, yes, I've read the book the series is based on, Fire and Blood, by George R R Martin.

I watch an episode of something after Alison goes to bed (she likes to get 7 to 8 hours of sleep, and it's difficult for me to sleep much more than 5 or 6). I've started Station Eleven, a series dealing with the aftermath of a virus that wipes out most of the population.

I also watch silent movies. I watch them for about ten or fifteen minutes, so they take me a week or so to see. The most recent I've seen is The Passion of Joan of Arc.

You can laugh at me all you want, but I've picked up watching the soap opera Days of Our Lives. I skip over chunks of it - I don't care which character is schlepping with another character. But the show has fantastical elements - resurrected characters, brainwashing, visits to heaven, purgatory, hell, and a mad scientist. There are whodunits, and I love a good mystery.

I perform. I've done a hundred or more community theater productions. I love being a Lector and Intercessor at church. Recently, as a lay episcopal minister, I've even been able to do a couple of sermons.

Most special of all, through the magic of the interwebs, I've been able to read stories to my granddaughter. I've also been able to read to children at our local public libraries. 

Someday, I would like to do podcasts and/or audiobooks. I possess the voice and talent - I do not possess the technical skills. Maybe someday I can find somebody to help me with that.

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

Peeking Out With Supergirl

 

Been gone for a while.

But...good news! Both Alison and I recovered from COVID and are doing well. Alison's case was milder than mine. Mine was a little more intense...had a day where I was foggy and mostly slept, with a slight fever, and another day where I was worried because my cough deepened. But...thanks to vaccines, proper care, prayer (thank you, Grace Episcopal!), and in my case Paxlovid, we're doing well. Alison and I have some residual cough and congestion, but it is getting lighter daily.

I am grateful that Benjamin did not test positive. He is back at school for his last semester.

I am most grateful that Alison's Mom, Rose, did not get it. She exhibited no symptoms at all. We were worried because she was with us at the Christmas Eve service, which appeared to be Event Central for the COVID spread.

Even our cat pictured above, in my favorite reading chair, along with my Supergirl throw pillow, was ill for a couple of days, not eating and throwing up a little, not wanting to move much. But she is completely back to normal now! She'll be 16 in May and is rarely ill. So we were pleased when she started perking back up.

SPORTS!

I was disappointed that Michigan narrowly lost to TCU but ecstatic at the whooping Georgia put on them. Local Blackshear lad, Quarterback Stetson Bennett IV, was brilliant. Will he make it as a professional quarterback? Who knows? Who knows if he even wants to? But they can't take this from him - one of only a handful of NCAA quarterbacks to lead his team to back-to-back championships!

Each game has to be taken individually. Is the SEC the only conference that counts? I hope not. OSU came within a missed field goal of beating Georgia. And who won a decisive victory against OSU in the regular season? That's right - MICHIGAN!!!

POLITICS!

Good lord. What a shameful disgrace the Republican-controlled House of Representatives is. To win the Speakership, McCarthy had to sell his soul to his party's darkest and most extreme elements.

Most of this will make a disgusting show as the Republican House passes one stupid and destructive bill after another. Then, they will have nonsensical REVENGE committees that will be a lava flow of misinformation and bull hockey.

All of this just makes for extra stupid theater. The one place they are dangerous is forcing government shutdowns over funding and the debt ceiling, with the goal being to slash money from social security and medicare. You would think that would upset some people, but in today's divided media environment, who knows?

TV and Movies!

I just finished the series 1899, the new series from the creators of the excellent German series Dark. It was one of the best things I've seen in YEARS. If you want to know what it's like, read some of the stories that I've written. The imagination in this show is just churning out in buckets!

And, of course, Netflix has already canceled this, so it's a one-and-done. Nevertheless, it's still worth seeing. This series gets one season, and Manifest receives at least four???

We did not get out to see movies during our Christmas COVID break. We managed to see Black Adam, which was a'right, but nothing stood out to me. The new Discovery owners of HBO Max are like Netflix times ten in their horrible swath of canceling projects - Batgirl, Wonder Woman 3, the new Superman movie - all canceled by these worthless clowns. Their new owner is a Trump-endorsing billionaire. Spoiler alert- as part of this atrocity, he controls CNN and DC Comics. Clinton News Network, my ass!

Finally!

As a final note for today's post, I will NOT post these to my Facebook page this month. I want to see how low I can go.

Until next time, 

T. M. Strait