My anger at the Walmart situation from Friday is getting worse.

As if the actual incident wasn’t bad enough, more details are emerging of how people went on to purchase televisions as Jdimytai Damourlaid in the entry way, presumably already dead.  No one stopped shopping until the Nassau County Police shut down the store as a crime scene.

Michael Daly of the New York Daily News has assembled more details of how the line started forming at 9 PM the night before.  When the line reached the end of the parking a lot, a line began forming on the other side of the doors, leading to a presumption of line jumping.  The doors were to open at 5 AM, but at 4:45 the crowd surged forward as the doors of the store buckled, leading to Mr. Damourlaid being knocked over and eventually trampled.  There are also now reports that a woman miscarried her child in the melee.

How is this particular Walmart handling the situation?  Business as usual.  The glass in front of where the incident happened has been covered up with cardboard, the greeters are in place, and customers continue to shop.  Why is this store not closed?  The police are still investigating…  You are asking employees and customers to walk over the spot where a man died… no, really, stay open and continue to sell your goods.  Please do.

Of course, it isn’t just Walmart that is making me roll my eyes over this whole issue.  According to CNN, Bruce Both, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1500 in New York, the state’s largest grocery worker’s union, is also on my naughty list.  He is taking this as an oppurtunity to say how Walmart failed, but it is an extremely thinly veiled commentary on how if the store had been unionized… you get the idea.  The UCFW is also calling for an investigation “by all levels of government” to make sure that justice is served.  I have this to say to the UCFW… you are no better than this Walmart staying open at this point.  You are using this man as a martyr for your cause and you should be ashamed of yourselves.  Let the police do their investigation, let Walmart deal with the family, and if after all that is said and done you still aren’t satisfied, which I’m sure you won’t be, then you can say something.  Until then, sit down and shut up because you are just using this unfortunate incident to further your own ends.

Could someone else tell me why the gun battle in a Toys R’ Us in Palm Desert, California isn’t getting anywhere neat the coverage?  Two women got in an argument, it is unknown if it was over a sale items, and the men with them both pulled guns and opened fire, resulting in both men dying.  Luckily no one else was hurt, but, still… THERE WAS A GUN FIGHT IN A TOY STORE!!! It’s getting some coverage, but it is always followed by, ‘we don’t know if it was over a sale item’, and you can almost hear them want to add, ’so it doesn’t matter nearly as much.’

Thankfully no one else was hurt in the shoot out, but, still… guns… in a toy store… and no one seems to care nearly as much.  I guess it’s okay since the two idiots only killed each other.

Enjoy Black Friday from here on out folks, I’m staying home no matter what is on sale.

In what is becoming an annual list, I’m going to share the holiday programming I enjoy every year.  However, I am changing the format a bit this year with ones I think everyone should own on DVD, and then following it up with a list of what is airing in the month of December, and on what channels and times you can find them (if you are in the USA that is).

A Charlie Brown Christmas – It’s amazing this show has aired every year since 1965, and it never seems to get old.  This was the first of the Charlie Brown specials, and was probably the best of them.  Interesting how something that aired in 1965 still seems so relevant in how Christmas has become all about consumerism.

A Christmas Carol – Patrick Stewart is a classically trained actor and he brings a powerful tone to the role of Scrooge. A fantastic version of this classic tale of Christmas spirit.  This has become one of my first watch items each Christmas season.

A Christmas Story – Being set in the 1940’s does nothing to diminish the fun, or relevance, of this movie. Every kid has had that “dream” gift on their Christmas list that it seemed no one wanted you to have. Fun, cute and so many quotable lines. “You’ll shoot your eye out” if you miss this one!

Elf – I am shocked how fast I took a liking to this film, and I watched it multiple times last year around Christmas.  I then spend the entire year screaming, “YOU SIT ON A THRONE OF LIES!  You smell of meat and cheese!”

Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas – Sadly it seems the only version floating around of this Jim Henson special is somewhat cut up from the original version with Kermit the Frog cut out of the beginning and end.  Still, Henson’s work was always magical, and this special from 1977 is just another example of how good he really was.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas – This is a special I really never got wild about, but it’s a mainstay of the season, so it makes it.

It’s a Wonderful Life – Come on…do I even really need to discuss this one? Is there anyone alive who hasn’t seen this? Actually I did find someone a few years ago…and I promptly pointed her out for the heretic she is… and then I bought her a copy and mailed it to her, forcing her to watch it.  This is one of my all time favorite movies. Jimmy Stewart is amazing.

Love Actually – Really, the only connection to Christmas is the time of year, and a couple of holiday jokes, but it’s cute and sweet. Never mind it has a stellar cast of English actors and actresses.

Miracle on 34th Street – While some can believe it’s like a film length ad for Macy’s department store, it’s still a cute film with a central message that Christmas can be magical for any number of reasons.

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation – The Vacation movies have been a mixed bag (as has most of Chevy Chase’s career), but this film is so easy to relate to. We all have those dreams of the perfect family Christmas, just to have them dashed and never have them live up to our hopes. Plus, the Cousin Eddie scene in white sweater, with green dickie, is worth the entire price of the movie!

The Nightmare Before Christmas – Not only is it a sweet story, and amazing to watch, how can you not love a movie that can make both the Halloween AND Christmas movie lists?  And without it, would Hot Topic have anything to sell.

The Original Television Christmas Classics (Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer / Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town / Frosty the Snowman / Frosty Returns / The Little Drummer Boy) – I recommend this primarily for Rudolph, but now you can only get it with all this other stuff. Oh well. What is Christmas without Rudolph? Nothing I tell you!  Although Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town is pretty darn amusing also.

Santa Claus – The Movie – This movie got ravaged by critics, but it is cute, funny and warm. Deal with it.

Star Wars Holiday Special – This thing has never been released to video, and aired only once on television on November 17th, 1978.  It is two hours of solid pin set in the Star Wars universe.  What is even sadder is the original cast of Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Anthony Daniels and so on all appear in the special… along with the likes of Harvey Korman, Art Carney and Bea Arthur.  Yes… you read all of that correctly.  You can find the Star Wars Holiday Special online, but be prepared to cringe.  The only cool thing is that it does feature the first appearance of Boba Fett, albeit in an animated form.

And yes, I know a lot of these movies show up on TV, but if it’s something like It’s A Wonderful Life, PLEASE don’t watch it on commercial television. It is deserving of your hard earned money being spent on a DVD of it. Same with Christmas Vacation. Christmas Story I don’t mind because it’s a 24-hour marathon, I usually watch it 3 – 4 times through out the time period. Yes… 3 – 4 times, I love it that much.

2008 Holiday Specials On TV Schedule

I will be putting this list up by network and in order of airing.

ABC:

Dec. 1, 8-9pm: Shrek the Halls and Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas (animated version)
Dec. 2, 8-9pm: Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town
Dec. 5, 8-10pm: Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas (live-action version)
Dec. 8, 8-9pm: A Charlie Brown Christmas
Dec. 9, 8-9pm: America’s Funniest Home Videos Christmas Special
Dec. 13, 8-9pm: America’s Funniest Home Videos Christmas Special
Dec. 13, 9-11pm: Surviving Christmas
Dec. 14, 8-10pm: The Santa Clause 2
Dec. 15, 8-9pm: I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
Dec. 16, 8-9pm: A Charlie Brown Christmas
Dec. 20, 8-9pm: I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
Dec. 20, 9-11pm: Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat
Dec. 22, 8-8:30pm: Shrek the Halls
Dec. 23, 8-9pm: Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas (animated version)
Dec. 30, 8-9:30pm: Happy New Year, Charlie Brown and Rudolph’s Shiny New Year

CBS:

Dec. 3, 8-9pm: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Dec. 12, 8-9pm: Frosty the Snowman and Frosty Returns
Dec. 20, 8-10pm: Elf
Dec. 23, 8-9pm: 10th Annual Home for the Holidays with Faith Hill

Fox:

None… apparently they have no holiday spirit!

NBC:

Dec. 3, 8-9pm: Christmas in Rockefeller Center
Friday, Dec. 5, 8-9pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: TV & Film Countdown
Dec. 10, 8-9pm: Little Spirit: A New York Christmas
Dec. 12, 8-9pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: Songs of the Season Countdown
Dec. 13, 8-11pm: It’s a Wonderful Life
Dec. 17, 8-9pm: A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa (BRAND NEW, MUST WATCH!)
Dec. 19, 8-10pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: TV & Film Countdown and Greatest Holiday Moments: Songs of the Season Countdown
Dec. 22, 8-9pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: Hilarious Home Video Countdown
Dec. 24, 8-11pm: It’s a Wonderful Life
Dec. 25, 10-11pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: Hilarious Home Video Countdown

MyNetwork TV:

Dec. 6, 8-10pm: Miracle on 34th Street
Dec. 8, 8-10pm: Blizzard
Dec. 9, 8-10pm: Olive the Other Reindeer and Santa’s Funniest Moments
Dec. 10, 8-10pm: Home Alone
Dec. 16, 8-10pm: Soul of Christmas
Dec. 17, 8-10pm: Christmas is Here Again and Santa’s Funniest Moments
Dec. 18, 8-9pm: Wrestlemania Holiday Special
Dec. 22, 8-10pm: The Spirit of Christmas
Dec. 23, 8-10pm: Babes in Toyland

The CW:

Dec. 5, 8-9pm: Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer
Dec. 5, 9-10pm: The Story of Santa Claus

2008 Holiday Special on TV By Date

(All times listed are EST)
Dec. 1, 8-9pm: Shrek the Halls and Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas (animated version), ABC
Dec. 2, 8-9pm: Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town, ABC
Dec. 3, 8-9pm: Christmas in Rockefeller Center, NBC
Dec. 3, 8-9pm: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, CBS
Dec. 5, 8-9pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: TV & Film Countdown, NBC
Dec. 5, 8-9pm: Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer, The CW
Dec. 5, 8-10pm: Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas (live-action version), ABC
Dec. 5, 9-10pm: The Story of Santa Claus, The CW
Dec. 6, 8-10pm: Miracle on 34th Street, MyNetwork TV
Dec. 8, 8-9pm: A Charlie Brown Christmas, ABC
Dec. 8, 8-10pm: Blizzard, MyNetwork TV
Dec. 9, 8-9pm: America’s Funniest Home Videos Christmas Special, ABC
Dec. 9, 8-10pm: Olive the Other Reindeer and Santa’s Funniest Moments, MyNetwork TV
Dec. 10, 8-10pm: Home Alone, MyNetwork TV
Dec. 10, 8-9pm: Little Spirit: A New York Christmas, NBC
Dec. 12, 8-9pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: Songs of the Season Countdown, NBC
Dec. 12, 8-9pm: Frosty the Snowman and Frosty Returns, CBS
Dec. 13, 8-9pm: America’s Funniest Home Videos Christmas Special, ABC
Dec. 13, 8-11pm: It’s a Wonderful Life, NBC
Dec. 13, 9-11pm: Surviving Christmas, ABC
Dec. 14, 8-10pm: The Santa Clause 2, ABC
Dec. 15, 8-9pm: I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown, ABC
Dec. 16, 8-9pm: A Charlie Brown Christmas, ABC
Dec. 16, 8-10pm: Soul of Christmas, MyNetwork TV
Dec. 17, 8-10pm: Christmas is Here Again and Santa’s Funniest Moments, MyNetwork TV
Dec. 17, 8-9pm: A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa (BRAND NEW, MUST WATCH!), NBC
Dec. 18, 8-9pm: Wrestlemania Holiday Special, MyNetwork TV
Dec. 19, 8-10pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: TV & Film Countdown and Greatest Holiday Moments: Songs of the Season Countdown, NBC
Dec. 20, 8-9pm: I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown, ABC
Dec. 20, 8-10pm: Elf, CBS
Dec. 20, 9-11pm: Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat, ABC
Dec. 22, 8-8:30pm: Shrek the Halls, ABC
Dec. 22, 8-9pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: Hilarious Home Video Countdown, NBC
Dec. 22, 8-10pm: The Spirit of Christmas, MyNetwork TV
Dec. 23, 8-9pm: 10th Annual Home for the Holidays with Faith Hill, CBS
Dec. 23, 8-9pm: Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas (animated version), ABC
Dec. 23, 8-10pm: Babes in Toyland, MyNetwork TV
Dec. 24, 8-11pm: It’s a Wonderful Life, NBC
Dec. 25, 10-11pm: Greatest Holiday Moments: Hilarious Home Video Countdown, NBC
Dec. 30, 8-9:30pm: Happy New Year, Charlie Brown and Rudolph’s Shiny New Year, ABC

You have a fave? Talk about it!

Black Friday needs to be ended as we know it, and it needs to happen immediately.

This morning in Long Island, NY, a 34-year-old overnight stock clerk was trampled to death as he attempted to assist in holding back the crowds.  According to reports from the Daily News, the crush was powerful enough that the doors were knocked from their hinges, and the clerk was knocked to the floor and crushed to death.

A later report from the Post Chronicle lists that a pregnant woman was knocked to the ground and later miscarried at a local hospital from the trauma.

I’ve done the Black Friday sales in the past, but I’ve given them up because 1) my sleep matter more to me than saving a few dollars and 2) I didn’t enjoy the antics of the other shoppers.  More and more companies are taking their Black Friday sales online, and I am at the point that if it isn’t online, I don’t really know if I need it.

Do I think Black Friday sales will end?  No, they won’t, but precautions are going to have to be taken to prevent situations like this.  Looking at the Walmart, it appears to not be one of their 24/7 stores, and that probably added to the problem, but whatever caused it, it was wrong.  Some reports I saw through out the day said that a few people stopped to check things out once paramedics were trying to save the man, but otherwise people were too focused on their cheap TVs and $1.50 towels to be worried about the man they were trampling over or was laying there in pain as time passed.

Friends of mine worry about the fact I rarely leave my property unless I absolutely have to.  Tell me why I should?  People worry about the fact I like to do my grocery shopping at 12 or 1 AM.  Fewer people, folks, why should I go during the day?  We’ve all seen my feelings about grocery shopping etiquette.  I don’t want to turn in to a hermit to be honest, but can someone tell me what motivation there is to go out in to public with people that will crush a man to get a cheap TV?

Mankind never ceases to amaze me.  My deepest condolonces to this man’s family and to the woman who had her miscarriage.  To those who trampled and crushed forward… I have no words for you.

I did not intend to skip doing the show this week, but since I can not currently breathe through my nose, and the pressure in my head makes it near impossible to swallow, talking for a half hour on a podcast isn’t going to work well.

So, sorry to all 10 or 11 of you who listen to the show each week.  I will save my rant for this week (it’s about turkey, and what people do to it…) for an episode closer to Christmas so it will be relevant again.

This is a definite drawback to doing a one man podcast show, but oh well, hopefully this will be the only time it happens, and I am trying to think of ways to avoid it happening again in the future.  Be sure to check back next week for episode 20 of Scattercast.

Remember the picture of my dinner from last Thanksgiving?  Pretty wasn’t it?  I was going to share a picture again, but 2 hours after finishing our dinners… we’re still waiting on the turkey to be done.

Now mind you this is not the fault of anyone here, it is the fault of we got a new convection oven this year, which is supposed to cook faster… well… yeah, about that… um… yeah, not so much.

So the turkey looked to be done when the rest of dinner was ready, but once we cut into it, it wasn’t, so we ate all the fixings… just not the turkey.  While disappointing, it wasn’t a deal breaker.  Oh well, just that many more turkey leftovers… bring on the turkey goulash!

Otherwise, sinus problems made my day miserable, but the rest of dinner was excellent.  mmmm stuffing and gravy…

***MAJOR SPOILERS***

Continue Reading ->

Remember getting up on Saturday morning to watch cartoons?  Well, that’s quickly coming to an end.

In January, Fox will end its contract with the 4Kids cartoon block, which will then move over to The CW.  Considering the health of that “network” (I use the term very loosely), this is pretty much the death throes of the Saturday morning cartoon as we knew it.

It is true that this is partially being done because they don’t feel they can compete with channels like Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Toon Disney and so on, so kids won’t be totally without enterteinment, but it is still sad.  What bothers me the most about this decision is that Fox isn’t replacing the cartoons with educational shows or the like, but instead they will be treated to “longform ads”… yeah… infomercials.

By no stretch of the imagination am I saying that cartoons were ever educational, though they tried, but replacing a tradition with commercials for the likes of cleaners, the Handy Switch and you just know Billy Mays will be in there somewhere.  Why not run something educational?  Heck, bring back School House Rocks! Sure their animation may be dated, but not much about what they taught has changed… unless… was there one about our solar system having nine planets?

It just saddens me on some level to see this coming to an end.  I can remember as a kid living for Saturday mornings, and always being torn about which cartoon would win if there were two on at the same time I wanted to watch.  All the while, munching down on a giant bowl of cereal I had concocted from mixing 4 to 5 different styles together.  You know, now that I think about it… maybe it was Saturday morning cartoons that led to my weight problems!

Stupid cartoons!

Oh well, still sad.

One of my hard rules on this blog since I started was no serious discussions of religion… with the exception of Scientologists.  Well, welcome to me breaking that rule.

I have not attended church with the exception of weddings and funerals since December of 1985.  I remember that so clearly because it was Christmas Eve of the year I was 14 that I finally spoke up that I had no interest in going to midnight mass.  I have nothing against people worshiping in the ways they see fit, so long as it does not infringe on another person.

Just because I don’t go to church doesn’t mean I have no faith, I just don’t see why a person has to go to a designated building, on a designated day to display their faith.  Even at 14 I saw too many people that were holy only for that one hour on Sundays, and never at any other time.  I just had no interest in going anymore, but that’s just me.

When I did go to church, I was raised in the Episcopal church, and I still consider myself Episcopalian.  For those of you unfamiliar with the faith, it is better known as the Anglican Communion in Europe, and was the church formed by Henry the VIII when the Pope would not grant him a divorce from Anne Boleyn.  To say that the Episcopalians tend to be a bit more liberal than most Christian faiths would be an understatement.  We allow our priests to marry, we have no confession, as I have always explained it, “think of us as Catholic Lite, same great faith, half the guilt.’

So, imagine my surprise when I learned there is a rift in the church being brought about the “conservative” Episcopalians.

… excuse me?  The what?!?

“Conservative Episcopalians” sounds to me like “vegetarians that eat meat”, the two don’t go together well in a sentence.  That isn’t to say that Episcopalians aren’t a diverse group of people in everyday life, but when it comes to matters of the church, it just seems odd.  At the core of their fight with the higher ranks of the church is over the acceptance of gays into the clergy, the blessings of gay commitments and, the one that shocks me, women being allowed into the clergy.

Women have been part of the clergy for quite some time now, and there was even a British sitcom, The Vicar of Dibley, which revolved around a female member of the clergy.  That has been around for quite some time now, so I find it odd people are taking issue with it now.

So far six dioceses in the United States have broken away from the church and have aligned with a new Episcopal church from Argentina.  Why Argentina?  I have no clue, but it appears that is where this movement has come from.  I find it odd that six complete dioceses have voted to leave the main church, and that says to me that their ministers are leaning that way to begin with, and convincing their congregations to follow along.  My question is if these people were so unhappy in the church, why hadn’t they left already for another church?  Maybe it’s just me, just seems a little over dramatic the way it was done.

So, why do I blog this?  For some reason it cracks me up that a church that was formed as a revolt against another church, now has a splinter group forming as a revolt against it.  As for me, if I still went to church, or was to ever return, it would still be to the main Episcopal church, because, as Eddie Izzard said in Dressed to Kill, “But you can’t do that in Church of England, you can’t say, “You must have tea and cake with the Vicar, or you die!” You can’t have extreme points of view, you know. The Spanish Inquisition wouldn’t have worked with Church of England”

And with that, I leave you with this parting shot also from his show that really sums up the difference between our church and others.

So the Pagan religion I don’t know a huge amount about, but it was this earthy thing. Christianity had split into many different areas – Catholicism still has the fire and brimstone,( beating drum ) “Row, you bastards!” You know… Original sin! What a hellish idea that is! People have to go,

“Father, bless me for I have sinned, I did an original sin! I poked a badger with a spoon.”

“I’ve never heard of that one before! Five Hail Mary’s and two Hello, Dolly’s.”

“Oh, all right…”

“Bless me, Father, for I have slept with my next door neighbor’s wife.”

“Heard it! I want an original sin.”

“Oh, I’m terribly sorry!”

The Anglican faith doesn’t have that. You’ll never go,

“Vicar, I have done many bad things.”

“Well, so have I.”

“What shall I do?”

“Well, drink five Bloody Marys and you won’t remember.”

Yeah… that pretty much sums up my confusion over the idea we have “conservative Episcopalians”.

With another year under their belt, why does Blu-ray still seem to be another “also ran” in the home media market?

It was one year ago today that I announced that I had decided to go with HD-DVD, and I knew full well that probably meant I had picked the wrong format in the high def war.  I was proven right in February of this year when HD-DVD threw in the towel, and it looked like a lock that Blu-ray would become the dominant format.

So, why hasn’t it happened?  Blu-ray is still languishing with only a single digit percentage of the home media market, and it doesn’t look to be gainging more traction with the economy in its current uncertain state.  As I see it, Blu-ray is fighting a multi pronged fight that it didn’t even ponder it was going to have to.

• As people have said everywhere, DVDs still look too good on a high def television to warrant people running out and buying yet another format.  With upconverting DVD players pushing standard definition discs to near HD quality, and those players still selling for less than a Blu-ray player, it’s hard for people to make the justification for going with Blu-ray.
• Even when people do go with Blu-ray, they are not buying films in the numbers they were with regular DVDs.
• Streaming media is becoming more common, and on numerous devices people already own.  For instance, the fact that you can stream Netflix films via the XBox 360 now.  Why purchase what you can stream, and be out more money and space in your home?
• The prices for Blu-ray players and their accompanying discs are still just too high compared to their standard definition counterparts.

You add up all of these problems, and it doesn’t look too promising for the high def format.  Yes, I fully admit that this may sound like sour grapes over me goign HD-DVD, but it isn’t, because I have been very close to throwing in the towel and buying a Blu-ray player several times since February.  At this point I don’t think buying into an HD format is a wise choice for any one.  Streaming is becoming more and more prevalent, and I don’t see standard def DVDs going anywhere, so I’m thinking it may be wise to just sit out this home media iteration and see where the chips land.

In short, don’t be me and put all your money on what could be a losing horse.

Those of you have read this blog for any amount of time, you know I think Arrested Development was one of the finest shows to ever grace television airwaves, and now it may be gracing the silver screen also.

The series ran for three seasons on Fox, and was possibly one of the most well crafted sitcoms ever.  While you could sit down and watch one episode, there were numerous things in each episode that would make the loyal viewers smile.  Each episode progressed each and every storyline at least a bit, and when you got to final episodes, things you totally missed came blindingly clear.  It was possibly one of the most well planned out shows ever.

The nice thing is that the cast was as passionate about the show as the fans were, and ever since the show went off the air in 2005, they have been doing everything they can to get a movie follow-up in to theaters.  As of Friday that dream got a little closer to reality as the producers, Mitch Hurwitz and Ron Howard, signed dealswith the proper companies to bring a film to reality.

As it stands, it appears all of the main cast is ready to come back with the exception of one.  (rumor is that it is Michael Cera who played George Michael, if true, you ain’t that big of a movie star yet, kid)  There is no script in place yet, but Mr. Hurwitz has said many times he has the movie all plotted out in his head, and Ron Howard is all set to return to his role as “The Narrator”.

For those of you haven’t tried the series yet, what are you waiting for?  You don’t even have to rent DVDs as both Hulu and Internet Movie Database have all three seasons online for you to watch for free! I’ll even get you started by embedding the first episode of season 1 right here in the post for you!  Try it, it is well worth your time, and you can be all prepared for the movie.  Now… excuse me, I need to watch the entire series for the umpteenth time.

It’s episode 19… Scattercast is rushing fraternities in college!

- First things first, I apologize for the clicky noises, I was having technical issues while recording.

- Some thoughts on the new Guns N’ Roses album.

- Is there different types of life through out the universe on planets with different make ups than Earth?

- DVD sales down, and I’m not surprised.

Here’s a link to the MP3 for those who wish to download it.

One of my favorite television shows of the past few years has met with cancellation.

Pushing Daisies was one of those shows I pretty much knew from the moment it was announced it would end up getting the ax.  The only reason it probably made it to the second season was because the first season got cut short by the writer’s strike last fall.  While that was probably the reason the show got to season 2, it is also probably what made it lose viewers when it came back this year.

For those who never gave it a try, now that you know it won’t have many episodes, I highly recommend you give it a shot as a DVD rental.  It was highly imaginative, well acted, beautifully shot and just a lot of fun to watch.

If you’re curious as to what it was about, Ned (Lee Pace) discovered at a young age that he could resurrect the dead, but this power came with a price.  Anytime he brought something back for longer than 60-seconds, something else had to die to replace it, but the resurrected item would stay alive until he touched it again.  This led to the oddest relationship between a master and his childhood dog, but that was part of the charm of the show.  Later in life, the first girl Ned ever kissed was murdered while on a cruise ship, and when he resurrected her to discover who had killed her, he couldn’t bring himself to cut her off at 60-seconds…

The show was far more complex and deep than just that brief paragraph, but I loved every second of the show.  So, like I said, treat yourself to a DVD rental and check it out, or you can see episodes on the ABC site.

So long Ned, Chuck, Emerson, Olive, Vivian, Lilian and the Narrator, I’ll miss you.