Watching TV

They have great cable TV here at Steve and Michelle's. I've never in all my life seen so many channels. While I've been semi-laid-up with back pain, I've had the opportunity to watch shows I'd only read about, or seen maybe once before. Or, as in the case of the soap opera, General Hospital, catch up on after decades of neglect.

Did you know that Luke Spencer, played by Anthony Geary, is STILL the star of General Hospital? And he is still interesting to watch. Gotta give the guy props for keeping a job that long. The latest plot involves Luke finding out that he inadvertently killed his grandson with his car. Didn't even know he ran over the little boy. Now, of course, the family is grieving and tensions are growing. In a final act of heroism, the boy's organs were able to save the life of his own cousin (I think) who was hospitalized for cancer on her kidneys. Lots of tears in this show.

Not enough tears in the "dress for success" reality program, "What Not To Wear". In this show, the hosts, a Cruella DaVille look-alike and her very gay friend seek out regular women who have been selected by their families and friends for a complete wardrobe make-over. I'd be humiliated and crying outright if this happened to me. The victims I've seen have dressed like either tomboys or prostitutes in their world. By the end of the show, after trying on several different outfits, having their hair cut and colored and new make-up applied, they are contrite and thankful to the hosts for showing them how to best present themselves to the world. Now, I was very resistant to this show at first, seeing the hosts as highly judgmental people hell-bent on criticizing women who have a life they can't fathom. But, somehow, I've come to look forward to the chastisement. Maybe it is because the show finds women who have such horrendous taste in clothing.

A show I'm happy to watch again is Anthony Bourdain's "No Reservations". He makes me giggle with that sarcastic wit of his. His writing is first rate and I like traveling vicariously with him around the globe. I am not a fan of the gross-out, though, and usually avert my eyes while he's trying to kill some poor animal or eat seal brains or something.

I've also watched episodes of "Pawn Stars" and "American Pickers". These are two of Steve's favorites. Pawn Stars centers on a pawn shop in Las Vegas. In this one, a trio of shyster pawn brokers make deals with people who are bringing in stuff to sell. In an episode I watched last week, it seemed like everybody was hoping to get $5000 for their unwanted treasures. My guess is that there was a high-stakes poker game on the Strip that night. The pawn stars never give folks what they are asking. There's always a whole lot of dickering that goes on and people usually take the low-ball offers. Probably just so they can be on TV.

American Pickers is less oily. In this one, 2 men cross the country looking for Americana treasures to sell on online auctions. They wind up in rural barns and ancient hardware stores and find old gas station signs and wooden telephone booths and WWII memorabilia. I like this show. It reminds me of hanging out with my mom's old boyfriend, Cal. He was really into old trucks and signs and stuff. The "stars" on American Pickers are likable and I think it is neat how they find treasures in unlikely places.

Don't ask me what channel these shows are on, though. Except for Bourdain on The Travel Channel, I have no idea. There are hundreds of options on the channel guide. Usually I scroll down for about 5 minutes before settling on something. Nice to know that you can still find episodes of "I Dream of Jeanie" and "Star Trek: The Next Generation" every day. I can't tell you what time they're on, though.

I'm trying to not get too used to this decadence. What am I going to do when I eventually get a place without cable TV?