What is going on in TV land these days? Why are all husbands / fathers portrayed like absolute idiots on everything from commercials for toilet cleaning products to sitcoms and movies?

Sure, we may miss that toilet every now and then, leave the seat up and all that, but this doesn't or shouldn't earn the scourge of an entire communications medium and the contempt of a few generations of daughters.

Sitcoms. Take for example "King of Queens". Very funny and full of important lessons about chicken wings pizza and beer. And at it's very base it showcases a fat guy obsessed with junkfood and a thinner, attractive wife. Same with The Family Guy, Still Standing, etc.

Makes for interesting viewing for men (the wife) and interesting viewing for women (sweetie, that's just like you, with a ratty teeshirt and sweats, eating chips on the couch.

Aaah yes, don't forget commercials involving teenagers. The father is a complete idiot that somehow holds a job, putting food on the table and is being completely thrown off his game by the daughter's / son's choice in jeans or taste in junkfood.

By the way, the kids are either really put off by how uncool the father is or are enjoying his predicament just a little too much, fully deserving a beat-down...

Is this an appropriate portrayal of reality? And is this bothering everyone else?

Out of the water and straight into a cage. Went out today with a few of my friends. We were downtown to a relatively interesting place called the Lava Lounge. Like any hang-out place anywhere it went through waves of hip - unhip. It's somewhere moving towards unhip again. Anyway, the point is that after 36 it seems like there should be some diferent alternatives. Something perhaps with less smoke. Because, for God's sakes, it absolutely, positively reeks. Not to say anything about the whole cancer thing. The big news, to all the smokers, is that it can kill you. But, hey, don't mind the warning. Any damn thing to look cool to the prospective mate, right? Aside from that it's a great-old time. People watching and shooting the shit.

Lava Lounge in Seattle. Recommended. To smokers.

New TV Season started. Am I yawning or screaming in the throes of delight? Either way, it's good news to all who love visual story telling. Good visual storytelling that is. This season there seem to be quite a few new shows that deserve some of your TV watching time. Some of the ones that are making a good first impression are NBC and ABC's X-Files style Surface, and Threshold, FOX's Prison Break and NBCs My name is Earl. Good solid returns, are Lost, and The Office.

In the Whaaa the...? category of show is the Apprentice, Martha Stewart style. What in the name of all that is holy are we doing? This woman needs to be stopped not encouraged. Someone please do something!
And another thing, please stop it with the CSI franchise. We're done here.

Yes, Apple and Motorola have teamed up to release the iTunes phone. May the lord be praised. The four horsemen of apocalypse can chill and all the world's wrongs are now going to be history. For the iTunes phone is now out. Yes, just what the world needed. An mp3 enabled phone. Because, as we all know, combining 2 devices to yield a 3rd is so wonderfully innovative!

Love folk festivals. I can never get enough of fat people beating their kids in public with too few clothes on. Makes for great people watching. But that's about it. I mean please, how many times can you tell yourself, I am in it for the music, and the overpriced ethnic food, of course, while ignoring the massive patchouli smelling, birkenstock wearing crowd? Not often enough evidently. I, for one, am happy the summer "festival" season is finally over. Wait, what's that? Oktoberfest??? Dammit! And in Fremont of all places...