Push Me, Pullman

I lost my phone over Thanksgiving. Well misplaced is more like it. It was my second phone within a year. After Amanda washed my first free basic model that never got a signal nor had any functionality what so ever I decided to upgrade. And being the game enthusiast I am I decided to go with the taco of cell phones, the Nokia N-GAGE. You may have heard the phrase “sidetalkin” which sprung from the awkward way you spoke into the first model. Mine is the second, the N-GAGE QD, which was released mere months after the first. Apparently the geniuses at Nokia forgot to do any product testing with the first. I was hesitant to buy a replacement. I had this one all personalized and set to my liking and had a gig memory card inside with my NES emulator and games. I just wasn’t ready to accept it was gone. I’m glad I held out. Earlier this week I received a message from Amanda’s brother that my phone had been found and that he would mailing it to me this week.

I am so tired of the mid television season hump. Some shows have barely aired 5 new episodes and already we’re repeating. What the hell is that? I suppose now is as good a time as any for a halftime report.

Down but not out, Arrested Development is cancelled. But there looks to be life after death for this underappreciated series on Showtime or HBO, either of which’s audiences would probably be a better fit. Apparently Fox’s programming schedule is too cluttered with what all eight of its original shows currently airing? Let’s see, seven days in a week, three hours of primetime a day, yeah eight should cover it. Maybe winning an Emmys is too much pressure for Fox.

Curb Your Enthusiasm I’ve sadly been missing. Just haven’t been able to catch an episode. But since HBO has fully embraced the DVD market with average turn around time less than a year I plan on giving them a rent as soon as they’re released.

Well, the secret behind the hatch door was totally worth the cliff hanger. A wigged out marooned and isolated marathon runner who has to push a button every 100 minutes or else the world may end; now that’s good writing. It is a bit annoying when they avoid story progression by redoing the same episode as last week’s from a different perspective, but I suppose its all part of the tension building. The addition of the tail section survivors was the biggest wild card thus far. The hot head with a gun, the bitch you love to hate, Ana Lucia was a much needed addition once bad boy Sawyer started becoming a bit too likable. Now let’s keep her that way.

And coming in first by a mace impalement downward through the upper abdomen is Rome! This show has replaced Deadwood atop my list of favorite shows. Oh the violence the glorious, glorious violence. Not only that but lesbianism and incest. It’s all so Shakespeare meets, well, HBO. I am disappointed that all we get of the large scale historical battles are the preparation then a fast forwarding to the aftermath. I guess HBO wasn’t willing to take that big of a financial risk the first time around. Hopefully with the second season they drop a bit more into the budget. That’s not to say the first season is any worse for the lack financing for what could have been this huge historical epic. It’s still a great show with very authentic feeling sets and costumes. There are no names you’d probably recognize among the crew, but every actor gives stellar performance and seem like the characters they portray were written by history just for them. I am saddened that all 12 episodes of the first season have aired and the second season won’t begin until 2007. That's gives Deadwood 2006 to reclaim the top spot on my list and at least I can rewatch episode 11, The Spoils, over and over till then. “Thirteenth! Thirteenth!” That moment never fails to give me chills.

So any time we would ask what people do in Pullman for New Year’s they would just laugh. Not too much I take it. Spokane has a First Night celebration but no one wants to drive an hour and a half to drink and see some fireworks just to have to turn around and drive back. Plus Amanda was scheduled to work the next day so we weren’t planning on staying out too late. The Tennesse intern’s boyfriend, Poo Poo (yes, a grown woman really refers to a grown man by this name), was in town so we went with them and the San Diego intern, Benji, to the Red Door in Moscow. The Red Door is the place to eat. It’s the one place with any type of culture and fine cuisine within the whole region. Luckily we had called ahead and made reservations because they were crowded. Unluckily our table wasn’t ready so we sat down at the bar to have a drink while we waited. After fifteen minutes I stared hard enough at a waiter to get his attention. We decided to split a bottle of Chimay, Red Label, having only had enough over Christmas to make us crave more. We were seated at a table barely big enough for four almost forty-five minutes late. Our waitress was a bit of a mess more than likely due to the New Year’s Eve rush and under staffing. She came to take our order then realized she had forgotten a pen and excused herself. Ten minutes later I found myself quipping, “She have to go to Office Depot for that pen?”, just as she returned. She took our order and brought some bread and one tea saucer of dipping oil for the five of us to share. An hour later, still no food, not even our salads. We had places to go, people to see, drinks to consume. Our waitress finally came to apologize and ask if we wanted something else to drink. Both I and Heather replied, “Yes”. The waitress just walked away leaving us both too stare at each other dumbfounded before bursting out in laughter. Hearing the laughter she realized her error and returned red faced. It was the longest dinner I have ever had lasting two and a half hours and that's with us boxing most of our entrees. I think it really speaks highly of the food to say that I still wouldn’t think twice about going back.