TV and stuff.

When I'm not out driving for hours and hours on I-95, I occasionally watch some TV. I caught "Dream Job" on ESPN Sunday night, and thought it was fun. A "reality show" of sorts, it's a weekly, live job interview, with the grand prize being a one-year contract as an ESPN anchor. And the competitions that the contestants take part in are legitimate and job-related - this week, they put together and announced their own "Top Ten" lists from that day's sporting events and took part in a "Fact or Fiction" segment, debating either side of some dubious sports proposition (e.g., "The Eagles will be in next year's Super Bowl"). Interesting show, with a real-life payoff (unlike, say, The Donald's show "The Apprentice"), and at least some of the contestants could be decent anchors. I'd be willing to watch this show in later weeks - except that "Crossing Jordan" returns this week and is also on Sunday evenings at 10 pm, and if the choice is between watching Tony Kornheiser (one of the judges on "Dream Job") and Jill Hennessy, well, it's not that much of a choice.

I've been enjoying "Keen Eddie" on Bravo. A fish-out-of-water detective story, with a New York City detective sent to London to catch drug smugglers he allowed to go free in a botched drug bust. Madcap antics ensue. Well written, pretty funny. Naturally, the 13 episodes that Bravo has will be all there will ever be - this was originally a Fox show, and the Fox suits burned off half the episodes as a summer filler and decided to can the rest because they didn't want another cop show, or something. So the principals from this show have gone on to other things. It's still fun to watch, for as long as it's on.

I've also been going through some of my many, many boxes of books, and came across the C.S. Lewis "space trilogy" of Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, and That Hideous Strength. So I thought I'd give them another shot - I've never been able to force my way through all three books, even though I've tried on maybe 4 previous occasions, the last being perhaps 25 years ago. And my experience this time is no different than those other times: Enjoyed the first book well enough, and am slogging through the second, although with substantially less enjoyment. If experience holds, I'll finish the second, start the third, and lose all interest.