Television preferences and genetics.

Somethings must be genetic. I've discovered that my mother and I have similar tastes in television. Lately she's been watching BBC America, including "Primeval" and "Eleventh Hour". She also likes "Monk", and I think she mentioned that she also likes "Psych". I fear I'm turning into my mother in many ways. (Can you say bifocals and food hoarding? I knew you could. But I digress.) At least she's not addicted to "Judge Judy" or the soaps. The cats are non-committal, since they have not met my mother.

"How It's Made" ... TV to slumber by...

I love "How It's Made". It's so soothing... it is truly TV to nap by. Don't get me wrong. When I can stay awake, I'm fascinated by how things are made. But the combination of the soothing narration, the light repetitive music, and the predictable motion of the machinery and conveyors puts me right to sleep, every time. Two snoozing, purring cats only compound the drowsy effect.

On the "Fringe"

I watched the first three episodes of "Fringe". Mix one part "Alias" with two parts "X-files", shake maddeningly, and serve. Conspiracy, monster of the week, evil corporations, and enough grounding in science and pseudo-science to provide a foreboding sense that this stuff might be possible. The ensemble cast is likable. The mad scientist is deliciously quirky. The red-haired corporate dominatrix is delightfully two-faced. The hero investigator is a little bland, but I think she could grow on me. I think the cats and I will stick with this one for a few more episodes, at least.

An introduction, of sorts...

Why write a blog about watching television? And what do cats have to do with it?

The easy answer is that I watch entirely too much television, and I don't write nearly as often or as much as I think I should. That's not a good thing for a professional writer.

I blame this on the digital video recorder (DVR). Back in the old days, when there was only live TV, my choice was simple: I could only watch one thing at a time. Then came the video cassette recorder (VCR), which enabled me to time shift and watch something live while recording something else to view later.

Now, I have the DVR. In fact, I technically have three DVRs: my old 40-GB ReplayTV unit, and the new dual-recording unit provided by my cable company. (Thanks, SureWest. You're enabling my addiction.)

So here I am, blogging about watching television. With cats. What could be more American than that?