A "short" story and a life in pictures

My mom passed away this morning. It's a little surreal—one minute she was with me, and the next minute she was gone.

It's been a long time coming. She got pneumonia five years ago and never fully recovered. She was on oxygen 24x7, and because she wasn't able to do as many things, her strength diminished. The Alzheimer's disease that has taken most of her family was staring her in the face. Two years ago, my sister, Laura, and I had to take over things like paying her bills, filling her pill box and, after Mom gave up her car, driving her to the store and the doctor and the hair salon—everywhere she needed to go.

This last month was rough on Mom. She got pneumonia and spent three days in the hospital. She seemed to rally at the end and was discharged. But five days later, she was back in the hospital. Her pneumonia was better, but she was having difficulty breathing. (She had COPD—chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder—so her breathing was always a little dicey.) She didn't rally the way she had before. She was more confused, more agitated, more tired. She was not watching "Judge Judy." This was a sure sign of the apocalypse.

Talk turned away from discharge to home and toward discharge to a skilled nursing/rehab facility. While she was open to that idea during the first hospitalization, boy howdy she was not open to that idea during the second. We decided to broach the subject of what she wanted next, and after a long discussion with her primary care physician and my sister (who was representing both of us), she decided she would like to go home to hospice.

She was "excited" (as excited as a very sick person can be) that no one was going to make her do physical therapy. No one was going to make her do occupational therapy. No one was going to bug her about eating and drinking and taking her pills. If she wanted to do those things, we would support her, and if she didn't, we would support her.

She was discharged not quite two weeks ago, and to make a long story short, she ended up in a hospice facility just two days later on the brink of death. Once again she rallied and was fairly coherent-ish for about 48 hours, but by Wednesday of last week, she didn't understand why she was there, and she started asking Laura to take her home.

That's when the facility shut down to all visitors. Thank you, COVID-19. She really started to go downhill from there. There's no telling whether it was because we were gone or whether she was just deteriorating "on schedule," but by Monday of this week, the hospice nurse said Mom had some telltale symptoms of a person who is "transitioning" from actively living to actively dying. That's when the hospice allowed us back in.

She had one day of agony, where she was hallucinating and seemingly in pain, very restless and very agitated. Laura bore the brunt of that day because I was not able to get to her until late afternoon, just as she was getting some medicine that would calm her and stop her twitching.

The next day was agony-lite—all of the Monday symptoms but less severe—as the nurses from our hospice service and the nurses at the facility adjusted the meds and the timing of them. She was still restless, and she would often sit up and then lie back down because she didn't even have the strength to support her own weight. And yet, it was a good day. We would sit on the bed with her, and when she would sit up, she would often collapse into our arms—the way we probably did when we were kids. And when each of us whispered "I love you" in her ear, she said "I love you, too." They were the only coherent words she spoke all day—but they were also the most important words.

Wednesday and Thursday finally brought peace for Mom. We had her on a good cocktail of medications spaced just the right amount apart, and she rested comfortably all day. She rarely opened her eyes and never tried to speak, but she didn't seem to be in pain, and her hallucinations had subsided.

Early Friday morning (a little after 1 a.m.), I got the coded text from my sister, 🙁 , and I knew Mom's struggle had ended. My sister did not leave Mom's side from the time they let us back in, other than a short respite on Wednesday to remind her husband (a) that he had a wife and (b) what she looked like. I will always be grateful that she was willing and able to do that. As we both said many times over the course of this journey, it is an honor and a privilege to care for our mother.

Do not cry for me. My mom is free. No more being tethered to the oxygen tank! No more scolding by us about how much (or how little) she was eating, drinking, exercising, etc.! She can hear without her hearing aids! She can walk to the kitchen without getting so winded that she has to sit down halfway there! (Assuming they have a kitchen where she's going.) She can remember everything! (Take that, Alzheimer's!)

I'm sure there will be many tears shed on "firsts," but I'll have all my memories of her and the strength I gained from her to keep me going

Speaking of memories, here are a "few" of my favorite pictures of my mom.

First, I love these old-timey pictures of her:

Ohmygosh, did my mom LOVE bowling!

Dad and Mom on their wedding day

Mom's family was everything to her.

Back row, L to R: Mom's sister Ruth, brother Gene, sister Mary, Mom, brother Mike
Seated: Mom's beloved Aunt Blanche and Uncle Chet

She fell instantly in love with her first grandchild, Nick:

Laura, Nick and Mom

 Then one became two ...

Granddaughter Margeaux

... and Mom discovered that two were twice as nice as one.

Grandchildren grow up faster ...

Clockwise from lower left: Bill, Nick, Margeaux, Mom, me and Laura

 
... and faster:

Mom was so proud of her grandchildren, and the fact that they wanted
to spend time with her gave her untold joy

Eventually, more family joined the fold, and that was OK with Mom.

L to R: Ali, Mom, Layla, Harrison and Nick

L to R: Layla, Mom and Harrison

She was delighted with more additions a few years later ...

L to R: Mom, Madi, Margeaux and Xan

... and even more a few years after that:

Madi, Will and Fin on Mom's lap

When you add my stepkids and their kids—whom Mom lovingly accepted into her heart (she was always tickled pink to get a card or a picture from one of them)—Mom had four grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren. Her heart was full.

Mom also loved to travel, and we often did that together. In fact, Mom and I could be found virtually anywhere, from Niagara Falls ...

... to the Isaac Walton League to watch trap shooting ...

... to Downtown Denver at Christmastime ...

... to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science ...

... to wherever this was!

Sometimes we let Vic tag along.

Rocky Mountain National Park

Vic pulled all these (and more) pictures for me a few weeks ago. As I clicked through his curated selection, one thing stood out: My mom and I were always hugging!

Mom had an "interesting" sense of humor, but that didn't mean she couldn't joke around with us:

L to R: Laura, me, Margeaux, Mom and Laura's husband Bill

Then again, she was also happy to let us be the clowns while she kept a straight face.

And now I feature solo pictures of Mom. We don't have a lot of them—she hated having her picture taken, especially alone. But Vic could always coax a smile out of her.

I want to leave you with one more shot of mom in her native habitat: talking to a complete stranger. Grocery store clerk? You get her life story. Customer? You'll probably have to hear about her daughters. Random guy on the street wearing a Nebraska Cornhuskers sweatshirt? Now she's your best friend. My mom could strike up a conversation with a stop sign.

I kind of miss her already, and it hasn't even been 24 hours. But I am content with her destination. I picture her free of oxygen, with perfect hearing and enough strength to walk farther than the mailbox. She eats nothing but caramels and Pringles—or whatever the hell she wants. She is with the family members who passed before she did. She is home.

Blanche (Breiner) Schenkel

February 6, 1939 – March 20, 2020

 

Rest in peace, Mom. We love you.

A daughter's story

A mother lies alone in hospice. She is dying, but her death is not imminent, so her daughters cannot visit. The coronavirus has shut down the facility to visitors, vendors—all nonessential people.

When the mother's death is imminent, the daughters will be allowed in. They will be able to stroke her hair, rub her back, speak words of comfort. "It's OK, Mom. You can go now. We will be all right because you raised us to be strong. It's time for you to rest."

But that time is not this time, and so the daughters go about the mundane tasks of life. Laundry. Bills. Taxes. Walking the dog. All the while wishing only that they could be with their mother, holding her hand, even if she didn't know they were there, which she probably wouldn't.

My mother lies alone in hospice. My sister and I cannot visit. We are doing laundry instead, waiting for the phone call that will finally allow us to hold her hand.

Fall TV 2018, Partial

Let us begin this post with a rant about my beloved Entertainment Weekly. It's right there in the title of the magazine: weekly. And yet, I'm not getting it weekly. Mostly, I'm getting it every other week. Now, call me a stickler, but if your name is Entertainment Weekly, you should publish, oh, I don't know, WEEKLY!!!!! Furthermore, the subscription usually costs about 20 bucks for one year. That's a bargain, really, no matter how many issues you get. But the subscription page says $20 for 46 issues. And I'm all, "46 issues—that seems OK. That's still only six weeks that don't get a new issue." Yet I am not getting 46 issues. Then I see the fine print (which isn't really all that fine, but I'm just saying, it should be more prominent): "Entertainment Weekly is published by Meredith 34 times annually. ... Publishes 12 double issues ... which count as 2 issues." As they would say on The Good Place, motherforker! So I'm getting 46 issues worth of content, but I am by no means getting 46 issues.

So you may be asking, "Why rant now? Here? When all I want to know is what are you watching this year?"

Well I'll tell you why: because my motherforking Fall TV Preview issue of Entertainment Weekly has not arrived yet! In years past, that issue came out over Labor Day weekend. But last weekend came and went with nary mention of fall TV. So I figured, this weekend. Nope. This weekend, some stupid cover about a new superhero movie, as if we need any more of those. (And yes, it is a female-led superhero movie, so I am at least happy about that, but I need my Fall TV Preview issue!!!)

So you may be thinking, "So what? The TV season doesn't really start for two weeks. There's time."

Yeah, sure there's time. But this is the weekend I set up to do the fall TV blog. And you all know how well I adapt to change.

So I am sallying forth into the land of TV, with only partial information. If I get my Fall TV Preview issue of EW next week, and if I find myself with extra time on Sunday, I will update this post (or write a new one) with information from EW. But don't hold your breath. I'm mad.

Now, without further ado, let me tell you what I'm watching on network television, and then I'll add a little section about streaming services.

Sunday

• God Friended Me, or as Vic calls it, Friended by an Angel. Interesting premise, plus it has Joe Morton in it, and I like him. And Matt Roush, the TV Guide (which, BTW, delivered my Fall Preview issue exactly on time, thankyouverymuch) reviewer gives it a thumbs-up.
• Madam Secretary: I look forward to seeing whether we'll get a name change to Madam President at the end of this season.
• Kidding: A Jim Carrey show on Showtime. I love Jim Carrey, so I'll give this a try—even though Matt doesn't like it a ton.
• You: A show on, yes, Lifetime. It's getting a lot of good reviews, and it sounds different, so why not try it?

Monday

• The Neighborhood: One of five new sitcoms I'm trying this year. I want to like it, because I do like the four main leads, but I'm skeptical of it.
• Manifest: One of the shows I most want to like. It's the new Lost, which means it will either succeed wildly or go down in flames just after I get really invested in it. Both Matt and the TV Guide editorial staff recommended it, too.

Tuesday

• The Kids Are Alright: My second new comedy. I actually don't want to watch this on principle: there is no such word as "alright." It's always two words: "all right." But Matt and the TV Guide editorial staff in general recommend it, so I'll give it a try.
• The Rookie: As if I'm not going to watch a TV show (or anything, really) with Nathan Fillion. Puh-lease. (Plus it's another one recommended by Matt and the TV Guide editorial staff.)
• FBI: I love procedurals, so sue me. And this is by Dick Wolf, the man behind Law & Order. (chung chung) Plus my boss Brendan's daughter Julia has a cameo in it, so like I'm not going to watch that! (That said, it does not get a good review from TV Guide's Matt, so I've set my expectations accordingly.)
• 9-1-1: I ended up liking this more than I thought I would last year, so I'm excited for it to come back. The cast is wonderful—huge crush on Peter Krause since his days on Sports Night, and, if I'm being honest, on Connie Britton since, you know, forever—and I like a show that shows our first responders in a good light.
• This Is Us: As if I'm not going to keep watching one of my favorite shows of all time and my favorite show on TV right now (including my beloved Grey's Anatomy, which I don't consistently love).
• New Amsterdam: I don't need another hospital show, but I do like unrealistic do-gooder shows, so I'll give this a try. Matt did not give it a thumbs-up, so my expectations are low.

Wednesday

• Modern Family: It's getting a little long in the tooth, and they may have mined all the best comedy already, but as long as Phil's a character, Patty'll be a watchin'.
• Single Parents: I wonder if you have to be a single parent to think this is funny? Good cast, and a half-hour isn't much to invest to find out.
• A Million Little Things: The new This Is Us. The new thirtysomething and The Big Chill. (At least, that's what the producers want you to think. But regardless, if it's anything like any of those shows, I'll love it. I love the male leads (David Guintoli from Grimm, Ron Livingston from Office Space [and pretty much everything else] and James Roday from Psych). (I don't know any of the female leads.) What I won't love is if it becomes Parenthood: 40 minutes of angst followed by 5 minutes of crying. (Meaning—the first 40 minutes of Parenthood were so hard to watch. There was a lot of whining and "ugh" moments. But the last five minutes were almost always so heartwarming that I ended up in tears. Mind you, I love TV shows that make me cry (see: This Is Us). But I don't like paying 40 minutes to get a good cry. Anyway, this is another one that Matt and the TV Guide editorial staff recommend, and it looks good to me, so I'm all in. Expectations are high.
• Criminal Minds: A returning favorite. I'll watch this until they cancel it.
• Chicago Fire: On the fence. They got rid of one of my least favorite characters at the end of last season, so I'll watch for a few episodes to see if I can like it again.
• Chicago PD: This is Vic's. :-)

Thursday

• My beloved Grey's Anatomy: No, it's not as consistently awesome as it used to be, but I still love it.
• Murphy Brown: I loved this show when it was on. Candice Bergen is one of my favorites. I even did my hair like hers back in the day and named my cat after her character! So, high hopes.
• The Good Place: Love it—can't wait to see where they go next.
• Will & Grace: Ummmm, we let last year's Will & Grace build up on the DVR, which seems to be a sign—like, if we can't watch even one episode before the second season starts, should we start the second season?
• I Feel Bad: My fourth new comedy. I've been seeing commercials for this, and they have some funny lines, but my expectations are low, and I do not expect to add it to my viewing schedule.

Friday

• The Cool Kids: I love comedies about older people, and I love this cast. High hopes, but low expectations. Fridays? Really?

Saturday

• Catch up day!

Other

• Camping on HBO with Jennifer Garner starting on October. Not getting great reviews, but I love Jennifer Garner, so I'll give it a try.
• Escape at Dannemora on Showtime in November. I've been waiting for this one.
• The Little Drummer Girl on AMC in November. Based on a John Le Carre novel, so I'm looking forward to it. This and Escape at Dannemora are recommended by the TV Guide editorial staff.
• Dirty John on Bravo in late fall. With Eric Bana and Connie Britton, it's a must-watch.
• Other shows coming include The Hot Zone and Valley of the Boom on Nat Geo and Proven Innocent on Fox.
• What happened to Life in Pieces and the Blacklist? Are they midseason replacements?

Streaming

• Matt from TV Guide's favorite show of the year is The Kominsky Method on Netflix starring Alan Arkin and Michael Douglas. You had me at "Alan Arkin and Michael Douglas."
• His next favorite show is Forever on Amazon Prime starring Maya Rudolph and Fred Armison. You had me at "Maya Rudolph and Fred Armison."
• The First on Hulu is about our first mission to Mars. You had me at "Mars." Another Matt Roush favorite.
• Another Netflix show, The Good Cop, is not on anyone's list, but with Josh Groban, I must try it.
• Same with The Homecoming on Amazon Prime: Julia Roberts is my jam.
• We've been watching Jack Ryan on Amazon—if you haven't, and you like shows like that, give it a try!
• Things we haven't tried but I really want to: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Ordeal by Innocence, Friends from College, Marcella, Ozark and Castle Rock.

I think that's about it for this week. Stay tuned for updates!

Funnel Cakes, Tilt-A-Whirls and Harry Potter Cakes: Boulder County Fair 2018

If it's August, it must be time for the Boulder County Fair. And if it's time for the Boulder County Fair, it must be time to show off my fair entries. (Yeah, I'm just that egotistical.)

So, without further ado ...

Let's start with the Lily Pond Afghan:

I love her, but she did not do well at the fair. (I was at the judging, so I know why. Doesn't make her less pretty to me. 😊)

Next up, the Flatirons Shawl:

This is another one that didn't win any prizes. There are always a lot of shawls, so it's stiff competition. One of my other pieces in the shawl category got second place—but I feel like this one is better. Still, as my surface stitchery judge used to say "Different judge, different day, different result." So maybe a different judge would have liked this one better.

And continuing with "didn't win any prizes," this slouch hat (which I made with the leftover yarn from the shawl above):

Again, there are lots of hats, so the competition is fierce. She did like my pompom, so that was nice. (Seriously, I'll take any compliments I can get.)

This stole was awarded second place:

I saw this in my local yarn shop. It was knitted, which is a craft I don't do. But I loved the yarn (it's eight different yarn textutres all dyed in the same color scheme—so one yarn is mohair, one is wool, one is silk, one has a bit of metallic in it, etc.), so I thought "How hard could it be do do a crochet version?" Answer: Not very.

And not to brag (OK, to brag), everything else I entered in the crochet department took first place:

Those of you who work with me might recognize this hat and the previous hat as my stitch 'n' bitch hats—the ones I work on in meetings at work!

I'm particularly proud of this hat, because it received the Reserve Champion for adult crochet. (Meaning, it was the second best among adults who entered crochet.) I believe in my talent, but I'm always ecstatic to win any kind of Champion ribbon in crochet. 😄

Hard to see, but this scarf has beads on it!

I know doilies are a little old-fashioned, but I'm a little old fashioned.

This poncho can be worn with the pointy part in front or on the side, so that's cute. And I love this yarn, which I got as a birthday gift from a co-worker who apparently loves me a lot. (Thanks again, GerRee!)

This tote—I did the crochet, and I don't think the crochet part is that great. But what makes this tote awesome is the finishing. The straps and the yarn came in a kit (with a button—though not this button). I probably could have sewn the straps on (and the button), but I wanted the bag to be lined. My sister-in-law has just started quilting, and when I asked if she thought she could finish this bag for me--lining, straps and button--she did not hesitate to say yes. She discarded the boring, plain button for this beautiful green button (the judge could not stop saying how much she loved the button!), and was meticulous about doing the lining. I am sure the finishing is the reason this tote took first place. (Thanks again, Alice!)

Next, let's move to the jewelry department! Here I entered one necklace and one bracelet. Both received first place:

Finally, surface stitchery, my original passion.

First, hardanger (a third-place finisher). I don't love doing hardanger, but I love how it looks after:

Next, a sampler. This is mostly cross stitch, but it does have some specialty stitches. This is a second-place finisher:

And here is a really close-up picture of this one:

On to beading:

 

Another first-place entry, and this one received a Champion ribbon (best in advanced/professional beading).

Last but not least, needlepoint, my favorite form of surface stitchery:

Here's a close-up of the middle:

This was a first-place entry that received a Champion ribbon in the advanced/professional needlepoint category.

Overall, I am super excited about my fair results this year. By the numbers:

• 15 entries
• 12 placed
• 9 first-place ribbons
• 2 second-place ribbons
• 1 third-place ribbon
• 1 Reserve Champion ribbon
• 2 champion ribbons

Thanks to everyone who supports me (by buying me yarn or shopping for yarn with me, helping me finish things, giving me advice on patterns, encouraging me, telling me how awesome I am [no, I know, super egotistical], and fawning over my pieces), and thanks to all the people who volunteer their time to keep the Boulder County Fair running! See you next year!

P.S. I mentioned a Harry Potter cake. I didn't make one, but check this out:

 

This was done by a child. A CHILD. So impressive.

About a Dog

Let me tell you about Olenna (nickname: Ollie).

Ollie is a sweet little dog we brought into our home to foster at the end of May. She was shy and scared and anxious, and the Longmont Humane Society (LHS) thought she would benefit from a little TLC. TLC is our specialty.

When she first came to our home, she was so nervous she tried to jump over our six-foot-high fence. Fortunately, she is only knee-high, so she was unsuccessful. 😄 Patience is the key to a dog like this. We stayed outside with her as she calmed down a little bit, and all we needed to do was get a hand on her and start petting her before she realized, "Oh, these guys aren't so bad. I guess I don't have to escape." She never tried to jump the fence again.

Next hurdle: stairs. Could it be that she had never climbed stairs? No, it turned out that she was just scared of new things. She saw our dog, Bella, go up and down several times, and eventually, Ollie realized that the stairs were her portal to potty, and she became a pro. (In fact, she did not have any accidents when we first brought her home—what a nice surprise!)

Her favorite thing about our home was Bella.

Bella was a good foster sister. In addition to being Ollie's stair role model, Bella helped Ollie feel less anxious and showed Ollie that she could trust us. Dogs are Ollie's thing. She loves 'em. Here she is with our four-legged niece, Chloe:

After only a few days, Ollie was following us everywhere. She was still a little fearful—for example, if we were all upstairs, she stayed near the top of the stairs, and if we walked past her, she'd go halfway down. But she got better every day, and it became rare for her to try to get away from us.

The couch in the living room was her safe spot. She loved to look out that window, and when we came over to sit on the couch, she let us do anything to her—pet her, hug her, kiss her on the nose or the head. She loves being petted and hugged.

Ollie also loved getting treats. Any kind. We give her soft treats, hard treats, fancy treats, plain treats—she loved them all. Watch what she does when we give her a Greenie:

For us, the holy grail was getting Ollie to come into the family room while we watched TV at night. At first, she would just stay in the living room in her safe space. After a week or so, she would "dip a toe in the water"—she would walk around the periphery of the family room—but she wouldn't "jump in." We tried to entice her with treats; she would come in to eat them and then leave again. We put a bed in the family room. She sniffed it but didn't stay. We moved it next to Bella's bed. She sniffed it but didn't stay.

Finally, after about two-and-a-half weeks—out of the blue!—she jumped up on the couch between us, put her head on Vic's lap and never left again. (Just kidding—she would always get down when we got up.)

What the pictures don't show is how soft her fur is—she is just a little ball of fluff! So luxurious! I love burying my face in her fur and running my fingers through it!

Overall, Ollie was a wonderful foster dog. Eventually, LHS decided we'd done our job as foster parents—by determining that Ollie's anxiety would indeed subside when she was part of a stable, loving home—and asked us to bring her back so she could be seen by anyone walking in to the shelter. We were heartbroken—as we always are when we let go of our foster babies—but we consoled ourselves that we'd had another successful foster. (Just kidding; there's no consoling us when we let go of a foster dog. 😢)

Now, just because we've determined that Ollie will eventually warm up to her new family, that doesn't mean she's "cured." She is still a bit fearful and anxious and will need more training, patience and TLC. But for the right family, she will be the best dog in the world.

Does all this make you want to adopt Ollie? If so, please contact the Longmont Humane Society at (303) 772-1232. If you want more information about this little love, please feel free to call or text me at (303) 746-3153 or email me at (thegrammarqueen@msn.com).

Fall TV 2016!

I'm a little late with this year's post because of my knee surgery (which I may or may not blog about later--suffice it to say that I'm still struggling but getting stronger every day).

Also, because of my knee surgery, this post is going to be short, sweet and to the point. Here goes.

Sunday:

• Still watching Madam Secretary, which starts next week. I really like the idealism of this show, and of course, I love Tea Leoni and Tim Daly--both the actors and their on-screen relationship.
• Starting Westworld (HBO, 10/2). It has a lot of good people in it, but probably the one I'm tuning in for is James Marsden, Prince Edward from Enchanted. I just love him.

Monday:

• Trying Conviction and Timeless, both of which start on 10/3.
• Conviction is about a special unit inside the DA's office that reviews past convictions. It's probably going to be too soapy for me, but I like the idea.
• Timeless is about a guy (Goran Visjnic, the hot Croatian doctor Luka from ER) who (I think) steals a time machine and starts mucking about in the past. Three intrepid heroes take another time machine to try to stop him. This will probably suck, but I love time travel, so I have to give it a try.

Tuesday:

• Trying American Housewife, which starts on 10/11. I'm basically trying this because there was a great soundbite in Entertainment Weekly. I've started watching shows for less.
• Watched the first episode of Bull. Not sure I liked it, but I'll give it a second try.
• Trying No Tomorrow (starts 10/4). I think it's about what if you knew the world was going to end in eight months? 
• Watched the first episode of This Is Us. Every review mentioned this huge twist, which sucked me in. Many reviews said this was a replacement for Parenthood. Let me give you my review of Parenthood: 40 minutes of whining, bickering and complaining followed by 5 minutes of amazing television. For weeks, I was sucked into that 5 minutes--and then I realized the ratio of suckitude to happiness, and decided to drop it. That said, the first episode of This Is Us was no Parenthood. It was 45 minutes of solid happiness (I mean, of course there was some sadness, too, but I really liked the people and the relationships--and the twist. It's probably my favorite new show I've watched so far.
• Still watching Chicago Fire. It premieres 10/11.

Wednesday:

• Watched the first episode of Speechless. It could get old fast, but I really liked the family. Plus being somewhat disabled myself right now, I see things (like people who let their bushes grow over their sidewalks so I have to walk with my walker in the street and how in certain neighborhoods, the sidewalks are actually slanted a little, which makes walking with a walker kind of challenging--so I'm back out in the street), and I understand how a mom with a severely disabled son would fight for things to make his life easier. So I'm definitely watching it again.
• Still watching Modern Family. Can't help it. I love Phil.
• Watched the first episode of Designated Survivor. I like how they make it believable--like, he's the Secretary of HUD, but he's smart enough to be president because he paid attention to security briefings at cabinet meetings. And I liked his family. (Liking the main family is hugely important to me.)
• Still watching Criminal Minds. It starts 9/28.
• Trying Frequency, which premieres 10/5. I loved the movie, and I've read that the show is not like the movie. But why not give it a try?
• Vic is still watching Blindspot and Chicago PD.

Thursday:

• Still watching my beloved Grey's Anatomy, but not in love with it right now. I really hate when people take actions because they don't know the whole story, and I really hate when people don't tell other people the whole story. It's like, don't say "It's complicated" or "It's not what it looks like." Just say really fast and loud "I got drunk and DeLuca took me home and he wasn't trying to sleep with me so please don't smash his face in."
• Trying the Great Indoors, which premieres 10/27. I like Joel McHale, and in my drug-addled state, I don't remember anyone else that's in it, but I remember liking a few other people as well.
• Still watching Life in Pieces, which premieres 10/27.
• Watched the first episode of Pitch. It was OK, and there was a good twist at the end that made me want to watch the next episode.
• Watched the first three episodes of The Good Place. Interesting premise, but it wasn't high on my list--until the twist at the end of episode 3, and now I definitely want to watch episode 4.
• Vic is still watching The Blacklist.

Friday:

• Vic wants to try McGyver, so that's on the DVR for him.
• Still watching Blue Bloods.

Saturday:

• Trying Dirk Gently on BBC America, which premieres 10/22. Please don't ask me anything about this. I was reading the fall preview issues of my magazines when I was taking a lot of Vicodin, so I don't remember anything about it. It looks interesting, and it's on BBCA. If you want to know more, use Google. lol.

Miscellaneous:

• We have already watched and discarded Lethal Weapon. The movie is a drama with funny parts. The TV show seems more like they're going for a comedy with dramatic parts, and the comedy is way too broad for my taste.
• We have already watched and discarded Notorious. I like people who are good and the best of their professions (West Wing, the Newsroom), not people who are bad and the best of their professions.
• Longmire started up on Netflix on 9/23, but I haven't watched any episodes yet. Can't wait to start the binge!
• I also plan to binge all four seasons of Orange is the New Black while I'm still on medical leave. I've watched the first two seasons, but they were so good I want to watch them again before I watch S3 and 4.
• A couple of late-breaking additions: Undercover on BBCA starting 11/17 and People of Earth on TBS starting on Halloween. Don't remember anything about them, but I wrote them down. I'm sure I'll find out more when it gets closer to the time. :-)

That's it. I've been sitting at my desk for two hours, so it's time for a two-hour nap.

If it's a holiday, it must be time to update you on my TV!

I know a lot of you have been waiting weeks for this (OK, one of you has been waiting a few days), but I have been lazy. Shocker. But today is a holiday, so I have a little more time. Yea!

Herewith, my thoughts on the new season so far.

Sunday

• I loved the first episode of Madam Secretary. It's still in fine form.
• I liked the first episode of The Good Wife. It is really frustrating for me that they couldn't just let Alicia and Cary start their own firm in that funky warehouse. They could have competed with Lockhart Gardner (or whatever it's called now), and that could have been really interesting. Now Cary's back at Lockhart Gardner (or whatever it's called now) and Alicia is struggling to get cases in bond court? I'll see where it goes, but I'm frustrated
• Quantico: The first episode was kind of interesting, but the second episode not so much—every week, she's going try to figure out who framed her while trying to avoid the people who are trying to capture her. We aren't a huge fan of chase TV shows. Chase movies are bad enough, but TV shows just get really repetitive. And also, I find it hard to believe that every single person at Quantico would have a secret that's so bad that, if it gets discovered would be devastating to the person. Plus, as I suspected, it's soapy. We dropped it after two episodes.

 

Monday
 

• "Normal ups and downs" my ass. They have really messed with Castle, and not in a good way. Beckett can't let go of the past, and Castle is just being stupid. Wrap up this storyline, showrunners, or I'll wrap you up.
• Life in Pieces: Not as hilarious as I'd hoped, but the people are really good. I would like them to make the younger couple less stereotypical; the other couples and the single brother are pretty funny. Keeping this for now—but still not on my permanent viewing schedule.
• Minority Report: Similar to Quantico. First episode was kind of interesting, but it too is going to be the same thing over and over—trying to save the world while trying not to get caught. Dropped it after the second episode..
• Blindspot: While I haven't added this to my viewing schedule, I am interested in it. We really like the tattooed lady, but not so much the FBI agent. Others in the FBI are more interesting characters. It continues to be on my bubble.

Tuesday

• Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: This was a Vic show that was often on the Vic bubble. Bubble no more—he dropped it.
• The Muppets: We don't love it, but it is growing on me. The Liam Hemsworth episode was hilarious, except for the Nick Offerman part. I'll keep trying it week to week. Like an apartment you're not sure you want to commit to.
• Grandfathered: Not as funny as I'd hoped, and this week's episode was particularly annoying. One more try.
• The Grinder: Favorite show of the new season by far. I've watched the first episode twice and saved it on the DVR so I can watch it one more time when I'm not stitching. That's right. I have a show I want to watch, not listen to. Rob Lowe and Fred Savage are brilliant. The supporting cast is awesome. The writing is sharp and harkens back some of the things Rob and Fred have done before. I hope they can keep it up!
• Scream Queens: Ugh. The mystery is interesting (why do I keep using that word?), but the mean girl talk is not. Dumped it after 1.1 episodes.

 

Wednesday

• Modern Family: Still funny and heartwarming for me!
• Code Black: First impression, frantic but with some incredibly touching scenes. Second impression, just frantic. It's going to be like that every week, and I just don't think I need another medical show, even though Grey's Anatomy isn't much of a medical show anymore..
• Rosewood: Meh. It's OK. I don't hate it, but I don't love it. Still on the bubble, though..

Thursday

• My Beloved Grey’s Anatomy: A somewhat annoying second episode, but I can't quit her.
• Scandal: As I said before, I don’t care how implausible this show is, it’s just a guilty pleasure.
• Bones: A similar theme to Castle—in this case, Booth has gone undercover and hasn't told Brennan, but does she think they're marriage is in trouble? No. She knows he might have to keep some secrets from her. This is how you do it, people.
• Heroes Reborn: First cancellation of the new season. I'm not sure we even made it through the whole first episode. Bummer.

Friday

• Blue Bloods: The mustache is still performing well.

Update

• I still don't see a premiere date for Person of Interest—and in fact, I am seeing rumors of cancellation after this season—but I did see a hilarious teaser trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibuwlwstd0c (thanks, Seth!).

Premiering this week

• Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
• Fargo
• Chicago Fire
• Manhattan. I don't know why I'm putting this here, because WE NO LONGER GET THE CHANNEL IT'S ON. Thanks, DirecTV.

And that's all the news from here! I gotta go watch TV now—as you can see, I watch a lot. ;-)