Jack, Patrick & Harry-Men Of The Week

Jack ‘s Gone Rogue (Again)

Who knew motherhood and quasi-government operatives had such similar qualifications?

He never eats, drinks nor sleeps. We’ve never seen him exercise or lift weights or go to continuing spy education. Come to think of it I can’t recall a bathroom break, a shower or  a shave. Of course the whole season is supposed to represent 24 hours of one kind of national security crisis or another so I guess in an extreme situation it’s plausible to never eat or sleep.

Hells bells, as a mother of 6 I’ve gone many of seasons with very little sleep or sustanance for days at a time, not to mention during the newborn eras showering, toothbrushing and potty breaks are almost impossible to come by. Shaving your legs...well what’s the point?

 Season 8 Cast-NYC location

I got my Jack is Back fix on. Something totally out of Jack’s character happened Monday, he shot an unarmed woman (although she was a lethal Russian spy) point blank.  That’s a leap out of the typical Jack storyline. I watched him run for his life, scramble around a warehouse floor dodging bullets, on the ground doing the soldier crawl. I got to thinking, how does he stay in good enough physical shape for all of these shenanigans.

I do think they have raised the bar this season over last, but I have a feeling Jack’s time on TV may be coming to an end. Freddie Prince has helped revive the man candy factor but Chloe put in charge of CTU...no veteran viewer  is going to buy that. I adore Chloe but the constant pouting would a very undesirable trait in a CTU director.

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Patrick Always Pleases

Sunday night didn’t go so well around here. Three teens PMS-ing, it was high drama. More so than usual. The senior freaking out over her imminent AP  Stats exam. It probably doesn’t help that I remind her every day that passing the exam would save us $1000 in college credit.

Then came a migraine for Sydney. Up at 2:30 for medication. Followed by the Hurricane’s alarm at 3:30 for her to get more study time in. Only, she pushed the snooze 4 times. 4. times. Then the youngest got up early to shower. I was exhausted by the time they all got out the door at 7:05 a.m.

I read my Bible, said some prayers and may have closed my eyes for a few minutes. I popped back up and hit the floor running to make up for lost time. I accomplished my list at warp speed. All that intensity wore me out so I decided to do something indulgent that afternoon and was able to stream a movie on Netflix.

What to my wondering eyes did I see, good old Patrick Swayze in his drag queen role in Too Fong Woo,Thanks For Everything, Julie Newmar.My world had to pause long enough to watch the movie from start to finish.

What more can you ask for in a movie than muscular men in drag, and big city folk learning to appreciate small town back woods types and visa versa. Good moral to the story and all that. Plus, it  just puts a smile on my face. How could such a hunk of a man be such a beautiful drag queen?

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Harry on Idol

I have a tiny confession to make: I think I may have become a real Harry Conick Jr fan. Move over Justin Timberlake. It started at Blissdom with a private concert for us bloggers.

Then there he was at the NASCAR opener at Daytona this year, all suited up as a driver lending his name to the sport all the intellectuals love to make fun of. Thank you Harry.

But tonight, he sealed the deal by transforming the often ho-hum American Idol into a spectacular event. It’s not unusual for the celebrity coach to come on there, offer a little guidance and throw out a load of platitudes to each of the contestants they are suppose to be coaching. If you ever heard Little Mama blather on as a judge on America’s Best Dance Crew you know what I’m talking about.

He honestly and charmingly brought out the best in each contestant, offering them honest advice, arranging their music and accompanying each of them along with the band. He bantered with Ellen and even influenced Simon to act like he swallowed a nice pill.

I just wish I would have realized how awesome he was before I was within 20 feet of him last winter at our Blissdom concert. I would have strived to get more bang for my buck out of that opportunity.

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On a final and sad note, Opryland resort (sight of the Blissdom 2010 Conference) has succumbed to the recent Nashville floods and much of it is underwater. Send your thoughts and prayers that it will be restored even better than it was before.

Jack Is Back...And So Is My Premier Status

Jack is back with a vengeance and he’s brought Freddie Prince Jr with him. After a ho-hum season last year, this week’s 4 hour premier is reestablishing 24’s status as the show to watch.

Chloe, along with her signature eye rolling and geeky-sly ways, seems to be taking a more prominent roll. By the end of the 4th hour she managed to come from behind to raise her value in the eyes of her new boss who seemed to be on a roll to get rid of her during the first few episodes.

I’m not really a Kiefer Southerland fan (I’ve heard he’s a real jerk) but I am a Jack Bauer fan. This season he’s starting out all warm and fuzzy, babysitting his adorable little grand daughter and planning to move to LA to live near them. Of course those plans get waylaid in the first 30 minutes. Enter a Russian mob villain looking to do very bad things. They bring former FBI agent Renee back since she’s experienced going deep under cover in Russia. Ten minutes later we find out “we have to be careful to handle this by the books” Renee can now cut off a Russian guys thumb with a power saw without feeling a bit of moral ambiguity.

 

I know Jack wants to be retired but I think we need to get him to the Midwest to interrogate the Christmas Diaper bomber. Let’s get someone on this guy to find out what all we can expect to be facing here in the next year. Last season I made the mistake of getting all excited about Jack Being Back. So far I think I see a glimmer of hope for a bang up season.

Just as suddenly as Jack has reappeared, so it seems has my Gap Silver Status.

You might recall that last year during the big financial crisis I did what any sane person would do. I cut back on my spending and was rewarded by being downgraded from my premier shopping status.

The funny thing is I haven’t bought a single thing from the Gap all year. However between my clothing needs and that of 3 teenagers I have rung up necessities at Banana Republic and Old Navy...where I also use my Gap card. But they say I've earned my way back to a special status and as far as I can tell the only perk I would enjoy is free hemming ( a good thing because I am short).

Maybe my special status is supposed to make me feel special enough to be more shopative whenever I walk into the store?

Raymondo is doing his part to help the economy. Monthly flights to the west coast and several over to Sweden has helped burn up enough jet fuel to quickly reestablish his platinum status with the airlines. Now that makes him really happy since it does help him with the perks that help making traveling more palatable for my road warrior. That premium leg room seat, the occasional auto bump up to first class and the special security line assures him that he is indeed special.

Just ask George Clooney who portrays American Airlines king of the frequent fliers in the thought provoking movie Up In The Air. It was painful for those of us living in Michigan to watch this bittersweet story from the director of Juno, Jason Reitman. But the discomfort was balanced out by the touching mentor relationship that Clooney (reluctantly at first) develops with his young ambitious associate. Clooney nails his part as a well seasoned road warrior working the travel perks system for all that it is worth.

Of course all the perks in the world do not make us feel special enough to forget about the Christmas day bombing attempt on the very Northwest Airlines route my husband frequently travels from Amsterdam to Detroit. As with most frequent fliers he thinks the TSA is a joke and he sleeps with one eye open on his international flights. Well, he says he does but I have my doubts. He pretty much is sound asleep before the plane leaves the gate on a typical flight.

You can bet that I however, do not sleep on a flight. I’m like all hands on deck ready. I’ve pulled out my Tybo tapes and given myself a refresher on how to kick somebody’s ass if necessary.

As for my road warrior, I send him out confidently to go forage for money to pay our bills. Deals....make deals...close deals...stay safe while doing it.