Up Past My Bedtime
Mood:  chatty
Now Playing: NYPD BLUE
I'm updating a little late tonight. Ordinarily I'd be in bed already, turning out the light after a bit of reading and a frosty Red Can. But I received a nice/interesting/unusual phone call tonight from an old friend. Steve is a good friend from my college days in Carbondale. He was a local news anchor at the television station where many of my friends worked, and we all hung out and partied together. But eventually I left Carbondale, he left for another broadcasting gig, and soon everyone was gone. We stayed in touch occasionally, but until last spring, I hadn't spoken to him in a couple of years, although I knew where he was and what he was up to. Last spring, Steve landed a very cool new job. He's a celebrity of sorts, so I won't be more specific (because of personal info I'll reveal in a bit), but it's the exact job that I dreamed of having when I was a kid. When I read in the news that he had the job, I called and left him a congratulatory message. We played phone tag all summer, until we finally chatted for a few minutes at the end of September, just small talk mostly.

So it was really cool to talk to him tonight. It's uncommon for me to receive late-night phone calls these days, but back in the day, none of us thought anything about calling someone at 3am if we wanted to. So I was surprised when the phone rang, and even more surprised it was Steve, calling from a Motel 6. Unfortunately, he's having marital problems, which is always a shame, and even worse, the motel TV didn't have TV Land, a killer for a sitcom fan like him. So we chatted for an hour or so about our jobs, his family, baseball, old TV shows. It was a good time. I actually have not seen the guy in person in about 12 years, but I think I'll make an effort to visit him next summer. He's only about 5 hours away by car, and he's got some excellent connections for baseball tickets...always a good quality to have in a friend.

He also has kids...two from his wife's previous marriage and one of their own, which makes breaking up more difficult. I visited some friends tonight who recently had male twins, I think they're about 3 months old. First off, I'm unable to see or hear about babies without being reminded of SEINFELD: "Ya gotta see the babies!" People are obsessed with looking at babies. Personally, a baby is a baby; you could put ten of them in a room together, and I wouldn't be able to differentiate among any of them. But as I was holding one of them and talking to my friend about them, I started thinking about all the things in life that I enjoy doing. And he confirmed that I wouldn't be able to do any of them ever again. What a huge sacrifice it is to have children. Will I ever be willing to take those steps? To give up activities and a lifestyle that I enjoy? I'm not ready now, and I don't know if I ever will be. I think that's kind of sad.

I was trying to squeeze in this week's NYPD BLUE before bed. I rarely watch any network programming as it airs anymore; I always tape it and watch it later. The reason is commercials. Not only are there more of them than ever before, but the number of breaks has increased. Shows rarely run more than 8 or 9 minutes without going to commercial, and that's just too much for me. Zip zip zip...I fast-forward right through those suckers.

I'll miss BLUE when it's gone after this season. While they're having a pretty strong season, I really watch it more out of familiarity than anything else. After 12 (13?) years, it has lost the power to surprise me, but its presence is still soothing. There have been seasons that I only intermittently caught it, mostly because it wasn't that good, but it has rebounded for its final year. The show has never been as good as it was its first year, when David Caruso was blistering the airwaves with his consistently stunning performance as John Kelly and the writing led by Steven Bochco and David Milch was so strong and innovative. The bare asses of Sherry Stringfield and Amy Brenneman didn't hurt either. Tonight's episode was solid, although I have a soft spot for scenes in which Sipowicz slaps a dirtbag suspect across the back of the noggin.

I'm getting ready for Xmas. Packages are actually wrapped this year, as opposed to just tossing them in gift bags with newspaper sticking out of the top. I'm actually sending cards, which I haven't done for several years. My last two Christmases, since my mother passed away, really haven't been that hot; t'is the season when you really do need a family. Not that I have no family, but my brother lives in St. Louis now, and my dad is a pretty busy guy, and I really miss the frequent interaction we used to have. If there's anything I have learned in the 21st century, it's to not take for granted people who love you, 'cause they won't be here forever.

But, anyway, I'm encouraged in that I seem to be slowing getting back into the Christmas spirit, and maybe I'll have another great Christmas or two sometime down the road. I also wrapped a present for the White Elephant game at work on Monday. I'm 3-for-3 in walking away from White Elephant with a better gift than what I came in with, so I hope to extend my streak this year.

Thanks to those of you who commented on my new blog, either on the site or via private email. Your positive vibes are encouraging, and I hope you'll continue to make this an interactive experience. I think it takes a certain narcissism to write stuff like this on a public forum and expect people to read it. I don't feel I have that sort of personality--while I am no different from anyone else in terms of enjoying a certain amount of positive attention, I don't think I have an ego larger than average size at the most. And if I'm wrong about that, I'm sure somebody will let me know!