My Top 10 Favorite TV Shows

Okay, here's my list:

1. Everybody Loves Raymond
The whole family was just insane and there's nothing funnier than their Thanksgiving episodes. This show takes everything to crazy extremes. It also makes me thank God I have such a great relationship with my in-laws!!
2. NewsRadio
How can you not like this show? Phil Hartman....Dave Foley...need I say more? Okay, I will. I absolutely loved this show. I actually thought this show was consistently funnier than Seinfeld. Jimmy James was totally clueless. "Jimmy had fancy plans and pants to match."
3. 3rd Rock from the Sun
This is one of the funniest shows I have ever seen. Jon Lithgow given free reign to be a big goofball-what more can you ask for? If ever you want a big laugh, check out YouTube for some funny clips. My suggestion: The episode where Dick is in Denile (sic). Jon Lithgow in squeaky leather pants. Oh, it makes me laugh just thinking about it....
4. The Office
Just started watching this show recently. If you like the movie Office Space, I think you would like this show. The boss is this absurd guy who can't seem to realize he's the biggest idiot.
5. The Closer
Normally, I wouldn't like an actress adopting a fake southern accent to play a character, but Kyra Sedgwick nails her character. The show is about a deputy police chief that specializes in closing cases. The writers were smart enough to include a healthy dose of comedy in the show and the supporting cast is fabulous. This is one show Marc and I never miss.
6. Seinfeld
No favorite tv list would be complete for me without Seinfeld. This show was probably the first program I became addicted to (other than the Smurfs, of course). I can't hardly watch any of the episodes anymore because I practically know all of them by heart. Beside Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer, the supporting cast held their own. From Frank and Estelle, Mr. Peterman, Newman, and (my favorite) Puddy, these characters made the show.
7. King of Queens
This is a show that I started watching after hearing Tami talk about it. Any show with Jerry Stiller in it gets my vote. He can deliver a line like almost no one else.
8. The Cosby Show
This one goes a long way back. I used to watch this as I was growing up and I still watch it today. One of my favorite scenes was when Cliff had taken the kids out to eat and came home, looking defeated, with a balloon tied to each of his ears. This makes me laugh even harder now that I know the chaos kids can cause when they are taken out to dine. For anyone without kids yet, just wait until you have some and take them out to a restaurant for the first time. If they give you a hard time, just think about Bill Cosby with a balloon tied to each ear and try to smile.
9. Lost
Marc and I once had an all-night marathon after renting this show on dvd. We haven't been able to keep up with it as we'd like (I guess more marathons are in order, Marc), but this has to be one of my favorites. The first episode showing the plane crashing are some of the most heart-pounding moments I've ever seen on television. Sure makes you think twice before boarding a plane.
10. Murder She Wrote
Okay, okay... No Polident and Social Security jokes, please. I can't believe I'm admitting one of my guilty pleasures. For a long time, Marc was the only one to know about this little secret 'cause he doesn't judge me (but if he does, he's smart enough to keep it to himself). I actually enjoy the whole whodunit genre so this one comes naturally. (If the list were any longer, Matlock may have made an appearance-stop laughing.)

Okay, this is my list. I actually don't own any of them right now but my collection will get started sooner or later.

The things kids say...

As I was driving the kids home from preschool today, I was struck by how many times they make me laugh just by opening their mouths. Here are just a few of the things they have said:

Miss J:

What the hell was that????
(This was said at the tender age of 2 as Marc was driving and she heard road noise.)

You're not going fishing with me.
(This is what she said to me when she got mad at me.)

I love my grown-ups.
(This is what she said after Marc and I told the kids we love them.)

Bub:

Please invite me to Toys R Us so I can be happy.
(He said this as we were driving by the store.)

I'm at a car show.
(This is what he said after lining up his toy cars in rows.)

You're a poof-it.
(Don't know why he says this but it is a regular.)

Moo:

We've got ourselves a nodder.
(She referenced the movie Cars when she said this as she was nodding off.)

This is the best sleep party I've ever had.
(She said this as we were furniture shopping and she was trying out every chair/bed.)

I'm not a baby, I'm a grandma and I take good care of Mama.
(She said this when Josie was trying to get her to pretend she was her baby.)

Oh, the silly things they say! These kids sure make me laugh!

Six Years

This Saturday will be our sixth wedding anniversary so I'm making this post for you, Marc. I love you so much. I made a promise to you to love you for the rest of my life and I find that easier to do every day. I cannot think of a better man than you. You make me so proud. Every day, I see how hard you work for us and I want you to know how much I appreciate that. The kids love having you for a dad. Watching you roll around on the floor as the kids pile on top of you is one of those memories that I conjure up when I have a bad day or just need a reason to smile.
You have always been and will always be my very best friend. Through you, I've met so many wonderful people that I am proud to have as my own family and friends. You are my safe place, my comfort, and my strength. I love you and feel truly blessed to be able to call you my husband. Happy Anniversary!

(Okay, the rest of you can stop gagging now -ha, ha!)

Marc's 5 favorite Albums

So I was talking to Ed (SINEDDIE for those of you "in the know") and he challenged me. He asked if I could name my five favorite albums of all time. With my CD collection in the thousands, that's a tall order. I have narrowed it down, but I'm not completely satisfied. I may have to expand this into my top ten. I tried to keep it away from artists with catalogs that I can't narrow down to one favorite album. So you won't see Zep, The Beatles, or Pink Floyd in this (you may when it goes to ten). I went with the idea of choosing albums I always go back to after my flavor of the day has gotten tiresome. Even then I missed a few favorites by narrowing it to five. These are in no particular order. Except maybe the first on my list. It could be my favorite CD of all time.

Verve - A Storm in Heaven
This album just sound like the soundtrack to my dreams. Psychedelic, a bit pretentious, but accessible. This album sounds so innocent. I think that's partly due to my innocence at the time and the stark contrast between this album and everything else I was listening to at the time. When grunge was king, I was a happy disciple. Then I heard this and was blown away by how different it was. It was one of those albums that I knew from the beginning that I'd always go back to. The opening chord of StarSail grabbed me. It rang out like a exploding star and I knew I would love the album. I would put this CD on the list just for that one chord.

16 Horsepower - Secret South
This CD has to be one of the greatest CD's of the past decade. The band has to be one of the most overlooked bands in recent history. I had been following 16 HP since their first EP. They fulfilled their potential in this album. This is the CD I hoped they would put out. It is just a spooky sounding album. It is heartbreaking and beautiful. They're the band that writes the soundtrack to ghost stories by a campfire. Every town has that one resident that's a loner. Rumors fly about him shooting people, killing his family, or some such nonsense. 16 Horsepower is the band that guy listens to. There is just a spooky vibe to these guys. They almost have a goth/alt/country sound, if that's possible.

Jeff Buckley - Grace
This guy took me by surprise. A friend sent me a tape after Jeff's death. It was a mix of his only solo release while living, Grace, and his first posthumous release, Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk. The beauty of his voice still sends chills down my spine. After I heard the tape, I immediately went out to find Grace. But no one had it, so I went for Sketches. Good CD, but it's just what it says it is, sketches for an album never finished. Grace falls in with the Verve's A Storm in Heaven album. It was so different from what I was listening to that it kept me enthralled for months. So Real and Corpus Christi Carol are two of my favorites, but I couldn't say I dislike any track from Grace. The album always makes me a bit sad. I always tend to think about Jeff's death and what could have been, had he not passed so early in his life.

Steve Vai - Passion & Warfare
This album was one of the first albums I had that I HAD to listen to constantly. I had Satriani's Surfing With the Alien, and I LOVE Satch, but this album just mesmerized me. How can this guy be THAT good? It's not possible. I played the tape (yes, tape) for eveyone I could. Vai is the reason I picked up the guitar and the reason I put it down. I still try to sound like him, but I know I never will. I loved this album because it was all over the place. Shred, Jazz, blues; how can one album have all that and still make sense?

Singles - OST
This one is a bit of a cop-out. I had a hard time picking between Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Smashing Pumkins, Mother Love Bone, et al, so I picked a soundtrack with all of them on it. But the songs are all great. Breath, Drown, Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns, Nearly Lost You, Birth Ritual, and Would? are all great tracks from great bands. Just listening to this brings me back to college and just after. Mother Love Bone started my love affair with grunge but so many other things killed it. I still love the older stuff, but PJ hasn't put out a consistantly good album since Vs. Alice in Chains touring with someone filling in for Layne Staley? No way. Mark Lanegan still puts out good material, but it's a lot differnt than the Screaming Trees. Soundgarden's last album was a bomb (as were all the Audioslave albums). Vedder and Cornell have blown out their voices. So I listen to the old stuff. Besides the nostalgia factor, the songs are just better than the new stuff.

Honorable mentions go to the entire Zep catalog, Temple of the Dog, Pink Floyd up until The Final Curtain, The Beatles catalog, My Bloody Valentine, Rush's entire body of work (especially Hemispheres), and The Black Crowes. Who knows, these bands may show up in updated lists. I think I need to do a Top 20 or 25 list to be fair. So who knows, maybe this is just installment 1 of 4 or 5.