The best thing about the past month is that Lydia has had to spend time with her Grandma Green, her Aunt Leslie, her Aunt Marcia, and her cousin Alexandria. Because of the geography, there has been a bit of an imbalance. Carol’s farthest close relative, her brother Mark, lives in southeast Pennsylvania. My nearest close relatives live in Charlotte, NC. So there have many more occasions for Lydia to get to know her relatives on her mother’s side than n her father’s side.
This isn’t just a case of jealousy. My mom’s 78 and she really hadn’t had a chance to spend with her youngest granddaughter. In fact, with all of the traveling by the Greens to the Northeast, that was my primary goal: for the Greens to get to know Lydia better.
Of course, since they don’t see her often, they do tend to lavish on her. Her aunts bought her a tricycle this month, which she loves to ride. One Aunt bought her a Curious George stuffed animal, which is second only to old reliable Kitty Cat in terms of sleeping companions.
Now, if I were a GOOD blogger, I’d have pictures of all these folks. I’ve TAKEN pictures, but just haven’t had time to develop anything. In fact, all of these pictures were taken the same day, the same day the truck took out the tree across the street. The picture below was from when she was about six months old, because I have nothing else current. To paraphrase Bullwinkle J. Moose, next month for sure!
Anyway, Lydia knows I love her, and that’s the important thing.
Series Airing on Prime Time on More Than One Network
By popular demand.
SO here’s the list from the 1992 Brooks & Marsh book. I’ve made no attempts to update it – so no Angel, the Buffy spinoff – but those of you who have an updated version of the book can use this list as a starting off point:
Networks: A is ABC, C is CBS, N is NBC, D is Dumont
On All Four Networks:
The Arthur Murray Party
Down You Go
The Original Amateur Hour
Pantomime Quiz
On Three Networks
The Adventures of Ellery Queen-D,A,N&
The Andy Williams Show-A,C,N*
Animal World-N,C,A
Author Meets the Critics-N,A,D
Bachelor Father-C,N,A
Big Town-C,D,N
Blind Date (Your Big Moment)-A,N,D
Break the Bank-A,N,C
Candid Camera-A,N,C
Charlie Wild, Private Detective-C,A,D
Dollar a Second–D,N,A
The Eddy Arnold Show-C,N,A*
Ethel and Albert-N,C,A
Father Knows Best-C,N,A
Ford Theater-C,N,A
The Goldbergs-C,N,D
Life Begins at Eighty-N,A,D
Man Against Crime-C,D,N
Mary Kay and Johnny-D,N,C
Masquerade Party-N,C,A
The Price Is Right-N,A,C*
The Sammy Kaye Show (So You Want to Lead a Band, Music from Manhattan)-N,C,A
The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour (The Smothers Brothers Summer Show, The Smothers Brothers Show)*
The Steve Allen Show-C,N&,A
The Ted Steele Show–N,D,C
Tom Corbett:Space Cadet-C,A,N
Topper-C,A,N
Twenty Questions-N,A,D
Walt Disney-A,N,C
The Wendy Barrie Show (Inside Photoplay, Photoplay Time, Through Wendy’s Window)-D,A,N
On Two Networks
Actor’s Studio (The Play’s The Thing)-A,C
Adventure Theater-N,C&
The Alan Dale Show-D,C
Alfred Hitchcock Presents (The Alfred Hitchcock Hour)-C,N
The Amazing Dunninger (The Dunninger Show)-A,N
Armstrong Circle Theater-N,C
Bank on the Stars-C,N
The Battle of the Ages-D,C
The Bigelow Show-N,C
Bigelow Theater-C,D
The Bionic Woman-A,N
The Black Saddle-N,A
Blondie-C,N&
The Bob Cummings Show-N,C
Bosom Buddies-A,N2
Cavalcade of America (DuPont Cavalcade Theater, DuPont Theater)-N,A
Celebrity Time (Goodrich celebrity Time)-C,A
Chance of a Lifetime-A,D
The Charlie Farrell Show- C,N2
Circus Boy-N,A
Claudia, the Story of a Marriage-N,C
The Clock-N,A
Columbo-N,A*
The Continental-C,A
The Court of Last Resort-N,A2
Dan August-A,C2
The Danny Thomas Show (Make Rom for Daddy)-A,C
Davis Rules-A,C
The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor (Robert Taylor’s Detectives)-A,N
Diff’rent Strokes-N,A
Doorway to Danger-N,A
The Dotty Mack Show (Girl Alone)-D,A
Drew Pearson (A,D)
The Earl Wrightson Show (Earl Wrightson at Home, The At Home Show, The Masland at Home Party)-A,C
The Eddie Capra Mysteries-N,C2
Eddie Condon’s Floor show-N,C
Empire-N,A2
Ensign O’Toole-N,A2
The Ernie Kovacs Show-C,N*
The Family Holvak-N,C
Famous Fights-D,A*
The Father Dowling Mysteries-N,A
The Faye Emerson Show (Fifteen with Faye)–C,N
Fireside Theater-N,A2
The Gale Storm show-C,A
The George Gobel Show-N,C
Get Smart-N,C
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir-N,A
Harbourmaster-C,A
Hawk-A,N2
Hazel-N,C
The Herb Shriner Show-C,A*
Hey Jeannie-C,A2
The Hogan Family-N,C
Hollywood Opening Night-C,N
The Hunter-C,N*
It Pays to Be Ignorant-C,N*
The Jack Benny Show-C,N*
The Jimmy Dean Show-C,A&
The Jimmy Durante Show-N,C2
The Joey Bishop Show-N,C
The John Davidson Show-A,N&
The Johnny Cash show-A,C&
Johnny Staccato-N,A2
The Johns Hopkins Science Review-C,D
The Joseph Cotten Show (On Trial)-N,C2
Juvenile Jury-N,C
Keep Talking-C,A
Kojak-C,A&
Kraft Television Theatre-N,A
Kukla, Fran & Ollie-N,A*
Law of the Plainsman-N,A
Leave It to Beaver-C,A
Leave It to the Girls-N,A*
Let’s Make a Deal–N,A
The Liberace Show-N,C&
Life Is Worth Living-D,A
Live Like a Millionaire-C,A
Lux Video Theatre (Lux Playhouse)–C,N
Madison Square Garden Highlights–A,D
Mark Saber-A,N (recast-think Doctor Who)
Meet McGraw-N,A2
Meet Your Congress-N,D*
Midweestern Hayride-N,A
The Milton Berle Show-N,A&
Mission: Impossible-C,A&
Mr. & Mrs. North-C,N
The Morey Amsterdam Show–C,D
My Friend Flicka–C,N2
My Little Margie-C,N
My Three Sons-A,C
My World and Welcome to It-N,C2
Name That Tune-N,C
Navy Log–C,A
Omnibus-C,A
On the Line with Considine-N,A
On Your Way-D,A
The Perry Como Show (The Chesterfield Supper Club)-N,C
Peter Gunn-N,A
Pick the Winner-C,D (simultaneous)
Place the Face-N,C
Police Squad–A,C2
Police Story-N,A*
Press Conference (Martha Rountree’s Press Conference)-N,A
The Pride of the Family-A,C2
Private Secretary–C,N2
Quiz Kids-N,C
The Real McCoys–A,C
The Rebel-A,N2
Rebound-A,D
Red Barber’s Corner (Red Barber’s Clubhouse, The Peak of the Sports News)-C,N
The Red Buttons Show-C,N
The Red Skelton Show-N,C
Revlon Mirror Theatre-N,C
Richard Diamond, Private Detective-C,N
Say It with Acting-N,A
Screen director’s Playhouse-N,A
Shirley Temple’s Storybook-A,N
Somerset Maugham TV Theatre (Teller of Tales)-C,N
The Spike Jones Show-N,C*
Steve Canyon–N,A2
The Stork Club-C,A
Stud’s Place–N,A
Tarzan-N.C2
Taxi-A,N
Telephone Time-C.A
Tex and Jinx-N.C
They Stand Accused-C,D
This Is Show Business-C,N*
This Is The Life-D,A
The Tony Randall Show-C,A
Treasure Hunt-A,N
Treasury Men in Action-A,N
Truth or Consequences-C,N*
21 Beacon Street-N,A2
Two for the Money-N,C
The U.S. Steel Hour-A,C
The Vaughn Monroe Show-C,N*
Versitile Varieties-N,A
The Voice of Firestone-N,A
Wagon Train-N,A
We, the People-C,N
The Web-C,N*
The West Point Story-C,A
What’s It Worth (Trash or Treasure, Treasure Hunt)-C,D*
What’s Your Bid-A,D
Who Said That?-N,A
Wonder Woman-A,C
You Asked for It-D,A
Your Hit Parade-N,C
Your Play Time-C,N2
Youth on the March-A,D
The items in red I would suggest don’t belong on the list at all, either because the second network merely ran reruns of the first network programs (or, for anthologies, even reruns of other shows) – those shows are designated with a 2, OR the show is essentially a different show with the same name (two different attempts to create a series out of the comic strip Blondie, e.g.). The & sign suggests a totally different show. However, the shows with a * are shows with gaps of 18 months or more which I’ve determined are essentially the same show.
I realize that lots of these programs were on the early part of television – Dumont ceased to exist after the mid-1950s – but there are some network switches I remember very well for some reason, and I have italicized them above. And I should have remember Bionic Woman and, forgive me, GP, Wonder Woman.
Monday Meme 7/24
Q: Why does one do a meme THIS Monday?
A: Because tomorrow’s post took so long to do.
A Tosy meme.
1.Have you ever been searched by the cops?
Yes, in May 1972.
2. Do you close your eyes on roller coasters?
Generally not.
3. When’s the last time you’ve been sledding?
Pre-Lydia, i don’t remember.
4. Would you rather sleep with someone else, or alone?
Depends on who, I reckon.
5. Do you believe in ghosts?
Maybe.
6. Do you consider yourself creative?
Didn’t use to. Now, maybe, I think I might be.
7. Do you think O.J. killed his wife?
Don’t know. I followed this case about as little as one could and still live in the United States.
8. Jennifer Aniston or Angelina Jolie?
To do what?
9. Do you stay friends with your exes?
Many of them, yes. I think I invited at least four to my wedding with Carol, and at least two came. But my most recent ex, I have no contact with, even though she lives 30 minutes away
10. Do you know how to play poker?
Perfunctorally.
11. Have you ever been awake for 48 hours straight?
Yes, cramming for a calculus final exam my freshman year of college, which I passed; I was going to fail the course if I failed the exam. I looked at the calculus textbook a couple weeks later and understood almost nothing.
12. What’s your favorite commercial?
Ever? I don’t know. Probablty a Rice Krispies commercial where Snap, Crackle and Pop sing all the words to the song, and on the fourth verse all sing together.
13. What are you allergic to?
Penicillin, naprocyn, probably some grasses that give me hay fever.
14. If you’re driving in the middle of the night, and no one is around do you run red lights?
No. But the last time I drove in the middle of the night, I didn’t have a license. (The satatue of limitations HAS passed on this.)
15. Do you have a secret that no one knows but you?
Yes.
16. Boston Red Sox or New York Yankees?
Let’s go, Mets!
17. Have you ever been Ice Skating?
Yes. I’m really bad at it. In fact, the only reason I went last time I did was to woo Carol. (And it worked.)
18. How often do you remember your dreams?
When I sleep well, almost never. When I sleep poorly, almost always.
19. When was the last time you laughed so hard you cried?
Don’t remember, but it’s not a totally unheard of thing for me to do.
20. Can you name 5 songs by The Beatles?
Yes.
I saw here standing there, penny lane, strawberry foields forever, got to get you into my life, tomorrow never knows were the first ones off the top. I can give you about 155 more.
21. What’s the one thing on your mind now?
Paying my oral surgeon’s bill.
22. Do you know who Ghetto-ass Barbie is?
Thankfully, no.
23. Do you always wear your seat belt?
Yes. I HAVE been in cars when it was broken (usually in the back seat, ansd some years ago) – HATED that.
24. What cell service do you use?
None currently. Had Verizon Wireless, which cost WAY too much for the infrequent number of times we used it.
25. Do you like Sushi?
Not a lot. I’ll eat it. My wife LOVES it.
26. Have you ever narrowly avoided a fatal accident?
Yes, and I’m glad I had a seat belt on. My friend Lynn was driving in New Paltz on Route 32, heading south, and I’m in the passenger seat, when this car, which had been waiting for several seconds, sudddenly makes a left turn right into us. Lynn had a neck brace for six weeks. I was OK.
27. What do you wear to bed?
Depends on the weather. Usually T-shirt and pajama bottoms.
28. Been caught stealing?
Yes, candy or gum from a grocery store when I was about 6. My mother found it at home, and I had to bring it back and apologize. How mortifying.
29. What shoe size do you have?
10
30. Do you truly hate anyone?
Don’t think so, but let me think on that.
31. Classic Rock or Rap?
Given my lack of understanding of quite a bit of rap, though I loved the really early stuff, I guess classic rock, though certain songs can become so overplayed as to really irritate me.
32. If you could sleep with one famous person, who would it be?
Hmmm. I think this is a question more suited to Tom the Dog.
33. Favorite Song?
Oh, I can’t have A favorite song. It’s so dependent on mood, what I’ve listened to recently. It’ll change every time. This moment: As by Stevie Wonder, especially the “preach” part.
34. Have you ever sang in front of the mirror?
Yes, but not at the Y.
35. What food do you find disgusting?
Canned beets.
36. Do you sing in the shower?
Yes, but not at the Y.
37. Did you ever play, “I’ll show you mine, if you show me yours?”
Yeah, I was comparing scars with someone.
38. Have you ever made fun of your friends behind their back?
Probably, but no more so than I would to their faces.
39. Have you ever stood up for someone you hardly knew?
Yes, or didn’t know at all.
40. Have you ever been punched in the face?
Yes. In 6th grade by 8th grade bully.
You Are a Winner
All I really need to do to work this blog is steal stuff from Tom the Dog, Tosy, Gordon, and especially birthday boy Lefty.
The latter asked last week the favorite thing his readers have won. In the day, I was very good at winning things from the radio stations I listened to, because I had very good dialing fingers, an advantage lost when the redial button was invented. WENE in Endicott, near Binghamton, was my first station of choice, when I was in high school.
It was followed by WNPC, the New Paltz College station. From them, one of the first things I won this album by this singer I’d vaguely heard of named David Bowie, an album called “Hunky Dory”, with a bunch of weird songs which I liked for the most part. My roommate Ron, however, did not, except for this one song called Changes.
In my early Albany days, I listened to, and got stuff from WQBK-FM, Q-104.
But my favorite win was from a station I actually seldom listened to. In the summer of 1977, I was living in NYC, specifically Jamaica, Queens, with my sister Leslie and her then-husband Eric. One day, they had the radio on, and one had to be the ninth caller “with the phrase that pays, ’99X is my radio station’ ” AND be able to identify the last song played. Well, I was the ninth caller, I said the phrase that paid, and I knew that “She’s Gone” by Hall and Oates was the last song played. I won twice my age, which meant $48, real money for an underemployed telephone solicitor (TV Guide, Encyclopedia Britannica). I had to spend SOME of it though, and that turned to be the ONLY time I’ve ever seen the New York Mets play in person. Don’t remember the game or even the score, but I remember the joy being there with my sister. I also have an unusual affection for the song “She’s Gone”.
***
Then there’s Eddie, the Renaissance Geek, who asks if a tomato a fruit or a vegetable? Answer: Yes, both. But if the Supreme Court says it’s a vegetable…
***
Oh, I added two blogs to the roll, both guys from upstate New York with long hair, as it turns out. One, Byzantium Shores, I’ve been reading for quite a while, and just forgot to add. The other, Hydrogen Jukebox, is one I’ve waiting for him to post a second item within the same month. (And you may recognize the person in his very first post.)
***
The Post Office has new superhero stamps. One guy I read, Gay Prof, will want two of the twenty stamps on the sheet. Belated happy birthday, GP.
***
And lest I forget, happy birthday, sister Leslie!
QUESTION: Time Is on MY Side
My friend Sarah noted in a response to a recent post how she spends the 168 hours of her week. I find the idea difficult, because it’s so varied. If I go away it’s one thing, if Carol and I have a date, it’s another. That said, I’m taking the bait and trying to note an “average” week.
46 – Sleep, maybe 6.5 hours in bed, sleeping, or attempting to do so
38 – Work, including some time at home getting rid of junk e-mails I get at work
16 – Specific Lydia time. This involves getting her up, fed, clothes changed in the morning, and stories, diaper changes in the evening, often also including going around the block with her. On the weekends, it’s a bit more concentrated, with Carol going grocery shopping, and me playing with or reading to Lydia.
14 – Eating. About half of this, at lunch, usually also means reading the paper or a magazine. Much of the rest of the time involves Lydia at dinner and especially breakfast.
12- Watching TV. Right now, this includes the nightly news, JEOPARDY!, CBS Sunday Morning, ABC This Week and The Closer, almost always on tape, because Carol & I decided that Lydia REALLY doesn’t need to see the news right now. Also, catching the weather, the first five minutes of the Today show to see if the world’s imploded, catching the weather. When watching taped programming, I generally have a newspaper to read while the commercials flash by.
8 – Racquetball, including time getting there, and showering and dressing afterwards.
7 – Blogging. It’s not like it’s an hour a day, every day. Some days, it’s the five minutes it takes to post. Other days, it’s whatever free time I can find: the last 15 minutes of my lunch break, the 20 minutes it takes for Carol to put Lydia to bed, a half hour of insomniac musings, the hour Carol takes Lydia swimming on Saturday morning. And the blogging also includes my time reading others, which could be 5 minutes here, 10 minutes there.
5 – House stuff: putting dishes in the dishwasher, washing the pots and pans, picking up Lydia’s toys, putting away my CDs.
4- Church, including choir and committees
3- Phone, mostly family. I spend a lot of time at work on the phone, so I tend to avoid it when I can.
2- Reading the paper while listening to music.
13 -All that miscellaneous stuff: getting to and from work, errands, weekend showers (weekday showers counted under racquetball), occasional movies, taking out the garbage, musing on life
What’s your week look like?
***
This post, like all of my (nearly-)weekly questions was inspired by one Chris “Lefty” Brown, who turned 35 yesterday. He is one of my musical gurus, and apparently, I’m one of his.
Oh, Lefty, I’ve been having technical difficulties actually burning the Summer Mixed CD exchange your wife set up; I’m going to someone’s house today, and hope to send out on Monday. I wanted to direct people to your contest, but I couldn’t get the specific link to work, unless I put “ketchup” in the SEARCH mode, in which case I found this; what are you gonna do with ketchup packets, anyway? And here is your birthday present: NEVER again will I EVER mention that apparel incident again. Promise.