(S04E09) It feels really good to be back, doesn't it? My calculations might be a bit off, but it seems to me the amount of time we had off for the writer's strike was about the same as what we usually have off for a summer break. For some reason, though, it felt longer. Something about the cold winter months makes me long for the sweet siren song of Scranton, I suppose. I wasn't there when we won WWII, but I imagine the joy I felt when a new Office showed up in my TiVo was similar to what it felt like on V.E. day. I almost wanted to dress up in a sailor uniform and give Steve Carell a long, deep kiss in Times Square (though, to be fair, I almost always feel that way). I was happy The Office was back, the only thing I worried about was whether it'd still be good...
If you tune into TV Land on September 25 from 6 to 7 p.m., don't expect to see anything. No really, you won't see anything because the network is going off the air for that hour in honor of Family Day -- A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children. The idea, I guess, is that if there's nothing being shown on TV Land you'll have no choice but to eat a meal with your family. Frankly, I think the American family needs more persuading than that. Maybe they could hire goons to break into people's homes and tie them to the dinner table and force them to eat at knife point. Even better, they could get TV Land personalities like Henry Winkler and Mr. T to do this. I'd be honored to have the Fonz force feed me a potato. That kind of experience could only make me a better person.
If, while tending your garden today, you suddenly trip over a rake, fall into a wormhole in the fabric of space and time and wind up in the Maritime Hotel in New York City on June 16, you should stick around because you can bid on a dinner date with Sean Yazbeck, the latest winner of The Apprentice. Tammy Trenta, also a contestant on The Apprentice, has set up the event and charity auction as a means to raise money for the the Theresa Kathryn Foundation, which supports "women and women-based initiatives around the globe." Tickets are $65 dollars, but you'll have to shell out $150 if you want to hang with the cast of The Apprentice beforehand (I don't think that includes Donald Trump, though). In a related auction, if you see me walking around the streets of Minneapolis today and give me a two quarters I'll buy you a Twinkie from the vending machine. That's just the kind of guy I am.
The Cheers episode Ken Levine's still writing in his head
Giveaway Tuesday: Fastlane - The Complete Series
Giveaway Monday: The X-Files: Revelations on DVD
