TVSquad

I have a 19 month-old son named Keane Black who has recently graduated from a boob-obsessed pink blob into a happy-go-lucky toddler. (Little does he know that, if he follows his father's path, he's only a few decades away from regressing back into a boob-obsessed pink blob, except this time with back hair).

The transition has been great for me because it means that my son and I are now actually able to do things together: we play ball, we color, and we watch TV.

Babies are greedy in the sense that my son seems to have no interest in watching PTI (regardless of how many times I explain to him the myriad delights of LeBatard). Thus, when we watch together, we're stuck watching his shows, specifically his all-time favorite, The Backyardigans.

While I've grown to enjoy the show, it's occurred to me there are several ways that it can be made a more effective educational device..

(S02E18) This wasn't the funniest episode of Everybody Hates Chris, but I did like how it explored the dynamic between Chris and his father.

Kurt Vonnegut once told McSweeneys that a male writer should never write about his father: "you learn about life by the accidents you have, over and over again, and your father is always in your head when that stuff happens."

(S02E04)

Chris Rock: Who knew the secret for a guy getting girls was for a guy to get a girl?

I have a friend who came up with the somewhat gauche term "girlfriend stink" to describe that air of confidence a guy has when he's in a relationship that suddenly makes him attractive to women who normally would want nothing to do with him. Chris finds out what that's all about when rumors start to circulate around the neighborhood that he and Tasha, the new girl next door, are dating. Chris figures as long as he responds to every query with "hey, well, you know..." he's safe, since it's a noncommittal answer, but really he just doesn't want anyone to think he's a loser who can't get any girls. Apparently he doesn't realize he's the star of a sitcom about how much it sucks to be a teenager.