What an icky show that Wife Swap is. I can't imagine how much they pay the people who go on it, $50,000 or more I'd hope. Why else would anyone go on that show?
The show is about putting people into totally alien, unnatural, and hostile environments for two weeks to see how much friction and conlict this can generate. Tears, great. Yelling, a-ok.
For the people who watch it it's about enjoying other people's misfortune. Watching people plucked from their comfortable, self actualized existance into a situation where they are attacked, ridiculed, overworked. The producers put up a line about helping people become better balanced, such as by getting the lazy to work a bit harder, the workaholics to lighten up, the religious fanatics to ease up, the unspiritual to get connected, the indifferent to care more. But really its about creating unfortunate events for everyone watching at home to snicker to themselves about.
I wonder if at the end of the two weeks, the husbands ever wish to themselves, not on camera of course, that the new swapped wife would stay on. I wonder if the wives ever wish they could stay in the new home instead of having to go back to their old life.
Sometimes though I feel like I'm on a reverse version of that show. Like "what am I doing here, what happened to my life, how did I end up here?" Sometimes I feel like I'm not the right fit for my situation, and my situation is not the right fit for me. Like my proper life has been replaced with strange happenings that are hard to grasp.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
basement bar
My older son played softball last summer. I helped out a bit by doing the score book. I also offered the players some occasional baseball tips. Some of those players are pretty good and were keen to play.
After the season ending tournament one of the coaches had a players party at his house. He had a big barbeque which was great. The kids had a good time, they went in his swimming pool. Also the boy had a large supply of toy guns which the boy players greatly enjoyed playing with.
Downstairs in the house he had a nice rec room with a guitar, big screen TV, computer, pool table, game cube, and a bar. The bar was a standard house bar, off in the corner and seemed unremarkable. Not too big or too small.
Anyway we had a good time and then we went home. Later on that week I came home from work to find the kids play room in our house transformed.
My son arranged the area to set up a bar in the play room. It was pretty cool. My younger son likes it too and sometimes we play customer. The boys like to take turns being the manager. My older son is the owner and my younger boy "works" there.
It's funny sometimes the stuff kids notice. The bar at the coaches house did not seem to be very noticeable to a child, but my son was impressed by it.
After the season ending tournament one of the coaches had a players party at his house. He had a big barbeque which was great. The kids had a good time, they went in his swimming pool. Also the boy had a large supply of toy guns which the boy players greatly enjoyed playing with.
Downstairs in the house he had a nice rec room with a guitar, big screen TV, computer, pool table, game cube, and a bar. The bar was a standard house bar, off in the corner and seemed unremarkable. Not too big or too small.
Anyway we had a good time and then we went home. Later on that week I came home from work to find the kids play room in our house transformed.
It's funny sometimes the stuff kids notice. The bar at the coaches house did not seem to be very noticeable to a child, but my son was impressed by it.
Thursday, January 04, 2007
Jets in the playoffs
This is a surprise. The New York Jets finished 10-6 and are in the AFC playoffs this weekend. Nobody expected this. Most people expected the Jets to win 0-6 games this year. While they benefited from a favorable schedule, they played well and won some tough games on the road late in the season. Coming into this season there was a rookie coach and huge question marks around quarterback and running back. Congrats to coach Mangini and the Jets for overachieving.
I remember the last time the Jets played New England in the playoffs. It was at home in 1985. I watched that game the Jets lost 26-14. This time the Jets are on the road. I doubt they can win out on the road like Pittsburgh did last year to reach the Super Bowl. I'm just glad to be in the playoffs, whatever happens.
I didn't watch much football this year. We cut back our cable package and lost TSN, so lost NFL Primetime. I used to pretty much always watch at least prime time to know what was going on and get the highlights. Without prime time I felt kind of disconnected and didn't really get into football this year. It kind of goes up and down a bit between seasons. This was a less season. Overall I'm less of a follower than I was in younger years, but I had more time for it in the past.
So go Jets, hopefully I'll be at home and able to catch the game on TV.
I remember the last time the Jets played New England in the playoffs. It was at home in 1985. I watched that game the Jets lost 26-14. This time the Jets are on the road. I doubt they can win out on the road like Pittsburgh did last year to reach the Super Bowl. I'm just glad to be in the playoffs, whatever happens.
I didn't watch much football this year. We cut back our cable package and lost TSN, so lost NFL Primetime. I used to pretty much always watch at least prime time to know what was going on and get the highlights. Without prime time I felt kind of disconnected and didn't really get into football this year. It kind of goes up and down a bit between seasons. This was a less season. Overall I'm less of a follower than I was in younger years, but I had more time for it in the past.
So go Jets, hopefully I'll be at home and able to catch the game on TV.
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Lucky 2007
I don't normally make New Year's resolutions. I haven't made one in many years, I can't remember the last time I made one (more than 10 years) or what it was. I like to think that you can make a positive change at any time. Why wait for the end of the year to change things to make your life better?
Still this year as 2006 winds down and the late 2000s are about to begin; I'm making a New Year's resolution.
My resolution is that 2007 will be a year that I Make Change. I'm not going to go into specifics. That will come out soon enough in good time. The changes will either happen if I make them happen, or not happen if I fail to make them happen. Some changes may be imposed externally, and that's OK too at this point.
I've needed change for a long time, like years. Sure I could coast along, trudge through another year of the status quo. Just like I have for the last X years. But it's time for change. This year needs to be different. The same old same old is not good enough any more.
This is the first time that I've really committed myself to changing things, instead of passively hoping for the things I want to happen on their own. Hopefully by writing them down here it will help me to overcome the intertia and get moving. Overcome the short term path of least resistance. I'll be able to check back on this a year from now to see if I actually went through with what I said here I'm going to do.
Still this year as 2006 winds down and the late 2000s are about to begin; I'm making a New Year's resolution.
My resolution is that 2007 will be a year that I Make Change. I'm not going to go into specifics. That will come out soon enough in good time. The changes will either happen if I make them happen, or not happen if I fail to make them happen. Some changes may be imposed externally, and that's OK too at this point.
I've needed change for a long time, like years. Sure I could coast along, trudge through another year of the status quo. Just like I have for the last X years. But it's time for change. This year needs to be different. The same old same old is not good enough any more.
This is the first time that I've really committed myself to changing things, instead of passively hoping for the things I want to happen on their own. Hopefully by writing them down here it will help me to overcome the intertia and get moving. Overcome the short term path of least resistance. I'll be able to check back on this a year from now to see if I actually went through with what I said here I'm going to do.
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
God and Harold
Well it's December. Christmas is coming soon. My children are as always looking forward to it.
This time of year makes me think a bit about why the Lord has this fascination with the name Harold. Consider
Hark the Harold angels sing
Glory to the newborn King!
and
Our Father,
who art in heaven,
Harold be thy Name.
Something to think about I guess.
This time of year makes me think a bit about why the Lord has this fascination with the name Harold. Consider
Hark the Harold angels sing
Glory to the newborn King!
and
Our Father,
who art in heaven,
Harold be thy Name.
Something to think about I guess.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Bob Rae
I think Bob Rae has to be the most interesting Liberal leadership candidate. It's remarkable that he has a pretty good chance of winning it.
I didn't believe him at first when he entered the Liberal race. He just came across as a former NDP opportunist. But he's done a convincing and believable job describing his conversion from the NDP ideology to the more pragmatic Liberal ways.
I was in Ontario when he was premier. It was pretty bad. There was a recession and a massive defecit. Yet he continued to spend and borrow recklessly. He deserved to be turfed after one term and he was. Rae may have learned some things from the hard nosed Mike Harris, who I always thought well of. Maybe he's trying to put a human face on the common sense revolution. What was a revolution in thought for Harris is now the Canadian way.
Can Rae win? This is one of the things what makes him interesting. He can win. Rae is interesting because he is the left wing version of Stephen Harper. Like Harper, he softened his ideological stances to move enough toward the centre to form a coalition to govern.
Will Canadians believe him and give him a chance based on his NDP past and the bad track record in Ontario 1990-1995. Based on recent experience, Canadians will be willing to give a chance. It only took Harper one election to shed any lingering Reform Party labels and be accepted by Canadians as a moderate. Even in the first Harper Conservative election campaign it was hardly an issue. So given that, Canadians will be able to accept Rae when he says he's a moderate now. So if Harper can reinvent himself and get past the Reform Party history, then certainly Rae can do the same coming from the left wing to the center.
The Ontario thing can be easily dealt with considering the brutal recession he inherited when he was premier, plus he was NDP then. Most people will accept Rae if he admits that mistakes were made in Ontario, and will accept he is wiser and more experienced now. A Rae vs. Harper election would be a very interesting battle and I think very much winnable for Rae. If Harper continues to do a good job then possibly Rae could hold Harper to a weak majority and then be in position to win the next time. If Harper falters on the economy or Afghanistan then Rae could surge and have a very good chance of winning the first time.
I didn't believe him at first when he entered the Liberal race. He just came across as a former NDP opportunist. But he's done a convincing and believable job describing his conversion from the NDP ideology to the more pragmatic Liberal ways.
I was in Ontario when he was premier. It was pretty bad. There was a recession and a massive defecit. Yet he continued to spend and borrow recklessly. He deserved to be turfed after one term and he was. Rae may have learned some things from the hard nosed Mike Harris, who I always thought well of. Maybe he's trying to put a human face on the common sense revolution. What was a revolution in thought for Harris is now the Canadian way.
Can Rae win? This is one of the things what makes him interesting. He can win. Rae is interesting because he is the left wing version of Stephen Harper. Like Harper, he softened his ideological stances to move enough toward the centre to form a coalition to govern.
Will Canadians believe him and give him a chance based on his NDP past and the bad track record in Ontario 1990-1995. Based on recent experience, Canadians will be willing to give a chance. It only took Harper one election to shed any lingering Reform Party labels and be accepted by Canadians as a moderate. Even in the first Harper Conservative election campaign it was hardly an issue. So given that, Canadians will be able to accept Rae when he says he's a moderate now. So if Harper can reinvent himself and get past the Reform Party history, then certainly Rae can do the same coming from the left wing to the center.
The Ontario thing can be easily dealt with considering the brutal recession he inherited when he was premier, plus he was NDP then. Most people will accept Rae if he admits that mistakes were made in Ontario, and will accept he is wiser and more experienced now. A Rae vs. Harper election would be a very interesting battle and I think very much winnable for Rae. If Harper continues to do a good job then possibly Rae could hold Harper to a weak majority and then be in position to win the next time. If Harper falters on the economy or Afghanistan then Rae could surge and have a very good chance of winning the first time.
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