Firefly

Since Meagan and I only have one more season of The Wire to go, I’ve selected a new TV series from Netflix to work on called Firefly.

I had some friends who half-heartedly recommended this series to me in the past, but I never felt drawn to the program. I say “half-heartedly” because they were obsessed with it and feared having to defend the show when its qualities aren’t really defendable.

Firefly belongs to the sci-fi sub-genre of “Space Westerns.” Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is the only Star Trek season classified as a Space Western on this Wikipedia page, but I’d argue that the entire Star Trek series is somewhat of a space western. In every season that I’ve seen (I’m not that familiar with the show aside from Star Trek: The Next Generation), the crew is on a mission to tame the open space in front of them. This underlying story line inherently belongs to the Western genre – exploring uncharted land, fighting with savages, staking claim on new area, surviving.

The shows mentioned on this page, including Firefly, are very obviously westerns in the sense that the characters have a cowboy drawl, wear guns on their hips, and wrestle cattle. The settings and costumes are what make these shows westerns in space in addition to the overall plot of taming a new frontier.

I haven’t seen a lot of this sub-genre, but my assumption is that each one of these shows is terribly cheesy. Firefly has great characters that go on fun, exciting adventures, but the show is filled with corny one-liners and unrealistic outcomes. This might be one of the reasons why I like the show, but it’s also what makes the show impossible to defend. It’s kind of lame. If you like it, great. If you don’t like it, you don’t even have to explain yourself.

Meagan and I got interested in the show after we saw a portion of Serenity, a movie based on the series, on TV. Firefly ain’t no Battlestar Galactica, but it’s a fun show if you like science fiction and this guy.

Louis C.K.

Standup comedy is really hit-or-miss for me. When a comedian is funny, I cannot get enough. When s/he isn’t funny, the TV gets a lot of death looks and standup is sworn off for at least two weeks. Maybe it’s like that for everyone. I wouldn’t know because I try to tone down my nerdiness in all venues that aren’t my blog.

That said, I love Louis C.K. I love this guy. He is incredibly self-deprecating in addition to making fun of everyone else. No one – not him, not anybody – lives up to his standards. He’s very crass and kind of an asshole, but c’mon that shit is hilarious.

Here’s a clip from a “Stand-Up Showdown” that Comedy Central hosted. I think it sums up his schtick.  He’s also great on Parks and Recreation, but I recommend staying away from his short-lived sitcom Lucky Louie. It was simply his standup with people acting out his stories. It didn’t work. Other than that, he’s golden. LouisCK.net

Watch Louis C.K. – Getting a Cinnabon

NIKE + iPOD

In addition to using the Couch t0 5k program to get started with training, I started using Nike + iPod in September to log my runs and progress.  I am a huge fan of this technology.  Nike+ shoes have a compartment underneath the left shoe’s pad for a small chip that is activated when it senses movement.  Information including your distance, time, and pace are then sent to your iPod Nano, iPod Touch, or iPhone.  When you connect your iPod to iTunes, this information is sent to NikePlus.com where your runs are graphed and your progress is recorded.  You can join challenges or a coaching program to help keep up your motivation.

I enjoy the coaching feature on NikePlus.com, but my favorite feature is the “motivating” voice that keeps you going through your run.  He/She tells you how far you’ve gone and your pace.  This is really helpful if, like me, you have no idea how to pace yourself or have any sense of direction, distance, or perseverance.

Oh, and I almost forgot the best feature and arguable the entire point of connecting your tennis shoes to an mp3 player: MUSIC.  You can make your own playlists to go with workouts or just put your songs on shuffle.  I’ve been on a Top 40 kick when it comes to exercise because the upbeat music keeps me going – or maybe makes me excited to turn it off.  Either way my favorites are Forever by Drake (ft. Kanye, Eminem, Lil Wayne), I Can Transform Ya by Chris Brown (featuring Lil Wayne & Swizz Beatz), and She Wolf by Shakira.  My “Power Song” is Atlas by Battles.

Be my Nike+ friend at http://my.nike.com/Caitlin913.