Stranded!

I've been in Grand Rapids the past few days (see my other blog for more info.). It was a fine few days, but much to my chagrin, I'm still here. That's right, I got up at 4:40 am and drudged off to the airport only to discover that my flight had been cancelled due to fog. So now I'm stuck here until 3:30 pm. Ugh.

I came here full of good intentions, of course. I was going to finish this week's sermon and get started on next weeks. Finish the four books that have been staring me down for the last month. Prepare for my adult ed class on Sunday. Read the Bible through in a single sitting. Oh, the mighty plans I had.

But, needless to say, few of them came to fruition. Somehow, I found other things to occupy my time. I got caught up in my novel. Chatted with old friends. Adjusted my glasses (new frames last week are still driving me nuts). And, oh yeah, watched cable TV.

I used to want cable. Secretly, of course. In fact, Jill and I used to have a "deal" (I'm not sure how serious either of us where) that if we made x amount of dollars we could get cable. I don't know if we've crossed that magic line yet or not (I don' think so), but we have made a choice not to get cable in our home. This week, I was reminded of at least three reasons why I'm glad we made that choice. (And pardon me if I sound like a real snob here--don't want to be one of "those people" who says, "Sure, I watch TV--did you see that new episode of Nova last night on PBS?). Here they are in, descending order:

3. Espn2/Espn Classic--Okay, I'm sure its hard to find sporting material to fill all 18 Espn channels (they could try bike racing, but I digress). But seriously. Turn on ESPN2 and you know what you get? Poker. Yeah, you heard me. Poker. What's next, Nascar? (Oh, wait...). And you know what was on ESPN Classic? An episode of "American Gladiator" from the mid 80s. At least there is some physical activity involved there (and some impressive mullets), but give me a break.

2. VH1--it's depressing to me that as a culture, we actually care so much about so-and-so's divorce/shopping habits/weight gain/weight loss. Even more depressing is that many of the shows on this channel make "Paradise Hotel" look tasteful.

1. "The Pussy Cat Dolls." Do I really need to say more?