Dull day

Got up shortly after noon. Still weighed 282.5. Got dressed, went out, discovered that it was actually a bit too warm for the jeans I was wearing (we’re headed back up towards 90°F weather), had some pizza.

Took the subway up to Union Square, visited NY Central Art Supply to see if they still had those brushes I like so much on sale (Dynasty). They only had one squirrel-hair, and the tip was bent. I bought a pen and a marker. Chatted a bit with the folks behind the counter. Stopped in at the Forbidden Planet on the way back north, discovered that the Sparks collection is indeed a paperback, and $36, but it’s pretty thick. I bought Meathaus #3 (an old issue, but one I didn’t have, of this anthology series) and something called Bazooka Jules: Bumper Edtion (on a whim). Sat in the park and sketched, then bought some shiro plums at the farmers market. Did some more shopping back in Brooklyn (milk, cereal, green beans, cherries, protein bars). That was pretty much my day.

Oh, I forgot to set my VCR to tape Stargate: SG1 and Farscape last night. Grumble. One of these days I’ll have to get a TiVo. Fox is scheduling Firefly (Joss Whedon’s new series) for Friday nights, and if I’m not going to be shackled to the TV, I’m going to need a recording solution that changes the channel on my cable box. I think that may involve calling the cable company and getting a new box. And a new remote, since the current one is full of leaky batteries.

Anti-workout propaganda

So I was working out this afternoon (weighed 282 this morning), stretchin’ out my thigh muscles on the hip abductor, which I had to wait for four other people to get finished with first, most popular damn machine in the joint, and a scene from an old episode of M*A*S*H floated up into my head.

I don’t remember what the main plot was, and I’ve been unable to find it by googling, but there was a sub-plot in which Radar was thinking about taking up weightlifting, and Hawkeye and BJ (or maybe Trapper) talk him out of it! What the fuck was up with that? Doctors telling a patient not to bother exercising?

When I was a kid, I figured being in good shape was just something some people were and some weren’t, like height or skin color. I wasn’t in shape, but it was OK because I was smart (I thought), which was (I figured) more important. If I’d really been smart, I wouldn’t have bought into that essentialist smart-or-athletic paradigm.

Anyway, I can imagine a bunch of out-of-shape writers sitting around, having bought into that same paradigm, trying to pass on the idea that being in good shape isn’t really important, that working out is the equivalent of putting on a false face, trying to be “something you’re not”.

And speaking of trying to be something you’re not, has anyone else noticed how very well-suited that particular sitcom vice is to its medium? Sitcoms are all about stasis — there’s a setup, and each week something happens to threaten the status quo, and at the end of the episode everything’s back the way it was. If a character actually changes, the success of the show is imperiled.

When's Firefly gonna be on?

So I’ve been looking forward to Firefly, the upcoming science-fiction show from Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I’ve been seeing ads on Fox saying “Fridays on Fox”. Now I just saw one saying Wednesdays. Huh? The Fox website for the show tells me the premiere will be on Friday, 20 Sept., but doesn’t say when the show will be regularly showing. This fan site also says it’ll be showing Fridays. I’m confused. Help me, Media Babe!

And a bit of unwelcome news on the fan site, Fox made Joss reshoot the pilot — they want more action and less drama.

Salmon

A neat thing about the Hot Point nutrition plan (which I’m only sorta half on) is that it’s forcing me to eat better. Not just more nutritionally, but it’s forcing me into a wider variety of foods, just to keep myself from getting bored eating the same two or three things every meal. Today’s dinner: pan-seared salmon fillet with green beans. Mmm, crispy salmon skin.