September Words of Wisdom

To sit in silence at the shore, watch the waves and hear the surf, is to appreciate the very breath and heartbeat of the earth. --Doe Zantamata

Political correctness is fascism pretending to be manners. --George Carlin

The streets were dark with something more than night. --Raymond Chandler

To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead. --Thomas Paine

Facism, Nazism, Communism and Socialism are only superficial variations of the same monstrous theme: Collectivism. --Ayn Rand

Weep deeply over the life you hoped would be. Grieve the losses. Then wash your face, trust God and embrace the life that he's given you. --John Piper

We are all here for some special reason. Stop being a prisoner of your past. Become the architect of your future. --Robin S. Sharma

Clutter is anything that stands between you and the life you want to be living.
--Peter Walsh

Woke up this morning with a terrific urge to lie in bed all day and read.
--Raymond Carver

To escape and sit quietly on the beach - that's my idea of paradise. --Emilia Wickstead

Nothing is original. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, new films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of later, light and shadows. Select only things to steal from that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work(and theft) will be authentic. Authenticity is invaluable; originality is non-existent. And don't bother concealing your thievery - celebrate it if you feel like it. In any case, always remember what Jean-Luc Godard said: "It's not where you take things from - it's where you take them to. --Jim Jarmusch

Always let your talent do the talking, never your tantrums. --Rasheen Ogunlaru

One day you'll wake up and there won't be any more time to do the things you've always wanted to do. Do it now. --Paulo Coelho

A room without books is like a body without a soul. --Cicero

Writing is a job, a talent, but it's also the place to go in your head. It is the imaginary friend you drink your tea with in the afternoon --Ann Patchett

Being close to water brings me closer to my soul. --Steve Aitchison

We are all here for some special reason. Stop being a prisoner of your past. Become the architect of your future. --Robin S. Sharma

I believe in the ocean curing all bad moods. I believe in the waves wiping away worries. I believe in seashells bringing good luck. I believe in toes in the sand grounding my soul. --Unknown

We must reject the idea that every time a law's broken, society is guilty, rather than the lawbreaker. It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions. --President Ronald Reagan

Fear begets fear. Power begets power. --Cheryl Strayed

Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing. --Laurie Buchanan

Every time I stand before a beautiful beach, it's waves seem to whisper to me: If you choose the simple things and find joy in nature's simple treasures, life and living need not be so hard. --Psyche Roxas-Mendoza

The elimination diet: Remove anger, regret, worry, resentment, guilt and blame. Then watch your health and life improve. --Charles F. Glassman

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. --Buddha

Don't give up! It's not over. The universe is balanced. Every setback bears with it the seeds of a comeback. --Steve Maraboli

The 2018-19 TV season has begun, and you know what that means!

It means that someone is going to suffer the humiliation of being the first cancellation of the season! And by someone, I mean one of the new network shows.

I stumbled across a terrific website today that I'm boggled I haven't seen before: Television Obscurities, devoted to shows that crashed and burned upon launch, many of which are largely forgotten today. The site has a poll where you can vote on your choice for the first cancellation of the new season.

Some amateur analysis:

I was surprised to have been only the second person to cast a vote for New Amsterdam. I'm all for helping people, but I've found the over-the-top do-gooding in their spots - which have been in heavy rotation - to be cringe-worthy, and I read a review of the pilot today that basically confirmed my reaction.

Looks like a lot of people are convinced The Connors will crash and burn without Roseanne. I personally think it will do well early on (due to the curiosity factor of how they wrote out their star and rebooted the reboot) so while I don't think it will last, I don't think it will be first on the chopping block either.

I was surprised that Manifest rated so high in the poll. NBC has been touting it as the most anticipated new drama of the season and I don't disagree with them. I did see the pilot last night and despite a bunch of less than enthusiastic reviews, was not disappointed. I especially did not see that ending coming. I actually think this will be one of the most successful new shows.

Also not surprised by the Magnum P.I. votes, although I don't see CBS being willing to cancel it early on even if the ratings tank, if for no other reason than to save face on what seemed to be a reboot no one was clamoring for but the network seemed hell-bent on making happen.

Think you know the first show to die a horrible death this season? Get on over to Television Obscurities and cast your vote!

Updated 9/26/18: Whoops! Looks like I was wrong about New Amsterdam!

Easier said than done

H/T to Seaside Serenity on FB.

How not to get away with murder

Also, can we nominate this for "Headline of the Year"?

Author of "How to Kill Your Husband" Arrested For, Well, Killing Her Husband

If only there was a CSI show left to rip from this headline. I guess it's up to you, Law & Order franchise. Seriously, I will watch that episode just to see how they play it.

From the linked article:

A woman who gained note for writing lurid mystery books about women murdering their husbands has now been arrested for acting out her fiction in real life.

Writer Nancy Crampton-Brophy, who wrote the 2011 book, "How to Murder Your Husband," was arrested in Oregon after her own, real-life husband was found shot to death.

Note: According to this article, she wrote romantic suspense novels and "How to Murder Your Husband" was actually an essay. Facts are important, but still...she actually addressed the subject in writing. Maybe not the best thing to have on your resume when your husband gets murdered.

Also, her late husband's body was found at the Oregon Culinary Institute, where he worked as a chef. Forget TV, this is looking more and more like a feature.

The funny thing (well, maybe not ha-ha funny, but well, funny) is that if there's anything I've learned from researching crime and watching both true-life and fictional crime shows, is not how I would get away with a crime, but how I would absolutely not be able to get away with it. One of the first things you learn from those shows is that the first person the cops are going to look at is the spouse. And when that spouse is the author of "How to Kill Your Husband"...well, you would think Crampton-Brophy would have figured that out as well. Apparently not.

(Disclaimer: Although, as we all know, she's innocent until proven guilty...and if she does turn out to be innocent, well this story just took an even crazier turn.)

Twitter has lost its ever-lovin' mind. Or it needs new algorithms. Either way...

Twitter has been under fire lately for manipulating and banning accounts that don't fall in line with its head honcho's political beliefs, while allowing genuinely bad people and behavior to go unnoticed, but I hadn't personally experienced it...until the other night, when this popped up on my timeline:

Yes, according to Twitter's algorithms, this is who they think I'd be interested in connecting with. Yes, that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. And as someone else on Twitter pointed out, not only is Mahmoud welcomed on Twitter while a number of prominent conservatives are subject to various Twitter punishments and restrictions, Ahmadinejad is "verified". He has the coveted blue check Twitter bestows on the important people of the world.

I have no idea where this came from, but I love Twitter and would hate to see it crash and burn. I'm sure My Space once felt invincible and we all know what happened to them. But when you not only give the appearance of condoning people known for human rights violations while penalizing law-abiding citizens, you're pretty much writing your own epitaph. I hope things improve, but it's not up to me.

And just for the record, no, I did not take Twitter's advice and follow this creep. Thanks but no thanks, Twitter.

Behind the scenes with TV writer Daniel Knauf

My Twitter Writing List has been going nuts since writer/producer Daniel Knauf recently decided to put what he refers to as his "NoShows" online for anyone who wants to see them. These are shows he's pitched over the years that weren't picked up and it's a fascinating look at one of the downsides of the industry - the part where you pour your heart and soul into a project, only to see it not come to fruition. The collection includes show bibles, pilots and concept pitches. Do check it out at Knauf.TV. There's some amazing material there. He also provides some background on what inspired each project.

Knauf's credits include Carnivale, The Blacklist, Supernatural and the recent reimagining of Dracula starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers, so he's the real deal. But even that apparently doesn't shield him from the sting of rejection.

I haven't had a chance to go through all of them yet, but the two that immediately grabbed my attention were Serling (yes, as in Rod Serling), the premise of which was that back in his Army days, the future Twilight Zone creator suffered a near-death experience that hurtled him into a purgatory that would eventually inspire the classic show, and Honey Vicarro, a mockumentary series about a Honey West-type show.

Knauf's NoShows even have logos. Check out Honey Vicarro:

And be sure to follow Knauf on Twitter as well. He's being very generous with his time and behind-the-scenes stories.

Flight animals

First of all, a brief apology for non-blogging lately. I stupidly spilled a cup of tea on my laptop, resulting in a very expensive and lengthy repair. Not sure how I managed to go ten days without my laptop, but I made it (with a big assist to my iphone). Blogging did suffer, though.

Back to the joys of surfing the internet: I've always wondered how show horses could be flown around the world without them freaking out, and since horses are flight animals (see what I did there 😏) they're instincts are to bolt and run when frightened.

So, needless to say, I was fascinated by this video of horses being flown in for the upcoming Tryon FEI World Equestrian Games in North Carolina. Fascinated and absolutely boggled. Plus, it wasn't a short flight - 8 hours plus according to the captain. And everything went smoothly. Do check it out. Here are some crappy screenshots to give you an idea of the undertaking.

The games, which include such diverse disciplines as reining, eventing, dressage and endurance, begin September 11.

The waves whisper to me

H/T to Mermaid Musings on FB.