What I'm Watching: Pushing Daisies

I wrote this article for the paper the other day. Check it out:

It is a simple fact that I love television. My television viewing as of late, however, has been at an all time low. I have two part-time jobs, which equals one full-time job (of course) and I am also a full-time student. Granted, I do not focus on my studies as much as I should, but that is neither here nor there. Basically, every night of the week I am working, so that leaves my six-inch television in a lonely place. I'm sure it hates me, now. Anyway, I digress. When I get home the first thing I look forward to doing is watching television. Thanks to a wonderful little invention known as the internet (thanks again, Al Gore!) I am able to watch practically any episode of any show. Ever.

Now, I'm not sure if any of you have been following the WGA writers strike, but I now feel guilty for all the internet TV I've been watching. In short, the writers who wrote that episode get zero dollars when you watch it. Oops! Not the time for that, though.

When it was time to do this article, only one show popped into my head. That was "The Office." Now, anybody who knows me knows at all knows that is my favorite show on television. Hands down. However, there are more shows that I watch: "30 Rock," "Friday Night Lights," "Bones," "House," "My Name is Earl," "Chuck," sometimes "Heroes," the new miniseries "Tin Man" and whatever else is on. There is one show that surpasses all but "The Office" and that is "Pushing Daisies."

"Pushing Daisies" is a series that is unique in itself. It is unlike anything I have ever seen before. This seasons pilot (the series premiere) has been one of the best television premiers I have ever seen. It is one of those defining pilots that will go down in television history. Please, go watch it online, but wait until the strike is over.

"Pushing Daisies" is a series about love, death, and the power of human contact. The series is narrated by the voice of Jim Dale (narrator of the "Harry Potter" audio books, for you nerds out there) and he keeps the series up to date for us viewers. The synopsis of "Pushing Daisies" is, well, strange and very unique. Meet Ned (the adorable Lee Pace), a pie maker with a special gift. He has the gift of bringing people back to life with a simple touch. However, there is a catch. If he touches them again they will be dead, for good this time. Also, if he keeps the undead person alive for more than 60 seconds then whoever is within close proximity will kick it instead of the undead person. Together with Private Investigator Emerson Cod (huggable Chi McBride) Ned and Emerson go into the morgue and find out how the dead person died and collect the reward money for the unsolved murders.

Next, we meet Charlotte (brilliantly played by Anna Friel). "Chuck" (Ned's pet name for Charlotte) and Ned were childhood sweethearts. All of a sudden, Chuck shows up dead one day, and Ned is there to ask her what happened. When Chuck shares her story with Ned he refuses to touch her again, thus keeping her alive. For more than 60 seconds! DUN DUN DUN! As a result, the mortician in the next room dies in Chuck's place.

Chuck and Ned are mesmerized with each other, yet they cannot touch. If Ned ever touches Chuck, she will be dead forever. The two find meaningful ways to touch and connect, and this invests the viewer in this relationship. For example, in Ned's car there is now a sheet of plexiglass dividing the two in the front seat, with a rubber glove sticking out so the two can hold hands. Awww! I still, however, shudder every time the two sit next to each other or when they are in the room together. Too close for comfort. I want Chuck to stay around as long as possible.
This is not the only thing between them, though. As a child, Ned inadvertently killed Chuck's dad when he touched his dead mother to revive her back to life. Later that night, Ned's mother kisses him goodnight and upon contact, she falls over dead. Yes, confusing, but very believable. Somewhat. Trust me on that.

This show is different visually as well. It looks like something from Tim Burton, yet for adults. The Pie Hole (as in shut yours) is the central location and where most of the action happens. The restaurant is colorful and just whimsical. Beautiful perfection. The waitress at The Pie Hole, Olive (tiny Kristen Chenoweth), loves Ned but Ned only has eyes for Chuck. Olive has no idea about Ned's secret, though. This love triangle sometimes causes Olive to bust out in song when she is alone in the Pie Hole, or driving a car, or … By the way, anyone who busts out singing a They Might Be Giants song is alright in my book.

This show really catches at my heart strings and I get emotionally attached. I was completely hooked after the pilot (or Pie-lette and it is better known to us "Pushing Daisies" fans) was a fantastic episode, yet all the episodes have been stellar. Each undead person has a unique and funny story to tell, and we get to see Emerson, Chuck, Ned, and sometimes Olive work together and solve the mystery.

Since I work at church every Wednesday night, I always miss it, and since I am old school and still use a VCR (which I've stolen from my roommate), I record this series and watch with eager anticipation. It is a sad Wednesday when there are no new episodes. I could easily go into much more detail, but I will digress. Please, just check out the show (Wednesday's at 7:00 pm on ABC) and get hooked in. When I watch it, all I want to do is eat a pie and make sure the two stars never, ever touch.

Sure, "The Office" is the best show on TV, but "Pushing Daisies" is most definitely my new favorite, and a unique one at that.

I'll Still Be Me

I got a job!! Well, I already have a job, but I got another one! Yay! I am now in charge of infants to three year olds at Slide Baptist Church. I get paid $10 an hour (whether there are kids there or not!) and work about 8-10 hours a week. Sunday mornings and evenings, and Wednesday nights. I am so excited! This extra money will pay for my rent, so that is a plus.
Now combined with my other job, I will now be working 40 hours a week and taking 17 hours of school. Whoops. I dropped A&P so now it is only 13. I've never taken this few hours! It's kind of nice, actually.

Katie's birthday was on October 20 something....so we had a big party for her Friday night. It was held at Linsdey, Katie, and Emily's apartment, and what a cute place they have. Katie was BJ from M.A.S.H, Lindsey was a nurse, and I was a nerd. Seriously! I was going to wear a cape and be a super nerd, but the cape I had was just way too big. It looked more like an invisibility cloak that Harry, Hermione, and Ron used. It is a major character in the last book. Great book by the way. You should all read it. I called it from the beginning though and knew Harry would not die. Oh well.

It was a great party! Katie rented 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later and we put in the first one while we ate hot dogs and hamburgers, and then we turned it off and played games. In one room there was karaoke! In the living room we played Scene It and then Apples to Apples. For Scene It we had Team A and Team 1. Team A (my team) won! Yay! I guess all that useless movie knowledge went to good use. Melissa and I helped our team win. After Scene It Melissa, me, and Emily's sister played Six Degrees to Kevin Bacon. Wow. You can link him to anybody! Amazing. We even linked him to Jimmy Stewart and Cary Grant.

We started playing Apples to Apples and got to meet Jim from Dublin. Jimmy from Denver City was there as well. Many others, but two dudes with the same name. Kinda cool. Katie and I were not too sure if Jim was really from Dublin but his accent was great. Nicole kept calling him John. Awesome. I wanted to just call him James, but I was too distracted by his accent. He left because I am pretty sure we freaked him out.

Becky came in after she got off of work and had a story to tell. We work together, and she is just great. Apparently there was some altercation with a customer. We have a pretty standard policy when it comes to looking at animals. You have to be 18 or older and you have to give us a picture ID. No problem. Once we have your ID you can take the puppy (except the small ones) into the puppy play room. This dude apparently wanted to take the puppy out of the store and show his family. Yeah right, dude. You ain't leaving our store without buying the thing. He got angry that he was not allowed to leave the store with the animal. Luckily Becky had not given him the dog yet. He became beligerent and refused to leave. Security! 10 minutes later they show up and by this time he apparently grabbed Nancy's (the manager) arm and shouted profanities at her. Wow. The assitant manager and Becky looked on and were pretty much terrified. That all happened on a Friday night. At 5:10 p.m. She got to the party around 9:30 and was still pretty freaked. I would have been scared too. Idiot guy.

Anyway, back to the party.

After the game Melissa just starts singing Willie Nelson's The Gambler. Wha? What a random song choice. I start singing along with her and I asked her if she watches The Office. "No," she said. I told her of the episode where they sang that song on the bus. She laughed.

Later on in the night we all drew names for door prizes and I drew Michael Meyers. Halloween!! Coincidentally, Melissa drew Dwight. She had no clue who that was, but we told her he was from The Office. She laughed. I won a spider goblet and Jimmy won a nerf gun. Haha! I think he was Frodo or something like that. Maybe he was a zombie. Blah! I'm going to get you and then he shot me in the eye. True story. Thank goodness I wear glasses or that could have been one big ouchie. Come on! It was a nerf gun, or something like that. I know nothing about guns.

Saturday I worked. Ugh. Katie called me and I went over to their apartment and we watched 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later. Wow. I really enjoyed the first one, but the second one is a little scarier. Oh. My. Gosh. Pretty creepy. Plus, zombies are awesome, and these were pretty cool. Great movies.

I got home and wanted a lighter movie so I put in one of my favorites, The Princess Bride (Inconceivable!), and fell asleep to it. Awesome movie. I love the R.O.U.S's. Totally great. Buttercup. Tehehe.

After church this morning (did I mention I got another job?) mom and the sister called and wanted to go shopping. I needed new clothes and I knew mom had money so I went along. I got a few sweaters and it was great. We went to Johnny Carino's and I took home leftovers. "I think I'm in love with Italian food." Sigh. I love that show.

I had to see a movie for the paper and I just got back from seeing Dan in Real Life. Wow. Great, great movie. I truly loved it. Steve Carell was amazing. Loved every minute of it. Please, go see it. I give it 4 out of 5 Chap Scratches. Whoohoo.

I have to write a story (due in the morning) and the topic is this: Moving Day! Your boss just got a promotion to another company and you are moving to a bigger cubicle(?). As you are cleaning out your bosses desk, you find some embarrassing items. What do you do with them? Intaresting. Say it like Dracula. The other is this: you go to the movies and on the marquee there are three movie titles that are up there but they are smushed together so it looks like one sentence. Ex: Seven Cars Gone in Sixty Seconds. Not mine, but it is great. So, I need to get on those. I have the article to write and then the little thing with the boss thing. Too many things. I need to stop saying things.

Hold on, if my boss got a promotion why am I cleaning out his desk? Am I getting his office? I don't get the prompt. Since I have not written it yet, can I argue that it is too ambiguous to do anything with? No? Well, ok then.

Hey, I like your picture of him on your profile. I might steal it and post it on my page. You know, just like the other one.

Not looking forward to the 10 (mom says 9) hour drive to Crosby for Thanksgiving. So far it looks like we are leaving Tuesday afternoon. Hannah does not get out of class until 2:15 so as soon as she gets out we will head out. Hopefully by 3. Cousin Macy might come as well. Steve, DeeDee, Matthew, and Micah will probably be leaving earlier. Yay for car rides. We will be leaving cold, wintery Lubbock for hot, humid Houston. Haha, an alliteration.

My 88 year old great grandmother might need back surgery so pray for her. Her back has been hurting for some time now, and she is in all sorts of pain. She is 88 years old, so if she is complaining, she must be in excruciating pain. I fell once and landed on my butt and had this shooting pain up my back for like a week. I acted like a little baby and it was nothing. "Oh Jordan, you'll be fine." Didn't help that the brother kept hitting my back to make it worse. "Jacob, stop torturing your sister" is all the parents would say. I punched him in his nose. I even made him bleed once. Another time we were fighting and...

This blog is boring. I should probably stop writing and begin writing....hmm.

Or not. The yearbooks finally came in and I am in it once. Yay me. I did not show up for individual pictures but they managed to sneak a picture of me with the Duster staff. Boo! I don't want people to know me. Plus, I am socially retartded and if people know me then they come up to me and start talking to me. That's fine. I don't mind that. It's just that I don't know what to say and I make a fool of myself. Something along the lines of "hey, I collect snowglobes!" Or, "Did you know that there are no such things as miniature Shih Tzu's?" They then look at me and wave to their imaginary friend conveniently located behind the bush and walk away. Since we had that one conversation we would of course be friends so if I ever saw that person again I could say "hey, let's share germs" and procede to hug that person. I love hugs. Not higs. I don't know what those are.

Is it so wrong to be socially retarded? Can I say the word retarded? Or is it retarted? Who cares. It's my blog and I'll spell it like I want to.

What's this I hear about an Office convention in Scranton?? If I had known about this awesome experience I would have possibly gone. Not like I have to money or whatnot, but it would have been cool. Plus, I hear the entire cast (except for the four big stars) are there. What a fantastic idea. People keep saying the "First annual Office convention." First of all, how can it be annual if it is the first time? Makes no sense. You can say annual when it the second time. Makes more sense. Duh!

Hannah got to intern Friday night for KLBK, the CBS affiliate here in Lubbock. I'm glad we live in a town the size of Lubbock (200,000) because it is just big enough, yet not too big. She was so excited and when she told me she practically had to pull her car over on the side of the road to tell me the good news. I'm so proud of my little sister. She's gonna be famous one day. Probably not me though, you know, the whole me being socially retarded thing. I could be one of those eccentric reclusive writers who only comes out for book signings and creeps out the fans. Awesome. I would wear a homemade shawl and never comb my hair. Since my hair is curly and frizzy it would look hideous. Sweet!

So, I guess it's been a good week for the Williams sisters. I did not fall once and Hannah is well on her way of becoming a news broadcaster. What will happen next??

Wow. That was lame. Oh well. Alright, guess I better go and begin writing. Take care, world. Or my limited viewership

Look at what I'm doing and go tell somebody it.

You know what, I actually love LCU. Sure there are plenty of things that anger and annoy me, but for the most part, it is great. There is a young freshman here on campus that has a brain tumor. Sad, yes. Ending there, no. LCU has rallied around this young man and it is just fantastic. It is times like these that you realize LCU is truly like a family. If one of our own is sick, then we do all we can to help. Amazing. Truly great. His name is Jerrod Shelton and he needs our prayers. He is currently in Plano undergoing surgery to remove the tumor, and so far I have not heard if it is cancerous. We had a chapel the other day totally devoted to praying for Jerrod, and the entire auditorium got on their knees and prayed for this young man. Amazing. Truly fantastic, and that is why I love LCU.

Would that have happened if I had gone to Baylor? I almost lived in Waco for four years, instead of Lubbock. I could have been a green and gold bear instead of a red. white, and blue chaparrel.
Speaking of chapel, Mandy and I had the honor and privilege to deliver the chapel address the other day. The reason why this is special is because we were the first females to do chapel. Apparently ever. Daunting. We spoke to like 1,300 people and it was great. I also got to say "You are dismissed." Cheers from the audience. We received a lot of compliments. It was about LST and we think we did a good job and we have already received tons of questions from people who are interested.

I got cousin Lemondrop addicted to The Office. Fabulous! I knew she would love it because I love it. We are basically the same person, only I am two years older. Sucker! So, what was your favorite episode, and who is your favorite character? Just wondering. Also, try 30 Rock, it is also great. Boo-ya!

That was one of my goals: to get people addicted to The Office. Done! I need a new goal. Also, every February LCU does a little show called Master Follies. All of the clubs on campus perform a six minute musical routine and it is always great. Each club performs and it is usually themed. This year a men's social club, Sub-T 16, is doing their theme to The Office. Wow. Can I just say how fantastic this is already going to be? Wow. Patrick is one of those in charge of doing it, and he is going to be Michael. He is going to dye his blonde hair black and grow it out and cut it badly. Haha. I can't wait to see who plays Pam and the other females since they are all guys. Their shows are so funny and random, and they will always sing the Oscar Meyer wiener song. Is February here yet?

I am now a Woman of Destiny. I went on a church retreat in New Mexico and it wad great. I REALLY needed this in my life right now. I was carrying a lot of burdens and it was great to leave them in the mountains. Up there, among the trees and bees are my burdens. Thank you for leaving me.

I'm pretty sure I bombed my British Lit. midterm. The test was 25 short essay questions. The last five dealt with Spenser's The Faerie Queene. Not the point. The point is that I knew this information hands down. I mean, the story had trees that bled, so of course I was intrigued. Plus, I loved the allegory in it. The whole first book is about the Redcrosse knight trying to save Una's parents, who are being held captive by an angry dragon. Awesome. I love dragons. The evil Archimago comes and corrupts Redcrosse and he deserts Una because he feels as if she has failed him. Not! We get to see people in the House of Pride (hell), and then the House of Holiness (heaven). We meet the evil Error and Redcrosse defeats her. We finally meet the dragon and it takes Redcrosee three days to defeat him. Redcrosse and Una get married, but Redcrosse has to go back to The Faerie Queene before they can consumate the marriage. Nothing to it. Typical story right? Yeah, I completely got things mixed up. I confused Error and the dragon and the whole fight. I mean, the dragon took three days to kill! How could I forget that? I mixed up the two Houses, and that was not brilliant. Idiot! I'm pretty sure the professor already thinks I'm an idiot, so whatever. I did, however, answer all twenty-five questions. Boo-ya! I needed massaging hand oil when it was over.

I'm pretty tired. I have a lot of things to do, but I don't want to do any of them. Also, I am going through Target withdrawals. Target, as most of you know, is indeed my favorite store. I buy everything there. Everything. Well, since all the money I make goes to paying bills, I never get to buy anything from Target. I want to go so bad, but if I go I will definitely spend money I don't have. Grrr.

Forget about Wal-Mart! It is no fun!

I put my keyboard on eBay and I am trying to sell it. Free shipping! Go buy it, if you want it, because I really need the money. Do it folks!

I'm pretty much obsessed with writing this story I have in my mind. No tells, my friends, no tells. Only in do time. I need a really good character name. She is a kindergarten teacher who loves teaching, but hates parents and tries to kill them all. Yeah, she's psycho. Psycho I tell ya!

Ich, ni, son, shi, go, yo....see, I can count in Japanese! I love Japan, or as it is known, Nihon des. Watashi wa Jordan des! haha.

If I studied, I could possibly make all A's. Eh, it's not worth it. I'm already into my fourth year, and I'm just ready to get my degree and leave forever. Sure, I love my LCU family, but I have been in school nonstop since I was four. 17 years! Time for a change. Plus, I can finally quit my job at the pet store and find a real job. One that I enjoy and get compensated for. Well, more than what I make now, anyway.

So, until then, I will dream of the day I will walk across that stage and accept my diploma, take a picture with Dr. Jones and leave. Forever. My family will be there and it will be great.

I went to Erin's church this morning and she introduced me to the pastor. He shook my hand, smiled, and talked to Erin. She told him I went to Japan last summer and he looked at me and said "I bet you liked it there because you are taller than everybody there." Wow. Way to say I'm short. I played it off and was like "yeah, it was great looking people at eye-level" or something to that effect. When I am next to my sister, I feel like I am a dwarf. Or she is a giant. She is a whopping five inches (or more) taller than me. Gah!!!!

That is all. Good night.

Currently watching : The Office: Seasons One and Two Release date: 12 June, 2007
9:15 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos

Charley Patton Songs

"Because you fall in love most often that's what's the matter." I like Jason Mraz. He rhymes words well.

How are you? Oh really? That's cool. No, just sitting here. Yeah, that's great. I totally understand. Alright, I'll see you later. Call me!

I want to develop a language and call it my own. I shall call it....something profound and great. It will be awesome, and it will catch like wildfire and SNL will do a sketch about it. It will be unfunny of course, because, let's face it, it's really gone downhill. I mean it used to be sooo good! My favorite decades of SNL were the 70's and the late 90's early 00's. That just looks wierd.
I wish I was Michael J. Fox. Marty McFly!

The other day at work I sneezed nine times in four hours. It was a good day!

I have come to learn that actions speak louder than words first hand. I realize that somebody is always watching so I need to present myself in a manner that is both socially acceptable yet mature. Doesn't always happen.

I stole a case of water from mom last night only after I drove over there and used her washer and dryer and got a free meal. I mean, come on, I did drive thirty miles to see her, so it was great to steal her water. I also stole Hannah's small barbeque grill that I will probably never use. Thanks, guys!

I dropped Anatomy & Physiology. Here's the deal. If you know me at all then you know that I hate studying...with a passion. On the off chance that I do study it is usually done the night before. Hey, cramming works. Anyway, I studied for about two hours for my A&P test and got a 68 on it. Coincidentally that was the class average. I just did not want my GPA to lower due to a class that I don't really need. Oh well. It was fun while it lasted.

I'm not superstitious. Just a little stitious.

I know this dude who is an idiot. I mean, he is like a stappler that is missing staples. Idiot.

Not sure why I wrote about him, but I did. Whatever. I'm tired and procrastinating doing work for Mr. (Dr?) Hawley. Long live the Faerie Queene! I like the part with the bleeding trees. Spenser's my dawg, y'all! I actually started reading this one, but of course I did not finish. I mean, professors really expect us to read 60 pages in two days? It's like they want us to do work or something. I don't get it.

Basically I hate being told what to read. The Faerie Queene is a great story, and one I probably would have read eventually, but it's just the idea of someone forcing me to read it. Same with Shakepeare. I mean, I have blooks aplenty containing his fantastic works, yet I don't like being told what to read. Something I need to break out of, I suppose, but I have gotten this far, so I'm sure I'm ok. Or am I?

In response to my default picture (on myspace): no, I did not see a naked guy. I think my face would look far less interested. It would be one of shock, and concern for the poor man running around in his birthday suit. Sort of like the face that I have on now.

No, a naked guy did not just run past me.

Stop asking.

Anybody want a piano? Still? Let me know, I've got connections.

I've been thinking about life lately. No, really? Wow, what a surprise. I know right! Anyway, I feel as if this semester something big is going to happen. I say that now, knowing that the semester is almost half over (really!). Not sure yet, but I have a feeling that it will be up there with having my teeth cleaned and riding in a helicopter. Ok, maybe not the last one. Still, profound nontheless.

Did I spell that right? I wish I had spell checker on this thing. Is spell checker one word or two? How do you spell carrot? I'm so lost. Help me!

I just don't think I'll ever get over you. It's not a bad thing. I miss you daily. Well, mostly at night. My Documents has stories all about you. One day. One day, my dear, I will share them, but for now, they are our secret. Shh.

I might have a second job and that is exciting. I love kids, and my second job will be watching kids while the parents are listening to the preacher preach. Hopefully I can too. It could be like listening to a sports game on the radio.

I'm sure I've babbled on long enough.

To leave you with:

What I'm Watching:
The Office seasons 1,2,3, and 4. Love it. Beware, season 2 is an ab workout.

What I'm (Supposed) To Be Reading:
Sonnets by Bill Shakespeare.

What I Want To Be Listening To:
Too many to put here. Mostly the new Cartel album.

Random word: palatial. adj. 1. suitable for, or like a palace. 2. magnificent; stately.

Random word used in a sentence: My aparment is not lavishly palatial. Yeah, I don't think so.

Number of times it took me to spell sentence correctly: three

Number of times I spelt "if" instead of "it": fourteen

Number of times I tried to end this blog: four

Number of people not reading this: priceless.

I don't care!

Currently listening : How We Operate By Gomez Release date: 02 May, 2006