Fall, Glimmer, Sparkle and Fade

:: Sunday, May 23, 2004 ::

Career Fair

I think we've all (those of that work anyways) thought about this one:
Top 5 careers you would have if you didn't already love what you're doing.

Even if you are happy as can be with your career (as I am), there's no harm in a little daydreaming about other possibilities. Just like most kids, I went through the typical "i'm gonna be a doctor/lawyer/police officer" answers when I was posed with the age old question "What do you want to be when you grow up?" Now that I've entered the world of 'grown up', my choices have changed dramatically. Due to a major lack of creativity and for the sake of actually posting this before July, I've decided to go with a Top 3. Enjoy.


1. Sports Agent
- What athletically challenged person wouldn't want to get a piece of those massive sports contracts? All the while constantly being around the best athletes in the world and getting front row seats to all the games you have a client(s) playing in. I would be all about showing them the money. Sorry, I just watched Jerry Maguire. I've recently re-visited the idea of giving it a try, but law school gets pretty pricey. Especially since I just got done with my $100,000+ education.

2. Musician
- Some might prefer to use the term 'rock star', but that would be going a bit overboard. Sure, I'd love millions of adoring fans -- who wouldn't? -- but just being able make a living while playing music is a nice gig if you can get it. As it stands now, I'm paid to play other people's music.

3. Poker Player
- Maybe I've watched one too many hours of the World Series of Poker on ESPN, but I think it'd be awesome to make that kind of cash just for playing cards. I know I can hold my own at one of those tables. Would I have the balls to try to bluff when $150,000 is at stake as opposed to $50? Probably not, but we can all dream.

:: Ryan 8:25 PM [+] ::
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Permanent Hiatus

After a bit of a break, here's our next topic:
After reading http://www.televisionwithoutpity.com all day at work, I thought of this list for you...
Top 5 TV shows that are on permanent hiatus.

I couldn't come up with a title, so I'd like to thank Deirdre for her choice of words in her topic. There are dozens of shows that I love that aren't on the air anymore and it would be damn near impossible to cut that list down to five or even ten. So I decided that the shows that had either ran their course (Quantum Leap) or went out on top (Seinfeld, Friends) didn't really need to make this list. Another favorite of mine that would've made the list -- Family Guy -- I'm happy to report is no longer on permanent hiatus. Luckily for everyone that loves good TV, their hiatus wasn't as permanent as we all thought. So after careful thought, these are the five shows that were taken from us (okay... from me) prematurely.

1. Due South
- I'm 99% sure I'm the only person that liked this show in the states, which is the main reason it was only around for three seasons. It came out when I was in grade school and it was a quality show that the critics seemed to really like. But it never completely caught on and was cancelled not once, but three times. The first two times by CBS. After the second cancellation it went into syndication, meaning outside of Canada -- where it was a smash hit -- you had to wait until 2 or 3am to catch the show each week. Why were Americans so threatened by a good willed Mountie?

2. Nowhere Man
- Another show that the critics loved, but UPN only kept it around for one season. I have yet to see another show on their network worth watching and I doubt that will change anytime soon. It was about a documentary photographer -- played by Bruce Greenwood -- who has his entire life erased in one night because of some photos he had taken. Actually, it seemingly was all done when he stepped away from his table at a restaurant to go to the bathroom. I know, it sounds crazy, but it was very well done. It had (has?) a huge cult following and there was a huge letter writing campaign, but the execs at UPN decided to let it die a quick death. Damn shame, because anyone that watched it never got an explanation for the conspiracy to all but erase this man from existence.

3. Picket Fences
- David E. Kelley has had a lot of really unique shows cancelled -- Chicago Hope, Boston Public, Ally, etc... -- but PF was by far the most off the wall. They got in something like four seasons before they were axed, so it's not as if they were one and done, but this was a show that could've been a standard for ten years. Stupid CBS.

4. The Pretender
- This one ran for four seasons as well, but should've lasted much longer. Very simply this show was a casualty of NBC trying to move its time slot 6 or 7 times. You would figure a show that had solid ratings for the first two seasons, would've earned the same slot for the remainder of the time it's on the air. TNT has put together a couple of made for TV movies, but it's not quite the same as a 24 episode season.

5. Bands on the Run
- I had forgotten about this one until the brains behind this list -- Deirdre -- brought it up and how can you turn down the best reality show to reach the air waves? For some reason VH1 decided to let this show die after only one season, which produced a solid winner in Flickerstick. Even the runner-up -- soulcracker -- put on great shows from start to finish of the season. This was a true Battle of the Bands. And VH1 killed it. Shame.

:: Ryan 8:44 PM [+] ::
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