TiVo Rocks

One of the benefits of TiVo is the fall guru guide. Basically, I can set my TiVo to record any new show this fall. So I decided to let people know my thoughts, as if it makes a difference, on the new line-up for the new season. Another cool thing about TiVo is that we got to download the new NBC shows before next week, so up first are the four new NBC shows, plus a couple Fox shows. In order from liked most to liked least:

1. K-Ville: I forgot that the guru guide was set to record this one, but I'm glad it did. I don't expect much from Fox (see Back To You), so maybe that played to this show's advantage, but I liked this show a lot. I think. It's about New Orleans - present day, post-Katrina - and a couple cops who stick around for the city they love. Now, the action scenes are not great. They're really choppy, probably to cover up for a low-budget and time constraints. But this show isn't about the action scenes so it's okay. It's really more about the people trying to cope even years later with Katrina, and in that sense, the characters really resonate. They're realistic (the pop word here is "gritty"), they're human, they're normal. I think they a good job incorporating the deep South culture without overplaying it, too. I'm not willing to say that it's great, but I thought the first episode was pretty good/really good. It'll stay on the list for the Fall. As a side note, the cameo by multiple Lost characters was unexpected. When "Ethan" shows up, you know he's going to be a bad guy - he's approaching Steve Buschemi creepy, without the Steve Buschemi. (Two TiVo thumbs up)

2A. Chuck: I'll start by saying that none of the NBC shows really appealed to me, but I was willing to give them a shot. Of the four new ones (Chuck, Life, Journeyman, Bionic Woman), I was most excited about Life - mostly because Damian Lewis was amazing in Band of Brothers. We'll get to Life, but first Chuck. This show is alright. The best thing this show does is not try too hard to be totally realistic. The premise of the show isn't realistic, so why try and make it something it is not? The action isn't special, but it's not too bad. The premise is a little iffy, but there's a good mix of light-hearted fun and seriousness. Fortunately, the fun heavily outweighs the seriousness, because this show would suck if it took itself seriously. The best thing they have done with this show is embrace the ridiculous, and that is what makes it work. Chuck is charming for a dork - something I aspire to, so I guess that's part of why I like this show. The supporting cast is pretty good too. (One TiVo thumb up)

2B. Life: Like I said, I'm pretty excited about Life. So far, so good. It's the good old cop drama, except with a twist. Lewis does a good job with his quirky zen-influenced character, bringing a good mix of sensitivity and ruthlessness to a complicated character. If you haven't seen the commercials, he was wrongly convicted for murder then released 12 years later with a hefty ransom and a job as detective back on the force. Oh yeah, his wife left him, his personal financial manager is an Enron-type corporate guy he met in jail. All the other cops hate him because he's still a con in their eyes, and he's pretty close with his female lawyer - guess what she's attractive. As you can see, there's a lot to work with. Since it's a little late on the scene with the whole quirky cop thing (see Colombo, Monk, Cracker), it may be hard to keep it unpredictable. The jury is still out, but I'm intrigued. (One TiVo thumb up)

3. Journeyman: I had no interest in this show, but I watched it during lunch over the last couple of days, and I have to say, it wasn't bad. By the end, I was impressed and maybe hooked. A promising storyline helps. I know the whole "I liked this show when it was called Quantum Leap" joke is an easy one, but there's more to the show than ripping off an old show. The lead guy is intriguing. The running story is tempting. With the exception of time travel, I thought the plot was realistic. Plus, the guy has an iPhone - at the very least, I'm waiting to see how long it works for him. (no thumbs)

4. Bionic Woman: Um, so this show... it's about a bionic woman. A secret government procedure administered by the boyfriend with secrets after a pretty rough wreck gives a woman a bunch of bionic special powers. I don't know about this one. It's not bad, but I wasn't really hooked. A show like this is going to have to rely on some pretty good action sequences and a sequence of events that don't leave you thinking, "Wait a minute... that can't be right...." I'm just not sure that can be done with this show. (no thumbs)

5. Back to You: It just plain sucks. From the ten-years-too-late Chris Farley overexcited, sweaty fat guy bit, to the AWFUL laugh-track, to the predictable and stupid punch lines, I did not like this show at all. The plot stinks, too. I thought it was a comedy, until the last five minutes got strangely serious. I can't figure out why Kelsey Grammar and Patricia Heaton signed up for this. I can figure out why Fred Willard signed up. Christopher Lloyd writes and produces. No, not that one. Apparently this guy won a lot of awards with Frasier (he also worked on Wings and Golden Girls). (Three TiVo thumbs down)

Superlative

Jesse and I were blessed this past weekend to take a trip to New York City for a little sightseeing. Among the various New York things we experienced, the highlight was a Sunday night concert at Radio City Music Hall featuring the great Tony Bennett.

Master artist. Consummate professional. Aged wonder. Gracious host. American classic. Pick your superlative, they all fit. This concert was one of the most amazing things I have ever experienced. First, you have the venue. Radio City Music Hall is a beautiful, historic concert hall (Tony told us it was designed by Liza Minelli's dad, who knew?). Just sitting in our nosebleed seats before the concert started, we knew that we were in for something special.

Then, the lights go down, and Regis walks out. Yep, that's right. Regis Philbin. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I'm so excited to be here. Aren't you, Gelman?" Actually, Gelman wasn't there. But anyway, here's Regis talking, introducing Tony and mentioning that there will be some special guests. Hmmmmm. That's interesting. So Tony comes out, and starts to do his thing, belting out classic after classic. Did I mention that he is now 80 years old?!?! Well, he starts to sing this song, and then stops and says he needs some help with the next one and would we please welcome his good friend, John Legend. So they sing their duet from his recent album, "Sing You, Sinner." John leaves to the delight of the young folk and confusion of the old (the concert was presented by the AARP). A little later, "Ladies and Gentlemen, my good friend, James Taylor!" I actually said "What?" out loud I was so surprised. So they sing their duet, "Put On A Happy Face." Finally, a little later, he is joined by k.d. lang and trumpeter Chris Botti. During the trumpet solo, he danced with lang. During "The Good Life," he dedicated the song to Paris Hilton (see lyrics: " Well, just wake up, kiss the good life goodbye"). She'll admit this, but Jesse cried when he sang "The Way You Look Tonight." She said she's never swooned for an 80 year old before, but this time at least, it was understandable. His voice remains strong, and he delivers each word with appropriate grace and emotion. He sang for two hours without a break. He told some great stories. He was very kind and gracious, and thanked everyone for coming out repeatedly. Quite simply, it was amazing, and as Jesse says, "The coolest thing we did in New York."

Here's one of Tony with the band.

Confessions

Sacrament - a Christian rite that mediates divine grace.

What little I know about confessing, I learned from Usher. Just kidding. But lately, I have been thinking a lot about confession, especially confession as sacrament. That's a big leap from the kind of confession that typically takes place in our churches - that is, not at all. Maybe confession as a sacrament seems Catholic. Well, it is. But what's so bad about that? I'm willing to say that confession is a necessary spiritual discipline, and one that we do not practice in our heritage. With the obsession for dogmatic absolutism giving way to a highly relational theology (for better and worse), why are we leaving out the practice of confession? If ever there was a place for "high church" practices to enter our fellowship, I would think it would be in the realm of confession. That being said, let's not all go tell the preacher. Better yet, let's not all wait and go down to the front - or worse yet, the back - of the auditorium on Sunday morning to confess. Why wait? What about your spiritual vitality is worth waiting even one more day?

I don't like the idea of hiding our confessions, whether in a booth or in the back of the auditorium. It speaks to the idea that we are afraid to be real with one another. It may even be indicative of the lack of faith we have in the grace of God, or more likely, in the ability of God's family to properly handle the grace-full situations that follow confession. Do I really trust you to know what is really going on with me? Typically, the answer is a resounding no. We foster a culture of distrust in our churches by our practice of confession and it leads to spiritual stunting. We fail to grow when we cannot confess.

That being said, are some things between the believer and God? Can you confess to Him alone and still experience forgiveness, healing, and growth? I grudgingly concede that the answer to both questions can be affirmative. But I still believe that God created the church to be a place where sins are confessed and healing is not only received, but also given. Confession is the only path to healing, forgiveness, grace. We're very good with talking about the need for repentance, but what is that without confession. True confession leads to true repentance. And true repentance is not about a matter of doctrine or judgment; true repentance is a matter of healing and grace.

Thus, in order for us to become a confessing people, we must first learn humbly to receive God's grace. Then, confession truly becomes a sacramental practice. Like our most common sacraments - baptism and the Lord's Supper - it is both intimately personal and amazingly communal. And, it is a practice that we desperately need in our churches today.

Memphis Sport Fantasy Challenge

I had a draft today for the Memphis Sport Fantasy Football Challenge, in which 50+ people compete for the crown. How can this be, you ask? Well, without too much detail, it's divided into smaller divisions (8 teams each), with the top one or two teams advancing to the playoffs. I got the second pick in my division, and I am super pumped about my team. It is better than Kevin Conway's All-Infirmary All-Stars.

Steven Jackson
Steve Smith
Marvin Harrison
Maurice Jones-Drew
T.J. Housh
Cedric Benson
Andre Johnson
Matt Hasselbeck
Jay Cutler
Lav Coles
Jason Whitten
Green Bay Defense
Ladell Betts
Jeff Wilkins
Brandon Jackson

I think this team will go far - make the playoffs for sure. Then again, I could be very, very wrong.

The Greatest Half Day Ever

When Jesse grew up, it was a somewhat common practice to celebrate her half-birthday, since the actual birthday falls in the Summer. We all know how bad we felt for the Summer birthday kids when we were younger. No one's around to celebrate! No cupcakes at school! I never had this problem (February). So when I saw my half-birthday listed on the family calender, I figured it was just a shout out to an old and cherished Maddox tradition. I was wrong.

Jesse came home early yesterday and surprised me with a wonderful half-birthday, half-day celebration. She took me to Davis-Kidd to peruse the fantasy football mags and pick out my favorite (K & A be warned). Then we went and watched The Bourne Supremacy on DLP (shout out to Pops). Then, we went home and she showed me the best part, a month subscription to MLB TV. Through the end of the season, I get to watch any Sox game I want on the new iMac, which by the way, is more than capable of handling a full screen Sox game, or the uber-cool MLB Mosaic, which shows up to six games at once in a (go figure) mosaic pattern. So last night, along with a wonderful shrimp dinner, we got to watch a great Sox game in which they came back in the bottom of the ninth to win the game.

My wife is awesome.


Here's the new computer: