Last night I rushed home from work to be sure I was in front of the TV at 9pm. Yes, in the age of recording devices I still ran home to watch a show. No, Lost starts next month. I’m talking the season premiere of Masterpiece Classic. I’ll wait a moment while you read that again. Masterpiece Classic. I made it home in time to drag my dog around the block and then sit down for some Masterpiecey goodness.
Explanation due, I understand. I grew up like most people. My early PBS memories were happy ones. In my toddler phase, PBS=Sesame Street. Then in my elementary school years, PBS=Monty Python’s Flying Circus and being forced by my brother to do jumping jacks to stay awake. But puberty and junior high drove a wedge between PBS and me. It became: PBS=Boring Stuff My Stepfather Watched. It was him saying, “I’m going to watch Nova” and the rest of us, thinking in our heads, “Ooooooh, la-di-dah, Nova. You’re sooooooo superior to us.” And then after being further entrenched in cable, PBS was the distant second cousin that you hear about from time to time but have nothing in common with. Or so I thought.
For whatever reason these last few years, I started noticing PBS again (actually I think I know: onscreen cable guides). Mainly due to one man: Rick Steves, the Travel Enabler. (He warranted his own entry in my other blog, The Grady Twins Overlook Anthology, here.) I went on one European trip and then all I wanted to due was travel or read about travel or watch travel shows. Hence, Rick. And then I added Rudy Maxa. And then, (while jonsin’ for more travel crack, I guess), I stumbled upon Wayne Dyer and the PBS Pledge Drive shows. Deepak Chopra, the Real Age guy. All of these Better Yourself specials that I watched obsessively and took notes. Again, I’ll wait a moment while you read that last bit over. (Yep, I admitted to this before.)
Now I’m obsessed. Which surprised me because I thought once I got rid of cable I wouldn’t be watching as much TV. But when I hooked up my digital antenna, I discovered that I had eleven PBS channels (OK. One is in Spanish and one is televangelists). So nine PBS channels! And I watch them…a lot.
So I decided to chronicle the things I’ve seen on PBS and what I’ve learned. And so far I’ve learned that I can watch a Nova and enjoy it. My fourteen-year-old self would be so disappointed…
