Lessons Learned

I think I may have mentioned once or twice that I am kind of obsessed with the TV show Friday Night Lights. Well the third season has begun, and you would think that I am writing about how awesome the plotlines are, but alas, I haven't seen one single episode. No, my love isn't waning...I just don't have directTV. In January I can finally watch the shows on NBC, but that's a really long time, and lets be honest, I am not that patient. I have a friend that will be getting directTV soon...but I want to watch it now! (Picture my five-year-old self pouting and having a minor tantrum because I am not getting my way...) One evening while doing some blog spying, I discovered that someone I know has been watching the new episodes online. Oh, I googled it but couldn't come up with anything that shouted "Watch FNL Season 3 Here" so I was a little frustrated.

I came upon this acquaintance who has been watching FNL, and asked how he was able to watch the show. He told me that he would tell me how...provided that I have no problems with stealing from the internet. I have no real problem with that. (I may or may not have purchased all the songs in my collection.) He emailed me instructions to ummm....downloading available content....and I swear I followed them to a "T"--even though I think we all know that I have limited computer skills.

I downloaded sites to watch shows; a site to search for available content, the first three 3rd season episodes, and apparently--according to the warning messages from Microsft--spyware, perhaps a Trojan horse, maybe some adult content--and other general bad news. So I also had to download an anti-spyware program.

Did I get to watch the coveted FNL episodes? No. They are actually not fully downloaded. After two hours I only had 60% of the first episode, and with all the warning notices from Bill Gates I gave up. Sad huh? I am not actually sure if my computer is 100% safe. I still get warning messages when I check my email. (And I was just about to be a little more involved with online banking.) I will give my little computer a checkup, and hopefully soon my friend will have directTV.

Moral of the story: Patience is a virtue. And don't steal, er download available stuff off the internet...without assistance from someone with computer skills.

And the Heavens Opened...

My Favorite Band For Life's third album was released today. I had a little dilemma about the choice of buying the physical copy of the CD or downloading the music from iTunes. I felt that as a true fan, I should buy the actual disc, but for $11.99 iTunes offered a deluxe version complete with demo tracks, a documentary and extra songs. I think you all know what I chose. (I will probably put the CD on my Christmas list.)

I previewed the album last week on lastfm.com, and so far I like the album. Two tracks in particular ("Lovers Are Losing" and "Again and Again") were immediately stuck in my head, which I consider a pretty good sign. The album is full of familiar Keane traits like soaring anthems, and intense keyboard synths. (I'm probably just making that word up.) This time the band reaches far into the 80's for some New Wave pop inspirations musically, but the lyrics contain the typical depth that I love about the band. Catchy and profound as usual.

Now I just need to hear about US Tour announcements to make my third album joy complete.

A Tree Grows in Washington Heights
About a year and a half ago I took a fancy to growing a lemon tree. I really like Meyer Lemons, but at $4.50 a pound I realized that buying them would break my bank...so why not grow them? It appears that you can just buy dwarf lemon trees and grow those fruits right in your own home. So of course I wanted one for my birthday, and of course my good parents bought me one. When it finally arrived for my 31st birthday, it didn't look too promising. Please see the above exhibit. That little twig didn't look like it was going to be producing any produce anytime soon. I knew it would take some time to get any actual lemons, and I was a little afraid that my black thumb would interupt any future lemon cultivating. It is so fortunate that I just so happen to have an uncle who just so happens to be the head of the horticulture department at Texas A&M. He intervened with some solid advice like watering and making sure that the tree gets plenty of sun. Good advice. That summer my tree, named Magnus (to inspire lemon greatness), spent its days on my front stoop soaking in the rays and getting all big and strong.

I brought Magnus in once the weather grew colder, as per the advice of my wise, plant-friendly uncle, and in December I noticed its first flowers. I was amazed...I was certain I wouldn't see any signs of plant puberty for another year. After all it was still a young tree. Nonetheless, I was glad to see prospects of my own, home-grown fruit. (Am I a bad inner-city parent or what?) The little flowers turned into little lemons and all of a sudden I had twelve little baby lemons.

Most of them matured quickly and fell off the tree without being a useable citrus, but three stayed on and continued to grow. I swear I took pictures of their progress, but I can't seem to find them. But I watched the progress carefully. The lemons grew, but continued to stay green. My lemon advisor warned me that lemons took a long time to mature, but when September rolled around I became a little concerned. Did lemon gestation last as long as human gestation. Longer, apparently. Two weeks ago--ten months after the flowers blossomed--the lemons started to drop off the tree, indicating that they were finally ripe!!!

Yesterday I juiced them with so much pride. I actually grew those lovely litte lemons! I look forward to using them. I squeezed about 1 1/4 cups of juice. One cup is reserved to make a lemon tart for my parents' visit, and the quarter cup I used today as a remedy for laryngitis. My throat feels better already.

Right now Magnus the Tree looks a little sick. I think it was a little too small to produce three large fruits, and it has lost a lot of leaves. I hope that with a little TLC, it will be back in shape to make me some more fruit.