…that’s what it feels like right now.  Most shows I care about are in hiatus, and the cable channels are festooned with various sports I don’t follow.  Worse yet, those which don’t carry sports are sending out wave after wave of reality shows.  I mean, Momma’s Boys? Really?!?! First, why would any of the women be interested in any of those guys, and second, why would anyone want to watch this show?  . . . must be a lot of momma’s boys out there.  I think Shakespeare wrote a play about it, but that’s another story.

Plus, recently my DVD player of a few years began to act up. Time for a new one and, of course, I bought a Blu-Ray player, which means I switched on the Blu-Ray option at Netflix. The unwanted consequence is whereas I used to get new releases in a timely manner, they now have long waiting periods right off the bat, and the “long wait” message lasts longer; I’m still waiting for Wall-E, Babylon A.D., Ghost Town, and Bangkok Dangerous, and I’m sure I’ll be waiting for a long while. Other than Wall-E, I’m probably not missing much, and I’ve already seen Wall-E. Still, I hunger for something new, even if I know it will be crap. If nothing else, I could then harp about the level of crappiness, and that at least has the potential for being fun. Instead, I’m recycling movies I own. But really, how often can you watch The Mummy, Frighteners, The Last Boy Scout, Hitman, The Fifth Element, and Firefly?… well, Firefly… there’s no limit on watching Firefly, but that is besides the point.

“You could buy the new movies!” I hear someone say. Well, yes; but it would negate the reason for Netflix. After the initial high demand period I can generally get a movie I want within a day or so. Why would I want to own them? Oh sure, Serenity, Blade Runner, and a few odd one here and there, but for the most part, I’m a renting man. Perhaps part of the DVD sales decline (and long waiting lists at Netflix) is due to more people feeling like I do (say, that would make a great Frampton title; Do you feel like I do? Well, do you, punk? No, wait… that’s Clint Eastwood… now, that would be something I’d rent; Eastwood sings Frampton).

Anyway, about the doldrums; the unintended consequence is I am renting nature documentaries just so I have new content to watch. Wow! Some excellent stuff! We certainly live in an interesting and diverse planet. You should see what the Cuttlefish can do with its skin! The series The Planet is especially visually impressive. Now, you’d think these wonderful shows about wondrous places, interesting animals, and chock-full of life and death dramas, would have long waiting periods as well. You’d be wrong. Apparently, and perhaps tellingly, they are not in great demands by the public at large. I’m guessing the listeners of this podcast are avid viewers, if for no other reason they are tuned into science. Then again, reading some of the comments on some of the news stories makes me wonder.

For it used to be Sci-Fi was as much about the science as it was about the fiction. Consequently, fans were well versed in the sciences, and often went on to illustrious careers as contributors to our ever expanding pool of knowledge. Nowadays? …it does not appear to be the overwhelming case. Of course, I’m not speaking of listeners to Slice of SciFi; all you people are top shelf stuff; cream of the crop; none could be better! Well, maybe not all, but at least most.

But, back on the so-called topic; what else is one to do during the doldrums? Why, one puts his fingers to the keyboard, and one writes some inane piece for Slice of SciFi, of course. It need not even be about anything specific; it just need wander aimlessly, mimicking the channel surfing that seems to characterize much of the face time with my TV. Perhaps not the best return to the editorial page after a long absence, but hey… blame it on the doldrums.