I seem well rested after a summer full of 6 day work weeks. The racing at Bowman Gray Stadium will not roar to life again until the last Saturday in April. Now don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed just about every minute of covering the action at The Madhouse. But when this Jack gets all work and no down time, he gets punchy and irritable. And I’m not easy to deal with after 17 long workweeks in succession.

The week after race season, I spent it with people celebrating a family member’s birthday. So there wasn’t a whole lot of down time for me during my first 3 day weekend since July 4th. The two weeks after that Labor Day weekend, I found plenty of time out of commission. I’ve even come around to the idea of sitting around outside with adult beverages hanging with friends and my Ion Bluetooth Tailgater. So the idea sitting around a fire pit pumping out some MP3s with a little bit of conversation has finally awakened the nature lover in me.

So now I’m back to get this award-winning blog of mine into shape. And it’s time to talk about another one of my loves… Television.

Right off the bat, let me say that this Fall season really doesn’t excite me like the years past. There are only two shows that I care about seeing… Gotham and The Flash. So I’m fairly indifferent.

I’ve even had a difficult time coming up with my ‘Best New Shows of 2014’ for The Less Desirables podcast. I’ve got four lined up so far, but a couple of them really aren’t as strong as I’d like. But I have to choose from what I’ve got to work with, right?

There are only 2 so far this year that has wowed me and keeps me wanting more. I’d share them with you, but I have to wait and stretch it out for the last 5 weeks on the podcast.

When I was a kid, I would study and get to know the TV Guide every week. I was the first to touch it when it arrived and the last one to send it to the landfill. I planned and plotted my viewing. I nearly memorized the schedule of the three networks. Due to my requirement to attend church, Wednesday and Sunday night viewing was exotic and rare. I never knew the joy of Eight Is Enough or The Greatest American Hero. And I would have to rush my parents home after Sunday evening service to see a few minutes of 60 Minutes or Ripley’s Believe It Or Not. I lived through the dark period before VCRs and DVRs.

I hope to find a few surprises this Fall television season, but the big over-the-air networks often leave me disappointed. The cable channels like FX and streaming services like Netflix is where it’s at. Oh sure, Netflix has had some disappointing programs like Hemlock Grove and BoJack Horseman but overall they provide some great original series. I’m looking forward to the return of Lilyhammer along with some of the new Marvel Universe fare.

Is there anything that has you geared up and ready for a new series?