In one week millions of viewers will be glued to their televisions for an event that can almost be considered a national holiday.  The Super Bowl is like Thanksgiving but in February.  Friends and families get together for a day that is filled with food and watching the game.  If you aren’t watching the game, you are probably tuned in to watch a new batch of  commercials.  Advertisers are banking on this especially with the average cost of a 30 second commercial this year in the range of $2.5 million.  This is probably the one day out of the entire year were they know you aren’t recording the game to watch later.  I personally like watching the commercials than I do the half-time show especially these  last couple of years.

Here are some of my all-time favorite commercials:

• McDonald\’s Showdown: Bird vs. Jordan
  • I’m biased because I grew up in Chicago during the Jordan era.  I love this commercial not only because it had two of the biggest stars in the NBA at that time but it put an interesting twist on my favorite playground game of HORSE.
• Budweiser Frogs
  • How could you not love these adorable frogs?  It was different at the time and created a buzz.
• Pepsi Kid In Bottle
  • Even though I am not a fan of Pepsi, this is a very cute commercial.  The kid is drinking his Pepsi and trying to get the last drop that he ends up getting sucked into the Pepsi bottle.  Love at the end of the commercial when his sister says, “Mom, he did it again!”
• Blockbuster\’s Carl and Ray
  • I am a sucker for commercials with cute animals.  Blockbuster used these two pets, Carl and Ray, who were excited about movies since the Blockbuster was across the street (of course).  Loved the Flashdance sequence.

What are some of your favorite Super Bowl commercials?

Here’s who I think the Glee Club needs to represent:

• Mariah Carey
• Beyonce
• Prince
• Whitney Houston (here songs would be great for a prom themed episode)
• Motown (think Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder)

Who would you like to see the show spotlight?

So, it’ not surprising, after much thoughtful discussion with a ccr,  a customer comes to the realization that even though he or she did not order the movies or event, someone in the household did.  The good news is that there’s lots of things you can do avoid the surprise of purchases on your bill that you did not approve such as parental controls, special pins, or changing your ordering limits.   If you’d like to learn more, just call us at 1-866-496-9669 to consult with one of our representatives who can explain all the options available to you. With multiple options, you’ll be able to pick one that leaves you with the level of ordering convenience you want while keeping others from ordering without your approval.

We arrived at the park around 4 p.m. and he didn’t come out until 6:45 p.m.  They paraded him through the crowd surrounded by a ton of security with a bagpiper leading the way.  After he finally made his way to the stage, there was probably a good 25 minutes of talking from the Mayor of Arlington Heights and Mount Prospect as well as the Superintendent of the schools that Lee attended.  They presented him with the standard key to the city and proclamation, he went on to express how much this meant to him.  He is a very emotional guy. 

Once the pomp and cirmcumstance was all done, he told the crowd that he was going to play three songs.  Well, to the crowd’s surprise he ended up playing over 10 songs.  It was like a mini-concert which was pretty cool.  Although, the camera guy was constantly in his face which took away from it a little bit. 

Overall, it was a pretty cool experience.  Who knows, maybe I’ll see myself in the crowd when they show the footage tomorrow night on American Idol.

Anyways, I gave in and purchased the pilot episode.  As I was watching it, I started to become caught up and knew at that moment why the show was as big as it was.  It is very entertaining and refreshing.  It isn’t exactly groundbreaking (High School Musical started this phenomenon).  On Saturday I went to my local Best Buy to buy the first season because I wanted to get caught up before watching the new episodes which started last Tuesday on FOX.  (I don’t know about you, but I can’t start watching a series in the middle.)   

Yesterday I started out watching the first disc and thought that it might take me a week or two to get through.  But, that wasn’t the case.  I was hooked and spent my entire Sunday watching the entire first season.  It was so bad that I ended up watching last week’s episode on top of it.  I discovered that I watched over eight hours of Glee and still wanted more.  The singing and choreography is wonderful and stays true to the basis of the show. 

I have become a Gleek and am proud of it.  If you love Glee, what hooked you?

Maybe after a couple of seasons, the show starts to lose its luster.  You find yourself starting to nitpick at the things that are starting to annoy you.  But, you don’t stop watching.  You feel that you have committed all this time that maybe if you give it a little longer, they just might turn it around.  So, you are sucked in a little bit longer.  But, at what point do you say, it was a good run while it lasted but it just is not working for me anymore?

I find myself at this crossroad with American Idol.  I have been a fan of the show since season 1 (Kelly Clarkson for those of you unfamiliar with it’s first winner.)  At first, I loved the variety of personalities, the judges (Simon vs. Paula) and the evolution of the show through the years.  I cheered for the underdogs and watched in anticipation of who America would choose as its winner.  I will even admit that I have attended a couple of the tours through the years. 

But, this year is different.  I don’t know if it is because Simon has turned into a tamed lion after his announcement that he will be leaving the show after this season or if not having Paula back over what she should be paid.  In my opinion, I think it is ridiculous what Simon, Randy and Ryan make but to not Paula in the same equation was just wrong.  Admittedly, she doesn’t always make the most sense but at least she knows what she is talking about.  Ellen, while super funny, is no judge of musical talent.  To me, she is mimicking Randy half of the time.  Does she really know the difference of being on or off key or the arrangements that were changed whether good or bad?  Highly doubt it.  Anyways, in addition to the judging, the mentors for the top 12 have not been that impressive either – Miley Cyrus?  Adam Lambert?  Outside of Usher, it seems that Idol is having a hard time getting some of the bigger stars to help these budding stars.  There is only so many seasons that I can hear the works of Lennon and McCartney and the Billboard Top 100.

So back to my original question, how do you break up with a show that you have spent so much time following?

I’ve stuck with you since day one. I’ve been with you through polar bears and smoke monsters. I put up with time travel. Flashbacks. Flashforwards. Flash sideways. Numerous plane crashes (at least three that I can count), hydrogen bombs, submarines, mysterious numbers, hatches, caves, births, deaths, poisonous spiders and just so much more. But as your time is running out, I am getting quite frustrated with you.

This last season of Lost feels like it’s been a complete change from the previous seasons. While you’ve given us lots of mysteries as well as twists and turns, you’ve also given us stories of courage, love, and friendship. And that’s what I’ve tuned in for. Well, the mysteries, too!

I realize you’re a fictional TV show, but like any good TV show, the characters and show become something we can believe in. In the beginning, I loved your show. I watched every episode, all the specials, read online articles about what (supposedly) all of the mysteries meant, and how the characters are intertwined (and I’ve always loved how you intertwined characters backstories). And I thought your writers always gave us loyal viewers what we deserved with more characters, more mysteries and questions, never truly answering any of the questions. But after the episode on March 23, I felt cheated. With so few episodes left, it seems that you are trying to wrap up too many storylines in a short amount of time.

The March 23 episode finally gave us the back-story of Richard, who we’ve seen on and off the island over many, many years (50+ years). He’s been a central figure in bringing some of the main characters to the island, including Locke and Juliette. But I think your writers tied up how Richard got to the island, how the Black Rock got to the island, and how the statue on the edge of the island got broke – all in one episode poorly. Yes, we’ve all been waiting for answers on these things, but I was hoping for better answers. (Spoiler alert). But to tell us Richard came over on the Black Rock, a slave ship, back in 1867 through a storm that created waves so high, the wooden pirate ship cracked an enormous cement statute?? Well, it just felt too simple.

With the end approaching on May 23, I do hope the characters will get the fate and futures they deserve, and us loyal viewers get the ending we deserve.

Thanks Lost for listening (or reading),

Steve

Now, with 24/7 programming and cable networks for every demographic and genre, there’s always a good season finale to watch on so many different networks. Thankfully my DVR will help me catch everything I want to watch.

Here are a list of upcoming season (and a few series) finales to help plan your viewing (and your DVR schedule!). This dates listed here are subject to change, so it’s always best to check your local listings.

I am eagerly looking forward to watching a few of the finales including Lost and Melrose Place (just to see if they can ever top how campy the old series was!). Please share what finales you’ll be watching and why through the comment section here.

April 12
Life Unexpected – CW

April 13
Melrose Place – CW

April 14
Ugly Betty – ABC

May 5
Human Target – Fox

May 10
Trauma – NBC

May 12
Mercy – NBC

May 13
The Vampire Diaries – CW
Supernatural – CW

May 14
Smallville – CW

May 17
Gossip Girl – CW
One Tree Hill – CW
House – Fox

May 18
90210 – CW

May 19
Law & Order: SVU – NBC

May 20
Bones – Fox
Fringe – Fox

May 23
Lost (two-hour series finale) – ABC

May 24
24 (2-hour finale) – Fox
Chuck (two-hour finale) – NBC
Law & Order – NBC

June 8
Glee – Fox

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