Then, I got hooked on Chicago Fire. WOW! As a former Emergency! (Squad 51) fan, I found I enjoyed this series even more. The plots were better, the characters more diverse and interesting (not to mention good-looking) the presentation more polished (we don't really need to see the radio speaker to know someone's talking over the radio!) and it was just better in every way! One channel carried it at 7 pm, the others at 10, so no problem: Chicago Fire, NCIS, NCIS L.A., then Chicago Fire again at 10 if I'd missed it at 7 for some reason.
Last year, I also became a fan of Switched at Birth. It was the first time I'd ever seen a series portray the every day life of a Deaf/handicapped person who wasn't some sort of a superstar lawyer or crime fighter. I LOVED it! I especially loved the season finale, where the writers/directors made a very bold move, and broadcast it from the Deaf students' POV, with no audible dialogue, to give hearing people a better understanding of their lives and culture. The current season is equally awesome, as it shows the problems a Hearing student is having trying to integrate with her Deaf dorm-mates, who have ASL as their first language. They sign at the speed of light, and she has trouble following, and is often left out as a result. It was broadcast Monday nights, and repeated 3 times throughout the evening.
I also fell in love with Call the Midwife, a British series about midwives in London's impoverished east end in the 1950's, before the days of the Pill. Some of the midwives are nuns, others just specially trained nurses. This series brings back fond memories of my own nursing days, when I worked for St. Elizabeth Health Care, a nursing organization that has its roots in the Catholic Church, and was originally staffed solely by nuns. However, the series didn't seem to have a set schedule. It would be on PBS for a few weeks/months, then disappear, then pop up somewhere else. This year, it's being broadcast weekly on Vision TV, after Columbo, at 9 pm. Oh, and guess which night that is??
And oh, Switched at Birth has also been moved to Tuesday, and it's only being broadcast once on that night, at 8 pm..
AUUUGGGHHH!!
WHAT ARE THE NETWORKS TRYING TO DO TO ME?? As all of these series (except Call the Midwife) originate in the U.S., I can't watch them on my computer. Even if I could, captions aren't usually available, and I MUST have captions to be able to understand the dialogue! My cochlear implant did dramatically improve my ability to communicate, but it definitely failed in that one area. I am still very dependent on captioning when it comes to watching TV and movies.
What's a girl to do?
[sigh!] Guess I'd better pull out the manual for my old VCR, and see if there's a couple of old tapes I wouldn't mind sacrificing...
BTW, If you're trying to get hold of me by phone, DON'T call on Tuesday night! I won't be picking up!
