Of Joshua Getting Engaged

The firstborn of the Duggars, Joshua got engaged and I think it is the cutest engagement ever that is videoed on Reality TV.

All throughout the show, I had this smile on my lips watching the two - Josh and Anna (hope I'm making the names right here), seeing that they really are so in love with each other and really desires each other but in a wholesome and innocent way. I can almost feel the butterflies in their stomach.

I admire Joshua for standin gup with his principle - first kiss on the wedding day. Where coulf you have heard such a thing? It even beats the principle on "no to premarital sex" or to "fornication." I know this decision is something both of them would never regret in their lives.

While watching the show, I was transported to my own youth, my first love, my own coming of age. It was sweet, wonderful, and unforgettable. It was a trip back to a time and place I fully know that I will never ever be at again.

TLC's three Big New Epsiodes

Tonight, starting at 8 PM, TLC will air three new episodes back-to-back, Little People, Big World, Jon & kate Plus 8, and the Duggars called 17 Kids and Counting.

Little People, Big World - I have been watching the marathon this weekend realizing that I've missed a lot of episodes. They were building a bigger house and the kids are older looking. I think the new episode will be called Little People, Bigger World.

Jon & kate Plus 8 - I'm tired watching the reruns and glad that they have new episodes. It's interesting to see the kids who would be bigger by now and watch all the growing pains, troubles, and happiness the whole family is going through.

17 Kids and Counting - I always love the Duggars since I saw their first show. I think they just have 14 kids then. Now, they are going to be 18. What a family. It's my opinion that Michelle and Jim Bob are really trying to have many children as much and as long as they can.

The Duggars have always fascinated me. The children are healthy, well-disciplined, and no one whas a genetic illness which is common to a big family. I admire the parenting method of Michelle and Jim Bob.

Health Care Is A Right

Is health care a right,a privilege, or a responsibility?

I admire Barack Obama when he said health care is a right. I watched, after missing the first one, the presidential debate last week. It was aired on at least five national television channels.

I admire Obama, the democratic candidate, for standing up for the majority of people who are uninsured. People who are not really keen on national security, the war in Iraq or Afghanistan, and the collapsing market, can only relate to what affects them directly -- and those are gas prices, small wages, and definitely, health care.

It's about time we have a man in Washington who rallies that health care is a right and not a privilege. And if it is a responsibilty, then it is by the government.

If I applauded Sarah Palin after watching her acceptance speech for the nomination for GOP vice president, then Obama won me this one. No contest -- for the former is running for vice president while the latter is running for president.

Degrassi

Last year, I happened to watch a marathon of Degrassi, a teenage series on the theN channel. I think I came across Degrassi because the children's programming in one channel that I was watching with my baby was over and the teenage programming came next.

Degrassi was relatively unknown to me but it was interesting. With a plot that went to unpredictable direction. Imagine a high school student who was president of the student council getting pregnant and didn't know, for the life of her, how to buy a pregnancy test without risking curiosity and judgment from the sales clerk. Imagine seeing that in Hannah Montana or Zoey 101? Of course not. Hannah Montana and Zoey are in wholesome teenage shows. Nope, pregnancy not allowed in the plot.

This weekened, I watched a bit of Degrassi again and came to know that "Degrassi" is a name of a fictitious high school and the setting and production is in Canada. No wonder. That's why it is on a not-so-popular channel.

Now, the student council president is not a girl but a gay. And in own his bloodletting campaign, he was told that he could not donate his blood because he had a sexual intercourse with a male, who happened to be his boyfriend. He was outraged.

In another situation, a male teacher is having a relationship with his student.

All in all, I would say that Degrassi is a one of a kind teenage show not the cutie-cutie ones where all the good morals are in place. It is not the kind of show geared at commercialism, to create a brand for clothing and accessories. Degrassi is a radical show, a very brave one at that, showing societal issues at its uncloaked state with teenagers acting out the cliche -- what the world has come to.

TBS Post Season Coverage

Last Saturday, I was impressed by how the TBS production handled the coverage of the MLB playoff.

At 10 pm, the Brewers and the Phillies were still on the top of the ninth and the Cubs and Dodgers coverage was supposed to begin at 10 pm. What TBS did, knowing how important both games were, was to interrupt the program on TNT, apparently its sister station, to show the Cubs and Dodgers on the first inning.

We had been waiting for the Cubs and Dodgers the whole evening and because they were playing in California, the time difference is three hours (we're in Florida). And so when it flashed on the screen on TBS that the game was being aired on TNT, which is just one channel up, we switched to TNT. After the first inning, an announcer came up to announce that the Milwaukee-Philadelphia game is over and the Chicago-LA game would now begin airing on TBS. TNT resumed regular programming then. The program that was interrupted was the movie Titanic.

So TBS did not compromise the coverage of the Brewers vs Phillies and the Cubs vs Dodgers eventhough there was an overlap in time. For me, that was a very good decision on the production team and I salute them for that.

Just so you know, but I think you already knew, the Phillies and the Dodgers won.

What Not to Wear

On very rare occasions, I watch What Not to Wear. For me, the show is boring but it does get better in the end. It is an hour long show of makeover, self-improvement, and fashion. But sometimes, I wonder if the hosts are credible enough to dress up someone the right way.

As I said, it gets better in the end. I like seeing the transformation. I like it when I see women gain self-confidence and feel good about themselves by the end of the show. Another lost soul rescured; another success story.

As I don't watch it enough, I wonder if What Not to Wear also have men as subjects. Surely, it's not only women who need to be directed to the right direction, as one of the hosts would put it. I honestly don't remember the names of the hosts and don't see the reason to find out.

The funny thing is, I wouldn't mind being in the show what with $5,000 to splurge on a new wardrobe.

Robbing the Graveyard

I heard from the local news that burial grounds are now the subject of burglary. About $42,000 in value. Some people were stealing the flower vases, which are made of brass and costs in the neighborhood of $500.00. In another park, another theft was reported: the urns were missing.

From where I came from, the cemeteries are in no way a place where you could imagine to do immoral act. Cemeteries are spooky places where ghosts live. It's a place where you don't want to be, especially at night. If you are wicked, then, the unseen dwellers in the graveyard are more wicked than you are. Even if a graveyard is a place for the dead, it is very much alive, with the power of the supernatural that can hurt you, haunt you, and scare you to death.

But here and now, cemeteries are what they are: memorial parks. A park where you can stroll by, linger, visit without fear, and yes, steal from the dead.

Notre Dame College Football

Notre Dame won against the Stanford last Saturday, 28-21. Notre Dame is the only college football team that I follow -- the other ones are in NFL and they are the Bears and the Giants.

I saw how Stanford did uncessary roughness, which was not called by the umpires, and not mentioned by the commentators, by the fourth quarter. Someone from the Stanford team pulled Clausen to his feet rather roughly after the latter was tackled. So there was a bit of a heated interaction between the players but the umpires were quick to cut in. At the end of the game, there was no show of sportsmanship at all and it looked like there was going to be a riot -- at least to me watching from my tv set.

I'm sure glad Notre Dame won the game even if they did not score in the fourth quarter. They deserve it and they did play like a champion.

That being said, I was glad to see the Notre Dame quarterback, Jimmy Clausen, cut his long hair. He looks so much better. I like the way he looks now -- neat and nice -- than when he had his hair long.