TV/Thief

When I saw that the credit sequence was a direct homage/ripoff of the Sopranos' opening, I was extremely wary. Also the camerawork is a little wonky, like they were trying a bit too hard for grittiness. But the show brought me around, big time. It was an excellent first hour, and I'm definitely in for the next 5--it's only a six episode season--and next season if it gets picked up. Check it out if you don't have HBO, or if you're a fan of any of the other FX series (the Shield, Rescue Me, Nip/Tuck). Plot stuff down below, maybe spoilers, we'll see.

Nick (Braugher) is the titular thief, a patriarch of sorts to his odds-and-ends team of ne'er-do-wells, Elmo, Gabo, Jack, and Izzy. They steal stuff for a living, but not in a glitzy Oceans 11-style hustle. No, they're more of an old-fashioned smash-n-grab outfit. Operating out of Nick's classic car dealership in post-Katrina New Orleans, they work for Linda Hamilton and basically just try to get by. There's also a corrupt detective and some Chinese assassins from San Francisco who are after Nick and the boys for a job gone wrong. Oh, and that's not counting the drug addictions, unruly teenaged kids, pregnant wives, interracial marriages and loan sharks breathing down their necks. And George Clooney made it look so easy. Anyway, Braugher rocks, and I would watch him do anything if they put it on screen.

Follow My Orders

I have an ActBlue page, I actually created it last semester, and just remembered it now. It's a great concept, but nobody I know has any money so it kind of goes to waste. You can see everybody I would vote for if I could change my residency at will. So that's kind of fun. And if you actually have a few hundred extra dollars lying around, why not give it to somebody on there? It's tax deductable!

A Seasonal Gripe

I understand that the first few nice days here in Boston are to be cherished. They mark a yearly renaissance, when all the things that Bostonians thought they had forgotten how to do--smile, go outside, be nice to other people--are rediscovered and celebrated. But why, oh why, does everybody and their mother (and their waddling, frappuccino-craving spawn) have to go to Starbucks the instant the grey wintry clouds vanish from the skies? It's Starbucks, for chrissakes! I'll never get how this store can inspire the kind of loyalty I see every day. And yes, I know that I make the best damn espresso-based beverages in Boston. Of course I know, I'm the one who makes them so good. But honestly people, Diesel Cafe has excellent sandwiches, great coffee, more seating, and real ice cream, that they'll put right in your coffee! And it's right across the street. Listen, I know what goes into frappuccinos, and it sure as hell isn't ice cream.