lunedì, marzo 27, 2006

Bureaucracy

I watched the rest of The Office yesterday, ate honey cheese turnovers from the Indian bakers up the street, and took care of some correspondence. Very little business. Very little. Although my bikes are well on their way to dominating the streets of Toronto once more. Fucking Office. Now I'll have to watch the whole American series, and take care of even less business. I should have watched it the first time someone fell over convulsing and yelling at me for my pop-culture negligence when I told them I hadn't seen it yet. For the record, one more time, I don't have television, the economic dynamics of the North American broadcast industry make me unhappy, and up until Saturday one of the fucking consequences of that was not having seen the fucking Office, ok?

Anyways, the principal problem with this sort of thing is once in awhile people start jizzing all over a show I absolutely MUST rent on DVD, and I say yes I must indeed rent that show, and then I forget all about it until the next person comes along and jizzes all over the same show. And I never actually see the show until someone, instead of just pulling a Genesis 38, actually has a DVD and can show me a couple of episodes, like Luke Duke with the Office or Calisaurus's beau with Deadwood, by which time there is no way the reality is going to match the build-up. Although Deadwood was actually a pleasant suprise I'd never even heard of before the beau sprung it on us.

Do I sound cranky? I am, a touch. It's not as though I don't want to hear anything about anyone's opinions on television shows unless they have a DVD handy and are prepared to show it to me then and there. But I'd heard so much about the Office for so long that there was no way it was going to live up to my hopes and dreams when I finally rented it. It was funny though. I would have liked the second series to be less focussed on the manager, because all the other characters were funny too, and when you watch it straight through high as a Tibetan kite you start to resent all his airtime when you could be watching Gareth doing something funnier. And the love story was really sweet. These poor little proles trapped in a set of expectations, wanting so bad to bust out! Also it was good to watch it after driving through Slough with Rodelinda and her young man on my way back to Paris earlier this month and realizing it was an actual place. Not that there aren't a million places like that all over France and Canada and even Italy now. Slough just has the best name for it, I guess.

In other office-y news, I have a pay review today. Not sure what to expect. I just started the new job, then went on vacation, haven't come close to finishing training, and don't benefit the company with my Frenchiness anymore. But - it's a new job and I just got a master's degree so I'll feel justified in getting pissy if I don't get more money. On verra.

4 commenti:

cali ha detto...

I've only seen the American version of the Office once on television, so I'm not saying this with any authority, but I think the British version is much more funny. If I remember correctly, the American Office has a laugh track! That defeats the purpose of everything!

In other news, I downloaded the Scientology South Park and am going to watch it tonight, as well as the newest South Park where they string Chef's lines together from other shows after Isaac Hayes quit.

Mistress La Spliffe ha detto...

A laugh track? How naughty. But I'll watch some of it anyways, because Steve Carrell was so great in the 40 Year Old Virgin.

Did you read in 'I Don't Like You That Way!' about how maybe some other Scientologist forged Isaac Hayes's resignation? I hope it's true, and that he stops being a Scientologist and comes back.
Or that Chef has a sex change operation and they get Earth Kitt to do the voice.

cali ha detto...

I don't think you are allowed to stop being a scientologist. I think it's like being a Jehovah's Witness, where if you leave everyone acts like you don't exist, even your family. I wonder if Tom Cruise's kids are scientologists, and how Nicole Kidman feels about that.

I read somewhere that the Church of Scientology is planning to buy MJ's Neverland Ranch, to turn it into a retreat for Scientologists or something. Now that's creepy!

Mistress La Spliffe ha detto...

I think Scientologists keep you in the fold by not having the same confidentiality obligations as the psychologists they purport to replace. So if you leave, they can publish all they know about the darkest parts of your psyche.

Still, I'd have a hard time thinking Isaac Hayes has ever done anything that couldn't be forgiven in the eyes of the world if he publicly refused to let Scientology fuck him up the ass by costing him what I imagine is a tasty meatball of a paycheque in exchange for doing some voicework for a universally loved animated sex machine.

That having been said, I'm still not sure this isn't all one big Viacom Paramount marketing ploy. Who cares. I'm engaged.