Which TV show did you watch lastֻ

I just saw a commercial for Dexter: Original Sin, which starts in about a week.

I hope it’s about as good as Dexter and Dexter: New Blood. :slightly_smiling_face:

Didn’t care for Snow-Dexter.
The early seasons were the best. Started going downhill at the end.
Hope this can make some of that early Dexter mojo.
All the Best, Jeff

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I’ve watched 3 episodes so far and I like it. Some of the dialogues are funny. As far as scenery, there is a little bit of it, but not a whole lot.

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Some of the actors are local “real people” from the Midland area.
If you see scenery - it ain’t from around these parts.
Most of the Permian Basin (the oil fields) is dead flat. Grease-wood and mesquite as far as the eye can see. Do have some sand dunes and every now and then - a hill.
Head west and south to Alpine or better yet - Big Bend park. Spring when the bluebonnets bloom is really something. Thousands of acres of flowers. Smell so strong nearly overpowering. Get to a high lookout and there is valley after valley of blue reaching all the way to the mountains in Mexico.

Oil field humor;
Dry Hole. A hole in the ground 14" wide, two miles deep - With liar on top.

How can you tell when a Landman isn’t telling the truth?
You can see their lips moving.

All the Best, Jeff

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I liked “Snow Dexter.”
I agree about seasons 7 & 8 of Dexter, though.
Seasons 1-6 were much better. :+1:

Thanks for the beautiful pics and the great write-up!

The flowers makes me remember the times I’ve visited the blooming desert (“desierto florido”) in the Chilean Atacama. Had the good luck to see it twice in a row, in two separate visits.

Yes, Big Bend NP had been on the list forever.

And by “dead flat” you mean with little to no elevation, right? If so, not a big problem for me – mountains and hills are of course nice but not strictly required, what I really love about deserts is being able to see far and wide up to the point where ground meets the sky, with the help of the dry clean air and the unobstructed views – magnificent desolation and all that.

According to Google, Landman was primarily filmed near Fort Worth.

Out here the sky goes on forever. It’s dry - but ugly with all the brush etc.
The farther west you go it’s more like the Texas in the movies.

Alpine is a dark sky area. Lights at night are restricted.
Down south passed the mountains toward Big Bend and Mexico the night sky is spectacular.
Being a city dweller, I forget how awesome it can be.

Fort Davis is another small town. It is near a scenic loop that goes by the observatory. They host some events at different times.
https://mcdonaldobservatory.org/

Also there is an annual star party at Prude Ranch, just out of town.
It’s become a rather big event in recent years.
Some show up with world class telescopes.
https://texasstarparty.org/

Then there is Marfa. Home to the mysterious Marfa Lights.
Also has the worlds smallest Prada store - that does not sell anything.

And yep, BB park is nifty.

Please excuse the thread drift.
We now return to our regular topic.
All the Best, Jeff

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Well you know what they say: the thing that separates the men from the boys is the price of their toys. Or was it the size of their toys??

Went to one like 35 years ago. One fellow brought a binocular reflector made from a pair of 16 (18?) inch mirrors. You stood with your head between the tubes.
First time I ever saw colors in many objects.
Can’t imagine the state of the art toys that show up now - never kept up with hobby.
They had, and assume they still do, have an awesome swap fest.
Scored me a set of 20x80 bionocs for a heck of a deal at the time.
All the Best, Jeff

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  1. we have been to several local star-parties.
    there is usually a super-duper scope which is fun to look through.
  2. i agree with Raccoon…Sarah Silverman got old quick.
  3. TV: at the vacation home we rented for Thanksgiving,
    the multitude of channels offered nothing for us.
    we brought a laptop for entertainment and information.
    it synced to the TV, and we watched what we wanted.

Watching the first installment of Leonardo da Vinci produced by Ken Burns.
Really well done with great shots of the artwork.
One thing bugged me.
During the show it told how much Leonardo loved books.
Then it went on to say how Gutenberg invented the printing press during this time period.
So incorrect. Gutenberg invented movable type (in Europe) as well as a press to use it. Along with the method to mass produce the type and the oil based ink to use with it.
The printing press was in use well before this.
Movable type was in use in China/Korea in the 1050s.
When they miss something that is so obvious, gotta wonder what else might be miss stated.
Enough of my rant.
Nifty show so far. Give it a watch if this sort of documentary rings your chimes.
All the Best, Jeff

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Wife and I have been watching Ted Danson’s new series A Man on the Inside . Basically a PI gets hired to investigate a retirement home, but is to young to go in, and finds Ted’s character to be her “Inside Man”.

It’s actually pretty funny (we think, anyway) but it also hits home for us because my wife’s Mother was in one of these places, also my best friends parents, and we feel they do a good job of showing some of the craziness the happens there.

I’d also recommend The Good Place if you haven’t seen it, we both enjoyed that also

Accidentally watched a rerun of an episode of the first season of Bonanza (1959-1973) on TV. Not really a fan of the show when it aired first and that hasn’t changed since. But in sharp contrast with the current “suicide by 05” we are so used to nowadays, only the “bad guys” in Bonanza really hurt people, and the “good guys” hardly ever do.

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?
An internet search didn’t help, either. :thinking:

Sorry for the typo. I tried to refer to the new Hawaii Five-O, were the perpetrator usually gets a double-tap from every Five-O member present at the scene.

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:+1:

“Suicide by 05”?

Whups, never mind, saw the followup…


I wasn’t a fan of “Bonanza” because the eps were hit or miss… with lots of misses, especially the ones where they try to be funny.

Ones where The Robber-Baron takes peoples’ deeds on their spreads and tries to kick them off (to open a mine, sell the land to a railroad, whatever), and The Cartwrights go and save the day, yeah, those could be good.

Ones like where The Hoss and Li’l Joe try raising chickens for cash and get way in over their heads… not so much.


There are some surprising old-timey westerns that are quite good, like “The Lawman”. Only a half-hour per ep, so they seem pretty rushed. If they ever went hour-long, they’d be movie-quality.

It stars John Russell, who was in a few Clint Eastwood movies. Bloody Bill in “The Outlaw Josey Wales”, Stockburn in “Pale Rider”, etc. Once you hear his voice, you’ll never forget it.

Also had Peggy Castle, and a LOT of those westerns had stunningly beautiful women as regulars or at least semi-regulars, so “The Lawman” doesn’t disappoint.

Actually, just thinking about it, it doesn’t have to be westerns that followed that formula. “Peter Gunn” was an example of that. You had Craig Stevens as A Man’s Man, and Lola Albright as his on-again-off-again main squeeze.

Half-hour eps, so some things come in from left field, need to get wrapped up in a hurry, but it’s the same. Our Hero lives by a code, is smart, stays one step ahead of The Bad Guys, and has fun along the way when making things right.

Sad, but they really don’t make 'em like they used to.

On the new Reacher, one of the bad guys is played by Olivier Richters, aka the dutch giant. A 7’2" 300+ pound body builder.
Dwarfs the 6’3" main character.
Guy would have made a better “Mountain” than halfthor.

Most actors/TV people, with a few exceptions, tend to be fairly little.
Once was in an elevator with Hugh O’Brian - The Wyatt Earp of my youth. Didn’t have on his lift boots. Barely reached my shoulder. You should never meet your heroes.
Down Alpine Tx. there a building with a huge Hoss character painted on the side.
All the Best, Jeff

The “Good Ole Days” when there were singing Sherrif’s and Sea Serpent’s named “Cecil” … :snake: