Archive for the 'Television' Category

Jan

The Weekend of 1/14

Congratulations to Schreiber’s Intel Semi-Finalists. This year Hannah Blumberg, Rachel Cohen and Arjan Saraon were all honored for their research. Rachel and Arjan were Green House students.
Last year the Green House also had Son Yon Song honored.
I also coached a semi-finalist on my baseball team at Lawrence Middle School. Perhaps I have the magic touch!!!
Actually all of the students that I know that were honored as semi-finalists were very gifted. I just like to take partial credit for their success!!!

Yesterday in class we talked about taking come time this weekend to read/watch something about Martin Luther King Jr. Remember, this isn’t just another day to sleep late. As I mentioned in class, BET is showing a few shows dedicated to Dr. King. However, they are on Sunday. The Martin Luther King miniseries from the 70s is on from 12pm to 6. That is followed by the Rosa Parks story from 6 to 8. I don’t necessarily expect you to watch all 8 hours of programming but perhaps a few minutes while channel surfing would be nice.

Football Predictions
I was 3-1 last week with my football predictions. I don’t have as good a feeling about my picks this week. I will admit that I’m picking with my heart and not my head this week.
Based on our superstition in Hofstra, I’m going with the Giants over Green Bay. Anthony from Hofstra answered 10 questions this week which was the magic number for a Giants victory. I hope he knows that if the G-Men win this week that the number will increase next week!
At this point, I cannot root against Tim Tebow. I’m caught up in the magic. It won’t be easy, but I see the Broncos beating New England.
I’m also going to take Baltimore over Houston and New Orleans over San Francisco.
Your thoughts?

That’s all for today. Don’t forget to study for Tuesday’s test. We have extra help Tuesday morning.

posted by Mr. Dowling in School,Television,Uncategorized,history and have Comments (7)

Dec

Programming Alert

I know I said I was done blogging for the year but…

Beginning tomorrow morning at 9 Cartoon Network will be running a Looney Tunes marathon. To my knowledge they are showing the classic shorts and not the new show. If you’ve never seen them, check it out. It is worth it. If you like the cartoons, join us during Laughs and Lunch every Friday. Once we finish the Karate Kid Part II we are going to switch back to Looney Tunes.
Ok…That’s All Folks!!!

posted by Mr. Dowling in Television,Uncategorized and have No Comments

Nov

Black Friday

We have a special clearance sale today to celebrate Black Friday. You can take all of the knowledge that you want from the website. All you have to do is pay 5 easy payments of $0.00. Hurry…This deal won’t last forever.

Good luck to the parents who are going shopping today. Keep your composure!

I think it is a pretty nice idea that some are dubbing Saturday “Shop Small Saturday”. Our small businesses in our towns can use our business. I’ll buy something Saturday, even if it means just going to dinner in a local restaurant.

There were many great shows on last night as I settled in to sleep. America Before Columbus seemed pretty interesting. Of course, I can always spend a few minutes watching The Patriot. The Patriot should have been added to my list of favorite movies.
We’re going to be finishing The Karate Kid in Laughs and Lunch this week. Great movie. If you haven’t seen it lately, do yourself a favor and check it out. Part two isn’t bad either.

There are still a handful of groups that have not presented yet. Be ready on Monday. Also, don’t forget, there will be Extra Help Monday morning and Thursday morning as we prepare to write our 13 Colonies essay.

I was pretty disappointed when Miami lost in the final seconds of yesterday’s game. I didn’t get the same feeling I’d get from a Reds loss but it was still disheartening.

posted by Mr. Dowling in Current Events,Movies,School,Television,Uncategorized and have Comments (5)

Oct

The Weekend of 10/15

Perhaps I should just stop rooting against the Cardinals. Clearly it is not working.

Bowling Scores For the Week: An old update has returned. I haven’t bowled at all since May. Since I’m not an active member of a team in my league there won’t be weekly updates. I’ve decided to simply sub when my schedule permits me to do so. My scores were 152, 155 and 146. I was relatively consistent but not at the level I’d like to be. Look for more updates in November.

100 Year Old Runner
Next time you’re having trouble running your mile during Physical Education Class, think of this man. Fauja Singh is 100 years old and he just broke the record for being the oldest person to finish a 42km race. His next goal is to run a full marathon tomorrow.

Follow Up-The 100 year old runner did finish the marathon this weekend. It took him over 8 hours to do so. That is quite an accomplishment. For the record, it would probably take me about 8 hours to run 26 miles also.

Personally I think it is a fraud. This guy doesn’t look a day over 93!

Moose In Backyard Pool
How would you like to wake up and find a moose in your pool? Apparently it took a long time to get him out of the pool. The large animal was probably just shy and didn’t want everyone to see him in his swimsuit. He’s a bit bashful!
Check out the video.

My favorite part of the video is the end when the woman is heard saying “keep going, keep going” like it was such an easy task to pull the darn animal out of the pool.

Our next topic in school is Explorers. We will be joining Mr. Joseph’s class for 2 double periods this week to discuss writing, quoting, citing sources, plagiarism, etc. The Social Studies focus will also be writing of course and Christopher Columbus’ exploration.

I watched Last Man Standing this week. It stars Tim Allen and its pretty good. I loved Home Improvement when it was on the air in the 90s. You can still watch that show on re-runs on various cable channels. I missed good, old fashioned sitcoms. I found this one to be a good one. It is on ABC on Tuesdays I believe. Check it out.
Are there any new shows that you are currently watching?

posted by Mr. Dowling in Bowling,Current Events,School,Television,Uncategorized,baseball and have Comments (14)

Oct

Post Season Predictions

Half of my predictions were true for the division series round. Hopefully I can do a little bit better than that this round.

Although they are already down 1-0, I’m going with the Tigers in 6. Teams can win a series without having their ace win. Tom Seaver lost game 1 of the World Series for the Mets in 1969 and we all know how that turned out.

Perhaps I’m allowing personal feelings about a team to cloud my judgment here but I’m going with the Brewers in 7. First, the Brewers barely ever lose at home. They still have great pitching and a great lineup. There seems to be a bit of magic surrounding the Brew-Crew.
Make no mistake about it, I’m not a fan of either of these teams. I basically picked the team I hate the least. That would be the Brewers.

I’ve been wondering if the Brewers are creating some sort of Looney Tunes live action thing. Pitcher John Axford looks like Yosemite Sam. Nyjer Morgan acts a bit Daffy. I think they might be on to something. If only they can get someone to pitch like Bugs Bunny.

The Reds off-season is not off the start that I was hoping for. Rumors are swirling that the Reds are willing to trade Joey Votto if the right deal comes along. It seems the Blue Jays and Marlins are leading candidates. If the Reds do this they better get a lot in return.

Good News for Simpsons Fans: We were worried for nothing. The show has extended the contracts of their actors and the show will continue for a 24th and 25th season. Good news.

posted by Mr. Dowling in Television,The Reds,Uncategorized,baseball and have Comment (1)

Oct

The End Is Near For the Simpsons?

Simpsons To Leave Television???
I’m not so sure life would be the same without the Simpsons. It is amazing how much the actors get per episode according to the article. It seems like a lot of money but then you think about how the Simpsons has been a consistent ratings grabber for over 20 years. Also, merchandising alone brings in $8 billion dollars. I would assume that FOX would like to see that continue.
I don’t watch the Simpsons as much as I used to but I would still rank it as one of my favorite shows on television.
Any of you out there Simpsons fans? Perhaps we can add it to our Laughs and Lunch rotation. Let me know what you think.

posted by Mr. Dowling in Current Events,Television,Uncategorized and have Comments (9)

Sep

The Weekend of 9/24

The baseball season is sputtering to a stop very soon. Perhaps not soon enough for a team with high expectations that did not pan out. The Reds have 5 games remaining and need to win all 5 in order to finish above .500. Given that they have found it impossible to beat the Pirates and Mets this year, I don’t see it happening.

Perhaps as a consolation prize, the Dolphins will beat the Browns this week.
But the big question is can the Giants beat the Eagles? Your thoughts?

Remember that your 8 note cards and poster are due on Tuesday. We will review in class and then I will collect your work. The Native American Cultural Diversity assignment is worth a test grade.

The oldest living Reds player died recently. Danny Litwhiler died at the age of 95. The “new oldest” player is now 93 year old Lonnie Goldstein. If you haven’t heard of either of these players you are not alone…I’ve never heard of them either.

Danny Litwhiler with Jackie Robinson

We managed to discuss breakfast cereals twice yesterday, once during homebase and once at the end of an afternoon class. I stand firmly by my stance: Cereals with marshmallows are terrible. I’d rather eat chalk than eat Lucky Charms.

Question of the Day: A recent letter to the editor in Newsday questioned the “sport” of competitive eating and whether it is in bad taste (ahem…pun intended) to over eat for sport when their are so many people struggling to find a meal during these tough times. The writer made a good point. What do you think?

Obama Repeals Portions of No Child Left Behind Legislation
It will be interesting to see how this plays out. I’ve always believed that legislation for schools is more geared towards places that are not succeeding and not a school district like Port Washington. Port Washington has the best of the best when it comes to teachers and students that strive for success. Are there weak students? Sure. But we do everything we can to help them achieve. We don’t need a law to tell us to do so. Just my opinion. What is yours?

Mrs. Dowling and I have added “Up All Night” to our weekly television viewing. It is about a couple with a baby and what life is like with their new addition. Obviously the humor is a bit funnier to those who are experiencing or have experienced having babies. Of course as I’m writing this I look over to see DJ with a bucket over his head pretending he’s a robot! All in a day’s parenting!
Speaking of Mrs. Dowling, she will return to school on Monday. If you see her, welcome her back.

posted by Mr. Dowling in Current Events,Food,School,Television,The Reds,Uncategorized,baseball and have Comments (16)

Sep

Monday, 9/12

I’m still proud to be an American. Patriotism is not a 3-4 day a year job. It is a lifetime of dedication. We need to remember that.
A lot of the heroism happened in the days after 9/11 not just on the day itself.

Watching the documentaries yesterday was like reliving a bad nightmare. The CBS doc in particular was amazing and I’ve seen it several times now. The bravery that the firefighters showed on that day still causes me to get emotional.

Check out some of the cartoons that Chris posted on an earlier link. They were pretty good.

2nd week of school…2nd of many! We’re starting to pick up the pace a bit and we’ll really be rolling soon enough. There is so much content to cover in 7th grade but we will get it done. That is a promise.

posted by Mr. Dowling in School,Television,Uncategorized,history and have Comments (4)

Sep

9/11/11-10 Year Anniversary

What a terrible day 9/11 was many years ago. It is hard to believe that it is ten years ago now and many things have changes in our lives. Most of them you don’t even realize.
I recall hearing the tragic news while I was in Dr. Borrero’s class at St. John’s. I then rushed home in a complete panic as there were still planes unaccounted for. It was a relief to find that my family members who worked near the site of the Twin Towers attack were alive. Unfortunately, not everyone was as lucky.
Take some time today to reflect on what happened and remember those people who died and especially the heroes who didn’t think twice about attempting to save people in the chaos.
Also, take time to reflect on the fact that we live in the best country in the world. There is no place I would rather live. We’re not perfect but I’m still proud of my country.
Take time to watch some of the shows that will commemorate this sad event. We should see these images (age appropriate of course) because you don’t remember it live. If you never see it because we shelter it from you we risk that we will forget these acts.
In addition, I recommend that you watch the Mets Classics presentation of the Mets first game post-attack against the Braves. That was the first major even in New York post-9/11. It was a chilling moment. Even if you don’t watch the entire game, check out Liza Minnelli’s performance of New York, New York. If you don’t get chills watching this, you’re not human.
The Mets (and other sports teams) played a huge role in the healing process. The game is on at 3:30 on SNY and is followed by Reflections on 9/11: The NY Mets Remember.

I’ll be wearing my red, white and blue today.

Mike Piazza’s Big Home Run Post 9/11

Liza Minnelli: New York, New York

posted by Mr. Dowling in Television,Uncategorized,baseball,history and have Comments (4)

Sep

I’m Back!!!

After an extended break from the blog and website, I’m back.
My time away didn’t exactly go as expected. I ended up having several family members come to my house as they had to flee evacuation zones. Of course, of all the homeowners that stayed with me only my house lost power.
We ended up not having power for 5 full days. I’ll avoid being critical of LIPA because I know they had a big job but thank goodness this wasn’t a huge storm.
I wasn’t too worried about losing the power because my family and my parents were slated for a trip to Lake George for 4 days. Unfortunately, that never got off the ground. After driving for hours and hours trying to find a way around closed roads, we finally decided to give up and cancel our vacation.
And it was a good thing that we did. It turns out that the place we were staying in Lake George lost all power. It was likely we would have been miserable there anyway.
We turned our vacation into a staycation as we stayed with my parents until power was restored. We ended up taking trips to 2 parks/playgrounds for DJ to play, Adventureland (he’s still a bit too young but did like the train ride around the park) and the beach.
I wouldn’t say this was the best vacation ever but at least we made the best of a bad situation.

Speaking of bad situations, the Reds must have been experiencing deja vu as they were once again swept by the Phillies in easy fashion. The good news at least is that Chris Heisey returned from the disabled list with a 3 run pinch hit homerun. The Reds also called up rookie catcher Devin Mesoraco to see what he’s got. The Yankees aren’t the only team with a catching phenom. The Reds now have 3 games against the Cardinals. Whether the Reds are in 3rd place or last, they will always want to beat the Birds. I hope they get it done.

Another Study On Soda
If you’re a loyal reader of the blog, you know that I enjoy soda. I drink it more often than I should but my excuse is that I don’t drink coffee so that makes up for the coffee.
Check out this article on soda. It was staggering to find that according to the article, 5% of people drink 4 cans of soda a day. The most powerful part of the article was the quote from an upcoming ad campaign, “”If you wouldn’t eat 22 packs of sugar, why are you drinking it?” I never thought of it quite like that.

St. John’s University Basketball On The Rise
I was pleased to read that the St. John’s basketball team will have 17 national broadcasts this season. That shows that the schedule makers see the Red Storm as a team on the move. I’m glad. Basketball and St. John’s used to go hand in hand. Unfortunately, that was a long, long time ago. I like to see that they are returning to their prominence. I haven’t been to a game in years. However, college level athletics is always fun. I went to a St. John’s baseball game last year and loved every minute of it.
There are plenty of local colleges that you can check out. Hofstra, CW Post and St. John’s are all within driving distance. Best of all, their games are extremely affordable and sometimes even free.

I also managed to finish reading Shoeless Joe during the vacation. Shoeless Joe was the inspiration for the hit baseball movie Field of Dreams. I enjoyed the book, but like the movie must more. The storyline in the movie flows much better than the book. The book has a few addition characters that don’t add to the storyline and often detract from it. Perhaps I feel this way because I’ve seen the movie so often.
I think the movie is better because it focused on the relationship between a father and a son. The book (in my opinion) largely skimmed past that.
I’ll have the book in my classroom library if you would like to check it out. It was still worth reading.
Question of the Day: Do you prefer reading a book first and then seeing the movie, or seeing the movie and then reading the book? If you’ve seen a movie, would you still go through the trouble of reading the book?

It is a tradition for us to watch Field of Dreams during lunch in April. I’m looking forward to doing so once again.

One last thing, I’ve been watching the Phineas and Ferb movie with my son. Is it odd that I’m actually enjoying it. Am I the only one that enjoys this show?

We’re just days away from school. Enjoy what is left of the summer!

posted by Mr. Dowling in Books,Current Events,Food,Movies,Television,The Reds,Uncategorized,baseball and have Comments (8)

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