Musings from the Edge of the Sphere

I suppose it was as self-deluding of me to assume my blog would remain a secret today as it was when I began that it would become a worldwide sensation. The point of a blog is to publicize one's private opinions. The Internet is for the exchange of information and blather, and not only, as the song from "Avenue Q" states, for porn.

Very incidentally, I do not like the word "blog," which, for the uninformed--not including anyone savvy enough to visit this arena--is an abbreviation of "web log." It does not fall pleasantly on the ears, and sounds more like the name of a Ferengi on "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine." But we're stuck with it.

Now, as for those visitors to my blog... welcome! Since I do not advertise this site, and I'm not cognizant of any links to it, I did not expect anyone outside of a stray Blogspot participant, scanning other samples, to happen upon it. And of course the few friends and family members with whom I care to share my rantings. My actual purpose was not to add one more strident voice to the cacophonous chorus of ten million worldwide bloggers, but to exercise my expository and analytical writing skills. And for the first six months of contributions I received the minimum of feedback--two comments, both from close relatives. Then my first reaction from a stranger popped up, which was literate but off-topic, and read more like a zany self-promotion.

So I proceeded as the voice in the wilderness spouting off to an audience of six, I thought, until a recent posting discussing the Bravo reality show "Situation: Comedy." To my amazement I received a comment from Mark Treitel, one of the young finalists of the competition. His note was brief but gracious; in return I'd like to tell Mark that I thought his pilot's concept seemed well-considered, and he and his partner's demeanor on the show--at least as it is edited--makes me want to root for him. The "Sperm Donor" writers project at least a surface affability and willingness to process criticism. They've suppressed the disdain they likely hold toward the veterans and network suits who want to alter their precious property. I hope it works out for you guys. Just remember--the most intense and dangerous relationship in Hollywood is the love affair between the writer and his words. It's okay to let go. TV scripts are infinitely improvable.

Another sidebar--both reality shows I praised in that article have turned out very disappointing ratings-wise. NBC has already dropped the slick and watchable "Law Firm," after two showings, and exiled it to late-night Bravo airings sometime deep into the decade. And Bravo has moved "Situation: Comedy" to 7 P.M. on Friday, which we used to know in network TV as a death slot. So what's going on here? Do people not want to watch real-life lawyers even as they lap up James Spader and William Shatner? Do they not care to visit the inner workings of their favorite enterainment medium? The popularity of the E! network would seem to say otherwise. But perhaps there's something more obvious happening here--the inevitable, and long overdue satiation of reality programming. Still, the Tuesday "Situation: Comedy" time slot has been usurped by one of two reality shows featuring Kathy Griffin. Now Griffin is a moderately amusing entertainer, but a reality special and a series? I hope she's paying her agent generously.

The essay I wrote yesterday concerning the manipulation of language for political ends was the first to receive more than one response. That was gratifying, since it was heartfelt and one of my better efforts. The reactions were brief but laudatory, and one of them came from Germany. The latter fact would impress me more if I weren't also aware that, according to the log in my McAfee firewall, my computer is being pinged every ten seconds from hackers from Rumania to Botswana.

I do not know how Mark Treitel, or the German net surfer, came upon my blog, but the Googlized world is way beyond my puny comprehension. I just have to accept that my words and thoughts are out there. Now if I could only sell them my novel.