I was always a fan of the show The West Wing. Being a person with a History degree that wants to teach social studies, this probably comes as no surprise. I thought it was the best show on television when it was on (except maybe for season 4; it was kind of a disappointment). I was sad to see the show end its run and was hoping that it would continue on with a new administration after President Bartlet saw his two terms end. Of course, ratings were down and Aaron Sorkin was no longer writing for the show, so it was time for it to go. I really miss smart TV. In a prime-time that’s filled with game shows and reality shows, a drama like The West Wing was a welcome change. Best Buy recently put all seven seasons of the show on DVD on sale for $14.99 each. How could I pass this up? I bought seasons 1-3 and will hopefully get the next 4 for Christmas (Lisa, Sarah, if you’re reading this, check with mom, she may be planning on buying these, if not, have at them :) ). I would have bought these DVDs a long time ago but they were expensive, at $50 per season, and reruns were on Bravo all the time. Now that reruns are no longer on the network and the price has dropped, I’m immersing myself with one of the all time best dramas that ever appeared on television. Seriously, this is a beautifully crafted show. I think, given a real chance, Sorkin’s follow-up, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip would have been just as good. It’s a shame the network’s no longer like smart shows. *Cue the imagery from Idiocracy*

So, I have my new MacBook, and one thing I notice about Apple users is they are just as passionate about the apps they use as they are about using Apple products. What’s funny is they will argue over what text editor is better just as fervently as they do when arguing over why a Mac is better than a PC. Based on recommendations by fellow Mac users in the #habari IRC channel, I have already begun collecting applications. So far I have Menuet, Adium, Transmit, Quicksilver, Colloquy, Firefox (of course), Smultron, and Transmission. What other applications for the Mac do I need (or you think I should have)?

What do you get when you have a creative filmmaker with Frat House experiences that is also a fan of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody? Answer: This hilarious video.

On the second day of my four-day weekend, I thought I’d update my blog a bit. After all, a break from work doesn’t mean a break from blogging, right? Since I’ve been off, nothing much has really happened over the past couple days, with one exception. My MacBook was delivered. What can I say? I love it. I’ve heard some users talk about their switch in the past and complained about how slow it was or how slow the programs were, but I’ve not experienced any of that. The OS runs great and programs are blazing fast to launch, even Firefox. I love the design of the MacBook, especially the keyboard and super-drive, compared to my old laptop. iChat is pretty sweet. I enjoyed chatting with Lisa on that. The only problem I had so far with the MacBook is last.fm appears twice in the dock and also doesn’t want to shut down (and needs a force-quit). I know Lisa has had problems with it appearing twice in the dock. Anyone else have any problems with last.fm on their Mac? I think next time I get a desktop it will be a Mac as well, but that won’t be for several years. That’s pretty much it for now.

The past two days I’ve been lagging badly. I’m tired all day, time seems to creep to a halt, and my brain isn’t functioning as quickly as it usually does. This is when I realized how addicted to Monster I really am. Since school started, every morning I would drink a 16 oz can of the low-carb goodness that delivers all the caffeine, ginseng, and taurine I need to get me through the day. These past two days I’ve forgotten to grab my Monster on the way out the door. I’m really feeling the effects of not having it. I know caffeine is bad for you, but when I look at all the people that are hooked on Starbucks every morning, I don’t feel bad. Since I’m not a coffee drinker, this is my little indulgence. On top of that, it only has 10 calories. Someone send me a Monster, please.