Slowly Going Bald

Here's this week's write-up of "The Office" for Houston Press:

"The Office" 6x07: "Koi Pond"

Also, in a move that surprised no one, "FlashForward" sucked again:

"FlashForward" 1x06: "Scary Monsters and Super Creeps"

My drinking adventures for 29-95 continue apace. This time I visited a great dive in the Heights, Alice's Tall Texan, and I also covered the opening-night shindig at the new location of the Saint Arnold Brewing Company. I had a lot of fun at both.

I'm not surprised that Melissa Joan Hart was sent packing, but really, how is Michael Irvin still in this? I think he's got something on the judges, or he threatened them with a blade.

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Six

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Six Results

This week's "The Office" was another great one:

"The Office" 6x06: "The Lover"

And OH YEAH: "FlashForward" was actually fun this week:

"FlashForward" 1x05: "Gimme Some Truth"

A boring, shameless grab at an Oscar.

Click here for the review.

I've been in Texas since Labor Day, but the girl and I are finally moving to a new place, which necessitates doing a whole host of things like signing up with an energy provider. I picked Reliant only because they were listed on the info sheet provided to me by the leasing office at our new complex, and because they're online-only plan offered low rates and no cancellation fees.

So I signed up online, and at the end of the process I was greeted with a screen confirming my scheduled start date for service. It also repeated the information I had submitted to them, including my address (click for larger):

I figured I had gotten something done with my day, and considering that we've got quite a bit of planning and prep still ahead of us concerning the new place, it felt good to cross this task off my list. A couple hours later, I received an email confirming my new account and start date, and it asked me to double-check my personal info and contact Reliant if anything was amiss. I scanned it quickly, not thinking there would be a problem, but when I saw what they had listed as my address, I knew something had gone wrong (click for larger):

They had omitted two digits from my apartment number, placing me at unit 19 instead of unit 3019. I have no idea how this happened, but I knew even before I checked my earlier screen-capture that the error was theirs, not mine. I had entered all my information correctly, they had somehow rendered it inaccurate, and now I would have to call them.

I spent twenty minutes talking to three different departments, having a conversation I could only describe as Kafkaesque. I just wanted them to correct the address — to add two digits to the front of my unit number to make it right — but that wasn't possible. The address they had in their system, for unit 19, had generated a specific code or tag of some kind that couldn't be amended that simply. The only way to fix things, I was told, would be to cancel my service order and re-submit a new one, though I wouldn't be able to get the online-only rate over the phone, so I'd need to hang up and go through their site all over again. One woman even told me (not cruelly, just factually) that because I had submitted an incorrect address, the only way to remedy the situation was to fill out a new order. I firmly told her that I had not, in fact, given them the wrong info, but that they had messed up.

I was also informed that, though it was a Thursday afternoon and I'd requested service to start on Monday, four days later, the service department might not get the cancellation in time. I told them that there is no unit 19 at this complex; it's not like it's somebody's else place, it doesn't exist, period. They said that they would process the cancellation, and in the event that I did get a bill in error with the wrong address, to call them and have them straighten it out. I considered repeating my earlier statement to the woman — specifically, how can I get a bill for electricity at a place that isn't there? — but I simply agreed and eventually hung up. Each of three operators thanked me for my business and welcomed me to the company, but none seemed to have any real understanding of two very basic things: Reliant had messed up, and I was left to fix it.

So I was done. Three hours from start to finish. I got another service provider. I've never had a company so thoroughly botch customer service from the start, and I plan on never using Reliant again.

The Invention of Lying

The Boys Are Back

Amelia

This week's "Glee" was back to form, and though I'm getting tired of the way the episodes seem to alternate between quality and something decidedly less so, it's still one of the most enjoyable shows on the air.

"Glee" 1x08: "Mash-Up"

"America's always had her problems, big and small, but do you remember how that felt? Do you remember what life was like? ... America has never been a perfect place, but we used to be united. We used to be united on some basic things. If a politician told you right now that he could make that happen, go back to those simpler times, when people were together, you'd do it in a heartbeat, wouldn't you? ... But the truth is, no politician can take you there, they can only take you farther from there. Only common sense and hard work, and only the honest truth, or better yet, the hard reality. [sic]" — Glenn Beck, 10/15/09

"We have serious problems to solve, and we need serious people to solve them. And whatever your particular problem is, I promise you, Bob Rumson is not the least bit interested in solving it. He is interested in two things, and two things only: making you afraid of it, and telling you who's to blame for it. That, ladies and gentlemen, is how you win elections. You gather a group of middle-aged, middle-class, middle-income voters who remember with longing an easier time, and you talk to them about family and American values and character." — The American President

"Do not say, 'Why were the old days better than these?' For it is not wise to ask such questions." — Ecclesiastes 7:10

"Let others praise ancient times; I am glad I was born in these." — Ovid

This week's "Dancing With the Stars" featured, among its typical horrors, a tribute to Michael Jackson. The whole thing was achingly bad.

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Five

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Five Results

I've got a new gig here in Houston. In addition to blogging about TV for the Houston Press (here's my latest weekly wrap-up), I'm going to be exploring bars and (eesh) some clubs for 29-95.com, a local culture/entertainment site run by the Houston Chronicle. The angle is that I'm the new guy in town, looking for what the city has to offer, but the bottom line is: They're giving me money to drink in public. Suckers.

The New Guy Visits: Alabama Ice House

This week's "Glee" was a pretty weak episode of nothing but filler. Disappointing.

"Glee" 1x07: "Takedown"

The episode also made shameless use of auto-tuning and echo effects in literally unbelievable ways. But at least that reminded me to see if a new installment of "Auto-Tune the News" had been released, and sure enough, it had. So here you go:

It was another glorious week on Dancing With the Stars. Seriously: Who watches this? Is it only, as one reader suggested, addled mothers?

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Four

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Four Results

Heck yes I got a little misty. You know you did, too:

"The Office" 6x04: "Niagara"

Related: Dustin wrote a really sweet piece about Jim and Pam as a relatable, realistic couple. Check it out.

Oh yeah: I'm still blogging about FlashForward, which for the past two weeks has squandered the momentum built up in the pilot. What a sadly weak show. I hope it can turn things around:

"FlashForward" 1x03: "137 Sekunden"

Sweet little movie:

Click here for the review.

This week's Glee was a really solid episode, with some of the most fun performances yet:

"Glee" 1x06: "Vitamin D"

Tom DeLay, that old sweaty bastard, quit "Dancing With the Stars" because of stress fractures. I didn't think he'd make it all the way, but I'd hoped to have at least two more weeks of the guy. Now I just have to watch Donny Osmond. THANKS TOM.

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Three

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Three Results

Muddled:

Click here for the review.

Here's this week's write-up of "The Office" for Houston Press:

"The Office" 6x03: "The Promotion"

I should also here admit that I'm really looking forward to the wedding episode next week. It's possible I got a little choked up at the commercial.

Oh yeah: I'm also blogging about "FlashForward," which is still fun, but I'm waiting for it to get great.

"FlashForward" 1x02: "White to Play"

Here's the latest "Glee" write-up for the Houston Press. I thought the episode was weaker than the previous week's, but still had some good moments. Now that Rachel is finally back in the glee club, here's hoping that's where the focus will be.

"Glee" 1x05: "The Rhodes Not Taken"

Here are this week's Dancing With the Stars posts. Did I use the image of Kathy Ireland because she's the one who got kicked off, or just to get you in trouble for reading this at work? You'll have to click to find out!

...Kathy Ireland gets kicked off. But please read the posts anyway. I need to keep the traffic up so I look like a viable hire. Gracias.

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Two

"Dancing With the Stars," Week Two Results