How did this make it on TV?

I was fortunate to spend last weekend up in Hayward with friends and family. Not only was the weather perfect, sunny and in the upper 50’s, but there were no bugs out either.

I took the time to hike the Birkie Trail, and here and there I could see the green tips of plants pushing through the dirt, see leaves slowly begin to emerge and see the grass returning to the emerald green that hints at the coming of summer.

I think it’s important to spend time amongst nature and the earth. It not only can be great exercise, but it’s also peaceful and a time to reflect on things. I know for myself, when I get done walking among the woods and water of Wisconsin, I always feel better.

Afterward I finally got a haircut. Which was good, since I was getting a little shaggy, and with the warm weather on the horizon, I don’t need a hot and sweaty neck.

I hung out with my sister and niece after the haircut, and once again I was amazed at how tall my niece has become. She’ll be as tall as I am soon, and already she dwarfs my Hobbit-sized mother and grandmother.

My niece just turned 14 years old in late March. In September she’ll be in high school, another milestone I’m not ready for. She’s also taking part in that other rite of passage — getting her first job. Now that she’s 14, she can legally work, and Friday was her first night at her new job. Like myself, her mother, and pretty much my entire family, she’s starting out in the restaurant biz, working as a dishwasher and bussing tables.

I think that will be good for her. Not only will she learn the value of hard work, she’ll have her own spending money. She wants to be able to get her own car when she gets her license, and she also wants to save up for college. More milestones I’m not ready for.

I finished my weekend by cooking thick steaks on the grill, and afterwards my friends and I binge watched shows from back in the day. One of those shows was Baywatch, a show that ran from 1989 to 2000. It starred David Hasselhoff, and a revolving door of beautiful looking women who could not act their way out of a wet paper bag.

Those early plots were horrible, the acting stilted, and the first seasons were filled with five minute long montages that did nothing to advance the plot, but did chew up time for a show that had to run for 48 minutes. Towards the end of the Baywatch marathon I began to think they could use these early episodes for torture.

I’m sure there would be members of the Taliban that would question the existence of Allah if they realized this showed on the air for over a decade. You look at shows like that and you wonder how they ever got the green light. Well, I guess I know why Baywatch did. People enjoy watching shows about beautiful people.

But really, the storylines were insane. David Hasselhoff’s character, Mitch Buchanan, was the most lucky unlucky guy in TV history. He’s fighting pirates, stopping shark attacks, drug rings and more, all while raising a kid and saving occasional drowning swimmers.

As the producer of the show, I’m sure Hasselhoff laughed all the way to the bank.

M USINGS AND G RUMBLINGS

ROSS PATTERMANN REPORTER