July 18, 2024

Lightning.

Mother Nature has kicked this year’s Monsoon Season up a notch, and according to the National Weather Service, this is just the appetizer for what may be an active weekend for storms.

I made my first Official Storm Spotter report to the National Weather Service office here in Tucson tonight. We clocked winds at 52 MPH at 18:28 this evening, which puts things into Severe Thunderstorm territory. Of course I was outside enjoying the majesty of it all.

I’ve been catching lightning shots all night. Lightning at sunset is glorious.

I just caught this strike on video about 10 minutes before posting this entry.

https://videopress.com/v/uesgpoP2?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true

That’s Entertainment?

My husband and I have been watching Hulu’s “The Bear” over the past couple of weeks. This show, about a family owned Chicago beef restaurant, has been a frenetic ball of chaos since the first moments of episode one. It’s not something I would normally watch, but there are interesting moments and I get the whole “art vibe” of the production. The show has won awards all over the place and everyone is stumbling over one another to declare how much they enjoy the show. It’s the latest in a litany of Internet sensations and has earned its place among “Breaking Bad”, “Orange Is The New Black”, and the one whose name escapes me right now but I remember everyone hated the last season of it.

Chaos is entertainment in these chaotic times of the 21st century, and it’s apparent that folks just want more chaos.

We tried watching “Succession” and didn’t finish the first season; if I wanted to watch the Trump family be insufferable idiots I’d turn on CNN. I know actors like to stretch their craft by realistically portraying these whacked out characters, but watching “Fishes”, the Christmas episode of season two of “The Bear”, threw my anxiety levels through the roof. The direction was amazing, the portrayals were top notch, but I did not find one ounce of entertainment in the entire experience.

If I wanted to watch folks have inexplicable meltdowns I’d drive to the nearest Walmart or Safeway or hang out in one of the seedy areas of Tucson.

For me, entertainment is escapism where I can find something to celebrate. I find no interest in wallowing in completely mental situations of characters cooked up to scream and fling forks and turn over dining room tables while Christmas carols are playing in the background.

I’ll continue to watch “The Bear” with my husband, as he very much enjoys the show and I enjoy spending time with him. But when it comes to entertainment?

I just don’t get it.

Jamie Lee Curtis in “The Bear”. Photo from IMDB.