Just realized the other day that the two shows on television I actually try to watch – as opposed to surfing and stopping to watch just because it’s the only tolerable thing to watch – are both shows that run off the main network season.  So while most people’s favorite shows are all winding down with season finales this time of year, I find myself wondering… when are my shows starting back up?

Apparently, July.  My two ‘favorite’ shows are probably the widest apart in genre and feel… but for some reason, they’ve both got me hooked.   One, just because it’s funny with some fairly clever writing and the other,… well, I still haven’t figured out what draws me to the other.   The first is Eureka which comes on SyFy (I know… it’s a terrible channel – made even more terrible since it’s acquisition by NBC who now uses it as a toilet where they dump reruns of bad shows from their own vaults).  This show is silliness at it’s best done with some pretty hilarious writing.  It’s just a fun show to watch… that’s all I’m saying. Well, Eureka starts it’s 4th season on July 9.

The other show is MadMen – of which I’ve already waxed poetic on after I  so gleefully madmen’d myself several months back.  (I still use the pic generated as my Facebook profile pic!) Still can’t figure out why I like the show… cool styling certainly… and I have to admit, they ended the last season with quite the cliffhanger.  Well, not so much a cliffhanger – that wouldn’t be in the spirit of the show… a cliffhanger would indicate something really big happened leaving you on the edge of your seat wondering how you are going to wait until the next season to find out what will happen next.  Mad Men is simply too slow and subtle for that.  It just quietly opened up new avenues in two of the main story lines… Betty leaving on a plane to get a divorce and the ‘boys’ starting a new ad agency. No cliff… rather a 90º turn in the road.

They’re season starts in late July.  By the way, have you seen the new line of MadMen ‘Barbie’ dolls by Mattel?  I kid you not! Take a look!  They made four of the characters and apparently, they do not come with cigarettes or booze as part of their accessories… too bad.

So now these two shows starting their new season in July begs the question: What’s up with July?  The dead of summer? Perhaps they figure that it’s too hot to go out so people will sit home and watch TV?  So while most people are on vacation… or simply watching re-runs… if you’re like me, you’ll be enjoying new programming in the middle of summer… hmmm. Don’t think that’s such a great thing.  In fact, I think I’m going to be out of town when Eureka premiers. And I DON’T have DVR or Tivo!  I guess I’ll be streaming a lot of TV on my laptop this summer.

Do people even like receiving Christmas cards? At 44 cents a pop for a stamp, are they even worth sending in this digital age when I can wish one and all a Merry Christmas or a Happy Hannukah with one status update on Facebook?

At the same time, I have to ask myself how I feel about the Christmas cards I receive.  I mean, do we even like getting them?  Each year,  we dutifully line  our fireplace mantle and shelves with them… and every year, we collect them all and pitch them in the garbage once the holidays have passed.  Then, we started receiving the photo cards, you know the ones… line up the kiddies in matching sweaters and take a picture and send them to everyone you know.

Now, I used to like these as they were the only time in the year I would see pictures of my friends’ progeny.  Once again, social media has made that obsolete.  I now routinely see pictures of my friend’s kids in real time.  No longer the kids lined up against a phoney baloney Olin Mills backdrop with a forced smile.  These photos on Facebook are varied and ‘real’ – like Camille at an annual corn maze/fall festival,  Alex playing Xbox in the basement, Grant playing soccer, etc.

Yet, each year, after Christmas, Hubby and I ride up to Target and pick up wrapping paper, bows and Christmas cards for next year at 50% off. Well, last year, I couldn’t find the cards I’d stashed away the year before… so we didn’t send any out… now this year, we’ve found them and the ones we bought last year so I’m up to my eyeballs in two season’s worth of Christmas cards. Therefore, it seems only fitting I write some greeting inside, sign them, stamp them and send them out.

But it still begs the question: why?

• Facebook,  Twitter, LinkedIn: Free.
• US Postal Service: 44 cents a pop.
• Saving money to put towards a new pair of  boots: Priceless.

Perhaps the fiscal soundness of the digital thing will make the decision for me.

p.s. Since I began this post a few days ago, I’ve noticed something.  By this point in the season, I would normally have received a lot Christmas cards by now… to date, I’ve received 2.  So perhaps I am not alone in my contemplation of withholding business from the US Postal Service… and relying solely on social media to pass on my Christmas Greetings. Perhaps I’ll send them all more ‘gifts’ in Farmville.