Since we moved I haven’t watched television very much at all. Part of the reason is because there haven’t been many shows that I’ve cared about seeing.

Part of the reason is because Oprah has been in re-runs for what feels like six months.

And part of the reason is, you know, blogging.

But the biggest reason is that moving meant that we had to leave behind our beloved DirecTV / TiVo combo (there are too many trees here at the new casa for DirecTV to work) and my inner rebel has refused to have anything to do with our new cable company’s ill-conceived and user-unfriendly TiFaux / DVR-ish-type product.

Okay, okay – that might be a little harsh. It’s probably not that bad.

And really, now that time has dulled the wound a bit, my DirecTV / TiVo separation anxiety has diminished to the point where I can (sort of) laugh about THE HORROR OF IT ALL, but make no mistake: it’s just not the same, my friends. It’s just not the same.

However, there are a couple of shows coming up in the next few days that certainly will pull me out of my television funk, regardless of the evil TiFaux that now controls my viewing, what with it’s 1985-esque interface and unreliable recording options (I’M A FAN! CAN YOU TELL?).

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you “24” and “American Idol.”

(My pulse started to race just from typing that last sentence.)

(Also, I’ve watched this four times this afternoon.)

“24” is only, like, the best show in the history of forever, and “American Idol” is such a guilty pleasure that I can’t imagine not watching it. It doesn’t matter that I know what tricks AI is going to pull out of the hat, that I’ll be subjected to four weeks (and then some) of sub-par, desperate-for-attention “singers” who only want to be on TV, because I AM ALL ABOUT IT.

Randy saying “dawg”?

Simon rolling his eyes and chewing on a pencil?

Paula clapping her hands over her head and making incoherent statements?

I AM ALL ABOUT IT.

Finally (OH SWEET MERCIFUL CONCLUSION, you’re no doubt thinking), I told D. this morning that I’m ready to see some movies again. I won’t go into the long history of my movie sabbatical, but it’s been awhile since I’ve watched movies, aside from my repeated viewings of Notting Hill and Ocean’s Eleven, both of which I have committed to memory and quote extensively in my day-to-day conversations.

So D. got us all set up with the Blockbuster-y / Netflix-y thing, and I have a queue to fill.

At the top of my list? Ocean’s Twelve and Mission Impossible III, because I’m OCD and I’d like to have as much information as possible about what’s happened with those characters since I last saw them.

Other than those two movies, I’m wide open. And I’d love to hear your suggestions.

Don’t worry about duplicating something I’ve already watched, because I haven’t even seen The Notebook or any of those Johnny Depp-plays-a-pirate movies, and yes, I just heard all of you gasp collectively.