the watch of time

There are learning advantages in binge watching well written and acted TV shows on speciality channels, available after the spread-out airing on their originating venues.  Not only is it more enjoyable to view them uninterrupted (i.e. commercial-free), but also seeing the evolving palette of character and plot developments can provide thought-provoking perspectives, even if over-dramatized, about the modern human condition.

One such program is ‘Nurse Jackie’, which completed its seven season run last year on Showtime.  My cable TV company, as part of keeping up with The Joneses, has the first six seasons (sixty-eight episodes total) available for download viewing.  Watching the episodes in bulk shines a brighter light on character traits and altering relationships, such as…

• Just about everyone has their own backstory of unresolved issues
• Since actions have consequences, actions found out will have reverberations
• Children really do grow up fast, but as importantly they may absorb what they see from parents to go on their own unanticipated tangent, dislodging the relationship to a new paradigm
• If you’re a drug addict, going to rehab is not an effective solution if you not only miss some steps but in fact take some of them backwards
• Appreciate that many hospital staff have to co-operate to operate expediently, knowing lives may literally hang in the balance
• Some people are more at home with their secrets than with their families
• Hierarchies in a business model, as well as in personal relationships, may find the sands of stability shift abruptly, perhaps changing things briefly, perhaps having wider implications
• Sometimes bad things happen to good-looking people
• If a close friend moves away, it may not be because of what you’ve done, but because their priorities have changed
• It’s possible a savaged relationship may be at least partly repaired with salve
• There are many occupations requiring a multi-tasking pace merging efficiency with awareness
• Being determinedly cheery on the job may get under other’s skins, but likely gives one a little more leeway