It’s official… There is nothing going on between now and the First Quarter. However, you didn’t allocate any sick / vacation / personal days to cover this dry-patch in advance and now you’re sitting in the office… pretending to “work.” What you need are some well curated distractions, that look vaguely project related or at least skill building.

First off, we have “Buster Gnutt” an actual working nutcracker in the hipster form. By following the directions you can build some production skills in the process. It’s also good as a gift that you can pull out at the last minute for someone you don’t know or like, but most likely will run into this weekend.

We’ll follow this up with a definitive list of fantastic TV shows you’ve not heard of and hence -- you haven’t yet explored on YouTube. But today’s a half-day, so below should be enough to keep you busy. However if you’re not crafty, check the YouTube links below the image…

The Three Greatest TV Show You’ve Never Watched

1. PEEP SHOW -- Channel 4 (UK), 2003 -- Present

Despite the title of this show (and this site!), there is no lewdness associated with this link. Just pure and unadulterated malice, self-loathing, anxiety and desperation as seen through the P.O.V.s of two roommates in London failing at the simplest goals and descending into chaos. Ricky Gervais called this “the only British thing that I was really blown away by in the last few years.” And whereas the British version of The Office is fun to make fun of, because it involves cubicle drones that have a safe distance from your life -- Peep Show hits you right in the gut. This is the most nihilistic viewing experience since Babe 2: Pig In The City, which somehow also amplifies the comedy and makes this the funniest thing we’ve EVER seen.

EPISODE 1

2. OFF-CENTRE -- WB Network (USA), 2001 -- 2002

This show debuted John Cho, a.k.a. Harold from “Harold and Kumar.” The biggest movie moment in 2009 was when Cho came on screen as Sulu in the new JJ Abrams’ Star Trek (The second biggest was Tyler Perry as leader of The Federation moments later). Off-Centre is a product of the team that brought you American Pie and About a Boy (Paul and Chris Weitz) and similarly it fills the spectrum from complete vulgarity to poignancy, in chronicling the base pursuits of newly arrived Manhattanites… Looking this up on Wikipedia I also see Spock from Heroes is in here as well. Seriously, this show has more puerile laughs and better story arcs than anything HBO puts on the air.

EPISODE 1

3. STICKY MOMENTS -- Channel 4 (UK), 1989 -- 1990

Julian Clary is a theatrically attired drag queen, hosting a cabaret night that masquerades as a TV game show. With the charming “Russel” providing accompaniment on piano, Clary challenges an audience of British housewives to answer innuendo loaded trivia, paint decorative watercolors or design their own hat while he arbitrarily awards points based on his mood. The best challenge was when the show unveiled a “Paki” convenience store set and contestants were given rocks and told this was a “hooligan” challenge. Everyone was laughing as windows were broke during something, that to the eye, looked like the The Price is Right… But very gay and very odd.

EXCERPT OF THE TV SHOW -- Stay Tuned for the Musical Number

INCIDENTALLY…

THE THREE WORST TV SHOWS THAT ARE PAINFUL TO WATCH

AND PERPETUATED AS FUNNY

The following make great token DVD gifts for people you don’t like… It’s sort of like passive spite and no one can call you on on it, because for some reason popular opinion keeps telling us these awful shows are “great.”

1. Monty Python -- It’s so painfully unfunny and precious to anyone who aspires to write a sitcom script, instead of a novel. Which says tons! Even the recent documentary couldn’t find one, single funny clip to explain why this show was on the air.

2. The Gary Shandling Show -- Graduated everyone who’s who in comedy television, despite the fact the star is a spectacular jerk and never says anything remotely funny.

3. The Simpsons -- What if Harvard grads could make smug in-jokes week after week on obscure topics no cares about? Well, it’d reach critical mass and no one would feel smart saying anything bad about the show. The same way Seinfeld is on eight times a day, this show runs daily. Only, the difference is you flip the channel when this is on.

Tags: Crafty, Hipster
Posted in: General