Red Alert

One of the side effects of my current work schedule is that I haven't had much time for seeking out alternative forms of entertainment. My relaxation/amusement mode comes mostly from watching Star Trek reruns while I eat my dinner. After that, I go straight to bed.

I do recognize that not everyone understands the appeal of Star Trek, and perhaps my continuing affection for it is merely a nostalgia-driven connection to the carefree days of youth...when our family's fancy color television received only three channels, and somebody else did all the cooking. Perhaps somewhere deep inside my psyche, there is an inner Captain Kirk trying to get out. Or maybe I just enjoy making fun of Chekov's haircut. Does it really matter?

The bottom line is that it's the only show I want to watch while I'm having my last meal of the day after the grueling hours of office work and tedious commuting. It puts me in a good mood, and helps me readjust my mental state back to one of optimism and general good will toward humanity. (And toward Vulcans and whatnot, too, I suppose.)

I am noticing things I missed in previous viewings. For one, the Prime Directive seems to only apply to humanoid cultures. There are several times where the Enterprise encounters lifeforms such as giant amoebas or sentient clouds of gas, and Kirk's immediate response is to let loose with photon torpedos. There's always anguish over interference when the aliens are Yangs, Combs, or Zeons, but if they're amorphous blobs of any type, well, I guess it's open season.

The other thing I noticed in the episode I watched yesterday is this: When Kirk orders Uhura to announce a Red Alert, she gets on the intercom and says "All Decks, Red Alert". It seems to me that the phrase "All Decks" is unnecessary. I can't really imagine any Red Alert condition that would leave some of the decks exempt. And I've never heard the Captain say "Red Alert for Decks 4 and 5, but Condition Green for all other areas." That would just be silly.

And why does Uhura have to announce it, anyway? If the red lights are going to flash and all the sirens are going to start woop-wooping, wouldn't you think people would get the idea?

Oh well, it's still fun to watch, so I guess I shouldn't complain. After all, even Spock admits that many of the crew's actions are highly illogical.

Anyway, the answer to the previously posted trivia question is this: A cab-over Pete is a Peterbilt brand semi truck with the driver's compartment located above the engine housing. A "reefer" is a refrigerated trailer; so our phrase indicates a truck like in this photo, pulling a self-cooling load. The phrase is from the song "Convoy" by C.W. McCall, who was a fictional truck driver created by a fella name of Billy Dale Fries, who also served as the mayor of Ouray, Colorado for 6 years. His singing career actually started in a series of commercials for a bread company in Nebraska.

My favorite memory concerning C.W. McCall comes from the time I was a disc jockey at KICT, Stereo 95 Country in Wichita, Kansas. I had a midnight to 6am shift, and every Sunday morning at about 4am, I'd get a phone call from a local farmer named Milton, who would request that I play some CW for him to listen to while he milked the cows.

Of course I obliged—Anybody who's working at 4am deserves to hear some rousing milkin' music. But it does make me wonder if the Prime Directive applies to cows. What sort of culture would the bovine population have if humanity hadn't interfered? And is a loud "moo" simply their equivalent of issuing a Red Alert? I stay awake at night pondering questions like these.

I'll let you know if I find the answers. In the meantime, enjoy CW's commercial, and have a great day!