It’s finally finished raining in Calgary now. Had been raining a full week, and I mean rain – not showers, not drizzle – rain. I’m not used to this much precipitation in Calgary. Sure, May and June are typically very wet months, but there are often intermissions between storms. Our rivers are running fast, swollen and brown. The streets and cars upon them have not looked so clean since last spring. I’m rather content with our recent weather, as it reminds me of winters on the coast, though the forecast for mosquitoes this summer must be quite dismal, given the amount of standing water we’re sure to see now that this system has passed.

Took it pretty easy this weekend and found that it flew by a little too fast for my liking. On Saturday, I went shopping with my Dad. Guys on the prowl for electronics. It turned into quite the expedition, but as go most male acquisitive endeavors, we were highly successful. And, may I say proudly, so we were setting them up afterwards.

I only bought one thing this weekend – a TV series on DVD. I’ve never bought a TV series on DVD before – typically, my wife and I don’t watch that many programs with any regularity, let alone enjoy one enough to go out and buy it. But this one is different, and can I say I heartily recommend it to everyone.

The show is Damages, originally broadcast on, and I believe produced by, America’s FX channel (FOX’s version of HBO, or something). In Canada, we watched it on Showcase, a favorite hi-def channel of mine because it is meant to be Canada’s HBO – an adult channel where nothing is watered down or filtered. The original series that Showcase produce, such as Billable Hours, the L-Word, Rent-A-Goalie, etc. are all wonderful Canadian programs that stand out in contrast to what have become otherwise cliche, Canadian television disasters. But I digress…

Damages (warning, spoilers inside) is a 13-episode, legal thriller set in Manhattan, starring Glenn Close (in what I believe is her very best performance I’ve ever seen) and Ted Danson (as the series, and accordingly, his character, develops you gain an appreciation for his acting ability), and the unknown Australian actress Rose Byrne, alongside several supporting actors and bit players. The series revolves around Byrne’s character, a recent law school graduate who is hired by New York’s leading law firm – Close’s “Hewes & Associates” to work along side Close’s character on behalf of bankrupted former employees of Danson’s multi-billion-dollar company who are suing him for damages.

Each episode builds on knowledge gained in previous episodes, culminating in a climactic finale that blissfully pronounces forthcoming seasons.

This series is very entertaining, as it is smart, captivating, thrilling and very well directed and acted. I don’t think I’ve enjoyed this quality of screenwriting before. It is imminently reminiscent of “Murder One” (one of my older, all-time favorite TV series), and in terms of how well this series is written, produced and acted, I am sure that fans of West Wing and the Sopranos will love it.