Hey, what's on tv?

Growing up in the 1970s, I was a big television watcher. As an adult, my philosophy has been to focus on making my own life rich and keeping myself interested in going further in that direction, rather than investing too much time in following the lives of people, fictional or real, on tv.

But there are still things on tv that capture my imagination. These days, that is mostly programs about traveling and about food.

For example, I have become a big fan of "Iron Chef America" shown on the Food Network. These year's competition to crown "The Next Iron Chef" really has me rapt with anticipation. In the week or so leading up to the first episode, which was shown last Sunday (Oct. 30), they have been showing episodes from previous competitions. I watched a few of the old ones, to get an idea of what the competition might be like.

I have already seen how on some competition shows, like Top Chef, the contestants are flown to exotic locations to compete, so that the challenge is as much adapting to a new location and conditions as it is doing whatever is asked of you. In "The Next Iron Chef" that seems to be pushed further even than usual.

For example, on last year's competition, the contestants were told to show up at the airport, without knowing where they were going. The attendant at the counter informed them there were tickets in their name on Lufthansa to Munich. When they arrived in Munich, they were directed to an enormous airplane hanger where they found Lufthansa's newest largest luxury airplane and were given their challenge: to create amazing airplane food.

I'm looking forward to all the twist and turns of cooking settings on this year's competition. And I can't wait for each new episode, partly because this year is a "super chefs" competition, full of chefs who have lots of experience on tv and therefore many of them are well known to me.

So if you're trying to get in touch with me on a Sunday night and I seem to be unreachable, you will know where I am and what I'm doing. Yes, in spite of my efforts to make my own achievements and activities the center of my life, I still am drawn just a tiny bit to living vicariously through the talented and charismatic folks on tv.