TV Party for Wednesday, July 13th

Well, how about a little Wednesday Night reality party? We start off our celebration with the premier of a show called “Brat Camp”, on ABC tonight from 8 to 10. It's a show that answers the question “What would you do with a teen who curses at you, breaks the law in your house and doesn't listen to anything you say?” That's the dilemma facing nine families dealing with out-of-control teenagers ranging in age from 14-17 -- and with issues from ADHD to drugs, promiscuity and fights. The families make a tough choice and send their kids to SageWalk, The Wilderness School, in the wilds of central Oregon for a period of more than fifty days, in the desperate hope that, once it's over, they'll get back the children they once knew.

In the premiere, we meet the kids as they arrive at SageWalk, learn about their issues and see their defiance in action, as they're confronted for the first time with the harsh realities of camp life. Forced to hike 10 miles with 40-lb. backpacks, the kids celebrate Thanksgiving in the wilderness without family, and with the ultimate question being whether they'll make it home for Christmas. Not to mention whether Santa will bring them anything if they do!

Finally, at 10 we end our evening's dose of reality with another hour with Mogan Spurlock’s "30 Days". In tonight's episode, "Off The Grid", two average American 30-year old professionals go "back to the future" and learn to live without the natural resources that will be depleted from our earth in the not-too-distant future. To do this they'll uproot themselves and move to an "eco village" in Missouri to live 100% off the grid. As they set up house in a former 3,000 bushel grain bin, they will sustain themselves on clean power such as solar and wind, recycle all their waste (both food and human), live in a car-free culture, grow and eat organic foods and conserve their water use with solar showers and rain-catch systems. Can these fossil fuel addicts wean themselves from their consumptive habits without their lives falling apart? Will they thrive in a community that is the total opposite of their New Jersey neighborhood? And will the ecological solutions they learn stick once their 30 days are up? Tune in to FX at 10 to find out.

That’s your TV Party for Wednesday July 13th,. For Northwest Indy Radio, I’m Scott Chicken