A DirecTV screen to scream for ... or at

DirecTV changed its on-screen interface yesterday.

It sure is pretty, but the fancy new "info" and "channel change" displays cover up a third of the picture on the TV screen. The "exit" button is ssslllooowww.

Now, anything I want to do takes two or three more button-pushes than the old way. The actions I use regularly are at the bottom of extensive lists.

It puts info about the show that's first on the recorded list in a blue-framed box that takes up a third of the screen. Info I don't need at that moment. The previous way showed six or eight more titles.

Finding what's set to be recorded is a mystery.

The channel logos added to the guide's grid are colorful, though. And the shading to show which shows are in progress: stunning.

Summing up: I hate it.

Plus, last month's bill was up $10. Gotta pay for the beautiful, I guess.

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I'm done with winter. Thirty minutes of shoveling this morning to rearrange 4 inches (measured via ruler) of overnight snow covering the back yard was misery.

Snow/ice crept in the pockets of my hoodie.

It's been snowing steadily for the last three hours, plopping a new stratum on the front walkway and driveway, which I do not have the strength to tackle, yet.

What's it take to cancel winter? I did my best.

Bought a 40-pound bag of ice melt, the smallest size Lowe's had.

Bought a plastic yellow/orange snow shovel to replace a metal shovel so old that the front corners curl up.

Damn, I gotta figure out how to afford to move to Hawaii.

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