In the Beginning...(Part One)
It all began in 1987...I was in the fifth grade, and, like a typical ten-year-old, I watched a lot of television. I had been shown a lot of PBS shows in school: 'Reading Rainbow', '3-2-1 Contact' (Yes, including 'The Bloodhound Gang'), 'Sesame Street', 'Mister Roger's Neighborhood', etc., but none even came close to being like this one.
This new show I had come across one rainy afternoon fascinated me; though I had a very hard time with math in school. These people were solving crimes using math skills, but they made it seem fun. I didn't know what it was called at first, but I knew it was on Channel 9 at 4:00 every weekday. So I'd tune in day after day, enjoying every episode. Later on, I found out the show was called 'Square One TV', and the part I particularly liked was appropriately called 'Mathnet'.
I remember the first episode, 'The Case of the Missing Baseball'. This kid named Howie had been playing with his dad's prized baseball, and it had been 'knocked out of the park', so to speak, when he and his friends were playing a ballgame. They couldn't find it anywhere, so they turned to the Mathnetters for help. It absolutely drew me in, and I quickly became hooked on this show. I remember them figuring out where the ball had landed, and they asked that crabby old lady about it being in her house, though they couldn't find it. And then, much later, they learned that her house had been stolen...how bizarre! (Especially with all those signs she posted saying, 'This house is not for sale!', etc.) Watching the story unfold was most interesting, and of course, seeing them solve a crime within a week's time was pretty cool, too. (And all that time that ball was in the lady's fireplace...)
Anyway, I became more and more enthralled with the show after every new case came about. I thought George was the funniest guy around, and I wanted to be just like Kate, because I admired her intelligence and ability to put up with George. (And all those other wacky people they met.) Of course, when they went to New York, I thought that was so cool. I wanted to go there and meet them soooo bad. (I never did, though.) Let's face it, I was willing to worship the ground they walked on. At the same time, I was actually learning math; something that didn't seem possible to an extremely dyslexic kid like me. I also began to take a strong interest in acting as well. (Quite a show, huh?) A funny thing was, all my friends (even family) knew that if they came over to play or visit when 'Mathnet' was on, they'd be watching it too. (They still tease me to this day about that, too.)
Aah...the memories of Mathnet.
To be continued...
*Now here! The Mathnet "Confessional" where you can share your thoughts on the show! (And they will be posted for all to see.) Mathnet fans, unite! Start e-mailing them to me now!*
Take me to the Confessional, please!
She Who is
Obsessed: Jill M. Sheehan
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