275

We wrapped up "Cheers" last night.

11 seasons. 275 episodes. We would have finished it faster - we were cranking them out in the beginning - but the Sox came back, Carol had to feed her addiction and Cheers took a back seat.

There was not one episode out of 275 that did not make us laugh. Not one.

That is not hyperbole, it is not a lie, it is not the delusional ranting of a demented man who's brain has atrophied to the point that I can hear and feel it rolling around inside my skull.

That show was medicinal for us. We started watching it early on in this fucking pandemic and it made us laugh. Allowed us to forget.

The main characters were our friends. The song was an anthem for today.

The humor was delicious but the appeal wasn't just that. The show was big on empathy. Characters did stupid things, made mistakes, got themselves in trouble and we were right there with them. We felt for them. And then they made us laugh.

That is a tough balance for any show to strike but Cheers did it magnificently. And consistently.

Christ, man - the show made us feel good.

The last episode ended in just the way we wanted it to. Sam, Carla, Frasier, Norm, Cliff and Woody sitting around the empty bar having a somber - but funny - conversation. A conversation that operated on two levels.

It addressed what was going on in the story but it was also clearly evident that they were also addressing the end of the show.

Must have been a tough one to film. I could be wrong but I think there was genuine camaraderie between all the actors.

The show was special, man.

I don't know what we are going to do now. I felt a real sense of emptiness at the end of the episode. Sam winds up alone in his bar, a stranger knocks on the locked door, Sam takes a couple of steps towards the door and says "Sorry, we're closed". And walks back towards his office.

The show aired from 1982 to 1993. I was 28 when it first aired, 39 when it ended. Keith was 2 when it started, Craig wasn't even born. Although we were with Craig recently and he told us he remembers hearing the Cheers theme song when he was in bed. He was 10 when it went off the air. Cool memory.

When I was a kid I remember hearing the theme song to Petticoat Junction when I went to bed. Those memories stick.

It is a real treat when something comes back at you from your past and soothes your soul. No doubt it affected us differently now than it did then.

We are in a different stage of our lives, the world is a different, unrecognizable place. It was even better this time.

I have been trying to watch new and different stuff during this fucking pandemic. Using the time to expand my horizons. But Cheers was the right choice. By a long shot.

Not looking forward to tonight. Don't know what we are going to watch. We'll find something but I doubt it will replicate the empathy, humor and humanity of that show.

But I am glad we made the commitment to watch Cheers.

It made us happy.