Dude!

First of all, sorry for that 5-day hiatus. Between schoolwork, the holiday weekend, and general laziness, I haven't been updating and I know all three of you reading this can't get through a workday without your fix of The Plethora. I vow to do my best to not leave that long of a period between posts.

Anyways, I felt it was necessary to start weighing in on some of the coolest '80s and '90s sitcom characters in memory. And who better to start with that guy who lived just outside the Lambert household in his sweet-ass van playing electric guitar and giving sound advice in his California-dreamin' dialect: Cody Lambert.

Cody, played by the talented Sasha Mitchell, simultaneously defined comic relief and also grounding the rest of the family by helping to settle disputes between the rival factions of the newly linked family. His lifestyle was relaxed, his wardrobe fantastic, and his demeanor was a much needed calming influence on the tension created by the differences in upbringing between Carol's uptight children and Frank's under-managed kin. Even when his vocabulary wasn't what you'd expect from the voice of reason, sometimes it takes a guy removed from the fight to present the most logical solution.

Always ready to help out a family member feeling down, he could lighten up someone's day with a great compliment or a clever joke. Port Washington, Wisconsin benefitted from having him around. For example, would Mark have ever rectified his relationship problems with the equally-nerdy, yet mysteriously attractive girlfriend Gabrielle if Cody never countered J.T.'s "boneheaded" advice about women? Never!

I was lucky enough to catch a couple episodes once again today on ABC Family and, let me tell you, his words ring even truer in this crazy crazy world. I think he might be able to solve many of the problems today if we only gave him a chance. And even though he HAS to be on some kind of drugs (you know that van has to contain some illegal substances), sometimes you need to look to the Cod-Man to understand that some problems can be solved with a hearty chuckle, a smile, and a "Dude!"

Here is an example of the insight Cody might provide to current U.S. issues...

Iraq War - "The Georgemeister! Dude! You need to relax, man. You gotta hear what other people are saying...then you could totally like hang out nearby in case there's a problem."
Global Warming - "Oh man...dude, that's rough. We should like totally use the wind to power stuff. It's like a pinwheel...DUDE! We should just set up big pinwheels everywhere! No way! That'd be totally awesome!"
Cancer - "Woah...we need to keep researching cures and stuff and not do stuff that causes cancer. Maybe get some new cures through cancer research places like Dana-Farber. The Dana-Burger!"

More recent Sasha news...
In addition to being a Calvin Klein model, Mitchell also enjoyed his status as the successor to Van Damme in the "Kickboxer" movies, starring as an ass-kicking action star in Kickboxer II, III, and IV. Apparently, some reporter also said he's the "World's Biggest Jerk." I have no idea why...I'm just saying I found that. Maybe he was playing his electric guitar too loud in his trailer and it bothered this person.

This world would be a better place if we had a Cody living in the driveway (AKA Canada) to come in and help us relax while solving our global issues.

Next up: Uncle Jesse, the Greek God of Coolness...