The following takes place from the time I woke up to the time my kids find me in the office.  Events occur in real time.  It’s a parody of the opening lines of 24.  I have seen every episode. (Humble brag) You may be wondering why a show about terrorist attacks, espionage, torture, murder and the gang at CTU would end up on my 40 days to 40 list and that’s OK.  I have not lost my mind.  Even though I would love to be the Chloe in any situation, the on screen action is not what made the show a pillar in my life, it was what was happening off screen.

I missed the first season of 24 when it first aired. (Kids, this was back in the day when you had to watch a show when it aired,  set up a VCR to record things or wait for Blockbuster to have it available.)  Kevin and I moved back to Michigan, from Nashville, after season 2 had begun.  My mom had watched from the very beginning, so when it was on, Kevin and I would watch with her even though we didn’t really understand what was going on.  It was a time to be with her.  She died before season 2 was over, but we kept on watching because it was a time to remember her.

After season 2 was over Kevin and I binge watched (before that was an actual term) season 1.  I’m embarrassed to say how quickly we got through all 6 DVDs, but it was more than 1 day and less than 3 days.  Oh to be young and have free time again!

Season 3 (which is still one of my favorite seasons) we started watching the show with other people.  We were connecting with a lot of people about the show.  Sometimes my brother would bring over his friends to watch, but most of the time we had over my friend, Sarah.  I’m so thankful for those nights we had with her before she moved far away.

I don’t exactly remember when the party moved from our basement to Dave and Sara’s house, but I remember how great it was to be together every week.  Our group fluctuated from season to season.  We would take turns bringing dinner.  There were so many good meals!  After dinner we would play a game on the Wii or a board game until the show began.  Some of my favorite memories are around that table, catching up from the week and walking through that season of life together.  The show was great, but the company was better.