You get home from work. You feed your cat. You make dinner for yourself. You microwave a big pot of popcorn. You plop yourself down on the couch. You turn on your TV and switch to DVR. You press play. You cannot wait to see Nicole and Rafe hit the sheets on "Days of our Lives." However, all you see is sheets of ice, with folks crossing gigantic slopes. What is this? You wonder why you are not seeing Sami causing trouble for everyone in Salem. You pick up your remote. You forget that NBC is all Olympics all the time for two weeks. On Feb. 19, "Days" will return. No, you cannot see those weeks on streaming in Canada and Italy. "Days" has gone silent for two weeks. Not to worry. When it reappears, the show will pick up where it left off. Ava causing havoc. Xander in love with Gwen as he thinks Sarah dumped him at the altar. Johnny still possessed by the devil. (Please end that storyline.) We know the devil is not easily conquered. Marlena's possession made sense. But with Johnny's, give us a heavenly break. Please let Julie be the one to discover Johnny is really the devil. Have Father Eric return to exorcise the devil. First off because he did it with Marlena. Secondly, because Greg Vaughn, who plays Father Eric, is the most gorgeous man on TV, followed by Brandon Beemer (Shawn). While you are granting soap opera wishes, give Shawn a storyline of his own.

Alison Sweeney (Sami) is headed back to "Days." Sweeney is thrilled to come back for the short term but is not interested in a long-term stay. On Instagram, she explained coming back to "Days" is always a treat. She was a teen when she joined the show. She loves coming back for a while. She grew up with most of the cast and crew. She also loves being noncontract, so she can work on her other projects from film to directing. She also relishes having time with her real family. So, enjoy the Sami mayhem that she is for a several weeks. No, they are not killing off the character; they are just giving her a break. They're also giving the citizens of Salem a Sami timeout.

This week, Robert Newman joins "The Young and the Restless" in the role of Ashland Locke. Richard Burgi, who created the role, was let go when he accidentally violated COVID protocol. Newman, who spent almost two decades playing Josh Lewis on "Guiding Light," explains the "Y&R" offer came out of nowhere. He got a call on a Friday. He flew out to Los Angeles that Monday. By Wednesday, he booked the job. He admits the first few days on the "Y&R" set were nerve-producing. Even with all his soap experience on daytime, he found the schedule and pace daunting. Two weeks in, he had acclimated himself to the new daytime. Most his scenes were with Amelia Heinle (Victoria) and Eric Braeden (Victor). He found working with the stars made his new soap life easier. So, is Ashland a good guy or bad guy? A bit of both. When he was not doing a soap, Newman did lots of theatre and some primetime guest spots. Yes, Newman is as dashing as ever.

"General Hospital" is giving me a headache. And no, the hospital cannot even give me an aspirin for it. They have made Sonny a jerk. The crime lord often did jerky things, but they found ways to redeem him. His latest misstep has gone too far. Without having sex with Carly for a few weeks, he beds Nina. Yes, Nina. Nina, who knew he was in Nixon Falls, let his family and friends think he was dead for almost a year. Nina has never been a likable character. She is a user, a liar and a cheat. Sonny has been made a slime bag. Two weeks? Really. Maurice Benard, who plays Sonny, is a great actor. He almost makes this story work — almost. And there is Peter, a vile character. He keeps on coming back like the Energizer bunny. "GH" can write interesting demi-villains; Valentin is a case in point. He strives to be good. If something comes in his way, he can become pure Cassadine. That is a "villain" we can love.

To find out more about Lynda Hirsch and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: PDPics at Pixabay