Men in Trees Blog

I blog to you from an Aer Lingus jet, high over the Atlantic Ocean on its journey from Dublin. I'm happy to report that Men in Trees is shown on not one, but two Irish television stations, a small step in our ultimate goal of Elmo world domination. Everyone in Ireland is loving the show, although those I spoke to are all related to me so it may be a rather unscientific focus group.

As the title of "Sweatering It Out" suggests, Marin is knitting a sweater for Jack to keep her occupied until his return from the Bering Sea. Anne Heche is such a dedicated actress that she actually learned how to knit for the show, and she is making a real sweater pattern in the scenes. (Obviously Marin has never heard the old wives' tale that you must never knit a sweater for your boyfriend.) Anne must have inspired the rest of us because now our cast and crew are all knitting a blanket together for charity. As soon as one of our assistant directors announces that we are ready to continue shooting a scene, the sound stage resounds with the cry of, "Just let me finish this row!" Not that it slows down production one bit, not at all. Please, Men in Trees bosses, don't take our knitting away like you took away our wireless Internet!

While she is waiting and weaving, Marin discovers that the age-old adage holds true: As soon as you are off the market, the suitors come running. Marin is getting some less-than-professional phone calls from sexy publisher Stuart Maxson (one of the Irish citizens we have on this show, including Colm Meany and myself. I'm sorry; I'm feeling a bit patriotic after a visit to my mother's homeland.) In true Stuart fashion, he offers to whisk Marin away on a romantic adventure in the middle of the country. Stuart isn't the only one falling under the spell of Marin's charms either. Patrick, still suffering from amnesia, also begins to develop a crush. I have to admit that, on behalf of Annie, I found this extremely disturbing, and when I read it I screamed and threw my script across the hair and makeup trailer. But as Emily, I think that it's one of the funniest scenes we've had on our show.

It's a wonder that Marin isn't tempted with all these offers. After all, she hasn't heard from Jack, even though he promised to call every other day. How is she to know that he is stranded out on a raft with Gary and Julia out on the Bering Sea? It's looking bleak for our whale watching crew, who discover that one of their rafts is leaking and supplies are quickly running out. The scenes in the life rafts are absolutely harrowing, and Kelli Williams and Santo Lombardo pull in some amazing performances. I must admit I was skeptical that I would be able to completely immerse myself in these scenes, because they were shot in an enormous water tank, and I had witnessed our boom operator, Marty, strip down to his underwear and swim laps in it. But even I was moved when I saw the amazing work helmed by our director, Dean "Deaner" White (you can't call him Deaner unless you are me or Sara Strange, long story.)

In addition to Annie and Patrick, Pastor Eric and Sara are going through some trials of their own, as Eric struggles to find his path after his decision to leave his church.

If you're dismayed that all of our Elmo couples seem to be in trouble, you shall be rewarded by the romance of newlyweds Jane and Plow Guy (even though we were robbed, in my opinion, of seeing their wedding.) I still haven't quite forgiven Jane for hijacking Annie's wedding, but I can't begrudge her happiness with her new husband. Sam wants to show off his new bride to all his friends, and what better opportunity than a Plow Expo? Plow Guy in his element should prove to be quite sexy. After all the machinery and romance, Sam and Jane still have to figure out how their new marriage is going to work from opposite ends of the country.

A real Vancouver landmark, The Chief, is featured prominently during this episode. The Chief is a famous rock face overlooking Squamish, our little town that plays the part of Elmo. If you look at it hard enough, you can see the profile of an Indian Chief. During this episode, Seana Kofoed and I climbed to the top while our crew was getting shots of the rock face. We were going to try taking our shirts off and wave them to see if we could surreptitiously get in the shot, but we decided to be modest in the presence of other hikers. The people on set must really identify us with our characters; because all day long our crew was telling Seana that she had to be careful on the hike and should really get a guide. While it is certainly a strenuous hike, the climb up to the Chief could not be more clearly marked and even has stairs! I guess up North we'll always seem like a couple of New York City girls.

I must wrap up, as a lovely Aer Lingus hostess has just brought me tea and a scone. How I shall miss the land of my people! OK, it's definitely time to wrap us as my prose becomes more and more florid. Enjoy tonight's episode while you can, because it ends with a rather harrowing ending.

I'm sure you're all wondering what's going to happen after last week's "Men in Trees" cliffhanger. "Nice Day For A Dry Wedding" was designed to be the grand finale of our first season, so I can promise that it contains some pretty dramatic developments, and will also satisfy some long-standing questions. Will Marin be devoured by wolves, or will she be rescued? Jack won't be around to save her this time. Will Annie still insist on calling off the wedding? Will the Chieftain survive being shut down?

In this week's episode we finally come to the big day of Annie and Patrick's wedding. I had so much fun on this episode because it was almost like getting married, but without the hassle of the Jordan almonds and annoying In Laws. (Now that "Men in Trees" has enabled me to finally buy my Cuisinart stand mixer and also get me in a wedding dress, there is no longer any reason for me to actually get married.) Our costume designer, Susan De Laval, consulted with me every step of the way, just as if I was a real bridezilla. I even had final approval over Anne Heche's maid of honor dress! We perused bridal magazines together to try and find all the elements of the perfect Annie wedding dress. Annie is never conventional in her wardrobe, so I knew she wouldn't want the standard, strapless, poufy princess number. There was a preview of the dress in last week's episode, but it was drenched in the rain, so I'm looking forward to seeing it in all its splendor this week. We actually had three identical dresses made just in case, which was a good thing, because by the end of the day that wedding dress train was dragging some serious debris.

As anyone who's attended a wedding knows, the love and emotion can be infectious. In my opinion, it's not a real wedding until two guests who just met are randomly making out on the dance floor. In the past, I have selflessly taken it upon myself to fulfill that responsibility, but that is a story for another blog. Could the love in the air finally bring Jack and Marin together again? Remember that he's about to leave for an expedition on the Bering Sea for nine months. I'm sure you're all hoping that Jane and Sam will catch some of the love bug as well. This is the first time they'll see each other since their break up, but Sam isn't attending the wedding alone. Meanwhile, Sara and Pastor Eric already got swept away last week when they threw his vows out the window, and that could spell trouble for the morning after.

When the wedding ceremony finally begins, it looks like a storm is a brewing. (Remember the dream sequence from last week? Another portentous omen may be coming to pass.) Of course the day that we shot the wedding was possibly the ONLY sunny day that we've had in Vancouver since we started filming, so we had to manufacture a storm with lots of large fans and filters over the camera lens. A storm is also brewing in the O'Donnell family as well. Danny, Annie's brother, seems to have fallen pretty far off the wagon since we last saw him at his intervention. Annie's dad is late as usual, leaving her mother lots of time to spend with a certain Elmo bachelor.

We actually shot the wedding in Squamish, the town that stands in for Elmo, and it was so lovely being back there. We don't shoot in Squamish very often anymore because so many of our sets have been built right on our sound stage. We were all thrilled to return to our little fictional town of Elmo and bunk up at the Howe Sound Inn, where we have all discovered yammer jammers (little pieces of deep fried yammy goodness). As we were all away on location, we also discovered the delicious local home brews. I won't say anymore except that the evening ended with Tim Webber (Jerome) standing on a table and serenading us all with a traditional Nova Scotian sea shanty.

Well I must go and fire this blog over the ether. So now I must make the long trek to the office to bring this news to you.

ABC's Men in Trees airs Fridays at 8 pm/ET.

Welcome to the first of a two-part episode of Men in Trees, "The Girl Who Cried Wolf," or as I like to call it, a very freaky fairly tale.

Speaking of freaking out, I'm sure you're all wondering what's going to happen with your favorite shows after seeing the current writers' strike plastered all over the news. You won't have to worry about getting your Men in Trees fix for awhile, because our writers have been so on the ball, we still have a few scripts completely finished and ready to shoot. And remember how dismayed we all were when the show went off the air last season? Well, now those extra episodes that weren't shown will make Men in Trees quite possibly the longest-running scripted show this season. In fact, it may be the only new show out there. Television will no longer be called TV, but MITTV.

This week's episode begins with a rather terrifying dream sequence, which was also terrifying to shoot. In this nightmare, Marin is wandering through the woods and encounters a vicious pack of wolves. She then sees a vision of a distraught Annie in the rain in her wedding dress. It's actually quite Carrie-esque, a theme I seem unable to escape in my career. (Watch the images in this dream sequence closely because they are all clues to some dramatic events to come.) We were shooting the dream sequence deep inside a mossy forest, and it was so magical and dreamlike, it almost looked like a movie set! It was also February and pouring down freezing-cold rain, but apparently not raining hard enough to show up on camera, so there was a large water truck standing by to manufacture additional raindrops. There I was, in a backless wedding dress, in February, standing in freezing-cold real and fake rain. It was too difficult to get out of the dress in between takes, so they just threw a pile of blankets on me and put me in front of a heater while the steam rose off of me. Have I mentioned how glamorous the television business is?

As soon as we finished shooting the dream, I was whisked into a van to go home and get warm. About halfway to our destination, the driver got a call on his cell phone that there was a problem with the shot, and I had to come back immediately and do it all again! I wasn't too happy about this until I got back to set and discovered that it was all a practical joke on me, played by none other than Anne Heche. She had me brought back to set to tell me in person that we'd been picked up for a second season! Now I look back on my freezing with fondness.

This dream isn't the only omen that purports impending doom in Elmo. You may remember that Mai did Annie and Patrick's astrological charts and came to the conclusion that they should be star-crossed haters rather than lovers. The evidence to support this conclusion certainly begins to mount. If you thought that your wedding was stressful, you should tune in to our next couple of episodes, because you will definitely feel better. I can't give it away, but the many trials include the aforementioned storm, a faulty roof, a frisky feline, and a beauty treatment gone seriously awry. Luckily Annie's mother, the lovely Annie Potts, arrives from New York to help her plan the wedding. Together with Celia and Mai, there are now three mothers involved in the wedding, which is another recipe for disaster. Add in a lot of champagne and it might even get illegal.

As for all you hoping for Jack and Marin to reunite, Jack's plans to whale-watch on the Bering Sea definitely put a damper on that. In case you think this is some writer's trick and he's going to stay at the last minute, I can say that we built a very large boat set this year. But we can all be consoled by the fact that James Tupper looks sexy at sea. Meanwhile, back at the church, maverick Pastor Eric is delivering a sermon that's very outside the box. His nontraditional ways coupled with his girlfriend Sara's nontraditional past may spell trouble for his place in the Church.

It will all come to a head next week in "The Girl Who Cried Wolf, Part II," which was supposed to be our season-closing episode, so I can promise some major events. And for all of you out there who have been clamoring for the return of Jane and Plow Guy, they will both be back for the wedding, although I must warn you that Sam may have moved on. See you at the wedding!

Let me begin by apologizing right away for some lackluster blogging. I will immediately follow that apology up with telling you that none of it was my fault, which is how we roll in my family. Due to a technical difficulty, my second blog never made it to your screens that week, even though it was finished (which was caused neither by me nor the prescient Matt Mitovich of TVGuide.com). Then the following week I caught the flu, which is making its way through our set like nobody's business. I knew this virus was bad when our cameraman, Keith of the iron stomach, got sick. I wouldn't be surprised if the Men in Trees set was quarantined (just kidding… but its been spreading pretty quickly).

Nothing could stop me from blogging about our next episode, "I Wood if I Could." I know I tend to extol the virtues of all our episodes, but this one is a favorite of everyone on our show. This episode has it all: sex, near sex and mud wrestling! Our writers, Chris Dingess and Cara DiPaolo, teamed up to bring the funny this bachelor/bachelorette episode.

As Annie and Patrick are preparing for their prewedding festivities, Jack and Marin are coping with both being single in a small town where everyone wants them to get together. I know all of you out there want that whole Jack and Marin thing (nee Jarin) to blossom; but people, his pregnant ex-girlfriend's place on the couch is virtually still warm! Despite this fact, Jack seems quite eager to move on with Marin. He even insists upon doing little manly and charming gestures, which are way too soon and completely inappropriate, but charming nonetheless.

Poor Marin, she doesn't want to let Jack back into her life after all he's put her through, but he's just so damn mountain-man sexy. Meanwhile, the unflappable and equally sexy publisher Stuart is still trying to put his hat in the ring. What's a girl to do?

Marin, as we know from last episode, is both Annie's maid of honor and Patrick's best man. Taking care of Annie's party is easy, but Marin isn't really sure how to plan a crazy party for the relatively tame Patrick. At first the well of wild fantasies is running a wee bit dry for our Patrick, but he finally reveals a proclivity for, of all things, mud wrestling. Who knew he was so dirty?

When the mud wrestler finally shows up to the party, she is, in a word, incredible. Sapphire (her professional name) is played by the lovely and amazing Dot-Marie Jones, who makes me hope that there will be more mud wrestling in Elmo, because she was hilarious. There's a scene where Sapphire issues a wrestling challenge to the men of the Chieftain, and Jerome steps up to the plate. Tim Weber, who plays Jerome, had no idea that Dot would actually rip his shirt open at that moment. (Neither did our costume department, for that matter, and they were sure glad that they had another one. One of my favorite sayings on our set is "one is none," because you have to have two of everything just in case something happens.) So when you see the look of absolute surprise on Jerome's face, know that it is genuine, as is Derek Richardson's (Patrick) ability to chug a beer bong.

Meanwhile, the girls are raging at Annie's booze cruise... and painting pottery. We actually shot the entire bachelorette party on a real boat, although you would never know it. When you are watching us all cramped into a tiny, windowless cabin where you can't see the ocean, know that it is not some Vancouver soundstage but the real thing. What a day we had on that boat! Our fearless director, Joanna Kerns, was desperately seasick, as were several other members of our crew. I immediately slipped on the dock and hit my head, and Lauren Tom (Mai) met with an unfortunate boogying accident.

Luckily some of the best donuts on the planet are located right where our boat was parked (docked? moored?) and they served as a kind of poultice to our various ailments. Despite our injuries, I think the ladies of Annie's bachelorette party acquitted themselves with remarkable gusto. There's a scene where Annie finds out that Patrick is mud wrestling at his party, and she insists upon immediately turning the boat around to investigate. I was given the Herculean task of performing this scene while a drunken Chief Celia tries to distract me. Cynthia Stevens' comedy skills eventually got the better of me, because you can actually see in that shot that I am trying desperately not to laugh!

The only guest not in attendance of the bacchanalian festivities is Sara, who has to stay home to take care of Matty. Pastor Eric, sweetheart that he is, stops by to make sure everything is OK. Due to unexpected circumstances, the three of them end up spending the evening together, and Sara finds herself falling more for his sexy, priestly ways. The fact that he can't have sex would be kind of a deal breaker for me, but obviously Sara is more strong willed than I.

Of course, I can't reveal how the episode actually ends, but I will say that we see a side of Chief Celia that we have never, ever seen before, and it involves karaoke. I hope they include Mai and Celia's rendition of "You Don't Bring Me Flowers Anymore" on our DVD because it is priceless. Also, I can tell you that the ladies end up crashing the mud-wrestling bachelor party at the Chieftain. I can't say any more except that at the end of filming this episode, I was brought outside and literally hosed down. Enough said. Except that Ben buys a hockey team, which will pay off down the road by the introduction of even more hot guys to Elmo. In the words of Annie, yay!

So tune in at our new time, Tree Huggers, Sluggers and Chuggers all! And perhaps you could make sure that all of your friends who watch the show know that it's on at 8, 'cause we're kind of nervous about that. Our time slot has been moved so often on Men in Trees, but we are all so damn positive that we go around saying "No, this time slot really is the best one, way better than the old one!" I have this recurring nightmare of showing up to set and hearing everyone say, "Saturdays at 7 am is the best time slot for us! We're not a cartoon, so we'll have no competition!" That being said, I do know that both my friends who have families and my friends who go out on Fridays are very excited we are on a bit earlier. It should work out for everyone… except for those of us who work on Men in Trees, because we are always still working then, so TiVo it for us, will ya?! I can promise you won't be disappointed, as "I Wood if I Could" really is one of our best. See you in the mud-wrestling pit!

The following entry from Emily Bergl got "lost in the Alaskan wilderness" and was meant to appear last week. Her blog will next be updated Nov. 2.

Welcome to our second episode of Men in Trees. I hope you enjoyed our premiere last week, especially after such a long wait. I'm having a hard time remembering juicy stories from this episode because we shot it nine months ago! Or maybe I'm blocking the whole experience out because it was around the time of the Super Bowl. Those of you who have traversed this blog before know that I am from Chicago, which means I have an unquestioning and undying love for the Bears. It's probably not healthy for me to revisit that time in my life, although the current season really isn't much better for my psyche.

In "Chemical Reactions," Jack and Lynn are planning for their wedding, as are Annie and Patrick. I can reveal that forget-me-nots, Alaska's state flower, will be prominent in Annie and Patrick's nuptials. This flower may be ominous for episodes to come! But right now Annie and Patrick are still reveling in prewedding bliss, that is until Patrick realizes he won't be carrying on the family name of his biological dad. (Patrick bears the name of his deceased father, Hal Bachelor, even though his biological dad is Buzz Washington).

Sara is also struggling with family when Matty's biological father returns and tries to demand custody. She'll need someone to stretch the truth about her past "oldest" profession, but unfortunately that task will fall to Chief Celia. How will Officer Dick react if his new love tries to bend the law?

Meanwhile, back at the cabin, Cash and Marin, now roommates without benefits, are engaged in an Iron Chef-style cook-off. That's right, Cash not only repairs things and frequently walks around naked, but he can also cook! Marin takes to foraging in the woods of Elmo in a search for exotic ingredients. I wonder what sexy ex she'll bump into? All I can reveal is that the situation involves "otter porn," and the rest I will leave to your imagination.

In this episode, there is also what I call a crazy Bergl. Sometimes during a take or right before the director yells cut, I'll do something a little off kilter for my own amusement, knowing that the editors can always cut it out if it's too silly. There's a scene at the end of the episode when Patrick and Annie make an announcement to Patrick's family in the Chieftain. At the end of the scene, I go to hug Chief Celia, and I decided that I would actually pick her up off the ground. I never thought it would make it into the show, but there you go.

Well, I must wrap this up because, quite frankly, I'm still a wee bit hung over from attending the Vancouver Film Festival gala with Sarah Strange and Seana Kofoed. I've been in Vancouver so long, I find myself blissfully unaccustomed to such red-carpet events. As soon as Miss Strange, Miss Kofoed and I embarked from our limo, I found myself so disoriented by the flashbulbs and cameras, all I could think to say was "If I'd known you were going to be photographing us coming out of this thing, I wouldn't have worn underwear!" Just joking! I know a gal's gotta wear undergarments.

And please let me close by thanking all of you for posting your lovely comments! I must admit I felt a little ashamed talking about the unedited (but rare) things people say to me when they see me in the flesh. Our "Tree Huggers" (as our fans were recently described in the New York Post) are truly the best ever. Just yesterday someone yelled out of a cab to me how much they love the show! So please ignore the ruminations of a neurotic actress, and tune in Friday for our new episode!

ABC's Men in Trees currently airs Fridays at 10 pm/ET, but moves to 8 pm effective Nov. 2.

After an interminably long wait, Men in Trees is back, and please allow me to begin by thanking all of you for sticking with us! I can say on behalf of everyone in the cast that we really appreciate everyone hanging on during almost eight months off the air, a decision I won't question because I know the gods at ABC are benevolent and all-knowing. My trips to Starbucks, airports and the grocery store have rung with a resounding cry from viewers: "Where is Men in Trees? When is it coming back!?" By the way, if you ever run into me on your morning coffee run, this is a gentle reminder that while I understand your outrage, I am not responsible for our show's hiatus. And also please remember when you are tempted to exclaim with bewilderment, "But you're thin and pretty in real life!" that the person on TV is also me.

Luckily everyone's patience will be rewarded by a stellar premiere episode, "A Tree Goes in Elmo." We actually traveled back in time to shoot this episode. At the end of our last season, we still had five episodes that hadn't aired, and the next episode in the rotation was resolving some big, ongoing issues. Some of these issues may or may not involve a certain love triangle, and I'm not talking about the one between Chief Celia, Officer Dick and her SAD machine. However, you'll have to wait to see how that unfolds. Our creator, Jenny Bicks, decided we needed a great season-opening episode to reintroduce new and old audiences alike to the folks of Elmo. So before we get right back into the juicy stuff, she penned a fantastic exploration of what it's like when you finally get to know each other in a relationship.

I must admit, after a whole summer off, and after inhabiting an entirely different character in another movie, I was nervous that Annie might not come back to me so easily. What if I opened my mouth and Annie's voice, which is several decibels higher than my own, was nowhere to be found? What if nothing came out but a gruff James Tupper whisper (sexy for him but not so much for me)? But as soon as we got back to work, it was like we never left off, which was comforting but also a little depressing when we were all still at work at 5 am Saturday. Everyone on our crew calls the end of the week "Fraturday" because by the end of the week we're usually working well into Saturday morning.

"A Tree Goes in Elmo" is marked by an arctic cyclone, which is a literal and metaphorical test to the relationships of Elmo. Marin is still struggling to move on after Jack's engagement to Lynn. I know that I risk more viewer anger by bringing up this subject, but them's the brakes, kids. Let us not feel too badly for Marin, however, as her grief will be assuaged by the return of Cash. I'm going to warn you ahead of time that this is one of the few episodes where he keeps his shirt on, so don't be disappointed. Cash and Marin take a spiritual journey into the woods, only to be threatened by the oncoming storm. Perhaps Jack will have to rescue Marin once again? Buzz and Mai are tested when Mai finds out a dirty little secret from Buzz's past, and Theresa is still struggling with Ben and Sara's now platonic relationship. Although they don't appear in this episode, this isn't the last you'll see of Jane and Plow Guy. And to top it all off, Chief Celia and Officer Dick have to cross one of the hardest thresholds of any relationship: farting in front of each other.

It was somewhat bittersweet for me to travel back in time to where Annie and Patrick's relationship used to be before our next five episodes. I can't give too much away, but there are hard times ahead for the two of them. In this episode they are still in the honeymoon phase of getting to know each other before the big wedding, or at least for a little while, before they discover that Annie has a dark side. A dark side that involves checkers. It all comes to a head with a crazy game of Twister. For some reason I have the tendency to always make things a little harder than they should be, so I decided that at the end of the game I absolutely had to be in a full back bend. It was almost fun on the first take, but virtually unbearable by the 30th. But that didn't compare to the difficulty of having to say, as Annie, that I don't like cheese. I may be permanently banned from my fondue club, The Fondue Preservation Society.

Well, I must close this blog because, quite frankly, I'm still recovering from all the parties and festivities surrounding the Emmys! Even though none of my New York theater friends actually won (shout-out to Neil Patrick Harris and T.R. Knight!) I know that this is just the first step to their world domination. I'm not just licking the hand that feeds me when I say that the TV Guide party was the best of them all. I finally got to meet Matt Mitovich, the dapper and erudite gentleman who makes these blogs readable. There was even a surprise performance by Kanye West! Although I must say, Kanye, when the time you spend listing the statistics of your album sales exceeds your actual performance time, it may be time to rethink priorities. I'm thinking of taking a page out of Kanye's books and creating a East/West Coast-type publicity feud with other quirky actresses. I may limit it to redheads only, so Alyson Hannigan, you're going down!

I hope you're as happy to be back in Elmo as we are!

ABC's Men in Trees returns Friday, Oct. 12, at 10 pm/ET.

Welcome to another episode of Men in Trees [Thursdays at 10 pm/ET, on ABC]. This week's installment, "The Indecent Proposal," was written by our creator, Jenny Bicks. She is also a great blogger, so you should check out what she says about this one on the writers' blog at ABC.com. I know it sounds like I'm plugging the ABC website every week, but I promise I'm not some shameless promoter for the network. I just enjoy reading what our writers are thinking.

This episode was exciting for me because it's the first time I have a scene with Jane (Seana Kofoed). In fact, this will be the first time that our characters ever speak to one another on the show. Seana and I were always saying to each other, "Wouldn't it be hilarious if Jane went out to Queens with Annie and met her insane family?" Well, Jenny Bicks must be a mind reader, because that's exactly what happens! Annie is bringing Patrick home to meet the parents and announce their engagement, and she tries to set up Jane with her cute stockbroker brother (Josh Randall from Ed). We shot all the O'Donnell house scenes at a real home in West Vancouver. Luckily, they never show the outside of the house, because I've lived in Queens, and let me tell you, the house we used doesn't look like anything that was ever built in Queens. The inside, however, was perfect. It's always so interesting to wander onto a new set, because the people who decorate and dress it always add such interesting details. There was a bowl of nuts and a nutcracker, lots of lacy doilies, and those funny mint candies that you always see at grandmas' houses. Even a lot of the books on the bookshelf were about Ireland!

This week we also meet Annie's parents, and they couldn't have chosen two more incredible actors. You'll recognize Annie's dad, Colm Meaney, because he's been in basically every Irish movie ever made. And if you are a big nerd like me, you'll also recognize him from Star Trek. [He played Deep Space Nine's Chief O'Brien]. My family and I have been fans of his for years, so I was a little star-struck having him come on our set. There's a scene where he and Patrick (Derek Richardson) have a little late-night, man-to-man talk, and both of them are hilarious. And Annie Potts needs no introduction. She's been in countless series, like Designing Women, but I must admit that one of my favorite performances is her turn in Ghostbusters. I'll have to wait until she comes back on the show to ask her about that movie, because I was too shy this time around. Working with Annie was really great because her character is very similar to Annie on the show, so we got to work off each other's gestures and mannerisms.

I'm sure you're all wondering about the big news between Lynn and Jack this week, and I will remind you that this episode is entitled "The Indecent Proposal." Take that how you will. However, I will say that if you are surprised by what transpires between those two this week, you will be in shock at what happens with them next week. The love lives in Elmo are becoming quite complicated. I, for one, was absolutely heartbroken that Jane and Plow Guy broke up. I do have it on authority that this isn't the last we'll see of Plow Guy and, of course, Jane, so I'm hoping they might find each other again, or at least have a little "ex sex" at Annie's wedding. And we have a brand-new budding romance this week when Sara (Suleka Mathew) meets Eric (Nicholas Lea), the hunky guy from her EMT class. This story line is especially endearing because Suleka and Nick live together in real life. They were so adorable their first day of work together because they were both really nervous. Suleka kept saying, "Nick knows me so well, he'll know if I'm not on my game," and Nick was worrying, "What if we don't have chemistry?" Well, I got to see a little bit of them together, and I don't think they have a thing to worry about.

Well, I must go. It's almost cutoff time for FedEx, and I have to make sure my man down in L.A. gets something for Valentine's Day. I can't get all my romance from watching Men in Trees!

Series creator Jenny Bicks answers TVGuide.com readers' questions about Men in Trees in Interviews & Features.

It is a sad state of affairs here at the Bergl Vancouver household. It's 3 am, and I would describe my living room as a crack den, but it's in such disarray that I would probably offend the crack addicts who read this blog. I think the Super Bowl really took away all my spirit for a while. At first the game was really looking good for me. Not only did Devin Hester do his thing and score a touchdown in the first 30 seconds, but I was also surrounded by various cast and crew of Men in Trees at the White Spot, which is a traditional Vancouver burger joint. Before I watched the Super Bowl with other TV actors, I had never seen anyone eat grilled chicken and steamed vegetables on game day. I won't tell you who the offending parties were, but I suppose we can forgive them for doing something so un-American on such a sacred day, considering we were technically watching the game out of the country. I think you all know the outcome for my beloved Chicago Bears, and the disappointment was felt most keenly by fellow Chicagoans Seana Kofoed (Jane) and Rick Wallace (our producer). I was really nervous to return to our set the next day, because I'd been talking a whole lot of smack for the entire season, especially when the Bears beat Vancouver's favorite Seattle Seahawks. Luckily all the guys were very kind, and only quietly expressed their deepest sympathies.

But enough wallowing in self-pity! I am very much anticipating this week's episode, "Nice Girls Finish Frist," especially after seeing the end of last week's episode. I actually watched last Thursday after getting off work at 3 am (this seems to be a theme lately), along with Seana Kofoed (Jane) and Derek Richardson (Patrick). We rarely get to see the show live because we are usually shooting pretty late come Thursday. In fact, since working on TV, I've found it incredibly difficult to actually watch television shows. Anyway, we were all blown away by that final scene where Buzz's son George comes down the stairs of the Elmo Inn. It's amazing how the smallest scene can have the biggest impact. The look on John Amos' face made me tear up, and Orlando Jones looked so vulnerable and innocent, I just wanted to hug him and make him a sandwich. I was in a few scenes with George and Buzz this week, and the development of their relationship is a beautiful thing to watch. Let's just say that George turns out to be the last thing that Buzz expects, and he's going to have some difficulties working that out.

This episode also marks the return of our fantastic director Jeff Melman, and of sexy redhead Anna Fricke (sexy in of course different but yet completely equal ways from all of our writers on Men in Trees). Poor Jeff had to walk with the assistance of a cane because he was injured on the set of Ugly Betty. Apparently he leaned on one of those curved walls on the office set, and took quite a nasty tumble. Not to be completely Machiavellian, but I'll say that his accident was our gain, as it opened up his schedule to return to our show. We also have another returning face in Mario Cantone. Those loyal viewers who watched Men in Trees when it was on Friday nights will remember him as the owner of Terri's Hair Emporium, who accidentally lobbed off a large chunk of Marin's hair. I just had to do a little looping for a scene with Terri and George at the bowling alley, and I can tell you it is hilarious. (Looping is where actors have to rerecord lines because the sound quality or line delivery was off in some way. Derek Richardson is the king of looping.) In Anna Fricke's writer's blog on abc.com, she writes about how they use fake rubber fish in our fishing scenes. Well, I couldn't believe that our extras at the bowling alley were actually throwing rubber bowling balls down the lanes! It was a little disappointing that we didn't get to actually bowl a little, but luckily up here in Canada there's always some air hockey around to keep one distracted.

Working with Mario Cantone was so wonderful both on and off camera. I could always get him to sing my favorite songs from the Broadway musical Assassins, which he starred in a couple of years ago. Plus, he does a mean Bette Davis. We soon discovered that wherever he goes he travels with a little personal recipe book, so we unleashed our inner Martha Stewarts one afternoon at my apartment and did a little baking. I made homemade Hostess cupcakes for Derek Richardson's birthday (a bittersweet celebration, as I am no longer older than he is and can't claim rank), and Mario made some of the best blondies I've ever tasted. I must ask him for the recipe when he returns (this season!), and maybe I'll be a big dork and post it on the blog.

We also have a brand-new face on the show this week with Scott Elrod, who plays sexy wilderness guy Cash. I'll go ahead and answer this question before it happens and tell you that, yes, he is just as good-looking in real life. Plus he used to lay the runways at the Denver air force base. Enough said. Now that Lynn and Jack are firmly together (wait until you see what happens next week!) and Stuart and Marin have curbed the phone sex, who knows what will happen between Cash and Marin.

Well, I must go and look at wedding-dress designs with our costume designer. This is my fourth fictional marriage, and I must say I'm a big fan. It's great to be able to pick up a bridal magazine and pick out the beautiful dress and hair without the pressure of an actual wedding! Although anyone who read last week's TV Guide knows that there will be unforeseen complications to Annie and Patrick's upcoming marriage. I must say I'm very nervous for the two of them.

See you in Elmo....

ABC's Men in Trees airs Thursdays at 10 pm/ET.http://www.tvguide.com/detail/celebrity.aspx?tvobjectid=266015

I think I've used up all of my good karma for a long while, what with Men in Trees getting picked up and moved to after Grey's Anatomy, and the swift and crushing Bears victory on Sunday. To be honest, I'm not a huge football aficionado in general, but I am from Chicago, so I really have no choice but to be a rabid and unquestioning Bears fan. Our producer, Rick Wallace, also hails from the Windy City, so we've been spending a lot of Sundays at the local Vancouver sports bar, along with John Amos, who plays Buzz. Here's some Men in Trees trivia for you: John Amos used to play football for the Kansas City Chiefs!

You don't have to wait until the Super Bowl to see some Bears action, because we have a very special appearance by a bear on tonight's episode of Men in Trees, "Bed, Bat and Beyond." From the title you may be able to guess that a certain winged creature will also be making an appearance. I know I've been talking about how much we all love each other up here on the show, but the bear might have taken it too far. James Tupper went for a "meet and greet" session with the bear a few days before he was going to be shooting. Apparently it was good for the bear to get a good smell of James so he'd be familiar with him. Derek Richardson requested that we did this before we worked together, but I said no. (He doesn't read this blog, so I can make up whatever I want about him.) When James and the bear got together, the bear got up on his hind legs, put his paws on James' shoulders, and licked him in the face, actually sticking his tongue in James' mouth! I think the bear should have been included in the sexual-harassment seminar Warner Bros. gave us all when we started shooting Men in Trees.

In this episode, Patrick is having money troubles, which I'm sure we can all relate to from some point in our lives. With Marin moving into her new house and Lynn moving in with Jack, not a whole lot of revenue is coming in. The other day I was thinking about how our show is one of the few shows on TV that represents working-class people. Sure, Elmo has a celebrity like Marin (Anne Heche) and a millionaire like Ben (Abraham Benrubi), but most of the town are working regular jobs, making a regular wage. Look at almost all the TV shows out there, and they're about doctors, lawyers, fabulous people.... Where are the people who make up most of this country? OK, I'll get off my soapbox, but I'm glad to be on one of the few shows that isn't just showing us what it's like for the rich people.

Last week Sara (Suleka Mathew) returned to Elmo, which I'm sure everyone's dad is very happy about. We have discovered that men in general, but particularly dads, seem to love Sara. Jane (Seana Kofoed) also returns to Alaska to spend a little more time with Plow Guy (Ty Olsson). I love both Sara's and Jane's story lines because they're about how two female friends deal with a new man coming into their lives. In Sara and Theresa's case, it's a genuine love triangle, and you don't see scenes very often where two women talk about it as honestly as they do. With Marin and Jane, they have to deal with Jane having less time for her best friend because of her new romance with Plow Guy. I think every woman has experienced this — when you start up with a new boyfriend, you're not around all the time for your single girlfriends anymore, and it can be hard to negotiate that transition.

Can I take a moment here and thank all of you again for your kind words about my blog? To be honest, I still have a hard time believing that people are reading it, but apparently you are. Regarding the Men in Trees show-commentary blog that's been taken down, I have passed along your comments to the folks at TVGuide.com, and I am happy to report that the mystery has been solved. The staff writer who wrote the commentary each week on Men in Trees is no longer working there. They are, however, in the process of finding someone else to write it, so it will return. Until then, I'll be holding up my end of the blog here, although please don't use my blog to post comments with subjects like "Annie sucks!" because I do actually read them. (The rest of the stuff out there on the Internet I stay away from.) Every actor has to learn the lesson not to Google themselves, because even if everyone out there loves you, there's always going to be someone who really, really hates you, and that's all you're going to remember. So I think I'll stick with you guys.

See you in a couple of weeks.... I need to save my energy to root for the Bears on Super Bowl Sunday!

ABC's Men in Trees airs Thursdays at 10 pm/ET.

Excuse me if this blog is a little bleary-eyed, but I'm on an early-morning plane back to Vancouver after attending the ABC All-Star Party last night. It sounds like a sporting event, but it's really just a gathering in a hotel ballroom where actors mingle with TV critics, get photographed in pretty clothes, and eat free sushi. I must say, I did feel like I was "on the TV" when I stood on the red carpet in a borrowed dress, watching the flashbulbs pop. A few minutes later, I had to go back and do a live interview at the beginning of the whole press line, which involved sneaking past the back of the red carpet, my cream high-heeled boots sinking into the dirt of the flower beds. The universe always has a way of keeping me humble.

This week's episode of Men in Trees [Thursdays at 10 pm/ET] is "History Lessons," or as we called it, the never-ending rummage sale. What will be about 15 minutes on screen took us days to shoot. Luckily the rummage sale was hosted by Mai (Lauren Tom), so we were all kept entertained. I busied myself by trying to actually buy things from the rummage-sale set, but to no avail. I am truly my parents' daughter (they never met a garage sale they didn't like). But I know you want to hear about more than rummage sales, after Marin and Jack's parting last week. I understand that the ladies out there aren't too happy with him, but in his defense I will say that he and Lynn have a very long history together. Even though Marin is trying to move on, there is a lot of love going on in this episode, with Ben and Theresa back together. Of course, there will be complications there, because as you know, Sara returned to Elmo at the end of last week's episode. And I hope you're happy that Annie and Patrick have reunited! In fact, something very big is going to be happening for Annie and Patrick this week, but you'll have to watch to find out. I think it may be one of my favorite episodes. OK, I know I say that a lot, but trust me, this is a good one.

We literally went up a mountain to shoot some of the scenes in this episode. The entire crew took all their gear up a very swingy tram and ascended to the apex of Grouse Mountain. When you see those beautiful scenes between Marin and Stuart Maxon, know that you aren't looking at a green screen, but some genuine Vancouver beauty. From the top of Grouse Mountain you can see all of Vancouver, the ocean and a lot of the outlying mountain ranges. (You can even see West Lion Mountain, where, if you read my Week 8 blog, you'll know I got trapped in the pitch dark.) Derek Richardson and I were finished shooting for the day, but both of us are pretty thrifty, so we decided to take advantage of the free passes, snowshoes, ice skates, catering and possible drinks. Derek had scoffed a little at my enthusiasm to get up the mountain, while he languished on the phone inside his trailer. I'm sure he probably reconsidered our plan when I banged on his door repeatedly yelling, "Move your ass, Richardson, the sun is going down, and we gotta get to the top of that mountain!" However, my efforts were rewarded by an incredible pink and orange sunset going down over the entire city. Then we strapped on some snowshoes and began trekking along a trail covered in several feet of snow. Derek had threatened to push me into the snow earlier, but luckily I fell enough times on my own that that proved unnecessary.

As the sky grew darker, we decided to wander off-trail and up the top of the mountain, despite my aforementioned history of getting lost on hikes in the dark. If anyone is looking for a good workout, this was no joke. Then we began to realize that we couldn't really see any lights anymore, so for a while we were snowshoeing blind, but in the end we emerged victorious on the top of the ski hill. At this point I think I said something like, "I can't believe we get paid to do this." Then we used our snowshoes as miniature skis, and tried to sail down the mountain, wiping out about every 20 feet. At the bottom we were greeted by the beautiful sight of James Tupper and Anne Heche ice-skating in perfect circles in the rink outside of the lodge. Then it was almost time for our show to air for the first time after Grey's Anatomy, so we all headed to the bar to find a TV. I was hoping to catch my friend on Grey's, but at the last minute the hockey game went into overtime. I wasn't willing to try to change the channel and face the wrath of a bunch of screaming Canadian men — who are even scarier than American men when they yell, because they don't do it as often. But we were able to see our show, which was a fantastic episode, and we did our usual bit of cheering and telling each other how much we love everyone on the show. This happens a lot here at Men in Trees.

One of our writers, the sensitive yet masculine Tim Davis, said to me up on Grouse Mountain, "You're just snowshoeing so you'll have something to blog about." Maybe so. Maybe my recent journeys to the Middle East and misadventures in the darkness of the wilderness are a thinly veiled attempt to be more interesting. If so, I thank this blog and you readers for making my life so much more exciting!

Enjoy the big news this week!

I am currently blogging to you from a hotel room in the Middle East, listening to all the songs on my iPod that begin with "H," and enjoying a tarte tatin I just transported from Paris. This is the glamorous half of my winter vacation — the second half will be spent sleeping on an air mattress in an Ohio basement with my boyfriend and his two brothers. But for now I'm in a city called Dubai, which is located in the United Arab Emirates, next to Saudi Arabia and just across the Gulf from Iran. It is also the current residence of my grandmother, and my parents and I have traveled here for some much-needed grandma face time. As to why my grandmother is in the Middle East, I don't think I can really explain the whole story of my crazy family without going all the way back to the Russian Revolution, and part of that explanation could lead to the indictment of certain family members, so I'll leave that one for my memoir.

Right now I'm sitting in a Marriott in the middle of the desert, looking out upon a completely manmade lake and an Arabian-style village. Clouds of apple-scented tobacco are wafting up to my balcony, making their way up from the hookahs of robed men on the hotel patio. Dubai is a fascinating city — it's Las Vegas meets the Middle East. The economic growth here is so rapid that 25 percent of all the cranes in the world are in use here. My uncle was driving us along Sheikh Zayed Road yesterday and got lost because "those buildings weren't there three months ago." I've seen the world's soon-to-be tallest building, an indoor ski slope, robot camel jockeys, the world's only seven-star hotel, and the most unusual sight of all: what has to be the only dry Irish bar in the universe.

From the heat of the Middle Eastern desert, I shall somehow transition to the chill of the Alaskan wilderness. It feels like so long since we've had a new episode, I can't remember what's happened, so I'll be just as surprised as all of you will be tonight. I guess my family doesn't watch much TV, because the whole concept of reruns was somewhat unfamiliar to them. I got a call from my parents saying, "There's been a mistake in Chicago! There's an old episode on this week!" They're very happy that we have a brand-new episode of Men in Trees this week, "The Darkest Day." Our writer for this one is fellow redhead Cara DiPaolo, author of everyone's favorite episode, "Talk for Tat," or as we like to call it, the sexisode. Unfortunately for Annie, she and Patrick (Derek Richardson) are still broken up, so she won't be getting any this week, but this week has one of the funniest love scenes I've watched in a long time. I can't say which characters are involved, but I think I can safely say that you won't see it coming, and that you will laugh your ass off.

During this episode I learned about the magic of Elmo snow. Up here in Vancouver, we don't have the advantage of a steady Alaskan snowfall. Even when it does blizzard here, for some reason we don't shoot outside — you learn after working on TV for a while that things just aren't supposed to make sense most of the time. There's a scene this week, a scene that I should warn you is quite sad, in which Annie brings some of Patrick's things to Chief Celia's house. Most of our locations on Men in Trees, like the Elmo Inn and the Chieftan, are real places that we have built replicas of on a soundstage, but Chief Celia's home is a real house in North Vancouver where we sometimes film. It was easy to pick out that day because it was the only house on the block enrobed in a perfect blanket of the whitest snow. I'll never tire of the magic of TV. That day I met some of our wacky special-effects guys at the craft-service tent (everything happens over the snack table in this business), and they told me that our snow comes from a Vancouver fish-packing company. They haul in a big truck of what is, essentially, tiny pieces of chipped ice, and just start spraying it all over. I guess the same substance that keeps our salmon fresh also makes for highly effective television trickery.

The weather theme continued in this episode as we experienced the full potential of all the rain Vancouver has to offer. As an honorary Canadian, I will say that we really got hosed. The scene where Lynn (Justine Bateman) is photographing Marin (Anne Heche) in the beautiful Alaskan wilderness? Pouring! But that storm was nothing compared to the deluge we received while shooting our big exterior scenes at the New Moon Festival. Elmo's annual festival takes place on the town dock, and the water level was so high that if too many people stood at one end of the dock, it started flooding. I think I spent the entire evening either standing out in the pouring rain or standing in a tent under a blow-dryer. (Unlike Anne Heche, I do not possess magical hair that looks good under any circumstance.) The weather did lead to a payoff at the end, though: When Patrick sets his model boat on fire, they really had to douse it with lighter fluid to keep it lit, so we ended the evening my favorite way: a nice big ball o' fire.

I hope you enjoy the festivities this week. In the meantime, I think I've hit on something here in the desert with the songs beginning with "H." You'd be surprised how almost every song in my iPod that begins with this letter rocks! In fact, I must say goodbye because Outkast's "Hey Ya" just came on, and I find it impossible not to get up and dance when it comes on.

See you on the TV!

ABC's Men in Trees airs Thursdays at 10 pm/ET.

Welcome to another Men in Trees blog by your friendly host, Bergl. I've just returned from a promotional shoot for the UK launch of Men in Trees, which is very exciting for me because I'm originally from England (my dad is British and my mom is Irish). Did you know that Jason O'Mara, who plays the charming publisher Stuart Maxson, is Irish? He has the most amazing American accent, which you will be hearing again in subsequent episodes. (Ladies, don't you love how they keep adding even more handsome men to the show? James Tupper can't be expected to shoulder all the burden on his fisherman sweater-clad shoulders, which, yes, do look as good in real life.)

Jason O'Mara is from Sandycove, which is right around the corner from the town of Dalkey, where my mother grew up. Now our Irish relatives can watch us on Men in Trees. Up until now, my appearances on UK TV were mostly limited to The Rage: Carrie 2 and an episode of CSI: Miami, and in both of these I kill people — most notably in Carrie, where I kill basically everyone in the movie — so it will be nice for my relatives see me in a non-homicidal state. Although I suppose one never knows, Annie might be driven to it. Don't you want to kill Patrick right now? I was in a relationship once where a guy didn't treat me very well at his family's Thanksgiving dinner, so I know what it feels like. (If you missed last week's episode, Patrick completely ignores Annie at his new "rainbow family" Thanksgiving dinner.)

This week's episode, "New York Fiction, Part II," wasn't quite as enjoyable for me to shoot as some of the other ones, because Annie and Patrick are fighting, and that always puts me in a somber mood. Plus, Derek Richardson is such a great guy in real life; it feels terrible even pretending to be angry with him. I just love Patrick and Annie together, because I think that they're two people who have found the only other person in the world who could fully understand them. I'm hoping they can work it out, but unfortunately there are some hard times ahead.

I'm sure that everyone is still reeling from the return of Lynn. I must say, [series creator] Jenny Bicks and [writer] Anna Fricke really know what they're doing; Lynn has been such a strong off-screen character since the pilot, and now she has been brought to life by the lovely Justine Bateman. I'm going to go off on a wee tangent here and reveal that Justine Bateman is a major memory from my adolescence, not only because she was on Family Ties, but also because she was in the movie Satisfaction. I'm probably dating myself here, but it was a movie about a rockin' girl band, and the first time I was allowed to go to the mall without my parents, my best friend and I went to see it. It was a sort of life lesson as well, because during the movie I spilled nacho cheese all over my new white stirrup pants, so I learned that independence comes with a price. But I digress. Lynn has returned, and Marin will finally see Jack after his heart-churning, "I think I'm falling in love with you" voicemail. As you probably saw from last week's upcoming scenes, there is another hot Jack/Marin makeout scene, but I should warn you that things between Marin and Jack are, as always, complicated.

OK, this is really strange. I just glanced up at the TV, which is playing the TV Guide Channel, and there's always a little trivia box up in the corner in the screen. Well, it just said "Strange Laws: In Alaska it is considered an offense to push a live moose out of a moving airplane." I suppose we do have a pilot — the legend, John Amos — and a float plane on Men in Trees, so we could possibly incorporate this on the show somehow. I also just read an article — sent to me by my high school drama coach, PJ Samorian — about Alaska's new governor-elect, Sarah Palin. She is the first woman governor in Alaska and the youngest to ever hold office, so I'm even more proud right now to be part of a show that takes place in that fair state. Apparently Ms. Palin is putting everyone in a frenzy because she has chosen to take the oath of office in Fairbanks instead of Juneau, the official state capitol. There has been a movement in Alaska to move the state capitol outside of Juneau because it's so inaccessible. Basically, it's about as difficult to get to as Elmo, our fictional town on Men in Trees. At the end of the article, they quote a Juneau resident as saying, "Juneau should stop gossiping and speculating about what [Sarah Palin] might do and give her a chance to govern… Juneau really is neurotic." Doesn't that sound like something straight out of our show? Let's start a campaign to move Alaska's state capitol to Elmo!

I think it was during this episode that we found out we were picked up for a full season, so you might see a little extra twinkle in all of our eyes. Unfortunately, by the time we all finished work the night of the announcement, it was already two in the morning, and the only place that was still open for celebrating was a Vancouver strip club called Brandy's. (I'm told it was what brought J. Lo and Ben Affleck's marriage to a crashing halt, so we can thank them for that.) Apparently Brandy's is Vancouver's "classiest" strip club, although I soon learned that evening that perhaps "classy strip club" is an oxymoron. It was a little odd to toast our success while looking at extremely bored, half-naked ladies, but what can I say, here at Men in Trees we make lemons into lemonade.

On that somewhat dubious note, I will close this blog and hope you enjoy the second part of "New York Fiction." If you're dying for even more behind-the-scenes info, be sure to check out the new writer's blog at ABC.com. I'm a little miffed that Jenny Bicks made my fondue addiction public knowledge (my publicist and I were hoping to announce it with an official press release), but since she did create this whole Men in Trees thing, I suppose I'll have to forgive her.

ABC's Men in Trees airs Thursdays at 10 pm/ET.