Is anybody else feeling intense relief at the return of prime time television? Okay, not all of the shows are back. Some, like Heroes, are waiting to return until next season (provided the Screen Actor’s Guild doesn’t go on strike, and there actually is a next season), but some of my favorites are back. I have waited some very long months for the return of shows like Ugly Betty and Grey’s Anatomy. I am also very glad for the return of NBC’s power players, My Name is Earl, 30 Rock, and Scrubs.

In stereotypically girly fashion, however, I am most excited about the return of Grey’s Anatomy. Last night I sat down on the couch, rubbed my hands together and announced (to my cat), “I really hope this show makes me cry tonight.”

It’s a girl thing. Sometimes we like it. We don’t understand why it works that way either.

While the episode didn’t produce actual tears, it did produce the requisite “WHAT?!?” at the end of the episode and then several minutes of swearing because waiting seven days to see what happens can be torture! That said—I am enjoying the small character arcs my favorite characters are traveling, and I feel like everything is being set up to produce a fantastic fifth season. I am enjoying the pleasure/torture Meredith and McDreamy are putting themselves through with their clinical trial. I desperately want to know how to use “You so coded” in a proper context, and I really want to lend Izzie some money so that she can do something about her hair.

For television and fiction addicts like me, the return of my favorite shows is a welcome relief after a long, cold winter of “I can’t believe I’m watching this on purpose” and “Making do.”