All About Us: A Dracut Weblog

Soon, it will be February, and another Sweeps month is upon us. Ah, fresh episodes of our favorite shows. My husband and I are getting quite hooked on "24". Marie a killer? Who knew? Now, this is good TV. Very visceral stuff. That bathroom turned abattoir--shiver.

I have mentioned before, that I'm not fond of reality TV. Or, to put it more accurately, when I see a promo ad for a new show of that genre, I gag. Actually it's more of a full-body-dry-heave to quote Seinfeld. And the inevitable comments, OhmyGod that's so stupid! Or - Do they have absolutely NO pride? The premise's for these shows seem to get more and more bizarre. But no one seems to notice! So, this is why - when I was catching up on my Important Reading in TV Guide, I came across the article on the new Survivor season set in the Amazon. Since the start of this show, they have tried to at least be demographically correct. More than one gender, age group, sexual preference, race. So, when I see a mention of someone my age or older in these episodes, I take heart that all is not lost to the hard body/soft brain types running rampant in most reality TV. Course, I don't think someone older has won the big purse yet. Sigh.

But if I did that, joined one of those crews - it wouldn't be to win a gazillion dollars. Monetary compensation, of course, would be awesome, but I am not competitive enough to try for the big prize. Frankly, who needs the aggravation. I'd like to do it, just to see if I could keep up. Unfortunately I'm too vain to want the world to see me in that hot weather attire. If they set Survivor in a shopping mall, I'm there. I'd be a good team mate too, remember - I don't care about winning. So, I'd save my team-mates places in the check out lines or I'd advice them on the right accessories for a new dress or suit. An immunity challenge would be to find the best and legal parking spots closest to the main entrance. No problem. Get a delicious AND nutritious meal in the Food Court for under $5.00. Yes, I can do that. As I think about this, I realize I could probably do Amazing Race too. I don't think I've watched much of the show, but I get the gist of it. It's like a huge scavenger hunt around the world. Cool! No worries about getting alligator blood out of my sports bra. I'd just have to be able to read a subway map in another language. Easy! —eˆÕ ! Facile! Einfach!

And what makes things real anyway. In my way of thinking, once you add a camera and/or mic to the mix, it ceases to be real. I do believe that in some of those situations the contestants might begin to forget that they are being observed, and might get a little more honest and open than they initially intended. But real? If you think about it, it all starts to get a little... "if a tree falls in the woods" type rhetoric. You can even extend it to all those nature shows. Those gazelles running for their lives from the lion, would they really look so ...urgent, yet elegant, if the cams weren't running? I don't bloody think so.

-- Keeping it real in Dracut