It's been a long time, been a long time, been a long lonely, lonely, lonely, lonely, lonely time

Sorry--I'm going to try to do a better job of managing my blog. Not that I have anything of consequence to say or that anyone is reading it. I'm mostly using it to manage the blogs that I enjoy reading as opposed to my own.

Now for something completely different....

I have been intrigued as of late by the Gosselin (Jon & Kate + 8) controversy/fanatacism. I was part of it myself, once. I loved JK+8, couldn't get enough of it. Thought Jon and Kate were the greatest people, couldn't imagine having to walk a mile in their shoes. Then certain things started to rub me the wrong way. I knew from the beginning that Kate wasn't someone I would like in real life, but I pushed that to the back of my head, or rationalized it, saying, "But she's under so much stress. I'd be hard to deal with too!" But as the show dragged on, I found less and less to like about either of the parents, and I find myself sad for the children, who don't even know what life is like without production lighting, cameras in their face, or even what it means to stand in line or pay for things. I worry about the rude awakening the children are going to face when the cameras go away for good (and they will, this is not the Simpsons, one day the show has to end). And I have no way of knowing if Jon & Kate prepare their children for life outside of the show, but I don't feel like they do. I don't think they have even prepared themselves for life after the show.

There has been much talk in the blogosphere about editing and giving the viewers what they want. But I have a co-worker who was a contestant on Big Brother and Big Brother All-Stars and was rather infamous during the season they were a cast member, and this co-worker tells me that they can't edit a personality that doesn't exist. Yes I know--different show, different mission, but the idea is the same. Kate has to say the things she says, do the things she does in order for it to get on camera. For example, you can't edit her disgusting response to her own behavior on the "Embarassing Moments" episode. When confronted with her appalling behavior in Toys R Us (yelling 20 yards across the store at her husband to "stop playing with toys, and help me!"), her response is not, "I can't believe how awful I acted, no wonder my kids yell and throw tantrums when they don't get what they want, they learn it from me. I'm trying really hard to change how I behave in those situations. Even though Jon doesn't always help me as much or in the way I would like, I need to change the way I react. It's not respectful to him and it sets a poor example for our children." No--that would be how an adult would behave. Instead, she responds something like this (to Jon): "I do that because you won't help me. If you would just ask me how you can help me, then I wouldn't lose my cool and have to resort to yelling. It's your fault I can't control my temper and act like a buffoon in public." That really happened, people. Not verbatim, I placed my own perceptions of how she sounded, but you get the idea.

I haven't watched the show for about a month, since the Phillies episode, which I watched more for Uncle Cholly and Shane Victorino than the Gosselins. I love my Phils! I am going to work hard tonight to not indulge my guilty pleasure to want to watch the vow renewal episode tonight. I'm kind of hoping that enough people get turned off by their behavior to drop the ratings and get the show canceled. I personally think that's the best thing for the family. Kate and Jon will likely never be the parents I think they should be, but at least the damage wouldn't be magnified by cameras broadcasting their behavior and the effect it has on their children into millions of homes. That's all. For now.