Four Weddings

...and NOT a funeral. But rather a contest. Let me explain: I'm in my hotel room in Nashville and watching a guilty pleasure show called Say Yes to the Dress. The show is set in a bridal salon in NYC where girls have an appointment with a sales consultant and then they do little interviews with all the people involved. It's not as obnoxious as Bridezillas - which, for the record, I have to believe is mostly staged. And if it's not, who the hell is marrying those girls?!?

Okay, I digress. Back to point - so, on a commercial TLC describes a new show, Four Weddings. The entire premise of this program will be that 4 newly married women will JUDGE each other's weddings, comment, and then vote on the winner; the winner gets a honeymoon.

I despise this premise! Bridezillas is sort of funny, if you can make it through a whole show. Whose Wedding Is It Anyway is also funny (planners and couples collide....think champagne taste on beer budgets and spoiled brats). These two shows are pretty mindless and sometimes I watch only to feel better about my own mindset during planning our upcoming wedding. But Four Weddings seems to really cross a line for me. WEDDINGS ARE NOT CONTESTS!!!

Of course we've all been to weddings where you ooh and aah, love a detail, think something would "not be my choice," and unfortunately, sometimes you see something a little cringe-worthy. But the entire point is that it is (or, let me amend this and say should be) about the couple getting married - their tastes, family traditions/expectations, dreams, etc. It's not about a SHOW for others. And I think it is complete bullshit for a TV show to turn it into a snark-fest so other girls can be snotty catfighters snickering about something someone else did. And I'm sure there will be moments of, "Oh, I wish I did that" (wait, I know there will because that's in the promo), but in general it's most likely going to be a how-much-can-I-tear-another-girl-down fiesta. No thank you. Grow up girls, show some class. Oh, and you, too, TLC.

Finally Finished...

the Twilight series, er, "Saga," I suppose. I never really thought I'd read them; fiction, in general, is not my thing. Nor are romance novels, "teen fiction," or any other subcategory you could put these books in. Nor, as has been recently pointed out to me, do I generally follow trends or crazes or fads (thanks, Chels).

But, you know, I really did enjoy them - so much more than I thought I would. The imagery and scenes were very vivid, and I was excited to stay up late reading long hours into each night. I even found myself looking forward to this week's Nashville trip so that I could complete my quest.

Now, it's onto another book. And I'm headed back to my usual M.O. this time - nonfiction. I almost always choose nonfiction books. I've often said that if I was going to spend the time then I'd rather learn something. I realize that sounds snobby, but there's some truth to be found, too, in that old saying "sometimes truth is stranger than fiction." But the Twilight series and "The Lovely Bones" (which I read in right before the saga....which is the first time in at least 10 years I read FIVE fiction books in a row!!) have brought me back to fiction again. Broadening one's horizons is always good. And plus, another friend, Michelle, pointed out that my taste when reading nonfiction can be quite boring. But personally I'm looking forward to "The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science."

O Tannenbaum...

Yea! The Christmas season is upon us. I love Christmas - really, I do. I love as I get older I really appreciate what it means...faith, family, friends and LOVE.

I don't love the stress and gifting aspects so much; don't get me wrong, I love to give gifts (and receive them), but sometimes I think it just boggles the real meaning. I know, same old story...this is how everyone feels, but isn't it funny how we all feel the same every year?

Which brings me to my next point: I realized another reason why I love this season eariler today. It has a tendency to make people so much more friendly and warm! Strangers smile at you more on the street and are likely to speak to you! When you run into friendly "small talk" conversations, people ask about your plans and your loved ones instead of just the weather! And, my personal favorite, people sing - OUT LOUD - to Christmas carols and holiday songs playing in lobbies, malls and throughout city streets! And often it seems, once one person starts, at least a few more join in!

Why do these things only happen at the holidays? One of my Christmas wishes this year is that more people will choose a New Year's resolution that involves keeping these little parts of the holidays going strong all year long!