4 28 02

By
now you are aware that we are being covered up with a dearth of
so- called ‘reality’ shows. These generally center on a group of
people being marooned on some remote spot while we observe their
efforts to survive. We’re to believe that these folks are in
danger while in the midst of a full camera crew with catering
services and medical facilities. Right.

The other group that has become popular in the past year or so is
what I call the ‘voyeur’ class in which we, the viewing audience,
get to look in on the lives of some people we’ve never met. They
tried several versions of this a few years back with somewhat
limited success. Now, the new twist is some rock singer named Ozzie
Osborne or whatever has a hit series devoted to the American people
looking in on the way his family reportedly actually lives on a
daily basis.

Already competition is showing up by someone named P. Daddy, P.
Diddley or Diddley Squat or something along these lines. I have to
confess I have not seen either of these two programs. I will also
tell you I do not intend to do so either. My reasoning for this is
simple, I don’t believe any attempts at reality on the part of these
folks can in any way match what most of us endure on a daily basis.
Now, stick with me here. As I understand it, both of these ‘reality’
families are successful entertainers and are probably well off. You
don’t have to live in Siberia to know what this means. I hardly
think they are living in a master planned community in some
subdivision, an apartment or in some farm or ranch house in a remote
part of the country. No, these people are most likely having to
struggle in some larger than life mansion in either California or
Florida. Are we to really believe they actually cook their own
meals? Somehow I don’t think so, any more than I’d expect to see Tom
Cruise shopping at the grocery down the street from our house. Do
you think they clean their own houses? Not likely.

Reality to me is mowing your own yard, putting your own kids to bed,
and staying up with them when they are sick and having to vomit. You
could do an entire show about driving your kids to school and back.
Can you envision Ozzy or whoever going to a PTA meeting or helping
with the school carnival?  Birthday parties where the new neighbors
kids manage to spill ice cream and cake on your new carpet. Cleaning
up after the new puppy or the hairball that your old cat left on the
couch. Changing the flat tire on your daughter in laws truck.
Planting flowers in the spring and raking leaves in the fall. Fixing
the toilet that runs and trying to understand how to rewire that
light switch in the guest bedroom.

Reality is cleaning out the garage and trying to put your toolbox
back into some semblance of order. True reality is getting all of
those photos you’ve been collecting for years and pasting them into
albums like you’ve said you were going to do for the past 10 years
or so. Reality is about friends coming over to play cards and
dominos and eating chili in the winter and ice cream in the summer.
Reality is smiling when your neighbors kid gets accepted into law
school or college or gets a job. Reality is being a shoulder to cry
upon when your neighbor loses a child or a parent. Reality is just
being there to listen and not talk when your kids have problems that
you can’t answer, but it makes them feel better to tell you anyway.