Waiting to Be Saved

My parents met in a mental institution. They are psychologists. Sometimes I don’t explain that last part. One would think that I grew up with all kinds of rules and was protected from anything that might damage my fragile young mind. The truth is, I had very few rules growing up. Maybe my parents just gave up because I was the youngest of three. I watched whatever I wanted on television and usually tried to keep up with my much older sister. I feel that tuning into shows geared towards much older audiences had a major effect on my life and how I differ from most 21-year-old girls my age. After all, I completely missed “Saved By The Bell.”
I don’t really know how it happened and I didn’t understand the potential effects at the time. How did I just miss “Saved By The Bell?” I had friends who loved the show, but I just wasn’t interested. When they discussed it at the lunchroom table I suppose I was too involved in my spaghetti. The shows I generally kept up with were “Full House”, “Beverly Hills 90210”, and “Melrose Place”. I liked “Full House” and my sister liked to watch “Beverly Hills 90210.” I hid behind a chair in the TV room so I could stay up and watch “Melrose Place.” This wasn’t exactly a show for third grader eyes.
I am still lost today when “Saved By The Bell” references come up in conversation. I have seen the show on reruns, but never watched it during its original run. Even though I sometimes miss the joke, I pride myself on being different. I have never been one to go along with the crowd. The same phenomenon occurred when “Dawson’s Creek” came on the air. It didn’t hold my interests and everyone else was watching it. So, that was plenty enough reason for me to avoid it. While everyone else was wrapped up in the intense drama of the lives of Dawson and Joey, I was watching Nick-at-Night reruns of the “Wonder Years” or “Welcome Back Kotter.” I was attracted to such a variety of shows, but I always seemed to miss or avoid the mainstream teen drama shows, popular at the time.
My family never really had a show to call its own. We rarely gathered together to watch anything because everyone had sports, ballet, or work. Our schedules were never the same. On the occasional Saturday night, we would tune into “Saturday Night Live.” We all share the same sense of humor, so this was an opportunity to laugh together until we cried. I can still remember some of the sketches we watched together. This was way back when they were actually funny. I must owe Alec Baldwin something for some of those few, but happy times my family gathered around the tube.
Another interesting fact is that I was the only one of the three children who was not allowed to have a TV in my room. I was able to watch whatever and do as I pleased, but not have a TV. The TV did not go with the room’s décor and in Mama’s opinion, spoiled the Victorian chest it was to be placed upon. I was never able lay in bed and fall asleep to the soft rumblings of some late TV personality. I never experienced Saturday morning cartoons in bed. The first time I was able to experience this was in college, and now I don’t even have the time to utilize it. I suppose it could be a good thing that I have the ability to function without the help of “The Today Show” and relax in bed without having to hear Leno’s bad jokes.
Today, I really have very little time for TV. This is a sad, but true fact. I would love to have the time to just sit back and be entertained by the antics of Paula Dean on the Food Network. Her half hour takes me back to the genteel South that I miss so dearly. It comforts me when I am homesick. I also used to look forward to “Grey’s Anatomy” on Thursday night’s, but because of Thursday night class, I can no longer keep up with it. It was the only show, other than cooking shows, that I found interesting. I was also a big fan of “Sex and the City”, but I caught on late in the series and wasn’t able to watch it regularly.
I will probably never be that person who is linked with a particular show when someone tries to describe me. I will never be the girl who is addicted to “Friends” or believes she is in fact, Carrie from “Sex and the City.” I know that realistically, I will be much too busy. I do, however, dream about being the authority on some show; the girl who knows the useless trivia or can give the office an update on what occurred in last week’s episode. It’s too late for me with “Saved by the Bell” though, that bird has flown. There is too much to catch up with and too much trivia to learn. I am still waiting for a show that really grabs me, and one that allows me to keep up with it every week. I am still waiting to be “Saved.”