Yakkity yak, don’t talk back.
18 Sep
Long, long ago I blogged here about Everything Bad is Good for You; a book that discusses the value of TV watching, video game playing, etc. I am not a big TV watcher. The box is often turned on, but it’s usually tuned to a movie or being used as a radio. My favorite television shows of all time are Little House on the Prairie, Northern Exposure, and Party of Five. I do not think that list gives me street cred. In the book, the author discusses how watching complex new shows like 24 increases people’s mental capacity for making connections. I probably have not developed that capacity and should not be reviewing TV shows, but for some reason, I keep doing just that on this site. Here I go again….
I’m losing interest in Weeds. It’s kind of driving me crazy. The main character’s life is a spiraling mess and it’s stressful to watch. Even the addition of Michelle from Full House to this week’s episode did not revive my interest. But. There’s another show that I am drawn to like a moth to the flame and that is Rock of Love. Rock God Bret Michaels, lead singer of Poison, is searching for the love of his life and he’s decided to do it on a reality show.
Oodles of really beautiful (in a pink-hair rock and roll babe kind of way) women perform challenges, hoping to qualify for time with Bret. During the first few episodes I watched, I could not stop wondering why they would want to win this prize. But, as I watched last night (we’re down to the final two), I realized that I have been totally sucked in and felt happy when the mean woman got kicked to the curb. I do not think watching this show is increasing my ability to make mental connections, but it is making me want to try a temporary pink hair color.
4 Responses for "Poison Weeds"
My love of heavy metal means that anything with the word ‘rock’ and the words “Bret Michaels’ can only be OK if he is under very heavy rocks.
Or I get to throw rocks at him.
But Everything Bad Is Good For You was a cool book.
I don’t get to watch Weeds until it goes to DVD…but I’m hip deep in Deadwood season 3 right now, and then I want to watch more of The Wire.
The bonus of trying out a pink hair color means that you are trying a new and different experience. New experiences are good for your brain!
Rock of Love is indeed poison. I can’t get enough of it either and I talk about it so much that I’ve gotten four of my coworkers to start watching. It’s a delicious trainwreck.
I haven’t read this one yet, but in my personal experience pop culture helps me to make connections. However, I think games (video or board or card) develop this ability more than TV and movies do. Also, there’s a tradeoff of sorts, because I think TV and games make us a little less articulate (especially when compared with reading or conversation). Finally, pop culture shows us how to make connections, but reading, intelligent conversation, and “real” experience provide us with the raw materials. There are some folks who are good at making connections between different ideas, but they only have three or four ideas to connect. Still, overall, I’m glad that pop culture is getting more respect these days.
OK, I change my mind again. Weeds is awesome.
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