Dearest Rachel –
You were – and you would acknowledge this, however abashedly (depending on the circumstance) – an avid consumer of, maybe not pop culture as such, but at least media in general. Be it one or another sci-fi or fantasy series, a daytime talk show, or various comedy anthologies that would air over the weekend, you spent a fair amount of time watching television (or, in the eventual case of anime or YouTube, the computer), both at college and once we got married. And while I would assume you did a fair amount when you were growing up, it’s possible that you thought you didn’t get enough chance to do this growing up, and once you were on your own, you tried to do as much as you wanted, in order to make up for lost time.
Most of your media consumption had to do with your own tastes in entertainment, obviously. Your dad, in particular, raised you up to enjoy and appreciate science fiction (and horror, but that wasn’t something you watched while Daniel or I were home). But I’d wager that some of what you watched, be it the news or some of those talk shows, was as much to keep up with what was going on in the world as it was specifically for your amusement. You would hear about current events and the latest in trends from some of these sources, and I think you may have kept up with them specifically to be able to discuss them with your fellow moms at various times when you would get together.
It’s roughly analogous to those of us in the work farce gathering around the water cooler in the break room and asking each other “so, did you see _____ on television yesterday?” Even though you never held a white-collar job that would place yourself in that specific situation, I think you can recognize the scenario, and the need to at least be familiar with the media being discussed. I’m thinking that what Oprah and the shows she produced were topics of discussion among your circle of acquaintances, and you absorbed those shows as much to be ‘in the know’ as for your own personal entertainment. If nothing else, I recall you disagreeing with her on the occasional topic, and I imagine you would have wanted to take that up with your friends.
I wonder if our generation was the last to actually experience that commonality of consumption when it comes to media. These days, there are so many sources of diversion that we can’t share them in any communal setting; what one person enjoys, another has never heard of, and vice versa.
Except on a day like yesterday; Super Bowl Sunday. Even for those who have no love for the game (like yourself), there were always the clever adverts. And for those who did enjoy the sport, even without a team to cheer for, there was the understanding that this was supposedly a contest between the teams that were literally at the top of their game. Either way, it is one of the few remaining cases of ‘must-see T.V.’ left to share with friends and co-workers – either in person together at a viewing party, or the following day at work (or wherever).
Except… these days, there’s no water cooler for me to socialize with co-workers. I don’t even have co-workers anymore. And while there are many more reasons for me to be grateful for that fact than not, it does make the watching a little less worthwhile. There’s no one to ask “so, what did you think of the game?”
Oh, there’s the folks, sure, but they’re the ones who invited Daniel and me over to watch the game last night in the first place (and if they hadn’t, we might not have bothered, to be honest). So whatever discussion there was and is to have about last night, we’ve already had it at the time. There really isn’t that much more to add, aside from further expressions of gratitude for their hospitality (and, apparently, some comment about the sore response from the losing coach. The blame game is silly at this level; one of the teams was going to have to lose, although for the first half of the game, neither offense seemed to be playing to win. Granted, that may have simply been a testament to each team’s respective defenses, but still…). Although I do think that Dad, in particular, likes having us over for such things to discuss the game in real time, much like my own experience with sport, as you know. Basically, we’re each propping each other’s enthusiasm up when, if left alone, would easily wilt into indifference.
Speaking of indifference, there was also a case of competing halftime shows going on to take in. Rather than being ‘must-see’ television, it would seem that the artist chosen for the official production was specifically meant to stick a thumb in the eye of the average American football fan (most of whom had never heard of him until now, and wouldn’t understand a word of the fellow’s music, even if they did speak his language) thereby turning it into a sort of ‘must-miss’ television, complete with other networks coming up with alternative broadcasts. In fact, it would seem that one other production garnered something like twenty million screens, as viewers changed channels from one network to the other. I doubt that sent much in the way of a message to the league, though – and in any event, it meant that neither show would be a unifying “did’ja see that last night?” event to be spoken of today.
For my part, I’m indifferent to either type; the musical numbers strike me as overblown no matter how you slice them. On the other hand, there are certain behaviors one wants to encourage and discourage in mass media, and the only way to do so it to reward the former with more eyeballs and punish the latter with fewer, so… there you go. Ask me to critique either of them, and I’d come up empty-handed.
At least the game was close, I suppose, with nobody willing to rack up a decisive stroke (and indeed, the losing team didn’t even score) until the fourth quarter, at which point there was a little offensive back-and-forth before one team literally dropped the ball, and the other picked it up and ran with it. Not into the end zone right away, but soon enough thereafter to make it clear that the fat lady needed to warm up in the wings.
Anyway, I apologize for boring you about this sort of thing; I’ve mentioned before that these events didn’t interest you with regard to the sports themselves (although you could occasionally appreciate the overall drama as well as a well-executed play now and again). You would be a part of the parties purely for the social aspect – and maybe the food. And as far as watching stuff, your focus tended to be on the ads, although these days, they don’t seem to be as creative as all that. Half the time, you wonder what they’re even trying to sell until you get to the end of the ad. I can’t imagine you being all that impressed.
But at this point, it’s all hypothetical. And, now that the game is over, and I’ve told you a little about what went on (and how we came to be watching it in the first place), it’s rather moot, as well. You’ve now heard all that you would need or want to know; and that’s simply because everyone will be talking about something to do with it today. Well… everyone on earth, that is, but where you are? Not so much.
Still, I can’t speak to what goes on up there by the water coolers… do they have those up there? Do people get together and chit-chat? What do they talk about? The traffic between us and you only goes one way; no one comes back to tell us. So all I have to talk about to you is what life is like down here. If it doesn’t (or no longer) interest you, there’s not much I can do about that; I’d talk about what goes on by you if I knew how that was, but I don’t. This is all I have, and it’s as close to a universal topic of discussion as things ever get down here any more, for whatever that will be worth outside of Seattle or Boston in a week or two…
…at which point, I might as well get on with everything else in life; I need to find more stories – and more interesting ones – to relate to you going forward. Until then, though, keep an eye on me, and wish me luck. I’m going to need it.
Letters to Rachel 