I was sitting at the bar enjoying a bowl of chili and a Gin Ricky at one of my favorite watering holes, Taboo in Palm Beach, when the topic of conversation turned to television.
“My husband can’t stand the fact that I’m addicted to reality TV.”
She was looking for some sympathy from me, but she wasn’t going to get any.
“I have to agree with your husband, reality TV is a real waste of time,” I said.
Without missing a beat, she turned to her husband and asked if he planted a shill at the bar for an intervention.
I was shocked to hear that she spends more than 8 hours a day watching shows like “Keeping Up With the Kardashians,” some show about wife swapping and the “Biggest Loser.” She could rattle off all of the men the Kardashians have slept with but could not tell me who Mitt Romney’s running mate is in the election.
“It’s sad isn’t it,” her husband said as he told her Paul Ryan is running with Romney.
“I don’t care about politics,” was her reply.
Her husband prodded me to ask he other questions about current events and she couldn’t answer any of them, nor did she care.
As I asked for another gin, I wondered just how many others are this disconnected from the world and are content living in a world where keeping up with Kim and Chloe is more important than keeping up with world events, who’s running for president and other hot news stories.
She looked at her watch, took one final sip of her wine and said, “Big Brother.” It was nearly 9pm and she had to get home for yet another dose of reality.
“This is why we sleep in separate bedrooms,” her husband said.
I don’t watch all that much television. Maybe two or three hours a day max. When I do, I’m usually tuned in to Discovery or watching a classic movie on TCM. I’d rather draw a warm bath and open a vein rather than succumb to Bruce Jenner prostituting his family out in front of America.
Based on the ratings these reality shows get, I’m definitely in the minority. At least I know who Paul Ryan is, what’s going in in Libya and the names of the banks who just got another Washington bailout. Just don’t ask me the names of the contestants on Dancing with the Stars or who the judges are on American Idol.