What Mimi Saw

My coworker lent me her copy of the first three episodes of MAD MEN, the A&E wonder-show. I'd never seen it but was intrigued with the premise: advertising executives on Madison Avenue in the 1960s. I knew it would be filled with whiskey in the afternoons, perfectly coiffed hair, and lots of smoking. I wasn't disappointed in those respects.


But while I watched the show I became uncomfortable in the way the men characters treated the women and how they reacted. I know that women were not treated nearly as fairly as they are today in the workplace, but what made me the most sick was how they treated each other. Talking up how a woman can use her slim ankles to attract her boss so he'll sleep with her is just one example.

I'm aware that this is really how things were. And I'm surprised that it bothered me so much. I gave it back this morning and won't watch it again. It's just too sad for wives and secretaries.

TV is for sad people...

I don't watch a lot of television. I never have. I didn't grow up with cable. I've never even owned my own set. I currently am borrowing my parents extra television (along with their rabbit ears circa 1958) and use the TV to watch movies with my DVD player.

The main reason I don't watch TV is because I don't want to get sucked into watching a program at the same time each week. The anxiety alone would put me over the edge. Plus, I don't want to feel like I have to stay in to watch Lost or Grey's Anatomy instead of doing other things -- like going to the gym, having dinner with my sister, or grabbing a drink with a friend. Plus cable is expensive.

Today I read with glee this article in the New York Times.

Happy people spend a lot of time socializing, going to church and reading newspapers — but they don’t spend a lot of time watching television, a new study finds.

I think I'm a pretty happy person. And I love having my lifestyle validated by the New York Times.