Grammy Cheap Shot

At the end of a wonderfully relaxing day, I spent the evening on the couch, embroidering away, while watching the Grammy’s. And during one of the presentation monologues, one thing was said that truly bothered me. Early in the show, Stephen Colbert came out to present an award. Trying to be funny, he took various pot-shots at performers. Now, I will admit, I watch the Colbert Report, and have frequently laughed. But something has happened to Mr. Colbert. Over time, his humor has morphed. He has gone from being clever in his comedy to, well, something else. His initial clever sarcasm has become dwarfed by an over-the-top arrogance and occasional down-n-out rudeness. Such was the case in his monologue.

While chatting about some of the entertainers of the season, he took a couple of unnecessarily harsh pot-shots at Susan Boyle. Known for her out-of-nowhere skyrocket to fame audition in Britain’s Got Talent, Mz. Boyle is one of those social anomalies that shatters stereotypes, forcing us to all realize that one cannot judge a book by its cover. No, Mz. Boyle is not what one would call a svelt, young beauty queen. But that isn’t the point. The point is, an average woman from an average place with a completely unremarkable life just happens to have such a pure and rich and rare talent as to make everyone take notice. And frankly, the talent that has launched her into a place of absolutely deserved international fame. But that does not mean that it should come at the price of being made fun of for her looks. And that is exactly what Mr. Colbert did. He took cheap shots, and it was just plain mean.

Now don’t get me wrong. Sometimes a good ribbing really is funny. And many of the celebrities out there say or do things to bring it on themselves. I mean, seriously – I don’t think that Lady GaGa would have a leg to stand on if she got upset at being made of for her fashion choices. Seriously, that gal is really out there! But what has Susan Boyle done to deserve being so harshly made fun of? Can’t somebody be appreciated for the beauty they contribute without being torn apart in other areas?

Shame on you, Mr. Colbert! Not cool.

Being an Adult Ain’t That Bad after All

Recently, I got into a misunderstanding with a good friend of mine. We had a miscommunication and it left us both in a place of “what the f#*$ is the other person thinking????!” We found ourselves frustrated, and knew that we needed to have a comin-to-Jeebus. So we did what adults really SHOULD do. We talked. There was no big public confrontation. There was no big dramatic scene involving screaming and waving of accusations. There was no gathering of forces. Instead, we both bit back on initial concerns and frustrations, faced what began as an awkward conversation, laid out our logic, and then quickly learned where we had gotten off-track. In no time at all, the stress level went down, the frustration drained away, and we found ourselves laughing like we normally do. Why? Because we learned that it was a simple miscommunication, and recognized the domino effect of human errors that happened as a result. And ya know what? I think our friendship is stronger now because of it.

I look back at some of the biggest rifts that have taken place in my life and really wish that all the parties involved could have just been more adult about it. And no, I am not pointing the finger exclusively at the other party or parties. I too have behaved immaturely in the past when dealing with issues. But hey, it is what it is. When I was younger, I was… well… I was just that - younger. That is the key. Maturity doesn’t happen over night. A number of times, I remember sitting in the corner of a couch, moping over some situation that had gone horribly wrong, and just wishing that I had handled it with less passion and more reason. “Why, oh why, oh WHY do I get so upset over things like this?” I used to ask myself. “Why does this sort of a thing bother me so much? Why can’t I just let things go or handle them calmly?” But one thing that I have learned, that I obviously didn’t know back then, is that calm and rational maturity isn’t simply a learned behavioral trait. Sometimes it comes only through time and experience. And that is really polite speak for developing a thick-skin after getting burned. And I’m not sure if there is any way around that sort of a thing.

In a way, I do take solace in one thought. It is possible that the big-bad-blow-ups of yesteryears did lead to some good after all. Maybe, just maybe, through the pain and the upset that I felt, I did develop that thicker-skin. Maybe, just maybe, I learned to calm down a bit. Maybe, just maybe, things that used to bother me a Great Big Amount, really don’t even hit my radar now. Maybe, just maybe, I have learned not to react in knee-jerk fashion, but to pull back and think things out. Could it be that I finally done growed up?!!!!

As always, I am probably over-thinking this whole thing to death, when I should just enjoy the simplicity of the situation. My friend and I kissed n’ made up. And because we talked about the problem, and solved it together, we are now even stronger friends. That is really a great thing and it makes my inner child go, “Squeee!”