“If life were predictable, it would cease to be life and be without flavor...”
-Eleanor Roosevelt
I can watch the same episode of a sitcom several times. Not in a row mind you...But I can watch an episode today that I have seen in 2010, 2008 and even 2004. Not just twice or three times...the fact that I may have seen a show five or six times, will not stop me from watching (and enjoying) it yet another time. I can do the same thing with a good book or a great article in a magazine.
It can make my husband crazy. He has asked me many times how I could possibly want to watch a show that I have seen so many times that I literally know the dialogue by heart. In fact, I don’t even have to watch it. I can simply have it on, and follow the show in my head, all by just listening to the television as I mop the floor, cook dinner or work on my laptop.
Seem strange? Not to me. To me, watching a sitcom or a good movie several times is predicable...there are no surprises...there is nothing new about it...I know exactly what will happen and when it will happen...and that’s exactly what makes it heavenly for me.
Maybe it’s the fact that my life seems to be so unpredictable that draws me to this weird fascination. My husband, as you may know by now, is a college basketball coach. For those of you who understand that business even a little bit, you probably know that means we have moved...a lot. To put it in perspective, my oldest daughter, Gabby has gone to 7 schools and is only in the 9th grade. We have truly loved nearly every city we have been lucky enough to live in but the moving is not necessarily a highlight of his job. In fact, when I meet someone who has been born and raised in the same city their whole life, I feel a twinge of jealousy. Of course, when I explain that we have been able to live in New Orleans, Tampa, Miami, Pittsburgh, etc., most people consider me the lucky one. Probably a case of the grass always being a bit greener....
I am certainly not complaining. In fact, the moving, while difficult, has never scared me. Of course, I am always sad to leave the friends we make and the home we created but the moving itself, is rarely as bad as I envision it being. I rarely fear the packing and unpacking of boxes, the canceling and starting of the utilities, the change of address forms, and all of those things that go along with moving. Are they fun? Certainly not, but they always get done one way or the other.
What I ALWAYS fear though with a move is the predictability of my life. I know where my grocery store is. I know how to find the post office. I know and love my children’s schools (namely because that is a choice that takes time and effort and we have managed to do a good job in that area). I know how to get to the arena where my husband’s team plays and I know exactly where to park. Little things, yes...but yet so important to me.
Moving always means new grocery stores, new schools, new post offices...new everything...In short, moving means that nothing is predictable and everything is new. Exciting? Yes... Scary? A bit...
But maybe that’s why I seek the solace of a sitcom that I have seen so many times. Maybe it’s why I choose to re-read a book that I have read on countless previous occasions. I’m seeking familiarity. I’m seeking predictability.
You see, those episodes of “Seinfeld” with Elaine dancing or the episodes of Friends with Ross’ monkey are the same in West Lafayette as they were in Miami. They made me laugh then and they make me laugh now. They’re comforting that way.
Some people have different habits for the same purpose. Maybe you like to wear your old college sweatshirt when you are feeling down. I have a friend who always cooks her mom’s recipe for lasagna when she is feeling anxious. It’s the same principle. You are searching for comfort through predictability and familiarity. And what’s so wrong with that?
Even I have wondered if this habit of mine was a little strange. And before you start getting nervous, it’s not as if I have to turn the TV on and off 12 times before watching or sit cross legged if I’m going to use the remote control. I’m not OCD. At least I think I’m not (kidding). But I think the thing about comfort is it matters less how you find it...just that you do.
Have a great comfort-filled day everyone...
-Claudia
Claudia: I am the same way. Even when I was a lot younger, I used to re-read the same books over and over. I am an avid reader and my parents used to hate buying me books, knowing that I would be finished with them within 3-4 hours. The good part is that the money wasn't wasted...I always re-read them until the pages were literally falling out. :) I know what it's like with the whole moving thing--my husband is active duty Air Force, so we move a lot as well. We never know where to and while we have a general idea of how long, it still is an adjustment. Having the shows, books, music, etc. as a constant help tremendously. My love of "LOST" is awesome, because now that we are stationed in Hawaii, I have seen some of the sets. My love of John Legend has lifted me through 3 assignments and keeps growing. :)
ReplyDeleteI am the same way, C! I bought the entire Seinfeld series in one of those DVD sets that you can buy at Target and I LOVED watching all of them over again. You find yourself laughing just as hard at the very things that made you laugh in the first place. It is such a sweet release! I remember my Uncle Joey and Dad just HOWLING with laughter as they watched Andy Griffith! They would even SAY the dialogue with Andy or Barney and just LAUGH and LAUGH and LAUGH like it was the first time they had heard it. Hahaha!! There is definite comfort in predictability!
ReplyDeleteLoved this! Thank you...
Teri