Monday, September 24, 2007

mixed messages

We had house guests over the weekend and one of them left the latest Oprah magazine. I'm not a big magazine subscriber. In fact, the two that I receive, The New Yorker and More, are both gifts from family/friends. So, after I finished folding the tenth basket of laundry last night, I poured myself a diet coke and flipped through Oprah's latest.

Perhaps it was the frame of mind I was in, laundry can do that to me, but I really felt the entire magazine did nothing to make most women feel better about themselves. The articles are all focused on self improvement, but I'd guess the examples provided are fairly unattainable for the majority of the readers she is targeting. The icing on the cake was Oprah's essay at the end. She waxed poetic on taking the summer off and recharching her batteries while lounging in Hawaii eating fresh produce and watching 28 consecutive sunsets. Wow.

Good for you, Oprah, so glad you can step away from your media empire and recharge. Most women who read your magazine and contribute money to your brokerage accounts would settle for a day out of the house.

I tend to get a bit peeved at celebrities informing us how to be more fulfilled, how to recharge, how to look, eat and dress. They don't represent reality and the message they send isn't helpful or even healthy, although they tell us it is.

I used to watch Oprah and I've even been to her show. Heck, I sat in her chair on stage. After spending time on her magazine last night, I can't say I appreciate the message she has to offer. If I ever get to Hawaii for a month, maybe I'll change my mind.

3 comments:

A Paperback Writer said...

You were on Oprah? Well, that's kind of cool.
I don't watch the show. Heck, I don't watch any shows because I haven't watched TV (other than Channel One at school) since 1982. But it's still kinda spiffy. How'd you manage that?
Let's see: I've been on TV news in various countries, usually dancing, but sometimes locally because of our school's academic team. I also was filmed for a royal command performance in Sweden, so I assume it went on the air. And then there was the 3-week documentary for the Chinese government -- but who knows what they did with it. I also did an Oktoberfest commercial and got paid as an extra (whoopee).
But I've never been on anything famous like Oprah.

Oh, and as to your celebrity comments; I don't reallly follow the lives of any celebrities, nor do I read such mags. But I can see your point.

EYR said...

I wasn't 'on' as a guest, I was in the audience....but I did make it on stage and in the opening segment of the show, my best buddy and I were in a crowd closeup shot, thus on national TV for about ten seconds.

I called and got tickets for her show. I lived just outside of Chicago in Indiana back then. Once there, the director was warming up the crowd and I was picked to be our section's cheerleader. Now, that is a real hoot for anyone who knows me, because I am so not a cheerleader!

I led our group in their cheer and sat down. The director was supposed to have given me a free tee shirt for my efforts and he forgot. So, the audience called him on it and I got the free shirt and was offered the chance to sit in her chair.

And that is my brief brush with Oprah. Our butts occupied the same seat, at different times, that day.

A Paperback Writer said...

Well, I'm glad you didn't sit on her lap.
Still, that's a good tale. I am entertained.