I have very seldom watched Oprah

There are many things about this world that I do not understand, and never will.

That is particularly true when it comes to the nuances of contemporary society. Part of the problem is there is just too much to absorb. Things get particularly difficult when one also has a job that demands a lot of hours.

Some might think that a guy like me, who works in the media, would be well up on all the trends in our society. Others might argue I should be familiar with everything. I wish that were the case, but the fact is I don’t have a lot of time for other things. It would be accurate to state that I’m too busy doing my job keeping track of what’s going on to know what’s actually going on.

I hear or read, for example, what TV critics think about what’s on the tube these days. Me, I get a little mystified that these people are able to find the time to watch TV. With all the stations that one can select from these days, I would submit there’s a lot on TV that even the greatest of experts miss.

I know there’s an awful lot that I miss, largely because I don’t have time to watch it.

There are some shows that people watch regularly and are conversant about when it comes to time around the water coolers, and such shows are important parts of these people’s lives. I would never have a problem with that, even if I don’t share the enthusiasm.

Late last week, it seemed all we were hearing or reading about was Oprah Winfrey announcing that she would be bringing her show to a conclusion in about two years.

I often watch CNN when I get home at night (assuming my wife hasn’t got something else on), and it seemed that’s all they were talking about last Thursday evening. The word was out that Winfrey was going to make the announcement, and there were numerous commentators trying to delve into the significance of the event. And it seemed that was all I was hearing about on the radio as I drove to work the following morning. And when I got home that night, guess what was dominating the coverage on CNN?

The departure of Winfrey makes little difference to me, because I have seldom watched her show. She’s on in the afternoon, and I’m usually at work at the time. I have infrequently stumbled on her show while channel hopping. The only time I made a point of catching the show (I taped it) was when she interviewed Muhammad Ali in 2001. It was a memorable thing to watch.

I expect there will be more commentaries about the significance of this development over the next couple of years, and one can easily bet there will be record audiences for her last show. Hell, I might even watch it too, if for no other reason than to be able to say that I watched it.

It wouldn’t be the first time I have succumbed to the temptation of watching something just because everyone else (it seemed) watched it too. It started many years ago, in 1969 when I was still a little kid and my brother and I pleaded for permission to stay up late on a school night to watch the Johnny Carson Show so we could see Tiny Tim get married. Somewhat to my surprise, the permission was granted. I think my folks were just as curious and intrigued about the whole thing as we were. It was a bit unusual, because my parents were usually opposed to doing anything that might have appeared to be going along with a fad. In 1968, at the height of Trudeaumania, my brother Michael hung a Trudeau poster on his bedroom wall. My dad told him to take it down, or he said he would put it up on his dart board and use it for target practice. The really interesting part of the whole affair is Dad later confided in us that he had voted for Trudeau in the election of ‘68, although we were admonished not to let word of that out of the house. He’d probably be pretty peeved with me for what I set down in the last sentence, but my father is no longer in a position to stop my allowance.

But he would probably be impressed with the fact that I inherited some of his abhorrence of appearing to be trendy, although I have given in to the temptation on occasion.

I have gone to see movies just so I could hold my own in discussions about them. Some of the films have been great, and in other cases, I have come away angry that I let myself be duped into paying to watch rubbish.

In 2000, when the first Survivor series was a main office talking point, I let my curiosity get the better of me. I had heard so much office talk about about the various participants that Beth and I sat down to watch it one night. The scenarios were silly and the I had trouble taking the whole premise seriously, but we watched it that week, and the following week and the week after that. Okay, I admit it! I was attracted to the curvaceous women on the show, especially Colleen.

Indeed, we were a little frustrated that the finale was slated to be aired while we were on holiday in the Maritimes. Fortunately, the account of the winner made the front pages, even in New Brunswick (besides, we taped it and watched the whole thing when we got home).

I’m happy to report that common sense reasserted itself in the aftermath. I have not watched a single episode of any subsequent Survivor series, and I haven’t missed it.

But I don’t hold it against anyone who watches such shows. They have their place in the way our society works, sparking conversation and social interaction.

Besides, what right do I have telling people how they must spend their free time?