Tuesday 20 November 2007

Sad Persons Anonymous

I have a confession to make. I watch Strictly Come Dancing. Religiously, on a Saturday night, I watch the entire show. It is the only TV programme I specifically sit down to watch. And I watch the results show on Sunday (although, BBC? We all know the Sunday show is a con. It is recorded on Saturday night and could be a grand total of 15 minutes long and still happily include the recap, the results, the dance-off and the ejection of the losing couple. Don't make me sit through Westlife please.)

I also watch Strictly Come Dancing It Takes Two on weekday evenings. In my defence, I am usually pottering about the kitchen anyway so have it on in the background but I do specifically turn it on. I love Claudia and I especially love Claudia getting dancing lessons from Len. That's the week's best 5 minutes of comedy on TV. Second Born too, likes his SCD. He and I creep upstairs on a Saturday to watch it together sprawled on my bed making scathing comments (we are experts, you know). But I am slightly worried that this is not a good influence on SB

I may have mentioned before that we are not a sporty household. I am married to one of only about half a dozen Scottish men who couldn't care less about sport, and particuarly about football. My brother has in the past stated that bringing boys up in this heathen atmosphere is tantamount to child abuse. This issue was thrown into sharp relief yesterday morning.

We drop the boys at school at a pedestrian crossing manned by a very nice lollipop man. He always chats to the kids while they are waiting to cross and on Monday, he started with the opening gambit which would have worked with 99% of the Scottish population: "What did you think of the result on Saturday, eh? Rotten, wasn't it?" My boys both looked a bit blank and I suddenly realised that SB might take this as a SCD reference and the lollipop man's reference to Scotland's defeat at the hands (feet?) of Italy would be greeted by "What do you mean? Kate and Anton were long overdue to be kicked out! That pasa doble was rubbish!"

Fortunately, the light changed and the boys crossed before they had a chance to answer. SB's reputation as a Scottish male is intact. For now.

3 comments:

  1. I wonder if there's such a profession as a television psychologist - a person who understand why people get addicted to certain television shows? I can imagine that the athleticism of competitive dancing would interest you. I'm also fascinated by the mother & son element of this. My partner has spent many a saturday evening having special time on the couch with our last born (3rd, in his early teens) as they watched such trash as The Bill, and Doctor Who together. I suspect this is the way mothers and sons can both feel comfortable about spending time together in a bonding sort of way.

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  2. At the supermarket checkout on Saturday -

    Checkout girl: You going home to watch the game, then?

    Us, in unison: Game?

    My husband did remember it given a moment, but claimed that he had an excuse, since he's not even Scottish.

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  3. Yes, I'm married to one of the other non-sport-watching men.

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