I’m on maternity leave and I’ve realized that means one thing is certain. It means I become addicted to daytime television. Oh Lord, help me because I cannot help myself.
It’s inevitable. It happened when I was on mat leave with my older daughter and I can see the tell-tale signs creeping in again. I feel powerless to stop it.
It starts off simple enough. I start off with just watching one, albeit the most ridiculous one. Yes, it’s true and I’m not ashamed to admit I watch The View. I can’t help it. I can’t resist a good cat fight; it’s like a train wreck that I just can’t look away from. These women are vicious and Elizabeth is just so freaking clueless.
And then one slowly morphs into two which slowly morphs into three which eventually morphs into every single daytime talk show on the goddamn screen. It’s a sickness and it’s taking over my mat leave.
I don’t even always enjoy them to be honest. It’s always the same fashion tips and health scares and beauty makeovers. Yet, I faithfully watch them because you just never know and the one I miss might be the one that was meant just for me. How can I be my best possible self if I don’t have the perfect lipstick for my skin tone?! It’s unfathomable.
These shows are my entertainment when I’m breastfeeding and since I’m ALWAYS breastfeeding, I’m ALWAYS watching them. They’re just so easy. I don’t have to pay much attention to what’s going on, I can miss part of the show without it making any difference, I can start watching halfway through an episode and still know what’s going on. See how easy that is? How can I be expected to fight that?
I know I could read a book or spend some quality time just enjoying my baby instead of watching television. I sure could but I don’t. First of all, maneuvering a book while breastfeeding is actually harder than it looks and secondly, I spend a lot of time enjoying my baby. Twenty-four hours of it, to be exact.
To be completely honest, it’s my time to just relax. It’s my time to not think and not worry and not do anything. Yes, it’s like a vacuum that sucks me into its mind-numbing abyss but I can’t say I really mind. Being a parent is hard work and sometimes, that’s just what you need. Escapism at its absolute finest.
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