I have several unfortunate hobbies, two of them involving truly bad television shows, and one involving a good and interesting one that is nonetheless derided by many serious people. (The other two, I’m mainly in the closet about, because any genuine *good* in them is *completely eclipsed* by hack writing and/or rotten special effects)
They are unfortunate because many “serious minded people” think that other “serious minded people” ought to move on to something more serious, and in addition, that if one begins something serious, like say, working for a living, or a marriage, or a professional ‘career’… it’s time to put unfortunate hobbies aside.
“When I was a child I spoke as a child, but when I became a man I put away childish things…”
People who wouldn’t be caught dead paraphrasing St Paul’s advice on wives and marriage..well, they’ll line right up behind his admonition to grow the heck up already.
I also had the unfortunate tendency to introduce the younger members of my family to the least offensive of my unfortunate hobbies, and *they* also have taken it and ran with it well into their thirties…
When my mother discovered that I had indoctrinated one of my cousins in my (least) unfortunate hobby, she said: “It’s so “nice” that **** has someone to share her insanity with.”
Well, some good has already come of that unfortunate hobby, and more still may arrive soon…
And since I’m no longer a screaming adolecsent I generally wait to share these things via email, like the adult I have been forced into becoming….
But last night was too important to wait for the email…Damn the time difference…I called back east and got the cousin on the phone.
There were important developments about the unfortunate hobby…. and some other new film gossip and casting that simply had to be shared via the phone.
I got his wife (a lovely person, resigned to the unfortunate hobby), and then I got my cousin on the phone.
Talking to these cousins…It is quite simply the unalloyed perfect, uncluttered with ambivalence, joy of my life to listen to their successes and trials and share mine with them.
“Are you sitting down? No, wait, you need to be sitting down and drinking a beer at the same time.”
“What? Why? What happened?” Is it about the movie?” Because they’ve cast–”
“No. No wait… it’s about *me* and writing, and [the unfortunate hobby] *at the same time!*”
“Omigawd *what?* *What?* That’s *amazing!* ” and laughing and virtual backpounding are heard across the phone lines… and the real reason I hate being poor is that I cannot simply get on a plane any time I want and go where they are and listen to them and hug them… and then we get down to the business of discussing his latest play, and is that Indiana Jones movie *ever* going to see the light of day …
I’m at the “It’s a joy, just to be nominated” phase, and may not actually be the one that gets to write the piece. But possibly.
Off to work.
(Crossposted to my serious blog)
