VH1 Makes Crack-y Shows

I was flipping through the TV program guide the other morning while I was in my room getting ready for the day. It was mid-morning-ish, so too early for any “Law & Order” episodes on TNT, it wasn’t Monday, so no “Criminal Intent” marathon on USA, and there was something lame on SyFy. I don’t watch TV much during the day – just bits and pieces of grown-up shows here and there as I’m getting ready sometimes.

I have a bad habit of am a firm believer in having “background noise” while I’m doing menial stuff around the house, so when the baby’s napping, I like to have something other than the “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” on for company. Anyway, this particular morning, I saw that “Pop-Up Video” was on VH1.

No. Way. I immediately felt the warring of two emotions: happiness because this thoroughly enjoyable cheesy pop culture show is back on TV, and shame because I knew that I was going to watch every single episode.

Quick summary of the show: As a music video is shown, little tidbits of trivia regarding the artist, lyrics, location, (or anything else, really), pop up on the screen. They’re totally useless facts, but I don’t care. I like the snarky ones best.

In 1997, when we were still in the early stages of our marriage (read: we were poor college students), I got hooked on this show. But my dear husband viewed it with disdain. A quick picture of him: he’s a brilliant nuclear engineer/computational physicist. His favorite author is Dickens, and he reads Hugo’s Les Mis once every year or so…just for fun. This year he attempted it in French. Don’t get me wrong – he is the funniest person I know and enjoys Science Fiction, video games, baking, and being silly with our kids. He just doesn’t care about (or for) pop culture.

I rarely watched the show in our home, but when I would go over to my mom & dad’s house in the middle of the day to grab lunch while they were at work (we were poor and I had no qualms about mooching – thanks, Mom & Dad), I would turn on VH1, knowing that my lunch hour and that crackaliciously addictive show coincided. I loved it, but I felt dirty. Like I was bringing down our family’s culture quotient (Hugo + Dickens + Pop Up Video = we should just buy a mobile home now).

Apparently VH1 has resurrected this little gem, much to my glee/dismay. I’ve DVR-ed every episode, but I’ve discovered a big problem with the show this time around.

It’s not a “background noise” kind of show. Any other show on the planet, I can handle as background noise, but the whole point of this show is the pop-ups. YOU HAVE TO WATCH THE WHOLE SHOW, otherwise you miss the pop-ups. That’d be like Halloween without the chocolate. Or having kids without making them do your chores.

Yesterday, I had thirty minutes before the kids came home from school. It was lunchtime (they get out at noon on Wednesdays – I know, weird), so I nuked a bowl of taco soup and asked myself, “Dear Sweet April, what should you do while you eat this fab bowl of leftover soup?” to which I replied, “Well, I have a couple of options. I could write because I’m behind on my NaNoWriMo word count since I skipped writing last night, or I could watch these Pop Up Video episodes that recorded this morning.” Any confusion as to which option I chose?

Yes, I totally shirked my writing goal to watch PUV. I can’t even tell you, a mere 24 hours later, which videos were on the two shows I watched. Is that sad or what?

One bonus about recording all the episodes is that I can skip the stupid songs or songs I don’t know. John Mayer, I’m looking at you. Well, no, actually I’m NOT looking at you because I just fast-forwarded past you.

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Sorry, had to watch Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me.”

 

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