I pride myself on being an early adopter. If there's something new and interesting out there, I like to know about, get into it before everyone else does, and be done with it just about the time the masses are discovering what I've already known for weeks, months, or possibly even years.
I had the anvil-sized "car phone," as we used to call it back in the late 80s. (Probably have the latent brain mass to prove it, too.) The first version iPod, which was heavy and awkward and had a very moody battery, and even before that the Intel something-or-other mp3 player which held a whopping 25 songs, which was astounding at the time. (I can tell you, the same 25 songs over and over when you're training for a marathon is enough to kill even the most ardent music-lover.) Became Tivo-addicted right after it came out. Have been on the Green Day bandwagon since Dookie was released in 1994. Loved Road Rules, Survivor, Real World, and The Surreal Life since season one. (I should be embarassed to admit my cheesy reality show penchant, but I'm not.) Anyway, you get the picture.
The only problem with this mindset is if I miss the boat initially, I am super-reluctant to jump on with everyone else--even if I am curious beyond curious about whatever the latest big deal is. It's a matter of pride. This happened to me with yoga, Pilates (luckily, I really don't have a huge desire to do either), Six Feet Under, The Sopranos, and yes, even Sex and the City. Up until recently, I'd resisted all of 'em.
...and then I snuck in a secret series recording of the reruns of Sex and the City. I'd caught enough episodes here and there over the years to know I was missing out on something positively delicious.
Now here I am a few weeks later, totally, completely and 100% obsessed. I can't get enough. Because the episodes go willy-nilly depending on what channel is running them, I never know what's going to happen next. Or sometimes, what happened before. And surprisingly, none of this impedes my sheer delight--in fact, it only serves to enhance it. What are those crazy chicks going to do tonight? Yikes! The strong and less caustic Miranda I know from later seasons dated a guy named Skipper? Why, I wonder, do they talk to the camera in some of the earlier shows? OMG, Charlotte finally loosened up enough to let an artist paint a picture of her nether parts! SJP & Co are like crack to me, and I just keep coming back for more despite the fact I have other productive things I should be doing.
But back the the early adopter thing. You may be wondering how I reconcile wanting to be first in line but actually being so late in the game with this one. Well, here it is: I take a dual-pronged approach featuring justification and denial. If the saying everything old is new again is true, then in this case, I must be so late, I'm actually early--for the second wave of S&TC mania. It's a retro chic, flashback kind of cool I'm flaunting this time--and I'm lovin' every minute of it.
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