"Intelligent" Gossip

I get judged at home when I purchase a People magazine. Geoff thinks it is a silly waste of time and that it is strange that I am remotely interested in reading it. (He also thinks Facebook is waste of time...which it mostly true, but it keeps me connected to my Seattle peeps, and for that I am so very grateful.) And my People magazine? It is people-watching in print. I love watching and listening to people. They are interesting, all of them. Even you. (Why do you think I stalk your blog, if you have one...or your house, if you don't have a blog or haven't posted in a while?)

And in defense of his objection: reading about beautiful strangers is a waste of time. I know that. They have nothing to do with my life. No impact on my decisions, including and especially my spiritual and political and moral decisions.

What I find interesting is that if I bring a People magazine home, I feel a little naughty. But (and this is the intrigue for me) if I bring home a biography on a former president of the United States or some other respected person in history, it isn't gossip, it's history, and deemed worthy of time. Even though it is just gossip.

No, it's not quite People Magazine, but then again, I don't want to see pictures of John Adams in a speedo on the beach with his beloved Abigail and their children. Well...maybe a picture of their children on the beach, because that's just precious... (what is it with America's fascination with celebrity babies, their parents are celebrities, and so then, they become celebrities? poor things. truly.)