TV shows and Community

Yesterday I watched the last 2 episodes of Desperate Housewives. I really liked that show. It was entertaining and fun. It's one of the few girly shows I watch on TV- all the other shows I watch are on HBO and Showtime. When I was a teenager my mom forbade any kind of American shows at home. The first I was able to watch was ER when I was 15. I missed Melrose Place, Beverly Hills, and others. I watched Friends after high school because a friend of mine brought it to the dormitory I was staying at.

Even though I didn't watch a lot of American TV shows, the ones I watched influenced the way I thought about community in the US. Call me naive but I really thought people in the US were like in TV shows. French TV shows are pretty good at depicting life at is actually is in France, so I didn't think US shows would be any different. So I thought neighbors exchanged recipes and hung out all the time. And then I went to the US and... OH MY was I wrong! It was so hard to find real friends, to feel like I belonged. People in Southern Cal were friendly enough -actually very friendly- but never went the extra mile to forge deep bonds. That might be due to the fact that I was 25 when I arrived and most people had had friends in the area for years. They didn't need new friends but I did and it was tough always being the one initiating get togethers. Even here in Seattle it took me years to find a church and the (wonderful!) friends I have are all from work. Maybe it's a matter of location -maybe Southerners are more likely to forge friendships with neighbors- and maybe it's me -I'm aware that I am not an extrovert. In any case, I kind of felt cheated when I arrived in the US.

TV lied to me!!

Um, yes, I know...

I'll stick to HBO in the future. Waaaay more realistic!