We all have them – those terrible TV shows we can’t stop watching (fess up, Jersey Shore lovers), trashy books we hide under literary book covers or really bad food we eat in the dark and hope no one ever finds out about it. Well, the Wickeds are revealing our own guilty pleasures this week, so make sure you come clean about yours!
Liz: Everyone’s going to laugh at me for this one, so I’ll get it out of the way: I love Monkees reruns. When I was a kid, I watched them (they were reruns then too, in case anyone was wondering) and they’ve remained my favorite silly show for all these years. There are good memories attached, too – The Monkees were as much a part of my summertime as a kid as the wild blackberry bushes growing behind my house, ice cream at Super Swirl and visiting my grandparents in the evenings after long days of swimming in the pool. See, if I throw a little nostalgia in, it doesn’t seem so silly, right? At least it isn’t Honey Boo Boo!
Jessie: Liz, why am I not surprised that your guilty pleasure is sort of animal related? Mine is Hello Kitty. I am always amazed by how much I am drawn to pink plastic things with that cat on them. It is inexplicable and undeniable. But it’s not like I have a Hello Kitty problem. I can control myself. Mostly. While I admire and consider buying Hello Kitty slippers and ear buds and cellphone covers, I stoically confine my weakness to only one area of life. I have a collection of Hello Kitty bento gear. I have several bento boxes, lunch bags and sandwich cutters. I have had furikake packets with her image on the front, napkins and even cutlery. If you want a rice ball shaped like Hello Kitty’s head, I can hook you up.
Sherry: I recently discovered a TV channel called Me TV. It plays old TV shows. And one of my favorite shows from when I was young (and unlike Liz it wasn’t reruns) was That Girl with Marlo Thomas starring as Anne Marie, the aspiring actress. I wanted the purple dress with matching parasol she wore in the opening credits. I wanted to move to New York City and live in her apartment. But I always thought she deserved a better looking boyfriend than Donald.
Edith: All right, you’ve focused the interrogation spotlight on me for a reason. I just know you have. I’ll admit it. Fritos. Wouldn’t you think after reading the nutritional label even ONCE that I’d never go near them again? But no. My esteemed author colleague Margaret hosts the excellent Salem Monday Night Writers Group that has been responsible for improving every scene I have ever read to them. And no matter how many times I promise myself on the way there not to touch them, the minute she pours those Fritos, thick and crunchy, into the bowl, my hand goes right after them. At least it’s only once a week, right?
Julie: These are all excellent guilty pleasures. Mine? Soy chai latte from Starbucks. Seriously, I don’t know what is in it, but it works magic on me. I’ve gotten chai lattes from other coffee houses, and they aren’t as good. Recently I discovered that they are delish cold, which isn’t good. And for the record, guilty pleasure TV show? Murder She Wrote, natch.
