thirtysomething

One of my all time favorite shows turns twentysomething with the release of their first season. I had forgotten that Bill had long since pre-ordered the first season that came yesterday. I was so NOT the coveted Madison Ave demographic of 25-49year olds targeted when this show originally appeared in the late 1980s. But for some reason I started watching this show and rarely missed it. Sometimes I watched it with my mom which lead to interesting conversations about the view of marriage/family that was very much not what the norm in my house.

I can't wait to watch this show again, this time from the said demographic of the show namesake. I wonder how much I will identify with the themes of this show as they relate to my own life? Already I remember that this show was a commentary on married with children life vs unmarried friends, the ever important work/life balance, making and keeping adult friendships, inlaws, dealing with serious life issues like illness and the death of parents, marital problems, and most of all sense of identity as you pass from your twenties into thirties. I wonder who I will identify with the most (if at all) being the same age as the creators of this show in 1987?

Actually I think I could answer that question now, but re-watching the show will be interesting to see if my memory serves me right.

Last night I was out with some friends and we were talking about indiscretions of our youth/twenties. I have to admit I was a boring soul for most of my 20s. Bill and I met and were married by the time we were 21. We both worked a ton of hours at jobs and kept up with college friends still in the area for the time we still lived in Birmingham. It wasn't until we moved to Raleigh 10 years ago that adding grad school, job changes/unemployment stints, illness and the care of parents complicated our lives. Having a child even further made me realize that being an adult often times meant trade off and decisions that I never dreamed I would make.

The past few months of being in multiple stressful situation have been especially revealing in that after 15 years together and 13 married we are the typical young married family dealing with much of what the show thirtysomething attempted to define as specific to the Yuppie generation. As I watch I will see that not much has really changed and that this age truly is a crossroads from leaving behind the irresponsible person you once were (and sometimes miss) and the knowledge that you are changing into the responsible adult that you feared would one day become.

Here's to 80s hair, men in suspenders, the heyday of print journalism, wine snobbery, the rise of video dating, and everything else that defined the late 1980s. I think I will remember the over analytical, self-reflective aspect of the show and find my 34 year old self.