I am a Television Slut
OK, it's official. I will watch absolutely anything on that damn box, no matter what the quality. Some of you know that I do have a bit of an obsession with pop culture and so have watched the odd reality TV show here and there. I see two distinct types: 1) Shows the elevate the human spirit (Three Wishes, Town Haul and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition) and 2) Shows that feature the dark side of humanity (Survivor, Fear Factor, the Surreal Life, etc.)
I saw one the other day though that beggars belief and categorization. Of course, it came from across the Pond. The Brits are getting good at shock value, and this show was the best yet. It was called "Too Posh to Wash" and the basic premise was to find an individual with horrible personal hygiene habits (and I mean horrible), expose them and their horrible habits to millions of other TV sluts, and then turn them around, give them a shower, and try to heal them of their sorry ways. They do this - not a word of a lie - by taking swabs of their underarms and other nasty bits and their clothing to a scientific lab for bacterial analysis. These people don't change their underwear, they smell, and they certainly don't brush their teeth or wash their hair regularly. And the show gets their "guests" from the upper crust of British society (hence, the posh). I suppose there was a reason for calling them the upper crust - seems they build it up over years of not washing. Shades of life at the French court at Versailles coming back to me.
Regardless, the one fact that stuck with me was that a normal bra will have about 800 to 1,000 bacteria on it after a day's use. That freaked me out enough. To the washing machine! They then tested this poor woman's bra - which she hadn't washed for a full year - and it had over 80 million bacteria on it. The scientist-guy said he torched it after testing it.
I thought that admitting to the world that your house was a foul mess was bad enough (that's How Clean is your House? hosted by the same two women) but this show... well, I was speechless. But apparently not wordless. Fear not, fellow bloggers. You need not watch these vile shows yourself. Apparently, I will watch anything, and I will report back on it. Same Bat-time, same Bat-channel. Stay tuned - you know I will.
OK, it's official. I will watch absolutely anything on that damn box, no matter what the quality. Some of you know that I do have a bit of an obsession with pop culture and so have watched the odd reality TV show here and there. I see two distinct types: 1) Shows the elevate the human spirit (Three Wishes, Town Haul and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition) and 2) Shows that feature the dark side of humanity (Survivor, Fear Factor, the Surreal Life, etc.)
I saw one the other day though that beggars belief and categorization. Of course, it came from across the Pond. The Brits are getting good at shock value, and this show was the best yet. It was called "Too Posh to Wash" and the basic premise was to find an individual with horrible personal hygiene habits (and I mean horrible), expose them and their horrible habits to millions of other TV sluts, and then turn them around, give them a shower, and try to heal them of their sorry ways. They do this - not a word of a lie - by taking swabs of their underarms and other nasty bits and their clothing to a scientific lab for bacterial analysis. These people don't change their underwear, they smell, and they certainly don't brush their teeth or wash their hair regularly. And the show gets their "guests" from the upper crust of British society (hence, the posh). I suppose there was a reason for calling them the upper crust - seems they build it up over years of not washing. Shades of life at the French court at Versailles coming back to me.
Regardless, the one fact that stuck with me was that a normal bra will have about 800 to 1,000 bacteria on it after a day's use. That freaked me out enough. To the washing machine! They then tested this poor woman's bra - which she hadn't washed for a full year - and it had over 80 million bacteria on it. The scientist-guy said he torched it after testing it.
I thought that admitting to the world that your house was a foul mess was bad enough (that's How Clean is your House? hosted by the same two women) but this show... well, I was speechless. But apparently not wordless. Fear not, fellow bloggers. You need not watch these vile shows yourself. Apparently, I will watch anything, and I will report back on it. Same Bat-time, same Bat-channel. Stay tuned - you know I will.
Comments
Postively, gut-wrenchingly gross.
I think we have a certain fascination with things that makes us feel personally much less freakish than we deeply fear we are.
I might be a freak, but I'm a hygenic freak, dammit!
Just had a vision... watching TV, running up and down stairs to do laundry... pop culture, cleanliness and a workout, all rolled into one. Sounds like a good way to spend an evening!
Do keep us posted, Oh Goddess of Pop Culture.