Avoiding aggravation

There is plenty in the world and in our private lives that aggravates, worries, depresses, etc. Some we simply cannot avoid. Enter the Serenity Prayer. Decide which aggravations you may be able to act upon that will result in a change and which irritations you must accept.

There are plenty of aggravations we can avoid by not going "there". "There" might be a message board with many hate filled posters. It might be a social event attended by people who will bother you by their words or deeds. "There" might be a TV show, which should be among the easiest of all to avoid.

A few nights ago my husband had Nancy Grace on TV for a while. We live in Michigan and he was curious about her upcoming interview with the mother of a missing child, Nevaeh Buchanan, whose body was found a few days before the interview. I didn't last until the interview. I often agree with Nancy Grace's opinions, but her delivery irritates me. No offense meant to those who like her. I probably enjoy some TV celebrities or entertainers that set your teeth on edge. Nancy, or at least her TV persona, could announce that today is Thursday, June 11th, and something about her delivery would make me wince or twitch.

David Letterman is another TV celebrity that I seldom watch. He has made many funny observations and jokes, but I don't personally care for him. I was not watching when he made his remarks about the Palin family attending a Yankee game the other night. I wouldn't have known about his apology that aired last night if not for Good Morning America and a local radio station discussing it this morning. I am not a fan of Governor Palin, but making her 14 year old daughter the butt of crude jokes is inexcusable. Letterman contends that he was referring to her older daughter who is 18 and an unmarried mother. Bristol, the older daughter, is not the one who was at the game. If Letterman's apology had been sincere, he could have stated that and moved on, but if you saw his show or google for the video clip, his so-called apology was ugly. I am not implying that Bristol should have been the butt of any joke either, but his point is that an 18 year old is of legal age. If I comment on that it will lead to many more comments and I will never get offline today.

I am not against making jokes about celebrities. They chose to put themselves in the spotlight and many jokes are funny and not truly malicious. I suppose it is a matter of taste, and not everyone has the same taste. I would like to think that when in doubt if a subject is in good taste, we would err on the side of kindness. If children are involved, there should be no question at all.

Let's be kind to ourselves by avoiding that which aggravates us whenever we can, and be kind to each other with a simple smile.