Fever Broken

I’m happy to report that the fever of my addiction related to anything even remotely pertaining to the 2008 Presidential Election has finally broken.

How have I come to this conclusion you may ask? Well… for one thing, I haven’t watched Keith Olberman’s Countdown since last Tuesday. I’ve also begun to limit my daily visits to The Huffington Post and CNN.com. Last night I even checked out Unsung on TVOne. In fact, right now as I write this post, I’ve got my old standby Law & Order on the boob tube.

Now, these may seem like baby steps to you, but for me these mini milestones mark real progress, because for the past eight months, all things Obama have consumed me.

So, barring a relapse, I really do believe I’m on my way to returning to that well-rounded Mango Mama my friends and family has come to love.

I'm a Law & Order Head

I am a Law & Order head. I have been for years and before you ask no, it doesn’t matter, I watch them all, the original and all of its subsequent spin-offs. If pressed, I guess I’d say Law & Order Criminal Intent is my least favorite, but that’s just because the lead actor, Vincent D’Onofrio, is a bit creepy. It also doesn’t matter if I’ve seen the episodes half a dozen times; I enjoy them all just the same.

I’m not into violence, but over the past few years, I’ve taken to watching quite a few of these pseudo-documentary/reenactment shows like Snapped, City Confidential and Dominick Dunne’s Power, Privilege and Justice, but hands-down, Law & Order is my absolute favorite.

I’m sure this has something to do with escapism, but a few years ago I discovered that viewing Law & Order also triggers a visceral reaction signaling me to relax. In May 2005, I found myself thousands of miles away from home in a small hotel room in the Netherlands, completely spun out from traveling for almost 24 hrs, and lonely because this was my first trip out of the country without Loverman and the kids, I was on the verge of tears, feeling pitiful when I turned on the TV, and heard the familiar, “dumm… dumm,” Now, let me tell you, at that very moment, this was the perfect elixir for this home-sick mama. I settled down, watched the episode and when it was over, I felt a bit more like myself and was able to get some sleep.

All in all, it’s a pretty harmless indulgence and I know I’m not the only one on this Law & Order bandwagon, but let’s keep it real, I do have an addiction and the road to recovery begins with admitting you have a problem.