I'm watching Hoarders. Mostly because nothing else is on. According to Wikipedia, most hoarders are men, but I think all the ones I've ever seen on this show are women hoarders. (And I'll tell you right now, it's definitely not because TLC is pushing the T&A for the young adult male audience.) Though I've only seen maybe 4 episodes.

I wish I could say that everything I have in my apartment serves a purpose. I have this efficient, minimalist ideal in my head that I think I inherited from my mother, but I also have a hard time throwing out old books I've read, which sounds like my dad's influence. I also tend to save gifts even if they have no use to me. That might be out of guilt. And I find that I can easily throw out any books if I can keep the digital Kindle version, so now my book collection is actually shrinking. It's like I have this fear that I might want to randomly look up something in an old book I've read. Though I don't think that's honestly ever happened. Every quotable thing is already on the internet, and I don't have gobs of time to sit and re-experience old books.

Ha! Now Toddlers & Tiaras is on. Some show about little kid beauty pageants. TLC FTW! It's a little weird to tell your 7 year old kid to be flirty and sexy. But if you don't push too hard, that's probably better for the kid than sitting them in front of the Jersey Shore or other reality tv influences. Most of the kids in this episode at least seem to be fairly happy. Besides, I think Britney Spears grew up doing these pageants, and she used to be well balanced.

I should find something useful to do.

Update. Now watched the whole episode and I take it back. This should be illegal. It's kinda funny and cute or whatever when the parents are practicing with kids at home, but everything changes when they put these kids in makeup on a stage and make them strut back and forth. Something very unsettling about it. And kids grow up in that environment, don't they? There's a 3 year old league, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9... it just keeps going. The 3 year olds are disturbing because they're showing a bare midriff while being dragged around stage by a parent, and the 9 year olds are disturbing because they're like miniature people!

I also tend to think kids should try not get emotionally invested in competition before high school. Kid life should be carefree.