THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 22, 1996 TAG: 9609180037
SECTION: REAL LIFE PAGE: K1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JASPER SHORT
LENGTH: 75 lines
NOW THAT Nathan is dead, will Olivia and Malcolm get together? I hope Ryan doesn't let that witch, Victoria, back in his life.
No, these aren't my actual friends. My life isn't this exciting. These are story lines from my favorite television show, ``The Young & the Restless.''
From as early as I can remember, it's been taboo for men to admit to watching soap operas. Actually, telling another guy about your soap fetish is cause to be banned from the ``universal brotherhood.''
But I don't care. I still watch. I always have.
I remember as a little boy watching ``The Edge of Night'' and ````Love of Life '' with Mom as she ironed Dad's shirts. Years later, while in college, I learned that a sure way to get in good with the girls on campus was to stay up on what was happening on the more popular soaps.
The show to watch then was ``General Hospital.'' The main story line centered on Luke and Laura. Talk about a conversation piece! Try turning the TV channel in the Student Union Building while this was on and you risked life and limb.
The Student Union was the gathering place for most of the women who were either between classes or simply cutting them to watch their sexy daytime dramas. Sprinkled throughout this horde were unsuspecting guys who had no idea that the ritual of watching soaps would turn into a lifetime addiction.
To walk in and hear the various conversations going on between the ``soapheads,'' you'd think there were some very riveting lifestyles on campus. ``She slept with Monica's husband while Monica was sleeping with Rick.'' Even I sometimes had trouble separating the show from real life.
Luke, Laura, Bobbi, Scotty - man, they were my friends.
Upon graduating, I reached what I considered to be a crisis. I got a daytime job. Although VCRs were around, I didn't own one. I gradually had to divorce the GH gang. They weren't the kind of ``friends'' that you could see only now and then.
Just as I was getting over my old friends, my girlfriend, who was still in school, would invite me over to her place during lunch. I found myself falling in love - not with um, what's-her-name, but with Lauren, Ashley, and the rest of the gang from ``The Young and the Restless.'' Even Luke and Laura couldn't compare to Victor and Ashley!
Because of my newfound love, I had two options. I could either buy a VCR or find a night job. Since I wasn't nocturnal, I opted for the VCR and five hours every week of my new favorite show.
Although I loved talking sports, I spent my breaks at work talking to female colleagues about the soaps.
All of this seemed to confuse my buddies. They concluded that I was only trying to get in good with the ladies. But that was secondary. My first priority was to hear their views on Crickett and Danny.
Once the guys realized that I truly liked the soaps, they kidded me incessantly. But one by one, I eventually turned them on to the underhanded dealings of Jack Abbott and his running feud with Victor Newman. Though they tried to appear unconcerned, I could see that they, too, were beginning to get hooked.
Now I have male friends who will call at night just to ask if I've seen the Y&R. When I tell them that I just got home, some even proceed to tell me what happened. Darryl, for one, can hardly contain himself. He says, ``Hurry up and watch it, and call me back!''
These are the same guys who once called only to talk about what Magic Johnson did against the Celtics. Now, if time permits, we might take a few moments to talk basketball, but only after we discuss the happenings of Phyllis and Danny.
That not's to say that I talk about the Y&R with all of my buddies. Ray, my closest friend, and I, never discuss the show. He's an ``All My Children'' fan.
But for you guys who don't watch soaps, don't worry about me, I'm playing basketball Saturday morning.
Right after I watch Friday's episode of ``The Young and the Restless.'' MEMO: Jasper Short watches his favorite soap in Portsmouth where he
lives with his wife and daughter. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Jasper Short by CNB