How far removed are you from Mainstream America?

[earllogjam]

I went to Safeway (the local mega grocery store) this afternoon and while standing at the check out line I glanced over to the 5-6 gossip magazines they usually have opposite the candy rack and I didn't recognize a single person who was featured on all their covers.

It dawned on me that I know nothing about current popular culture and that I really didn't care. I looked down into my hand basket and there were 2 pints of organic blueberries, some stilton cheese, sliced bread from Vita Vittles bakery, kosher salt, and a bag of frozen scallops.

I looked at the conveyor belt of the person in front of me and there was Kellogs box cereal, a sack of potatoes, hot dogs, ground beef, frozen pizza, gogurt, and whole bunch of commercial junk food that she had coupons for. I looked at the other conveyor belts on each lane besides me and they were all buying the same kind of stuff. Was my diet and interests so different from everyone elses? Is this why I have a hard time finding any type of joy in things everyone else seems to enjoy, revere?

It dawned on me that I have slowly drifted very far, far, far away from mainstream America and all the commercial popular culture that it holds important and dear. How does this happen?

 

[arkfarmbear]

I think you answered your own question in your last sentence. I am in the same boat as you. I'm 55 so I attribute a lot of my distance to that. Also I am gay and single and live in a small town. If you want more evidence of your supposition log on to Forbes.com and look at their lists of who the power players are today. Forbes is a far distance from The Enquirer politically and culturally. When the two of them give ink and paper to the same people it says a lot about the world today.

 

[TomCat84]

I went to Safeway (the local mega grocery store) this afternoon and while standing at the check out line I glanced over to the 5-6 gossip magazines they usually have opposite the candy rack and I didn't recognize a single person who was featured on all their covers.

It dawned on me that I know nothing about current popular culture and that I really didn't care. I looked down into my hand basket and there were 2 pints of organic blueberries, some stilton cheese, sliced bread from Vita Vittles bakery, kosher salt, and a bag of frozen scallops.

I looked at the conveyor belt of the person in front of me and there was Kellogs box cereal, a sack of potatoes, hot dogs, ground beef, frozen pizza, gogurt, and whole bunch of commercial junk food that she had coupons for. I looked at the other conveyor belts on each lane besides me and they were all buying the same kind of stuff. Was my diet and interests so different from everyone elses? Is this why I have a hard time finding any type of joy in things everyone else seems to enjoy, revere?

It dawned on me that I have slowly drifted very far, far, far away from mainstream America and all the commercial popular culture that it holds important and dear. How does this happen?

I always get a sense of self satisfaction when looking at other people's items in the grocery store. Me with my lean meats, fresh fruits and veggies, olive oil, spinach- and others with their nasty processed foods and gross 2% fruit juice cocktails.

 

[mista geechee]

I went to Safeway (the local mega grocery store) this afternoon and while standing at the check out line I glanced over to the 5-6 gossip magazines they usually have opposite the candy rack and I didn't recognize a single person who was featured on all their covers.

It dawned on me that I know nothing about current popular culture and that I really didn't care. I looked down into my hand basket and there were 2 pints of organic blueberries, some stilton cheese, sliced bread from Vita Vittles bakery, kosher salt, and a bag of frozen scallops.

I looked at the conveyor belt of the person in front of me and there was Kellogs box cereal, a sack of potatoes, hot dogs, ground beef, frozen pizza, gogurt, and whole bunch of commercial junk food that she had coupons for. I looked at the other conveyor belts on each lane besides me and they were all buying the same kind of stuff. Was my diet and interests so different from everyone elses? Is this why I have a hard time finding any type of joy in things everyone else seems to enjoy, revere?

It dawned on me that I have slowly drifted very far, far, far away from mainstream America and all the commercial popular culture that it holds important and dear. How does this happen?

I'm with you on that earl. Maybe one reaches such a point of introspection and conciousness that we just stop caring about people's bullshit. Breaking away from the herd is empowering AND a curse at the same time since people will start to view you as as alien as you view them.

As far as the diet thing goes I agree with that as well. I only eat organic foods and lean meats (mainly whatever I catch from the ocean)......no salt , sugars , or greasy fast foods.

 

[vince]

We've been noticing the change in you too Earl. Especially since you got your Canadian citizenship papers. You might want to start watching more mainstream TV sitcoms, reality shows and Fox News.

 

[earllogjam]

Vince, I have a 1975 Sony Trinitron TV with bunny ears that only gets 12 preset channels. Boy, that is telling isn't it.

Dictated nostalgia, it's the kind of longing one has for an era you've never experienced before but only know through the media. Like a 20 year old thinking back on the glorious 60's and the Beetles even though he wasn't born yet. And he thinks it was a great time because every damn thing he has read, heard or seen glorifies it.

Well, I think I'm stuck in the 70's. It's all coming to me now, Neil Young, hippies, Gordon Lightfoot, Canadian citizenship, organic produce...it's all rather tragic. I'm a modern day hippy in this Nancy Reagan inspired horrifying world of 2011.

 

[B_Nick8]

You are a product of your own imagination, that's true.

To answer your question: as far as possible. But not in ways you would understand. Or necessarily respect given your personal worldview.

 

[joe bltsflk]

smug - http://webcache.googleusercontent.c...&gl=us&client=firefox-a&source=www.google.comExhibiting or feeling great or offensive satisfaction with oneself or with one's situation

 

[D_Rosalind Mussell]

Because I have a child I need to keep up with what's current. If it weren't for my son I would know a lot less about pop culture. Otherwise, I couldn't care less. As I get older I find myself gravitating towards the older ways of doing things. Less technology and more hands-on, the way my grandmother used to do things. There is a visceral satisfaction that comes from having your feet firmly planted in the physical world and getting your hands dirty. I prefer my life to be this way.

 

[D_Rosalind Mussell]

I always get a sense of self satisfaction when looking at other people's items in the grocery store. Me with my lean meats, fresh fruits and veggies, olive oil, spinach- and others with their nasty processed foods and gross 2% fruit juice cocktails.

What are you self-satisfied by? I fail to understand why another person's food choices would give you this feeling.

 

[tbrguy]

Kosher salt? NaCl...

But apart from that I get your point, likewise in the UK, I haven't a clue what people are talking about half the time; and I'm not in the least bit bothered.

 

[earllogjam]

You are a product of your own imagination, that's true.

To answer your question: as far as possible. But not in ways you would understand. Or necessarily respect given your personal worldview.

From what I gather you are a very wealthy person who was born into money, had cancer and over came it and was a valiant friend to Jason, and helped him tirelessly during his illness. I do respect you for that. But I don't know who you are to understand your life or make any judgments.

You do seem to harbor contempt for me in every one of your posts on my threads however which I don't understand. Perhaps your meanness surfaces on other threads as well. I have no ill feeling towards you.

 

[nudeyorker]

Earl for whatever it's worth I don't think I've ever been part of mainstream america and as I get older I'm very grateful. When I got to UCLA I realized that my brother and I were not raised like most others.
Living in New York and Hawaii are about as far off the radar as you can get from mainstream and still live in the United States. I'm happy with my individual differences and if I need to learn something about pop culture I have friends with teenage and young adult children.

 

[LaFemme]

I could rationalize my subscription to People Magazine, my monthly visit to McDonalds and my inability to look away from Big Brother - but I won't. I eat well most of the time, I read well most of the time, I work my ass off in a job I love and I am a good productive person. I have friends and family with whom I spend time and who I love dearly and who love me dearly. I'm pretty tight with the mainstream and I'm fine with that. And that's ok with me.

Alright, here's a little rationalization. I work really hard in a highly emotional line of work. I need brain floss. It's all about balance and moderation.

 

[Bbucko]

I'm also very far removed from mainstream America:

1) I don't watch TV except for occasional edits of things like The Daily Show or Rachel Maddow's program which I watch on the internet;

2) I loathe suburbia and find suburban sprawl to be appalling;

3) I live car-free, which continues a life-long pattern. I bought my first car when I was 38 and got rid of the second one seven years later. I've never understood the concept of the "freedom" cars are supposed to provide: to me they are nothing but an expensive, ugly, polluting, dangerous responsibility;

4) I was never really ever in the closet and came out to everyone when I was still in High School in 1977. Aside from four (dreadful, for me) years in Connecticut, I've always lived in either very gay-friendly cities or right in the center of a gay ghetto;

5) Though I'm hardly a foodie purist, I do buy whole, real foods that have been subject to minimal processing (as much as I can). I'm also a rather adventurous eater and will order things in restaurants that many/most Americans wouldn't;

6) I speak two and a half languages: my French is just about as good as my English, and if I weren't so damn lazy about studying/learning their verbs, my Spanish would be fluent, too (hence the 1/2). I understand spoken Spanish perfectly well and have a pretty good vocabulary of nouns and adjectives;

7) Back when I could travel, I'd spend as much time as possible in one place (instead of travel packages where you see five cities in ten days) and immerse myself in the culture, riding public transit and/or trains and generally avoiding tourist must-sees. I would go raving insane on a cruise;

8) I've always had kinda odd, creative jobs that have made most people ask "How'd you get into that?", and I've hardly if ever worked a job that I didn't really enjoy.

 

[Calboner]

I regard the popular music that has been produced in my lifetime (I'm 50 years old) as pretty much all a waste of time.

I sometimes write letters.

If it weren't for the Internet, I would probably be even more clueless about current slang and vogue phrases than I am.