Relapse of a News Junkie

Today, I did something against my better judgment. And (as isn't it always the case?) I was none the better for it.

Or am I?

The jury, as they say, is still out.

So what did I do? I turned on the news. And I saw finger-pointing. And bullying. And opportunism. Perhaps a little grandstanding. And I have been reeling ever since. I knew better, but I never listen.

I used to need to be informed on politics and all events current (I was a bit of a news junkie). I'm not sure when that changed. It started to aggravate me instead of inspire or interest me. Maybe I just got wise to all the sensationalism and baiting. Maybe I got tired of hearing my dad regurgitate what the different pundits said on any given day about any give hot topic. And I'm pretty sure that it was making me more cynical, to boot.

This just in: it's really hard being a cynic AND a mom.

Sure, life's not all puppy dogs and ice cream, but my kids don't need to know that just yet.

So what did I do before sitting down to write tonight? Yup. More of the same. But in particular, I looked at a news piece that a friend-of-a-friend posted in a Facebook comment. It was eye opening. It didn't take the edge off, not in the least. But it put some things in perspective.

Now I find myself trying to claw my way out of the rabbit hole, so I can bury my head in the sand again and regain that false sense of security that is blissful ignorance.

Edit: as I hopped over to cross-post at BlogHer, I realized I fell down two different hot topic rabbit holes already this week. Definitely time to detox!