The best reality show ever begins.....

  It only happens once a year and it is totally unscripted. Of course I am speaking of the NCAA College Basketball Tournament. You will not hear me call it March Madness. That is the term that should be reserved for the number of snowstorms that roll through my hometown of Painesdale, Michigan every year. The rest of the country looks forward to spring while the snow just keeps on coming. Now that is madness.
  I won't refer to "The Big Dance" either. When I was growing up the big dance was the Homecoming dance. It also happened once a year and like the tournament, it was filled with pressure. With my long hair, big nose, bigger ears and questionable fashion choices, I was rejection looking for a place to sit. As a teenager, the pressure you are under when you approach a girl to dance is equal to any jump shot a basketball player might take. Much like the tournament, there is only one winner and I wasn't it. At least there was only four of these torture chambers before I graduated. Oh, did I mention the fact I can't dance? The best description of my dancing would be a cross between seizures and The Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz. Not smooth at all.
  The tournament doesn't need all the over-used nicknames. It is the greatest reality show going and has been since 1979 when Larry Bird and Magic Johnson faced each other and the most of the nation became interested. For three weeks the ultimate drama unfolds in real time, win and you play again, lose and you go home. There are no scripts, no pre-determined outcomes and guarantees. Many of the stars of the show only play for a year or two yet the plot goes on. Small schools most people have never heard of have a chance to perform in front of millions of people for the first and maybe only time in their lives. Bigger schools are more accustomed to the bright lights but aren't assured anything but the chance to advance. The players mostly play for the love of the game or the school. In reality, it doesn't get any better.
   Shows like The Voice, American Idol, Biggest Loser and Survivor garner huge ratings every year. But are they truly reality shows? I don't think so. Perhaps the bigger question is why do we love these types of shows so much? With the tournament, the answers are easy. You have the brackets, office pools and wagering for starters. For the more serious fans, you have a four day weekend starting tomorrow with a pizza delivery man on speed dial and a full refrigerator with adult beverages ready to go. Or for the real die-hards, you head to the post office and fill out the form to have your mail forwarded to your favorite sports bar for the next three weeks and head to the bar. (Thanks to those of you who did this, you know who you are.) Even for the person who could care less there are benefits. That sports nerd who won't shut up is so engrossed in his brackets that he leaves you alone for the better part of a month. Everybody wins.
   My best guess on why we love reality shows so much is the thrill of vicariously living through other people. We love to see the underdog win against the odds because we can imagine ourselves doing it. Or watching someone conquer the demons within them because we all have them and want to beat them as well. Sometimes we love reality because it makes us feel better about ourselves. C'mon now, who hasn't watched a Real Housewives of wherever or Honey Boo Boo and said, "At least I'm not that much of a train wreck." Have you ever wondered if you should audition for Hoarders? Do you sing in the shower and think The Voice is next on your list? If you really love the reality shows, then pull up a chair and call in sick for work. The greatest show ever produced starts tomorrow and you don't want to miss the first episode.....

Till next.....