Living Oprah has made it big! The project is the cover story in the Chicago Reader. It's especially exciting for me as I've picked up the Reader every week since I moved to Chicago in 1994. As the Beastie Boys would say, Ch-Check It Out. I had one humbling experience today however...as my husband and I were riding the train home from downtown, we saw a woman pick up a paper someone had left on a seat. She looked at the cover, turned to the page the story is on, read 2 lines, and then threw the whole thing on the floor. I turned to my husband and said, "I'm litter."
As a result of the article, written by Rupa Shenoy, I've been asked to do a couple radio interviews...one is set for tomorrow at midnight. Yes, midnight. I usually turn back into a pumpkin at this time, but now that the 21-Day Cleanse is over, I can drink all the green tea it takes to stay awake. (If you're in the Chicago area, it'll be on 720 WGN's The Nick Digilio Show.)
Ok...back to the business at hand. Today's show was a rerun from 2007 about an infertile couple who have an implanted surrogate in India and Alexis Stewart, daughter of homemaking maven, Martha. I have to say, Oprah was pretty good at holding herself back when Alexis spoke about how women are meant to have babies. As a woman who has chosen not to be a mother, Oprah has been remarkably open to having quite a bit of programming on the issue of motherhood, infertility, sperm donors, etc. What I cannot recall in recent episodes, however, is a show about women who have made the choice to remain childfree, as Oprah has. I vaguely recall at least one guest talking on the subject, but that might be a fabricated memory. I just tried to do a search on her site, but they seem to be upgrading and that function is not working at the moment. Anyone remember this?
It was one of those shows where I remained unscathed by assignments until the last moment of the show. ARGH! It made me laugh, actually. I was about to grab my remote control in preparation to stop recording, when Oprah said, "Alexis Stewart talks candidly about trying to get pregnant on her radio show, "Whatever," on Martha Stewart Living Radio. Tune in to follow her progress there." Does this mean I need to subscribe to Sirius? I need to do some research. Plus, the show looks like it aired in October of last year, so I don't even know if Stewart is still trying IVF after all this time. I'll get back to everyone on this...
Thursday, July 10, 2008
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26 comments:
LO,
Very cool idea. I picked up the reader at the Buzz in Oak Park and then came here to check things out. I am curious to get the summary of your year (cost,time, etc.). Does seem as though a certain income level is required...
The cover of the Reader is priceless.
Hehe--maybe she'll have to have you on her show now...!
I can't wait until you're free of the horrible Oprah Burden. You could duck out now and I'd still respect you...
The Reader article is fabulous! (and you look too darn cute!).
XOXO
I, also, have noticed her many shows about having babies. Oprah always inserts the comment that raising children is the world's hardest job, and she respects everyone who does it. As I recall, her statements about her decision to remain childless are rooted in past fear, humiliation and pain, and the conviction she holds that, to be a good mother, you have to achieve a level of selflessness that she knows she can't reach. I think her shows about the subject are intended to make people like herself, who really shouldn't have children, realize this. I think she feels her mother was one such woman.
Congratulations on your cover story in the Chicago Reader!!!
Way to go!!!!
One thing, I am not so sure Oprah decided to not have children. She did have a baby but it passed away. That event may have influenced her decisions in the future, but maybe not.
I am looking forward to reading your archives and following your experiment. I am an Oprah fan and as I said on my blog...it wouldn't have occurred to me to do everything Oprah recommends so your idea is very funny. I had a good chuckle. I usually watch for inspiration, sometimes reading her bok choices sometimes not. Often I have heard of the concepts, books, and many guests before they appear on her show. One of the special aspects of watching her program is the person we don't know...who isn't famous or making a product..but has a unique and inspiring life experience or story to share.
I also found your project via The Reader. And just had to check you out. Quite a project. Good luck on it!
The Reader article was great!
They published a dollar figure on your Oprah-related expenses that you haven't shared with your blog readers yet--are you waiting til you can give us a more detailed accounting?
anon, thanks for writing and letting me know where you saw the article. great news. i am trying desperately to get my whole blog moved to another server so i can create a page that makes all the costs and accounting totally transparent. it'll be up this month or i'll have a nervous breakdown! :)
beebe, hee hee...i'm stickin' it out!
sharon, thanks lady!
paula, i think oprah's childhood (which would certainly fall under the "disfunctional family" umbrella must have had a very deep effect on her. she does indeed seem to respect motherhood very much. i think you're spot on.
candy minx, (great name): thank you SO much for that reminder. you're right - she had a baby when she was 14. he died very quickly. i remember someone in her family sold the story to the tabloids or something awful. regarding your comment about the oprah we don't know...i agree with you...but i also think she's doing everything she can do to keep that side of herself guarded and private at this point in her life/career. i think she's been burned so much that she's put "do not cross" police tape around her personal life. i don't blame her in the least, but i also think that's what makes some folks feel less able to connect with her. i'm gonna check out your blog!
diana! gracias!
sphinxie, this is the bane of my existence! :) i am sweating over getting my blog on typepad so i can share with you guys the most minute detail of my accounting. i've got excel spreadsheets galore to share, but really am having such a hard time moving to a new blog because i can't yet import all my old posts. i'm trying, i promise. i'm going out of town in a couple weeks and my goal is to get it up and running before then. on the upside, i'm really pleased to know you want to see the details of the project! i haven't bored you quite yet at least! :)
xoLO
Congrats on the article! I live on the West Coast, so don't have that paper. Is there a link we can see it at?
Just a thought about the # of shows devoted to being a mother, infertility, children, etc. I'm sure a very large portion of Oprah's viewing audience are stay-at-home mothers, so it would make a lot of sense to have topics that pertain to them. The women who have chosen not to have children are probably working outside the home during the time slot Oprah is on. Just a thought.
mkc: http://www.chicagoreader.com/features/stories/oprah/
and you're probably right...it's just that simple - she's programming toward her viewing audience. although, we might have to do a little creative interpretation to figure out why there's so much talk about the pregnant man and swingers then! :)
xoLO
LO,
Saw the Reader article as well, and my first thought was "DAMN! I wish I'd thought of that!!" Except you're right; as we have a child, the time and money wouldn't be feasible for me.
I am a SAHM with a serious love/hate relationship with the Big O. I watch no more than 1x/month, or have serious pangs of coveting crap I don't need, and doubting my looks. I do admit to having gained tremendous organizational help from Peter Walsh, and I had a seriously sick fascination with the episodes about the hoarders. Which leads me to...
That is my biggest beef with Oprah, in fact, and therefore the one question I'd ask her if I could: "Doesn't it feel hypocritical to spend every other show spouting Buddhist-lite mantras like being happy with what you have, less is more, etc., and then every OTHER show simply hawking more and more STUFF!?"
That's absolutely something that bothered me about her show. And her magazine. To achieve this simple inner peace, you have to have the world's softest $300 bathrobe, the world's best $5 chocolate chip cookie, the world's best $1000 fragrance made personally for you, etc. I also was disturbed by her purchase of the mega million dollar Santa Barbara mansion as somehow connecting with her soul. I don't begrudge her having those things, because trickle-down theory says the rich must spend money so the merchant class can thrive, and I'm all for that. I wish I was the person who thought up those luxury items and got Oprah to endorse them. It would be completely bizarre for her to be shopping resale shops and ebay for bargains, driving up the prices for the rest of us. But the connection is lost to a portion of her audience as a result of her pushing this stuff.
"Living Oprah" is a great idea, and I look forward to hearing the results. I am a 40-something childfree writing a book called "Kidfree & Lovin' It" for people who are childless by choice OR by circumstance, and for those who are still deciding.
Oprah has chosen not to have children, because she knows she would not have the time to focus on them, and would not be able to give 100%. Instead, she has chosen to help children by doing things like building schools for girls in Africa, which will help thousands of people. Childfree people have more time and resources to devote to these charitable projects than do parents.
I have an online survey that over 2,100 childree have taken to date (and I believe Oprah herself took it last year!) If any of you are childfree or "on the fence", here is the link to the survey:
http://tinyurl.com/2lcjah
I'm hoping to get a "childfree" theme show on Oprah when the book is published in a year or so. Good luck with "Living Oprah!"
-KidfreeKaye
Neat blog. I actually like it better than much of the stuff I've seen on the Oprah show.Sometimes, I just can't fathom why she chooses some of the guests she has on.
This show with Alexis Stewart really sticks in my craw. I have no right to tell someone else how they should live, nor how they should feel, but I can't stop thinking about all the already born children who desperately need a family,or at least one parent, to care for them. That 28 thou a month could be doing so much good for so many babies who are hungry now.
LO,
I don't think "tune in to follow her progress" constitutes a directive. I took it as "if you would like to follow her progress, tune in to Sirius. . . " My vote is you are not obligated.
lisarides8, that is the BEST compliment anyone could give me. thanks much! and you are not alone with what turns you off about oprah. (by the way, peter walsh is my favorite of oprah's lieutenants. he's been quite helpful for us).
paula, hilarious - that could be a saturday night live sketch - Oprah shopping second hand at a salvation army. love it.
kidfree, i use the term childfree as well. i think childless sounds as if i'm somehow lacking. good luck with your book.
anon, i had the exact same reaction as you. 28 thou? now, she can spend her money anyway she likes, but it felt so wasteful. especially when there are so many kids who are in need of parents or food/healthcare/shelter, etc...
jamie, hey thanks for chiming in there - i like getting input on the "gray" assignments because they make my head spin.
have a fab weekend.
xoLO
I just got around to reading the article in the Reader. I think what you are doing is a great idea! I knew this girl in design school that was 'all about Oprah' and lived by her like it was a religion. (As a lot of women do, or at least quote, "Oprah says...")
I never really thought about it, but I guess if you did do everything Oprah said... Well, I would wonder what the consequences of your life would be...
I'm a relative Oprah fan. I think she does mean well. And, I do not think your project is a mockery of her. I think it's a pretty truthful response at the millions of women that worship her. I cannot wait to read your book.
I hope Oprah invites you on her show!
Best of luck!
Congrats!
xoxo
anon, i am REALLY glad to hear that an oprah fan can see i am in no way doing this to make a mockery. frankly, i enjoy my life too much to spend 366 days filled with the bitterness it would take to do that! (that's funny about your roomie, by the by.) hope you continue to check in and comment as you feel the urge!
d. prince - thank you soooo much! i was pretty darn excited, i must say.
xoLO
Great article LO! I'm very excited to see where all of this will go...
thanks ms. julie! beautiful picture, by the by. xoLO
Have you (or your husband) observed changes in your habits or attitudes since your started the project? Are there Oprahisms you'll hang on it when the project is over?
hey anon, my husband has pointed out that i am FAR more self-conscious about how i look and that i am frequently pointing out that other women have "broken the rules" when it comes to makeup, clothes, style, etc. before this project, i was a tomboy who wore flipflops almost everyday and never put a stitch of makeup on. my husband thinks i've lost it a bit.
i think i'll keep the rule about savoring every bit of food. it's slowed me down, helped me eat mindfully, and let's me pay attention to the people i'm with. what else...i've learned a ton from some of the books oprah has suggested. specifically dr. northrop and suze orman and peter walsh.
are you a fan of the show? a foe?
xoLO
I heard you on ATC today! I've also found it surprising that oprah only offers advice on how to be a perfect-power-career-mom, but doesn't speak to women who choose not to have children. Her buddy Dr. Phil has a nice little "checklist" on his site...
http://www.drphil.com/articles/article/27
Hi
while I am indifferent to Oprah and have always been (always worked-rarely watched) I heard you on NPR yesterday and was intrigued enough to click on your website. When I first heard you on NPR, I thought you were doing this as some way to get Oprah's attention then I realized your intentions. I have very little time in my life or very little desire to model myself after anyone. While I know she has helped many women and has been very generous, I have never caught the bug. Few of us are in a position to "do" all of what Oprah does- I guess I could if it was my JOB!! I admire and respect her business sense and her overcoming obstacles, I am much more intested in exploring life for myself and making my own way. As an avid reader, I must say I hate her book selections and have stopped reading anything she reccommends- It was too depressing. I wish you good luck with your project and will be interested, from a business stance, how Oprah and Harpo handle this- I will say my name Lisa Kramer-Lape thanks for listening.
Anon - thanks much for the link!
Lisa, I feel like you do about the books. Although, I am glad it's inspiring people, who might not usually read a book, to pick one up. Keep checking in and writing, if you can!
Best,
LO
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