It seems like each week, something new dominates the world with the sole mission of keeping me off social media.  A few weeks ago, it was the election.  I’m all for exercising my civic duties, but a girl can only handle Donald Trump with the dog filter on Snapchat so many times before it feels political activism is morphing into something less meaningful. Then it was rivalry week, which I don’t even want to think about.  I made the mistake of tweeting about the game, and with every notification on that status, memories come flooding back to me and I feel physically nauseous.  And now, this Gilmore Girls revival is taking over the Internet.  Deep breath. Okay.  I hope you can respect our differences and understand that I’m still human, but I haven’t bought into the whole Gilmore Girls craze.  Yes, you read that right.  My name is Hannah and I haven’t binge-watched “A Year in the Life.”  This is my story.
Before you judge me too hard, let me demonstrate that I don’t live under a rock.  I know the middle names of each of the Kardashians.  I also know all of the United States and their capitals.  And, as if you need any further evidence of my intellect, I once even studied in the Dude, which is where the engineers study.  So now we’ve proven that I’m way smarter than you, so naturally you cannot judge me for not watching Gilmore Girls.  That, my friends, is called establishing credibility.  My AP English teacher would be proud.
I bet you’re wondering how I got to this point.  How does someone, especially someone as smart and logical as I just proved myself to be, not get hooked on America’s favorite mother-daughter duo?  I can’t answer definitively, but I have my theories. I’m kind of heralded as a social outcast.  I wasn’t allowed to watch “Zack and Cody” in elementary school, so I was at rock bottom of the third grade social hierarchy.  My best guess is that there’s some Freudian-crap going on in my brain, and it wants to revert to that social-reject status. Naturally, it has programmed itself to reject popular television shows.
I’m familiar with Gilmore Girls, though.  Winter break one year, I spent a solid five minutes of my life watching it before realizing it was “Gossip Girl” that my friend had recommended.  I also did some pretty extensive research (one Google search) for this article, so I’d say I’m qualified to summarize the show for those who may not be as informed as me.  Basically, there is a mom and a daughter who are both named Lorelai Gilmore and they’re obsessed with each other, except the daughter embraces her individuality enough to go by Rory (so she’s not exactly the same as her mom).  I don’t understand how you can get “Rory” from Lorelai, but then again, “Billy” is short for William, so whatever.  Rory is super smart and goes to Yale.  She and her mom cry a lot.  The Wikipedia page didn’t say that explicitly, but I’m definitely getting that kind of vibe.  And that’s pretty much it.  My sincerest apologies if my synopsis is lacking in any way.
I found out about “A Year in the Life,” as most people did, because I’m friends with Gilmore fanatics on Facebook.Â
I found out about “A Year in the Life,” as most people did, because I’m friends with “Gilmore” fanatics on Facebook. The first status that I saw about it said, to the best of my recollection, “There’s going to be a Gilmore Girls revival, so all fans can come to my house to watch it with brownies and hot chocolate and good vibes, and if you don’t watch it, you can spend your Friday night on north campus eating rice by yourself.”  And, honestly, I was pretty happy for all those Gilmore Girls fans.  I’d like to say that I’m someone who can accept differences and be supportive of those who may watch different shows than I do.  What can I say?  This is the American melting pot we’re talking about!  We have room for people who watch Gilmore Girls, and for people who watch actual good shows.  America is built on that kind of diversity!
But, I’m not gonna lie, it gets tough sometimes, because it’s hard not to feel excluded.  The Gilmore Girls fans are all so thrilled.  And when I imagine how I’d feel if there was a Friends revival, I totally get it.  But then I get mad because it should be a Friends revival, because it’s clearly the better show, and J.T. Barrett was definitely short, and more people voted for — okay, never mind.  Never mind!  I don’t even care!
Regardless of how it looks, I’m actually handling this revival thing just fine.  I’ve gotten a lot done in the time I’ve spent not watching “A Year in the Life.”  I’ve watched a lot of YouTube videos.  I’ve watched some Vines.  Part of a TED Talk.  I’ve made a Powerpoint about an apple that I found in the dining hall.  Actually, it was a Keynote presentation.  Surely there are some more profound accomplishments I could be citing.  I’m losing the credibility I so poignantly established in the second paragraph.  Please don’t rhetorically analyze this.  The point is that I’m 100% enjoying life, even without watching the revival.
So you’re pretty much up to date on my story. Now for a glance into the future.  As my homeboy Gary W. Goldstein once said, “All you can change is yourself, but sometimes that changes everything.”  I think it’s time for me to emerge from my proverbial cocoon.  I’ve established some pretty valid points as to why I haven’t watched Gilmore Girls and why I’m okay with that and happy with who I am.  But, as fun as this run as a non-GG-fanatic has been, I think it’s time for it to come to an end.  The research I did on the show for writing this article kinda convinced me.  Like, it honestly sounds really good.  And, as evidenced by all I’ve gotten done while not watching the show, I really need to chill on the productivity and just procrastinate for once.  So, come 2017 you can catch me on the couch watching ya girls Lorelai and Rory Gilmore cry and hug about Yale.  It’ll be an emotional challenge, but I can handle it.  Non-Gilmore Girls squad, it’s been lit, but I’m out.  Ready to become an accepted member of society.  I’ll be waiting for that girls’ night Facebook invite.
Photos courtesy of Buzzfeed, Celebuzz, giphy and Entertainment Weekly.Â