31 days and counting

Mood: sick
Happy thought: tissues with Vicks (omg, get them)

Four years ago when I was just a wee freshman magazine major, a TV show called Ugly Betty debuted on ABC. It followed a young post-college gal (America Ferrera) as an entry-level assistant at a major fashion magazine in New York. She was overweight and was a bit outlandish with her outfit choices, which made her a fish out of water. But she worked hard and proved herself consistently ... so on and so forth.

No idea why that sort of show would appeal to me... haha.

Anyway, it's ending. After four years, ABC is pulling the plug on one of the quirkiest, most original television shows I've ever seen. It's sad. I also can't help but feel that the timing is a little weird. The show was on four years - it began almost immediately after I came to Drake, and will end only days before I leave.

I get it's a TV show. I do. I'm not one of those crazy people who gets obsessively attached to shows or characters or whatever, but Betty and her gang struck a chord with me. It was kind of encouraging to see this gal struggle and overcome obstacles in the world of magazines while I was studying all those very same things in school. I understand that her experience isn't exactly real, and it's likely over-dramatized, but that doesn't mean it wasn't based in some sort of reality.

She had to change and grow and really decide what was important to her. She had to make goals and chase dreams and make difficult decisions. She had to sell out then make it right. She had to figure out her priorities and stand up for herself. She had to prove herself. She had to fail. Not at all unlike what most of us are going through right now.

On the show lately Betty has been keeping a blog for the kind of writing she wants to be doing (since she doesn't want to spend her whole life in fashion) and the whole motivation behind it is to inspire someone. And, you know what? She did.

Betty Suarez, a person who doesn't even technically exist in our reality, has inspired me. The show is wrapping up so she's starting to consider all these major life-changing options and things, and I feel like I'm doing the same on some level. Watching her is like a reminder that it's time to be brave and take that next step with confidence, even if we don't know what's waiting for us when we do. So thanks for that, Betty.