Whatever Gets You Through

Mike and I came to The Office relatively early and for a while it felt like we had stumbled upon our own little secret as so many people didn't seem to get it. I often heard, "It's just not, well, funny." Mike and I constantly found ourselves saying to one another, "This show is brilliant! I can't believe other people don't get it! It's just so good! Let's make Jim Halpert faces at each other again, OK?" And then we'd smirk because we? WE GOT IT. America eventually called our bluff and the show exploded and everyone else got it too. But for those of us who have watched from the very first stapler-in-the-jello episode, the show's popularity is just ever-so-slightly bittersweet.

I can only liken it to the small local band you saw every Thursday night at your favorite hole-in-the-wall bar. The band whose lead singer took shots with you that one time. But then the band went and got themselves famous (the nerve). And now everyone thinks the band is their band and it annoys the hell out of you because they weren't there back then, when the bass player was feeling you up between sets. THEY DON'T KNOW.

The Office is kind of like that. (With Creed as the inappropriate bass player.)

You want your favorite show to do well. Hell, you don't want it to remain a complete secret like CERTAIN SHOWS (coughveronicamarscough), getting canceled before even the whisper of syndication is heard. But you don't want everyone to love the show as much as you love it because, seriously, how? HOW COULD ANYONE LOVE THE OFFICE MORE THAN ME?

Mike and I began watching The Office while we were living with his parents. (Oh, you didn't know? Mike and I lived with his parents for roughly seven months right out of college.) (ENVY US.) It wasn't an easy time for us, and not because we were living with his parents. (I won't talk much about my in-laws because they didn't ask for their son/nephew/cousin/brother to marry the crazy girl with the crazy verbal-vomiting habit. Meaning, I feel a strong urge to protect them. But Mike's parents took us in and let us live—rent free— in their home, while cooking for us and taking care of us and, basically, saving our lives. For that, they will always be two of the most astoundingly giving people I'll ever know.) But it was a very hard time for us because even though I had a college degree, I didn't have the ability to MAKE MONEY SHOOT OUT OF MY ASS. I had just started working for the company I'm with now, and I was working for not a whole lot. Mike wasn't working at all. We had debt. We had bills. And we had a suicidal dog who shoved a piece of something into her eye, causing it to swell shut and causing us to spend well over $200 to hear the vet say: "Just watch her. It'll probably fall out and heal on its own." Thanks, asshole. Of course we'll watch her, seeing as we have no money with which to do ANYTHING ELSE.

We lived— stuff included—in one room, with very little floor space and Molly's bed kept in the closet, where our shoes would occasionally fall on her head. We didn't have much to fill our time, so we played games and downloaded a plethora of TV shows. (Don't believe me? We still have every episode of Duck Tales on some hard drive, somewhere.) The Office was one such show.

We would curl up on our bed, Molly between us, and laugh hysterically during a very laughter-light time in our lives. In our relationship. Then we'd watch each episode over again.

I think we always believed we'd make it through that time, as a couple, but I know there were some very serious discussions about depression and unhappiness and JESUS WILL OUR ACCOUNT BALANCE EVER APPEAR IN A COLOR OTHER THAN RED? And we grabbed on to anything that brought us closer, anything that reminded us that our favorite thing to do together was (is) laugh.

The Office very much reminded us. So much so that I mentioned it in my vows to Mike. It's more than a show to us, and lord this post just became the cheesiest bunch of words I've ever written.

I'm going to stop now and sum it up with this:

My husband and I are quite excited about one particular premiere tonight. And if we can make it, Pam and Jim absolutely can, too.

(And they sure as hell better or SO HELP ME, NBC.)

::

(Happy fifth anniversary, Rachel and Mike!)

Comments

[Tricia]

Hey - I just ran across your comment on Dutch Blitz and read this post. I know the exact feeling!! We started pretty early with the office, when nobody "got it." And now I feel the need to advertise to everyone that we were there FIRST, BEFORE others thought it was funny. Also, Arrested Development? (speaking of canceled shows)

[Nicole]

You couldn't have said it any better, I completely understand your feelings. And thanks to your example, all I can hear in my head is some song by Creed...nice right? I have to wait for Mike to get home from men's poker night to watch The Office...eeee I can't wait! Chat tomorrow about it I hope!

[Raven (just expressive)]

Calling a bass player a "base player" is for effect right?

and I don't get the office still. Maybe my funneh bone is broken.

[Natalie]

Well I'm glad that I've jumped on the band wagon. I didn't think they first 30 minutes was that spectacular but the 2nd 30 minutes were great!

[Roz]

PB&J
PB&J
PB&J
PB&J
PB&J
PB&J
PB&J
PB&J
F-O-R-E-V-E-R!!

[Michelle]

I totally skipped most of the post before this. Because I TiVo'd The Office in favor of Grey's Anatomy viewing upstairs. BIGGEST. MISTAKE. EVER. Grey's was not satisfying at all, and all anyone here at work is saying today is "Did you see The Office last night?" NO Dammit, and I probably won't see it tonight either because my toddler wanted to get up at 5 AM and now I am TIIIRRRRREEEDDDD (to be read with a whiny tone).

[Kristie]

I will admit that I hated The Office the first time I saw it and I watched the very first episode when it premiered. It took me a while to warm up to it and now I love it.

And I hear ya about loving something that no one else knows about and then all the sudden they are experts on. There's a band that used to be like with me. ;-)