The other day, I happened to catch a preview for the second season of a television show called "Portlandia." It was 30 seconds designed to be hilarious enough to inspire you to watch the series. And what's the go-to 5-second visual gag they knew the entire country could get behind?
You guessed it. Making fun of food allergies.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiNXXM2mn9Y
Hysterical! Always good for a laugh from everyone!
I see this everywhere I turn. Somehow, the possibility that our children could drop dead is the funniest thing people have ever seen. When I point out that dozens of shows use food allergies as the go-to laugh, people look at me blankly. Occasionally someone will say gently "perhaps you're oversensitive, dear."
Really? Would they feel that way if I laughed hysterically about leukemia? Snorted about cystic fibrosis? WHY is is o.k. for Hollywood to consistently portray our children as objects of fun?
The blown up face! Hysterical! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCDm_kI9p_g (Courtesy of "The Big Bang Theory")
The wuss who talks funny when he has a reaction! What a riot! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X50SFJn3LD4 (Courtesy of "Friends")
The incredibly overprotected kid who also just happens to have multiple allergies! (Thank you, iCarly)
I see one of these at least once a month. And guess what? The laugh track is always, always Volume 10.
Funny.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I just found your blog.....love this post. No one gets it~except another mom who's walking the walk with you. Keep on writing and giving me one person who I truly feel can relate to my life. My 5 year old son had a life threatening dairy allergy (he is contact reactive and also has asthma).
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nicole! And you're right - milk allergy is something that's hard to understand even for moms dealing with nut allergies. This post sums it up:
ReplyDeletehttp://foodallergybitch.blogspot.com/2012/03/my-perfect-comfort-zone.html
So glad you found me!