Ruse the.magazine Post

From http://www.rusemag.com/Pages/Music.Life/Entries/2009/4/26_041.html:



Yes, I'm aware that on the page in the link there is an error in the last sentence. I let them know, but it looks like it will be staying.








Real Housewives Console Me When All Else Fails
By Dan Trupin



In the midst of a turbulent economic crisis, I find comfort in only one thing. This singular source of hope keeps my chin up and my outlook hopeful. It's not Suze Orman; it's not God; and it's not lottery tickets. It's the Bravo television program The Real Housewives of NewYork City, or rather, it's the muses who populate the cast.

The show has proven that no one is immune to the current economic state: not even self-obsessed, status-hungry women. We all feel the crunch in different ways. In a recent episode, cast member Jill Zarin gave an interview to BBC, because they wanted opinions on the economy from, in Jill's words, “successful people who lived in Manhattan.” I believe the translation for that is “just how oblivious are these rich Americans?”

The reporter asked Jill to describe the financial crisis because it's so hard to see it from her fabulous apartment. She responded, “it's not hard to see here. It really isn't. Especially, you know, I feel it, and all of my friends feel it.” It's true! She's changing her spending habits just like us little people. For her birthday a few episodes earlier, she opted not to get jewelry this year due to cutbacks. She responsibly spent only $16,000 on a custom handbag, and her husband got her a measly Mercedes SUV. They're practically peasants.

Jill added, “it's become more difficult and challenging to get sponsors to just write checks [for charities].” This means trouble. What happens when the one seemingly effective method of easing the guilt of living a privileged life, or perhaps silencing critics, is put in jeopardy? Not to worry, these ladies have a lifetime of rationalizations under their designer belts.

With so much negativity and gloom in the atmosphere, apparently there is still a way to make a difference. According to Jill the answer is in the small things we do for others. For instance, she opens doors for people and holds the elevator for potential passengers. The random acts of kindness she does every day will most certainly save countless lives of suicidal investment bankers and depressed housewives. I expect her to receive a Nobel prize soon or at the very least, humanitarian of the year.

Because Jill is a saint, and I could never hope to come close to her philanthropic deeds, I must settle for simply NOT engaging in harmful or negative acts. These will count not only as sacrifices that I must make, but as promoting goodwill in a sad time. I promise not to laugh hysterically when I witness someone on the street trip into a run, pretending he meant to do it. I'm going to stop intentionally smoking cigarettes next to babies. I'll try to contain all my pee in the urinal when I use public restrooms. I'll stop sabotaging my brother's TiVo because when I was eight years old he told me I came from “a defective sperm.” Lastly, I'll cancel all those pornographic magazine subscriptions I ordered to be sent to a local priest at his church. I feel better already. If we all follow Jill Zarin's sage advice and do our part to improve humanity, we'll be out of this recession in no time.