She shouts!
She insults!
She's sarcastic!
She's rude!
One of my little pleasures of daily life that I sorely missed when I moved to Delaware in November of 2006 was that I could no longer get the "Judge Judy" show on my television.
In Pennsylvania I had satellite television with local channels, which means I could get the syndicated "Judge Judy" show daily. In Delaware I could not get local channels thus I couldn't get the "Judge Judy" TV show. I went four years without "Judge Judy!" Last month DirecTV finally came through and now I can get the "Judge Judy" TV show right here in my comfy, cozy home here on the east side of Route 1 in Lower Slower Delaware.
Who is Judge Judy? Judge Judy is a former family court judge from New York who was discovered during a "60 Minutes" profile. For almost the last twenty years she has had her own TV show. She is the top rated syndicated TV show in the land and for good reason, she is good!
While Judge Judy is all of the above things I said about her, you have to understand the context in which she responds the way she does. Once you see the characters and their court cases not a who appear before her in court and their cases, you will understand all too clearly.
Judge Judy is real.
Judge Judy is smart.
Judge Judy is right.
The success of her show has spawned other "judge" shows but none come close to the authenticity of Judge Judy. Most of those other judge shows have come and gone and for good reason. They are fake and put on.
Then there are the reality shows like the rude restaurant owner (I can't even remember that idiot's name) and the some other shows on Bravo TV like the fashion show with Iman and the beauty salon show. The stars of those shows try to be like Judge Judy but they only come off as mean and cruel. There is only one Judge Judy.
Snag (what I will now call Bill, my partner heretofore referred to as S.O.) hates Judge Judy as does my good friend Bob C. They think she rude. Well............yes but as I've said she has good reason to be rude. Sometimes you have to hit a mule with a two by four between the eyes to get their attention. She cuts through the BS and gets to the core of the matter. I love the look on the faces of some of plaintiffs and defendants when they realize their usual tricks aren't going to work with Judge Judy.
And then there is the other reason I like Judge Judy. It came to me the other night when I arrived home from work at the hotel late a night and turned on my DVR which had previously recorded the Judge Judy show that had aired earlier in the day. As the opening theme song played a warm, comforting feeling swept over my body. For an instance I didn't understand and then a very familiar feeling came to me.
When I lived in Pennsylvania I lived the next road over from my Mother. About three or four times a week I would take a ride over to visit my Mom. She would be lying on the platform bed that I had given her many years her cat Molly cuddled up next to her. I would walk in her living room and take a seat in the small rocker next to her bed. We would talk awhile and then she would grab her remote control and turn on the "Judge Judy Show." The opening song and credits would appear on her 30 inch Sony TV that my brother had set up high in the corner of her small living room. Then we would sit back and watch "Judge Judy" together.
Now when I watch "Judge Judy" I feel like I'm with my Mom again.
That is a good feeling.
That is a good feeling.
