Gossip girls
Studies show that gossip can boost women’s health (I wrote about this research when I worked at Best Health Magazine.) It’s said to boost bonding and lots of feel-good stuff. But one thing my friend Laura and I discovered is that gossip can make women competitive.
We went to The Smut Soirée earlier this week – an interactive evening hosted by MTV face Dan Levy and celebrity blogger Lainey Lau. I think Laura and I would agree that we went more for the bonding than the dirt. We hadn’t seen each other in about a year and thought it would be a fun night.
We were offered (although we paid for it with our $54 tickets) white wine, lemonade coolers, calorie-friendly sweets, micro-sized cupcakes and some savoury apps. Let me tell you, though, that you’ve got to be ruthless at an event like this. At least five times the waiters were charged at by women in summer dresses and pumps. They were within two steps of us with a full platter and in seconds it was all crumbs and crumpled napkins. We had asked two women to save our seats, so we brought them back each a cupcake to thank them. They tried to take all four!! It’s okay, we enjoyed sipping on wine and the rest of the audience likely overate mini corndogs, sliders and butter popcorn. Next year, Laura and I will go for dinner beforehand.
Laura and I generally have two very different perspectives on everything. She’s much more thoughtful and sentimental. I’m always waiting to throw out the bullshit card. (It’s part of my job as a health editor at a women’s magazine, as I’m constantly being told self-made health experts that their book/diet/product will make me beautiful/skinny/younger.) I thought it would be fun to compare our reactions to the event. So here you go:
Amanda Bynes is acting crazy for publicity.
Me: I honestly can’t imagine how this is good for a career. And if she thinks it will work, then she is crazy – not ‘acting’ crazy. She must know how it worked for Joaquin Pheonix.
Laura: Didn’t know who she was, but she sounded like a mental case.
Scientology is all powerful.
Me: Meh. A church is a church is a church. I could care less. And I don’t believe that for a second.
Laura: Was creeped out by the stories of late night threatening phone calls to inquiring journalists, but a bit skeptical of their so-called power.
Actors don’t come out of The Closet because their movies make a ton of money outside of North America.
Me: Hey, I never really thought about it that way. If Oprah were there she would say, aha!
Laura: Actually, it was a real eye opener for me as well, as I hadn’t really thought of it. Rupert Everett was the example used, and if you follow his career, well, it kinda makes sense.
Every celebrity cheats, especially golfers.
Me: Who knew Phil Mickelson was such a stud?! But I have to say that I wasn’t all that surprised. I remember hanging around the bar that the Hamilton Bulldogs would go to after every hockey game. The ladies were ready! And that’s just the AHL!
Laura: Gross. All I could think about were the DISEASES! Again, though, a bit sad.
That a certain star is mean to her nannies.
Me: No, not her! She’s always so nice to police officers!
Laura: What a thing that celebrities spend so much time cultivating their “sweetheart" personas, and then with one indiscretion…poof!
Dan Levy swears. And Lainey sounds exactly as she writes.
Me: My sweet memories of The Hills After Show are quashed.
Laura: Guilty pleasure. I actually consider her a great writer, is quite insightful and amusing to read. In person, though, a bit too Valley Girl. (Sorry Lainey, I still love you!)
We don’t really like mean gossip.
Me: After we left The Smut Soirée, we chatted about how it would have been nice to balance out all the cheating, drugs, sex and general bitchiness with more feel-good stories. We were told about a Canadian actor who was saved from his addictions by his girlfriend. Then all was good with the world.
Laura: I actually felt dirty. I had to drive the two hours home, grab a shower, and feel bad about myself for indulging in that kind of smut. Next morning though, I couldn’t help it. I had fire up my computer to read the latest gossip about the gossip! Le Sigh.
*Note that there were bits of gossip that were much more juicy than these, but we were told not to share them. It’s kinda a girl-gossip honour code.
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