5 TV Shows That Got Me Through Hard Times + 1 That’s Just For Fun

Project 365, Day 51

Today’s post is something that popped into my head today for reasons unknown. Well, I suppose I know the impetus. This week was jammed packed for me. I went to bed too late and woke up too early to get things done both in my personal life and for my work life. So Friday night, when I Slacked my coworkers goodbye and closed by laptop, I dragged my limp, tired body into bed and ended up taking a two-hour nap.

It’s something I haven’t done since this fall when I’d spend all parts of my day in bed. Man do I NOT miss that bed tray, where I’d eat all my meals. My mind jumped to the thing that got me through those quiet days in the bedroom, Charles in another part of the apartment working while I tried to survive my own workday with a foggy brain, hands that locked up, heavy limbs. To keep me from being too lonely or too focused on my ailments, I started watching Top Chef. I figured something with 17 seasons had to be good enough, so I gave it a whirl. And for months, Padma and Tom and Gail were my coworkers. They got me through.

That thought reminded me of other tough times in my life, when TV shows got me through. They helped to silence the worry, the sadness, the loneliness. So, I thought maybe it was a good idea to share those, in case you need them, as I did.

Or maybe you’re just looking for something new and comforting to watch that requires very few brain cells. Either way, here are five shows that, as I said, got me through, and one other show that I just like to watch when I have nothing else to watch.

30 Rock

Where to stream: Hulu

I moved from my hometown in Central Florida to South Florida in my mid-twenties for a job. It was the first time I had lived alone, ever in my life. I had left behind all my friends, Charles, my parents. My brother didn’t live too far away but he worked a lot, and my sister lived about an hour away, which on weekends was great, but during the week, left me incredibly lonely and, frankly, a bit depressed. The first few months in Boca Raton were really hard for me. I can chuckle now at myself for having to go home a few minutes after arriving at the nearby Target because I spontaneously broke down into hysterics, shielded only by my sunglasses, though there was no hiding my bouncing shoulders.

TV was my friend on weeknights, and 30 Rock was the first to lull me into a place of happiness. The show is full of easy laughs and enough hijinx to pull you out of the mundaneness of life while also making you feel like maybe your life/job/situation isn’t all that bad. I can’t hear that theme song without being transported back to my little apartment, on my little gray velvet tufted sofa from Macy’s, surrounded by the glow of my little TV.

Drop Dead Diva

Where to stream: Amazon Prime & Hulu

This is another one of those shows from that time I was adjusting to “adult” life in South Florida. The concept is so wild and silly but I loved it so much. A coworker from the job I left had told me about Drop Dead Diva, and she always had the best recommendations (Stephanie P….are you reading?!?). So when I finished 30 Rock, I devoured DDD. It felt like I was hanging out with my girlfriends…if my girlfriend happened to be the soul of another friend that was transported into the body of someone I didn’t know. Yeah…told you. But it’s fun!

Ugly Betty

Where to stream: Amazon Prime & Hulu

I grew up hearing about the Spanish telenovela called Betty, La Fea. Translation? Betty, the Ugly (wow…rude much?). I didn’t watch Ugly Betty, the American remake of the soap opera with America Ferrera, until much later…when again…I was lonely in Boca, in need of Betty.

I was a magazine editor at the time, forever in search of my ticket to the world of Manhattan publishing, so a show about a girl/woman who eventually would work in magazines, in New York City, was right up my alley. The ’90s kid in me can also never look away from a classic ugly duckling/swan story…this woman here (as in, me) loves a makeover montage.

It’s ridiculous, it’s fun, it has some romance…what’s not to like?

Royal Pains

Where to stream: Peacock & Amazon Prime

By now, you may have noticed that I like shows with plot lines that are a bit hard to fathom. About 10 years ago, I went through another time when my body rebelled against me and I felt scared, alone, unwell. (Turns out, I had VERY bad GERD and something called silent reflux. That mixed with a bad doctor who didn’t see the signs left me confused, sick, and sleepless.)

I’d stay up until the wee hours of the morning, sometimes I didn’t sleep at all (due in part to constantly waking up gasping for air, so I was afraid to drift off…ugh what an awful time). Somehow, I stumbled upon Royal Pains, a show about a doctor who went out to the Hamptons after a series of events (I won’t spoil it for you) and was able to help people solve mysterious health issues in the matter of one episode. Gee, I wonder why I latched on to this show, hm? I never did actually finish the show. Once I found my own Dr. Hank Lawson and felt like a human again, I went back to reading before bed and sleeping soundly for a proper 8 hours. But I’m grateful to Royal Pains for keeping me company all those long, dark nights.

Top Chef

Where to stream: Hulu

Top Chef needs no introduction because I already introduced it. Once Charles would get out of bed and get to his workday, I’d feel around for my work laptop that I’d place need to my bed the previous evening, prop myself up on many pillows, and turn on Top Chef. I got through something like 10 seasons in just a few weeks. It was a nice mental retreat from the worries about my health. I’m pretty sure I slept through many episodes. Heck, I feel like at one point I slept through a whole season, but one day I’ll go back and watch…and finish the remaining seven seasons I have left.

Superstore

Where to stream: Hulu & Peacock

And finally, the “for fun” show. My sister put me on to Superstore years ago but I never watched it. It wasn’t until I drove by the actual Could 9 store they used to film on Cahuenga Blvd. every day on my way back from my office in Burbank that I thought “this could be fun.” I tend to geek out about anything that films in a place I know. The first time I went to Tuscany, I immediately watched Under the Tuscan Sun when I got home. It’s a thing I do, and I don’t believe to be alone in this. (For instance, just tonight, Charles rewound a scene in Modern Family THREE TIMES that he swore was filmed up the street from where we live…it probably was…it’s Los Angeles, as I reminded him.)

Anyway, whether you’ve driven by slowly to see if you could spot the cast filming outside in the parking lot (true story) or not, it’s still a very soothing, silly show that always puts me in a good mood. It’s on its last season now, which makes me sad, but I’m jealous of anyone who gets to start it new.

So that’s that! I’m sure if I thought hard, I could come up with plenty of other shows that filled a hole in my life somehow (Gilmore Girls, The Wonder Years, The Office, The Great British Bake Off, Bob’s Burgers, Schitt’s Creek, Queer Eye, etc., etc., etc.). But I’ve “talked” enough today. What do YOU have to share? Charles and I are always on the hunt for something new and comforting to watch, so can’t wait to hear your suggestions.

See you tomorrow, friends.