Not a small thing

Confession time: I usually have the tv on in the background during the day while I work - the sound of other people's voices murmuring in the background drowns out the ones in my head is comforting. As a result, I ended up watching part of an episode of Guiding Light - one of those "serious" soaps that takes itself seriously...serious like when they insert clips of the actors rebuilding homes in New Orleans and talking about "what THEIR Light is"... which is to say that there is not a lesbian-army, nurse-monkey, pseudo-she/male blackmailing killer to be found in GL's storylines (oh Passions, how I'll miss you when you're gone).

So, while it might seem like a small thing to some, I was quite amazed to see that GL has embarked on a serious, surprisingly well-played (so far) storyline where the hunky young stud has fallen for a non-twig woman - plus-size "Ashley" demonstrates common-sense and self-confidence when it comes to "Coop's" admission of love... by not getting all gratitudey, weepy-eyed and weak-in-the-knees - and instead sends him packing, after pointing out that he actually seems quite freaked-out by his feelings for her - because "loving large" was something he had fought...and only eventually "came to accept."

Have I said well-played?

Apparently, Caitlin Van Zandt (who previously appeared on The Sopranos) was originally hired to provide comic relief from the "serious" stories with "serious" characters [quel surprise]. Van Zandt, though, proved very popular with audiences and has been signed to a contract with the show. With this storyline (whether they like it or not), GL is tackling the last bastion of socially accepted overt discrimination in North American society: size-ism.

Seriously, I may have to tune in again to see how this thing plays out...