Picket Fence Post

Jon +  Kate Not So-Great

As difficult as she’s been making it, I’m starting to feel badly for Kate Gosselin, from Jon “Hey I’m only 32 and for dates” & Kate Plus 8.

I’ve already written about how disappointing and breathtakingly difficult it must’ve been for Jon and Kate Gosselin to have their marriage crumble in front of national television cameras for a reality show whose producers seek to get the best ratings, not take care of a family in trouble.

Soon after they announced that they were divorcing, my feelings of melancholy for both Kate and Jon started to shift. It had a lot to do with the photos and footage of Jon cavorting with several different twentysomething gals late into the evenings, one of whom is the daughter of the cosmetic surgeon who gave Kate her tummy tuck in the first season of Jon & Kate.

Then Kate decided to provide an exclusive interview to the Today Show, and the program exploited Kate’s pain, seemingly trying to goad her into crying. (Wrote about it here.) Following the interview, anonymous NBC staffers complained to the Chicago Sun-Times about Kate’s behavior following the interview, saying, “We get virtually all of the world’s biggest egos coming through here. But Kate was one of the most unpleasant I’ve seen in working here for many years.”

I now wish that this family would simply cease providing interviews to anyone and just pull up the draw bridge to protect those eight young kids and, frankly, themselves. I wish they’d stop providing fodder for anyone to write about, live their lives as quietly as possible. Aside from doing the TLC show — payment for which is likely providing the family with the funds to put those eight kids through college — I wish Jon and Kate would just stop talking about their impending divorce and love lives and just focus on providing TLC with footage of raising eight kids, not on tabloid sideshow trash.

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Yesterday was originally slated to be the most wonderful day of the year. Except that it was dark and stormy and much of the Boston area resembled a wetland area.

So the powers that be on Yawkey Way decided to postpone the most wonderful day of the year. Until today. When it’s only mildly dark and intermittently rainy.

Yes, today we officially kick winter to the curb (even though snow did mar at least one opening day game) and celebrate the beginning of baseball in Boston, even though most people I’ve seen in the Metrowest Boston area are still bundled up, we’re still running the heat in our house and I have the winter comforter on the bed.

But, with all the economic news lately — which has been about as bright as Rod Blagojevich’s political future – the hope that is the first day of baseball, as they say, springs eternal. Every team has a chance to have a shocker of a great year. Some scrappy team could surprise us. (Think 2004.) Middling, unheralded ballplayers who aren’t cashing multi-million-dollar paychecks COULD emerge and outshine marquee players who don’t live up to expectations because they’re hurt, in a slump or too preoccupied with kissing their own reflections in the mirror.

That’s why, on the first day of baseball – even though New England weather doesn’t become reliably warm until, say, May – I feel like the sun is shining a bit more (even if it’s on the inside) because, no matter what else is going on, from now until September (and *knock wood* through October) there will be baseball. Boston Red Sox baseball. And all will be right with the world.

Image credit: AP via the Metrowest Daily News.