Action Girl

From the Action Girl Manifesto:
RULE 9: MOST THINGS SUCK. That pretty much sums it up. Become a more discriminating person. While you're breaking down and admitting you can appreciate a really good movie or a major label album, also try to realize that not everything that is independent is good. Anyone who seriously likes every album put about by "cool label X" or every comic put out by "cool company Y" is either a relative or has no taste. Nothing is good all the time. Don't "like" something just because it's in the genre you support. Most stuff is lame, period, no matter who puts it out. Don't waste time on things that aren't worth it, and you'll have way more time to spend doing something fun!

This is all well and good, but I am having my doubts. The other day Floss said, "You know, I really just like most things. Even bad things- like, I'll see a movie like Tuck Everlasting that's really not very good, but I'll enjoy watching it. And when people don't like something- like [Friend A] didn't like Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, I'm just like, what's wrong with you?" I think this is true of me as well- I, too, enjoyed Tuck Everlasting. Most movies and books have something to like- even if I don't love a book, I'm generally inclined to see it through to the end. And I get really upset and annoyed by people who are never pleased by things. These people are frustrating. Similarly, I get very irritated with people who pursue indie pop and comic books as though these things had some intrinsic value apart from the enjoyment you get from them. IT'S JUST POP MUSIC. THEY'RE JUST COMIC BOOKS.

Does this mean that Floss and I are not discerning? I don't know. But it seems to me that our way is, at least, more pleasant for us than the other way would be, because we get to do enjoyable things more often. There's still the fact that we're wasting time on Tuck Everlasting when we could be, say, at a Pavement concert or something, though. So I'm not sure. What's the way to be? I guess as a compromise we'll take another cue from Action Girl:

RULE 6: DON'T WASTE TIME BEING NEGATIVE. Life's much too short. Don't waste time bitching about assholes and asshole behavior. If you can do something about it, go ahead, but otherwise just go on and forget it. If someone's a complete jerk, no amount of your time and energy is going to change them, so why work yourself up? Spend that time doing something you enjoy. If you hate someone, fine, but don't make it your career.

(Actually, the Action Girl series itself, despite some occasional gems, consisted largely of rather insipid stuff. But I love Action Girl anyway, because of the gems and because it's a neat concept, and as a result I'm trying to live up to its manifesto and it's all a little recursive.)