THE INSTANT SAVE

Hey there sagacious reader.  I freely admit that I am addicted to TV (which speaks volumes about my life).  I watch all kinds of different shows but my absolute favorites are reality competition shows that have anything to do with creativity.  Be it singing, dancing, fashion, art; I love them all.  

Most shows don't give me the opportunity to express my opinion (they don't know what they're missing out on there) but some allow viewers to vote for their favorites in order to keep them in the competition.  I'm sure you all know which ones I am referring to.  After all, you are sagacious!  

With the advent of DVR, I find myself recording everything.  I figure, what the heck, if the show sucks I can always delete it.  But because of this, I am what you might call an advertisers' nightmare, by which I mean I loathe 99% of the commercials aired and fast forward through them all. (Works for me.)

I was massively relieved when those shows that allow us a vote extended their voting hours to the following morning.  That way I still have a say in who should go and who should stay.  I take advantage of this and always cast my vote. 
(Now, if only everyone would vote the way I do....) 

That has worked out all well and good until they decided to introduce the "Instant Save".  This gives the voters the opportunity to save one of the bottom contestants from elimination; in real time. Well, seeing as how I am usually sleeping (another reference to my exciting life) during this window, I miss out on this opportunity.  Serves me right, doesn't it?  But wait--

Apparently the Instant Save is only available to those viewers who reside in the Central and Eastern time zones.  Really??  What about everyone in the Mountain and Pacific time zones? We don't count?  Well excuse me (and around 70 million other folk) for living outside the preferred zones!  Anyone else out there feel a little less than adequate for choosing to live where you do?  As if our opinions don't matter. That's just rude!

I probably shouldn't let it bother me so much since I do record everything and would miss the time window anyway.  But in my defense, I will say that I would stay up, watch the show 'live' and vote if I had a say in the outcome.  I do have my favorites that I support (as should you) and want them to continue on.  But there it is. My opinion doesn't count.  I don't live where opinions matter. (It's not like the shows are actually filmed out here...Sheesh!

Now I have to depend on those folks in the approved time zones to get it right.  Yikes! It's not as if I can tell them who to save.  I would if I could. So, CT and ET people, in the words of one esteemed judge, don't be Nudniks!! 

All that being said, I absolutely resent the words, "America has saved..." The very least the hosts can say is, "Two Thirds of America has saved..."  I am pretty sure that I live in America and yet I didn't have the opportunity to save anyone. Again, that's just rude.

So to those shows that offer an Instant Save to the select few; and on behalf of all those whose voices cannot be heard, I say BITE ME!