Recently someone asked me what my “desert island” TV show would be. This would be the one show I’d want to have in a complete video collection if I were stranded on an island with only a TV set, a VCR, and an electrical power supply (a situation that could only happen on a “reality” TV show).

So, being a fudger by nature, I fudged. I had to choose two shows. Drumroll….the winners are: Northern Exposure and Scrubs.

These two series, one airing in the early 90s and the other a current hit, have several things in common, even at a surface viewing. Most obviously, both feature a doctor as the main POV character. They also share a similar approach to humor in which bizarre situations pop up and disappear without explanation, and we get fascinating “inside-the-head” looks at the thoughts and fantasies of the characters. Both shows also place a strong emphasis on the value of relationships in getting us through the craziness of life.

This morning in the shower (where a high percentage of my serious thinking takes place), it occurred to me that my fascination with these two series must say something about me, about what makes me tick. I think it might be the fact that both shows have a main character who is thrust into a challenging situation not of his own choosing.

Northern Exposure’s Joel Fleischman is a brash, young, worldly-wise New York City doctor whose education was financed by the state of Alaska. In return, the state claims the first five years of his medical career in a kind of indentured servitude. By virture of a bureaucratic snafu, Fleischman is switched from his expected post in the city of Anchorage to an assignment in the backwoods isolation of the town of Cicely, population c. 800.

In the case of Scrubs, it is true that intern (now resident) John Dorian (”JD”) knew full well that residency in a teaching hospital would be part of the deal of becoming a full-fledged M.D. However, he never would have chosen the often inexplicable, sometimes cruel, world of Sacred Heart Hospital.

Now most of us, if not all of us, can probably identify with that. Who hasn’t found himself thrust into situations that he never would have chosen? Heck, we’re all born into families with no one asking us who we would like, right?

In my own case, however, I’ve come to realize that I’m strangely attracted to living in weird circumstances that will challenge me to the core. I’m not sure if it’s entirely healthy or not, but my wife and I have never been able to settle anywhere and become part of the scnenery for very long. We usually end up making a choice to move or do something new that has most of our friends scratching their heads and saying, “What are you thinking?” Good example: the time we moved to Hawaii for a year on one month’s notice and next-to-no income to take over a school that was in danger of closing. Another story…another time.

On the upside, these choices have certainly always led to adventures. And we find ourselves always thirsting after the next adventure. The latest manifestation of this is our decision to both enroll at Westminster Theological Seminary starting next fall. We’ll be leaving behind the best combined income & job security we’ve had in our married lives. We’ll also be leaving eight years of relationships here in Charlottesville. But something (or Someone) is calling us on…let’s hope it’s more than just that “spirit of adventure”!

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 11th, 2004 at 1:57 pm and is filed under It`s All About Me, Randomness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.