Let's be honest - I love celebrity gossip. Somewhere in between my subscription to OK! magazine, scanning Pink is the New Blog almost every day and falling asleep to E! almost every night, I have made it my unconscious effort to find out as much about celebrities as I can. My friends and I can have full conversations about the latest happenings in Hollywood, often referring to celebrities on a first name basis.
But I realized something lately. I am actually invested in most celebrity relationships. Remember when Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston broke up? I went through a mourning period, bought a "Team Aniston" shirt off the Internet, and swore I'd never see Mr. & Mrs. Smith.
I'm not going to lie-watching that Hollywood couple divorce was tough. But nothing could have prepared me for the slue of Hollywood breakups that would follow.
Chad Michael Murray cheated on Sophia Bush with Paris Hilton. They divorced, but at least I could still pretend they were together on One Tree Hill. Justin Timberlake may or may not have hooked up with Scarlet Johansson and Kate Hudson before his split from Cameron Diaz. Britney Spears kicked Kevin Federline to the curb and turned into the world's biggest redneck.
Who would have thought that flashing her va-jay-jay all over town with Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton would make K-Fed look like the better parent?
Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe made me challenge the existance of true love. They looked like the real deal. But apparently not even seven years of marriage and two children are enough to keep anyone together anymore.
Then, Jennifer Aniston further upset me by splitting from Vince Vaughn. I know, I know. Everyone said it was just a rebound relationship, but I loved The Break Up.
I think my biggest problem with celebrity breakups is that I take it as a personal attack. Shortly after Jen and Brad broke up, I remember hearing on one of VH1's many pop culture related shows, "If those two people get tired of having sex with each other, what about the rest of us?"
Well, isn't it true? We look to celebrities for what to wear and how to do our hair, why wouldn't we consider them as examples of successful relationships? Seeing them break up only serves to remind us that love is something you have to work for and that happily ever after may not include everything you thought it would.
But that doesn't mean you should stop looking. If we take anything from our celebrity neighbors, it should be to never give up the search. Because our childhood fantasies might just eventually come true.