Why I Love Celebrity Gossip

I love celebrity gossip.

Thankfully, it's something I'm rarely asked to reveal - as I don't exactly love admitting to it. Celebrity gossip is sort of my dirty little secret. I'm a rather level-headed individual with a career, a family, and a lot of dreams. The average spectator would never suspect that I'm a celebrity gossip junkie.

I've gotten better. Really. For a few months I was reading probably about a dozen sites on at least a daily basis - blogs, forums, video, and more. My fun escape was starting to turn into a bit of an addiction, so I weaned myself off ... but I still can't give celebrity gossip up completely.

I love celebrity gossip because it's an escape. Paris and Lindsey are my mini-vacation, and I certainly thank them for that. For a few moments each day (I now only read two blogs and only once a day), I get to forget my toddler's latest tantrum, I get to temporarily ignore job stresses, and I get to forget the laundry, the errands, the dishes, and all the other mundane things that just seem to pile up.

I love knowing the latest Britney drama for no better reason than "just because."

The snapshots of Suri, Apple, Kingston, and the Jolie-Pitt clan are adorable. Children of celebrities, for all intensive purposes, are children first and foremost. They throw fits, they stick their tongues out at the cameras, and, better yet, they have a guy like Brad Pitt wrapped around their finger. It makes me feel normal and undefeated in my own life as a mother.

And, for the record, I've disapproved of every one of Gwen Stefani's outfits since No Doubt's Tragic Kingdom. (Except for that beautiful white dress she wore to the 61st Annual Golden Globes.)

Now, don't lecture me on the paparazzi stalking stars like Cameron Diaz or how wrong it is that they camp outside schools and funerals and use thousand-dollar lenses to shoot celebrities on vacation and in their own backyards. Twenty-three-hours-and-forty-five-minutes a day, I know it's wrong. For the 15 minutes I spend perusing Perez Hilton and Pink is the New Blog, though, I totally do not care. And, let's face it, no one is going to lead a march protesting the paparazzi's aggressive behavior.