The end of an era.

I have been dreading today for a very long time.

My girl is moving on to bigger and better things (although girlfriend really can't go much higher from where she already is...)

Yes, that's right...

Today is the finale of Oprah. The SERIES finale.

Unless you've been hiding under a rock, you're well aware that Oprah is signing off, after 25 years. The show is as old as me-- since it's an epic year to end, this is slightly scary and gives me an old-feeling. I have to be honest-- the show ending makes me sad. I know there are many anti-Oprah people out there. If you are one of them, ta ta for now. I just heart her so much. Obviously I don't personally know the woman, but I think that Oprah is one of the most wonderful people and that she has done so much good in the world for so many people. She has paved the way for people, both directly and indirectly, through her work and her words and her wisdom, and she has changed lives for the better.

Growing up, I was the ultimate latchkey kid. I would come home on the bus after school, microwave a snack (hey hey taquitos!) and settle down with my babysitter, Oprah Winfrey. There were certainly show topics I didn't understand (the heavy stuff), topics that made me excited and happy (Oprah's Favorite Things, obviously!), topics that made me cry without even being completely positive why I was crying (this has not really changed, except now I get where the tears come from). When her anniversary boxed set of top moments came out a few years ago, it was the singular item on my Christmas list. After unwrapping it on Christmas morning, it was all I could do to finish opening gifts before popping in the DVD. I sat with my mom on our couch and we laughed until we cried, and then our hearts broke over her touching stories and we cried more.
Sidenote: Does anyone else cry as much as I obviously do while watching Oprah? Because I'm prepped for the finale right now with a boatload of tissues...

When we went to Chicago earlier this spring, making a trip to Harpo studios was the one "must do" on my list... and so we did it.


Can I just say that if I ever meet Miss O that we will just be besties forever? I mean-- how photogenic are these two together?!


I never made it to a taping of Oprah, although I am gosh darned bound and determined to meet her someday, somewhere. Seriously. It's my blog and I'll dream and wish if I want to. All in all, I'm sad that this little chapter in my life is closing. I grew up with Oprah-- she followed me through high school after dance practice, served as my breather in between classes in college, she comforted me and reminded me of home when I moved to Boston and felt so completely alone, and she has been there for me as I started the new chapter in my life-- living with The Boy and needing to seek refuge in something All Woman. I will miss the familiarity that Oprah has brought to so many televisions around the world. We may not have known her, but we were right there with her, driving cross-country with Gayle, losing and gaining weight, dealing with difficult times as a country... Oprah was there.

I'm really just procrastinating. My screen is paused and I'm dreading pressing "play." Once I do, and this show is completed, that will be it. I'm not good with goodbyes. When Friends ended, I sobbed. ER? I was a goner. Dawson's Creek? I think my eyes are still swollen. So I'm prepared for the tears. I'm propped in bed with a glass of wine and my Puffs Plus with Lotion, ready to bid farewell to a lovely lady. All good things come to an end, yada yada yada... I'll still miss the comfort that watching Oprah brings to me. I don't know what I'll do at 4pm anymore!

As creepy as this post is potentially coming across, here's a funny: I was at the gym tonight and I had my earbuds plugged into the speakerbox on my machine. I wasn't paying attention to the TV screen and heard the show host mention Oprah's last show, looked up, saw O holding back tears on the stage, and YANKED the cord out of the speakerbox. I might have almost fallen off of my machine. I've avoided news websites and entertainment TV shows all day to prevent any kind of spoilers, and I wasn't about to let the TV at the gym spoil my good cry for the night. Psh to that.

And with that, I'm off to get my cry on.

And for you Oprah, cheers to years and years more of happiness and success. I mean, like I said... you can't go up much further from where you are now, but still, enjoy and appreciate it all. I personally shall never forget my way to Harpo :)