16 and Pregnant: Nicole

Did anyone else want to give tonight's 16 and Pregnant baby daddy a haircut?  Or at least a comb?

Does this make me old?

Another bit of a snoozer this week, in my opinion.  Nicole and Tyler seemed like a sweet couple, albeit a little unmotivated.  He obviously loves her a lot, and loves the baby, which is a refreshing change from the d-bags that were around earlier this season.  Now if only he hadn't been kicked out of school when he was 12 years old.

Watching this show as a (mostly) responsible adult is weird.  It kind of makes me want to stand outside of high schools and hand out condoms.  I mean, what happened to these kids?  I have always (ALWAYS) been terrified of getting pregnant.  Like, legitimately freaked out.  Like, let's wrap both of ourselves in Saran Wrap and then stand in separate rooms and then we can have sex, that sounds like a great idea.  These girls don't appear to have the fear of God in them when it comes to getting knocked up.  And while I grew up in a pretty laid-back household with some pretty cool parents, that was one thing that was definitely on the "do not do" list.

And then you watch tonight's episode and Nicole's mom said that when she found out her 16-year-old daughter, a high school sophomore, was pregnant, she was happy for her, it's like, say what?  Speak into my good ear, woman, did you just say you were happy about your underaged daughter having unprotected sex and having a baby?

I wonder why these girls don't feel like they have choices.  Not just choices between adoption, abortion, or keeping their baby; but choices to have safe sex or have no sex, to go on birth control, to tell their boyfriends no sex without condoms.  And then the mirror gets turned back on all of us, not just their parents, for encouraging a society where underaged girls have a hard time accessing birth control, where girls are made to feel like they can't stand up to their boyfriends (how many of these 16 and Pregnant girls say their boyfriends "don't like" condoms so they didn't use them), where boys aren't taught to take responsibility for their part of the process, where parents are afraid to talk to kids (and vice versa) about their sex lives?

Maybe instead of judging the kids on this show, we should be judging ourselves.  After all, we should know better.

Playing catch-up

Ugh, I am behind the times and lame in so many ways.  Here's what I've been watching this week.

Life: Okay, this probably doesn't fall under the "bad TV" umbrella but I could care less because this show is BLOWING MY MIND.  Holy crap.  I mean, between the adorable baby ibex escaping from the fox (I am not ashamed to say I was yelling "Oprah!  Don't kill the ibex!" while he was running away) and the frog that wraps itself into a little ball to bounce down the mountain, like, holy poo, the production value on this show is unreal.  Even if you think you don't like nature shows, do me a favor and check out at least an hour's worth of this series.  It'll make your HDTV worth every penny.  Plus, ibexes are adorable.

Kell on Earth: I hate to say it but this show is getting a little tired for me.  Kelly Cutrone is still fairly entertaining, but the failings of the company are getting old and I want them to hire a HR representative.  Then maybe they could do background checks to avoid hiring people who get arrested for stealing and to also find some non-crazies to fill the ranks.  Seeing their job interviewing process in this week's episode (a glass of wine and a "so you can do lifestyle PR, right?"), I'm not surprised anymore that half of their staff has quit or been fired since this series started.  I used to feel bad for Stefanie Skinner and the bags under her eyes for not getting any help, but it's abundantly clear that she is a sadist who has no self worth unless she is crazy overworked.  The season ends next week, but never fear, Cutrone fans: you'll be seeing her on The City on MTV in just a few weeks.

Be Good Johnny Weir: Why aren't you watching this yet?  Seriously.  I thought Monday's episode was going to be the last one of this series, but an interview I read with Johnny seemed to indicate there were more episodes coming dealing with the Olympics.  Monday's episode dealt with the U.S. Nationals, and (hilariously) Evan Lysacek would not allow the footage of his (not-so-great) performance to be used on Johnny's show.  So Johnny's Russian-reporter character interrupted to narrate Evan's performance.  I kind of hate Evan Lysacek based solely on this show.  And Johnny was robbed at the Olympics.  The end.

16 and Pregnant: You didn't think a week would go by without some pregnant teens, did you?  I managed not to cry during last night's episode...until the VERY END when the girl was talking to her mom about how she should have listened to her about not having sex with her boyfriend.  Damn you, 16 and Pregnant!  Other then the surprising realization that many of the girls don't have that maybe Mom was right trying to keep me from having unprotected sex, I didn't find the episode all that notable; probably the weakest one of the second season for me so far.

Oh, and one of the annoying pretty teams got the well-deserved boot on The Amazing Race, plus there was that whole health care thing that happened this week, which was kind of cool.

16 and Pregnant: Lori

I thought I was going to be able to get through an episode of 16 and Pregnant without crying.  BOY WAS I WRONG.

Tonight's teen, Lori, couldn't decide what to do with her baby.  And in admirable procrastination faction she decided on adoption...two weeks before the baby was born.  I was a little uncomfortable initially in this episode with how much her parents were pushing adoption.  But then I thought - how often do the (adult) parents on this show actually tell it like it is to their daughters and stand their ground?  We've seen our fair share of shrill, overbearing parents, and pushover parents, and parents who don't seem to be all that concerned that their babies are having babies.  Lori's parents were actually pretty amazing at being honest with their daughter in a calm, straightforward way that seemed to eventually get through to her.

I felt almost panicky during the whole episode.  Will she or won't she?  Will she or won't she?  And then when it was time for the pissed off d-bag dad to say goodbye to the baby at the hospital, and Lori just would not let go of her son while tears were streaming down her face...dang.  She wasn't the only one crying.

It's a weird thing to say about a MTV reality show, but I really love the storytelling in 16 and Pregnant.  Even if the girls themselves aren't compelling, the raw reality of pregnant girls in high school, babies giving birth to babies, young women whose lives have imploded because of a few bad decisions breaks my heart.

16 and Pregnant: Chelsea

I don't know where MTV went to find this season's crop of girls for 16 and Pregnant, but those producers should be applauded. The sheer level of douchebaggery amongst the young fathers this season is unequaled by, like, anything ever. I mean, I'm a single woman in my late 20's and I'm shocked, which is saying a lot.

For some reason, tonight's d-bag dad really bothered me. Even more so then the borderline sociopath who picked a fight during labor with the girl's mom, or the guy who got picked up for a DUI the day after the baby was born. I think it was because on tonight's episode, you actually saw the horrible, awful, no good very bad text message (sidenote: do teenagers ever talk on the phone anymore?) that he sent calling his newborn daughter "that mistake." Ugh. When will they come up with the technology to reach through the TV set and strangle people? It made me so sad that he could care less about what he was missing out on with his newborn daughter, that he could be so callous towards the woman who had just given birth to his child, and that he had the cojones to do it over a text message. While being filmed by MTV cameras. Here's hoping that's enough to not get him laid for the rest of his fertile years.

Chelsea, the mom in tonight's episode, seemed pretty responsible, together, and so in love with her daughter - season 2's Maci? And her dad was awesome. I kind of want to take him out for a beer.

What I love about MTV is how amazing they are at telling the stories of people under 21. Look at the difference between Jersey Shore, Real World, etc. and shows like 16 and Pregnant, Teen Mom, True Life. The former are mostly alcoholic train wrecks (which I can love, hello, they brought Snooki into my life), but the latter are mostly sensitive, thoughtful, well-made looks at what real teenagers are going through in real life. While the girls in 16 and Pregnant make decisions I probably wouldn't have at that age, I can't help but respect and admire them for the choices they've made and for laying those choices bare in front of a national TV audience.

Haven't seen 16 and Pregnant yet? Check it out here.