Mad Men and My Man

(Photo from AMC.com)

Some of you out there might have been addicted all along…I just caught the Mad Men “bug” this August right before I flew back out west for my baby girl’s senior year. Thanks to NETFLIX, I watched all four seasons; all 52 episodes! I'd snuggle under the covers, plug into my I-Pad,and click the resume Mad Men button. I squeezed in four years of Don Draper in less than three months.

If you haven’t ever tuned in, Mad Men is an AMC show about an advertising company in the early 1960’s (from the boardroom to the bedroom) and season five begins in March. I’m not the only fan because Banana Republic even had a fall collection designed after the show’s fashion.

I have a virtual asthma attack just watching everyone constantly lighting cigarettes and I realize the men at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce are focused on appearance rather than substance and yet it’s my guilty pleasure! The fashion,the music, NYC, the decor, the ads, the men…

I was a product of the 60’s (actually born a few months before that but let’s not quibble over decades.) My parents smoked, my Daddy wore Fedora hats to work, and I owned shifts like Sally Draper's. I see furniture and food on the show that bring back memories.

My man Mike has only the positive qualities of Don Draper; sex appeal, charm, drive, business success. Thankfully he’s devoted to little old me, loves God, doesn’t hide secrets and doesn’t have a stocked bar at his office.

Due to our current circumstances Mike and I only get to be in the same state and place about once a month. On Friday he’s flying here for Thanksgiving. I feel a bit like a character on Mad Men having an affair when he comes to visit. I get dressed up to meet my man and we go out in the city. I realize that this year isn’t like real-life compared to the day in, day out, marriage we’ve experienced for 28+ years. Typical Carver days consisted of sweats, flannels, chores and couch time. We’re in for a bit of a reality-check next month when I go back to Illinois for Christmas and we resume living under the same roof for the winter. (We'll get a preview spending a week tucked into our one-room studio here with Sarah.)

For now, I’ll look forward to our “date” and maybe I'll even order an Old Fashioned or a Sloe Gin Fizz Friday night in Seattle!

Lessons Learned: NETFLIX is the best thing ever when you live apart from your husband, secrets always get discovered and pearls look good with just about everything!

Who is your favorite Mad Men character?

In His Grip, Jane