Donna Martin graduates!

Today has been a truly lousy day from about noon on, for reasons too numerous to name.


On such a day, only one thing can make me feel better. And that thing is 90210.


Some people go shopping; others pour a stiff drink.


Not me. No, I turn to SoapNet, where every day is 1993. Or maybe 1997 or 1999. It matters not -- every day in Beverly Hills is an hour-long package of goodness, a festival of trendy fashion, trendy hair, trendy music and the requisite location shots of Rodeo Drive. (Lookie there! It's Cartier!)


As you're reading this, you might be thinking, "Ah, any second now she will make a salient point tying 90210 to a major cultural touchstone relevant to today's economic and social circumstances."


I will do no such thing, I assure you. That would minimize the value of 90210 for being exactly what it is: unadulterated, mindless American entertainment. (It's like macaroni and cheese. Why are people adding lobster to something that was absolutely perfect to begin with?)


Indeed, 90210 is the ultimate comfort food, chicken soup for Jennifer's soul. 


Today, the senior class at West Bev staged a protest demanding that Donna Martin be allowed to graduate with the rest of the gang. Even Dylan joined in! Heck, even the juniors joined in (with their only stipulation being a co-protest of the clearly oppressive dress code). Nothing like that ever happened at Scott High. Or, frankly, any actual high school anywhere on the planet.


And that's why it's awesome. And why I'll be tuning in again tomorrow. And the day after that. No matter how bad any of those days might be, I know I'll have one hour of pure, nonsensical joy. 


And some sweet sideburns.