Wait-Wait-Wait! Don’t skip right on past. This isn’t a recap of a show you don’t watch or a show you watched too much and are sick of hearing about. I’m never gonna blog my recaps/thoughts, because snapchat is wayyyy too fun for that. No. This is about the reality TV disease that has been spreading for 20-something seasons now – and I’ve finally caught it.

Now if you’re up on your high horse, that’s ok. I was too. It felt like everyone I knew was tweeting, texting, posting, and hosting Bach stuff. I gave it a try on two different seasons, but didn’t make it more than 10 minutes deep into the premiere before I tried to gouge out my own eyeballs. I get it. It’s the dumbest thing. It’s misogynistic. It’s a terrible definition of the word “reality.” Why would I waste time watching something so pointless when I could just watch The Office for the fiftieth time? What a no-brainer LITERALLY. (Get it? Because most of the girls AND GUYS don’t actually have brains.)

But I am here to tell you that stepping off the high horse (do you step off a high horse? Jump down? Dismount? Whatever) is well worth it. It’s much more fun down here in the mud. *If* – and this is a major if- *IF* you do it right. I tried it several times but I finally found the way to enjoy being part of Bach Nation and I have honestly LOVED IT. Here’s a few easy steps:

1. Find a Community and Join It. There’s a lot of different ways to do this, and it’s very very easy. When I posted that I was gonna watch this season I was added to two (2!!) Bachelor Facebook Groups within 24 hours LOL. Immersing yourself in it is really the most important part. Whether your community is online, IRL, whatever. Join it and interact. It makes it about 1000% more hilarious and fun. THat’s the biggest reason it never worked for me before. Watching in isolation can just be kind of sad and embarrassing. EMBRACE IT WITH US. There’s a few different levels of community – I recommend doing as many as you can handle!
   1. Online – Twitter is what really motivated me to watch, since so many of my friends would talk about it. Finding a twitter crowd that you can share your thoughts/jokes with is so much fun. The Facebook groups have a lot of hilarious and real discussions. But snapchat is QUEEN. I don’t want to commit to like years of this but I can say right now that I plan to snap recap every episode for the forseeable future. IT’S SO FUN. (I’m dholdy if you wanna join in!)
   2. IRL Friends – if you can get your best friend/mom/coworker/spouse to watch with you it gives you a more fulfilling experience. It’s almost like holding yourself accountable to watch it – even when it gets boring. I like that it gives me something to talk to my friends about – not that we don’t talk anyway, obviously. Just that we have a standing tuesday text appointment to talk about everything from that week’s episode. I love it.
   3. Watch Parties – This is the ideal way to watch The Bachelor. I really started watching this season when I was invited to join my SIL & her best friend who watch religiously each week. Now it’s grown into a group of our close friends and family it’s honestly one of the best parts of my week. I look forward to getting together with some of my favorite people and watching a dumb show. It’s the greatest.
2. Food. Always Food. Even if you’re watching alone, to truly enjoy being a part of Bach Nation there needs to be a food attachment to your viewing. (Again, another benefit of watching WITH friends – food!) If you watch alone then get yourself your favorite cup of Ben & Jerry’s or a bag of Mini Cadbury Eggs and treat. yo. self. Watch at my friend Kiara’s house and we have chips & guac, drinks, bring treats… and she has a CANDY WALL. A literal wall of candy. Can you guess why we watch it there? You just gotta turn the whole experience into a treat. You probably don’t do enough stuff just for yourself – especially if you’re a mom. Maybe Bach Nation can be your mental health therapy. It certainly makes me feel more sane just watching.
3. Don’t dip a toe – jump in. Don’t be a wallflower – get on the dancefloor! Idk, whatever dumb metaphor works for you. Basically just invest emotionally. Pick favorites. Declare an archnemesis. Yell at the screen. Fill out a Bachelor Bracket or Fantasy Bachelor (yeah. it exists.) I learned the hard way that The Bachelor isn’t really the type of show you can casually watch in the background or passively watch to get out of your queue. If you really want to jump on the bandwagon you gotta throw your emotional intelligence out the window and espouse some good ol fashioned irrationality. It’s fun!

If you’re still not convinced, that’s ok. Not everything has to be for everybody. But if you’re still considering, that’s awesome! You’ve got a little time to decide. the next season starts May 23rd, and it’s starring my personal favorite from this season – Jojo. They do not waste time.

Come on in. The water’s fine. Because we’re in a hot tub. That’s all they do on the Bachelor anyways, right?