How the Muppets ruined my relationship

In elementary school there was a boy who had a crush on me. He was tall (ok, everyone is tall to me) handsome and funny, there was just one little dilemma....He had a huge fascination with The Muppets. I'm not talking about just liking the show, he had actual muppet puppets. He did impersonations (his favorite was Fozzy the Bear), knew muppet facts, I mean, this kid LOVED the Muppets.

In the beginning I wasn't too keen on Muppet boy, but over time, he won me over with his humor, outgoing personality and charm. Soon we were liking each other. I found myself more interested in the muppets as well and was watching the show in order to familarize myself with the characters.

When you crush on someone, who want to be able to enjoy the things they enjoy. It's not just an adult thing, for I found myself wanting to learn all about the muppets, just to keep that connection with the boy.

Well, Muppet boy would occasionally put on little skits at our school assembly. On one occasion he asked me if I would help him. You can imagine my excitement I felt, when given the opportunity to finally handle one of his puppets and to be on stage side by side performing the skit together. How romantic is that!

Well this was the beginning to the end. I had no idea how intense his hobby (obsession) was until we started practicing. It was almost as if these puppets were real people. You had to handle them a certain way, there was a way in which they moved that had to be exact and don't get me started on the Muppet voices!!

His desire for a perfect performance soon began to spoil any excitment I had of sharing the spotlight with him. I started to hate the Muppets. No longer were they cute and fun. They became more and more annoying and childish. My crush was slowing being crushed.

I couldn't stand how he couldn't get through a day without talking like one of the characters or talking about the show. I was thinking of ways to bow out of the performance, but I didn't.

I went through with the Muppet skit. I know I wasn't as enthusiastic about it as he was. After the skit was over, well we were over too. We drifted apart. The Muppet love was over.

I look back on that from time to time and wonder how it could have been different. Even though that took place quite some time ago, that same scenario has occured over and over again in my relationships.

I am all for being open minded to new experiences, but that doesn't mean we have to engulf ourselves with the same hobbies of those we are dating. Naturally, we are going to have similarities that draw us together, but we should also embrace the differences and be ok with allowing the individual to engage in those hobbies..... alone.

It wasn't Muppet boy's love of the Muppets that killed the relationship, it was his need to have me feel the same way, that started the demise. I also realize that I was 10 years old and really wasn't equipped with the communication skills to take a stand or express what I wanted.

So while the Muppets ruined that immature, elementary crush, it taught me a lesson. One, you can't control the things people like. Second, it's o.k. to appreciate bits and pieces of these talents and hobbies without feeling a need to love them to the same degree. And finally, it's ok to say no if you don't want to play with a hand puppet.

I got over my anger against the Muppets over time, I even love the Muppet Christmas Carol, but please, whatever you do... don't ask me to impersonate Miss Piggy.