Sometimes, we are buying the hype without even realizing we’re doing it. Certain things we hear for many years take on a life of their own. When you finally experience it, nothing lives up to the hype.
Case in point. I had heard about the musical Hair for many years. In my mind, great music and the hippy experience. Aquarius, Let the Sunshine In, and a few more.
I finally got the DVD from Netflix and watched it last night. Bubble burst. The music wasn’t the same as what I had heard on the radio. The plot was weak, and the characters not all that believable.
OF course, I’m not really a fan of musicals in the first place, though I’ve watched a few others recently, including Quadrophenia and Tommy. (I think Quadrophenia is the better album but Tommy the better film.)
The message is that sometimes we imagine a situation and idealize it in our own minds, only to have the illusion shattered when we finally get first-hand knowledge. Just stay your own course and don’t be buying the hype you create for yourself.