I have this obsession with the show The Girls Next Door all of a sudden—and with Playboy in general. I can't stop watching it. Hugh Hefner, I've decided is brilliant for producing the show the way he does. One expects a "love to hate them" kind of thing, like My Super Sweet Sixteen, where the girls are vapid and spoiled and horrible but you can't stop watching. Not so with Girls Next Door; they are surprisingly down to earth, kind, fun, considerate, grateful. And of course, it's presented that way to attract a female audience, women like me who would have otherwise dismissed the entire Playboy brand as being misogynistic or outdated. Instead, I'm watching and saying, I need to move there! How do I get into Playboy??

I Wikipedia-ed everything about them last night; I learned the difference between Playboy (softcore) and Penthouse (hardcore). And it fascinates me to watch the girls on the show interact with their parents, proudly showing off their pictorials and inviting their younger siblings to the mansion. Only once have the parents ever seemed the slightest bit uncomfortable.

The more I watch it, the more normal their lifestyle seems, even though it totally isn't. But I love it. They make me want to show more cleavage.