Yes, I have tweaked things on my site AGAIN, even after just doing it on Friday. While the main page itself looks relatively clean and elegant, the pictures for each category just didn’t seem to match up with the vibe of the rest of the site. I think I’ve come much closer with this iteration of pictures. There is a touch of elegance to them. I may play around with the fonts on them, though, to see if there’s something better, but I’m pretty satisfied with things for now.

For those of you who have a subscription to Max, I decided to check out their new series, “Quiet on Set”.

It was only 4 episodes long, and it dived into a time of Nickelodeon that my kids used to watch when they were growing up. They certainly weren’t kidding when they were going to take a look into the darker side of children being on TV, specifically the “Dan Schneider era” of television. Unsure of what era? Think this:

• The Amanda Show
• All That
• Zoey 101
• Drake and Josh
• iCarly
• Sam and Cat

There are others, but any of these ring a bell with you? I’m obviously not going to spoil it for you, but there were a lot of shady, questionable things going on.

The biggest in my mind was that of male pedophiles were amongst the crew, pretty much unbeknownst to everyone, except for their victims. One of them stepped up to tell their story in the series, and it hit me hard.

REALLY HARD.

That person? Drake Bell, of The Amanda Show and Drake and Josh fame.

THAT Drake.

Drake bravely shared his story of being sexually assaulted and abused by one of these men. I watched these episodes nearly breathless, listening so intently to him tell his story.

Why did it hit me so hard, you’re probably wondering..

I could relate with Drake.

I, too, was sexually assaulted by a man when I was younger. I have kept that dark secret locked away for over 30 years, and Drake’s courage to share his story in public, has given me the courage to let out that dark secret. I never thought I would ever share that with the world. I never felt that I was ready to. If I had never watched that series, I likely never would have. It probably would still be locked away. I’m not sure if I will ever be willing to share the details of that event, but this is me trying (slipping in some Taylor lyrics to lighten the mood a bit).

I wish I had a way to thank Drake for sharing his story, and instilling the courage in me to share mine as well.

Having said all of that, am I glad I watched the series? Absolutely. It was extremely eye-opening. I’d certainly recommend it to others.

I don’t know about you, but I think that’s enough for today. Over and out.

-T