I don't Like Greens.

Lately I have been watching the documentary called the 'Up Series', where the lives of fourteen British children are filmed every seven years, starting in the 1960s when they were seven. They span the social classes and the programme is centered around the Jesuit saying ' Show me a child until he is seven and I will show you the man'. The point being whether social privileges afford children better opportunities and if personality traits at seven predetermine their future and fate. I am not sure if that saying has proven true.

I am finding it very sad to be honest. I am up to where they are 35 and I really don't want them to grow up any more. It is too late though as obviously they already have, but until I play the next episode, they are 35 to me.

I especially don't want to as it isn't working out very well for one man in particular, I want to protect him, I want to hug him and and say 'pull yourself together!', but he keeps getting more lonely and crazy, looking way older than his 35 years. In fact, each time I see an older version of any of them it is a little disturbing.

The show is tainted with sadness from the offset, it is like they were doomed to their fate of looming old age and death the moment the cameras started rolling in the 60s. If I were them I wouldn't be able to live the seven years in between without being constantly aware of how much of a failure or success I will appear in the next series.

It is not all bad of course, some are perfectly happy, but still their life seems synopsised and somehow devalued and with each new installment, someone has lost a parent or divorced a spouse. It is constantly switching back to the black and white footage of happy, optimistic seven year olds. Oh sweet naivety! The message seemingly: Don't grow up, it's hard, confusing and crap.

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