Still Daria

Beavis and Butt-Head had all the attention at school. Daria was the show for the kids who found that tedious. That voice making everything sound stupid, Quinn genuinely blank, Jane sketching in the background. It was all permission to not pretend.

Loved it obsessively. Forgot almost all of it. Weird how that works—shows you’re sure are permanent until years pass and all that’s left is the knowledge you felt something about it.

One thing stuck with me though. My mom had this completely flat way of talking, never performing, just—deflating anything that tried to be important. And somewhere along the way I realized I’d always been hearing Daria when I pictured her. That refusal to engage. The way she wouldn’t soften anything for anyone.

Which is probably saying something I don’t want to think about too hard.