Pick up the Pieces

First, it took me like half an hour to come up with a title for this. I was thinking, 'All to Pieces', but it felt too easy. It's hard to feel clever coming up with a pun-ish title about a guy who has been publicly humiliated over a book with 'Pieces' in the title. The book was called 'A Million Little Pieces' in reference to the fact that he fell apart into said pieces. So it's not really a joke to say he's fallen to pieces, because he already said it. As some one who was picked on as a kid, one valuable tool I picked up is that if you agree with your tormenter, they kind of lose interest. When a kid would call me fat, I would just kind of chuckle, say "You sure got me pegged," and then offer him some pie. Because I never went anywhere without a fresh baked pie. I think I was trying to make the point that you can't really make the joke if he already made it about himself. Or something like that. I tend to lose focus when I start talking about pie. Anyway, I ended up going with 'Pick Up The Pieces' because not only does it fit with the title of the book, and Frey's current situation, but it's an Average White Band reference too. Everybody wins.

Anyway, I think James Frey is in a pretty nice situation right now. Sure he's been publicly humiliated by being proven a liar, but oh, oh no, it's okay, because Oprah was there for him. Except now, not so much. I don't watch Oprah, not because I despise her, just because they air the show in the morning here in Chicago (Though I do despise her). Anyway. It looks like he had it handed to him and left with his tail between his legs. But now, well now he's golden. He's been emotionally destroyed on national television, he's sitting on a pile of money, and he has a history of drug use (sort of). All of this looks like the beginning of a destructive downward spiral that makes one hell of a memoir. Sure he kind of half assed it before, but now he's been handed a second chance to totally ruin his life. And after it's all done, he can write it all down, and maybe make it back into a certain little book club.

Though I guess if he was smart about it he could just skip all the destructive bits and then lie again.