Crazy, But It Feels Alright

In the car on the way home from work today, I had an all too common experience. There I sat, minding my own business, fiddling with the radio dial because I can't be bothered to fish through my black hole of a purse to find my iPod, silently cursing traffic. One station to the next, commercial to commercial, and then it happened. I landed on a song I couldn't help but stop and listen to. In fact, a song I couldn't help but sing along to. What's worse, a song I couldn't help but dance to.

That song was Britney Spears' "Crazy."

My questionable music tastes aside, you have to admit it's a catchy tune. If you've seen the video (or the masterpiece 1999 Melissa Joan Hart/Adrien Grenier hit, "Drive Me Crazy"), you may even remember bits of Brit's dance moves. I do, and it's nearly impossible to not break them out whenever the song comes on. Even in my car.

One of these days I may have to invest in some illegally tinted windows, because I tend to make a fool out of myself on the regular. Now obviously I don't care what these people I'm never going to see again think, but it's always kind of a jarring realization to go from merrily bouncing around to cheesy pop music to noticing you're being pointed and laughed at by the boys in the Jeep up ahead. Even worse if they're cute. My usual coping mechanism is to just keep on doing what I'm doing, but I'll admit to maybe going for the more subdued dance moves when I know I'm being watched.

Britney and her '90s pop compatriots are repeat offenders when it comes to embarrassing me in the car. Other culprits? Anything with banjo and a good beat makes me bounce around a bit. When a wordy song I know all the lyrics to like "It's The End Of The World (As We Know It)" comes on, I probably look like I'm either having a seizure or yelling profusely at someone on an invisible Bluetooth. And when a catchy rap song comes on? I probably look a little bit like Michael Bolton from "Office Space." You know the feeling.

So I'll admit, I get a little embarrassed every now and then in the car. But I'm not going to stop. Because as soon as the shame passes, and a Backstreet Boys song comes on shuffle, you know you'd be rocking out to those '90s beats, too. It's the law.