After a seven-year streak, much to my dismay, Tuesday night was the final Chelsea Lately show. I have watched every episode of this show since it started, and even have some of my favorite episodes from years ago saved on my DVR. That sounds ridiculous, but whatever; it was a laugh out loud hilarious show. While I loved watching the celebrity interviews and the comics of the roundtable, the appeal of the show, for me, was Chelsea Handler. I have not met her (yet), but I am often told that we share the same sense of humor, and timing with our wit. And that's by far my favorite compliment.
That being said, as a writer and a person, I sometimes feel insecure about offending strangers with my writing, or what I say online, and that makes it hard to be successful. When this happens, those that are close to me always say something along the lines of "Do you think Chelsea Handler gives a shit what people think about what she's saying?" And, no, I don't. It's a good reminder and motivation to keep on keepin' on.
Throughout the finale, I was reminded of other things that Chelsea Handler can teach us all:
1. Not everyone is going to like you, and that's totally fine. The show opened with a monologue from Chelsea, where she said, "I've made a lot of friends and a lot of enemies" and continued to a shower skit with Ellen DeGeneres, where they joked how disliked Chelsea is.
2. It's okay to be a woman who doesn't feel the need to rush into marriage. She is notorious for saying that she doesn't care about being married, with a lot of backlash. The first thing she sarcastically says after thanking the audience for being there was, "I'm wearing white. Welcome to my wedding!"
3. If something no longer makes you happy, it's okay to move on. In an interview, Chelsea said she was leaving E! because she was over reporting on celebrity news. The song at the end was a testament to that, specifically when Avril Lavigne sang about not reporting on Kim and Kanye.
4. Invest in your friendships. The show was filled with Chelsea's friends who were more than willing to participate in the funny skits, perform, and celebrate. It's also clear through her books, the press, and the show that she spends a lot of time with these people.
5. When you're fortunate enough to take care of others, do it. When they introduced all of the roundtable comedians, Chelsea said: "One of my favorite things about this show was putting comedians who shouldn't be on TV, on TV. Being on the roundtable has kicked off some great careers". There was a bit with Chuy thanking Chelsea for everything she's done for him, ending with "Miss Chelsea I love you from the bottom of my heart. You changed my life" and him wiping tears away. At the end of the show, Chelsea asked everyone to donate to My Friends Place. She said, "even if it's $5".
6. Be grateful. The show ended with Chelsea thanking everyone who has paid attention to her through her career and while she jokes about E! often, she closed the show by saying "I am grateful for this career. Thank you very much."
October 10, hurry up.