We have all done it. We were perfectly minding our own business, flipping through the tv channels, and there it is Stella (Bette Midler) standing in the rain watching as her daughter marries into a well to do family. You know Stella desperately longs to be apart of the ceremony, but doesn't dare interrupt. All that separates her and that wedding is one large pane of glass and the sacrifice of a mother's love. A doorman tries to usher her away but Stella begs just to get to see the bride's face (her daughter's face). Then the moment comes and Stella gets a full glimpse, she sheds one tear and gives that great big ‘everything is alright now' smile (only Bette Midler knows how to give) and walks away in the rain. Your heart is aching for Stella and you don't shed just one tear but a bucket. Then you realize just what happened and you scream, "Why TBS! Why?" Melanie Burkes assures us that it is okay to cry while watching tv movies and explains why.

Red eyes (the kind that a bucketful of Visine could never cure), a runny nose ( the kind that no matter how much Kleenex you use, it still runs like a facet), and finally, the throbbing headache. A monstrosity of pain that camps right in the middle of your forehead, and will not leave you alone until you surrender and go in search of some Advil or Tylenol or Motrin.

Does this sound familiar to you? It should because I'm talking about crying. So just to clarify, I am not talking about crying that is associated with an allergy attack in response to pollen or ragweed or grass in the spring. Nor, am I talking about the physical response to some kind of pain or the loss of a loved one (Hello, this is an upbeat column – is it not?)

Nope, I am talking about a good old sobfest on one of those days (like today), where it is raining outside, you are tucked, warm and comfortable on your couch, and it may be 1:00 p.m. on a Sunday afternoon, and you are still in your jammies. You have a bowl of popcorn in one hand, some Girl Scot cookies on the coffee table, and your remote control in your other hand. As you are flickin' the channels back and forth (and for those of us that have digital cable, that's a lotta channels), you come across a Sunday afternoon triple whammy, a ten Kleenex special. TBS Superstation, or maybe it's TNT, or AMC, or Bravo, or whatever cable channel of your choice is running a triple-header: Terms of Endearment, Beaches and Stepmom.

Now, what in the world would possess me to watch all three of these movies in one day, let alone back to back to back? These are not uplifting movies. We are not talking about warm and fuzzy happy endings. No one rides off into the sunset with his or her true love. There is no triumph of good over evil. There is no final play at the last second that wins the game for the good guys. They aren't those kinda movies. These are gut- wrenching, cry - your - eyes - out, "oh - God - why - does - s she - have - to - die!" movies. Not exactly something that I want to uplift me on a Sunday afternoon.

Despite this, there are a legion of people out there like myself, who will willing serve themselves up to be tortured emotionally with these shows. It is not just movies alone. It's anything on TV such as the made for TV movies (do you remember The Burning Bed with Farrah Fawcett?); cheesy commercials that pull your heartstrings (just about anything these days by AT&T); and even the cheesy junk on soap operas. In fact, I distinctly remember an episode of Days of Our Lives several years ago when Hope died for the 3rd time, and Bo, was speaking at her funeral, I was sobbing so hard I couldn't speak and that was daytime television. Something more current that comes to mind, is The Swan Song of Dr. Mark Green (Anthony Edwards) that is currently being played out on ER. Now, as a television viewer, I'm not stupid. I know he's gonna die, because his contract is up at the end of this season. They gave him brain tumor last year so at least we have had some foreshadowing, but still I will guarantee you, that when that episode finally comes around, and he dies, I will be sobbing like a maniac. I'm such a sucker.

So, am I just a sap? A masochist, who likes to torture myself emotionally? Not at all, it's just sometimes crying over a cheesy movie is just the thing that you need on a rainy day. Not only that, but it is a bonding opportunity. Just a couple of weeks ago at work, several friends and I were recounting some of our sappier moments watching movies on cable. Some of the favorites being Dead Poets Society, Dances with Wolves, and believe it or not Billy Elliot. (the Billy Elliott reference came about when I was recounting the story of my friend Lisa, who called me sobbing one day on the phone, muttering over and over again "Dance, Billy…dance!" Apparently, you need to see the movie in order to get the reference).

Moreover, it's a release. Although, often it spirals into uncontrollable sobbing (think Braveheart), there is something very controlled about succumbing to the emotional machinations of a movie on television. It's as if you need the emotional release that comes with crying, only in the controlled, sterile, and private environment of your living room. In addition, despite the tears it's hilarious. There is something ridiculously funny over these crying jags. Not to overstate the obvious, but these are not real people. These aren't my relatives and that isn't my man. In fact, some of these movies are well, kinda bad. We are not talking Academy Award winning performances. I do not remember Corey Haim being nominated for an Oscar for his performance in Lucas. Nonetheless, if you were to show me the last 20 minutes of that movie right now I would still collapse in a heap of tears. Maybe I am a sucker.

So now that I have bared my soul about my proclivity to the sappy Sunday afternoon movie, you too can feel comfortable that there are many out there like yourself. It's okay. that your eyes well up when you see Cocoon on TBS for the 5th time. It's okay that you get a hitch in your voice when you recount the last scenes of The Way We Were, and Babs smooths Redford's hair for the last time. Don't be ashamed! We all do. Stand up and let yourself be counted! I have, and you can too.

Melanie Burkes is a twenty something corporate attorney in Washington, D.C. Much to the chagrin of her parents and all of the banks holding her student loans, Melanie plans on quitting her job as a lawyer as soon as possible, and shall strike out for the wealth of riches that awaits her in the broadcast journalism field. In her spare time, Melanie likes to read current literature, prepare meals for her friends, and plots the overthrow of her current employer.

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