Monday, January 2, 2012. California heart-throb, Ben Flajnik is back in my life.

For a total of 20 hours this summer, millions of love-struck women watched as Ashley Heppert made out with 20 attractive men in search of a husband on ABC’s The Bachelorette. And week after week, she cried over men, laughed at their “adorableness,” and kissed almost every guy on the show. Even though I thought it was ridiculous, I continued to watch this shallow girl fend for her next husband.

And it’s all because of Ben Flajnik.

Ashley talked about each of the guys until the final two, JP and Ben, were left.  JP had been a front-runner from the beginning because Ashley always talked so enthusuastically about “JP’s kisses.” This humored me, because if that was all JP had to offer, this relationship was going to be limited. Then there was sweet and quirky Ben, who was a wine make  and my favorite. But Ashley thought he wasn’t emotional enough. And that was coming from this girl who cried all the time. To my ultimate dismay, bald-headed JP won. This left the suave, cute winemaker, Ben, alone.

And this season on the spin-off of The Bachelor, you can bet I’m going to be there watching Ben wreck his life with other passionate girls.

I hope Ashley and JP are happy and that Ben finds joy. But I’m skeptical. This show never allows two people to be exclusive. At the end, someone is proposing. It seems too fast to get to know someone on a personal level and then propose! I feel love should be the primary reason of marriage. But on this show, inevitable contributing factors play into important life choices. Can you even imagine the kind of financial woes the winning couple are going to have? Considering they spent their courtship in expensive hotels and destinations, the bar is already set pretty high for marriage.

The Bachelorette and The Bachelor are proof that singles want companionship so badly that they’ll leave their jobs and lives to spend time on a superficial show. The probability of actually ending up with the main contestant is rare.  This definitely isn’t a spectacle to watch for people looking to engage in a steadfast relationship.

The Bachelor airs on ABC Monday nights at 8:00.

Written by Peri Kahraman’13