Can you relate?: "Soap Opera Stars"

 Here is an excerpt from the book "Attitude Is Everything" by Keith Harrell.

"Do you ever watch the soaps? You can admit it, no one will jump out from behind the page and arrest you. For many people, soap operas are a guilty pleasure. They're certainly not boring. There are people, though, who think life is one big soap opera, minus the commercials. Like characters in a soap opera, these people often have over-the-top attitudes. They can be charming, charismatic, narcissistic, flamboyant, imaginative, compelling, and persuasive.

These soap opera pretenders love drama, and they love the limelight. They tend to see you as one of the supporting cast, or an extra put on set merely to serve as a foil to their whims and fancies. They need an audience. You're it. 

There are no intermissions, and the curtain never comes down. Their lives are a long-running series. Just when you think the end is near, they'll create another drama, dilemma or crisis they cannot escape without you. They're control freaks, and you're the puppet they're stringing along. To validate their own lives, they need you around as a witness---not as a participant, or a lovable sidekick, just a witness. "I can't go on without you! You must save me!" is their cry. As soon as you try to get a speaking part, they step on your lines.

No matter how important the items on your agenda are or how badly you need to spend time doing something outside their world, they won't see it. Their life is a stage. If you are smart, you'll head for the exist. Tell them you'll gladly read the reviews, but you don't have time for another opening, or another show."