One of my goals this week is to limit my television viewing to three hours. That's right...only three hours of t.v. for the entire week! Is this possible? Sure it is. Will I actually accomplish this goal? I'll let you know. Television has become more stupefying than ever. You truly can become dumber by watching most of what's on the 'one-eyed god.' It's also amazing how much time you can find in your day if you turn the thing off.As I stated in an earlier post I grew up without a television for the first eleven years of my life. I actually had to either read or go outside for entertainment. I don't even remember missing television during those days. Sure, I didn't get the Mork and Mindy jokes at school. But I think the trade-off was worth it. My parents didn't have an over-arching plan about television viewing...we were just too poor to buy one while my Dad was in graduate school.
When my parents finally relented and bought a tv set so we could watch the 1984 Olympics I joined the great unwashed masses of television zombies. Yes, my parents set limits but once I was on my own I became a television zombie like everybody else. The transformation was easy. You come home from a long day at work or school and plop on the couch to vegetate in the comforting glow of the idiot box. But my move to Spain in 1996 jolted my pattern. In Barcelona I did not possess a television, telephone or even a computer! Once again, I had to either go outside or read for entertainment. That was a good thing.
I've had my relapses. But when Kimberly and I got married we agreed not to subscribe to cable or satellite. We wanted to save money (approximately $480 a year...that's 10 lift tickets at the ski resort!) and to spend time together. Of course, with eleven free channels, not including half a dozen Spanish language stations, it is easy to watch too much tv without cable or satellite. However, I was amazed how much more time I had in the day when the television was left off. With my Trinitron off I have time to get things done around the house. I have more time to read, write, think, play music, converse, enjoy the outdoors, pray and spend time with my wife.
I'm not giving up on television entirely. There are many intellectually stimulating programs on as well as those shows that provide a healthy moment of escapism from the harsh realities of life. Even your brain needs to relax every once in awhile. So this week I'm watching the premiere of The Amazing Race 9 and Survivor (an apalling guilty pleasure!). I'll let you know if I meet my goal of only three hours of tv this week. I got nothing to hide.
