Life Without T.V.

We don't watch T.V. We don't have reception for T.V. If you didn't grow up with a large Motorola in your living room in the 1970s, you might not understand how shocking this is. My brother Marshall and I were hard core T.V. addicts: Petticoat Junction, Bonanza, Andy Griffith, Brady Bunch, Gilligan's Island ~~ Every. Afternoon. Accompanied with a batch of Pioneer Mix homemade donuts. It was our after-school life.

T.V. costs money now. You can't stick an old set in your living room, turn it on, and hope to get a few channels. Lest you think we're holy or off-the-grid, fear not! We simply get no reception, don't want to buy fancy antennas or pay for cable. And who needs T.V. anyway?

We have Netflix. There's so much to watch on Netflix that my college-age son cancelled his account. It was affecting his grades. Right now, I'm experiencing Doc Martin. I think I watched the entire third season on Thursday when I had the stomach flu and was in bed.

I could have watched Downton Abbey at 9:00 PM on Sundays. Instead, we watched it Monday afternoons, online at the PBS website, at a more humane time. Same for: Call the Midwife, Once Upon a Time (ABC website), and others. Watch when you want to.

This is the thing: why are we enslaved to tolerating commercials 20 minutes every hour, and plunking ourselves down on the couch at a dictated time, to watch a show? There's no need. Did you ever try to pause a T.V. show for a potty break, only to discover that you couldn't? Haha!! I don't think I could sit through commercials ever again. I've been spoiled by the convenience of online viewing and DVDs when we like.

Um, don't worry about our lack of screen time. There isn't any.

I must admit though, on Saturday afternoons, I still miss these guys, A Lot:

Especially Bob. He gave me so many nice naps! But I bet they're all available online somewhere. I just need to look.

This is very similar to our old Motorola.