I haven't mentioned it, but one thing that changed in my life recently is that I received a T.V. for Christmas. One reason I haven't mentioned it is that it didn't get any channels. I finally borrowed a good antenna and last night watched TV. I get ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, UPN, FOX, the WB, and some kind of televangelist channel. Also an unidentified channel that appears to broadcast M*A*S*H at all times. The televangelist channel comes in the best. Second best is Fox. The network channels all come in, but the antenna needs to be adjusted in different directions for different ones. I think ABC works most of the time, but you need to pick your orientation, so you can either have CBS or NBC, but not both. I haven't set up my old clunky VCR yet, but I will soon. And one day, when my ship comes in, I'm thinking of being totally frivolous and buying a DVD player.
So last night I set things up and sat on the sofa with the remote control, watching TV. A friend came over. We flipped between the televangelist and some reality TV show apparently called Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Model Search. Then we watched The West Wing. The West Wing is pretty good. I can see why people like it so much. The picture was a little snowy, but I enjoyed the experience.
I'm now trying to figure out whether I should become a TV watcher, and, if so, what shows I should watch. I still don't see where people find the time to watch TV (especially when there's so much urgent reading to be done). My evenings always seem to be full. But maybe I could carve out a night a week to watch something. I used to really like The Simpsons, and Malcolm in the Middle. The West Wing wasn't bad. If Survivor comes back on maybe that'll be my show. Or maybe I'll just leave broadcast television alone a little longer, get myself a 15-movie rental punch card from the video store, and start trying to make headway on all the movies I haven't seen.
The Outer Life Guy wrote a great post recently about filtering out the world. I feel like I've been living a highly filtered life for a long time. The addition of this television is going to be an interesting change. I'm not sure what to do with it.
One word: NetFlix
Posted by: Butch | January 13, 2005 at 10:43 PM
don't do it Sherry! xxxx hexes xxxx stay away from the void! your time is your most precious asset!!! don't burn it that way! Kill your television!
Posted by: matt | January 14, 2005 at 12:40 AM
how big is the tv?
Posted by: bk | January 14, 2005 at 12:41 AM
There are only a few programs that I find worth watching and The West Wing is one of them.
However, I have a WinTV USB hookup for my laptop so I can watch it in a small window on my computer while doing work.
Posted by: jmbishop | January 14, 2005 at 01:19 AM
I'm glad you liked my post.
Just to be clear, I haven't filtered out the world. If anything, eliminating TV and other mental distractions has only enhanced my perception of the world.
I wish you luck with your new TV. My guess is you are wise enough to use it without abusing it. I wasn't.
Posted by: Outer Life | January 14, 2005 at 02:17 AM
The only television show worth watching: The Amaing Race.
Posted by: Susan | January 14, 2005 at 07:03 AM
What Susan said.
Posted by: Rich | January 14, 2005 at 08:32 AM
Blow up yer TV
throw away your paper
go to the country
build you a home.
Plant a little garden
eat a lot of peaches
try and find Jesus
on your own.
(words of John Prine, endorsed by me)
Whoever gave you that antenna should be ashamed of herself.
Posted by: turboglacier | January 14, 2005 at 09:16 AM
It's called satellite. Look into it.
Posted by: Cool Ethan | January 14, 2005 at 01:09 PM
It's the Hallmark station that plays MASH continuously. I know because I've been sick at home for the past two days watching it.
Posted by: Susannah | January 14, 2005 at 01:59 PM
I concur - The Amazing Race. But I too enjoy the Simpson's!
It's called balance... do what you want, as long as you're enjoying your life!
Posted by: Two Step | January 14, 2005 at 03:13 PM
Ah, TV with an antenna! I almost forgot what that was, but now I find myself thinking about the old days, growing up, when the family's only TV went out and my parents refused to get it fixed. (My Mom was also a noise-filterer-outerer.) For about a year, we had to go over to a friend's house to watch TV, until one day I got fed up and decided to fix the TV myself. My first step was to start randomly turning all the knobs in the back. Suddenly, the picture came back on! The TV was playing Bewitched!
To this day, I figure it was my Mom who'd sabotaged the TV by messing with the knobs, probably to get us all out of the house. It had a giant antenna with a base the width of the TV itself, various metal loopy things, and three rotary dials you could use to dial in a sharper picture. Even in black and white, Elizabeth Montgomery looked fantastic.
Posted by: Evan | January 14, 2005 at 03:18 PM
west wing...is there anything else on t.v.?
Posted by: MSIV | January 14, 2005 at 10:35 PM