What if we watched no television?
I was thinking about this over the weekend after visiting the Shelburne Museum with a friend. She pointed out this circus, which has something like 3,500 individual, hard-carved figures. One man carved this circus, and it took him 40 years. It is completely overwhelming. Karen pointed out that this is what you get when you don’t have t.v. She was joking, but it’s something to think about.
Honestly, I don’t sit around watching t.v. all day. I watch about half the news (skipping non-news “Making a Difference” kinds of stories – thank you, Tivo). If it’s not too late I’ll watch an hour (at most) of some other show or maybe part of a movie. I also watch Curious George pretty much every day, John’s allowed to watch that and it seems rude to leave him sitting there all alone. I like to think that it’s quality television for the most part.
So at the absolute most, it’s two hours a day, and I’m almost always doing something else while I’m watching. But holy smokes! That’s two hours a day! And never having enough time is one of my biggest worries these days.
What could I accomplish if I watched zero television? What could you? Maybe I’d exercise more. Maybe I’d be a better baker. Maybe I’d be more informed. Maybe I’d play an instrument or learn a second language. Every one of those things is something I think about and talk about but never find time for.
So why does turning off the tube seem so unlikely?
steady she goes 
Not to mention how much time we all spend in front of our computers! As our boys get older they have become less and less interested in television, which is a blessing and a curse 🙂
Love the blog!! Keep it up!
Yay, fronelle!! I ponder this often. So proud of you for doing it!! Will enjoy reading!
I will tell you what my kids did when we said no more “screen time” this weekend. They dug in the garage for boxes, came to me with scissors and asked for Saran Wrap and washable markers. Soon, they’d created their own pretend video games – one handheld, one a console. They spent hours playing their pretend games – making up levels, characters, prizes, etc. I think that was good … ??? We got a Wii last June, and we only allow weekends during school and shorts bursts in the summer… yet, Will is obsessed. I knew he would be, hence the waiting until he was 7 …
John watches almost no t.v., although if he had his way, he’d be watching a whole lot more of it. I’m thinking about my own watching! Would I be more productive with none, or just more tired? I sometimes think I have no coherent thought left by 9:00 p.m.