Goodbye, TV

I realized that I was spending nearly $100 a month on a cable bill.  I watched TV, but I found myself hating more and more how much time I spent doing it.  I found myself desiring to go to Redbox more and more.  I realized that I could purchase a Nintendo Wii for just a couple months worth of cable bills and drop cable completely by getting Netflix through the Wii.  Additionally, I’d have a Wii for me and The Boy to play!  I already switched to Sprint’s 4G for internet, so cable TV was all that was left.

So, I made the leap.  There were only two shows I’ve missed: White Collar and SYTYCD.  I’m sure I can find them on the internet, but that means I need to sit in front of my computer to watch them.  And, I’m delayed.  And I have to watch commercials.  Still, I’m glad I made the leap.  I have a library of movies at my disposal for having company over.  I watch less TV and what I do watch is commercial free saving me the time of even having to fast forward through them.  And, I’ve watched some things I probably wouldn’t have watched otherwise and quite enjoyed thanks to Netflix’s suggestions.

I think The Boy’s watching less TV, too, though what we’re watching might be less educational, it’s still pretty awesome.  I’ve traded Noggin shows for super heroes.  Noggin shows are available, but I think we’re outgrowing them.  I’m not exactly sure what shows fill the void between Noggin and other TV that has redemptive attributes.  I’m not even sure if there is redemptive TV after Noggin.

Super heroes are essential to boys, I think.  We need adventure, fantasy, some pretty clear good vs. evil stuff at a young age.  We need to want to be as smart as Iron Man/Tony Stark, as good as Superman/Clark Kent, and choose well in moral dilemmas as SpiderMan/Peter Parker.  Somewhere in the back of our head, I think it’s the super hero in all of us boys that ultimately helps us choose to do the right thing, make the hard choice, be better than we thought we could be, and sacrifice ourselves for others.  Yes, the motivation, I hope, is actually based on a different super hero later in his life, but for now, the X-Men and Avengers will make a nice quasi-tangible example.

But, I’ve also traded a nice chunk of TV time for some active Wii play.  The Boy has broken a sweat on numerous occasions and he has a blast.  Plus, we play together all the time… Cooperatively… Versus… practice good winning and good losing… Eventually, I hope we can find more games to play together and connect with on top of the cuddles, wrestling, sports, and music that we already have.  I’m always open to suggestions… and, even better, I’m open to free games that you and yours don’t play anymore!

Anyway, I’m ultimately happy that I made the move.  There are times I wish I could just flip on the TV and channel surf to find something interesting.  But, typically, when the urge arises, I try to do something else.  Work out, chores, catch up, be social… and if couch time is just what I need, then I pick something from the Instant Queue and just watch it.  I would recommend the switch to anyone who needs to save money, time, and be more active.  It’s different, but not bad… just takes some getting used to…