Pulling myself away from television.

I don't know about you, but one of my favourite things to do, whether it be to relax or not, is to watch TV. I love that it's completely mindless and it's something that finally doesn't call for my attention. I also really like that it doesn't demand concentration, but keeps me occupied enough to not think about other things on my mind. It's completely undemanding and yet provides all the entertainment and information I need and want.

But how much is too much? I don't watch too much TV during school since I have virtually no time, but now that the course loads have lightened, I'm able to sneak a couple more hours in that I couldn't before. I've also found that I've expanded the repertoire of shows I watch; I've added Hell's Kitchen, Wipe Out, How I Met Your Mother, Glee, and Big Bang Theory to the list of shows I used to watch carelessly and without too much commitment.

I think part of the charm of TV, for me, is that is has this story-telling effect. I'm the kind of person who prefers to listen to someone speak than talk herself. The TV technically does all the talking; I can sit there with my feet up and just listen as it rambles on about these intriguing and unrelated stories. I can also listen to these stories half-assed, or switch back and forth to listen to the ones I prefer over others.

And don't a lot more people use watching TV as an excuse to relax these days, too? People come in from work, raid the fridge or grab a beer, toss off their shoes, sit down, and watch the news or something. We have no more energy to come home and crack open a book, or go for a walk. But why TV? We look at little glowing screens every day and all day. We text. We stare at our computers for 8 hours a day at work. We check our emails and Facebook for the remaining 16 hours of the day. We watch TV.

So this weekend, I put myself to the test. I told myself I would not watch TV all of Saturday and Sunday, which ended up being easier said than done, but anyways. On Saturday, I worked on some material for my other class for a couple of hours, then read a book. It was getting later on in the day, but I left my blinds open to get in enough natural sunlight, lit some bamboo candles, sat in this big comfy chair I have, and found a light blanket. I have to admit, I felt really relaxed just reading my story at my own pace, in an environment that made me feel at ease and relaxed. I made a mental note of the way the atmosphere I created for myself made me feel, and I think I'm going to try to do the same thing with my homework. At night, I went to a Tim Hortons with a friend and we just hung out there for a while while she told me about work, school, where she was going this summer, and how her boyfriend, which is also one of my friends, is doing. I got home around 11:30 at night, and even though it wasn't very late for a Saturday, I went to bed, satisfied for the way my day panned out.

Sunday was more challenging only because America's Funniest Videos plays at 7 pm and it's hard to pass up watching dogs drag children around on their leash, or people falling down stairs. But according to my dad, after I had asked him, it wasn't playing so I wasn't really missing out. Despite this though, I spent my day working on a project, and then I went down town to meet up with some team members to discuss where we were in our progression. It also took me a while to mosey on through the crowd accumulated from F1, which bought some time also. When I got home, I had some supper with my family, then me and my mom sat outside with some sangria and just spoke. When we came back in though, I got kind of bored and wanted to just sit down and watch something, but instead I just cracked open my book and finished it a couple hours later.

So really, though TV could be entertaining, there are so many better things you could be doing than watching it. You can be strengthening your relationship with someone you haven't spoken to in a while, or read a book you've been dying to, or go for a nice walk, or paint, or whatever. It might sound silly but I really think TV can create its own relationship with its viewers. I've already been warned by a friend that she can't go out on the nights Glee plays on, which is fine, but that's just an example to illustrate my point. I wouldn't give up TV, but I think it would be healthier for me to give up a couple hours for something with more subsistence.

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