My Week without TV

This week I have vowed not to watch TV.

I have quite the history as a TV addict. Growing up as a latchkey kid, I always watched TV when I got home from school. At night I would watch reruns of decades-old shows like Get Smart and The Dick van Dyke Show with my dad. In college I stayed up late to watch MacGyver in syndication, since I missed the show the first time around.

I really like television. I like knowing what is going on in the world, and I like the communal experience of watching something that several thousand other people also are watching simultaneously. Sometimes, though, my TV-watching habits become too important to me. When I start planning my day around Malcolm in the Middle reruns, things have gone too far.

So, I haven’t been super-extra productive without my TV time, but this has been a nice break. Most of the time I don’t miss the shows.

Tonight has been kinda hard, though. I find myself itching to go upstairs and turn on the television. I think that’s because Paul and I have a bit of a Wednesday night habit — he plays video games or works on his Flickr account, while I watch Criminal Minds and (usually) crochet.