“Watching too much TV can triple our hunger for more possessions while reducing our personal contentment by about 5 percent for every hour a day we watch.” -Michael D. Pollock
Television can consume our lives.
When I was a child, we had a black and white TV (this was in the 1960s); my parents saved money to get a colored TV. They bought a Magnavox that was in a piece of furniture. We were so excited. The first show I remember seeing in color was Wizard of Oz. My mom was disappointed that it was in black and white, then suddenly, after the tornado, we saw beautiful Technicolor! There were no remotes, so I was the remote, changing channels for my parents, and once my brother was older, he had to help too. We had three channels ABC, NBC, and CBS. The stations went off the air at midnight. The Star Spangled Banner played, and there was a signal (picture) that today we would consider a screen saver. Then in the morning, the broadcasting would start again.
My brother and I enjoyed watching cartoons like Popeye and Bugs Bunny. At some point, Public Television (PBS) was added to the lineup, and we started watching Mr. RSesame Street, Electric Company, and Zoom. As we got older, we watched Speed Racer and Ultraman.
New stations were added to the lineup all the time. As a result, the variety of choices grew!!
My parents had their favorite shows after we would go to bed; however, during primetime, we would watch TV as a family. We watched Brady Bunch, Partridge Family, Mary Tyler Moore Show, Bob Newhart, Carol Burnett, and many more.
Cable was introduced to the community in the 70s, and HBO was introduced as a pay station. When HBO first began, it aired three movies daily, and they played repeatedly.
I got a little TV for my room for one of my birthdays or Christmas. Unfortunately, I closed myself off from everyone and stayed in my room and watched TV. However, I did have other interests and did not spend all my time in my room.
So much for my TV history; today, electronics seem to have taken over the world. We continue to watch TV. Some continue to have cable, but now we stream everything. There are so many streaming apps it is crazy. Some things are free to stream, and I pay a fee for others. They can be streamed on TVs, cell phones, computers, and tablets. Shows can be recorded and watched later; you can pause, rewind, and fast forward. There are so many things that can be done with TV and electronics I can’t even name them all.
My concern comes in with what we are doing with our time. I admit I have my TV on more than I should, so I am speaking to the choir.
Today, both adults and children play on electronics a lot. However, I see some advantages to some games and believe people should play on their electronics for an allotted time.
Now I am going to show my age! What happened to reading? What happened to books? (I read both books and books on my iPad.) Do children play outside anymore? Can young people carry on a conversation, or do they only communicate through social media?
I think most of you reading this have concerns of your own. I am exploring better ways of spending my time. I am already busy, so I plan to keep that up, but in my downtime, I will read more, pray, and be more diligent at journaling.
12 At-Home Activities to Do Instead of Watching TV
· Journal.
· Read a book.
· Do some meal prep.
· Practice medication.
· Get outside.
· Listen to music or podcast.
· Stretch or do yoga.
· Organize something.
· Paint or draw.
· Do nothing.
· Walk
· Get an extra hour of sleep.
Enjoy Television and electronics; however, find ways to enjoy life daily by interacting with others and finding constructive ways to spend time. (There is nothing wrong with a day of binge-watching your favorite program!)
