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| Yup, my kids are watching the Sound of Music. |
When we moved here, I insisted that we not hook up the cable, or satellite or anything like it. My husband looked at me a little funny, but he agreed, besides, we would have to go through our landlord and it would up the rent. So we started our life here without the television. We do have movies, but I was a little worried how things would go, as I have been known to use the TV in the mornings to keep the kids busy while I get things done. I would love to say it's been perfect, but I have missed the kids shows a bit. (I am a closet backyardigans fan) But really, it's been tough filling that time for the kids without them being right under me. I am pondering on getting one of those digital receptors so we can get a few local channels. I kind of miss the news now and then, but really, with the internet, there's not much I need from TV.
I'll tell you what I absolutely don't miss though. The commercials! It has been so nice to not constantly hear my kids telling me that they want or need the latest toy they just saw on TV. Nice to have them actually use their imaginations, instead of repeating what the commercial said. Marketing works. Last summer, my son told me I should get glad force flex garbage bags. Seriously? A five year old cares about garbage bags? I realized just how nice it has been to be commercial free yesterday, when one of our new movies had an advertisement for a toy before the movie started. My kids were suddenly unhappy without that toy. It's all they ever wanted. How could they go on without it?
I think I'll keep on being commercial free. I'll take the kids under my feet.
When we first moved to the farm, we only had analog tv, no satellite. It was just fine and the price was right. Little by little, we managed to have a satellite dish and every single channel they offer.
ReplyDeleteI justify it because we don't go out to dinner, movies, etc... it is our entertainment. But I respect people like you who go without. It is an admirable quality. :)
I DO watch television, or listen to it. I am not a big fan, we have a dish, the smallest package they have - we used to have the big pkg and switched services - I don't miss the extra shows, at all. We also have one of those boxes for the big antenna in the back yard - I would have been happy with just that, for weather, news and occasional watching.
ReplyDeleteBack at the cabin, we had no tv, our kids found other things to do, there were less squabbles, and lots more fresh air!
The first of that little series was at
http://lifewithjacknjill.blogspot.com/2010/04/so-you-think-you-want-to-go-back-to.html
You might find it interesting.
I haven't had television in 11 years and I truthfully do not miss it in the least. Of course we have no small children to worry about wanting to watch what their friends watch. We have our computers with satellite hook up and that satisfies my need for the outside world. You can watch tv free online though I haven't tried that. We watch dvd movies on our computers now and then.
ReplyDeleteI do watch a few shows online, but really, there's not much on the television that I want to watch. I think I could get all I need from a few local channels. Sharon, I'll have to check out that post.
ReplyDeleteWe've been commercial free for our whole marriage (4.5 years). My son has a huge movie collection though. He gets to watch TV and gramma and pops though, and I hear ya on the "I gotta have it" syndrome!
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking about getting the roku box so we can get Netflix and watch the on demand shows on the TV instead of the laptop. I'm told there are lots of documentaries and shows good for school. We'll see.
No cable where we are and although we could get satellite, I've found we haven't missed it and the kids watch much less TV. Between spending all our time outside in the summer months and busy reading, crafting or cooking in the winter, we just don't have much time for TV. We do watch movies, especially Friday and Saturday nights, and we get the odd older TV series like The Waltons or Little House on the Prairie from the library so the kids can experience them but that's good enough for us. Besides, the library is free, satellite is not, in the end it has been one of the best things for the kids since we moved out here!
ReplyDeleteHappy Weekend!
~Andrea~