We got rid of TV programming in November of last year. Here is a little of what the Nelson household has learned...
1. Movies are better. The action, the acting, the story lines, the suspense, the dialogue - all better in movies. Half a movie is better than most full TV shows (save "The Office" and "24").
2. Time is one of the new economies most precious commodities. At the end of our days, we will not say, "Boy, I wish I would have watched more television." I can’t tell you how many times I have been watching something and had this thought, “why am I watching this?” It was totally meaningless, and really not funny and when I was done I was not a better person for watching it. When you watch TV, you are at the mercy of the timing of the programming. There is a schedule and if there is nothing good on at 9:30 on a Monday night, you are stuck watching whatever is on. However, with movies, you pick what you want to watch and don’t even have to finish it in one setting. We have chosen to carefully select the movies our family watches. The TV largely does not afford you that luxury if you want to sit down at a certain time and relax.
1. Movies are better. The action, the acting, the story lines, the suspense, the dialogue - all better in movies. Half a movie is better than most full TV shows (save "The Office" and "24").
2. Time is one of the new economies most precious commodities. At the end of our days, we will not say, "Boy, I wish I would have watched more television." I can’t tell you how many times I have been watching something and had this thought, “why am I watching this?” It was totally meaningless, and really not funny and when I was done I was not a better person for watching it. When you watch TV, you are at the mercy of the timing of the programming. There is a schedule and if there is nothing good on at 9:30 on a Monday night, you are stuck watching whatever is on. However, with movies, you pick what you want to watch and don’t even have to finish it in one setting. We have chosen to carefully select the movies our family watches. The TV largely does not afford you that luxury if you want to sit down at a certain time and relax.
3. We are more creative. Now that we have turned off our TV, we find ourselves reading much more, playing board games together, talking more and generally going to bed earlier - thus, more rested, too. Most of all, the kids have not asked for it back. Amazing! Seriously, they don't miss it. There is so much more to do that is far more interesting. Trust me, your brain will thank you.
4. The show you want to see is free online! You can still watch your shows if you go to www.fox.com and www.nbc.com to see “24” and “The Office”. The entire show from the week before is on there for free. But now you can SAVE MONEY! Cut off your cable bill or your DirecTV contract. Netflix is cheaper than Blockbuster, and the library is cheaper than both. When we cut off our Directv connection, we saved $82 a month. That’s a savings of $984 a year.
What in the world does this have to do with orphan care? Good question. It doesn't...
Except ... you now have $984 you can donate to World Orphans to save some more kids lives! Here to help. Grace and Peace, Tim
Thanks Tim for this amazing blog! T.V. has taken control of the attitudes in the house I live in. I am in such a better mood the longer I stay awayu from T.V. Keep it up Tim!
ReplyDeleteNate
Amen! As of a few weeks ago I'm living with TV for the first time in 11 years (because we're living with family so it's not our choice - we're not paying for it!) I can very honestly say that not having TV is WONDERFUL...and you did a great job explaining why :)
ReplyDelete