Tv

bonnie in indiana · #1 03/12/07, 05:14 AM

I'm thinking about having my TV cable turned off. No cable means no TV at all--even the local stuff don't come through. $45.00 a month just seems tooo much. I think I would rather get the computer on line and it woudl be a little cheeper.
I would miss the TV, but maybe I would loose a few pounds.

Are there people out there without TV?

tn_junk · #2 03/12/07, 05:23 AM

May 1 will be the 1st anniversery of the day I unplugged my TV for good. Since then I have listened to a lot of good music, read a lot of good books, and not missed TV even for one second.

galump.

MorrisonCorner · #3 03/12/07, 05:40 AM

We unplugged ours in a 6 month experiment which I enjoyed but my husband didn't. So now we have basic.

slnj · #4 03/12/07, 05:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by galump

May 1 will be the 1st anniversery of the day I unplugged my TV for good. Since then I have listened to a lot of good music, read a lot of good books, and not missed TV even for one second.

galump.

Ditto all except for the anniversary. We never had a TV until Katrina, we got a battery operated one to plug in the van to see what was going on. We had no electric or phone, so that was the only way we knew how bad we were hit.

I guess TV has its' place, it just doesn't have one in our house!

nehimama · #5 03/12/07, 05:58 AM

Haven't had TV here since 2004. Do not miss it one single, teeny-tiny, little bit. Life is good without TV. I would miss the computer & internet, though.

NeHi

Liese · #6 03/12/07, 06:02 AM

Haven't had a TV since '96 and haven't missed a thing. In fact, I feel that I have become more objective in thinking - the hype on TV is very insidious. Also in traveling about, talking to people, I think TV programs also scare people - many are so fearful about others. Certainly don't need TV to create a "bogey man" for me! I listen to National Public Radio and the BBC for news. Our son who was a mid teenager at the time we unplugged had no complaints and now at 26 still doesn't have TV himself. My husband and I patronize the library every week, have a glass of wine and talk whilst making dinner, do crafts and general spend the evening quietly and peacefully. Perhaps you could do a trial period, after all you could always turn it back on. But $45./month is $540 the year. I think you could have a lot more fun with the money than the TV is giving you!

materursa · #7 03/12/07, 06:40 AM

Valentine's day marks our 5th year without tv reception/cable, etc. In the beginning, it was a little odd, but not bothersome like I thought it would be. I have 3 kids and they don't complain about it, gives more time for them to play doing constructive type things. I do have to mention though, that we do have some DVDs in the house and watch those occasionally, but not nearly as much as most people watch their cable tv.

n8tureboy · #8 03/12/07, 06:48 AM

I get two channels over the airwaves an ABC affiliate and PBS. I have'nt had cable TV since 1996.....and don't miss it!

Here's my fave Bumper sticker regarding television.

Warning: Television contains phsychopolitical programming and subliminal thought alteration!

pookshollow · #9 03/12/07, 06:49 AM

I haven't had cable since 2000 when I left my first husband. Out here, we can get a couple of channels, sort of.

We don't bother.

When DD's girls come for the weekend, they'll bring DVDs and pretty much live in front of the TV, and sometimes, if it's something we'll enjoy, we'll join them - but not very often! We get movies out of the library once in a blue moon.

Mostly, we go out to the barn and watch the goat channel for amusement. Yesterday, I let the chickens and ducks out for the first time this year, and we stood and watched them for a good half-hour.

They were enjoying themselves soooo much.

keljonma · #10 03/12/07, 08:20 AM

We've led a connected tv-less life since 2003 and we love it. We do have an old 13" color tv plugged to the vcr & dvd. We own some dvds and video tapes, borrow movies from our local libraries and the grandkids, nieces, nephews bring their favorites when visiting.

Where we live now, if you don't have cable or a 100' antenna you can't get any stations. We get our local free press and get the international news (BBC) online and listen to NPR on the radio.

We see the sensationalized news at the checkout stands.. and that's enough for us.

Obser · #11 03/12/07, 08:49 AM

I have not had television since childhood in the fifties because I consider it a gross waste of time and a negative influence -- with very few redeeming qualities -- pure entertainment. Programming is evidently set at sixth grade comprehension level (or is that six year old?). The 1500 hours per year that average Americans spend sitting and watching I choose to spend more positively and productively.

#12 03/12/07, 08:50 AM

My family stopped watching broadcast and cable television years ago. We do have a DVD player and a collection of disks mostly for the kids, but no antenna, satellite, or cable.

.....Alan.

Westwood · #13 03/12/07, 09:00 AM

We only get PBS out here and the signal is so bad we rarely turn the TV on. We read a LOT!

Fae · #14 03/12/07, 09:05 AM

I am sorry to say I have Directv and would go through withdrawal if I did not have it. I love watching the home decorating and gardening shows and Fox news. I could put an antenna back up(Katrina blew it down) and get 3 or 4 channels but I don't watch game shows, soap operas, or sit-coms.What they call entertainment, in my opinion, is vulgar garbage and I would not waste my time. I tried having my programming selections changed but I lost Fox news and had it all turned back on. I would love to be turn it all off but my husband would not agree to it. I know I would get used to not having it but it would definitely be hard.

DocM · #15 03/12/07, 09:10 AM

Well, I'll be the dissenting voice. I have satellite and I can't imagine life without it. I rarely watch broadcast TV channels, sitcoms, or sports/cooking shows (if ever). I do watch a lot of history channel, A and E, discovery, science, and news. At least with the TV on, and I can be moving about and still enjoy the programming, with the computer, I'm pretty much chained in position. I'd hate to be without the news, and I'd hate to be forced to sit and read it online. TV isn't quite the great satan people make it out to be, with more choices in programming, it can be an excellent addition to a family's entertainment package. I'd rather pay $2-4 for a pay-per-view movie than have to either wait (months) for a movie from netflix or drive 45 miles to the nearest video store. I like having the satellite radio channels (no commercials), and after a hard day of working outside, I sometimes like to just sit and veg on the couch and watch some mind numbing entertainment on the big screen.

My kids (4 homeschooled, all in college now) never had any limitations on "screen time" and none of them became TV addicts. The addition of all the educational programming to our homeschool was great. A and E, History Channel, and all the discovery channels provide educators programming guides to anyone who asks for it, along with supplemental lesson resources, dvd's, and tons of print materials. I'd rather keep paying my $70 a month for satellite than be isolated. And I would be, without it. No newspaper delivery out here. Internet news? Sure, if I want to sit and read it all day. I can keep CNN headline news on low in the background of my day. It works for me.

Junkmanme · #16 03/12/07, 09:13 AM

The ONLY time I miss it is when the DENVER BRONCOS play football. Don't have time for that TV thing!

Macybaby · #17 03/12/07, 09:15 AM

I like having the TV, every once in a while I actually use it. We also would have no service with out satelite. DH and I are "post kids" and not in a situation where the bill causes undue hardship, otherwise we'd have none.

We watched a Movie (dvd) Friday night, and that was the only time the TV was on during the weekend.

However, it's those darn computers that have turned into brain drains for us. We each have our own, and we'll spend several hours a day on the weekend on message boards and looking stuff up online. It's real easy to sit down at the computer to see what is going on on this message board, and spend too much time.

Then if you have two or three message boards, it can really add up. Other people talk about the TV show they watched, I talk about what I've read on the message boards.

I get my news and weather off the internet, so I don't watch TV for either of those items. I figure the internet is a bit more interactive than watching TV, but both take up a lot of time without you realizing it LOL!!

Cathy

uncle Will in In. · #18 03/12/07, 09:22 AM

Bonnie, I am not saying you should or should not have TV. However everyone in Indiana recieved their TV signal from their own antenna for several years until they came out with cable in the cities. Then they got the personal dishes and call that cable. What I wonder, is where you are located that you can't recieve stations on an antenna?? We have only antenna and can pick up over 20 stations. We live in the middle of the northern half of the state.

bonnie in indiana · #19 03/12/07, 03:16 PM

Uncle Will,
I live next to the Purdue University Airport , Lafayette, Indiana. In a woods and have no antenna and at this time do not have the means to get one. I am doing a lot of thinking on the subject right now. I'm fat and no TV would get me off my butt. I got 7 acres and a bunch of exotic poultry and keep the bills paid with a small job. Lost the good job a few years ago. I just keep thinking that I am getting very little out of the cable tv. For example---I now know way more than I wanna know about Anna Nicole Smith

Thanks Uncle Will--------------you are my HERO and i always value your opinion.

uncle Will in In. · #20 03/12/07, 03:35 PM

Bonnie, Lafayette has a very strong CBS channel 18. If you had an FM antenna on a piece of pipe it is very likely you could get at least one channel. I think Purdue has a TV channel, but I know nothing about it.