Update on no longer having a television service

It's been 2 months since I announced cancelling my television service.

Time for me to get back to you about it...

It is a known fact that I wish I could get rid of my television all together. However I do have a teenager and he likes to watch television and play video games.  He has a limited amount of time of them but it is still important for him, now anyway.  Because I am all about respecting other people decision, I will not take the television away without him being OK with it.  Would I let him watch it as much as he wants to? No... Never....  Would I let him play video games all day?  No... Never...

Respect is not about letting him do has he please and not teaching him that there are other options than watching television in life.

I still firmly believe that many people spend their life living someone's else life through television....  series, reality TV, movies and what not... 

I do believe that most people spend way to much time staring at that image box in their living room, bedroom, kitchen, bathroom...

I also firmly believe that television will and does dictate what you buy, do and eat...  that is the power of commercials!  Billions of $ are spent on that....  it has to work.

However, I think that there can be some value to watching some of the stuff on it, under one condition:  you understand that this is NOT necessarily real life, that all you see is somehow distorted and acted up AND you avoid commercials! Even the news...  I doubt all of it is actually precise...and what is REALLY happening.

I did take up a Netflix membership... and have been watching a few things:  mostly documentaries and a few movies over the week end.  I also watch Dr Who with my son and Being Erica on my spare time.

I was surprise that I actually do not miss all the police shows I was watching (this is what I was most scared of).  Watching these were actually making me more nervous then I realised... 

I also was surprised to realise that I "need" TV to relax at the end of a day  (more than I'd like to admit it)... and that having the television ready to be opened when I sit in my living room doesn't help.  I am trying to figure out a way to organize my living room in my new apartment without having the television as the center of everything.  I think I have an idea, once I am in my new place I will figure this out a post about it here....  sometimes early July.

Therefore television is not going for a while for 2 reasons:

1) my son
2) I need it more than I would love to (but less than I initially thought)

I will still work on that...  When my son will come back to Montreal this summer, to visit family, I will try to not open it at all for 21 days...  I should add that to my rules for the #108daystoanewlife project! Let me figure it out...

Conclusion of those 2 months:

1) I do not miss my usual shows
2) I am more relax not watching police stuff
3) I do not miss it as much as I thought
4) I need it more then I would like
5) I watch much less and do not use Netflix as much as I imagined
6) I want to continue finding other options then watching television before bedtime
7) I love following Dr Who with my son - this is our secret place
8) My son, to by big surprise, has decrease considerably the time spend on TV and playing video games - he even sometimes stops before the time limit is reached.

One question for you guys...  beside reading, because it makes me sleepy and yoga because it prevents me from sleeping, what can I do about an hour prior to bedtime to unwind?

thanks for reading!
and please share if you like this blog!!!


love&peace,
nath
xox
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