In defense of television….
Aug 19th, 2008 by S. Anderson
As I stated here, I sometimes feel a bit overwhelmed by the constant suggestion that we all must give up our tvs in order to be creative, complete human beings. So as I mentioned in that previous post, I have been paying attention to my tv time habits to see if I can determine what I am watching at particular times and what it is doing for me. This is what I figured out about my tv time:
- It isn’t the first thing I turn on in the morning. In fact, I usually don’t watch in the morning at all.
- I watch a lot of reality tv, but not the type you might be thinking. I love the Dog Whisperer and Dirty Jobs, and I am digging Renovation Nation on the new channel, Planet Green.
- My major tv time is at night.
- We have become firm DVR lovers. We hate commercials, so we don’t watch them and have even started muting them when we watch something real time.
- Since the BGF moved out, my tv habits have changed. What happened all last semester was that I would tape a bunch during the week, and then we would sit down and watch a bunch at the same time. We also liked to collect a few of the same type of show, and then watch them together. I am not sure what will happen this upcoming year, but it is not something that I am going to worry about.
The last two weeks have justified tv more than anything for me, though. I don’t know how to explain it, but I have been glued to the Olympics this time around. In the last week, I have seen some amazing feats of athletes from around the world:
- Obviously, at the top of most lists is going to be Michael Phelps’s amazing eight gold medal streak. The boy and I both found ourselves cheering at the screen. And, I am amazed by not only Phelps, but the teammates that helped him succeed. I found his attitude about the whole thing very gracious and heart-warming. And, I LOVE his mom!
- I got to see Nastia Lukin become the third US woman in history to take the gold in the all around for gymnastics.
- I watched two Jamaicans, Usain Bolt and Shelly-Ann Fraser, mark themselves as the fastest man and woman in the world. And, I am excited to watch Bolt’s career because I know that he could have gone faster!
- The Chinese gymnasts and diving teams deserve a huge amount of admiration for the dedication it must take to be as good as they are.
These are just a few of the things I have witnessed in the last 10 days. I have watched a few hours of the things I probably didn’t need to see, such as, I probably didn’t need to watch the entire two and a half hour marathon run the other night, but damn the woman who won was impressive. Overall, I am happy with the time that I have spent with my television over the last week. However cliche it might be, these athletes inspire me to be better than I am. And, I was able to gain that inspiration from my television.
I am finding that this happens when I use TV for knowledge, like the Dog Whisperer, or comedy, like Dirty Jobs. Maybe this is what everyone that talks about tv being a creativity drain. What I would like to do is seek out more of those experiences that do something for me and ditch the mindless stuff.
I am glad I took the time to consider the suggestions rather than just believe them wholeheartedly or blow them off.
