Life Without Television

Since 2009 began, my husband and I decided to eliminate watching regular television. Recently, we made a huge committment to this life change by cancelling our cable service. Some of you might think this is ridiculous and wonder:

• "What would drive you to do that?"


• "What are you going to do now when you get home?"


• "I could never do that, I need to watch my shows?"

I am here to tell you that this is one of the best decisions we have ever made. Before we cancelled our service, we were watching only sporting events or 30 minutes of television to wind down from the day. Since we started watching television less and less, the times we did watch became more and more frustrating. Some of the things that are on television are astonishing. Why do members of our society feel compelled to religiously watch television shows about other people's misery? Does it make us appreciate our lives that much more? Is it the same feeling you get when you drive by a car accident and you just can't look away?

All I know is that my life has more fulfillment in it now that our household does not have cable television. Since the change:

• My husband and I have better and more conversations.


• I am more productive around the house and don't leave things until the weekend.


• We aren't feeding our brain with some of the garbage that passes for quality television.


• I am reading more books than I thought I would (goal was 2 per month and in January I read 5).


• My work productivity has increased because we read in the morning and get our brains firing so that by the time I get to the office I am ready to tackle the work.

So, not only are we saving money by cutting out the cable but we are increasing our overall quality of life. When telling someone I know about this life change, I was shocked when their response was, "what are you going to watch at night?" I pray that people find the value of enriching their lives with things other than the "boob tube".