33 DAYS TO 50-TV and Me

Skipped a few days, but the countdown continues. I don’t blog much on weekends. Keith is here. Church. Family stuff. Weekend stuff. I just don’t sit at this thing much on the weekend. Today I paid bills. I was on hold with Direct for EVER, trying to fix the new upgrade, got it lined up, then went walking/running and rethought and called and cancelled the new added on account.  I am almost 50 I can change my mind, if I want to.

Direct TV has a thing named Hopper and Joey’s now. Suppose to be able to record, watch, go to another room and watch the same on a different TV kind of like having it on the same channel 😉 . I really wanted to just get Evan’s cable box upgraded, somehow we got a non DVR for him. One of our controls was really going through the batteries, so thought upgrade and a few more bells and whistles might be nice.  It became a HUGE mess.  Lots of techno babble that kept us from having DVR and Hopper/joeys. so needed to set up new account or not have as many joey’s because 1 hopper in apartment and can only have 2 hoppers on account, blah blah blah. When I first made the order I got a little embarrassed about how many hook ups we have, there are only two of us, and we have 5 televisions in this house. Evan has one.  Keith had the same feeling, we over indulged.  We have been rethinking our TV watching since.

I like TV, it is a constant friend, someone that talks all day long to me. TV is a family tradition, for me. My family always had TV, we had a colored TV as long as I can remember. Our televisions were the big consoles in the wooden cases. Mom chose them to match the den furniture, and the prettiest and biggest. Dad always bought the most elaborate ‘rabbit ears’ to set on top of the TV, Mom was opposed having an antenna on the house. Dad should have just told her to get over it. Instead I grew up watching television with snow, or ‘ghosts on the best reception channels, the bad channels were flipping lines and fizzle sound, usually we only had 1 good channel, 1 bad, and 1 maybe.

Family time revolved around TV- Dad loved TV. Mom liked it. Mom did not have to mess with us much if the TV was on. So, TV dinners on old school trays in front of TV is a comforting childhood memory of mine. Family Affair, Petticoat Junction, The Munsters, That Girl,The Flying Nun Lucy Ball in her various stages, Carol Burnett, Red Skelton, I Dream of  Jeannie, Bewitched with the 2 Darrens, Brady Bunch, Manix, Get Smart, Bonanza, Green Acres, Mod Squad, Laugh In, Rowen and Martin, McMillan and Wife, Mary Tyler Moore My Three Sons, Mission Impossible,McCloud, Archie Bunker. They all shared my evening meals.  We laughed together, we listened together, we ate together. It was good.

When I was 7 or 8 Mike moved out, then Kirk left home when I was about 12. Dad got a second job at Sears, and went to work right after he finished his teaching days and bus driving.Mom went with him and sat in the car or walked around the Mall. I was at home alone from the time I was 12 till I started working nights at 16.  TV and I were all that was left of the family. Love boat, Fantasy Island, Mork and Mindy…

When I am alone the TV is on, I  barely watching it most of the time.  I like the sound. I choose , I like the oldies, also I don’t like commercials..  Keith and I do  have some favorites we watch together. Big Bang, Mike and Molly. We share that time, laugh together, if he falls asleep I wake him up because I need to have him laugh with me.  But TV is not my companion anymore. Keith is.

Good night, Momma, Daddy,John Boy, Mary Ellen, Erin, Jason, Jim Bob, Elizabeth, Grandma, Grandpa