The year I gave up TV
When I moved to Birmingham in December 2014, I did not bring a television with me. My former husband (FH) and I only had two TVs. The one in our living room was OLD. It must have been from the 1980s; it weighed over 100 pounds. He had inherited when he moved to Los Angeles in the late 90s. He had a five-year-old TV in his office as well, which we had bought from a friend for $60.
We couldn't sell the older one, but we were able to give it away on Craig's List along with the entertainment center to which it seemed permanently attached. This 20-something hipster picked it up with his friends. I'll never forget what he said.
"This is so cool, man. So retro. I can watch Three's Company just like you used to when you were a kid." Thanks, dude.
When my FH asked if I wanted the nicer TV, I said, "Nah, you take it."
"What will you do?" he asked.
"I guess I won't watch TV anymore. Besides, I'm sure if I want to watch television that badly, I can find it online.
"The funny thing is ... I didn't think I would stop watching a certain genre of shows altogether but I did. I gave up one of my favorite genres: horror.
Enter Zombies
I remember when The Walking Dead debuted in the fall of 2010. It was a difficult time in my life because my FH was working in Detroit. I was spiraling downward into a black hole of depression. Looking back, I'm not surprised I was drawn to The Walking Dead even though I had never cared about zombies before. Prior to that TV show, I was far more interested in vampires and witches than the dead returning as flesh-eating morons. But I loved the characters from The Walking Dead so much that I became obsessed with zombies. Obsessed. I watched all the Zombie movies I had skipped before.
28 Weeks Later
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Night of the Living Dead (1990)
Shaun of the Dead
28 Days Later, which I believe inspired the opening of The Walking Dead, is my favorite zombie film.
Though he had never watched a single episode, my FH dismissed The Walking Dead as a ridiculous show. However, in 2013, he watched the Season 4 debut with me. He was hooked. Since he was injured and had plenty of time on his hands, he binge-watched the previous three seasons until he was caught up on the show's characters, story lines, plot twists, etc. Soon, The Walking Dead became one of 'our' shows.
Knowing how much I loved vampires, my FH suggested we watch Penny Dreadful on Showtime. While I didn't immediately fall in love, I saw its appeal and kept watching. Another show we initially watched together was Hannibal, but after two seasons, I couldn't handle the talent of the art department anymore. I was always shielding my eyes from the carnage on the screen. It was too much. I quit watching Hannibal, but my FH continued watching the next and final season (3) without me.
My reluctance to watch Hannibal should have been a hint that my taste was changing. The gore was getting on my nerves. Additionally, I was tired of spending more time watching more television to avoid a marriage that was no longer working. I ignored the signs. I stopped watching Hannibal. So what? We still had The Walking Dead and Penny Dreadful among other shows.
Despite the geographic distance between us, my FH and I continued talking about 'our' shows though we no longer watched them in the same room at the same time. It's funny how television brings people together. How it bonds strangers. How it maintains the outer layer of a marriage even as the inner layer is dissolving.
After I moved to Birmingham, I watched television on my laptop. I could find any and everything online for free. As long as I installed the right ad-blocker plug-in in my browser, I was set. Additionally, I purchased a monthly subscription to Netflix.* Soon, I was watching American Horror Story, a show that had interested me, but my FH and I had never watched together. For a while, I continued watching 'our' shows, but something happened.
After a few episodes of The Walking Dead in the spring of 2015, I didn't care anymore. Rick was never going to die and neither were the zombies. So I quit. After one episode of season two of Penny Dreadful, I realized I had only enjoyed the show with my FH. By myself, it wasn't as much fun. It was dark, dismal, and sad. Watching it alone only amplified the mood of the show so I quit it, too. I binge-watched several seasons of American Horror Story. I realized the least gory ones were my favorite even when the plot was not as strong. I began to watch season five and quit though I was looking forward to Lady Gaga's acting debut. I didn't enjoy the show anymore. I'm not sure I ever did.
Shows I quit
The Walking Dead after 5 1/2 seasons
Hannibal after 2 seasons
American Horror Story after 4 seasons
Penny Dreadful after 1 season
The best part about not having a TV is not having it on in the background all the time. If you enter my house, you may hear the clicking hands of the clock in the living room or the clock in the kitchen. You will often hear music, especially if I'm doing yoga. You may hear a podcast if I'm eating lunch or taking a shower. You may hear my fingers clicking away on the keyboard as I'm writing. Heck, you might even hear me talking to myself as I think an idea out loud or practice for a live workshop.
What you won't hear is ESPN. No sports. Ever. You won't hear any crazy political bullshit nonsense because I don't listen to Fox, MSNBC, or CNN anymore. I don't watch HGTV either. No House Hunters, Property Brothers, Love It Or List It, or Flip or Flop. Not happening. That's the positive thing about not owning a TV. If I want to watch a show, it is a purposeful activity that takes a bit more effort than clicking a button on a remote. While I didn't 100-percent quit television, I reduced my viewing time by 75 percent. Today, I schedule my TV time. If I'm bored, I don't watch TV. I read. A lot. I still have some favorite shows, but horror is not part of my collection now. With shows like Law & Order: SVU, Scandal, Elementary, Homeland, and House of Cards, I've got my detective, legal, and political fix. I don't miss horror one bit.
And if I had to quit television tomorrow, I could. It's not that important to me anymore.
CHALLENGE
Do you watch a lot of unnecessary television? Do you leave your television on as 'background noise'? Are you watching television to avoid dealing with a personal situation? Is watching television interfering with your job search time? If you said yes to any of the questions:
Turn on your television with the intention of watching a specific show. Do not leave it on for background noise.
Make a list of shows that you truly want to watch. Schedule time to watch them. Maybe it's one night a week, or maybe it's no more than X hours per night.
If you are watching TV to avoid dealing with a personal situation, realize no amount of television will make the situation go away. You are delaying the inevitable.
If you are looking for a new job right now, you have to make time for the search. Just as you would schedule time to watch your favorite TV shows, schedule time to search for your dream job.
Respond in the comments! I would love to read them.
Confession
Thanks to my boyfriend, I'm on a Breaking Bad binge-watching fest (but we still schedule our 'TV' time). We started it before I got the flu and plan to finish it up in the next week or so. No spoilers please!
*When I realized I was watching Netflix too often, I canceled my subscription.