This past weekend we cancelled our DishNetwork service completely. We bought a $30 cable to run from the laptop to the flat panel, so now we stream shows directly to the big screen. After just two days of living with this set-up we are SO happy with the outcome.
No longer slaves to the programming schedules of the networks, we watch what we want when we want. Also, we're no longer wasting time "surfing," trying to find something to watch. Instead, we watch a program while eating or winding down at the end of the day but otherwise we're finding other things to occupy our time.
This was more of a change for Desi than it was for Mike, who was never one to sit in front of the TV for more than a few shows at a time. Unlike Desi, Mike never used the TV as a form of relaxation. Desi could waste an entire day in front of the TV, even if nothing was on. Well, this weekend Desi discovered other things to entertain her.
On Saturday we walked to the grocery store and to Radio Shack for the TV/Internet cable. We did yard work (something Desi rarely does) and just generally enjoyed each other's company.
On Sunday we rode our bikes to the U Village (16 miles round trip) to shop at the Mac Store and Barnes & Noble and check a few more errands off our to-do list. We then spontaneously joined a friend in Ballard for some drinks and dinner.
Getting rid of TV is definitely a life change for Desi. The saddest part about this, though, is that she didn't decide to terminate it because of the amount of time it was sucking from her life. She terminated it only because of our move to Scotland, now just 14 months away.
Since we're unsure of the TV situation in Scotland, Desi didn't want that to be part of the culture shock. So, she pre-emptively terminated it from her life in order to better acclimate to life in Edinburgh. However, now that she has identified it as a time sucker, she's sorry she didn't terminate it years ago. Now the question is, what other unidentified time suckers exist?
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