OK, I must make a confession.
I’m a TV addict.
I watch TV. A lot of TV. Probably far more than is good for me. And definitely far more than I need to be doing if I want to get other things (like writing) done.
There are many series that I watch – Supernatural, Once Upon A Time, Falling Skies, Revolution, Castle, Haven, Nova, The Big Brain Theory, Mythbusters and more. And now a new TV season has started so add Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Blacklist, and Sleepy Hollow to the list.
When I’m not watching TV shows I’m watching movies.
The worst part is that I turn the TV on when I get settled in for the evening as background noise when I’m not actively watching something. If one of my shows is not currently airing I put on a rerun of one of them. Or a favorite movie that I’ve seen many times before and can probably quote from heart.
I tell myself that I can actually work while the TV is on but I find myself snatching glimpses of the screen to see what is happening. “Oh this was a good scene” I say and before I know it I’ve wasted fifteen to thirty minutes (or more) watching something I’ve already seen.
I then try to refocus on the task at hand, and I might get a few things done but before I know it the Boob Tube is whispering at me again. “Hey, this is neat, you like this. It will only take a minute or so. You can take a small break to enjoy yourself.”
I don’t think I will ever be able to give up TV completely. It has been a large part of my life. Back before the Internet Movie Database started people consulted me to see who played what character on which show. I’ve lost some of that storehouse of knowledge with the rise of the Internet and pressures from work. That is probably not a bad thing.
I have tried quitting cold turkey but so far it is has never worked. So now I’m going to try and taper off. Starting today, I’m limiting myself to only two hours of TV a day. I did my two hours before writing this entry then turned off the TV – yeah me! I’m going to do this for a few weeks and see if I can get down to one hour of TV a day.
I’m resolving that I need to turn the TV off and get on with other parts of my life. More creative parts. Otherwise I’ll never get these stories out of my head.
Wish me luck.