As the World Turns
August 18, 2009 Earlier this month I made a very grown up decision, probably the most grown up decision I've made in the twenty six years that I've been alive.
I got rid of cable.From pre-adolescence on, cable television was a dominant figure in my household. With both my parents working full time and the family living in a neighborhood that was segregated from my friends and my school, I had ample time to bathe in the glory of television. Dirty, rotten television.
I am proud to say that despite the strong media presence I experienced while growing up, I still turned out pretty well, and I didn't even have religion to guilt me into morality. A few of my close girlfriends had Television Nazis for parents and cable was prohibited in their households. This made me the media savvy one. Want to know what band this is? Dude, I know. Need to know the gory details of what happens during a face lift procedure? No worries, I just watched one on channel 11. Want to know about Tantric sex, or meteors, or how elastic bands are made? I know, 'cause I am cool.
Television has a reputation for administering powerful brainwashing agents that can whittle people into crazy morons. I do see the media affect morons every day of my life, but there are a lot of factors that play into people's state of malleability. As a kid it didn't take me long to start analyzing the media with a critical eye. Nowadays it is extremely difficult for me to watch something without dissecting it to the point of nauseaum. Ask my current boyfriend and he'll fall to his knees and foam at the mouth in a post-traumatic fit as he recalls what it was like to watch The Watchmen with me.
It's hard to say how I would be different as a person if I had not grown up with a television intravenously attached to my arm. Maybe I would have a more positive world view, or maybe I would be more naive and trip over my idealisms. The only thing that is certain is that I probably wouldn't be so transfixed on the prospect of becoming a zombie hunter. And that would totally suck.
Yesterday marked the day that my cable was officially disabled. I expected to experience some sort of withdrawal symptoms, like feelings of panic or uncontrollable weeping, but it just so happens that I haven't noticed its absence. That's the thing-- television isn't what it used to be.
As much as I love watching drunk, twenty year olds pee in a pool while grinding each other on Much Music's Spring Break Special, I'd rather go back ten years and tune into some Sook Yin Lee. Will I miss wasting minutes of my life watching a Fergie video, analyzing her crotch in an attempt to uncover the truth behind her transsexual mysteriousness? No. Nor will I miss Fox Television, or watching people die on Spike's Most Amazing Crashes Caught on Tape, or worse of all, enduring the horrid propaganda of CNN. Even HBO has gone to shit. True Blood? In Treatment? Entourage? Thankfully AMC has stepped up to the plate, but AMC is not Jesus or Tony Robbins or Mother Teresa. It cannot make my $55 cable bill worthwhile.
Come fall, I will be tuning in to the new seasons of Dexter, Heroes, and Breaking Bad, but it will be via file sharing and not through the increasingly disappointing means of traditional television. My current Utorrent roster includes the season premier of Mad Men, a Japanese horror movie, Open Your Eyes (the original Vanilla Sky), documentaries about Nosatradamus: 2012, Black Metal, and heroin use in the 90's, and biographies on Darwin and Satan: Prince of Darkness.
Yes, a biography on Satan.
Beat that, cable.
file sharing, media, television
Reader Comments (6)
Do you find that because you got rid of cable that you had to upgrade your internet connection to be able to download and a not slower than a camel speed?
We too are contemplating getting rid of the home phone basically b/c we don't do long distance and we both have succumb to the cell land.
I think the only thing keeping us having cable is because we seem to be like old ladies that when not in the company of another tv has become "the other" sadly I can read with it on, and still not feel alone. Although I did the "no cable" for about 6months-year (mgm had a "not pay his bills roomate) so we bought a lot of dvds. But afterwards it was killer dealing with commercials again.
We have the basic digital box so we also get movie channels. So yes, we may get rid of it again if we get frugal OR make new friends.
I agree, cable these days is evil and almost everything on television is crap and not worth watching. I miss the good old days of MuchMusic too! I was watching way back when Erica Ehm was on. I wouldn't watch anything on MM nowadays - it's NOTHING like it used to be.
We didn't have cable for about 7 years or so - just decided it was crap and we could use the money for better things. We really didn't miss it either. And downloading just the shows you want (and commercial free - a HUGE bonus!) is the best way to go for sure.
That being said, we DO have cable now - for about the past 5 months. We got it since I'm often glued to the couch nursing Andrew and wanted to be able to just zone out (altho now I try to read instead of watch the telly, when I can). And I have to admit, the Treehouse channel for kids is SO great at times, to just have Andrew watching a cartoon while I get 5 mins to myself. Although I don't want him to be a tv junkie so I don't make a habit of it!
We won't keep cable for long tho - it makes us so angry when we sit down to watch something and flick through the channels and there's literally NOTHING to watch. We end up watching a Seinfeld episode we've already seen 10 times, it's ridiculous!
I bet everyone who works for FOX drives one of those souped-up trucks we talked about in the previous post. And I bet everyone who works for CNN drives a fucking Prius Hybrid with an "I <3 Obama in my ass" bumper sticker. Fuck.
But, as the Law of Conservation of Cable dictates: cable can neither be created nor destroyed. To keep all things in balance, we are going to be getting cable in September, but only for two reasons:
Firstly, because it comes bundled with our high speed internet and secondly, because it's hard to find Food network shows via file sharing. I can bet that our TV will spend 90% of its time on Food network and we'll use it for very little else. I'll most likely still download my Dexter and Breaking Bad, so I can make my own schedule.
Torr,
Interesting because when I first met you I never watched anything on TV except Hockey. Then after my bike accident a couple years back I started watching CSI NY, Miami, NCIS and Dancing With The Stars. I do love mindless movies, the other day I watched Shoot Em Up a completely mindless movie with Clive Owen that had lots of bullets, explosions, and a nun Stripper. On the other hand, if it's a mindless TV series like True Blood I tend to get pissed for having my intelligence insulted. Maybe because my work demands so much attention and I get blamed if others screw up I'll tend to like shows where I don't have to think one bit. Now I don't believe at all that cable makes one mindless anymore than I believe a gun in and of itself kills people. Everything in life is a personal choice but I do commend you for getting rid of it! Anytime someone kicks a habit I support them.
Love you
MMBop
Chandra:
I just have the High Speed internet (through Shaw) which is one of the lower grade ones and I rarely ever notice speed issues. Was a little bit of a problem when my ex was here and was always downloading big files on his computer.
I tell you, getting rid of my land line was the best thing I ever did, especially considering my land line didn't work 70% of the time. I jumped over to a cell specifically so I could get rid of my line and I haven't missed it one bit.
I hear you about the old lady thing. That's one of the reasons why I kept my cable for the last couple of years-- kept me company when I was living alone. :) The only bad thing about not having cable is that you have to plan ahead a bit in terms of entertainment and you can't just flip on the TV and zone out.
I gotta admit, I enjoy the cable boxes and their movie channels.
Liz:
Ohh, the sweet days of Erica Ehm. Indeed, that channel has been completely demoralized. Nowadays it is hard to imagine that it used to actually play music, and discuss issues, and be hosted by people who were bright and relatable. It used to be a source of Canadian pride when set against MTV, but now it is MTV.
I can definitely see the benefits of having cable when you're at home all day with a young one. And I know what you mean about flipping through the channels and finding nothing to watch. Even when there are engaging series on, it's so hard to catch the episodes at the same time every week. It's really hard to get into anything.
Twitch:
HAHAHA. Dude, you know it. I admit that I will be missing the Food network and the flamboyant home decorating shows I used to catch on HGTV.
Dalton,
What's better than a stripper nun? NOTHING.
I can understand your desire for easy watching when set against your responsibilities at work. I used to turn to the Food network or the country station after a gross shift. No, I am not a country fan in the least, but those channels were the only ones that were so "neutral" that I could just shut off my mind and watch.
How is the panda cuddling going?