Our family has been living without a T.V. for about 2 years. I think this is one of the best ways we have simplified our lives. Not having a television not only frees up time to do more important things, it also frees up space in our home. Just think of being able to arrange furniture without the T.V. stand or entertainment cabinet, or without having to worry about where the cable connection is located.I'm not saying that everything on television is bad or that watching T.V. every once in a while is a waste of time. There are lots of great eduational programs out there, but we've discovered that we can find most of the same information on the Internet or at our local library. If you're family isn't interested in getting rid of your television why don't you try a T.V. free day or weekend. See what other things you can come up with to do together as a family.
We do have a tv... with ONE channel... so tv isn't really our "issue." My personal addiction is the internet. I need a NO COMPUTER day!
ReplyDeleteI'm with you. No TV is the way to go. I wrote about it
ReplyDeleteyesterday as a frugal tip.
Amy
My husband and I were toying with the idea of getting rid of cable (and therefor all but 3 channels) when we moved but our new apartment rent includes cable and I can't get him to completely give it up now. But we have decide to have a no media (no tv, no internet) time between 7-9 and have already benefitted from the extra time we spend talking, reading, or just walking around the neighborhood. It might be a good way for others to wean themselves off too.
ReplyDeleteLots of good ideas. I knew we watched too much TV when I showed my son a picture of a square and asked him to the name the shape, and he said, "TV". So, we have taken the first step and cut our cable to limited basic (which is basic channels plus a few government channels). My husband likes baby steps. I would like to cut out cable all together and move the TV to the garage and only bring it out on weekends. But I did like Mackenzie's idea of doing 7-9 without TV. Thanks for the post!
ReplyDeleteI've never thought of the advantage of arranging a room around something OTHER than a TV...great point!
ReplyDeleteWe totally agree! We gave up having a tv about 4 years ago, and love it! We don't miss it at all, and I love having a living room that is designed for conversation, not so that everyone can watch the big idol box on display (oh- did I call it that out loud? :)
ReplyDeleteWe do still own a small tv (that was given to us against our objections!), but it's only for watching movies, and we keep it in our bedroom instead, and find that we barely even watch it there. If we really want to see a video with the kids, or with friends, we can use our computer in our family room.