They took our TV last Friday. It will take 7-14 days to determine if it's fixable. "No problem", I was thinking. "We've gone without TV before. Nine months with no TV when Rick was unemployed, six weeks with no TV when we put the French doors into our basement, and then last year 4 months when we remodeled the basement. We hardly ever watch TV in the summer - what's a couple of weeks?" After all, I am the one who said that no matter how large a house we own, we will never have more than one TV because I don't want it to be that important in our lives - and a TV should never be in a bedroom - that sanctuary of sleep & rest. I am philosophically against TV.I made it through the weekend fine. Then Monday arrived & I had to miss 24. It's OK, I reassured myself, our DVR is probably still working and I'll be able to catch up soon. I didn't last long. On Tuesday (an ironic 24 hours later), I paid $1.99 to download it and watched it on Rebekah's Macbook while I folded laundry & picked up toys!
By this morning I was yelling over the phone at Rick, trying to figure out why "Cars" wouldn't play on our computer to keep Jacob still long enough to get Jane down for a nap ... then I began to think about my changing relationship with our tv set.
Kids #1 & #2 - I thought of TV as polluting their darling little brains. Something to be restricted and carefully monitored, like candy. Only terrible un-loving mothers, who knew no better let their kids consume large amounts of that junk.
Kid # 3 - Emily had just turned 3 when I was pregnant with Jacob. I would lie on the floor on pillows trying to will myself not to throw up anymore (it never worked) and leave Em parked with a snack and some water bottles in front of the TV for hours. I rationalized that it was PBS, and therefore educational. It was probably pretty equivalent to pre-school. She was lucky to have me choose such excellent programming for her.
Kid # 4 - TV is now a major part of our daily routine. Jacob watches it when Jane takes her morning nap, I watch TV to break the monotony of folding laundry, and most importantly of all - it buys me A MINUTES PEACE when the kids are melting down.
So, even though it's been less than a week. I'll be calling the repair guys in the morning and begging them to be speedy in their diagnosis of the TV. I'm hoping they'll say it's inexpensive & quick to repair - what do you think my chances are?
For tonight, we're zipping over to our neighbors house to watch "Greys".
3 comments:
We haven't had TV reception for almost 2 months but fortunately we've got our DVDs to see us through - and the complete series of Arrested Development (that's for me, not Maya!).
I love the history of t.v. in your life! Through all of college I don't think I ever turned it on. Then I married a t.v. junkie (sports, so it's on but I am not in front of it).
First year with Zane I mostly kept it off (for fear of him discovering the dreaded Barney!).
Second year with him and it's the only thing to keep him from climbing into the dishwasher when I am doing dishes and out of the oven when I am cooking.
But then I make sure it's ONLY on Mtv.
just kidding
Well, with three TVs in our house and a DVD player for the car (only used on long journeys, I hasten to add) I'm obviously one of those terrible unloving mothers who knows no better than to let their kids (and husband) consume large amounts of junk! - Karen
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