Weekends are too short.

I used to say that all the time. I probably spent somewhere in the ball park of 8-10 hours a day watching TV on the weekends. In fact, my belief that weekends are too short is partially responsible for my decision to stop watching TV. I figured, if I got 8-10 hours of my life back each day of the weekend, it would be plenty long enough. I think I was right and wrong..

Here's how I was right:
Yes, I got lots more time in my day. Yesterday I cleaned the whole house, got halfway through the laundry, went to a fundraiser, swam, and wrote a bunch of emails. In Joey's world, that's gotta count for at least 7 days of stuff. Here, see what I'm talking about:

Maybe I should start prank calling people with my free time... hmmm :-)

Here's how I was wrong: It's the end of the weekend already, and I really don't feel like I got any rest. Sure I'm more productive - getting all kinds of stuff done that I wouldn't have if we still had TV, but I want that down time. Naps are great, but what about that time TV provides where you can be conscious, and yet in a completely passive state? Isn't there value to that time? I think there might be... What did people used to do with that time? I always think of the old guys sitting in their rocking chairs on the porch, sippin' sweet tea and playing the banjo. I don't know how to play the banjo... it might be fun to learn, but also... I don't have a porch. Well, TV was great for that kind of time, but that's out of the picture now, so either I've gotta learn to play the banjo, or I've gotta find something else. Any suggestions? You think about it and I'll start making the sweet tea.

Today's temptation rating: 8.8

Days without incident: 20!!!

Bonus night...

Last night was a rough and wonderful night. I got home from work and jumped right into my workouts - bike and then a really really really really hard run. When I got done I drank a quick glass of chocolate milk, stretched, hopped in the shower, and then I was off to Somerville for an evening with some of my favorite peeps - "Missliss" (Melissa) & "Oh-doe" (Odoi - yes, that's what we call you guys at home). I was hurt-ing. Sooo tired, sooo thirsty, sooo hungry. Fortunately, when we got there, the Odotei's quickly got to the business of feeding me some deliciousness. Pasta with seafood and veggies - sure there were mushrooms (which Melissa noticed I pulled out - I guess I wasn't sneaky enough), but I won't hold that against them - it was delicious all the same. :-)

After dinner, I sat on the floor of their kitchen for a little bit (I told you my legs were tired!), and then Odoi and I got to melt down some chocolate (which we ate a little of first), and dip strawberries. And somewhere in all of this SOMEONE (me) merely mentioned the fact that Apollo Ohno would be competing in his final races last night. I repeat - I MENTIONED - I did not suggest... completely within the rules. But Melissa and Odoi being the wonderful people they are, decided to make sure that they saw that. So somewhere in the strawberry dipping process, Odoi disappeared to the living room, and moments later I heard, "It;s on!" So I grabbed the rest of the melted chocolate and a spoon and dashed to the living room.

Between the races and controversy of a disqualified Apollo (bad call, ref), Odoi was kind enough to channel surf a little, and caught a glimpse of a Numb3rs episode! Exciting stuff right? 3 weeks ago, I would come home to brand new episodes of all my shows - happy, sure - but excited? Mehhh... Now, I literally jump out of my seat (seriously, Odoi was cracking up), when amidst channel surfing, I catch a glimpse of a re-run of Don and Charlie Epps trying to catch the mastermind of a tournament style Russian Roulette gambling racket. (I picked that up from less than 30 seconds of the one scene that Odoi lingered on for my benefit.)

I miss TV. I wonder if it will ever get to the point where I am no longer excited by glimpses of shows. I think that would be the real victory. But right now I don't really want that. It'd be like wanting to forget about your friends (as fictional as they may be) to the point that you no longer get excited when you see them again. Hmmm ... sounds kinda like a break up. I've gotta get over TV. Well, someday I'll get there I'm sure. In the meantime - last night I got to log some time with wonderful friends (not to mention the wifey), eating tasty dishes, and watching a little Olympics - I'm not even sure which one I'd call the bonus!

Today's temptation rating: 6.8

Days without incident: 19

My friend, the enemy.

I want to show you something. Something that has brought trouble and joy to my life simultaneously, and in equal supply. No it's not lost. It's not Jack (from Lost), and it's not Hurley (also from Lost). This is the opening page for Hulu.

Emily and I have actually tried avoiding TV in the past. Since we've been married, we've never purchased cable. We've lived without cable for nearly 5 years now. (Excluding a year that we lived with some friends that wanted TV for CNN.) I got my TV fix from Friends DVD's and Netflix movies and episodes as they came in the mail. However, in the last 2 years - both Netflix, and Hulu have really come along. They've been... well... awesome. Everything I want to watch can be watched between the two. I managed to watch more on these two sites, than I likely ever would have on TV. That's how I was able to watch 12 different shows. But my favorite thing about them - oh it's the best - going to the Hulu site, and seeing an image (like the one's you see here) of one of my shows. You know, they only do that when a new episode has just been posted. It's like getting a package in the mail! Oh what a wonderful feeling. I drop what I'm doing, and I click "watch now". It's like a drug - just talking about it - ooooo chills. I managed to block that out the last couple of weeks. It wasn't till I did the post on Heifer Fest that I realized the power that these sites had over me. I went to Hulu to get that clip of Liz eating cigarettes, and there it was - LOST - right there on the main page. Immediately, I got excited. 

In the last two and a half weeks I've learned to resist that urge to click "watch now," so I didn't. In fact, it felt really weird being on the site. Taking the 10 seconds to think things through without instantly clicking "watch now" opened my eyes. "Woah - did you see how you just reacted to that picture, Brett?" After thinking about it more - and realizing how many NEW shows I could "watch now," and it makes me a little sad. OK makes me more than a little sad - which is sad in itself. But knowing the reaction Hulu's new episode adds can elicit makes me that much more confident that what I'm doing needs to be done. My resolve for this cause is now stronger than ever, but I definitely miss my friend, the enemy.

Today's temptation rating: all over the place

Days without incident: 18

Heifer Fest - My uncanny resemblance to Liz Lemon

"Heifer" = Cow, "Fest" = short for festival. Therefore, Heifer Fest is what I have titled yesterday's afternoon "snack" session. A bag of popcorn to myself, 1/4 bag of tostitos with salsa, 1/4 of pita chips, and - here's the kicker - a 48oz bottle of Hershey's syrup that was almost finished, so I filled it with milk, shook it up, and drank it down... smooth, oh so smooth. As delicious as it all was - it definitely became clear that this was the culmination of a very... ummm... weak week, diet-wise. (As always please excuse my blatant violations of the English language.)

The whole "no TV" thing is really a sort of "whatever it takes" campaign. Whatever it takes to be obedient to God, whatever it takes to love my wife better, whatever it takes to become a professional triathlete, etc...  And as I kicked it off a couple of weeks ago, I found myself thinking that (particularly for the triathlon piece) improving my diet probably qualifies as "doing whatever it takes." So I've tried to improve my diet as well (unofficially, of course). But last weekend we had cookies and brownies at our friends' house, and I've been pretty in-discriminant of what I eat since then. Yesterday's afternoon was the culmination.

You see, I love food. Not just any food though - I love the bad stuff. Cookies, candy bars, chips, gummy bears, gummy worms, popcorn with extra butter, soda, chocolate chips - straight up from the bag, chocolate milk - ohhhhh the chocolate milk... You know up until about 3 weeks ago, I would go through a gallon of chocolate milk in 2 to 3 days (figure 5 to 6 big glasses every afternoon/evening). But when Emily figured it out, she made me promise to cut back to 2 medium size glasses a day, tops. Anyway, the point is that when it comes to junk food, I have no filter, and there is no bottom to my stomach. This is where my good friend Liz Lemon of 30 Rock comes into the fold.

Liz loves her food too - pretty much the same way I do. I remember in one show, a boyfriend complimented her on her beef stew, and she responded, "Oh thanks I just followed the recipe, but instead of water I used cheese." Yeah. I'm like that too. Annnnywho, she and I both know that we need to improve our diet for the sake of our aspirations - me for triathlons and her because she wants to have a baby. So in the show, she agreed to a deal with Frank (one of the other writers on the show) that they would quit their bad habits cold turkey - her junk food fix for his smoking addiction. Here's how that worked out for old Liz Lemon:



Ha ha, oh Liz. I wonder... what would be my equivalent of eating cigarettes... watching cigarette adds? They don't have those do they? Maybe watching a cartoon where all the characters are cigarettes? Ooo I got it - watching South Park - because that terrible show is about as healthy for you as cigarettes, and I would say is equally as distasteful. I just hope yesterday afternoon's junk food binge is the extent of my release. I'd hate to find a tape of me sleep-watching TV in the middle of the night. Of course viewing such a tape would be watching TV while conscious, so I guess I'm in the clear either way. :-)

Today's temptation rating: 6

Days without incident: 17
(Unless you count the screening of this clip for the blog... then it'd be 0. All those that think this was cheating say "I")

A message for me and my students... compliments of Mr. Sinatra

Last night I had a really good run. 70 minutes, 11 miles, 6:30 min/mi pace. When I got home, I wanted to have some well deserved celebratory TV... oh well. I thought to myself - "Well I'm going to have to find a new way to celebrate good workouts..." I didn't. At least not long term - but as I lay there on the floor with my feet leaned up against the gynormous credenza that used to hold our TV, pondering my reward, God provided me with a little diddy of a musical treat... have you ever heard the song "Swinging on a Star"???

The first time I heard this song, Bruce Willis was singing it in a very silly movie called "Hudson Hawk." It's an oldy, but a goody - I think actually it's currently a "watch instantly" movie on Netflix. But I wouldn't know about that any more. (Our Netflix account is now officially frozen.) Anyway, I think this song is one of the reasons that I really like to movie. It's light, silly, and cheerful - puts me in a good mood. But last night I got a chance to really listen to the lyrics, and I found it to be a really good message to me and my students. (We're all a little grumpy about being back in school this week.)

Would you like to swing on a star, carry moonbeams home in a jar, and be better off than you are, or would you rather be a mule? A mule is an animal with long funny ears, kicks up at anything he hears. His back is brawny and his brain is weak. He's just plain stupid with a stubborn streak. And by the way, if you hate to go to school, you may grow up to be a mule. 

Or would you like to swing on a star, carry moonbeams home in a jar, and be better off than you are, or would you rather be a pig? A pig is an animal with dirt on his face, his shoes are a terrible disgrace, he ain't got no manners when he eats his food, he's fat and lazy and extremely rude, but if you don't care a feather or a fig, you may grow up to be a pig.

Or would you like to swing on a star, carry moonbeams home in a jar, and be better off than you are, or would you rather be a fish? A fish won't do anything, but swim in a brook, he can't write his name or read a book, and to fool the people is his only thought, and though he's slippery, he still gets caught, but then if that sort of life is what you wish, you may grow up to be a fish.

All the monkeys aren't in the zoo. Every day you meet quite a few. So you see it's all up to you, you can be better than you are, you could be swingin' on a star. 

So there you have it kids - stop being stubborn, have some manners (and respect for your teacher for that matter!), and quit trying to fool me into thinking you're not cheating, because "though you're slippery, you'll still get caught! I'll try not to be a mule, pig, fish, or monkey too. Well... maybe I'm one of the monkeys... :-)

Aaannywho... this fun song helped me get over the fact that I couldn't celebrate with a little TV last night. Good times.

Today's temptation rating: 4.2

Days without incident: 16

PS As once of my students informed me the time stamp on these posts often reads 5AM or something ridiculous like that. I assure you I'm sleeping at that hour. :-)

TV ATTACK!

In anticipation of this week, I was less concerned with being tempted to watch TV because, with work, I figured I'd be too busy to watch. I let my guard down... SNEAK ATTACK! As I walked into my apartment building I found myself a creature of habit. 

What shows have new episodes for me to watch today? Maybe I'll just watch some re-runs of Leverage... Oh wait! Heroes usually has a new episode by Monday... OH WAIT! I bet they all have new episodes for me to watch since it's been a while! Why has it been a while again? Ohhhhhh riiiigghhhhht... I gave up TV.

Hazaaah! Nice try Captain America (or some other intimidating force to be reckoned with - much like my desire to watch TV), but I've thwarted your attempt. But another sneak attack came later in the day when I got back from the pool. As loud as my tummy was grumbling, my first inclination when I walked in the door was to go pick up the lap top and bring it into the kitchen to watch some Hulu action as I made some dinner. SNEAK ATTACK... THWARTED AGAIN!

As proud as I was to put the my Captain America like nemesis in it's place, I thought - how sad is it that as hungry as I was after my workouts (and I was flippin' starving), my inclination was still to reach for the remote before the left over ziti and chicken parm. Sad, sad, sad. Some day soon, I hope, that inclination will subside - and when it does, I think I'll be seeing a lot fewer sneak attacks.

Today's temptation rating: 4.5

Days without incident: 15

More of what could have been...

As I sit in my office depressed that February break is over, grumbling that it's back to pencils, back to books, back to student's dirty looks, I can't help but imagine how much awfuller (more awful?) it would be right now if I were still as exhausted as I was last night. Our house mildly in disarray, Emily slightly behind on school work, me behind on grading, and both of us so freakin' exhausted that we ate dinner lying down last night - I can't help but wonder if God really intends for us to have this much on our plates. I don't think life is supposed to be this crammed or busy. More down time please - time for thoughts, smiles, rest, leisure, ANYTHING but the work that is now hanging over my head again.

I wonder... Back in the day when the only work that people did was to feed themselves and their loved ones - do you think those people felt busy or stressed? Do you think they were all concerned about whether they had the most meat to trade? Whether they had enough stuff? Whether they were important enough?  Maybe commercials and ads really do make us want more than God has designed us to want. I think all this wanting is what drives us to take on too much.

By the way, all this about stress and business coming from a guy that just had a week off from work. But I digress. The silver lining in all of this is that as much as I don't want to be back at work, I'm sure I'd be much more miserable here today had Emily and I stayed up last night to watch one of my beloved shows. Instead, we ate, checked off some chores, and go to bed promptly at 9. A full 8 hours... VERY needed. Seriously, had we gone to bed at 11 or something, I'm pretty sure I would be asleep and drooling on my desk right now instead of writing this.

As overwhelmed with the stuff of life that Emily and I feel right now - TV would definitely NOT help the situation.

Today's temptation rating: 1

Days without incident: 14 (a fortnight!)

Thank God for friends with TVs... and the Olympics

After a VERY busy day yesterday (and today for that matter) to distract me from any sort of temptation to watch TV, Emily and I got to go to an Olympics party! :-) I had some days this week with high temptation ratings, so it was really nice to relax the discipline a little for a night. Well maybe, relax my discipline a lot... our dear friends Dan and Kristin fed us Olympics, cookies, brownies, pizza, beer, and chocolate milk. It was awesome. Thanks for a day of rest, God! (Well, at least from the fight against the allure of TV... :-))

Today's temptation rating: 1

Days without incident: 13

what about a little consolation on bad days? re-learning how to self-sooth

A lot of our friends have started having babies, and whenever I'm around them (which actually hasn't been that much lately) there is often talk about when to pick up a crying baby and when to just let it cry. The idea behind letting the baby cry being that it needs to learn to calm itself, or "self-sooth." This is something I'm finding I've forgotten how to do without the television.

This week has been pretty good largely because I've had pretty good workouts all week. I've hit the paces I've needed too and I've recovered pretty well. But by Friday I was pretty wiped out mentally. I had a hard swim workout in the morning, and then a hard run in the afternoon. I was just tired of pushing so hard, and when I got to the run, I had psyched myself out. I felt slow and negative, so I ended up cutting the run short and skipping the challenging part altogether. That put me in a bad mood. I was disappointed in myself, and feeling very sulky. Usually when I'm in that place, I'll grab a gigantic mug of chocolate milk, make some popcorn (or another comparable comfort food), sit down in front of the TV, and watch Community or 30 Rock, or some other light and funny show. I'll laugh to myself, "oh Abed, you and Troy are so silly," and I'll feel all better. Works like a mother's kiss on a boo boo. But last night, I came back from my run, all ready for that kind of consolation only to realize that Abed, Troy and I were no longer on speaking terms. No more Community, no more 30 Rock, nothin'. I stood there and stared at my computer for about 2 minutes.

What do I do now? This sucks. Emily won't be home for another half an hour, I could watch just one show. Even if she comes home early, I could give her the puppy dog eyes - and everything will be fine.

By the grace of God, I was able to just turn on the music and go stretch on the floor. I usually start by putting my feet up on the wall for about five minutes to let the lactic acid from the workout drain from my muscles. Last night I did that for about 20 minutes. I just laid there continuing to run that conversation through my head. Finally Emily walked through the door, and I had some accountability. It was like I couldn't move from that state, cause if I did, my next move would be back to the computer to put something on Hulu. Disaster averted.

After that I got up, took a shower, and Emily and I embarked on a culinary journey to India, where we made - without recipe, mind you - a yellow curry/pineapple sauce filled with all kinds of chicken/veggie goodness that would bring a smile even to the biggest baby (me). Even Emily was a little perplexed with what we should do with the evening, as many of our Friday nights involve snuggling up on the couch eating dinner and watching the shows from the week on Hulu. Instead we talked, ate, played some chess (riveting), and went to bed at a reasonable hour... Ok so the food was the highlight. We'll have to find something a little less 1955 to do with our Friday nights, but it was still a good night, and we made it through a Friday night without Television. BOOYAH.

Today's temptation rating: 8.9

Days without incident: 12

the life of a kindergartner... well... minus sesame street

When I was 5 years old, I think I would have told you that the favorite part of my day was eating cheerios while watching Bert and Ernie. (I hope you're beginning to see how deeply ingrained vegging in front of the TV is - even as a wee-laddy.) But now, 21 years later, as I lament the fact that this is the last day of my February vacation, I think I would have to change my answer. I've really kicked my own butt this week with my training, and my NAP TIME has been invaluable. It's been a great alternative to watching TV, a great way to make Emily a little jealous, and a great source of recovery in a very difficult week of training. There's nothing like a 10AM-12PM nap time after your first workout (or "play time") to really get the rest of your day going. I could reflect on how much sleep and recovery time I would have missed out on this week had I sat on the couch and watched 24 instead (I'd probably be through two more seasons by now), but instead, I'm going to revisit some of the fantastic naps I got in the last 11 days.

• There was last weeks impromptu 2 hour nap on the couch after a half day of school. I think I might have actually been writing a blog entry when I just conked out in the middle of it. I woke up 20 minutes later, so pleased that I took the lap top off my lap, and really got into it.
• There was Wednesday's totally committed nap, where I did my full night time preparation. Got in my PJ's and got into bed. Also awesome.
• There was yesterday's floor nap. Emily finds it really strange, but sometimes when I dramatize my fatigue, I'll collapse on the living room floor. At first it's usually a joke, but once I'm down there I'm always amazed at how comfortable it is. So yesterday, I tried taking my nap down there intentionally. Surprisingly (probably not to Emily) not as comfortable as I thought it would be. I guess the floor is more for cat naps - 20 to 30 minutes. (And yes I squeezed into that little space.)

This morning I had a really hard swim workout that followed a really hard bike workout last night, and tonight I have my hard run for the week - to I'm not gonna mess around with today's nap. I'm getting into bed.

Today's temptation rating: 3.5 (and holding steady)

Days without incident: 11

the pleasant distraction of REAL human contact

Between yesterday's post and today's post, you might have noticed that I'm starting to post a lot of pictures of places that serve food. Well the reasons are two-fold: (1) Food is awesome and (2) I have been eating out A LOT this week. I thought that with all this vacation time I'd be cooking lots of elaborate meals, but I haven't... yet. (Friday I'm going to make chicken and broccoli in a yellow curry and pineapple sauce - no recipe.) I've started using my free time to see real people. Now that I've had to say good bye to my wonderful yet fake friends - Joey, Chandler, Ross, Rachel, Monica, and Pheobe - I've started saying hello to the real ones more! Yesterday I spoke with Debbie - my dear friend from VA, Phil - new friend from church (lunch at Chipotle), and Ian and Anna - a new couple with whom Emily and I are definitely becoming fast friends (dinner at the Publick House).

The great thing about spending all this time with friends (aside from the wonderful company and realness of these relationships) is that with the more time I spend with other people - the less I feel tempted to watch TV. I wouldn't say yesterday's temptation rating was at it's 10 day low or anything, but it was pretty low considering the fact that I didn't have to go to work. Maybe one of the things that I really appreciated from the shows that I watched was the artificial relationships I formed in my deranged little mind. Watching TV was like acquiring and maintaining friends without having to put the effort into the process. I could just sit on the couch with my jaw dropped in my sweats as I popped flipsides (by keebler - I highly recommend them) and chocolate milk in my already open mouth. If that's really what it was all about - having friends available with the push of a button - then I think I'll probably be spending a lot more time with my real friends in Boston very soon.

Like tonight for example, I'll be having dinner with my buddy Odoi. We'll be eating at Charlie's on Newbury Street. In case you're wondering I chose Charlie's because they have the best burgers in Boston. After tonight's delicious burger, I'm going to have to find some other ways to spend time with friends that don't involve spending 15-20 bucks on meal. Pizza's cheaper, right? ;-)

Today's temptation rating 3.5

Days without incident 10 (double digits, baby!)

Sometimes you're just tired

Part of the premise for this whole endeavour was to starting doing all the things that I haven't been doing because I busy watching TV. And yesterday I did stuff all day long - checked a lot of chores off the list. But after my run in the winter wonderland last night, my feet were blistered, my legs were sore and stuff, and I was just too freakin' tired to do any more stuff around the house. At that point, I was dying to watch TV. I had been good all day, I had a significantly challenging workout, and I felt like I deserved a little reward time.This is time I always used to look forward to because it was one of my only completely guilt free TV sessions in a week. I thought about all the shows I could watch - all just there on Hulu waiting for me to catch up with them! It was difficult, but I was able to resist, though it seemed like a totally pointless exercise of discipline. I mean what was I supposed to do with that time? I had dinner on my lap, sitting in a quiet and lonely apartment - TV was a perfectly reasonable means for occupying myself for the 45 minutes to an hour before Emily got home. I ended up going on facebook and vicariously catching up with some friends from high school. Did you know that my old friend Oscar went to see the Mayan ruins? I saw the whole trip. Also my first girlfriend just got engaged.

When Emily finally got home, we went down the street to one of our favorite restaurants - we always go there when it's a winter wonderland outside. (In case you didn't notice, this would be my second dinner on the day.) They have a fireplace that we sit by all cozy while we eat some mashed potatoes and look outside at the snow. (Consequently "The Fireplace" is also the name of the restaurant.) It was definitely a well earned sweet release from the torment of sitting at home NOT watching TV.

Today's temptation rating: 7.8

Days without incident: 9

reuniting with the real world

So I think the detox period/withdrawal symptoms have subsided. No more headaches :-), and I'm really starting to see some of the wonderful benefits of being free from TV. For starters, real people! Usually when Emily and I visit my parents, I will spend the majority of my time doing three things: (1) Watching there gynourmous TV with on demand cable, (2) stuffing my face with my mom's delicious, yet fatty food (seriously, last time I was there, she prepped the skillet by coating the bottom with olive oil, and THEN proceeded to dropped in 3 table spoons of butter), and (3) working out either in their basement or on the beautiful rolling hills of New Jersey (that's right - New Jersey is beautiful once you get out of Newark). This trip I replaced watching TV with discussions around the delicious food I mentioned at the kitchen counter. Turns out that my family is not in the living room watching TV with me - they're around the kitchen counter talking! Emily pointed out on the ride home yesterday that she usually feels like she doesn't see me at all while we're in New Jersey, but this time that was not the case, as I spent my free time talking with her and my parents instead of watching TV. As it turns out - I would say that talking in the kitchen would be just as relaxing as watching TV if there were a big comfy couch in the kitchen, (I'll have to try just laying out on the counter next time) but without the TV, there's the added benefit of spending my time with real people!

Today I start my week at home without TV. I suspect this will be a bit more of a challenge since one of the most pressing alternatives to watching TV will be the daunting task of getting my life back together. Let's see if I can resist TV when one of my main alternatives is quite a bit less enticing. :-) Oh man, it's even harder when I think about ALL the episodes I've missed but could catch up on!

Today's temptation rating: 6 and climbing...

Days without incident: 8 (past one week!)

it's like I have two heads

I tried getting pictures of actual people I've told that I'm giving up TV, but those people are either camera shy, or still in their pajamas (eh hem, mom and Emily). So I looked for some pictures of people that have made similar faces - these are the spitting image. It just doesn't compute with people. Why on earth would I give up what many believe to be my God given right to watch TV. The responses I get are more than just what you would see when rights are violated - it's like I'm telling people that I'm giving up eating.

The thing is though, that it's not actually like eating. It certainly feels like it to me sometimes. as I'm sure it does to other people - but the fact of the matter is that there was a time before television, where... get this... NO ONE EVER WATCHED TV. Yeah, I know, crazy, right? It's not even that I'm trying to revert back to a simpler time folks - I have my reasons, which I hope I've made clear. But the bottom line is. it's really not as crazy or controversial as it sounds. So for all those of you that are still scratching or heads in confusion, or insisting that I'll be back to my old ways a month from now - we'll see what happens. In the mean time, scratch away folks.

Today's temptation rating: 5

Days without incident: 7

Parting is such sweet sorrow, saying goodbye to Stevie

Yesterday, Emily made our trip to New Jersey. It was nice to get to watch some of the Olympics, but earlier in the day was a very emotional time (only kinda joking), as Stevie (my TV) said gave his farewell to my apartment. The trip was hard on him, he was blind folded by the fleece blanket I threw over his face, and bound my three seat belts in the back seat of our car rental. I assure you this was not an act of cruelty on my part - I did this for his own safety on the journey, since the box that he would have otherwise traveled was already my parent's basement. I probably also did this to avoid my own emotional torment each time I looked in the rear view mirror, because as I said before, I am only partially joking when I say that I'm mourning the loss of my dear friend and roommate. The picture above not only serves as proof that he has in fact been moved from my living room to the guest room in my parents house, but also as a memory of Stevie that I can come and look at online whenever I want. (Hopefully, I'm actually completely joking about that last part.)

On a separate note, I'd also like to report that I stuck to my rules on watching TV somewhere else. I did not take control of the remote at any point. On the other hand I would say that a temptation rating is not applicable for Saturday since I got to watch some TV anyway. Call it consolation the now Stevie shaped hole in my heart... I mean living room. :-)

Days without incident: 6

Temptation rating for Feb. 12

Emily and I drove to NJ yesterday, so there was unfortunately no time to write a blog post about day 5. I don't remember much about the day except for my temptation rating... what's that? What's a temptation rating? Well I'm glad you asked. It was Emily's idea, really. So in the car we have a 1 to 10 rating system for the urgency of our need to go to the bathroom - 10 being "I'm peeing my pants as we speak" vs. 1 being "the thought of peeing just crossed my mind." I know, brilliant, right?

Anyway, Emily thought to use the same kind of rating system to check in with my everyday and see how tempted I am to watch TV. Friday was probably the first time that my rating went above 5 - I'd say it was about a 6 or 6.5. I was in the 1-3 range Monday through Thursday, but Friday I got home ready to start my week long vacation (no school next week!), and I just really wanted to plop down and watch TV. Yesterday, however was sweet relief from the torment. We arrived in New Jersey, and my parent's had the Olympics on. I'm proud to say that I stayed in the kitchen with the real people until Apollo Ohno came on, at which point we all went into the living room and watched him skate his way into his sixth Olympic medal. I get one more day of Olympic enjoyment, and then the real test will come as I resist the urge to go on Hulu while at home by myself for most of next week. I think we'll likely be seeing temptation ratings north of 7 most days next week - let's just hope I never actually hit 10. :-)

what is and what could have been

If you have not yet found my other blog (team scrappy) you don't know that I am a triathlete. Training for triathlons goes in cycles - usually about four weeks per cycle - that consist of three weeks of challenging workouts that are meant to "build" you up, by breaking you down. You get more and more sore and tired, and then the last week of the cycle allows you to recover. That fourth week is heavenly - your muscles repair themselves, the soreness subsides, and by the end of the week you are faster and stronger than you were at the beginning of the cycle. I just started a new build cycle - the beginning of which is supposed to feel pretty good since it follows a recovery week. But because I was so consumed by the TV during my recovery week (I watched all of season two of 24 between Thursday and Sunday - along with several other shows), I really didn't take good care of myself. I didn't get much sleep, I missed two of my workouts, and I didn't really take the time to eat well. Consequence: I have felt like crap this week. Seriously, the headache yesterday was just icing on the cake (ps, the headache is gone today!).

Soooo, headache aside, this anti-TV thing has really saved my body this week. Had I started season three of 24 this week (one of the scenes I'm missing out on is at right), I might know a little more about what happens to Jack Bauer, but I probably would have missed out on four hours of naps and several badly needed sessions of stretching. You see, when I usually need to stretch or take a nap I say, "Oh, I'll just watch TV while I stretch," or "I can fall asleep while watching Friends," but the reality is that I'll turn on the TV and forget all about whatever it was I had planned on doing. Not any more!

A mild headache yesterday was a small price to pay for rest and stretching that I needed to recover. I may still be paying for last week's TV extravaganza, but I'd be paying for it a lot worse if I spent this week finding out what happened with Jack Bauer and some chemical weapon in Mexico. (I didn't watch it, I promise - I heard it from someone else.)

Anyway, school's out now for a week, and I'll be spending some of that time in New Jersey at my parents house. Lots of free time will definitely be a challenge! Let's see how it unfolds...

Days without incident: 4

withdrawal...

Seriously, I'm having withdrawal today. I have a legitimate headache. At first I thought it was just because I've been sleeping a lot more (I've taken 2 hour naps each of the last two days during the time that I would have spent sitting on the couch watching TV), but then I realized, I haven't slept very long at night. I'm, still rounding out at about 8 hours a day - hardly enough to justify a headache from too much sleep. It must be the TV!

I guess this is what's called the detox period for addicts right? My brain is adjusting to the lack of TV. Actually last night I dreamed about people from my past (less common in my dreams) instead of characters from shows I'm watching (more common in my dreams). In the past even when I dreamed about people in real life, the dream often took place in a fictional setting from whatever show I had been watching most religiously at the time. Sometimes the fictional characters would even get mixed in there with the real ones too. Last night however, was entirely real people, in an entirely real setting. Maybe that's why my brain hurts today - it's not used to so much reality. I'm shooting in the dark here, but it all makes sense in my TV deprived brain.

Also, I'm realizing that I haven't posted pictures for the last two posts... I'll try and be a little more visual tomorrow. :-)

Days without incident: 3

breaking free from stevie, my tv

Like I said, I've tried this before, and I've obviously never been successful. So here are the devices that are going to help free me from stevie, my TV. (That's right, I named my TV stevie - just like Joey did in season 7 of Friends.)

1. Send my beautiful Sharp Aquos TV home to my parents. Sure I could still watch stuff on my computer, but the lack of a bigger screen will make it less appealing.
2. Cancel my Netflix subscription. Believe it or not, Emily and I have never actually subscribed for cable television anyway. All TV that I watch comes from my computer - Netflix, Hulu, NBC.com, CBS.com, ABC.com, usanetwork.com, etc. The age of the interwebs has made my efforts to avoid TV that much more difficult. Just as well, eliminating Netflix will eliminate the constant income of fresh DVD's in the mail and cut me out of their "watch instantly" selection of shows and movies - the most fatal attraction that TV has to offer me.
3. Blog my successes and struggles daily. Cancelling Netflix only accounts for one of my six sources of TV, and sadly I can't cancel a website. I suppose that if worse comes to worst, I could set up some sort of parental controls on our interwebs that would block me from the TV websites and have Emily set up the password, or even cancel my internet service. But those are extremes that I would only resort to if it became absolutely necessary. I'm hoping that this blog will become a system of accountability. Knowing that someone will read this if I cheat just might be enough to keep me from cheating. If you do follow my journey to freedom - please feel free to post emotionally crippling words of disappointment should I fall off the wagon.
4. Rely on the power of the Lord to resist temptation. He is after all, my inspiration for this whole ordeal. And all things are possible through Christ who gives me strength, right? God has shown his power by doing some pretty crazy things. I mean come on - how many of you have seen someone walk on water? Part a sea? Impregnate a 90 something year old woman? Yeah, I think he's got the power to help me see this through. If I do succeed, He'll get all the credit.

Only two TV type exceptions are allowed for this endeavour:

1. TVs that are out of my control. For example, TVs of friends and family members. This weekend the Olympics start, and we're going to my parents. I'm not going to subject my parents to my "no TV" rule. In fact, as long as I'm not the one with the remote, I will allow myself to watch the things that they choose to watch. If I don't want to watch it - tough luck - I'll have to find something else to do.
2. Date nights of the theatre variety. Probably about 5 to 10 times a year, Emily and I will go to see a movie for a date, or we go with some friends. I think that's ok. Theatre of any kind is fair game - and the motion picture type is the only kind I'm interested in - broadway... YUCK. After all "the big screen" is NOT a TV.

So there you have it. That's the agreement. Those are the rules. Good bye my beloved fictional friends. Hello freedom!

Days without incident: 2

taking stock of reality

Let me drop some knowledge on you:

• Percentage of households that possess at least one television: 99
• Number of TV sets in the average U.S. household: 2.24
• Percentage of U.S. homes with three or more TV sets: 66
• Percentage of Americans that regularly watch television while eating dinner: 66
• Number of hours per day that TV is on in an average U.S. home: 6 hours, 47 minutes

The average America watches 20-26 hours of TV a week. I tallied my own statistic last week - I watch about 30 hours of TV a week. That's right, 30. And let me assure you folks, this isn't 30 hours a week that I have the TV in the background on while I do chores, or engage with other people. I'm a freakin' zombie. I sit on the couch, I stuff my face, and I watch 24, Heroes, Burn Notice, Leverage, Friends, 30 Rock, The Office, Community, Lost, How I Met Your Mother, Numb3rs, Glee, and just about any movie I can get my hands on. Count 'em up - that's twelve shows that I follow religiously. TWELVE. And I don't just watch each show once. No - I've watched all 10 seasons (240 episodes) of Friends so many times, that I have a completely comprehensive index of what happens to each character in each episode. For example, I can tell you that it's in season 9, episode 2 that Joey reveals he doesn't know how to use air quotes.

30 hours a week. That's 1560 hours a year - 65 out of 365 days of the year that I tune out my training, my friends, my wife, my God to relive the experiences of fictional characters I've come to artificially know and love. The saddest part is that this is not a new realization. I've been completely aware of my unhealthy commitment to TV for almost 10 years. In those 10 years, I've tried to stop watching TV or at least cut back 7 times. Each time, I not only failed to stop watching TV, but I started watching more. I judge smokers for throwing their life away at the hands of their addiction, but the fact of the matter is that I'm no better at confronting my addiction than they are. You wanna talk about wasting your life - one time I was so hard up for TV that I watched a discover channel VHS tape I found in the back of a drawer on tigers and dinosaurs.

Millions of Americans are so hooked on television that they fit the criteria for substance abuse as defined in the official psychiatric manual, according to Rutgers University psychologist and TV-Free America board member Robert Kubey. Heavy TV viewers exhibit five dependency symptoms--two more than necessary to arrive at a clinical diagnosis of substance abuse. These include: 1) using TV as a sedative; 2) indiscriminate viewing; 3) feeling loss of control while viewing; 4) feeling angry with oneself for watching too much; 5) inability to stop watching; and 6) feeling miserable when kept from watching. 

Make no mistake, TV can absolutely be an addiction, and I am absolutely addicted. How about you?