akohekohe

About 10 years ago I was watching something stupid on television and I asked why am I doing this? I had no good answer so I called the cable company and said disconnect. My wife was a bit shocked but I said give it a bit and let's see. She came around very quickly. I bring this up because people at work seem about equally divided on what makes me stranger - no car or no television. When asked why I don't have a television my favorite answer is to say "Television is the eye of Satan." That usually ends the conversation right there. So do people who are car free tend to be television free or am I an eccentric among eccentrics?

poormanbiking

Eccentric I don't know about. Posting this online means you surf the web, do you do this to replace tv watching ? I've noticed I don't watch as much tv now compared to a few years ago. I record programs and watch just those, fastforwarding the ads . I have gone back to reading more. How do you get your daily news and keep up on politics ?

Ekdog

I'm almost TV free in the winter time. We have one in the other room, but I spend most of my time here in the library surfing the Internet or reading. I keep up on politics and the news of the day by reading on-line newspapers and listening to talk shows on KGO via the Net.

In the summer I watch more TV, mostly BBC World and CNN, as well as some Spanish channels, as we don't have an Internet connexion at our summer home. I really prefer radio, though, and I listen to Spanish and Portuguese news and conversation quite a bit.

https://www.kgoam810.com/

P.S. I've been having trouble formatting my posts (bold type, italics, etc.) as well as posting links since the changes were made to the site. Any suggestions?

Metzinger

I sold my North American format TV and never bought a European TV after I moved here. Not because of the language. Dutch TV is largely in English anyways. The key improvement seems to be the return of a civilized living area. No more couch meals. The computer is tucked away in the office, and is still used for entertainment and practical purposes. I don't ever want to go back.

I read online newspapers and listen to radio news. The TV style ads that precede movies at the cinema, I now find to be hilarious.

Ekdog, my formatting, links, and photos are fine. Vista.

bluegoatwoods

I turned my back on Hollywood about 25 years ago now. I don't talk about it much because I didn't seem to be able to do it without seeming as though I was looking down on others. With the introduction of DVDs, though, I'm watching those a bit.

When I got married the TV re-appeared in my life. My wife and I have spent nearly 20 years now fighting (a bit) over that. Oddly enough she seems to be losing interest in it in recent years. It's not turned on nearly as much as it used to be. So things are getting better.

Now if I could only get her to ride a bicycle.

old and new

well said bluegoatwoods, I can relate to that

wahoonc

Apparently I grew up in an odd family. We did not have television growing up, we had regular trips to the libraries, plenty of books and music around the house and many, many interesting people to converse with. FWIW my dad was a college professor and my mom a high school teacher. They currently have a television, but no cable, they primarily use it for watching DVD's. The interesting people came in the form of foreign grad students, and visiting foreign professors and clergy. Sunday dinners were always well attended and a great treat at our house.

Currently there is a television in the house, but I never turn it on. I get my news primarily from internet news feeds, CNN, BBC, Reuters and local sources for the area I happen to be working in. I also read books and magazines to get more in depth opinions and facts on current events, and to research why they are occurring. Funny how history repeats itself. I don't normally listen to radio, but do have an MP3 player and have it loaded with pod casts and my favorite music.

Not carfree but I do everything I can to minimize driving at every turn, whether using Amtrak to travel back and forth between home and my jobsite on weekends (where feasible) or just not traveling home one my weekends off, staying local and riding my bike to get where I need to go.

Aaron

tsl

Same here. It's taken years for co-workers to quit asking me if I saw this or that inane show, movie or commercial. Library patrons, well their flabber is completely gasted when I answer "No" when they ask if I can recommend a DVD.

Fortunately, McCarthyism passed several decades ago. Otherwise I'd be a risk of being picked up and charged with un-American activities:

No car
No TV
No cell phone (I wish I didn't have to have a landline either)
No air conditioning
No credit cards
No loans of any kind
No bank, investment, or brokerage accounts
The list goes on…

I'm not a complete ascetic. I have Internet, use a little electricity, and rather enjoy the central heating and hot water my landlord provides. In the kitchen, I'm rather fond of refrigeration and my gas stove. That list goes on too.

cyclezealot

To not watch something "Stupid," is hardly eccentric.. Congratulations.. I do suggest you get slightly better broadcasting if you have satellite TV with more choice.. We are car light.. TV free. If not for certain satellite networks and good movie channels. , We'd be TV free. As to selecting the lower tier which is the most idiotic, we never do.. Our logo against TV is not that it is satanic but just mostly stupid. Our logo Kill Your TV...

gregf83 

Do you keep your money in a shoebox or under the mattress?

dynodonn 

There are several televisions in our household for other members of my family to watch, along with the many channels that are offered today. My viewing tastes changed considerably some 30 plus years ago; gone are the ridiculous sitcoms, infomercials, and reality shows. Back then, and now, I've just kept my viewing format to an educational one, letting the other family members have their choice in what they wish to watch.

Llamero

My wife and I were actually TV free before we were car free (about 4 years now). For us, it was the fact that the cable company had suddenly decided that the one channel we watched was no longer part of the standard package and was going to cost extra. So, we ditched the TV and never looked back. Recently, we spent two weeks with her parent's who have a television, and it was painful to watch. They flip between shots so fast it gave me a headache (I counted, the longest shot was 10 seconds), and there are more ads than content, and all the ads are screaming at you to buy buy BUY!

I think if you watch TV, you become numb to the constant flickering and endless screaming ads. However, after a couple years away from the sensory overload, it becomes physically painful ti watch TV. The only shows that were remotely pleasant to watch were BBC dramas.

I-Like-To-Bike

What does a single guy, a steady job, living in a simple apartment with a good Internet connection, and no apparent interest in doing anything that might cost money need with more money?

dynodonn 

Thank goodness for DVR, it's tough enough to remain awake in order to watch my educational programs, much less if I had to watch only BBC dramas.

I-Like-To-Bike

But swearing that the TV is only used for watching BBC dramas has the same ring of snobbery and smarm (and truth) as swearing that the pile of Playboys under the bed are only used to read the interviews.

wneumann

I can see that. I'd stop talking to anyone who dropped that line on me too...

DX-MAN

Let's see:
No car
TV that gets occasional use, about halfway between DVDs and broadcast
No landline, keep a cell for job contact (required)
Would have no A/C if my extended fam wasn't loaded with wimps
No credit cards EVER AGAIN!
Mortgage
No bank contact other than paying mortgage @ a local branch

I'd use a free wi-fi if it wasn't already in the house (ext. fam), library a mile away or local business (Taco Bell, McD, etc.)
I holler daily about wasting electricity, gas, water

The day will come when I'm in the house by myself; I will have a small stove, microwave, fridge, and coffeemaker, MAYBE a washer/dryer (math will determine if ownership or rental < laundromat); I'll keep the TV & DVD
The bike WILL be back in the house; garage will likely get torn down.
The only allowances above pure minimalism I'll have will be for my daughter.

cruzMOKS

We didn't get the digital box. Before that I only watched the NFL football. That is all I miss about TV. We do have cars for work and school.

jgedwa

You are my hero! I am not nearly so evolved (but I have no TV and am car light), and I have noticed that people see it as less strange as they used to.

jim

Ekdog

This Charger fan watches the NFL on the Internet.

gerv 

I have a TV only so I can watch episodes of "Living with Ed" on Planet Green. Or maybe Trailer Park Boys.

How did you know about my magazines?

AsanaCycles

i pretty much despise TV
my girlfriend watches it
i look over my shoulder time to time

there is nothing on TV
why wait for the file to download?
when you can watch whatever you want, whenever you want, on a computer

i'd rather read a book, anyways...

why let media dictate what is in your brain?

that is, I'm amazed how much our (US) culture is idiosyncratic to pop culture
watch TV and mimic it?

akohekohe

Well, yeah, it is harder to claim you are tv free these days when you can use the web as a television if that is how you want to use it. I don't, although I occasionally follow links to youtube from places like this forum. Mostly I use the web for work related stuff, e-mails, research (it is really great having access to a huge amount of literature online through my university library's server). I think I am able to avoid the tv like uses of the web more easily because I've been tv free for so long. I view the web as a working tool and not as an entertainment vehicle but a lot of that is probably a generational thing. I do watch the occasional DVD (once every two weeks) but I don't see that as intrusive as television.

By the way, I was just kidding about the "eye of Satan" ... although I must admit my sense of humor gets me in trouble sometimes ... probably the result of the anti-social characteristics I've developed from being TV free and riding a bicycle.

sykerocker 

We have one, being out in the country we've got DirecTV. We also have a 10 acre woods as our yard, so from April through mid-November you can kiss off the local 'broadcast' channels. I don't miss them. Now it gets hilarious around here as my wife is a complete burnout on (retch, gag) "American Idol", and we can count on the leaves coming back about half way through the season. I try not to cackle too loudly.

OK, as to the snobby aspect of watching TV: Yeah, I'm one of those 'educational channel only' types, and I'm not bragging. I'm a complete burnout history freak, and have been for at least the last 50 years. About the only thing I find entertaining on the tube is some historical documentary. Either it's my "all Nazi's all the time" as my wife calls it (did you know that between 1800-2000 eastern time, one of five 'cable' channels minimum are showing some WWII documentary every night?), something to do with any odd or little known period of American history, or anything to do with either English or French history anywhere from the Normany Invasion to pre-WWI.

And I'll happily settle in to some minor show about the early Assyrian empire . . . . . . .

Sitcoms make me retch, a good mystery can hold my attention (it's about the only thing on 'broadcast' TV that I can watch), some science fiction can hold my attention (I burned out on the stuff after 26 years of attending SF conventions) but I'd prefer to watch entire seasons at a time on DVD.

No, give me a good history ANYTHING!

I-Like-To-Bike

I avoid prurient like uses of dead tree reading matter (as well as electronic imitations) and only use them for stimulating my intellect. I think I am able to avoid the crude "stupid" uses of such media because I think my choice makes me far superior to those lowlifes who have different interests than me, and furthermore am not too proud to boast about it on the Internet.