I'm not one of those people

Why no TV? The fact is, I watch TV the way I eat food: I love heirloom tomatoes and Niman Ranch beef and Michelin-rated restaurants when I can afford it, but the fact is, I'll scarf the Doritos too. I'll eat because the food is there, I'll eat when I'm bored, I'll eat when I'm procrastinating.

And it's the same with TV. There is a lot of great TV out there. But it is way too easy for me to casually turn on the TV on a Saturday while I'm eating breakfast and end up watching a marathon of, say, A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila and then it's 3PM and I haven't showered, worked out, or done any of my chores. Ugh, don't you hate it when that happens?

So I'm not one of those people who turns their nose up at TV, only reads literature and occasionally deigns to watch PBS, the news, and documentaries. I'm not cutting out TV because I'm opposed to reality TV or commercials. I just hate it being a time suck. I going to start treating TV like ice cream: I won't keep it in the house--if I really want it, it's fine, but that craving has to be strong enough that I'll have to actively go out and get it, and when I do, it will be by the scoop, not the carton.

So here are the conditions under which it is OK for me to watch shows
1) No broadcast or cable on the TV, but DVDs of the shows are OK
2) Video on the Internet are OK--more on why in a future post
3) TV outside the house at friend's or at gym are OK
4) TV for news or major sporting events is OK