Lately I've run into a lot of people that are not only shocked that I do not own a TV, nor waste all of my non-working time in front of it, but that laugh at me. That laugh and tell me that I'm strange, and wonder what I must do with my life. I tell them - I'm living it, learning about it, growing in it, interacting with others.
Also watching youtube videos. Hehehehehehehe.
But even with an explanation of what amazing things one can do when simple distraction isn't the main goal of free time, they still laugh, and tell me I'm strange. Is it just me, or is that saddening? And scary? That living and learning and growing have become stigmatic, and turning yourself off in front of reality TV for 4 hours a night (28 hours a week - over a whole day per week!) is admirable?
I do download the occasional TV show and understand that sometimes we do indeed need to turn ourselves off, or watch something for the interesting, well-written entertainment that it is, and I make that clear to these people. They twist my words and then understand that I watch TV just as much, only it's downloaded. Ah good, there's still context within which I can be interacted with!
I usually just let it go there. I think I've been recommended to watch every single show that's on TV except ICE ROADS 2: FUCKING YEAH!?, which, with a title like that, I'd actually be inclined to watch at least one episode of. Trying to explain my love affair with being alive and being a speck on a speck orbiting around a speck in a cluster of orbiting specks otherwise indistinguishable from other specks isn't really something that gets met with any more enthusiasm than the original "You don't have a TV?!"
Also watching youtube videos. Hehehehehehehe.
But even with an explanation of what amazing things one can do when simple distraction isn't the main goal of free time, they still laugh, and tell me I'm strange. Is it just me, or is that saddening? And scary? That living and learning and growing have become stigmatic, and turning yourself off in front of reality TV for 4 hours a night (28 hours a week - over a whole day per week!) is admirable?
I do download the occasional TV show and understand that sometimes we do indeed need to turn ourselves off, or watch something for the interesting, well-written entertainment that it is, and I make that clear to these people. They twist my words and then understand that I watch TV just as much, only it's downloaded. Ah good, there's still context within which I can be interacted with!
I usually just let it go there. I think I've been recommended to watch every single show that's on TV except ICE ROADS 2: FUCKING YEAH!?, which, with a title like that, I'd actually be inclined to watch at least one episode of. Trying to explain my love affair with being alive and being a speck on a speck orbiting around a speck in a cluster of orbiting specks otherwise indistinguishable from other specks isn't really something that gets met with any more enthusiasm than the original "You don't have a TV?!"
e.g. youtu.be/AEOpX8tmiUI