This was the blog post I had planned for the day. After what went down the Wisconsin legislature I was tempted to write about that, but I realize it's still too raw. Just like I shouldn't grocery shop when I'm hungry, I shouldn't blog when I'm angry. So I'll leave that for another day.
Instead I'll return my original topic. Lent and sacrifices. Growing up Catholic I always gave up something for Lent. I don't remember what that something was pre-middle school, but since about 1996 I've had variations of the same 3 fasts. The most recent of which has been to go vegetarian the entire 40 days instead of just Ash Wednesday and Fridays. Before that I would traditionally kick my caffeine habit cold-turkey, withdrawal symptoms and all. But it's my original big sacrifice that I'm returning to: abstaining from television.
I wanted to return to something that really was a sacrifice. The vegetarian thing was a little too easy to comply with. And the caffeine thing was something was a sacrifice for me, but ended up also being a bit of issue for those people around me having to deal with me in the transition period. Not entirely fair.
So starting today, no more tv for me. I've given myself one exception. Live sporting events. I know this seems like a bit of a cop out, but to me it isn't. It's a different beast. So no television beyond live sports (which to be honest will basically be NCAA tourney) either on tv or Hulu. After Easter I may decide to go back and watch a few things on Hulu, but I have a feeling those may be few and far between. I didn't get a chance to yet, but I'll be turning off the DVR recording. So I won't be stockpiling this stuff for 40 days.
I think it will give me more time to focus on real life and me. Honestly I think the weekdays might be less difficult as I don't get home before 7pm 3 nights a week. The weekends will be a different story. This next weekend I'll be out of town, but I think the rest could be interesting. The last time I did this, I lived at home with my family. We'll see what it's like in my apartment by myself.
Ok, thanks for listening. Be forewarned, you may be getting a political rant tomorrow.
Instead I'll return my original topic. Lent and sacrifices. Growing up Catholic I always gave up something for Lent. I don't remember what that something was pre-middle school, but since about 1996 I've had variations of the same 3 fasts. The most recent of which has been to go vegetarian the entire 40 days instead of just Ash Wednesday and Fridays. Before that I would traditionally kick my caffeine habit cold-turkey, withdrawal symptoms and all. But it's my original big sacrifice that I'm returning to: abstaining from television.
I wanted to return to something that really was a sacrifice. The vegetarian thing was a little too easy to comply with. And the caffeine thing was something was a sacrifice for me, but ended up also being a bit of issue for those people around me having to deal with me in the transition period. Not entirely fair.
So starting today, no more tv for me. I've given myself one exception. Live sporting events. I know this seems like a bit of a cop out, but to me it isn't. It's a different beast. So no television beyond live sports (which to be honest will basically be NCAA tourney) either on tv or Hulu. After Easter I may decide to go back and watch a few things on Hulu, but I have a feeling those may be few and far between. I didn't get a chance to yet, but I'll be turning off the DVR recording. So I won't be stockpiling this stuff for 40 days.
I think it will give me more time to focus on real life and me. Honestly I think the weekdays might be less difficult as I don't get home before 7pm 3 nights a week. The weekends will be a different story. This next weekend I'll be out of town, but I think the rest could be interesting. The last time I did this, I lived at home with my family. We'll see what it's like in my apartment by myself.
Ok, thanks for listening. Be forewarned, you may be getting a political rant tomorrow.
No TV!?
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