When I was a little girl growing up in LaCenter, Washington on a small farm, we didn't watch much television. For one thing, there was not much for kids to watch in the 1960's except cartoons, and I was never a Road Runner fan. I had two brothers who loved the Road Runner and his nemesis Wiley Coyote. So even if I would have wanted to watch The Flintstones or The Jetsons, my brothers would have outnumbered me and I would not have won. Since I wasn't that attached to Pebbles and BamBam or Jane and Judy, I always found other things to do on Saturday mornings. During the week there were just too many activities that went on outside of the house, and to be honest, I can't remember the television being on at all. I don't remember my parents watching the news. I don't remember them sitting down at night to watch Bonanza. The only thing I recall is that on from Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings, they would turn on the television and watch the "weekend" lineup.
In the 1970's The Brady Bunch and The Partridge Family were added to the line up. It was then that I got a clue and started to like that great big box that sat in our living room. Each week, I looked forward to Friday nights because it was then that I could learn how to be popular by watching Marcia Brady. And I thought that David Cassidy was about the cutest guy on the planet. It was also about that time that my parents built a new home up on the hill of our farmlands that we got a second television where the kids could watch without our parents joining us. We kids had never had so much freedom before, and since we'd never in our life had a room all our own (the playroom), my siblings and I went a bit overboard. We watched television all the time. I even sewed with the television on when it was summer vacation, and I quickly fell in love with daytime TV too. I began watching General Hospital and All My Children when I was eleven years old.
It only took a few months of listening to us fight over the television until my mother came up with what she considered to be a brilliant solution. Each Sunday night, she handed out tickets... the kind of tickets that they used at the carnivals. The sort that come in a great big round roll and are made of two parts - THAT kind of tickets. Where she got the roll of tickets, I'll never know, but I thought it was pretty cool that my mother would have her very own jumbo roll of tickets just like they had at the Clark County Fair. Each Sunday night, she counted out our individual tickets. I can't even remember how many we received, but it did not even come close to being enough tickets to maintain our newly formed habit. It didn't take long for my brothers and me to start bartering our tickets. And that opened a big can of worms with a completely different set of problems for my mom to deal with. I think her ticket system was very short lived. For an entire year after the ticket system was introduced I searched for that jumbo roll of tickets. I never could find them. I've always considered them to be the mystery tickets.
By the time I was old enough to start earning my own money, we had moved to the city and I hit the babysitting bonanza. For a fourteen year old, I was rolling in spending money. It didn't take long for me to save enough to buy my own little black and white television - one that I could put in my bedroom at night so that I could watch Roots and The Thorn Birds - those shows that were true mini series that seemed to go on and on, night after night. The premise of my own television was that I needed a small unit to watch while I sewed. Well, I did move the little television back and forth from my bedroom to the sewing room. However, when I bought it, the real intent was to keep it all to myself in my bedroom so I wouldn't have to fight with my brothers over what shows I wanted to watch.
I went to college in the fall of 1980. It took me just one semester to figure out that practically the entire campus shut down at 1:00 each afternoon. The 1:00 classes were empty, but the at the same time, the campus hub was overflowing with students. Why? Because that was the time of day that General Hospital was aired and in 1981, Luke and Laura got married. When I returned from Christmas break for my second semester, my classes were scheduled around General Hospital. Needless to say, I remember watching Luke marry Laura with about 100 other students cheering and clapping. That same year, I watched Prince Charles marry Lady Diana Spencer in the middle of the night with those same 100 students.
When I was pregnant with Alyssa, I was a working girl and I carpooled to work with another woman from the office. Each morning as I would wait for her to arrive at my house, I would sit at the kitchen table drinking coffee and watching The Today Show. In 1990, the hosts of The Today Show were Jane Pauley and Bryant Gumbel. I loved Jane Pauley. I thought she was so wise and smart and professional. I'd been watching her on television for several years and on those mornings as I drank my coffee and waited for my ride, I felt as though I was spending time with a close confidant and friend. Is it any wonder that my daughter's middle name is Jane? She was named after Jane Pauley because I felt as though the name lent itself to great future achievements.
It's been over fifteen years since I named my daughter after a television personality. And I am still hopelessly addicted to television. My love of TV has not lessened over the years. If anything, it has slowly grown into a full fledged addiction. In fact, my husband considers it to now be an obsession. Unfortunately, I'm afraid he may be right. I plan my weeks around Lost, Survivor, Desperate Housewives, and Grey's Anatomy. So is it any wonder that when I received TiVo yesterday as a birthday gift from my family, I experienced a feeling of overwhelming relief? No longer will I have to arrange the kid's evening activities around my shows. I won't have to rush home from John's football games praying that I make it in time for the opening credits. And when I travel, I won't have to sneak out of dinner meetings to call Alyssa from the ladies room to remind her to turn on the VCR so that I don't miss an episode of Survivor.
As I review the television habits I've acquired over the years, I notice that my TV addiction started out slowly - that's the part I want to blame on my upbringing. Maybe if we would have had a television on at all times when I was a child, I wouldn't have discovered a fascination with the boob tube as I got older. Because our big box was turned off most of the time, it was a novelty to me, and I was drawn to it like a bug is drawn to light once I had the freedom of choice. In fact, it would be easy for me to place blame anywhere but on myself. But the truth is, I love television and that is just part of who I am. It takes me away from my own reality and lets me enter a world of drama, comedy and mystery each night. And, as I ponder my unhealthy viewing habits, I realize that I could have worse addictions. I could have chosen so many other unhealthy lifestyles when I need to unwind and find escape. Instead, I turn to the television and invite my family to join me. Alyssa and I have standing dates each week. We enjoy our television time, and we look forward to those evenings with great anticipation. I think we might even be bonding when we watch TV together.
So, although I am admittedly addicted to television, I believe that with the TiVo I am going to be able to balance my life a whole lot better. I'm excited! I'm relieved. I'm downright thrilled! And, in my mind, I keep chanting TiVo Bay-Bee, because to me, that's entertainment.
Kelly, I'm so with you on the TV addiction thing! You're going to love TIVO .. .I too have the dish version (DVR) and I love it. It's been great for me this week with my awful bout of insomnia! I record quite a few shows and use the TV in our bedroom for that recording. . . so I can lay in bed and watch until the TV puts me to sleep.
And, so you're saying the tickets thing isn't the best idea? I was thinking of using something like that for these 3.
Posted by: Heather | October 21, 2005 at 11:11 PM
OH lady you are soooo lucky. I've been wanting that forever with DH saying tough too much money. ARGH. Enjoy and one day I'll be up and we can tivo a ton of shows to watch together later. hugs!
Posted by: shawn | October 21, 2005 at 09:16 PM
OMG, I LOVE my TIVO!!! We have a whole library of children's shows - mostly Sesame Street - stored on it for Bridget and when she gets sick of them we record some more and delete the old ones. Anything we HAVE to see we record just in case, and I love that you can pause and rewind when you are watching live TV! "What happened? What did he just say?" or the phone rings...just hit pause or rewind!
Welcome to the wonderful world of TIVO!
Posted by: Nancy Nally (ScrapNancy) | October 21, 2005 at 07:42 PM
You are GONNA LOVE TIVO!! I don't know what I'd do without it now. Not only can you watch what you want WHEN you want, but NO commercials. Ahhhh :)
Jennifer
Posted by: Jennifer Stewart | October 21, 2005 at 03:35 PM
Oh yea, I know what you're sayin'! I adore my TiVo and we're getting another one for the basement kids family room TV and I also want one for my studio TV but I can't justify that! LOL I was cracking up reading about watching Marcia Brady! "MARSHA MARSHA MARSHA!"
Posted by: Barbie | October 21, 2005 at 03:31 PM
Loved the journey through your personal TV watching history! LOL! I am definitely with you on TIVO...it is heaven sent! I am still able to have my entertainment time, but in LESS time. Can't stand commercials now. Even if we plan to watch it while it's on, we usually wait until it's 20 minutes into the show so we can forward through the commercials. Don't know how we ever lived without it!!
Posted by: Heather D. White | October 21, 2005 at 12:34 PM
what an awesome gift for the TV lover!
Posted by: chris | October 21, 2005 at 12:31 PM
TIVO is such a great gift for you!!! That's a smart family you've got there!!!
Posted by: Steph (Karlslove) | October 21, 2005 at 11:27 AM
LOL at the ticket plan! Too funny. I'm addicted to certain shows, for sure...Alias, Lost, and VH1 in general :)
Posted by: Becky (mommaduck) | October 21, 2005 at 09:54 AM
LOVE this flash from the past.... I don't have Tivo... now I'm wondering if I should. I actually only watch Sunday, Thursday and Lost on TV.. nothing else!!! So.... I just "plan" my life around that. Your way sounds splendid!
Sherry
Posted by: sherry steveson | October 21, 2005 at 09:02 AM
Oh, I could totally have written this post. I remember all of the big tv moments, like Luke and Laura's wedding in the dorm lounge as well. I also remember hanging out in the dorm lounge watching the very new and very cool MTV. Remember watching Michael Jackson dance back when he wasn't a pervert? You'll love your TiVo, I have DVR and it's really great. It's changed how we watch television in this family.
Posted by: Barb H. | October 21, 2005 at 06:56 AM
new Zealanders dont even know what TIVO is unless they know someone from the States. I explained it to my hubby the other day and he was blown away. Wow we havent even got caller ID, never mind Tivo.. lol
nic
Posted by: Nic Howard | October 21, 2005 at 03:57 AM
Oh - good for you!!! It's going to revolutionize the way you watch tv... within a week you'll wonder how you ever watched tv without it!
How great for your family to get you something so relevant and helpful and PERFECT!!!
Posted by: Cathy | October 21, 2005 at 01:15 AM
Oh, Kelly, you are SO gonna LOVE TIVO! I'm not a big TV person these days, but I love the freedom to watch Oprah when I'm on the exercise bike at 7 a.m. (or 8, 9, 10, whenever). Tonight I watched the first two episodes of the Martha Stewart Apprentice show, back to back, fast-forwarding through the commercials, while I cooked dinner. (In our new "open" floor plan, I can see the TV from the kitchen -- yay!) Enjoy your new toy!!
Posted by: Carla | October 21, 2005 at 12:09 AM
tee hee - this is way funny!!!! love it!!! ;D
Posted by: Steph | October 20, 2005 at 11:25 PM
We have the Dish version (DVR) and I LOVE it. I don't watch much tv, but what I do watch, I want to watch! I love being able to pick and choose when I have time to sit and enjoy my tv uninterrupted! Great birthday gift!
Posted by: Becky | October 20, 2005 at 10:51 PM
I too love my tv and have had the same addictions over the years and am totally addicted to the same shows you listed. You will be so free with your TiVo. It will completely change your life.
Posted by: BeckyM | October 20, 2005 at 10:19 PM