Thursday, January 31, 2008

Seven Up!Date #3 and 4: Our Rabbit Ears and My Knitting Partner

Time for another installment of explanation on the January 24th post response to my friend Melissa's meme! A refresher for those who may not have seen it: I was supposed to list 7 random and slightly wacky things about myself. I am now tying to explain them. Here are numbers 3 and 4:

3. We don't have cable. We don't have satellite. We have 'rabbit ears' on our tv. We do watch tv (actual tv, not just tv hooked up to a dvd player), we are not 'reality tv' fans. And yet, life doesn't suck. (But I really miss Life, Bones, and Pushing Daisies.)

4. Speaking of Pushing Daisies, I love LOVE LOVE to knit along with Emerson Cod.

No. We are among the few in the (apparently) WORLD who don't pay exhorbitant monthly sums for loads of television that doesn't get watched. We rely on rabbit ears (antennae) that get sometimes reasonably good, sometimes snow-like reception.

One of our tvs doesn't even have a remote, and must be turned on and off by plugging it in and unplugging it from the wall outlet. NONE of our tvs are large-screen or flat-screen, and ALL of them will be obsolete next year when the FCC rules apply and everything is high-definition. Why do we put up with this? Why don't we have cable or satelite like all normal people?????

First of all, it's not in the budget. We have other things that are of a higher priority. The gas bill, for instance. Groceries. Water and sewer and electric bills. Rick's credit card bills and his student loans. Life comes with expenses. Life took VISA. VISA charged the f%$@#$% out of life. WE are now up past our eyeballs. Life doesn't need cable.

Second of all, we feel like we're making a stand. NO ONE needs cable. It's a luxury. I'm profoundly tired of people looking at us like we're from an undersea commune when we explain we don't pay money for tv. Why should we? We feel strongly about living within our means. And our lives don't revolve around tv. There are some nights the tv doesn't get turned on. Try it sometime!! You might actually like it! (We don't pay for radio, either.)

When we do turn on the tv, there's a surprising variety of shows with good stories on broadcast tv, provided the writers aren't on strike. Unfortunately, there's a writer's strike. So we are stuck with lousy reality tv. There's nothing actually "real" about so-called "reality tv". Starting with Donald Trump's hair and the drug-enhanced physiques on that gladiator show. I sincerely miss Life, Bones, and Pushing Daisies. Toss in Chuck, Heroes, the Office, 30 Rock, and Numbers, too, while we're at it.

The difference between scripted characters and so-called 'real people' in a 'reality situation program' is that thought has gone into the character, plot, development, and script for the character. The person working in front of a camera completely ad lib has no real clue about what will entertain The Market. All sorts of rubish will be tossed off in hopes that it will be controversial enough to make the editing cut. Yippee Skippee.

Let's have the writers back. Please. NOW.

Especially because I miss knitting with Emerson Cod. Emerson Cod, of Pushing Daisies, is a cranky sourpuss, only in the business of Private Investigator for the money. But his hobby is knitting. He knits cash cosies for the money he makes, and lines them all up neatly in his desk drawer in this office. He knits bright red gun cosies, and wears them instead of holsters. Festive! It was one of the few times Mr. Cod cracked a smile, and it looked genuine, like he was proud of his accomplishment. Hilarious. He gets deep satisfaction from his monthly magazine of knitting stories and jokes, called Knit Wits, and was shown leaning backwards in his offics chair reading and chortling, a rare scene of comfort and relaxation for Mr. Emerson Cod. I find this character fascinating. I can't wait to discover more about him, because he seems like such a compilation of opposites.

Very little was as satisfying than to get everything I needed to get done for the day done, and sit in front of the tv on a Wednesday night at 8 with my knitting (or cheat, and do some crocheting, because I'm more adept at that and don't have to look at my hands), settle in, and relax into the off-kilter program that is Pushing Daisies.

I want those evenings back. Poor reception and all.

 

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