Who has no television (or just local channels)?

i haven't had cable for years... we have a T.V. and DVD player and watch a movie or 2 here and there... it's mainly so our boys could watch movies..
 
No TV for in the house for us, going on 5 years. We've got the internet (obviously) and occasionally watch DVDs on our laptop, but no broadcast TV. We have been indulging in escapist fantasy via Hulu recently with the show "Legend of the Seeker", but I like to tell myself that it's just to check out the edged weapons :)

It's been very successful at making us more peaceful (TV news wants to show you the most extreme bad news so you keep tuning in), more focused on what matters (family, hobbies) and much, much more widely informed (wildflower identification, knife collectng/using, natural building). Sometimes I miss out on a conversation that some of my co-workers or students are having, but that's a very, very small price to pay for the above benefits.
 
I've got two TVs - a 53" and a 25" - that are only connected to DVD players. I really don't miss the mindless crap that's on regular television (especially the non-stop barrage of commercials).
 
i grew up with "country cable" as we called it. Its basically the public channels and thats it. I think we were able to pick up 5 of them lol... To me that was awesome bc A. I didnt want to be inside as a kid and B. I didnt want to be inside as a kid.. I learned a lot of my hunting, tracking and fishing skills during that time bc i was bored and loved nature. now however my fiance has to have satellite (do not have cable out here) and the 300 channels of BS that comes with it including DVR.. DVR is nice but i find myself just watching crap when i should be outside tapping back into my childhood love of the outdoors..
 
Talfuchre said:
Who has made the jump to simply turning off the television? What do you think?
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I do occasionally consider it. Honestly, I don't spend all that much time watching teh TV anymore, and when I do I watch DVDs as much as cable so I have to wonder if even without the cost for premium movie or sports channels, is the money I pay every month is really worth it? :confused:
 
Well, I only had the local NBC/CBS affiliates and sometimes FOX affiliate, before the digital switch. Now, I have the local ABC affiliate and sometimes the local FOX affiliate and very rarely the NBC affiliate almost two hours away. I get most of my news from the radio. I watch DVD's all the time. Except for the news, I never watched much tv anymore anyway.

When I was in the hospital a couple weeks ago, I was watching ESPN Outdoors and the Discovery Channel nonstop.
 
I work 3rd shift so I sleep during the day, the only shows I watch are Seinfeld and the Soprano's ...............other than that I'm trying to sleep!!!!!!!
 
well we use telephone and internet through cable, only basic channels, I bet the TV is only on about 5 hours a week for Netflix movies.

maybe an additional 5-7 hours for the girls to watch E/I shows.

TV is addictive, but you'll probably find after several months that you absolutely HATE commercials, the wife was watching a show this week that interested her, I watched it with her for some cuddle time, I couldn't stand the commercials, luckily I had the remote with the mute button :D

Turn it off, pick up a book, even a cheesy fiction novel entertains better, has no commercials, doesn't require a hard disc to save it and can be read in the car, at work, before bed etc.

you can sell your book, you can't sell TV shows (well you can, but that requires work to record, edit out commercials and copy)

Take that time to spend with the wife and kids or to focus on a new or old hobby.

Guaranteed in a years time you will really start wondering why people are so attached to the boob tube.

that's my two cents.
 
From 1976 to 1992 I lived in New York without cable, with no broadcast reception. When I retired in 1992 I got cable but moved to New Jersey in 1997 and didn't bother hooking it up again. I like watching DVDs. Lots of good shows on TV but it's not worth my trouble and the expense to sit around and watch them.
 
All we have is the local channels, about 5. Sometimes watch the news and that's it. Our daughter watches a few cartoons, but then she will go and turn it off. My free time is spent here, instead of watching TV.
 
My tv had been only for dvd's for 5 years now. Occasionally I will miss Discovery or History channel, but overall I'm glad it's gone.

Do it and you'll be amazed at how much more free time you'll have.
 
We have never had cable, just rabbit ears. And we seldom watch that. Occasionally when staying at a hotel I'll flip through the cable channels, but really most of the stuff is just ridiculous junk!

What I'm saying is, we haven't really watched tv in years and don't miss it.
 
Skimo said:
TV is addictive, but you'll probably find after several months that you absolutely HATE commercials, the wife was watching a show this week that interested her, I watched it with her for some cuddle time, I couldn't stand the commercials, luckily I had the remote with the mute button :D
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I totally agree! I have actually taken to recording the few shows I do watch on the DVR (even if I am sitting in front of the TV when they are on), and watching them later so I can fast-forward throug the commercials. I just can't stand watching shows live anymore, with the number of commercials they try to pack into each broadcast I either end up poping in a DVD or just surfing aimlessless every time a commercial break starts. :grumpy:
 
I went about 10 years with no cable or satellite, just a local channel. I find there are many things more worthwhile to spend your time at, such as anything outdoors.

It also gave me an excuse to visit friends if there was a big game on.

I now have cable in my house because I rent out apart of the house and its hard to get renters without cable TV.
 
I just have some local channels. With the exception of some sports, I watch maybe 1 or 2 shows a week. We also limit how much time the kids can spend in front of a screen (TV, XBox, Computer, DVD, etc) each day. I don't miss it and my kids spend their time doing things, not being couch potatoes.
 
Haven't had one in maybe ten years, and I don't miss it. I have a house to renovate, so that takes priority. I still see tv once in awhile, but most of the programming is pretty poor.
 
I've been thinking about this, and this thread has finally pushed me over the edge. Today I cancelled my cable tv, well, it will be officially disconnected on 8/19 :o
Funny how difficult they make it for you to disconnect. Since I wanted to keep my fios internet, they said they would no longer bill me. Have to take that out of a credit card, etc. Then they try to get you to "suspend" service for up to 6 months for only $25. This is, ostensibly, to save you the fees of reconnecting once you realize that you cannot live without it....
I plan to use the "dead air space" time for more training, and actually getting back to reading again. Now, where is that copy of "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire".......:D
 
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