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Friday, October 16, 2015

What Else I Did This Summer

Since I did not have my computer to entertain me, I depended on TV. I could not read as in "sit down in read a book" because of cataracts and the one missing lens. I did NOT want to listen to the radio. I did want to watch TV.

I have an antenna that exbf put up facing the wrong direction, so I cannot get the one station that I do want to watch. He maintains he did it right. I don't think so.

Let me give you a rundown of bad TV and some good. I even watched Cops Reloaded once and almost enjoyed it! It was a fruitless search to find the good.

Remember Laramie? I didn't. John Smith was a real hottie, cute, blond hair, one of the better looking actors of the day. He made it really big but worked bit parts here and there. There was one thing that bothered me. He had the tightest pants I have ever seen. The seam in the back was imbedded in his well-formed backside. The front was so tight I could tell whether he was right or left-handed!

Other than those distractions and questions about why those pants were so tight and why I had never seen him in the other things he was in, I liked the show.

When exbf was here, I turned it on to show him because he could not place the actor. When he saw Robert Fuller, he blurted out his name and knew everything he was in.

Then, there is ion television. There were house makeover shows, garden makeover shows, and another kind of makeover that I don/t remember. These were horrendous. The designers said the books were clutter and had to go, the sofas and shelves were too clunky and had to go. Many of the homeowners had toddlers or very young children. The designers declared that the children should a section for their toys, should play there, stay there, and not bother the parents in the kitchen or study! Whaaaat?

Then, the designers put in new spindly furniture, nothing with curves at all, but something trendy.??? The designers rhapsodized about separating children from parents, and the put low candles with open flames in reach of children. In one case, the designers put the children downstairs in the basement so the parents could read or watch tv or cook upstairs.

My babies, toddlers and preschoolers usually moved to wherever I was located as soon as they realized I had relocated, even to the bathroom for a moment. If they were not under my feet, I went to see what they were up to!

Then, there is Design Rivals, two designers, at least one of whom was gay. He, himself, joked about it. It was/is a great design show.

I have forgotten the name of the garden design show. But, I was horrified when the parents of two small children, maybe two- and five-years-old, were presented their garden makeover. The parents stated they wanted to entertain their friends with small children. The designers rhapsodized over the fact the children were at the back of the yard, separated from the view of the parents, so "parents did not have to see the children at play."

Let me tell you, I would be sitting where the children were playing. In my experience, parents cannot leave children from several homes untended, especially when there is an age range and several children. I would not want my three out of my sight! My children were good children. Most of my friends had very good children, but they all did something or started to do something that I or my friends had to veto or go to stop. I don't want my two-year-old playing unmonitored with an eight-year-old and other children! 

I did get my fill of Criminal Minds, but it is rough watching it for 7 or 8 hours in one day. At first, I did not realize it showed all day. Tonight, I saw for the fourth time the episode where Hotchner's wife is murdered. Jack was "working the case." Haley (wife) is murdered and Jack (son) saved himself by hiding.

Walker, Texas Ranger slugged so many people without damaging his hands. Each thud was identical. Plus, he kicked so many people in the face and none of them bled. Interesting. Nope, I watched this maybe five times all summer.

Mostly, I had religious channels or selling programming, neither of which I wanted to watch. There was an HSN at the bottom of the screen. It took me weeks to even become curious, then realized it was Home Shopping. Network. THEN, I saw a QVC in the corner of the screen. So, now I know what QVC actually is. Most nights, I would watch these for maybe five minutes total. The sellers never revealed the fabric content of most garments. They would point out silk or wool. There never was an acrylic reveal!

I was frustrated most hours of the day and night with no access to a computer and no access to decent TV programming. Plus, the library does not allow any blogs on their computers.

Does anyone have an inside antenna that gets tv? The Leaf did not. Sluggy, what model is your RCA? I know you are not able to tell me right now.

I know some of you do without tv. I won't. I want to watch the news, so hulu or Netflix is not what I need. I like watching Meet the Press. So, an antenna is what I need.

Your turn
Do you have the same problem with limited coverage of programs you really want?

6 comments:

  1. My very frugal 30-something son made an antenna out of a piece of wood for the base, a wire coat hanger that I don't know where he found, some aluminum foil and put it on top of his 6' bookcase. It works fine to get the local networks so he can watch the local news and a few shows. He does have to turn it some for one of the networks. Hubby bought a $90 indoor antenna that didn't work and made one like our son's using wire instead of the hanger.
    For good shows we use the computer and hulu.com and some of the networks like Lifetime for Project Runway. Also, I've found a lot to watch on YouTube from quick 5 min how-to's for gardenting to full length TV shows. All depends on what you want to watch.
    I must add that on a regular basis I currently only watch 3 shows on network TV - NCIS, CSI and Big Bang Theory plus the nightly news on our local FOX network that actually gives local news.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bellen,
      Local for me is religious programming. I am trying to catch something 50 miles away. I laughed at the old-style fix with a coat hanger. I keep a half dozen of those around here.

      I am about five blocks from the local station and that is really the reason I can catch little with the outdoor or indoor antenna. But, I can only hope that someday I will find the right antenna.

      Delete
  2. If you just want mindless entertainment, Youtube is a good source. I've been watching some shows from my youth like, "It's About Time, It's about Space" recently. Have you ever tried listening to some of the news shows on NPR? There are some good international ones, national, and local ones.

    ReplyDelete
  3. l and l,
    I want specific programs! I know about NPR. I want to watch the weather. I want radar so I can see specifics. I really don't think my wishes are mindless. Thanks for the input.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I found Laramie a few years ago and fell in love with it. For the most part the stories were really good, the chemistry between the actors was wonderful. John Smith was in Emergency for a couple of episodes - he played a captain in the fire department. Honestly I don't know how either John Smith or Robert Fuller could ride in the pants they wore.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. seyrey,
      I am not in the habit of ogling men's bodies and especially not commenting, but this was such an evident element in the show. I really like Westerns and have never noticed pants that tight.

      I read about the other roles they played, but I don't remember ever seeing either one of them before.

      Delete

Okay, hoping the annoyances have gone away.