When we moved to Chelmsford in Aug 2013, me and my wife decided not to have a television. We wanted to check if we can live without one and how it will affect our lives.
I must say in the last 10 months not having a TV has been beneficial in many ways.
1. I used to watch TV about 1.5 to 2 Hrs everyday. This was apart from the time I would spend browsing the net. So with no TV I get an additional 2 hrs everyday. I am quite sure I would not have been able to write this blog with TV at home. Hence I have the satisfaction of creating something which I love to do. When I look back on these writings on Cricket and various other topics close to my heart, I will certainly feel a sense of accomplishment and the satisfaction of time well spent.
2. Ammar earlier had 5 things vying for his attention, TV, Wii, Nintendo DS, iPad and the laptop. With no TV two of these are reduced ie the TV and Wii. He has been able to read many more books because of that, which I hope will be good for him.
3. Earlier we would have dinner with the TV on. Most of the family time was spent in front of TV. Certainly that was not healthy. Now we have more meals together, and we talk more.
4. I used to mindlessly watch news and other programme just because it was coming. It was certainly not very productive use of time. After all, Wisdom is not just about having all the information in the world.
5. We can still watch news , sports and other shows on the internet. Hence we are more in control of watching what we want rather than what is on air.
6. We are able to make more productive use of time like reading, exercising, catching up with friends and relatives.
There are a few disadvantages as well, like -
1. Sometimes when we are visiting friends and relatives, and the conversation turns to certain shows on TV, then one might feel a bit left out.
2. One may not be up to date with some very important news doing the rounds. This happened to me recently when some talked about the 'Trojan horse' investigation. I knew what it was about vaguely but was not fully aware of the details. Also , because I mostly work from home, I also miss out on the daily reading of the newspapers while travelling. So it is even more important for me to visit bbc.co.uk everyday !!
3. Sometimes missing the buildup to a major sporting event, like the Football World Cup now. Again if the interest is real, there are many sources on the Internet to get this from. Like for Cricket I religiously visit Cricinfo, Cricbuzz many time s a day.
All in all, the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages........
Let us see how long we are able to live without the idiot box !!
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