So here’s a quirky, little thing about me: I rarely ever watch television, movies, online videos, etc. This isn’t a conscious decision, and it hasn’t always been that way. I was a veritable sitcom junkie when I was a kid. Hours upon hours of Family Ties, Diff’rent Strokes, Facts of Life, Growing Pains… all those popular 80’s shows.

At some point, I didn’t have all of that free time anymore and then the internet came into the picture.  There just isn’t anything on TV anymore that I care about enough to dedicate time to it every week. There’s also the fact that nothing on TV is usually captivating enough to keep me fully interested so that I don’t have my nose in a book, magazine, or online while it’s on. The same generally goes for movies, unless it happens to be something really good. Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland did a fabulous job of keeping me in the story last weekend. 2012… yeah, not so much.

My husband has the TV on quite a bit, and even “watches” the shows he likes while he’s writing code on his computer. I don’t know if that would be considered normal, but I think it’s probably more normal than my habits. When I’m home by myself, whether I’m working or doing leisurely things, the television never gets turned on. I used to, but even then the station instantly went to a music channel. Once I realized that I had greater choice, better audio, and never watched the video part anyway, I began to listen to music all the time. Or I sat in silence, and still do, frequently. I really don’t think enough people appreciate the volume of a noiseless room once in a while. It can be so refreshing and calming.

Instead of watching the TV, I’d rather be on my computer where I’m more in control of the information that I’m receiving. Not only that, but I can share information, communicate, work, play… or just lazily read whatever. I might be an internet addict, but at least it’s becoming a profitable addiction for me.

But I’m curious what other’s television habits are like. Do you still enjoy watching shows and movies, or have other things taken precedence in your life? I, for one, don’t miss it.

Yeah, you know what those days are like, don’t you? The Murphy’s Law, anything-that-can-go-wrong-will-go-wrong, sorts of days. Yep, I had one. But don’t worry; I’m not going to bog you down with the gory details, but to say that it’s got me down a bit.

Incidentally, when you’re trying to write 300 words about anything and you’ve had a day like that, how does one not reflect that in their work when they write for a living? I’m finding that it’s not easy, because there is an emotional component to writing unless you’re doing the most technical of documents. It’s so easy to give a document an unintended negative or positive spin depending upon the mood that you’re in or how you’re feeling during that time. But I digress…

Okay, one gory detail of the day that I feel the need to share. I’ll admit publicly right now that this Deepwater Horizon “accident” (disaster of unknown, and possibly unparalleled, proportions is what I’m choosing to call it) has had me worried since it started, and I’m not getting numb to it after two months. I read about it nearly every day to see where it stands. Today I came across the article that I really didn’t want to see: http://motherjones.com/blue-marble/2010/06/worst-already-true-BP-well-now-unstoppable

All that I can say is this: I’m not a religious person, but today I’m hoping for a miracle. I don’t care who stops this thing, or how. I don’t care if a little green man comes down, spaceship or no (Hey, God could be green. You don’t know), waves his hand over it to make it magically stop, and says, “There you idiots. Now you’re indebted to me for all eternity.” Whatever works. Something needs to happen.

I want to say tomorrow will be a better day, but I’m hesitant to be optimistic. We just move forward and hope for the best, I guess.

Actually, as Hunter S. Thomson said it well: "Pray to God, but row away from the rocks." Or the oil in our case.