No TV For Me

According to this article, Data Says 2.5 Million Less Watching TV, we're all watching less TV.

Hurray for us.

The article goes on to hypothesize why we are watching less on the boob tube. Maybe we're gardening, working on the computer, "or just plain bored. . . . Everyone has a theory to explain the plummeting ratings: early Daylight Savings Time, more reruns, bad shows, more shows being recorded or downloaded or streamed," the article reads.

The programs on TV are terrible, I think. Maybe we're all "reality show" tired. I'd like to see something fresh and exciting. Something that has a pulse. Something with strong characters, fresh plots, unique ideas.

Something that makes you go "huh" when you're done, and you're glad you watch it.

I don't watch shows on FOX because I won't support the network. I have never seen an episode of "24" or "American Idol." It leaves me out of conversation at the water cooler, but I don't have a water cooler anyway so I don't really care.

My show? The local news. That's pretty much all I watch. I never have the TV on during the day. The only show I make a point of catching is Ghost Whisperer on Friday nights on CBS.

That's because Friday nights are about the only nights I watch TV, and CBS has generally had decent shows in the 8 p.m. time slot. So Ghost Whisperer it is.

The rest of my time I spend reading, writing in this blog, working, doing the laundry, etc. I haven't the time to spend watching reruns or reality shows. Why would I want to watch people make idiots of themselves over money when I can read a book that takes me worlds away and gives me something to think about?

These are some of the shows I have made a point of watching in the past: Cagney & Lacey. Beauty & the Beast. Xena: Warrior Princess. Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Buffy: the Vampire Slayer. I liked comedies, like Murphy Brown, Cheers, Frasier.

You don't see TV like that anymore. Now everything is Law & Order something or another or its the newest CSI in Iceland. All the same.

Some people don't like to watch forensic science on TV. I am one of them. I don't read Patricia Cornwell books, either.

Give me substance. Give me character. Give me plot. Give me a reason to watch!

Then maybe I'll turn on the set.