Thursday Thirteen

DirecTV and Viacom, in a bidding war, have forgotten that they have customers who might want to watch those 25 channels I've been paying for but can no longer see. (Actually I did not watch them all, but they came with the bundle).

I am not a big TV viewer anyway. My husband, however, likes to watch TV and has it on whenever he is in the house. I'm just glad that Viacom doesn't own the Discovery or History channels or he would really be raising a ruckus.

Knowing that a lot of folks are missing these channels, I thought I would offer up 13 things you could do instead of hunting for something to watch.

In other words, let's turn off that darned television set!

1. Read a book. This would be my top choice for something to do besides watch TV. With a good book in hand, I don't need a TV. A book takes me to other worlds, puts me in a soap opera, feeds me news (if it's nonfiction) and otherwise engages me.

2. Write something! You could write a poem or a story. You could write a play! If you have kids, you could have them write a play and act it out for you. You might find you have a budding screenwriter in your midst.

Take a walk!

3. Go for a walk. Enjoying the wonderful world that nature has provided for us offers loads of teaching opportunities for everyone. I always see something new on a walk, even when I am traveling paths I have trod before.

4. Talk. Gosh. Imagine that. A conversation. What a novel idea! What would you talk about? How about hopes and dreams? Goals for the future? Promises of tomorrow? Belief systems? Philosophies. The last book you read. It's wide open! Go for it.

5. Cook. Learn a new recipe. Bake a cake for an ailing neighbor. Fix a batch of brownies for day care.

6. Draw. You could paint a picture of anything you like, even things that have never been seen before. Maybe you have a latent artistic talent. Or maybe the best you can do are stick figures. Even so, give it a try. You might find it opens up a creative pathway.

7. Listen to music. The radio, CD player, or Ipod offers up interesting possibilities. What if you put on something soothing, close your eyes, and just listen for a while? How might you feel afterwards?



8. Play an instrument. Maybe, like me, you play the guitar but seldom pick it up. This would be a fine time to hone those skills. Or maybe you want to learn but have never had the time. Well, those hours of watching reruns on TV Land are gone now. Practice time!

9. Sew. This is an art that will soon be lost, I fear. But needlework is a wonderfully relaxing activity. I cross stitch sometimes when I am looking for something totally different to do with my self. You can knit, quilt, crochet, or make your own clothes.

10. Play a sport. This could be something as tame as tossing horseshoes (does anyone do that anymore?) to a team sport that involves the neighbors and lots of dirt and tackling. Get the blood pumping!

11. Take up a hobby. Maybe you want to become a stamp collector or a coin collector. I have always thought both of those would be good hobbies but have never pursued them.



12. Organize! If you're like me, every drawer and shelf could use a little sprucing up. Things accumulate and the next thing you know the junk drawer has taken on a life of its own. Go through your old files and toss what you no longer need. It will make you feel better.

13. Dance. When all else fails, get up and boogie. If you don't have music, hum a tune, and do a waltz across the garage.