Put the TV Down!!

(Began as a reply to Piccu’s Crap on TV post, but got too long.)

At some point in your remote control flipping from one piece of junk to another, do you ever stop to think, "I've got better things to do."

I have reached that conclusion often lately. Sitting around after my son has but put to bed, flipping from one channel to another looking for something to catch my interest. I've turned it off a couple times to read. I need to do that more often.

Maybe stop and play a game. I don't know. It just seems like we've been so enveloped by television that we'll literally watch anything just to avoid doing anything else. As if there are no alternatives.

Here is my list of other things to do:
Read a book. I know many of us haven’t read a book since senior English class in high school or English Lit in college. But books are actually enjoyable. Much more so when you’re not studying them for an exam. A short list of authors I recommend includes Silas House, Larry Brown, and Mitch Albom.
Play a board/card game. This one requires another living soul, so you might have to crowbar someone else off their couch. But it’s worth the effort. Play something that allows for some good conversation and laughs if possible. A short list of games I recommend includes Scategories, Scrabble, Spades, & Trivial Pursuit.
Cook. Yep, I said it. Cook. Cook something you wouldn’t normally. Give it a try. I know Piccu is a famous grill man, so he can relate here.
Get a hobby. Ok, some people have hobbies, others have obsessions. Try not to get an obsession. Then you’re just freeing your mind of one trap and putting it into another. Some hobbies I and friends have are: running, guitar and video games (no problem for piccu and bratch there.)

If you’re like me, you’re just tired of surrendering your time and mind to the television to literally kill time. Why kill time? What did it do to you?