Apropos of Nothing...

What is it with you prideful people? I am Blanche DuBois. If I WANT something, and you can get me there, I will ask.

I rely on the kindness of everybody.

pony pony pony
snobby snobby snobby
Pooooo-NEE!!!
Snoooo-BEE!!!

That is a GREAT story about the Mormons.

LOL! If she hadn't scuttled away so quick, I probably would have. I just hollered "Gee, Thaaaaanks...." at her as she left.

There'll be more Roundups... ;)

I am NOT snobby!

...I'm snooty.

It's completely different.

Hmph.

I used to be a TV snoot too. But it's just like anything else -- music, movies, people, the Internet. Can you imagine saying you don't "do" any of those? Yeah, you have to ignore the 90% but feel privileged to find the quality 10 that's left.

Honestly, if you haven't seen "Blue Planet," your life is the poorer.

Oh, I'm sure there are plenty of shows I'd like if I ever got around to turning the TV on. I just never seem to think of it. Tracy watches a little now and then, but not often.

We do download "Doctor Who" and "Torchwood" and watch them on the TV... does that count?

I'm not saying that you shouldn't avoid the siren song of the surround sound ... but as I get older, the less I want to see things in black & white.

I don't really "do" theater -- it freaks me out to be confined in a seat & forced to give in to someone else's artistic vision for better or for worse (at least with television I can turn it off) ... but if I don't get out of my rut once in awhile, kick off my Asics, get dressed up, go to dinner & a show and (usually) have my socks knocked off by the beauty of people putting their hearts on the stage as a gift to me, the less artful ... well, then my life is the poorer for my clinging to my usual way of doing things.

probably not.
How about Southpark?

I guess I'm a snob too because I don't watch TV. Haven't had cable in, let's see, about 15 years and I don't miss it. Yes there are good shows, but if I want to watch them I get the DVD when it comes out. Love 30 Rock, The office, Arrested Development, number of others. I can barely sit through a movie, much less a show with interruptions for inane commercials every 10 minutes or less. It drives me out of my mind. I'm just glad to know there are others like me because I'm always a little bit out of the loop when people talk about recent TV shows. I don't equate the internet, movies, music and people to TV. On the other hand, if people knew what happened to their brainwaves when they watch TV, there would be more people turning off the tube. If being a 'snob' means I don't have to put up with TV, then consider my nose high in the air. I've heard of Blue Planet. I'll get the DVD and skip the commercials so i can enjoy the show.

southpark would be funny if it were not so coarse. I just get a little tired of all the 4 letter words. They tend to just make me weary after awhile.

Pixy, no offense, but you are partaking of TV.
What's the difference if you watch it later or watch it in real time?

I mean, really, if it is a point of principle to NOT be current, rent "Glee" from Netflix in a year, because it's fun to watch.

Or don't.

I heart DVR's....

DH watches loads of TV. I could skip about 80% of what's out there. I detest commercials, love recording stuff to watch later. I love movies, but he watches lots of Discovery-type shows. Not surprisingly, he likes all the engineery- and machinery shows, like "really big things" (yah, uh-huh, I know, size matters and all that....) He also is getting downright old-fogey-ish and has started to watch game shows (blech, blech, blech)

(And , yes, we watched part of Design Star. I am not surprised than Antonio won, but it's not due to talent, it's due to personality. He's unique, totally different style than any other tv designer on the air right now. Looking at "type" (Horrid, really, though it is to do so) There's already been a quiet gay guy and two women. Seems like a very out of the box straight guy is almost a shoe-in if you think about it from a producer/viewership standpoint.....I was still rooting for the other guy, though)

I also watched more than my share of old musicals growing up. (I'm just "Singin' in the rain, what a glorious feeling....") But I cannot bear to watch that stuff now-NO patience for it at all. I do enjoy plays, though, every million years or so when I get to do something like that.

Nearing the end of my second night shift and on my final break of the night. Thank you all for your warm welcomes. :)

Re: Glee I am a sucker for musicals of any decade, incl. Glee.

Sorry, Design Star is probably one of the very few design programs I am not interested in but I am accused of watching way too much HGTV instead of "doing" things. DH just doesn't seem to understand the Muses that inspire me to invent more new projects for him to do. I say I am the concept person and he is the person who brings them to life. Seemed like a fair trade-off to me anyway.

HGTV Canada is big on reruns and I didn't see enough of the U.S. version last month when I visited my son in Virginia to know if that is true there also. There were a few programs that the U.S. version had that the Canadian doesn't that I want up here.

Susybell, your DH and mine could be TV twins I think.....except for the game show bit

Pony,
We are all inveterate book lovers in my family. My nephew will be thrilled to hear about Powell's and hopefully I will be able to check it out, too.
Thx.
Cin

Why is it that when people choose a 'no cable TV' life, or when they prefer to watch only the shows that interest them, and without all the commercial interruptions, they are considered snobs? I have never understood that. That makes no sense to me.

Ladyfiresign (go Leo!), Powell's will take you an entire day. It's enormous and you can get lost in there!

Pix - I don't think it's the choosing, I think it's the dismissal of all TV as bad/worthless that makes people feel like they're being snobbed. Sitting down to do something that interests you is a personal choice - whether it's watching your neighbors work in their front yard, going to a play, taking a class, beading, gardening . . . TV is just one of multiple venues . . .

Who DOESN'T watch only the shows that interest them & go do something else during commercial breaks?

Books are not sacred cows to me. They can be clutter in your house AND mind. Witness the dozens of self-help books I've thrown out while cleaning my new garage, or the hundreds of murder mysteries that my friend Mo has used over the years to avoid doing anything productive, healthy, or fun.

never thought of snobbishness when it came to electing to watch/not watch television.
I think of it as any other way to relax & pass the time. But I am wired differently in that I feel more relaxed when I am in motion. Can't help it - born that way. Please refer all questions to my dear Mom.
I also feel trapped when I sit at any screen - it demands my visual attention. The only time I can sit for an extended period of time is when I am researching something or making something (tailor by trade). Reading is a thumbs up, but it better be non-fiction (!) or something really geeky like a how-to or the functionality of a system. don't ask....
I agree with SK about the room books take up - but as an older folk, & former asst. librarian. I absolutely adore the feel & aroma of paper, particularly when it has lots of words on it. so I read online, or cheat & borrow.
I just wasn't made to be sedentary & have battled that most of my life - it's not acceptable to a great deal of people to always be moving & doing something. I hope you all save lots of weeding & work for me to do next year & the year after. When I am done with my rock retaining walls, i will need to engage in some Turbo Weeding. Looking forward to work parties - make sure it's sunny!

Well, it's probably better to be an object in motion, Katye! But I agree that there is a point to which compulsion can take over. I had this friend Mimi, who could be a delight & good friend. But after 3 trips to France with her, I just stopped being friends because her constant commotion jangled my nerves so badly. She couldn't stroll reverently through St. Eustache, one of my favorite cathedrals, without flipping noisily through the guidebook to check out the next store we were going to visit. She practically yanks your dinner plate out from under your last forkful. She can't endure a delay in an airport -- she's crossing & uncrossing her legs & talking & humming to herself & making it impossible for me to READ. She gets a LOT done, that's for sure, but is not at peace.

She probably does not miss me, however -- she has TONS of friends because she is a ball of fun & up for anything, unless it involves contemplation or the need to shut her mouth for a few minutes.

Of course, that is not you!

SK - I had a friend who drove like that. She kept changing lanes when the traffic was stuck. She knew it didn't do any good, but she couldn't help herself. She also doesn't stop to look around her;she misses where she is because she is constantly ready to go on to the "next" thing.

I'm impatient by nature when I'm doing things with other people, but when I'm in my element, I can stay there forever. For me, it's not all about whether your body is occupied -- my mind needs to be occupied, to. And some things on television do that for me. Some don't. But some books don't do that for me, either.

IMO, it's nice to have balance if you can achieve it. You know better than I, but that's what Yoga is about, isn't it? Freeing up your mind and teaching yourself to be still . . .

Ladyfiresign Powells is great fun but plan to spend at least a few hours there, and be sure to get a map of the store when you go in. It's that big.

I love to read and have lots of book shelves full of favorites. Always have a book going, sometimes several at the same time. But I do watch TV. CNN and others. And I admit to liking Grey's Anatomy. If my brain turns to mush for a few hours, so be it.

I don't dismiss TV as being bad or worthless. I just don't personally enjoy it much. I don't care whether anybody else likes it or not. Sometimes I wish I did like it more, so I could at least follow the conversations when my friends or family are geeking over their favorite shows, but it just doesn't do it for me. *shrug*

Ditto, Pony. Since I already pointed out that there are shows I value enough to watch on DVD, maybe that saves me from the dreaded 'snob' label.

Katye,
Understand your need for non-fiction. If I don't read at least something along the lines of "The Elegant Universe" I feel my brain shrivelling....lol. A couple of years ago I went through a time when I would read only classic literature such as "The Count of Monte Cristo" and picking up some of the current fiction was wrecked for me because of the loss of the richness of language in them. I tend to be very picky about which publisher I choose for the classics because so many of the books out there have been dummied down so much. I was like that with my kids' books, too, when they were growing up. No Disneyfied "Winnie-the-Pooh"; they had to have the classic A.A. Milne. Same with "Peter Pan." My parents gave me "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm" and "Black Beauty" as a seven year old and I went on a kick of reading Tolstoy, Dostoevsky and Dickens as a twelve year old. My sons were much like me. The younger one was reading Kerouac at fifteen...
Cin

I did the same with my son. Reading the current children's "literature" makes me very sad. But like many other things in print, it resembles sound bites. No thinking necessary. Too many pictures & the text is no longer rich, as it once was. The classics have been written off as archaic & too difficult. I say nonsense - most people want to have their brains stimulated, and while younger children may not be able to adequately verbalize this concept, it still holds true. The pictures that are now de rigueur lessen the connection between the visual, the written/spoken word, and the imagination. Why bother to construct pictures in one's head if it has been supplied for you?
One of the highlights of the librarian gig was to read to children (toddlers/pre-school) several times a week. In summertime, it opened up to the older children, who would have been in school the rest of the year. It was very gratifying to make them aware of their ability to illustrate the story in their heads, using the words the author provided. They understood "painting with words" quite well.

Omigosh, is there ANYTHING more empowering than repairing your 1st window screen & discovering how easy it is?

Wanna come repair ours? They're all trashed.

Feisty had a very rambunctious episode this morning. She was running like a wild cat up and down the hallway, into the living room,through the bedrooms, under tables, through the kitchen and back up and down the hall. I heard a crash and went to investigate. She had jumped up to the wimdow sill in the family room and knocked the screen out of the window and was just hanging out the window. Good thing I have a 1 story house!! She was a bit dazed but is fine. Not sure what caused this unusual outbrust of energy..but I am just glad the window was open and she did not go through the glass!! Screen has been placed back into position..all is good.

My fifteen year old cat did that Saturday, just took off running with her tail high in the air. Ran out around the side yard and came flying back in the courtyard. Must be winters coming? I say my first wooly caterpillar on Friday.

We always called that ailment "I MUST go see what is in the living room!!!"

We call that "Insane O'Clock" around here.

Sounds like "happy hour" to me!!!

Glad Feisty is OK!

Good for you Summer...each step of homeownership that you can conquer on your own truely is empowering!

Speaking of household chores...is there ANY worse chore than defrosting a freezer? I would rather clean dozens of toilets any day!!! A cord got shut in my freezer about a month ago, and it had gotten so bad that there was no putting it off any longer. I started before noon yesterday, and my bathtub is STILL full of ice....

Ugh, what a chore. I always manage to leave the defrosting to about this time of year when I want to stock the freezer up.

I miss reading to my kids. I read to my son until he was 13. When my daughter was at home, she would come in and listen, too. I always read books that were far above their own reading level. That made the reading interesting for us all, but it kind of backfired on me when they learned to read themselves. Then the books they could read easily were very boring to them. Oh well, I wouldn't do it any other way. We started on the Tolkien books when Andrew was 6 years old. Our other favorite series was the Brian Jacques books - adventure stories staring animals. Fabulous stories! I highly recommend them.
Now I mostly listen to books from Audible.com on my mp3 player. I'm currently listening to the new Dan Brown book and,, as usual for Dan Brown, it's a real 'page turner'!

The richness of language...
.
As a three year old my older son would laugh and laugh when he heard this from "Winnie-the-Pooh"...

".....Owl, wise though he was in many ways, able to read and write and spell his own name WOL, yet somehow went all to pieces over delicate words like MEASLES and BUTTERED TOAST."

I would hear him murmuring "delicate words like measles and buttered toast" in his sleep. :)

Now he has his own three year old and oh, do I ever hope she is getting the richness of the language also!





This message was edited Sep 20, 2009 11:24 PM

'...measles and buttered toast....' LOL! He sounds like such a sweet child! Both my kids are good at putting words together. All that reading pays off.

I used to read to my daughter also from the beginning. Read her all the jokes in the newspapers. At that time we took the PI and Times. All the comics and taught her to read with the Phonics they had in the paper everyday. And then end with a story of some type. She is now a teacher with a Masters in Special Ed and reads constantly. The pride never goes away. I find it amazing that she is 49 this year. I taught her to print before she went to kindergarden, but I taught in capital letters, so when she did that in school she was told it was wrong==did I ever get in trouble.

I'm feeling like the worst mother - I read to my kids just occasionally and they watched TV. Sometimes the big ones would read to the little ones. Not a lot of TV but a few times a week something would catch their interest. And we all loved Southpark and Ren & Stimpy. We did have lots of books around - my architecture books and their father's medical books, which they would giggle over with their friends. Oh, and daddy was doing research at UCLA and kept jars of pig eyes in the refrigerator and their friends would just about pass out when they saw them.
Despite the lack of consistent read-a-loud times from me, they all have graduated from great schools like Berkeley, Reed, Notre Dame, UCSD, Cal Poly and most went to grad school. They are; 2 research biologists, 1 linguist now in grad school studying speech pathology, 1 architect, 1 computer engineer, 1 stock broker, 1 with a new local/organic produce business. I am so so proud of them all.
We traveled a lot with them, skied and snowboarded lots, and had lively dinner table discussions.
Funny story - my second kid Marsha was the favorite of the honors physics teacher and wrote a wonderful paper and got an A+. When the fifth kid Ben was in the same class with the same teacher, he had to write a paper. When he got it back with a B grade, the teacher wrote on it "Good, but not as good as Marsha's". He said to me "The hell of it is, Mom, it IS Marsha's!"

Ah I miss those days!

Judi LOL!