I never imagined it would be so easy to be cable-free.
After months of wondering whether paying for channels we rarely watched was a worthwhile expense, we took the leap in April and canceled cable.
First, a disclaimer: My family is, by no means, TV-free. We watch programs online, using services such as Hulu or the networks' websites. On occasion, we even sit in front of our television screen and watch cable programs or movies downloaded through the Wii system via a Netflix subscription that costs 1/6 of what we were paying for cable.
This is not a diatribe against screens or entertainment. I enjoy a good TV drama as much as the next person, but I honestly don't miss channel-surfing or even using the DVR, a convenience I once thought I couldn't live without. In fact, cutting the cable has been easier and more beneficial than I ever expected. Here's why:
"¢ I'm saving money.
We had a package deal with Time Warner Cable, so for us the savings amounts to $60 a month. People who don't have cable bundled with phone and Internet or who pay for premium channels, multiple DVRs and other frills stand to save a lot more. Even so, $60 a month is not nothing. The money we've stopped spending on cable could pay for a whole year of dance classes, weekly pizza orders or two trips for the whole family to a big amusement park.
"¢ I'm saving energy _ and more money.
Did you know that some home entertainment systems use more energy than refrigerators or central air conditioning systems? So says a recent study by the Natural Resources Defense Council reported in The New York Times last week. According to the study, one high-definition DVR and one high-definition cable box use an average of 446 kilowatt hours a year _ about 10 percent more than a 21-cubic-foot energy-efficient refrigerator.
"¢ I have more time.
Now, I know many people have time to spare, and I am not here to judge anyone who chooses to fill his or her leisure time with sitcoms, soap operas or sporting events. But, for me, free time is a precious commodity. As a freelance writer-editor and mother of two, I'm constantly juggling deadlines and family responsibilities. I don't have much time to watch TV, but the presence of my favorite shows in the DVR made it tempting to sacrifice something else _ most often, sleep. I love to read but rarely could find the time to even start a book. Since going cable-free, I've read two novels.
"¢ Who needs commercials?
Even though my 7-year-old daughter, Allie, still gets her Nickelodeon and Disney fix through Netflix, she's not asking for Aqua Beads or a Barbie Dream House anymore. Funniest thing, she doesn't ask for snacks as often, either.
"¢ Special events are more ... special.
Growing up in the '70s, when there were no remote controls and the channel dial only went up to 12, watching "The Wizard of Oz" on TV every year was a family event. So I was thrilled to see one of my all-time favorite movies as a selection in the free summer movie series offered by SUNY Oneonta. Tuesday's screening was supposed to be outside, on the lawn behind Hunt Union, but thunderstorms moved it inside to the Red Dragon Theatre. Though it wasn't quite the event we'd anticipated, seeing the movie on the big screen was very cool.
Maybe I'm more sentimental than the Tin Man, but I still get teary when Dorothy says goodbye to her new friends before clicking her heels together. I still marvel at the sets, costumes and special effects, all truly spectacular for their time. I still fall in love with the Scarecrow, laugh at the Lion and appreciate the Great Oz's penchant for alliteration.
This morning, as Allie was paging through her pop-up Wizard of Oz book and pointing out inconsistencies in the movie (who knew the slippers were actually supposed to be silver?) I realized I've never actually read the original book by L. Frank Baum. I looked it up online and was shocked to learn there are 40 books in the Oz series. How did I not know this?
Move over, Harry Potter. There's a new fantasy series on my daughter's bedtime reading list. And now we have more time to enjoy it.
Lisa Miller is a freelance writer and editor who lives in Oneonta. She can be reached at lisamiller44@hotmail.com.
Lisa Miller
Untethered from the cable box
- Lisa Miller
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A view from above
Fire towers in the Catskill Mountains have always been destination points, built to capture some of the region’s best views. These sentinel stations served an important role for the earliest possible sightings of forest fires in the remote mountain ranges. But the fire towers and those who manned them fulfilled a multitude of other roles as well.
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Being a parent is a constant learning process
I am sitting cross-legged on the floor in the dressing room, waiting for Allie's dance number to be called. The cave girl costume has been donned, the jazz shoes double-tied, the hair pulled back, the requisite dab of lipstick applied.
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Healthy doesn't have to mean expensive
Half of Americans will be obese by 2030 if current trends continue, according to a report released last week in the British medical journal The Lancet.
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A family era ends with close of Potter series
As Harry Potter fans the world over flock to theaters for the final screenings of the final film in the eight-part series, I'm marking the end of an era myself, reading the last pages of the last book to my last child.
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Independent stores make up for loss of Borders
For many small communities, the Borders store at the nearest mall was the only place to browse and buy a variety of books, beyond the few titles offered in Walmart bestseller and bargain racks.
- Saturday, July 2, 2011
- Saturday, June 11, 2011
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On cells, sprouts and sodas
It figures. Six weeks after we dropped our landline, the World Health Organization issued a warning that radiation from cell phones might cause brain cancer. Meanwhile, the ultimate health food, organic bean sprouts, is being blamed for one of the deadliest E. coli outbreaks in recent history.
- Saturday, May 21, 2011
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End of the world as we know it? I feel fine
If you're reading this article after 6 p.m. and the ground is not shaking beneath your feet, then Harold Camping was wrong. Again.
- Sunday, May 1, 2011
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Song lyrics are an odd measure of attitudes
It was the third rainy weekend in a row, and I was scrolling through comments to a post by MSNBC blogger Melissa Dahl about a new study linking song lyrics to cultural changes.
- Saturday, April 9, 2011
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Parenting adventure takes a turn
On Friday, my 13-year-old daughter, Abby, will embark on the biggest adventure of her life.
- Saturday, March 19, 2011
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Japan devastation: Powerful reminder of our limitations
The images were surreal. People screaming from higher ground as they watched the relentless wave of brown water sweep up houses and topple power lines. Cars and boats floating like bath toys. Aerial photos of flattened villages, with crumpled roofs jutting out of the debris-laden landscape and orange-suited rescue workers like ants on a mountain of twigs.
- Saturday, February 26, 2011
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As food prices rise, sustainability makes more business sense
Frustration with high food prices is among the underlying causes of the unrest in the Middle East and North Africa, and a global food crisis may be brewing.
- Tuesday, February 8, 2011
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National agenda needed to advance green technology
In his State of the Union address, President Obama issued a call to action for Americans to "out-innovate" the rest of the world and build on our history of doing "big things." Green technology is the next big thing, and it's our best hope to reinvent ourselves as competitors in the global economy. But we won't get there without a comprehensive national agenda supported by all parties -- political, yes, but also businesses, consumers, educators and students.
- Saturday, January 15, 2011
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Shootings remind us of need to teach children to hope
They should have been chattering about spelling tests and Hannah Montana songs. But instead, the two second-graders in my backseat were talking about the shooting of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. They had heard about it at school and were commiserating over the "sad" and "creepy" news as we drove home for a play date.
- Friday, December 3, 2010
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Marketing tactics could get kids to eat healthy foods
In a new twist on the "Super Size Me" fast-food diet experiment, the executive director of the Washington State Potato Commission ate nothing but spuds for 60 days.
- Saturday, November 13, 2010
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'Oneonta 360' captures essence of our area
The fact that Oneonta's new branding campaign has generated so much controversy shows how passionately people feel about this place. One thing everyone might agree on is that the essence of Oneonta cannot be easily conveyed in a few words or a logo. However, photographer Stephen Joseph makes a fascinating attempt to capture it in his new book, "Oneonta 360." If you haven't seen it yet, stop by Huntington Library, where one two-page spread is on display each day.
- Saturday, October 23, 2010
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Stem cell research must move forward
Robert Edwards of Britain received the Nobel Prize in medicine earlier this month for research that led to the birth of the first "test-tube baby" in 1978. Hugely controversial 32 years ago, Edwards' work is now lauded as a medical breakthrough that has brought immeasurable joy to the families of the 4 million babies born through in vitro fertilization.
- Saturday, October 2, 2010
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Supersized salmon? No thanks
Davenport Garden Center owner Dennis Valente drizzled maple syrup over sweet potatoes in the cafeteria kitchen while a group of sixth-graders topped pizza crusts with pesto they'd made using basil from their school garden.
- Saturday, September 11, 2010
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Chobani yogurt: Nothing but good for the area
I'm in love with Chobani. True to its marketing slogan, this locally made, Greek-style yogurt is, indeed, "nothing but good." First of all, it's delicious: thick, creamy, fruity and sweet (but not too sweet).
- Saturday, August 21, 2010
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Summer is a perfect time to unplug
Last month, I wrote about the rewards of disconnecting from information technology during a weeklong family camping trip. Since then, I've picked blueberries, skipped rocks, curled up with my 6-year-old and a pile of books, walked in the woods, and spent a gorgeous day at the lake picnicking with friends and watching the kids swim.
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