Cutting the Cord: Life Without Television

[Mad Mac]

One month ago, I canceled telephone land line and Directv, my satellite TV provider. More and more tech savvy young people are "cutting the cord" using other devices and services. For an old timer like me (68) reaching for the remote is a reflex action, muscle memory, habit. So far, I've been making do with a smartphone, the Internet, Netflix and catching up on some reading. In general, seem to be getting more done, too. In a way, it's like being on vacation without leaving the house. Anyone else "cutting the cord?"

[Sequimite]

We're cut the cord several times over the years. Currently we've had no TV, local, cable, satellite since early 2008.

Internet only since then.

[Dr. Snubnose]

Cut the cord to the TV about Five years ago....Don't miss any of it....I'd rather watch a Movie on my DVD player...that said no TV, no land line, no netflicks, no satellite, no Cable...I do have and use internet and iphone...so for the most part I have cut the cord.....you know what? Glad I did.....Doc:)

[Peter1960]

We cutted to look TV more than 10 years ago. One of the better decissions in our live. Enjoy beeing free now :)

[El Gato]

I have enjoyed freedom from television, telephone, radio, and electronic technology for the past 7 years without regret. My old laptop computer and a throw-away flip phone are all I have and all I need. The freedom, peace, and quiet are well worth it to me.
I pretty much live in the 19th century, to the extent possible, and I am very happy there.

[The Deacon]

Never had satellite TV and the last time I had cable TV was over 20 years. Do have cable service, use it for my internet and phone. Have the ability to watch a network TV show the old fashioned way, with rabbit ears, but rarely do so.

OTOH, about two years ago I freed myself completely from the tyranny of instant accessibility by getting rid my cell phone and keeping the ringer on my other phone off unless I'm expecting a call.

[Evil D]

I haven't had cable for a while now, but I do have Netflix and I do watch some TV shows on there. I prefer it that way because I like to watch TV shows as if they were movies, I like getting episodes back to back instead of waiting a week between shows to see the next episode. I can live without cable TV, but I have internet access at all times. What can I say, I'm a forum junkie :o

[David from NC]

Same as most of you. We cut the cord (INITIALLY to save money but soon realized we could do without it even when we were better off financially) years ago. Some people are shocked by this (which I'm sure many of you have found this also). A friend's daughter (18 yoa) found this out one evening and her eyes bulged. She said in the most incredulous tone "What do you DO without TV???"

We DO HAVE about 1200 DVDs and watch movies but no network, cable, satellite, Netflix etc. A buddy felt sorry for us and "created" a Netflix account for me on his account but I've never used it. :)

Like someone said I think much of this is just "muscle memory". For a couple generations TV was the "babysitter" for kids and I think this was where some of this come from. Today's generation have electronic devices as their "babysitter" and that's why some never look up and see life in front of them and only down into their game/phone/tablet. Social skills are dying out. (I'm ALMOST ready to get on a soapbox here...!)

Another couple of observations of mine about TV come from my work as a career police officer. I can't tell you how many homes we go into on calls and the TV is on or even BLARING, but the residents don't "hear it" or are conditioned to it to the point of blocking it out. I don't even ASK anymore-I find volume controls on the TV or on a remote and turn it down myself. Did this just the other night on a call. People are just SO USED to the TV as "background noise".

We serve a ton of involuntary commitments and have to sit with them for a short time in the hospital. SOME will stay wired up (even with the ER ordering food plates and calming drugs) until you put them in a room with a TINY television and turn it on. MANY will soon "drift off" WITH the noise. ME-while I like some sort of fan or "white noise"-I can't sleep with ANY KIND of TV or radio on, but I've consistently noted SOME people can't fall asleep WITHOUT this junk noise (!)

Just one of those things... :confused:

[Doc Dan]

We got rid of most of our TV. But, I am a news junkie so we do keep a small package. Mostly I watch via internet on a program affiliated with Netflix.
News stations like Fox and CNN and BBC really should catch up to the 21st century and have their shows broadcast live over the net, instead of being stuck with pre-recorded videos.

[yablanowitz]

When I was in grade school (back in the 60s) my father decided we were watching too much TV, and restricted us to one hour per day. Basically our favorite show and nothing else. Within a month, we weren't even watching that much. He still refers to that as the best parenting decision he ever made.

I've never paid a cable or satellite bill in my life, but I have bought a ton of VHS tapes, DVDs and BluRays over the years. My seven year old TV must have almost a hundred hours on it now.

[JAfromMN]

I can't do it.

[bearfacedkiller]

I have an antenna on my roof and Netflix. I also have SlingTv. It is 20 channels for $20 and includes ESPN, ESPN2, TNT and TBS. I am a sports nut and need those four channels plus my antenna gives me the networks so I get news and sports there too. That works for me. You can checkout movies for free at the library.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

This reminds me of a question I wanted to ask all if you. Do you think, if you were to speculate, that the time will come, when BOTH power/electrical production, and entertainment systems such as Netflix, Hulu, and others, will become so decentralized, that BOTH the traditional centralized power grids and power plant production/Utility Companies, and the centralized entertainment and communications (Telephone Land Lines) will be totally obsolete and no longer in existence?

As an example: I read one claim made by some power company folks, that if at least 20-30 percent of the United States alone were to be able to produce electrical power in a decentralized way (solar, water-hydrogen systems, nuclear fusion, wind power, and whatever else) then there would no longer be ANY ECONOMIC INCENTIVE for them to maintain the USA and other power grids around the world, and once that spread to other countries (Europe, Canada, South America, Asia, etc) there would be no more economic reason for them to invest time and money and materials in maintaining power grids, and the world would become decentralized with power production, like we see the decentralization of communication systems. What do you all think of that?

[RanCoWeAla]

I have never had any pay TV. I have an old rusty antenna and get about sixty channels. There's not anything on TV worth watching anyway unless it's something about fifty years old because of the way TV has been hijacked

[MichaelScott]

No TV service. No land line. WiFi and DSL. DVDs from the library. Streaming Netflix and Amazon Prime. Rent occasionally from iTunes store. I do miss baseball games, but a streaming MLB subscription would take care of that.

[MichaelScott]

No TV service. No land line. WiFi and DSL. DVDs from the library. Streaming Netflix and Amazon Prime. Rent occasionally from iTunes store. I do miss baseball games, but a streaming MLB subscription would take care of that.

[OldHoosier62]

Just an antenna, Hulu and Amazon Prime streaming via my phone as a wifi hotspot (I live less than a quarter mile from where Frontier Communications STOPPED laying cable for their internet service and they flat refuse to finish the run to my home.) Plus I have a laptop set up as a KODI server to stream things I can't get elsewhere...lots of old shows.

I really don't watch much TV but it's on as background noise as I do other things.

[awa54]

I get my news from the radio and movies from Netflix. Haven't had cable TV or a landline for the better end of a decade now and I wouldn't have it any other way. I also don't "do" the smartphone thing either, phones are for talking to people!

Now I just have to cut down on my internet usage

[TheRaven]

I'd like to cut the tv cord one day. So far, my wife says she couldn't do it though. Maybe she'll change her mind one day, and we'll give it a try??

[Mad Mac]

In a past life, I was drinking in a strip club with some co-workers. An earnest young lady was doing her best to Stevie Nicks' Gypsy when the music suddenly stopped. At once, she was reduced to an embarrassed, naked girl in front of a bunch of men in suits. After an agonizing period of awkward silence, the music resumed and she timidly soldiered on.

The music had been a barrier of sound if you will between this painfully shy but pretty girl and her lecherous audience. Only when the silence erupted, was she truly nude. In my view, the cacophony of television in our homes also provides a barrier between the members of a family. Each person is isolated in an invisible cocoon where they are safe to ignore each other.