Yes, the TV will be turned by the time Monday comes around, but this got me thinking, what can we do to make our TV watching more efficient? Is there even such a thing? I think so. I think, that with the right equipment you can cut your TV time in half. I want to go through some things that came to my mind while I was thinking how to lessen my time in front of the TV and to bring green to our living room.
Through our cable company we also rent a DVR. I don’t know how I made it through TV watching before we got one. With the ability to pause and record live TV, I definitely take advantage of it’s efficiency. I will typically start a TV show half way through so I can fast forward through all of the commercials. Sometimes, when I have two shows on at once, I watch them both, just flip through when a commercial starts. This saves me half the time of a regular program without missing any of the actual program.
Another green way to be entertained by your TV, is to use Netflix. I love this company! I feel that this is going to be the new way to watch movies. I actually heard that DVD sales have declined. This could also be an increase interest in Blu-Ray, but could also mean the end of the DVD. It has been a very long time since Ben and I have actually bought a movie. When we do purchase, we will take the DVD out, then dispose of the case. That just takes up so much space in our house, plus how un-green is that? Ben and I also just started streaming movies through Netflix. This requires no waste at all. It’s kind of like On Demand. The benefits include not having to worry about movie quality or getting it in the mail. However, there is a limited selection to choose from, but I feel in time this list will get longer.
I think there is a place for the TV in the household, but I also think that time should be limited. However, I do think that most American’s over-use this piece of equipment. There is so many things we could be doing instead flipping through the channels mindlessly or clicking away online. I love to read, so I should start picking up a book once a night. Ben and I love to be in each others company, but how come we are usually on the internet or in front of the TV at the same time? We are addicted to these things! Facebook and Twitter are becoming so ingrained in our lives we can’t image being without. If you have anything you would like to add, please put your comments below.
