Goodbye Satellite TV

I don't think I would confess to being a TV-junkie, but growing up I watched a lot of TV. But didn't everyone? I mean, the eighties and nineties put out some great TV programming. And according to the ratings a lot of people watched. But that was when TV was free.

Growing up, we did not subscribe to the fad of cable TV. There was no MTV in my house. We kept to the basics, the big networks and the local channels. it wasn't till I was married with kids that we finally started a subscription to cable TV. To be more accurate, satellite TV. We have been proud members of the satellite TV community since 2005. Now, that doesn't seem that long, but it's been long enough. It has served as well, while living in the mountains of PA, far from any local station providers with signals strong enough to picked up but a set of rabbit ears. But over the years we've watched as the programming for TV in general has taken a downward slide into content we'd rather not watch.

It's been a steady decline of shows with strong moral messaging and a rapid increase of program marketing a less than Biblical standard. In just the last 4 years, our list of "favorite" shows has dramaticly dropped to a very small handful. And while the endless channel options were once an exciting menu of possibilities, we now only watch a select few.

Throw in life with 5 active kids, sports schedules, school schedules, work, church, meetings, and other sorts of lifestyle activities, the amount of time available for TV watching is greatly reduced to just a couple of hours. Sure there were the days when we had nothing to do and TV was a good option for vegging on the couch, but those were and are far and few. So what it all boils down to is this, not a whole lot of good TV programming, with only a few channels that we watched, and only a couple of hours every week to actually sit and watch. And we were paying for it.

So the decision was made, goodbye satllite TV. We determined that based on our overall watching habits, and the lack of strong, positive programming, and a desire to want more from our kids instead of sass and backtalk,we have opted to disconnect our satellite for good. And to be honest, I didn't want to keep paying for what I wasn't watching. Seriously, it can get expensive!

We are now a couple of days into our disconnect and we're surviving. Our plan is simple and affordable. Since we live in an area that a strong digital signal we are getting a quality digital antennia. That paired with a subscription to Netflix and HuluPlus, we will be able to still watch many of our favorite TV shows at a fraction of the cost. And the best part is, we are no longer entertaining our kids with the junk that now fills many a home. We control what is watched and when it's watched.

Oh, and we will be able to reallocate funds that we were expensing for TV to more family-friendly activities.

So goodbye satellight, you polluted my family and drained my wallet long enough. Now I'm taking back what is mine; MY FAMILY!

- jay

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