Switching Off!

I CONFESS!

i watch a LOT of tv.

i watch reality shows like survivor, the apprentice, american idol, to name but a few.

i watch eastenders and coronation street.

i watch home makeover shows; and sometimes i've watched the same one twice!

anyway, it's lent.

the lead up to easter.

a time when we should be thinking about our spiritual selves, which we know are there, somewhere, buried down deep.

the priest this morning at church thought that people should consider giving up tv. for lent.

(IS HE MAD? luckily he wasn't talking to me.)

to stop the bobmbardment of images, news, and consumerism.

he said it's hard at first, but when you do it, you find you have more time for other things.

like, reading, exercising, visiting people.... (what if they have their telly on tho?)

he said how can we live a spiritual life when we are never turned off long enough to listen to what God has to say to us?

i would have thought that some people might have started to look uncomfortable at this point. but i didn't see anyone squirming when i looked around.
i've seen the expression on some people's faces when i've mentioned something important that happened on a tv show that i watch regularly.

they look confused, perhaps because i'm talking about the person on tv on a first name basis?

they don't seem to be as concerned as i am that the tv person is going to be;

a) winning the whole shebang,

b) getting fired

c) unfairly treated by others

what is WRONG with some people? don't they CARE?

he WAS talking to me.

can i give up tv?
last year for lent i gave up my daily coffee with french vanilla and boy, that was hard.
i LOVE that stuff. or i used to. it doesn't bother me now...


i know in the grand scheme of things it doesn't matter a damn who wins survivor, who donald trump fires (though i am intrigued by omaroso and the feelings of dislike she arouses in me, and last week, i even caught myself, much to my surprise, thinking how good she looks in hats)
will i be enriched by watching hours of american idol and investing my time in the hopes and dreams of another wannabe pop-star?
(i am really struggling with that one because, i have to admit, i do get completely involved.)
but, i do have a stack of unfinished books that i never seem to have time to finish.
i've noticed that my attention span is much shorter these days. i can only read when the tv is on in the background. if i put a book down, i forget about it and have to start again at the beginning of the chapter, or sometimes the beginning of the book.

it's like ADD.
brought on by years of laziness; being spoon fed characters and plots with fixed images, that i don't have to use my imagination to see.
i do have a list of people i promised myself i would write to more than just a line on a christmas card....i do need to be more in touch with my inner self;
so,
will i go mad?
will i find myself unable to relax without knowing whether omarosa's headgear this week is as eye catching as last?
whether the donald will fire piers morgan?
whether paula, randy and simon can manage to pick the right idol if i'm not watching?
who will win survivor; the favourites or the fans?

we shall see.
watch this space.
but don't watch it too much.
do other stuff while you're waiting.