Hello Children,
It's been a while since I posted as my NSB-Supernerdy self. Those of you who are friends with me in real life will know that I recently started a new crafty blog with my best friend (who is referred to as Polly on this here blog). If you're interested, you can check us out at http://www.satchelfullofsalt.blogspot.co.uk/ But fear not, I'll still be posting on here from time to time - you were worried, weren't you?
About a month ago, I gave up TV for lent. I know what you're thinking: 'Didn't she give up TV last year?' Yes and no. Last year I only let myself watch 3 programmes a day, which, I'm sorry to say, is a big limit for me. However, I found myself, a year later, right back where I started with this telly addiction, and lent right around the corner. So, I went one step further - I could watch TV if I was at someone's house or they invited me to the cinema (what am I gonna say, no? Who wants to be that guy?) but other than that, NO TV.
I've got to say, my brain has not coped well. You see, TV has become a habit of mine to the point where I don't realise quite how much it takes over. I switch on without even thinking about it, and suddenly 5 hours have passed at it's time for bed. The reason I gave it up for lent was that I wanted to break that cycle, and use that time productively. So there I was, Ash Wednesday, and TV wasn't an option. I spent about five minutes thinking, 'So what the hell am I meant to do?' until I settled on writing about 5 craft blogs in one go, just so I didn't have to come up with another activity.
However, though I have got around to little jobs I've been meaning to do, if I'm honest, I'm not handling the TV fast all that well, and am mostly just replacing it with other, mindless things.If you want to give up one form of mindless drivel, there are still plenty more out there. I've been reading random articles on Student Beans, making colour-coded to-do lists that never get done, and surfing for hours on Facebook, Twitter, Sporcle and anything else that means I don't have to think. I was really beating myself up about it too, until 'Hannah' told me that maybe it's ok to have some downtime once in a while. And that got me thinking.
My long-distance wife, Jamie, has a personal philosophy that all boils down to one word: 'Balance'. And the more I think about it, the more I reckon she's on to something. If I don't watch any TV at all, it doesn't stop me from thinking about it practically all the time or switching off with other things, and if I watch too much, according to my mother I am more disengaged, and, apparently, a right grumpy cow. I like TV and I don't think there's anything wrong with that, but when it takes over your life, then it's a problem. Before lent, it was taking over my time, and now it's taking over my thoughts and cravings.
I write for a health magazine, and, when it comes down to it, almost every subject I write about involves getting a right balance. In everything from weight loss to cancer prevention, you need a balance of healthy diet, exercise, socialising, sunshine and, well, everything in moderation. I'm a sucker for starting big projects and not finishing them, and getting obsessed with one hobby or interest and then dropping it altogther for months. In the last few years, I have taken up sewing, baking, scrapbooking, general crafting, the guitar, the piano, the ukulele, writing a novel (albeit that one's with a career in mind), two blogs, two Christian book groups and a reading list that's longer that there's paper to write on.
But there's no balance. I get really into one thing, and then move on to the next, and nothing ever gets finished. All I've got to show for my many pursuits are a pile of half-sewn clothes, a quarter of a novel, a book shelf full of un-read books and three instruments in my conservatory gathering dust. Plus about 10 different mid-process craft projects that are waiting to be blogged about, and all I can think is 'Damn, I wish I could watch Glee again.'
So here's the conclusion I've come to; 'All or nothing' is a stupid way to do things (even though, unfortunately, I seem to be wired that way - not to shirk responsibility or anything, but I blame my Dad). I think the mistake I made with Lent last year was setting the task for lent at all, when really I should have made the 3-a-day thing a permanent, lifestyle-changing habit to restore a balance to my life. An opportunity to, yes, watch TV, but to change the way I watch it. To pick a programme I want to see, watch it, and then, magically, turn off the TV and do something else.
I'm a stubborn bear, and so I'm gonna see this no-TV Lent through, but after that maybe I will have another crack at regulating my viewing. That way, my brain gets the down-time that it sometimes needs, and then is more inspired to finish an odd project, hang out for a bit with other people, and top the day off reading Winnie-the-Pooh with a nice cup of tea.
And hopefully that, my friends, is balance.
