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September 22, 2006
It's Fall and TV is in the Air
And there's a coldfront in my living room
So this week is premiere week for the fall television season, and that means that my husband and I have been fighting nearly nonstop about what, exactly, our Tivo should be recording. Now, I realize that for the sake of our marriage, we ought to buy one of those ingenious splitters (the modern marvels that let you tape more than one channel at once). But I’m pretty techno-ignorant, and my husband has an allergy to shopping of any kind. He won’t even buy his own khakis, asking me to order them online for him, instead.
One of my friends have said that the key to her happy marriage is the fact that they have two separate (but nearly equal in screen size and quality) televisions in the house, so that she can watch Desperate Housewives while her husband watches football. I can see the merits in this.
Because my husband won’t just disagree about what we should be watching, but he can’t help himself but making a running commentary like one of those people you want to strangle at the movie theatre.
“You HAVE to be kidding me – who writes this stuff?” he’ll exclaim just as Meredith and McDreamy are about to get it on Gray’s Anatomy. Or “I am physically in pain right now, and if I watch this any longer, I may go blind,” as Susan tromps around one of her neighbor’s bushes in Desperate Housewives.
Sometimes he has a point (“Why do you insist on watching Amazing Race just to see the couples argue? We could argue right now instead!”) but most of the time, he’s just a guy, and can’t understand why I like love triangles, neighborhood intrigue and hunky supporting guys like Patrick Dempsey.
Now, to be fair, I do my share of groaning, too, like whenever he insists on watching a) old westerns, b) the old original Star Trek with William Shatner or c) football. When it comes to his favorite viewing pastime this season, football, I’m pretty mild in my criticism – I just fall asleep on the couch.
This, however, enrages my husband.
“It was the fourth quarter, and the score was tied at 21! How could you fall asleep?!”
What can I say? The roar of the crowd and the nonstop drone of empty-headed commentators (who say things like “The team that showed up to play won today” as if the other team didn’t show up to play? What? They came to knit sweaters?) just lulled me right to sleep.
And don’t get me started on Star Trek. I thought I’d outsmarted him on this one: he’d taken up so much room on our Tivo recording old Star Trek shows, that last Christmas I bought him the box set of the entire three seasons. Unfortunately, then he proceeded to sit down and watch them. And he wanted company while he did so.
If I never see Captain Kirk seduce another green-skinned alien girl again, that’ll be fine by me.
So, this week, I’m going to find out about that whole Tivo splitting thing, if only to save myself a whole fall season lineup of arguments. And I think I’ll do that before Sunday’s premiere night. I hear Desperate Housewives just might be good again this season.
And by the way, congrats to the winners of signed copies of "I Do (But I Don't)"! I'll be mailing them their books this week:
Winner #1
Rachel Frasier
Elk Grove, CA
Winner #2
Billie Bininger
Lancaster, Oh
Winner #3
Lacy Hairgrove
Euless, TX
Winner #4
Tina Schultz
Dearborn Heights, MI
Winner #5
Maya Missani
Richmond Hill, ON
Canada
Posted by at 9:28 AM | Comments (7)
Comments
I guess I'm a little like both of you. I watched Grey's Anatomy on my own last night, but then kvetched to my grandmother for not watching it with me. She couldn't tear herself away from her Spanish telenovela.
"Puh-leeze!" I said, "You know what's gonna happen. A dirt poor but beautiful virgin woman befriends the village McHottie. He's hot, he's rich and his mother hates her. Mama McHottie conspires to get him back with his more socially palatable ex-girlfriend. Of course the ex is not only a beautiful social climber, she's also hiding the fact that she's carrying McHottie's estranged brother's baby. Yada, yada, yada!"
"Be quiet!" Grandma barks, "You're gonna ruin the surprise for me!"
Sigh. So, d'ya think McDreamy will leave his Addison?
Posted by: Janina at September 22, 2006 10:12 AM
I once had to watch like five Farscapes to pay for dragging Cowboy to see The Mikado at the local community theater. The sad thing was, by the end of five Farscapes, I was hooked and actually begged to see more.
The LC Eileen
Posted by: Eileen ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.literarychicks.com/nav-commenters.gif)
at September 22, 2006 10:49 AM
The secret to a happy marriage = separate closets and separate bathrooms.
Also: some of the new "generic" DVRs can record two shows at once. Ours can. It's a godsend.
Posted by: Beth at September 22, 2006 12:33 PM
Mine records 2 at a time, too, and believe it or not, there have been a couple of times when we wanted to record THREE!! Aargh. I think the DVR is turning me into a TV junkie. Thanks for coming, Cara!! We loved having you here!!
Posted by: Alesia Holliday at September 22, 2006 1:09 PM
Men just don't understand. And sports are boring. Unless it's the NCAA tournament - I can get into that! Anyway, it was great having you here, Cara! Thanks so much for hanging with us!
Posted by: Lani at September 23, 2006 8:18 AM
Cara said: "And don’t get me started on Star Trek. I thought I’d outsmarted him on this one: he’d taken up so much room on our Tivo recording old Star Trek shows, that last Christmas I bought him the box set of the entire three seasons. Unfortunately, then he proceeded to sit down and watch them. And he wanted company while he did so."
LOL, I hear you! I tried that approach with the Star Wars movies for Oh Patient One and The Teenagers at Christmas. Guess what we watched alllllll Christmas looooong?
Michelle, who slunk off to the office to watch Jane Austen DVDs, instead :-)
Posted by: Michelle C at September 24, 2006 6:58 AM
Thank you for the book!!!
I have been away from the pc since last Thursday due to a nasty new wireless card frying my harddrive.
I usually don't have problems with the hubby wanting to watch football because for the most part, I will sit down and watch it with him (especially college football). I did have a problem on this past Thursday night though with the start of Grey's Anatomy. I absolutely love that show! The problem is, hubby was watching on the big screen and I was in the sun room watching it on one of those old fashioned floor model televisions. The picture tube is almost completely gone so it was more like I was listening to it than actually watching it.
I went inside and told him that it was time for us to move the 32' tv from the basement to the sunroom. He said, "I'm not doing it right now" which I replied with, "then you can go watch your football on the telly out there then!!"...lol
Posted by: Jo at September 26, 2006 4:55 PM
