Behind the curve

Thursday, August 13, 2009

I have a brother-in-law that buys new technology the moment it hits the shelf. He is always the first one with the newest iPhone, the latest movie-viewing machine, the most recent gaming system.

We take turns making fun of each other.

He reminds me of that scene from "The Wedding Singer," when Glenn buys a CD player for $700. If my BIL would wait, even a couple months, many items would be cheaper and better.

He makes fun of me for waiting so long. When I mentioned the Wedding Singer scene, he asked if I would wait 20 years to buy new technology just so I could get it cheaper.

And I'll admit it. When it comes to technology, I'm usually behind the curve. And it really doesn't matter what form that technology comes it.

I didn't get an e-mail address until I was a freshman in college in 2000, well after all my friends had e-mail. I was the last one of my friends to get a debit card, and it was getting fed up carrying a newborn Bug into the gas station to pay for gas that finally convinced me. We had dial-up internet forever! Well after high speed dial-up, DSL, and then cable internet came along, we were still trucking along with our good old NetZero account. I don't have a laptop. I just got an iPod.

Some of it because I'm cheap (or frugal. Yeah, let's go with that). I'll admit it. It was hard to imagine that paying $30 plus dollars a month just for internet would ever be worth it, when we were getting our dial-up for $6.95/month (we had gotten a special deal by threatening to change services.) So what if I spent much of my undergraduate career wanting to throw things at the computer while waiting for pages to load...at least my frustration was cheap!

The other part of it is I'm always a little skeptical if the new technology will really make things better. Maybe it's just another way to brag about how "with it" you are.

But this week, we've made a change that would have my BIL cheering for joy.

We got DVR.

I wasn't sure we needed it. After all, we had a VCR. I could just set it to record shows while I was at work or at the lake. I had even gotten quite good at setting multiple grograms on the VCR. Yeah, it was inconvient. Yeah, sometimes we misjudged the start or end time and never knew how LOST ended. Yeah, the quality of the picture was lacking (nowhere near as amazing as the HD picture Hubster insisted we sign up for the minute we bought a new TV.) But still, we already had the VCR.

(But now that I think about it, I'm not exactly sure what happened to our old, boxy, non-LCD-flat-panel. I'm beginning to think it may have had some help meeting it's untimely demise.

Anyways.)

So, I wasn't convinced.

But we have crazy schedules. Now probably more than any other time. And I've started the nasty habit of falling alseep during the season premier of Psych, or before the champion is named in Chopped. Hubster doesn't really have time to constantly be programming the VCR, especially now that fall premiers are right around the bend.

I was sold on the DVR within 2 minutes of having it. I could record all the new episodes of America's Got Talent. And watch it whenever I want. In HD! We can record two shows at once. No more conflict between Survivor and LOST. And recording is easy: just a push of a button. No more timers, making sure the VCR clock is aligned with the TV clock, worring about how much tape I have left, wondering if I really turned the TV to the right channel.

I thought the cable menu was the best thing that ever happened to TV watching (seriously, how does anyone do it without it?) I've decided now that DVR is going to take TV watching to a whole new level.

I think I'll call my brother-in-law and let him tell me "I told you so."

Season Finales

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Many of my favorite shows are rapidly approaching their season finale. Although this means a lot of excitement, it also means a summer full of re-runs.

(Although Psych will be starting up with new episodes this summer. So at least I have witty 80s references to keep me happy.)

I used to say I was a fan of reality television. This was back when Survivor was about the only reality show there was. However, I don't watch "American Idol," "Dancing with the Stars," "So You Think You Can Dance," "Big Brother," or "The Bachelor." Since these are the first things that people think of when they hear reality TV, I don't say I'm a fan of reality TV anymore. I leave it at being a fan of Survivor and Amazing Race.

Amazing Race ends next week. And this is the first time I don't hate at least one of the teams in the final three. I'm really hoping that Tammy and Victor will win. After all, they've completely dominated most of the race. They deserve it. But if Luke and Margie win, I'll still be pretty happy. Come on, being in the final three of a uber-competitive race, both physical and mental, doing awesome, and being deaf? That's a big deal. It's so nice to see people not using disability as an excuse, but a reason to push themselves harder. It makes it so I just expect even more from myself.

Survivor is also approaching its finale. I would just like to say that while none of the contestants are as hot as resident physician Marcus for last season, this is shaping up to be an amazing, amazing season. The contestants are crazier than ever (um, Coach, you're a big liar!). The blindside votes are better. The alliances are more surprising. Personally, I'm rooting for J.T.

Marcus from Survivor Gabon

Lost will be ending in a couple weeks. I'm very broken up about this. I watched the first three seasons of Lost on DVD. Hubster and I watched 4 episodes a night, every night, until we had seen all three seasons. During the approximately three weeks this process took, we were extremely exhausted, but so intrigued by the story, we just couldn't stop.

So for us, only one hour once a week has been a tough adjustment. But the time in between seasons is akin to torture. What will we talk about at dinner?

As for this season, it's been pretty good. I really missed the flashbacks, so I'm glad they've gotten back to those in the last few episodes. But I'm too broken up about Daniel Faraday's death to be very happy. Lost always does this. Create characters you love, and then kills them off. Charlie, gone. Eko, gone. Daniel, gone. But pure-evil, master-manipulator, horrible Ben? He's still alive. I'm hoping next season brings a little more justice.

But I'm not going to dwell on the inevitable sadness of the time after season finales. I'm going to just sit down on my couch with a huge bowl of popcorn, and enjoy the time that we have left.

What to Watch...or not

Friday, February 27, 2009

I hate when I feel I have to justify myself. Because that feeling means that deep down, I know that I'm wrong.

This isn't that. This isn't a justification. This is more of an explanation.

Lately, I feel that I have been confronted by the age-old debate. Okay, it's not age-old. It's only been around since the 50s. TV or not. This conversation has been going on with my parents, my sister, some friends, some blogs, and Facebook.

Many parents feel that their homes should be television-less. Many more are going that direction.

We are not one of those families.

I feel about TV free the way I feel about vegetarianism. It's not a bad thing. It can be a really good thing. But it is not for everyone. Nor are you a less healthy person, a worse parent, or a complete drain on society if you choose to continue to watch the tube.

I did the vegetarian thing. I did the TV free thing. Both those phases of my life didn't last. And just like there are a couple meat things that I love so much that I can never go back to being a complete vegetarian (think grilled lime-cilantro chicken kabobs), there are a couple things on TV that I love too much to ever give it up (Lost, Survivor, Psych.)

Of course, moderation in all things. We don't watch an exorbitant amount of TV. Our kids pretty much only watch Saturday morning Disney cartoons (mostly so we can sleep in, just a little.) Occasionally, we watch a movie together as a family. Maybe a couple times a month. I love renting movies and watching them with a huge bowl of popcorn and a tissue. This also happens maybe a couple times a month. And there are a couple weekly shows that I just love. And refuse to give up. Refuse!

And off course sports. Sports, sports, sports. Because watching them on TV is just so much cheaper and more convenient than tickets. Not to mention local.

So yes, we are television watchers and movie lovers.

(I know that someone is saying, but what about books? Well, I always have a novel on my dresser. So does Hubster. I read to my boys every night. Both my boys love books. So we aren't exactly lacking there. But just imagine that your job is reading. Lots and lots of reading. Textbooks. Medical journals. Review articles. The LAST thing you want to do is come home after 12 hours and read some more.)

But besides the pure enjoyment factor, TV is a little more practical. What do TV less people do during elections? The Olympics? National disasters? I know that there is the computer. But computers are solitary zones, while television, by its nature is a group activity. What chances do you get to address reactions to news, talk about difficult situations that haven't come up in your childrens' lives yet.

Like it or not, we live in this world. Just a little bit of exposure is healthy. Essential.

Consider it a cultural vaccination.

Lost

Thursday, January 29, 2009

I feel that I have been a complete slacker, since it is over one week since the Lost premier and I haven't mentioned it!


(To be fair, I didn't watch the Lost premier last Wednesday, because I was out of town. I watched it Saturday with my husband, who, sweet guy, waited to watch it with me.)

I have three points that I would like to make.

One, I wish that I could tell you to start watching Lost. But I can't. You can't just start now, with this season and think that you will like it at all. You will have to do what I did. Rent all the previous seasons, and watch 4 episodes every single night for over a month. No, seriously, that's what I did. I hadn't watched any of Lost before March of last year. But a good friend kept telling me that it was exactly the type of show the my husband and I would like. So I broke down and rented the first season. And then pretty much didn't sleep for the next month.

Lost is strange like that. For those who have seen it since the beginning, it is the most amazing, complicated, exciting, mind-twisting show there is. But for those who missed a couple episodes, or a season, or who pick up with season 3 or now, it is just too confusing and weird.

Second point: This blog will NOT turn into a Lost recount and theory page. There are plenty of Lost theory pages I could contribute to and have discussions on. This will not be one of them. And as for recounting television shows on a blog. If you watch the show, you don't need a summary. And if you don't watch the show, you don't need a summary. (Seriously, would Jack, Locke, and Desmond mean anything to people who don't watch the show?) I stopped following a blog, because for over two weeks, the only thing the author wrote were summaries about MTV's The City. Don't watch it, don't care to. So stop giving me daily reports. Write about how you like it, or a funny story. But not the screen play. Please.

Last and final point. I really need DVR. I mean really. Which is kind of funny, since there are times I want to throw our television away (okay, not really, since it is so pretty, and I really like movies.) So here's the scenario. Lost is on at 8 pm. Bedtime at our house is at 8:30 pm. (Or sometimes 9, or 9:30, or um. No it's at 8:30). And because we still like to think of ourselves as good parents, bedtime takes priority over any TV show, Lost or otherwise. So we record it. Which means my husband has to set the VCR and we then watch it after the boys are in bed. On the VCR. Which means no HD. Occasionally grainy picture. Problems with the color and sound. And the always anxiety that my husband set the VCR wrong. If we had DVR, we could just watch whenever, without the silly VCR programming. And it could still be in all it's HD glory. And as our schedules are only getting busier, and we are home less, the case for the DVR is growing. I think I'm going to win this one.

Or maybe, the cable company with thwart my efforts and just put it on demand.