The Downfall of Owning a DVR

My family didn't get cable television until I was living in Thailand.  And to record Friends, back in the day of new episodes, I had to cue up and set the VCR with a blank tape.  Not anymore, ladies and gentlemen.   There is now a thing called DVR.  And, my sister is the queen of it.

When I came back to Saratoga in December I began to understand the full potential of DVR, thanks to my sister.  I also understood the frustration my grandfather must have felt when he was forced to watch Hannah Montana because my sister had too many shows recording simultaneously.  Poor Grandpa wanted to watch Fox News, but DVR took over, and forced him to watch and listen to Miley Cyrus' ridiculous Disney Channel antics.  Months later, I was forced to watch Dance Moms, when I really just wanted to watch The Food Network and Ina Garten making something delicious and chocolatey.  Thanks, Erin.

When we moved into our apartment we were pleasantly surprised to find it much larger than we had assumed.  Erin had other reasons for her excitement.  While I unpacked my suitcases, Erin quietly got into trouble in the living room.  On our very first evening, she discovered DVR, and got right to work scheduling recordings.

She was so busy recording, she didn't have time to take off her scarf or shoes!

I have enjoyed the recordings.  I have recently become hooked on How I Met Your Mother, and I love being able to watch a 22 minute episode, in 22 minutes, while I eat my breakfast.

I enjoyed the recordings until last night.

Erin was on my computer, working on her math lessons.  I was tired, but sat on the couch to watch a few episodes on the DVR List.  I was shocked by how quickly all of the shows had accumulated.  I started with three episodes of How I Met Your Mother, then switched over to an episode of Barefoot Contessa.  Halfway through Ina's explanation of how to use a charcoal chimney, I realized I didn't even want to be watching television.  But, instead of just going to sleep or reading my book, I saw the DVR List as a to do list.  I felt the need to power through television shows, just to watch them and erase them.  I didn't even want to be watching television!

So, I took control.  I stopped watching Ina, and erased the episode.  I scrolled through and erased a few more episodes of Friends, Wipeout and Giada at Home, and I went to sleep.

It's great to have television shows on the ready for when I want to sit down, but I need to be more aware of when I actually want to watch television, and when I'm just using the DVR List as a To Do List.

No more wasting time watching television I don't want to watch.

And, while I try to stick to that, I'm going to attempt to teach Erin the same thing.  Her habits may be a bit tougher to break...