posted August 02, 2014 08:51 PM            

I went a whole year without TV or videos of any kind (rare educational exceptions were granted on vids which don't count as entertainment) so some of the others who didn't watch (it was an area that you had to be cable or sat to get anything anyway) invited me to play D&D with them.

Unlike watching TV together (for the most part) it helped us socialize (tuning into each other rather than tuning others out to tune into the TV) and bond to each other, exercise our minds and creativity to create a story together instead of passively watching, encouraged team work and sharing (both in game and as players) as well as exercise basic math. Our actions and choices mattered more with more tension as there was no guarantee that the good guys would come out on top and we never knew who could die (it was sometimes worse than a Joss Whedon story ). And our (or at least my) vocabulary was also expanded by it. For example, I learned "eschew" from D&D. I've heard that people have won spelling bees because D&D taught them obscure words that they frequently used. It also got me interested in classical authors, philosophy, and history. And it was also fun, in addition to typically being superior to anything on TV and NO COMMERCIALS.

After that year was up I didn't dive back into TV (though some people couldn't wait to show me vids). And I recall how I once spent a day in the woods and then walking home under a beautiful sunset in summer and all the homes had the glow of TV coming out of them. Hardly anyone was outside. It felt kinda scary as I hadn't realized how ubiquitous it had become (I never was much of a TV watcher growing up) and how mesmerizing it was.

And it would continue to haunt me at times like when I stayed at a flop house and all the older people who had basically tuned out the rest of the world watching the TV in the common room with a glassy look in their eyes. They didn't talk, they didn't even think as far as I could tell, they barely moved even during commercials. And I marveled that some people have a hard time with role playing games instead of that (especially when you consider the TV as a form of mind control).

posted August 03, 2014 07:11 AM            

Gardening, Reading, Quilting.

Spinning, Spiritual Studies, Astrology.

Just like looking out my two doors, and seeing my Sentinel Kitties

I do a myriad of different Crafts, and my Daughters and I crack each other up...

posted August 03, 2014 10:28 AM            

Winter is the time for learning to fill my time with the extras .

I love to read. Archaeology, cultural history , animal husbandry and horticulture are some of my passions.
Walking the dogs or horses is a great way to prevent the cold winter blues.
Jigsaw puzzles are a great pass time. It keeps the hands busy and mind open to actually thinking without media interference.
I enjoy volunteering weekly at the Library and getting books and such out to the house bound seniors. Along with he childrens reading program, my life is full with normal day to day activities of running a farm , household and landscaping business.
Winter I do watch some History channel, Animal planet and Discovery.They often run programming that matchs my reading interests and curiosities.
I confess to summer watching of CBS`s Big Brother and Survivor. Each summer I swear never again but I can`t seem to help myself. It is a wasted few hrs a week but I`m worth it

posted August 03, 2014 11:55 PM            

Music was good.

posted August 04, 2014 02:40 PM            

I haven't had TV reception in 10 years...and for the 5 years before that, I had an old TV that got a few basic channels. I had to hold the antenna a certain way to be able to see Oprah (hers was the only show I watched) through all the static.

Occasionally I watch YouTube re-runs of shows that premiered on TV.

I spend most of my time with my children roundabouts; sometimes playing with them is very fun and sometimes it's more like a labor of love (teaching my four-year old chess yesterday was a bit of both, it depended on how good his commentary was between moves. )

And other than that:

I love cooking. Indian food is my latest rage. Most days I spend at least an hour whipping up Indian meals.

I LOVE reading memoirs by chefs, cookbooks with lots of interesting commentary, and books about food politics and history. Meanwhile I am looking at the chefs on YouTube and looking at their charts, minus birth time. What can I say, I have a Taurus SN that still needs feeding.

So that's my latest kick. I'm always into natural medicine, long forest walks, astrology, doodling around aimlessly (sometimes literally doodling.)

posted August 04, 2014 03:33 PM            

My household has head phones so each can listen privately and no one [me]else has to listen to their programming.

I don`t dislike t.v. per se but I see life as a participating adventure not one to sit still watching a box {or rectangle}

Faith, I love to cook and quilt as well. My newest creation is another crazy quilt. A typical Aquarian creation

PJ, it always makes me a little sad when I see all the t.v.`s glowing through windows. I always hope it isn`t the children

Ellyn, indeed. Gardening and reading is 2 of my greatest joys as well..

posted August 04, 2014 04:05 PM            

I like quilts that are either gaudy, like my Leo rising or totally systematic to please my 6H sun and Mercury.

My big dream is to make an ocean waves quilt like this one:

posted August 04, 2014 10:12 PM            

The Hand-Quilting looks like the most Time consuming.

And Space.

But Completely Satisfying.

There are many variations on the Flying Geese motif.

The last one I made was a Lighthouse one, a Lap Quilt.

I had a Mariner's Compass I always wanted to make, have the Pattern in an envelope.

posted August 04, 2014 11:53 PM            

I would love to do either one of these.

In fact, the one above resembles the one I made for my Bug. This one looks closer to the Real Thing, with the Lilies and all. I had that Theban embroidered on the sides with a couple of lines from "The Charge of the Goddess" on mine.

Had a little one around my little Sun/Moon Clockface on the Dash to match.

posted August 05, 2014 09:22 AM            

quote:

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Originally posted by Ellynlvx:
Juni, I've never gotten the courage to jump into a Crazy Quilt, although I have gazed in Wild Wonder from afar.

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posted August 05, 2014 09:34 AM            

I bought a bolt.

Originally they were for Shriners' kids quilts.

But the lady I worked with said we could raise more by selling them to the Shriners and donating the money.

I kind of agreed.

By the time I was through, it had "Let There be More Light" quilted in a Rainbow Arc in Calligraphy Script above the Lighthouse, as well as in Hebrew below the boat.

posted August 09, 2014 07:30 PM            

I decided that I would try to use my time doing something creative, that had a visible result.

This was great, until I had to move twenty-five times.

Hard for me to find something I truly like to watch, anyway.

posted September 07, 2014 11:07 AM            

quote:

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Originally posted by Randall:
No tv?

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Truely, I would not lie.

Life exists outside the box