Changes Lately

I don’t think I’ve mentioned it on here, but Nick and I only have basic cable in our new house. With the change in house payment (huge difference from our old place) and the other little increases (power, water, heat for a bigger space), cable was one of the few places we could actually cut back on to save some money.

Some nights, I wish we had it back.

I miss watching Top Chef and everything on the Food Network, and we may have to revisit this idea when college football season rolls around again. I’m not sure I can live through fall without ESPN.

But most nights, it’s fine.

Last night, we came home from work and got working on other stuff. I made dinner while Nick worked in the garage for a while. By the time we were done eating, cleaning up, packing lunches, and getting a glass of chocolate milk, it was already 8:30 (which is late for us old folks).

Plus, without cable, we’re really only watching things that we want to watch – certain shows on networks are still on, which is nice. The last few White Collar episodes had to be watched online, and we still have Netflix for movies and watching things instantly, if we want.

And on nights like tonight, it’s 7:44 and we still haven’t turned it on – not even to watch the news.

This is a huge difference from before. At our old house, the tv was on all the time. Literally.

We ate breakfast while we watched the news. Turned the news on as soon as we got home and while I cooked dinner, since I could see and hear the tv from the kitchen. Watched reruns of old shows just because they were on until a show we actually liked was on. Kept watching tv until we fell asleep because, well, just because it was there.

But now, it’s rare that we have the tv on before 8 pm most days.

So on nights like tonight, when we’re finally having good weather, it’s 7:47 pm and our tv has not yet been turned on today.

Nick is in the garage with Maggie. I just got back from picking more dog food.

The windows are open. Birds are chirping. Families are walking around the track next to our house, enjoying the cool breeze and longer lasting light.

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And our trees are in bloom! A beautiful pink dogwood and some others, but we’re not sure what all of them are yet.

There are definitely nights I am extremely sad that we don’t have cable and I can’t watch Barefoot Contessa or What Not to Wear, but how ridiculous is that, right? Everything I could want to see is online now, and I’m wasting so much less time without it. And I know this makes me sound crazy, but I used to freak out a little bit inside when we talked about getting rid of cable at the old house. I mean – what would I do? How in the world would I fill my time at home without it? The funny thing is that, after moving and adjusting to all these other changes with the new house and budgets and responsibilities, it didn’t seem so scary.

And, since we’re no longer glued to the tv all night long, we can actually enjoy the weather and we’ll really be able to see everything that starts to bloom in our yard this year. Since it’s our first spring in this house, I’m excited to see what is planted around the yard.

No cable? Fine with me.

But we’ll see how I feel when football season starts.

24 comments

  1. I could DEFINITELY live without cable, or TV for that matter, but I’m pretty sure Toly would leave me if I brought up the idea. ;)

  2. We cut our cable back a few months ago. Most days it doesn’t bother me but there are certain things I miss watching specifically PTI, Sports Center and sadly Secret Life of the Real American Teenager (I know lame). Once the weather gets nice, I’m sure we’ll spend lots of time in the backyard with the guitar hanging out.

  3. you go girl! we’re trying to cut back on using tv as background noise and i’ve noticed we’ve been watching less. so i guess that’s a step in the right direction!

    • That’s exactly what ours was! We could be in the house doing all kinds of other things (cleaning, picking up, working on other projects, etc) but we would still have it on in the background, just because.

      It’s nice to not have it sometimes.

  4. Nice job B!!!

  5. That’s impressive. I could do it during the summers for sure, but it would be hard to give up college football and basketball.

  6. I suspect you’ve already learned how much more gets done with out it on constantly. It is a tough adjustment, but I’m sure you’ll find some way to manage. The new house sounds wonderful. I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary

  7. My husband and I moved to California in the fall – and we decided against cable. Hello, we’re in Cali – we want to make the most of this beautiful area! I must admit, football season was hard (I grew up in Nebraska & attended UNL – go Huskers!) but we were able to stream a lot of games through ESPN online….or go to a bar and be social! :)

  8. I’ve actually talked with my husband about getting rid of cable and he won’t go for it. The funny part about it is that before we met, he didn’t have cable!

  9. I’d probably go into TV withdrawal, but to be honest, I think switching to basic cable is a good idea. You’ll spend less money and have more family time. I give you major props for going through with this, not many people (myself included) would be able to do that! :-)

  10. It sounds like you guys made the change for the better! I think I’d be happier without TV, but I seriously have an addiction! I love my How I Met Your Mother, amongst many other shows!!

  11. BAHAHA I’ve had the exact same thoughts going through my head! I don’t have cable PERIOD, and my apartment has a huge viewing room downstairs (not to mention an abundance of sports bars within walking distance), but I was like…how am I going to live with the chance of missing a game once the NFL starts back up? (if it starts back up at all, that is…haha)

  12. I’ve been thinking that I need to give up TV. I watch way too much and it’s all pretty terrible. I probably won’t get cable right away when I move, but when football season starts I’ll have to figure something out. I’ll have to find a way to get my Sooners games on since I’ll be on the East Coast and they probably won’t play them much. I’m scared!

  13. I refuse to pay the (outrageous) prices for cable since I got my own house. I get SO much more things done! I do miss watching the news in the morning, but oh well

  14. YAY! I’m so proud of you for giving up cable! Mike and I gave it up about 4 years ago and we haven’t looked back since! Okay – well that’s a lie – I definitely still lust after Food Network and Bravo (just like you!) – but I promise – it gets easier every month! And just like you guys – we watch SO MUCH less tv – its actually wonderful!

    We should start a *no cable* campaign! :)

    • I agree! It’s not nearly as tough as I thought it would be.

      But…my thoughts may change when football season rolls around :)

  15. i went without tv and really any streaming shows online even for 9 months in 2009 and i think it was one of the best experiences ever! it made me focus on things to do outside and a huge plus, i read A TON of books! i wish i could get my tv out of my place! maybe i could just unplug it…

  16. Oh man, no cable! Well it sounds like it has been positive for you and Nick. Maybe you can just get it for football season ;)

  17. Your trees and yard are gorgeous! I’m so jealous – in MN we still have snow/ice and nothing blooming yet. We just got another 6 inches this week. Ugh. April is coming, though – I can’t wait for spring! I’m hoping my pink crabapple tree will be in full bloom in about a month. Isn’t it great having your own yard to be excited over when things pop up in the spring? :-)

    • thank you so much! this year will be super fun to see our new yard in bloom :) I’m so excited to see what pops up!

  18. Good for you!! I keep trying to convince my hubby to cut cable entirely…but unfortunately we can only pick up 4 channels with an antenna. Two in Spanish, one Christian (but barely shows the picture) and one with nothing but Westerns. For the meantime, I’m making a concerted effort to keep it off, and we haven’t missed much at all!

  19. I LOVE the glimpses of your house that you’ve shared with us so far. It just looks like such a great home. And I love the yard – the trees, the rolling lawn, the green…it’s just beautiful! I live in Texas and miss greenery.

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