Cutting Cable

About two years ago (2009-ish), I made the decision to cancel our cable TV. It wasn’t really a financial choice, it was about getting the awful, horrible media and pushy ads out of our home. My husband and I were watching grown-up shows, thinking the kids weren’t paying attention… but they were. At the time, it felt like a good move.

About three days in, though, we all realized we missed TV. To be honest, we were bored! So we got a small antenna for the top of the entertainment center, just to pick up the news, which my husband considered important. From there, he discovered that a bigger antenna on the roof could bring in several more channels.

Then, about ten months ago, we reactivated our Netflix subscription. For about $10 a month, we could watch movies and TV episodes instantly on our TV (through our Wii) and set up my laptop in the bedroom for the kids. Cheap entertainment. CHEAP! Not inexpensive, but cheap in the sense of, well… easy to overdo.

I recently did the math: in ten months, we’ve had 45 DVDs mailed to us and watched over 350 titles instantly.

Yes, it’s inexpensive, $100 in fees for 400+ movies, which comes out to a quarter (or less) per show. But it’s been a bit of a disaster. We’re watching more TV than ever, even though it’s cheaper. I feel a little foolish realizing that I didn’t really fix the bad habit, I just changed the way we accessed it.

I’ve begged my husband to let me remove the TV from the living room. I know it might seem “un-American,” but it’s something I deeply desire. My hope is that by the end of 2011 (though sooner would be even better) we’ll have our basement completed enough to move the entertainment center, TV, and all video games down there.

It’s not that the shows we watch are terrible. It’s that there’s so much more we could be doing with our time than watching things we aren’t productive to our life.

Just like a cookie: just because it’s there doesn’t mean we should eat it. Just because the shows are available doesn’t mean we should watch them.

A little financial breakdown for those considering cancelling cable:

• Cable was $40 a month. Over two years, that’s $960.

• Antennas: $50 for a small one, $200 for a larger one. Total: $250.

• Savings: $960 − $250 = $710.

• Netflix: roughly $120 for one year.

• Total savings over two years: $590.

So yes, we still saved money, but the bigger lesson is that controlling the media in our home requires more than just cutting cable. It takes intentionality, boundaries, and sometimes, a little courage to do things differently than everyone else.