View Full Version : So far behind the curve we are leading it
iris lilies
3-8-16, 1:31pm
We never had cable tv. We have an antennae. A few years ago we bought one of the new age antennaes, the "flat planel" style that sits in our front window. It works well.
I've been hearing talk that cable tv is on its way out, younger people are dropping any cable plans.
Today while driving home we saw three of these attennaes in the homes of our immediate neighbors. It looks like a saturation point has been reached! So this trend, which we led (haha) is now fully out there.
How about you? Im sure there are simple living people who are so out of it they are leading a trend.
Never had cable or satellite or any TV that had to be paid for.
Grew up on 1.5 channels depending on weather.
With the flat panel antennae we get 8 channels, more than enough.
I usually pay for Netflix (dropped it while guys are away at college). Sometimes hulu.
I think younger people would rather pay more for their phone plans than pay for TV.
Wow, you guys really are Luddites! (At least where TV is concerned).
I admit to having cable TV. My MIL was one of the first to have cable, and so DH was really used to it. OTOH, my DS curses the cable companies and prays daily for their demise.
But I have another anti-simple-living admission to make. I recently got a TV for upstairs in a guest room--very reasonably priced Smart (Roku) TV. I subscribe to a yoga website and having a good home practice system is cheaper than paying for yoga classes. Now that I've had a chance to play around with it, I see how there is absolutely no need to pay for cable TV! It might convince me to cut the cord (or cable, as it were).
So, I don't have a flat panel antenna, but I do have Roku!
ToomuchStuff
3-8-16, 3:42pm
Have you looked in the attic?
I've had several friends go out and buy those antenna's, when all they needed to do was hook up the one in the attic, that still works. They sometimes need an adapter from the old ribbon/flat style cable, to a coax cable. (used to come wtih tv's, and still sold.
Haven't had a television in over 20 years and no longer have the internet at home:-)
I mostly use trailing-edge technology for news and social media:
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Q_Zi3lbuoHw/VGaiW3nBcAI/AAAAAAAAMrM/LCj2aL7DuUk/s720-Ic42/Awesomized.jpg
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6TSct4OWm14/VGak0QwKvgI/AAAAAAAAMro/DPV-3C30qJM/s720-Ic42/Awesomized.jpg
No cable here as far back as a I can remember. Dh worked up an antenna out of wire hangers and put it in the attic. Works great! We get quite a few channels including 4 PBS stations which is plenty for us. Though we do have Netflix with a Roku gadget for streaming shows and movies.
No cell phones. At all.
These are probably the 2 things that most people find surprising. But it's not a sacrifice at all for us, we genuinely have no desire or need for either of these. Oh, we have a couple of things that come with gps but don't use it. I prefer to look things up and make my own way there.
There's probably other stuff but it's so normal to us that we don't notice it.
Ok, one more, neither one of us uses social media at all (no facebook, instagram, twitter, whatever else there is). Dh used Linkedin when he was looking for a job and I set up a pinterest when I was looking to do some things around the house. Both have been left to languish since.
This is the only online forum I'm active on. When I think about joining others (like MMM or bogleheads for finance/retirement stuff) it makes me feel tired just thinking about it.
Bae, I love your phrase "trailing-edge technology"!
We live out in the country where there is no cable tv and we don't watch enough to justify having satellite. I do have Netflix and that is plenty for us.
We stopped the cable service a few years ago. We weren't watching anyway. But we do enjoy Netflix and sometimes I just want to watch my local news. So I spent $18 CAD and got rabbit ears for the television and now I can get the CBC's local feed. For free. And a really excellent picture: apparently digital over the air is good.
I like the concept of trailing edge technology....
Cable TV? Love it. Totally worth it. I like having a couple of hundred channels to choose from. Sometimes I feel like an old Western, or an out of town ball game, or an Avengers re-run. I like channel surfing. I find it soothing. I could no more live on a steady diet of PBS than I could a steady diet of turnips.
For some reason, cable is one of those little luxuries (like lattes) that people are always spend-shaming each other about. There are plenty of other areas where I economize. For instance, I never bought into that whole “I travel because I’d rather spend it on experiences” rationale. There are many other things I’ll give up before I cut myself off from the golf channel or the yachting channel or the DIY channel.
spend-shaming
Interesting phrase...
LDAHL, I couldn't agree more. I look at Netflix and can't find much I want to watch. I'd be happy to use an alternative to cable if there were one with no sports channels but lots of news and information channels and a full complement of Discovery offerings. I don't get the "experiences" thing either--I forget the details of experiences the minute they're over. Sometimes before they're over. :D And I despise traveling itself--pure torture. I long for teleportation, because I'd love to be in Europe but I can't hack the trip.
And I can't be spend-shamed. It's my money.
I think much of this stuff about TV varies by person.
I'd like to know more about the research behind TV consumption -- how it plays into mental and physical health, demographic trends, etc.
But for me, I get sucked into shows about zombies or doomsday. Even then, it is hard for me to follow through and watch it all.
Maybe I am hyperactive or "self-motivated" or some such. I'd just rather be out doing stuff like fishing, paddling my canoe, zipping through a park on my bicycle, sporting clays (pricey but fun!), and so forth. And when I am stuck inside I like to read books of all kinds or dabble in oddball hobbies, like origami or what-have-you.
It is just rare for a TV program to really grab me, even if it is on socialist PBS. haha
Short funny videos on youtube can hook me though!
For some reason, cable is one of those little luxuries (like lattes) that people are always spend-shaming each other about.
My mother-in-law passed away recently, and we likely won't sell her house until late summer. My cousin is living in it now for a bit. I was going over the budget for the house, because it all comes out of the heirs' pockets. $200/month on cable/Internet service, and it's *bad* Internet service, whenever I've been there I've just used the cellular data network instead.
So we cut that out completely. Cousin watches TV maybe 2-3 hours a week, and uses his phone for the Internet anyway.
LDAHL, I couldn't agree more. I look at Netflix and can't find much I want to watch. I'd be happy to use an alternative to cable if there were one with no sports channels but lots of news and information channels and a full complement of Discovery offerings. I don't get the "experiences" thing either--I forget the details of experiences the minute they're over. Sometimes before they're over. :D And I despise traveling itself--pure torture. I long for teleportation, because I'd love to be in Europe but I can't hack the trip.
And I can't be spend-shamed. It's my money.
The way I see it, for the price of three miserable weeks in Europe I can enjoy Swamp People, Texas Flip and Move, and Angie Tribeca for the rest of my life, plus watch the Chicago Cubs extend their losing streak another few decades. Total no-brainer.
My mother-in-law passed away recently, and we likely won't sell her house until late summer. My cousin is living in it now for a bit. I was going over the budget for the house, because it all comes out of the heirs' pockets. $200/month on cable/Internet service, and it's *bad* Internet service, whenever I've been there I've just used the cellular data network instead.
So we cut that out completely. Cousin watches TV maybe 2-3 hours a week, and uses his phone for the Internet anyway.
We don't pay that much. My wife calls our provider every six months (we've learned that's the limit) and browbeats them into various deals. She's great on the phone. I listened to her making a telemarketer cry once - I love her so much.
I listened to her making a telemarketer cry once
On the rare occasion I get a telemarketer I still do the Sienfeld thing.
"Hey, I am kind of busy right now. But if you give me your home phone number I will call you back around dinner time."
Usually a hang up happens after that.
We are just about to get "skinny cable" packaging available....a lower cost fewer options plan. The CRTC is making the companies do it but they are not happy. Still packaging their "bundles" which don't have savings but "save" you from getting multiple bills per month. Anyway, twenty five bucks. But we already pay over $100 for internet and phone so that's on TOP of what we're paying. I think I might stick to my netflix and rabbit ears for local news.
Sometimes though I just want to drop on the couch and surf. Probably not enough to pay for it, though.
One of my best friends told me the funniest thing last night. Her home is in a rural area, in the woods. Their driveway is 1/2 mile long. Cable isn't available and a satellite dish doesn't even work for them. They get two network channels if they're lucky. Well, at Christmas (even though their house isn't visible from the road) they always put up Christmas lights and this year added a lighted metal reindeer to the roof. Well, they discovered they were able to get PBS with the deer on the roof, so they're leaving it up there! She finally was able to watch Downton Abbey and her hubs can watch Oregon Field Guide! And as an added bonus, they get to embarrass their kids every time one brings over a friend to the house that still has a reindeer on the roof!
Teacher Terry
3-9-16, 8:40pm
WE both love our cable and would never give it up. We also love to travel.
One of my best friends told me the funniest thing last night. Her home is in a rural area, in the woods. Their driveway is 1/2 mile long. Cable isn't available and a satellite dish doesn't even work for them. They get two network channels if they're lucky. Well, at Christmas (even though their house isn't visible from the road) they always put up Christmas lights and this year added a lighted metal reindeer to the roof. Well, they discovered they were able to get PBS with the deer on the roof, so they're leaving it up there! She finally was able to watch Downton Abbey and her hubs can watch Oregon Field Guide! And as an added bonus, they get to embarrass their kids every time one brings over a friend to the house that still has a reindeer on the roof!
That is one of the funniest things I've ever heard!
ApatheticNoMore
3-9-16, 10:17pm
I don't' own a t.v.. By the way have I ever mentioned I don't own a t.v.? I also don't travel that much, locally sometimes.
That is one of the funniest things I've ever heard!
I love that story.
goldensmom
3-10-16, 7:41am
Grew up on 1.5 channels depending on weather.
I am watching a lot of old shows that are on Dish Network right now and my husband will comment on how old the show is and I tell him that they are new to me because they weren't on either channel I got when they were new.
I don't' own a t.v.. By the way have I ever mentioned I don't own a t.v.?
I've always found it odd when people brag about not watching television. I don't own a snowmobile, but you don't see me boasting about it.
SteveinMN
3-10-16, 12:23pm
I've always found it odd when people brag about not watching television. I don't own a snowmobile, but you don't see me boasting about it.
That's a variation of the spend-shaming you mentioned earlier. The same applies to social media and, sometimes, even Internet use. I don't know as ANM is bragging about not owning a TV. But lots of people do. *shrug*
That's a variation of the spend-shaming you mentioned earlier. The same applies to social media and, sometimes, even Internet use. I don't know as ANM is bragging about not owning a TV. But lots of people do. *shrug*
Well, this thread is about things we don't do but that are considered mainstream or "normal" in our culture. Wouldn't talking about cable, tv, and social media apply? How is that bragging? Or spend-shaming?
If LDHAL wants to buy cable, what do I care? How am I shaming him by saying that cable is not important enough to me to spend money on it? Does LDHAL care that I would rather spend my money on my cats and dogs? I doubt it.
This whole thing is so tiring. I don't understand why people have to butt into a positive conversation and turn it into something negative and argumentative.
I'm going to go outside now and retrieve my happy mojo that I just lost here! cow-hi
SteveinMN
3-10-16, 12:44pm
Well, this thread is about things we don't do but that are considered mainstream or "normal" in our culture. Wouldn't talking about cable, tv, and social media apply? How is that bragging? Or spend-shaming?
If LDHAL wants to buy cable, what do I care? How am I shaming him by saying that cable is not important enough to me to spend money on it? Does LDHAL care that I would rather spend my money on my cats and dogs? I doubt it.
This whole thing is so tiring. I don't understand why people have to butt into a positive conversation and turn it into something negative and argumentative.
I would recommend a re-read of my post.
Having cable is mainstream in our culture. LDAHL enjoys his cable, to the point where he would forfeit paying for other things. I have no issue with that. Not my choice, but whatever. LDAHL was responding to ANM's comment about not owning a TV and observing what the comment would sound like with another consumer item mentioned.
And, honestly, I see it again and again here, numerous posters who don't necessarily take on a haughty tone about TV or social media or mobile phone use. But many mention their lack of objects in a way that implies they are superior for not having/using that item.
My PoV is to do what you want. If you're paying for it and you enjoy it and you're not hurting anyone else by using it, go forth. Fine with me if people never turn off their TV or send thousands of texts a month. I don't want to do that, so I don't. The choice to not have something is not inherently superior to choosing to have it. But the implication raises its ugly head often and sometimes even here.
My point is this: we are confronted daily with the reality that humans are suffering on a massive scale around the world, and sometimes in our own backyards. People are killed, tortured, starved, women and children raped and killed, families losing their homes and livelihoods. And there's not much we can do about it on a personal level.
To see that, daily, and then manufacture negativity just for the sake of being argumentative or peevish is almost disgusting. In some countries, today, women are beaten and killed by their male family members as punishment for being raped. The humiliation and shame endured by the women themselves is of no consequence. And even in this country, if a women is raped, she is bound to experience deep shame, sometimes for a lifetime. And that is just the tip of the iceberg, in terms of how people experience shame over events in their lifetimes. To sit here and say, 'oh, when you say that you don't want to pay for cable, you are spend-shaming me...' boo-hoo. For cryin' out loud. Talk about white whine.
ApatheticNoMore
3-10-16, 6:38pm
Hmm, my repeating twice in the post I don't own a t.v. was meant as a humorous reference to a skit that has been mentioned here about not owning a t.v. and going on and on about it. It was a bit of an in-joke.
But I don't own a t.v. so it's a factual statement and since it was a thread about not having cable .... I think t.v. overall is a negative influence on the culture so it might indeed be better not to have it, but that doesn't mean some shows aren't good, and that watching a t.v. show is original sin or something. I'm very happy my bf also doesn't own a t.v. - this makes me happy, but it wasn't anything I did, they were that way long before meeting me.
To sit here and say, 'oh, when you say that you don't want to pay for cable, you are spend-shaming me...' boo-hoo. For cryin' out loud. Talk about white whine.
See it as you wish to see it. Viewed through that lens, really, this entire board does not need to exist. What is the sense of, say, declaring our happiness over moving a hundred items out of our domicile when other people are sleeping in open fields?
I'm not denying such suffering exists. I do believe it's incumbent on those who have to help out those who don't. Living simply so that others may simply live is a valid (if oversimplified) reaction to the world's problems. But I do not think LDAHL's or my responses were out of character for the thread. We can all wind ourselves up over some amazing stuff.
iris lilies
3-12-16, 2:51pm
I've always found it odd when people brag about not watching television. I don't own a snowmobile, but you don't see me boasting about it.
Uh, just because I dont have cable or streaming or sateillite service doesn't mean I dont watch tv productions. I watch a lot of tv as I think those here know.
I must admit to, since I retired, watching 2x weekly streaming tv at the home of my friend and neghbor. She has ALL the services (but as I have explained prior, I still ak not impressed with the selection. DVD is STILL the best deliverer of content, and you also get extra features.)
At the moment Ive got 4 Dvds from the library with tv content. Ive got a dvd from
netflix service that I gave to my friend because she cant get True
detective Season 2 on any of her streaming services for free. Shes gotta pay for it.
iris lilies
3-12-16, 3:31pm
?...But I don't own a t.v. so it's a factual statement and since it was a thread about not having cable ....
well, the thread is intended as a bigger topic, mainly about trends circling around so that what was once out of the norm is now mainstream. If you sit long enough in one place, you will find yourself to be "in" . For a while anyway.
Yes, but before there was cable TV, there was no Internet, no Netflix, no streaming services, no DVDs available for library checkout. Life is indeed good. ;)
iris lilies
3-12-16, 3:36pm
Like clothng styles. What will be the next trend thats a riff on something I wore at one point in my younger days?
I can hardly wait cor the purebred dog trend of French bulldogs and Bulldogs to die down. I wish for a world where people want Bulldogs be ause they are attrqcted to the breed, not because they are cool to have and oh yeah by the way, they like bulldogs. (well, who doesn't?)
iris lilies
3-12-16, 3:37pm
Yes, but before there was cable TV, there was no Internet, no Netflix, no streaming services, no DVDs available for library checkout. Life is indeed good. ;)
Oh yes, that is all true!
Teacher Terry
3-12-16, 5:43pm
The young people mostly don't have cable from what i have seen so it will be interesting what the cable companies do when all us old timers kick off.
ToomuchStuff
3-13-16, 3:23am
The young people mostly don't have cable from what i have seen so it will be interesting what the cable companies do when all us old timers kick off.
I was at a meeting where they were discussing the coming back of cable boxes. After one of them and I had a casual conversation, after that no more meetings happened around us. From a cost standpoint, I understand where they are coming from. From a cost verse offering standpoint, I understand where I am coming from.
Notice that they and so many other companies have merged in partnerships/co ownerships, etc. I expect them to try to expand their "you subscribe to tv, so you can view these online" offerings more. I expect them to try to up the cost for the bandwidth, so cable cutters can view their content online. And also push the other services that fewer take, but take because of a discount, then don't cancel (phone service, for example).
I can watch what I want online. Some via the stations channel, others via other methods (proxy or other sites for foreign content). If a $$ per channel option was available, I and a lot more would probably subscribe. At some point, I expect them to see that, as a cost effective solution, to give x channels to the mac address of your internet connection. (pretty much give me one show, when it comes out)
well, the thread is intended as a bigger topic, mainly about trends circling around so that what was once out of the norm is now mainstream. If you sit long enough in one place, you will find yourself to be "in" . For a while anyway.
Along those lines, I've actually bypassed Kindle and bought used books on Amazon, which are now cheaper than Kindle versions. For a while I bought the Kindle versions because they were cheaper, but now you can get good used books for a penny plus shipping which works out cheaper than the Kindle versions, the price of which has risen. I don't know if that's going to be a trend, though.
Of course, a classic example are vinyls, which were nowhere to be found except boomer garage sales, and now all hip stores have a vinyl section, and cool retro turntables. I personally don't have a turntable, but all my kids have them.
ANP, I appreciated your post. Got a chuckle out of it:-)
Gardenarian
3-13-16, 7:32pm
I always thought the not having TV/cable thing was more about time than money?
I instigated a TV Turn Off Week campaign for my town (back when TV was actually TV) and it was mostly directed at encouraging people to read, play board/card games, do crafts and DIY, and get outside - and primarily for families with children. It was not so much about what is on television but to suggest the things one might be missing - though getting away from the commercialism on TV was a point, too. TV Turn Off Week was invented (as far as I know) by Adbusters (http://www.adbusters.org/) - still very creative anti-consumerists.
I feel like everyone on this board has given these issues a lot of thought, and whether they have cable or not, or TV or not, doesn't really matter. It's more important that people make a conscious choice about the best way to spend their time and money.
We (I) dropped cable and our land-line last fall. I figured we could buy a new smart TV with the money we saved in less than a year. We have the interior antennae which work pretty well and we subscribe to Netflix, Sling TV, Hulu and CBS All Access (antennae don't pick up our local CBS station). My kids are great with it; it's my DH who isn't happy. He misses being able to sit and just click through channels and back and forth. I find it better the "new" way for us because you have to be mindful about sitting down to watch TV.
Williamsmith
4-8-16, 8:48am
Ok so I realize I'm entering this discussion way late, so late that the topic is already dead. But I just got my cable/internet rate increase and it was difficult to initiate the payment this time. Let me acknowledge, I love watching MLB and the Golf Channel, cable news, and the wife is addicted to HGTV. Was it a coincidence that the rate increase came during the first round of the Masters Tournament?
So I Was paying $127/mo and they raised the base rate $10 last month. I sucked it up but this month the bill went up another $8 when they started charging rental fees for devices that were previously free. Add to it a doubling of state taxes and the bill went up 15%. There's that magic number again.
Do I love my cable TV? Sure. Question is how much. I find that there are just a few channels I regularly watch and that much of the offerings are of no interest to me. But how do you navigate through what it would look like to adopt a different technology, not lose anything you want and reduce cost? I'm convinced cable television realizes people my age are reluctant to change and their marketing reflects this.
I view satelite service as another trap. If I tried to capture free tv all I would get would be two local affiliates. Are the streaming subscriptions a viable option with smart tv?
I wonder if streaming from the computer to the Smart TV would solve that problem William Smith. I am too lazy to do much about it except call the cable company to reduce the rate which usually works but has to be done every year and of course it never goes down to the original rate, just less of an increase.
Are the streaming subscriptions a viable option with smart tv?
Well, yes ... and no. If there's just one (maybe two) you'd want, you should come up cheaper. But at $5-15 a pop each month, plus the cost of the broadband Internet that makes it all work, would you save enough to justify the expense of a smart TV or outboard box (if you need one)?
One little gotcha we've discovered is that some of the streaming options you'd expect to be free are not. DW likes a number of shows which are on CBS. We get that fine with an antenna here, but we know we're a little lucky in that respect. CBS does not participate in Hulu (as ABC, Fox, and NBC do). So our Hulu subscription is useless here. Streaming CBS requires their "All Access" subscription -- at $6 a month. (CBS News is free, but the shows cost.) ABC's smart TV/outboard box app is free, but using it requires logging in to ABC as a cable or satellite customer. Fortunately we kept our super-duper-basic cable TV with our Comcast broadband Internet or we wouldn't be able to stream ABC (though we can pluck it from the air over the house for the cost of an antenna). It's still a bit of a minefield.
It won't help you much with live sports, but DW found that many of the shows she wanted to watch after the fact are posted surreptitiously to YouTube shortly after broadcast. Quality is all over the map, from YouTube's best video quality and skipped commercials, to a straight screen-scrape with poor contrast and all the bugs and crawlers present on the original. You also never know when the content producer issues a cease-and-desist and whoever posted it has to take it down, so don't count on archiving anything for long. But if you can get YouTube videos with sufficient quality on a device, you may be able to watch some stuff for free.
Cable access is much cheaper--and faster--in other parts of the world, partly because there is no competition to speak of here. We really should break the stranglehold Comcast and others have on us--perhaps by installing municipal fiber-based access?
HappyHiker
4-10-16, 9:19pm
We've got the very basic cable for something like $8.00 bucks a month. We've considered more pricey cable but...I do some pet/home-sitting and after viewing the offerings on fancier cable in clients' homes, I decided I could make better use of my time than watching Judge Judy, Hoarders (although I do find this sickly fascinating, my bad) and the old black and white movies on TCM.
Now, if I were a sports fan or into cooking, home shopping, decorating shows--or any of the Survivor-type shows (please let your loincloth slip just once) I could see the allure, but I'm not...so the basic cable, which gives us PBS, works fine.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2025 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.