Cable TV or no Cable TV??
2009
We have had an ongoing conversation in our house about the Cable TV….whether it is worth having and paying for or not. My husband thinks it’s crap! and just hates all the commercials and all the channels that have nothing on them to watch. Most of the time I agree and so we are as a couple avid Netflix watchers.
We watch English TV shows, movies and the like all the time from Netflix and rarely turn on the regular TV which is fine with me because if/when we do watch cable…..he moans and complains about the commercials and the content in general! 
He is right, there are too many commercials and for the most part there just isn’t anything worthy of my time on the television…..especially if I can get it on Netflix sans commercials!
We almost cut it off completely last fall…I agonized a bit as one of the only shows I like….is yes, I admit it…..General Hospital! I was a bit crushed that I had to give up my daily fix of GH and my hubby said I could probably watch on line etc….but that seemed like a lot of work to me! Then I thought, well, we will save a bit of money on our monthly bills and that’s a good thing so OK, yes let’s do it…..well, we didn’t do i!. Our youngest had just gotten bitten by the Noggin bug and was enjoying Max and Ruby, Franklin, and Maggie and the Ferocious Beast just to name a few so we relented and kept it on.
Fast forward 6 months and Noggin has recently moved to Boomerang and Nickelodeon which unlike Noggin….has commercials for all the toys and junk out there to attract the kiddies and it’s awful. She was starting the “Mommy, I want that!” syndrome! And I, well I was a bit convicted last week about my GH addiction and what a time waster that is…..not to mention HGTV….yes, I love that show Design to Sell and Design on a Dime! Not that I sit in front of the TV for hours or anything….but even 1 1/2 to 2 hours a day…..that’s a lot! I could be doing the decorating and the crafts rather than watching them on the TV right?
So, I had a talk with my youngest about the TV on Sunday night and Monday morning, I told her that if we didn’t have Noggin and the other shows on the big TV downstairs….that maybe we could get some more movies for her and we could spend more time together doing things like puzzles, play-dates, going to the park, and maybe doing some more crafts etc, how would she like that? and she thought about it….and said that sounded like a great idea! So, I am pleased to say this week we have not turned the TV on at all….(OK, I confess, I turned it on yesterday during GH but felt like I was cheating so I turned it back off!) 
My son is more into computer games and the like….and the stuff he watches, well, let’s just say garbage in…..if you know what I mean! And he spends his time between his dad’s and my house so he will get his TV fix at his dad’s house. So, while there is moaning…..he’ll get over it….right!
It was kind of a “trial” for me if you will and I can honestly say I really haven’t missed it so I guess am ready to pull the plug! It’s a very freeing feeling really! Wahoo!! (and my husband didn’t even have to lay down the law or anything!!!!!) So, Monday I am heading down to the Cable office with my digital box and calling it quits on cable!
If you have any thoughts or success stories on this do let me know!!!! I am all ears! especially since the TV isn’t on! 
Cheers!
Grace
I quit cable two years ago and I was a TV addict. With an off-air antennae I still get all the local channels in HD and it is free. I find myself reading more and, like you, really putting my Netflix to use. Not having immediate access to 200+ channels really keeps me from watching so-so shows just for something to do.
There are so many ways to watch TV (if you must) without cable now, such as http://www.Hulu.com and DVD box sets. I don’t know about your town, but we have several stores that buy and sale used DVDs. I’ll often buy a season of a show, watch it, then trade it in for credit towards the next season. Amazon.com’s used marketplace is awesome as well.