Senior Moments
By Charles P. Eberson
A Senior’s Observations, Opinions and Rantings
Judging by the sheer number of self help books available in book stores or online, podcasts, classes, etc., there appears to be a real desire to improves one’s lot in life or at least improve one’s outlook. No matter how many books or podcasts one takes in, it takes a lot work. I’ve read my share of books, articles and heard a few podcasts in the areas I feel I need improvement. Although I am pretty set in my ways I still try and make some small changes. I also try and take cues from people I admire, which was the case this weekend. We have just finished visiting some friends with a true entrepreneurial spirit in New England. They run a farm and a small motel in a beautiful locale surrounded by mountains. The wife makes jams and soaps which are sold in the motel lobby and the husband brings in his fresh baked goods every morning. I wondered how they had time for everything until we started talking about the TV and how we scroll through the guide endlessly to find something to watch. They don’t have a TV and no, they don’t watch streaming video on their computer. They use their time productively. It brought me back to the time when our children were living with us and I shared the fact with my wife that we had 5 TV’s in the house. We didn’t think it was excessive. We had one in the living room, a small one on the kitchen counter, one in our bedroom and one in both of the children’s rooms. Thankfully, we are down to the one in our living room now but I confess, I watch that way too much. We start out with the local news after dinner and then it continues on with national news. This is then followed by the talking heads spewing forth opinions on Trump, the Democrats, North Korea and NFL players. I watch until my blood pressure tops out. I can count on one hand the shows I truly enjoy and look forward to. The TV used to be a comfortable place to which I could escape. That is no longer the case, but yet, I still persist. In the evenings, as I took my dog on his walk before bed, I noticed I was not alone in my TV habits. The glow from the TV was emanating from practically every home. How much more productive and content would we all be if we cut back on TV in the evenings? I, for one am going to find out. I probably won’t be making jams or soaps but who knows?
