WITHOUT TVThe most radical thing we

WITHOUT TV

The most radical thing we have ever done is not have a TV in our house. Since 99.1 percent of American housewives cannot make this claim, it may be of some interest to know why. Certainly, our lack of a television has created great curiosity, puzzlement, and anger among the people we know, and I suspect even more of these emotions behind our backs. ‘If the Wetherells get away without a TV, why can’t we?’
We did have a television during the first days of our marriage. I remember the dizzy way the images flickered across the screen. A few days later, after I recovered my senses, we took the set to our local dump, shook hands in satisfaction and have been without one ever since.
Now that my TV watching days are behind me, I can afford to be nostalgic towards it all. I remember those nights when the whole family used to sit in the living room watching Ed Sullivan, one soft light left on in the corner, laughing at the comedians before the commercials came on. Nevertheless, even warmer and more precious in memory will be these quiet, peaceful years with no TV at all.