by Moe Zilla

Created on: February 02, 2008   Last Updated: May 11, 2009

"There'd be time for everything in life, if we just didn't watch television." My high school teacher preached that philosophy, but as I've gotten older, I realize there's some truth to it. Here's some tips for how to keep television from taking over your life.

Keep track of the time spent watching TV.
Some families limit their children to a set number of hours per week. But it's a surprisingly effective trick, forcing choices and eliminating weak shows from your schedule. It also puts a number to the amount of time spent watching television. Looking back on a week, you can ask what else could've been done instead of watching television.

Read all about it.
Several web sites offer humorous written descriptions of every episode. Reading those is not only quicker than watching the whole thing - it can also be more fun.

Cancel the cable TV subscription.
If the shows aren't available, you can't watch them. I personally think most cable TV shows are over-rated anyways, and the best ones become available through syndication or DVDs.

"No TV for a week."
Just try it once. As soon as the habit gets broken, it's easier to continue skipping shows. The 2008 writer's strike sent most programs
into re-runs, reminding viewers that there wasn't much to miss.

Develop other interests.
The Harry Potter books captivated a generation, and there's hundreds of other books which are just as exciting as any TV show. When you're craving a fix of entertainment, try to break the TV habit with a book instead. Even if there's a few favorite shows that you can't resist, there's still ways to keep TV-watching from swallowing all your free time.

Watch TV shows online.
Most online commercial breaks last just 15 seconds. For an hour-long program, this eliminates nearly 15 minutes of commercials. And some web sites even offer quick "recap" episodes online, allowing you to keep up with the story-line without having to watch the entire episode.

Watch DVDs instead.
Every quality show gets released on DVD, where it can be watched in digital clarity, and without commercials. There's no waiting a week to watch the next episode, and sometimes DVDs even included deleted scenes. Plus, it makes it possible to watch the entire series, without missing an episode.

Remember, your TV will become useless in in 2009 - at least, until it's upgraded to receive digital broadcasts! Maybe the government's trying to tell you something. It's a good time to start transitioning to another medium altogether!

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