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Television in the time of Covid

Wed, 09/23/2020 - 5:00 am

We are totally flooded with choices when it comes to nighttime entertainment. Most of us still hold onto that cable or satellite dish to connect us to “regular television.” Whereas the younger, more hip generation is going its own way. They have cut the cord (or cable) and have filled their evenings with a plethora of internet-based television shows.

Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu … the list is probably endless because as you are reading this, some company has decided to expand its business into videos, television shows, internet lessons, or the sale of their passed-over merchandise.

Although I still hold onto my satellite dish for local news, weather, and the national news, I find myself bingeing on movies, cooking shows and even a British mystery or two. I don’t get a lot of joy from watching Survivor or Big Brother or even Keeping up with the Kardashians. To sit for hours watching people try to hurt someone else is not my thing. Watching famous people be famous… just because doesn’t thrill me. However, I do enjoy the competitions between chefs, the contests for the best new designers, the rivalries between smart people on Jeopardy, and of course a little football.

Now, my friends will think I’ve gone nuts. My family will have the police do a welfare check. Football … or any sport has never been a big interest to me. For one thing, I know nothing about it. If it were not for the strip of information at the bottom of the television screen, I wouldn’t know who was playing whom or what color their “costumes” were.

However, my “man-friend” has been staying with me due to injuries and other health problems. He doesn’t like British detective shows. The language barrier is a problem. Even with the captions, he had a hard time understanding the Queen’s English. It took him a good two weeks to figure out what a fortnight was.

I’m still getting in my cooking and designing shows. I have plenty of time to catch up on Grantchester, The British Baking Show, and will make time to watch Project Runway when it comes back. After all, the man must sleep, sometime.

We’ve compromised on a lot of our viewing. Find me a crime show with a lot of good repartee between the characters, a couple of hunky men, and a modicum of puddled blood, and I enjoy it. He does, too. Maybe not the hunky men, but they do carry guns and knock people around, so he’s happy.

Last week everything changed. Despite Covid19, football season started in America. Testosterone oozed from the screen. Although there were the restrictions of cutout crowds and masked officials, players rushed onto the fields to the sound of people cheering everywhere. I decided to “take one for the Gipper,” and join him in the living room for the first game.

I brought my crossword puzzle and Kindle reader. I figured my presence in the room was enough. But … with a little explanation from him and a lot of excitement on the field, I “got into the game.” I found myself cheering for the field goals, bashing the rude players who intentionally knocked those people down, and staying up for the end of the game, although my “man-friend” fell asleep and had to watch the recording the next day.

I’m not getting much laundry done, my dishes have a tendency to pile up, and my exercise routine is falling behind. However, I’ve found lots of shows to watch on television … even on the old-fashioned connections.