Editor, Unplugged

by Brian Howard

On the brink of the digital television conversion on June 12, I've disconnected myself from cable television completely. Over the weekend I made the decision to cut the cord and, as of this writing, I've been gloriously free of cable programming for four whole days.

It may be coincidence that this decision correlated with the most productive weekend I've enjoyed in some time. I got so much shit done over Memorial Day weekend it boggles my mind.

That it took me years to make the decision speaks to the level to which television — and 24-hour access to hundreds of crappy channels, news, entertainment and otherwise — had infiltrated my life.

The simple fact of the matter is that I was watching too much TV. Way too much. I recognized it. I'd attempted to curtail it. But it had become like a drug. And I seemed to have no control. I'd upgraded to a bajillion channels and a DVR when I switched from cheapo analog cable to digital a few years back, figuring I'd record just the shows I wanted to watch and watch them only when I wanted to watch them. No more being forced to stay up till midnight to watch Stewart and Colbert, I thought. Woo!

Which would have been brilliant had I not then stayed up till 3 a.m. watching reruns of Law and Order: Criminal Intent and SVU, Ice Road Truckers, Dollhouse, Cities of the Underworld, Scrubs, House, Jurassic Fight Club and like 10 other shows that, in the past, I'd never have been around to watch.

Attempts to scale back the number of channels I received were fruitless, and my request to exchange my DVR for a regular box was met with an offer of more channels (free HBO!) if I'd keep it. I had to go cold turkey.

And so I did. Admit it, you've been thinking about it yourself, especially in these tight economic times. "How are you going to watch all the trash on the boob tube?" one friend asked (yes, my friend Upma says "boob tube"). "How will you watch the Phillies?"

I suspect I'll get one of those digital converters I hear so much about so I can continue to watch the local channels. (Antennaweb.org is a great resource for figuring out what you should be able to get where you live.) And I've already begun to rediscover the joys of watching the Phillies on the radio.

HALF OFF DEPOT

Why live life at full price?

Another friend, Chris, who canceled his own cable in October, has been looking into more advanced options. There's the Roku box, which allows you to stream Netflix films. And Western Digital's WD TV box, which serves as a link between your hard drive and your TV. Chris, who is much more technically inclined than I, admits he "thinks about this a lot," and that he's honed in on a combination of a Netflix account and a Mac Mini running a program called Boxee (boxee.tv) that "is pretty much all you need."

I won't say I don't miss my always-on fix. My girlfriend and I are both going through a bit of withdrawal, popping DVDs (hello, Wholphin) like Gregory House pops Vicodin and (re)watching Arrested Development on Hulu. But the nice thing is what I've rediscovered. Like the fact that I can listen to radio stations from across the country and the world on iTunes. And that I can do other things while listening to them. And I'm certain I won't miss the $70 or so monthly cable bill. In several ways, I feel like I've woken up from a nap, or emerged from a fog.

"Do you think we'll be smarter now that we don't have TV?" my girlfriend joked.

I'm not sure, but I plan to keep you apprised of my findings on The Clog.

Extra, Extra

When you read Carolyn Huckabay's excellent profile on T. Desiree Hines, covergirl/classical organist/organizer of the Philadelphia GLBT Arts Festival, check out Neal Santos' video footage of Hines as she explains her connection to the classical pipe organ, and plays the hell out of the one at First Unitarian Church.

(bhoward@citypaper.net)