There are those who don’t watch television because they’re making a statement. Namely, “My mind is too precious to be allowed to rot in front of a t.v. screen.” There are also those who simply don’t have the time to spend five hours per day (still the national average) entirely checked out. Then there are folks like yours truly, who hasn’t had cable since 1993 when I lived in Chico, California at home with my mom. My reason for eschewing the box? I don’t like t.v. shows! It’s that simple! In addition, it isn’t possible to find solid news reporting on t.v., so aside from the nature and history channels, what’s the point? For me, there isn’t one. For me, there’s Netflix.

However.

It’s inconvenient as hell to not have cable.

Why? Because I’m pop-culture illiterate. I’ve never seen “American Idol”. Never watched an episode of “The Sopranos” or “Lost” (check that, I did watch one episode of “Lost” online once out of curiosity but found it less than compelling.). Sure, my electricity bills (and thus my sacred carbon footprint) are lower, but so is my social-IQ. I often find myself unable to contribute to the most common conversations - those where the participants really have no common interests so they talk about t.v. shows to pass the time and forge the temporary illusion of bonding. Outcast and without a tribe, even an illusory one, I do sometimes pine for cable.

So.

So yesterday I used that awkwardly-designed iTunes contraption to download two episodes of “My Name is Earl.” And, while I wasn’t blown away I did find them amusing. I don’t think it works without Jason Lee, however. He’s fantastic. I don’t have a crush on him like I had on Miranda July last week (my crush’s only last one week. sorry miranda. sorry angelina. sorry mr. cheney), but I’ve always liked the guy.

Anyway, the show’s premise, as you likely know, has to do with Earl trying to right every wrong he’s ever committed - crossing each one off his huge list as he goes. I can identify with this. So can you, I’m betting, if you’re at this site (there are two reasons for viewing this site. you’re either a committed eco-warrior or you have a crush on ME. so far, traffic has been equally split between the two.). Each day, we try to figure out how to not commit some of the eco-fouls we committed the day before. And, going through life in a first-world country, it’s awfully difficult to not only do better every day, but to not make new mistakes, to not add new tasks to the “list” (See Tod Brilliant, Hypocrite-Extraordinaire).

After watching Earl do his damndest to do his best, I must say I’ve been reinvigorated to do the same. This morning, I wiped my backside using the “Sheryl Crow” method, using only two sheets of toilet paper in the process (I did waste a bit more soap and water than usual washing up, however). For breakfast, I went outside and harvested some strawberries and ate eggs provided by my friend Jen’s very happy chickens. No joking. These are easy adjustments. From this day forth, like Earl Hickey, I will consult my checklist and strive to reduce my eco-karma. Thanks Jason Lee, star and producer. Thank you, network television and iTunes for working together to show me the light.

Song o’ the Day is a cover song. The The does a blistering version of Hank Williams’ “I Saw the Light”. You should check it out. [audio:thethe.mp3]

american-idol, carbon-footprint, cultural-illiteracy, earl-hickey, inconvenient-life, itunes, jason-lee, my-name-is-earl, sheryl-crow, television

Tags: Inconveniences

This entry was posted on Monday, May 21st, 2007 at 10:31 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.