12 Channels and Nothing On - Resolution Update

This past Saturday a strange man came to my home and took away my cable (and digital phone). Well, most of it at least. For some strange reason the total cost of my internet is cheaper if I have basic cable than if I don't. When Comcast gets in line for their Federal bailout, I may have to balk a little.

Do I miss it? Eh...a little. When I come home tonight after class and can't watch Top Chef, I will definitely miss it, but other than that, it's not really a big deal. When I heard how much cheaper my Comcast bill was going to be, I knew it was going to be pretty easy to get over it.

So out of 5 New Year's resolutions - 1 was a joke, 1 is complete, 1 haven't had a whole lot of opportunity to do anything with, but consider myself on track, and 2 are left.

New Year's Resolution #5

I will go see/hear the Chicago Symphony Orchestra

I'm ashamed to admit I've lived in this city for 15 years minus 3 and I've never been to see and hear the CSO. I've been to Symphony Center once, to see Mavis Staples (doing a tribute to Mahalia Jackson, many years ago), and I've heard the Grant Park Symphony Orchestra on a number of occasions, but never the CSO. Now that I've been to Second City and taken classes at the Old Town School of Folk Music, this is #1 on my list of things I will hate myself for not having done if I leave Chicago.

New Year's Resolution #4

I will go to the dentist

There's a Simpsons' scene where Lisa asks the saxophonist Bleeding Gums Murphy how he got his name. He asks Lisa "You ever been to the dentist?". She replies, "Yes". He says, "I haven't".

While I've certainly been to the dentist before in my life, it's been a long time. Years. Many. It's a catch-22 for me really. While I can certainly scrape up the funds for a check-up and cleaning, I have a fear that it's not going to end there - that I'm going to be told I need more painful and painfully expensive work. So I don't go because I don't want to face this reality. But the longer I don't go, probably the more I'm going to need and the more expensive it's going to be. So the problem just perpetuates itself.

But this is the year, I promise, I'm going, and more sooner than later.

New Year's Resolution #3

I will get rid of my cable

I've been promising myself I would do this for the last year or so. With the newfound ability to stream Hulu and Netflix to my TV, and the financial crunch being what it is, the time has come. No, I don't have any grand aspirations about watching less, reading more, getting out, etc...If I can't do all those things with cable, I'm not going to be drawn to them without it. If it's mindless entertainment I'm after, I'm sure to find it elsewhere. The reality is though that I'm not a major junkie. I rarely turn it on just to see what's on, but rather watch with intention. That's not to say I'm watching Nova or C-Span or anything.

So my plan is to keep it through the holidays then find some rabbit ears and one of those digital convertor boxes for the impending elimination of analog broadcasts, and make the call.

New Year's Resolution #2

#2 - I will stop drinking soda in front of my daughter.

This has been such an area of hypocrisy for me. Whenever we go out to eat, I get soda and make her get milk or juice and then listen to her beg for sips of my soda. If it's not good for her, it's not good for me. I don't have it in the house, I shouldn't have it out of the house either. I haven't figured out what I will drink in its place. Water I suppose.

New Year's Resolutions - #1

Resolution #1 - I will blog about my New Year's Resolutions

It's nice to set myself up with a nice easy resolution I can knock out right away. Now I have some momentum and confidence to move on to the rest...