A funny thing happened Sunday while I was alone. Tyler was with his father watching the football games and I was sitting in the hotel reading the newspaper and flipping the channels trying to find something half-way interesting to watch on TV. At one point I flipped to Scooby Doo and for a split second I thought about stopping but then I hurried on. When I didn’t find anything, I made the rounds again and when I came to the channel that had Scooby Doo on, once again I was tempted to stop and watch. But somehow I felt that watching a cartoon while my son was elsewhere was strange.
Then I thought, “You know what, I like Scooby Doo and there’s no sane reason why I shouldn’t watch it.” So I did. After all, I watched Scooby Doo before Tyler was born why shouldn’t I watch it now? There’s absolutely nothing wrong with watching “kids” programs when your kids are not with you. When you think about it, we spend so much of our time when our kids are little watching these types of programs that, geez, we forget how to watch adult programs.
I watch very little adult programming except for home and garden-type shows and learning programs. When I try to watch a movie with Tyler that does not contain talking animals or cars, I generally don’t get to really watch it because he’s talking during the entire movie. And when I get the chance to watch a movie or TV program alone I’m usually doing something else at the same time so I don’t focus anyway.
So if you find yourself alone and you’re looking for something good to watch on TV, don’t forget about the programs your kids like or ones you liked as a kid. While watching Scooby Doo I found myself laughing and remembering a time long ago when I was a kid and this was one of my favorite programs. Now, as a parent I get to share this joy with my son (he’s a big SD fan) but there’s no reason I can’t enjoy it alone. Be honest, do you watch cartoons or other kids shows when your children are away from home?
See also:
Remember Watching Saturday Morning Cartoons?