According to statistical data compiled by John S Croucher, professor of statistics Macquarie University, the amount of time the average person in USA spends watching TV is 35 hours a week. Add to those another 2 hours watching taped TV Shows , 22 minutes for online videos and 4 minutes of mobile videos and that adds up to quite a whack out of the week.
So Mick and I decided to conduct our own little experiment and add up our TV watching. It doesn’t even come close to that. And a lot depends on the time of year. In footy season it will be higher than in summer months. We’re both big footy fans but don’t watch other sports much. Aside from footy we watch very little TV in real time. It is taped so we can cut out the ads. That saves a lot of time and basically many of the shows I hear people talking about at tennis or elsewhere we are we don’t watch, like the reality TV shows.
Unlike some people who have separate TVs and separate viewing schedules within the marriage, we have one TV and watch our shows together or not at all, unless Mick watches something on a night when I’m at music or choir practice.
Just what effect does this amount of TV watching have on a marriage? Wouldn’t it be more use and just as relaxing to play a game together or sit and chat or listen to music or interact with each other? I can’t help thinking marriages would be in better shape if we relied less on TV and more on amusing ourselves and relating with each other and with our children as well.
Just as a test, add up the amount of TV you watch either in real time or taped shows. You might just get a shock. I’m not suggesting we need to get rid of the TV all together just monitor what we watch and not turn it on early in the afternoon, evening, or morning as some do, and leave it on, but regulate it to only watch certain favorite shows. Maybe our relationships with each other would improve and we wouldn’t be as influenced by the disastrous marriages we see on TV shows either. Anyone care to comment?
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