On entertainment

I was thinking about the comment that Kristine made to one of my posts that a lot of her family's entertainment involves food, a fact that was frustrating her weight loss efforts. It seems in this country that we aren't able to meet socially unless it's around food and after much thought on the issue I suspect that this is in part a result of the influence of television in our lives. In addition to the relentless barrage of commercials tempting us with a never-ending variety of unhealthy foods, television leaves us with a mindless numbing of creativity. We lose the art of conversation as a form of entertainment (at least conversation that involves more than a discussion about who was voted off the island). Ahhh yes, this is my soapbox. Four years ago when my doctor diagnosed my heart condition and informed me that I needed to lose a substantial amount of weight and make some lifestyle changes, we did so on a grand scale. We moved to the city proper of St. Louis and bought a condo, in a place where we can walk to everything. We walk to the movies, to the park, to play pool, to the museum, to the library, to the galleries, and just to walk while having conversation. Soon after moving here we decided we were too busy doing these other things to need our television and discontinued the service. A very surprising thing happened. We found we didn't need the entertainment of television. We found that life iteself was entertainment enough. We had time to read again and to talk about what we'd read. We had time on our walks to meet neighbors. We had time to go back to school (and even do homework...) Soon food was not the center of most of our entertainment. Don't get me wrong - there is nothing wrong with meeting socially over food. Not only is there nothing wrong with it, it's also a desirable and necessary part of human interaction. Some times. If you're strugging to gain control of your weight, though, it's best to find another form of entertainment. Meet for a board game night (and if you must have snacks then have a veggie tray). Go hiking with a friend. Volunteer. Turn off the TV.

Eleanor Roosevelt once said, "Do one thing each day that scares you." Turning off the TV was a little scary. Could I live life without its constant background presence? Without the comfort noise when I was alone? Did I really like myself well enough to spend that much time with just - - me???

And that, my friends, is the crux of the matter. We hide behind the television because it's easy. We don't have to think. We don't have to deal. Just watch. Just be entertained. In the same way we hide behind food. It's easy. We don't have to work at conversation. If we're too busy eating we don't have to develop relationships. We don't have to risk exposing ourselves to hurt.

So can you do it? Can you take the plunge and live your life making your own entertainment instead of living someone else's?

Yes you can!