Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana

COLUMN: The Remote

When I was growing up, I never usually had much say in what television show was being played in the house.

In the days before the remote control, I would certainly have to be the one to get up and change the channel but that was my extent of being a decision-maker. I guess I was the remote control. If it was my older sister in charge it would be either soap operas or MTV when it used to play music videos instead of the garbage reality programs that have seem to find quite the niche with today's younger generations. One time I was eight I so sick of "Days of Our Lives" and stood up to my sister who is five years older. It turned into a fight that is still talked about today.

When my Dad was watching television it never failed that he would fall asleep watching something like the Senior Tour for golf and as soon as I would go to change the station he would somehow know and instruct me to leave it where it was. He could be mid-snore and still know I was changing it. I never minded golf, but I seriously believe my dad would have watched the "Muppets" play around on television.

When I was around five, I badgered my mom constantly about watching scary movies and she finally relented and let me watch the original "Halloween". I am still scared to this day about Michael Meyers and can't really handle the original. In fact, I don't enjoy scary movies at all, and this is probably why.

On the few occasions I had sole control of the content of the television it meant that I was by myself and figured I really needed to utilize this time to watching something that I wasn't supposed to.

Long before the day of satellite television was the heyday of cable and "naughty" channels were always part of a premium package that we never seemed to have. What kids around 10 to 15 could do was turn it to the channel and while it was scrambled about 95 percent of the time you could see enough to make straining your eyes well worth it. On one occasion I was caught doing this with my cousin and that's not something you really want to explain to your grandma who had left the house for only a few minutes to walk the dog.

There were also questionable things to watch on HBO and Cinemax that were like a rite of passage for boys in junior high. I would usually get busted watching those shows too. And if I didn't get caught, I would have to stay up weird hours and be tired for school. Kids today have access to just about everything on their phone and that is kind of scary. In my day you had to do a little work to misbehave.

When I finally got into high school, I pretty much had control of the television in the basement and I was super excited for the opportunity. Turns out it what as exciting as I expected, and I could usually hear the exact same game or show playing from the upstairs.

This day and age is far different than getting out of your seat to turn the channel. There is a remote for the smart television, a remote for the satellite, a controller for the gaming system and "voice systems" that will do the work of all of them. There is still cable, satellite companies, streaming services, and of course cell phones that play everything.

It is certainly a world of easy access to television and has really made the world lazy, and I will readily admit this includes me and I'm ok with that.

I do however miss the days of getting up to turn the station or having only one television and having to fight for what was going to be played.

No matter how many options I have, I'm just glad I get to have some control of what is being played, and it certainly not going to be "Days of Our Lives".

 

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