Hey people,
I've joined this tribe because the intro had some statements and ideas I agree with, and maybe a couple I wanted to know more about.
I have a frew questions for all of you. I have a new roommate (or two) and they are a father/daughter set. The daughter is 16 and has ZERO ambition for anything. Not even for health. She's grossly overweight and when I asked her about it she expressed flatly that she didn't care. When I told her that diabetics have circulatory problems and that their hands and feet get cut off when they're in the advanced stages she said that she didn't care and made noises that technology would fix all her problems by then.
She IS a TV junkie. Up until two weeks ago I didn't have a television in my house. I honestly didn't want one. She spends, quite literally, all her time watching TV. It's gross and it bothers and disturbs me. I can't get around the reality that when I'm really old it's HER generation that is going to be around to take care of me (or not as I think is more likely).
Is anyone else in a similar situation? Does anyone else have to deal with the vapid standard of humanity? If so, how the hell do you do it without a) killing yourself, or b) killing them? I'd ask them to leave but honestly it took two months to even find them as roommates go. I'm not financially situated to toss them out or I would. I can't stand TV or apathetic, fat, brain dead people. It's an offense to my spirit that a child can be this way.
Regards,
Trip
I've joined this tribe because the intro had some statements and ideas I agree with, and maybe a couple I wanted to know more about.
I have a frew questions for all of you. I have a new roommate (or two) and they are a father/daughter set. The daughter is 16 and has ZERO ambition for anything. Not even for health. She's grossly overweight and when I asked her about it she expressed flatly that she didn't care. When I told her that diabetics have circulatory problems and that their hands and feet get cut off when they're in the advanced stages she said that she didn't care and made noises that technology would fix all her problems by then.
She IS a TV junkie. Up until two weeks ago I didn't have a television in my house. I honestly didn't want one. She spends, quite literally, all her time watching TV. It's gross and it bothers and disturbs me. I can't get around the reality that when I'm really old it's HER generation that is going to be around to take care of me (or not as I think is more likely).
Is anyone else in a similar situation? Does anyone else have to deal with the vapid standard of humanity? If so, how the hell do you do it without a) killing yourself, or b) killing them? I'd ask them to leave but honestly it took two months to even find them as roommates go. I'm not financially situated to toss them out or I would. I can't stand TV or apathetic, fat, brain dead people. It's an offense to my spirit that a child can be this way.
Regards,
Trip
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Re: TV
Mon, May 17, 2004 - 10:02 AMHey Trip (and everyone . .)
TV in small doses can be relaxing and / or informative . . but my idea of a "small dose" is about an hour a week max . . I ended up ditching my cable altogether because it wasn't really worth the $40 a month for the small amount I was watching. If there's a game or something on the broadcast stations I really want to catch, I'll hit the pub and talk to some humans, or break out the tin foil and rig something up . . ; )
I'm guessing you came across a little heavy to your 16 year old friend there . . I've found that can be the worst way to deal with kids around that age. You are not going to change her habits overnight, but I am sure that if you set a positive example for her, she'll become a bit more relaxed around you . . and one day she might surprise you: "What's that you're reading?" or "I heard you talking about such and such with so and so - what's that all about?" If you are approachable when / if these questions are asked, and gently suggest that she should check it out one night instead of staring at the TV, she just might take you up on it!
tommygoat -
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Re: TV
Sat, May 22, 2004 - 4:41 AMI am a bit perplexed by your question. On one hand you simply want a good fit for a roommate and on the other hand you seem to be interested in trying to understand and even help these people change in some way.
I too am bothered by TV in general as it sucks the brains out of our heads. I also struggle with being comfortable with obese people. It's not because they are fat, but because they suffer from food addiction and the worst foods are the most addicting. They get fatter and more unhappy by the pound and your comments only cause additional craving for food and TV to get away from reality. TV is used and abused like a drug. My son's mostly waste time on the internet (a newer drug form).
I have three son's and I know dozens of teenagers. The girl is suffering inside and total denial is the best defense. Teens don't care about health; they only care about fun and being accepted by their peers.
You have some studying and a lot of work to do, if you hope to make some difference in this kid's life. Don't kill her or yourself. Get ear plugs, play some music, and enjoy your fruits and vegetables. :)
Rev.
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Re: TV
Sat, January 1, 2005 - 4:13 PMIn my experience, the more you try to change someone, especially a defensive 16-year-old, the more they will simply shut you out and resist you. If you're really interested in getting involved, you may have some luck enticing her to participate in "fun" activities with you, if you are nice to her and don't act like you're judging her.
I think it's reasonable to ask your roommate to refrain from doing things that disturb you, such as moving the TV into her own room so that you don't have to see it and hear it so much.
But for your own sake, I would recommend saving up some money so you can kick them out in the future and find roommates more suited to your lifestyle.
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Re: TV
Wed, January 12, 2005 - 8:20 AMThey are gone. They've been gone for a while. Fortunately my new roommate doesn't have the same addiction to television as they did. In fact, I think his views are pretty close to on par with mine. He owns a TV but he uses it for games and movies and they're rarely ever loud enough to bother me.
The big girl and her father have moved on. I'm not entirely sure where to or even how they're doing but I've heard that the girl dropped entirely out of school. I can't verify this and have little interest in pursuing the facts but this in the information that has come to me. Take it with the grain of salt I have.
I wish neither of them any ill will but I do, as I mentioned in the original post, fear for my old age. It is the junkies of television who believe that technology will be the answer to all of their troubles that are supposed to take care of us. I see them hooking us up to some kind of machine and forgetting we exist. Most of us would spend the next several years going stark raving mad from isolation. The scary thing is that they learned it from people our age. If something is wrong, watch tv, if you're irritating someone, watch tv, if you can't afford something, watch tv... etc. Canned laughter will cure all.
haha.
Lates,
TripSeven -
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Re: TV
Thu, January 13, 2005 - 1:23 PMSounds like this girl, and probably a majority of the nation, is suffering from some sort of depression. The only time I watched that much TV was when I was going through a bout of major depression. It dulled the pain, but ultimately made my depression worse because it made me feel even more stagnant and useless. Nice little vicious cycle.
When I started to become interested in my own life again, I no longer turned on the TV.
On the average, american households watch TV 53 hours a week...that's more time than a person spends at work!! Most people I know watch TV less than 10 hours a week, so who is picking up our slack? Shudder to think. -
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Re: TV
Fri, January 14, 2005 - 8:00 AMHey KittenBite:
Thanks for the response. Can you get a link or a reference to those statistics or others like it? I'm keenly interested in backing up my own arguments in the future that I'm bound to have regarding this toxic phenomena.
Thanks bunches.
TripSeven
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