Saturday I was suffering from a temporary case of insanity, hangover from few too many vodka drinks and an anti-oxidant rich pomegranate margarita, and upset stomach from bacon-wrapped hot dog for dessert devoured at 3 am. That’s the only reason I can explain why I decided to go through with canceling cable. I called Time Warner and explained to the nice lady that I have decided to cancel my cable. She seemed surprised, since I had a pretty good deal. For about $45 bucks I had basic cable package with a lot of channels I didn’t watch, Showtime, and DVR. I spend more than that on sushi for lunch. She thought I was nuts for canceling. But, I was motivated to cancel my cable and end my addiction to hours and hours of mindless TV.
I thought after calling there would be a few days before cable would get disconnected but this is one area where Time Warner responds very fast. While I was still on the phone with the nice lady, cable got disconnected. Just like that. One minute I’m flipping channels between Food Network, HGTV and Bravo and next minute I’m staring at a blue screen of emptiness.
That’s when reality set in. Shit. It’s Saturday. I have a hangover. No motivation to go out and socialize. And now, NO CABLE!!! What am I going to do with myself? I had wanted to cancel cable for number of reasons. I thought I would go to the gym more. Read more. Socialize more. But I was wrong. The only thing I started doing was surfing the web MORE in search of watching TV shows to watch online. I watched the entire first season of Californication on Netflix, thanks to my roommate’s account, instead of going out with a young, good looking, 22 yr old. That was not a good decision.
Another bad decision was my timing. I mean the colder LA days are ahead with temperatures in the high 60s. A few more episodes to go until the season of Mad Men. And I am sitting in my living room staring at the TV that no longer broadcasts my Bravo and AMC. I called Time Warner back on Sunday to get cable again but my special deal is no longer available and I refuse to pay almost $70 for the same thing. Now it’s about the principle. And my friends are divided into the Yes and No cable camps. My BFF Laura even offered to pay for the difference but I refused. Out of principle. So now I’m watching basic channels. This is painful. More painful than the 4+ hrs spent in the dentist’s chair today getting crowns on 2 teeth. I’m going to see how much longer I can go…
From Hollywood and Beyond 
hm. i tried this once. when i moved back into the condo after the divorce. i thought, oh, i’ll get so much more done. i think i lasted literally two days before i called up and had my directv activated. it was like heaven. i know kids today can’t live without their phones or the internet. but i lived through a time without either and was fine, i can do without again. but tv. holy shit.
plus, delia needs her animal planet when i’m out of the house.
Well, fortunately I have the basic channels so I still have my very basic needs met. But I do miss my Bravo TV and all the chef shows. And HGTV. And Food Network. Not to mention the moment of weakness that is E!
I called back 3 times after canceling to reinstate cable but they refused to give me back my $45 dollar deal. So now I refuse to get it back out of principle. Apparently I have some despite my many moral misjudgments.
I wish I could get DirecTV but my manager doesn’t allow the Dish in the building. And I’ve already talked him into not raising the rent for a while…
I miss cable…