As soon as you walk into the room, you see it, sitting like an emperor on a throne. It takes center stage in most every living room. It must always be on even if no one is watching it. It’s the TV. At the right times, television can be relaxingand enjoyable. At the wrong times, it’s intrusive and annoying and possesses all the charm of a yapping dog. Love it or hate it, something needs to be done about it.
Much ado about TV
Televisions today are increasingly more sophisticated and the varieties and styles are endless. What they all have in common, though, is size. The average girth of a TV, much like our own, has grown substantially so that these electronic behemoths take up a generous portion of real estate in any room they occupy. TV’s are also a status symbol for many homeowners and the bigger, the better.
The problem with TV’s today is that they’re just so large and impersonal. Intimacy in a room goes to zero when a huge electronic wall sits silently by. When the TV is on, conversation and conviviality take a backseat, and some would say that even simple thought becomes impossible with blaring commercials and harsh images. Sometimes the point of gathering for a holiday or celebration must compete with the game, the game show, or the news, turning what had formerly been a living room into a “watching room.” (Ladies, are you with me? Men, please don’t send me hate mail because you’re going to love what I suggest; I promise.)
Take control
It’s time to take control, and, no, I don’t mean the remote control. I mean the here and now control of taking the living room back. Many homeowners have more than one living area. If that describes your situation, convert the least-used and smaller room to a full-blown media room. (Guys, didn’t I tell you you’d like my suggestion?). That’s right – create a full-tilt, no-holds-barred, all-technology, surround-sound television experience. When a room is used at its maximum potential, it’s enjoyed to the maximum. That’s true of a media room.
I have one and the only reason we go in there is to watch TV and nothing else. We love it. Because of its smaller size, our large TV looks even larger, the room’s dark color makes watching movies more like a theater experience, and the surround sound system makes the whole room thump and vibrate when King Kong or another similarly large and growling creature is on the screen. However, when we want to talk, gather with friends or family, read the morning paper, or celebrate holidays, we go to the living room. It’s a sea of tranquility in our home and it’s the room all our visitors see first. There are no distracting images, disturbing or grating noise from talking heads, and we can actually converse.
The living experience
In my last home, we had a TV in the living room next to the kitchen. When certain friends and relatives (mostly of a certain gender) came to visit, the TV would be on and socializing was impaired if not completely impossible. Once we moved the TV up to the bonus room, these same folks would go upstairs to watch it, but then wandered back downstairs to talk. Ahhh, social interaction returned and I could hear myself think as I served drinks or prepared dinner.
If you don’t mind the TV being the center of your living universe, then you have nothing to worry about. But, if you’re one of the legions of people who are suffering in silence (not TV silence, mind you), then perhaps you should consider moving the TV to another room, and if you don’t have that luxury, then containing it in a closeable cabinet that can be shut when you want to live instead of watch. Stay tuned here for more living ideas….
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