I’m sure every couple battles over the remote control. Every pair of roommates or families living under the same roof, for that matter…it’s inevitable. Here, it’s not so much the issue of control, but rather technique. Since I am usually glued to the computer blogging once the kids are tucked into bed, Jeff mostly gets to control the TV. We may need to seriously rethink this arrangement, however. He’s just not cut out for the job.
Every night, without fail, it’s the same. At the close of an hour, any savy, smart and proactive person I will try to plan ahead. Why don’t we see what’s coming on next I suggest? Nah, he replies. He waits until the clock hits the top of the hour before beginning to scan the channels. When I flip, I use the guide to stay on one station while reviewing my options. When Jeff flips, he pauses on every single channel for a full minute or two (seriously- we watched priests around a round table for a two minutes last night.) By the time he gets through all 300 stations, it’s twenty past the hour. We’re too late to start an hour long drama, sitcoms are drawing to a close and news programs are too involved to begin now. He usually lands on his favorite channel, HGTV to watch House Hunters. Having moved almost every year for the past 15 years, watching that like reliving the some of most stressful parts of my life. Not my idea of good time television.
How about a movie, I suggest? We have a Netflix membership, and being the thoughtful little housewife I am, I add movies to our queue whenever Jeff mentions wanting to see something. Every time I suggest a movie that I’ve ordered with him in mind, it’s met with an “eh, not tonight.” So, nine times out of ten, they get sent back, unwatched, to the Netflix hub.
Inevitably, we watch either a movie on some commercial filled network station that we’ve both memorized, or a King of Queens repeat that we’ve DVR’d. Every night I try again to avoid the inevitable, but it is just that. And it never fails to drive me nuts. One of these days, I just may surrender the laptop and gain control of the remote. And I’ll try to land on something that really drives my husband crazy.
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{ 22 comments… read them below or add one }
I am on your side on this one Jill. That would drive me crazy. I always search for upcoming shows using the guide. Flipping channels is just torture. Sixteen candles was on cable this weekend…it is always fun to watch that movie.
Good luck!
Are you actually watching us through a window???
Down to the King of Queens, you pegged us! Except we have now switched to Raymond, b/c we’ve just about memorized every K of Q episode there is.
Drives me crazy. Hel-lo. That’s what the guide is for!
Um, your husband WANTS to watch HGTV and you are complaining? That would be my ideal man….no seriously.
My husband not only stops at EVERY channel for one minute- he will watch a channel in a foriegn language for minutes before I say ‘hey, what are you doing?’ and then he will change it. Weird. Weird man.
Oh that’s not accepable! We scan the DVR to know where to be!
We also have two remotes so one person can take over if te other is too lax. It’s perfect!
I totally understand your point!
There is something about a remote and a man’s need to push it. I hate it.
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It HAS to be the testosterone! They’re all the same..
I completely sympathize & agree with you. Husbo is NOTORIOUS for pulling up the guide while I am watching something though. Drives me nuts that I watch most of my television in a little, tiny box because he has to look for something better.
At night I have control of the laptop and the remote — my husband loves to read and that is what he does when I working on my laptop and watching a movie at the same time — When he is off we do usually put away the laptop and books and watch a movie together. It’s always been like this. I would go crazy if that would ever change.LOL
Colby, that is a great stand by.
Tracye- That is funny! We just discovered King of Queens a few months ago and LOVE it. Raymond is another that I never, ever watched and need to give it a try!
Marcy- Only House Hunters. And then he wants to move to a bigger, better house. If he'd watch the home improvement shows and want to work on ours, that would be fine.
Noble- you are a wise woman ;)
Pecos, Piece & Colleen- At least I'm in good company!
Anissa- I am so jealous- What I would give to have control of both.
Ha Ha…that sounds so much like my husband & myself. I came across your blog & I have to say it is very good reading!
I am seriously laughing at this post…you just described me an dmy husband every night..down to me with the laptop on my lap on the couch and him with remote in hand…it must be in the “man genes”!
Definitely a losing battle, I’m afraid… I like to think of it as a hunter-gatherer thing. Women like to commit to a channel; men are afraid they are missing something better, so they keep hunting. :)
Can’t breathe! Laughing so hard! What is it about husbands that makes them do this? It sounds like you’ve been spying into our living room each night. Only we don’t land on HGTV nearly as often as COPS. But other than that, it’s almost exactly the same. Hee hee!
Oh, gosh, we have Remote Issues in our marriage, too! Sometimes it’s just worth it to stick with The Wild One watching “Gilmore Girls” re-runs for the umpteenth time ’til he gets the hint and “retires” to the basement. But that doesn’t always work, ’cause TWW sometimes won’t cooperate with the remote, either! BTW, Uncle Lynn launched another Great Pop’rs Giveaway today. Please stop in and Check. It. Out.
I thought me and my husband only fought about the remote. My husband can not watch reality tv, yet he can watch nascar all day. What I want to watch is crap compared to what he likes. So what if I like reality tv drama?
I know this doesn’t do much for together time, but the answer to our tv disagreements…two DVRs.
Oh this post made me LOL!!! Mr. Lipstick is the same way-he will stop to watch anything…including commercials that look interesting. Drives me crazy.
I am so a TIVO girl…I plan out all my TV watching and never watch a commercial (unless the remote is broken)…just not enough time in the day to watch priests at a round table ;) You always crack me up!
Very insightful post….mental note…hide remote in a remote location.
okay you will probably hate this answer, but I say, get rid of either Netflix or the cable. You don’t need both. You probably think you do, but try living without one or the other for 6 months and see if you miss it enough to sign up again. You will save some bucks too! Hope that doesn’t sound too preachy.
Thanks, Smith Girl!
Kissin & Migrane- It must be the way they are wired. We are so far superior in every way ;)
City, eww- COPS is even worse!
Veggie, I do love me some Gilmore Girls, but only in small doses.
Miss Pro- crap is in the eye of the beholder. My favorites are Ghost Whisperer and Top Chef. Don't judge me. ;)
Julie,
I do want to, but there are two issues with that. 1. We'd barely see each other, and 2. The bedroom TV is wall mounted and I hate to junk up the wall with cords. So I will keep bitching. ;)
Stephanie,
If I were single, I'd map out my TV watching weekly and plan ahead! Let's hope I never am single again.
Texan,
I could never get rid of the cable, but you are right about the Netflix. Problem is I have the 4.99$ membership. I cancel it and then, inevitably, we both want a movie and have to schelp to Blockbuster.
i think our husbands might have been separated at birth!we watch tv the same way.
That would drive me batty too…
We don’t really battle over the TV… if I’m on the computer, he’s watching sports. If there is a game of any sort on, he goes downstairs to the living room to watch and lets me blog and watch what I want… when I’m done I go down and wake him up….
we return unwatched movies to netflix all the time too…