Clearer Picture, More Channels, Better Reception (?)
When I was growing up, most of my relatives on my mother's side lived with in walking distance of me. So I played with my cousins a lot, and visited my grandparents a lot.
At first, my visits to my grandparents were primarily for their television. My parents did not have cable, and did not have a colour television, so as a young, preschool boy with a growing obsession for the flashy box, I had to find alternative venues to indulge.
My grandparents and my Aunt Pauline lived side by side, and both had cable and colour television. So I visited them both on a regular basis, often one right after the other.
Eventually, I stopped visiting my Aunt Pauline, and just visited my grandparents. When they got a VCR, I think I used it more than they did. I taped movies, mostly, and watched them when I came home from school. My grandmother would feed me leftovers and/or cereal while I talked about my day, and then I would retire to the TV room to watch whatever crappy movie I had taped.
This is partly because I felt like I had to catch up. My parents didn't let me go to the theatre, they didn't get a vcr until I was in University, they still don't have cable, and I didn't visit anybody's house on a regular basis when I was a kid. So, in elementary and junior high, when talking about the latest crappy movie or crappy TV show is really the only way to relate to your peers, I didn't want to be left behind.
And my grandmother understood.
My grandfather, on the other hand, frequently complained that he didn't see why they had a TV and vcr since I used it all the time. There was more than once when we would have a stand off. He would be watching something he didn't understand, or really didn't want to watch, and I would wait patiently for him to leave so I could watch what I wanted. I never asked, although, my grandmother would frequently intervene on my behalf.
When I got older, I made more of an effort to watch what they wanted to watch, and watch it with them. But it was hard because my grandfather always had to ask questions like "who's that feller?" and "what's he doing?" and when I tried to explain it to him, I inevitably had to repeat myself three times before he heard, and even then, he didn't understand. A few times of this and he would get frustrated and leave, grumbling under his breath.
At first, my visits to my grandparents were primarily for their television. My parents did not have cable, and did not have a colour television, so as a young, preschool boy with a growing obsession for the flashy box, I had to find alternative venues to indulge.
My grandparents and my Aunt Pauline lived side by side, and both had cable and colour television. So I visited them both on a regular basis, often one right after the other.
Eventually, I stopped visiting my Aunt Pauline, and just visited my grandparents. When they got a VCR, I think I used it more than they did. I taped movies, mostly, and watched them when I came home from school. My grandmother would feed me leftovers and/or cereal while I talked about my day, and then I would retire to the TV room to watch whatever crappy movie I had taped.
This is partly because I felt like I had to catch up. My parents didn't let me go to the theatre, they didn't get a vcr until I was in University, they still don't have cable, and I didn't visit anybody's house on a regular basis when I was a kid. So, in elementary and junior high, when talking about the latest crappy movie or crappy TV show is really the only way to relate to your peers, I didn't want to be left behind.
And my grandmother understood.
My grandfather, on the other hand, frequently complained that he didn't see why they had a TV and vcr since I used it all the time. There was more than once when we would have a stand off. He would be watching something he didn't understand, or really didn't want to watch, and I would wait patiently for him to leave so I could watch what I wanted. I never asked, although, my grandmother would frequently intervene on my behalf.
When I got older, I made more of an effort to watch what they wanted to watch, and watch it with them. But it was hard because my grandfather always had to ask questions like "who's that feller?" and "what's he doing?" and when I tried to explain it to him, I inevitably had to repeat myself three times before he heard, and even then, he didn't understand. A few times of this and he would get frustrated and leave, grumbling under his breath.
posted by deadwriter at 8:53 a.m.
2 Comments:
This reminds me of my childhood. My grandparents were not actually related to me, but they played that role in my life. They lived next door, and while I loved them as people, the fact that they had cable and I didn't was a definite factor. I miss watching TV at their house with the ice cream and cookies. I miss that chance to see the world through their eyes. "This is just nonsense, isn't it? It's just nonsense. I only like the news, and murder shows these days."
I don't feel bad about using them for their cable television. They were too old to go out and do things with me, so they offered what they had. It was just pert of the relatioship. And in 40 years I'll be happy to feed someone cookies while they watch my television.
Maybe your grandfather was just a grumpy man. Maybe he didn't really mind your domination of his TV and VCR, but that was just how he related to you. Maybe he would have missed you if you'd actually listened to him and stayed home.
I was laughing out loud when I was reading, but kinda of sad when I think about him not
understanding what was on tv and now he doesn't even understand real life
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