Some buy shoes or take a bubble bath. Others seek an adrenaline rush through bungee jumping or skydiving. But when I'm throwing a pity party or am stressed out, I turn to an inanimate object that lets me live vicariously through it: the TV set. Whether angry or sad, watching TV provides an intimate setting for those emotions to be expressed and/or resolved.
I know I'm not a psychologist, but it's important to have something in life that serves a cathartic purpose. TV became that for me quickly; I had an unpleasant high school experience and relied on it to escape. It became one of my comforts. But when college started and I prioritized my life, TV was replaced by an excellent group of friends, relegated to infrequent use.
Then this column came along and ruined me. Kidding, but it did cause me to re-evaluate my relationship with it, and I realized the set still had a place in my life. Everyone has days when they just want to be alone and overanalyze their every thought and action, right? Well, when I feel that way I head straight for whatever satisfies my particular mood. When I'm sad, it's the Food Network or Lifetime; one offers comfort, the other emotional release. When I'm angry, it's a crime drama like CSI (the original, of course) to quell that feeling.
This is not to say that TV should replace social relationships. My friends are always there to support me, but they don't need to hear every irrational thing I'm thinking. I don't even want to hear it, but my brain doesn't like listening to me. Thankfully, Bobby Flay is ready with a throwdown to save me from actually consuming hundreds of calories in Double Stuf Oreos when I'm sad about an unrequited crush.
Don't feel embarrassed or anxious about having something constant in life that lets you feel better about life's frustrations. The alternative, hiding and bottling that emotion, is worse. Thankfully, cable TV has almost limitless variety, so I can even watch old game shows if I want. Trust me, nothing gets me a through a rough patch like former C-listers trying to host a farce and smile for 30 minutes.
- Stephanie Hummel is a senior studying journalism. Channel your emotions about her column into an e-mail at sh213005@ohiou.edu.
3 Culture
Stephanie Hummel
