< Previous page

"What about TV shows?" I puzzled over that one and came up with one: "The Sopranos."

Geez, I sound like a snob -- perhaps that can't be helped. But the point is not that books and film are superior to TV. That is a matter of taste. No doubt some people can name dozens of shows they'd love to see again and would be hard pressed to identify even a few books that have brought them equal pleasure.

The larger issue is about how we choose to spend our time, about how much control we exercise over our activities. Are we really doing what we want to?

There are no right or wrong answers to that question, as Woody Allen suggested when a reporter asked him years ago why he attended so many New York Knicks games. How could a great artist devote so much time to watching grown men run around in shorts? Allen said it was simple: He chooses to care about the game.

The writers' strike reminded me that I've devoted far too much time to something that I don't choose to care about. TV seduces me. It is easy and asks little in return -- watch it and forget. Because it requires little thought, I haven't thought much about it. And so I've probably spent at least as much time in front of the tube as I have in my cushy reading chair or a darkened theater.

I plan to make one more list. Not just of the books and movies I want to get to, but of all the things I really want to do -- my best intentions for my work and my family life. Then fingers crossed, I might just get to a few of them instead of lazily reaching for the remote.

How about you?

< Previous page