Ben and Me: From Temperance to Humility by Cameron Gunn

Author:Cameron Gunn [Gunn, Cameron]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Autobiography.Historical Figures
ISBN: 9780399536076
Google: KvC7l-lo_JEC
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: Penguin
Published: 2010-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

One Is the Loneliest Number

By the end of Day 1, I felt like I had the DTs.

Like many assessments of my capabilities, I badly overestimated my ability to withstand the lure of television. I assumed, given that I don’t watch that much television, that I would saunter through the day almost oblivious to my own commitment.

Oh, did I say I’d watch only an hour a day? I’d forgotten. Nothing to me really.

Ha! Never was an hour more thought about, never was unfettered access to a television more coveted. I was like an inmate waiting for telephone access. Every few seconds I reached for the remote, stopping only when I remembered that it was verboten. I was fidgety and anxious. Worse than that, rather than being a wedge in the door of Industry as I had hoped, my program of television abstinence was becoming a hindrance to any productivity. I thought that when not watching TV, I would be doing something useful. Instead, all my intellectual energy was being expended on trying not to think about the fact that I was not to be watching television. I felt like a crack addict in a convent.

Why was I having such difficulty? The answer was no real mystery. First, though I hadn’t opted for total abstinence, I had treated this too much like TV detox. Ben Franklin clearly knew the dangers of complete denial—as I thought I had when I planned for an hour of television a night. Notwithstanding that, I was acting as if even a momentary glance at the remote would turn me into stone. The self-denial made me covetous.

My second problem was a familiar { Industry need not wish.} one. Lack of preparation. I relied, to my detriment, on whatever had gotten me through the rest of my life—brains, chutzpah, cheese and crackers—to get me through my first day of self-imposed television restrictions. Bad idea.

Finally, I should have tried, even at the risk of serious injury, to involve my family in this adventure. Misery is often borne easier if shared. As it was, I was actively rebuffed in my efforts.

At some point during the evening, Michelle came into the living room, sat in her favorite chair, and noticed that I was sitting in silence, looking as if I were waiting for the dentist.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“Not watching television. I’ve decided to be more industrious, and watching TV isn’t useful.”

She looked at me with the sort of weary expression only a spouse can display and sighed. “I thought we weren’t supposed to be part of this. If you don’t want to watch TV, go do it downstairs.”

On Day 1, I could add Banishment to my list of accomplishments.

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