Our TV

12 years ago, I hosted a gathering at my home. My guests wanted to watch a TV programme. So, I switched on our TV. The problem was that our TV looked like this...

My guests were torn between the need to look polite and the frustration of having to squint at the TV screen to make out what the moving people on the tiny screen were doing. I tried to justify my lousy TV by explaining that I did not want my kids to watch TV. So, it did not make sense to buy a nice one. One guest patiently explained to me that TV was educational, and that if I did not allow my kids to watch TV, they would grow up stupid.

We went for another 2 years with that lovely antique. I thought it looked quite charming in the living room. It gave off vibes from the 1980s, and if someone really wanted to watch TV, we did actually have a TV, which was better than no TV at all. TVs in those days were a few thousand dollars each. I did not feel like spending that kind of money.

Then, Little Boy failed Chinese so badly that he was 20 marks below the 2nd last. Desperate to improve his Chinese, I decided to sign up for Cable TV so that he could watch Chinese cartoons. The Husband was overjoyed. Finally, he did not have to feel embarrassed when his friends came over and saw our TV.

So, we bought a 50" TV for a little less than $2000. Little Boy did not enjoy watching TV because I only allowed him to watch Chinese TV. He could not understand Chinese and quickly became bored. It did not help that I was always nagging him to watch TV. It became a chore. In the end, no one watched that beautiful flat screen TV. We moved it over to our bedroom and I used it as a full length mirror after my bath. It has a beautiful reflective surface.

Then, Petunia discovered the joys of C-drama, and the benefits of hula hooping. So, the TV began to fulfil its life purpose. I would connect it to my iPad so that I could watch it, and hula hoop and knit, at the same time. When the soundbox gave out, I asked for a new TV.

The Husband still thought it was a very lovely TV, and refused to get a new one. He connected an external speaker to it. The sound was not very clear but I made do. It is not worth a conflict with The Husband to insist on a new TV.

Then, it became impossible to even connect up the iPad. So, I again asked for a new TV. The Husband said, "No, I can make it work again." When it was clear that the TV was quite quite unusable, The Husband said, "Watch from the iPad. You don't need a TV."

It was then that I realised that The Husband had bought a TV just for show. It has the same utility as a vase or a sculpture. In The Husband's worldview, the TV is not meant to be watched. It is meant to be looked at for its sleek lines and deep black reflective surfaces. He deeply disapproves of me actually using the TV in the way it is meant to be used. Watching TV is a waste of time, never mind that I am also hula hooping and knitting as I watch.

So, I said, "If you don't buy, I will go to Harvey Norman tomorrow to buy one." The Husband does not trust me to buy expensive things. He always thinks I don't shop around enough and get the best deals. So, he decided to get down to brass tacks and do his husbandly duty of providing me a TV.

We are both thrilled to buy THIS (the PRISM+ E55) at $665. In every way, it is superior to our current TV, and it can do a whole bunch of other stuff (not sure what yet) that our current TV cannot do. It is somewhat bigger too.

Then, I wanted to throw away the current TV. The Husband insisted that it still looked very elegant and we could keep it somewhere. When I insisted to throw it away, The Husband mourned, "We let go of things too easily. We let go of Milo. Now, we need to let go of the TV."

Me: Do you love me more than you love Milo and your TV.

The Husband: Yes. Why?

Me: Ok... when I die, you don't let me go, ok? You dress me up and lay me on the bed next to you and chat with me every day.