Friday, March 6, 2009

The Stranger...

A few years after I was born, my Dad met a stranger who was new to our small Texas town.

From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer and soon invited him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around from then on. As I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family. In my young mind, he had a special niche.

My parents were complementary instructors: Mom taught me good from evil, and Dad taught me to obey. But the stranger...he was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for hours on end with adventures, mysteries and comedies.

If I wanted to know anything about politics, history or science, he always knew the answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed able to predict the future! He took my family to our first major football game.

He made me laugh, and he made me cry. The stranger never stopped talking, but Dad didn't seem to mind. Sometimes, Mom would get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each other to listen to what he had to say, and she would go to the kitchen for peace and quiet. (I wonder now if she ever prayed for the stranger to leave.)

Dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions, but the stranger never felt obligated to honour them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our home... Not from us, our friends or any visitors. Our long-time visitor, however, got away with four-letter words that burned my ears and made my dad squirm and my mother blush.

My Dad didn't permit the liberal use of alcohol but the stranger encouraged us to try it on a regular basis. He made cigarettes look cool, cigars manly and pipes distinguished. He talked freely (much too freely!) about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing. I now know that my early concepts about relationships were influenced strongly by the stranger.

Time after time, he opposed the values of my parents, yet he was seldom rebuked... and NEVER asked to leave.

More than fifty years have passed since the stranger moved in with our family. He has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was at first. Still, if you could walk into my parents' living room today, you would still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures.

His name?...


We just call him 'TV.'

Now how about a fresh cup of coffee...my friend?

25 comments:

Cygnus MacLlyr said...

Didn't see that one coming, but so true, isn't it!
Thanks for the smile!

HermitJim said...

Kinda snuck that one in on ya, huh? Gotta watch the old guy, nephew!

Thanks for the visit this morning...

riverwalker said...

Excellent post Jim! Them young ones need to watch out for us "older" types.

RW

Anonymous said...

kill your teevee,,,
it will kill you

Anonymous said...

Good one, Bubba! I kinda knew what was coming, but kept trying to fit "radio" into the context, and it just didn't work. So, you got me, too! Great way to start my day - thanks. And where's that new phone #?

Let's have a weekend together soon, huh?

Big hugs -

Lydia said...

Hi Jim,

Awesome storytelling. Didn't see it coming either.

Luckily, I was not influenced by too much TV while growing up. In Europe we didn't have one until I was about 9 and in the states I was too busy playing outside to be stopped by a TV.

But my kids wouldn't know what to do without one. :(

Nice story,
:)
lydia

Preparedwarrior said...

Morning Hermit!!

I let that cable or whatever it is called now go about two years ago.

I could feel the life being sucked out of me. Started to look forward to coming home and watching the most ridiculous shows. I found that I was reading less, and I was letting other things just get by.

Still have the TV but only for watching DVDs that we have chosen to watch, and even that is very infrequent.

Giving up the blah blah from the stranger freed my time up for prepping, reading and being with the family for quality time.

Yep, I am drinking coffee while reading about your stranger.
warrior

Mo said...

brilliant post.

scoutinlife said...

Great Post Hermit! Truly didn't see that one coming!

Maitreya said...

It really is frightening how dependant people are on TV. Given the choice between paying the car note and paying the cable, they choose cable.
Good post!

HermitJim said...

Hey RW...the old guys can still show 'em a trick or two, huh? Hey, I appreciate you coming by!


Hey Erik...I think it is killing us in the way that it takes control silently of our lives and keeps us from doing other things.

Appreciate your visit today...


Hey Sis...I'll send you the new number via e-mail in a few minutes...

Weekend visit does sound in order to me. I'm ready anytime!

Thanks for the visit today!


Hey Lydia...good to see ya this morning.My sisters and I used to spend a lot of our time outside playing as well...Saturday was our favorite day because of the cartoons and all.

Kids today are really more addicted to television than we were...

Hey, thanks for coming over. I really do appreciate it!


Hey Warrior...good to see ya again! I don't turn on my T.V. much anymore...too much trash on the air.

I do love to read myself...and of course, daily prepping is ongoing. Hope to be moving soon...so trying to get it together!

Thanks for the visit!


Hey Mo...thanks for the comment and for coming by!


Hey Scout...how are ya, my friend? good to see ya. Glad you enjoyed the post, and thanks for coming by!


Hey Maitreya...always good to see ya. I'm afraid you're right about the bad choices made at times because of the priorities being wrong.

Hey, thank you for the visit, my friend!

It's me said...

Maitreya, that's what the government is counting on.

I know I'm a paranoid freak, but I truly believe that is why there was an extra $600 million in this last bailout... they had to make sure they still could provide "bread and circuses" to the populace to keep us properly drugged. Otherwise, we might actually pay attention to what is really happening, not just rely on our IV/TV to provide us what they want us to know.

Jess (Ozark Momma) said...

Excellent post HJ! We have a stranger here too, but he only gets to chat and play for a little while before Momma pulls his plug.

Sayin' adieu to the stranger and the puter for the day...enjoy the sun HJ!

HermitJim said...

Hey Meadowlark...I don't think you are being paranoid at all! Sounds like a very likely scenario to me...and probably will happen sooner than most folks realise!

Thanks for the comments and the visit, my friend!

HermitJim said...

Boy Momma...you are a tough lady! Imagine making the youngun's actually learn to get by without the constant ravings of the "stranger"!

I knew that there was another reason why I liked ya so much...!

Sunshine it is for me the rest of the day...may even clean upo my old truck a bit! Not too much, as it is in the "urban disguise " mode for a while longer, if you know what I mean!

Thanks for stopping by...

Anonymous said...

And his daughter is the x box.
Good post Jim

HermitJim said...

Hey Tony...thanks for the comment and for coming by. Always good to see ya, my friend!

La Crona said...

Let me go straight to the point, some people in this world can´t control a single habit in their lives and those who watch too much television is on their way in to the television itself.

It´s amazing what they can send today, as you mentioned, far too much of disgusting programs!

Pick the good fruit and avoid the bad fruit.

HermitJim said...

Hey Mattias...good to see ya again, my friend. We don't get to see ya enough these days...

How are things going in your homeland? Are they rough as they are here? Hey, my friend, don't be a stranger...and thanks for coming by!

La Crona said...

I thought it was the tv who was the stranger and not I.I am networking with my friends but I am also expecting something in return.

HermitJim said...

Hey Mattias...I think you may have misunderstood what I merant. In the post, the "stranger" was the television. But in saying "don't be a stranger" I just meant that you should stay in touch. It's only a saying...and I certainly didf not mean anything negative by saying it. Sorry if it offended you.

Ryan said...

That was awesome.

HermitJim said...

Hey TOR...glad you enjoyed it. Also glad you ould visit tonight!

Anonymous said...

Damn Jim, that was neat. I'm going to send that to those I give a crap about...and maybe some I don't!

HermitJim said...

Hey G3Ken...maybe if we disguise the wisdom in a dose of humor, more folks might stop and think about things a bit more. All we can do is to try...

I sure do thank you for stopping by!