As I contemplated writing this column, I also thought about procrastinating a while longer to watch Netflix instead.
I think I have a problem. I’m addicted to Netflix.
I’ve heard the first step to recovery is recognizing the problem. So I’m going to lay it out now: on an average day, I’d say I watch at least two hours of Netflix.
My morning starts with a cup of coffee and an episode of “American Dad” or “Family Guy.” I’ve most likely already seen these episodes at least once.
In class, I sometimes contemplate what I’m going to watch once I get home.
I’ve seen every single “American Dad,” “Family Guy,” “Archer” and “Bob’s Burgers” episode there is to watch.
I once killed a whole season of “The Blacklist” in just a few days — that’s an hour for each episode with 22 episodes in a season.
“Are you still watching?” Silly Netflix, of course I’m still watching.
I was in denial for quite some time.
“’Family Guy’ brings up social problems in an unconventional way, it’s educational,” I would argue. Yeah, keep telling yourself that Jane.
I had my come-to-Jesus moment when I thought I could manage reading 40 pages of “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” with Netflix still running in the background.
I decided at that moment I had to quit cold turkey. I was going to give up Netflix for a whole day.
The minutes slowed and seconds lingered like a clock on the wall loudly ticking away.
So I decided to kill time playing solitaire on my phone. Then I realized something: these distractions are taking away from the important stuff.
Always being technologically stimulated was taking away from the things I could be enjoying in real life.
Even if it’s just going downtown to enjoy a coffee on a Saturday, it’s better than sitting on my ass for hours watching “How I Met Your Mother.” She’s only in the show for like four episodes anyway, what a waste of time.
Although I gave up on quitting Netflix, I can now turn it off without feeling like I’m missing out on life.
Julianna Eveland can be reached at [email protected] or @janeca12 on Twitter.