I’m a television person, which I blame entirely on my upbringing. As a kid, my television time was strictly monitored. I could watch one show a day, and it had to be on PBS, so my viewing options were somewhat limited.
It’s really no wonder that I became a television junkie. It was a novelty for me. Some kids steal or lie as a part of childhood rebellion, but not me. I was too busy sneaking in evening episodes of “Beverly Hills, 90210” when my mom was at PTA meetings to know that there were more serious offenses.
So when I hit college, with the encouragement of other television addicts and without the structure of set school hours, I quickly learned that if I’m not careful, I can in fact find something to watch at any hour of the day.
So I thought I’d share my own selections, from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m., in the hopes of purging myself of this curse and passing it along to my fellow overachievers turned underachievers. I must warn you, some of my choices are questionable, and just admitting that I watch them is somewhat embarrassing, but they are entertaining nonetheless.
At 10 a.m., the earliest time you should push yourself to wake up, you can choose between the classic “The Price is Right” on CBS or the new and hilarious “Ellen” on NBC. Follow that up with the previous night’s “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” on Comedy Central at 11 a.m. My noon choices are diverse, with either a nice soap dose of “All My Children” on ABC or some macho “MacGyver” on TV Land.
From 1 to 2 p.m., VH1 has the new and entertaining shows “The Fabulous Life of…” followed by “Best Week Ever.” “Fabulous Life” looks at the lifestyles of the rich and famous with commentary by entertainment journalists while “Best Week” examines the pop culture events of the previous week using the commentary of some revved up comedians.
Around now you might be feeling like a worthless human being, and if you’ve been watching four straight hours of TV, you probably are. So I generally suggest a break, maybe a nap, some exercise or even class.
But if worthlessness doesn’t bother you, TNT has “NYPD Blue” at 2, “Dr. Phil” comes on NBC at 3 with dysfunctional Americans, at 4 on channel 24 “Emergency Vets” shows some real animal-owner drama and “Charmed” reruns air at 5 on TNT.
Syndicated episodes of “Seinfeld” and “Friends” can be found in almost any time slot, but I favor them between 6 and 7 p.m. on TBS.
After that, it’s up to you to choose the evening’s prime-time shows, but come 10 p.m., flip to Comedy Central for “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” followed by an episode of “Family Guy” at 10:30 on Cartoon Network.
By then, it’s about time to start up a game of Caps or stop by the 1800 Club and you have valiantly wasted your entire day in front of the television.
Medill senior and PLAY TV columnist Katherine White can’t wait for the summer. She can be reached at [email protected].