The Empty Soda Can

Anna and I have been re-watching The X-Files from the beginning, in preparation for the new “season” (yes, it’s only six episodes, but it’s still a season). In so doing, I’ve noticed a phenomenon that she and I have discussed before, but is still fascinating: our age in comparison to the ages of those we see on television. For the casual reader, I must explain that I am 40 years old, and that’s really quite okay with me. Forty is a good age: I’ve been around long enough to have a bit of wisdom under my belt; I’m far enough into my career that I can provide a reasonable living for my family; yet I’m still young enough that my body isn’t completely falling apart, an issue I’m sure I’ll have to deal with in the next decade or two. In short, forty is nice. It’s a shame I can’t stay here for a while. What’s weird is that, when I watch TV shows, the people on them—who are almost always quite a bit younger than forty—still seem to be older than I. Perhaps it’s because the shows we watch t...

Every once in a while, I get an email from Harris Poll Online . I used to take their surveys all the time; now, not so much. But for some reason, I decided to take today’s survey, regarding television viewing. Perhaps it’s because I care about the kind of entertainment that is available to me. Perhaps it’s more for my kids. Whatever the case, I decided to participate, and the brevity of the poll made it likely that I will do so again. What I really want to talk about, though, is what happened at the end: they offered me the opportunity to see “selected results” of the poll. What amazed me most were the results to Percent Indicating Types of Television Shows Watched . Now, personally, I hate reality shows. But the way things are hyped, I would have thought that they’d the #1 type of show watched. Thus, I was quite surprised when they came in seventh place, with a mere 27.9% of respondents. I also don’t get into sports, but I figured that might take the top spot. Again, I was sur...