
I gave up TV, then qualified for Olympic marathon trials and got my PhD - sonabinu
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/i-gave-up-tv-then-qualified-for-olympic-marathon-trials-and-got-my-phd/2017/03/24/6d90aafc-ee38-11e6-9973-c5efb7ccfb0d_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_notv-353am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.99ab3f2312d1
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neel8986
We at least have an option of not buying TV. Internet addiction is far worse.
The sad part is I can not even avoid my laptop as it is where I do all my
work. The device on which we work is slowly the biggest source of our time
sink

~~~
Johnny555
Just edit your hosts file and route your most time consuming websites (i.e.
hackernews) to localhost:

 _127.0.0.1 news.ycombinator.com www.facebook.com www.youtube.com_

~~~
hollerith
On OS X 10.8, routing to 127.0.0.1 did not block the site reliably (with
Firefox), but 0.0.0.0 did and still does on OS X 10.11 (with Firefox and
Chrome).

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ordinaryperson
The headline implies she went from zero to hero after quitting TV, but she'd
already submitted her PhD thesis and was already close to her marathon time
goal. I don't think TV was the difference.

Besides, the implication is TV is some morally bankrupt mind-killer, but
there's plenty of intelligent programming out there, not everything is "The
Bachelor."

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ourmandave
Next week's article: _I gave up my obsession with marathon training, then
spent more time with my family. "

Next next week's: _I gave up obsessing over my family, then was able to clear
my Netflix queue."

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infodroid
> I was feeling proud until I realized I had started to transfer my TV time to
> Twitter and Facebook. How was that better?

As the author observes, even if you stop watching TV, it doesn't mean you'll
automatically be more productive. It's a struggle.

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doctorpangloss
Narcissism, I would argue, is a far more dangerous thing than TV. The author's
narcissism lets her celebrate all these unlikable cliches: being a fitness
guru, being an "aspiring writer," being an academic overachiever, having a
perfect husband and incoming baby or whatever. Then the style: preachy,
written in the first person, chronologically. As though the only way to write
about yourself is like an upbeat propaganda travel log.

The beautiful thing about a show like Friends is that it takes broken people
and makes them likeable. Girls does a great job at mocking a character like
the author, and arguably does more to encourage people to do good for
themselves than the author does.

~~~
fred_is_fred
I agree with you here. This is written in the preachy way that people post to
Facebook and then say "#blessed" at the end. The whole purpose of this is to
say how their lives are better than yours.

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romanovcode
Isn't this the main purpose of FB anyway - to boast how much your life is
better then everyone's else?

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jlarocco
Reminds me of the onion article: [http://www.theonion.com/article/area-man-
constantly-mentioni...](http://www.theonion.com/article/area-man-constantly-
mentioning-he-doesnt-own-a-tel-429)

I don't own a TV, but I doubt it makes me any more productive. There are
plenty of other ways to waste time if you're not motivated.

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stevefeinstein
I gave up TV, those things didn't happen, but my wife left me, and took the
kids and the dog

~~~
throwaway2016a
In college my grades went down significantly when I started dating my future
wife Sophomore year. I was a 4.0 Freshman year and only a 3.75 Sophomore year.
Definitely causation...

Sorry, I know you're being tongue and cheek, it just made me think of the
anecdote :)

One could argue that if I didn't start dating her and get married I would be
much more "successful" right now.

~~~
thesmallestcat
Protip: When somebody brings up their wife leaving them and taking the kids,
save the marital bliss talk for later.

~~~
throwaway2016a
I never said we were still together or blissful... in fact I said I would have
probably been more successful if I didn't get married.

Although the thought hadn't crossed my mind I was being insensitive because I
am 80% sure the OP post was a joke. Intentionally in stark contract with the
article.

Hence why the other replies are:

> You should try stand-up comedy

> But did she take the truck?

(a joke reference to American Country Western Songs)

If I am wrong and his wife did leave him and take the dog my condolences.

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rdlecler1
This article makes the assumption that people are not watching TV as a mental
decompressor. Depending on your job and hours you may very well not have the
physical and mental energy left over to engage in extreme physical and mental
activity.

~~~
Cyph0n
Actually, I'm a PhD student myself, and Netflix/Amazon/Twitch is how I
decompress at the end of a long day of classes and/or research. I guess it
depends on the person; some people find physical activity enjoyable, while
others (like myself) see it as something that must be done in order to stay
healthy.

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blowski
I gave up _not_ watching TV and found myself more engaged with friends, family
and colleagues. A world where nobody watched TV might be a more cultural and
educated place, but in the world we actually live in, cutting yourself from it
has negative consequences. Everything in moderation.

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Upvoter33
I watch plenty of TV, but managed to get a Ph.D. in a hard field. Don't worry,
TV viewers - you can have it all!

