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Did you survive? It's the first working Monday of 2016...(insert the expletive or exclamation here based on your day). Mine, well it was fairly decent. After all, I had two full weeks, uh huh 14 glorious days, away from the office. The time off was awesome. We basically celebrated the holidays and then hibernated. After being routine-less for an extended time, we can only expect so much from a single day. But that's neither here nor there. I'd like to include an new segment on the ol' blog. It may be more spontaneous than weekly but we're going to give it a go. So on this very first Make It Happen Monday, I'd like to revisit the challenge I issued myself nearly a year ago: cutting the cable cord. I love TV. Like really, I do. I have a TV above my fridge so I can watch and cook, for goodness sakes. Plus, I was a lucky kid, for multiple various reasons, but for one, I had cable! Like probably since birth...I don't remember a time when we didn't have more than the Big 3 channels. Seriously! I didn't realize it was a rarity but my husband assures me that not all kids grew up with variety. For the record, I didn't squander that blessing, I watched all the shows any kid would have loved like Dragnet, I Love Lucy, and Bewitched on Nick at Nite, Get Smart, Charlie's Angels, Designing Women, and the A-Team. Oh, and, plenty of Food Network. Ahem, isn't that what every precocious child watched? No, well, I've never claimed to be normal. When I moved out on my own I budgeted for cable, albeit basic, but this meant I'd have more than the primetime networks. But sheesh, that privilege gets expensive even without a lot of options. As Nick and I prepared to buy our house we spent a good amount of time crunching numbers. One moderate but unnecessary expense kept leaping out -- the satellite subscription with DVR and HD channels of nearly $80/month (for TV alone with a heck of a 2-year frozen price deal). When we took the plunge and bought our home, I knew it was the perfect opportunity to not transfer service or get a new contract at a higher price. Yep, this cable kid cut the cord. There were some upfront expenses as we purchased an AppleTV and a Roku Streaming Stick (Nick already had a PS3 that could stream too so that took care of all our TVs). We now just have two payments for Netflix ($8.99/month) and Hulu ($7.99/month). We also considered Amazon Prime but just haven't swallowed the $99/year fee though it carries lots of benefits and is only about $8.25/month. (There are other options aside from Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime, but I don't have any firsthand knowledge of them so you'll have to investigate those on your own.) While it took some adjustment to not just turn on the tube and flip to a fave channel, it's been a pretty easy transition. I really only miss NCIS marathons and a few other exclusive shows that run on USA Network and CBS prime time tv shows. To my surprise, I'd actually recommend joining the 43.2 million other Netflix subscribers and break up with your cable provider. It's been an easy way to save some cash and break my addiction to tv. I actually watch less now because it's not such a mindless activity. I've compiled a few pros and cons for Cutting the Cord. There are plenty, and of course, these are a matter of opinion.  In summary, if you're looking for a way to trim your budget in the New Year or just sick of shelling out money for channels you don't really take advantage of, weigh your television needs and pick the best alternative for you. And, if you can't break away quite yet you're in good company because there are about 100 million cable subscribers. But if I can do it, anyone can...
Alright, gotta run. I've got some Scandal binge watching to do. ;) Until next time-- xoxo
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