HeathensOnline.com

I have heard rumors that we here in the US have become lazy.  That we watch too much TV.  That we spend too much time sitting on our fat behinds, on the sofa, doing nothing.   Well, I can’t dispute any of that.  I enjoy sitting on the couch taking in some fine family entertainment.  Or a horrible movie.  Or even a late night show that might not be suitable for the young ones.  I know I should spend more time exercising, and that I should be much more conscious of what I eat.  These are things I have come to accept about myself, my wife, and the lifestyle we lead.

I also hear, rumor has it, that women like to shop.  And, while I understand that some men also enjoy this past time, which women are apparently better at anyway, I am not here to talk about men.  At least not today.  What I want to talk about is the combination of shopping and sitting on the sofa watching TV.  It is one thing if you go out to do a bit of shopping.  Get yourself a little fresh air, a nice stroll, perhaps one of those Auntie Ann’s pretzels.  It is something wholly different when you can sit in your chair all day watching product after product stream enticingly by while eating bonbons and drinking Mountain Dew.  What does this teach our children?  The ones who don’t even get the opportunity to be hauled around the mall by an angry mom who wishes they were anywhere but with her.  Shouldn’t every child get to experience the thrill of hiding under racks of clothes in a department store?  Or fishing the coins out of the mall fountain while mom’s back is turned so that you can afford a turn on the mechanical car ride?  Isn’t it bad enough that you  can buy practically anything you want on the internet?  Do we need to shop on TV as well?  Get out to the store.  It just may be the healthiest thing you do today.