Seriously?

Starbucks has these really nifty "The Way I See It" blurbs written on the sides of their coffee cups that I enjoy reading. They're written by authors, talk show hosts, radio personalities, directors, and sometimes even customers. I was reading one the other day and was shocked by what I read:

The Way I See It # 51
Americans spend an average of 29 hours a week watching television - which means in a typical life span we devote 13 uninterrupted years to our TV sets! The biggest problem with mass media isn't low quality - it's high quantity. Cutting down just an hour a day would provide extra years of life - for music and family, exercise and reading, conversation and coffee.

- Michael Medved, author of Right Turns and radio talk show host
29 hours a week?! That translates to roughly 4.14 hours per day. Where do people find the time to watch that much television? Because I'd really like to know (I never have enough hours in a day to finish everything I need to do). And the invention of TiVo has only made things worse.

I'm lucky if I watch even 3 hours a week when my favorite shows are on (American Idol and Dancing with the Stars, which I often miss due to after-work activities). No wonder childhood obesity is increasing in this country...too much sofa time! That's precious time that could be spent at the gym. Or eating. Just kidding.