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My freshman year of college I created a Hulu account as Spotify and Hulu offered a college student discounted bundle deal. I never used Hulu before, but I knew it was a similar streaming concept as Netflix. Although, because of my antecedent knowledge of Netflix, it didn't take me too long to figure out the workings of Hulu. I decided one day to watch an episode of Seinfeld--which I've seen before when it came on TBS after Friends, but I never really liked the show too much. Thank the good Lord I decided to give it another chance on Hulu! I've watched Seinfeld at least four times over by now, and I continue to watch it today. I have always enjoyed comedy, and as I age, I enjoy dry comedy more and more. I learned a lot about 90s pop-culture from this show, too. Because of this show's prominence and dominance of the mainstream, many people know a lot about it and often make references, which I find hilarious. Many guest stars on Seinfeld later in their careers became much more popular/successful, and it's cool to enjoy actors I enjoyed in the sitcom in other works. Seinfeld is my favorite TV show and my comfort show. A TV show I can turn on and just listen to in the background or not really pay close attention to, and still enjoy and appreciate the artwork it truly is.

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Seinfeld - Hennigan's Scotch (Kramer Drunk)

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For a long time, the only way I watched TV or TV shows was on cable in the living room or at a friend's or family's house. However, I was introduced to Netflix by a friend of mine in middle school. I had heard of Netflix because of its rising popularity at the time. Although, I didn't know what exactly Netflix was. As a young boy, my family hosted a foreign exchange student named Ben from Germany. Ben would often get German DVDs in the mail in a red envelope labeled "Netflix." So, you can imagine my confusion when in middle school my friend invited me over to his house and asked if I wanted to watch a movie on Netflix, thinking Netflix was a movie service for people who spoke different languages. By the time I was in eighth grade or freshman year of high school, my love for TV and movies was immense, no doubt. Being introduced to Netflix by my friend--and coming to the realization it was for people who speak all languages--I really wanted to have a Netflix account. Around this age, somehow, I managed to get ahold of my mother's credit card and sign up for a "FIRST 3 MONTHS FREE" Netflix subscription. I was introduced to so many different shows and movies. The sheer number of viewing options readily available to me was simply overwhelming; my love for TV grew. After the third month, however, my mother's credit card was charged a $7.99 subscription fee. There went my Netflix access and came a long lecture about "reading the fine print" when producing a credit card number for things--specifically Netflix subscriptions--that say they're free. Netflix will probably be around for a very long time. The students I eventually will be teaching probably already have access to Netflix and are familiar with how it works. I can use Netflix as a tool when teaching my future students.

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Like many others, at one point in my life, my "favorite" TV show was Friends. Of course, my parents watched this show when I was younger, so I knew about the show and recognized some characters and familiar settings. However, my interest in the show didn't peak until fifth grade. By this point, the show had ended and was past its glory days, yet still quite popular. I would watch the show almost every day after school on TBS from around 3:00 until my mother would tell me to turn it off and go outside or do my homework. Friends was on TBS practically the entire afternoon. It would come on while I was still at school and the programming wouldn't change until around dinnertime. My fondness for Friends carried beyond fifth grade and into high school. My mother had a Friends trivia game from years ago, to which I knew all of answers. I was gifted the entire series boxset of Friends on DVD for Christmas on year. My fondness of Friends sparked an interest in a couple of my cousins and my sister in the show, as well.

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Disney Channel and Nickelodeon were huge parts of my childhood. Before TV and TV shows started their shift toward streaming services, I engaged with TV most because of these two networks and the shows on the networks--Spongebob Squarepants, Suite Life of Zack & Cody, Wizards of Waverly Place, Fairly Odd Parents. Watching these shows helped me be in tune and connected with the culture of my peers around the country. I became deeply engaged with the characters and the storylines of the shows, as did many other children my age. Even today, my peers and I can converse about these shows, make references to them, and joke about them. TV provided me with a sense of identity with a facet of popular culture and other people. Both Disney Channel and Nickelodeon are still major platforms that children watch shows. With my literacy of these modes of viewing TV, I can connect with my students on a deeper level and connect their experiences with mine.

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The first cable or satellite provider I remember my family having was DirectTV. After the living room Zenith died on us, we got a new TV and new provider. With DirectTV we had the choice between 700 DIFFERENT channels--even though Nickelodeon was on channel 300 and 301. With the Zenith gone, so too went the remote control. With DirectTV in, so too was the new DirectTV remote control. It took me a little while to figure out how to use the remote and to familiarize myself with the buttons and channels. I started using the TV guide of network channels--on two pieces of paper stapled together--to locate the channels that the networks I wanted to watch were aired on. Soon, I learned how to use the TV guide button on the remote to find specific shows I wanted to watch, without simply channel surfing. After DirectTV's occupation of the Bland family living room came the epitome of providers: Xfinity by Comcast. When we got Comcast, I had to learn a new remote all over again, although it was much easier this time around. With Comcast, if a show I wanted to watch wasn't on, I could use the "On Demand" feature and watch any show I wanted at anytime (free or with charge). Comcast allowed me and my family to record programs and watch later in our DVR.

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Still, as a young boy I became more familiar with television and the other shows, commercials, and stations. I became familiar with the local news station and came to dislike lead anchor's voice, so I would turn off the TV when he came on. My parents regularly watched the news throughout the days, my dad watched football and baseball, my mom watched soap operas, they both watched FRIENDS together, my grandparents would watch Dr. Phil and Bonanza. After my affinity for Dragon Tales came my disdain for the local news. Nevertheless, the local news introduced me to another small facet of television and the conventions that make up the television. When out or around other TVs, I was able to recognize when the news would be on, even if it were an alternate station. Similarly, I was able to recognize shows watched in my home by my parents when seeing a familiar character or episode on a different TV.

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Throughout my life, there have been televisions in almost every setting I have found myself. In the maternity ward of the hospital my mother was in during labor when giving birth to me had a television in it. There are TVs in the living room; TVs in the bedroom; TVs in doctor's office waiting rooms; TVs in the classroom, TVs in the kitchen; TVs in the car; TVs in our pockets! Televisions are everywhere, and have always been ever present in my life. However, my earliest memory watching TV was as a young boy waking up early in the morning and making my way into the living room to watch dragon tails on PBS. From the moment I discovered Dragon Tales, I was hooked on television. I watched a lot of Calliou, Sesame Street, and Barney, too because of my affinity for Dragon Tales. I would wake up in the morning and quietly go to the living room, find the remote control, power on the TV, and the press the buttons on the remote that coordinated with the PBS channel number.