When I was thirteen I had a little portable TV on the nightstand next to my bed. The shows I remember watching were Sliders and Frasier and Cheers and maybe that show Coach. I don't remember much about the shows but I remember the feeling of having my *own* TV (I had found it in the trash) was thrilling. Something that was mine (my own) that wholly belonged to me.

I never watched much TV after I left for college, and until Thom moved in and discovered that I had free cable, I still didn't. Now the TV is a pleasant background sound with infrequent bright highlights of funny sound bytes and interesting commercials. When Frasier is on I'm reminded of that first happy thrill of independence. When Thom mutes the sound to scan the channels, the silence bothers me.