I've been implementing my own version of the Marshmallow test - with myself as the vict...I mean test subject. I hate that Netflix and it's compatriots in paid-programming release all (or some) of the episodes of its' newest releases at once.
Honestly, I'm a product of the delayed gratification generation. Are you? Well, full disclosure, I'm Catholic - so I have been waiting for the end of the world for many years...although, I'm pretty sure I'm not a candidate for redemption. But, denial and delay have long been precepts of the Catholic faith. Perhaps Lent, currently underway, is having an impact on me.
Here is where I'm experiencing this delayed gratification: I hate to watch the end of a program - so I don't. Most recently, I've been watching the series Victoria, (yes, it's not recently released) and it's fabulous. The music (I watch the whole intro and outro, because of this) is amazing; the visuals are superb, and I love the actress playing Victoria (Jenna Coleman). However, I cannot get past the next-to-last episode filmed in Season three. But, is this delayed gratification, or is it just delaying an end...I don't want to watch the end. I know what happens in history - I do not want to separate from the storyline that I have connected to in Victoria...it seems so real.
I've also stopped moving forward in the series of The Diplomat, as well as Virgin River. Both of these series have been gripping for me - and yet, I cannot move to the end of each.
I hearken back to those days when I was young, and my siblings (all younger) and I would gather in front of the TV with our snacks or dinner on a Friday night to watch first The Muppets, then Dallas, and finally, with the youngest in bed, Falcon Crest. Now that was some delayed gratification. Who shot JR? We waited for a long time to find out, and I'm better for it.
Now, I'm carefully curating my access to Bridgerton (self-imposed, limited release, weekly) - hoping to extend my enjoyment of the show over time. Delayed gratification is a powerful motivator to get me through the week.
What an excellent way to give yourself something to look forward to! Many of my students lament that they have to wait a WHOLE week for an episode to come out of a new show and while I smile and commiserate, I remember the excitement of rushing back from a commercial break!
ReplyDeleteLove the incorporation of Catholicism and the Lenten period :) Are we giving something up or letting something in?
You and I grew up on the same TV shows!! I loved reading the end of this slice and making connections. I am NOT like you at all when it comes to streaming, though! I have no problem sitting all weekend and watch all the episodes!
ReplyDeleteI remember those shows! I remember talking about and waiting for “my shows”. I, too, believe I am better at impulse control because I forced to get better at it. To actually wait for things. Go us! But I DO watch the end of shows
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