A month of snow, living without caffeine… and TV

When I look back at January 2014, three things will stand out for me. We endured the coldest, snowiest month that I can remember in my lifetime. I quit drinking caffeinated beverages. And I watched all four seasons of Battlestar Gallactica.
Really, can life get much more exciting than that? Actually, there was more. But this blog post is going to be long enough without talking about some cool changes to my job, our big home improvement projects and all of the kid-related news.
Even as we start the first day of February, the snow is piling up outside. It’s become so common that we no longer run to the window and jump with excitement to see our world covered in white stuff. We’ve been buried in snow almost constantly since December, and our attitude about “what is cold” has changed dramatically. After missing four days of school due to extreme negative temps, we now celebrate anything in the double digits.
Being trapped inside so much, I also have had many moments when I second guessed my decision to give up caffeine. It all started on Jan. 3 when I had my wisdom tooth removed. I reasoned that as long as I was planning to stay in bed all weekend anyway, I might as well go through caffeine withdrawal at the same time. The first three days were rough. Thankfully, I could blame my tooth for my desire to sleep all day.
I might have given up if it weren’t for e-mails from a few friends encouraging me that I could do it. One told me it took her nine days to get through the withdrawal. And she was right. I had a headache for nine days straight before I finally started to feel normal again.
People ask me all the time why I decided to do it. The main reason is that I wanted to see what it would feel like. I was pretty much on a caffeine drip all day long. My caffeine was controlling me more than I was controlling it. I also have been encouraging one of my children to break a bad habit. I decided it was time for me to lead by example.
I still can’t believe that I can get up each morning now and start my day without caffeine. I definitely miss the rush sometimes, but I do NOT miss the extreme low that I would feel when I “needed” that caffeine boost. I think the biggest positive impact, though, is the feeling that I could now change ANYTHING in my life. I really didn’t believe it would be possible for me to cut out caffeine. Now that I’ve done it, I have confidence that I could create some other good habits.
And that brings me to my TV viewing for the month. Back on that same weekend when I stayed in bed for three days, I started watching Battlestar Gallactica on Netflix. I just finished all four seasons last night. Yep. That’s four years of TV packed tightly into one cold month.
At this season in my life, I don’t watch much TV. We don’t have cable, or any type of recording device. Homework and family time keep us from sitting down and watching “live” TV. So that leaves me with Netflix and Hulu. I have a love/hate relationship with this type of TV viewing. There’s no forced anticipation when you have access to every episode of a show, and you don’t have to wait until next week to find out what happens next. At the same time, I watch TV like I read a good book. I can pick it up any time (on my phone, iPad, computer or TV), without missing anything. The anticipation drives me to fold laundry or walk on the treadmill, just so I can have an excuse to watch my show.
I really enjoyed Battlestar Gallactica. I’ve always been a sci-fi kind of girl, but I was surprised that the series touched on so many issues. Science vs. faith. Religion. God vs. gods. Evolution and creation. Angels. Fate and destiny. (It is rated TV-14 for a reason, by the way.)
Now, I’m on the hunt for another TV show to get me through February. I watched all of Bones last year, and I’ve also watched Downton Abbey, Once Upon a Time, Lost (of course) and The Office in recent years. A few people have recommended Breaking Bad, and I’m thinking of 24. Any other suggestions?
If you made it to the end of this blog post, leave me a comment! What was the highlight of January for you? What’s your favorite TV show right now?