Shh!!!! Please do not tell anyone but yes we do have one of them – a TV. We bought our TV so many years ago as entertainment for our daughter Naama. She would come home from school and in her room the TV was on and Happy Days was waiting for her. Fonzie of Happy Days fame, known to others as Henry Winkler was a best friend of hers. When we entertained the idea of making her a bat mitzvah, we actually sent him an invitation and he responded with a signed poster of himself with the inscription–“To Naama–Bat Mitzvah’s are cool.” She was beyond thrilled.
As the years continued we added a DVD Player to that TV and we were the best customer of Blockbuster in the mall closest to our home. Every Sunday we would take out five movies for Naama to watch since in the winter in Montreal it is most difficult to maneuver a wheelchair. Ironically, shortly after Naama moved into her new home, Maison Shalom, the video store went out of business.
When Naama moved, her beloved TV became the possession of her parents (that’s us). Our grandchildren who do not have TV’s in their homes would arrive from hours of travel and scoot right up to our bedroom to turn on this exciting phenomenon. When the older ones were younger, any children’s program would do and as they got older the Food Channel and Sports Channels were waiting for them. As my grandson reminded me, in the beginning sports on TV in Montreal was only hockey or curling!
Recently, our almost 3-year-old great-granddaughter (wow) Chaviva was crying until we brought her upstairs to our bedroom revealing that flat screened secret object on Nina’s dresser. It was a miracle how she instantly became absorbed in the screen and the child’s program being shown. The tears dried quickly.
The dilemma which we seem to face in our new home is what channel to watch for the best news. In Montreal it was so easy. There were really only two acceptable English language TV stations. The 11:00 p.m. news reporter became part of our family just as we are assuming Walter Cronkite did for many here years ago. And when we turn the news on, we find it is often not there because baseball, hockey, or football seem to override its importance. It is hard to get into the latest stabbing in Newark, Brooklyn, or some place in New York City. Nor are we concerned about the unbelievable lawsuit which is now taking place against the State of Connecticut on behalf of a man who we would consider more an animal, who is now requesting kosher food in prison after killing a mother and her two daughters gruesomely in their home. He has found religion in prison and is now requiring kosher food. HELP!
Is there not a channel that primarily focuses on world news? We know that we cannot watch CNN–Judge Judy has become a fun alternative while one of us sleeps away. It seems that we have many choices with FIOS, but whenever we turn to one of those stations we believe that there is an extra charge for everything. Oh well, we’ll just stick to the plain and simple ABC, CBS and NBC. Even the French stations did not cost us anymore.
Our difficulty finding the right station also reaches to the radio as we drive in the car. Muggings, murders, hit and runs, steel falling from scaffolding–we used to think that the news in Montreal was dull. We have never appreciated it more. By the end of the day listening to 880 or 1110 AM we would be able to repeat verbatim everything that is said as it gets repeated every 15 minutes. We are learning about 970 and NPR.
Agreed these are silly adjustments when one makes a major move, but they are also reminders of the fact that we are still foreigners in our new home.
By Dr. Mordechai and Nina Glick
