Dreading Sunday Night

One of the few good things about being unemployed is avoiding the dreaded, “Sunday Night Disorder.” You know the feeling - you used to get it when you were in school. Your day would be going along nicely, when suddenly, 60 Minutes was on and you knew your weekend was officially over. Worse still, it was finally time to start doing your homework at the last minute. It sucked. 

Back in December, when I was a productive member of society, I would dread Sunday night, because I knew that I would have to wake up for work a little bit after one a.m. and forfeit a “normal” sleep schedule for another week. Now when Sunday night comes around, my biggest concern is figuring out how to DVR Big Love, Brothers & Sisters and The L Word. Right about now, you’re probably thinking, “Pete, your problem is easily solved. You are a dude, so you shouldn’t be watching Brothers & Sisters or The L Word.”

But, you see, unemployment offers a wonderful opportunity to sit mindlessly in front of a TV for hours and hours looking for any form of entertainment available. And then what happens is you get emotionally involved in programs that you normally would never watch. For example, an employed person might have one favorite show a night, or more typically, a couple of favorites per week. Well, for me, a normal Monday involves trying to watch: House, Chuck, Gossip Girl, The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, 2 ½ Men, whatever piece of  crap they put on after 2 ½ Men, (this week, it’s the David Spade and Puddy vehicle, The Rules of Engagement), Heroes, 24, and The Bachelor (I know, shut up).

My DVR is running at 90% capacity, yet I’m still mad that The Office was a rerun last week. I realized this week that I’ve been out of work for three months, and other than a Christmas visit to the parents, I haven’t even left the city limits. And when you don’t leave the city in the winter, you spend way too much time surfing the internet (Kenneth the Page and Bobby Jindal parodies anyone?) and watching TV. I’ve tried to combat my obsessive TV watching by challenging myself to start reading more, but that didn’t last too long because, well, the TV is shinier.

Take this for example: One week ago today, I was actually going to get out of the house for some fresh air and go for a run. But then, I turned on the MLB network and they were playing the Chicago Cubs vs. St. Louis Cardinals game that is now referred to as “The Ryne Sandberg Game.” Needless to say, I was entranced by the shininess and four hours later, the outcome of the game was the same as it was in 1984, but I still hadn’t left the house.

Yes, I have a problem and I need help. And I’d really like to figure it out right now, but Flight of the Conchords is about to start, so . . .