I discovered something alarming on our recent vacation. My kids' idea of fun TV shows to watch are basically all on the Food Network.
Seriously. Checking the TV guide, setting up our lives around the next episode of Chopped, of Ace of Cakes, of Iron Chef, of Cupcake Wars. When forced by Husband to watch something educational, they'll turn on Discovery's Man vs. Wild. On that one the guy roasts bugs for dinner. Do I detect a common theme of eating?
Now I readily admit that I've spent about five years watching HGTV drone on and on with Househunters and Design on a Dime, Curb Appeal and Spice Up Your Kitchen, and I know those shows don't exactly have any suspense, but why are my kids so fascinated with food preparation?
Since we were spending a lot of time together and since it was vacation, I had to watch some of these shows myself. At first I was concerned. After all, I used to weigh considerably more than I do now. In the circles in which I run, the Food Network is routinely referred to as "Food Porn." Was this a good idea?
Turns out there was no problem at all. The stuff that the chefs prepare on most of those shows is totally unrecognizable to me as food. One day on Chopped the chefs had to use some fish called Aho in every dish, and they used it - as fish ribs, dried and grinded, and in other torturous preparations. And then they threw in some other stuff, like pork rinds, shaved this or that and then, I swear, jellied blech. Because of these unrecognizable ingredients, I've actually never wanted to eat anything on these shows (okay, except the cupcakes). Most of the time I wonder how the judges can stand it.
I wonder at my poor, hungry children, watching Food Network to just see something being cooked, instead of their own mother who stands in the kitchen blankly, never able to actually think of What's For Dinner? I think of Bar Mitzvahzilla, happily reading the food ads that Husband places before him as he reads the paper, Bar Mitzvahzilla's eyes growing luminous at the glossy photographs of the grocery store ads.
But the kids and I had to reach a compromise somehow. Somewhere in the vast space between HGTV and the Food Network. Finally I found it, my new favorite show: Say Yes to the Dress on TLC. Oy.
What do you get stuck watching on TV in your house? Does anyone else have kids who watch Food Network, like mine do? Are you a fan or is some of this stuff just way too complex? HGTV?
True story: When Miss M. was almost 2, I awakened in the middle of the night to a loud, animated male voice. I looked next to me and hubs was sleeping soundly. I was a bit wigged out by this.
ReplyDeleteI groggily lurched out of bed, slithered down the stairs, and as I was almost to the end of the stairwell, I heard a little giggle and a high-pitched "Bam!"
That Minx was watching Emeril. Obviously, we watch too much FN in our house.
Oh I watch many of the same shows! I used to record Chopped and Top Chef and The Next Food Network Star for myself. But now my teen wants to watch them all with me. And my son at college watched when he was home and I had to send episode recaps to him via email when he want back to school mid-season for Top Chef! I also lover HGTV. And yes, I watch those woman and their dress drama and always wonder what I would have chosen had I not worn my mother's wedding dress.
ReplyDeleteBTW - We watch no "instructional" cooking shows, just the competitions. Hmmm
I tend to leave the room when one of the kids gets the remote in his/her hands. I watch mostly news and sports on the TV. Occasionally, there will be a movie on I want to watch. Reruns of West Wing are high on my list too!
ReplyDeleteAs a kid, I used to love to watch the cooking shows on PBS. Now, I rarely get the remote. Nick, Jr., the Cartoon Network and the Disney Channel are all that gets played during daylight hours. When Hubby gets home, CNN!
ReplyDeleteI like to watch Food Network, but like you, I find some of the combinations pretty disgusting...Plus, if they look appetizing, I can hear my stomach grumble in protest!
But I did manage to catch a marathon of Say Yes to the Dress and LOVED IT...Who spends that kind of money on a dress? I spent $500 between my dress, shoes, petticoat and veil, and thought I spent too much!
My family is obsessed with the Food Network, too - maybe it's because I can't cook, but I do have a secret crush on Anthony Bourdain! I've recently come across my teenager watching the Kardashians and some kind of rehab show, but was successful in turning the channel back to a mother/daughter marathon of DVRd Gilmore Girl reruns.
ReplyDeleteThe Food Network? Not so much. But I have seen every single episode of House Hunters and International House Hunters and I've begun to talk like them..."Move-in ready", "Turn key", "This isn't really my taste".
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile my house is a wreck. Jo
I love Top Chef and Ace of Cakes. Apparently the Food Network has grown tremendously in the much sought after young male demographic. go figure.
ReplyDeleteOh, I am with your kids. I heart Food Network. And my 3 year old watched one episode of The Next Food Network Star with me. He of course liked the blond girl. LOL
ReplyDeleteHaha! Mine are addicted to Nick Jr and Sponge Bob. When I get the television to myself, I do like House Hunters, Real Estate Intervention and a few network comedies I can't miss ( Big Bang Theory, 30 Rock). The only drama I watch is Army Wives, and that is only because of the military connection. I'm hooked.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was pregnant I became obsessed with watching home makeover shows and househunters and all those sorts of shows. Thankfully I think it was a severe case of nesting instinct and brain atrophy as I no longer much care for them. I never watch food shows and I do not like reality TV so there are just a few shows I like all of them off at the moment so I am really enjoying a summer of no TV.
ReplyDeleteWell, I still am infatuated with Scott on INCOME PROPERTY. His voice doesn't bother me at all. (That is on HGTV.) I used to put myself to bed at night watching the ABC soaps on SoapNet. It was my wind down. I was trying to mentally prepare and physically prepare for sleep. For a while that worked. Now the insomnia is as bad as ever. At 11pm, I am still wide awake. That has ceased working. During the regular TV season, I record everything on the DVR and watch it later. I still have stuff on there to watch. I am stretching it out through the summer, so I don't have complete withdrawal. I don't think I actually answered your question. How about that?
ReplyDeleteTKW, I can't believe I haven't watched Emeril yet! My kids are picking the shows, of course and I think it has more to do with the competition than the food. Must be!
ReplyDeleteKaren, us too. No practical instruction, just drama and more drama! I keep telling my daughter that the Iron Chef is biased against the challenger - the Iron Chef is never going to lose. And now our new thing is hating the judges. Definitely more fun than HGTVs Design Star!
ReplyDeleteNicki, I used to be so hooked on the old AMC movies and miss them. Do they still air them? And, yes, when my son turns on FX (which appears to be the Violence channel) I leave the room!
ReplyDeleteMaria, ca you even BELIEVE those brides spending twenty thousand dollars on a dress? I love that show! I hate to admit it, but my dress was made out of polyester satin and I definitely had a budget! Even if I got married today I'd have a budget! But I love Say Yes to the Dress for the drama of the girls falling in love with their dress, the horrifying families and the weird back room sales tactics that go on with the staff!
ReplyDeleteLisa, I've got to find Celebrity Rehab. Now that I've finally turned on my TV I might as well make it worthwhile! I stumbled across the Kardashians a few years ago but that whole reality cam in the middle of a family was too much for me. And what do they DO anyway? In the episode I watched they were just fighting. If I want to watch that I can just think back to my own early years with my sisters! Definitely have to check out the Gilmore Girls!
ReplyDeleteWe turned off the tv...and I swear, it's the best thing we ever did. I used to watch Paula deen and everything on there was not only recognizable, it was durn tasty. And fattening.
ReplyDeletelol.
My daughter is watching that cake boss show and a whole bunch of other crap. I don't get the food network and you nailed the reason. I'm not cooking that crap; I haven't even heard of half of it!
ReplyDeleteI love this! But I sense a bit of guilt creeping in...
ReplyDeleteI do love watching Top Chef and Top Chef Massters. Mostly it's Bravo on in the background in my household.
To my surprise, when holed up in a hotel room for a weekend with my kid (and I gave him the remote), he zapped a good bit, but kept coming back to National Geographic and Discovery Channel. We ended up watching some fascinating shows (including a terrific documentary on beavers of all things).
Embarrassing to raise two sons who watch more highbrow fare than I.
We love watching cooking shows too, me and the boys. We don't have cable so we have to stick with PBS. I cannot cook, yet I am comforted by how picky my kids are: there is no way they will eat the food being prepared on the shows. LOL.
ReplyDeleteLove the new look!
ReplyDeleteSometimes when I watch food competition shows it stresses me out and I get some kind of weird anxiety. I think this is probably because a) I hate to cook, b) I am NOT creative in the kitchen and c)I am not very good at it.
ReplyDeleteI am also not particularly creative when it comes to decorating my home but HGTV I love! As for Say Yes to the Dress, my 8-year-old daugther loves it.
My kids watch TLC and Food Network and Discovery Channel more than anything else. I worry it will make them geeks, but then I remember that with me as there mother, there wasn't much of a chance for them anyway. My geekness of choice? The history channel.
ReplyDeleteLinda, we are Food Netowrk Junkies in my house. I discovered it in the winter of 200/2003, stuck in the house 24/7 with four pound preemie twins who were not allowed to leave the house unless it was to see on of their doctors.
ReplyDeleteI remember discovering Rachel Ray and was fascinated by 30 Minute Meals. It seemded so easy!
One night, a rare night that my husband came home, I was feeding both babies and wathcing 30 Minute Meals. My husband had seen the show before, too. So when I asked him, "How come she can do that and I cannot?" He said, "She isn't taking care of preemie twins."
My DD loves Cupcake Wars and my twins love Food Network Challenge and Chopped. DD2 is partial to Ina Garten, the Neelys, Paula Deen and Duff Goldman (a nice Jewish boy). DS loves Rachel Ray.
I just marvel at it all!
I watch tv on my laptop so I can watch all the corny shows I want. Plus it's cheaper than cable. Even when I lived at home I had my own tv so I never had to fight for the remote.
ReplyDeleteFood Network is our common meeting ground in my house—the shows we all end up watching together. Cooking, eating (at home and trying new restaurants) and watching FN is one of the best bonding rituals we share.
ReplyDeleteThey'll watch shows like "House" too, but I can't take them for fear I have every illness that anyone on the shows get.
One of the joys of being single is no one messes with the remote. I get to boycott sports and watch all the Bravo & Food Network I want! Why, when my diet consists of healthy, low-fat foods do I still get pleasure watching Paula Deen pour in the cream and dollop on the butter?
ReplyDeleteHere via Absence of Alternatives. I am watching NCIS at the moment and also get sucked in by Law & Order: SVU. Otherwise, my tv addictions tend to reflect where I am in my life. I used to watch tons of HGTV while I was remodeling my house. Then I took up with What Not to Wear.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I'm glad that you're sharing my summertime "misery." I think we need a break - even if it's embarrassingly embarrassing.
ReplyDeleteOn to your question - our kids do the same thing and your description of yourself in the kitchen was so apt. I just don't care to make meals anymore. With our nutty schedules and the monsters we've created in our picky eaters, it seems pointless. The upside is that they are all learning to cook pretty well.
Nate is watching lots of Anthony Bourdain. Chloe watches a lot of wedding shows and (oy vey) Housewives of wherever. And poor Sophia with her 5 cats and a serious jones for a dog watches Dogs 101 like crazy.
Me? I'm still going through every dang series of British murder mystery I can get my grubby paws on at the library.
We gave up cable a few years ago because we were addicted to Law and Order (that show is on one channel or another every hour of the day, I swear). So, it's all PBS all the time for us. Except lately my husband has started watching America's Got Talent. Yeah, really.
ReplyDeleteI would love to watch Say yes to the dress. Kaishon loves the food network also. Like you said, I never understand any thing they are cooking. Cupcake wars is a problem for me though because it totally makes me want a cup cake at 10 PM! Darn it!
ReplyDelete