Toward the end of his interview with Neil Patrick Harris last night, Conan O’Brien bemoaned interruptions of applause, which were slowing down the witty banter on stage. He imagined someone at home with the remote, turning off the TV, complaining, “I might have to read a book!” He mimed reading a book, for a split second, then: “Can’t read.” The invisible book disappearing, an invisible remote clicking. “Back to Conan!”
Which was very funny, and the fact that Conan mentions books in the middle of an interview that has nothing to do with them practically makes him a champion of literacy. Conan’s no slouch, after all. He did go to Harvard.
But it made me think about reading before going to bed. Setting aside the other things we’d all like to be doing in bed, there used to be a tradition of reading before going to sleep. People hung special lights on their headboards so they could read at night. Maybe they’d only get in a few pages before nodding off, but still, there was a tradition of reading before going to sleep.
Then we started putting TVs in our bedrooms. Why did we do that? OK, it’s easier to watch reruns of Law & Order than try to remember where we were in War & Peace. But wouldn’t it be better for our poor fragile brains to have a little intellectual spark before pulling down the shades for the night?
Of course, there isn’t anything that says we can’t watch Conan and then read. But to guard against TV-before-sleep hazards, I’ve left my TV in the living room. What about you?
With very few exceptions, I have read for between a half-hour and an hour in bed before nodding off every single night since I was around 12 years old. My parents inculcated and encouraged a love of reading in me at a very young age, and it’s something I’ve done almost continuously for about twenty years.
I always read before bed and I’ve never had a tv in my bedroom.
I’ve always kept the television not only out of the bedroom but out of the main living area. The rule for me is to place it where I cannot use it as background. As well, having the television in the bedroom might threaten more than just your reading habits. (And yes, I always read before sleeping).
My girlfriend and I have a TV in the bedroom but we never turn it on. In the bedtime hours we read while listening to NPR quietly in the background. As I get older (I’ll be 48 next month) I find that I watch less and less television while the stack of books waiting to be read increases.
Reading before bed puts me right to sleep, whereas I can lie (lay?) glazed-eyed at the 10 o’clock for a good 10-15 before I drift off. Thank god I have a long train ride to and from work, or I might never have time for reading at all.
(Make that “10 o’clock news” and “10-15 minutes”. I guess I’m already a bit drowsy.)
What a great blog! I just found it.
I’ll weigh in on the (heavily-weighted) No TV in the Bedroom side. I don’t even have cable but am addicted to Netflix, so the hulking black screen and little red envelopes would definitely be a temptation. I read every night, but sometimes I pick easy to read, less than literary works (mysteries, mostly). But. I just got a copy of Russell Bank’s Continental Drift and plan to dig into that tonight. Woohoo!