A welcome break!
By Fleur
@Fleura (29280)
United Kingdom
April 23, 2019 4:12am CST
Last week we were away on holiday - more about that another time. But for now I was just going to mention what a relief it has been not to hear, see or read any news, not only for the week we were away but also for the days we have been back until this morning, when the radio alarm woke us all up and told us a series of bad news stories.
For about 10 days I have not seen any news on TV (I don't normally watch TV anyway, so nothing new there really), not heard any on the radio (we did listen to music radio in the car but I don't think we heard any news bulletins - and if we did, they were very short and we didn't understand them!), not read any newspapers or any online news, and we've been able to imagine that all is right with the world.
Today unfortunately it's back to disasters and tragedies here and there, plus more Brexit (will it ever end?)
My resolution for Lent was to give up reading news online, because it is almost all bad as well as being in incredible time-waster. It took me a while to really manage that, because although I managed to give up an online newspaper earlier in the year, the BBC site was more difficult because I would generally check the weather forecast there and then my eye would be caught by one story and then that would lead to another...
I've now weaned myself onto the Met Office instead, so no temptation there, and I haven't turned the radio on after getting up (which I often do to help me keep track of time) so the rest of today so far is quite pleasant and calm.
I must try and keep this up, as I'm sure it is better for my mental state as well as saving about an hour or more of time wasted reading things which are moderately interesting but ultimately not necessary!
18 people like this
14 responses
@MALUSE (69390)
• Germany
23 Apr 19
I've never been so strict and don't intend to become so but I've known such a situation when I was on holiday in countries whose language I can't understand. If I was able to decipher the headlines at least, I was always puzzled that my home country wasn't mentioned and I wondered how German newspapers fill their pages when obviouisly nothing happens here which is newsworthy in the rest of the world.
Watching TV news in Italy or Great Britain most of the times gives me the impression that Germany doesn't exist!
2 people like this
@Fleura (29280)
• United Kingdom
23 Apr 19
I think that's the same everywhere isn't it, mostly you just get local news although America always seems to get far more than its fair share of news coverage worldwide.
I think my most interesting news experience was a week in the far north of Scotland, you still get the regular UK national news but it all just seems so totally irrelevant and distant because most of the news stories cover events in the south of England, and from up there, even Edinburgh is hundreds of miles away never mind England, even the furthest north parts!
This said, the first thing I do when coming back to home is to read the local news
. Will you manage to resist long to the call of the news
?
@garymarsh6 (23393)
• United Kingdom
26 Apr 19
Not a bad Idea. I have stopped buying a news paper on a Sunday because I used to spend all day just reading every single thing much to my wifes annoyance. The news is so full of doom and gloom and blooming Brexit quite fed up with it all to be honest! You have made a good choice!
1 person likes this
@garymarsh6 (23393)
• United Kingdom
29 Apr 19
@Fleura auto suggestion is a powerful thing if you are constantly bombarded with grim news it could affect your own moods. Remember a few years ago they always ended the news with a good story. This seems to have fallen by the wayside which is a shame!
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29280)
• United Kingdom
29 Apr 19
@garymarsh6 Every now and then someone tries to start a newspaper or some other medium with just good news, but it never really catches on. It seems humans are just drawn to bad news like vultures. I'm still enjoying my blissfully ignorant state !
@Fleura (29280)
• United Kingdom
27 Apr 19
I've kept it up all week and I do feel happier I must say. Haven't even heard a thing about Brexit all week, it's been great!
There is the feeling that one should be well-informed but there has to be a better way than the constant stream of bad news, surely. Recently there's been a lot of focus on mental health but no-one has suggested that constant exposure to bad news could have a deleterious effect.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21745)
• Canada
23 Apr 19
I've been disconnected from many news stories for years. Somehow I still manage to be informed of most bad news stories....through MyLot, Facebook, things mentioned by friends.... I'm not uninformed.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29280)
• United Kingdom
23 Apr 19
@Morleyhunt Exactly! If there was something I could do to remove the threat of Islamic State, for example, I would do it; otherwise hearing about the terrible things they have done just makes me feel terrible for all the victims.
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21745)
• Canada
23 Apr 19
@Fleura I agree with that. There are so many things I have no control over. Why should I get stressed out about it.
1 person likes this
@Poppylicious (11133)
•
23 Apr 19
News is horrid these days. Not because more horrid things are happening, but because it's all so instant.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (19056)
• United States
23 Apr 19
I used to watch CNN every morning. I stopped watching it a few years ago. All they talk about is Trump now. I have been reading headlines on Bing to get the points.
1 person likes this
