The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

© BOPINION jcle | Thursday, March 16, 2023 BITS TIME TO ¢ RETHINK HOW | = CONSUME TV AND MOVIES . . . AGAIN, WRITES DREW EDWARDS It looks like my kid mightactually have to start ix. When our oldest child moved out last summer, among the things she pil- fered from us -a list that in- cluded dishes, furniture, small appliances - was a Netflix password. With a raft of new expenses (food and rent chief among them) she elected not to DREW EDWARDS Column tinga a stop to that practice, the latest series of moves that have me re- thinki ww I consume TVand movies. Again. Iwas an early adopter of “cutting the cord," cancel- ling our TV package after a particularly nasty spat with one of the larger mem- bers of the Canadian tele- ommunications oligopoly over their ability to provide pensive for what you get (my dad still has it because he watches a ton of live sports and can't live with- out 24-7 cable news). When we started with Netflix, it was $7.99 a month and that seemed in- sanely cheap after paying through the nose for cable all those years. There was lots to choose from and mu H seen - watching excellent BBC shows was a revela- tion - and there was pre- cious little from North American network TV that I miss¢ ting movies from ‘Apple and purchas- ing DVDs of shows like HBO's The Wire filled the remaining gaps. Over time, however, the TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT WATERLOOCHRONICLE.CA as well Apple Ae get Ted ‘rime for Jack Ryan aol 8a some me bow. tique services like Formula 1 TV, a direct result of my daughter's fascination with the Netflix series "Drive to Survive." We still rent movies from time to time. Soinstead of one big bill, we now get a bunch of not- so-little ones that are con- stantly increasing. Apple TV, which originally came free with a device we pur- chased, jumped from $5.99 to $8.99 last October. Three bucks isn't much in the grand scheme of things, but it adds up. And I still can't watch everything I want. A Star Wars spinoff called The -YEARS AFTER CUTTING THE CORD, MAYBE IT'S TIME TO CONSIDER STOPPING THE STREAM watch the first two seasons but she doesn't live here anymore (that password is among the things I miss about not having her home). I'm also watching less TV these days. While my usual evening routine in- volved crawling into bed to watch something with my wife, recently we've been reading or scrolling on phones or just going to bed a little earlier. When we do watch, it's intentional - not just because we've stum- bled across something and decided to give it a try. am. Or at least ask my kid to share some pass- add streaming services to _ reliable internet service or cost of seas has gone Mandalorian just started words for a change. the list and instead piggy- go two straight months upandupand up. season three but we don't back off our account. without screwing upa bi We now pay more than — get Disney Plus - the de- Drew Edwards of Well, Netflix recently Traditional cable was, and $20 amonth for Netflixand parted kidhadaborrowed Guelph can be reached at announced they are put- remains, outrageously ex- have added other services account that allowed usto drew@drewedwards.ca ting offers the opportunity A FAMILY JEWEL IN THE COMMUNITY YOU MIGHT BE SURPRISED AT WHAT YOU'RE MISSING, WRITES GRAHAM HOOKEY Spring may still be a bit away butit's not tooearly to consider some preparation for the eventuality of en- joying the water activities of summer. There is something pri- mal about water, an attrac- tion that goes back to our Neanderthal roots and still draws us to the beaches, lakes and rivers by the mil- 8 lions. 3 But loving to be around 5 water, being safe around water, are two very 3 different things. Each year, g in Canada, 400 to 450 people A GRAHAM HOOKEY Column drown, a third of them chil- dren. Worldwide, over 350,000 people a year drown. Yet, while families moan about the length of the winter months, the re- ality is that there is a jewel in most neighbourhoods, a community centre which often combines a swim- ming pool with a skating rink and a gym. Aside from offering something to do other than scroll screens during pub- lic-use hours, the swim- ming pool, in particular, of- fers afamily the opportuni- ty to learn and practice bet- r swimming skills. And how many things can you do with your kids that bring: m home cleaner than when they ae afather of three boys, the local swimming centre was a no-brainer for me. We were an outdoor family. We spent a lot of ime hiking, biking, camp- beaching and canoe- ing, We had our are in the water of the recreation centre before their first enough to at least paddle their way to the side pool if they Ae Sinead Pelli in as toddlers. It is a fact that 50 per cent of. all child ornnnes back: pools, peer often when par de ents are around but simply distracted for a moment. The whole crisis can unfold in seconds if a child cannot come to the surface after a fall into water. There isa cost to belong: ing to a community centre but most recreation de- partments offer discounts to low-income families. In all honesty, my experience has been that, even at full cost, membership is a bar- can provide the entire fam- ily with fitness and work- out options that are simply unmatchable outside the public sphere. ‘Additionally, for chil- dren, the community set- to meet new friends and de- velop wider social net- Works. feck, even parents inleht extend their social networks there! Ifyour community hasa recreation centre, you owe itto your family to visit and learn more about on fa- cilities and their program offerings. While I've mentioned swimming lessons specifi- cally, there are many fit- ness and social programs developed at these centres for all age groups. fou. might be surprised at what you're missing ant decide, asa. family, t that this is an invest family time together mone mak- ing! Graham Hookey is the author of Parenting Is A Team Sport (Amazon ;o0ks) and can be reached at ghookey@yahoo.com. Tis a ee published lay, is a division ofthe Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants urged to bring their concems w ia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca Aocna editorial@waterloochronicle.ca Pcie ican waterlonchronicte @wichrot WHO WE ARE Publisher and Chief Executive Officer Neil Oliver Vice President, Conte Community and Operations Dana Robbins Director of Content Lee Ann Waterman Regional General Manager Nelson Parreira Regional Director of Media Heather Dunbar Advertising Representatives Fran Hendry, Katrina Anderson, Jan Bodanka, Matt Miller, Lisa Humphreys, Cassandra Dellow, Zaid Shahabuddn, Managing Editor Robyn Wilkinson ‘Online Editor Loraine Centeno atonal Newelteda counet Reporter Bill Jackson Director Creative Services Paul Gostlin Waterloo Chronicle 219 Labrador Dr. Suite 203, Waterloo, on N2K on Phone: 519- Web: www. watefonchonil.ca Letters to the editor Allletters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification print and/or online at waterloochronicle.ca Delivery For all delivery inquiries, e-mail sustomerservice@metroland.com or call 519-894-3000. Acerédité Accredited.