In my attempt to find something to entertain myself in the evening, I once again subscribed to Netflix. Although I like to be productive all the time, I find that after dinner, I’m usually spent. I just want to relax and chill out.
For me this usually means sitting on the sofa with Wiggles on my lap while reading or watching something.
My sources for entertainment include the Public Library, Amazon Video, Netflix (post surgery and this month), YouTube and the general Internet.
I’ve found that the “Top 10 Lists” and “Trending Lists” typically don’t do much for me. There are a ton of Crime Dramas, Murder Mysteries and Forensic Shows.
While I appreciate a good mystery and am not above formulaic series like the Spencer and Travis McGee book series, I can’t consume anything that has:
- Gratuitous Violence
- Torture
- Rape
- Abuse
- Murder
- Depravity
- Autopsies
- Graphic Scenes of Blood and Gore
This is not a moral stance for me. It’s just that whenever I watch shows with this content, it becomes embedded in my head. Then, I’ll dream about it at night. Forever.
I have crazy, wild nightmares. There’s often murder, cracked heads, trying to run away (but moving as if the air is wet cement and not being able to get anywhere) and mayhem. I’ll wake up with my heart racing in a pool of sweat.
I’ve learned that I my nightmares get triggered by certain foods – especially garlic and spicy foods. I also get what I call “fever dreams” when I am trying to sleep through a grinding headache.
But the content of the dreams is fueled by what I watch and what I read. Or at least, the content of my nightmares is.
And so, I continue to search for alternative ways to chill out before bed.
When my wife was alive, we’d go to see all of the latest movies in theaters. Then, after Blockbuster and Netflix came about, we’d rent any we hadn’t seen in the theater.
Watching shows with her was different. We would talk about them afterward. Sometimes days later, we’d be discussing plots, characters and endings.
But even then, I avoided gory horror flicks as much as possible and refused to watch Criminal Minds with her. She loved that series but to me, it was a torture flick guaranteed to give me nightmares.
Maybe I’ll find what I’m looking for by watching movies with other people someday. If not, I might find myself limited to watching football, comedies and Disney specials. In which case, I might be better off just going to bed early.