Do you eat dinner in front of the TV?

Lathum · 08-26-2008, 01:05 AM

poll to come

Groundhog · 08-26-2008, 01:10 AM

Don't have any other place to eat - only table I've got is a coffee table in front of the TV.

Lathum · 08-26-2008, 01:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Groundhog

Don't have any other place to eat - only table I've got is a coffee table in front of the TV.

we are pretty much the same.

We hae a dinning room table that was my wifes great grandmothers but we have no chairs for it

korme · 08-26-2008, 01:26 AM

Yes, because that's where my coffee table is, the only option.

TCY Junkie · 08-26-2008, 01:41 AM

Only if I'm feeling fruity.

johnnyshaka · 08-26-2008, 01:43 AM

Our kitchen, dining room, and family room is one big room...so, yes.

Karlifornia · 08-26-2008, 01:57 AM

I eat dinner from behind the TV. I find that I have more of an appetite if I can see entertained faces.

JeeberD · 08-26-2008, 06:17 AM

Most of the time. Which is weird, because we NEVER ate dinner in the living room when I was growing up...

Tasan · 08-26-2008, 06:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeeberD

Most of the time. Which is weird, because we NEVER ate dinner in the living room when I was growing up...

Completely opposite here. We always ate in front of the TV growing up. My wife's family, however, NEVER did, and that's carried through to our family. I often find myself eating quickly to go watch something, or if the Cowboys are on, I excuse myself with my plate, apologize to the wife and go watch the game.

wade moore · 08-26-2008, 06:46 AM

As a kid we always ate in the living room.

My wife and I did the same until we moved into our new house in June. We have vowed to never eat in front of the TV again. I've found that eating at the table with no TV has done wonders for being able to keep up with what each other is doing, etc, etc.

JonInMiddleGA · 08-26-2008, 07:02 AM

Usually, but that's because there's a TV in the kitchen & we eat at the center island.

lighthousekeeper · 08-26-2008, 07:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeeberD

Most of the time. Which is weird, because we NEVER ate dinner in the living room when I was growing up...

+1

Fidatelo · 08-26-2008, 08:33 AM

Growing up we were allowed to eat dinner in the kitchen (which could see the living room TV) only when my Dad was away (about 40% of the time with his job). When the whole family was together we ate in the dining room.

Currently with my wife I think we've eaten in front of the TV once or twice since we've been together. I don't intend to do it much more once we have kids, especially now that we have a PVR.

MacroGuru · 08-26-2008, 09:07 AM

I put sometimes...

My standing rule is eat at the table, because I have traveled for the past 11 years of my married life I never really got to find out a lot about my kids and such, so the dinner table is where we eat and talk about things UNLESS there is a live event or BYU game on then we will watch t.v.

Malificent · 08-26-2008, 09:09 AM

Only when it is just the wife and I at home. If it is a family dinner, never in front of the TV.

chesapeake · 08-26-2008, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Malificent

Only when it is just the wife and I at home. If it is a family dinner, never in front of the TV.

+1, for the most part.

Subby · 08-26-2008, 10:03 AM

If I lived in a trailer park I totally would do that.

MikeVic · 08-26-2008, 10:09 AM

The kitchen over-sees the living room, so I watch TV with every meal at home. When I move out, that'll test whether I need the TV. I'm thinking yes.

Lathum · 08-26-2008, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Subby

If I lived in a trailer park I totally would do that.

you really are a dick.

PackerFanatic · 08-26-2008, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeeberD

Most of the time. Which is weird, because we NEVER ate dinner in the living room when I was growing up...

Ditto.

This will likely change once my daughter is old enough to sit at a table and eat, just because I enjoy sitting at the table.

JediKooter · 08-26-2008, 11:26 AM

Yes. My bedroom is my living and my dining room all in one.

timmynausea · 08-26-2008, 11:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Usually, but that's because there's a TV in the kitchen & we eat at the center island.

Close to the same for us. We mostly eat at a snack bar between the kitchen and living room and can see the TV.

lurker · 08-26-2008, 11:59 AM

We kind of treat eating dinner in front of the tv as popcorn at the movies -- it just makes it a more fun event. Since all the shows we watch together usually involve us talking about the shows (usually to mock) while we watch, it makes sense to do it while eating dinner. We still talk plenty, all evening long, so it's not a problem for our relationship. Plus, it's not like most people that watch tv together are staring at it in rapt attention, not interacting with each other at all.

When I was a kid, we would usually watch Jeopardy while eating -- somebody who assumes only trailer trash watches tv while eating must have a pretty limited imagination.

BrianD · 08-26-2008, 12:13 PM

I ate in front of the TV often while growing up. Now that it is just me and my wife, we rarely eat in front of the TV. Since we end up watching a fair amount of TV, this is a nice change of pace to give us some time that it different from the norm.

Subby · 08-26-2008, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lathum

you really are a dick.

I bet if you had started your morning off with a mimosa you wouldn't be so fucking judgemental.

Lathum · 08-26-2008, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Subby

I bet if you had started your morning off with a mimosa you wouldn't be so fucking judgemental.

Judgemental?

says the guy who compares more then half of us to trailer park trash, what makes you any better then someone who lives in a trailer?

jeheinz72 · 08-26-2008, 12:29 PM

If we're eating with the kids, then at the table, no TV.

If it's just my wife and I, it's in front of the TV

Subby · 08-26-2008, 12:29 PM

Is that a trick question?

Mustang · 08-26-2008, 12:35 PM

Me and the wife always ate in front of the TV before our daughter was born. Since then, we have made it a point to eat dinner at the kitchen table with no TV. I'd rather get into that habit so I'll have some time with my kids at night when I get back from work rather than plunk down in front of the TV.

Drake · 08-26-2008, 12:38 PM

I eat in front of Subby's TV.

Izulde · 08-26-2008, 12:50 PM

As a kid, we ate in the living room unless it was a special occassion like Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner or the like.

After I left home, I got into the habit of not eating in front of a television and now eating in front of a TV is so unnatural to me that even when I go home, I eat in the kitchen.

lurker · 08-26-2008, 12:54 PM

Are you people who are not watching tv during dinner also not watching tv at all? That's the sort of judgmental attitude I can at least understand. I don't understand what the problem is with combining the two activities as long as that's not all you're doing that evening. It actually seems better to eat while watching instead of just watching, if you know there's something you want to see. Then you can get up and do something after. Don't you people talk to your spouses without the dinner table forcing you to sit down?

This is probably different if you have kids and want to make sure you talk to them and that's the only way you'll interact with them.

Subby · 08-26-2008, 01:06 PM

television is for commoners although I do watch masterpiece theater once in while

Honolulu_Blue · 08-26-2008, 01:08 PM

It's just Lady H_B and I, but we try to eat in the dining room more often than not. I'd say we eat in front of the television maybe twice a week or so.

BrianD · 08-26-2008, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lurker

Are you people who are not watching tv during dinner also not watching tv at all? That's the sort of judgmental attitude I can at least understand. I don't understand what the problem is with combining the two activities as long as that's not all you're doing that evening. It actually seems better to eat while watching instead of just watching, if you know there's something you want to see. Then you can get up and do something after. Don't you people talk to your spouses without the dinner table forcing you to sit down?

This is probably different if you have kids and want to make sure you talk to them and that's the only way you'll interact with them.

I don't think there is a problem of eating and watching the TV at the same time, but I do know some families that come home from school/work, sit down in front of the TV, eat, and stay there until it is time for bed. If I allowed myself that kind of option, I'd probably do the same thing. For me, eating away from the TV is my way to be sure I have time to share the day's activities with my wife.

BrianD · 08-26-2008, 01:18 PM

One other thing I should mention is that my wife likes to cook and she likes to experiment. Because of this we rarely have the same meal more than once or twice. If she is going to make the effort to be creative in the kitchen, I feel like I owe it to her to appreciate the meal and her while we share it. It is an extra little experience that I don't think we'd get if we were watching TV at the same time.

Cringer · 08-26-2008, 01:29 PM

We eat in front of the TV. I used to live in a trailer for a couple of years at one point too, Subby. Then again, being a truck driver I think that is all pretty much expected of me and I take no offense at all.

wade moore · 08-26-2008, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lurker

Are you people who are not watching tv during dinner also not watching tv at all? That's the sort of judgmental attitude I can at least understand. I don't understand what the problem is with combining the two activities as long as that's not all you're doing that evening. It actually seems better to eat while watching instead of just watching, if you know there's something you want to see. Then you can get up and do something after. Don't you people talk to your spouses without the dinner table forcing you to sit down?

Wow - what an idiotic response.

But, to address your questions.

I don't have a "problem" with watching tv while eating, I just choose not to do it. It gives a dedicated time when we can have dedicated time to talk while we're eating - just like you like to accomplish tv and eating at the same time. It means we know there will be 30ish minutes a day that we will be talking without other tasks/distractions.

As a side note - a recent study showed convincingly that people eat more when they watch TV and eat.

Subby · 08-26-2008, 01:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cringer

We eat in front of the TV. I used to live in a trailer for a couple of years at one point too, Subby. Then again, being a truck driver I think that is all pretty much expected of me and I take no offense at all.

Well at least I know that you know that nothing I say on this site is even remotely serious.

Except for that stuff I said about Drake.

wade moore · 08-26-2008, 01:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lurker

That's the sort of judgmental attitude I can at least understand...

Quote:

...Don't you people talk to your spouses without the dinner table forcing you to sit down?

Oh and - way to call the pot black there kettle.

wade moore · 08-26-2008, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lurker

Plus, it's not like most people that watch tv together are staring at it in rapt attention, not interacting with each other at all.

I missed this post initially.

FWIW - this is how we watch TV. I see no problem with it.

cuervo72 · 08-26-2008, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Subby

television is for commoners although I do watch masterpiece theater once in while

Is that the one with Cookie Monster? I *love* that show!

MacroGuru · 08-26-2008, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lurker

Are you people who are not watching tv during dinner also not watching tv at all? That's the sort of judgmental attitude I can at least understand. I don't understand what the problem is with combining the two activities as long as that's not all you're doing that evening. It actually seems better to eat while watching instead of just watching, if you know there's something you want to see. Then you can get up and do something after. Don't you people talk to your spouses without the dinner table forcing you to sit down?

This is probably different if you have kids and want to make sure you talk to them and that's the only way you'll interact with them.

Nope, not using the dinner table to force me to sit down and talk with my spouse, we talk all the time. It's family time for us, we talk about everything, joke around and have a good time and sometimes we just keep going past the point when we are all done eating. It will turn sometimes into a board game or story telling time.

For me, it's disconnecting my kids from electronic stimulus (T.V., gameboy, Wii, 360, ipod, computer) and having them actually interact. A lot of kids these days are lacking the social skills due to the fact they never unplug, I don't want my kids in that bracket. In fact, my 11 year old is running a successful business now because of one of our discussions at dinner over a year ago.

korme · 08-26-2008, 02:04 PM

I intentionally always get Chipotle with my roomate to go now, usually during times when Scrubs or King of Queens or any other badass rerun comedy show is on. Screw you, Friendship Builder! I've fictional characters to watch!

JetsIn06 · 08-26-2008, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Groundhog

Don't have any other place to eat - only table I've got is a coffee table in front of the TV.

Same here. No room in the kitchen for a table and no dining room.

Cringer · 08-26-2008, 02:48 PM

How many people eat dinner in front of the TV, AND watch WWE while eating? That is my question.

rjolley · 08-26-2008, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeVic

The kitchen over-sees the living room, so I watch TV with every meal at home. When I move out, that'll test whether I need the TV. I'm thinking yes.

Pretty much the same for me. However, over the last couple of months, we've started to put on XM through DirecTV instead of an actual tv channel.

cartman · 08-26-2008, 03:23 PM

I only eat off of the ironing board, facing the wall.

lurker · 08-26-2008, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wade moore

Wow - what an idiotic response.

But, to address your questions.

I don't have a "problem" with watching tv while eating, I just choose not to do it. It gives a dedicated time when we can have dedicated time to talk while we're eating - just like you like to accomplish tv and eating at the same time. It means we know there will be 30ish minutes a day that we will be talking without other tasks/distractions.

As a side note - a recent study showed convincingly that people eat more when they watch TV and eat.

Calm down. It was pretty obvious that implying only people that live in trailers watch tv during dinner was the judgmental comment I was replying to. The implication I was responding to was that it is possible to have real conversations with your spouse even if you're not doing it during dinner.

Autumn · 08-26-2008, 09:28 PM

Wow, I'm really surprised by these results so far. Good poll.

View Poll Results: DO you eat dinner in front of the TV
Yes	69	52.27%
No	19	14.39%
Sometimes	44	33.33%
only when eating trout	0	0%
Voters: 132. You may not vote on this poll

08-26-2008, 01:10 AM	#2
Groundhog Coordinator Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Sydney, Australia	Don't have any other place to eat - only table I've got is a coffee table in front of the TV. __________________ Politics, n. Strife of interests masquerading as a contest of principles. --Ambrose Bierce

08-26-2008, 01:41 AM	#5
TCY Junkie College Prospect Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: TX	Only if I'm feeling fruity. __________________ I try to open things I probably have no chance of opening.

08-26-2008, 01:57 AM	#7
Karlifornia Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: San Jose, CA	I eat dinner from behind the TV. I find that I have more of an appetite if I can see entertained faces. __________________ Look into the mind of a crazy man (NSFW) http://www.whitepowerupdate.wordpress.com

08-26-2008, 06:17 AM	#8
JeeberD General Manager Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: The Town of Flower Mound	Most of the time. Which is weird, because we NEVER ate dinner in the living room when I was growing up... __________________ UTEP Miners!!! I solemnly swear to never cheer for TO

08-26-2008, 01:26 AM	#4
korme Go Reds Join Date: May 2001 Location: Bloodbuzz Ohio	Yes, because that's where my coffee table is, the only option.

08-26-2008, 01:43 AM	#6
johnnyshaka College Benchwarmer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Edmonton, AB	Our kitchen, dining room, and family room is one big room...so, yes.

08-26-2008, 07:02 AM	#11
JonInMiddleGA Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Behind Enemy Lines in Athens, GA	Usually, but that's because there's a TV in the kitchen & we eat at the center island. __________________ "I lit another cigarette. Unless I specifically inform you to the contrary, I am always lighting another cigarette." - from a novel by Martin Amis

08-26-2008, 08:33 AM	#13
Fidatelo Pro Starter Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Winnipeg, MB	Growing up we were allowed to eat dinner in the kitchen (which could see the living room TV) only when my Dad was away (about 40% of the time with his job). When the whole family was together we ate in the dining room. Currently with my wife I think we've eaten in front of the TV once or twice since we've been together. I don't intend to do it much more once we have kids, especially now that we have a PVR. __________________ "Breakfast? Breakfast schmekfast, look at the score for God's sake. It's only the second period and I'm winning 12-2. Breakfasts come and go, Rene, but Hartford, the Whale, they only beat Vancouver maybe once or twice in a lifetime."

08-26-2008, 09:07 AM	#14
MacroGuru Coordinator Join Date: May 2003 Location: Utah	I put sometimes... My standing rule is eat at the table, because I have traveled for the past 11 years of my married life I never really got to find out a lot about my kids and such, so the dinner table is where we eat and talk about things UNLESS there is a live event or BYU game on then we will watch t.v. __________________ "forgetting what is in the past, I strive for the future"

08-26-2008, 09:09 AM	#15
Malificent High School JV Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Durham, NC, USA	Only when it is just the wife and I at home. If it is a family dinner, never in front of the TV. __________________ Check out my Flickr photos.

08-26-2008, 10:03 AM	#17
Subby lolzcat Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: sans pants	If I lived in a trailer park I totally would do that. __________________ Superman was flying around and saw Wonder Woman getting a tan in the nude on her balcony. Superman said I going to hit that real fast. So he flys down toward Wonder Woman to hit it and their is a loud scream. The Invincible Man scream what just hit me in the ass!!!!! I do shit, I take pictures, I write about it: chrisshue.com

08-26-2008, 10:09 AM	#18
MikeVic Head Coach Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Hometown of Canada	The kitchen over-sees the living room, so I watch TV with every meal at home. When I move out, that'll test whether I need the TV. I'm thinking yes.

08-26-2008, 11:26 AM	#21
JediKooter Coordinator Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: San Diego via Sausalito via San Jose via San Diego	Yes. My bedroom is my living and my dining room all in one. __________________ I'm no longer a Chargers fan, they are dead to me Coming this summer to a movie theater near you: The Adventures of Jedikooter: Part 4

08-26-2008, 11:59 AM	#23
lurker High School JV Join Date: May 2001	We kind of treat eating dinner in front of the tv as popcorn at the movies -- it just makes it a more fun event. Since all the shows we watch together usually involve us talking about the shows (usually to mock) while we watch, it makes sense to do it while eating dinner. We still talk plenty, all evening long, so it's not a problem for our relationship. Plus, it's not like most people that watch tv together are staring at it in rapt attention, not interacting with each other at all. When I was a kid, we would usually watch Jeopardy while eating -- somebody who assumes only trailer trash watches tv while eating must have a pretty limited imagination.

08-26-2008, 12:13 PM	#24
BrianD Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	I ate in front of the TV often while growing up. Now that it is just me and my wife, we rarely eat in front of the TV. Since we end up watching a fair amount of TV, this is a nice change of pace to give us some time that it different from the norm.

08-26-2008, 12:29 PM	#28
Subby lolzcat Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: sans pants	Is that a trick question? __________________ Superman was flying around and saw Wonder Woman getting a tan in the nude on her balcony. Superman said I going to hit that real fast. So he flys down toward Wonder Woman to hit it and their is a loud scream. The Invincible Man scream what just hit me in the ass!!!!! I do shit, I take pictures, I write about it: chrisshue.com

08-26-2008, 12:35 PM	#29
Mustang Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Wisconsin	Me and the wife always ate in front of the TV before our daughter was born. Since then, we have made it a point to eat dinner at the kitchen table with no TV. I'd rather get into that habit so I'll have some time with my kids at night when I get back from work rather than plunk down in front of the TV. __________________ You, you will regret what you have done this day. I will make you regret ever being born. Your going to wish you never left your mothers womb, where it was warm and safe... and wet. i am going to show you pain you never knew existed, you are going to see a whole new spectrum of pain, like a Rainboooow. But! This rainbow is not just like any other rainbow, its...

08-26-2008, 12:38 PM	#30
Drake assmaster Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Bloomington, IN	I eat in front of Subby's TV.

08-26-2008, 12:50 PM	#31
Izulde Head Coach Join Date: Sep 2004	As a kid, we ate in the living room unless it was a special occassion like Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner or the like. After I left home, I got into the habit of not eating in front of a television and now eating in front of a TV is so unnatural to me that even when I go home, I eat in the kitchen. __________________ 2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty)

08-26-2008, 12:54 PM	#32
lurker High School JV Join Date: May 2001	Are you people who are not watching tv during dinner also not watching tv at all? That's the sort of judgmental attitude I can at least understand. I don't understand what the problem is with combining the two activities as long as that's not all you're doing that evening. It actually seems better to eat while watching instead of just watching, if you know there's something you want to see. Then you can get up and do something after. Don't you people talk to your spouses without the dinner table forcing you to sit down? This is probably different if you have kids and want to make sure you talk to them and that's the only way you'll interact with them.

08-26-2008, 01:06 PM	#33
Subby lolzcat Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: sans pants	television is for commoners although I do watch masterpiece theater once in while __________________ Superman was flying around and saw Wonder Woman getting a tan in the nude on her balcony. Superman said I going to hit that real fast. So he flys down toward Wonder Woman to hit it and their is a loud scream. The Invincible Man scream what just hit me in the ass!!!!! I do shit, I take pictures, I write about it: chrisshue.com

08-26-2008, 01:08 PM	#34
Honolulu_Blue Hockey Boy Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Royal Oak, MI	It's just Lady H_B and I, but we try to eat in the dining room more often than not. I'd say we eat in front of the television maybe twice a week or so. __________________ *Steve Yzerman*: 1,755 points in 1,514 regular season games. 185 points in 196 postseason games. A First-Team All-Star, Conn Smythe Trophy winner, Selke Trophy winner, Masterton Trophy winner, member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, Olympic gold medallist, and a three-time Stanley Cup Champion. Longest serving captain of one team in the history of the NHL (19 seasons).

08-26-2008, 01:18 PM	#36
BrianD Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	One other thing I should mention is that my wife likes to cook and she likes to experiment. Because of this we rarely have the same meal more than once or twice. If she is going to make the effort to be creative in the kitchen, I feel like I owe it to her to appreciate the meal and her while we share it. It is an extra little experience that I don't think we'd get if we were watching TV at the same time.

08-26-2008, 01:29 PM	#37
Cringer Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Edinburg,TX	We eat in front of the TV. I used to live in a trailer for a couple of years at one point too, Subby. Then again, being a truck driver I think that is all pretty much expected of me and I take no offense at all. __________________ You Stole Fizzy Lifting drinks! You bumped into the ceiling which now has to be washed and steralized, so you get NOTHING! You lose!

08-26-2008, 02:04 PM	#44
korme Go Reds Join Date: May 2001 Location: Bloodbuzz Ohio	I intentionally always get Chipotle with my roomate to go now, usually during times when Scrubs or King of Queens or any other badass rerun comedy show is on. Screw you, Friendship Builder! I've fictional characters to watch!

08-26-2008, 02:48 PM	#46
Cringer Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Edinburg,TX	How many people eat dinner in front of the TV, AND watch WWE while eating? That is my question. __________________ You Stole Fizzy Lifting drinks! You bumped into the ceiling which now has to be washed and steralized, so you get NOTHING! You lose!

08-26-2008, 03:23 PM	#48
cartman Death Herald Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Le stelle la notte sono grandi e luminose nel cuore profondo del Texas	I only eat off of the ironing board, facing the wall. __________________ Thinkin' of a master plan 'Cuz ain't nuthin' but sweat inside my hand So I dig into my pocket, all my money is spent So I dig deeper but still comin' up with lint

08-26-2008, 09:28 PM	#50
Autumn Head Coach Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Bath, ME	Wow, I'm really surprised by these results so far. Good poll.

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