The DVR as a Metaphor

A few nights ago, as H and I settled in to watch a few of our favorite television shows, we both realized something that was pretty profound:

Our DVR is a good metaphor for our marriage.

I know that sounds completely silly, but hear me out before you judge! We both love the DVR. As two members of the "working class" neither of us have that much time to dedicate to our must-see TV. Or at least not when it is regularly scheduled! So, like millions of other people across the world, we rely on the DVR to make sure we don't miss out on the greats like "Gone With the Wind".

Or "Real Housewives of Orange County".

When it comes to my section of the DVR, you will find a plethora of different shows and movies. I might record "Teen Moms" on MTV, the critically acclaimed "Downton Abbey" on PBS, and a documentary about child soldiers in Botswana all in the same day. I am a Gemini-which is the sign of the twins, or multiple personalities. I like a mixture of so many different things at any given time it almost seems like there is a pageant-obsessed, 14 year-old girl working on a book report operating my remote.

H on the other hand, is different. His viewing habits are much easier to monitor and follow. He enjoys major sporting events, sports talk shows, documentaries about sports icons or historical sporting events, sports news....notice a trend here? These recording traits match up perfectly with the real-life H--a sports enthusiast who is stable, predictable, and completely uninterested in the drama.

As we began to watch our shows that night, I mentioned to him that I had deleted quite a few of his old recordings. There was no need to save the National Championship Game so he could watch it for the fifteenth time.

After I'm done watching a recorded show, I immediately delete it. I'm embarrassed enough to admit I watch "Dance Moms" in the first place, much less to add that I sit through marathons on a Saturday night once everyone is asleep. We need to free up space for future recordings!!!! Likewise, I also discard of things pretty haphazardly in real life. I'm not a sentimental person AT. ALL. Objects and things don't have much meaning for me, so I don't have much trouble tossing things after I'm done with them.

H, however, is the total opposite. For instance, he refuses to let me throw out a hockey puck from his elementary school days back when Mobile was the home of the Mystics. True story. Not sure why he needs that puck or why he wants to relive the glory days of Bama's win over ------- (because I can't even remember or care less), but both live on in our home. One just lives in the drawer next to the fridge and the other takes up valuable space that I will need for "Texas Women".

He tells me there is no need to delete shows to make room for future recordings because the DVR will just delete the oldest stuff to make sure the new stuff gets recorded. He flies by the seat of his pants, not worrying about the little things in life. I fret and worry that an episode of "Beverly Hills 90210" from 1992 will get deleted to record one of Arnold Palmer's classic golf rounds. I like to plan and know that what I want will be there when I want it. But in the end, is it really that important if something doesn't go exactly the way I planned?

Just as we do in real life, our DVR will meet in the middle on a select few shows that we not only enjoy, but bond over. "Mad Men" gets us talking about the generations before us. "Modern Family" will have us laughing over the mundane household issues that can sometimes drag us down. "Doomsday Preppers" leads us to those "what if...?" discussions about government, foreign threats, and mental illness.

And if we're really lucky, we'll stumble across a recording of "Super Troopers" to remind us why fell in love to begin with.