Stuck at home since March, I'm totally dependent on

[procon]

digital media for everything. The entertainment selections are getting quite thin these days, and I just added Disney. In searching for something to watch, even looking at the old B&W movies, it suddenly occurred to me that this might be as good as it's ever likely to get as long as Covid 19 is raging.

Will there be a new fall TV season, will my favorite TV series have new shows, will new shows get Primetime TV premiers? I won't think any TV programming will exist until this damn virus is beat back and it's safe for people to get together.

What about the movies? Same thing I suspect, no new Hollywood blockbusters, no caped hero's or wicked villains, no even a scary alien of the ET variety. Nothing until the virus is no longer a threat.

So what do all us bored, locked away, homebound, disgruntled virus haters do when the current movies and TV shows are all watched?

I tried some foreign language films, they were interesting but I kept dozing off and lost track of the dialog. Did some reruns of favorite movies... ET, Galaxy Quest, Ghost Busters. Thinking about replaying Mad Men as a really long binge fest. But I'm afraid I'm going to run out of choices and be reduced to watching cat videos and cleaning hacks on YouTube.

What are the task of you shutins doing about your entertainment needs?

[lapfog_1]

1. books

I love to read books

I'll watch a few shows... watch a few movies I missed, but really its my collection of books. many of which I've never read and some that I try to read every year

[TreasonousBastard]

4. Books are good.

[procon]

14. Love to read. Free books at Amazon is ruining

my old eyes.

[SWBTATTReg]

2. Youtube. There are such a wide variety of things to watch on YouTube that I doubt you would be ...

able to watch all of them. And the selection of things to watch is literally unlimited.

[Nevilledog]

3. What kind of shows do you like?

[procon]

10. I'm very eclectic, curious on a wide front.

I'll explore almost anything from TV and films, to how-to and DIY videos, suspense, syfy, history, mystery genres in books, classical jazz, and some fun, fringy music.

Just a big no-no on the gratuitous and repetitive scenes of blood, guts and gore and violence.

[Flash953]

5. I get my friends online in Skype or google hangouts and I go to this website

This is the coolest board game website ever. Theres a game called Can't stop. It's kind of easy but it will draw you in. Easy to learn but you don't always win.

I also play Stone Age., Nimmt 6 , carcaisonne, . Try Can't stop first and maybe it will lift you spirits.

Here's the website:

https://en.boardgamearena.com/ . You can try it and see if you like it

[procon]

17. Thanks! I have a couple of games I play.

I think I'm partial to the stupid no-brainer variety that lets you just smash things without thinking.

[Voltaire2]

6. edibles. read a book. cat videos are how the world ends when the AI takes over.

[LakeArenal]

7. Have you watched ...

October Sky
Paul
Aliens vs Cowboys
When Mars Attacks
Downtown Abbey the movie
RBG


I’m watching reruns of Project Runway Seasons and Downton

Watch Sharpe’s Rifles
The Hornblower Series
Hell on Wheels Series.

[procon]

18. Oh my, we have identical tastes! nt

[LakeArenal]

32. ❣️

[avebury]

8. I have Roku which offers a lot.

I take advantage of the free streaming sites. Pluto and Roku are my favorites. You can find some older series that you can watch. There is an app called Old Movies where I out can find old movies. YouTube is the modern day version on an encyclopedia, you can find all kinds of stuff to watch.

There is a website called Daily Motion and you can search it for shows. I am currently watching The Mallorca Files, a British procedural show set in Mallorca.

[Yeehah]

15. I love the Roku

My guilty pleasure is the old Match Games on Pluto.

[procon]

21. I debated Roku Or Disney and opted for the later.

When I finish watching what they have I'll switch.

[avebury]

34. If you have the Roku stick

there are a lot of stuff you can watch for free.

[wcmagumba]

9. I use a couple of streaming services...

Hulu no ads (seems to have a lot of variety if you search deeply and adds new series shows every day or so), I do subscribe to Sling blue with the Hollywood and News add ons, Acorn TV (I really like UK, AU, NZ and CA programming and Acorn has a lot for $6). I like a variety of sports so I watch reruns on the Olympic Channel (Sling tv anywhere gives access to this for free). I get about 40 channels over the air with an indoor flat wall antenna. Recently I signed up to a cheap VPN (about $4 a month) and this gives access to UK (iplayer), AU (iview and SBS), CA and pretty much any other country TV...These are mainly in English but I don't mind subtitles on foreign films...lots of movies, docs, arts and music...SBS out of AU has some 10,000 film and video titles on demand (some foreign).

I don't seem to run out of new things to watch and sometimes turn the tv off and listen to any number of free streaming radio through my smart speakers (various npr, jazz stations, celtic, new age, classical, rock...anything).
Occasional podcasts, ted talks are often good...

I just changed my paradigm for accessing media a bit from the "before times"...Keep busy with hobbies (computer, guitar and banjo, chat with senior neighbors a bit ...at a distance...I have a couple of zoom groups I meet with weekly...so I'm hangin in there...I got a little long winded here, sorry...cheers...

[unc70]

11. Books, Libby ebooks, Acorn TV

Mostly going towards escapist genres, particularly a lot of mysteries. Enough reality with DU. Averaging about five books a week, at first ebooks using Libby app, now mostly real books from my library. They have begun doing curbside pickup.

Mostly mysteries, many British, some classics I had missed. Finding some new to me authors like Camilleri.

[Backseat Driver]

12. Dreaming of an unlimited budget to purchase every ingredient in my growing

collection of recipes I'll make...someday...and/or just on a present whim, and enjoying the fact I can take advantage of every minute of every dollar spent with my alternative sustainable energy provider and billing service-er for A/C - so far, so good - no interruptions or brown-outs, while outdoors its closing on the 100 degree mark in Ohio. TV and movies: they don't make 'em like they used to, LOL - my home; my schedule to do what needs done, and never bored on DU, LOL!

[procon]

26. I know! Damn those YouTube recipes, they

forced me to purchase a Ninja Food I and now I'm addicted to little cakes and sweets. Pineapple Upside Down cake for dinner tonight. Refrigerated Cinnamon Rolls for breakfast, Cherry Cheesecake after that.

Save me!

[Backseat Driver]

37. Oh my yes - save me some of that cheesecake

I've got 6 packages of cream cheese, a large sour cream in the fridge, and a box full of vanilla wafers on the counter as well as a great recipe...plain classic New York style. Fruit topping(s) on the side, LOL!

[procon]

39. I got sick

I got suckered in by the size... Just big enough for two... No leftovers...no wasted food.

All true. Very true. That infernal machine makes the perfect size servings for two normal people, or one gordito. It beckons me to make a little loaded pizza, four perfect choco chip cookies or muffins, gooey brownies, and French fries are served around the clock

I just learned that I can make popcorn too. I'm ashamed of my addiction to that damned gadget.

[MLAA]

13. Downloaded scrabble to my iPad.

I like playing against the computer so the games move quickly 🙂

[Wounded Bear]

16. We'd be hearing promos for the new fall shows by now if they were coming...

I think there will be very few "new" shows or episodes this year. Spring/summer is where they get ahead of the fall season.

[tblue37]

19. I read. But that's what I've always done. nt

[CozyMystery]

20. Take up a hobby or ...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hobbies

If you Google "list of hobbies" there are a bunch of sites that come up, but I picked the one above since it isn't clickbait.

Or learn more about a subject you may be interested in, but know nothing about. For me, it is physics. There are plenty of resources, including books, which are for the non-scientist. I mention this because those resources are good for me, as I've never taken a physics course in my life.

There are also places you can take online courses for free. I use EdX.

I love to read, so I've been doing a lot of that.

These are all things I find entertaining, although I realize that not everyone would place hobbies and education in that category. I've expanded my idea of entertainment due to Covid.

[brooklynite]

22. NYC will allow film/TV production next week...

[customerserviceguy]

23. Is your local library opened up yet?

You might be able to reserve movies online, and pick them up in a brief (masked, of course!) visit.

Our cable package has more than enough for us to watch, and it's just a basic one.

[procon]

27. LA county has an excellent digital book service.

Sometimes there is a bit of a wait for a popular new title like Mary Trump's book. I can read the big newspapers with no paywall.

[LymphocyteLover]

24. Video games? Lots of options

But hard to believe you're out of old movies to watch!

[milestogo]

25. Tons of good stuff on Netflix.

I never had it before the shutdown. Between Netflix and Amazon Prime, I never run out of movies. Actually I made a list of the greatest directors of all time, and I'm watching all their movies. Some gems I've never heard of.

Also a lot of good documentaries out there.

[hunter]

28. I'm reading more.

I have one of those e-books with the e-paper screens so I'm not distracted by the internet. It's like reading a paperback. I bought it "refurbished" for $50.

The supply of books is endless, and many books are inexpensive or free.

https://www.goodreads.com/ has some pointers.

Project Gutenberg has a huge number of free books.

http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page

I enjoy science fiction and have been working my way backwards through The Year's Best Science Fiction series edited by Gardner Dozois. Each of these books has about 600 pages of short stories and there are 35 of them.

My wife and I have been watching an hour or two of television every day during the pandemic so we haven't run out of stuff to watch on Netflix. It's possible we are very easily amused. We've explored other streaming service but always come back to Netflix. We're entirely intolerant of commercials.

DU has a streaming television group:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=forum&id=1143

[llmart]

29. Read.

I'm a lifelong reader. I just couldn't live without it. Books/music/food is all I would ever need if stranded on a desert island.

I have bad eyesight too (probably from all the years of reading), but I still read. I love to armchair travel through books. I used to think I'd get to Europe one day after I retired, but now I'm retired and can't travel. I had so many trips in mind, even in the US and Canada, but now I have no idea when people will be able to safely travel once again. I hope it's before I get too old and feeble.

[underpants]

30. The BBC "reality shows" are good and not combative

Very much a sense of community. The baking shows are famous but we just started watching a gardening one that’s very good. Mostly artists not gardeners.

[LakeArenal]

33. Love the Great British Baking Show.

Paul Hollywood!!!

[underpants]

35. He made the most expensive loaf of bread in the world

Don’t know what made it so expensive.

Mary Berry refused to be moved off BBC 1. She has a best cook show that’s pretty good.

[LakeArenal]

36. Yes they gutted the show. Hate that

Paul Hollywood has literally gone Hollywood

[frazzled]

31. Yay to no new Hollywood blockbusters, no caped heroes or wicked villains, no scary aliens

I hope that this may be the end of these tired old genres that exist solely to make big bucks (mainly from Asian audiences).

We've found plenty to watch, though we have had to add a few more streaming apps. We use Criterion and TCM apps to catch up on old classics—always a pleasure. Used HBO Go (borrowed password) to watch Harriet last night, which we hadn't seen before. Currently watching new Perry Mason limited series and Red Oaks (funny). Watched riveting series like The Eddy and Unorthodox.

We've also streamed operas from the Royal Opera House and Metropolitan Opera (we're not opera buffs, but I find that streaming them is much more enjoyable and intimate than the few times we've gone to them live and spent a fortune), musicals (Hamilton), concerts.

I feared the same thing earlier, but honestly ... there's plenty of good stuff to catch up on. I'm kind of glad all the junk is on hiatus. Maybe it will disappear forever.

[Kaleva]

38. At most, I watch about 2 hours of tv a day.

DU is a big place and there are many subjects being discussed and so I come here not just for news and discussions about politics. The rest of my day is spent cleaning, cooking , doing minor projects around the place, gardening and lawn care.

[electric_blue68]

40. CBS All Access, Pluto TV, YT, e-read, and ....

I draw (artist), digital art phone & tablet, design and make unique wire jewelry w/wo semi-precious stones and water pearls, knit and crochet and visit here.

[demigoddess]

41. same here, I have seen just about everything on Britbox and Acorn

can't read, can't concentrate. I have got some sewing done. Would love to clean and organize the house but the handicapped child we have takes too much attention.

[Baclava]

42. Amazon Prime videos, thousands, i have been going through the sci fi and horror lists

Basically every B movie that never made it to TV is in there, lol, some good ones too