Recently a man surveying Google Fiber knocked on our door. I foolishly thought it was the delivery person for a package I was expecting, so I opened the front door. Unfortunately because I made eye contact I was suckered into taking his survey.

I answered questions about what internet provider we had, as well as my total satisfaction, rating on a scale from 1-5. He then proceeded to ask me which cable company we used. I don't him we didn't have cable. He slightly raised an eyebrow, however it's not entirely unusual for millennials to be "cord-cutters."

"So you you have Netflix or Hulu?" he asked.
"No." I replied.
The look on his face showed that he was clearly confused, as he made scratch marks on his survey paper.

That's right, we are probably one of the few couples under 30 who do not have any sort of TV show or movie subscription. Nada.

I know, I can hear the audible gasp coming from whatever electronic device you are reading this with. The fact is, we aren't against TV or movie subscriptions. We love some of the shows and movies on Netflix. We are also not some self-righteous couple who think they are better than everyone else. Although it may seem odd, we aren't the only ones out there that live like this. 49% of Millennials that don't subscribe the Netflix.

Because of our choice, we can't give you the latest details from House of Cards, or Breaking Bad.

We don't feel the intense anxiety that comes when the 14 seconds are counting down at the end of an episode and we have to decide if we should watch another episode or do something productive.

We don't have to worry about "Netflix cheating", or the temptation to watch an episode before our spouse does.

We don't Google "Best unknown movies on Netflix for people who have already seen everything."

We also don't get that dazed feeling, not knowing if it's light or dark outside after binge-watching several seasons of Downton Abby.

We are not haters, we just realized early on in our marriage, we probably wouldn't be on our deathbeds saying, "Sweety, I really wish we watched one more season of  House."

So what do we use instead?

We use our minds. We get a little creative when it comes to entertainment. Because of this, we have experienced a lot more, and become closer as a couple. If it's cold outside, we just put a few more sweaters on and go exploring. If it's a torrential downpour, we don't resign ourselves to movies, but we get on some old clothes, grab a raincoat, and take a walk in the rain. We don't let the weather, or lack of money stop us from having fun.
Spontaneous activities have included but are not limited to:

- Taking a hike after work to watch the sunset, and then eating sweet potato fries at our favorite restaurant.
- Exploring the little Asian market we always pass on our way home.
- Going for a bike ride along the river after dinner.
- Making cookies and eating them while watching a movie on our laptop outside
- Playing board games that we haven't touched in years
- Reading a book for fun, not for school
-  Planting seedlings in the family garden
- Taking our neighbor's dog on a walk and playing catch with her at the park.
- Volunteering to watch kids together for parents who need a much needed break
- Going out for ice cream and talking
- Cooking together
- Going for a jog at night while our laundry dries in the dryer
- Varnishing a piece of furniture for our house
- Watching a free Disney movie in the park and laughing at how we missed so many of the  little details when we were kids.
- Popping into little antique shops and seeing who can find the weirdest item
- Swimming in the Rec Center pool
- Walking around the city and critiquing landscape choices
- Going to the temple together on a regular basis
- Having bonfires in the mountains (with free wood from Freecycle,) while trying new food combinations in our Dutch oven
- Playing Frisbee golf
- Watching live basketball games, even if we're in the nosebleed section
- Designing and building a beehive
- Window shopping
- Fixing our bike's flat tires together
- Hosting dinner parties with friends
- Seeing a movie at the dollar theater
- Reading the magazines at the library for an evening
- Listening to live music at a free concert
- Going to bed early on purpose so we can relax and talk. We usually say to the other person, "pick a topic" for example, 5th grade, and then you have to tell a story on the topic. We still learn new things about each other doing this.
- Sampling the food at the local farmer's market
- Attending the premier of the Warren Miller movie

For us, we just don't have a lot of time to watch movies and TV. We'd rather be living.

But what about sports? 

Because Calvin is an avid sports fan, we are kindly invited to watch TV at his parents' house. We would like to watch TV at their house even if we did have cable, because it makes watching games a more social event. It's more fun to cheer and boo for a team (sometimes opposing teams) when we're in a group setting. Sometimes, we will also go to a restaurant, order food, and make an evening out of eat. It doesn't get much better than burgers and basketball.

What about when you want to watch movies?
It's no question that the internet has dozens of free, legal websites to stream content from, so we use those. We are also not ashamed to rent movies from the library. Our library has some decent choices for classics. Lately, we have been into watching documentaries or "how to" videos. They're entertaining and well, educational. We occasionally rent from Redbox, or see a movie in theaters. For us, we don't feel deprived and it works. We also save money, and use that money for dates.

Yes, we may be a little odd with our media lifestyle, but we wouldn't have it any other way. Our conversations don't revolve around the TV shows we watch, but rather the things we do together.

 
                         

"Fire! Fire!" I shouted and haphazardly looked for our wedding photos with one eye still not fully open. It was 4 a.m and there was an ear-deafening beeping noise happening in our house.
 I thought our house was burning down.
Good news - it didn't.

Somehow a kitchen timer with a faulty battery decided to deploy at 4 a.m. (It didn't help that is was half-melted from using it so often near the oven.
I'm so glad it was a false alarm.

It looks nothing like the movies.
They don't hold their neck and make a lot of noise.
It's easy to miss.

Today I was feeding the residents in the dementia unit when, it happened.
Sweet Marilyn was choking and I was the only one in the room.
Her saltwater blue eyes rolled in the back of her head and she leaned back in her wheelchair.
She wasn't breathing.

Panic mode set in and I sprinted down the hall looking for someone, anyone to help.
"Help! Help! Marilyn is choking!" I shouted, my adrenaline was really pumping now.
Sadly it was a ghost town - I couldn't find anyone.
I didn't want her to die.

This wasn't my job! I wasn't trained in "abdominal thrusts in a wheelchair," I thought to myself as I sprinted to back to the dining room. I was only gone for a few seconds but it seemed like forever.
Marilyn's lips were turning blue.

Without thinking I leaned her forward in her wheelchair and thrust the heel of my hand hard into her back. Over, and over again until she spontaneously spewed banana pudding all across the nearby residents. Then she threw up on me. I have never been so happy to see vomit, because she was breathing again. After a coughing fit, color came back to her cheeks and she was talking within minutes. The nurse staff and CNAs magically appeared and looked relieved that I was able to help her. I hope no one has to go through that kind of experience, but if you do, be prepared.

Signs of choking:
- Person is not able to talk
- The person isn't coughing
- Difficulty breathing
- Loss of consciousness

 Not good.

       

"Honey, I don't know how to tell you this, but your package of noodles is in the middle of Main Street."  I never thought I would hear Calvin say that to me.

In the movie "500 Days of Summer" one of best scenes is when they are shopping in Ikea. It is like a playground for home decorators. One of our favorite quotes to say is when Tom says to Summer, "Darling."
[Summer looks up at him]
Tom says, "I don't know how to tell you this, but... there's a Chinese family in our bathroom." In one of the 300 square-foot model apartments there is a Chinese family oddly looking at Tom and Summer as they cuddle on the display bed.
For some reason we crack up hysterically every time we hear this.
It has been the punchline for weeks.

However today was not a day for laughing. I was late to work and I had to drive Calvin to school. I managed to spill an entire tray of frozen celery on the ground before leaving the house and didn't have time to clean it up. My hair was wet.
It was not turning out to be a peachy morning.

I looked like a tightrope walker as I tried to cautiously balance everything in my hands while trying to open the car door. I couldn't take it anymore. I had to put something down. My lunch, (in a glass container) seemed like the perfect thing to rest on the top of the car.
"Just for a minute," I thought.

I tossed the keys to Calvin because he was a better driver. He sped all the way to BYU campus, swerving like a race car driver. I heard a loud thunk somewhere between 4th and 5th street.
"What was that?" I asked Calvin.
"I don't know."
Our car makes lots of noises.

We finally arrived at BYU with a few minutes to spare.
Calvin leaps out of the car with his backpack in hand.

"Hey... you have something on your car, a student said with a puzzled look on our face.
Somehow, the glass container defrosting vegetables and a bag of trail mix was still intact, had defied the law of physics and were resting on the hood of the car.
The noodles though, were gone.



I snatched the food and put it in the car to hide my embarrassment.
Calvin, at a loss of words for the disaster we just avoided, just kissed me and said, "Only you Krysta would be able to do something like that."

On my way home I went down main street imagining to find a package of udon noodles with tire tracks on it. I didn't.

However, "The case of the missing noodles," was not a tragic ending.
Every day I pass by what I lovingly refer to as the "tamale lady." I sometimes see her several times a day, in rain or cold selling tamales. She must be at least 80 years old. Well today was the day. I finally bought some. I found a dollar bill and some coins in the car so I gave it to her and said, "I'll have two chicken tamales please."
She didn't speak a word of English.
Trying to remember the Spanish I learned from Dora the Explorer and Taco Bell commercials, I said in my Spanglish, "dos chicken tamales porfavor." She didn't understand so she pulled out a worn menu and had me point to the  kind of tamales I wanted. I was not her first English customer.
She then lovingly wrapped the tamales in a brown paper bag and handed them to me with a smile. At that second, even though I didn't speak her language we shared a wonderful moment together. Human connection is so powerful that sometimes language doesn't even matter.  I wish I could have bought 20 tamales to help this sweet lady.
Although I didn't plan it, it turned out to be a good day after all.