I know the tradition of eating together as a family is something only some do. But, this daily tradition is one my family tries to follow as frequently as we can, with the exception of sports and doctors’ appointments. I have been raised on the principle of sitting down with my fam and discussing our days over a nice homemade meal. With this comes the problem of not wanting to be around my family. It was never an option to skip dinner if my sister and I got into a fight, the same goes for me and either my mom or dad. Without fighting, even just making small talk with people that already know me so well proved to be difficult at times. I have found that having the distraction of watching something while we eat, something that we are all seeing and can all interact with, like television, helps with conversation. Now, I am not saying my family and I have the worst, most dreadful eating experiences ever, we just like watching TV while we eat. Because of this, I will be rating some of the programs we watch out of 10 to give you my personal opinion on what show is the best for dinner time with the fam.
Starting off in dead last, I mean dead DEAD last is Access Hollywood.
Picture this, I am sitting at dinner with the fam enjoying NBC 5 Chicago’s 6 o’clock news when suddenly Allison Rosati and Stefan Holt big their farewells as they wrap up the news. Oh no. It is 6:59, I react much too slowly and all of a sudden, the clock strikes 7 and cameras begin flashing on
the TV, almost as if it’s paparazzi. You may think it is some special story on the news about cameras, but no, instead Kit Hoover and Mario Lopez’s faces appear on the screen as they begin to spill all of the latest celebrity gossips. I HATE ACCESSING HOLLYWOOD.
Access Hollywood: 1/10
This is actually my least favorite television program there is on the face of the earth. In reality, I always try to sit through the first 10 minutes of that dumb show, just to see if their stupid tactics have changed. Every time I make a fool out of myself by thinking anything could be good about this show. As I watch, I can feel the brain cells in my head shriveling up and dying as they show various celebrities’ recent red-carpet looks combined with whatever divorce they are going through. I don’t like celebrities much, to begin with, so when other celebrities (Mario Lopez) start to talk about celebrities, it is just the worst possible combination ever. Every time it comes on, I change the channel, usually switching over to Hulu, where I will put on whatever show I am currently watching.
This leads to the next TV program, How I Met Your Mother
HIMYM: 6/10
This has been my something-to-put-on-when-bored show, for something to put on when I am bored. I don’t usually watch TV and because of that, I have extreme difficulty getting through long shows, especially when there are 9 seasons. Because this is an older show, this was something that my parents would put on when I was younger. This is good because then everyone at the dinner table can enjoy and appreciate the humor. Although, this is still not my top choice for dinner TV because of the necessary attention that is required to understand what is going on. Unlike the final and best TV program, I can’t sit and have a conversation about whatever with the fam while this is playing in the background.
The best show to play for dinner is… NBC 5 Chicago news. Yes, I love news at dinnertime. Allison Rosati and Stefan 
Holt are basically my parents, I have been raised on their hour-long federal and national news debriefing. You know we are either eating too late or too early in the day when we are not able to watch their program. The time restraints keep my family and me on a schedule of trying to attempt to fit
dinner in at the same time every day so we can watch our usual programs. Regardless if it was Stefan and Allison, or even NBC 5, news, in general, is always a good idea during dinner. This is something that you can try out while watching to focus on a conversation with your parents while providing the opportunity to tune in and hear about what is going on in the world. I still have a bias against Allison and Stefan.
Fun fact, Stefan Holt is Lester Holt’s son, a journalist for NBC’s nightly news with Lester Holt. This father-son duo is however not related to Olivia Holt, a famous actress, and former Disney channel star.
Reflecting on this tradition has made me realize that I will miss it when I move to college in a few months. As much as I used to complain about it, the conversations shared with my family, especially this past year, have been very enjoyable. Most of the time we do not even need TV as means of distraction, instead we play it more for upholding our traditions. I hope that as I transition into the next stage of my life, I can make new traditions with my new friends while still upholding those that shaped some of my morals.