Has anyone here actually recorded their use of time? I did and it shocked me. By the time my children turned 18, continuing to pay for cable TV and eating out, would have paid off the entire mortgage. I was so shook up that I turned off cable and started cooking again.

According to the Nielsen Co., Americans watch an average of more than 4 hours of TV each day (or 28 hours/week, or 2 months of nonstop TV-watching per year).

In addition, as of 2019, Americans daily social media usage averaged 145 minutes per day.

6 hours a day, seven days a week is 2,190 hours a year. A five day a week, full-time job is only 2,080 hours a year.

My kitchen was my classroom where I introduced my children to language, math, biology, science, geography, literature, history, philosophy, culture, art, teamwork, personal responsibility, manners, conversation skills, family history, hygiene, how to follow directions, and experiment. Together, the four of us could get a meal on the table in 20 minutes, then clear the dining room table, put food away and clean up the kitchen in ten minutes flat.

It worked.

Instead of the cable company and restaurants, we paid for braces and college (without student loans). Braces cost $20,000. We paid the house off early and started saving for college. Instead of paying interest, we were earning interest. University was $16,000 a semester for tuition alone - and we had two children (ouch). Both kids worked and paid their own living expenses, including rent.

I’ve been using computers since the late 1970s. Today, I am quite attached to my laptop where I watch movies, read books, and correspond with friends.

I’ve never had social media, so I have no way of knowing what its like. But it sounds like a full-time job with lots of stress and no pay.