I feel less lonely when I watch TV:
The heartbreak and the healing both go quicker,
And Marketing’s best minds keep courting me
As though my name were capping a marquee—
It might as well, since I control the clicker.
I feel less blue, too, watching: though TV
Can’t do much more than mute a tragedy
(The ten o’clock news scrolls its frantic ticker),
It compensates with ample comedy—
Reruns alone could last an eternity!
That comfort bathes me in its bluish flicker.
I feel less lonely when I watch TV,
Though lately not as often. When I see
My favorite sitcom couples snipe and bicker—
They used to smile, to beam, accepting me
Into their homes; now they seem less carefree,
And the canned laughter sounds like one long snicker.
I get so lonely when I watch TV,
Where everyone plays a part apart from me.
Dear Reader,
Can I be direct with you?
War abroad. Socialists on the rise. AI upending human life. Endless uproar online. The modern attention economy doesn’t want readers — it wants users enslaved to the tyranny of the present.
First Things is the antidote: literary excellence, timeless truths, and a fixed point of reference in a culture that has lost its bearings.
But we can’t do it without readers like you.
Our goal: Raise $150,000 by November 1 to sustain First Things in the year ahead.
Your gift anchors readers in the permanent things.
Make your Fall Campaign gift now using the button below.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Giovanni Del Piero, Director of the Editor’s Circle, at gdelpiero@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
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