I tried to turn off the cable for the summer, I really did. I've taken cable vacations before, and usually find them fairly relaxing, with time to read, spazz out on the Internet, write, putter in the garden. It's amazing how many hours there are in the day when none of them are spent on TV. Plus, I figured I'd probably get some package deal in the fall when I signed up again.

So I called and tried to do the same thing I'd done before. I asked the cable company to dump my TV cable and keep the cable broadband account. It didn't work; my cable company is now subsiding my TV subscription. Apparently, they are desperate to keep the eyeballs on their screens.

Here's how it works out. Broadband alone costs $57 per month. Broadband costs just $45 if you are also a cable TV subscriber. The lowest, lamest, most limited cable package available is $10 a month. Ergo, it is $2/month cheaper for me to have broadband plus TV than it is for me to just have broadband. Very weird, but there it is; it's a better deal for me NOT to cut the cable.