Mavis removed a three-foot section of the fiber optic cable coming into the house. I’ve been intending to drop my cable service since January, but kept putting it off. Mavis forced my hand.

I’ve had AT&T Uverse since 2012 and have made no changes. Month after month, the bill went up a tiny bit. The most recent bill was twice as much as the first. The time to cut the cable was long overdue.

Several friends had spoken highly of T-Mobile where I already had a trouble-free, low-cost account for phone service. They didn’t open until 10. I squeezed in a haircut and a mani-pedi before heading to the store.

I feel like fiber optic is more reliable, but unfortunately, T-Mobile doesn’t yet provide it in my area. Having a tech come to the house wasn’t necessary. She added me to a waiting list for fiber optic and then set me up with a wireless base and an extender.

Setting everything up for the new service was surprisingly fast and easy. Even I could do it. Canceling the old service would likely be more difficult. I put all the old equipment in a big trash bag and headed for the AT&T store.

A nice guy met me at the door and informed me they don’t do cancellations or take equipment back. Uh, oh. Here we go. Before I could go crotchety on him, he sent me to the UPS store for a free return.

The UPS Store clerk poked through the bag, scanned bar codes, and printed a receipt. Done. She said not to lose the receipt–they’re unable to reprint it should the need arise.

I called the toll-free number for AT&T when I got home. After waiting maybe three minutes, Trey asked how he could assist me. He called me Mr. Michael with a voice I can only describe as cool and smokey. Younger me would have asked for his number.

Sexy-sounding Trey kept apologizing for the delay as he worked through whatever was required to cancel my service. No sales pitch. Ten minutes later, we were done. Sigh.

The next day, I got an email message from AT&T. No need to return my equipment. Recycling instructions were included. Oops. Too late.

After subtracting for the new service, canceling Uverse saves me enough to pay the housecleaning service and more. T-Mobile is supposed to pick up the tab for some of my streaming services too. Between bundles and services paid for by others, I’m waiting to see the impact.

Right away, I noticed the house is significantly darker at night. Lights on the new equipment are far more discreet. I was down to two remotes per TV, but now only need one.

Adjusting to life as a streamer is a work in progress. Between freebies, bundles and subscriptions, I have accounts with most of the major platforms. I’m still trying to remember/find the shows I always DVR’d before.

The biggest change is freedom from a rigid television schedule. I’m surprised how much my routine revolved around TV shows–especially news. I feel a bit untethered.

I’m still figuring out what’s no longer available and looking for substitutes. All in all, I have to say eliminating cable service has been less painful than expected. As always, I’ll keep you posted. Thanks for stopping by.