[Magdalen] The Angle.

[Cantor03 at aol.com]

Whenever I visit my daughter and her family, we dutifully
watch the evening news together.
 
They have the now archetypical large, flat screen television 
mounted on the fireplace above the mantle.  This always 
causes discomfort acutely and sometimes for days afterward
because of the 45 degree angle above eye level required to
see the screen.  The screen looks like a sort of black hole
when not in use.
 
Twin Cities, MN USA network television began functioning in
about 1948 after the completion of their "tall towers."  I first
saw television in 1949 at the invitation of a dealer in TV sets,
and it wasn't until 1953 that my family actually had our own
television.
 
Then and now, I have always had my TV screen at or even
a bit below the eye level while I am seated.  
 
I have a large, very colorful oil painting (Elof Wedin) above the
fireplace mantle, and my television is in a low cabinet with doors
that hide the screen until the evening news.
 
There is no neck strain.
 
 
David S.