One movie ticket: $10. One soda: $8. One bag of popcorn: $6.

Essentially, a single person going to our Carmike theater could pay about $25. But who goes to the movie theater all by themselves? More often than not, people take at least one friend. If you add up the entire cost to get these commodities, the price is simply atrocious.

For me, the only solution I can find is to avoid the theater like the plague. I’ve had many friends invite me to go, but I usually find a way out of it.

Price isn’t the only reason. The movies that the theater plays are not at all appealing to me. There are so many movies that are nothing more than violence, swearing, and crude behavior. They usually aren’t worth the trouble that producers put into making them.

The last movie I saw was “After Earth,” which was a pretty good movie. But was it really worth emptying my pockets for? I don’t think so.

Though some people think that being the first to step into the darkened theater and see a new showing is the greatest thing on earth, I am much more content to wait a few months and see a movie in the comforts of my own home with a blanket, close friends, and homemade popcorn easily available to me.

Maybe that means I won’t be part of the buzz when people start chattering about how good or bad a movie was, but I can easily bring it up with friends whenever I finally watch it. Plus, if it is truly a good movie like “Tangled” or “Pirates of the Caribbean,” the puns and quotes don’t wear off.

Entertainment doesn’t have to be as costly as Carmike makes it. Movies don’t have to be full of nothingness in order to be fun. Be a little patient and the best movies will reach you, and your friends, for only a few coins; they’ll even stay with you as long as you ride the Kim-garoo.