During the summer, I spent a lot of time doing things with boys that I didn't necessarily want to do. I invited over kids I didn't like, I rode a horse, I took a trip to Wild Waves when I needed to strip and stain the deck, plus I played video games.
Now, of all of those activities, I dislike playing video games the most. I've spent the last twenty-four hours with a sick boy while Mike was doing his Scouting thing. Oh, I convinced him that he should stay for dinner with the campers, but I secretly hoped he'd be home by eleven. When it became clear that he was staying, I encouraged him, but inside, I realized that I'd almost definitely have to play video games in the morning when Nick woke up.
It was true. That was what Nick's smiling face wanted from me when he woke me at 8:30 this morning. He was even cheerful about my ineptitude in playing. I'm not even good at playing Lego Star Wars. I can never figure out where I am. I'm not creative in trying different combinations of the buttons and I don't seem to remember which ones do which, even over time. Though I'm reasonably athletic in the real world, if I need to jump, spin, or aim in the video game world, I'm at a loss. And finally, at any game but Lego, I seem to reach a plateau beyond which I just can't reach.
I've spent hours reading my books as Mike and Nick played. They could stack their games Nick-high and I have only asked to buy two games, Katamari and Loco Roco. We only have one of them left. I liked rolling people up in my ball for Katamari, but I got stuck at a certain level and stopped playing. I couldn't stand the animation that came on the screen when I was done that told me how awful I was at the game. 'No shit, Sherlock,' I'd think. 'Now leave me alone while I make a quilt.'
The same plateau happened with Loco Roco and now the music really annoys me. Of Nick's games, I like Gauntlet and I tolerate the Lego games. My iPhone games of choice are Scrabble, SolFree, and Plants vs. Zombies. For each of these games, I was obsessed for a while, but when I'd finish, bleary-eyed and disoriented, I'd hate that I'd wasted so much of my time playing. I never hear Mike, Nick, or Adrian talk about wasting their time when they play too long. My current obsession is Plants vs. Zombies, but I'm getting close to my plateau and I don't play it nearly as much as I did a couple of weeks ago. Is that it for Plants vs. Zombies enjoyment? Two weeks for any game and I'm done?
I have spent countless hours wondering why I don't like video games. I'll be making breakfast in the kitchen on a Saturday morning, feeling left out and then I wonder why. When the guys are busy playing, they're so intense that they can't hear me asking them what they want to eat. I'll put a book on the CD player, but, until I'm immersed in the story, I'm still wondering why I don't want my turn at playing. After a busy day, the guys will play and I'll be making something in my sewing room. These days, I'm making hand-stitched notebooks. I've made whole quilts in the time they've played video games and I wonder why I need to be on my feet, still, while they're relaxed on the couch. I've reluctantly turned to my book on other evenings when the television is occupied by one or both of them playing games. Sometimes, I'm interested in the graphics or the music, but I seldom ask them if I can play. I was also playing Gauntlet with Nick once, proud that I'd finally earned a guardian bird, when I had a good idea. What if the energy those guys spend on video games could be tapped into, producing something useful? These males could be made into batteries, something like in the movie, 'Matrix.' They could be happy and productive for hours as long as concerned womenfolk would still buy groceries and deliver them to their seats.
I'm not the only one who has wondered over this question. A friend of mine works at a gaming company and she said that the whole industry has asked why most women don't get hooked on video games the way men do. Apparently, half the population is out there, ready to be mined for the cost of the right game, that game that women will want to play deep into the night for weeks on end or until the last level is reached and the wallet opens for the next game. So there's my answer for them: it hurts my eyes and hands; I don't get better at it and don't like getting stuck; it isn't productive and I feel bad about losing all that time.
Regardless, if I get hooked on a video game, I don't stay that way. If all forms of video games were to disappear off the map tomorrow, I wouldn't mind so much. Mike and Nick would be devastated. They'd have to come up with a whole new plan for what to do with themselves at home, especially when they were a little bit tired anyway.
They're in the other room right now, still playing. In the meantime, I'll cook good food. I'll read good (and sometimes shabby) books. I'll make quilts and notebooks. I might eventually learn how to make socks and chain mail. And I'll write to you. Somehow, I never get up from writing and wish I'd spent my time in a more productive way.
Thank you for listening, jb
Now, of all of those activities, I dislike playing video games the most. I've spent the last twenty-four hours with a sick boy while Mike was doing his Scouting thing. Oh, I convinced him that he should stay for dinner with the campers, but I secretly hoped he'd be home by eleven. When it became clear that he was staying, I encouraged him, but inside, I realized that I'd almost definitely have to play video games in the morning when Nick woke up.
It was true. That was what Nick's smiling face wanted from me when he woke me at 8:30 this morning. He was even cheerful about my ineptitude in playing. I'm not even good at playing Lego Star Wars. I can never figure out where I am. I'm not creative in trying different combinations of the buttons and I don't seem to remember which ones do which, even over time. Though I'm reasonably athletic in the real world, if I need to jump, spin, or aim in the video game world, I'm at a loss. And finally, at any game but Lego, I seem to reach a plateau beyond which I just can't reach.
I've spent hours reading my books as Mike and Nick played. They could stack their games Nick-high and I have only asked to buy two games, Katamari and Loco Roco. We only have one of them left. I liked rolling people up in my ball for Katamari, but I got stuck at a certain level and stopped playing. I couldn't stand the animation that came on the screen when I was done that told me how awful I was at the game. 'No shit, Sherlock,' I'd think. 'Now leave me alone while I make a quilt.'
The same plateau happened with Loco Roco and now the music really annoys me. Of Nick's games, I like Gauntlet and I tolerate the Lego games. My iPhone games of choice are Scrabble, SolFree, and Plants vs. Zombies. For each of these games, I was obsessed for a while, but when I'd finish, bleary-eyed and disoriented, I'd hate that I'd wasted so much of my time playing. I never hear Mike, Nick, or Adrian talk about wasting their time when they play too long. My current obsession is Plants vs. Zombies, but I'm getting close to my plateau and I don't play it nearly as much as I did a couple of weeks ago. Is that it for Plants vs. Zombies enjoyment? Two weeks for any game and I'm done?
I have spent countless hours wondering why I don't like video games. I'll be making breakfast in the kitchen on a Saturday morning, feeling left out and then I wonder why. When the guys are busy playing, they're so intense that they can't hear me asking them what they want to eat. I'll put a book on the CD player, but, until I'm immersed in the story, I'm still wondering why I don't want my turn at playing. After a busy day, the guys will play and I'll be making something in my sewing room. These days, I'm making hand-stitched notebooks. I've made whole quilts in the time they've played video games and I wonder why I need to be on my feet, still, while they're relaxed on the couch. I've reluctantly turned to my book on other evenings when the television is occupied by one or both of them playing games. Sometimes, I'm interested in the graphics or the music, but I seldom ask them if I can play. I was also playing Gauntlet with Nick once, proud that I'd finally earned a guardian bird, when I had a good idea. What if the energy those guys spend on video games could be tapped into, producing something useful? These males could be made into batteries, something like in the movie, 'Matrix.' They could be happy and productive for hours as long as concerned womenfolk would still buy groceries and deliver them to their seats.
I'm not the only one who has wondered over this question. A friend of mine works at a gaming company and she said that the whole industry has asked why most women don't get hooked on video games the way men do. Apparently, half the population is out there, ready to be mined for the cost of the right game, that game that women will want to play deep into the night for weeks on end or until the last level is reached and the wallet opens for the next game. So there's my answer for them: it hurts my eyes and hands; I don't get better at it and don't like getting stuck; it isn't productive and I feel bad about losing all that time.
Regardless, if I get hooked on a video game, I don't stay that way. If all forms of video games were to disappear off the map tomorrow, I wouldn't mind so much. Mike and Nick would be devastated. They'd have to come up with a whole new plan for what to do with themselves at home, especially when they were a little bit tired anyway.
They're in the other room right now, still playing. In the meantime, I'll cook good food. I'll read good (and sometimes shabby) books. I'll make quilts and notebooks. I might eventually learn how to make socks and chain mail. And I'll write to you. Somehow, I never get up from writing and wish I'd spent my time in a more productive way.
Thank you for listening, jb
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