January 2008

LOST is coming back tomorrow night, and I can hardly wait! I hope ABC provides some kind of recap, because it's been forever since the last episode. I read an interview with Matthew Fox (I think it was in Entertainment Weekly), and he said it's going to be getting exciting again. We're going to be finding out more about where (and when) this island is, and what is really going on. Who was in the casket? Do they really get off the island, and then go back? Woo-hoo! You know where I'll be on Thursday night at 8 pm!

I'm not really a fan of South Park. (If you've never heard of it, it's an animated television program with mature language and politically incorrect storylines.) However, I am a fan of cute cartoon avatars. And since I cannot draw anything myself, I love finding places online that will let me play around and create my own cartoons! Planearium.de has a fun South Park avatar maker. You choose your skin tone, eyes, hairstyle, clothing, and facial expression. Plus, you can customize it quite a bit, by choosing various accessories, weapons, and a background color or scene. Do a screen capture to save your creation, and there you are! You have your very own South Park-ish cartoon avatar. Here is one I made to represent myself. I decided to go with the Jedi look, complete with light saber, because I love Star Wars, and I'm about the same height as Yoda. "Do, or do not. There is no try."

I am addicted to my computer. And the Wii. And my kids are becoming total gamers too. Think I'm just exaggerating? Well, how about this for proof that I spend too much time at the computer? My wrists are tired and my hands go numb. Also, my eyes barely focus on anything that's not 24 inches away from my face, because that's how far away my screen is. And then when I'm done working at the computer, I love playing on the Wii. It is so much fun! And of course, it's the kids' favorite indoor activity, and it's what they want to do as soon as their chores are finished. Between the Wii, and games on the PC, they will play for hours, if we let them. Now before you blast me for allowing my kids to spend too much time in front of a screen, let me admit that I know it's a problem. Isn't that the first step toward recovery? I don't know. I've never been in rehab. And it's not like we live in a broken down shack full of rubbish and filth. Our home is fairly clean, the kids are well-fed, they make honor roll at school, and we read to them every day. We do turn off the machines and interact as human beings, but sometimes it's difficult to tear everyone away from the games. That's where I need some help. Now you brilliant inventors out there, here is my idea. This is going to make someone very rich, and I'm giving it away for free! I want a bank that I can attach to my gaming devices. For instance, I attach this bank to the Wii, the kids put in some coins, and it plays for however many minutes I decide each coin is worth. Then, I can open the bank, collect the coins, and recycle them into the allowance or reward system (or use as Mom's Mad Money!). How brilliant is that? The coin system makes the play time easier to regulate, because there's no arguing with the machine's timer. Also, I think it would be helpful in teaching the kids about work and rewards. They do chores to earn money, and then they can decide how much of the money to spend on gaming, or whether they would rather save it for something else. So, does such a product already exist? Anyone out there going to make one for me? Please? :-)