The Men in the White Jackets Are Your Friends

It started out innocently, I promise. A friend asked me if I'd watch her 9 year old son afterschool for a couple of days. After countless games of basketball, wiffle ball, and chats with the old man up the street...I had to pull out the video games. 9 year olds -- they're tireless. I hadn't hooked any of our systems up for a while, mostly because I only have two modes for playing video games...ON and OFF. When its ON its ONNNN!

When I was pregnant with E, I played DDR to the point of hazard. Having to put it away for the sake of my unborn. Tony Hawk has kept Pat and I up until all hours during various seasons of our lives. Mario Tennis and Mario Kart have occupied more evenings than I care to count. And lest we not forget...TETRIS! Game of all games. I think many of you have fallen victim to this game yourselves at various points.

Tetris has been the bulk of my game craze lately, and, as I stated, I would not have even hooked it up had it not been for the tireless 9 year old. Early last week, while bored at work, I discovered a game that I had long been trying to avoid...SPIDER SOLITAIRE. I spent much of Friday playing when I should have been cleaning, reading, bathing, or any other multitude of productive tasks.

Once I get into this mode, I know no limits. All games are enticing. So you'll understand why I'm absolutely maniacal trying to beat "Bust Out", a basic game at sharpiemini.com. If you pass Level 4, they'll send you a FREE SHARPIE MINI. Its a GAME with a REWARD! Its all I can do to type this instead of returning for MORE.

As I have made evident, I have a problem. And it appears that removing myself from temptations is the only remedy. So I'm leaving. Retreating to a quiet oceanside town where the video games can't find me. I'll leave the laptop at home, pray there is not a Nintendo 64 in sight, and just enjoy the waves, sand, and frolicking baby. I'll be in the hands of a capable "professional" who has dealt with plenty of my crises before. She helped me get over him, understood that I was really in love him, and when I said I was moving us all to a land called "Cornucopia" where we could talk in any accent we wanted, she laughed, knowing not to take me too seriously.

Sunny California, here I come! Off to Cooper-ville -- aka Monterey, CA! E will scout out the Cooper boys for potential suitors, and I'll be reading by the sea. Will be back next weekend. Its for my health people -- I have no choice!