Whats and Ladders?

So, it's weird for me to be writing more than once in one day, though it would be my ambition to write several times a day. But I just saw Jamie Lee Curtis on Oprah, and she inspired me to jump on here and spew. I only caught the last few minutes of her interview, but her words really struck a chord in me. She has written several children's books over the past few years and her newest one is called, "Big Words for Little People." In a nutshell, it's trying to keep "real" language alive for kids these days. It kind of goes back to what I was talking about in another post about technology and how kids are so involved with their video games and blah blah blah. You may remember her in some commercials for board games like Operation where she's dressed up in scrubs and a surgeon's costume? Well, she mentioned in her interview that she was talking to some of the makers of the games and told them that her favorite game used to be Chutes and Ladders. She said that her favorite part of the game was the loooonnnng slide at the end of the game that sent you right back to the beginning if you happened to land on it. Well...it seems that too many kids were throwing temper tantrums about having to go back to the beginning of the game...and too many moms were calling the company COMPLAINING about their kids not winning the game. Mmmmmmmmmm kay. So.....................THE COMPANY CHANGED THE GAME! CHUTES AND LADDERS!!! IT IS CHANGED! All because some whiny little shits got on their impatient mothers' nerves. Whatever happened to learning how to lose graciously?? I mean...now they have rules posted outside all the ballparks instructing parents not to raise their voices at the ball games or they'll get thrown out. Most of the ball games under certain ages aren't even SCORED any more because they don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. Okay, okay...I get it. Everyone and their dog is on some kind of anti-depressant now, so they have to start at age 2 to up self esteem. I get it. I'm just wondering what happens to these kids who are pampered until they're 22 and then BOOM they get fired from their cushy job in corporate America, and they have not the first idea how to handle it!

I'm just saying...kids need to experience disappointment. I realize that parents don't want their kids to face it...but let's get real...life is FULL of disappointment and if kids don't learn how to deal with it early on, then won't it just be harder later? Look...before everyone jumps down my throat, I'm not saying throw your kids in a lake full of crocodiles. I'm just saying...put the damn slide back on the board for crying out loud.

If you can't be a gracious loser...how can you be excited about winning anything?

Back In The Day

Do you remember the age when your mom's spankings didn't hurt anymore? When it actually DID hurt her more than it hurt you? But yet you kept on fake crying for the mere fact that you got off with an easy punishment? Yeah...I remember. I was about 7. It lasted for about 2 seconds before I actually giggled mid-spank. Mmmm hmmm. I giggled. Advice for my 7 year old blog audience out there: I realize that these days, "spanking" is grounds for you calling DHR...but if you are still lucky enough to get the easy punishment of getting laid across your momma's lap bare butt and all, and she uses her BARE HAND to slap your rear to "teach you a lesson"...at least whimper or something. You may be able to stretch this another year or so before the actual "grounding" starts taking place. I know how you kids these days value your endless menagerie of electronic mind control devices and believe me...your mom (or dad) WILL confiscate these lovelies from you. What will you do then, young grasshopper? Read a book? *GASP* The horror of it! Believe it or not, my toys actually CONSISTED of books which I thoroughly enjoyed. And look at me now. Blogging away. You wouldn't want this happenening to you. So behave by all means so that you can continue to practice your hand-eye coordination with Guitar Hero and searching for the Gatlin gun on Xbox 360 with your buddies. We wouldn't want good, young minds going to waste, now would we?

It amazes me the kinds of toys kids have today. Even toys for babies. When I was a kid (and no...I'm not quite old enough to go on a tirade about how I walked to school 3 miles in the snow barefoot) we had actual jump ropes instead of those glittery musical whips they have today. We had dolls that just sat there that maybe came with a brush. These days, they come with hair that changes color when you add a "magic potion" to the brush...not to mention the doll poops and pees and barfs all over you, all while having a conversation in Arabic. We had frisbees. Now they have these gigantic discs that, if thrown correctly, soar into the next zip code. That's fun times. You don't just run through a run-of-the-mill, ordinary sprinkler that your dad pulls out of the garage anymore...oh no. You get the air pump out to blow up the inflatable playground fully equipped with a water slide, bouncy thing-a-ma-jig, and full working waterfall. You don't just ride a bike or skateboard anymore...nope nope nope. You have motorcycles for 4 year olds and so called "scooters" that go 50 miles an hour and probably get better gas mileage than a Prius. Ahh yes. "Toys" these days. Makes ya wanna be a kid again doesn't it? And you wonder why lawsuits are on the rise.

Cartoons have come a long way. And that's an understatement. I remember watching Chip & Dale's Rescue Rangers and Duck Tales, The Care Bears and Pound Puppies, Fraggle Rock, Inspector Gadget, Garfield & Friends, and The Jetsons. These days, they have Spongebob Squarepants, Jimmy Neutron, The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, and even shows for the toddlers like The Backyardigans (which I happen to love) and the Baby Einstein series. What's funny to me is that if you watch the old school Looney Toons or Tom and Jerry NOW, you will see that a lot of the jokes were geared towards adults. What you may not know is that the Looney Toons that you see on TV today is actually edited...quite a bit. Because back in the day, those cartoons were written during the war and had scenes written to "lighten the mood" that would be inappropriate for little ones' eyes to see today. Ahhh...but we adults have options now. And it's called "Adult Swim". Never did I think I'd see the day when an animated character would cuss or make off-color jokes. Enter Family Guy, American Dad, Robot Chicken, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and other such beauties on Cartoon Network. It all started in 2001 on a Sunday night after 10 PM with a disclaimer on the screen which originally showed senior citizens in a pool with an audio of a lifeguard yelling on a megaphone, "All Kids Out of The Pool!" It was FANTASTIC!! Well, maybe not for everyone...but for those of us who are the classic "never-gonna-grow-up-Toys-R-Us-kids" it was freakin' fantastic. And now, almost 7 years later, it's on every night with several shows to fulfill the cartoon need in all of us. Sure, most of the shows are absolutely out-of-this-world outrageous and admittedly pretty stupid, but don't knock it until you try it. Put the kiddies to bed and tune in. Hey...the Simpsons haven't been on for almost 20 years for nothing, ya know.