Thursday, January 15, 2004

Pong

Chad, forget Sega...forget Nintendo...go old school Atari 2600. Everything started there, when $50 bought you the latest in cutting-edge 16 color graphics...when our only gripe is that games didn't look like their arcade counterparts (you had to splurge on the 5200 to get that quality)...when games were no more complex than a joystick and ONE button (except for the "Star Raiders" game which came with it's own special controller - or the "E.T." game - did ANYONE figure that game out?????). No keymapping (like PC's) needed...no multi-function controllers with dual thumb-sticks and ump-teen buttons. No "ESRB" ratings. Video gaming at its purest, almost "virgin" form. Space Invaders...Demon Attack...Kangaroo...Jungle Hunt...Pitfall...

Case in point: For Christmas, my parents got me one of those Atari joysticks they sell nowadays with 10 built-in games. Not only was it amazing to know all those games were packed in the joystick...not only did it have the look and feel of the best game controller ever made...but we spent more time playing rounds of Pong, Missile Comand, and Yar's Revenge this Christmas than we spent TOTAL playing games on the GameCube or Playstation 2 in the past 2 Christmases. Even Stacey - yes, the anti-gamer - spent a good hour or 2 playing Adventure...and actually demonstrated a good degree of skill in playing it. I've never wanted her so much... (hehehehehehe).

So, I guess there is no real debate. For the best, you have to get nostalgic.

Anyway, back to real life...

Band practice went long, but good last night. I set up my new keyboard stand at the church, and it is the bomb-diggy. Holds 2 keyboards with no wobble. It's pretty easy to break down and transport, too. It's all good... We had Eli and Amber on vocals, and a full stage of instruments. We also got to listen to a new woman sing who is interested in helping us out. If we can get her good monitoring and find the best way to mesh her "style" with ours, then that will be great.

Afterwards, we headed out to Ruby Tuesday's - Stacey, Kailyn, J-mo, and I. Oh, wait...Eli was there, too. I forgot about that...she said she'd be there before we got our food...she "meant" I'll be there after you've paid." So, maybe she really wasn't "there"...um...
(Eli, just pokin' fun at you...).

As I type right now, I can hear - through the baby monitor - Stacey brushing Kailyn's teeth with an electric toothbrush. Ewww. The whirr of an electric motor, a screaming baby...man, based on this "dentist visit" preview, I've just determined I'm never going with her... Stacey, it's all you...

KEY PHRASES: "Oh, I didn't know you didn't want people to know that...um...sorry." "We have the market cornered on 'redneck stage monitoring' installations." "Come on, E, smile..."

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