Pet Peeves

Yeah, we all have them - including me. One of my biggest pet peeves is parents who expect television networks, filmmakers and game developers to take over the task of the parent.

Okay, some of you will slam me for that statement but I stand by it. I read an article recently where a woman was slamming a video game for it's content. She didn't want her child seeing what was in it and blamed the developer for producing content that was unacceptable.

One game came out a while back that had sex in it. Well, you got a chance to see a butt crack and the side of a breast IF you spent about 30 hours going through the game and building the relationship to the point the characters wanted to have sex. And it was some vanilla stuff - sort of a pseudo sex scene.

But boy did some parents bitch! They wanted the game developer to eliminate that content because they Did Not Want Their Child To See It!

Helloooooooo! First of all, 30 hours of killing versus 30 seconds of almost sex? Where's the balance here? And when did slicing people to ribbons, stealing cars and blowing the world all to hell become acceptable while sex is something horrid? "Now, listen little Tommy, watching people getting gutted, blowing off opponents heads and bombing cities is just fine - but for goodness sakes, stay away from sex because sex is baaaaaad!"

WTF?

But hey, if that's your opinion that's fine. Opinions are like elbows and assholes - everyone has one. It's good to have an opinion. But act like adults here. If you don't want your child to see something, don't make it available.

It's not like there's a squad out there, holding guns to parents' heads to FORCE them to buy the games for their kids?? I don't know about the rest of you, but when my children were growing up, if there was something I didn't want them to see or do I employed that magical technique and said "NO". Amazing how well it works.

So what's changed? Saying no is easy. For goodness sake - it's a one syllable word! And saying no doesn't scar a kid for life. In fact, it's rather good for them. Let's face it, in life we get told no a lot. We experience some disappointment and move on.

And hey, selfishly, I don't like people messing with game developers. There's some major talent at work here people. Have you watched an intro for a game like Gears or Modern Warfare or Left 4 Dead? There's some amazing animation and graphics there!

Not to mention a lot of fun gaming hours:)

Okay, rant over. One more cup of coffee and I'm going to kill some Zombie. Yes, kill. After all, they ARE Zombies and we don't want them infecting our world.

For those of you who haven't seen the trailer for Left 4 Dead 2, here's a peek. Now this is some quality animation!


Happy Sunday!

Sexy guys - you find them in the strangest places

Like in video games. Laugh all you want, but I swear I've found a couple of video characters that are BAD ASS!!


Like Marcus in Gears of War. Oh my goodness. Tall, dark and deadly - a tortured soul who's not quite reconciled with his past but who can seriously kick some ass. A man of few words with a steely gaze and a really big ...gun. Bring it on!!
And Francis in Left 4 Dead. Yes, Francis. Big, burly guy in jeans a vest and lots of inkwork. The man can handle himself when facing the Zombie Horde.



Sexy video characters. Who would've thought?

There's a whole new world out there in video-game land. And thanks to the guys i the family thinking I need to join the world of online play, I now have my own console. I plunk on my headset and get down to it. Sniping enemies (my fav), blasting zombies, running like hell when I run out of ammo:)

And checking out the characters to see who's the hottie:)

Hmmmm, me thinks it's time to play. A year from now, I'm going to be lethal:)

Yes, LETHAL. That's my story and I'm sticking with it. Watch out horde, here I come!!

Oh Francis.........

What the day brings

Yesterday morning, I stepped outside just before sunrise and was met with the most incredible site - a sky so beautiful it had me running back inside for my camera.

This was definitely the most lovely sky of the day. An hour later the clouds began to thicken and by the end of the day it had started to seem as if someone had used a cosmic version of Photoshop to desaturate the sky,


This morning, just before dawn, I stepped outside to be met by a different version of beauty. Silent and cold, the mist and fog had everything shrouded, making the trees appear ghostly.

And did I mention cold? Freakishly cold!!

But hey, it's still a good day. It's all in the attitude:)

I'm in the danger zone!

You know you've said it at least once (or a thousand times)... "when hell freezes over".

I used to say that a lot. Until I moved to Florida. Then I switched to "when it snows in Central Florida."

Well, damn. I'm in the danger zone here. I heard one weather report that said we may get snow flurries this weekend.

Hmmm, does that mean I now have to:

1. Eat sea urchin
2. Wear bright orange
3. Buy a pair of stilettos
4. Ride the space ride at Disney
5. Ride the mechanical bull backwards
6. Watch football
7. Wear a pair of capri pants (with those stilettos)
8. Drink beer
9. Go bungee jumping
10. Swim with the sharks

Maybe I'll switch back to "when hell freezes over".