Life Past 30

In 1982, I received the greatest Christmas gift of all time, an Atari 2600.  At least that what is was to me.  Seeing the box as I ripped the wrapping paper off made my excitement grow each second until it had been completely revealed.  I held it up and exhaled so loudly, my parents laughed quiet audibly.  They were happy to see their 6 year old daughter so elated over her very first video game console.  I was nearly breathless because I could not believe it was mine.  I drove my parents crazy playing Pitfall, Pac-Man, Defender, and some other games every day after school and on the weekends.  It had gotten to a point where my mother made me take breaks because she felt I was becoming obsessed. 

 What fun it was, but then one day I stopped playing video games.  This happened when I was almost 12.  My interest in video games and Barbie dolls had waned to almost nothing as I set my sights on computers and electronics.  So, from the start of puberty until right after I had my daughter, I did not think about playing video games.  Sure, I had seen the newer game consoles in the mall and specialty stores, but like I said before, my interests had moved to more complex electronics.  Surprisingly, I came across a video game that instantly rekindled the love I’d had for them so many year before.  That was game was Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.  I can honestly say that I was hooked after only 10 minutes of game-play.  Soon, I found another favorite game, True Crime: Streets of L.A., which reminded me of when I lived in Los Angeles.  Before I knew it, I was hooked yet again on another game!  

Since then, I play both games and others, including the Final Fantasy series and the rest of the GTA games.  I am so glad that video games never became a thing of the past and greatly improved over the years.  There are times, however, when I find it difficult to stop playing a game.  Is that obsession?  We’ll see.