I have the dubious distinction of belonging to a somewhat exclusive club that most would prefer not to join. It doesn't have a secret handshake or burdensome bylaws to which I must adhere. Members don't hold annual conventions in exotic places where we gather to discuss our common experiences. There is, however, an initiation ritual that we all had to endure. To join the Comeback Club you have to die, then return to tell about it. My initiation came in 1994 when I kicked off following a surgical procedure. It was an enlightening experience, though not in the ways you may have heard described on daytime television. I didn't have a great compulsion to go into the light. I didn't even see the light.  Dearly departed loved ones didn't appear to ease my journey and show me the way. I missed all of the fun and drama of the whole thing. When I awoke from a coma two weeks later I was told that I had died and been revived, but I have no memory of the event itself. I still claim it as an enlightening experience, though, because it's given me, to date, fourteen more years to grow older and wiser. Not a shabby gift, I assure you. That being the case, I feel that it's appropriate - nay, that it's compulsory! - to justify my use of the gift of time that I've been given.

Much of that time has been spent online. I no longer need to justify the hours spent blogging and networking and promoting my brand. Friends and family have finally come to accept that these are legitimate pursuits that contribute to my income. It's the "fooling around" time that they question. They don't understand why I spend so much time playing games. They consider some of my game playing to be "legitimate" use of my time because my game reviews draw a lot of traffic to skeet's stuff. I'm a beta tester for a game developer - no one thinks I commit too much time to that. When game time consumes large chunks of each day, though, they tell me I should turn off the computer and go out and live. They just don't understand that I'm learning how to live a better and wiser life as I'm popping bubbles and flipping virtual burgers. I'm honing my life-skills so that I may better use the time I've been given. I offer you a few examples of the profound insight I've gained:

If you stick to the shortest distance between two points, you might get there faster while missing the joy of the journey. Try the winding road sometimes. Don't be afraid to step off of the path to gather flowers and friendships and interesting souvenirs. Most of the good stuff isn't on the main drag anyway. Wander around. Make lots of connections!

If you want something badly enough, you'll find it eventually. If it's not obvious at first, keep looking. It might be right before your eyes, awaiting only a change of focus to bring it into view. Perseverance pays off.

The stuff around the edges is just that - stuff. If we blast our way through it and get to the heart of the matter, we'll be victorious!

Power is not necessarily an indicator of intelligence or moral superiority. It's okay to question authority

I have more pearls of wisdom I've garnered from playing games, but now it's your turn. You learned how to handle money by playing Monopoly. World dominion became clear once you mastered Risk. What have you learned lately? What zen-like enlightenment have you gained through games?If you can't think of anything right off the bat, go play! If someone says you're wasting time fooling around online, tell them I made you do it. Tell them you're helping skeet research life!

In order from top to bottom, the games are:

Flower Quest

Can You See What I See?

Fairy Town

Hot Dog Bush

Posted by skeet at 04:44 PM in Posties | Comments (6) | TrackBack (0)