When Father Doesn’t Know Best
All luck run out (Photo credit: nyoin)
I am beginning to hate Words With Friends. It is because two of my friends have kicked my writer ass up, down and around the block.
It irks me not just because I am competitive but because I have a larger vocabulary than most people do. I never run out of words but apparently I run out of good combinations.
It sucks to be beaten constantly and it is only made worse because there have been multiple times where I lost right at the end of the game.
I HATE that.
Never Give Up, Never Surrender
Forgive me for using a slogan from a forgettable film, but it is apropos for this discussion. I have a grip that would make a gorilla jealous and a will to win that doesn’t let me just walk away from things. When it gets tough, I get going, but not in the opposite direction.
Yet, I keep losing and it makes me scream WTF because I haven’t figured out what I am doing wrong. It is clear that I am, but I am determined to figure it out.
There are bigger problems and more important issues than this, but sometimes it is the little ticky tack ones that make you crazy.
Self Hosted Blogs versus Free
Bill has a post running today that reminded me of the advantages of a self hosted blog and why I made the change.
Free blogs are great but if the powers that be decide you have violated their Terms of Service they can yank your blog and you will lose everything.
You might not know this, but I have a bunch of free blogs that I still use. They all need to be backed up.
Each of those is important to me for different reasons and I would be irked if I lost them. So I have taken steps to back them up. Better to be proactive about it.
Children and Hard Questions
My son asked me about the Boy Scouts today and why they got into trouble. It is not easy telling a kid that some people are sick enough to hurt children. It is not easy to try and talk about these things in a way that impresses how serious it is but doesn’t scare them silly.
It might have been easier but last week was our conversation about 9-11. My little mister wants to know why people will fly planes into buildings and if I ever am nervous about flying.
He wants to know what I would do if someone threatened the family. I do my best to reassure him and remind him these things are quite rare, but he presses me on the issue.
I make a point to look him in the eyes and I tell him not to worry because I will do what is necessary. He doesn’t say much other than he feels better. I am still superman for a bit longer.
When Father Doesn’t Know Best
Last week my daughter had some sort of misunderstanding with several of her friends. They are eight years-old so I thought I would have some time before some of the drama hit but I was wrong.
The dark haired beauty shared a ten minute story with me about why she and her friends were upset. She told me about how some of them cried and how she wasn’t sure if they could be friends again.
I listened to her tale and asked if she thought it was a misunderstanding. She blew up and told me that I can’t understand because I am a boy.
So I hugged her and told her I loved her. She said thank you and then told me that I still didn’t understand.
Did I mention that my girl already has mastered the female look of death. One day some boy is going to wither and shrink under that glare, but not me. I may not understand but I am still dad.
Something tells m that this won’t be the last time I don’t understand, but I am ok with that. My daughter is smart, strong and has a good head on her shoulders.
But I would be remiss if I didn’t share that I have never seen anything like this with my son and his friends. Maybe it is because I understand boys. 😉
And that my friends is my entry for Just Write #53.
BigLittleWolf September 18, 2012 at 2:50 pm
I’m sure my FB “friends” all think I’m unsociable or unfriendly, but I don’t play or use any of the assorted games / apps that they do – including Words With Friends. Sadly, that’s one I might enjoy, but the bottom line is the bottom line – making a buck, and by the time that day ends, there’s not much time for anything else. (Shite.)
As to boys, girls, moms, dads, and the comprehending of the “other” gender, as a woman who has raised boys, I will say I loved it, but it grew increasingly “foreign” as they got older, though even the differences were (to me) intriguing.
Lots of fodder for open discussion, even if we haven’t lived the same things our children have / are, and Mom – or Dad – can’t possibly know best.
Jack September 18, 2012 at 10:20 pm
Hi BLW,
If I didn’t have to live on the computer for work purposes I might not play any of these games. However I do and I have found that is a relatively enjoyable way to decompress and since the games aren’t held from start to finish in one sitting the time constraints aren’t quite so prohibitive.
I expect there are always going to be some “foreign” concepts that come through and or up when parenting children of the opposite sex. I definitely find it easier to follow my son’s train of thought than my daughter.
That is not to say that I never understand her because more often than not I do. But there are moments where I scratch my head and wonder.
Bill Dorman September 18, 2012 at 11:22 am
You have more than one blog? Say it ain’t so………..
Thanks for the mention; I have looked into self-hosted before, but might take a closer look this time. Got to spend some good time w/ @AdamToporek and @Dino_Dogan last night and this was one of the things we discussed.
The trials and tribulations of childhood; interesting times indeed.
Jack September 18, 2012 at 10:15 pm
Hi Bill,
It doesn’t have to be an expensive venture to be self hosted. Certainly easy for me to tell you how to spend your money, but it does provide a certain amount of control that is otherwise lacking.
Kristen September 18, 2012 at 10:30 am
I am terrible at Words with Friends. No matter how long I think about a move, I never seem to be able to make any word more impressive than “wax” or “qi.” Let’s just pretend that there is some inverse relationship between verbal brilliance and WWF ability…
And, Jack, Galaxyquest is *not* a forgettable movie! Why would it play on endless repeat on TBS if it were?! 😉
Jack September 18, 2012 at 10:11 pm
Hi Kristen,
I think you are right. I was gobsmacked the first 1 million times I played and lost. It made no sense to me. I have a vocabulary that is larger than most and yet I was soundly defeated time and time again.
Eventually I figured out a few tricks and have made significant progress but not as much as I would like It is embarrassing.
Galaxy Quest was enjoyable the first few times and then it just lost its sparkle. I like a movie like The Princess Bride where it is inconceivable that a day would come in which I wouldn’t want to watch it.