The Perfect Mii

I’ve been using Wii Fit for about 2 weeks now.  I’ve got the top scores in the house on the step aerobics and am looking for more challenges, so I just bought Wii Fit Plus.  I don’t know if the mii’s will be following me to the newer version, but I hope not.  

When I first met them, I was all set to like them.  They were unthreatening and sweet, or so it seemed.  The problems started with our first step class together.  They were all lined up and it was clear they’d done this together quite a bit.  I was told to join the other mii’s and protested that I, in fact, was not one of them--I was a human.  It quickly became obvious that I should just play along.  

Everything was all about them--follow the [other] mii’s, watch how the [other] mii’s do it.  I missed steps, the program stopped and told me what I was doing wrong.  They never did anything wrong.  They never missed a step, they never stopped smiling and moving in perfect rhythm.  I was reminded repeatedly that I wasn’t stepping in time to the music.  I was stepping too fast, too slow, missing steps.  At the end of each 3-minute session. I got a score card.  I didn’t get to see theirs, but I assumed it was A plus plus plus.

But then I noticed that the audience was responding to me, not the mii’s.  When I did better, the audience cheered me on.  No matter what the mii’s did, the audience was focused on me.  I was inspired.  It drove me on.  Quit or Try Again? Ha, Try Again!  

Yes, again and again until the mii’s were no longer my focus.  And the audience, well, yes, sure, they could watch and cheer, but my attention was glued to the steps, the feet, the arrows, the little flashes of “Perfect!” on the screen.  

But then, I realized the program was flawed.  As long as my feet hit the board, the Wii didn’t know if I was facing in the right direction.  Ha!  The mii’s couldn’t tell either, they just kept smiling and stepping.  And the audience, well, as long as I kept going, they kept cheering for me.  I stepped and stepped and stepped, driving harder and harder for the top scores.  Exhausted, legs aching, heart pounding, I hit “Try Again” until not only did I have the top score in the house, I had the top 5 in both step aerobics categories.

I sense the desperation in the [other] mii’s.  Theirs was a team victory, no one mii recognized for his or her spirt and individual accomplishment.  They have no choice, they will remain in basic and advanced step forever while I, well, I am moving on.  I’m going to the Locker Room now to set up Wii Fitness Plus.  I hope there are no mii’s in the Locker Room.  I still have a long way to go and they are so, well, perfect.

Simply Thankful For 24 Stress-Free Hours

Went to the Borgata Hotel and Casino last night with Marc.  We had a great time.  No traffic getting there.  Made it to the hotel with a pit stop to drop off Wil’ shoes (see previous post) in an hour and half.  Delightful desk clerks at check-in.  Beautiful room (comped, can’t beat that).  

Wonderful people and dealers at our roulette table, great dinner at Sea Blue.  Our waiter, David, was everything you want a waiter to be, nothing more, nothing less.  

Heading back to our room, decided to try more roulette.  Another fun table and great dealers.  I was amazed that they remembered my last bet, no matter what it was, so that they put the chips where I wanted them when I couldn’t easily reach.  

Back to the room, the temperature was perfect.  Didn’t sleep well, but that’s normal for me, unfortunately.  

Out at 11:00 a.m. this morning and would have been back home by 12:30, if not for the trip to Whole Foods for salad (with falafel, my favorite) and sandwiches for lunch.  Home for lunch, then down to the Mount Laurel Costco  to pick up some things for the dinner I’m cooking for my brother, sister, and their spouses tomorrow.  

Starbucks as a treat, then back home again.  It’s now 5:03 p.m. and Marc’s just getting to the NY Times.  I’m in my comfy chair with my new side table that holds all my writing stuff, cords, etc.  (I ordered the table from Levenger the other day and it got here by FedEx this afternoon.)

So this is a simple little post of thanks for all the simple things that went right in the last 24 hours:  an order arrived earlier than expected; the hotel, restaurant and casino last night were stress free; I went to my favorite Costco’s and everyone smiles there no matter how crowded it gets; and, oh yes, the kids’ cats are at the vet getting their nails clipped and their annual shots--so the house is cat free until we pick them up on Monday.  

Yes, the last 24 hours were very nice indeed.

Clueless, Shoeless and In Love

My son is in love.  For the first time.  He’s 15, almost 16.  His girlfriend is a real sweetheart--I really like her.  It took him months to ask her out.  She turned down other guys waiting for him to work up his nerve.  They’ve been dating for about 5 weeks.

Today I volunteered to take him to her house provided her parents were home.  They were.  He couldn’t remember her house number so we cruised the neighborhood until she texted the answer.  Building 9.  We got to the building and then he stood in front of it, laughing, because he couldn’t remember the apartment number.  Instead of texting back, she opened the door, giggling at him.  He giggled too.  I waved and was off to run some errands.

At 5:00, I showed, as agreed, to pick Wil up.  Her dad came to the door.  We exchanged “Hellos.”  Then he looked a little confused.  I said, “Well, I’m just here to pick up Wil.”  His cloudy expression became clear,  “They’re not here,” he said, “They went to the mall, my wife took them to the movies.”

“Oh,” I said (laughing in a way they will grow accustomed to the longer they know my son).  “He is supposed to be with his dad tonight.  I hope I can catch him by phone before he shuts it off for the movie.”  Her dad and I exchanged those “Oh to be young again” looks, we smiled, and I was off again, dialing as I jumped into my car.

Thankfully, Wil answered.

“WIl, it’s mom.” 

Dead air.

“Wil, I’m at your girlfriend’s house.  You’re not here.  Where are you honey?”

“I’m at the mall.”  

“Yes.  And where were you supposed to be at 5:00?”

“I’m sorry mom.  I forgot.”

“Well, I have to drop something at the FedEx box.  I called Dad and he said he will be to my house by 5:45.  I can come get you at the mall, I’ll call when I’m almost there.”

“Mom?”

“Yes?”

“I’m really really sorry.  I just...forgot.”

“Okay, see you in 45 minutes.”

I wish i could tell you that was the end of it.  But there’s more.  

In his rush to get out to his dad’s car, he ran out barefoot.

Two minutes later, I noticed his shoes by the door and called his cell.

“Wil, do you have spare shoes at Dad’s?”

“I knew I forgot something!  Dad, can we go back?  We can’t?  There’s no time?  [Laughing in the background.]  Well, I guess I’m staying in all weekend.  I’ll talk with you later Mom.  I’ll get my shoes when I’m back at your house on Monday.”

“Okay honey, it’s up to you guys.  That’s a long time to be stuck inside. You can come back or be shoeless.”

"Mom?"

“Yes Wil?”

“My glasses are at my girlfriend’s house.  I left them there when we went to the mall.”

“I love you Wil.  I love you so much.”

I hope his girlfriend keeps thinking he’s cute.  I know after 15 years, he’s grown on me.

The Wow of It All

Really amazed at how easy it is to load and start using Skype.  I remember when loading a program like Microsoft Word took hours, swapping one floppy disk after another and hoping that nothing went wrong.  

I had an existing Skype account but I’m working on a new computer (Mac Airbook).  From the time I accessed the Skype site to starting the conversation with my daughter took less than 10 minutes, including retrieving a forgotten password.  How cool is that?

I think sometimes it’s my generation that is the most adaptable when it comes to technology.  I’m “on the cusp” of the Gen Xers and the Boomers.  I’m definitely a young boomer (I’m 52) but being at the tail end of that generation, I have some of the characteristics of the Gen Xers too.  One thing about my generation is that we were young enough to be in the workforce as personal computers were beginning to take hold (I was in my early 20’s) but not so young as to have grown up with them.  So people younger than me tend to take technology more for granted than I do--I still think there’s a wow to it all. 

And while people a little older than me are often adaptive, many are a little intimidated by the technology and by digital information distribution, so they tend to be hesitant about thinks like texting, social media, etc.

Well, I promised myself I wouldn’t make this blog about my worklife, but I guess technology is just part of my DNA at this point.  But really, the fun part of tonight was getting to see my daughter as well as talk with her while she’s at her dorm at NYU.  It makes the transition from mom of a teen to mom to an adult just a little easier.

Do Over

Sometimes in life you want a do over.  Not because anything is wrong, but because you've learned so much you'd like to start "from here" instead of continuing "from there."  Today I bought a Mac Airbook because, the week after my 52nd birthday, I'm feeling like I'd like a do over.  

I want to spend more time writing creatively and so I'd like a clean delineation from the work I do for my company, Digital Brand Expressions and, to enforce this further, from the PC on which I do much of that work.  To go even further, I wanted something more powerful than the iPad I purchased last May, on which I thought I would do a lot of writing (with external keyboard in tow).  The keyword sans mouse approach didn't quite cut it.  This Airbook (256, 13") is very portable (so far, it's made it safely from the reading room to the family room with ease) and I feel like it is giving me the do over I was looking for, or, more precisely, the platform for it.