Vent: on... vent: off

After reading Heather's latest post about her work, I have to post about people myself and something I despise.

This past Friday I went to Pueblo with some friends for a Go lesson with a 3 dan amateur (I lost one game to him by 6 stones and won a game by 33 stones). Anyways, during the evening his children did not play Go with us (understandable) but were not allowed to watch TV (also understandable as there were guests).

So the boy, I think 12-14 years old, after he's told that he can't play a videogame, go on the internet, or watch TV says (out loud to even the guests) " There's nothing to do. I need something to entertain me. ". He said it twice in 5 seconds.

I was aghast.

(vent)

I have rarely been bored in my entire life. I have been bored of something I'm doing, but never so bored I was unable to find something to do because I was bored-bored. Hell, one of my mom's favorite stories to tell people is when I was little and I would get in trouble... she would take things away from me to punish me. But she eventually had to put me in a corner with no objects within reach JUST so I would not give myself something to do... and even then I would daydream and entertain myself that way.

BOOKS! DRAW! PAINT! Look at your little sister! She's learning cooking with her mom! Hell, when I wasn't playing Go *I* was helping cook with her mom! I had a blast! We made home-made pizzas! It was wonderful.

Karma has it's own way of coming around to you, though. The talkative one of the group, Steve, told the boy that since he didn't have anything to do that he should think of things to do. An hour later he was still lecturing the young man. Karma to karma, eh? Afterwards, the boy was quiet and played a game of chess with one of our masters and was polite.

Now, I don't want to tell people how to raise their kids. Kids are kids, each one is different and no kid is perfect. BUT! When I was his age, I was making music mixes on cassette tapes for myself and friends, I was drawing, I was reading, I was learning to work with wood, I was inventing, I was reading and organizing comics, I was playing with action figures WELL until I was 17 (I'm an uber-geek and I admit it proudly)... I NEVER complained that I had nothing to do. GAH!!! I didn't even OWN a Nintendo until I bought one myself in 1989 when I graduated from High School! GAH! I say... GAH!

(/vent)