Game Night

I was feeling done with work around 5:30-6 last night. I needed to write, but the kids were antsy, and I didn’t think it would be productive. So I went across the family room. Kendall was watching some cartoon, Delaney on the iMac, absorbing YouTube directly to his brain.

I fired up the XBOX 360, and put in Rock Band. Grabbing a guitar, I proceeded to run through a few songs, stretching my skills on the game. I kind of felt like I should be on the real guitar, learning something, but this was a release. It was a time to have fun.

Kendall wandered over after a few songs and grabbed the mic to sing. The Tia came over to sing, and I eventually gave Delaney the guitar. We had a good time for awhile, getting everyone involved.

Then Kendall asked if we’d play Scene-It. We have the Disney version, and didn’t want to go through the whole game thing, but we put the DVD on and sat around, all of us trying to guess the answers. That was fun for another hour.

It was getting late, and Kendall went to get clean, and Delaney brought me poker chips. He’d asked me to play yesterday, and I’d played a game of Life, and one of chess, but I had to work. So finally around 9 we broke out some chips, and played some blackjack. Tia joined in briefly, but then it was just Delaney and I. I played the house, tried to give him some ideas on basic strategy, and let him play. He realized that he loses more than he wins, but by thinking a little and using basic strategy, he can play for awhile.

He still loses, which he doesn’t like, but he also starts to see it as entertainment. And that’s how I’ve framed it. It’s entertainment, like buying a lift ticket and spending the day doing something. You can sit there and play for awhile, but you’re going to pay for the privilege. It’s not likely you’ll win.

I don’t like gambling and it’s not for me, but I want to make sure if the kids show interest that they realize the dangers of it. They can have some fun, but don’t go in there expecting to win.