Mind If I Watch?

Darcy asked me a question tonight that made me think about something I observed and spent some time thinking about recently. She said, "Why do boys love video games more than girls do?" I have no statistics to confirm the veracity of that statement, but it certainly feels true. I have never been a big fan of video games (except for the Wii--I love me some Wii!) and Tyler will be QUICK to tell you that I don't let him play nearly as often or as much as HE would like to. I've even gone so far in my mind as to think that Tyler is "addicted" to video games because he loves them, he talks about them a lot, they bring him great pleasure, etc.

But if he is addicted, then most kids his age are overdue for a stint in a rehab clinic! Everywhere we go, it seems, kids have those little . . . oh brother, I don't even know what the newest model is called. Nintendo DS? Is that a little hand-held thing? I don't know, but I see them EVERYWHERE. Seriously, everywhere. Tyler has never once asked me for one so I give him a lot of credit for that; but I'm sure deep down he would love one so he could play "on the go" just like all his friends.

That really wasn't my point, though. To return to Darcy's question, I don't know the answer but I agree that boys just seem to be drawn to video games like moths to a flame. The other day I went for my annual "Well Woman" check-up (I'm sure I needn't say more but I have to say, it cracked me up when the undoubtedly old-fashioned nurse who took my medical history referred to my exam by that name) and as I sat in the waiting room, I watched a mother come in with her son, a boy of about five. He had one of those thingies (let's just call it a Nintendo DS for the sake of convenience) with him and he ran over to a couch and propped himself out full-length on it, just like if he were at home, I'm sure. He was oblivious to everyone and everything around him, as most boys seem to be when they're fighting the bad guys and saving humanity.

Not five minutes later another mother and son walked in the waiting room. The mother went straight to the reception desk and the boy just sort of meandered aimlessly across the room. And then--it was amazing--he spied the Nintendo DS. Suddenly his gait slowed to a crawl as he came even with the boy on the couch, and then, as though he had second thoughts, he inched forward a few steps . . . only now his feet were moving forward while his head was turned backward, still watching the boy with the Nintendo DS. Then, the forward momentum was gone. He backed up several steps until he was even with the couch so that he was essentially watching the action over the other boy's shoulder. Neither ever acknowledged the other. Not a word. But they stayed there in companionable silence, completely absorbed in their artificial world and bound by that common bond that most (all?) boys seem to share.