Strollerderby : Wii

Morning News - It's All Bill Clinton's Fault

Brett Singer — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 13:00:00 GMT

One current theme I've heard leaking out of the GOP Hive Mind lately is the idea that the Obama Administration needs to stop blaming the Bush Administration for, well, anything. For example: "I think people will be blaming George Bush until they die. We are almost halfway through the 1st year of Obama’s Presidency and they are still blaming the last administration for EVERYTHING. I think the blaming needs to stop and people need to start taking responsibility for their destinies."

Here's a little item from Business Week about the failures of the auto industry: "The Clinton Administration, as many before it, simply could not figure out how to force the Japanese to open their auto market, so in 1995 after a bout of highly publicized negotiations, it declared victory, even in the obvious face of failure. And the Clinton Administration was also unable to address the absence of a national health-care system. These two failures were huge, seen in retrospect."

So. Let's review. The Obama Administration and/or all Democrats need to stop blaming the Bush Administration because, you know, c'mon. It's been MONTHS since Obama took office. But blaming the Clinton Administration, which has been out of office for NINE YEARS, makes perfect sense. Yes, these articles are from two different sources. But the idea that nothing a former President did has any effect on our current situation is just silly. Thus endeth the opinion portion of Morning News.

Malls are in trouble, and therefore stocks in mall companies may not be a good buy right now, according to the Motley Fool (me, I know nothing about finance). To me, the problem with malls was always the excessive amount of useless stores. "I Can't Believe They Put A Clock In It!" That sort of thing. These are not stores that will survive in weak economic times. OK, that's opinion as well.

Funny item from Buzzfeed -- Ferris Bueller's best friend's house is up for sale. The house, located at 370 Beech Street in Highland Park, Illinois, can be yours for a mere $2,300,000. Four bedrooms, four baths, and the coolest garage ever to appear in a classic 1980's film. ("When Cameron was in Egypt land... Let my Cameron go...")

Dopey iPhone app of the day -- ShakeIt, which attempts to simulate the shaking that people used to do with Polaroids. As a commenter on Wired puts it: "That seems silly. Got any apps to add pops and hisses to my MP3 files?"

And also from Wired, news of a new Wii accessory that will monitor your heart rate while you get your Wii on. The Wii Vitality Sensor attaches to your WiiMote and will do more than just tell you your BPMs, according to Nintendo. “It intends to have you see the information relating to the inner world of your body, achieve greater relaxation." Or it could tell my son that he's waaay too into the game he's playing and needs to take a little break.

Morning News - GOP Calls Sotomayor Racist

Do You Leave Your Kids Alone in the Car?

13 Year Old Alfie Definitely Not A Dad

Katie Roiphe Doesn't Like You Or Your Kids

Dad Charges Daughter With Grand Theft Auto

Lego Rock Band Video Game Announced

Brett Singer — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 03:00:00 GMT

People are excited by the news that a Lego Rock Band video game will hit stores soon.

PC World says that this new version of the popular pretend-to-be-a-rock-star game will likely be more "kid-friendly", which would fit nicely with previous versions of the Lego-whatever franchise.

The thing is, all of the Lego games haven't been hits. Lego Star Wars is a lot of fun and seems to be popular with every kid gamer I know. It's also the only game I know of where kids are likely to have more than one version of the same title, such as Nintendo Wii and also DS. Lego Batman is OK, but as far as I know it wasn't nearly as popular as Lego Star Wars. And Lego Indiana Jones didn't really catch on.

Lego Rock Band has a chance to be fun, but details are currently slim. PC World's Matt Peckham asks some reasonable questions: "How's the DS version going to work? Do you mean DS as in DS-original-only? Or DS-equals-original-DS-plus-new-DSi? How's the LEGO version supposed to be any more family friendly? Isn't the original already?" The latter I don't know if I agree with. Rock Band isn't exactly Halo, but it can be intimidating for a young game player.

Still, if Twitter is actually the bellweather that many technopundits believe it is, lots of folks will be buying the game as soon as it comes out. Lots of tweet-a-rific Lego Rock Band chatter today.

Source: PC World

Husband Loses Job, Wife Loses Respect For Him

Will Ferrell's Landlord Retires From Comedy

Fox News Hates Kids In Political Videos Except When They Don't

Keep This Kid Away From The Dog

Morning News - Spring Break Broken?

Peeper Madness - Control Your Wii With Peeps

Brett Singer — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 23:00:00 GMT

In a very real way I don't want to think about how this is possible.

Do Peeps contain some substance that acts as a conductor for Bluetooth, the wireless technology in the Wii-motes? If so, could you use a Peep as a cellphone headset? Could a Peep replace your wireless mouse? And if you eat too many, could some nefarious ne'er do well control you? The mind boggles. Or perhaps I've just eaten too many Peeps.

Source: Gizmodo via Buzzfeed

More Peeper Madness

Peeper Madness – Nude Peeps

Peeper Madness - Peeps On The Pole

Peeper Madness - Supeep Court

Guitar Hero Camp

Brett Singer — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:00:00 GMT

Ah, summer camp. Log cabins. Bug juice. Video games.

Exsqueeze me?

Power Chord Academy, a company that runs mini-music camps for aspiring rockers, has added summer sessions featuring the popular game where kids pretend to play instruments. Why anyone thinks this is a good thing to have their kids do during the summer is beyond me. To be fair, the sessions are short, as in two or three days. That only adds to the head-scratcher quality of the enterprise for me, however.

Many have hailed Guitar Hero and Rock Band as fantastic gateways for kids to start learning how to play a musical instrument. I am not one of those people. I play guitar, and I've played Guitar Hero. It's different. I actually had some difficulty at first learning to "play" my "guitar" the way the game wanted me to rather than the way I would play an actual guitar. Why? Because it's different.

I do think that the game exposes kids to music that they would otherwise probably dismiss as "lame" or "for old people." Guitar Hero 3 includes music by Mountain, Social Distortion, Heart -- guitar rock. Even a song like "Sabotage" by The Beastie Boys, which shows up in Rock Band, is retro to these kids today. (These kids today. With their hippity-hop music, and that Justin Timberwolf...)

There's nothing wrong with the game. I've played it, it's kind of fun, and I'm sure if I was 10 I would enjoy it more than I do at...the age that I am. But sending kids to camp to play a video game? No way.

Image: Amazon

Woman Charged With Driving While Breastfeeding And Talking On Cellphone

Woman Trades Two Kids For Bird

OctoMom Loathes Being Pregnant

What Octo-Mom Is Spending The Money On

JeanneSager — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 01:24:00 GMT

Want to know what Nadya Suleman is doing with the donations she may or may not be getting since giving birth to octuplets?

At least $250-some was apparently spent on a Nintendo Wii this week; Suleman was spotted buying a video game system for her kids, eyeing an additional controller worth $40.

The question is - do you really care?

If you were drawn in by Suleman's Website requesting donations this week and sent her a chunk of change, do you think you have the right to weigh in on how she spends your money? After all, they're donations. Once the check is written, it's out of your hands. You knew she could buy a game system for her kids just as easily as she could buy a few boxes of diapers.

On the other hand, the chief reason Nadya Suleman has drawn significant criticism since the story of her eight babies and an additional six children living at home is because she's been accepting public assistance - including food stamps and disability payments for at least three of her kids. She's not just someone spending private donations from a multitude of good-hearted suckers.

Food stamps have some limitations, as does WIC, but just like donations, there's no limit put on what someone can buy once they get their disability checks. Which is precisely why there are so many problems with the system - because for every person who makes use of the system because of a real need, there are the Nadya Sulemans of the world who go out to buy a Wii when when they have fourteen mouths to feed and no job to pay for them.

My colleague Shannon says the vitriol toward this woman has to stop, and I agree there's no point in getting yourself worked up over someone you don't know - nor can we put all the blame for this situation on her. But I can't help getting angry on behalf of the taxpayers who have to pay for her fourteen children's medical care, their food, their diapers, while their own kids sit home without a Wii because Mom and Dad just can't afford it - and they made the hard choice of putting food on the table instead.

And charging my anger is the response - just before the Suleman story details began leaking - to the Georgia family who put the bulk of their belongings up on eBay rather than advertise for donations. The same family who tried again and again to deny the offer of a flat $20,000 donation from a kind-hearted Samaritan. Out of thirty-seven comments left on the post, more than half claimed the family had some ulterior motive. Even more criticized the family's actions leading up to their decision to sell off their belongings - denying that attempts to be financially responsible in the here and now could negate any financial irresponsibility in the past.

Why do people leap to such conclusions? Why do the families who are truly in need, honestly reaching out, get treated with such utter cruelty and suspicion? Because of the Nadya Sulemans of the world. Because of those who take and take and take some more, the honorable system of providing for our poor and our disabled is tainted by the dishonorable.

Only Child Syndrome Doesn't Explain Octo-Mom

Babble Podcast for January 12, 2009

Brett Singer — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 03:24:00 GMT

Here is the eighth Babble Podcast.

You can either listen right here

or download the MP3 file by clicking here.

On today's episode:

1. Quick news update:
- Barack Obama is a celebrity? How about Bristol Palin?
- Al Franken won – maybe.
- The Jets didn’t make the playoffs, which is worse than the Giants losing to the Eagles. Not much worse. But worse.
2. The Week in Blog
- A six-year-old driving to school alone, extra nipples, and Jett Travolta.
3. Comment of the Week
- Nobody ever claps for parents. Today, we fix that.
4. The Last Word
- The Wii Fit lets me work out in my living room, away from the freaks at the gym.

Notes on this podcast:

Songs parodied:
- The Knack, My Sharona

Songs mangled:
- Led Zeppelin, Immigrant Song

Posts mentioned:

Parents Wait a Decade to Report Missing Child

Six-Year-Old Drives Himself to School After Missing Bus

Mom-to-Be Has Two Vaginas, Two Uteruses

Tripp Palin's Name Explained

Extra Nipples, Anyone?

Yup, This is a Fairy Door

Sasha Obama Brought Something Ugly To School

Update: John Travolta Son's Death Details & Statements

John Travolta's Son Dies

Funeral For Jett Travolta In Ocala

Stuff You Never Thought You'd Say -- Winter Edition

UPDATE: Kid Kissing A Pig - The Musical

Should Homeschooling Parents Be Certified?

Mom Saves Kids From Sinking SUV

More News About Missing Child Adam Herrman

Past Podcasts:

Babble Podcast for December 15, 2008

Babble Podcast for December 8, 2008

Babble Podcast for November 24, 2008

Babble Podcast for November 17, 2008

Freaking and Shrieking: Christmas Morning Video

JeanneSager — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 22:32:00 GMT

There's nothing like those wide eyes on Christmas morn, the sweet smile spreading across that little face, the exclamation of "this is what I always wanted!"

Warning: this video of a Canadian kid getting a Wii on Christmas morning is nothing like that that. The boy's parents pull his present out of a bag, and apparently unwrap it (the lack of tearing noises made me wonder if this was staged until I realized they didn't bother really wrapping it - no wonder the kid freaks out!) and Dad does the excited "it's the Wii!" pronouncement.

The son, on the other hand? He looks shocked for a handfull of seconds before he starts shrieking. Not screaming excitedly. Shrieking - like some bad Meatloaf album title.

All of this is followed by maniacal laughter and a relative asking "are we on steroids buddy?" About the only thing that screamed normal kid about this video was the over-the-top grin on command at the end.

My daughter's three (and thus too young for a Wii), but if she acted like this, I think I'd be more tempted to send her to her room to blow off that steam than to keep filming. But then, we're still at the age where the mere fact that Santa came is enough.

YouTube's Child Stars

Confessions of a YouTube Addict

The 50 Funniest Kid Videos Ever

Babble Holiday Guide 2009

There's nothing like those wide eyes on Christmas morn, the sweet smile spreading across that little face, the exclamation of "this is what I always wanted!"

The son, on the other hand? He looks shocked for a handfull of seconds before he starts shrieking. Not screaming excitedly. Shrieking - like some bad Meatloaf album title.

YouTube's Child Stars

Is Barack Obama Anti-Video Games?

Brett Singer — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 23:00:00 GMT

Not everyone is overjoyed that Barack Obama was elected the 44th President of the United States last week. (Was it only last week?)

Of course there are people who voted for John McCain. They're not too thrilled. But some hardcore video game players are concerned that our new President-elect may not be so friendly to their favorite pastime.

From the New York Times:

"Blog posts scoring Mr. Obama’s positions on video games have received hundreds of comments, with some readers worrying that his admonitions during the campaign to 'put the video games away' signaled new regulations or restrictions on the industry."

Here's what our new prez said:

"We’re going to have to parent better, and turn off the television set, and put the video games away, and instill a sense of excellence in our children."

Whoa. If that isn't a call to arms, I don't know what is.

In reality, I would imagine that Barack Obama is more likely than any other President to be friendly to the gaming industry as a whole. First of all, his campaign made extensive use of the Internet and other technological tools, including advertising in video games. Plus there is ample evidence that he is at least a little bit geeky. For example, he collects comic books, and made a pretty nerdy Superman reference at the Alfred E. Smith charity dinner (video is below):

In reality, I don't think any politician really wants to "ban" video games. Titles like Grand Theft Auto and other violent or sexually explicit games make "a convenient scapegoat", as the Times quotes a commenter from 1up.com. Just because a guy doesn't spend 12 hours blasting zombies every day doesn't mean he wants to stop other people from doing it. Besides, I think he might have one or two (or a hundred) more important things to worry about come January. Somewhat like the earlier concern that he had stopped telling supporters that he loved them, I think we might be expecting a little bit too much from the guy.

Source: New York Times, Image: Newser

Babble Podcast for November 10, 2008

Video Gamers Find Obama in Xbox 360

Obama doesn't say I love you anymore

25 Things You Don't Know About Barack Obama

Barack Obama Asked If Bill Clinton Was The First Black President

The Obamas Are a Great First Family

Good Kids Like Video Games Too – Who Knew?

JeanneSager — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 15:58:00 GMT

I came to terms with it long ago – I am a Playstation widow. For some guys it’s basketball or the bar, but I never have to worry that my husband’s straying too far from home. I can find him, in a pinch, in front of our TV.

Thanks to the Associated Press, I’ve finally got my proof – he’s just a little kid in man’s clothing. A Pew Internet & American Life Project survey published this week showed almost every single one of the more than 1,100 kids followed is a video gamer.

And there’s not been a grand theft auto reported among them.

The study was focused on kids age 12 through 17, but reporters have been talking to parents with kids as young as 4 who are getting fit with Wii and rocking out with Guitar Hero. They’ve found what my husband has been trying to tell me since he lovingly placed his game console on its special place on our first entertainment stand – it’s not that bad.

The survey showed the loser playing video games in his basement has been replaced by the social gaming kid who jams to Aerosmith with his buddies and building online relationships through the modem on Madden. They’re even talking about putting video games in schools in the DC metro area to drive down obesity.

I’d rather have my husband on the couch than out at the bar – I’ll give you that. But is placing a controller in my child’s hands really making her a more well-rounded kid?

Image: Rebecca Pollard

Teen Drops Out of School to Play Guitar Hero

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 20:15:00 GMT

Many parents of gifted children allow their kids to take time off of school to pursue their artistic or athletic vocation. But what if that vocation is playing video games?

Meet Blake Peebles, a 16-year-old from Raleigh, North Carolina who is one of the best Guitar Hero players in the country—meaning, he has a rare talent for pressing buttons on a toy guitar hooked up to a TV screen. Last September, Blake’s parents finally gave in to his repeated requests to drop out of high school and focus on what he loves. Now, instead of attending high school, Blake studies with a private tutor—and puts in long hours with his Nintendo, PlayStation, and Xbox.

But this is not all fun and games. Blakes hopes to turn his gaming abilities into a lucrative career. Players signed by Major League Gaming (no, I'm not making this up) earn as much as $80,000 a year competing in tournaments.

So far, Blake has won around $1,000—but that money came in the form of gift certificates, gaming equipment, and Chick Fil-A combo meals. He hopes to start bringing in some actual cash after his father takes him to the U.S. regionals of the World Cyber Games.

Concerned family and friends have been quick to condemn the Peebles' decision. But Blake's parents have watched his work ethic and grades improve under a private tutor, and most importantly, they say that Blake is now happy. “I wasn’t really good at anything else that I liked,” he says. Still, the fact remains that being good at Guitar Hero means staying up till 4 a.m. staring at a TV screen.

Do you think the Peebles should have forced Blake to remain in school? Or were they right to trust their son to know what was best for him?

Photo: The News and Observer/Corey Lowenstein

5 reasons it's a good thing I had boys

Brett Singer — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 17:05:00 GMT

I was going to say, "I'm glad I have boys" but that didn't sound quite right. That is, I would love girl-children just as much as I love my guys. But there are a few ways that having boys has made my life – mine, specifically – a little bit easier.

1. No pink ponies: It doesn't seem like having a Y chromosome should automatically mean that one is interested in superheroes, videogames, and action figures inspired by superheroes and videogames. But experience says otherwise. While there are definitely girls who love trucks and boys who follow the Frasier and Niles Crane path – a love of opera, Broadway and snappy clothing – my guys are way into Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, Pokémon, Wii, Playstation 2, and so on. If I had to learn whatever there is to know about My Little Pony, I think my brain would crawl out of my ear.

2. Miley-free zone: Thus far Things 1 and 2 have shown zero interest in Billy Ray Cyrus' little ~~meal ticket~~ girl, which means I can continue to go through life knowing almost nothing about her. Maybe this will change when they get older, but hopefully by then Miley Ray Hannah Montana Stewart Cyrus will have either pulled a Britney Spears and had a meltdown, grown up and started singing jazz standards, or retired to spend her days sitting on a giant pile of cash gazing longingly at Nick Jonas. OK, I guess I sort of know something about her, but that's just from trying to keep up with pop culture. I have nothing against Miley or the Jonases, but not having to listen to their music or attend their concerts is something I will never, ever complain about.

3. No batting of eyelashes: My wife has pointed out many times that if we had had girls, odds are I would be putty in their hands. I wish I could say I disagree but I think she's probably right. Little girls are so cute, and seeing them cry is much more painful than seeing boys cry. I know that's stupid, sexist, and stupid (did I say that one already?). But I've seen, more than once, little girls who lead their dads around by the nose. It's probably best if we never find out whether or not I would join their ranks.

4. Less irrational over-protectiveness: Again, I am fully aware that this is unfair, stupid and sexist. But if I had girl-children, I would be very tempted not to let them leave the house until they were 30. I guess going to school would be OK, as long as they dressed like those Mormon sect people.

5. No High School Musical: When this monstrosity first started airing on the Disney Channel and the CD went to number one, I tried to watch it out of curiosity. I made it through about 15 minutes before I realized that it would probably be more fun to chew glass. The songs are lame, the characters are dull, the story is… Feh. Anyway, the boys seem immune to whatever charms that thing has, and for that, I am grateful.

image: Amazon.com

They say: Sarah Palin should step down

Sarah Silverman says: make granny vote for Obama

Palin should read Internet for Dummies

Stuff my 3 year old broke

More stuff my 3 year old broke

Dad arrested for leaving son at McDonald's

Red eye? Nope, eye cancer

Creepiest spam message ever: "we have hijacked your baby"

Lego Metallica

11 months old, 62 pounds

Babies R Us tells breastfeeding mother to get out

Volleyball hasn’t come a long way, baby

Shawn Johnson more mature than her coach

Shawn Johnson, Democrat? (UPDATE: Now with video)

RetroFitted: Can Space Invaders Stage a Comeback?

Jen Chaney — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 14:34:00 GMT

Before there was Super Mario or The Sims -- hell, before there was even Pac-Man -- there was Space Invaders, the 1978 video game that gave us all the ability to shoot freaky buggers from outer space while sitting in the comfort of our own living rooms. It was so popular, even the British fell in love with it (by the way, I love that Super Breakout is characterized as "educational" in this commercial):

Like all wonderful things from the '70s and '80s, Space Invaders is getting revamped for this millennium. Specifically, the game was re-released last month as Space Invaders Extreme. "Extreme" -- that makes it sound so daring, so high-octane, so Vans Warped Tour, doesn't it?

Turns out all that means is that the basic Invaders concept has gotten a little flashier: cooler lasers, room for multiple players, etc. So far, several reviewers -- including Clive Thompson at Wired -- have lavished high praise on the new version, which is available on the Nintendo DS and PSP. (Why not for the Wii? Why????)

The reason for the accolades: Space Invaders Extreme stays true to its original concept and doesn't try to get too elaborate. Here's my feeling about video games: For the most part, I should be able to understand the premise in a sentence. Pac-Man: You eat pellets and run away from monsters. Cool. Space Invaders: You shoot at aliens, who keep coming at you faster and faster, so you keep shooting. Excellent. I get that. It's games that go like this -- "Well, first you have to capture the golden orb, which gives you extra lifelines, at which point you advance to Level Supremus, then you try to capture the super-secret sword" -- that lose me. I don't have time for that. Just let me take 10 minutes after dinnertime and before bed to shoot a few extra-terrestrials and then I'll take the check, thanks.

Long story short, Space Invaders worked in 1978 because its premise was fun, compelling and classic. It will work in 2008 for those same reasons. Now, for the love of God, just make it for the Wii.

RetroFitted appears every Thursday on Strollerderby.

What Kind of Mom Are You?

Adrienne Martini — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 19:00:00 GMT

Even though the school year is over, there's still time for a quiz. No, it's not timed. No, you won't win anything other than a two-minute diversion from whatever it is you should be doing on a Friday afternoon. How can you resist?

Redbook magazine wants you to know what kind of mom you are. The possible results are intriguing -- I'm a Wii Mom, for what it's worth -- and are a far cry from the Redbook quizzes of old.

Not that I read Redbook.

Well, maybe a little in the checkout line.

They Say: Limit Kids Screen Time

Brett Singer — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 14:00:00 GMT

What's great about "advice" is that, in trying to be many things to many people, it often comes out sounding unintentionally dopey.

From About.com's singleparents site (I guess kids in two-parent families can watch as much TV as they want to?) comes these tidbits:

"The American Academy of Pediatrics has some pretty strict guidelines for children's television viewing." What are these "strict" guidelines? Limiting the TV viewing of children younger than 2 years old to two hours per day, and not putting a TV in your kids' bedrooms.

Do you think those are "some pretty stringent guidelines"? I admit that we let our son play his Nintendo DS in his room sometimes, but no TV in his room is not even an issue. I was allowed to get a TV in my room when I was old enough to pay for it myself (hello, Bar Mitzvah cash.)

Then we get to the advice on how to actually limit viewing hours.

- "Don't use the TV as background noise. Only have it on if someone is sitting down watching a specific program." Good advice in general, frankly.

- "If you have TiVo or a DVR, record a few of your child's favorite shows and allow him or her to view them at specific times during the week. Once they've been watched, delete them from the recording device." Clearly these people don't have children, or if they do, they don't have TiVo. In my experience, kids want to watch the same things over and over again. Not necessarily right away, but there are definitely repeat viewings of favorite shows. If we only watched everything once, why do so many folks buy DVDs?

- "Avoid using TV for winding down. Instead, read a book together or allow your child to listen to an audio book." Again, reasonable advice.

- "Provide a TV viewing chart for your children, and teach them to plan out the shows they'd like to watch during the week." This one seems weird to me. Isn't this sending a message that television is so important it needs to be scheduled as an important part of your week? Admittedly, we've been spoiled by having TiVo for the kids' entire lives, so planning is a non-issue (as are commercials.)

- "Finally, choose your child's television programs carefully, and take the time to preview shows together. Talk about what you like about certain shows, and what gives you caution about the shows you do not care for." I'll take this a step further and say that you can and should watch shows with the little ones, especially once they get old enough to understand what the hell they are watching. For example, there's an episode of "The Brady Bunch" where Mike tells Carol, "If I caught one of my sons playing with a doll house, I'd send him to a psychiatrist." My mother was right there to point out the sexism of that line.

How important is the TV in your house? Any "strategies" for reducing screen time, or do you just shut the damn thing off?

image: Pegmurphy.com

Strollerderby Playdate: Thriving With Five

Kids Open Lemonade Stand to Pay for Cat Surgery (see what happens when you turn off the TV?)

Father's day idea--newly released Flip Video Mino

Mom Convicted for Leaving Toddler Alone for Weekend

Christina Aguilera’s Parenting Tips

Remember Violet and Jennifer?

High heels for newborns

Wii Sports No Substitute For The Real Thing

Amy S.F. Lutz — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 20:35:00 GMT

How many times have your heard Wii owners brag about how sweaty and exerted their kids get wielding their virtual racquets, bats and clubs? Well, if you're one of the skeptical ones, congratulations. Active Healthy Kids Canada recently released their 2008 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth, and one of their recommendations was that kids stay away from "exercise" that's focused on video games, such as the Wii.

I can hear the indignant howls of all those Wii owners now. Well, don't worry - you have an advocate in writer Marni Soupcoff, who argues, "What's wrong with working out with your Wii? . . . Let kids get active in the ways that suit them best and that feel most natural."

What's "natural" about pretending to play sports, or spending hours waving your arms in front of a TV? I'll admit that I've never played a Wii, but I do play a lot of real tennis, and my tennis friends report that the movements required to rack up high Wii scores are nothing like real forehands and backhands.

But that's not my real objection to the Wii. Soupcoff goes on to write, "The worst thing we can do for our children is teach them that exercising is a chore that must supersede the pleasurable activities they actually like." That's my objection - the assumption that playing real sports and running around outside is a "chore." All I can say is, it's not hard to make your kids think that playing outside is fun - dare I say, it's "natural" for most kids to love playgrounds. But parents do need to encourage this behavior by playing outside with their kids - by tossing baseballs, running laps, and shooting hoops.

I know that parental influence wanes as kids grow into teenagers, but that doesn't mean I don't have plenty of time to instill in my kids a life-long love of sports. My oldest daughters, age 5 and 7, think that running is the coolest thing because they see me do it all the time. So, for Mother's Day, my husband bought us all matching turquoise and white running outfits. Nothing is more fun - for me or for them - than putting on our coordinated togs and setting out on our 1-mile jog with a cheer of, "We . . . are . . . the . . . RUNNERS!" And I've got to think that my kids will be more likely to adopt a healthy, active lifestyle as adults than they would if they grew up believing that you can get everything you need in life out of a video console.

Free Wii ... For a Price, That Is

Mike Adamick (Cry It Out!) — Mon, 19 May 2008 12:24:00 GMT

Want a super cool gift or just want to play some awesome games when the kids go to bed (sharing is overrated)? Well, SD alum Stefania (Citymama) Pomponi-Butler is giving away a free Nintendo Wii game system ... with a catch, of course.

All you have to do is spill the beans on your most embarrassing exercise story, just like Stefania did with her Jazzercize routines. (Ouch.) Check out the details here and then enter away -- you don't even need your own blog. Just a healthy dose of self esteem. (Three Kid Circus has the same contest, so if you want another chance to win, go here.)

Apologies for pimping out the Wii like some character out of Hustle and Flow, but I was so excited to hear about the Wii when it first came out because I thought, "Finally! If kids are going to play video games all day, at least here's a way to get them off their fat asses!" Having played the bowling game and the tennis game, I now know it's not that involved -- but still, gotta be better than nothing.

Game Designer to Teachers: Don't Knock It Til You Try It

Brett Singer — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 14:00:00 GMT

Clint Hocking is the Creative Director of Ubisoft Montreal, a video game developer and publisher. His credits include Splinter Cell, a Tom Clancy-inspired adventure game. On his blog, he has a suggestion for the Canadian Teacher's Federation (CTF): before you tell someone not to play a game, why not play it yourself first?

Hocking was responding to the CTF issuing a press release "condemning" the game on the grounds that "the video game [Bully] is mean-spirited in that it trivializes and glorifies bullying in school." According to the release, a total of eight "teacher organizations," including the U.S.-based National Education Association (NEA) have joined in their efforts to pressure retailers not to sell the game. An article in The Globe and Mail offers a fairly balanced discussion of the issues, something Hocking praises in his blog entry.

When it was first released in 2006 for the Playstation 2, Bully caused controversy (for the record, the company that makes the game also makes Grand Theft Auto, so they're used to defending themselves.) Bully just became available for the Wii and the XBox360, prompting this latest outcry. The stated goal of the coalition is to "condemn bullying and cyberbullying in all its forms," which is certainly admirable. But blaming the game? The Globe and Mail piece quotes McGill University professor Michael Hoechsmann as saying, "As tempting as it may seem, I'm not so certain that banning this will somehow result in a more peaceful and more loving school population." Asking retailers to boycott it does call attention to the bullying/cyberbullying problem, but one wonders if the teachers' efforts are a little misplaced.

Hocking actually invites the teachers to play Bully with him, since he hasn't played the game either. Maybe they should take him up on it. This review seems to say that at least some of the criticism is misguided - that the main character, Jimmy Hopkins, is the one who defends "weird chicks, nerds and underdogs" from the bullies, who are often "jocks." So it's a bit, shall we say, retro, but it certainly doesn't sound like the goal is to give wedgies and intimidate other students.

Some school districts, like the one in Charlotte that Mike wrote about, have introduced specific policies that address the problem of bullies, which seems more proactive than issuing press releases about video games.

As the parent of a budding young gamer, I do this weird thing when my kid wants a particular game - research. If possible, I play the game myself first. If I have any doubt about whether or not a game is appropriate, I play it with him so I can see what's going on there. So with all due respect to the teachers, I appreciate the efforts, but video games are really not the problem.

Full disclosure: I haven't played the game myself, and I don't know if the teachers have either. But whether they have or they haven't (my guess is no), Hocking makes a good point.

image: Amazon.com

Babyproofing Tip: Wind Those Cables

Brett Singer — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 14:35:00 GMT

Babyproofing is a hot topic on Babble at the moment, with some parents saying they ain't gonna 'proof no more, no more, they ain't gonna 'proof no more. To me, there's baby proofing and there's baby proofing. Which means what exactly?

As with all things, there's common sense and then there's insanity. This poll is overwhelmingly in favor of "hiding the bleach and covering the outlets," to which I will add "putting the steak knives in a drawer" and "not building a fire in the middle of the living room."

With that in mind, there are some things that qualify as babyproofing but are also just good things to do in your house. It's worth considering that you are not only protecting your wonderful children from themselves and all of your dangerous stuff. You are also protecting your wonderful stuff from your dangerous children. I'm not talking about cookbooks, which Thing 2 actually requests to have read to him, after he's done pawing at the pages. Or the salad spinner, another favorite Thing 2 toy, which, according to him, is used for making toast. I'm talking about my stereo. Laptops. iPods. The Wii. Sweet mother of Abraham Lincoln, don't break the Wii.

Basically, babyproofing was a lot easier before we all had more electronic devices than Radio Shack. All that expensive stuff you own is great fun--until your daughter decides that she absolutely must yank the speaker cable until something happens. You know, like the speaker falling to the floor and breaking.

To tidy up the abundance of wires in our happy home, I use Cable House Cord Organizers from a nifty little online retailer called Cyberguys (get the catalog, the kids will love it.) Until you can redo the house so that all the wires are inside the walls (is that a pig flying overhead?), these brightly colored rubber doohickeys will help you tame even the wildest home theater/home network/evil scientist lair. At $5.95 for four, they're a steal, so get a bunch. Hey, they’re a lot cheaper than new speakers.

See also: LifeHacker's Top 10 Ways to Get Cables Under Control

image: Vibrant.com

We Wii, Why? Wow! (Ow!)

Karen Murphy — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 13:04:00 GMT

It had to happen. Neck strains. Shoulder strains. The spoils of war and the repeated strains of "Just one more game!" In other words, a new class of medical calamity: Wii injurires.

Oh, not the kids. They could play for days and never feel a thing. It's we (wii) parents who are getting hurt, we (wii) parents who wield the Wiimotes of Doom and throw out our aging necks/backs/shoulders trying to play tennis/boxing/Rock Band (wrong system, I know, they all blend in though) and keep up with our younger/faster/more flexible kids.

If that doesn't make you feel old, what will?

Parents are being urged to "take it easy" and to "ease into things". Ha! I say, ha! After all, aren't we older/bigger/smarter than our kids? Shouldn't we be the Wise Wielders of the Wiimote?

I still kind of want one.

Just don't tell me I'm too old and to take it easy. I can always go out and crash my bike into something anyway.

Photo: sechiropractic.com.au

Boy Limbo Skates Under Cars. For Real.

Kelly Mills — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 14:31:00 GMT

It just wouldn't be Friday without at least one odd story, so I'm here to oblige. Six-year-old Aniket Chindak can skate under cars. Like, 57 cars in 45 seconds. That's a record. Apparently limbo skating is the "latest craze" for the kids in India--hey, have we banned the phrase "latest craze" yet? Anyhow, Aniket practices for four hours a day and is totally into it, according to his parents. He saw a girl do it on television a few years ago and decided to figure out how to do it. It took him three months to get the technique, but now he can clear spaces eight inches high.

Wanna see how he does it? Photos after the jump.

Yes, yikes. Look for the Wii version of car limbo to hit stores soon.

Beautify the Man Cave

Kelly Mills — Wed, 30 May 2007 19:04:00 GMT

Ah, remember when we used to call them "rumpus rooms"? Lots of people are revamping the garage to make it into usable space. This often means fixing it up with some gym equipment, a television, and some tasteful sports wall hangings as a surprise for the husbands- I guess that's the "man cave". Other people are turning that diamond in the rough into space the whole family can enjoy. Or just throwing up big-ass doors for the SUVs. After the kitchen and the bathroom, the garage is just ripe for a big remodel.

Now here's what I don't get: one garage-enhancement professional says 70 percent of his customers are women. Why so many man caves? But I'm ready to be the next customer, because I sooooo want my own man cave now. A big screen TV, a stocked mini-fridge, some weights, a pull up bar, a few Gabrielle Reece posters... I'd hibernate year round. Maybe I'm just a frat boy at heart, but if you want to ask me about it, you'll have to pull me out of my happy daydream of living in my man cave, surrounded by empties while I play my Wii and watch porn with my buddies.

Brain Wave-Reading Toys: The Future is Here

Karen Murphy — Wed, 02 May 2007 13:59:00 GMT

Futurists have long predicted that one day we'd be able to control objects with our thoughts, and apparently, that future is just about here. Toy makers are adapting biofeedback technology to make toys that are completely interactive, allowing users to control movements using just their thoughts. As exciting as this is, it's also a little creepy. Most distressing is the use of electrodes to create a connection with the brain. Is it me, or is this a little Frankensteinish?

The same technology can also be adapted to help people with anxiety disorders, and possibly also little-understood conditions like autism, ADD, and mood disorders. Can it help the morose mom, I wonder?

Back to the toys. Two companies, or perhaps more, are vying to break open the brain-wave market. Neurosky looks to roll out a simple toy later this year, and Emotiv plans a more elaborate system that can hook to your gaming console for a truly interactive game experience, which is an application that seems like a natural pairing (imagine what it would do with a Wii!).

What do you think? Flash in the pan or does this idea have staying power? Scary, or does this technology have promise?

[photo source: Emotiv.com]

Wii Whee at the Y: YMCA's Use Wii to Get Kids Moving

Karen Murphy — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 17:54:00 GMT

Wiiiiiiii! (I've been dying to say that.) Kids at YMCA's around the country have something special in store for them: Nintendo is donating W11 party packs to 100 YMCA's, with the thinking that they will "help bridge the gap between parents and their kids." Which I'm all for. In fact, even though I'm basically opposed to video games for all the reasons other people are (not enough activity, addictive, too much screen time and not enough book time, etc) I'm really really attracted to Wii. Why? The physical aspects of it. (I totally need to cream my eleven-year-old at Wii Sports to prove my prowess)

So YMCA? Sign me up.

Oh, and what I said about addictive? Never mind. I'm okay with that part.