A Diversion

How is it that it is now Wednesday? How is that even possible?  I got on a plane last Thursday, and came home on the red-eye on Saturday night, and climbed into my bed when I got home at about noon on Sunday, and now it's Wednesday.

Oh, I got up and went to work on Monday, and on Tuesday, but I was catching up from two days away and my assistant was out having surgery, so here it is Wednesday and I sort of have my head above water. A little.

Seattle was great. It was wonderful to be away, terrific to be there, lovely to be alone, awesome to be surrounded by bloggers - a complete mixed bag of bloggers, all there because we're Nintendo Brand Ambassadors. I got to spend time with Amie and Stimey and Ilina and Julie and Aimee and Kim and Cooper and Emily, and I met two food bloggers at dinner, Marisa and Jen. Jen took pictures of our delicious meal at Black Bottle, and I'm in some of those pictures. (And if you want to see me in action on the 3DS, I'm in a couple of the photos in Rachelle's post.)

We were in Seattle for a "summit" - basically a day of hanging around the Nintendo headquarters playing video games on the new Nintendo 3DS. 3D + DS = 3DS, get it? It's kind of amazing that you can have dogs jumping out of the screen without having to wear funny glasses. It has motion and gyro sensors, for games like the mesmerizing Steel Diver where you're manning a submarine periscope and shooting down boats. The "augmented reality" games are kind of wild - and actually make you get up and dance around the table as you aim at little moving targets.  I bought a copy of Nintendogs (+ kittens) because I knew the girl would love it, even though I think it's tediously boring. I didn't love all of the games, but I was oddly captivated by Street Fighter, because I was like an idiot savant at punching the lights out of bad guys. Steel Diver, though, I could play that on my swivel chair in the basement...

The device has hands-off features that work when you're just walking around - if you're carrying it, and it's in sleep mode, it counts your steps like a pedometer. It also "talks" to others of its kind - and exchanges miis. I collected a mess of miis in Seattle, even outside of the hotel we were all at, but I think no one in NYC has a 3DS because I haven't picked up any more. And yes, I'm carrying it around with me, for research, you know. Apparently, this irritated my kid yesterday when she got home from school and couldn't show it to her friend.

Now? Back to reality. Or something



Disclosure: Nintendo provided the airfare, accommodations, meals, a Nintendo World gift certificate, and a Nintendo 3DS. No one paid me to write about the trip or the DS, in fact, they didn't even ask.

Embarking

I'm sitting here in the airport, using the free wi-fi, backpack at my feet. The last whirlwind trip I took was the one with my sister, back in January. This time, I'm alone - flying out to Seattle for a Nintendo event with a mess of other bloggers. Two nights in a hotel - alone. A visit to Nintendo headquarters, with a chance to try out the new 3DS. Dinner out in Seattle And three visits with friends on Saturday before I fly home on the red-eye.

It's a chance to escape my life for a bit - no child to read to, no work to do, no laundry to sort.

I feel lucky today.

But I'll love getting off the plane on Sunday, to the big hugs from my little family.

All About Me

So, you know I'm a Nintendo Enthusiast, right? Sometimes they send me stuff - DS games, Wii games. They never tell us they're sending it, it just shows up, a magic box on the doorstep. And the games are rarely unaccompanied - there's always a little relevant something alongside, like the huge plush dolphin that came with the Endless Ocean game, or the teensy perfect top hat that accompanied the new Professor Layton and the Unwound Future. I'm so not a gusher, but the Brand About Town team is awesome. Their promo tie-ins are always creative, they're incredibly charming to work with, and they are very hands off - letting word of mouth work instead of trying to dictate the message.

Yesterday, I came home from work and found a new backpack filled with a pad, water bottle, Mario keychain, umbrella, pen - and a little note: welcome back to school from your friends at Nintendo. No game, but no matter - the girlie was beside herself with joy. "Oh mama, can I use my new backpack tomorrow?"

Later on, we went off to open house at her school and met the second grade teacher with the nine syllable name. Up on one of the walls in the room was a series of mugshots - each child's picture along with an "All About Me" essay.

I nearly plotzed when I saw what she'd written. Can you read it? If not, here's the text:

My name is Miranda. My mom writes Nintendo blogs and I get lots of Nintendo stuff. I love cats. And I like the Mets. At school, I like recess and snack. I like Art! I am unique. I have 3 scars.

Yup. Viral marketing. Give a DS game to the mom, and the kid tells everyone how wonderful Nintendo is. And she wrote that essay BEFORE the backpack showed up in the mail.

The only problem is, what do I do if the principal asks me about my blog?

Wardrobe Wednesday: New Popsicornian

Top to bottom:

• New pink fire hat from the pancake breakfast at the fire house. This is the first time they've had pink hats, alongside the standard issue red ones. Honestly, does anyone actually need a pink plastic hat? Oy.
• New onion goggles, so we don't cry when we're cutting up onions, thanks to Nintendo, who sent them along with an apron and a cutting board and a stockpot and an interactive DS version of America's Test Kitchen, with which we have not yet interacted.
• New lavender bike shorts from eBay, because wearing shorts under a skirt means no one can taunt "I see your underpants". Of course, wearing them on your head means that your underpants might still show.
• New hippie shirt from Target, because a girl can't have too many heart-shaped peace signs.

Oh, and when asked? She told me she was a Popsicornian.

Why Yes, I Am A Nerd

Did you know I was a nerd? I kind of am. I like word games, like Scrabble (in the flesh and on FaceBook) and Moxie (on my iPhone). I spent countless hours in college playing Boggle with my roommate, while we listened to Springsteen and drank Black Russians. I think logic puzzles – the kind that you need a grid (and a pencil eraser) to figure out – are fun. Back in the day, I got an 800 on the analytic section of the GRE. Most mornings, I do the Ken-Ken in the Times, though it makes me crazy that they print it across the fold.

I have a Nintendo DS, but the games I had for it never really grabbed my attention. I tried MillionHeir/Mystery Case Files – but it’s kind of tedious, and not terribly challenging (and the music is annoying). Rhythm Heaven is fun, but it’s more about timing, not logic. But what’s really gotten under my skin?

Professor Layton.

I haven’t played the first one (Curious Village), but I’m in the midst of the Diabolical Box and it’s enchanting. It has a meandering little story line with a lot of puzzles – some tricky, some simple, many varieties. The scenery and people are somewhat reminiscent of those in the Miyazaki films. Sometimes the story advances through little videos, sometimes it’s more interactive in that you have to "talk" to the characters you encounter. I like that you can play it with the sound off because all of the dialogue is also shown as sub-titles - but the spoken dialogue is pretty well acted, with a mess of British accents. The puzzles are clever, and there's a "memo" feature that lets you scribble on the screen to figure out sums or paths. I did, however, resort to modeling a cube out of folded paper to solve one of the brainteasers.

The only bad thing? It's keeping me from reading! Instead of climbing into bed with my current book, I'm playing a video game. My husband thinks I've lost my mind. In point of fact though, I may be exercising it to enhance plasticity and stave off forgetfulness. Good justification, right?

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Disclosure: The lovely ladies at Brand About Town sent me a copy of Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box; I didn't pay for it. They neither asked for a review, nor paid for one.

The requisite BlogHer post

Maggie Dammit describes it as akin to Alice in Wonderland, down the rabbit hole. I think it's kind of like a college reunion - lots of people with whom you have commonality, but don't see very often or even like very much. For a few days, real life paused and I found myself in some parallel universe.

I had a great time meeting and seeing people - wonderful warm generous lovely smart people - like Cecily and Mel and Aurelia and Annette and Amanda and VodkaMom and Marinka and Jean and Lori and and Becky and Becky and Catherine and Susan and Ree and IzzyMom and Grace and Emma and if you're not listed, it doesn't mean I don't love you. I met Lisa Stone when I didn't have any cards on me. I gave Kelcey a ride to the airport and never saw her again - her humor panel room was overflowing. I met Florinda for the first time and she was a perfect roommate.

I found the sessions I went to inspirational - I wanted to give Kelly a standing ovation when she finished talking about the "transformative power of blogging", the community keynote made us laugh and cry, and the mommyblogging panel on balance with Lisa Belkin wasn't nearly as annoying as I thought it would be.

I was delighted to meet the Johnson & Johnson people who sponsored me; they were lovely and seemed genuinely happy to have been able to support the random handful of bloggers who won their sweepstakes.

I was happy to wear another hat when I got to thank the representatives from Method and Sprout. Several months ago, they'd come through generously when I asked for product for a silent auction charity event I was working on.

I didn't win a netbook (which I don't need anyway) or a washer/dryer (which I do). And I didn't win new tires, but I did have my picture taken with the Michelin man (and anyway I need two new cars, not four new tires, thank you very much).

I was tickled to be invited to a private party given by Nintendo, a swank party complete with horse-drawn carriages and a spectacular view of Chicago from the 95th floor of the Hancock building. Nintendo's outreach reps are charming, and all of the guests got a DSi in the slickest gift box ever - it opens up to a vanity mirror, with lights and applause.

That gift box was one of the best things I brought home for the girlie, but she did like the Strawberry Shortcake dolls and the Schleich white tiger and the toy car and the clown nose and the coloring books and the chocolate lollipop. And my husband ate all of the chocolates that came from the Room 704 party (but he hasn't seen the vibrator yet).

I even left the hotel on Saturday morning, and - with Gwen - went to the Art Institute of Chicago and walked back along the lake.

And there's a lot of shite floating around about swag and marketing and PR, but eh. For me, the weekend was fun, and maybe I'll post some pictures tomorrow. After all, I've got some downtime tomorrow - I'm detoxing from BlogHer by having a colonscopy. Joy.

To Somebody's House Wii Go

Wow. Just wow. I spent the weekend mulling over the many posts and comments from people hoping for that Wii Fit that Nintendo is letting me give away.

The posts ranged from funny to poignant, and from witty to painful. There are lots of mamas out there hoping to lose baby weight - even with babes old enough to be walking and talking and going to school (though Heidi claims to have given birth to varmints, not children). Monkey's Momma and Marmite Breath can't ever set foot in their health-clubs again because of embarrassing treadmill incidents, and some are just too shy to ever go to a gym in the first place. Many people used to do (and love) yoga, but can't find the time to get out of the house to get to the yoga studio.  Rima signed up for Jazzercise, and then didn't go for a year - even though though they were billing her credit card every single month. 

Well Read Hostess nearly seduced me with a recipe that requires copious amounts of egg and butter.  Andi has flat out declared that she'll never be fat again.  Robbin needs a Wii Fit because she doesn't laugh as much as she once did, and her abs are suffering.

Melanie and PicaboDaddy both recounted their video game history, because after all, what's the Wii Fit but the latest in a long line of video games?

And the posts got personal!  Nicole included a photo, with personalized plea on a blackboard, and Cold Spaghetti enlisted her son to make a video.  Ree says she'll make out with me if she wins.

Rick started a blog just to enter the contest, because they need one to take with them when they move to Ethiopia next summer.  On the other hand, Jen declined to participate, because she can't imagine taking one to the jungle with her.

Furrow wants a Wii Fit, because she likes the idea of quantifying her exercise (her cellphone has a pedometer - go figure.)  Stimey wants to set a good example for her kids.  And Painted Maypole - bless her creative heart - rewrote a Shel Silverstein poem as her entry.

But the post that got to me, the one that moved me the most, was from She She.  I can't quite put a finger on it, but her beautifully written and naked tale of her weight struggles - alongside the advice she wants to pass along to her children - resonated with me in a way that demanded that She She be awarded the Wii Fit.  

Here's a little bit of what she said: 

A couple of weeks ago, a friend asked me what would be the one piece of advice I would give to my children if I knew it was the only advice they would take. Without hesitation, I said, “I would tell them to say ‘yes’. Some opportunities only come once. Say ‘yes’.”

There are so many things I didn’t say ‘yes’ to because of my weight. Hiking through the Puerto Rico rain forest, dancing with a Frenchman, having sex with the light on. 

I look back at my 20 and 30 year old selves, and I want to shake them by the shoulders and shout at them, “Say ‘yes’! You will only be here once! Stop using your weight to protect you from new experiences! Stop using it as an excuse not to participate in your life! Say ‘yes’!”

I know, unless disaster strikes me, that I will someday be a 52 year old, and hopefully a 62 and 72 year old. If I’m terrifically lucky, 82 and 92. I don’t want my future self admonishing my 42 year old self to say 'yes'. 

Some opportunities only come once.

I know my weight struggle will be a lifelong one. Genes, habits, and a big taste for cream sauce dictate this. Nothing will make it less so -- not acupuncture, not special tea, not denial. But I feel like I’m ready to take it on. Again. I think I’m ready to say yes to my very own life.

Thank you all for participating - I wish I had a prize for everyone.