The Twin and Me at 35

[kybearfuzz]

Big thanks and hugs to everyone who emailed, LJ-posted, IM'd, and called me to wish me a happy birthday. It means a lot to know you guys thought of me. You guys are great! I'll also throw out a big birthday hug to coachbear who shares my birthday too :)

Usually, I recount something about the twin and me on our birthday. I'm thankful he didn't call right after midnight last night like he usually does. To quote him, "well, if you only curse me out once a year, that's pretty good."

This year, I'll post about video games.


Vying for the Atari 2600
This is a rough toon I did today, it explains a lot though. I suck at video games. I always have. Joe the twin on the other hand is a pro at them, good at basically any game he plays, much like he is at sports. He has a hand-eye coordination I just don't have.

Set the wayback machine to the early 80's, in the Atari days (that's pre-Nintendo for you younger folks, post-Pong for the older ones). Our folks got us the Atari 2600 for Christmas, complete with Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, and Haunted House games. Mom set the rule that we not fight over the game and just take turns.

While this normally would be an excellent piece of parental advice, there was a fundamental flaw in this rule that quickly became evident. The twin quickly became very adept at video games and could play for HOURS on just one turn. I on the other hand never quite got the hang of it. So while we took turns as told, his turn would take forever, my turn would end in a matter of minutes. I complained to Mom that this turn-taking thing was very uneven, but she couldn't reverse time and undo it so I was stuck.

On those rare times when I got the machine to myself, I'd give it a bit of a longer try, but inevitably Joe would sense that the Atari was on and quickly appear to shout, "I'm NEXT!" He could be across the neighborhood or at the pool and still I could guarantee his presence within minutes of turning it on.

As a result, I gave up on video games as a whole as the wait just didn't seem worth the effort. As video games advanced, they just got more complicated to me. I love going to the arcades, but I have no real expectations regarding winning at them. My friends have tried to get me to play online RPG's, like "World of Warcraft" or "City of Heroes," but to be honest, I can't imagine I'd do well at them. Maybe I'll give them a go sometime just to see, but no promises.

The twin still plays games like Guitar Hero and whatever the current Madden version is out. Ironically, one of the few games on my computer, Bejeweled, tends to stump him for some reason, so I guess there is at least one game I can play better than him :)

Comments

[madkevinp.livejournal.com]

Sorry Im Late...

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

You're not late, you have several hours to go still :)

[pocochon.livejournal.com]

Happy Birthday!!!
I was hoping you will post something so I could reply with a wish!
LOL

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

LOL.. Sorry for the slow post, I usually do it earlier, but wasn't sure what to post about. And thanks :)

[writerbear81.livejournal.com]

Happy birthday :-)

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks handsome :)

[ui-tomcat.livejournal.com]

I suffer from your handicap but I still play em, I pretty ADD, so I don't have the patience to do them too long. But I still have fun. I do better at the strategy based games and the role playing games.

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

That's better than me. I love to play games, but just never really got into them.

[martini-tim.livejournal.com]

Happy birthday, Mark. I'm sorry to hear about your video game experience. You should try one of the many classic retro video games out now. You could play all of the 2600 video games on an emulator on your PC and that would bring you up to speed with today's games.

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks Tim.

I wondered if you'd comment on this, considering video games are your bread and butter. What is this emulator you posted about? I'm intrigued now :)

[martini-tim.livejournal.com]

There are several emulators, but the one I played a lot was Stella. You can find it here (http://stella.sourceforge.net/).

I was surprised at how different some of the games were from how I remembered them. I used to love Miniature Golf and would play it for hours. I could barely play it for 10 minutes on Stella. It looked so blocky and was too simple. On the other hand, Space Invaders and Frogger are just as fun now as they were twenty years ago.

Well, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

[anziulewicz.livejournal.com]

I will have to mark your birthday down on my calendar. For some reason LJ did not notify me. If I had known today was your 35th, I would have sent you a nice card in the mail. I hope it was a good one, sweetheart.

Re: Well, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks handsome! I appreciate the sentiment :)

[sweetjimmyto.livejournal.com]

A very nice little piece of your past ... loved the cartoon, too!

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

LOL.. thanks. It's not my best work, but I do like putting the quick toon together. :)

[digibob.livejournal.com]

Happy (belated) birthday HOTTIE!

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks furry bear! Big hugs! :)

[bigreddee.livejournal.com]

Great story...

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Great story...

<b><big</i>Happy Birthday!

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks handsome! I hope you're doing well :)

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you like the toon. It's not my best work, my ink marker diffused too much on the paper for me...but it is what it is.

And I'm sure you're much better than you let on :)

[spatts5.livejournal.com]

Hope today finds you recooperating from a wonderful birthday celebration and may the rest of your birthday weekend be full of fun.

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks Paul, I appreciate it :)

[cincy-dave.livejournal.com]

Happy Birthday!!!! Sorry its late. I haven't been around my computer for a few days.


I understand your frustration on video games. Was never quite good at them myself. I don't have that hand eye coordination needed for fast pased games.

But I do love bowling on my Wii.
And I'm hopelessly devoted to all the games at Pogo.com.

(If anyone is up for a game of canasta at Pogo, let me know!)

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks, Dave! :)

I may give my nephew's Wii system a try when I go to my hometown again. I may buy one myself if things go well :)

[http://users.livejournal.com/_decibel_/]

OMG! I"m so sorry that I missed it!

happy birthday mark!

and I experienced Guitar Hero for the first time tonight. I am sick and tired of Heart's
"barracuda".

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks Derek! I hope things are going well for you! :)

And I love Barracuda.. but even the good ones get worn out...

[pudgybloke.livejournal.com]

Hey handsome, Happy Birthday!

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks cute bear! :)

[snowboardjoe.livejournal.com]

You might want to try some other games. It takes me a long time to really get hang of a new game. My brother and I had Atari and Nintendo games growing up, but not a huge collection. I actually had no such gaming devices in my home until just a few years ago when I broke down and got an old PS2. I love Gran Turismo 4 and I also have Dance Dance revolution that's a lot of fun (and a workout).

I've put it in my budget to get a PS3, but it will be some time before I get one (and then I'll have a blu-ray player too). So, try some different games. Could be you have not found the one that you really like playing. Time to hang out with some friends and try some different ones before you buy. :)

You? 35? Your picture makes you look like you're 30. ;)

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

I may give the different game machine a go when I visit my nephew again. He has just about everything you could want. I think I'd like Dance Dance Revolution.. provided no one is looking :D

LOL.. and yeah, 35... you make me feel good, handsome... thanks :)

[bookish-cub.livejournal.com]

Happy (belated) Birthday!

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Thanks handsome! I hope you're doing well and a Happy Belated Birthday to you too! :)

[bookish-cub.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[cubtharsis.livejournal.com]

Kept waiting for the text that you found your table...my keys were in hand and my camera in standby, but never got it...oh well hope your Birthday was great without the table.

Sorry to hear about your early video game trauma...my room is a virtual "relearning lab" for video games when your ready to give them a shot again...and I'll even step out of the room for DDR (which yes I do have).

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

LOL.. well, maybe the table thing will happen next year! The DDR will help. :)