Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Just a Game

Some important parts of life are like video games.

You know the rules, you've seen how others have played the game, but you can't really know what it's all about until you play the game yourself. The longer you play it, the more familiar you become with the rules. You find yourself engrossed in it, involved in it, spending lots of time doing it, learning new techniques, leveling up, just having tons of fun.

But at some point the game starts to become more difficult. You somehow sense that things aren't going too well, so you use your knowledge and adapt your technique to try to survive and win. Still, it happens. The enemies overwhelm you or you've run out of time or the strategy you used backfired or your timing was all wrong or the decision you made wasn't the right one. Sometimes you just don't know what the hell happened: one minute all was going well, the next minute you're left staring at the screen--either hurling expletives at it or frozen in stupefied shock.


You've run out of lives or you failed to save your game at some point. There's no way to regain all that you've achieved thus far. It's really over. And for a moment, nothing else in the world seems to matter.

21 comments:

Kiyotoe said...

Hopefully all is better in your world than is suggested in this post.

And if not, the bright side is, just like in every video game, even if you've lost, you always get another chance.

Unless it's one of those games that costs like $1.00 to play, because i only play those once and............

sorry.

Lizza said...

You're the sweetest dragon I know. Actually, you're the only dragon I know.

I'm okay, lol. I was just playing this game and my mind just did its strange thing again. :-)

Schmoop said...

I have always been disturbed by the sibling rivalry of Mario and Luigi. They have issues. Cheers.

Odat said...

"This too will pass"...
Peace

H said...

Damn. that sounds like life.

But I guess we wouldn't have it any other way, would we?

Love how you've built it up. the sense of involvement... it's palpable.

Merritt Fields said...

Umm, I have the feeling we're not really talking about video games here.

Like the dragon said, if we're sticking to video game references, you have a chance to do it over again...and you usually get better with practice (or you can learn the codes and skip the hard parts!)

Foofa said...

I am all about learning the codes, or at least reading the walkthrough pre level. Too bad there isn't a walkthrough for life. I think I could have gotten more points.

Lizza said...

Matt-man: You had to mention Mario--now I can't get the Mario tune out of my head. Aarrrgghh!

Odat: All things--good and bad--will pass.

H: Thanks, my lovely soul sistah. Yep, it wouldn't be life at all if there were no ups and downs.

Aisby: Yep, it could also be an analogy for a hobby, a relationship, a job, etc. I really should limit my caffeine, haha!

Cheat at video games??? Oh, yeah. I do that all the time.

Natalie: Even though there's no walkthrough for life, we can still use other aids: family, friends, conscience, humor.

I usually try to finish a game honestly, but when I get stumped at some part I'm too impatient to figure it out on my own. So, walkthrough or cheat codes to the rescue. :-)

Schmoop said...

A thousand pardons Lizza...

Lizza said...

It's gone now, Matt. Phew! :-)

houseband00 said...

I heart Need For Speed Most Wanted.

If that reflects anything about me, it might be the fact that I drive like a grandma in real life. =)

Lizza said...

Hahaha, HB! You should remember though that some grandmas can give race car drivers a run for their money.

C said...

That's depressing... true, though.

Lizza said...

Yes, it's depressing. Well, that's the way life is sometimes. Gotta accept it and roll with the punches. Or play another game. Or press "restart" if you can. :-)

Anonymous said...

Life is just a game. Even love is just a game. You play by the rules to get the ball in your court. Play a little different, you suffer the consequences ...

But sometimes, we all do wish that things will go well, but not all the time things will go our way, noh?

Lizza said...

You got that right, kyels. Can't have everything. You're so wise. :-)

Anonymous said...

The game what we play
The rules are what we try to break all the time
The end of the game brings us to a new one
Or the end of it all
Hmmmm

Anonymous said...

The game what we play
The rules are what we try to break all the time
The end of the game brings us to a new one
Or the end of it all
Hmmmm

Lizza said...

ZI
Rebel?
Survivor?
Realist?
Hmmm

Dean aka Sgt Dub said...

But if I pass go, do I still collect $200?

Lizza said...

I hope so, Sgt. But maybe that depends on who's playing. :-)