Yes I'm a Girl...Gamer.

The above commercial for Toyota Tacoma is one of my favorites!

As a gamer (one who plays videogames on a consistent basis) I had quite a few laughs watching Toyota use the game WOW (World of Warcraft) to tell their target audience how powerful their truck is. I am part of that target audience. Surprisingly of the 8,000,000 people that play worldwide, women make up a over 30% of the players. In college the ribbons, flowers and bows I loved to wear in my hair, along with my usual dancer style, inclined people to have the first impression that I would never play video games. That, however, is FAR from the truth. Do not let my dress, gentle nature and high voice fool you! I am an agressive, gaming, sports loving, amazon!

Not all the games I play, however, are violent. WOW, Call of Duty and the old-school James Bond are really the only bloody type I enjoy. Usually I'm playing SIMS, Rollercoaster Tycoon or Head Rush.

Studies show women game more then men, but often don't play multi-player games. Why do we so love to keep to ourselves? I pondered this in bed for a while last night. At first I thought perhaps our sex is not as competitive as the male sex, but then my all girls highschool education full of bloody noses in gym class and bruises during recess told me otherwise. Then I began to think women may play solo type games because they use games as a form of relaxation (while men turn to gaming as a competition of man verses the computer)! I began looking around Google for an answer this morning when I found this statistic:

"According to a study released in October 2008 by the Consumer Electronics Association, 65 percent of women ages 25 to 34 report playing video games, compared to just 35 percent of men. The report cites casual gaming as the reason why the numbers for women are so large."

To understand this statistic one must first understand what "casual" gaming is. Basically it refers to games that are entertaining, but simple (i.e you would not have to read a manual before playing). In my experience, casual games usually involve less strategy and cheat codes! Like Roller Coaster Tycoon. I can spend hours building an amusement park without even caring to meet the game objective (ex "aquire 100,000 guests in your park within the year").

Casual gaming or not, the 65% of women gaming is astronomical compared to the 35% of men. This statistic so surprised me that I had to come blog about it immediately! In today's society the feminine ideal is definately changing from the stereotypical "baking, cleaning, housewife." Now I need to go investigate other things I believed as conventional truth.

Now what is the statistic for women verses men who watch sports...?

WHY YES, I sang in the shower

why yes.

what a weird phrase.

It would make more sense if we just said "Yes"

... why "Why Yes"?

I would discuss this more, but I rather leave my audience to their thoughts. Imposing my feelings surrounding "why yes"-ness could sway readers to a realm they are not prepared for (aka a discussion of the English language and all its pecularities).

Keepers of the Cookies Unite!

In 1987 a bright young college kid at Middlebury, named Robert Fulghum, said
"Think what a better world it would be if we all, the whole world, had cookies and milk about three o'clock every afternoon and then lay down on our blankets for a nap.”

If this man was not 20 years my senior, I would most likely be his best friend. Not that a 23 year old young woman can't be best friends with a 40 year old man probably going through his mid-life crisis, but ...well I don't think I need to list the cons of such a relationship. Oh wait, my dance partner is 42 and we're close friends...we saw Cats together recently...HMm.

Moving on, or rather moving back...the topic is cookies with milk followed by a nap. Brilliance. Pure brilliance. After all, who decided in the first place that at the age of ten or so we no longer deserve a good cookie and nap? What evilness could imagine, and then proactively pursue, such a dim world?

Possible culprit: Models. But not all models avoid cookies! I know I tend to eat every sweet in sight. Another suspect: Workaholics. But this theory falls apart when considering that most workaholics would be too busy working to take time and put an end to cookies & naps. Most likely evil-doers: Santa or Cookie Monster. These two characters both know how great cookies and milk are. Also, due to their extremely free schedules, I'd bet a dollar that they both like to nap as well. Perhaps, in their extreme addictions, they sought to change the world. By ridding us of cookies and milk (followed by naps!) they would have more cookies for themselves. Greedy b@$$+@r#$!

Whoever changed the world from the blissful state of cookies and naps to 3pm traffic will not be held responsible. That's OK with me. What's important, however, is that a return to blissful normalcy be enacted as soon as possible.

By calling 1-NAP-AND-MILK you too can voice your concerns. Actually (like many things I say) I made up that number. Sometimes when I get bored with life I may up things. A psych once told me it's the writer inside of me. I usually follow my made-up stories by "not really" statements. This helps me believe my psych is right (instead of me simply feeling like a chronic liar).

Readers of this blog may be wondering, if everyone was napping at 3pm, won't some things fall apart? My answer is simply this: no. If everyone truly decides to nap, crime will cease...war will end...even world hunger will be solved with cookies, milk and naps! Only good could come of such a state.

But what of those who cannot nap? Those who lie there for hours straight, slowly losing the contentedness of their milk and cookies when sleep will not follow. Insomniacs will have the highest place in the nap hierarchy for they will be Protectors of the Dreamers. Guardians of the Night (or afternoon). Keepers of the Cookies. You get the idea ; )

And I'll have one snickerdoodle please.

Well, I really could contemplate this for hours...literally. Alas, the time for my own "nap" has come. It's 1am ... although I am a huge advocate for a nap at any hour of the day. Yes, I roll senior-citizen style and that's perfectly ok. Currently, I must walk away from this cookie/nap nonsense and, therefore, stop listening to background re-runs of Will & Grace, Friends or Sex & the City. Although Sarah Jessica Parker did just comment on cookies, so I will leave her cookie quote as a conclusion...

"A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand"

Fierce miss Parker...Fierce. ALMOST as fierce as Robert Fulghum.