Christmas is Saved!

Up until recently, our house has been referred to as "Little House on the Prairie" by our smart-aleck friends. No play station, no Wii, no gadgets except for a karaoke machine and a couple of high-end computers. Big whoop for the kids. Last New Year's Day, Jake and I struck a deal: If he read every night (or close to it) until his October birthday, we'd get him a play station for his birthday. Well, he held up his end of the deal and so did we. He used his birthday money to take it even further: he bought a PSP, a hand-held game system. I joke that we haven't seen him since October. People tell me the obsession will wear off in time. Not seeing any sign of that thus far...

Since we've crossed the threshold into the 21st century, I decided to go all the way and get them a Wii from my dad this Christmas. Except, being totally ignorant in the way of most things electronic that aren't computers, I waited until yesterday (Dec. 22) to look for one. Last week, I was at a Game Stop in Massachusetts and saw the store was loaded with Wii boxes, except Jake was with me and I hadn't yet discussed this big idea with Cliff Claven, who's even more of a dinosaur on this subject than I am—and that's saying something. I held off on buying it last week because I figured they were fat with them and there'd be plenty left when I went out to make the buy. I've since learned that the boxes in Game Stop are only for show. They don't necessarily mean they have them in stock! I also figured the Wii has been out for a couple of years and people are probably over it by now. I said as much to the guy at Best Buy yesterday. He just smirked and said, "Yeah, not so much. Not over it."

I came home and called my dad. "We're screwed," I said, bummed mostly because I was loving the idea of him being the Christmas morning hero. My kids adore him, and the gift would be huge coming from him. He and I agreed that they were old enough at 13 and 10 to cope with an IOU especially since they're getting plenty of other loot.

Then, today, a miracle! My cousin Trisha calls about something totally unrelated and mentions that she bought a Wii today! WHERE? I cry. She tells me where she bought hers and then mentions that she's at Game Stop—the same one I visited yesterday only to be told there wasn't one in the entire state of Rhode Island. Guess what? They had ONE. BUY IT! I screamed. Laughing, she asked me to stop screaming in her ear.

The THING is in my house. She's been paid. Christmas is saved.

Note to self: next year plan ahead. Second note to self: hope the kids don't read the blog. They don't read the blog. Do they?

Merry Christmas one and all. Thanks for all your support this year, for your kind words about Line of Scrimmage, and your excitement about the still unnamed second book. I'll be back after Christmas.