Gaming Mom

    Funny encounter the other day while shopping at the food store.  I was minding my own business, deciding at the last moment to change dinner from just baked ziti to throwing some chicken parm in the mix because the chicken was such a great deal and I over hear a conversation,

“I will be on tonight (pause) yea… uhmmm, no, no, late, when she goes to bed”

Thinking I had just stumbled upon some hot torrid steamy trist, my ears peaked and I moved down the meat isle to the ham steaks to get a better listen, yes I am nosey!

“Well, Ninjae will be there, and so will Blackjack”

Okay unless this was some weird fetish with hookers, this guy was either in some terrorists plot and was some kind of super op, or he was a gamer.

“We plan on attacking as a group (pause) uh-uh, well that’s why Its so late, if she knows I’m gaming there will be hell to pay”

Now of course I am more intrigued as from the back of him he looks to be older, well older then me, and I’m 40. He was wearing a business suit as well, and had a briefcase in his cart.

“Oh no doubt, that guy is going to deserve to get his shit raided. Ive had enough of his clan, this is to the death”

It was like caging an animal and then showing it food after a week and keeping it just out of reach of the food, almost wanting to spin him around and see whom this undercover gamer was, I was beside myself with hidden glee.  Slowly I moved around near the milk so I could see if I possibly new this man, slowly..slowly…

“Hi Mr. blahBlah!” I responded, it was the superintendent of schools. /dies

We went on with a bit of small chatter, and I commented how I saw he was on the phone and didn’t want to interrupt his call, he shook my hand and said it was nice running into me.  I turned to check out the bottle water, no I didn’t need any, but was trying to figure out what game he was playing. Curiosity had the better of me, even if it did kill the cat, I was pretty sure in one game or another I had been a cat and had a few lives left in me.

He walked past me and laughed loudly to his “clan mate” on his cell, “Well its a good thing I’m off tomorrow, will have to use the ‘I had insomnia excuse, again’”

I walked through the rest of the store, looking at people, the old lady with the walker, gamer? or mild mannered senior lady?  I’m serious, this guy was well into his 60s.  Was I shocked, okay I admit it, a little.  Maybe that’s because to me, It wouldn’t shock people to find out or realize I am a gamer, but I don’t hide it and am not ashamed of my gaming status, but along side my piercings and tattoos, when people know I game, they get a “oh, typical” kind of look on their face.  When you find out the superintendent of schools is a gamer and apparently a hardcore clan leading one, its… more then intriguing!

There is a stigma to the tag gamer.  People usually see some pre-teen up all night, empty bags of chips and soda cans littering the surrounding area, but rarely I’m sure do they imagine a man of 65ish, leading the cities schools, as a virtual war monging warlord.  Gamers to me are like the skaters of yesteryear.  When you were a kid, us 40 something, skateboarding was a crime, and to say you wanted to do it for a living, could get you kicked out of a family will and made to have your name changed, and now, its as close as an Olympic event.  Granted the gaming industry is huge, and the industry itself is a money maker.  To tag yourself as a gamer, leaves most adults with visions of kids with no life whom will amount to nothing.

I wonder now how many closet gamers there are, CEOs, head of banks, prim and proper business elite whom work a 9 to 5 job and come home, kiss the wife/husband and kids, take out the dog and when all are asleep, evolve into some kind of sub human beastie whom ravishes and pillages some virtual community.

Makes ya think