Saturday, May 29, 2021

Wii Are Not Amused

Drummer Boy brought his old Wii to my place last week. 

So to speak.

This old Wii, as if you didn't know.

You guys, back in the day I really loved playing Wii. Precocious Daughter was around 10 when we got one and was always willing to strap on a controller and play a few tennis matches or a bowling tournament. It was almost more fun to watch her play with her friends, though. We had a big family room in those days with plenty of room to jump around like idiots, and they did.

I'm not sure what happened to the Wii. I assume it went with my ex when we sold the house, like almost everything else. Or maybe we sold it. In any event, I had been Wii-less for a number of years.

I was super-excited when Drummer Boy pulled out his Wii for me. So to speak.

Seriously, you guys, knock it off.

I got to make my little Mii! That was always my favorite part. I remember when The Godfather came out on XBox, I spent at least two hours creating my character, but I don't remember anything about the actual game. 

That game did have one of the most amazing
character-making thingies, though.

Anyway, all week I've been playing Wii games. It's been a major nostalgic rush, not to mention good exercise for my middle-aged bones. I can't jump around like an idiot, because these days I have downstairs neighbors, but all the flailing is good for my arm-wattles, at least.

So eventually in the course of my playing, I got around to Wii disc golf. And found myself on the horns of a dilemma.

They looked like this.

Some history:

Back in the 90s, my ex was super into disc golf. And I frequently played with him. We were good little GenXers that way. He was pretty good at the game. I was pretty terrible. And I was not OK with that. 

It's not that I was a particularly competitive person. I didn't mind losing. But I did mind not being good at it. I've always hated not being good at things. Like, temper-tantrum-throwing hated.

Not an actual photo of me, but sure as hell
could be.

For all the flaws in our relationship, I was always able to be exactly who I am with my ex. He knew that I was going to react to a bad throw or a missed putt with yelling, cursing, and pouting, and he accepted it. I would get it out of my system, and we would continue playing. And the next time I made a bad throw or missed an easy putt, I would yell, curse, and pout again. 

I'm not proud of being that person in my 20s. I'm pleased that I'm much more able to control my tantrums these days. But that angry, insecure woman-baby still lives in me. Oh, yes.

Now, sometimes, back in the day, Drummer Boy would play disc golf with my ex and me. If you don't know that portion of my personal history, here it is in a nutshell: Drummer Boy was my ex's friend first, then he was my friend, then he was my partner. And yeah, there's a little more to it than that, but we're not going there today.

"The past is never dead. It's not even past."
That Faulkner boy knew his stuff.

The point is, when Drummer Boy played disc golf with us, I was always on my best behavior. He scared the hell out of me in those days, did my Drummer Boy. Half the time I wouldn't even play when he was with us. I'd caddy, or just kibbitz. That was the best way to avoid losing my shit over bad play.

Fast forward a certain number of years. Drummer Boy knows and accepts my flaws. I have no idea why, but he does. But, as I've gotten older, I've realized that in a relationship, there is virtue in being your best self, even if your partner already knows your worst self. It's just nice, you know?

But here's the thing. This week, when I was playing Wii disc golf by myself, I reverted instantly to the old Mii, er, me. The one who cursed a blue streak after every bad throw. And there were a lot of bad throws. A. Lot. I'm no better at playing Wii disc golf than I was at real disc golf, and I'm certainly not a more gracious competitor. I made an effort to at least keep my voice down, but my neighbors probably think I'm a crazy person, if not a homicidal maniac. 

I Googled "shocked neighbors" to find an illustration.
This came up, and I'm going with it.

And now it's the weekend, and Drummer Boy is here, and part of me really wants to play Wii disc golf with him. But I know what's going to happen if I do. 

I don't really want to be that person in front of him. But I also don't really want to pretend to be someone I'm not. We're too far along in our relationship for such nonsense. And frankly, I'm not going to enjoy the game as much if I can't lose my shit over it.

As I said, a dilemma. And I don't know what to do about it.

What would you do, Drunkards?

1 comment:

  1. I would do nothing because I haven't the faintest idea what a Wii is or what disc golf is supposed to be.

    ReplyDelete

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