And for something more amusing, if not exactly kindly...

I occasionally pop in to The Daily Bite to read Tina's blog.

well, on one of her older entries (had been a while since I checked the blog out), she talked about a trip to Chuck E. Cheese.

she called it "Chuck E. Birthcontrol."

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

that's the funniest thing I've read in a while.

And yeah, I've been to one. Once. I was a pre-teen. My (younger) brother had been doing the beg-plead-promise-to-do-extra-chores-promise-to-get-all-Outstandings-in-school-hold-his-breath-till-he-turned-blue thing wanting to go to one. I loathed the place, even at 11 or so. It was so loud. And there were so many flashing lights. And so many children running around. I felt not unlike what Rain Man would feel in your typical crowded mall.

And one of the things the younger Youth Group members have requested is, "can we do an outing to Chuck E. Cheese?" (there is one now in Sherman). I find myself saying "Oh, but wouldn't you rather [naming anything and everything else I can think of] instead?"

I will NEVER willingly go to a Chuck E. Cheese again. If I get dragged to one, I will probably melt down in the middle of the restaurant, curling myself into a fetal position, eyes tight shut, hands over ears, saying "the noise....the flashing lights...the skreeching...make it stop, make it stop."

I wonder if they ever have to carry people out on stretchers from that place? My main memory of it was "grand mal seizure waiting to happen"