Life
KEEPING UP WITH THE POKEMON GO CRAZE: YAY OR NAY?
August 13, 2016Alas, the game that's making the whole world go nuts finally launched in Malaysia last week! Sorry to say but I'm one of those parents who are on board the hype train. I was curious and how could I miss out on something so huge?! I downloaded it on my mobile phone the first thing that morning to see what that sudden craze was all about! Wait, what? Who said SAHM can't play or keep up with the latest games? *Smack*
First off, let me give you an idea of what I used to be, though this has been some time back. I used to be quite a gamer; MMOs, RPGs, puzzles, arcades etc. I had a guild, we did raids every week and even had meetings to discuss strategies. Yeah, yeah, call me a nerd or whatever, but I can assure you I certainly do not look like one. So if you think that female gamers are fat and ugly, kindly erase that thought immediately :P <In fact, some of my guild members (other than my real life friends) were a little shocked to see how I looked like the first time they saw me. Haha!> Did my parents object? They actually said that I could play, under these conditions: 1) Do not put my health/safety in jeopardy, 2) Never mess up my studies, and 3) Respect family time and know when's the right time to stop. I kept my promise, continued playing, got a scholarship overseas, did my postgrad and graduated, so they had no problem with it at all :D Though I don't have the time for all these anymore, I still do love playing games. They are fun, they can help to relax/de-stress and stimulate the brains and reflexes. After all, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
Don't get sucked up in the process.
As we all know, there's no final end for this game. So is there a need to rush through it? No. Just take it slow, play when you can and enjoy the process. Make this into an excuse to spend more time and have fun with kids or family. I'm not really an outdoorsy/nature kind of person - definitely not a park-goer. There are 101 reasons behind this... Let's see... the weather is tooo hot I'm gonna melt, the sun is too bright and my skin will turn dark (Typical Asian, I guess :P), too many mosquitos/bugs and I'm gonna get bitten etc etc. Lol! I would rather exercise in a studio/gym/home than to jog outdoor. I can't stand getting into the car being all sweaty/sticky/stinky and drive home without a place to change/shower first. But last Sunday evening, hubby and I took our LO to a nearby park... <You've got it right!> to hunt some Pokemons! It turned out a good family activity, I would say - Sweat a lil, let LO ran around for a bit, tried out some of the free exercise equipment, had a few good laughs and, of course, caught some Pokemons and tried a gym battle. I've heard some friends doing this: Daddy drives, kids keep a lookout and Mommy catches them. So, go out together, have fun and hunt as a team while enjoying some mild exercise aka walking.
Objective: Family time.
Benefit: Improve relationship between you and your kids/family and physical health!
Platform for conversations.
Find yourself struggling to start a conversation topic with your kid/family at times? Why not use this game to strike up a conversation and have a few good laughs? Sometimes at the end of the day, my hubby and I would just sit together and tell each other what new Pokemons we caught, how a low CP Pokemon managed to break free so many times, how I wasted so many balls and yet it still ran off, how bad our aiming was and then laugh at each other on how good or bad our luck was in the game. Though my LO can't engage in this conversation with us yet, she'll sometimes laugh and say "Ball", "Catch", "Dog", "Oh oh", and "Yay!" Where did the 'dog' come from, you ask? From the cute Pokemon graphics, of course! Some of them do resemble animals, like my LO would call Ponyta a horse, Pidgeotto/Spearow a bird, Growlithe a dog, Squirtle a turtle etc. I think it's pretty cool to see that she can recognize some features in the animals and remember their names! So, I think the game can be a powerful tool for connecting and bonding with each other.
Objective: Communicating and bonding.
Benefit: Build a healthier husband-wife or parent-kid relationship.
Turn the game to your advantage, not an enemy.
This is important especially if you are having a rocky relationship with your kid. Instead of just saying, "NO! It's a waste of time and you are not allowed to play it at all!", set some rules/conditions and have a discussion with your kids. Let them feel they are involved in making decisions together too. I know this game can be quite addictive. It requires one to be constantly engaged with the game and not pay attention to their surrounding. Though the game does give warnings like, 'Do not trespass/enter dangerous areas', 'Remember to be alert at all times and stay aware of your surroundings' and 'It should not be played while driving' but one will tend to forget when too engrossed in the game. I know because I've tried the game, and by playing it together, we set an example of how games should be played - only at spare/leisure time, without compromising on safety. So, why not try/experience it yourself, set some boundaries and conditions to create a win-win situation for yourself and your child? I think I would have felt angry/rebelled too if my parents gave me a concrete NO with no room for discussion when I asked if I could play last time.
Objective: Diplomatic discussion.
Benefit: Improve parent-kid relationship and create more trust.
A peek into your child's world.
As I've mentioned before, time will not turn back or stop. They won't be kids forever. Their world is evolving at a lightning fast pace and before we know it, they might just turn into adults. It may be worthwhile to get to know this game because it's a peek into your kid's world. By cutting this out completely, you might send the message that you are not interested in what they like, or don't care what's going on in their world. Hence, you might miss the opportunity to participate and create some memories with them. So, why not try the game to get a feel of what your kids love about it?
Objective: Get involved, see what's in your child's world, try to understand what they love and why they love it.
Benefit: Improve parent-kid relationship and build memories.
What we use as tools to our advantage depends entirely on us. We can either take it as just another game, or use it to improve relationships (And perhaps physical health as well from all the walking). By thinking that children must absolutely stay away from games like this and giving an ultimate NO, I believe it'll only make them more curious, become rebellious or start hiding things from us. I do hope one day my LO will grow up and share things with me. I wouldn't want her to feel left out when all her friends are talking about it or for her to go behind my back and download it. At the end of the day, children will only remember/thank us for the happy times we've spent together.
Now when I'm a mom, people start asking me questions like these: Am I showing a bad example to my LO, or will I allow my LO to play too? Well, she's too young to know what exactly this game is all about now but in the future (If this Pokemon Go is still around... or perhaps some similar type of games...), I don't see why not. I've been hearing friends complaining that their children are constantly asking for permission to download the game and play it. I know there are moms out there who think that this Pokemon Go game is a big NO NO and their kids are strictly not allowed to touch it. My take is, set the right rules and keep your priorities well. You can play, as long as you do the important things first. If done correctly in the spare time, there will be plenty of opportunities to enjoy the game, even as a family.
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| Aim, shoot and catch them all! |
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| My trainer. Chose Team Instinct as the description suits me :D |
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| All the walking helps my eggs hatch. It's exciting to see what pops out and I can also use it to tell my LO this is how baby chickens/ducks/birds are born. |
Don't get sucked up in the process.
As we all know, there's no final end for this game. So is there a need to rush through it? No. Just take it slow, play when you can and enjoy the process. Make this into an excuse to spend more time and have fun with kids or family. I'm not really an outdoorsy/nature kind of person - definitely not a park-goer. There are 101 reasons behind this... Let's see... the weather is tooo hot I'm gonna melt, the sun is too bright and my skin will turn dark (Typical Asian, I guess :P), too many mosquitos/bugs and I'm gonna get bitten etc etc. Lol! I would rather exercise in a studio/gym/home than to jog outdoor. I can't stand getting into the car being all sweaty/sticky/stinky and drive home without a place to change/shower first. But last Sunday evening, hubby and I took our LO to a nearby park... <You've got it right!> to hunt some Pokemons! It turned out a good family activity, I would say - Sweat a lil, let LO ran around for a bit, tried out some of the free exercise equipment, had a few good laughs and, of course, caught some Pokemons and tried a gym battle. I've heard some friends doing this: Daddy drives, kids keep a lookout and Mommy catches them. So, go out together, have fun and hunt as a team while enjoying some mild exercise aka walking.
Objective: Family time.
Benefit: Improve relationship between you and your kids/family and physical health!
Platform for conversations.
Find yourself struggling to start a conversation topic with your kid/family at times? Why not use this game to strike up a conversation and have a few good laughs? Sometimes at the end of the day, my hubby and I would just sit together and tell each other what new Pokemons we caught, how a low CP Pokemon managed to break free so many times, how I wasted so many balls and yet it still ran off, how bad our aiming was and then laugh at each other on how good or bad our luck was in the game. Though my LO can't engage in this conversation with us yet, she'll sometimes laugh and say "Ball", "Catch", "Dog", "Oh oh", and "Yay!" Where did the 'dog' come from, you ask? From the cute Pokemon graphics, of course! Some of them do resemble animals, like my LO would call Ponyta a horse, Pidgeotto/Spearow a bird, Growlithe a dog, Squirtle a turtle etc. I think it's pretty cool to see that she can recognize some features in the animals and remember their names! So, I think the game can be a powerful tool for connecting and bonding with each other.
Objective: Communicating and bonding.
Benefit: Build a healthier husband-wife or parent-kid relationship.
Turn the game to your advantage, not an enemy.
This is important especially if you are having a rocky relationship with your kid. Instead of just saying, "NO! It's a waste of time and you are not allowed to play it at all!", set some rules/conditions and have a discussion with your kids. Let them feel they are involved in making decisions together too. I know this game can be quite addictive. It requires one to be constantly engaged with the game and not pay attention to their surrounding. Though the game does give warnings like, 'Do not trespass/enter dangerous areas', 'Remember to be alert at all times and stay aware of your surroundings' and 'It should not be played while driving' but one will tend to forget when too engrossed in the game. I know because I've tried the game, and by playing it together, we set an example of how games should be played - only at spare/leisure time, without compromising on safety. So, why not try/experience it yourself, set some boundaries and conditions to create a win-win situation for yourself and your child? I think I would have felt angry/rebelled too if my parents gave me a concrete NO with no room for discussion when I asked if I could play last time.
Objective: Diplomatic discussion.
Benefit: Improve parent-kid relationship and create more trust.
A peek into your child's world.
As I've mentioned before, time will not turn back or stop. They won't be kids forever. Their world is evolving at a lightning fast pace and before we know it, they might just turn into adults. It may be worthwhile to get to know this game because it's a peek into your kid's world. By cutting this out completely, you might send the message that you are not interested in what they like, or don't care what's going on in their world. Hence, you might miss the opportunity to participate and create some memories with them. So, why not try the game to get a feel of what your kids love about it?
Objective: Get involved, see what's in your child's world, try to understand what they love and why they love it.
Benefit: Improve parent-kid relationship and build memories.
What we use as tools to our advantage depends entirely on us. We can either take it as just another game, or use it to improve relationships (And perhaps physical health as well from all the walking). By thinking that children must absolutely stay away from games like this and giving an ultimate NO, I believe it'll only make them more curious, become rebellious or start hiding things from us. I do hope one day my LO will grow up and share things with me. I wouldn't want her to feel left out when all her friends are talking about it or for her to go behind my back and download it. At the end of the day, children will only remember/thank us for the happy times we've spent together.
Lastly, let's be open and try the game yourself first. Maybe after that you'll realize that it isn't so bad after all. Never try never know. If it doesn't help you in any way, at least you've tried and can confidently explain why you said no.
OR
You could try this (Got the idea from a friend):
Dig out all the soft/plush toys you have and hide them in every corner of your house. Hand a small ball to your kid, ask him/her to find the toys and throw the ball at them. Count how many they've got! Haha!
OR
If you reject this game completely but your partner wants to play it, tell him this:
OR
If you reject this game completely but your partner wants to play it, tell him this:
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| :P |
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