Electronics, shmectronics, they don't scare me.

I parent, therefore I worry.

As a parent I often find myself worrying. Sometimes the worry is justified (it's 2 AM, where is my daughter?), other times it is not (it's noon, did I put the clothes in the dryer?). And then, there are those times I think it is justified and, in fact, it isn't.

There was a time when I would panic (momentarily on the inside) every time my son picked up his Nintendo DS. I feared he would become socially inept, wondered if the violence would create a mass murderer, freaked out when he would ask for a new game, and quivered a little when I would ask him to turn it off and he would say, "I can't right now. I have to finish this level."

Being a teen during the "Video killed the radio star" era, I know how scary technology can be. It looms over us, threatening to change everything we hold sacred (like songs on the radio???). It's almost as if it creeps up and then pounces when we least expect it. Or is it?

Video games have been around for a long time. Sure, they've come a long way since we mastered eye-hand coordination with Pong but they're still just video games. And even when they are as intriguing as Pokemon Platinum Edition or as silly as Kirby, they can't suck my child away into oblivion forever. Yes, he most definitely goes through phases where it appears he can't live without his Nintendo in hand. Fortunately, those phases are brief. After a day or two of living vicariously through that little box, he is guaranteed to put it down somewhere unusual (under the chair in the dining room, perhaps) and completely forget about it. In fact, he recently gave up looking for his Nintendo before every car trip and now makes sure he has a sketch pad and pencil with him.

Like everything else in the world of an 8 year old boy, it's only the most important thing in the world while it is actually happening. After that, who knows? Better yet, who cares? He enjoys his Nintendo when it's important for him to enjoy it and he reads a book or draws some pictures when that is important. Electronics, you don't scare me any more. My son has taught me to take you in stride because some days you keep him happy during a long car ride and other days you wait patiently to be found on my dining room floor.