If those instruments were any good than everyone would want to play them. Kids know best how to ultimately live life. Nobody needs some control freak parent thinking that just because they have the experience of years that they have any right to exert any influence in the service of some silly ideal. French horn never got anyone laid. QED

I can't help it, but all the talk about taking up unpopular musical instruments keeps conjuring images of this guy in my head ... ;P

in semi related note:

to oldies here with kids.

how did you reconcile the time between gaming (and other hobbies I guess) and having your own npc. especially a young one?

we recently had a 'pregnancy scare' which sortof made me think about how a kid will impact my gaming (it was easier to handle first than consider all other more serious impacts)

Until people make you live your life to arbitrary rules and tighten their grip more and more. You can pretend to ignore it, but it don`t ignore you and the more you do, the more powerfel it gets.

Then you won`t be having any fun at all.

Just reading this thread I realised that I added a year to my age (I'm 42).

Must be getting old :P

Seriously I could not care less, age is a number, do what you enjoy doing! I could not exist without any hobbies, whether its gaming, collecting or learning/improving a new skill or interest...

If you are burned out from gaming, its not a problem and natural - I know people who have no hobbies/interests at all. I would really start to worry if I ever found myself in the same position.

A lack of gaming appetite is pretty insignificant worry to be honest.

What did you get? I figure you'd have to trade in a lot of kids for an Nvidia RTX GPU.

Yeah, that was a disappointment. After meeting the paternal parent from which the kids were given their genetic heritage (me), best offer I got was a used mousepad.

Next time, I let my wife handle all the negotiations.

Bummer. Was it a really cool looking mousepad? I should still have a slightly beaten up Carmageddon mousepad somewhere. Don't really want to trade it in for any children tho'.

It was one of those foam-and-cloth deals, from CompUSA. Only two or three cigarette burn marks, though it looks like the other type of mouse chewed along one edge.

my pad is the Death Star,

Well...it's the Death Star II, right before Lando blew it to hell, killing all of those innocent independent contractors.

I watch and read news every day, year in, year out. I see everytime the ugly side of humanity, how some people make others life a hell.
And yet i still play games. RPG's, MMORPG's, actiongames, adventure, sport, simulation, strategy and even shooters.
When i play games i don't think about what was said in the news. I play them for the fun, to relax a bit. When i play Mount & Blade Warband and i cut a head off from an enemy in the battle i don't associate it with war or so. Same with Saints Row 2 or 3 or with Crusader Kings II. I just think then about another victory or that a mission is completed. You know, sometimes when i have a bad day i just start Saints Row: The Third, grab the saints crusader and just start shooting on every gangmember and police.

Oh and as for the whole age thing; i'm 37 years young at the moment, still playing games and don't plan to quit it.
Same as with visiting edm events.

Ah, I was reminded of a particularly idiotic image I saw recently.

Because if Halo 3 and Portal are 'ancient', then I must be from the Cambrian Explosion.

And Pong is from the Hadean, obviously.

Jared Leto is an amazing actor, but his performance in that movie was embarrassing.

27 is old I must be ancient then .....