Tadadada!!!

We have a New Lawyer in town!!!!

Business Venture

I think the very first video games we had were the game and watch games. We had the octopus, and the fire, and later, Popeye, and Mickey Mouse. They were a huge load of fun to play but it totally brought out the whininess of people. The constant yelling of “it’s my turn!!” and “unfair!!!” and “MA!!!!!” probably made our parents wish they never bought the darned things.

People used to bring them to school and share them to each other. Most of the games were a bit expensive so sharing them was important…at least at first.

One day in fourth grade, the games became so in demand that some of the boys in our class decided to rent them out. Twenty-five centavos per game. Kawawa na lang those who didn’t play very well. They would quickly lose their allotted 3 lives and bye-bye money… the more experienced players just kept on playing and playing and playing.

The next day, our class turned into a virtual game center. Everyone who had games, any games mind you, not just the game and watches, were hawking their wares. Twenty- five centavos per game. There were the usual card games, the trump cards and such, of course, but there were miniature bowling games, pin ball machines, mastermind, other board games and even larger video games. There were tons of other stuff too. Recess and lunch made our class into a fully functioning carnival with all its frenzy.

Now, the boys in our class weren’t renting out these things to our class. Classmate groupings were determined when we entered nursery and they were set so that classmates kept on being your classmates throughout grade school.

People became much like family, and the boys were very protective of the girls especially in our class. A girl is insulted and the boys would proceed to beat up on the offender. They would put up blanket tents for us to change in privacy during PE class, and when cleaning, they did all the really dirty scrubbing and let us do the easier less dirty jobs. Very chivalrous I thought.

Actually, I only started thinking that soon after this carnival incident.

The people in our class could borrow the games free and clear…first priority too. It was the boys in the other classes that would come and pay for renting the games. Remember that the ones less experienced….them…played their game lickety split. The more experienced gamers…us…kept on playing (for free) but as time was of the essence
(Recess only 30 minutes, and lunch an hour) paying, then waiting was infuriating.

After a couple of days of this, the boys in one particular class began realizing that all their money were going to our class and they decided to start up their own “business.”

As game central was our classroom, they had a meeting and finally opened the door to their business the day after.

Suddenly the girls in our class had their hackles up. The other class opened up a twenty five centavo….

MASSAGE PARLOR

As in…. the powder or oil kind too…and they had their girl classmates doing it!!!

That recess hour started all the buzz, and chatter and outrage. We found out about it…some of our boys went in there for their massage and boy did we just boil up in anger.

By lunch, though the door to the other classroom was barred to us girls, we got some of their girls out and asked them “What the hell?”

I don’t really know where that business idea came from…maybe someone had heard talk about it, or had heard about it on TV.

Remember we were only about 9 at the time and all we knew about it was put powder under the shirt and do those karate chop moves on their back. Five minutes and that were about it.

Only, the idea of “selling” your girls for money totally pissed us all.

Ah ….my first experience with woman’s liberation.

By noon the next day, all businesses were closed and the games were shared exclusively to our own classmates and everything was back to normal.

Ha! And to think most people's idea of a first business is selling lemonade in a lemonade stand.