My birthday is this weekend. As it seems, so is Google’s. Today’s Google Doodle — the logo that you usually see on the main page when you’re trying to remember if it’s “affect” or “effect” — is a piñata game.
So I found it. Then kept playing it. And suddenly, I was in this massive black vortex of doom that is an addicting Internet game. Which is usually par for the course with Internet games like these, but this was different.
How is it any different? I hear you ask me.
It was a challenge, and I, for one, am always up to accept challenges. I stared the star piñata right in the face and kept smashing the space bar on my keyboard. I sat at my desk in The Campanil newsroom, whacking away for sugary confections I will never get a chance to consume.
On and on I went, not really paying attention to my surroundings. I continued to get as much candy as I possibly could. 150 to 150 to 161, I kept aiming for more. When I was so close to getting to my goal, I’d swing and miss — and flail my arms while yelling profanities at my screen. (My colleagues here stood in bewilderment — just what is she doing that is driving her mad?)
I went on. And on. It was the start of the addiction, not unlike my Free Cell addiction on my old PC. I mean, have you ever played those PC card games that came built-in to the system? That stuff had the potency of a spell. I spent many nights in high school trying to get the deck in order. Curse you, Free Cell, curse youuuuu, I used to say.
This time, I was determined to beat 175 (a random, arbitrary number I chose that was close to a high score I saw on Twitter). I was going to break that score if it was the last thing I do.
Then, I found a way. It’s going to be my secret ’til my grave and I will continue to taunt my friends over Twitter with my high score. They can’t get to 177, but I can. And I’ll continue to play it.
As I sat at my computer, still swinging away at the multi-colored piñata of doom and sunshine, I realized: there was no way my birthday would ever be as fun. I’m not having an actual piñata, nor do I have many people around the world trying to constantly break their high score. I am beside myself, staring at this iMac screen, punching the air because I couldn’t beat my old high score.
This will follow me until I turn a year older. And what have I done with my life so far?
I’m still trying to get pixelated candy for anthropomorphisized letters in the word “Google.”
