The Game of Assumptions

Today, I was playing the game of Life with a client. He loves this game. I'm always struck by the fact that, in this game, immediately after you choose a career, you hit a stop sign that says "Get Married". It's a requirement; you can't pass it without getting hitched. Soon after that, you hit a stop sign that says "Buy a House". This is also required of each and every player. These are the assumptions of the game of Life.

I have some news for the good people of Hasbro... my life does not mimic Life. I didn't run into any stop sign that forced me to get married. And I do not intend to purchase a house any time soon (unless, of course, those lottery people finally return my phone calls). And, as if it weren't enough that the people of Hasbro cannot fathom a Life in which marriage and owning a residence are optional activities, today, I managed to play the entire game without landing on any Baby Boy or Baby Girl spaces. I was barren. (Hey, just because I'm a game of Life spinster, doesn't mean I don't want to have a baby, you know.)

I have my little revenge on the toy company moguls, though. No matter whom I'm playing the game with, I ask if he/she wants a blue or a pink peg to put in the little plastic car to start. Generally, I get very gender-specific answers. Today, however, my client, a 13-year-old boy, chose to start in his car as a pink peg.

Now that, my friends, is progress.