Time to Grow Up. I'll Miss You Ultima Online!

No, my hiatus wasn't due to playing Ultima Online 24/7 this summer. But how I do enjoy the game...or used to. I played it for 5 years straight at one point. Then I sold the account because we couldn't afford our rent, much less shell out $15 bucks a month for an online game. I traded it for the much less expensive, and more creative, Wrassle[dot]Net. But after a while, I missed it, and wanted to play again. So once we could "afford it", I bought my old account back, and began playing again. It was fun, of course, I wish I could play it forever.

But this year, my oldest starts kindergarten. For a plethora of reasons, I'm terrified.

You see, over the years, since I've been married, I've caught glimpses of "adulthood" in myself. I'd catch myself in the middle of mowing the yard, or cleaning the measly easy set pool we have and think, "wow, I feel like my Dad"..."I feel like a grown-up."

Now, I've got to move beyond those glimpses, and live it full time. I've taught my kids, of course, in between playing and having fun. But now I've got to teach my kids. No, they aren't going to be home schooled, though sometimes I'm sure I'd just as soon they were.

I can already tell, that I don't fully trust schools to teach my kids what they need to know. Secularism, political correctness, and liberalism that infiltrate and encompass the school system pretty much dictate that I'll have to give my kids "perspective" on a daily basis.

So while I've slowly been trying to make myself "more responsible" by setting reading goals for myself, ridding my life of clutter, and generally trying to break away from frivolous time consuming activities, it hasn't been enough. Time to put responsibility into hyper-drive.

Now I've probably been a little hard on myself. I rarely play Ultima Online these days...though the bill for $15 mysteriously has not adjusted to reflect less usage of Origins servers. And, in reality, I'm quite a responsible parent. But I think the overwhelming nature of my daughter starting school...you forget until times like these how resilient kids are...along with the symbolism of still playing an online game that I played when I was a "kid" is what has me rattled.

But for some reason, I feel like the symbolic gesture of quitting Ultima Online officially...though my pocketbook will realize that it's more than symbolic to the tune of $180 per year...will make a difference. So, by the end of this month, Ultima Online will be removed from my computer.

Welcome to adulthood, Mad Hoosier.