Pinball!

[celticdragonfly]

We went to take the kids upstairs to bed, but didn't proceed into the bathroom to brush their teeth immediately, because the two kids went into a chase-each-other-up-and-down-the-hall game, using the nook and our closed bedroom door as bases, I think, involving lots of screeching and giggling and lots of running. And hey, when they're tiring themselves out and we just have to stand there, that's worthwhile. We stood there as they brushed past us and bumped into us and we chatted some. Karl said we didn't so much need the Cedarworks backyard playset that we've coveted for the kids as we need a big kid-life-sized pinball machine that they can be in. I looked at him and said "We are a big pinball machine for them.

I was then visualizing and describing a kid play center where you could go pay for your kids to have playtime inside a big pinball machine type set up - padded floors, padded bumpers and obstacles and such. And ideally you'd have the parents sitting in a relaxed elevated cafe setup where they could have nice drinks and snacks and watch the kids. And hey, do something where you pay some extra and you can control the lever for one of the flippers! Okay, sure, it'd have to be really padded, and it would probably have to move slowly, but it sounds fun. Karl didn't think they could possibly make it safe enough. But I was amused.

Comments

[patgund.livejournal.com]

Simple. Put the kids in those inflatable bubble balls that are used to roll down hills and across lakes. :-)

[tygerr.livejournal.com]

Sounds like it could be just as big a commercial success as the 1990's fad for giant Habitrails-for-kids. If the safety/liability issues could be solved.

I have very few hopes for this bit, though:
ideally you'd have the parents sitting in a relaxed elevated cafe setup where they could have nice drinks and snacks and watch the kids.

I suspect it'd wind up being "second-rate pizzalike wedges and sugary fizzywater" or "burgers of questionable heritage and sugary fizzywater" because that's what the KIDS will want. And these types of businesses are all about catering to the kids--the adults are generally just the mobile support system with drivers' licenses and wallets/checkbooks/credit cards.

It's a very nice vision, though.