> I'm with Liz; we're not that passive a generation. :-) I used to like paper dolls... so I drew a set of about 25 of them, all with names and personalities, and they had about 10 outfits apiece. (I had way too much free time.) Also fun: humongous solo or collaborative Lego structures, and chain reactions that started when someone opened the door. (I could get out through the window.) And then there were the tricks on top of the monkeybars which led to 5 years of gymnastics lessons. :-) One of the drawers in my dresser still is devoted to oddments that it might be neat to make something out of; I reach into it when I get bored. My favorite amusement always was, and still is, though, reading a book.

Hmmm, I'm in the wrong generation, but you're still describing my childhood passtimes almost exactly!! In the late 60's/early 70's, my sister and I would spend *hours* drawing and dressing our "neighborhood" of paperdolls. We always made them all new outfits for Christmas and other holidays. And lego...our specialty was lego airplanes, which of course disintegrated during lego aero-dogfights. We didn't do chain reaction things, but did play "poison water", which involved leaping from one piece of furniture to another--touch the poison water floor and you're out. And you're right--reading did/does beat them all.


> Likewise with prepackaged toys and entertainments; you can't get into trouble following what someone else has already decided is the "best" way to play with a toy. I would like to think that I haven't succumbed to the pressure to take things as they are given to me without considering my own way as well, but I've never been encouraged to, and neither have many of friends. It wasn't so unusual to be inventive as young child, but those who are later are considered, well, a little weird, and I wish it wasn't so.
>
> -Fob"instructions? we don't need no stinking instructions!"ulis
>

...and while we're speaking of lego and instructions, I recall babysitting a couple of boys once who decided to get out the lego. I'm thinking, hot dog, let's build some cool 7-winged planes or a combination rocket/tomato picker/ shoehorn or something--when the oldest kid PULLS OUT THE INSTRUCTIONS and proceeds to build a fortress EXACTLY like the picture showed it. I was stunned. It was sooooo boring. And presumably, he had built it at least once before, since it wasn't a new toy. Actually, maybe it wasn't so stunning after all, since his stated goal was to grow up and be an accountant.



koala "no offense meant to accountants, after all I ended up marrying one"mom