Tag Archives: Xbox

Motivating the motivator


I’ve written a couple of posts about finding motivation for my teenager. I’ll update on that particular task shortly, but in the course of writing most recently about finding my focus again, I mentioned to classic To Do list.

The page pictured above is from the notebook that I started using when Eve & I began working together. That’s my page of tasks for last week. Check marks everywhere indicate that I did a pretty good job of completing it. The last item was added later in the week and I suspected it might roll into today at least to complete.

In addition to making sure I don’t forget anything these lists help to motivate me as well as to keep my focus on the important tasks.

I keep a similar list at my day job – a place where it can be quite easy to lost focus and motivation because - hey – accounting aint always the most entertaining of tasks! Several things I do are exceptionally tedious even for my detail oriented brain and having that visual always at my side with the list of what I need to complete that day/week really helps to snap me out of any “dear god do I *really* have to keep searching these 1000′s of lines for that $5 discrepancy?” doldrums.

I know some folks can utterly ignore a To Do list, but I can’t. Must be another aspect of that mild OCD going on. but I have GOT to check items off or I can feel them dangling over my head.

For some reason, they need to be handwritten too. I’ve tried keeping task lists in my calendar program or my phone and they just don’t trigger the same “Gotta Do This!” inspiration.

Nope – I need the old fashioned hand written list. So if you are struggling to keep things inline – give it a try. Amazing how something so simple can work so well!

Now, on to the teen…….

So a few weeks ago I overheard him say to someone while he was playing Xbox that “Playing video games and football keeps me calm”

I thought that was an interesting self-assessment he had. Makes sense – teenage boys are filled with testosterone and I am sure that playing a contact sport and some interactive military style video games provides an outlet for that.

It also makes sense in that it was the prospect of losing football via bad grades that motivated him to pull up 3 D’s to C’s in the second semester of school. He also earned a 3 on his AP World History exam which, considering he did NO EXTRA STUDYING is pretty darn good. Not enough to earn college credit in most cases (needed a 4 or 5 for that), but it’s considered passing and will still look good on his transcripts. Plus, being his first AP exam and given that he could be taking 3 next year, it is was great practice.

He started summer off needing to balance his Xbox playing time with his online math class that he is taking in order to get into AP Calc in the fall. Since he is taking an entire year of Pre-Calc in just three months it is pretty fast paced and the requirement was that he finish up the 1st semester by this Friday and start the second semester on Monday. He started off fine, but then in his typical style, he fell behind. So last weekend we removed his Xbox and told him he couldn’t have it back until he was back on pace. Who knocked out a crap ton of work last week in order to get his gaming system back? :-)  Not only did he blow through it, but he’s maintaining a 91% so far and will easily be done by Friday.

Baby steps…

 

The merry month of May


So here’s a rarity. I’m going to try to write in here every night this month. Sort of like a (gulp) actual diary. I’m sure it will largely be boring and frequently short, but I know I will need to do some non technical writing to keep my brain clear. Having sold more books we are going to really ramp up the fresh content & format of PDIY. Also going to update the book itself & look into formatting it for kindle, nook & iBooks. Oh yeah, and finish up the in depth market research for the next site.
Yipes! I’ll need a place to process the rest of my day so prepare for the mundane.
Por ejemplo:
The first 60 mins of today (4/30) were a total fail. Woke up sore as hell from three hours of workouts yesterday & as an added bonus! Special! Sinus headache included. Chip peed on the floor while I ate breakfast do I got to clean that before I left which caused me to leave my phone at home. Ugh. Thankfully, I managed to shrug off the foul mood (though not the headache) as the day wore on. It helped that work itself went along pretty smoothly and that two more ebooks sold – yay! 15 was his usual uncooperative self regarding school & did the bare minimum as usual at first. Then he started talking about his Xbox “clan” and a schedule & goals and I said. “THAT! Show me THAT organization & motivation to meet goals with school & I’ll help you clear the space & time to reach your clan goals!” jeepers! Got a bit of agreement on that actually.
Meeting with Eve to get organized over dinner helped finally turn the day around.
Then Chip peed again :( ugh that cat!! I know I should take him to the vet soon. $$$ other than the peeing he is fine though. At least it’s just two spots on the wood floor (so far)
Now for the dorky part of this experiment: I am rating Monday Yellow. A little pee, a little virtual sunshine with both jobs & a middle of the road schoolwork day.

Transitions, part 1


In case you didn’t notice from my last post, SportsBoy is looking less like a boy and more like a teen clearly transitioning to a young man:

 

 

Last summer I hatched a plan to start transitioning his bedroom to match, but somehow got side tracked. So this year when the summer bonus-in-lieu-of-a-raise time rolled around again, I made sure to set aside money for a new bed for him.

OK, flashback – it actually kind of started when I got my new bed in November. Sweet Prince gave me his gorgeous king sized bed with it’s super nice mattress. I then had to re-arrange things to make room which then started the whole “closet overhaul project” of 2011. The thing is, he has some pretty nice closet space in his room. I initially was going to use that as my bedroom when I first moved in due to it. But then I realized that room I am in is bigger and that if needed I could just use one of his closets to store out of season or little used items. Which, of course, never happened since he had so many toys and so much sports gear over the years. But now I really need to utilize it better. So the biggest part of this whole endeavor was the cleanup. I never took a proper before picture, but this is what it looked like when I started yesterday on the final big clear out – this is after I’ve already done two closets and he and his brother took down his two older game systems (an ESPN game station setup with basketball net and another fooze-ball sized gaming table). He had also moved his TV and Xbox out of the way so that I could access his game closet:

The bookcase is going entirely. The few books he wants to keep will store very nicely in his game closet. The trophies are going to be moved to the top shelf of another closet. His dresser is already placed in there. He’s a boy – he has no need for hanging more than a few items and I am not kidding about the closet space – he has two long ones – one has three sliders – and then he has what we call the game closet but which I guess is supposed to be a linen closet that is floor to ceiling shelves. No way he will never fill all that with clothes!

Yes, I had feline assistance. Wouldn’t have expected anything less. Here’s what it looked like part way through with many items moved to the floor to be sorted and transitioned out to the garage in proper piles:

Those plastic containers are filled with Legos. Some of them 20 years old since they are from Music Man :-) If you want Lego’s come to my garage sale! I will have boat loads!

The bookcase is gone. The stuff in the bag is what I think he will want to keep. No, he was not there but that was good. It goes faster and I am able to throw out more when he is not around. He is so sentimental sometimes that I think he would want to keep much more if he were to see it! In fact, I am taking bets now – there is an enormous bag full of stuffed animals due to be sold. Will he take some out? Specifically – will he keep Blue Bear?

Wait – did you notice what happened to my helper in that other picture?

Down for the count

Next up: – bed removal. That will be Tuesday when the new bed frame arrives. The mattress ordered separately arrives Thursday – his birthday.

Oh, and my reward for all that hard work? Dinner out with the gals from the Mother Talkers blog and some utterly delicious creme brulee!

 

 

How to get your teen to hug you


1) Buy a used Xbox 360 as an early Christmas gift

2) Set up an Xbox Live account so he & his brother can play games online with friends

3) Agree to get him the latest game (previously mentioned Black Ops, this time for the Xbox) also for Christmas. Stumble into a nice cash back ebates deal through Dell.com where you have a credit account. Buy it right away so it will be delivered on time.

4) Black Ops arrives two days later. You immediately spirit it up to your room along with a new Adam Lambert 2011 calendar that also arrived in the mail for you. Consider giving him the game early since he takes off for San Fran with his dad on Christmas night for a week away. Decide he can wait since he does already have the game at his dad’s & is no longer dying to play it, right?

5) On twitter, notice that a Padres player you follow has posted his Xbox live account name. Show it to the teen just for shits & giggles not really thinking he’d take it that seriously.

6) Watch teen jump up faster than he’s moved in months to race to the Xbox & sign in and find the Padres player.

7) Remind teen that Padres player has over 2000 followers on twitter and that probably a few dozen or so just did the same thing as him and don’t be too disappointed if Padres player doesn’t accept friend request right away.

8) 30 mins later here teen give a squeal…no, check that..his voice is changing…it was more of a squawk…of glee as Padres player accepts his friend request.

9) Go see what’s up as the teen checks to see what game Padres player is using since he is now online – Black Ops!

10) See teen fall to the floor in agony because he knows he *asked* me for the game for Christmas but he also knows that it’s still over 2 weeks away, and he only told me 2 days ago so there is no way….right?

11) See me grin ear to ear and ask him how badly he wants that game right now?

12) See teen’s eyes get huge & hear him promise to do dishes for a week and to do ALL of the cookie dough stirring this weekend and….

13) Tell teen the game is in your room under the Adam Lambert calendar on your dresser

14) See/hear teen break speed of light to retrieve game

15) As the game loads…teen turns to you…puts out his arms and says “Thanks mom!”

 

Yes, I even got a smile!

16) Padres player is so cool, he plays with the teen and *talks* to him during the game

17) Realize that the only way dishes will get done or cookies made is if you physically unplug the magical Xbox machine because otherwise that boy is butt planted into that chair forever. Well, not forever as that is his brother’s room. He plays there because his room is still elementary school boy style. What he doesn’t know is that I’ve got those plans laid out too so that this pose can soon be set up in his own room. :-)