My morning routine has changed dramatically. Where once I rode the bus and subway with strangers (all the gory details here), now I’m at home with strangers.
That’s right I’m home with strangers. I don’t mean my family is strangers. While it’s true it’s been years since I saw my wife and children on a Tuesday morning at 8:00 a.m. in October, the change is not so dramatic that I don’t recognize them.
Never the less, there is a stranger in my house each morning. This guest is not at the front door. This guest is at kitchen table. Let me back up. Every weekday morning, I go to synagogue and pray. When I come home, I head to the kitchen table.
SJ sits in the same chair every day. He eats the same food (a bagel smeared with both cream cheese and cheese and a blueberry waffle) every day. He is the ultimate creature of habit. These days, I join him at the kitchen table and eat my breakfast.
Picture that. A dad and his son sharing quality time in the morning over the kitchen table. Isn’t that nice? Really, it’s Hallmark worthy.
If only, that was the case. Sigh.
You see SJ and I are joined by a third person. This interloper is a stranger to me. He shouldn’t be as he joins SJ and I nearly every morning.
Want to know his name? He’s Dan. Dan is a kid – probably not old enough to order a beer – is slim, and British. And your children may know him as well or at least heard his voice as well. You see Dan’s Facebook page has nearly 200, 000 likes. A YouTube video he made gained over 2.2 million views in 5 days.
Who is this crazy popular kid who joins SJ and I at breakfast every morning? He is the voice behind the YouTube channel known as The Diamond Minecart. Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy offers play by play and narrates while he plays Minecraft.
My children love these types of instructional YouTube videos. Most of the videos are the same. There will be one or more people playing a video game such as Minecraft and they talk about the game while they are playing it. Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy does this solo.
Anyway SJ loves Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy. I hope he loves his cousin with the same name more than Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy. I hope he loves me more than Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy. But I’m not sure.
You see when Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy is talking, SJ pays rapt attention and his head is bent over the Kindle screen. He talks to Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy and reacts to what he’s doing. Me, he ignores. Well, that’s not true. Sometimes he asks for some of my food. I think I’d rather him talk to Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy.
I suppose I should be thankful to Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy. After all, he keeps SJ entertained. Maybe, I should set an extra place for the third person at the kitchen table. What do you like for breakfast, Dan, The Diamond Minecart guy?
Are your children crazy for Minecraft or other video games? Do your children watch these types of instructional videos? Who joins you for breakfast?
I think that’s the same guy Caleb’s been watching! I swear I’m going to have to pry his fingers off that iPod.
What is it about that guy?
Mr. T watches those videos, too!
But, we don’t sit down for breakfast! LOL. He was either fed at daycare or later he ate breakfast at school 😉 This morning he had extra time before he had to see the trainer this morning (He hurt his ankle a few weeks ago) and he told me he was going to swing my 7-11 for a bite. 🙂
At his age? I thought they would be out of it by then. I don’t get it.
I haven’t yet introduced my daughter to minecraft, nor have I explored it myself. I sometimes wonder if we’d be able to keep it from taking over our lives.
Do you ever play minecraft with your kids? Is it something you can bond over?
It doesn’t have to take over lives. It’s like any other video game.
I never played the game with them. I’ve asked them about it and watch them here and there but I don’t quite get it. I keep asking how you win and they keep telling me it does not work like that.
Neither of my kids play Minecraft but my son watches some YouTube show about games.
BTW, I don’t know if you watch Real Sports on HBO but the most recent episode shared a tale about how a college in Chicago has a video game team that is part of their athletic department.
There are kids on scholarship for their video game ability.
Wow, I never heard that about video game scholarships. Hmmm. Maybe, they should play even more.
What is it about watching these youtube videos – just play the game!
Might be nice if just once he set the kindle aside and talked to you.
Dare I dream?