E-diction

Gadgets, gadgets everywhere;
And still I hesitate;
Gadgets, gadgets everywhere;
Are they really that great?

I'm not really much of a gadget freak. I used to be, but somewhere along the way, I realized that I'd really much rather spend money (or not) on more important things. It should be noted, though, that this line of thinking causes me to pick up games, hot new portable gaming systems, and gadgets when I can't readily think of something I'd rather spend the money on.

Most recently, though, I've been focusing (fixating) on the slew of worthy games being released for the DS. Initially, I didn't have much interest in the DS, I picked one up for my girlfriend, and found that, while I though it had some pretty good ideas, it was poorly executed. It was big, cumbersome, and annoying. I'd seen Advance Wars: Dual Strike come out for it, and knew that there was no way I could justify getting a DS just for one game, so I pretty much dropped the idea.

Recently the game Brain Age was released, I'd been paying a bit of attention to it, and thought it was a cool idea. I only needed a slight push to pick it up. After my girlfriend said a coworker enjoyed it, I was sold, and picked it up for her.

It's a pretty good idea and a pretty cool premise, you test your brain function with a test, and determine your "brain age," then train daily with different programs, and track your progress. It also graphs your results so you can see your improvement. It's a bit of fun, and definitely worth my time (especially when there are measurable results!). So my DS interest was re-kindled.

I looked around and quickly found that the DS Lite was coming out soon. I looked at reviews and comparisons, and the lite is, for lack of a better word, sexy. I want it. I told my girlfriend that I'd happily buy it for her, but she was resistant. She thought it was silly to get one just because it was smaller. I'd have a tougher time justifying the purchase for only myself. (I don't like spending money on myself if it's not a necessary purchase) So I started reviewing some of the games available for the DS (to justify the purchase to myself), and while there were a few MUST HAVE's (Twilight Hourglass, Advance Wars: Dual strike) I could see that the game selection had expanded into some impressive games. I knew I had to get Super Mario 64, and New Super Mario World looked awesome, Partners in Time got awesome reviews; I was sold (again).

I had picked up "brother in arms, earned in blood" used from gamestop when I picked up Brain Age, and planned on returning it, as it wasn't exactly what I was looking for. Instantly this return turned into money towards the DS Lite. I also figured I could trade in my GBA Micro toward the DS Lite. (I really love the Micro, but the DS Lite seemed like it could (almost) fit the niche, plus it had a bigger screen with the micro's DPI. I love my Micro, but every time I take a game out, and pop it in my girlfriend's DS I always admire the game's appearance (though the same can't be said for the DS). Making the issue worse, I just got my bonus check (modest, but enough to put me over on the DS Lite). I was pretty resolved to get it.

If you know me, you'd know that after I've resolved to something, it becomes time to second-guess it!

I started to think about the game, the Micro, the Lite, and the bonus check. If I turn them in, and deposit the cash, I could get around $160 extra cash. Extra cash can be spent on other things. Other things like part of an upper for my newly acquired lower... I know I said I'd take my time building that rifle, and maybe I should, but it is quite tempting.

Continued... After thinking about this a bit, and coming back to it, I think I should really spend more time preparing for the upper purchase, so I should not spend it on that. However, saving specifically for the purchase is tempting, and probably the thing I should do. But on the other hand, $160 isn't that much to bother over. I was really looking at it as "free money" because it was money I didn't have before. But just because it's free money doesn't mean I should spend it, just to spend it. I think I'll use it to pay down my credit card, that way, I'll leave both options open... I still don't know what I'll do...

Bugger. I don't know. I think I'm going to reserve it. Well, it's not like it won't be there later... I obviously don't need it right NOW... It's just that the thought of that huge, bright, colorful screen gets me all hot and bothered. I don't even know when it will be released... Ah. June 11th. Is it sad that I'm so worried about this?... Hey, word is out that Target is improperly selling Lites early... I'll have to hit the Target in the same shopping center as the GameStop... I think I'm going to get it. As it happens, that bonus check was really just a spiff. The bonus check should come mid month, and be a bit larger... (further justification!)

Ok. I'm going to wait. (probably the best idea.)