I’m all in favor of things that make people say, “Huh?” Everyone should have some inexplicable weirdness inserted into their otherwise dull, everyday lives. Usually, that inexplicable weirdness is me. I’m good at it – I’m a professional, after a fashion, and so I’m not easily made to tilt my own head and say, “Huh?”

Number One Son, however, seems to have not only inherited this trait from me, but to have concentrated and refined it. This morning, for example, he was playing a video game. In and of itself, not a surprise. He was also singing, which is again not a surprising activity for him. (The fact that he can carry a tune is surprising, on a macro level, as he’s the first male of my bloodline to be able to do so for more generations than I know of. That’s another story.) The surprise was the combination of the two.

The video game, which he received a few days ago on the occasion of his Kindergarten graduation, has to do with the Bionicles, some hellish toy creation for which we can thank the fine folks at Lego. This is basically a robot-based first person shooter game set in some robot netherworld, where pits of lava explode into flaming deathmasks. (It’s simple, you see: the Mask of Life has been seized by the evil Barraki, and to recover the Mask of Life, the six powerful Toa will have to wage the war of their lives.) Why is he playing this? I do not ask.

So, as I glance over and see the laser eye beams and hand-held Gatling phaser weapons, with the sound turned nearly off since folks are still sleeping, I notice that he’s singing as he’s shooting, “Day by day / Day by day / Oh Dear Lord / Three things I pray / To see thee more clearly / Love thee more dearly (“Got ‘em!”) / Follow thee more nearly / Day by day…”

Huh? OK, he wins.

Originally published at Big Ugly Man Doll. Please leave any comments there.

I’m all in favor of things that make people say, “Huh?” Everyone should have some inexplicable weirdness inserted into their otherwise dull, everyday lives. Usually, that inexplicable weirdness is me. I’m good at it – I’m a professional, after a fashion, and so I’m not easily made to tilt my own head and say, “Huh?”

Number One Son, however, seems to have not only inherited this trait from me, but to have concentrated and refined it. This morning, for example, he was playing a video game. In and of itself, not a surprise. He was also singing, which is again not a surprising activity for him. (The fact that he can carry a tune is surprising, on a macro level, as he’s the first male of my bloodline to be able to do so for more generations than I know of. That’s another story.) The surprise was the combination of the two.

The video game, which he received a few days ago on the occasion of his Kindergarten graduation, has to do with the Bionicles, some hellish toy creation for which we can thank the fine folks at Lego. This is basically a robot-based first person shooter game set in some robot netherworld, where pits of lava explode into flaming deathmasks. (It’s simple, you see: the Mask of Life has been seized by the evil Barraki, and to recover the Mask of Life, the six powerful Toa will have to wage the war of their lives.) Why is he playing this? I do not ask.

So, as I glance over and see the laser eye beams and hand-held Gatling phaser weapons, with the sound turned nearly off since folks are still sleeping, I notice that he’s singing as he’s shooting, “Day by day / Day by day / Oh Dear Lord / Three things I pray / To see thee more clearly / Love thee more dearly (“Got ‘em!”) / Follow thee more nearly / Day by day…”

Huh? OK, he wins.