ON A FUN NIGHT OUT

Last night, we went to Dave and Buster's. I hadn't been in a while, and it always strikes me how seriously I take "ticket games." I really want to get those tickets to get usually-low-grade prizes, that would have been much less expensive had I just used the money directly for (for example) the pint glasses.

As I think on it more, I suppose there's something to be said for the experience. There's not much point to going to a place like D&B's by oneself, with the idea of "I'm going to get two pint glasses tonight!" The prizes are there as a bonus, something extra that makes the night a little more enjoyable. So the next time some wiseguy points out the relative value of the prizes, feel free to cite the "fun" included in the "price" of the prize.

In addition to the cheap gifts, we added a little of our own excitement to the night. I had a free T-shirt from my school's orientation program. I brought it with me and called it a trophy. The person who had it could be challenged at any game at any time throughout the night; winner of that game kept the shirt until they were challenged again. The shirt changed hands many times throughout the night, on a horse-racing skill game, DDR, trivia...but it ended up being most hotly contested in the final game of pop-a-shot. The decision was made to go best of three; the first two games were split and the last one...was a tie! In sudden death, my cheese-loving friend Casey took home the trophy. In our post-evening discussions, she said that made her in charge of the "trophy" the next time we go to Dave and Buster's. I'm really glad the trophy idea worked so well last night, and I'm even more glad that it seems to be a hit for the future as well.