I was thinking the other day about how seriously I take being silly. I guess it's not that I take it seriously. It's that I so thoroughly enjoy it. I thought it would be neat to examine these thoughts. I even came up with a nifty title for an article if I were to ever write one. It would be called (drum roll please) "Are You Game? The Pedagogy of Play." I'm not exactly sure what perspective I would take to approach this topic. Here are some ideas I came up with in a brainstorming session I had...with myself...alone...(I'm so lonely) =D

• Rules to games, guidelines to be followed
• Objectives of games, goals to be achieved
• Creative solutions to the puzzles and challenges provided
• Competition, winners, losers, and sportsmanship
  
• Fun, whether it can be measured and what roll it plays
• Meaning making, how does it shape our world view
• Can you have serious fun, business and gaming meet
• A new vision for how we can harness, or see how it already is harnessed to learn
• The value of playing, not just for children
  
• Move playing from transparent to opaque

I was never very good at producing a "final" product. It always seemed to me that in my work their was always room for a little "play". Ok, I'll stop using "quotes" for now lol =p. Anyway, that is why I always enjoyed the digital medium, because it gave me the freedom to play without many serious repercussions. I think that is what playing is all about. To be able to be free to experiment and experience the joys that come with the exploration of possibilities. It seems as we grow older rules get broken, stakes are raised, and fun becomes irrelevant. That is why it might be the most important time to start playing.

Peace out,

Shane Empie