Youth is wasted...

TGIF Winster Friends!

I have a new internet addiction and it's name is Pinterest. For those of you that don't use it, my explaining it to you would not cause anyone to go out and get the app, but here goes. Pinterest is a site where young women, in their early twenties as far as I can tell, post photographs of things they want in life. Over and over you'll see couture wedding gowns, fancy homes, skinny women with six-pack abs and luxury goods. All with captions like "I will have this" or "I have to remember this for my wedding" or "I want my house to look like this".  That's it. Occasionally there are some recipes for easy meals or a motivational quote, but mainly it's a glimpse in to a weird fantasy world where everyone is a future wealthy super model.

Perhaps my addiction is a tiny bit based on the dreams of a giant conservatory in my backyard that are still left in me, but mainly I just like to see what the young people are thinking. And folks, it's the same as it's always been. White horse, prince charming, 2.5 kids and a white picket fence (around a house with 6 bedrooms and 4500 square feet).

I was looking at a diagram the other day called the happiness curve. It shows that from the time you are born until your mid 30's, your happiness is in free fall. After 35, the curve goes back up and in your seventies you are as happy as a child. They attribute that to acceptance. Accepting that you'll never have six-pack abs and a 3500 square foot house actually makes you happy. And just knowing that I was on the upside of the curve made me happy!

So, more power to the young people but I'll take my muffin top and Vegas elopement and like it. Because that's just the kind of people we are. Am I right, ladies?

XO
Winnie

Freaky Friday

Hey Winsters,

I am looking out the office window at a clear, sunny February day. If I hadn't turned on the news this morning today would be like any other day. Only better, because it's the Friday before a three day weekend. But no. The asteroid is coming, and now that I know that, I can feel it. My whole day is off somehow and my anxiety is even too high to enjoy Pizza Friday at work.

Once I read that women and their cycles and moods were controlled by the moon, no space fact is off limits. All meteorological events effect me and can arbitrarily make me feel physically or emotionally ill. This only happened in my late 30's by the way. Before that I was gleefully unaware that such things existed and chalked everything up to actual life events.

Luckily, I have a cohort in this. My sister and I talk every day and are on google, looking for space events that will justify our feelings whenever we get the least bit irritable. Today, with 143,000 tons of molten rock hurling toward us, we've both gone silent. Bracing ourselves for some kind of inevitable mental explosion that will happen as this monster passes by. It's a bit terrifying, and exciting all at the same time.

I'll let you know how I fare. Stay safe and wear a tin foil hat or something :)

XO
Winnie Weirdo

I Heart You

Before I understood the new normal that exists in schools (at least in California schools), I once sent cupcakes to my daughter's class on her birthday. Saying I may as well have handed the teacher a live grenade is not an understatement. After I pushed them on her, I found out later that they were given to the parents at the end of the day so they could dispose of them at will. I relayed this story to my family back east and they all agreed that "she should be taken out of that hippie school immediately!"

Years later, I'm still trying. Spending my nights researching acceptable ways to make a child feel special without alienating or offending anyone. Last night, I was on a mission to figure out Valentine's Day treats. In this particular school, they don't allow cards or gifts to be given so I thought a "snack" for the class would be acceptable. I settled on a treat bag full of pink yogurt pretzels and dried strawberries. Score one for the "hippies".

Rest assured, when my daughter gets home, she will open the door to a two-pound, heart shaped box of chocolate and a weird stuffed animal with a heart in it's paws. I will not go down without a fight.

And to the rest of you in my life, I hope you all feel special this Valentine's Day as well. I recommend a personal box of chocolates (purchased on the 15th for half off) so that you can have a bite out of each one :)

Make sure to also send our free e-cards and gifts to your Winster friends.

Happy Valentine's Day!
XOXO
Winnie

Groundhog Day

Okay, campers, rise and shine, and don't forget your booties 'cause it's cooooold out there today!

For those of you that don't get that reference, it's from one of my favorite movies, Groundhog Day. And with Groundhog Day just around the corner, we thought it appropriate at Winster to celebrate the mundane, do-it-every-day tasks that we take for granted. Just this morning I was walking my daughter to school. Every day, the same routine. She walks up on this wall that fences in someones yard and I hold her hand and walk below. The we go to the next wall and so on until we get to the corner (where we jump the puddle and cross the street, walk past 5 trees and then piggyback ride the rest of the way...she's slightly OCD :). It's frustrating at times, usually because we're late, but this morning I made a conscious "Groundhog Day" decision to enjoy the little things. I know that the mundane, have to get through it tasks are the ones I will miss the most when she grows up.

Yesterday I received a nice Facebook post from a player commenting on how many great friends she's met through Winster. It came after a particularly bad day of getting beat up with software glitches and Customer service issues. Not complaining about those, it's our job to fix them, but there's something about the software business that sometimes feels like you're holding up a house of cards. One thing fixes, another breaks. Customers unhappy, bosses unhappy. So getting that Facebook post and having it seconded by a few others really brought me back "in the moment" and made me feel great about what we do.

So thank you Winsters. And happy real Groundhog Day, (the one where you find out how much longer you're going to be freezing out there).

XO
Winnie

No Doily's Here

This week I'd like to give you a little glimpse into the office where I work. As many of you know, a larger company took over the running of Winster. Their main business are what they call "massive multi-player online games". It spells MMOG is all I know. What that means is that your avatar runs around doing some form of combat and you play online with a world-wide audience. As far as I can tell from the posters in the lobby there is a medieval themed one, an urban warfare one and a couple other variants on post apocalyptic hell scapes.  I know this only from the decorations.  Life-size posters depicting WWF style men with Rambo gear and women in head-to-toe leather. One looks suspiciously like Halle Barry.

It's an odd fit for sure, but somehow it works. Our little corner of friendship and cooperation gaming is slowly softening the man warriors in the office and making the place a little more, shall we say "estrogen-driven".  I have yet to redecorate but am planning on passing out some sweet Valentine cookies next month.  I'll let you know how it goes :)

XO
Winnie

Civility

Good Morning Winster Friends,
I'm thinking that basic civility seems to be at an all time low. Standing in line at Starbucks this morning, a simple thing we all learned in grade school, a young woman came in and got in line behind me. As the line got shorter, she started inching up and eventually was standing next to me. As the Starbucks worker called "next" she went right ahead of me and ordered!
And don't get me started on drivers. Honking at you because they perceive you to be going too slow, only to speed by, give you the glare and mouth choice words in your direction, and then have to stop at the same light next to you up the road.
Whenever I felt I was getting the short end of the stick as a kid, my mother used to say "you'll get your reward in heaven".  Not very comforting for a six year old, but wiser than I gave her credit for. And I don't think you have to wait that long. Watching the madman sit at the light trying to maintain his anger or standing to get your coffee with the girl who cut in front of you is reward enough. They generally feel stupid and that's pretty rewarding.
So it's nice to be working with people like you who would rather work collaboratively than competitively and are appreciative for the things our little Winster team can give them. I don't think we'll ever make a million dollars for running this site but we'll "get our reward in heaven" :)

XO
Winnie

Thoughts on Flannel Pajamas

Hi Winster Friends!
I was just watching Al Roker present the latest storm sweeping the country. Two feet of snow from Nevada to Minnesota today. We are officially sandwiched in between the hope of a White Christmas and the seemingly endless wait for Spring.

Being from the east, and having just visited my family over Christmas, I know how your mindset changes from one of wonder at every beautiful flake pre-December 25th to one of disdain all the way through April. The gray days bleed into black nights and you cocoon inside, in my case never taking off my flannel pj's. Which count as clothes now? I guess you just throw on a pair of boots and pretend they're pants. I see all the kids doing it :)

I think living in California, we're programmed to do things. The great weather forces us in to work and school every day, pushes us to exercise, run errands, make plans. There's something to be said for a season that allows you to rest and sit with your thoughts. Or in our case, sit at our computers and play with our friends. Nice segue, huh?

In the spirit of cocooning in our pj's, Winster is throwing a little pre-mid-winter Happy Hour tomorrow, Saturday January 12th from 3-4pm PST (6-7pm EST for those of you who are actually freezing). Free Spins and no ads! It's a make-up for those of you who were locked out during the last hour of our New Year's event.

See you there in your best flannels/pants :)

XO
Winnie