Mind Status: BLOWN (Post 2)

In the early stages of my teen years, I felt it was extremely important to be able to fit in and be on good terms with practically everyone. During my quest to obtain the status of a “cool kid,’ I obviously had to go where all the hipster kids where hanging about. The natural habitat of the elusive cool group of youngsters happened to be the arcades at a local mall. We would always be there after school because we were rebels that refused to be confined at home. Our main focus was having fun all day every day since studying was for squares (although I did crack open a text book once in a while when no one was looking).

The main attraction at the arcades was the Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) machine. DDR was a game that was quite the fad back in the good 'ol days, where children would make a mockery of themselves in front of others to serve as entertainment. You could not be considered an Elite unless you were able to perform well on that machine. I remember spending many hours a day watching the regulars tear up that seizure-inducing noise box. Their sense of eye-feet coordination never failed to amaze me.

Most of the fun was just listening to the music that was playing. It was always so upbeat and catchy. Most of it consisted of techno and electronica themed music. The insane beats were powerful enough to pump a person’s adrenaline to levels that seemed almost lethal.