My friend's son had a big problem. The tell-tale signs were all there. Arms crossed, a livid face, flared nostrils – indicating that he was hurting, with tears threatening to descend down his plump cheeks. For all of eight years, he has been my weekend gaming partner – the PSP console is mere putty in his expert hands, and more often than not, the little chap beats me. Now, a six-footer putting up a fight against an eight-year-old at videogames is not considered mature in our society. And I'm all for appearing mature (wink, wink ).
Anyway, it appears that my little friend's "bestest" friend had suddenly stopped being his best friend because someone else in his class had bought the latest portable PlayStation. And the "bestest" friend decided to shift his allegiance to the enemy camp.
My friend's mum negotiated a tough deal: get full marks in Science, Math, English, Social Studies and all the other subjects. Only then will you get a new PSP. Understandably, his tear glands could not hold the deluge any longer. As my colleagues from the Arabic radio channel would have said – Miskeen boy this.
Now I have always wanted a PSP. What better way to spend your hard-earned money? And since I needed to bring a smile to this miskeen boy's face, I had the perfect excuse to own one. But I still needed to tackle the mom.
After some long, laborious talks with her, she was convinced and we bought a shining new console home. After a whole day of beating each other, our sore fingers begged for a rest. The boy went to bed, nestling the PSP on his pillow. I am happy that he is happy, but why do I get the feeling that I've lost my "bestest" friend to the PSP now? I also have the iPhone 3G and the Lord Of The Rings collectors' set. Anyone looking for a "bestest" friend?
