Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Barbie Games and Growing Up


I hate the idea of growing up. Growing up seems to say I must move away from childish things, and those, of course, include my Barbie games collection. Personally I love Barbie. I always have. Barbie games were a lot of fun in my youth and they were a great bonding experience between my sisters and I. But as we grew up, Barbie left her dream house less and less and the Barbie Corvette of old was a bit neglected.

But growing up doesn’t mean I can’t play Barbie games at all. It just means I don’t get to spend hours on the floor every day of summer dress and undressing plastic dolls. Instead, I’ve moved on to the grown-up version of playing Barbie games – collecting them.

For the most part, I leave my collected Barbie games in the box to keep them pretty and perfect, but sometimes I’ll open a box and sit the Barbies along the special shelf over my desk. It might seem childish to the die-hards out there, but having a row of eternally happy fashionistas is simply fun and that brings a bit of joy to life.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Barbie Games Reach Out


I noticed recently that the Barbie games seem to be reaching out from their normal position of blonde perfection. There are new series of dolls that have darker skin types and a bit more personality. Of course, I love Barbie games and even if it is stereotypical and cheesy, I find myself picturing myself twirling in those Barbie ball gowns from time to time.

After all, Barbie was one of the first and definitely the most lasting cultural icon. Little girls want to look like Barbie, they want to dress like Barbie and they want to be Barbie. Personally I remember wanting Barbie’s car and horse, but I digress.

The Barbie games of our youth reflected society’s position on beauty for the most part. I, for one, am thrilled to see that society is reaching out to embrace alternative forms of beauty and this level of comfort is evident through the wider and more varied selection of Barbie games. If I could, I’d buy a Barbie of every color, just for posterity.