Less is the new More

01.24.2004 - 7:32 p.m.

I just got a brand new toy I want to tell you about.

I was out having some drinks and this girl was telling me all about her "nation".

I later consulted the internet to find out what she had been talking about.

It seems some dude wrote a mediocre and moderately-well received book called Jennifer Government.

He then went on to create an internet community/game based loosely on his book - which has been infinitely better received.

It's called Nation States.net and I'm a new member (read: addict).

You setup a government and assign it a name and flag and motto. Then based upon some vague questions it gives you a little profile of your fledgling country. It sticks you in a region to start out with - and you are assigned a UN delegate (some other community member with a well-established country).

Basically, you are given various UN resolutions to accept or decline or you can submit your own issues for UN members to vote on. The game/community aspect of it is that you can jump to different regions or create your own. Basically, you get a bunch of your friends to start their own country. Then you band together to form a region and maybe gain UN representation, and then buddy up and impose your will. At least, that's what I think. I'm only brand-newbie and don't know all the ins and outs of it yet.

Anyhoo, I invite you all to check out my budding country, the Republic of Frenching.

Maybe we can all band together and start a region. Come on people; let's break down that fourth wall.

***

You know those round hand-held counters that people use, like when they click it to count people as they enter events and amusement parks?

It's fun to use it for no real reason. If you have one, just stand or walk around, and if you make eye contact with somebody, make a show of clicking it so that it's pretty clear you are clicking it because of them. People go nuts.

They'll probably not say anything to you, but it will drive them crazy. They'll want to know what list they just made. What statistic they just became.

As much as people want to be on all the right lists, they desperately don't want to be on any of the wrong one's either.

out to pasture - to the barn raising