Flashbacks arcade, Seaside Heights, NJ, 7/25/09 - 8 of 20

Did you know that the predecessor to Beyond the Rhetoric was a humble Geocities site called Now That’s Entertainment? Following that fun little tidbit, this week’s speedlink has a dash of nostalgia mixed in with all sorts of ways to keep entertained.

In the case of Zach Rosenberg, he’s sad that his son will never get to enjoy playing video games at the arcade the same way that he did in his youth. I also grew up as an arcade brat and while those stained carpets and sticky controls left a lot to be desired, there is something incredibly satisfying about placing your quarter on the ledge of a Street Fighter II cabinet to indicate you’ve got next.

As much as I enjoy listening to music, I’ve never been any good at making music. Some of my friends are far more talented, in that regard, and one fine example is Damien Riley. The teacher also happens to be a guitarist and he recently posted his original song “Weathering” on his blog for your entertainment. He reunited with his old “The Resolution” band mates for this recording.

Music as a hobby and as a supplementary source of income is one thing. When you’re a professional like Jeremy Lim, you approach the business in a different kind of way. Just as I get hired for freelance writing gigs, Jeremy gets hired to score and soundtrack a variety of works. For instance, he’s responsible for what you hear behind A Brit and a Broad. He used “Uncharted” for the introductory video and a custom track for the Vancouver video.

As kids, story time is naturally one of the best forms of entertainment. We think we’re telling wholesome stories, but as Henry Elliss points out, the true nature of classic fairy tales may teach some undesirable lessons. Goldilocks taught us that it’s okay to break into a home, for example, and Little Red Riding Hood indicates that talking to strangers is perfectly safe, because another random stranger will always save you from harm.

And for a final little piece of entertainment, Christopher Stork travels several years into the future. There, we eavesdrop on a support group for kids of daddy bloggers. I have to admit that I have struggled with how much of Adalynn’s life I want to share online and the idea of having your entire life on the Internet is going to be a real problem for the current generation of children. What’s your take on the matter?