Money seems to rear it's head in practically all we do these days. If you google "money songs" you will come up with multiple money song lists. It is interesting to see the songs that make multiple entries. But does it really need too? Every day we get national news on the deficit, the weak dollar, money we owe China and so on and so forth. To have even the most basic things we need it usually takes money to get them. Some forms of bartering goods and services have taken hold but for the most part the a bank of some sort wants money for a mortgage, or a land lord wants rent. For food even if we have a garden - it only produces a certain portion of the year. And to have that garden you need the land, water - which usually you pay a city or other government agency money for. You need to buy seeds or plants at some point. It just goes on.
But what about our "down time", leisure, recreation - do these things have to cost us money. There are some that don't. We can go outside and play with our kids and dogs, take a walk, enjoy the snow or the sunshine. Many things. Of course we also can choose activities that will cost us money. But what really bugs me is when things that don't have to be about money - become that way.
I used to play a game on Facebook called Farm Town. I still have my 3 farms, I named them Shalom Acres, Midsummer's Naucht, and Hidden Lake. I carefully bought things that I liked, placed flowers and trees on them. I tried not to cram fruit trees too close together - I wanted some similarity to reality. When I was first playing you coulse send gifts to your farmer friends - you would select a gift and they would send ones to you. Now you could sell it if you didn't need it - but it wasn't just something to add to your riches. But apparently I missed the point of the game. The creators have continued to add new levels, things to buy, gifts can now be "exchanged" , you have to have the big farm vehicles so you can harvest your and others crops in just a few clicks, and it's all about money. You go to someones farm and it's just a big page of crops. There is no thought or character. I find this sad. I may go back but for now my fields sit fallow.
So should everything be about the money? I certainly hope not. I have some more thoughts on this but will leave it here for now.
