Disappointed by McDonald's Monopoly

[S. Newport]

So here I was, eating my Quarter Pounder, not a care in the world and
enjoying a beautiful Saturday.

Slurping away on my Coke, I notice something funny on the cup. Stickers...
what are they doing here? Gently pulling them off, I noticed on the other
side and in bold text the words 'INSTANT WIN!'.

WOW I thought, THIS IS MY LUCKY DAY.

I read on further; 'Free Game Download'.

Oh my God... a FREE game download? I LOVE games. This is seriously the best
day ever, I thought.

Off to the McDonalds website I hurriedly go, input all my details to claim
my prize. I admit, I did have to give them a lot of information, but for a
free game (considering I LOVE games), it was totally going to be worth it.

Finally I get to the point where I input my unique code, and I wait with
anticipation as the page loads. What will my game be? I wondered.

"Congratulations you're a winner of a Free Game Download.

Your prize is a Free Pickle Mania Game download that entitles you to
download the Pickle Mania game at www.picklemania.com.au. "

Picklemania I thought... have not heard of that. Is it like trackmania? Is
it part of the Call of Duty series? I wasn't sure, but I was definitely keen
to give it a go.

Once I got to the website, I started looking for my download. Perhaps I
needed a new account on this site too? Oh well, I input all my details again
and continued to look.

It was at this point, that I realised they were not going to allow me to
download my copy of picklemania for PC. As the realisation sunk in, I admit,
I did start to feel a little let down inside. I had genuinely hoped to be
able to shoot the Hamburgler in my spare time from a PC of my choosing,
whether connected to the internet or not, but alas, the game was actually a
web based game that anyone could play for free.

What had I actually won? 1000 in-game 'coins'. These allowed me to purchase
a new kind of weapon. Perhaps this would assist me to defeat the Hamburgler
and save the day. But alas, that was not the point, I was already defeated,
defeated inside, defeated in my heart... because the game would never really
be 'mine'.

That is my story.

"There's nothing quite like the power and the passion of Broadway music.
Musicals carry us to a different time and place, but in the end, they
also teach us a little bit of something about ourselves. In many ways,
the story of Broadway is also intertwined with the story of America.
Some of the greatest singers and songwriters Broadway has ever known
came to this country on a boat with nothing more than an idea in their
head and a song in their heart. And they succeeded the same way that so
many immigrants have succeeded through talent and hard work and sheer
determination. Over the years, musicals have also been at the forefront
of our social consciousness, challenging stereotypes, shaping our
opinions about race and religion, death and disease, power and politics.
But perhaps the most American part of this truly American art form is
its optimism. Broadway music calls us to see the best in ourselves and
in the world around us."-- President Obama

"Musicals blow the dust off your soul."-- Mel Brooks