Family venues need to be family friendly

Progressive parents, I am writing today from an Incredible Pizza Company. We got some great deals today; I spun their website wheel and received a free buffet and drink, and my husband and daughter both got unlimited attractions (bumper cars, go-karts, golf, etc.) and buffets for about twenty bucks a piece. All in all, not a bad family day out!

Or is it? I must be honest with you here and let you know that I don’t like these types of places. Chuck E Cheese, Dave & Busters—they’re just not for me. I’m not a big game player (unless it’s board games, or old 80s Nintendo, which just dates me even further!), I don’t like crowds or lots of noise (that’s not created by my own family, ha) or really anything that goes with these places. In fact, I had contemplated having them go without me so I could stay home and work, but frankly I’m just tired of staying home. So here we are.

The thing that bothers me the most about places that dub themselves family-friendly, however, are that in many ways, they are not. To me, showing TVs in every dining area you have is not a family-friendly gesture. I get it, we do it sometimes ourselves, so it’s not the worst—but it’s on the list. Shooting games are also on the list; I don’t think games that show you shooting anyone—from people to animals to anything in between—are good for children, either. Teens, eh, maybe; adults, absolutely. But not children.

When we got here, there was also a television program on where a man had a knife to a woman’s neck. It was some kind of so-called wholesome 70s program and I was appalled, so I turned it off. There was no other family in our room—we chose the quiet room—but an attendant came back in and turned in on again anyway. So we had the choice between leaving our spot, which I like, and watching this violence against women on TV. Seriously?

Indy gathered Wood Sprite up and took her to play, so all is well now, but it still leaves me very uncomfortable knowing that this is considered a “family-friendly” program.

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