I remember when our oldest son was around 10 years old how much he enjoyed the Choose Your Own adventures series of books.
Here’s a description from Wikipedia:
Choose Your Own Adventure, or Secret Path Books is a series of children’s gamebooks where each story is written from a second-person point of view, with the reader assuming the role of the protagonist and making choices that determine the main character’s actions and the plot’s outcome. Choose Your Own Adventure, as published by Bantam Books, was one of the most popular children’s series during the 1980s and 1990s, selling more than 250 million copies between 1979 and 1998.
While I may have only read one of them just to see what it was like, I always thought it was a clever idea for a book series.
The books came back to me tonight as I was trying to think of something to write about. I had already scanned through The Wall Street Journal, the HuffPost, Seth Godin, and Fred Wilson, to no avail.
Then I went to StudyFinds, and I was overwhelmed with so many appealing topics to select from. So I thought rather than choosing just one that may have the most appeal to me, but not to you (notice how I am writing in the second person).
So I thought I would offer you a choice among a few different options, all of which I found interesting.
- Ditching the Western diet could help you live up to 13 years longer (but the big question is, would you enjoy those extra 13 years living on a non-Western diet)
- 7 Health Benefits From Drinking Coffee Every Day, According To Scientists (and I am guessing that there is probably a study at StudyFinds that offers the 7 negative health benefits of drinking coffee)
- Watching TV, listening to music before bed can actually help you get BETTER sleep (I guess it’s time to crank up the speakers in the bedroom)
- Average person drives around for 9 days with ‘Check Engine’ light on before getting car serviced! (I guess that means there are a couple of people bringing in their car the day that light comes on, to balance out how long I wait.)
- Networking or knowledge? 4 in 5 people say who you know is more important than what you know (and 1 out of 5 people don’t know anyone)
- How kind are you? Average person performs 25,000 thoughtful acts in their life (I’d have to do about 3 such acts every day for the rest of my life to reach this level)
- Most doctors paid by quantity of patients — not quality of care (no wonder they keep finding so many things wrong with me)
- Want to make more money investing in stocks? Don’t listen to the experts, study says! (I guess that means you can listen to me – buy Twitter – lots of it. Full disclosure: I own Twitter stock.)
- Stunning images reveal what happens when you leave the toilet lid up while flushing (I don’t think I want to know)
I hope the adventure you chose was all you hoped it would be 🙂
*image from Suggested Reads
**Volume 1 can be found here
I loved the Choose your Own Adventure books, especially for long road trips.
Nice idea to let us choose, I know one subject that Tippy won’t choose. I think I need to read it so I can be helpful and point out the 7 good reasons to him!
As for the kind deeds, I bet you do a lot more than you realize. How many times in a day do you hold the door open for someone or smile at someone? Wishing someone a good day, “liking” someone’s post. They all add up. 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
I thought of you and Tippy when I saw that coffee one…
and it looks like if I just like about 3 blogs per day for the rest of my life, I should hit that 25,000 number. Nice that I never have to leave my chair…
LikeLiked by 1 person
You are welcome, now you can rest easy knowing you will hit 25,000. 🙂
Though if you would like to live long enough to hit 25,000 I would suggest that you do leave your chair for extended periods.
LikeLiked by 1 person
well I would have to leave my chair occasionally to go to one of my many doctor’s visits, and to get myself a cup of Dunkin…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve heard all the reasons for drinking coffee. They seem more like excuses and snake oil medicine, to me. But go read your book, then bring it on. Yawn.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Ok I will. 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
No, please. You were supposed to say something like, “Never mind,” or “Forget it.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, “never mind’, you mean like that? But I know it will make for interesting reading.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Don’t read it. It’s misinformation.
LikeLiked by 1 person
fake news?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Exactly.
LikeLike
I think like most things, it’s probably ok in moderation…
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s my opinion about cocaine.
LikeLiked by 1 person
and it should be legalized…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I agree. But even if it was, I doubt I’d use it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
no interest on my end either…
LikeLike
Those were great books. Now days kids do that with video games. I made the mistake of clicking the last one just to see if there was something actually linked to it. Toilets are not my favourite subject. I may have to go back and try again.
LikeLike
they were great books. Did the link not work for you, or did you not want to read about toilets? I can certainly see why you would not want to know what is happening whenyou flush a toilet…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh yes the link worked. I just should have made a different choice. I was just testing a link.
LikeLiked by 1 person
thanks; that was not the most pleasant link to click on 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
The average person with a “Check Engine” light probably has to wait 9 days to get an appointment with a mechanic.
LikeLiked by 3 people
and $900 later, the check engine light magically goes away…
LikeLiked by 2 people
It’s amazing what money can buy.
LikeLiked by 1 person
it seems lately that I’m kind of happy any time it’s under $1,000…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Those mechanics charge a heck of a lot. But I guess that helps go toward their future back surgeries and other medical problems such work leads to.
LikeLiked by 1 person
it is tough work, and I am sure it has gotten much more technical over the years…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Way too technical for me. It ain’t like working on cars back in the 70s.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had no clue in the 70s either…
LikeLiked by 1 person
My brother is a great mechanic. Which is something you might not expect from a professional tax preparer. He taught me a lot about working on cars when I was a teenager. But these days about all I can manage is changing the oil, rotating the tires, and changing the wiper blades.
LikeLike
I find these studies amusing. As you pointed out, I’m sure there are benefits and problems with coffee depending on what the testers are trying to prove. I’m sure the same is true for studies about watching television or listening to music before bed.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I guess the truth is somewhere in the middle…
LikeLiked by 1 person
The worst part about waiting nine days to service the car after the “check engine” light comes on is when it goes out on the seventh day, and you don’t know why.
LikeLiked by 2 people
cars are just a big mystery to me, and sometimes a big money pit…
LikeLiked by 1 person
do you want the good news or the bad news first?
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂
LikeLike
p.s. i knew my coffee was a health elixir!
LikeLiked by 1 person
it’s got magical properties!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love it! Did you know there’s a card game based on this series now?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did not know that. seems like it would make for a good card game…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve always been curious about these types of books, though I’ve never tried. Are they seven times the size of a regular one because of all the different paths a reader can choose?
LikeLiked by 1 person
as I vaguely recall, they are not much longer, if at all, than a regular book for the age they are targeting…
LikeLiked by 1 person
But, but, all the possibilities of different adventures!
LikeLiked by 1 person
maybe the plots are just shorter…
LikeLiked by 1 person
The thing that I liked about those books was theat, yes, you could choose a path and follow it, but you also had the ability to look at all of the other options and make an informed choice, or choices. I love your spin on choosing your own adventure and I am looking into adding more nuts to my diet now. I hear it will add 8 more years to my life.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know my son really enjoyed those books.
and it looks like your new diet just gave you eight more yours of traveling the back roads!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha, yes!
LikeLiked by 1 person
👍
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t know any doctors or anyone else in medicine who gets paid by quality of care. There ain’t no such thing as a contingency fee in medicine.
LikeLiked by 1 person
everything has become a business these days, even health care…
LikeLike
I remember the Choose your Own Adventure books for my students. Jim. I live not too far from UC Irvine. They have a research center to study the people who live beyond 90s. Some findings and recommendations are to have “one” cup of coffee a day and occasional wine. I pretty much drink only one cup of coffee a day.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am guessing your students probably enjoyed the Adventure books. And I’m not surprised with those findings; moderation usually seems to be the best option…
LikeLike
My dad always said, “It’s not what you know, but who you know.” And…Wait…there’s a way to get the “Check Engine” light to go off?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Your dad didn’t need any research study to tell him that.
and I kid you not, we brought a car to a mechanic once because the check engine light was on. He solved it by putting a piece of black tape over the light. He became my favorite mechanic…
LikeLiked by 1 person
😂Yes, that’s the kind to keep.
LikeLiked by 1 person
👍
LikeLiked by 1 person
The comment about living longer on a non-Western diet is a bit sweeping given than most third-world countries have a much lower life expectancy than the first world countries. The Central African Republic, Chad, and Lesotho have a life expectancy of under 54 years. I loved Choose your own adventure when I was about 9. I bought some of these books for Greg but he never took to them.
LikeLiked by 1 person
good point about the diet; some peope would love to be able to eat the way we do. I wonder if those adventure books have lost their appeal, given what video games and the internet can offer today…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Maybe, video games have changed everything and the first world children of the world are all being dumbed down at an alarming rate in my loft opinion – wink!
LikeLiked by 1 person
there is that possibility, but I also think that some video games teach useful skills…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Some of them do and I was always strict about which ones my kids played. Some are very mindless though. Everything has its place in life, I just think technology has taken over a bit to much for many kids.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I agree; technology certainly has its role. It can help do many things more efficiently and effectively, but then it is also good at getting us to waste our time…
LikeLiked by 1 person
My kids loved the Choose Your Own Adventure books. I like your choices, Jim. I’m good with most, except changing the western diet to add 13 years. Nope, I’ll give that a pass.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know my oldest son really liked the Choose Your Own… books, but I don’t think our next two children did. I think changing your diet has got to be one of the hardest things for a person to do.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think so, too!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ll try just about anything to get a good nights’ sleep! But I am a true cynic… honestly, I’m thinking I’m the problem lol but I suppose I could click on that article about music and tv before bed helping me sleep better… does YouTube count as TV? Because if so, then no it doesn’t work lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve heard the glow from computer and phone screens often causes sleep problems. I don’t know if the tv is somehow different…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Made me chuckle, Jim. Your options sound more relevant and more interesting….good news about coffee though…am mad for it myself…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was happy to see that the coffee benefits exists even for decaf…
LikeLike
Nice. Lesspresso….
LikeLiked by 1 person
nice – I’ve never heard that expression!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Me neither! Just made it up….
LikeLiked by 1 person
that’s how these expressions get started!
LikeLiked by 1 person
😀
LikeLiked by 1 person