Oh how I wish I could own a pet, one that I can feed, bathe, play with, take care of. But alas, no matter how many times I pleaded, begged, dropped down to my knees for, I still couldn’t convince my parents to get me one. Yet miraculously, there was a solution to my ever-lasting desire. I still remember the day I saw it. My 7 year old eyes blankly stared at the television screen (I think I was watching SpongeBob Square Pants) until the commercial above popped up. “Tamagotchi! The virtual reality pet!” said the narrator of the commercial. W-W-What!?!?!??! A virtual pet!?!?!?!? My second-grade mind was blown–literally.
I specifically remember spending every penny on that 7.99$ Tamagotchi–even though I probably had bought at least 10 of them. I owned a cat, a dog, a parrot, a duck (I think), a fish, and even a mouse. I cared for each and every one of them as if they lived a regular pet life. As the Tamagotchi industry progressed, more complex programs started to develop. Soon enough I was customizing my own pet house, as well as taking my dogs to the park to play “ball toss”.
After about 2 weeks of feeding, bathing, exercising, and playing with my “pets”, they eventually started to evolve. Since the commercial above did state, “More care determines the pets you get!” I was in over-protective-mommy-mode everyday at school. I fed my Tamagotchis exactly every 5 hours, along with taking it to the bathroom whenever it needed to…However, this did result kind of negatively. During free-time in between my classes, everyone was either playing Pokémon, My Little Pony, Barbie Dolls, or even Polly Pockets. But I was the outlier who played with a bazillion Tamagotchis hooked up to the zippers on her backpack. But no matter what other people thought, I new I had one priority–to take care of my Tamagotchis.
As the years flowed by, I started feeling more apathetic about my love for these Tamagotchis. Eventually all of the pets passed away :(. Yes I was sad but I knew that it had to happen one way or another. They’re all probably stored in a plastic bin, waiting for me to change their batteries. However, no matter what I will always cherish the happy memories I’ve had with my “virtual pets”!