Humans vs. Zombies

It's all the rage these days. At least on college campuses. Humans vs. Zombies is a game played on college campuses around the country. It's basically a complicated version of tag in which "humans" (people wearing orange bandanas) go about the normal daily business trying not to get "shot" (with nurf guns or balled-up socks) by people who have been designated or turned into "zombies." If you haven't read about it or seen it in action, check out the link. You can even watch a documentary about the game.

I think it's quite a clever invention, even if I have on occasional been annoyed/inconvenienced by swarms of orange-bandana-clad, and nurf-gun-toting college kids sprinting across my path to the bus stop. The humans vs. zombies game makes me feel old though. When I first saw "kids" playing this game last year, it really hit me that I am of a different generation than they are. Up until recently, I've felt like I can relate to the students I teach. They're just me, but slightly younger. My brother was in college so I could think of them as being like him. But now my brother is almost out of college, he's 22. He's told me he tried playing Humans vs. Zombies at one point, but thought it was boring. These kids are younger than him. They're kids that were born with iPhones and facebook profiles. Humans vs. Zombies are to them as facebook was to college kids seven years ago: brand new, experimental, and only on college campuses. Now everyone is on facebook. Will everyone be playing Humans vs. Zombies soon?