For my last birthday, my parents bought me the video interface piece that goes with my system and, let me tell you, it’s a whole other world. It connects to the audio piece and works like a tiny monitor that projects an image through the really cool bug-eye monocle into my eye. It has lots of ‘serious’ applications, but my favorite is to watch ‘Buffy’. When I get the camera piece for my next birthday, I’ll be able to have video chats with my friends while I’m walking down the street - now that would be cool!

My mom has already realized that when the video is on, the lenses become less transparent. That way she knows if I’m really paying attention to her or reading my email. She’s caught on quickly.