Did Cavemen Play Video Games?

My vacuum cleaner is suicidal. I have tried to work with it, encourage it, I have lightened its workload by having carpeted floors replaced with hardwood. All to no avail. It will seek out the one lethal particle on the rug that is most likely to cause a smoking, buzzing, clattering disaster.

And yesterday, the drug of choice was a very thin wire. The thin wire was attached to the sensor bar of the Nintendo Wii game. The bar's job is to sit near the tv screen and pick up signals from the handheld Wii-Mote unit. When you point the Wii-mote at your tv screen, a little hand or pointer will appear on your screen and this is how you control the games.

Well, when I ran over the nearly invisible wire on the rug that is patterned with palm fronds, an effective camouflage, all hell broke loose. The familiar clattering, the whine, all of those sound effects - plus the added visuals of something flying through the air (the sensor bar) and the crash of the Wii system falling over in a dead faint.

By the time I got the vacuum cleaner shut off and the cord unplugged, the fine wire had wrapped itself around the vacuum's brush several times and wisps of smoke were emitted for several minutes for dramatic effect.

My main concern was for the loss of the sensor bar. Who needs a vacuum cleaner, especially one with serious instability?

When in a crisis, I turn to the internet and it was not five minutes later that I learned how to make my own sensor bar with materials I have right at home! In fact, I will bet you $10 right now, that even if you are very nontechnical YOU, YES YOU, can make your own sensor bar! And one that even works!

Here is how:

1) Find two candles, I like the idea of matching ones for esthetics, and also little short ones are best. Like the votive sized candles.

2) Place them about 6-8 inches apart, somewhere in front of your tv screen. They don't have to be actually blocking the screen, just either on top of your set or if you have a cool thin tv like mine that doesn't have a big clunky top, you can put them right down in front.

3) Light them.

4) Turn on your wii system and point your Wii-mote at the screen.

-----------
I am NOT joking! This truly works. It is amazing. You now have a wireless Wii sensor that you made yourself. Impress all your friends!

You may still not believe me, here is a short video I found:



Enjoy your new sensor bar, so much more attractive than the old version.