We’ve had a bit of weather lately, and the sub-50 degree temperatures have weighed heavy on my soul. The gray days dropped me deep into a funk that started over two weeks ago. Hopefully, sharing my private pain will be cathartic.

Deep cleansing breath. Okay. The Nintendo Wii game console was recently released, and I want one. I might need it to sustain life, like a dialysis machine, but cuter. I have a Wii-shaped hole in my heart.

Last year, we (the ubiquitous, geek/technology-site surfing we) started to hear about a new game console from the fine folks that brought us Donkey Kong and Mario. The console, code-named Revolution, was going to make our lives better through a number of secret technologies that were recovered from the UFOs in Roswell.

I thought Revolution was a kick arse name and the “revolution”-ary new gizmo for this console was motion-sensing controllers. So, fer instance, if playing a game that required a sword, you could hold the game controller as a sword and the box would automagically translate your movements to the game. Golf? Ditto. Boxing? Punch toward the screen. You get the idea.

Viral videos started appearing of people looking like goonies waving their arms around in the air. It warmed the cockles of my heart. I was starting to get excited. Keep in mind, I am not a gamer. The game consoles that we have in the house include an Atari 2600 and a GameCube.

A few months before launch, the “official” name was released. Wii (pronounced we). Not nearly as cool as “Revolution”, but they already had hooked me. I needed a Wii.

So, I went to my local game shoppe and pre-ordered in October. I like spending money with local mom-n-pop type stores. Generally, the service is better, and really, does WalMart really need more money? They already own Arkansas -- and cornered the lucrative corncob pipe industry by developing a tooth-optional model. But I digress.

So, like a slightly pathetic mid-30’s guy, I counted the days till the launch date in mid-November. Then, right before launch, I discovered a cold, hard fact in the game business. Mom-n-pop type stores fall on the low end of the distribution chain, barely above rabbit turds. The Circuit City, Game Stop, WalMart, and ToysRUs in my area each received between 25-100 Wii’s on launch day. My store?

Oh yeah, they got one. O-N-E. Uno. Now serving #1. Please take a number. My number? #3. So, it’s been three weeks since launch. My game store has not received any more.

So, I wait. It doesn’t matter that over 1,000,000 Wii consoles have been sold, and I paid for mine two months ago. I'm getting boned by my penchant for not supporting big box stores.

The Nintendo gods hate mii.

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