Morrisons are weird about our electronic toys. My late arrival into the world of modern electronics (I was the last person in my geek peer group to own all of the following things: a dvd player, a cell phone, a palm pilot, a PC, DSL, an MP3 Player and a digital camera) comes naturally. Witness my father, who called me last night to revel in his latest acquisition: A 51″ television with Bose Surround Home Theater and CD/DVD player.

I have a DVD that I’ve been holding hostage from my father. We’ve been nagging him to buy a player for three years, stooping so low as to taunt him with one of his favorite musical performances of all time and to refuse to buy him VHS tapes. He wouldn’t invest. Why? Because he was heart-set on getting a home theater system and was unwilling to purchase so much as a cord of equipment without buying the entire system of his dreams.

This is where I get it. This is why I resist buying new electronics. I never just want one piece of the puzzle. I want the whole thing put together, sprayed with adhesive and mounted on the wall. And really, every new toy I’ve gotten in the last few years has been gifted to me. Left to my own devices I likely wouldn’t have gotten a Palm yet. I’m enjoying it, yes, but now I want the Treo that Christopher just got. See. We’re all crazy.

But check out how long my father has waited for this dream system. The new television replaces a 15 year-old console set. The stereo? Circa 1984. Both were in their death rages. Try watching an episode of Angel on a television with a dying picture tube. The whole show is filmed in the dark 70% of the time.

My folks deserve this new toy and I am now thrilled at the new options for Christmas and birthday presents. I am also looking more forward than usual to our next trip home so that we can watch our sci-fi flicks on this uber t.v. My father’s only concern about the system–they now have three remotes. HA!