PSA: When all you see around you is doom and disaster - try roller skating. Seriously.

I'm a doomer, a HUGE cynic ... life gets me really down sometimes, and I imagine many of you are the same.

I'm a mom, too, and I can't wallow for long. But a lot of kids' stuff makes me want to tear my hair out or scream.

So, in an effort to get my kids to bun off the energy that is driving us all a little crazy, I started taking them roller skating. It's strangely therapeutic, and I'm finding myself taking them to the skating rink every chance I get.

Our rink is straight out of 1985, and it's fabulous, so I get the benefit of nostalgia.

It's pretty cheap - it's between 7 and 9 dollars each for hours of skating and skate rental. Refreshments are not too pricey, either and sometimes they have all you can eat pizza included.

The music makes it happy. And the old Galaga game is fun.

I've been taking mine and my neice aged 3, 5, and 8 and it's the most fun I've ever had, and probably the most fun they've ever had. The smaller they are, the easier it is for them when they learn. the thing is they have to keep getting up when they fall in order to have fun - and they do. Everyone leaves happy, sore and exhausted.

Cheap
Fun
Music
Exercise

So if there are any other parents like me out there who really can't stomach a lot of kids' stuff, try roller skating with them at an old-school rink. It would be good for anyone - not just parents. It will make you feel good.