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Friday, July 2, 2004 12:17:24p: *
So I'll be taking a break from FFXI for a while and playing City of Heroes. I'm Asplodaman on Virtue server... and I have a bit of bad lag in crowded areas, but it's nothing I can't live with. For now, however... YOUR HEAD ASPLODE!Tuesday, July 6, 2004 9:21:04a: *
Good morning, folks. I probably should have started this post a while back, but eh, things happen. Anyway, let's get right into the groove...
First, and most important for TFO.net regulars, Otakon info. For anyone who's not a part of the forums already, this is probably meaningless, but for those who are joining us in Baltimore (without having been to TFO.net before) this could be a lifesaver. Oh yeah, just a couple notes on that-- I can't find the $#@~! RF adapter. I thought I had one, but as it turns out, no, I don't. I'll probably go to the store sometime these next few days and pick up a cheap universal adapter. Also, don't feel too bad about me bringing "too much stuff"-- I have a car, that's what it's for. ^_^
Continuing on the anime thread, Scrapped Princess was licensed by Bandai just recently. Good stuff; I encourage you to check it out, as I'll be picking it up once the dub hits. Bear this in mind, however-- Crispin Freeman is slated to direct the dub, so it will be decent, if not outright excellent. Alex (Erie Alex, of the Light Side; i.e. not Evil Alex) wished for Mr. Freeman to be cast as Shannon; I have to differ, thinking that maybe Spike Spencer would be better as Pacifica's brother-- save Mr. Freeman for someone like Leo or Chris, where he can really shine. If Karen Smith gets cast as Raquelle, that would be good, too.
Enough anime, for now-- let's talk games. I'm really looking forward to Xenosaga Ep. 2, despite the radical change in art style. Change is good. (While at home, I was going through my books, and managed to rescue my Art of Xenosaga book from near-certain doom due to water damage. The two books beneath it did not fare as well...) I'm sure that XS2 will be worth the price of admission, just as the last one was, but I just hope that Monolith and Namco decide to take it on a more traditional RPG path rather than eschewing some of the things that made Xenogears so compelling. Change is good, but alienating your fanbase is bad.
Speaking of compelling, City of Heroes kept me in thrall for about five hours yesterday. I have to say, the game does a better job of balancing combat than FFXI does-- of course, it could be merely a difference in paradigms. In FFXI you are an adventurer in a strange world, weak and alone; you must band together for survival. In COH you are a badass with superpowers, looking to clean up the city of evildoers. In FFXI if you get attacked by more than one creature of the same level as you, you're screwed. In COH if you get ganged up on by thugs-- even thugs at a level equivalent to you-- you may have a tough time but you'll still win. The two games take two very different attitudes towards their players' characters, and it's very evident. That said, I still intend to split time between both worlds-- I will be damned if I'm going to quit FFXI before getting to ride a chocobo. To think, I went into Target to get La Pucelle Tactics, and came out with CoH... well, I've routinely made poor decisions in the past, so this is really no biggie.
Tales of Symphonia is released next week-- an RPG on the Cube that a) isn't a port and b) probably won't suck. Caution should be exercised here, as I said the same about FF: Crystal Chronicles, and do I still have that? Though I do have my hands somewhat full with FFXI and COH, not to mention I still haven't touched X-2 since Pez returned it-- and reading through the legendary Tale of Kain Aron Highwind has made me greatly desire a trip through FFIV again-- Symphonia might actually garner a spot on my shelf if the post-release reviews are good enough.
Also hitting next week is Karaoke Revolution volume 2. I'm not thrilled, simply because I know what karaoke means, and I also know that I cannot sing without LOTS of practice. (Let's put it this way-- when I was in my high school musical, I wasn't on-pitch during any of the songs until three days before the performance.) However, the song selection seems to be really interesting-- lots of old and new int here. Konami, get your asses in gear, release a songlist for DDR Extreme, and then get to work on a US version of Beatmania IIDX or Pop'n Music.
That's about it, folks. More news as it comes.Thursday, July 8, 2004 4:22:07p: *
There are days when I wonder, just what the hell is wrong with me?
I don't want to start out with something so blatantly whiny, but it does have its roots in a legitimate concern. Given the fact that a romantic relationship of mine was recently and ungraciously terminated this past week, I've been thinking quite a bit about how I really haven't had much luck out in the world of the ladies. And unfortunately, it's a situation which gets worse with every passing day.
So there're a few things which make me think that the problem isn't entirely external. First, everybody else has found a romantic partner. Well, nearly everybody. Any and all women around me are attached, to some other guy. Typically this other guy is a big doofus, terminally huge, or otherwise out of my league. I don't begrudge them that-- I always want my friends and the people I know to find happiness with whoever they want-- but it's a little disheartening. Plus, well, there are probably factors I don't know about, so it's not like I can really judge.
Second, if I do meet a girl who's unattached, she's totally uninterested. I flirt a lot. I'm talking about casual remarks to cashiers, to people who are just walking by... pretty much anyone. I try very hard not to use cheesy lines, and still if someone does react favorably she's either got her kid in tow or is a good thirty years older than me (which means that the person I intended to charm wasn't paying any attention-- in other words, "John attempts Flirt on Cute Cashier, but misses! John has inflicted Charm on Skanky Ho-Bag. Skanky Ho-Bag is following John!" etc.).
Finally, if I find someone amazingly attractive, with no other friends in her company, no ring on her finger, and wearing a skirt or other flattering outfit... I am reduced from tactful eloquence to a gibbering idiot. "Miss, I find your manner of dress very enchanting. May I take you to the ice-cream vendor, and treat you to a cone?" becomes "Um... uh... I'm staring 'cause you're hot." when spoken in that condition. As a result, I freeze up and don't say anything.
For a healthy guy of 24, this is something that should not be. I've spent the better part of two and a half decades cramming my brain full of computer info, useless trivia, and assorted random humor; and I can't even talk to a girl!
So you see my frustration. It's so much easier when communication isn't spoken-- when it's written, as in "internet". However, you get into some REALLY weird situations there. How many times has Miss Right turned out to be Mr. Man? Yeah. Imagine if I wound up spending the better part of my time falling in love with SusieCutie3253 only to find out "she's" actually BubbaBigLuv8459? Or worse yet, she used to be BubbaBigLuv8459 before the operation? No thank you.
It's really not a good position for me to be in right now. But then I think back to the end of freshman year, when for whatever reason I was infatuated with the Queen song "Somebody To Love". I think maybe a part of me has always wanted that kind of an attachment. Wait, scratch that-- I know for certain that some part of me has always wanted a girl. The problem could be that I've set my sights either too high, or maybe that I don't have enough self-confidence. Or it could be something else. I have no real idea why, but thinking about it just terrifies me so much for a reason I can't explain.
I'm a perfectionist, and I'm also extremely aware of it. Which means that I'm aware of my own faults to such an acute degree that sometimes, I forget that other people have the ability to look past them, even if I can't. So subconsciously, I suppose I keep sabotaging myself because I feel I'm not good enough. Humility's a good virtue to have, no doubt about that, but there also has to be a limit. There's a point where you cross over from humility to self-abuse (and not that kind of self-abuse), and it's a very thin line sometimes. Sometimes it's too thin to see; other times it's only visible from the wrong side, where it becomes a wall.
Holy #$@%, this turned out a lot whinier and angstier than I anticipated.
By now I'm sure you've had the chance to read my grand finale, "If God Will Send His Angels", over at RPGamer. Thanks to Joel, first, for posting it-- I'm a bit flattered that I managed to dominate the update by myself, but all things happen as fate wills them.
Anyway, as is customary when I garner attention from a site, I figure a quick tour of what is affectionately known as TFO.net is in order. First, I'd like to call attention to the Dynamic Toys section, which houses the PHP insanity I've created as well as other things-- such as the Weapon of CX video (which is probably only funny if you a) know me, b) went to Gannon University, or c) revere Spike Jonze, Christopher Walken, Fatboy Slim, or Mac Hall).
The Anime and Video Game sections are woefully out-of-date, as I haven't had anything really interesting to contribute to them lately. The same goes for the D20 section, but that's out of laziness-- a campaign is in progress, but what with writing, reading, and work, I haven't bothered to add the information. The webcam was just a bad idea. Let's not speak of that again.
Everything you probably didn't want to know about me is listed on the About page. And the Past Blog pages are pretty self-explanatory. I also have a very large collection of Links, which expands as needs dictate; and probably the liveliest section of the site, the Forums.
Please enjoy your stay, and let me know what you thought of the story!
Oh yeah, one last thing-- are any other Firefox users having problems viewing RPGamer?Saturday, July 10, 2004 3:36:23p: *
OK, couple things to note. Anti-leeching code is now in effect-- this ought to drop the amount of bandwidth used per month by quite a bit, as I'd seen A LOT of livejournal and xanga sites chewing through my site. Sadly, this also means that there might be a drop in traffic from google image searches... ah well. Oh yeah, avatar links still work, for those of you who wished to use avatars linked to from my site.
Secondly, see the "John's Condition" note over there? It replaces the poll. It's also editable from my cell phone. Nifty, huh? It's the first in a few experiments I've run in mobile-phone accessibility. A few more tricks like that and I might be a real revolutionary... nah.
Finally, an Englishman sent me an e-mail which was verbose, eloquent, and polite. This e-mail was one of those things where you can tell the writer is a Brit; very proper, unfailingly precise, and totally perfect. If I, as an American, were to attempt a response to it in a like fashion, the resultant mangle of words would be a shame to both our nations. So, instead, I'll craft my response as American as I can make it: "Get your butt in here, Kain. We miss you."Tuesday, July 13, 2004 3:33:10p: *
All right, I realize it's been a while, but let's take care of a few bits of business. Otakon planning is on track, both on my end and with regards to group accumulation. We're just about two weeks away from the con, and so far no major disasters have presented themselves. Well, none that we can't handle, anyway. I'm unable to give you a solid itinerary as to what I, or any of the other folks around me, will be doing... but I can say this, I won't waste time updating the page while I'm at the con. I'll have the laptop, yes, and I'll have brought the appropriate equipment... but sadly it won't be used to provide "from the floor" coverage because, quite simply, everyone who reads the site will be there with me already. I fully intend to have a final writeup after all is said and done, but from July 30 to August 2-- or later-- there won't be any updates. Bear this in mind.
Also of note is the fact that, this year, I don't have any surprises lying in wait at my place of employment... so I'll actually be able to relax and enjoy my well-earned vacation. As a result, I'll have plenty of opportunity to prepare ahead of time, and also to recuperate afterwards. My route takes me right past Sharon-- where, coincidentally, my grandmother lives-- so I'll probably stay there Sunday and Monday nights. I'll have to negotiate with the folks-- hey, they may want to swing by too-- but for the foreseeable future it'll be me and my Gram.
The fact that there's a 6th Mix DDR machine at the Lube in Sharon doesn't hurt my chances of stoppin' by much, either... plus, well, I do have a key, so I can let myself in.
Anyway, game news... I've been seriously repressing myself in terms of games of late in order to maintain a semblance of a budget for Otakon. The return of the Mack Kain has prompted a re-run through my aging copy of FF2 US, as well as an interest in picking up the version of FF4 included in Final Fantasy Chronicles (along with the lackluster port of Chrono Trigger which will serve no purpose except to lend to Pez-- or smack him upside the head with 'till he plays it). The reason I'm even considering buying that particular pairing of games I already own is the fact that FF2 US is retarded easy. Maybe it didn't seem that way back in the day, when every cliche in the game wasn't yet any cliche in the book (or for that matter back before the proverbial book existed), but playing through now I found myself blazing past enemies without so much as a glimpse backwards. I'm just about to face off against Rubicante and so far the only time I've had to repeat a boss battle was because the power went out immediately after the Calbrena battle. (By the way, I thought it was really telling of how massively overleveled I was when I managed to beat all the Cal and Brena enemies before they could fuse into the Calbrena boss. I think I also screwed up continuity one other way, beating the snot out of Dr. Lugae before Balnab could transform. Of course, I paid for that one, too, 'cause the resulting explosion took out Cecil...) In total I don't think I've ended a battle with a dead character more than about six times; so maybe once I finish this one I'll think about re-starting Mario RPG or Breath of Fire 3.
I had a story accepted at Slashdot about gay themes in games-- I don't think I had originally worded the title that way, but I thank Simoniker for fixing whatever egregious sin against political correctness I had made. I had actually debated submitting the story at all, but eh, it was a GameSpotting article and it was going to wind up there anyway. There's something there now about an obscure East German game called Schiessbude ("Shooting Booth") which is spelled unfortunately close to Scheissbude ("Booth of..." um... poo). What I will probably never understand for as long as I live is what posessed the German people to decide to separate normal words from really really icky ones with only a minor spelling variation which the rest of the world doesn't use and automatically assumes is used in all words in the German language. So if there's one thing I can infer from this, it's that little German kids pick up good spelling and pronunciation really fast after the fourth time they have their mouths washed out with soap.
The umlaut thing is also an anomaly worth studying, but I think that's really specific to Nordic languages anyway. It's weird, though-- if I hadn't become enamored with computers and games, I probably would have pursued an English or linguistics degree. I love studying languages, codes, lexicons, and etymology... so maybe with the decryption angle, computer science and some mathematics was a good field for me to go into. Don't ask me how to write a decryption program, I never took it to that much of an extreme; but I'm actually fairly decent at cryptograms and other word puzzles. Of course, I think a lot of that has to do with me "cracking" ROT-13 before realizing what ROT-13 stood for, turning bright red, and never thinking of it again.
Much to do today. First, DDR. Then, groceries. Then, laundry. Then... well, by then I'll probably be comatose. Speaking of comatose... actually, I may just have a surprise for you folks lined up for the last quarter here. We'll see, depending on how much activity the site sees.Wednesday, July 14, 2004 10:16:36p: * TFO.net Presents: A Windows XP Haiku
SP 2 Beta! Your scent is as a fall dorm: Like burning dog crap.
Thank you.Thursday, July 15, 2004 2:21:39p: *
Just when you thought it was safe to check referral logs, comes the return of Disturbing Search String Theater. In case you're just joining our show, this is where we go through the site's history and pick out particularly suspect phrases which, once entered into a search engine, brought at least ONE person to TFO.net. This installment's meditation on "who comes up with this stuff?" is:
lets talk about death baby the song
Thank you. We hope to be able to bring you more Disturbing Search String Theater in the future, especially now that we've figured out how to find the really weird ones (it just took a little diligence that, frankly, I hadn't wanted to spend the effort for until now).Friday, July 16, 2004 11:00:43a: *
I'm not one to get too political in public, but I just have to make mention of this.
In the past four months, the United States has tracked down Bobby Fischer and the guy who leaked the Half-Life 2 source. Of course, this has all happened while we were looking for Jimmy Hoffa, Osama bin Laden, The Man Who Put The Bomp In The Bomp-She-Bomp-Shebomp, and other nefarious evildoers.
This just goes to prove what you can find when you're not looking for it.
I think the U.S. should call off all their searches and stare at Canada for a while. If we do that, Osama, Jimmy, and Mr. Rama-Lama-Ding-Dong will probably turn themselves in.Monday, July 19, 2004 9:16:31p: *
I just noticed a strange element on a frozen Swedish meatball dinner I was cooking this evening. Under the "Nutrition Facts" label, it lists the following:
Serving Size: 1 Meal
Having previously believed the serving size to be defined as the amount of food you would eat at a single meal, I found this to be somewhat redundant.
...but the meatballs are really, really good. Monday, July 19, 2004 10:04:00p: * This post is late and disjointed because I spent nine hours writing it, and forgot about it for five more after that. Mea culpa.
OK, so blogger can no longer be accessed at work. That's OK, there're other ways for me to update. Worst comes to worst, I'll have to just type it out here and save it 'till I get home. Fair enough, I guess-- I did it on the old Open Diary, I can do it again here. Besides, it's not like I'm supposed to be working or anything.
Oh, hey, someone linked to me! Twice, no less! I appreciate the attention, to be sure, but just one quick question-- do I know you, dude? "Raygeta" sounds familiar to me, for some reason; just one of those things that you know you should know, and you think you know, but you know that even though you think you should know that you know, you just don't know... you know? As a side note, "anime love" is the single highest-ranked search string to lead people to my site. "love anime" is second, but it has only one-third of the hits that "anime love" does. Weird, no?
Otakon preparations are still proceeding as best as can be expected, on my end at least. We've hit some snags in the logistics of getting everyone out of the airport in a timely fashion, but I think we'll be able to hammer something out. On a completely unrelated note, here is a list of words and phrases you probably do not want to use in or near an airplane: Hammer, hack, drill, bang, "funny noise", grind, terminal, knife, "bladed weaponry", communist, Republican, Democrat, "I'm a uniter, not a divider", dead, crush, kill, destroy, maim, "What? I can't hear you, talk louder into your cell phone, like this", dismember, blood, heaven, hell, glory, sacrifice, and "moist towelette". Thank you.
Speaking of snags, two of the surprises I'm working on probably won't be ready for a little bit... I need more time to practice, and also more time to actually get through some of the coding for the other project.
And moving right along, I suppose I ought to bring this up. I want to make an online game. Period. That was one of my major resolutions for 2004 and to this point I have done very little to keep it beyond developing DEPTH and a couple other of the Dynamic Toys. I'll be opening up a new site upon my return from Otakon, and from there I'll begin development on the game. It will be an online role-playing game, similar in play style to "Legend of the Red Dragon" or any of the old BBS Door games that old people like me used to play, but using an original fantasy/sci-fi setting I've been developing for about three years. Hopefully I'll be able to get a functioning beta together before the end of the year-- you guys will actually be able to see the game come together.
Kirsten Dunst is whining about Spider-Man. First, she wanted to kill him; now she says he objectifies women, specifically her. How much do you want to bet that little Ms. Dunst will no longer be Mary Jane Watson for Spidey 3? Awwww, poor girl, she basically got re-hired to sit there and be Doc Ock bait and she has the gall to whine about it? I didn't particularly like her before, and I can understand her claim that maybe her digital representation might be a little, ahem, over the top... but you do not bad-mouth the movie that is currently raking in money for you while it is still in theaters. Hell, ideally it's not a good idea to complain about it until your tell-all unauthorized autobiography comes out when you're old, saggy, and almost forgotten. And even then it might be considered a little gauche.
Sharon Stone, who is recovering from brain cancer (and I wish I was joking about that-- despite the forthcoming punchline, I do wish her a swift and full recovery), said "I?m into Happy Town, and if you don?t want to live in Happy Town, move, hit the friggin? bricks, baby." Seriously. That's not the punchline. She really said that. Which makes me wonder, just what do they put into the water in Happy Town, Ms. Stone? (That was the punchline.) Ain't It Cool News, who have long been a paragon of dutiful and accurate Hollywood reporting, are now saying that Jack Black will play the Green Lantern. WTF? That's a bit of a disparity there. Like trying to get Winona Ryder to play Juggernaut. (Though I would not mind seeing that, as long as they adapt the costume to her and not her to the costume.) Finally, John Travolta is going to write a book about Scientology his life. His alien overlords publicist has said that it's unclear whether or not he'll address the chocolate sauce and whipped cream incident with Mena Suvari tabloid issues which constantly encircle him, and that we should not be surprised if he talks a bit about his belief in Catholicism, his birth-faith Scientology, his chosen calling. (By the way, thanks to MSNBC for the news.)
Hey, check it-- Halo 2's trailer will be shown in theaters. I'm not suprised-- they advertise just about every other damn thing before movies these days. I'll admit that I liked Halo-- I mean, come on, just look at the fawning quick blurb I wrote for it in the game section-- but the single-player torment campaign got old fast. The lack of Live support made it one of the key reasons I ditched the Xbox in the end. Ah well... anyway, Gamepsot's also mentioning that Advent Rising has been pushed back to 2005. Not like I could have played it this year anyway, seeing how as right now it's Xbox exclusive, but it is kind of depressing seeing how as I've been psyched for it since its 2002 announcement. I mean, it's Orson Scott Card. New OSC is always good. (As long as it's not the Maker series... never got into that. And "Treasure Box" was kind of iffy. But Bean's cool.) Oh yeah, apparently there is indeed a Devil May Cry 3 in the works. Hopefully Capcom's worked out the bugs in this one. The bugs from the first game, that is; the ones that they chose to market as "new, exciting features!" in DMC2. Wednesday, July 21, 2004 6:44:56a: *
OK, folks, two things of note here. First is the latest Real Life, which prompted a totally spontaneous evil laugh; and the second is a t-shirt found at Hyperion Press (found, of course, through VG Cats'sstore page). Very thrilled about both things-- the comic just because it's happened, and the shirt because I know eventually someone will embarrass themselves on a stage I have rocked, and someone will have to lay down the law; that someone probably is not me, but I sure as hell can try.
Hit level 9 in City of Heroes last night, working with Oksah and Zak'nafein. I'm sure you can guess their secret identities, but the strangest thing was among them I was the highest-leveled character. I was blowing stuff up left and right, and come to think of it I don't think I ever really took too many hits... ah well, laying the smackdown on four level 8 bosses in a row was a real boost to the ol' ego.Thursday, July 22, 2004 10:50:54p: *
Hey folks. Couple things to note: First, anyone catch this little gem? Yeah, apparently now Vincent's going to be the next star in the Square-Enix cash-in Final Fantasy VII Compilation project. With all due respect to the memory of Kao Megura, we knew this would happen someday. It was foretold by Sakaguchi.
Speaking of whom... he's not in S-E's thrall anymore either. His new studio is called Mist Walker, after the fact that it would be easier to walk through a field full of mist than try to secure venture capital for this endeavor. I'm not of the opinion that Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within was a "disaster", as my esteemed place of work has seen fit to denounce it, but in all honesty it wasn't that hot, either. If we had had him out of there after FFIX I would have been happy. In any event, now that he's freed from the burden of the FF series, I sincerely wonder just what he'll do next.
Hey, more gaming news: Star Fox is reportedly on track for a December release in Japan. I'm not sure what that means, if anything, for the U.S. release date-- ideally it would be a simultaneous launch, as Namco and Nintendo certainly have the resources to pull off such a stunt. And by "pull off a stunt" I mean "keep the god-damned promise you made earlier that the new Star Fox that you said wouldn't suck would be out before the heat-death of the universe". Based on Gamespot's preview of the game, which I thought was a little harsh, I suppose I can tolerate a delay if you're using the time to revise the non-arwing gameplay. But it better be worth it. This had better be the Halo 2-killer. I mean it. Let me down with two bad Star Fox games in a row after killing off any interest I ever had in a 3D Zelda, and I might not be able to forgive you, Nintendo. I really mean it this time.
I'm not excited by the announcement of Shin Megami Tensei Online: Imagine-- seems like a quick cash-in based on the success of FFXI, and I really doubt it'll hit the U.S. anyway. I'm not surprised by the fact that EA is stealing making a shitload of cash by squeezing the last gasps of life from the sports game market. I'm not impressed that Gamespy had a list of bad comic-book games and completely failed to mention Silver Surfer, Spawn: In the Demon's Hand, or any of the REALLY old Marvel games from the early days of the PC/Commodore 64. And I'm not too upset that Doom 3 will be totally unplayable on any computer that I own right now, nor will I be able to upgrade as my main machine's motherboard just hasn't got the proverbial clocks (I'm an Unreal guy myself, and UT2K4 runs just fine, thankyouverymuch-- though I have to admit to recently re-playing through the original Doom thanks to Doomsday. All I want to do now, actually, is hunt down a copy of the Quake Trilogy, and add that to the pile of "stuff to go through someday".
Finally (and it's kind of interesting that I mention this now, so soon after mentioning Quake), did you know that Trent Reznor was born in Mercer, PA? It's true. His birth certificate is probably about four filing cabinets over from mine, I'll bet. Mr. Reznor has reportedly been a sufferer of depression for quite some time; if he grew up in Mercer, then I can totally sympathize. Life in the Valley wasn't easy-- especially 'cause about the time he'd be ready to work, all the big industry in that area was shutting down-- GATX, Sharon Steel, and Westinghouse all closed their doors between '80 and '85. Ah well, at least NIN and Quaker Steak came out of it all, so I guess it can't be that bad. Lookin' forward to the new album, too. Chin up, Trent, and take Tori's advice. Believe me, it works.
For comparison, the other objects in the photo are a 6.6 floz. bottle of Ramune soda (empty), and a common AA battery. In its defense, it's only 64 ounces of soda, but it looks a hell of a lot bigger.
I'd be getting one of these for the trip Friday morning except a) I don't want to have to sit with that nestled in my crotch for four hours as water condenses on the outside, leaving me with the appearance of incontinence by the time I hit the Maryland border; and b) the Delta Sonic where they're sold doesn't open 'till 6a and I need to be out of Erie by 5a.Friday, July 30, 2004 3:15:41a: *
Before you ask, no, it was not my intention to be up at 3 in the morning. My alarm was set for 3:45.
Let's get right down to it, folks-- I'm off to Otakon. I'm almost certain that you guys are getting absolutely sick of hearing me talk about it-- especially those of you who almost went but couldn't. For that, I'm sorry, and I'm also sorry for the next two weeks that I'll still be talking about it. But after that, no more. Really. I promise.*
(*Promise may not be available in your area, please check your local supermarket)
So that's why I'm up-- that and my stupid, stupid self thinking it would be a good idea to a) rearrange the furniture in my bedroom yesterday and b) try to sleep on the futon when it wasn't folded down. As a result, at 2:30 I awoke with a lovely batch of PAIN as the blood returned to my right arm. Oh well-- nothing liberal amounts of caffeine and driving won't fix!
There's also something else kind of nagging at me, but I'll deal with that in Inner Circle. No point in advertising it to the world.
Totally by chance yesterday during my travels I came across a classmate from my high school days. She's doing fine-- got married, has a good job. It did, however, make me kind of curious to know about two other ladies with whom I associated "back in the day". Not really worth talking about here. Though Amanda, Laura? If either of you come across this site (maybe after ripping through the Cuba-Rushford yearbook and googling all the names), please drop me a line, mmmkay? I'm worried about you.
Also in my travels I found my old copy of Deus Ex. I fondly remember the wholesome goodness that was that game, and started a new game after installing it on the laptop. Took a few moments to configure the controls, but it runs like a total dream-- better than it ever did on the crappy old machine. Even with the GeForce2. Oh yeah, and I picked up Quake 2, but that doesn't seem to play well with Windows XP. I'll have to tinker with some settings after I get back.
It was actually a choice between DX/Q2 or Star Wars: Jedi Academy. Quite frankly, I'm probably looking to get that later on, if only because I know the Cardboard Tube Samurai mod will be available for it. More than that, however, Jim-Bob (praise to him!) played through it in the long long ago, the before-time, when laptops still roamed the call center; and it's because I saw a lot of what the game had to offer (OK, let's be honest here: I saw a lot of what the Dark Side had to offer) that I'm hesitant to go through it again. It looks like it would be hellaciously fun to blaze through a sea of stormtroopers, swinging the lightsaber to and fro, like a giant death-rave glow-stick from hell; I just have a full plate right now.
Speaking of full plates, La Pucelle Tactics certainly is a tasty morsel. I realize I'm about a month late and several sexual innuendo behind in this assessment; moreover I have as of yet failed to successfully make a French joke about the title. I am shamed as a gamer. Despite my now-mandatory ritual suicide, please enjoy the game.
It's paragraphs like that one which remind me why I don't write at 3 in the morning anymore.Friday, July 30, 2004 3:41:16a: *
All right, then. I've procrastinated long enough. Let me detail a few last bits of business, and we'll be off on the magical journey:
No Updates From The Con: As stated before, I won't be taking time out from the blitzkrieg of Japanese culture (wait, that doesn't even make any sense) that is Otakon to update the site. Given that I rarely get to see some of you folks except through the site, it seems kind of self-defeatist to ignore your real-world avatars in favor of folks who may or may not exist, as I have never actually seen them. Like you, Pez. Who's to say you're not some kind of Tyler Durden-esque figment of my imagination, aside from six years of records, the conversation with Alison backing up your story, and the fact that we have been observed to have been in the same public place together at the same time? Bah, lies, all easily fabricated. In any event, TFO.net Updates Will Resume August 4th At The Latest.
Photos and Con Report On Return: As I have a digital camera now, I don't need to wait to find out that I'm a lousy photographer. More than that I don't have to worry about wasting film or being desperate for a photo op so I can change the roll before the next event. YAYZ0RZ I'll probably be writing the con report in the wee hours of the morning, when everyone else is still asleep-- either that or I'll do it when I hit Sharon again, depending on my exhaustion level. That's why the con report will take so long to actually show up on the site-- I'm taking a brief layover at my grandmother's house on the way back. It's really only an hour away from home, but if that's an hour where I don't have to be on the road in a strung-out blaze of pain and sleepiness before I hit a bed that is mine, then it will be worth every second. And continung with the selfish theme, I'll be stopping for Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips, the Greatest God Damned Fast Food EVER.
Ahem. Moving on...
AMV Of The Month Issues: I never got to talk about July's AMV. For that, I feel a little bad. However, there was a technical snafu with the site that prevented some people from actually downloading it. So, in short, I'll be leaving "Noir: Hunter" up for the first half of August, as well as a new AMV to be selected when I get home. I might just take the easy route and pick Mamboleo, but I'm sure everyone's seen that one a million times already (and played the Stepmania course, too).
Oh yeah, speaking of videos, I am totally flattered by the remark a co-worker (now at a different job) made regarding the Weapon of CX video: "This is funnier than the Star Wars kid." Yeah. YEAH! Take that, Ghyslain! I'm funnier than you! I'm funnier than you! SUCK IT! HA HA HA HA!
I suppose I really ought to be ashamed of myself for that little outburst, but it's 4 in the morning now. Shame has no place at 4 in the morning.
That about covers everything. You folks have a good weekend, and I'll see you when I get back to Erie on Monday or Tuesday.
