tag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519terabientterabientterabient2015-12-01T01:00:32Ztag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:144694Someone said "Your fault is to put anything off !"2015-12-01T01:00:32Z2015-12-01T01:00:32Z常盤ゆう - CHOCOLATE PHILOSOPHYtiredpublic0Hello, Dreamwidth! It is the end of November and thus, the end of National Blog Posting Month--for me, at least. While I wasn't able to write much of what I planned beforehand, I'm glad I didn't miss a day, especially given that this month was busier and more stressful than I had anticipated. And my little sidebar calendar is all filled out!<br /><br />I...don't really have much to discuss today. I have to go to sleep pretty early for work tomorrow, and I need to figure out what's up with the NAT settings on my router before I go to bed, so I'll just leave a few links to things that have amused me recently:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0VHG_sp5wQ">Kickstarter Nonstarters: petsu.it</a>: Here is a video of two guys commenting on a Lovecraft-inspired pet site Kickstarter. Yes. Kickstarter is truly the place where dreams come true, nightmares become reality, and two or more tastes of varying greatness are inexpertly mashed together.<br /><br /><a href="https://soundcloud.com/bullseye-with-jesse-thorn/baron-vaughn">Baron Vaughn on insects</a>: A stand-up routine that has the truest depiction of crickets and bees that has ever existed. I didn't know about Baron Vaughn until I heard this bit on Bullseye yesterday, and...I wish I had heard his stuff earlier. Well, now there's another show to add to my Netflix queue.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fOJk2-KoCE">Chocolate Philosophy (Long version) from Pop'n Music</a>: This is an adorable song from Konami's Pop'n Music series; it's described as a 'swing waltz', which I think means a swing-inspired song in 3/4 time? Anyway, if you like acoustic guitars and piano with and a breathy female voice singing some truly incomprehensible, allegedly English lyrics, please listen. Even with a transcription, I can't figure out what the song's supposed to be about; I <i>think</i> it's about a girl who everyone thinks is lazy, but she insists that's not true--she just loves everyone (or 'you') so much that it takes everything she has to deal with it, so how can anyone expect her to keep her room in order? That's a super cute sentiment, although I'm only 50% sure that's what the intention is. If you do happen to listen, let me know what you think is going on. :P<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=144694" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:144431Phantasy Star Online: Bungie remake2015-11-30T05:15:27Z2015-11-30T05:17:39ZPhantasy Star Online BB: Jungleaggravatedpublic0Played some more Destiny today. I only have a vague idea of how everything works, but it hasn't been too hard to grasp the basics of character progression and how to advance the game. When Destiny was first released, people described it as Phantasy Star Online with Halo mechanics, a comparison that my sister agreed with and that seems apt from what I've played so far. There's the 3 races/3 classes setup, the Guardians are functionally the same as the Hunter's Guild in PSO, The Last City is Pioneer 2 and plot of both games is basically 'discover what destroyed the civilization here, uh oh wait looks like our activity has awakened something DARK and TERRIBLE.' Destiny's Hive even has the same 'sentient infection' vibe that PSO's Dark Force had. The way the social hubs and actual gameplay areas work seem identical to the way PSO2 is set up as well...I wonder if Destiny will add in 'My Room' personal spaces and player shops in the future? Haha, I wouldn't mind if they did.<br /><br />The gameplay has been pretty enjoyable so far. Controlling your character is intuitive and tight--going from walk -> run -> jump -> double jump -> run -> slide is remarkably fluid and natural, and it's easy to traverse the landscape and position yourself in firefights. Enemies haven't been challenging but it's not like the beginning of the game is supposed to be tough anyway; I'm just glad the enemy AI isn't as limited as Borderlands, where it became painfully easy to predict what each enemy type would do because they had like...2 behaviors total. The weaponry, is already quite varied and easy to use with quality feedback--I can <i>feel</i> the difference between a successful shotgun blast and when I've missed the mark, not just discern it from the damage numbers that pop up on screen. I suppose its a bit strange to praise the basics of game mechanics like this, but it's something that Destiny does really well; it's hard to describe how comfortable it feels to play.<br /><br />The environments (all two that I've seen) are gorgeous. The skies are particularly beautiful. I've spent a fair amount of time just watching the day/night progress so I can enjoy the different lighting effects and scenery. <br /><br />As far as things that annoy me, WELL. As one might think from a game titled 'Destiny' the story and worldbuilding is not exactly brimming with originality. From what I've experienced in game: in the distant past, humanity traveled through space and inadvertently awoke some awful thing that tried to destroy everything; it didn't succeed but it wasn't exactly defeated, either, and now 'The Guardians' are protecting what's left of humanity/keeping the evil at bay. The plot has Guardians utilizing light energy for weaponry so when NPCs talking about 'driving back the darkness with your light!' they are talking metaphorically <i>and literally</i> which makes me laugh and laugh and laugh with how over the top it is. I also had to suffer through a cutscene in which an NPC who was clearly in the know about all of Destiny's backstory blathered on about how he <i>could</i> tell me all about the history everyone keeps alluding to vaguely...but then he didn't because of course those times are coming again so I will get to experience them first hand! I mean, why even bother including a 'story' cutscene like that, Bungie. It is a literal waste of time.<br /><br />The other thing is that while the world is beautiful you mostly just look at it. It's a problem that plagues a lot of open-world games as of late; the game has meticulously rendered and detailed environments but you don't interact with them in any meaningful way. There are quests which send you here and there across the landscape, but you don't explore as much as you follow markers on your radar until you see a glowy thing and press a button to get a checkmark next to some meaningless task. It's pretty telling that about 5 hours into this game, I was being 'led' to new areas but instead of gawking at them my eyes were focused on the radar in the corner so I could finish a side quest. Oh well.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=144431" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:144288i'm a robot2015-11-29T01:50:42Z2015-11-29T01:50:42Zsorepublic0LOOOOoooong day at work. I mean, it's always long because it's eleven hours, but also it was...a very <i>eventful</i> day, and a forty minute drive each way that happened to take place in the rain and darkness. HOORAY FOR THE ONSET OF WINTER AND DENTIST VISITS...?<br /><br />Played roughly 15 minutes of Destiny last night. I wasn't even able to finish the tutorial because I was so tired, but I did create a violet-colored robot girl and I think I picked the tank class for her? (She's a Titan.) I'm glad that the robot girl faces aren't particularly feminized, although having them be smaller/slimmer than the male faces is a tiresome stereotype. Can't dismantle the gender binary all at once, I suppose.<br /><br />The other game I played was the Xbox One dashboard, which I DO NOT recommend in its current state. It crashed like, 3 times last night! Once it was while I was trying to <i>select an icon for my profile.</i> The other times it just got hung up on menus for no discernible reason. Is that what I can expect if I upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10? Whatever, the point is that the Xbox One dashboard sucks and a huge downgrade from literally every single Xbox 360 dashboard that ever existed over the years. boooooooooo<br /><br />I'm going to go back to the Destinylands for the evening, and will exhaust you with my thoughts about it tomorrow. Have fun, everyone~<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=144288" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:143914consumerism so invasive you don't even have to shop to shop2015-11-28T02:23:34Z2015-11-28T02:23:34Zsleepypublic0ahAHAHAHA i was making such a big deal over whether or not to get a next-gen console (well, I guess current gen by now...) last night, and then today...my parents went out Black Friday shopping, and around 10am my mom called me and said: "JANE. THERE IS AN XBOX THING HERE IT'S $300 AND HAS [asks salesperson a question]...GEARS OF WAR? DO YOU HAVE THIS XBOX. DO YOU WANT IT IF YOU DON'T???"<br /><br />I waffled for a minute but then said, I did want this Xbox. So...now I have an Xbox. Which I've yet to play, because I've spent literal hours waiting for Destiny to download/install updates (SEVENTEEN POINT THREE <b>GIGABYTES</b> OF UPDATES, FFS BUNGEE). It literally has just finished installing so I am going to check it out for like, ten minutes before I go to bed for my 11 hour shift tomorrow.<br /><br />Some other things I have been excited about:<br /><br />★ I have two days off a week instead of one going into December. HOORAY \o/<br /><br />★ My Persona OTP is MAKING A SNOWMAN even though one of them is pretty dead:<br /><br /><img src="https://41.media.tumblr.com/39d9eb4c5a14dc30687abd5fe426c359/tumblr_nyexoiHAep1tgda0mo4_500.png"><br /><br />It's just (<i>just?!</i> screams my not-very-inner fangirl) an advertisement for a Persona event at a ski resort (where you can rent/buy Izanagi snowboards and Thanatos skis, from what I've gathered from Twitter) so, you know, promo image, but look, sometimes you get excited over fictional characters hanging out in art.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=143914" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:143797and now, the mad season begins2015-11-27T02:56:39Z2015-11-27T02:56:39ZMasashi Hamauzu - Alpha Clock: Theme of Sassiexhaustedpublic0To all my US friends: HAPPY THANKSGIVING! \o/<br /><br />To all my international friends: HAPPY LAST THURSDAY OF NOVEMBER! \o/<br /><br />I hope you all had a wonderful day. Mine went pretty well; I had to get up at 5:00 am to get my ass to work, but that went well and the client was in pretty good spirits after breakfast. I managed to get to my aunt's house about an hour before dinner was served, which gave me plenty of time to catch up with family. Unbeknownst to me, some of my cousins are going to PAX East next year, and so am I...but on different days. :c They are going on Friday and I'm going on Sunday, as those were the only badges left for the weekend by the time I was able to buy one.<br /><br />Food was good as always...except for the turkey, which turned out a bit dry. Apparently, I am also the only person left among my cousins who prefers dark meat to white meat. This morning NPR ran a bit on how white meat is far more popular than dark meat in the US, which surprised me, for some reason. I guess I never considered that other people have different food preferences...? Haha, but honestly this fact has been bugging me all day. I just assumed everyone preferred dark meat but refrained from eating it because of health reasons or something. :P<br /><br />This weekend I'm <s>working</s> going to decide what next-gen console to buy. Actually, I'm not certain if I'll get one at all--my sister and brother-in-law have an Xbox One and I wouldn't mind playing stuff like Destiny, the Gears remake, or Titanfall with them, and I have a fair amount of old 360 pals who have made the jump to X1...but there's not much else that appeals to me. The Playstation 4 has...I don't know? I'm still getting acquainted with the PS3's library, stuff like Uncharted and Bloodborne are just these big question marks for me. :c I'm most interested in the stuff on the Wii U, but I haven't used my Wii for anything <i>in years</i> and even though I would like to play a lot of the games on the U I think it would end up collecting dust simply because I don't have much time for gaming these days. I feel like my taste is narrowing too--sinking time into puzzle or strategy heavy games doesn't appeal to me anymore, and I don't know if I'll ever get back into certain genres again.<br /><br />All this waffling is probably an indication that I should just waste $50 in the Steam Autumn Sale on games I like in theory and will never play, instead of wasting $350+ on a console I like in theory but will never play. :P<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=143797" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:143362first they came for the jiggle physics, and i said nothing2015-11-26T02:53:05Z2015-11-26T02:53:05ZSUPERBEAT XONiC - Now Rollingamusedpublic3Today's post is once again about (mostly) men crying about something that doesn't matter: <a href="http://kotaku.com/why-so-many-people-are-yelling-about-dead-or-alive-xtre-1744682267">Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 isn't going to be released in Western territories,</a> apparently because the criticism of the game's overt sexism (which, lbr, is what Dead or Alive is <i>most known for</i>) is scary and they don't want to deal with it. I think the underlying concern for Koei-Tecmo is that DOAX3 is going to sell abysmally no matter what they do (DOA5 has only sold 1.5 million copies worldwide over 4 multiplatform releases, and the DOAX games have always sold significantly worse than the main series) but they don't want to admit it, so it's easier to blame a vague, non-specific target.<br /><br />Anyway, OF COURSE if you are in certain Gamer-Gatey circles this is UNEQUIVOCAL CENSORSHIP and a sign of how 'the SJWs' and their shadowy agenda of criticizing things will lead us to a world without fun. <a href="http://www.usgamer.net/articles/doax3-still-not-releasing-in-us-koei-tecmo-makes-excuses">This USGamer article</a> has a pretty excellent run-down of why KT's position seems to make no sense in light of DOA's long history of being called sexist and super embarrassing ever since it was released. <br /><br />As for the cries of 'censorship': GG, you need a refresher course on what words mean and possibly on how the free market works! Censorship occurs when a group in a position of power edits or bans something from being distributed due to content it deems objectionable. People who criticize something as sexist (or as objectionable for any other reason) and thus refuse to purchase or support that thing are not censoring it; they're simply exercising their right to free speech and action.<br /><br />Things get a little dicey when it comes to companies not releasing or altering product due to consumer backlash, real or perceived. Sometimes a company chooses to self-censorship because, after encountering criticism, they decide they don't want to be a company that supports whatever objectionable behavior they're accused of. More often, it's a financially-driven decision: the company determines that the negative attention and/or loss of sales from the people who criticize them is not worth the support from those who don't care or want the objectionable content. So in KT's case, they either<br /><br />1. Don't want to be perceived by Western audiences as a company that releases softcore porn video games, or at least not as a company that releases softcore porn video games that have no other entertainment value;<br />2. Have no faith in the product in the first place and are trying to minimize costs and consolidate (pad, really...) sales numbers in a few regions, which would look much better on paper than abysmal numbers in many regions. :P<br /><br />Given the state of DOA5: Last Round and their releases from the past few years, Option 1 seems unlikely. Option 2 is VERY possible, for a variety of reasons that...well, I <i>planned</i> to get into them in this post, but I have to work early tomorrow so I'll have to save that portion for later. <br /><br />Anyway, regardless of what the reasons are for not releasing DOAX3 in the west, I think it's important to focus on what we, as an audience are missing: a shitty mini-game collection and polygon boobs bouncing in hilarious ways for the low, low price point of $90. Truly, a great work of art has been denied us.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=143362" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:143121cry harder, baby2015-11-25T02:29:52Z2015-11-25T02:29:52Zcoldpublic0So, the World Fantasy Award <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/nov/11/hp-lovecraft-biographer-rages-against-ditching-of-author-as-fantasy-prize-emblem">will no longer issue H.P. Lovecraft busts as an award</a> and naturally, people are salty about this! Apparently it's the <i>worst kind</i> of political correctness to reconsider giving out a statue of an actual, avowed racist. This is because certain people get very upset and nervous when a dead person's fame and influence is no longer considered a 'trump' to their racism, even when that racism is explicitly expressed through their literature, as it is in the case of Lovecraft's work.<br /><br />If anything, anyone who considers themselves a mindful literary critic should question why fame/genre influence trumps all other flaws in an author's writing. The objection to no longer rewarding fantasy writers with Lovecraft heads seems to boil down to "He wrote a bunch of stories about this specific idea, some were pretty good, and lots of people over the course of a long period of time liked that idea or his stories and it influenced their writing. Yes, he was a racist, and some of his passages are extremely difficult if not impossible to read if you accept on a basic level that all humans are created equal, but <i>that</i> doesn't mean he's an unacceptable figurehead for a general fantasy award. Have you SEEN all the Cthulhu professional fanfiction out there?" <br /><br />There's a persistent idea in professional literary criticism that social issues like racism and sexism* ought not be considered when deciding the worthiness of reading or not reading an author. People who say they do not want to read authors whose works express racism or sexism are told 'but the themes/plotting/prose are so great that you should just ignore the ugly parts and take away the good!' And yet it never occurs to these critics that their thesis may be flawed, that racism in a work goes much deeper than the use of racial slurs, mocking descriptions of people of color's appearances, and calling other cultures 'savage' or 'barbaric'; that relatable themes, complex or tight plots, and beautiful or economic turns of phrase do not supercede or 'cancel out' the existence of racism/sexism. It should be acceptable to reject an author, as an award figure or as a person worth reading, based on how they portray (or refuse to portray) people of difference races or sexes--just as it's acceptable to reject them because of their prose or their plots or their themes. But no. Critics gonna cry, because not everyone loves the authors they spent their careers fellating.<br /><br />Such is the horror of Political Correctness: it cares not for your prolific body of work, your level of fame nor the countless adorers of your tales--it takes all your poorly designed caricature busts away, and lays waste to your reputation! Truly it is the cruelest of the Elder Gods.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=143121" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:142856dinner is serious business2015-11-24T03:53:46Z2015-11-24T03:53:46Zexhaustedpublic0It was my sister's birthday today, and she stopped over at the house before I left for work this morning. She brought <a href="https://goo.gl/photos/JVR2kJSdUDhdkrza6">her dog Byson,</a> who is a <a href="http://www.yourpurebredpuppy.com/reviews/canecorsos.html">a Cane Corso breed</a> and kind of takes over any house he is in through sheer size and enthusiasm. He's well-behaved and so is Momo, but she gets rather upset when people coo over Byson instead of her. She spent the morning yipping and wriggling her way in between Byson and whoever was petting him, then hopping on the person's lap to...show Byson who the boss was, I suppose. <br /><br />Sister liked the pajama set, but tonight when we went out for dinner she said the cloth eyemask that came with it had shrunk to the point of uselessness when she washed it. I guess we should have expected it, given that the eyemask looked like scrap fabrics stitched together.<br /><br />On the subject of dinner, it was kind of disappointing. Sister wanted sushi, so we went to the closest sushi-serving restaurant, a Hibachi grill/modern 'Asian fusion' place that appears to be staffed primarily by white people. This was not especially weird since we happen to live in a place where 98% of the population is white (there are more confirmed opioid addicts than people of color here) but given that this restaurant advertised its authentic Japanese cuisine it was a bit odd. But it was also ~~modern~~ and ~~fusion~~ and ~~inspired~~ so we figured the food would be really good and unique, or...a trainwreck. In the end, it was neither of these things, although it was decidedly leaning towards 'trainwreck' and not unique. The beef negimaki was waaaaay overcooked, but the peanut sauce chicken wings were good; the sushi rolls looked like they had waaaaaaaaay too much going on but the one we ended up ordering turned out to be pretty nice, even though I couldn't tell you what was in it besides tuna, avocado, and tempura flakes. I only remember there were like, 3 different sauces and at least two other fish, and cucumber might have been in there??? Anyway, like I said, a lot going on. But it tasted alright. The entrees were literally forgettable, as in, my server packed up whatever I ordered and I didn't remember to take it with me and didn't realize it until I was halfway home. I didn't go back to pick it up; IIRC it was ginger orange duck? The duck was overcooked just like the negimaki, and the orange sauce was okay but there was way too much of it.<br /><br />The <a href="https://goo.gl/photos/jpkukouQmL1R1czu7">pumpkin pie cocktail</a> was pretty good though. I wasn't aware that pumpkin flavored vodka was a thing yet, but it is. Next year, I expect everything edible in America will be pumpkin infused from September to December. <br /><br />and that's how the day went.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=142856" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:142597and he actually uttered the words "My songbird has stopped singing"2015-11-23T04:50:21Z2015-11-23T04:50:21ZDoDonPachi DaiOuJou - Taidoufullpublic0I did a fair amount today:<br /><br />★ Worked until noon<br /><br />★ Got my sister's pajama set, which was way more than I was expecting, $56...! They came with free slippers which are supposedly ~$26 in value~ which I doubt, but they do look cozy, at least.<br /><br />★ Made my way to the arcade and played some rhythm games for the first time this month. I am getting better at Pop'n Music after years of hovering around the same level, EXCITING. And I tried jubeat on an arcade machine for the first time. (I've played the iOS release) I was a bit surprised to see that the arcade machine doesn't utilize a touchscreen, it's just clear plastic buttons in a grid...it does make tapping the right beats feel a bit more satisfying, but hitting multiple notes or 'following' a fast beat as it moves across the grid is harder. <br /><br />★ Did some grocery shopping and made...way too much <s>stuffing</s> dressing for 3 people. I had a mild moment of panic when I discovered that we were way lower on rosemary and parsley than I thought, and I forgot to put in craisins, but the stuffing ended up tasting fine, which is the important thing. <br /><br />★ Watched 90 Day Fiance with my mom, which has become our guilty pleasure watch. We both hope the Filipina girl who might possibly marry a man who is old enough to be her <i>grandfather</i> decides to go home instead. In some kind of reverse miracle, the guy's advanced age is the <i>least</i> creepy thing in their, um, relationship: he talks constantly about his ex-wife (who was also Filipina) to the point where he buys his bride-to-(maybe)-be the exact same car and compares their behavior constantly. Also his house is trapped in the 80s and he gets really upset when someone tries to change it, has an alarming amount of books about divorce with titles that sound suspiciously wife-blamey, and just...good lord. Absolutely no woman of any age should marry this guy, he is the sort of person who will passive-aggressively comment a woman into misery then blame her for the inevitable divorce.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=142597" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:142506this 'daily goal' thing isn't working out2015-11-22T03:57:18Z2015-11-22T03:57:18ZDoDonPachi DaiOuJou - Burn Yourselfexhaustedpublic0I spent the last two hours writing an entry on my ~~feels~~ about Cave's DoDonPachi series. I have finished about...one quarter of it. I have to get up for work by 7, so I <i>should</i> go to bed in fifteen minutes.<br /><br />what I'm saying is: for tonight, I have to take a break. ^_^;; <s>man, i haven't used this super-weeaboo smiley in ages look everyone it's the internet in the early 2000s</s> This is essentially a placeholder so that the little DW calendar has all the days for November filled in.<br /><br />SORRY, OBLIGATIONS. I can only meet you in a half-assed manner. <br /><br />♥<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=142506" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:142119black friday season2015-11-21T01:02:46Z2015-11-21T01:02:46Zdj Nagureo - 20, November -Single Edit-anxiouspublic1Today was my day off and I spent the morning SLEEPING IN MY GLORIOUSLY COMFORTABLE BED~ Then I was out with my mother and sister doing what my sister called 'Christmas window shopping' which mostly consisted of us walking around shops, unsuccessfully trying to remember what friends and family already had or what they might like. I also tried to discreetly figure out what my sister would like for her birthday, and I think it's pajama sets and sweaters with Christmas/winter themed motifs of questionable taste. :P I'm not terribly surprised, as pajama sets and sweaters that straddle the line between charmingly festive and horrifyingly festive is also my aesthetic. That comfy, cheap pajama sets are in abundance this time of year is a nice bonus. I just have to decide between the poorly-drawn snowman set or the poorly-drawn reindeer set...<br /><br />I also spotted this completely unnecessary, but utterly adorable <a href="http://www.burlingtoncoatfactory.com/burlingtoncoatfactory/Home/5pc-Jingle-Dog-Collar-Cuff-Set-S-M-543578683.aspx">jingle-bell collar and paw cuffs set</a> and...I'm aware that dressing up a dog is a self-indulgent activity that has no benefits for the dog, (unless they've got an insufficient winter coat) but I keep thinking about Momo prancing around the house with jingle bells on and I can't stop giggling about it. Not that she needs MORE costume-y things to look ridiculously cute in--Mom bought her a reindeer costume about a month ago and Momo already has a jingle bell collar. (But imagine the little jingle bell cuffs, around her little doggie paws...!)<br /><br /><center><img src="http://i.imgur.com/K4Zr3YOm.jpg"> <img src="http://i.imgur.com/A7w5njNm.jpg"> <img src="http://i.imgur.com/iwpe3Ejm.jpg"><br /><font size="1" pt="pt">Shetland Reindog</font></center><br /><br />I don't know if Momo likes dressing up or not. From how she acts, she tolerates it because she is a very well-behaved and thoughtful dog, and warms up to it because everyone starts cooing and awwing over her. She likes being the center of attention, as long as she knows the people around her. ♥<br /><br /><center>***</center><br /><br />In ten days, November will be over...I'm pleased that so far, I've kept up with my commitment to post daily, even if I'm not wholly satisfied with the quality or content of my posts. At the very least, I know for certain that a daily schedule is a bit too fast-paced for me if I want to write more opinionated posts.<br /><br />Two things I've been thinking about doing, once December rolls around: hosting another gaming-centric friending meme, and/or having weekly 'gaming progress posts' where people can comment about, uh...their weekly gaming progress. I've whined a lot about the lack of laid-back, small discussion communities in this internet day and age...I might as well do something about it :P<br /><br />And since it's November 20th, of course I must mark the date by linking to dj Nagureo's (of Beatmania fame) catchy, self-composed birthday tune: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7xT2V8iUko">20, November</a>!<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=142119" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:141994continuing adventures in bullet hell2015-11-20T04:37:27Z2015-11-20T04:37:27ZDoDonPachi DaiOuJou - A Peaceful Deathpublic0I've been playing Mushihimesama for about an hour each evening. So far, I've cleared Novice Original and Novice Maniac without using a continue, gotten up to stage 5 in Novice Ultra before having to continue, and I credit fed my way through Arrange mode from Stage 4 onwards. I'm <i>mostly</i> pleased with my progress; it took me roughly a year to clear Deathsmiles--the first bullet hell I sunk significant time into--without continuing. Granted, I've only done so on the easiest difficulties so far, but progress is progress.<br /><br />Anyway, rather than tackling Ultra or Arrange mode, I decided to learn how the scoring system works in Maniac mode and see if I could beat my high score--on the Steam leader boards, I'm...57, I think? Since that was from my first one-credit clear, I figured with some practice I would be able to beat that score quickly. The reality: I haven't come <i>close</i> to beating my original score. :( Part of me wants to keep practicing until I put together a really good run in Mushihimesama; part of me wants to change things up and work on some other Cave-developed shooter. Or maybe any shooter that isn't Mushihimesama. Or maybe...not play a shooter at all for a few days. Haha, this might be why my bullet hell skills are still solidly average after fairly frequent playing since 2010.<br /><br />I didn't intend for NaBloPoMo to turn into 'exhaustive updates on personal progress in bullet hell games' month, but hey, here we are! I suppose I find the relative straightforward quality of the games to be intriguing; every game boils down to two goals: "shoot baddies,dodge bullets" and "get the highest score" --and yet, even within the strict confines of the design there is a remarkable amount of creativity and diversity within the genre.<br /><br />...I really should start writing these entries sooner, before I'm ready to collapse into bed. There are a lot of things I've been mulling about wrt bullet hell game design, but right now I'm too tired to articulate them clearly. I imagine it can't be very intersting to read. Guess I'll try again tomorrow.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=141994" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:141698scattershot2015-11-18T23:57:54Z2015-11-18T23:57:54Zlazypublic0<span class="cut-wrapper"><span style="display: none;" id="span-cuttag___1" class="cuttag"></span><b class="cut-open">( </b><b class="cut-text"><a href="https://terabient.dreamwidth.org/141698.html#cutid1">work update</a></b><b class="cut-close"> )</b></span><div style="display: none;" id="div-cuttag___1" aria-live="assertive"></div><br /><br />I don't know what else to do for today's entry, so...time to work on the Borderlands meme.<br /><br /><b>Day 5: Did the Sheriff of Lynchwood deserve her own introduction?</b><br /><br />AAAAHHHHAHAHAHAHA what an oddly specific question. I DO remember back in the day when the Gearbox forums and tumblr tags were obsessed with this particular issue, though, so not only does this date the meme as 'a few months after BL2's release' I'm also familiar with the internets scuffle it refers to.<br /><br />IIRC, the problem was something like this: given that very minor mini-bosses like the Badass Nomad 'guarding' the Bloodshot Stronghold get a name and a title card, why didn't the Sheriff of Lynchwood--the boss at the end of an extensive (by Borderlands standards) questline, and a character who had direct ties to Handsome Jack--get the same treatment? Some people suggested it was due to sexism, but the truth is almost certainly less nefarious: Lynchwood and the Sheriff's questline are entirely optional, and none of the optional sidequest bosses got formal introductions, even though many of them were more memorable and influenced the main plot more than a lot of the mini-bosses in the main quest. <br /><br />Going by that reasoning: no, the Sheriff didn't deserve her own introduction.<br /><br />Besides, Nisha became a playable character in the Pre-sequel and is possibly the most overpowered one, to boot; clearly she's moved on from this cruel oversight. :P<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=141698" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:141557work drama2015-11-18T01:30:11Z2015-11-18T01:30:11ZMasashi Hamauzu - Die Wahrheitcoldpublic0Yesterday, I got a notification from my office about new shifts opening up for those still looking for work. Thing is, they're for a client and a shift that I'm currently working, so...basically, they're looking to replace me. That's happened before, and the case managers have always explained why a change was requested. But they didn't this time, and I'm also still scheduled with this client for the foreseeable future, so I don't know what's happening. Naturally this has been eating at me since I received the email. In absence of any direct information, I suspect there are two possible explanations for this oddity:<br /><br />-I am mistaken. When the office sends out these work notifications, they're absent of most personal information; all that's given is the shift time, town/city, whether the client lives with family or not, and a general overview of the type of assistance required. (e.g., safety supervision, help with ADLs, PT assistance, transportation) So it's possible the email wasn't about my current client, just one in the same town with the same needs and the same living situation with my exact shift times. Possible, but I find it...rather unlikely.<br /><br />-The family has requested a change, but my office can't find anyone suitable. This seems obvious, but again...it's not the first time I've worked with someone and they've requested a replacement, just the first time I've never been told about it! The office has always been very good at not only informing me promptly about these changes, but <i>why they happen,</i> whether it's something I can improve (like hesitating too often) or not (I'm too young-looking and the client can't get over it, haha). I've never been in this situation, where the office is looking for a replacement but not taking me off the case, nor informing me that this is occurring.<br /><br />So I'm left speculating at what the problem is, if there's something should (or can) do to help mitigate it, and if I'm not replaced, how I'm going to handle this week's visits...I'm thinking that the office isn't enthused about looking for a replacement, I'm under the impression that this family has been through quite a few caregivers. Of course, whether the office is fed up with the family or not is beside the point. I know I should contact the office and ask them directly, but I'm a bit miffed that they haven't told me anything at all and I only know about it because of a mass email. And--well, working with this client/family has been pretty stressful even without this complication; I'm not looking forward to working with them for an extended period with this simmering in the background. Is it unprofessional of me to say that I'm mostly grateful that I might not have to work with them again, ever? It probably is.<br /><br />Well, I'm off to die in Mushihimesama before I melt into the bed for the night.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=141557" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:141279it's not always about Western literature2015-11-17T02:35:11Z2015-11-17T02:35:11Ztelevisioncontemplativepublic0Something that annoys me about a lot of Puella Magi Madoka Magica analysis: theorizing the whole story (or at least the original series) is one big Faust allegory--specifically, Goethe's adaptation of Faust.<br /><br />This idea is <i>so prevalent</i> in the PMMM community; it's littered all over the <a href="https://wiki.puella-magi.net/">Puella Magi wiki,</a> the annual Anime Boston PMMM panel devotes like, half of the running time to an extensive Homura-as-Faust theory, and...I just don't see it? I admit that 99% of my knowledge of Faust comes from Wikipedia and 1% comes from cultural osmosis and references in other literature, so I'm not exactly the most qualified person when it comes to what is and what isn't a Faust allegory. But one of the most common descriptions about the plot of PMMM is 'Be careful what you wish for/the characters make Faustian bargains' and like...no, that doesn't happen <i>at all???</i> I'm pretty sure the concept behind a Faustian bargain is that the person making the wish knows the consequences of their wish, but their desire for worldly power is so great they decide to go through with it anyway. The exact opposite happens in PMMM--with the exception of Madoka at the end of the series, none of the girls are aware of what their contracts entail, and their wishes are all made on behalf of others. I suppose Mami is an exception, in that she wishes to survive a fatal car crash, but that wish doesn't display the power-hungry desire that a traditional Faustian wish does.<br /><br />"There are literally quotes from Goethe's <i>Faust</i> in the backgrounds of some episodes, and there's a witch named Gretchen!" Fair enough, but let's not forget that back in the 90s everyone thought that Neon Genesis Evangelion was heavily based on apocryphal biblical texts, because crosses and Christian names were everywhere. Then Gainax said 'lol we just thought it'd be cool and different.' I suspect that the references to Goethe's Faust in PMMM are quite similar, added for visual flair but nothing deeper than that.<br /><br />"But isn't Madoka an example of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eternal_feminine">the Eternal Feminine?</a>" It is pretty clear that Madoka's final form/Godoka/the Law of the Cycle is an avatar of mercy, 'pure' (i.e. chaste) love, and hope, concepts that are typically coded as feminine. But that coding is as common in Asian culture as it is in Western culture. Not only that, but the magical girl genre <i>in particular</i> often climaxes with the main character turning--if briefly--into a being whose power comes from hope, mercy, or from the love of their friends; Madoka may fit the idea of the Eternal Feminine but it's through coincidence, not because she's a stand-in for the role of a female character in an influential piece of Western literature.<br /><br />Finally, given the sheer amount of interviews with the creative team of PMMM--many of which directly ask what influences were baked into the plot of the show--if Faust played anything more than a superficial role, you'd think someone would've said so by now. But Faust never comes up in these interviews. Lovecraft does, various magical girl shows do, but I honestly can't find a direct mention of Faust by any of the Magica Quartet members. And believe me, I have looked. If it's ever come up, it's from something that's never been translated into English.<br /><br />In short:<br /><br />-Kyubey's contracts are like the polar opposite of a Faustian bargain<br />-Quotes from Faust are like Christian crosses in NGE: <i>meaningless</i><br />-A Japanese show by Japanese creators for a Japanese audience is more likely to draw from Japanese sources before European ones<br />-Look, SOMEONE would have said something about it by now<br /><br />I've never been a big fan of analysis that essentially boils down to 'The characters and plot of this show are stand-ins for the characters and plot of this cultural myth/piece of literature' and in the case of Puella Magi-as-Faust I feel it's particularly strained and ill-fitting. It's a little frustrating that's it's so widespread.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=141279" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:140818attention seeker2015-11-16T04:58:39Z2015-11-16T04:58:39ZLupin III - Love Squallcoldpublic0I had work today, but only for 4 hours, and I was finished by noon. What did I do with a whole Sunday afternoon, you ask? I slept. I slept until 5:00 and then I stayed in bed for another hour to fully enjoy the sensation of being snug and warm in bed on a cold Sunday, with no pressing obligations until tomorrow. Part of me is regretting all those 'wasted' hours, part of me feels nice and refreshed and...ready to sleep another eight hours, lol.<br /><br />I still need to sort out the clothing donations, though....<br /><br /><center>***</center><br /><br />In search of inspiration for writing fandom essay-ish type things by reading old posts at <span style='white-space: nowrap;'><a href='http://ship-manifesto.livejournal.com/profile'><img src='https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif' alt='[livejournal.com profile] ' style='vertical-align: text-bottom; border: 0; padding-right: 1px;' width='16' height='16'/></a><a href='http://ship-manifesto.livejournal.com/'><b>ship_manifesto</b></a></span>, which has been dead for awhile but still has a template for use and interesting posts in general. It's helped me structure my thoughts about a few ships that have been taking up space in my brain for awhile now, but that I've never really talked about--P4/P3 protagonists and Tsubaki/Noel being foremost in that category, but nearly every piece of media I've consumed in the past few <i>years</i> has had a character or pairing I've enjoyed. But I don't discuss why, partly because I'm uncertain my friends through LJ/DW would be familiar with the fandom and finding people who want to analyse rather than squee is a lot harder to do. It's not just a 'tumblr problem' either; the fact that 'fandom' takes place across many different social media services and sites, and the most popular ones are not geared towards long-form, slower discussion styles is the real issue. Tumblr's just a symptom of a larger trend in fandom participation that was occurring long before LJ activity collapsed. And it's not something I want to whine about <i>all the time</i>--complaining about the way the internet has changed is not interesting to read or write about--I miss the creation very small, specialized communities of people who were willing to discuss something as silly as a non-canon, video game slash ship with great detail and over a long period of time. It's hard to talk about what you like and don't like when there's no one around to listen to you. :(<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=140818" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:140717this is dangerously close to not being fun anymore2015-11-15T02:20:05Z2015-11-15T02:20:05Zan obnoxiously loud space heater and a snoring dogi dunnopublic0<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gs6S_Q_Yz6g">Blazblue CENTRALFICTION</a> (i guess this name is slightly less ridiculous than Chronophantasma?) was released in arcades and I...I have no strong feelings about it. I mean, in a general sense I'm still glad the series exists but I can't bring myself to care about this increasingly complex (for no payoff, I GUARANTEE IT) storyline that keeps adding in unexciting characters from side stories that were never released in English. I'm not terribly excited for Phantom/Nine/whoever possibly being playable. I'm not especially interested in finding out who resides in the Amatarasu Unit. (I assume it's going to be some character from the visual novels I have no desire to wade through.) I don't even know what I want to see happen to the characters I <i>do</i> care about (Arakune, Litchi, the Academy trio). I guess I'd like to see Noel <s>get married to her true loves, Tsubaki and Makoto</s> ...not have such a sucky life? Her character arc felt like it had come to a satisfying conclusion in Chronophantasma for the most part--she accepts herself, isn't afraid of confronting her past/origin, and wants to help her friends and people in general...I'm hoping Centralfiction won't heap <i>too</i> much misery on her. <br /><br />Arakune and Litchi barely had any development in Chronophantasma and I suspect that trend will continue into Centralfiction. :c I wouldn't be surprised if one or both of them were straight-up killed, probably Arakune because he doesn't have boobs big enough to be a plot device. I wouldn't mind if something like Litchi's alternate ending happened--where Arakune, in a moment of lucidity, 'eats' Litchi's memories of him. Buuuut the most likely development is that they'll continue to be largely irrelevant to the main story and their relationship, such as it is, stays static. :/<br /><br />In short: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=140717" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:140490acid bath2015-11-14T03:32:04Z2015-11-14T03:32:04ZFFXIII-2 - Last Huntersgroggypublic0<b>Day 4: Favorite area in Borderlands</b><br /><br />Oooh. There are a lot of areas I like, and I was having a hard time picking between the Southern Shelf, the Caustic Caverns, and the hub of Sir Hammerlock's Big Game Hunt campaign, but I finally had to choose<br /><br /><span class="cut-wrapper"><span style="display: none;" id="span-cuttag___1" class="cuttag"></span><b class="cut-open">( </b><b class="cut-text"><a href="https://terabient.dreamwidth.org/140490.html#cutid1">the Caustic Caverns (cut for images)</a></b><b class="cut-close"> )</b></span><div style="display: none;" id="div-cuttag___1" aria-live="assertive"></div><br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=140490" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:140042extreme lack of chill2015-11-13T02:15:48Z2015-11-13T12:59:42Zlistlesspublic6So I guess Tumblr has instant messaging instead of replies now? It seems to function exactly like Gchat except, you know, only on tumblr, and there doesn't seem to be a way to tell if someone is online or not (<i>thank god</i>). It's not really effective as a replacement for replies, though--and was there really a need to completely ditch replies to add chat? Probably not, but I guess Tumblr wouldn't be Tumblr if it didn't randomly remove and add features with no explanation. <br /><br />Also, it looks like the ability to see if a tracked tag has new posts has been removed. Ugh. Tracking tags is how I experience the majority of tumblr; even with blacklists and muting people, I feel like my dashboard is too busy and varied for me to follow closely. So I use the tags to engage with people and fandom at large, but now they're inexplicably less accessible and I'm salty about it. >:T<br /><br /><center>***</center><br />Things I wanted to write about for this year's NaBlo:<br />-Characters I like and why I like them<br />-Pairings I like and why I like them<br />-Video games I like and why I like them<br />-The above, but replace 'like' with 'healthy dislike'<br /><br />Things I have actually written about:<br />-None of the above<br /><br />Well, that's not entirely true. I have written a bit about assorted shoot-'em-ups, but not at length and not much beyond "I LOVE THIS GAME PLEASE TRY IT TOO." It's not exactly what I was aiming for this month. I want to write some decent character/pairing analysis, something that's a bit more substantial than squee, and not about relating to a character--it feels like what little meta exists these days is focused on drawing comparisons between the writer's life and what happens to a character in canon. Which is fine, but I'm thirsty for something more objective. Less 'I like this character because we're both shy,' and more 'This character expresses shyness in this way [examples in canon] which I like,' ...if that makes sense. <br /><br />Unfortunately I have a really hard time organizing my thoughts, even with a goal as simple as 'write about a character you like.' I keep trying to create a basic framework to keep from going off on tangents while I'm writing, but I haven't come up with anything satisfactory yet. OH WELL. I still have...uh, a little more than half a month left to work something out.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=140042" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:139902excellent use of synthesized dog bark2015-11-12T02:46:58Z2015-11-12T02:46:58ZMasashi Hamauzu - Aquatic Ambianceawakepublic0<span class="cut-wrapper"><span style="display: none;" id="span-cuttag___1" class="cuttag"></span><b class="cut-open">( </b><b class="cut-text"><a href="https://terabient.dreamwidth.org/139902.html#cutid1">a story about work</a></b><b class="cut-close"> )</b></span><div style="display: none;" id="div-cuttag___1" aria-live="assertive"></div><br /><br />I spent the morning getting an oil change then doing one out of three hampers of laundry. The two I didn't finish are the ones destined for the donation bins; they've been in storage for years and I'm under the assumption that they're full of yuck and empty of clothing anyone actually wants, but I haven't actually <i>looked</i> too deeply into the hampers. I did <i>today</i> and discovered a number of non-clothing items (just plastic...stuff???? didn't look too closely) so I'll have to *sigh* go through them and toss out all the not-clothing stuff before bringing them to the laundromat. OH WELL. It will be good to have the extra space for all of a day before it gets filled up with more stuff from some other corner of the house no one is using.<br /><br />Still haven't gotten around to cleaning the house! :T<br /><br />To end, a couple of interesting game music tracks to consider:<br /><br />★ <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FNxllIuNUI">J-E-N-O-V-A, arranged in Mario Paint Composer</a> Looking up Mario Paint composer arrangements of other video game tunes is one of my favorite niche past times; this J-E-N-O-V-A arrange is remarkably close to the original, and uses the "dog bark" note in lieu of timpani. The addition of dogs is always an upgrade, so in some ways this is an improvement on the original piece! :P<br /><br />★ <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qL8l12OPgI">Metal Gear Solid theme, arranged for the Gameboy Color</a> Things that will never stop amusing me: the fact that a Gameboy Color port of Beatmania exists; the fact that the Metal Gear Solid theme is a playable track--complete with video overlay!--in said GBC port.<br /><br />★ <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7GsatYtOSU">Aquatic Ambiance, re-arranged by Masashi Hamauzu</a> To end on a very different note, here's a beautiful re-arrangement of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDvKwSVuUGA">Aquatic Ambiance track from Donkey Kong Country</a>. Hamauzu says he was really happy to work on this track, which isn't surprising since it features the atmospheric, chromatic harmonies that he favors in his own compositions. Also: piano and violin solos! ♥<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=139902" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:139649"i hope one of the lovers dies"2015-11-11T04:25:27Z2015-11-11T04:25:27Zamusedpublic1<span class="cut-wrapper"><span style="display: none;" id="span-cuttag___1" class="cuttag"></span><b class="cut-open">( </b><b class="cut-text"><a href="https://terabient.dreamwidth.org/139649.html#cutid1">Poor life decisions</a></b><b class="cut-close"> )</b></span><div style="display: none;" id="div-cuttag___1" aria-live="assertive"></div><br /><br />Anyway, here are some amusing links:<br /><br />★ <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWLqQSKxdKU">PLEASE WATCH THIS AWFUL VIDEO REVIEW OF EARTHBOUND IT IS UNBELIEVABLE.</a> Okay, technically it is two guys commenting on an awful video review of Earthbound, but please do not let that deter you; the source video is spectacular. It's 1:42 minutes of a guy rambling about the most obvious features of Earthbound while poorly chosen gameplay footage plays in the background. Also, there's pizza. <a href="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Series/GamingInTheClintonYears">TV Tropes has a bit on the history of the review show</a>, which is even more amazing than this review. If you have the time or inclination, I strongly suggest watching the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GuGNGwkCvk">Final Fantasy VIII review</a>--or maybe it's a walkthrough of the first five minutes of the game?--which ends on a somewhat horrifying note of hyperbolic disappointment. Also, cites Titanic as an ideal example of epic romance.<br /><br />★ National Public Radio ran <a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/09/30/444753002/hear-how-energy-policy-helps-bush-put-the-in-jeb">this bizarre piece on Jeb Bush,</a> most notable for being the son and brother of unpopular presidents and doing poorly in televised debates. The quotes featured are cringe-inducing in how tone-deaf they are, and NPR includes the actual audio so you can really wallow in the secondhand embarrassment. Highlights: An actual utterance of "Praise Jesus" in relation to <i>the stock market</i>; the phrase "unleash American's animal spirits" because of course a speech on energy policy is a very exciting event requiring the unleashing of animal spirits.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=139649" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:139479stress level: *probably* not bad???2015-11-10T03:47:46Z2015-11-10T03:58:17Ztiredpublic1<span class="cut-wrapper"><span style="display: none;" id="span-cuttag___1" class="cuttag"></span><b class="cut-open">( </b><b class="cut-text"><a href="https://terabient.dreamwidth.org/139479.html#cutid1">In which I whine over being an adult</a></b><b class="cut-close"> )</b></span><div style="display: none;" id="div-cuttag___1" aria-live="assertive"></div><br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=139479" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:139104still don't know what to write about2015-11-09T04:51:08Z2015-11-09T04:51:08ZDarren Korb - Stained Glassweirdpublic0Yet again it is late evening and I don't know what to write about. Good (bad?) thing that 30 day memes exist.<br /><br /><b>Day 3: Favorite Gun Manufacturer</b><br /><br />This...is more difficult to answer than the first two. I tend to pick favorite guns by type rather than manufacturer, and with the sheer amount of guns in Borderlands, combined with red-text special effects, means that even if though I may dislike a manufacturer's gimmick (hello, Hyperion reverse recoil) they probably have at least a few guns that I make regular use of. (In the case of Hyperion, their Legendary-tier shotguns are all incredible and among my favorite weapons in the game.)<br /><br />But if I had to choose a single manufacturer, I'd go with <b>Dahl</b>. Their gimmick is extremely low recoil and burst-fire when aiming down the sights, so overall their guns offer a lot of precision and control. The burst-fire while aiming annoys a lot of people, particularly when it involves Dahl's snipers, but Dahl snipers are actually my favorite kind for a few reasons. The stability and lack of recoil means Dahl snipers are extremely accurate when hip-firing, especially at a high rate of fire. (Vladof snipers can fire faster, but practically you have to pause every 3-4 shots to manage the recoil; Hyperion's reverse recoil means they're more accurate over time, but as a matter of principle I won't use a sniper rifle when its' initial shot is almost guaranteed to miss. :P) The burst-fire while aiming can be annoying at first, but again having low recoil means the burst fire doesn't get out of hand and it's possible to have all 3 shots in a burst hit a crit point, which makes Dahl snipers an ideal fit for Zer0's Critical Ascension skill. <br /><br />I do find Dahl's in-game company theme to be...uninspired. It's a standard military theme, hence the low recoil gimmick--it's supposed to represent dependability and practicality and stuff. It's an attitude that I like as a <i>player</i> but in a universe where the competition is like, sleek and space-agey with an overwrought, poetic naming scheme and just comes off as totally inappropriate for a weapon manufacturer, (Maliwan) or run by a guy who <i>fucking loves explosions</i> (Torgue), being 'the military manufacturer' is pretty boring in comparison. I think Dahl's lols potential got a decent boost in the Pre-Sequel, though--I liked how they were in charge of the New-U stations, and the contrast between the generic 'army strong' encouragement and the absurdity of reconstructing your character over and over again.<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=139104" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:138889live to work, work to live2015-11-08T02:31:23Z2015-11-08T02:31:23ZOtomedius Excellent - Bluefieldtiredpublic0My work schedule for this month has me working 6 days a week, with Saturday being 11 hours long and a 40 minute drive to get there on top of that. <br /><br />Pros: Friday is my off day; Wednesdays and Sundays are only 8am-12pm so I have plenty of time to do errands and stuff; lower chance of getting called at the last minute for fill-in shifts; MOAR MONEY and quicker accumulation of earned time off.<br /><br />Cons: Well, uh, working six days a week, I guess, and that most days I have to budget about two hours to get to/from my home to my client's homes.<br /><br /><span class="cut-wrapper"><span style="display: none;" id="span-cuttag___1" class="cuttag"></span><b class="cut-open">( </b><b class="cut-text"><a href="https://terabient.dreamwidth.org/138889.html#cutid1">other difficulties</a></b><b class="cut-close"> )</b></span><div style="display: none;" id="div-cuttag___1" aria-live="assertive"></div><br /><br />Anyway, long shift is long and that's why today's entry is short. ^_^;; Gonna try to write something more substantial tomorrow!<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=138889" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> commentstag:dreamwidth.org,2009-12-20:466519:138629stop hitting yourself2015-11-07T00:47:30Z2015-11-07T00:47:30Zirritatedpublic5I wonder why video gamers as a group are so eager to take abuse from gaming companies.<br /><br />Like, I was reading <a href="http://www.thejimquisition.com/2015/11/bullshit-roundup-microtransactions-everywhere-warhammer-bollocks-and-arkham-knight-pcs-still-buggered/">an opinion piece on microtransactions in premium-priced games,</a> and you'd think there'd be like 95% agreement on these things (i.e. they're unnecessary and manipulative) but no! There are lots of people who are defending the right of corporations to charge money on top of a sizable entry fee, ostensibly because something vague like 'the servers need money to stay open' or 'development costs so much these days' so it's okay to create inherently manipulative systems to drain your wallet of $0.99/$5/$9.99 at a time? I understand that creating games is expensive and you have to pay the people who work on them, and servers require maintainece; but ffs your business model is to charge $60 to play the game. it's not <i>my</i> fault if a publisher spends an outlandish amount of money on promotional mountain dew flavors, or decides to go over budget by cobbling together a multiplayer mode a few months before release so that they can add microtransactions in the first place. i am literally and morally outraged that companies raking in hundreds of millions of dollars a year have the gall to insinuate that they need $60 AND my lunch money in order pay their (overworked, underappreciated) workers and shit out another premium priced game in a year.<br /><br />But apparently not everyone has the same problem and don't mind getting charged over and over again. :|<br /><br /><img src="https://www.dreamwidth.org/tools/commentcount?user=terabient&ditemid=138629" width="30" height="12" alt="comment count unavailable" style="vertical-align: middle;"/> comments