FenixDown's Territory

A little vent about inet drama for those it may concern

Wed, 23 Dec 2009 14:45:46 GMT

I just want it to end. It's bringing down more than just the three people directly involved, the friends, especially the ones who are friends of all three involved, are being bogged down as well. It's hard to stay impartial, especially when most of your information on the matter is presented from only one side. And I'm not questioning the legitimacy of the end result, of one relationship chosen over another, just the steps that were taken that resulted in that.

I've heard so many insults and derogatory statements directed at each of the three involved including: "cheater," "attention whore," "drama queen," "hypocrit," "liar," and so forth. I refuse to specify who said what about whom, or about which of these and other similar terms I think are accurate or not, so don't even bother to ask. Some of these likely apply to multiple people too. I'm just sick of hearing them is all.

If I haven't made it clear before, I do want to say that I have no intention to stop being anyone's friend over this matter. Believe it or not, I have seen worse and stuck with people through it all. I'm just disappointed in some of the decisions and actions that have been taken that resulted in the current situation, or to be more accurate, I feel that the sequence of events that would have been morally acceptable were switched out of order.

I harbored no doubts that the first relationship in this situation was going to end, I saw it coming since day one, I just didn't think it would have ended the way it had. Nor am I particularly surprised in the current relationship in question and I do hope it lasts, especially considering what it cost to establish it. I also hope the one left behind continues to find the strength to carry on with his life so that he can someday find that special someone who will stay happy with him. Most of all, I hope everyone involved will just get passed this, learn from it, and move forward.

Now that I'm properly vented, I have no desire to discuss this matter any more. I will do so if you wish but I will not be the one to prompt it. It's time to leave this in the past, live with the decisions that were made and play the cards that were dealt, for better or worse.

Euphoria fades

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 19:34:22 GMT

The downside to having a great time is after it has passed, you're forced to return to the droll, monotonous days of the routine. It only took one phone call from the workplace today (one I didn't even speak on due to being in the shower at the time) to completely collapse all the asperations I had for the day. So much for writing, or reading, or gaming, or even maybe putting in a Christmas special to watch. None of it sounds appealing and if I were to attempt any of them, I would not have the proper focus or interest or whatever and would take no pleasure out of the activities in question.

I always dread this part of vacations when I take them, when the happiness has passed and it's back to being miserable. Stuck around people who I could stand to be apart from for a longer period than any vacation can grant me, and wishing for the companionship I left behind, whether it's DA, or Cerb, or Silver, or Panther and Seeker, or anyone else I've spent time with over the last few years. I have to cling to memories of good times just to keep myself together because I don't know how long it will be before I get to be happy again.

The rest of the trip.

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 02:36:10 GMT

Still winding down from last weekend and all that happened so I haven't really gotten around to a lot of things I've been meaning to. Still need to get back to holiday shopping and resume where I left off on the RL Christmas story since I decided to attempt it again. Not even sure why at times since the RL is so dead these days, I wonder how many people even expect it anymore. I did finally decide to use the idea Cerberus has been telling me for the last two or three years now. Anyway, that's all in the future, this post is about the previous weekend and the events unrelated to the concert.

I hit the road for Rosemont early Saturday morning, using the GPS I borrowed from my Dad to guide me on my way. The path itself was pretty straight forward, the bulk of it was on the nearby toll road, and since it was Saturday morning, traffic was sparse for the first hour and a half or so. Spent the ride relaxed and listening to an assortment of Final Fantasy tracks I had on my MP3 player with a few other game tracks here and there, plus Susan Calloway's songs and Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

The drive was actually enjoyable until I got to Illinois and the traffic thickened considerably and the Tom Tom's directions were getting harder to follow with the other cars around me. But somehow I reached me destination, the only problem: figuring out where I was supposed to park. I ended up in the parking garage for the convention center across the street by mistake, but since I was already inside I didn't want to have to pay extra to find a different parking spot in the hotel garage. So I went inside and checked into the room and waited for Panther and Seeker to arrive. After an hour or so and no one arriving to the room, I started to get concerned and went downstairs to find they were waiting for me in the lobby all that time.

After retrieving their things from Panther's truck and talking with Cerb on Seeker's phone briefly, we returned to the room to discover the key wasn't working. Turns out they were magnetic and got too close to a cell phone and lost it's magnetism. Panther went and got the key fixed and soon we were inside the room and everyone started settling in. I got a couple Christmas gifts (which in hindsight, I should've seen coming), a DeathNote wallscroll and a Santa stress ball.

We spent some time just hanging out and talking. Panther soon hooked up her Nintendo 64 and she and I played Mario Kart 64 (which she beat me a lot at) and then my GoldenEye 007 (which I was the victor in). I texted to Tailz between matches in GoldenEye, which was cool in a talking in a similar but different than usual kind of way. I attempted to take a nap as they watched a new episode of The Legend of the Seeker but eventually gave up, though I felt a little rested. We played some cards and tried to plan out what we were doing up until leaving for the concert, including dinner concerns and time for changing into our respective outfits.

We attempted to leave to find a place to eat but could not get out of the parking garage. The layout for leaving is so convoluted, if you lack a credit card there are so many hoops you have to jump through to get passed the gate. We went back in and asked at the desk how to get out and got a ticket to use for that occasion, but decided we didn't have enough time to eat out anymore and just returned to the room to change and snack on what we brought ourselves.

The concert happened, which can be read about in my previous post or on Facebook. We returned to the room somewhere between midnight and 12:30 I believe, pumped from the experience. We ordered some pizza and tortellinis and had it delivered to the room and enjoyed a meal while going on and on about the experience. The pizza was too greasy though and started to upset my stomach, and I was already sick from a cold I got Wednesday, so I wound up feeling like crap and not sleeping a wink that whole night.

We resumed hanging out the next morning when Panther and Seeker woke up. More gaming ensued and Panther continued to mop the floor with me in Mario Kart 64. Soon after I got Seeker to try out Final Fantasy VI on my DS, she was really getting into it, reading the dialogue outloud and all. She seemed to really get a kick out of Kefka when he was at Figaro. After talking and taking a couple pictures, we started preparing our things for the impending departure. While we were all eager to leave the Rosemont Hotel behind, we weren't so eager to part ways so we stopped at a nearby Starbucks for a quick bite to eat.

Panther dropped me off outside the convention center parking garage and Seeker almost bowled me over with her farewell hug. With a few parting words, I gathered up my things and waved (as best I could with my hands full) as they drove by. And I got inside the garage to find my car and begin the arduous journey home. I took a couple moments to sort out my emotions as I sat in the car waiting for it to warm up, and soon was heading home.

Trip home sucked, to be blunt. Between functioning on no sleep, Sunday afternoon Chicago area traffic, and the Tom Tom giving me redundant instructions like "Veer left and then veer right" and "Stay in the left lane and then turn right." I had three close calls traffic wise before getting back to the Indiana toll road, the first in the parking garage when some idiot was entering through an exit ramp and nearly hit me head on, the others were from trying to watch too many places at once while in congested traffic. And about forty-five minutes or so away from home, my speedometer stopped working due to a sensor attached to the transmission burning out. I got home though, utterly exhausted and after calling up Panther to tell them I made it back safely, I went to sleep and woke up 10 hours later at 2 in the morning.

Distant Worlds 12/12/2009

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 04:21:45 GMT

Distant Worlds: Music from Final Fantasy had their most recent performance last Saturday and out of the three Final Fantasy concerts I have attended, this one was by far the best. The Chicagoland Pops and the Elmhurst College Concert Choir performed at the Rosemont Theatre under the guidance of conductor and tour producer, Arnie Roth. Susan Calloway provided her superb vocal skills to four moving pieces. Famed video game composer Nobuo Uematsu was also in attendance, and also displayed his musical prowess on stage during the concert's finale.

Like most good stories, it would be best to start from the beginning. Shortly after arriving at the Rosemont Theatre, I parted ways with my two friends I rode with to reach the concert and had a brief conversation with a young woman with a moogle doll and her boyfriend, the topic primarily revolved around the PSP game Dissidia Final Fantasy. As the doors were opening to allow entry to our seats, I left my fellow fans and found my seat; Section 103, Row 3, Seat 2, the section front and center.

While waiting for the concert to start, I engaged in conversation with the woman seated to my right about what we were most looking forward to. The mention of Dancing Mad caused the guy to my left to say "Kefka beats Sephiroth, am I right?" and I agreed with a fistbump. I continued to chat off and on with my neighbors while taking the occasional picture of cosplayers posing in front of the stage. Nobuo Uematsu himself soon entered the room, escorted to his seat to a standing ovation from the crowd, and I was personally excited that he was seated almost directly behind me (several rows back, but behind me all the same). And then, before I knew it, the concert was about to begin.

Arnie Roth appeared on stage to the applause of the audience and the concert opened with an emotional arrangement of The Prelude. Liberi Fatali was next, the standard opening for the Distant Worlds concerts and was just as powerful as I remembered from the Grand Rapids show. A fitting conbination to open this concert. And to top it off, they followed up their successful opening with the Victory Fanfare.

Afterwards, Arnie talked to the fans, welcoming everyone to the last Distant Worlds concert of the year. And of course, Nobuo-san had to have his big introduction. Not only that, but representatives from Square Enix were also in attendance, which was a pleasant and welcome surprise for many fans, myself included.

To Zanarkand, Don't Be Afraid, and Ronfaure were the next three pieces to be performed. To Zanarkand was as I remembered from my previous concert and was so moving, the piece is at its best when fully orchestrated. Don't Be Afraid was full of action and I still love the usage of the projection screen for this piece, very clever and appropriate. Ronfaure was also well performed and goes to show that you don't need to have played all the games to enjoy the score.

Susan Calloway took the stage for the first time next with Memoro de la Stono ~ Distant Worlds and it is still an enjoyable piece to listen to. Love Grows and Swing de Chocobo were next on the agenda. Love Grows is still so moving and will always be one of my favorites; I even shed a couple tears near the end as I watched the exchange between Laguna and Raine on the screen, that always gets to me. Swing de Chocobo is still my favorite rendition of the Chocobo Theme, Arnie Roth did a fantastic job arranging it. Melodies of Life was next and I honestly liked Susan Calloway's performance over the original, as much as I still enjoy that version.

After that, Fisherman's Horizon was performed with the aid of the choir and it was very soothing to listen to. And then, one of the world premieres everyone was waiting for, J-E-N-O-V-A! The opening bells that were used ran a chill down my spine, and I quickly found that the orchestral arrangement was similar to the version performed by The Black Mages, which I was more than content with. And with that, it was time for intermission.

The Opening ~ Bombing Mission kicked things off in the second half, followed by the Main Theme of Final Fantasy VII, which was performed beautifully, definitely my favorite from the big number VII. Susan Calloway returned for her third performance of the night with Suteki da ne, which was for me the biggest surprise musically speaking. Eyes on Me has always been my favorite vocal piece from the Final Fantasy series and now I find myself questioning that after listening to Susan's amazing rendition of the translated ending song of Final Fantasy X. One of the best parts of the night for me to be sure.

One of Arnie Roth's personal favorites was next, Aerith's Theme, and I don't blame Mr. Roth for enjoying it so for it is an excellent piece. The world premiere of the Distant Worlds version of Dancing Mad was next, the arrangement I was most eager to hear, and I was pleased with what was offered. Part of the third movement and the faster paced rendition of Kefka's Theme were omitted but that is an understandable decision, even if the fans prefer to have Dancing Mad in its entirety. The story telling usage of the video was a nice approach and it also showed the various representations of Kefka from his sprite form, to the opening video from the Playstation release of Final Fantasy VI, to the fairly recent Dissidia cutscenes.

Susan returned to the stage for the last time to sing Kiss Me Goodbye from Final Fantasy XII. I have only heard it once before but it was a nice vocal piece and Susan performed it wonderfully. Next was one of my personal favorites from the series, and according to Arnie Roth, also one of Nobuo Uematsu's as well: the Theme of Love from Final Fantasy IV. The Man with the Machine Gun was next, another highly anticipated arrangement and I loved every second of it.

The fans attending this Distant Worlds concert were granted a special treat by Square Enix, permission for the orchestra to perform a two-piece medley of music from the upcoming Final Fantasy XIV: Twilight over Thanalan and Beneath Bloody Borders. Terra's Theme brought the main part of the concert to a close, complete with the concert's credits displaying on screen above the Magitek Armored troops and Terra marching through the snow field. But of course the show is not over yet.

Enter the Chicago Mages with Nobuo Uematsu on the B2 organ. The highly anticipated Advent: One-Winged Angel was about to begin. But Arnie Roth had a little more to add to the performance: audience participation. The fans were asked to sing the "Sephiroth!" parts of One-Winged Angel, and it actually didn't sound bad. It may have been because I was sitting so close to the stage but the Mages were drowning out the orchestra and choir during a considerable portion of the piece. The performance itself was still one of the most enjoyable and memorable, but from an aesthetic viewpoint, it was a little disappointing. And with another battle theme over, the Victory Fanfare was played one last time.

And then, the encore, a repeat performance of Advent: One-Winged Angel. Another lively performance, highlighted by Nobuo Uematsu jumping away from the organ for a couple seconds to play the air guitar alongside the two guitarists of the Chicago Mages. The crowd loved that part and even Arnie was grinning and shaking his head at the beloved composer's actions. And with that, the concert reached its conclusion.

The meet and greet with Arnie, Susan, and Nobuo after the show was also very lively and enjoyable. I chatted with the people I was standing with in line from time to time and as I neared the end I started to organize the various soundtrack CD booklets I brought to be signed and discovered the guy in front of me attended the same Dear Friends concert I did back in 2005. Saw some familiar faces from the Facebook community though names were not so forthcoming, including the guy with Nobuo's signature tattooed on his arm.

I talked to Arnie briefly about how great the concert was and about my past experiences with the Final Fantasy tours. I got Susan to sign my copy of her solo album, Chasin the Sun, as well as the Distant Worlds CD I received for attending the meet and greet. She seemed genuinely surprised to see it, and really appreciated it. I shook hands with Nobuo before presenting him with a copy of OverClocked ReMix's arrangement album "Final Fantasy IV: Echoes of Betrayal, Light of Redemption" on behalf of a friend of mine who was deeply involved with the project. I got my items signed and posed for a picture in which we said "Yo!" for the camera, resulting in a somewhat goofy picture but one I'll gladly take over none at all. And with that, the clock just striking midnight, my night of fantasy reached its conclusion.

A New Record of Sorts

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:43:33 GMT

This is the longest I've ever gone without updating LiveJournal. Didn't keep track of the actual number of days but it's easily about a month's worth. Just haven't felt like blogging about anything, just kind of felt like there was no point to doing it. Which I guess is kind of true, I don't really gain anything out of it aside from a brief respite from boredom.

Not that much has transpired over the last month or so, at least that I can recall off the top of my head. My birthday passed, it was pretty uneventful and I mostly got pizza and a Walmart gift card. Been part-time working at the old job three days a week, which gets me enough money that I don't have to resort to going to the bank to pay for rent, as long as I work every weekend (Distant Worlds concert weekend might put a damper on that next month).

And Dissidia happened. Been playing Dissidia for varying amounts of time each day since I got it. Six of the 22 characters are at level 100 now: Firion, Cloud, The Emperor, Bartz, Garland, and Cecil. Firion and The Emperor are probably my best characters overall though I do alright with Terra, Bartz, Sephiroth, and Squall. This game probably should've been on a console, the game mechanics would be easier to perform with a controller that isn't also the screen (and doesn't feel like pressing a button rapidly might break it; the PSP does not feel durable in my hands). Inward Chaos, the hardest mode in the Story Mode, will require me to get the harder to acquire weapons and armor before I have a chance to finish off the level 110 Chaos at the end.

I also signed up for NaNoWriMo but lacked the conviction or motivation to type up more than the prologue. I'm disappointed in myself for this weakness. Ever since my sci fi story's second chapter, something happened that has left me constantly frustrated with anything to do with writing. I haven't been able to read or write anything aside from that prologue without wanting to slam my head on my desk in frustration. I might be next in line for Casus Belli too (whenever Soul Hunter gets around to finishing his chapter) and I'm a little worried I won't be able to repeat the general success that was my first chapter in that story.

I guess there's more to talk about but I'm going to leave it at that for today.

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:33:15 GMT

Well, it seems my part-time days have been increased by one, so I work two scheduled days a week now. Will definitely help out on the money front.

Got an email from dad today, wishing me a happy birthday a couple days in advance. That was nice, and now I'm reminded that my bday is this week. Totally forgot.

Considering dressing up as Light Yagami from DeathNote for Halloween, assuming I find a wig that's close enough to his hair color/style to work. I already have an outfit close enough to what Light wore at the end of the series, just need a different tie. If that doesn't work out, it'd probably be easier to dress up as L instead.

Dissidia videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAjFYFh3Ies
Firion from FFII vs Bartz from FFV

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDAgy8ltRHk&feature=channel
Also Firion vs Bartz.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpDu1clc5mU&feature=channel
Garland from FFI vs Squall

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GfrsycgHUk&feature=channel
Cloud vs Tidus

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFRUYOxQJ8Y&feature=channel
Terra vs Golbez

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuqzf9xublI&feature=channel
Terra vs Kefka

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6b4PCEXKDD0&feature=channel
and Jecht vs the Warrior of Light

Fenix Down's Dissidia videos

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 00:56:02 GMT

Haven't been posting lately. Haven't really felt like writing or reading much lately either. Still think about it but it just doesn't really happen. Lately I've been playing Dissidia and Dragon Quest V, both of which are enjoyable games. I've been uploading a bunch of my battles from Dissidia onto YouTube, though I'm not sure if half of them were really worth putting up there. Oh well, I've got a few more on the computer just waiting to join the ranks and a couple on the PSP that haven't made the jump to PC yet. I am interested in any requests for possible match ups, preferred stages to battle on, which battle themes to use or any combination of the three.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaRpYBZEEkQ
Squall vs Bartz in Pandaemonium (FFII).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hP8g2QG8Ty0&feature=channel
Terra vs ExDeath in Ultimecia's Castle (FFVIII).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRTENcMSWwI&feature=channel
Sephiroth vs Cloud in the Crystal World (FFIX).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GydASP6Gdg&feature=channel
Tidus vs Zidane.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-G7C_s5syI&feature=channel
Bartz vs The Onion Knight at Dream's End (FFX)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieRXOpKmtYM&feature=channel
Cloud vs Sephiroth in Ultimecia's Castle.

Sun, 11 Oct 2009 01:14:34 GMT

Got Dissidia Final Fantasy recently and have spent some time playing that. I've unlocked all the FFI-X villains and got through the story modes for most of the heroes save for Onion Knight, Terra, and Warrior of Light. I'll probably play through Onion Knight's tomorrow. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX4XZ6erC0I is a link to my first YouTube video, which I took from one of my fights in Dissidia today. Sephiroth vs The Emperor, you can tell I'm still inexperienced with the mistakes I made during the fight.

Not much else to go into at present. Haven't been job hunting as much at present, I should renew my efforts. A clean energy plant is supposed to open fairly close by in the near future, I need to get around to typing up a resume and emailing it to them so that I might be considered for a job. Not sure what kind of jobs are being offered at present though but the pay has to be better than what I was making before. Just need to figure out how to write a resume and find stuff to put in it...

Brawl Building and other stuff

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 02:15:14 GMT

Updating for the sake of updating it seems. Not even sure what to type yet. Been making custom stages in Super Smash Bros. Brawl the last two days. I think my best would be my Spring Yard Zone, Scrap Brain Zone, and The Pit inspired by that stage from the original Mortal Kombat. SYZ basically spams springboards, SBZ is loaded with conveyor belts and spike dropoff points, and The Pit is basically a wide platform with a long stretch of spikes at the very bottom, with moving platforms on the far sides to enable a means of returning to the top. Just wish I had people to show them to.

Finished reading The Pirate King last week. Forget if I mentioned that or not last time but overall it was a good story but not the best in the series. Definitely better than The Orc King, which was the previous story. And once again, R.A. Salvatore decides it's time to kill off another of his longterm supporting characters, though I saw it coming this time. Actually, that was my biggest beef with this story, it was waaaay too preditable, like he didn't bother trying to hide anything.

Catching the new seasons of Castle and Dollhouse, so far they're doing well. Castle's new season is feeling stronger than the first. Dollhouse's new season is showing potential as well, though they're still being sloppy with the plot details. At least it was better than the start of season 1, I'll be satisfied with this season if they can maintain this quality per episode.

Finished Super Mario Galaxy as Luigi recently, which is why I've been playing Brawl again recently. Just something to play as I decide what game to focus on next. Either finish Persona 3 since I'm so close to the end, start Kingdom Hearts RE: Chain of Memories, or one of my downloaded games on the Wii like Super Metroid or FFIV The After Years. Also off and on FFIV DS new game + and Crisis Core on the PSP.

Guess that's it for today.

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 01:11:32 GMT

I seem to have fallen into a once a week LJ updating bend. Guess using Facebook and Twitter to cover the little things leads to less to blog about in a longer sense. Or I just haven't felt like it. Don't even remember what I talked about last time...

Anyway, things seem to be going alright at present. Was asked to fill in for someone sick at my old job. Wasn't exactly pleased with that but I did it, went relatively well, though seeing what's become of my old work station since I quit pained me more than I was expecting it to. The overall degradation, and not just from renovation stuff, was greater than I anticipated, or at least allowed myself to believe it would turn out. I knew it was going to go down the tubes, I guess I thought they'd do a better job of hiding it. Anyway, netted a solid $40 from that evening, more than the hourly pay would have covered for my time, so now that it's over, I feel better.

Still just a little sick, been sick since a week from today, voice is still kinda raspy, and I cough a bit but I'm active again for the most part. Hopefully I'll be all better tomorrow.

Gaming has been primarily Super Luigi Galaxy on the Wii. Less than 40 stars to go now, and since I beat the last Cosmic Luigi race, the rest should be fairly easy to clear. Only two chapters left in The Pirate King, the most recent Drizzt Do'Urden book by R.A. Salvatore. Not the best the series had to offer but I'm enjoying it, even if it's way too obvious who the mysterious people in the shadows are, to the point where I didn't get why they weren't revealed sooner, other than they were just there for plot device purposes and if they were unvealed, they would have to be characterized and scenes would have to be devoted to them and the book would veer off the intended course or wind up rushed. Looking forward to the epilogue then.

And I guess that's it from me for now.

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 23:56:10 GMT

Guess I'm overdue for another update. Not too much happening that's worth talking about though. Car started leaking brake fluid a few days ago so I had it taken to a mechanic and fixed up. Put an application in at K-mart after picking it up, since someone there said they were hiring, despite the computer not having any openings listed. Going to visit my dad this weekend at some point, I'll stop in after that and ask about it then.

Haven't really done any writing since I finished Riddler Hearts, despite thinking about various projects either currently active or ones that've been on the backburner for a long time. Even thought about reviving the old Fenix Down Series, another reboot, not that the second attempt got anywhere. I really should get cracking on that FFO story though.

Recently got back into One Piece. Been watching subbed episodes off Funimation's website. Nearing the end of the battle against Captain Kuro at present. Still early in the series, which is currently over 400 episodes long and still going. Also been watching Haruhi, but now they've reached the last four episodes of the original season, so nothing new for at least four weeks, assuming they have more new episodes to show after that.

Gaming-wise, been playing Super Mario Galaxy, and got all 120 stars. Now I'm playing as Luigi and got 40some so far. Feels easier as Luigi, but maybe it's because I know what I'm doing now. Cosmic Luigi races SUCK though. Speedy bastard...

Week one

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 00:48:58 GMT

So far the bulk of my free time has gone towards gaming of some kind. Beat Megaman 9, first as Megaman, then finished my incomplete file as Protoman. Also played a little Super Mario Bros. 3 and The Lost Levels which were already on my Wii. And most of all, Super Mario Galaxy, I now have only four more stars to get, and the one I'm currently trying for is rediculous (and not unexpected, just wish the time limit would go).

Also did some reading. Finished Neverwhere, which I found enjoyable, and am now working on The Pirate King, the most recent Drizzt Do'Urden book by R.A. Salvatore. So far I'm liking it.

Been writing a bit as well. Started chapter 2 of the FFO-based sci-fi story I've talked about before. And today, I finally reached the end of Riddler Hearts, after starting it over three years ago. I feel accomplished today as a result, even though I think the ending was kind of meandering, I just couldn't find a suitable place to stop and kept going and going... I'll probably resume the FFO story next unless I decide to finish the Insanity Revolution or something instead.

I started my job hunt today. Put in applications at Walmart and Meijer's, and took one from Arby's when I stopped for lunch. They weren't hiring yet so I'll fill that out and submit it next time I go there. Think Meijer's probably has the best odds of happening of the three at present, but I'll find other places later this week or early next and keep going. I'll have to remember to call the stores within a day or two to make sure they got my apps. Fingers crossed.

Newly unemployed ...yay?

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:31:37 GMT

Title says it all. I am presently without a job as of today. Quit due to circumstances that I was not willing to work with. Left shortly after arriving, after finding my work station area torn apart to put in new flooring later on, and me being expected to do my job in the midst of all that. Stuff like that should be done when we're closed, that sort of thing could get a place closed down if the right people find out.

Told Andrea and Dorthy, the girls working at the time, that I was done, and after a bunch of 'are you sure?'s and 'but we love you's and things inbetween, I clocked out for the last time. They wrote down their phone numbers for me so I can stay in touch, which I intend to, and had some parting words with a couple of the regular customers, I left. Since I walked to work, I actually ran part of the way home, not for any particular reason. Boss called shortly after I got back and we talked for a minute, I said I wasn't coming back and he said ok, he thanked me for what I did and I did the same to him and we made it clear that we didn't want to part on bad terms and that I would stop by from time to time. I'll be going back on Friday to get my last check, well assuming he includes my money from my six hours this week in with it.

Still reeling from the shock of it all, reality is setting in and the looming issue with unemployment is laid bare. I've got about 8,000 saved up in the bank, did the math and found it's about 22 months worth of rent if I don't spend it on anything else, which will be near-impossible without some serious leeching. I'm going to take a few days, maybe a week or so to try to relax before I seriously start the job hunt, or the school hunt, first one then the other I guess.

So... fingers crossed.

Hadn't felt like blogging in a while

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 00:25:27 GMT

A lot of depressing stuff has been going on, primarily between my sister and niece leaving and my uncle passing away last Friday. The funeral was today and I served as one of the pallbearers for the ceremony. Not something I want to get acustomed to doing but am willing to do so if necessary. The family is taking it hard but we're all coping. Time heals wounds and all.

I'm not really up for elaborating on details at present. Not sure what I'd say even if I were in the mood. It's just sad. Not much else to say.

It's over.

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 01:24:17 GMT

Well, my sister and niece moved back to California today. We went to Detroit yesterday and stayed at a hotel since her flight was going to leave early in the morning today. After some parting words and pictures at the airport, we left them and went back to the hotel to get some sleep and breakfast, etc. I tried some coffee but it was either over brewed to the point of tasting burnt or I'm just not a coffee drinker despite the Godot fixation. Tried some Detroit-brewed beer last night called Detroit Dwarf that was alright but not the best I ever had.

Had to load up a Uhaul truck after we got back with some of Grandpa's stuff we've had in the house. Wasn't enough room in the truck for three people so I got left behind, but I did manage to take a nap during that time.

That's about all I feel like saying at present. I feel so contradictory, I feel the opposite from what I was expecting.

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 02:56:24 GMT

Starters - Found out tonight that the Main Theme of FFVII has officially been added to the Distant Worlds concert in Chicago. Great news though I was positive they would add it after premiering it in Canada a couple months beforehand. Confirmed performances for Dec/12 are: J-E-N-O-V-A (FFVII), Dancing Mad (FFVI), FFVII Main Theme, Kiss me Goodbye (FFXII), and Advent One-Winged Angel (FFVII AC). FFVII's getting a lot of attention.

New Haruhi episode is online today, but the subtitled version is still in the works apparently. Saw about a minute of it without text but I'm not sure which story it is. Hope it isn't filler... Endless Eight filled up enough.

Had some new insights for the FFO story I'm working on while at work today. Ways to make previous ideas work for me better. I'll get back to working on it in the near future.

Caught up on the episodes of Castle available on Hulu. They skipped a couple for some reason. Anyway, I like the show enough, Nathan Fillion is definitely the high point. It's a little too predictable who the killer/kidnapper is, think I'm on a perfect track record for guessing who was the culprit so far. They do throw in some twists that cause a little doubt on the matter but after those get straightened out it becomes all the clearer. I'd say it's a good show with some great cast members that keep it interesting despite weaknesses in the story telling itself.

Guess that's all for today.

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 03:14:14 GMT

It would take 21 bottles of Guinness Guinness Draught to kill me

Created by Bar Stools

Been awhile

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 01:04:35 GMT

First off.

Endless Eight has finally ended. At last, the eight episode long quasi-rerun fest has concluded. Though the ending did have a lot more impact after having to go through those seven other episodes to get there. Probably would not have been so good otherwise.

Finished the first chapter of the FFO story I started up recently. According to my main proofreader, it's pretty good, and I already corrected the things he had concerns about. This won't get posted on FFO until I completely finish it though, then I'll post a chapter every so many days until it's all up. Looking forward to completing this.

Been playing mostly Megaman X games as of late. Currently on X4 playing as X, and only one more robot master to go before the final sequence of stages can begin. I also started Super Mario Galaxy today, so far it's pretty neat.

Guess that's about it for me today.

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 02:03:04 GMT

Visited my uncle in the hospital today with my mom and sister. They were actually in the process of moving him back to his house so we relocated over there. Apparently, he had tried to escape the hospital a couple days ago or so in the middle of the night, but fell and hit his head. We stuck around for a while, talked to family members who were present, and I walked away with three bottles of free beer (cousin's husband apparently bought it while they were home from Germany but didn't finish it all, and my aunt didn't want it so she gave it to me). We're not sure how much time my uncle still has left, they've got a lady from Hospice who comes by to check on him. Just hope it's painless when the time comes.

Sun, 02 Aug 2009 02:49:36 GMT

Seems like my uncle is not long for this world. Sister told me earlier tonight that he's back in the hospital and they will not be releasing him again due to the amount of cancer he has throughout his body. I don't really have any other details, no expected timetable, I didn't even know he was in the hospital again until my sister returned from wherever she went to today, which apparently was to my aunt's house.

This is just awful, I can hardly focus on what I was doing before I heard.

Wed, 29 Jul 2009 03:11:40 GMT

Niece said her first cuss word today. Not my fault. Sister had candy and wasn't letting her have any, then said something like 'You look like you just want to call me a bitch' and then Niece said 'Bitch.' and her mouth dropped open. Unfortunately I wasn't paying enough attention that I missed the big moment. I laughed when I realized what happened though.

Not much else to go into tonight. I did type up about five pages for a new story using members of FFO as the cast. So far only my character, JSG, and kirbenvost have been properly introduced, though I started describing CaButler before I finished for the day. Spring Heeled Jack looked it over and now wants a role and I'm now debating whether or not I can fit him in without jumbling up my pre-planned events.

Just about bed time, but I am not looking forward to tomorrow so I'm hesitant...

Off for Distant Worlds once again

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 02:33:07 GMT

After work today I went online and purchased a ticket for the FF Distant Worlds concert in Chicago that will happen on Dec/12. Still have half a year or so before the show but I'm looking forward to it. I'd probably feel happier about it if it were sooner though. But with new arrangements and Nobuo-san performing Advent One-Winged Angel with a rock band, orchestra and chorus, that's something worth waiting for.

Unfortunately, despite buying a glorious, but expensive, concert/meet-and-greet ticket, my day was pretty shitty. Work continues to suck, but that's nothing new, though today was hitting a fever pitch. I really should just go 'fuck it' and quit, back-up job or no back-up job. Unemployment sounds more appealing that replaying this shit again and again in a recuring loop. Unfortunately, the boss is on vacation this week so I have to wait til Friday at the earliest to say that. That's assuming I'm still upset enough to quit at the time, the bastard has a knack for not being present during the times when I want to quit the most. There are proper procedures for such things after all.

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:47:50 GMT

Saw the new Harry Potter movie the other day. Overall, I thought it was done rather well, save for maybe the last half hour to forty-five minutes or so. That was just rushed and felt lacking in the amount of thought the rest of the movie was given. The camera work was impressive though. Overall, I think it was one of the better film adaptions.

Got three of the four books I've ordered recently in the mail yesterday. Read the final volume of Fruits Basket, the ending was full of happy endings and lovey dovey stuff. Sooner or later I'll get to the other books, just like I'll get to a lot of other things too.

Not sure what else to talk about. Feeling unhappy at present, mostly living situation related this time. Not enjoying this place but that's been the case for awhile. Sister is just going out of her way to piss me off today. I'd love to slug her but that would make me the bad guy. Had the nerve to tell me to watch what I say around her kid because she learns everything everyone is saying when, as I pointed out, she cusses more than anyone in this house and that she should shut her mouth.

I just don't know what to do anymore.

Final Thoughts on the FFIV Remix album

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 17:51:08 GMT

I say final in the sense that I don't intend to carry on about it any more after this entry. Was lying in bed awake thinking about my overall thoughts on this project (not on purpose, I tend to experience insomnia and end up thinking about recent things) and practically had an essay's worth of things to say, both good and bad, but I don't remember half of it and some of the rest were either unnecessarily harsh/rantish, or just rambling in general. I shouldn't get worked up for something I got for free and that others put a lot of time and effort into, I feel like an ass for my initial reaction. I've gone through most of the music at least three times now, some tracks a few more due to being on my MP3 player, and the ones I really disliked only once, so I feel I'm in a position where I can share my thoughts in a more concise manner.

I'll break it apart into the 'good' and 'bad' categories and the things I don't touch on I either forgot or was just indifferent about. I'll start with the negatives since they require less thought for me to pinpoint (for me it's easier to find something I don't like than what I do, guess I'm just a 'glass is half empty' guy).

Criticisms:

- I personally don't like having words in my music if they are not lyrics. In Ana(pro)logue, the track was going well, was enjoyable to listen to, then some voice akin to Merlin from Disney's The Sword in the Stone starts counting... and I don't remember the rest of the track, broke my focus on the music. The Palom and Porom one was kinda annoying but didn't bother me as much.

- I hated the Zeromus finale. I was alone when I listened to it and felt embarrassed hearing it. Last time that happened that I can recall was when I played FFX for the first time and reached the infamous laughing scene. I applaud the effort, and the attempt at something different, but it just didn't do it for me. I don't think I liked any of the Zeromus tracks, especially the half hour long background noise fest that I don't understand how it passed any review or judging process.

- Rhymes with Elixer. No desire to elaborate.

- There were a few tracks that I was unable to hear the source music, though I can't even remember which tracks those were. I know Treason I thought had more Zeromus in it than Four Fiends save for one part (but I kind of like that track, just the only real example I could recall).

Praises:

- I'd have to say the best track in the album in terms of quality and sticking with the source material would have to be Fighting for Tomorrow. Not my overall favorite, actually I don't really have an overall favorite yet, but I do believe it was the best made.

- The album started off good, I liked the metal take of The Might of Baron. Red Wings is always enjoyable.

- Liked all of bLiNd's tracks, they were pretty solid.

- The non-Zeromus battle themes were also good.

- Tundra of Dwarves and In the Land of Dwarves were enjoyable as well.

- The first half of the finale tracks, the Moon overworld theme with DA's vocals, I really liked that one. One of DA's better performances IMO.

- Liked The Still Land and the epilogue. Also the first three or four of the bonus tracks, the Calcobrena one I liked more than the offical album track.

And I'll stop there, I'm kind of pushing the clock in terms of things happing in real life so that's the reason things started to get rushed towards the end. If I think of anything else I may edit in later if I feel it's worth doing so. I do thank everyone involved for their efforts in this project, despite my general negative-sounding reaction, I have been enjoying the album for the most part. I just think everyone tried to reach too high with this album, overdid it at times, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but can lead to less than stellar reactions. So, in case anyone involved in the project stumbles across this, thank you for all your hard work.

Still a Bored Blogger

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 02:23:17 GMT

After much searching and frustration, I finally located and downloaded the Final Fantasy IV remix album off Overclocked Remix. I really wish they included some kind of expected posting time when they announced the date. I was refreshing the OCR homepage for about a half hour after midnight last night, and even checked the site before work this morning but it still was not up. Now I'm currently listening to the album, though saddly not as many tracks are grabbing me immediately. Not saying they're bad, at least not all of them, but they aren't as great as I had hoped.

Only one or two of them so far I know are going to the MP3 player and I think I'm about halfway done now. I'm sure if I listen to it enough I'll be able to pick out more, right now it's kind of a music overload with 54 tracks in this album counting bonus tracks. Only skipped one track, but those who hear it will probably understand why as it's a joke track with a bunch of remixers (including DA) rapping as various summons like Chocobo and Shiva, etc. I've heard parts of it courtesy of DA and I really tried to like it, or to even find it amusing but I could not. It really feels out of place in the album and should have been put with the bonus tracks, if not erased altogether.

Anyway, enough on the remix project. Finished reading Amber and Blood today. Book overall was alright, from a technical standpoint, I could not believe the sheer number of typoes and grammer mistakes made. I can't tell if Margaret Weis even has an editor. The story itself was alright, just winding down the path set up by the first two books. Ending was sort of predictable, at least the final outcome with Mina. Not sure what I'm going to read next, probably Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman.