2 Challenges

Two ideas occurred to me today.

The first one is putting a halt to buying video games. I've become far too susceptible to the hype surrounding games I think I'll enjoy. When these games come out, it's difficult for me to not buy them. I have dozens of games to play, though. I don't need the latest one. In fact, there are many incentives to waiting to buy a game. They inevitably go down in price (except for the rare gem like Rez). Also, buying a new game means either neglecting one I'm playing now or not starting the one I just bought. The cycle begins anew when I buy the next game before I've even started playing the last one I bought. Left unchecked, I'll just continue to accumulate unplayed games, effectively throwing my money into a deep, dark hole.

This is my pledge: I will not buy any more video games for the rest of the year, for any system. There is only one exception: The Wrath of the Lich King, the next World of Warcraft expansion. That's an add-on to a game I already play, so I'm allowing myself that one expenditure. I will maintain subscriptions for World of Warcraft and Warhammer: Age of Reckoning. I will buy no more games for any console or the PC. No digital downloads, no used games, no casual games. I will play what I have. There are simply too many games to ignore. Even after getting rid of all of my first person shooters, the list is embarrassing.

Completable Games 

(having a distinct ending or completion point)

1. Mass Effect
   
2. Oblivion
   
3. Ninja Gaiden
   
4. Jade Empire
   
5. Final Fantasy XII
   
6. Rogue Galaxy
   
7. Devil May Cray 4
   
8. Metal Gear Solid 2
   
9. Final Fantasy Tactics A2
   
10. Mario Galaxy
11. Marvel Ultimate Alliance
12. Black and White II
13. Assassin's Creed
14. Braid
15. Castle Crashers
16. Fallout 2

Repeatable Games

(having no ending, can be played indefinitely)

1. Soul Calibur IV
2. Burnout Paradise
3. Rez
4. N+
5. Puzzle Fighter
6. Bomberman
7. Carcassonne
8. Catan
9. King of Fighters 11
10. Rock Band 2
11. Starcraft
12. Diablo 2

(These lists are incomplete.  They contain only what I can think of off the top of my head in 5 minutes.)

My second idea is related.  On weekdays, 10 pm is fun time.  Until 10, I do chores, programming, writing, TBA work, organizing, and anything else that is not pure recreation.  The only exception is TV or anime while eating.  Once 10 pm comes around, work ends, and I enjoy myself.  Then, I'll read comics, play video games, read books, assemble models, or anything else.  N0 work, though.

I'm doing this to encourage myself to be more productive.  There are too many things that I can easily handle if I simply take the time to do them.  Most of them take 15 minutes or less, but I too often let myself get distracted by recreational activities.  I have to get that under control.  The 10pm deadline is also a reward of sorts.  It gives me something to look forward to as I work. I'll consider bringing the time up to 9, if I can get far enough ahead of my work.

It's not Blooger.com

I typed blooger.com into my browser when I decided to make a quick blog post just now. It amused me. I just thought you should know. "Blooger" is a funny word.

With the Electric Goldfish's help, I finished Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law last night. There are 5 cameos by Street Fighter characters, each of which unlocks a different "gag reel". I only found two. I intend to download an FAQ to see the rest before I rid myself of the game.

I'm going to give Goozex a try, to trade away Harvey Birdman. It's a service I've been interested in for a while, but I've never signed up. I've already got an account, and, as soon as I've unlocked the rest of the gag reels, Harvey Birdman will be the first game I make available on that site. Wario: Master of Disguise will probably be next.

I weighed myself today. Not good.

Current weight: 330.2 lbs
Total weight lost: 0.2 lbs

Next

Having now finished Kingdom Hearts II, I'm turning my attention to the huge stack of games I have that I still need to finish.  Well, "need" is a strong word.  Nobody "needs" to finish this stuff.  It's my hobby, though, and that's something I've come to terms with.

Anyway, I've decided to move on to Final Fantasy XII.  Since I lost my copy, I'm borrowing a friend's, and I prefer to finish games I've borrowed before all others.  I had already made a little progress a couple of months ago, so I didn't have to start completely over.  After taking a few minutes to reacclimate, I once again started off on the adventure.  I'll probably be playing it for the next few weeks.  Let's see, if I estimate 60 hours of playtime and divide that by 3 - 4 hours per week, that comes to 15 to 20 weeks.  Wow.  Ok, if I want to do it in two months, I'll need to put in ( 60 hours divided by 8 weeks ) 7.5 hours per week.  Tall order. I think I'll keep track of my playtime in this blog.  Watch for that.

I'm easing my way back into my diet.  I'm not counting points just yet, but I'm cutting back on fast food.  I've got some chicken defrosting in the fridge right now.  I'll have that with some veggies tonight.  I just need to get back into sound eating habits.  I'll get back on the scale and start counting again Monday.  I'll post the progress here, too.

Now With More Gamercard!

I'm a little late with this one, but I didn't forget.  Work has kept me a little busy, but it hasn't really been that bad.  Things are going pretty well for me, right now, actually.

Metrocon is coming up, so I need to buckle down and get some buttons designed and created for Tampa Bay Anime.  Our last meeting before the con is this weekend, so it'd be nice if I could have something to show for it.  I did manage to get the code set up to automatically list the next meeting date, and I've started gathering tools for updating the website and forum on a more regular basis.  So, that's coming along.

Kay is at an exciting time in her development.  She's grabbing at everything, including her feet.  She doesn't quite crawl yet, but she's trying really hard to get the hang of it.  She definitely squirms across the floor well.  She's already managed to paw at my sound system, so I'm going to have to get serious about relocating my floor-level electronics.  She's started teething, too.  This is a time that I've been dreading.  It's varies in intensity - sometimes it keeps her up at night and she'll cry for an hour.  Other times, she's the same as always.  It's a little nerve-wracking, but it's nothing we can't handle.

We're getting settled into our diet fairly well.  We're starting to miss the foods we used to eat, but we're working together to choose meals that are good for us.  Of course, though, they've opened a Krispy Kreme across the street from us.  And they have drive-through window.  Unfair!

Game-wise, I just bought Puzzle Quest, finally caving to my friends' pressure.  It is a lot of fun, as I knew it would be.  Their characters are much higher level, though, so I'll have to play for a while before I can be competitive against them.  Other than that, I'm getting into Shadowrun for the PC, and I'm trying to finish Zelda for the Wii.  Crackdown, Ninja Gaiden Black, and Lumines Live spend about equal time in my 360 these days.  Also, I occasionally get to play World of Warcraft with Misty.  Good times for gaming.

Current weight: 321.2 lbs
Total weight lost: 6.8 lbs

I would be the most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves.
-- Anna Quindlen