Top 'O the Mornin' to Ye

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Nice day for me, because I'm Irish. Of course I don't drink, so that makes my celebration a little different. Still, I enjoy the day. My wife and I are going to be having some sort of Irish dinner. We have a leg of lamb in the fridge, but we're not sure if there are any points friendly meals we can make with it. We may instead do something with some deli Corned Beef.

Sorry for the lack of updates, but that was mainly due to Spring Break. Starting today I'm back on track. I should have a comic uploaded by Friday.

In game related news, we've decided to keep Mario Party 8. Thankfully, when I selected Keep It, there was a DS game available, which means I'll be able to play my DS some more. I'm expecting Puzzle Quest any day now.

I reached my 10 lb. goal on Friday which means I got to play Bully this weekend. It's a fun game. My only problem with it, and this is a problem I've noticed with Wii Games in general, is that it's a full body game. I mean sure, I could just sit down and play like that, but then I'd just feel like a tool. Suffice it to say, it's not that kind of game you want to relax with after a workout.

I've been playing Bleach: Shattered Blade too. I have to say, it is a fun game. I read some bad reviews about it, but it actually is fun. It's got its own original storyline set after the Save Rukia Arc, but before everyone goes back to the Human World. Episode Mode is really fun, if a little short (at least in comparison to Bleach for the DS). I only have two more episodes to beat. The hardest episode by far has been Hanataro's. Unfortunately, they got his abilities dead-on. His sword actually heals when it cuts. In order to do any damage, you've got to use special attacks, which mainly consist of Hanataro being clumsy and bumping into the enemy. Thankfully, when you fill up his "Bankai Meter" (which, unlike everyone else's, looks like the gauge he normally has on his sword), you can "Bankai" (which is actually his Shikai). During this time, his sword can actually do damage, but it has virtually no reach either. He does, however, have one of the most powerful special moves in the game at this time. Still, it was a challenge.

In other game related news, I just got my first World of Warcraft Character to level 30. His name is Carvis and he's an Undead Warlock on the Trollbane server. Say hi if you get a chance.

Well, I've got to get back to work. Still have a job to do. Later!

Wii Rock

I picked up Bully: Scholarship Edition for Wii today. I'm not going to play it yet though. It's not like I enjoy buying games that I can't play, but there is a story behind it. I reserved the game when I first bought my Wii, and I decided when I started making weight loss goals that this game would be my reward for loosing 10 lbs. Needless to say I'm still a bit short of this goal, but it was either buy it today, or loose the $5 deposit I put on it. I figured the best compromise would be to buy it now, but not to play it until I reach that goal. So now it's just going to sit there, mocking me.

Speaking of games, I had a few ideas I wanted to get out of my head and this seems like the perfect venue to do it. I want to see Rock Band for the Wii. Not the one that the other consoles have though. I've always felt that the only bad thing about Rock Band was the song list. It's not that I think the songs are bad, it's just that I don't usually listen to those songs. It seems to me like most of the songs (on the disk anyway) are mostly Metal and that's just not appealing to me. Not to mention there are some other ideas I'd like to see. So allow me to present my idea.

Rock Band: Greatest Hits.
[for Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, and Wii]
Immerse yourself in the greatest hits done by the greatest bands. Now, not only can you rock like the bands, but you can look like them too. Make your own fantasy band by playing as members of real bands! Make Steven Tyler your lead singer, Carlos Santana your Guitarist, and Ringo Starr your drummer! You can even download other band members and individuals into your game! The game contains songs actually done by the artists you're playing as.

Suggested Band List:
Aerosmith
Kiss
Beatles
Gorillaz
And Many More

Wii Exclusive Features:
Rock Band: Greatest Hits will have several features exclusive to the Wii (as compensation for not starting out with a Wii version). The Rock Band Guitar will be similar in setup to the Guitar Hero version, but with the added Rock Band functionality. It should be compatible with the Guitar Hero controller for the Wii as well. The Drum set will be nearly identical to the Drum Set for other Rock Band games, with the exception of a slot for the Wii Remote to slide in, making it a wireless drum set. Hits will support a USB microphone but there will also be two other methods as well. They can either use a Microphone or Headset that plugs into the back of the Wii Remote, or they can use the Nintendo DS (the DS headset is recommended). Users of the DS will notice that the words also appear on their DS as well as the TV. Wii gamers will also get exclusive characters, the Mario crew. Wii gamers will be able to choose from Mario, Luigi, Princess Daisy, Princess Peach, Wario, Waluigi, Toad, Toadette and of course, Bowser. These characters will be available for all band positions and have their own signature instruments.

Anyway, let me know if my idea strikes a cord with you. (Get it? Strikes a cord? Oh, nevermind)

Later!

Best. Weekend. Ever.

Oh my God, I had so much fun this weekend. I built a computer. All by myself. The only thing that would have made it better was if it was for me. Instead, I built a computer for my Mother. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the Rig itself, but I do have links to the parts I bought. I used Newegg.com because well, they're the best. I typically rely on Newegg and use Tiger Direct if I find a better deal, but this thing, with shipping, came in under $900.

New Computer:
Case
- hec COMPUCASE Black/Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower
Motherboard
- GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX All Solid Capacitor Intel Motherboard
Processor
- Intel Core 2 Duo 2.66 GHz Processor
RAM
- Kingston HyperX 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 SDRAM Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
Power Supply
- mushkin 550250 ATX12V/EPS12V 580W Power Supply
Video Card
- XFX PVT86SYAFG GeForce 8400GS 512MB 64-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card
Sound Card
- Creative SB X-Fi Xtreme Audio 70SB104000000 7.1 Channels PCI Express Interface Sound Card
Optical Drive
- LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM Write Black SATA
Extra Case Fan
- AeroCool TURBINE 3000 120mm Case Fan
Monitor
- Hanns·G HB-191DPB Black 19" 5ms DVI Widescreen LCD Monitor
Keyboard/Mouse
- Microsoft S82-00032S Black USB + PS/2 Wired Standard Keyboard Mouse Included

I have to be honest, If I could, I would have taken it home with me. But it's OK, because the one I build for myself will be even better.

One thing that irks me though. I sent the Zelda DS game back to GameFly (I just couldn't get into it) and I stuck 3 DS games at the top of the Q, hoping that they'd send me one of them. Instead, they send me one of my Wii games, so Now I'm going to have 2 Wii games out at a time. It's OK though, because my wife and I are seriously considering keeping Mario Party. If we do, I'll make sure I do that at just the right time to get sent a DS game.

Well, that's it for now. See you real soon.

Comic

My first Webcomic is up over at Ingaged. Go over there and check it out. Don't worry, I'll wait.
....
...
..
.

You back yet?

Hey! You're back! What did you think? Keep in mind that it is my first. I figured I'd just start out by introducing the characters. Check back next Friday when I actually try to tell a story.

In other news, I weighed in today. Didn't loose much, just 0.4 lbs. I think I need to get back into working out. I'm going to the gym tomarrow.

Anyway, that's all I have right now. Catch you later.

Sneak Peak

Hey everyone, I don't have much time, but I thought I'd give everyone a sneak peak at my new comic. Since I don't have much artistic ability, I'm using The Sims 2 for the characters and settings. Here it is:

I plan on updating on Fridays so the first comic should go up in two days. Looking forward to it.

Ben

To Be...

I've lost 3.8 lbs! Well, as of Friday anyway. Honestly, I'm a little stunned. I mean I haven't been working out as much as I should. I guess the diet really works. This makes for a total weight loss of 6.2 lbs, which means I've hit my first goal of 5 lbs. I rewarded myself for reaching my first goal with a new (for me anyway) game: Fable. I have to say it's pretty fun. So far I've already created 2 characters. One's a nice, compassionate warrior; the other is a greedy, morally ambiguous "Battlemage".

In other news, I'm now an Uncle. My sister-in-law recently had a baby girl. She was born premature, but the doctors say she'll be fine. I'm going up to visit her this Sunday.

I'm also starting a Webcomic. This should be interesting as I'm not a good artist. It's called Ingaged. Look for the first panel sometime this week.

Wait Loss

Well, it's been a bit since I checked in. As of last Friday I've lost 2.8 pounds and I'm sure I've lost more this week so I'm feeling pretty good. Mentally, anyway. Physically, not so much. I sill have a bad cough that I have yet to get over. Saw my doctor today and she gave me some medicine that I can't get until tomorrow for some reason. Also, I'm starving! It has nothing to do with the diet, it's just that I have nothing I can eat at work. There's a convenience store in the building, but everything in there is really high in points. I've just got 1 1/2 hours before I can get out and get some real food at home.

I sent back Marvel: Ultimate Alliance even though I hadn't played it much yet. There are a few reasons. First off, my TV already has poor brightness and that, combined with the game's dark features, made for a difficult play experience. Also, I discovered that the game's unique play style (using the Wiimote, Nunchuk combo) to be a little difficult. I really think this is a game better suited to a controller.

Speaking of Control Schemes, it looks like Mario Kart Wii is going to be compatible with all forms of Wii controllers, including the GameCube Controller. With Smash Bros. and now Mario Kart using the multi-type controller scheme, it leads me to believe that this is the direction that Wii games are headed, which is fine by me. Of course, they won't get the Classic/GameCube Controller to mimic the pointing abilities of the Wiimote (unless they come up with some sort of Wavebird/Wiimote hybrid), but a lot of other games could make great use of multiple control schemes.

That's all I have time to say for now. I've got to get back to work.

Wacko Jacko

You know it's guys like this that give Lawyers a bad name. My Grandfather was a lawyer and when he fought against something, it was something worth fighting against. Like the death penalty.



The ECA's Reply

Recovery

Sorry for the lack of updates, but I've been sick the last couple days. It started Tuesday, but it really hit me hard on Thursday. It seemed to be tonsillitis, but the last few days my lungs hurt like bronchitis. I skipped both classes last week and even had to miss a work meeting (which sucks because I actually like the meetings at my job). Anyway, I'm now back to work and classes (or I would be back to class if my class hadn't been canceled yesterday) and gaming (I couldn't stay on my computer for more than 30 minutes at a time before I nearly passed out).

I am now an official member of Weight Watchers. I joined Friday and so far I've only gone over my daily points limit once, and that was my first day. I've got to say, it's easier than I thought. The big thing I've been doing is not eating out very much, and when I need some kind of quick food, I usually just heat up a Smart Ones meal. Of course since those meals all have a lot of vegetables in them, I've mostly been eating the Italian meals. I've also discovered that, while I'm not normally a fan of artificial sweeteners, the Crystal Light drink mixes are actually pretty good.

In other news, I received Phantom Hourglass from GameFly this weekend. I gave it a shot, but I'm afraid that, being sick, I wasn't able to give it the full attention it deserved. I'm going to try to play more this week and see if I can do better than I did while I was sick. I think I'm going to send Marvel: UA back though. While the game was fun, I think it would benefit more from a traditional controller scheme. I plan on putting my upcoming Tax Rebate Check to the purchase of a 360.

Valentine's Day is coming, and my wife and I will be going to White Castle for our celebration. Yes we're both on Weight Watchers, but since we both have special weekly points, we can save those up for one night of unhealthy food, as long as it's not too often.

Aftermath

Another week begins, but this week, something different. A large check, the first half of my financial aid, that had been sitting in the bank has now cleared. The next phase begins this week: spending it. Granted much of that money has been spent before I even received it. It's going to pay off bills and such, but after that, a nugget of spending cash remains.

The first expense isn't even on myself. My wife has been needing a new computer ever since the LCD screen on her last laptop broke (and that wasn't covered by the warranty). After much discussion she has decided that, due to the nature of her chosen career she needs a Mac (this also makes me less likely to use it). Also, due to her on-the-go lifestyle, it needs to be a laptop. We'll be getting a MacBook rather than a MacBook Pro for one reason only: Cost. The good thing about this is that the MacBook can run World of Warcraft at a tolerable level. While it may not be quite as good looking as running on my computer (which has it's own dedicated graphics card), her MacBook should get about the same frame rate I do. And if I can live with 15fps, I'm sure she, who is not a hardcore gamer, can too.

In other news, I will be joining Weight Watchers this Friday. I've been steadily getting more and more overweight since high school and it's time I did something about it. I have been working out for the past couple weeks and I've lost weight at about a pound per week, but I feel that I need more than just exercise. Weight Watchers has a support group that can help me keep at it even when I feel like quitting. Also, if I start to eat better, maybe I can start to feel better. I'm less concerned with "being thin" than I am with being and feeling healthy. Besides, I want to throw off the last "Nerd" stereotype that's been following me around forever.

Last but not least, I'd like to bring up an online game that I've been playing recently called NationStates. It's a fun game that lets you play out the running of your own country. The good thing for an Altaholic like me is that there is no limit to the number of "NationStates" that you can have (though you can only have one UN member nation per person). As of now, I have 4 nations that I have created: The Constitutional Monarchy of Stantonation, The Holy Empire of Majikstand, The Allied States of Farfigfalafel, and The United States of Amerisoft.

Well, that's it for now. See you later.