Monday, March 28, 2011

Nintendo 3DS: First Impressions

Yes.  I'm a nerd.  Not because I wanted to Nintendo 3DS.  If you're at all into video games, you'd have been a fool not to want to continue to have access to Nintendo's great handheld games.  And with the introduction of Game Boy and GBA games for download, what's not to love?  No, no.  I'm a nerd because I went to get it at midnight on Saturday.  I had it and was back to the car three minutes after it was released.  



It's a pretty little thing, my 3DS.  I got the blue one, and, unlike other systems that are just cast in different plastic, this one has a nice light-to-dark fade on the top screen.  It's actually kind of pretty.  The new thumb stick feels nice, and it even comes with a 2GB SD card for saves and downloads.  Hell, you can put an mp3 on the card and play it on the music channel the system is packaged with.


Speaking of packaged with...the AR (Altered Reality) cards that come with?  Brilliant.  No, really.  Who doesn't want to play mini golf on an altered version of their kitchen table?  It was way neat!  Robb and I stayed up until about 1:30 playing with it.  I wanted to keep it all for myself and just keep playing it, but everything was so amazing to me that I had to keep handing him the system and going, "You have to try this!  This is so amazing!"


I didn't even open the game I bought until yesterday after work, and even then, I played with the system's built-in software for a little bit first.  


Before I get to the giddy glory that is Pilotwings, let me tell you what I'm NOT thrilled about.


This thing doesn't come with the channel to download GB and GBA games.  You can't get it right now, for some reason.  I'm guessing they're still setting it up, but...if it's a major selling point of the system, don't you think they'd have it up at launch?!  Way disappointing.  I wasn't worried about only having one game for it because I could buy and download whatever I wanted to play.  Not so much, apparently.  So...that was a drag.  And I don't know when that service is coming.


And it's hard to show anyone what you're doing, because unless you're front and center, it doesn't look 3D.  Not a spectator system, for sure.  Buy one for your boyfriend, too.


Okay...so there's the negative.  Aside from that, everything is golden.  Except the stylus.  I hate the new telescoping stylus.  When I want to just pull it out and play with it, I don't want to get it all stretched out first.  And in its regular size, it's not big enough to do anything with.  You HAVE TO pull it long first.  And that might be the dirtiest thing I've ever said on my blog.


So...by now you're going, "Who cares about all that.  Tell us about the freaking 3D!"



Have no fears. The 3D is worth it.  Sometimes it's like, "Whoa...it's coming right at us!" and sometimes it's like, "It's like there's a tiny diorama of an island in my 3DS..."  What they say about judging distances is definitely true.  It's WAY easier in 3D.  I didn't think it would be, but it is.  That's what makes Pilotwings so fun.  Flying a plane?  Rocketbelt?  Hang glider?  All three things work just like they did in the N64 days.  This title is seriously taking me way back.  They judge you on time, fuel, accuracy, and objectives, and they judge harshly.  It hasn't gotten any easier.  But, the funny thing is, since I spent hours and hours and hours and hours and hours and hours playing the 64 version, I didn't feel like the learning curve was too bad, even with a new system to learn.  If you liked that one, this is a must buy.  And don't worry if you think you've seen it all.  It's got some surprises that had me giggling like a school girl in sex ed.


I think it's worth getting for the 3D camera alone.  How amazing!  But...the packaged games and the available titles and the fact that it's a Nintendo handheld are all working together to make this something that any gamer who is serious about keeping with the times needs to get!


That's all I'll say for now.  I gotta get back to perfecting my barrel rolls and thermal updrafts.  Not to mention keeping a small dragon from taking over my kitchen table.  Or desk.  Or floor.  Or boyfriend's prone body.


Out

Thursday, March 24, 2011

My Escape...

Today I woke up feeling like I just wanted to escape...to go up into a summer tree house and sit there until someone realized I was missing. I wanted to listen to them searching the yard and shouting for me, calling neighbors, opening closets...and then finally climbing the tree to see if I was up there, a grin spreading across my face as I know I'm about to be found.

I think I'm ten years old again.

Normally I escape into a book or a video game, which I've been doing. But this morning...I dunno.

What's your favorite way to escape?

Out

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Music for WTF-ing...

That's the title of my new playlist: a collection of some of the most random and strange songs I own. I needed a little happy today, so I made it!

Check it out:

1. Do Wacka Do - Roger Miller

2. Anus From Uranus - Klaatu

3. Making Ladies - Scissor Sisters

4. Undone - Weezer

5. Ice Cream Truck - Cazwell

6. Gibberish - Relient K

7. New Age Girl - Deadeye Dick

8. Genius Next Door - Regina Spektor

9. Jeffrey Dahmer Went to Heaven - Room Full of Walters

10. Katamari Swing - Katamari Damacy Soundtrack

11. Shankill Butchers - The Decemberists

12. Sweet Transvestite - Glee Cast

13. Nan You're a Window Shopper - Lily Allen

14. I'm Not Wearing Underwear Today - Avenue Q Soundtrack

15. Giants - Five Iron Frenzy

16. MacArthur Park - Richard Harris

17. Bicycle - Plankeye

18. Ugly Bitches - Coolio

19. The Roommate Song - BrentalFloss

20. She Don't Use Jelly - Ben Folds Five

It might be my new favorite CD...

Out

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Reserved...

Well, I did it. I put money down on a Nintendo 3DS last night. Now I just have to wait until the 27th...or midnight on the 26th.

It's not so much the gimmicky 3D that I'm looking forward to. I mean, that's gonna be awesome, even though I don't love 3D movies. No glasses required for this! And...when I already constantly wear one pair, who wants to wear two? I mean...really...no one wants to be called "six eyes".

So it's on its way, I guess. A little over a week, and I'll be the proud owner of yet another Nintendo system. And since I'm trading in my lovely, trustworthy, reliable Nintendo DS Lite (shh...don't tell it...I haven't broken the news yet), it will be $50 cheaper. Great.

I have mixed feelings about that, though. I love my DS Lite...it's been here for me for almost five years. It's a great little system. But the 3DS does everything the DS does (expect play Game Boy Advance games...but I already own a GBA), and more. It's a trade-up. I just can't help but feeling a little guilty...like trading in a pet for one you like a little more.

Why do I feel that way about an inanimate object? I'm broken.

Have you ever felt that way?

Out

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Still Kickin'...

I'm still here. I'm just...distracted. I posted a blog over on my xanga that's about xanga, so...it didn't seem relevant over here.

What's going on in my life? Work drama. Friends randomly sending me hate texts and then apologizing for being asses. Boyfriend drama. Marbles is fat.

Nothing to report. I'll be back soon.

Out

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Story Songs...

"Got a job working for her aunt, graveyard shift down at the curing plant..."

How do you feel about story songs?

"Summer of 1978, my sister and I in the back seat, just wait. We spent the time by drawing lines on the seat that we can't cross...a thin line like dental floss..."

I used to skip them, move on, didn't want to make the commitment. Something about them made me a little bit uncomfortable, made me roll my eyes and say "oh, please."

And now? Now I kind of love them...

"Bought a few more pickled wieners and a diet chocolate soda, gonna see the Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota..."

It's like a musical short story, back story and foreshadowing and good characters...

"Sara spelled without an 'H' was getting bored on a Peavy amp in 1984, while Zak without a 'C' tried out some new guitars, playing Sara with no 'H's favorite songs..."

What's your favorite story song? Is it because of the music or the story? Maybe it's time for a story song play list...

Out

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Got a Haircut...

Yup.  I went from this:



To this:



Much better.  


That's all I've got for now.  I'm neglecting the personal right now, since it only seems to get me in trouble.  Work, personal life, drama with friends...it's all going on.  It always goes on.  Maybe some day I'll fill you in.


Out

Monday, March 7, 2011

Bed Politics...

If you're in a bed-sharing type of relationship, this will probably be a review, but if you're one of those single people who thinks sharing a bed with someone is all bliss and flowers and butterfly kisses, listen up.


You think the Magna Carta was important?  You think the U.N. is a delicate balance of power and play?  Try bed politics.d


Let me break it down for you.  



This is a bed.  Our bed, actually.  Our down comforter is navy, our sheets are a sky blue.  



The blue pillows are mine, which makes the green box my side.  He has the gray pillow, so, it follows, that the purple box denotes his side.  


Simple enough, right?  Well...what about our 15 lb. feline, the one who thinks both the green zone and purple zone are his?  After many nights of grumpy wake-up calls and being kicked out of bed over and over again, he's chosen a few spots that he knows will give him a good chance of sleeping through the night...or at least until 4 AM when he decides he needs to get us up to feed him.  Here:



He's got the red zones.  Anywhere on top of our pillows is fair game, which means that some nights I sleep with a fashionable, purring, testy hat.  The three cat zones at the foot of the bed are places he's found where he won't get kicked too much.  He barely ever sleeps in the purple zone, since Robb is a little more restless in the night.  He's a smart cat, which means that He spends a lot of time in the green zone.


But see, that's not all!  No, no.  What about those nights when we go to bed angry?  Bedtime talks that turn into arguments?  Oh...the pain.  In that situation, special yellow zones are created.



These put us as far from each other as possible.  If I can sleep while tottering on the brink of falling, somehow that will prove how angry I am and how much I don't want to be touched or looked at.  This leaves the remainder of the corresponding half of the bed open for the other party.  Generally, this leads to consoling, making up, and reluctant cuddling.  The majority of these actions take place on the discarded half of either green or purple zone.  Rolling out of the yellow zone is considered acquiescence, and it shows a willingness to work things out.  The yellow zone is a bunker of anger that sometimes leads to a very tense night of sleep and a silent morning.


Okay, so there's that.  Rethinking your position, single people?  It's all very complicated...lots of political rigamarole when all you want to do is sleep.  Well, then why do we do it?  Why do we put up with having someone else in our bed at all?  Aye, there's the rub.


Let me tell you about the last zone, the pink zone.  That would be what makes it all worth it.



This is why we put up with all the other stuff.  The pink zone, friends, is the cuddle zone.  Warm togetherness, bodies entwining, sweet words, kisses, whatever.  It's the consolation after the fight, the prize for getting through another hard day, the place where the troubles of the world just don't exist anymore.  The pink zone.


As you can see, the cat mostly hates the pink zone...but that's another story for another time.  Maybe we'll explore all of that in Bed Politics 201.  


Out

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Script Frenzy...

It's coming. I only have one month before I have to get an idea together in my head. I thought about writing about my dad, conversations I've had with him, defining moments, a sort of retrospective. It might help me process the things that are still unresolved in my head. I've made the resolution not to post anything about him because I don't want him to know that I even think about him, but I finally decided that I don't give two shits. I think about him. How could I not?

I had a dream last night that I showed up at his restaurant (as far as I know, he doesn't own a restaurant) in orange briefs and red heels, and he was short handed, so I just started taking orders. The first person was underaged and trying to get a drink...but he'd just broken his motorcycle and was pretty badly burned. The other patrons were trying to tell me that my dad would be furious when he got in and saw what I was wearing, but he was just glad I was helping. He didn't care what I had on.

Freud would have a field day with that one.

Anyway...I'm thinking about writing that. I also toyed with a screen adaptation of my last novel, just as a rewriting exercise. It could work, I think...but...it might not be that exciting for me. I've got a month to figure it out. I'm sure something will work out for me. And if not? I'll just put on my orange briefs and red heels and go out to eat.

Out

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Best overheard line from children playing: "I love you, chair monster!"

Sharing is Caring...

This song has been on heavy rotation lately.  The video is soooooooo bad--so bad that I love it.  But the song is amazing.











I just might have to track down some more of his music...


Out