Life update

[oyceter]

As in, I am still alive, even though posting has been rare.

I feel like I haven't read a single book since I started dating CB, partially due to adjusting my schedule to accommodate another person, partially due to his siccing online games on me, and partially due to all the life changes that followed dating him (familial drama, new job, etc.).

I picked up C.L. Moore's Jirel of Joiry because I wanted something incredibly pulpy with kickass women, and then was felled by a cold that continues to dig its nasty little claws into my throat. Instead, I've mostly been listening to audiobooks and podcasts, primarily before going to bed. I sped through all of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy during the cold, since my cough ends up keeping me up half the night (oh codeine, why aren't you working?!), and though I love the production and the girl who voices Lyra, it's interesting revisiting the world for the first time in maybe five years or so. I really feel like The Golden Compass started a series that I really wanted to read, only Pullman got further and further away from that world and Lyra as the trilogy went on, much to its detriment.

I also caved and actually paid for the This American Life iPhone app, but I figure it's a nice donation, particularly since it means about six years worth of backlog. (Also, I am already deeply fond of Poultry Slam.)

Oh, and CB is now trying to get me to play the new Star Wars MMORPG by promising I won't have to fight things too much, so that is probably even more time away from books.

I don't know... I'm hoping things will shake out a bit more once it's 2012 and I'm more settled into the new job, although that's when I start apartment hunting for somewhere that is a bit closer to work, and moving always wreaks havoc on my life.

But right now, it feels like 2011 has been a year of big changes, and I'm still getting used to a lot of them. At least it feels like it's finally winding down, and hopefully it will do so WITHOUT this nasty cold thing so I can have fun during vacation.

Comments

[troisroyaumes]

Get better soon! <3 If you are feeling better later and are up to hanging out, let me know!

[oyceter]

Thank you! And we should definitely hang out!

[rachelmanija]

Get rid of your cold before you come over! ;)

I have been having the opposite thing: reading a lot, watching very little.

[oyceter]

I very much hope it will be gone by then!!

Ha, hopefully I will pick up some of your reading! I didn't even realize Princess Knight was already available in translation, that is how out of it I am!

[sophia_helix]

The Star Wars MMO is really great, no lie. The story is good, the voice acting is amazing (Azula's voice does the Female Bounty Hunter!), and I have really enjoyed it.

However.

You do have to talk to people more than in a regular MMO, but you certainly fight most of the time! It can be stressful to play an MMO sometimes because you have all these different attacks on these different cooldowns, and it's fine when you're killing things your level or below, but sometimes it can be tricky to keep yourself from dying before the monster does. If you just play a healer in groups, there's the stress of trying to keep everyone ELSE alive. You also have to navigate a 3-D environment, though there are maps to follow. MMOs are definitely easier to control than a console game, and things die faster. But I remember you saying that you hated the time pressure of needing to attack and kill something right away, which is what a lot of MMO gameplay is about.

You should definitely try it, especially since you have someone with an account to borrow! And you can take your time in the tutorial and learn the skills as you go along. I love MMOs and I wish more women played them (or at least it was more well-known that women play them too). I just don't want you to be disappointed that it's more combat-heavy than advertised. :)

[oyceter]

That is all very good to know, thank you! CB tries, but he is so used to computer games that he sometimes does not realize just how much combat he is accustomed to. I suspect I will try a bit on his computer to see if I can deal with the 3d and initial combat, since usually it just takes about half an hour for me to figure out if I can play a game or not...

[umadoshi]

Feel better soon!

[oyceter]

Thank you!!