I'm Gonna Wreck It!

Remember, remember!
The fifth of November,
The Gunpowder treason and plot;
I know of no reason
Why the Gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot!

Happy Guy Fawkes Day everybody! If you don't know what that is, you are either not a history buff or you haven't watched the movie V for Vendetta (which is an excellent film by the way). Regardless, I hope that this Monday has treated you all well.

Not too much has transpired since my last blog entry to be perfectly honest, but I felt inspired to update it anyway so we'll see where this goes.

Easily the most exciting and important (in terms of a soul uplifting treat) thing that's happened since you last heard from me is that Skye and I went to see the Disney animated production Wreck-It Ralph on opening night last Friday, and it was awesome! A very brief summary for those who are uninformed on what the movie is about: Ralph is the bad guy from the DK Arcade-styled game 'Fix-It Felix Jr.', where he has for thirty years used his massive fists to wreck the apartment complex of the Nicelanders, a group of NPCs (non-playable characters) that always ask Felix Jr. for help. When the player 'wins' the game, Ralph is thrown off the top of the building to land in the mud. When the arcade that houses their cabinet closes up for the day, that's when the movie truly comes to life, as it shows us what our favourite video game characters do behind-the-scenes when they're not on the screen. Turns out that Ralph doesn't get treated very well for his bad guy status and doesn't want to be the villain any more. One of the Nicelanders coyly verbalizes what seems to be an impossibility: perhaps if Ralph could win a gold medal, it would prove that he is more than the sum of his parts, and they would give him the time of day.

Inspired, Ralph starts game-hopping to find a game where he can win a gold medal.

There's obviously a lot more to it than that, but I don't really want to spoil anything and I kind of suck at describing it anyway.

Wreck-It Ralph is a treat to watch, with an explosive voice cast (John C. Reilly as Ralph, Sarah Silverman as Vanellope, Jack McBrayer as Felix, and Jane Lynch as Calhoun) and countless video game references and cameos. Sonic the Hedgehog and Bowser are even in there, for heaven's sake! It's the best video game movie ever made, period. It stays true to the material it is inspired from (encompassing the 8-bit era to the present) and you really can't ask for anything more. From the inclusion of the Konami code to this gem with Sergeant Calhoun ("She can't help it; she's programmed to have the most tragic back-story ever."); Wreck-It Ralph is a triumph and I highly recommend it to anyone who had positive experiences with games or even if you haven't, the movie holds up very well on its own merit. I've never seen a movie that has inspired me to want to watch it a second time in theatres, but I've finally discovered one that has.

Calhoun/Lynch demands that you go see the movie. SEE IT NOW!

So much love for that movie. I proudly wore my mushroom/NES controller shirt that night. Best day off ever!

Okay, so maybe Wreck-It Ralph is the only thing that's really happened since I last posted. All of the other days have gone something like this: Sleep, Work, Plop on Bed, Neglect to Move for Rest of Day, Sleep... Rinse and Repeat. I really need to get back in the flow of writing Red Rogues again, but right now my brain feels fried. My brain's computing capacity isn't too significant at the moment. :(

Well, I guess I'll end it off here; no point in delaying the inevitable...

PAPER MARIO: STICKER STAR IN SIX DAYS! 007: SKYFALL IN FOUR!

Good News Everyone!

If you were or are currently a fan of Futurama, you probably just read that title in the Professor's voice. No worries, that still happens to me around 80% of the time too.

Not surprising it started appearing on the internet everywhere

Anyway, onto the good news itself.

The first thing is that the Lime-Green Nintendo DS Lite replacement that was sent from China arrived the other day, and I'm pleased to report that the unit has no defects that we can see! The top screen isn't warped, the touch screen is actually responsive, and the volume slider directly controls the sound output. Skye says that the speakers sound a bit off to her but from our brief testing period I couldn't hear what she was talking about. I'll reserve any judgment as to whether or not that's the case when we pop a game in. It's a very minor issue if so, and can be easily remedied with headphones. I'm glad that it all turned out all right in the end - the internet would have suffered a severe maelstrom of my wrath otherwise.

Or so I would to think, anyway. In reality it would have just been a heated discussion with the seller and eBay representatives, but I digress.

The second bit of good news is that Skye and I have decided to invest in acquiring internet at our current place of residence, so that should be set up sometime in the next week. Now Skye doesn't have to worry about finding a place with a secure connection so she can do her work, and as for me, well, now I'll be able to webcam with my family (and check my emails) from the comfort of home. We're getting a pretty spectacular deal since Skye's Nan already is using Bell Aliant's phone service - the internet only adds around $35 a month, and between the two of us that's at most $17.50 each. Not too shabby eh?

Skye bought The Last Story as a gift for me and so far I am enjoying it. It's a different kind of JRPG from the likes of Xenoblade Chronicles - they're both good in their own ways, and The Last Story is all about getting into the thick of the plot immediately. The characters are more dynamic or at least their development seems more intricate than those of the Xenoblade ilk, but I can say that I do prefer the environments and soundtrack to Xenoblade overall. The Last Story keeps to more traditional aesthetics whereas Xenoblade has fun making visuals as surreal and memorable as possible. I'm also more a fan of Xenoblade's gameplay because it felt very tight and responsive (and you could choose to play as any character you wanted in the party at any time) while TLS feels a bit heavier and the battle mechanics are all right. I'm looking forward to seeing where the story goes from here - there are a lot of potential exciting avenues for it to tread, and we'll find out soon enough how it develops.

Also, you can change the colours of their outfits. That's a feature that Xenoblade probably could have used to dull the sometimes ridiculous clashing of parts of their outfits. Still, it made for some hilarious cutscenes.

Work has been treating me well for the most part; most of the co-workers seem to like me and I can easily say that the same goes for the other way around. I always try to put forth 100% in any task that I am given, though I am definitely better in some roles over others - trying to take cash while simultaneously taking another order is not my strong suit, nor do I particularly like it anyway. I feel that it is rude to the customer currently paying - I like interacting with each person to give them a uniquely personable experience, but it's hard to do that when you're trying to input an order from the next in line. I still prefer front counter to the other roles for that reason, but I've never been assigned there since joining the team. I've been exclusively on drive-thru, and while I've become used to it, I would like to take orders face-to-face once in awhile.

Random note: Skye is becoming more interested in Game of Thrones. EXCELLENNNNT.

My glee when she asked to watch an episode this morning

Every Sunday I look forward to the new episodes of Downton Abbey and Once Upon A Time. Unfortunately I will not be able to see them until tomorrow night as I work 5-11PM tonight (I'm already tired now, so this may be brutal) and 12-6PM tomorrow, but still. I'm looking forward to my day off on Tuesday. I haven't had one since last Tuesday, and I'm starting to feel it.

Skye bought a Blackberry Playbook (tablet) for herself this past week and is finding a lot of use and enjoyment out of it - so much so that I feel half-tempted to invest in one myself. It's cheaper than most tablets (the 32GB model is around $150) and works very well from what I've experienced so far. I am trying to resist that temptation in order to deliberate whether or not I wish to purchase the Wii U still. If I did, I'd be going for the 32GB Deluxe model (which is $350) and honestly I've never had many faults with Nintendo so it will likely turn out to be a worthy investment, but at the same time I don't know. If I pre-order one now I would be able to secure a unit for its release. If I don't and it turns out I want one later, it will probably be very difficult to come across, similar to how the Wii did in its first year and a half. I guess we'll see how I'm feeling after my next pay cheque.

Well, I'm off to enjoy the last two hours of freedom before work, so ta-ta for now!

These Be Crazy Times

A lot has been going on in October since my last entry (I do not mean to let the time pass between entries exponentially, and will try to curb that in the future) and I'm not going to touch base on all of it for varying reasons, but even with being selective there is plenty to share so let's dive straight into it.

I've been working at McDonald's for the past month now and I feel like that's a decent enough range of time to judge my experiences and what I think of it. Overall, it's not too bad. We were under construction for the first two weeks of my employment so we weren't hit by the usual high traffic levels that an establishment like McD's often receives - it gave me the wonderful (and slightly intimidating) opportunity to learn drive-thru, and tested my abilities in multi-tasking with order-taking, taking cash, cleaning, running, and presenting. I have still not quite mastered the art of taking an order and taking cash simultaneously, but I'm getting just a tad bit better at it each day and will soon be a pro. The dining room was closed until last week so now I may be placed on front counter occasionally in the future; that position was always where I felt most in my element so I'm actually looking forward to the time I'm assigned there.

If I were to compare my experiences of this McDonald's with the one I worked with in Victoria (which happened to be my first job!), so far I'd have to say that the management was much more consistent and understanding in Victoria - that's not to say that the management here is bad (some of the managers are quite awesome, actually), but they don't operate on the same wavelength like they should. The most current example of this is actually from yesterday; Skye's Nan has recently returned from the hospital and Skye called them to schedule Wednesday off to look after her - and, of obvious importance, take her to her blood-work appointment - but whoever answered the phone was not understanding at all and demanded that Skye find someone to fill the shift or she couldn't take it off. When I heard that, it honestly blew my mind - the Victoria team, no matter who took the call, would never have responded like that. They would have expressed their sympathies, been grateful for at least a two day notice, and called around to find someone to fill the shift themselves. Fortunately Skye talked with the head honcho today and he was much more understanding and now she officially has the day off, but still. Not much credibility to their compassion or their leadership (or those 'flexible hours') if some managers react to that situation in such a manner.

On a completely different note, the lime-green DS Lite that I ordered back in August from eBay for Skye's birthday has yet to arrive. Well no, that's not quite it; it did arrive on my birthday (September 10th) but the unit they sent was defective. The top screen was warped; the touch-screen was unresponsive (sometimes it worked, but it was incredibly glitchy and useless when so), and the volume slider was broken as the volume level stayed the same no matter where you moved it. Skye found the whole thing humorous but I was unhappy about it - when I buy things, especially as a birthday gift, I like them to work. There was around a week and a half discussion about it with the seller before they sent a replacement which has yet to arrive - on my end, I had to pay for return shipping of the defective unit and oh lord, my rants at the post office were not pretty. [The cashier sure did find it amusing though.] The seller is very highly rated and no one else has had any problems with them, but I should have known better despite their feedback to trust a seller from China - it takes forever for anything to get here, and it sure is expensive and takes a long time to send anything back. I wasn't too bothered that I had to buy a $3 bubble envelope for the handheld box to fit in, but when the cashier listed my options in mailing it out there... oh my. The first option would cost $10.75, would take approximately six weeks to arrive, and offered no tracking. The next option was $20.34, would take two-three weeks to ship, and offered tracking. The last option clocked in at a wonderful $41.44, would take 3-5 business days, and also offered tracking. After the annoyances and grief I had been through, and knowing that the replacement would take "at least" 20-25 business days to arrive here, I looked at Skye and proclaimed "Fuck China" and selected the first option. They weren't going to receive their defective unit back in a reasonable time (and cost me a lot of money for their mistake) when the replacement was easily going to take a month plus to get here. It's been over 20 business days already. If I don't see it in the next two weeks I'm going to contact eBay to change my feedback back to a blood-curling, scathing red review. The whole thing is obnoxious, and I'm going to let everyone know about it.

In entertainment news, Skye and I are now entirely caught up with Downton Abbey and are eagerly awaiting the next episode - so glad we took the plunge! It is a high-class British historical drama and I highly recommend it to everyone. It has very high production values, a stellar cast, a superbly written script (which weaves together the lives of the servants and their lords and ladies seamlessly), and beautiful cinematography that proclaims its artistic nature as soon as you watch the intro. The musical score is nothing to scoff at either and very elegantly sets the scenes up for hilarity or tragedy. You can feel the intensity of the characters' plights from the soundtrack itself.

I have inducted Skye into the world of Westeros recently (ala Game of Thrones) and have watched the first five episodes with her so far. I'm not entirely sure what she thinks about it to be honest; there's enough interest that she's willing to watch another episode if I suggest it, but I don't feel that it grabs her in quite the same way that it did me or Sophia (or my brother and parents, for that matter). Sophia and I were obsessed and would watch at least four episodes at a time because we were invested immediately - Skye's more content to just watch one every couple of days or if there's any free time. That's all right though, at this rate she will be caught up by the time season three airs and will hopefully be a tad more interested then. Medieval fantasy stories aren't really her thing, but at least she's humoring me.

They're finally back, to get some tail...

On the subject of games, after traveling through the perilous (and beautiful) world of the Bionis and Mechonis in Xenoblade Chronicles, Skye and I felt like taking a retro trip back to one of our nostalgic loves on the Nintendo 64 - Donkey Kong 64. For having only played through the game back in 2000-2001, I have a very fond memory of the different worlds and where to find the golden bananas. I'm currently at a 90% completion rate (187 out of 200 golden bananas acquired; only have a few left to acquire in Creepy Castle and the DK Isles overworld) and aiming for the 100%. When I was younger, I never would have had the patience to get to 100% - some of the golden bananas require getting past really difficult mini-games or obstacles, and back then I'd be inclined to skip the ones I couldn't beat in  a few tries because I'd rather explore and progress through the rest of the game. I wasn't much of a completionist then, and I technically am not that way nowadays either, but in a game like DK64 where collection is the core element of game play, I figured I might as well play through it properly. It's been a fun adventure and some great reminiscing for both of us. I will eventually purchase The Last Story (and Paper Mario: Sticker Star in November, eee) and play through that too; only a matter of time now.

I don't really know if I'll be doing anything for Halloween yet; I haven't done anything for it in years so I'm not too bothered, but I know it's an occasion that Skye likes to celebrate so there's bound to be something on the way. I may go as far as to buy candy corn (t'is the season!) if I can find it, but that's about as far as I usually go where Halloween is concerned. If one of my friends throw a party, that might change, of course... :)

October has been good to me for the most part, and there are plenty of things coming out in November (movies, games, other potential happenings) that I'm excited for, so there's bound to be good times ahead. 

I hope that you're all doing well, whoever you might be and wherever you might hail from. This American-Canadian sends her love. <3

End of the Month Reflection

As it has been twelve days since my last entry (that is two days longer than the last time, so this is worth a double oops!), it's about time I get a move on and write up an entry so that you all know what's currently going on in my wonderful life!

I'll try to keep this entry focused on just a few key points that have occurred since my last update, because a lot of big things have happened since then!

Firstly, and probably the most prominently interesting to note for the people that follow this blog - I GOT THE JOB! The interview was absolutely stellar; in fact it felt less like an interrogation and more like a casual conversation, because she asked me only a couple of questions and we talked pleasantly for the rest of the time. One thing I can remember clearly that she asked me was: "Are you always this happy?" and to be honest, the answer is "Yes!". When I'm out in public and dealing with people (and this is especially important for a front counter position), I am very peppy and naturally enthusiastic. It makes the experience more enjoyable for not only myself but the people interacting with me, and I really don't see any reason why I should or would want to act like a plug. That's not fun for anyone. I officially start on Tuesday, and having looked at the schedule I was given, they certainly don't look to be giving me any training shifts - perhaps they have more confidence in me than I do, because I have next to no experience serving breakfast! I'm nervous, but I'm sure I'll get back into the swing of things again. Hope so! I'll be chronicling my adventures here, so you'll get to hear all about it.

Secondly, and what may come as a surprise to you (it certainly did me; I never thought I would see the day) is that I am once again an Administrator of NintendoWorlds. I had left quite a legacy during my membership there in 2007-2010 apparently, because my friend Michelle messaged me on Facebook asking what it would take to convince me to come back - being me, I said 'Tyrannical Overlord!' and, well... Now I'm an enlarged pink dinosaur on a rampage.

This is me claiming dominion over the VIP Usergroup

Joking aside, it's both great and a bit strange to be back on the site. It's a lot different from how I remember it! XenForo took a little bit to get adjusted to, being a VBulletin native and all, but the transition hasn't been too difficult since there are people more than willing to help me should I have any daft moments. It's been a log of fun interacting and reminiscing with some good old friends of mine - can't believe two years have passed since I actively conversed with them last! The site is currently in the midst of a rejuvenation period, and we're getting it all set up to relive those glory days in the modern era of the 3DS and Wii U. It might take some time, but it'll all be worth it in the end!

For anyone who might be concerned, let your fears be assured - Red Rogues is still my highest priority, and I currently have my days scheduled to accommodate for work, writing, the site, and some downtime (which currently is still Xenoblade Chronicles). Speaking of which, I feel like I'm nearing the end of the game - and what an adventure it's been! I plan on potentially writing a review of the game once I'm completely done with it, so you can look forward to that! The next game on my to-do list (which is probably 'October's' game) will be The Last Story, another JRPG for the Wii that is part of the trio from Operation Rainfall just as Xenoblade Chronicles is. I can already tell you November's game is going to be Paper Mario: Sticker Star; there really is no deliberation over that. :D

On a completely random note, Cartoon Network's 20th anniversary is tomorrow (October 1st). To celebrate the occasion, they commissioned a video to be made that references the milestones of their broadcasting tenure. While I didn't see Teen Titans in it (surprisingly), Dexter's Laboratory and The Powerpuff Girls more than make up for their absence. The video itself is artistic and very trippy, so if you're interested in checking it out, you can find it HERE. Nostalgic memories came up for sure. <3

Also, I started watching Downton Abbey yesterday. While I've only seen the first episode so far, I do quite like it and it feels like it holds a lot of promise. I know many people who love it (the parentals included!) so I do look forward to taking some time to sit down and watch all the episodes. I also recently acquired the first season of Game of Thrones, so I definitely plan on introducing Skye to the world of Westeros soon! :D

I feel like I might be forgetting something, but as I can't seem to figure out what it is, I'm going to finish off  the entry here. I can always edit the bottom of this post if what's been forgotten is important enough.

I hope you've all had a fantastic (or at least bearable) September; I know that mine has certainly been interesting! Let's hope for an excellent October!

Much love!

PS: Season 2 premiere of Once Upon A Time tonight! Yay!

Rollin' on the Rails of Pop Culture

Hey all! It's been awhile (or a whopping 10 days, oops) since my last blog entry, and I do apologize for the delay for anyone that likes reading what I've been up to or are interested in at any given moment. Where I live at present the internet can be finicky at best so I tend to keep myself occupied with other pursuits while Skye tends to her online work at the desk (the only area we can get a wireless connection).

Soooo what have I been up to these last ten days?

Well, we can start with my birthday (September 10th). It has been one of the only days since I've been back thus far that's had absolutely abysmal weather (it rained hard and consistently for a good portion of the day, with the outskirts of hurricane/tropical storm Leslie battering us with wind and rain); I considered it Murphy's Law that it had to happen on my birthday of all days, but it didn't dampen my spirits any! In the card Skye gave me, she wrote "Have a great birthday Missie! - Sorry for the rain :(" and for some reason her apology I found really humorous. I got to webcam with my parentals and it was really great to see them (we'll have to do it again soon, hint hint Mom? :D) and finally got the recipe for one of my favourite dishes hamburger stroganoff. I carry the recipe with me everywhere with the intention of buying the ingredients, but I haven't actually got around to it yet, oops! My Mom also told me how to make coffee mocha cake, and I absolutely can't wait to try to recreate what I consider to be her dessert specialty. My brother's bound to agree - he and I used to ask her to make it for our birthdays every year! That and hamburger stroganoff (or tuna spinach bake) actually. Mmm... Makes me miss my Mom's home cooking. I know it might be a bit of a stereotypical thing to say, but my Mom really does make the best gourmet foods. <3

Later that afternoon we headed over to Bethley's house, because her Mom decided to be amazing and buy me a carrot cake! It was really greatly appreciated and I enjoyed hanging out with them before Debbie went line dancing. They got me a t-shirt exclaiming my awesomeness (really, it's a shirt that says I'm awesome) and a Japanese phone sock/cover with symbols on it I can't read. Yay language barriers! Looks pretty pimp; love them.

Speaking of love, Meghan (the friend I met in Victoria, and currently resides in Calgary) sent me a really thoughtful and amazing gift through the post - she knitted me a scarf! It's her first foray into the world of knitting, and it's downright impressive the level of care and precision that went into making it. She also accompanied it with an EB Games gift card that I already know what it's going towards - either Paper Mario: Sticker Star for the 3DS (comes out November 11th!) or maybe the deluxe version of the Wii U (releases November 18th). Ahhh, really good choices, can't go wrong either way.

The final few hours of my birthday were spent the good ol' fashioned way by drinking with Skye and Jordan at his house. Well, I guess I can't say that it's 'old fashioned' because I rarely ever drink, but we all saw my birthday as a good occasion to do so anyway so we went for it. It's probably the most I've ever had to drink (I had three glasses of vodka mixed with ginger ale and a couple of straight up shots after). We were all a bit loony but it definitely was a lot of fun - even if I had to be cautiously aware of Skye's inclination towards the ditch on our return walk home. We consumed the rest of the carrot cake then too. Haven't really hung out with any of those peeps since so I might just have to pop on over to their places and say hi sometime soon.

The job front, as dismayed as I am to admit it, has been rather silent for this entire period of time I've been here, despite printing out and submitting a TON of resumes. This is part of the reason I felt like I didn't have much to share, because for the most part, nothing has been happening! However, on a whim Skye and I decided to head to the McDonald's in Bayers Lake today, and our timing must have been superb because not only did we meet a manager genuinely interested in both of us (Skye's looking to get some part-time work to go along with her present marketing awesomeness to rake in the dough), but we both scored interviews for tomorrow! That lifted my spirits significantly - after not hearing from ANYONE in the entire duration of being here, I was starting to get a bit worried. We speculated that it may have been because of my phone number (perhaps they have a prejudice against different area codes? 778 Victoria is pretty far from Nova Scotia/PEI's 902 digits), but that doesn't seem very likely... Well, Bayers Lake might be a bit of a commute, but if I'm making money it shouldn't be too much of a problem.

Relating to the title of this blog entry, I've recently been obsessed with the game I mentioned earlier (the one Mat bought for my birthday), Xenoblade Chronicles. I wasn't too sure what to think of it at first, but I honestly love it now - it has a deeply engaging/interesting story, the environments are gorgeous, the amount of quests you can partake in seem endless and the music... wow. I have loved the soundtrack for months prior to ever playing the game, so it's been really fascinating and fun to hear where the tracks are actually used in the medium they were designed for. After using the soundtrack as a muse for writing Red Rogues, though, it almost feels a bit disjointed and weird to hear them where they were actually intended to be heard! The game itself is a traditional Japanese role-playing game with real-time battles where your characters will automatically use their basic attack and it's up to you to coordinate your other skills into battle to get the upper hand. That might not sound as engaging as it actually is, though - the boss battles in particular can get very stressful and heated! I've currently logged about 50 hours into the game - that's including the occasional random exploration to fill in the maps and completing some side quests here and there - and I'm still nowhere  near finishing it. At least it's a long adventure! Really grateful that Mat got it for me; was a really worthwhile investment, to be sure. :)

Also, the voice-acting is entirely British. Can't go wrong with that!

Not too bad for a Wii game, eh?

The other main 'pop culture' support that both Skye and I have been up to is that we actually went to the HMV in Mic Mac Mall a few days back and each bought an album. That almost never happens so it was worth noting; Skye got the 'Torches' CD by Foster the People and I got 'Ceremonials' by Florence and the Machine. In terms of sound they're both as different as you can get from each other but they both sound superb in the car and we're quite content with our purchases. I'm quite happy listening to either when I'm in the car; I think Skye prefers Foster the People (unsurprisingly) but doesn't mind Florence too much and says "She definitely sounds like something I would hear you listening to". I am a schutbag who likes the D I didn't actually know most of the songs on the album when I bought it - I don't usually go for impulse purchases, but I went for it this time and am very grateful I did!

The above song is Strangeness and Charm, and that is what she relatively sounds like for most of them (sans the mild pitch adjustment so that this could actually be loaded on Youtube). Strangely, this song isn't on my album, though it's advertised online that it is (?) - a bit of a bummer, but the rest of the songs more than make up for its absence.

Well, Skye and I are going on an impromptu adventure to Bedford because why not so we're heading off for now. Hope you're all doing well everyone!

Edit: This is my favourite song from the album so far (it's so powerful with surround sound!). I demand you all take a listen since you're already at the end of this blog post. Thank you. <3

Edit 2: Also, forgot to mention it, but Glee's back. It's under the category of "I'm not too sure why I watch this any more but it's sort of a guilty pleasure or something". It wasn't too bad, but I do think that the writers deliberately make choices with the direction of the show that are there to make you groan and smack your head in disbelief. Sure the Glee club won Nationals last season, but I highly doubt the victory would have gone THAT much into their heads after the summer holidays (nor would the other students actually care that much after going on their own adventures during vacation time) and become jerks to everyone else because of it. I know you're supposed to suspend your disbelief and that it moves the plot forward (or something) but... at least try to have a semblance of reality somewhere in there show. Well, I guess it's never been too realistic, bursting into song in the hallway and all. Wow, this is more than I was planning on writing about Glee, oops. Yeah, Glee's back. End topic.

Birthday Presents

I think it's become an annual tradition for me to buy a birthday present for myself a couple of days before the actual day (which is on the 10th, for clarification). On September 8th, to be exact! Last year, inspired by some impulse and a barren dresser, I ended up purchasing a 24" Dynex Television for my second year in university. To "prep myself for Skyward Sword in November" was my excuse at the time, and for Skyward Sword it was used most often for sure! I distinctly recall finishing my homework days in advance before the release of the game so that I could enjoy it uninterrupted. That November was one of my most relaxed months despite the typical "November Landslide" that comes with being in a post-secondary institution.

Oh sweetums you so fly <3

This time around, after around a year of swimming in them, I decided it was time to invest in a new pair of jeans. Whereas last year was more a splurge and an unnecessary (though soul satisfying) purchase, this year was a bit essential as I had long downsized in stature and having ridiculously baggy jeans just wasn't cutting it any more. It's a $50 investment that should last as long as I don't lose or gain too much weight!

Hey there sexy... Come here often?

I am not the most photogenic of people; never quite knowing what to do with my face in those awkward "TAKE MY PICTURE" moments. I just really wanted to show off my jeans. 8x32, awww baby! I can fit in 7s depending on the brand, so I'm content. I don't need to weigh more or less; I'm pretty much where I'm should be right now! Happy camper.

Enjoy the intimacy of my face in TIRED MODE

You may have noticed that down in the (this is jokingly titled but we're totally going for it anyway) "Currently Playing" corner (the bottom left of the second picture) that a box of Xenoblade Chronicles is being displayed there. That is a very thoughtful and nice gift from my friend Mat, hailing from Victoria! I haven't got very far in the game yet, but I've enjoyed what I've played so far, and looking forward to playing more. I'll be sure to write an entry on my thoughts concerning my experience with it; commenting on what was done right and perhaps what wasn't in detail.

The other main short obsession I've had in terms of pop culture recently is entirely the fault of my friend Bethley, who did not need to make much effort to coerce me into watching the first few episodes of Young Justice with her. I've always been a fan of animated superhero cartoons (primarily Teen Titans, back in the day), so consider me hooked. Almost done the first season already, and I just started!

Last news to report of the day is that today was the mass-handing out of resumes that I alluded to in my previous entry. From EB Games and Chapters to Dollarama and Hallmark, no one was spared from my resume spree! Well, except for fast-food restaurant chains, which I have opted to wait in applying for to allow some chance to hear back from another business first. I have nothing against fast-food companies (in fact, I absolutely loved working at the McDonald's in Victoria), but I do wish to expand my horizons and my repertoire a bit. I will take any employment that comes my way, though! Not too picky; any job is a good job in my eyes, and it is what you make of the place you work at that defines the experience that you have with it. 

Of course I will update this blog with how the job hunt is going, but for now, it's time for some food and Xenoblade Chronicles, I think!

Have a great evening/night!

On the Prowl

Operation: Acquire A Job

Procedure: Update and beautify resume. Write personalized, targeted cover letters to each individual company being applied to. Proudly boast a shiny reference letter. Go out and submit these highly glamorized packets of professionalism to aforementioned businesses. Next, ???. End game: Profit.

That's how it works, after all!

Perhaps it is unsurprising after an introduction like that to learn that I am currently in the midst of writing cover letters towards pretty much any company in the Lower Sackville/Bedford areas. I am not too pressed for time yet, but I would like to get hired soon so I can start saving up some money for future investments! I am hoping to get employed by either of the EB Games this time around, as I've always had an aptitude for games and organization that I am sure would be useful in that particular retail environment. I am a former employee of McDonald's, so I do have experience in the food service industry should I wish to apply to any restaurant chain in the region. I'll keep you all updated on how the job pursuit goes!

I am currently sitting in a Starbucks inside of Chapters in Bayers Lake - Skye is having a lunch meeting with her boss over at Montana's. I hope that all is going well! Looking forward to hearing the news. :)

It's been an odd but enjoyable experience to be back here in Nova Scotia so far. There is always a weird sense of nostalgia being back in the area, knowing where all the roads connect and (roughly) where all the buildings are. Of course there are always new additions after a year or two, but for the most part it still looks the same! No one has changed very much either; they may have acquired a couple of new obsessions (one has a hearty interest in the art of cosplaying and in the animated television show Young Justice) but they still possess the same relative personality traits. It's been a fun few reunions so far!

I'm going to end this off here because Skye's done her meeting and is on her way over to me now. I hope you're all having a great week!