Time sure does fly when you're um, busy. The week has been going alright. As the amount of posts to my blog increase, I suspect that the amount of time spent updating my LJ will decrease. As long as I spend a few times or even once a week updating I'll be content. As for replying to comments and reading other LJs, I've been a bit too busy to do that, but I'll probably catch up with it on Saturday. This week looks like it'll be a busy one, but it should be interesting nonetheless.

Tomorrow will be spent getting ready for my older cousin's wedding in Northern PA and Friday will be the actual day of his wedding (I've already taken off from work). It'll be a busy and long day, so I suspect that I won't be around on the net until at least Saturday. I predict lots of picture taking in my near future.

I also spent some of this week catching up on anime, trying to whittle down my backlog in anticipation of buying new titles at Otakon. I'm one DVD away from being finished with season 1 of Ranma 1/2, I'm almost caught up with Bleach, I've started on Spice and Wolf, and I'll probably watch down Tenjho Tenge before the actual trip. Yesterday before work I watched the series finale of Avatar: The Last Airbender, which was great, a little open ended but still great. In gaming news, my adventures in The World Ends with You continue. Also with almost all of my extra money being diverted to my Otakon fund I'm not going to be purchasing Final Fantasy IV on the DS any time soon.

Getting back to the blog, Damage Control, I as well as geofflb have added a few entries. I wouldn't call the blog 100% done, but I'm just finally have some content up. I'll probably attempt to update a few times a week, while attempting to get the final look of it down. As a shameless plug, an RSS feed link is available here if you want to keep up (aka support us) with by subscribing the news feed through LJ.

Anyway, time to run some errands before work. And the heat wave around here has gone, but the humidity is nearly unbearable now. Also, my diploma from Temple University arrived today, hmm, glossy.

I've decided that I'm only going to work double shifts twice a week until the week before Otakon. My back ache hasn't gotten any better and other joints now feel stiff. Somehow working doubles in the winter time is grueling, but in the summer with the combined heat it's just brutal. As a plus, I should be able to raise nearly $600 by the time Otakon starts, if not more. I'm glad for that so last week's non-stop doubles were good for something as I nearly doubled my working hours. I just don't want to have to do it again any time soon.

The weekend was okay. I ended up calling geofflb on Saturday to wish him a happy birthday before running errands for my mom. Dinner with my stepdad and mother went okay and I was able to relax in my room on TBL chat when we got home. Other than killing myself at work, I've been playing The World Ends With You on the bus and in between shifts. This title is definitely a refreshing RPG experience that completely cuts ties with the typical fantasy settings. Who needs to collect potions or herbs when you can have ramen noodles and soda instead? Though I'm not liking the mini game, "Tin Pin Slammer" much, it reminds me too much of pogs, on steroids no less.

I also effectively removed Mark from the basement/office/computer room for the time being, he just won't know it until he gets home. When he does get home he'll find that all of the consoles are gone, and that his account on the computer has been password locked. I told him nearly ten times now to stop treating the computer room like his personal room, and to leave the door open (unless the weather is cold or the A/C is on). The last time my mom reinforced this point, he lied and said that the A/C had been on, when it hadn't been. (The unit is so powerful that it can be heard on the 3rd floor of the house.)

Every time I tell him to do so, he says "okay" and the next day the door is closed again. If he wants to hang out in an area with a door that he can close, he should pick his own room. If you can't ask someone to follow a rule when using your own space, why again should they be allowed to use it? Should someone be outraged if they're fired from work for never doing what's asked of them? Last time I checked, I brought the computer and all of the video game consoles that he uses every day. (Along with a broken GBA, a broken PS2 wireless controller, and a PS1 controller with parts of it removed.) Not to mention the basement was "given" to me as my own area by my mom since my room isn't big enough for the consoles and computer. Heaven forbid that I put conditions on things that I brought and the space that was given to me, while others fail to appreciate that I am letting them use my things almost whenever they want to.

Good news, I've survived working almost non-stop double shifts at UPS and tonight is just a regular shift night.

Bad news, last week I injured by back slightly and all of the extra work at UPS has made it worse. Thankfully it's just mildly painful and probably needs medicine.

Good news, the phone hasn't been ringing off the hook today for once.

Bad news, there's no dial tone and there's an equipment problem on Verizon's end and they can't come to fix it until tomorrow or Sunday.

Good news, there's no charge for the service since our equipment is fine.

Bad news, my mom is upset about it among other things and I'm the main recipient of her anger.

Bad news, my mom and my stepdad are going out to celebrate his birthday tomorrow. With her angry moods I want to stay the hell away from her if I can help it!

I think I need a real vacation away from this partial vacation. At least when problems at home arise I'd be able to bury myself in non-stop work. Then my excuse for everything would be, "I was working all day, don't blame me!"

Remember when I said, I'd write about my thoughts on the Crisis Core ending? Well that sort of expanded into a full article style game review. I added pictures to break up the text, which seems to help a lot. I think with some minor tweaking this article will be heading to my blog. And here is the article, all 1500 words, cut at some point to cut down on length.


Zack watches over a very comatose Cloud.

Final Fantasy VII is one of those rare games that have the ability to generate heated discussion among many gamers more than ten years after its original release. For many FFVII brings back fond memories of playing Final Fantasy for the first time ever in full 3D. For others it was the start of a trend that would change the very nature of RPG story telling forever and not necessarily in a good way. Regardless of spirited debates, putting it lightly, between fans and non-fans of the game alike, FFVII remains a cash cow for Square Enix. It was no surprise to anyone when multiple spin-offs revolving around FFVII were announced a few years ago. Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children's release in 2005 marked the start of the myriad of Final Fantasy VII related releases that would become known as the "Compilation of Final Fantasy VII".

With that said, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII is the most recent title to be added to the Compilation, and many agree that it might be one of the best FFVII video game releases so far. Crisis Core succeeds in a variety of areas, where other games failed ( most notably Dirge of Cerberus) because the game sticks closely to its FFVII roots and even expands them. Turning on the game means taking a trip back through time and visiting the world of Gaia all over again, with updated graphics(the best around on the PSP so far) and filled-in plot holes no less. In short, Crisis Core uses nostalgia to its advantage in everything from characters, to music and even locations. The entire premise of the game is simple enough by playing as Zack, also known as the deceased 1st Class SOLIDER who Cloud thought he was for the majority of Final Fantasy VII. It is a highly approachable but powerful angle because Zack's fully fleshed out character is both intriguing and very easy to like. Knowing that he faces an untimely assassination at the end of this story creates a foreboding undertone that runs throughout the game.



Activate major game plot!
( The shocking details are under this cut. Or I could be using puffery, who knows! )

Thanks to The Final Fantasy VII Citadel for all of the awesome screen shots!

Comcast is down again, it's always when I want to be productive on the net. Grr. Urge to storm local Concast headquarters rising...

...will probably return to finish you off later.

That pretty much describes my mood and physical state regarding double shifts at work right now. I did a day sort double on Monday, a midnight sort double last night/earlier today and now I've been given a curve ball by day sort again. Normally they only accept doubles on Mondays, but the full-time supervisor begged some of us from twilight to come in early for today. I said 'okay, if I don't oversleep' hoping that we'd be done by 2:30 on midnight. Naturally we weren't done until 3am, but a co-worker was kind enough to give me a ride to my car. She had also planned to work for the day shift too and was going to give me a ride to work, until she messaged me on cell phone canceling her day double plans. If I was smart, I'd probably return to bed and get more rest and work a midnight double. However, working for the day sort usually means longer hours, where midnight is pretty much like working the twilight shift time-wise. For an hourly worker more hours naturally means more money.

So yes, I fully intend to drag myself into work early today and stay late tomorrow night for work. At least my check should look good. I'll just tell myself that it's for Otakon... Though I have no idea when the bus arrives for the day sort (I'm guessing 11:30). I don't really want to drive to work, so if I miss it then I'll end up working midnight tonight.

I learned last night that I will not be receiving a stimulus check from the government after all. I met all of the qualifications to receive the money except for one, my mother claimed me on her income tax return. The logical choice would be to ask for the $300 from my mother would receive for claiming me right? Actually, no. In a small loophole it turns out that not only does the person who is claimed not receive a stimulus check, but the one filing the claim does not get the extra $300 if the said dependent is over the age of 17. So where does that leave me and my mother? No stimulus check for me and no extra money for her. Actually, I'm sure that leaves a lot of college students and or young adults without money that they would have most definitely put back into the economy.

I had planned to use that stimulus check to fund my trip to Otakon this year. Learning about the little loop hole in the government's said economical "bail-out" this close to the convention is a huge bubble buster. However, there is still hope. I have roughly a month to gather the needed money for the convention, it might fall short of the original $600 that I thought I would have but it will be something.

I've decided to cut the simplest expenses out of my weekly grind, including driving and filling up on gas. (Luckily there is a free bus to work that I can take.) So I probably won't be driving much or at all until after Otakon. I've also decided to work as many double shifts as they offer at work. Which means if they're working doubles Monday through Thursday I'll be putting in extra hours on those shifts. I'm also delaying large payments on my credit card in order to take the cash on hand with me to Baltimore. Finally, I'm waiting until near the end of August to take my car to its annual state inspection. Hopefully that will be enough to save up the money I thought I would have.

At least I can use the "I don't have the money for supplies" line to justify not cosplaying this year.