PixlBit

It's been a while since I've done a random update. Life's been interesting, to say the least.

Playing: Still playing Tomb Raider. I have to say I'm really enjoying this game. Yes, the QTEs can be annoying, and yes, I'm still dying several times over during certain combat segments, but even those aren't detracting from the game. Is this a perferct game? Hell, no, but it's fun. Or at least I think it's fun, which is all that really matters to me. I even like the fighting mechanism of using the two triggers. I just wish it were a little easier to aim and shoot at the same time. I think I'm about 1/2 to 2/3 of the way through the game. I'd be further, but real life intrudes into my playing time more often than I'd like.

Also playing a few new tables on Pinball Arcade. I broke down and bought the Season 2 Pass, because I know I'm going to be buying all the tables anyway. I just wish I'd known about this before I bought the first two packs this season. Oh, well. I think I'm still managing to save a little money this way. I have to say that Pinbot in the arcade beats Pinbot on a console, though. The other one I'm enjoying a lot is Space Shuttle, which I also remember playing as a physical table.

Retro City Rampage still continues to make me giggle. I never progress very far because I'm too busy running over pedestrians and blowing up cop cars and looking for pay phones. Favorite easter egg so far was having the TMNT come out of the sewer after me.

Watching: I've been sick with the summer cold from hell for the last week. Took three sick days last week, glad I have plenty of paid sick leave. I didn't feel with it enough to game, so I spent a lot of time watching DVDs and Netflix. Several seasons of NCIS and many movies later I am now feeling better. Several observations from the past week: 1) if a movie has any form of the word "dragon" in the title, it probably stinks worse than a week-old mackerel left out in the hot sun. 2) The African Queen and Humphrey Bogart are not all that. 3) Gordon Ramsey makes great comedy fare. I was glad to see the return of Max on Netflix, even if it rarely tosses something I actually will enjoy my way. I have fun seeing how many times it will recommend a movie that I really don't want to watch for every movie it does recommend that I actually end up enjoying. So far, I think it's about 20:1, and that may be generous on my part. The one movie that it recommended that I liked was a somewhat corny sci-fi action movie called Lockout.

Listening: Went to see Joan Baez in concert last week with my boss. She's still got it, even if she doesn't have that clear, high voice anymore. Played a lot of her older stuff, which she doesn't usually do in concert. Also been listening to a lot of James Keelaghan in the wake of the loss of 19 smoke jumpers in Arizona last Sunday. A friend posted this article from USAToday on his Facebook wall. Worth a read. Anyway, I know I put the song in a Folk Friday blog, but here it is again:

Other bits and pieces: Last week, at around 6:15 AM (my Saturday), I was woken by an earth-shattering KA-BOOM. Whole cottage shook. In my not-quite awake state, I was sure a tree had fallen on my roof. Dog and I went out to inspect and...nothing. Then the sirens started, I'm half a mile from both Route 1 and I-295, the two major roads in Maine, so I could hear them pretty clearly, and they were headed south. After getting my rarely-used antenna to pull in the local news, I discovered that two houses in the next town over (a good three-four miles away) had exploded. It was later determined to have been the propane tanks, and there was one fatality. After looking at the photos from the scene, I'd say that only one fatality was a stroke of luck - nothing left of the house where the explosion originated, and that area is all pretty thickly-populated with a condo complex.

Bandit is slowly getting back to his old self, but he still tires out way too fast. This has put a stop to our exploration of the vast network of Conservation Trust trails within walking distance. Hopefully, he'll be back to normal by the time fall hits.

Well, that's what I've been up to. I'm going to go get an hour or so of playtime with Tomb Raider before I have to go in to work. Some of us have to work so the rest of you can play. Have a fun and safe 4th of July!