I've been looking through some of my old blogs recently, and came across one that listed some of my Life Goals / things I want to do. Life Goals are a little different from my New Year's Resolutions since I have my whole life to do them, but there are some overlap. Some goals I'd probably never finish unless I worked on them a bit at a time.
It's been almost 7 years since that last post so I figured I'd update it a bit. Here is the same list of Life Goals / Things I want to do from my last post, with a bit of commentary if I have any. I've also added a few new goals at the end.
For my original post, click here.
-Learn Japanese
-Learn a programming language (preferably Python and C++)
-Create a video game (preferably more than one) <-- DONE! I've accomplished this with my text-based games, but I want to do more! :D
-Create a song (preferably more than one)
-Write something and have it published (preferably more than once)
-Learn to cook more than just rice and chocolate <-- DONE! Yes, I have learned this thanks to the cooking club at work last year.
-Travel to Japan <-- DONE! I've travelled there three times now! :) <3
-Eat a melon-filled melon bread <-- DONE! I think I've eaten this at least once everytime I visited Japan.
-Treat myself to a ridiculously expensive restaurant (that has good food!) <-- I partially did this with Miku in Vancouver last year. I'll go all out if I can finish my resolutions this year... provided the pandemic will be over by then!
-Attend a Hatsune Miku concert <-- DONE! I attended one in 2016. Hopefully the one scheduled for September this year will still be happening *fingers crossed!* xD
-Attend a Glay concert (please still be together years from now!)
-Experience / Expose myself to all the media that I own (I make things difficult for myself by buying more media every year) <-- I've been working on this one for so many years now and it's finally showing some progress (done all my anime, done all my Xbox360 games, almost done all my TV shows / movies)! But I will probably have this goal for many, many more years, if not the rest of my darn life.
NEW
-Travel to Wales (will mention why in a future blog)
-Learn to play a new instrument, specifically a portable one
-Go fishing at least once (not to really eat the fish... just to experience fishing)
Do you have any life goals / things you want to do? If yes, what are they? And if you have any, do you find it easier to work on them during the pandemic?
For myself, I'm finding it easier to go through my media collection, even though I still don't have that much free time these days. One of my media can't be experienced, though, until I beat a video game (Final Fantasy VII so I can watch finally watch Advent Children on DVD). That will be a mini-challenge for myself, hahaha.
That's it for this blog. Thanks for reading! If you'd like to comment, feel free.
Stay safe, take care, and until next time! :)
Sunday, 26 April 2020
Sunday, 19 April 2020
BLOG (PERSONAL) -- Getting Re-acquainted with Final Fantasy XIV
So... a few days ago, I started playing Final Fantasy XIV again (will refer to it as FFXIV from this point on).
If you have been reading my monthly recap blogs for a while, you might think, 'But you have been playing FFXIV'. Well, yes, and no. I've re-subbed and logged on multiple times to do the limited seasonal events that happen every often. Aside from that, I barely did anything to progress my characters, nor the story / dungeons. That is because... aside from the lack of time (I have many things that can keep me busy), I felt a little alienated / intimidated by all the changes in the game.
To summarize my experience with FFXIV, I started playing it on February 1st, 2014. I instantly loved everything about it and went on to play it intensely for about the next 2 and a half years. For anybody curious, here is my first blog about FFXIV: https://ironixgirl.blogspot.com/2014/02/exposures-video-games-final-fantasy-xiv.html.
During that time, I went through a mix of highs and lows. I've mentioned this before, but it really felt like living a lifetime in there. Also during that time other aspects in my real life got affected. I wasn't playing as many other video games nor watching as many movies / shows as I had wanted. My blog-writing also took a huge dive. I just wasn't able to balance my life and my FFXIV life... to a point where I eventually decided I had to take a break. There were other reasons, too, but... I don't want to get into them right now.
In the beginning it wasn't so bad. I'd re-sub or take advantage of a free 4-day login campaign to do limited events, and then spend the rest of my time leveling some of my classes. I had wanted to level them all to 60 (the max level at the time), but didn't want to run dungeons for all of them. If I was lucky, I'd also be online while the FC was doing some group-runs of old content and I'd join in sometimes.
Then came the 3rd expansion (Stormblood), and the next time I re-subbed I was surprised to see so many unusable skills in my hotbar for Bard. The skills for many classes changed. At that moment, I knew -- I was a noob all over again! I had been playing for 2.5 years -- Many of my war classes were level 60 -- and I didn't know how to play any of them properly anymore...
I familiarized myself enough to update my hotbar for my Bard, but wasn't 100% comfortable so if I ran anything, I'd run it by myself. I didn't want to be a deadweight for anybody. Fortunately none of the crafting skills changed so I was still able to do some crafting during that time.
Then when Shadowbringers was released (the most recent expansion)... the crafting and some of the gathering skills changed. I was devastated. All of a sudden, the crafting macro I had been using for years was useless, and I didn't have time to re-learn everything. I ended up playing less and less every time I re-subbed until a few days ago.
A friend from another server decided to try playing FFXIV again because his girlfriend started playing it and they transferred over to Masamune. To not be completely useless when running dungeons with them or if they had any questions, I looked up on some of the game changes. I also re-familiarized myself again with my Bard skills, so now I'm a bit more confident with playing that class.
Then yesterday, I spent almost a whole day logged into the game just... getting re-acquainted with everything again (please note that I start getting into FFXIV-specific lingo here). Here are some of the things I did / discovered:
-I updated the hotbar for all my crafting classes. Updating the hotbar for 8 classes... hah...
-I did minor updates for the hotbar for my mining and botanist classes. I didn't look at my fishing class yet.
-I had read that there was no longer a max point cap for Desynthesis, and no failure rate for desynthing items, so I started desynthing high level gear I didn't need anymore. It used to be that Desynthesis had a max point cap that was shared amongst the crafting classes, so if you wanted to fully level Desynthesis for any class, you could only do it for 3 classes at most, and you had to make sure none of the other classes had any Desynthesis points in them. Desynthesis also failed in the past if your level was too low compared to the item you were trying to desynth.
-While I was desynthing gear, I noticed that some were 100% spiritbonded so I decided to turn it into materia. When I selected the gear and selected "Extract Materia", I was surprised to see my gear still in-tact... but just at 1%. So... extracting materia doesn't destroy the gear anymore??! My mind was blown. I can't count how many low level gear I crafted in the past just for the sake of spiritbonding and turning into materia.
-While I was extracting materia, I'd notice sometimes that the "Retrieve Materia" option would be highlighted. Curious, I selected that option for a piece of gear I didn't care much about. The materia that was melded into the gear was removed. I went O__O! All of a sudden, I thought, The market value for materia on the marketboard must be in the crapper now... In the past, Materia would be melded into the gear permanently.
-I changed to my Astrologian class for the first time in a long time, just to do a little bit of solo leveling. I was surprised that the card skills had changed a lot. Before, each card would do something slightly different, either raising attack, or giving a regen effect, or making skills a little faster. There was also a choice of applying that card to one person or using a skill to have the card be applied to the whole party (maybe that skill got moved to a later level), but now every card just raises attack, with some classes getting more attack % than others depending on the card. I guess there's less to think about, but I don't know... I think if all the cards are around raising attack, then have less cards (there are currently 6), or have just one skill that does that.
I know that there is a new Glamour system in place (the Glamour plates and Glamour dresser), but even after reading about it online, I still don't fully understand how it works in conjunction with the old Glamour method. I have also read mixed things about using the new Glamour system, so I think I will stick to the old system for now.
I haven't really familiarized with skills for my other classes, but I'm sure I will eventually. Aside from joining my friend and his girlfriend on dungeon runs and such, I'd like to get more caught up with the story. Let's see if I can get at least that done before my subscription expires (in exactly two months).
That's it for this blog! I'm surprised at how much I wrote, hahaha.
I'll do my best to keep a balance this time -- between playing FFXIV and doing other things.
Take care, stay safe, and until next time! :)
If you have been reading my monthly recap blogs for a while, you might think, 'But you have been playing FFXIV'. Well, yes, and no. I've re-subbed and logged on multiple times to do the limited seasonal events that happen every often. Aside from that, I barely did anything to progress my characters, nor the story / dungeons. That is because... aside from the lack of time (I have many things that can keep me busy), I felt a little alienated / intimidated by all the changes in the game.
To summarize my experience with FFXIV, I started playing it on February 1st, 2014. I instantly loved everything about it and went on to play it intensely for about the next 2 and a half years. For anybody curious, here is my first blog about FFXIV: https://ironixgirl.blogspot.com/2014/02/exposures-video-games-final-fantasy-xiv.html.
During that time, I went through a mix of highs and lows. I've mentioned this before, but it really felt like living a lifetime in there. Also during that time other aspects in my real life got affected. I wasn't playing as many other video games nor watching as many movies / shows as I had wanted. My blog-writing also took a huge dive. I just wasn't able to balance my life and my FFXIV life... to a point where I eventually decided I had to take a break. There were other reasons, too, but... I don't want to get into them right now.
In the beginning it wasn't so bad. I'd re-sub or take advantage of a free 4-day login campaign to do limited events, and then spend the rest of my time leveling some of my classes. I had wanted to level them all to 60 (the max level at the time), but didn't want to run dungeons for all of them. If I was lucky, I'd also be online while the FC was doing some group-runs of old content and I'd join in sometimes.
Then came the 3rd expansion (Stormblood), and the next time I re-subbed I was surprised to see so many unusable skills in my hotbar for Bard. The skills for many classes changed. At that moment, I knew -- I was a noob all over again! I had been playing for 2.5 years -- Many of my war classes were level 60 -- and I didn't know how to play any of them properly anymore...
I familiarized myself enough to update my hotbar for my Bard, but wasn't 100% comfortable so if I ran anything, I'd run it by myself. I didn't want to be a deadweight for anybody. Fortunately none of the crafting skills changed so I was still able to do some crafting during that time.
Then when Shadowbringers was released (the most recent expansion)... the crafting and some of the gathering skills changed. I was devastated. All of a sudden, the crafting macro I had been using for years was useless, and I didn't have time to re-learn everything. I ended up playing less and less every time I re-subbed until a few days ago.
A friend from another server decided to try playing FFXIV again because his girlfriend started playing it and they transferred over to Masamune. To not be completely useless when running dungeons with them or if they had any questions, I looked up on some of the game changes. I also re-familiarized myself again with my Bard skills, so now I'm a bit more confident with playing that class.
Then yesterday, I spent almost a whole day logged into the game just... getting re-acquainted with everything again (please note that I start getting into FFXIV-specific lingo here). Here are some of the things I did / discovered:
-I updated the hotbar for all my crafting classes. Updating the hotbar for 8 classes... hah...
-I did minor updates for the hotbar for my mining and botanist classes. I didn't look at my fishing class yet.
-I had read that there was no longer a max point cap for Desynthesis, and no failure rate for desynthing items, so I started desynthing high level gear I didn't need anymore. It used to be that Desynthesis had a max point cap that was shared amongst the crafting classes, so if you wanted to fully level Desynthesis for any class, you could only do it for 3 classes at most, and you had to make sure none of the other classes had any Desynthesis points in them. Desynthesis also failed in the past if your level was too low compared to the item you were trying to desynth.
-While I was desynthing gear, I noticed that some were 100% spiritbonded so I decided to turn it into materia. When I selected the gear and selected "Extract Materia", I was surprised to see my gear still in-tact... but just at 1%. So... extracting materia doesn't destroy the gear anymore??! My mind was blown. I can't count how many low level gear I crafted in the past just for the sake of spiritbonding and turning into materia.
-While I was extracting materia, I'd notice sometimes that the "Retrieve Materia" option would be highlighted. Curious, I selected that option for a piece of gear I didn't care much about. The materia that was melded into the gear was removed. I went O__O! All of a sudden, I thought, The market value for materia on the marketboard must be in the crapper now... In the past, Materia would be melded into the gear permanently.
-I changed to my Astrologian class for the first time in a long time, just to do a little bit of solo leveling. I was surprised that the card skills had changed a lot. Before, each card would do something slightly different, either raising attack, or giving a regen effect, or making skills a little faster. There was also a choice of applying that card to one person or using a skill to have the card be applied to the whole party (maybe that skill got moved to a later level), but now every card just raises attack, with some classes getting more attack % than others depending on the card. I guess there's less to think about, but I don't know... I think if all the cards are around raising attack, then have less cards (there are currently 6), or have just one skill that does that.
I know that there is a new Glamour system in place (the Glamour plates and Glamour dresser), but even after reading about it online, I still don't fully understand how it works in conjunction with the old Glamour method. I have also read mixed things about using the new Glamour system, so I think I will stick to the old system for now.
I haven't really familiarized with skills for my other classes, but I'm sure I will eventually. Aside from joining my friend and his girlfriend on dungeon runs and such, I'd like to get more caught up with the story. Let's see if I can get at least that done before my subscription expires (in exactly two months).
That's it for this blog! I'm surprised at how much I wrote, hahaha.
I'll do my best to keep a balance this time -- between playing FFXIV and doing other things.
Take care, stay safe, and until next time! :)
Sunday, 5 April 2020
BLOG (PERSONAL) -- What's Going on in Toronto (Journal #3)
I thought I was going to blog about something different this week, but... more things have happened in Toronto since two weeks ago relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. I'm kinda glad more is being done, since not everybody seems to be taking this pandemic seriously... At the same time, I'm not particularly happy that it had to get to this point. Also, I'm not happy with the thought that this pandemic could last for months...
Again, if I miss listing anything, my apologies.
- "Non-essential" businesses are closed. Any businesses that could work remotely are still open, though.
- Public gatherings of 5 or more are not allowed.
- All city-led events, festivals, permits, conferences, and cultural programs until June 30 have been cancelled. When I first heard about this, I thought the FLOW concert (June 3rd) and International Fan Festival Toronto (IFFT) (June 19-21) were cancelled, but they're not city-led. The public gathering restriction will get them, though, if the pandemic is still going on by then.
- Outdoor recreational amenities, beaches, playgrounds, and sports facilities are closed. I honestly think this could have been avoided if everybody was taking this practicing social distancing seriously.
- Those violating the social distancing (now termed physical distancing) can now get fined. Why did it have to get to this point?
For myself, I'm still at home, going outside only to throw out trash (and the trash bin is right next to my home).
This past week, I spent almost all my spare time cleaning my room, and I think I am done with it for now! I have a nice empty spot where I can prance about. The floor isn't 50% bare so my New Year's resolution isn't done yet, but it's getting there. I am feeling very, very proud of myself! Now I can spend the next few weeks or months crumpling to the floor as I try to exercise after many years of not exercising.
Also, I received a package this week -- my last package for a long while: Persona 5 Royal. I'm super excited to play it but I'll hold off for a little while. Call me a cheat if you want, but I'd rather play it with a couple guides for certain elements. Just like in the original Persona 5 game, I hope the grim reaper can get sick for another easy trophy (if that trophy is also in Persona 5 Royal).
That's it for this blog. Thanks for reading!
If anybody would like me to blog about something else, feel free to leave suggestions in the Comments or to send a message via the Contact Form.
Next week, there will be no blog. Next weekend will be a long weekend (Good Friday is April 10th), and I want to spend all that time... possibly not on a computer. Maybe I'll binge-watch some shows or try to finish more of my video games or work on more of my New Year's resolutions.
Stay safe, take care, and until next time! :)
Again, if I miss listing anything, my apologies.
- "Non-essential" businesses are closed. Any businesses that could work remotely are still open, though.
- Public gatherings of 5 or more are not allowed.
- All city-led events, festivals, permits, conferences, and cultural programs until June 30 have been cancelled. When I first heard about this, I thought the FLOW concert (June 3rd) and International Fan Festival Toronto (IFFT) (June 19-21) were cancelled, but they're not city-led. The public gathering restriction will get them, though, if the pandemic is still going on by then.
- Outdoor recreational amenities, beaches, playgrounds, and sports facilities are closed. I honestly think this could have been avoided if everybody was taking this practicing social distancing seriously.
- Those violating the social distancing (now termed physical distancing) can now get fined. Why did it have to get to this point?
For myself, I'm still at home, going outside only to throw out trash (and the trash bin is right next to my home).
This past week, I spent almost all my spare time cleaning my room, and I think I am done with it for now! I have a nice empty spot where I can prance about. The floor isn't 50% bare so my New Year's resolution isn't done yet, but it's getting there. I am feeling very, very proud of myself! Now I can spend the next few weeks or months crumpling to the floor as I try to exercise after many years of not exercising.
Also, I received a package this week -- my last package for a long while: Persona 5 Royal. I'm super excited to play it but I'll hold off for a little while. Call me a cheat if you want, but I'd rather play it with a couple guides for certain elements. Just like in the original Persona 5 game, I hope the grim reaper can get sick for another easy trophy (if that trophy is also in Persona 5 Royal).
That's it for this blog. Thanks for reading!
If anybody would like me to blog about something else, feel free to leave suggestions in the Comments or to send a message via the Contact Form.
Next week, there will be no blog. Next weekend will be a long weekend (Good Friday is April 10th), and I want to spend all that time... possibly not on a computer. Maybe I'll binge-watch some shows or try to finish more of my video games or work on more of my New Year's resolutions.
Stay safe, take care, and until next time! :)
Sunday, 29 March 2020
BLOG -- EARLY Recap of March
There weren't many changes this week to handle the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto, so I figured I might as well do my end-of-month blog a bit early. I don't imagine myself experiencing anything new in the next couple days since I've been in a "clean-my-room" mode recently. My room is still very messy, but it's getting cleaner little by little!
About the COVID-19 pandemic, though... I personally wish more was being done to enforce the social distancing. The number of infected have risen and according to the news, not everybody is actually practicing social distancing. This will likely lengthen the virus spread and get more and more people infected. That would also mean many places will stay closed for a longer time...
- Bought a second computer monitor to work from home more efficiently. I really need a bigger desk to accommodate two monitors...
- Monday March 16 was the last day I ventured downtown. After that I've only left the house to throw out trash.
- Karaoked by myself x1. Finally, after so many months of not being able to go!
- Stayed over at my sister's place x0.
- Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn achievements / news:
-I did the Little Ladies Day event, but not much else.
- (TV show): Six Feet Under -- This series made me feel and think about so many different things. I thought the first two seasons were the strongest. The final episode was really good, too. Claire and Brenda were my favourites.
- (Anime): Happy Sugar Life -- I'll hold my thoughts about this series for now...
- (Anime): Scum's Wish -- Quite mature, but pretty good. There were some really intense relatable moments.
- (Anime): Persona 5 the Animation -- I enjoyed this, but that is likely because I played the video game. It felt a bit rushed, though.
- (Anime Special): Persona 5: Dark Sun... -- This also felt rushed.
- (Anime Special): Persona 5: Stars and Ours -- This one, too.
- (PS4): Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls -- Still one of the most twisted games I've ever played so far.
- (PS4): Kingdom Hearts Final Remix (from Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix)
- (PS4): iDOLM@STER: Platinum Stars (STOPPED -- I wanted to get one of my idols to top rank before stopping this game, but -- it's just so much grinding, and I don't want to buy extra songs nor costumes for this game... I personally prefer spending money on iDOLM@STER 2. I think that game is way more fleshed out)
- (PS3): Borderlands 2
- (PS2): Drakengard
- (3DS): Tomodachi Life
- (GBA): The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition
- (Wii): Fortune Street
- (PC): UnEpic
- (PC): King's Bounty: The Legend
- (PC): Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (When They Cry)
- (TV Show): Criminal Minds (Season 15)
- (TV Show): The Strain (Season 3)
- (TV Show): Galavant (Season 1 - Episode 5)
- (TV Show): The Office (Season 8)
- (TV Show): The Goldbergs (Season 3 - Episode 15)
- (TV Show): Huff (Season 1 - Episode 10)
- (TV Show): Legend of Korra (Season 3)
- (TV Show): Nodame Cantabile Live-Action (Episode 7)
- (Anime): Log Horizon (Season 3?)
- (Anime): Attack on Titan (Season 4?)
- (Anime): Food Wars (Season 4)
- (Anime): Pyscho-Pass (Season 3)
- (Anime): Carole & Tuesday (Part 1 - Episode 5)
- (YouTube): StephenVlogs (Day 850)
- (Manga): One Piece by Eiichiro Oda (Volume 80 -- Chapter 806)
- (Manga): Berserk by Kentaro Miura (Volume 2)
That's it for March. Here are a couple pics I took this month plus a YouTube video. I didn't really take too many pics this month, for obvious reasons, hahaha.
One of the cream buns I had from Hattendo. My last treat for myself before
"holing" myself up during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A new unit I got from Magia Record.
Thankfully I didn't have to whale for her.
"Good Morning Kids" from Ellegarden.
I like the bittersweet lyrics.
Thanks for reading!
As usual, if you have any questions / comments about anything, feel free. :)
Unless anything major happens, I think I'll start blogging about different things next week.
Take care, stay safe, and next time! :)
About the COVID-19 pandemic, though... I personally wish more was being done to enforce the social distancing. The number of infected have risen and according to the news, not everybody is actually practicing social distancing. This will likely lengthen the virus spread and get more and more people infected. That would also mean many places will stay closed for a longer time...
Outings / Events in March:
- Hung out with friends overall x0.- Bought a second computer monitor to work from home more efficiently. I really need a bigger desk to accommodate two monitors...
- Monday March 16 was the last day I ventured downtown. After that I've only left the house to throw out trash.
- Karaoked by myself x1. Finally, after so many months of not being able to go!
- Stayed over at my sister's place x0.
- Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn achievements / news:
-I did the Little Ladies Day event, but not much else.
Exposures:
- (Food place): Hattendo -- This place specializes in Japanese cream buns and melon buns. The buns are a bit pricey, but I've enjoyed what I've tried so far!
Finished...
Watching:
- (Movie): The Invisible Man -- There were several things I had questions / issues about, but overall it was entertaining.- (TV show): Six Feet Under -- This series made me feel and think about so many different things. I thought the first two seasons were the strongest. The final episode was really good, too. Claire and Brenda were my favourites.
- (Anime): Happy Sugar Life -- I'll hold my thoughts about this series for now...
- (Anime): Scum's Wish -- Quite mature, but pretty good. There were some really intense relatable moments.
- (Anime): Persona 5 the Animation -- I enjoyed this, but that is likely because I played the video game. It felt a bit rushed, though.
- (Anime Special): Persona 5: Dark Sun... -- This also felt rushed.
- (Anime Special): Persona 5: Stars and Ours -- This one, too.
Playing:
- (3DS): Culdcept Revolt -- I reached the first ending so I'm counting it. I'm sure I'll continue playing it sometime in the future.- (PS4): Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls -- Still one of the most twisted games I've ever played so far.
Reading:
- Nothing this month.
Currently...
Playing (not all at once):
- (PS4): Dark Cloud- (PS4): Kingdom Hearts Final Remix (from Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix)
- (PS3): Borderlands 2
- (PS2): Drakengard
- (3DS): Tomodachi Life
- (GBA): The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition
- (Wii): Fortune Street
- (PC): UnEpic
- (PC): King's Bounty: The Legend
- (PC): Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (When They Cry)
Watching:
- (TV Show): The Walking Dead (Season 7 - Episode 7)- (TV Show): Criminal Minds (Season 15)
- (TV Show): The Strain (Season 3)
- (TV Show): Galavant (Season 1 - Episode 5)
- (TV Show): The Office (Season 8)
- (TV Show): The Goldbergs (Season 3 - Episode 15)
- (TV Show): Huff (Season 1 - Episode 10)
- (TV Show): Legend of Korra (Season 3)
- (TV Show): Nodame Cantabile Live-Action (Episode 7)
- (Anime): Log Horizon (Season 3?)
- (Anime): Attack on Titan (Season 4?)
- (Anime): Food Wars (Season 4)
- (Anime): Pyscho-Pass (Season 3)
- (Anime): Carole & Tuesday (Part 1 - Episode 5)
- (YouTube): StephenVlogs (Day 850)
Reading:
- (Comic): Bodie Troll by Jay Fosgitt- (Manga): One Piece by Eiichiro Oda (Volume 80 -- Chapter 806)
- (Manga): Berserk by Kentaro Miura (Volume 2)
That's it for March. Here are a couple pics I took this month plus a YouTube video. I didn't really take too many pics this month, for obvious reasons, hahaha.
"holing" myself up during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thankfully I didn't have to whale for her.
"Good Morning Kids" from Ellegarden.
I like the bittersweet lyrics.
As usual, if you have any questions / comments about anything, feel free. :)
Unless anything major happens, I think I'll start blogging about different things next week.
Take care, stay safe, and next time! :)
Sunday, 22 March 2020
BLOG (PERSONAL) -- What's Going on in Toronto (Journal #2)
Well, here are more things that have been happening in Toronto during the COVID-19 pandemic. We're not on lock down yet... but it already feels like one... but that could be because I've stayed home almost everyday this week. Again, this is more for myself, so this may not be very interesting for you.
Again, if I miss listing anything, my apologies.
- Since Monday, Canadian borders were closed to everybody except for Canadian citizens, trading / exporting of goods, diplomats, and US citizens. One day later, I believe Canadian borders were closed to US citizens.
- Monday night, restaurants and bars would be closed, only offering take-out or delivery. This was passed just before St. Patrick's Day, which I thought was good timing. I really hope the small businesses will survive through this, though! For sure this has already resulted in some being laid off...
- Public gatherings of 50 or more are not allowed.
- On Wednesday, a "$27 billion aid package and up to $55 billion in tax deferrals" was laid out. Initially, I didn't know what that meant, but it seemed to include support for various situations. More info about it could be read here: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/economic-aid-package-coronavirus-1.5501037
- Practicing social distance is encouraged, but not enforced.
- Some internet providers are waiving data overage fees to accommodate those working from home, which is really nice.
For myself, I've been working from home since last Friday. Over the weekend, I bought a second monitor so I could do my work a bit more efficiently. Unfortunately, my desk space is pretty tight so the monitors are set up a little weirdly (I might show a pic of it in later weeks).
I left the house on Monday to buy a lotto ticket. The closest kiosk to me was closed due to the pandemic so I travelled downtown. When I did find an open kiosk, I bought my ticket. For lotto tickets in Canada, you can buy tickets for up to 26 weeks' worth of future draws. I was very amused at the kiosk person's reaction when she scanned in my ticket (which was marked for 26 weeks) and the total ticket cost came out to over $200. Now I'm set for pretty much the next six months. If I don't win anything between now and then... hahaha...
After that Monday, I don't really intend to leave the house anymore except to throw out garbage, but I will be expecting a package in about two weeks (Persona 5 Royal, squeeeee! <3 <3 <3). Fingers crossed it won't be delayed.
About the line-up that happened outside an EBGames store to pick up Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Doom: Eternal... I'm not surprised. I can't comment on Doom: Eternal, but I know that Animal Crossing is still a really popular game, and one that could offer a lot of fun and escape during this rough time. If I had a Switch, I would have gotten the game as well, though I'd have it delivered, since I don't shop at EBGames that often anymore.
During my downtime (which hasn't been much since I'd been working a lot this week), I've been watching this old-ish TV show called Six Feet Under. So far, it's very good. Very morbid and quirky -- but very good. It makes me think about so many different things.
That's it for this blog. Thanks for reading!
If anybody would like me to blog about something else, feel free to leave suggestions in the Comments or to send a message via the Contact Form.
Stay safe, take care, and until next time! :)
Again, if I miss listing anything, my apologies.
- Since Monday, Canadian borders were closed to everybody except for Canadian citizens, trading / exporting of goods, diplomats, and US citizens. One day later, I believe Canadian borders were closed to US citizens.
- Monday night, restaurants and bars would be closed, only offering take-out or delivery. This was passed just before St. Patrick's Day, which I thought was good timing. I really hope the small businesses will survive through this, though! For sure this has already resulted in some being laid off...
- Public gatherings of 50 or more are not allowed.
- On Wednesday, a "$27 billion aid package and up to $55 billion in tax deferrals" was laid out. Initially, I didn't know what that meant, but it seemed to include support for various situations. More info about it could be read here: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/economic-aid-package-coronavirus-1.5501037
- Practicing social distance is encouraged, but not enforced.
- Some internet providers are waiving data overage fees to accommodate those working from home, which is really nice.
For myself, I've been working from home since last Friday. Over the weekend, I bought a second monitor so I could do my work a bit more efficiently. Unfortunately, my desk space is pretty tight so the monitors are set up a little weirdly (I might show a pic of it in later weeks).
I left the house on Monday to buy a lotto ticket. The closest kiosk to me was closed due to the pandemic so I travelled downtown. When I did find an open kiosk, I bought my ticket. For lotto tickets in Canada, you can buy tickets for up to 26 weeks' worth of future draws. I was very amused at the kiosk person's reaction when she scanned in my ticket (which was marked for 26 weeks) and the total ticket cost came out to over $200. Now I'm set for pretty much the next six months. If I don't win anything between now and then... hahaha...
After that Monday, I don't really intend to leave the house anymore except to throw out garbage, but I will be expecting a package in about two weeks (Persona 5 Royal, squeeeee! <3 <3 <3). Fingers crossed it won't be delayed.
About the line-up that happened outside an EBGames store to pick up Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Doom: Eternal... I'm not surprised. I can't comment on Doom: Eternal, but I know that Animal Crossing is still a really popular game, and one that could offer a lot of fun and escape during this rough time. If I had a Switch, I would have gotten the game as well, though I'd have it delivered, since I don't shop at EBGames that often anymore.
During my downtime (which hasn't been much since I'd been working a lot this week), I've been watching this old-ish TV show called Six Feet Under. So far, it's very good. Very morbid and quirky -- but very good. It makes me think about so many different things.
That's it for this blog. Thanks for reading!
If anybody would like me to blog about something else, feel free to leave suggestions in the Comments or to send a message via the Contact Form.
Stay safe, take care, and until next time! :)
Sunday, 15 March 2020
BLOG (PERSONAL) -- What's Going on in Toronto (Journal #1)
Well, since my life is about to change somewhat and I want to remember this time more accurately than relying just on my memory, I figured I might as well keep a record of it.
Each week for a while, I'll be summarizing pretty much what's going on in Toronto during the COVID-19 pandemic -- any changes, thoughts, activities, whatever. This is more for myself than for anybody else, so this may not be very interesting for you, especially if you live in Toronto and already know about these things.
I think I mentioned this before, but my general, personal thoughts regarding COVID-19 are this: I do not see the COVID-19 pandemic ending anytime soon. Because the virus can spread while those infected are asymptomatic, there is no sure-fire way to keep yourself safe if you are outside in a crowded area.
I think one of the only ways the pandemic can end sooner, aside from various countries taking measures to limit spreading (lockdowns, event cancellations, etc.), is if the virus mutates into something that is easier to treat / develop a vaccine for. So... until the pandemic ends, I really hope that the mass panic that's been going on will eventually die down. We'll likely be in this for the long haul, so let's get through it together.
Anywho... so things that are happening in Toronto. Please note that this won't be crazy extensive. There's a good chance that I'll miss listing some things, so my apologies about that.
Well, in the beginning (way back in January), there were only extra signage in the airport. Then there were some flight cancellations. Now, with March break starting tomorrow, major changes have started happening.
- All public schools will be closed for two weeks AFTER March break is over. For parents who work during the day and can't bring their kids to their workplace, what will they do?
- Various events are either getting cancelled or postponed. I know this is also happening all over the world (E3 getting cancelled, etc). Notable event cancellations / postponement (at least notable for me) are Toronto Comicon (cancelled), the One of a Kind Show (postponed), and the Hatsune Miku Expo 2020 USA & Canada tour (postponed).
- Closures to major public places, like the Toronto Public Library (all branches), Science Centre, ROM, AGO, Toronto Zoo, CN Tower for the next three weeks (or until further notice). For those on March break, what are they going to do?
- Reduced shopping hours for some major malls like Fairview and Eaton Centre, opening 11 AM and closing 7 PM (or earlier if it normally closes earlier).
All these closures, cancellations, and postponements feel so disheartening, but it's understandable. This is the start of what needs to happen to try limiting the virus spread.
For myself, a mandatory work-from-home policy will be implemented for the next three weeks, starting tomorrow. While I will relish not having to commute everyday (my main unknown variable for possibly catching COVID-19), I know I will miss seeing and interacting with some of my co-workers. Also, my home is not the optimal work environment since I currently only have one computer monitor (at work we use two monitors).
With the extra time I will save from not commuting to work, and with me prioritizing to stay at home during this time, I'm going to make the most of it and get farther with my New Year's Resolutions. I really want to clean my room...
That's it for this blog. Thanks for reading!
I really hope you all are faring okay, wherever you are. *virtual hug*
If anybody would like me to blog about something else, feel free to leave suggestions in the Comments or to send a message via the Contact Form.
Stay safe, and until next time! :)
Each week for a while, I'll be summarizing pretty much what's going on in Toronto during the COVID-19 pandemic -- any changes, thoughts, activities, whatever. This is more for myself than for anybody else, so this may not be very interesting for you, especially if you live in Toronto and already know about these things.
I think I mentioned this before, but my general, personal thoughts regarding COVID-19 are this: I do not see the COVID-19 pandemic ending anytime soon. Because the virus can spread while those infected are asymptomatic, there is no sure-fire way to keep yourself safe if you are outside in a crowded area.
I think one of the only ways the pandemic can end sooner, aside from various countries taking measures to limit spreading (lockdowns, event cancellations, etc.), is if the virus mutates into something that is easier to treat / develop a vaccine for. So... until the pandemic ends, I really hope that the mass panic that's been going on will eventually die down. We'll likely be in this for the long haul, so let's get through it together.
Anywho... so things that are happening in Toronto. Please note that this won't be crazy extensive. There's a good chance that I'll miss listing some things, so my apologies about that.
Well, in the beginning (way back in January), there were only extra signage in the airport. Then there were some flight cancellations. Now, with March break starting tomorrow, major changes have started happening.
- All public schools will be closed for two weeks AFTER March break is over. For parents who work during the day and can't bring their kids to their workplace, what will they do?
- Various events are either getting cancelled or postponed. I know this is also happening all over the world (E3 getting cancelled, etc). Notable event cancellations / postponement (at least notable for me) are Toronto Comicon (cancelled), the One of a Kind Show (postponed), and the Hatsune Miku Expo 2020 USA & Canada tour (postponed).
- Closures to major public places, like the Toronto Public Library (all branches), Science Centre, ROM, AGO, Toronto Zoo, CN Tower for the next three weeks (or until further notice). For those on March break, what are they going to do?
- Reduced shopping hours for some major malls like Fairview and Eaton Centre, opening 11 AM and closing 7 PM (or earlier if it normally closes earlier).
All these closures, cancellations, and postponements feel so disheartening, but it's understandable. This is the start of what needs to happen to try limiting the virus spread.
For myself, a mandatory work-from-home policy will be implemented for the next three weeks, starting tomorrow. While I will relish not having to commute everyday (my main unknown variable for possibly catching COVID-19), I know I will miss seeing and interacting with some of my co-workers. Also, my home is not the optimal work environment since I currently only have one computer monitor (at work we use two monitors).
With the extra time I will save from not commuting to work, and with me prioritizing to stay at home during this time, I'm going to make the most of it and get farther with my New Year's Resolutions. I really want to clean my room...
That's it for this blog. Thanks for reading!
I really hope you all are faring okay, wherever you are. *virtual hug*
If anybody would like me to blog about something else, feel free to leave suggestions in the Comments or to send a message via the Contact Form.
Stay safe, and until next time! :)
Sunday, 8 March 2020
Weekly Thoughts #8 -- Cleaning My Room; Beating Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls
Since I lost an hour today due to daylight savings time, I'm gonna try to keep this week's blog short and sweet. As I usually say in my Weekly Thoughts blog, this may not be very interesting for you!
Cleaning My Room
Cleaning my room is one of my New Year's Resolutions (with the aim of half of the floor being bare), and I already know that this will be one of my more difficult resolutions to accomplish.
I hate to say it, but my room is very, very, very messy. I think part of it is because I tend to have interests across multiple genres and in multiple formats and platforms. For example, I like playing video games for various consoles / handhelds; I like reading manga, novels, graphic novels; I like watching anime, movies, TV shows; I like character figures and other fan-made / official random things. As a result, I've amassed a very... varied collection... and unfortunately my room is not large enough for me to display everything.
A couple solutions I've thought about involve either playing "Tetris" better in my room (stack more boxes and line them up better) or ... throwing out some of my stuff. I actually don't mind doing the latter as long as I know I'm fine with letting it go. I've mentioned this before in earlier blogs that I have a lot of stuff I haven't experienced yet, so most times I don't know if it's something I'm fine with throwing out (hence my resolution to spend at 750 hours going through my media collection).
If you are in a similar situation as me, how do you go about cleaning your room? :3
Beating Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls
I just beat and platinumed this game last night on the PS4 (yes! I can finally get to playing Danganronpa V3!), and I gotta say... that was quite a ride. I generally like things a bit twisted (I don't know why -- I guess I'm just weird), but in all my years of playing video games (that I can recall), Ultra Despair Girls is probably THE MOST twisted game I've ever played.
Being a spin-off of the Danganronpa series, a video game series with already a twisted premise, I had expected some level of shock and rawness when I started Ultra Despair Girls. I just never thought it'd be that extreme. It's not particularly a bad thing... but it was very surprising for me.
In a nutshell, the premise for Ultra Despair Girls is this:
Kids have unleashed deadly mechanical robots to kill adults on an island city. You play a teenage girl who ends up fighting the robots and trying to beat the kid ringleaders.
On the surface, it seems clear-cut that it's a "Good vs. Evil" scenario, but as you play through the game and learn more about each character and their situation, it's not so black and white anymore. This game can possibly make you question what would be the "right" thing -- maybe even to suggest there is no absolute "right" thing. And all the while, the extremities of the situation are shown in "all its glory" wherever you go...
All in all, I enjoyed Ultra Despair Girls and would recommend this game... but ONLY if you think you can handle all the twistiness -- and if you've played the first Danganronpa game and enjoyed it. If I feel I need to say more about this game, I might do a spoiler blog for it.
I won't start Danganronpa V3 right away, but I'll be excited whenever I get to it!
That's it for this blog. Thank you for reading!! If you have any questions or comments about anything, feel free. You can also send me a message via the Contact Form. Just note that if I respond, I would do so through my alternate e-mail address.
Stay safe, take care, and until next time! :)
Cleaning My Room
Cleaning my room is one of my New Year's Resolutions (with the aim of half of the floor being bare), and I already know that this will be one of my more difficult resolutions to accomplish.
I hate to say it, but my room is very, very, very messy. I think part of it is because I tend to have interests across multiple genres and in multiple formats and platforms. For example, I like playing video games for various consoles / handhelds; I like reading manga, novels, graphic novels; I like watching anime, movies, TV shows; I like character figures and other fan-made / official random things. As a result, I've amassed a very... varied collection... and unfortunately my room is not large enough for me to display everything.
A couple solutions I've thought about involve either playing "Tetris" better in my room (stack more boxes and line them up better) or ... throwing out some of my stuff. I actually don't mind doing the latter as long as I know I'm fine with letting it go. I've mentioned this before in earlier blogs that I have a lot of stuff I haven't experienced yet, so most times I don't know if it's something I'm fine with throwing out (hence my resolution to spend at 750 hours going through my media collection).
If you are in a similar situation as me, how do you go about cleaning your room? :3
Beating Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls
I just beat and platinumed this game last night on the PS4 (yes! I can finally get to playing Danganronpa V3!), and I gotta say... that was quite a ride. I generally like things a bit twisted (I don't know why -- I guess I'm just weird), but in all my years of playing video games (that I can recall), Ultra Despair Girls is probably THE MOST twisted game I've ever played.
Being a spin-off of the Danganronpa series, a video game series with already a twisted premise, I had expected some level of shock and rawness when I started Ultra Despair Girls. I just never thought it'd be that extreme. It's not particularly a bad thing... but it was very surprising for me.
In a nutshell, the premise for Ultra Despair Girls is this:
Kids have unleashed deadly mechanical robots to kill adults on an island city. You play a teenage girl who ends up fighting the robots and trying to beat the kid ringleaders.
On the surface, it seems clear-cut that it's a "Good vs. Evil" scenario, but as you play through the game and learn more about each character and their situation, it's not so black and white anymore. This game can possibly make you question what would be the "right" thing -- maybe even to suggest there is no absolute "right" thing. And all the while, the extremities of the situation are shown in "all its glory" wherever you go...
All in all, I enjoyed Ultra Despair Girls and would recommend this game... but ONLY if you think you can handle all the twistiness -- and if you've played the first Danganronpa game and enjoyed it. If I feel I need to say more about this game, I might do a spoiler blog for it.
I won't start Danganronpa V3 right away, but I'll be excited whenever I get to it!
That's it for this blog. Thank you for reading!! If you have any questions or comments about anything, feel free. You can also send me a message via the Contact Form. Just note that if I respond, I would do so through my alternate e-mail address.
Stay safe, take care, and until next time! :)
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