Sideshow & Syrana

Actually, this looks like not much will change in the future for future you… er… me.  Well, in game, Syrana changed quite a bit more… at least gear-wise.  Now, let’s cross our fingers for some change for the future RL me.

*crosses fingers*

Taking Fulguralis’ suggestion to have some fun with equating work with WoW and vice versa, I present you (and myself) with another way to look at what’s been happenin’….

Our server is experiencing some isolated issues that don’t seem to be affecting other servers or guilds.  Some of the problems, such as loot table nerfs, are a bit more widespread.

Our raid team is currently short a few people, which we are unable to PUG at the present time.  This has resulted in additional adds for all members to be responsible for.  We’re also expected to output the same level of DPS, if not higher, than usual despite these circumstances.

The most frustrating bug is the lack of a boss in the encounter.  Although this is an isolated issue, it is quite a frustrating one.  GMs assure us they are aware of the issue and plan to fix it in an upcoming patch.  Of course, they need to test it out on the PTR and find the most appropriate fix.  It is undetermined when the PTR testing will begin and when the patch will be implemented.

As a result, I’m co-raid leading with another member of our guild.  We’re doing our best with developing strategies for this new encounter.  Some of the old strategies are viable, but some no longer are.  I’ve co-lead this raid before; however, my current co-leader has lead other raids, but is not as familiar with the mechanics of this particular one.  We are anticipating having to change them again once the boss patch drops.

It has not been easy to ensure and enforce that everyone’s gear, specs, and consumables are up to par.  At this time, we are having to be in a hardcore mindset with more elitist expectations of everyone, considering we’re not running with a full raid.  The biggest concern is a few members look like they could die in a firing.

I’m sick of warning people to stay out of the damn fire.

The loot table has also been nerfed.  The level of rewards do not coincide with the difficulty of the encounter.  In fact, they are below it.  This may or may not be fixed in the future.  We’ve actually read some patch notes discussing future nerfs.  I’m not sure they realize how much this is and will affect our progression.

There is no achievement listed for completing this encounter without a boss, only a feat of strength.

And not the good kind of funky either, I’m afraid.

Work is still nothing short of Hell at the moment.  I love how at work, they talk about not bringin’ your personal issues with you to the office, but they don’t seem to care if work issues are spilling over into your personal life.

I also know I’ve read plenty of “how to improve your blog” posts that say don’t apologize for not posting.

Well fie on you.

First, I do want to apologize for my lack of posting.  I know I gave all of you a heads up, but I still don’t like knowing I’m slackin’ here right now.  I’m going to ease back into the routine this week and be back to my regular posting schedule next week.  I tell you this so you know what to expect.  I feel that I should let you know in case you are wondering or concerned that I’ll disappear.  (We’ve all seen that happen too much lately, afterall.)  I also want to say that I will be back to my normal schedule of posting next week because it will help me pull outta this funk.

As I said before, work is still just… ugh.  (Ramble incoming) So, I haven’t played WoW in 2 weeks now, and I probably won’t log back into it until this weekend.  I planned to go on for a bit last weekend, but just wasn’t feeling it.

But I am not burnt out of WoW.

I just want to make that clear.  This work crap is weighing on me a lot and stressing me out.  If anything, I’m burnt out of my RL profession right now.  Unfortunately, that’s a lot harder to cancel my subscription to.  My workload has increased due to my supervisor being let go and another staff member having just left for a 3 month leave.  The interim supervisor and myself have found even more “mess” to take care of and try to straighten out…. while trying to keep things operating AND get everyone’s performance up.

As you might imagine, this has piled a lot of work and stress upon my shoulders (and believe me, my back is feelin’ it).  Granted, with the economy as it is right now, I am thankful to have a job… I just can also see some more “cuts” on the horizon that won’t make things any better workload-wise or morale-wise.  So, this has spilled over into my personal time.  A few nights of staying a bit later than usual… more calls to my cell phone after hours (as well as bombarded more frequently when I’m at my desk)… which leads to me not feeling like dealing with anyone or anything when I get home.

And this sucks, because it is sucking my enjoyment out of things simply by affecting my mood.  I don’t want to inflict gchat with my crappy mood (or deal with potential drama if something is goin’ down).  I just want to “be.”  Which, of course, has also affected my muse for writing and posting.  (Damn you muse, you fickle mistress.)  When I’m in a funk, I tend to do a bit of isolation until things smooth out again.

The funk is still here, and probably will be for a bit.  However, it’s not quite as bad as it was last week.  Some of my extra workload will be lifted from my shoulders by next week as well (not all, of course, but enough) as I work on getting the interim supervisor up to speed on our daily operations and whatnot.

Thank you for your patience.  Your regular entertainment shall return shortly.

So, Syrana put me under pressure to post, huh? I’ll do it, since I do need to live with her and I’m doing my best to keep her sane this week. Contrary to all online news outlets, she’s alive and well.

I haven’t been playing much WoW over the last few weeks. I’m in the semi-burnout phase, but there are also a lot of other things going on like yard work and the enjoyment some other games. I’m in a glass case of emotion!

Seriously, my virtual self died while making hot dogs. How humiliating is that? Right in front of my wife and my son. I guess Death didn’t want one. Good, cuz I never finished making them.

Who wants hot dogs?

Even though I probably died the most humiliating death, Syrana went out in style. She bit the dust right at the beginning of her son’s birthday party around his guests. He hadn’t arrived yet. SURPRISE!

Corpse run!

It’s not all about death, I promise. But, it’s still funny. Our son wasn’t too scarred (only for a few days) since he went on to become a rockin’ musician who plays guitar on the street for old guys in overalls.

I'll jack the first guy who yells, "Freebird!"

On a serious note, I’m really enjoying this 3rd release of The Sims. They fixed a lot of the minor annoyances from the previous versions. The full, living city is a great feature and it makes everything feel much more alive. It’s not such a chore to travel to other locations and seeing other people age up and have kids is cool. I’ve played enough to have my current family just give birth to my first player’s (Me and Syrana) great-granddaughter. I kept the life length at the default, while Syrana pushed her’s up. So, you can go through a generation pretty quickly if you want.

A cool experiment with the game is a site I just found today (courtesy of @feliciaday) is called “Alice and Kev.” It’s a very clever idea by a chap in the UK using the Sims 3. He converted one of the parks into a “home” lot and created a small family to live there. Basically, he’s using the engine to see how a “homeless” family would live in the game. It’s actually very interesting, sad, and hilarious at the same time. Check it out.

I know last week I mentioned my playing and posting may be affected with the release of Sims 3, but this week it’s a bit of a different situation.

As I mentioned in Friday’s post, there’s some stuff going on at work.  And things will seem worse before getting better as my duties are temporarily increased.  (How temporary is anyone’s guess at this point.)  I’m a bit drained mentally and emotionally with the abruptness and everything that surrounds someone above me being let go.  So, I need some time to process what’s all goin’ down at the office and deal with it.  (As well as some later hours to go along with that).  I would guess I’ll be back to my normal (outside of work) routine by next week.

So, I’m sorry to say this Tuesday’s RP post is on hold.  I’ll try to get to some posting this week, but no guarantees.  Like right now, I’d just love to nap.  (Although, this might be a great chance for Sideshow to get a word in edgewise!)  Oh, and if anyone would be interested in guest posting this week, that’d be wonderful too, just send me an email through the contact form or to: syrana [at] sideshowandsyrana [dot] com.

Although, instead of a nap, I think I’ll go play Simgod.  It’s days like these that I don’t feel up to playing social games like WoW.  (Sad, but true.)

/recharge

Last week’s recap

Nexultor was right on the money with the screenie from last week.  It was taken within Auchindoun, where, when looking up, you see the ominous twister.

Introducing . . .

My felpuppy reminds me more of a felkitty from the way he’s poised in this screenie!

This is a call out to all of you with humorous links, stories, etc to share.  I’m going through a bit of an emotional rollercoaster due to a firing that occurred where I work, and I’d appreciate if you all could send something my way (via comments or contact form) to give me a Friday Funny.

I don’t know about everyone else, but when I don’t regularly use words in another language… I start to forget what they mean.  It really is ‘use it or lose it’ in my case.  Although, the language I used for the title is even tougher than English to learn.

There are no rules.

There are no exceptions.

There is no right way to spell.

And it’s made up.

Yes, I said made up.  I’m talking about Simlish!  According to this thread, “Bloo Bagoo” appears to mean “Hey, wussup?”

In my opinion, Simlish is the funnest language ever.  It’s great fun to mimic what they are saying, how some words and phrases sound dirty like “real” words, and try to guess from their actions and thought bubbles as to what they mean.

Awww, we're thinking about each other!

For example, Sideshow’s sim of me wrote a popular trashy novel called “Splurgin’ My Yurgen.”  I really think it sounds worse than it is…

Anywho, if I seem a bit preoccupied for a few days (as evidenced by not logging into WoW or any other MMO, not commenting, not twittering, or talking in gibberish Simlish) it’s because I’m a bit engrosed in The Sims 3 at the moment.  (It just came out on Tuesday!  Gimmie a break!)

Many of us crave attention, some more than others. Overall, that’s ok.  We’re social beings.  We want to feel special.  We want attention.  However, we hope that most of us know how to get attention in a positive manner.  Negative attention seeking is not so good.

I’m sure many of you have an inkling as to who or what I’m referring to.

Ayup, the 007 Pally or the Dread Roberts Piratadin.

If you are not sure what scandal has fueled my muse on this post, you can find all kinds of posts and talk about it.  Unfortunately, as I do not wish to provide anymore direct attention to the person(s) in question, I am not naming them nor am I linking to them.

As it were, the rest of this post could probably stand on its own without this issue having been brought to light.  I wasn’t intending to post on it, but, sometimes your mind fills with things to say.

So here we are.

I will try to have a coherent flow to this post, but no guarantees.  Read at your own risk. (continue reading…)

(Part 19) For a complete list of this series, please go here.

Locke slowly paced the entrance to the cave.  He had been restless and uneasy since Aerissa woke up back at the Inn.  The air was cooling off as the sun began to set.  Aerissa had yet to start a fire.  Locke thought about suggesting this, but did not want to agitate her further despite the fact that the cave would become cold quickly.

Every few steps he would pause to look in her direction.  She hadn’t said a word to him for what seemed like ages.  The change he’d seen in her today put him on edge.  He was wary and concerned.  Locke stretched his back and legs, his sharp claws protruding from his paws briefly before retracting again.  His thoughts flitted to Twyla and the sadness that clouded her face before he left to follow after Aerissa.

Aerissa sat at the back of the cave, which was growing darker as the sun dipped below the treeline.  She faced the rear wall, huddling her knees close to her chest, her arms wrapped tightly around her knees.  The dagger lay sheathed in front of her feet.  Aerissa stared blankly at the dagger, rocking like a scared child. (continue reading…)