All posts in Geek

A Post Not About Internet Celebrity

by Drey on March 2, 2010 in Television with No comments

I had this whole post mentally queued up about the nature of internet celebrity re: Penny Arcade vs. Jordan, Jesse, Go! but I’ve had a bit of wine, so it will need to be tabled for later. Instead, let me tell you about the fantastic Monte Cubano sandwiches I made tonight. As is tradition, we gather at Nick and Amanda’s to watch Lost. But first we have fancy sandwiches. Tonight I faced the challenge of preparing the sandwiches. I’m making a note here: Huge Success.

What is the recipe, you ask? Look no further than the wonderful Epicurious: click here for awesome sandwiches

Also, have you seen that amazing OK Go video for This Too Shall Pass?

Status Quo

by Drey on March 1, 2010 in Board Games, What I Did Today with No comments

Not much to report today except I discovered there is a new large expansion for Talisman coming out. Plus Adobe CS5 will supposedly get released in April. The new features of Photoshop CS5 look crazy.

Tired from errands. Bye now.

Back from the Dead

by Drey on February 28, 2010 in Geek with 2 Comments

This weekend I was going to take my dead computer in to the shop to see what was wrong with it. I decided to plug it in and turn it on just to double check that it didn’t boot up. But it booted up! It took about 5-10 minutes to boot to Windows. I had forgotten how slow it was. Then I moved it and plugged it into the UPS, and it wouldn’t boot up, just like before. So I plugged it straight into the wall. So I’m transferring all my files off it now. I think I’ll try to sell it and put the money towards a new laptop of my own.

What a Great Day

by Drey on February 27, 2010 in Board Games, Movies, Video Games with No comments

Today I woke up early, showered and played a bit of Broken Sword on the iPhone. It’s a really well put together adventure game.

Then I went over to Nick and Amanda’s where I and their friend Ryan were meeting to go out hiking. We stopped and grabbed yummy kolaches first and then went to the park. I can’t remember the name of the park, but it was a great hiking trail.

Then we went to see Cop Out at the Alamo. Pretty silly movie. It could have been directed by anyone. As Kevin Smith didn’t write it, it didn’t seem to have anyone signature on the film.

After the film we went back to their place and watched Amanda play Heavy Rain for a few hours. Totally different game than what I experienced in the demo. I’m really looking forward to playing the game on my own. I can see what changes by making different decisions than Amanda.

I had to leave and go to Great Hall as I was playing in a Dominion Tournament. This was a slick operation. Everyone got personalized name badges to wear. We played three rounds, with three different load outs. They had these funky tournament rules where you played until 45 minutes were up or you ran out of *all* Victory cards. At first this sounded crazy, but it totally worked. You totaled your scores from each game and that was your tournament score. I ended up in 3rd place with 121 points. 1st was 125 and 2nd was 123, so it was close. Plus, the guy who got first place was taught by a guy that I had originally taught to play the game. Overall, it was a blast to play. It was like being in a geek poker tournament. Everyone was standing around, talking strategy, how each game had gone. Super fun.

Player Freedom vs. Narrative Cohesion

by Drey on February 21, 2010 in Video Games with 1 Comment

Having recently played the Heavy Rain demo, Batman: Arkham Asylum, and Uncharted 2, I’ve been thinking about linearity in video games and the impact on game play and narrative. As I have already written a piece on the subject, this is more of an addendum.

I have come up with a Theory of Player Freedom vs. Narrative Cohesion (working title): The scope of a player’s freedom to explore a game world and choose courses of action is inversely proportional to the cohesiveness of any overarching narrative structure. Continue reading →

Could He Be the One?

by Drey on February 20, 2010 in Books, Movies, What I Did Today with 2 Comments

Recently I decided to try reading the the Dune books in chronological order, including the extended universe books by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson. I made it about 100 or so pages into the Butlerian Jihad before I couldn’t stand it. The story seemed epic and could have been interesting, but the writing was just so juvenile I couldn’t justify spending more time in the series.

So I satisfied my Dune craving by rewatching the Dune Extended Edition with Nick and Amanda. Despite the horribly dated effects, it is still awesome.

Achievement Unlocked

by Drey on February 18, 2010 in Artwork, Board Games, House of Whack, Life, Reft, Something Real, Video Games, Work, Writing with 2 Comments

Sometimes I fall into that slough of self-examination where I feel as though I have accomplished nothing with my life. Or, when compared to Person X, I am found wanting. This often happens when I’m not currently working on a creative project, as they tend to define me and give me purpose.

So I think it might be helpful to recollect the things I have achieved. Not in a boastful, resting on my laurels sort of way. But to remind myself that I am the same person who did all of those things. Try it yourself when you are feeling somewhat less than. Continue reading →

Mike Doughty, Yeah

by Drey on February 17, 2010 in Music, What I Did Today with No comments

As with JoCo, it seems that going to see Mike Doughty has become a yearly ritual. This time he dropped by the soon to be closing Cactus Cafe on the UT campus. Entering the sleek, hip student union made me pine for college and youth.

This was the first time I had seen the Question Jar show, where he answers written questions from the audience between every few songs. He kept the answers pithy and amusing. It was a typical Doughty set, with a few Soul Coughing tunes and stuff from the new album thrown in. I hadn’t realized how similar the guitar riffs were on about half of his songs. It created a perpetual anticipation: Which song is this? Is it going to be Circles?

He played Looking at the World From the Bottom of a Well and Tremendous Brunettes, but no Gambler cover and no Pleasure on Credit. Can’t have everything.

Legend of the Seeker

by Drey on February 16, 2010 in Avatar, Television with 1 Comment

Legend of the Seeker, based on “The Sword of Truth” novels, is an archetypical (that is to say, cliche) fantasy show on par with Xena, full of sketchy special effects and cheesy dialogue. But I have a huge crush on Kahlan so I’ve decided the show is awesome and I’m going to watch it. So there.

Dying of the Light

by Drey on February 13, 2010 in Geek, Movies, Video Games with No comments

The little red light on top of my projector came on. While not quite as alarming as the Xbox’s red ring of death, the light is indeed a dreadful harbinger. The lamp has surpassed 1800 hours of use and needs replacing. Of all the material objects I possess, my projector is one I actually have attachment to. Without it, there would be no movies, no video games. The projector makes everything go. Without it, my PS3 is just a wedge-shaped hunk of (questionable) modern art.

Every month it seems that there is some event, some newly awakened need, which siphons away whatever extra money I might have. This month it will be the projector lamp.

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