Month: December 2017

The State of the Writer: 12/31/17

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 13 Comments

<–The State of the Writer: 12/17/17          The State of the Writer: 1/14/18–>

A biweekly post updated every Sunday discussing my current writing projects and any completed the prior two weeks.

Finished Projects: 4

Project: Recipe
Title: Chocolate Chip Cookies

I think this was the first time I ever posted a recipe on this site, and it seemed to go over quite well.  I’m actually in the process of making these right now (well…I made the dough; my husband is going to bake them.  I didn’t get enough sleep, so the fatigue is bad today, which is unfortunate since I have NYE plans).  I, er, ate the ones I was supposed to give to my brother, and when TSN makes cookie promises, she keeps them!  I’m making the last cookies of the season before I head out to a NYE party, though I’m not sure if I’m even going to make it to midnight *yawn*

Project: Blogger Tags
Name: The Christmas Tag

I managed to make some progress in my saved Blogger Tags (I still have a bunch more though) thanks to Ignited Moth’s festive post!  Though…well, I didn’t have it before, so really I added another tag even as I completed it, so, it’s a zero sum equation?  Like how a Christmas tree affects the environment o.O  Oh well, there’s nothing wrong with adding a little more merriness.

Continue reading →

Creative Christmas – High Resolution

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 7 Comments

Tis the Christmas season (or Advent to be theologically accurate), and in the spirit of the season, the lovely blogger over at Later Levels has decided to celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas a few days earlier with 12 gaming related questions for all of us good, little gaming elves out there.  These are my responses.

🤞   31 December 2017:   Midnight eventually rolls around, which means it’s now time to pick a New Year gaming resolution to see you through the next 12 months. What’s your choice for 2018?

In a general sense, I definitely want to play more games in 2018, and I’ve made steps to facilitate that!  Specifically, I want to continue with my Final Fantasy (Re)Play Project, since I haven’t touched FFV in a few months, and I still have FFs VI-XV to get through after that (possibly cutting out XI, but possibly adding in the “off” numbers)!  To be even more specific aka have a definite goal, I’d like to get to and through Final Fantasy VII and maybe even have the review for it written and published before the end of the year.  Yeah…that’s part of the (Re)Play project, too: playing and reviewing them.

I also want to expand my genres, something else I’ve started doing with Assassin’s Creed: Origins.  I’m not saying I’m going to fall in love with FPS, but I also don’t want to not play a game because it is an FPS.  Hehe, maybe some of you will see me playing Destiny after all :p

What’s your gaming resolution?  Is it general or specific?  Does it involved a particular game, genre, console, company?  Let’s hear about it in the comments!

Creative Christmas – New Year Swag

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 10 Comments

Tis the Christmas season (or Advent to be theologically accurate), and in the spirit of the season, the lovely blogger over at Later Levels has decided to celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas a few days earlier with 12 gaming related questions for all of us good, little gaming elves out there.  These are my responses.

👗   30 December 2017:   You’ve been invited to a swanky New Year’s Eve party but have nothing suitable to wear! Which video game character do you call to ask if you can borrow an outfit?

Luckily for me, I’ve already talked about this in my Fashionistas and Fancy Fellows post!  Of course they’re all from Final Fantasy, though I’ve noticed my favorite series either dresses its characters in the best get-ups…

Runway model quality

Picture Source: Sephiroth from FFVII by AHague

…and the worst…

Continue reading →

Final Fantasy Friday – The Switch That Isn’t Nintendo

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 10 Comments

Final Fantasy Friday

It’s the last (Final Fantasy) Friday of the year, and whenever a new one is nigh, the trite “New Year, New You” is often thrust upon us.  I, for one, plan to remain the same awesome me, and any resolutions I have won’t be predicated upon the idea that there’s something “wrong” with my appearance that needs to change ere I be considered a worthwhile human.  While there are things I’d like to do, they fall more in the realm of “I want to be able to more kill a man with a kick to the throat if necessary” or “I think I need to be better equipped to outrun a zombie” than anything aesthetic.  BUT the hackneyed phrase has inspired this year’s final question…

Which (Final Fantasy) character would you trade lives with?

I suppose I could’ve worded this, “Who has the coolest life?” but I like invoking the “switch” (see pun in the title).

Hm.  This is another question for which I don’t have a preconceived answer, though I can safely say I wouldn’t trade lives with a single damn person in Final Fantasy VII.  That’s right out.  Final Fantasy VIII is too emo for my liking…and shit, neither FFIX nor FFX are much better for the trade off.  None of the FFs prior are much good either are they?  I haven’t finished V, but it still has all the telltale typical tragic Final Fantasy signs.  With all this in mind, I think I have my answer:

 

Sexy bunny, sky pirate with a cool accent?  Yes please.  The (much hotter) Chewie equivalent to Balthier’s Han (seriously, now that I’m more into Star Wars I’m seeing how much all of Final Fantasy is just filled with similar symbolism, geez), and (imo) the ones who should’ve been the main characters, though I suppose if we’re going to continue along the SW line, that wouldn’t be appropriate, would it?

What Final Fantasy character would you switch lives with?  It doesn’t have to be a main/playable character either.  As always if FF isn’t your thing, feel free to draw from any other video game world!

The Poetic Edda: Stories of the Norse Gods and Heroes by Anonymous

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 7 Comments

Title: The Poetic Edda: Stories of the Norse Gods and Heroes
Author: Anonymous
Translator: Jackson Crawford
Date Started: May 8, 2017
Date Finished: July 22, 2017
Reading Duration: 75 days
Genre: Mythology, Poetry, Classic

Pages: 392
Publication Date: March 5, 2015
Original Publication Date: Circa 1200
Publisher: Hackett Publishing Company
Media: Paperback

Compiled by an unknown author in Iceland around 1270, and based on sources dating back centuries earlier, the single main manuscript of The Elder Edda is one of the literary wonders of the medieval world and the greatest source of knowledge of Viking lore in existence. These mythological and heroic poems tell of gods and mortals from an ancient era: the giant-slaying Thor, the doomed Volsung family, the hell-ride of Brynhild and the cruelty of Alti the Hun. Eclectic, incomplete and fragmented, these verses nevertheless retain their stark beauty and their power to enthrall, opening a window on to the thoughts, beliefs and hopes of the Vikings and their world. Andy Orchard’s new translation faithfully conveys the spare, unadorned style of the original metre and language. The glossed text us accompanied by four additional poems, a chronology, further reading, an index of names, a note on pronunciation, and an introduction discussing the poems in detail, the history of The Elder Edda and its influence on writers from Tennyson to Tolkien.”

The Poetic Edda, compiled histories, stories, and legends of Scandinavia, is not what I would call a complete or even cohesive compendium, but rather cobbled together vignettes of the Vikings and north men from cold and brutal lands.  Its influence is undeniable across eons and media: Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen, which in turn inspire J. R. R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and more modernly George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire, Square Enix’s famous franchise, most emphatically Final Fantasy VII, BioWare’s Dragon Age, and obviously Marvel’s Cinematic Universe, though all of these titles merely scratch the surface of how deep its inspiration goes.

Continue reading →

Creative Christmas – The Helper’s Reward

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 7 Comments

Tis the Christmas season (or Advent to be theologically accurate), and in the spirit of the season, the lovely blogger over at Later Levels has decided to celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas a few days earlier with 12 gaming related questions for all of us good, little gaming elves out there.  These are my responses.

🎄   27 December 2017:   Your help must have worked, because it’s now Christmas morning and presents are under the tree! There’s a fancy box with your name on it; which gaming-related item are you hoping is inside?

My very own PS4!!!

I’d also accept a Wii U.

I know you’re all probably shocked that it’s not something Sephiroth related, but I pretty much have all of the Sephiroth statues, three Masamunes, a one-wing pin, numerous pairs of knee high boots, and anything else I want, I just buy myself.  The systems though are expensive and would take much grinding to earn enough gil to purchase on my own, whereas everything else is more than feasible so long as I don’t obtain it all at once.

What present would fulfill your wildest gaming holiday dreams?  Is it a game or system itself, or is it a fandom item?  Let’s talk gaming presents in the comments!

The State of the Gamer: 12/26/17

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 33 Comments

<–The State of the Gamer: 12/12/17            The State of the Gamer: 1/9/18–>

A weekly post updated every other Tuesday detailing my current gaming projects.  I have an account at Grouvee, which is a site you can use to keep track of your backlog, so please feel free to friend me there!

Story Based/Definitive Ending Games

Title: Final Fantasy V
Series: Final Fantasy
Genre: RPG – Fantasy
Developer: Square
Release Date: December 6, 1992

Date Started: June 17, 2017

Nope, didn’t play it again this week.

Continue reading →

Merry Christmas and a Partridge in Despair Tree

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 12 Comments

“Santa Claus” is coming to kill you!

Santa Sephiroth by vusionary

I know I’ve already used that pun, but it’s just too appropriate for this.  The angry Cloud snowmen though 😀

I hope you have the Merriest of Christmases, if you celebrate, or a relaxing day off if you don’t!  I hope you’ve all been good, because I think coal in your stocking would be the least of your worries in this situation, though I personally wouldn’t say, “No,” if the Black Materia found its way into mine.  Hey, it’s the same color and size!

Merry Merry and Happy Happy ♥

Creative Christmas – Replacement Rudolph

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 10 Comments

Tis the Christmas season (or Advent to be theologically accurate), and in the spirit of the season, the lovely blogger over at Later Levels has decided to celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas a few days earlier with 12 gaming related questions for all of us good, little gaming elves out there.  These are my responses.

🦌   24 December 2017:   You’re woken from your drunken haze by another frantic call from Santa, who’s worried he’s not going to make all his deliveries in time. Which video game item or vehicle would you recommend for him?

So many options!  There’s Mario’s warp whistle…though that might only be able to take you to predetermined locations, which is the same problem with any of Link’s warp items, though his Ocarina might not be a terrible option.

Being able to turn time backwards could help old St. Nick complete his deliveries, but since it sent you back three days in Majora’s Mask, there doesn’t seem to be a way to control the time reversals, so I don’t think it would that useful.

No, I think for this task we’d need some kind of vessel, a ship if you will, one that can travel incredibly fast, and I can think of no better craft than the Normandy from Mass Effect.

Just so long as Santa returns it to Shepherd in one piece, I don’t think the Commander would mind.

What item or vehicle would you lend to jolly old St. Nicholas to either augment or replace  his reindeer drawn sleigh?  Let’s discuss in the comments!

Creative Christmas – Mistletoe Mischief

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 14 Comments

Tis the Christmas season (or Advent to be theologically accurate), and in the spirit of the season, the lovely blogger over at Later Levels has decided to celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas a few days earlier with 12 gaming related questions for all of us good, little gaming elves out there.  These are my responses.

❤   23 December 2017:   The party is still going strong and you find yourself conveniently positioned under the mistletoe. Which video game character would you call over for a cheeky kiss?

*blushes furiously*  EASIEST ANSWER EVER!!!

Come here, you beautiful, winter angel ♥♥♥

Picture Source: Sephiroth by BethanyAnnie

*star eyes times infinity*

Update on scheduled date: So yesterday (12/17/17), my husband caught me fangirling (swooning and sighing) over my Great General, and the picture below in, er, general.

I thought he was in the other room watching YouTube videos!  How dare he interrupt my fangirl time :p

Who would you bestow with that special mistletoe kiss?  Let’s talk smooches in the comments ♥