She Never Did Win the Lottery
In almost two decades of working various ends of retail and service, there were few employees quite like the grizzled warrior we’ll call Granny. This story is almost ten years old, but my Facebook feed reminded me of this lady so I had to share. At a popular fast food restaurant where I had worked in over the course of several years, a lot of employees came and went. Granny (obviously not her real name) was not one to be forgotten. She was in her 70’s, and the sinew and grizzle that made up her body couldn’t have put her at more than five feet tall. She was hired for…
Review – The Kimochi Warui Diary
Note: the above link is an affiliate link; if you make a purchase from it, there’s a chance I’ll get some sort of kickback. For what seems like the longest time, I’ve found myself struggling to sit down and read actual fiction. I read a lot of nonfiction – blogs, newspaper articles, self-help books, and for a time books that educated my on school subjects – but I just never seemed to have the time to read fiction. For several years, I’ve told myself “this year, I’m going to read two fiction novels.” For several years, I’ve failed at this. This year, I’ve read over 30 works of fiction. That’s…
First Look – 4theWords
It was suggested on social media that I try the website 4thewords.com. It’s apparently one part writing platform and 3 parts MMO. There is allegedly a very helpful community, lots of support for writers, a way to read the fiction that others has presented, and also a game aspect where the player creates their own avatar and levels it up.I am going to give it an honest shake. That said, to be honest, in the three housr I’ve spent on it I absolutely hate it and I kind of want to give up on it. In fairness, three hours is barely enough time to have a knowledgeable opinion. I feel…
In Another World With Too Many Damn Animals
To date, in this household, we have three cats and two dogs. I’m reasonably sure that’s not legal – the city code says three animals, no more than two of the same type. To be fair, this isn’t the most animals we’ve had in this house, but it is at times a concern. The answer appears to be “ensure they are rehomed to owners who will love and care for them,” or alternatively “sacrifice them to the dark gods.” Neither of these are likely to happen. More likely, if I find myself in legal trouble of some sort, I’ll just need to reaffirm that one of the cats is for…
Looking Back – Infinite Space, for the Nintendo DS
6 years ago, the Nintendo DS allowed players to travel the stars with the game Infinite Space. I remember being sold on it before it even came out, in part because of the amazing anime shorts put out by Gonzo. I remember absolutely loving this game when it came out, but decided to revisit it to see if it still held up. Surprisingly, it still does, and I might even recommend individuals seek it out. But I also rediscovered just how damn frustrating the game can be, in part because of how it handles and how obtuse certain elements of the game are. A Brief History of Infinite Space Infinite…
328 Days With Torn
While I don’t have the time to play games I used to, and I’ve mostly stepped away from the mobile game scene, one browser game I’ve found myself playing at least once a day since I checked it out almost a year ago is Torn City MMO. It’s premise is deceptively simple: grow your character and make a name for yourself in a crime-riddled city that seceded from America. Raise your stats, take some courses, join a business or run your own. Race, trade stocks, get involved with wars, do drugs for fun and profit. A lot of people who have stuck with this game likely find they have higher…
Self-Serve Kiosks Give Horrible Customer Service
There’s this really dumb joke you’ll see me post sometimes to the tune of “I’m so broke I have to do my grocery shopping in the self-checkout lane.” The reference or suggestion, of course, is that if I went to a checkout lane with a person that I’d have to scan everything, but if I’m the one doing the scanning items are going to conveniently not be scanned. In a time where self-scanning becomes increasingly prevalent, such gambits seem increasingly common and perhaps convoluted. Measures to ensure customers aren’t gaming the system range a bit as well. On top of security cameras, asset protection, and employees that at one time…
The Time I Was Kicked Out of Hunter’s Safety
As a child, I would sometimes go out of my way to get attention or stretch my sense of importance. Often, these actions would end poorly. I grew up in a valley in Western Montana, in a time and in a place where hunting was encouraged not just as a way of life but as a way to survive. Taking the life of an animal could ensure a family had food in the freezer for weeks, which wasn’t always a small feat considering the difficulties of finding good work in the area. I remember having concerns about going hunting with my stepfather at the time, but I also remember he…
Survey Scores, Amazon Reviews, And You
You’re at a fast food restaurant, and you get a lengthy receipt. On the bottom, it has a website. “Fill this out,” it states, “and get a chance at a monetary reward!” It’s not a large reward, but hey, why not. You’re filling out the questions, and it asks you “How was your service?” Well, it wasn’t like, the best. Everything was as expected, but I mean, it’s fast food. So that answer gets a 4 out of 5. And at that moment, you just gave the survey a critical (negative) review. Strange, right? 4 out of 5 is like, 80%! Why would that be a negative? You’re on Amazon,…
Return to Vana’Diel (For Ninety Days)
It was the Fall of 2010 when I had made the decision to log off from the popular MMO Final Fantasy 11 forever. I had started the game early April 2004, as I could play it on the Playstation 2 and I was already tired of Everquest Online Adventures. It would grab me in a way no other game, let alone MMORPG, had up to that point (and perhaps more than any MMO since.) My character was assigned to the Fenrir server. I knew no one who played the game. In 7 years, I would meet with characters in game which would lead to friends in real life. Meeting up…