Ramblings of a Failing Mind

I have several games that I’ve paid for and regretted it.  I even have a couple I’ve paid subscriptions to.  Currently I have Left4Dead and World of Warcraft on my plate that I’m enjoying, one a paid game, the other a paid game + subscription.  Why is it that I’m being drawn away by this free game that has poked it’s way into my view?  I’ve now picked up and started playing Combat Arms, a free to download and free to play first person shooter with a slight RPG element to it.  How is it that a company can develop, release, and support a game that’s entirely free with only the income of buying a few in game items that aren’t even required to fully enjoy the game?  There’s also another new game that’s an interesting concept.  The Chronicles of Spellborn is what’s called “freemium”.  You can download and play the game for free up to a certain point.  You are allowed to level up to 7 (it’s a MMORPG) and after that you need to subscribe.   Time will tell if it’s enough to get me to subscribe or assuming I do, enough to keep my attention longer than Warhammer online did.

Went to dinner tonight for the very first time to Texas Roadhouse.  Sara was craving steak like MAD, so I decided, against my better judgment (or is that just old age talking, another blog for another time), to go out to dinner tonight, a Friday night - in Lynchburg where the only thing people have to do is go to dinner.  Every single time we drive past this place the parking lot is so full, you’d swear it was a Japanese train during rush hour (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axwMxUBL_ws).  On the way in the parking lot indeed looked full but no worries, I was brave.  We found a couple who were literally grabbing tail in the parking lot and I interjected into their adolescent spit swapping and asked, “Have you guys been inside? Does it look real busy?”  To which the guy replied, “We just left and it didn’t look like many people were waiting.”  Onward quickly to the parking spot and head in to get our names down.  Inside they say “Just a couple minutes and we’ll have a booth ready.”  Only about 10 minutes later and sure enough we get a decent seat.  Although I must say that the booth was very small and left little to no room to even set my coat down with me much less Sara’s tote bag (she calls it a purse but I must say I think you can smuggle babies out of China in it).  The waitress was quick, friendly with the orders, drinks, and food.  She always made sure we had plenty to drink and that our food was in order.  Receiving the check however was another story.  It took a good 10 minutes before we could get our check, although I have to attribute this to the massive rush of Lynchburgians that have sieged the restaurant.  It wasn’t apparent at the time but soon as we paid and made our way out, it was going to be hard to miss.  When we got to the waiting area we found a litteral wall of people.  There were obviously people trying to leave, and there were people trying to sit but the area in which both were trying was not much more than 4′.  This was also filled with people waiting.  So where there could have been room to form an easy In/Out orgainzed procession, it was less than organized chaos.  To add to this fact, the staff did nothing to try to straighten it out.  I took a deep breath and dove head first into this mass and got about 1/2 way into the crowd when about four adults and four children started making their way in.  I looked at two of the adults directly in the eye and tried to politely make my intention known that we were here first and wanted to leave, and when we left there would be room for them to come in.  Instead the mother starts pushing the child in front of her trying to urge her to move on to where, I don’t know because there’s room for no one.  I enjoy mosh pits… when I’m not sick, not full from eating, and when there’s appropriate music playing which does not include country/pop music.  To Texas Roadhouse I implore you, either widen your entrance/exit, separate them, or make people wait else where besides in the “fire lane”.

A blog’s theme is supposed to relate to the author and/or the subject matter right?  I think it’s very difficult to find a theme that matches me perfectly.  I’ve been browsing themes off and on this morning and found a few that I like but none that I love.  I found some that are colorful but end up being a little too girly, some with some very nice images or backgrounds but end up being too goth or emo.  Found some that have some nice pictures but just bad layout.  Some nice layouts but too spartan.

Nothing can match as well as what you can create in your minds eye.   Putting minds eye to paper (so to speak) is the real trick and takes finesse, patience, and dedication.  Between my addiction to world of warcraft and seeking to raise a few more ranks in call of duty 4, it’s some time before my mental theme becomes a realization.  I’ve imported a few themes to try out, if you see one you hate or one you love, give a shout as I cycle through them!