It's a good thing I have a job....

A few months ago, I wrote about the computer game, "Sims 2". A couple of weeks ago, the latest version "Sims 3" came out. I put off buying it but caved in and bought it today. It's quite interesting but it's going to take a while to get used to. I was finding that with the "Sims 2", I had kind of hit a wall so it's nice to be able to discover the new features in the latest version. There a bunch of things I really like about the "Sims 3" such as picking specific character traits for your sims such being a klepto or being very flirty. It's also really easy to customize your characters. Also, you have more freedom about where your sims go and don't have to save your game when you move from place to place. I haven't found everything out about the game but it's been interesting. So today's favourite thing is discovering the features of a new game.

"Those mines won't sweep themselves..."

I spend a lot of time on the computer, much of which is not doing anything productive. When it was my prime source of entertainment, I tended to always have game of Minesweeper going on in the background. Minesweeper is rather difficult on a laptop because it lacks an actual mouse and all you have is the touch pad so you really have to coordinate your fingers. After a few tries, I eventually got the hang of it. I always play the advanced level because otherwise it's to easy. I don't tend to do especially well. Usually have times between 130 to 200 seconds and a 2% success rate but that doesn't stop me.

Yet another thing my sister got me addicted too.....

A couple years ago, I came to Ottawa for a week to visit my sister. She had just gotten really into the game the Sims 2 and decided to show it to me. I ended up playing it most of the visit, couldn't stop thinking about my characters when I got home, played it much of the time on subsequent visits and, now that I am living with her, I usually tend to play it before I go to bed at night. When I first started playing, I had absolutely no idea what to do. My sister ended up having to fix my characters because they were doing quite terribly. I have figured it out since and haven't screwed up my new characters too badly.
It seems like such a basic game, fulfulling the characters wants and needs, so they don't get depressed or die, but it definitely draws you in. The Sims 2 is the basic game, and the subsequent expansion packs allow you to do more.
Once you get into it, it can be quite addicting and I often stay up much too late because I want to fix a problem or seem how something turns out. It's technically my sister's game, which I play on her computer, but she hasn't actually played the game since I moved in with her since I kind of hijacked her computer (it's in the same room I sleep in. Not to worry, she's pretty much hijacked my laptop. I got the better end of the deal. Mwa ha ha ha)

That didn't quite work out like I had intended it.

Today I continued scanning stuff into the computer for my sister. It seemed like it was taking a long time to scan the pages in so I decided to start playing a game of Mahjong Titans while I waited. It turns out that wasn't the brightest idea because ended up trying to finish each round before I stopped to do the next page. Apparently it didn't take as long to scan as I had thought. What should have maybe taken an hour stretched to an hour and a half and I still haven't finished. At least the game was fun. It shouldn't take long to finish the scanning provided that I don't wind up playing a different game in the meantime. I will wait until tomorrow though.

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a good 2008. I should totally be asleep right now as I am leaving for the airport at 4:30AM but I decided to do this before I actually go to sleep. For today's post, I am going to write about some of my favourite things of 2008. Some of them have or will have their own posts but for now it's just a list. In no particular order,...

• Panera Bread (American restaurant, really good sandwiches and soup. One of the things I miss most about Boston)
• Joss Whedon TV shows (I discovered Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly this year. Also, Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog was awesome)
• The Sims 2 (for PC)
• Television Without Pity (Snarky recaps of your favourite shows, what more could you want?)
• Tina Fey as Sarah Palin
• Neil Patrick Harris
• I discovered some new and amusing websites this year. See my blog roll. I also enjoy www.tvtropes.org
• Twitter (I don't use it often but I like reading what other people are saying)
• Hulu (although I can't use it in Canada)
• Flamenco (That's not a new favourite, but I saw some amazing flamenco performances in '08)
• Living with my sister (It's been an adventure, especially with her doing a new thing everyday. It kept me on my toes)
• Using acronyms for phrases even if it's shorter to say the actual phrase (ex. btw for "by the way")
• Quoting random TV quotes in casual conversation (It's a sickness)
• Having an actual TV and using a DVR to record certain shows. (Awesomeness)
• TV Shows that are online (How I caught up on TV when I didn't have one)
• TV on DVD

I probably have a few more favourites but I am getting tired. I hope everyone has a great 2009!