Thursday, May 28, 2009

Please Aspyr, Give Me My Life Back


For a couple years now, I dabbled with Sims 2. The only expansion pack I had was University. This past month I got Nightlife, Pets, and Seasons. The game has gotten way too much fun!

I am a weird Sims 2 player. I like being a hands-on God. In the original game, my favorite aspect was building homes. With all these expansions, I am discovering new aspects to enjoy. Here are my expansion pack reviews:

University - compared to the other expansion packs, this is a lot more work than cool additions. There's an entirely new life stage - young adult. Getting young adults through university is a bit of a drag. I do appreciate the new objects, clothing and hair.

Nightlife - this is an amazing expansion pack. You get a Downtown plus vampires. I love the variety of a Downtown: shopping, clubs, bowling, and restaurants. It is even more fun building your own Downtown from scratch! I made Gotham with two clubs, two restaurants, a casino and bowling alley. Vampires are a hoot too. They do have coffin beds and can't go out in Daylight.

Pets - so, so cute in many ways. Of course, I tried to make a Sims 2 Rasputin. I also made a crazy cat lady. Lots of fun new interactions and possibilities with this expansion.

Seasons - very lifelike and entertaining. Thunderstorms are pretty darn scary in the game! Plus, I love that if it snows a lot, kids get a Snow Day. The gardening activity is pretty awesome too. I've only gotten through 2 seasons across all the families I play so I have a lot to look forward to.

When I start the Sims 2, I usually poach Strangetown and Veronaville for houses and then delete the neighborhoods. With seasons, there's a whole new neighborhood, Riverblossom Hills which I kept. I also made a new neighborhood called Springfield. My plan was to make a poor side of town and a rich side with middle class in between. I really tried not to use cheats for the poor families but darn it I broke down and used kaching. For the rich families, I'm motherloding all over the place.

Okay, When Does This Happen?

Last week, I ordered replacement checks to be expedited via UPS. I try to do most of my bill paying online but unfortunately my COBRA provider still uses coupons. So, with expedited shipping via UPS you usually get a tracking number via email, right? I got nothing. As the beginning of June is looming, bills are due so I was getting a bit anxious.

This afternoon, I tried calling to get info on my order but couldn't speak to a person so I started composing an email through their website. I had finished and was re-reading what I wrote when a UPS truck drove up and dropped off my order. So, I'm happy and amazed at the timing! Plus, woohoo for more money outflow - ugh. Luckily, I never sent my email.

Friday, May 22, 2009

A Better Week

Even though I had to go 3 nights with no sleep, I got to see my doctor and all the medications are working their magic. I have a combo sinus infection and bronchitis. I lost my voice for a couple days too. So, I'm on Zpack plus Mucinex and taking Robitussin with codeine at night. The hot weather is helping a lot by drying out my lungs and sinuses.

Better news on the job front this week as well! I heard from interview #3 company letting me know that the hiring managers haven't made a decision and checking to see if I'm still available. Also a recruiter contacted me about my resume and is actively trying to place me in a new analyst role at his new company.

Tomorrow is my mom's birthday and today is Rasputin's. I got a variety of seafood wet food for him this week as a present.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Pure Relaxation

Imagine if you could take a long, hot soaking bath in the same tub you bathed in as a child. Imagine that this is the same tub where you learned how to unplug your ears when dunking your head and how surfacing uneven leaves water in your ear. Just close your eyes, remember the plumbing hardware, the color of the tub, and the tiles...

Guess what? I don't have to imagine! My parents did all of the major renovations in the kitchen so my childhood bathroom is fairly intact. Since I am still sick and now sound like Kathleen Turner, I needed to take a bath. It brought back so many memories and was so amazingly relaxing... I am basically a blob of butter right now. YAWN!

Friday, May 15, 2009

Sick As a Dog

This week has been fairly crummy for a couple of reasons:

1) Still haven't heard from job interview #3
2) Wednesday and Thursday, a nasty stomach bug.
3) Today, the beginnings of a sinus infection/heavy-duty hay fever.

1) Since it has been two weeks since my interview, I'm guessing that I'm not going to be hired because during the interview process, their time line was pretty tight. I just wish I would get some kind of kiss off message so I can completely smother all hope.

2) For the first time in ages, I threw up. It was either the Japanese food I had that evening or an already upset stomach. The rest of the evening, I used all my focus to settle down my stomach. It was kind of an interesting exercise. I had bad chills so I wrapped myself up in blankets and focused on my breathing. I could actually feel when whatever was disturbing my stomach dropped from the top of my stomach and down to the lower part. This is no the first time I have been able to get through physical discomfort through the power of breathing and focus. I was able to survive getting my teeth filled with no novocaine. Lamaze, here I come! Also, one of the perks of living with my parents, they got my glasses of water and kept an eye on me.

3)I know tree pollen is at hellacious levels lately and my bedroom is right by blooming everything so basically I feel like crap with a sore throat, post-nasal drip, lethargy, and aches.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Partay in the Hizzy

Saturday night I threw a really fun Cinco de Mayo party. It is one of my favorite holidays since tequila is always good to me. I bought a bunch of apps from Trader Joes and baked an amazing dessert. Thanks to my aunt and uncle, I also got a yummy margarita recipe: 3 parts tequila mix, 1 part tequila, and 1/2 part chambord. The berry taste with citrus is absolutely divine.

Of course a cold front blew in while the party was going on so by the time everyone left, all my old injuries were aching fiercely. Back, knee, joints, and head. Oh the joy of being old...

Today, my parents are coming back from Florida. I hope the house is in good shape and I saved them some of my amazing dessert.

Monday, May 04, 2009

Weekly Catch-Up

My parents are away on vacation this week so of course, PAR-TAY! Yes, I am 32, what of it? It is so funny that I have gotten so used to living with people just this past month, I am a little uneasy being alone. I lived on my own for 7 years but that was a smaller familiar apartment. This is a big old house with noises and a lot of doors/window.


Speaking of doors, I am like kryptonite for the back door key. My first week here, I lost the extra copy while I was out running errands. Then, it turns out that making a copy could cost up to $60 because it's an old fashioned key. This weekend, as I locked the house up, I twisted off the head of the key in the lock. I really, really hope my parents will take this as a sign that we need to get a new lock for the back door. Heck, I'd chip in to change it!

Ironically, I chose this week to try to find a movie that scares the crap out of me. I'm not easily scared. Hostel just made me want to visit Europe. Saw was mildly entertaining. High Tension was tense and entertaining, not scary. Tonight, I watched Quarantine. I was surprised how good it was! I was really sucked into it. Again, not spooked or scared... Most horror/thriller movies lose me when they reveal the explanation. I'd love a movie that has absolutely no explanation, just sheer horror, gore, and jump out of your seat surprises. I don't care if the entire movie just takes place in a mental patient's head or a toxin has been released to drive people nuts. It's scarier if there's no logical reason.