Better Than A.A.
What, you ask, am I up to? Well, you didn't ask, but I'm telling you anywayz. Given you read further that is.
I mean, who can tell anymore in today's fast-paced and risk-filled world of jet-setters and go-getters. I'm lucky if I can learn about whatever celebrity died or shaved thier head or whatnot. And we haven't even began on politricks. Don't get me started.
Where was I? Oh yeah, how I'm mindlessly wasting my middle age life (and that of my family): My home, once and forever known as Casa Tranquila, is now harboring a terrible secret. An addiction to be sure, and to be sure a secret no longer.
World of Warcraft: Burning Empires.
I tried to get my father to buy my oldest son this world of Warcraft (WoW) online game about a year ago. He did, but it was a single player story version, not the Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) that I thought it was. (I still say "massively" is poor grammer, but they persist and who am I but a lowly civil engineer.)
But this past "holiday season" Ben received some gift cash, and did manage to purchased the correct WoW MMORPG. Thus it began. Innocently enough he and his brother, and then their step-sister all developed characters and played them.
Soon Sims2 was ignored.
Soon the Xbox came into disfavor.
Soon I had a character.
Then, finally, the last un-infected person of the house, my gf, had a couple of characters.
But my cranky year old computer designed for internet browsing and music downloads was having a rogh go of it displaying graphics. So I bought a $100 video card and installed it.
OMG! Over the weekend, when all three tweens were at my house, the computer was on WoW literally 24/7. I'm shit you not, all night it ran. I would do a shift starting at 5 am. This couldn't last.
So 2 1/2 weeks ago I spent $1,700 on a second computer (with snazzy 19" flat-panel LCD and sucky Windows Vista, super video card and a wireless router system, and a second set of WoW licenses. Last Friday, after well over a week of struggles, I finally got the whole damn thing working.
You guessed it. Two computers cable-modem logged-in literally 24/7 all weekend. Two hour staggered shifts. And chairs set behind whoever is playing while those who wait watch the other's play.
We are all developing different characters on different accounts so we can play together in WoW's virtual world. Between the five of us there are about 20-25 characters in development at any given time. With about 10-12 established ones.
This past Sunday we spent a couple hours voting on our Guild name, which, if I recal rightly, will be "Those that Fear the Rabbit".
I have four characters as follows (all in Echo Isles).
Stonecolder: Level 22 Human Female Rogue (Herbology, Alchemy)
Thwak: Level 12 Draenei Female Paladin (Mining, Blacksmithing)
Knerdkill: Level 10 Blood Elf Female Paladin (Mining, Jewelcrafting)
ManPig: Level 3 Draenei Male Warrior (not sure of professions yet)
Stonecolder has taken me about 5 weeks to develop, but she is massive lethal. Knerdkill took me three days.
Yes, my characters are majority female. First, there are, to the best of my knowledge, no underlying strength/ability difference between gender (it's class based). Since the graphics are quite good, I'd simply rather look at a woman's ass for hours upon end than a man's. And all three of my women are hotties to be sure.
I shall offer a brief note on the debate about characters and their creators. Appearently some (doubtless homophobic) knuckleheads seem to think the characters one develops are an extension of themselves. I don't believe these characters are anything like me or what I want to be. They are, if anything, my servants. I am the lord, thier creator, and they are my minions. They do my bidding in the WOW virtualiverse. Like, er, Charlies Angels, yeah, that's it. Heh.
So, yeah, I dream in WoW now. I look at the clock at work ticking down the hours till I can play again after work. I get up 3 hours early before work to play. Jennie stays up all night most nights. It's sort of a necessary thing because of the grey skies, rain and cold that prevent her from gardening.
Oh yeah. I can't play drunk. Doesn't work. Can't focus properly. So its helped my drinking enourmously. whodathunk?
Alcoholism vs. World of Warcraft
You decide.
I already have.
I mean, who can tell anymore in today's fast-paced and risk-filled world of jet-setters and go-getters. I'm lucky if I can learn about whatever celebrity died or shaved thier head or whatnot. And we haven't even began on politricks. Don't get me started.
Where was I? Oh yeah, how I'm mindlessly wasting my middle age life (and that of my family): My home, once and forever known as Casa Tranquila, is now harboring a terrible secret. An addiction to be sure, and to be sure a secret no longer.
World of Warcraft: Burning Empires.
I tried to get my father to buy my oldest son this world of Warcraft (WoW) online game about a year ago. He did, but it was a single player story version, not the Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) that I thought it was. (I still say "massively" is poor grammer, but they persist and who am I but a lowly civil engineer.)
But this past "holiday season" Ben received some gift cash, and did manage to purchased the correct WoW MMORPG. Thus it began. Innocently enough he and his brother, and then their step-sister all developed characters and played them.
Soon Sims2 was ignored.
Soon the Xbox came into disfavor.
Soon I had a character.
Then, finally, the last un-infected person of the house, my gf, had a couple of characters.
But my cranky year old computer designed for internet browsing and music downloads was having a rogh go of it displaying graphics. So I bought a $100 video card and installed it.
OMG! Over the weekend, when all three tweens were at my house, the computer was on WoW literally 24/7. I'm shit you not, all night it ran. I would do a shift starting at 5 am. This couldn't last.
So 2 1/2 weeks ago I spent $1,700 on a second computer (with snazzy 19" flat-panel LCD and sucky Windows Vista, super video card and a wireless router system, and a second set of WoW licenses. Last Friday, after well over a week of struggles, I finally got the whole damn thing working.
You guessed it. Two computers cable-modem logged-in literally 24/7 all weekend. Two hour staggered shifts. And chairs set behind whoever is playing while those who wait watch the other's play.
We are all developing different characters on different accounts so we can play together in WoW's virtual world. Between the five of us there are about 20-25 characters in development at any given time. With about 10-12 established ones.
This past Sunday we spent a couple hours voting on our Guild name, which, if I recal rightly, will be "Those that Fear the Rabbit".
I have four characters as follows (all in Echo Isles).
Stonecolder: Level 22 Human Female Rogue (Herbology, Alchemy)
Thwak: Level 12 Draenei Female Paladin (Mining, Blacksmithing)
Knerdkill: Level 10 Blood Elf Female Paladin (Mining, Jewelcrafting)
ManPig: Level 3 Draenei Male Warrior (not sure of professions yet)
Stonecolder has taken me about 5 weeks to develop, but she is massive lethal. Knerdkill took me three days.
Yes, my characters are majority female. First, there are, to the best of my knowledge, no underlying strength/ability difference between gender (it's class based). Since the graphics are quite good, I'd simply rather look at a woman's ass for hours upon end than a man's. And all three of my women are hotties to be sure.
I shall offer a brief note on the debate about characters and their creators. Appearently some (doubtless homophobic) knuckleheads seem to think the characters one develops are an extension of themselves. I don't believe these characters are anything like me or what I want to be. They are, if anything, my servants. I am the lord, thier creator, and they are my minions. They do my bidding in the WOW virtualiverse. Like, er, Charlies Angels, yeah, that's it. Heh.
So, yeah, I dream in WoW now. I look at the clock at work ticking down the hours till I can play again after work. I get up 3 hours early before work to play. Jennie stays up all night most nights. It's sort of a necessary thing because of the grey skies, rain and cold that prevent her from gardening.
Oh yeah. I can't play drunk. Doesn't work. Can't focus properly. So its helped my drinking enourmously. whodathunk?
Alcoholism vs. World of Warcraft
You decide.
I already have.