wind's requiem
So it's been at least two weeks since my last entry, and it's a mere three weeks (21 days exactly, wow) until Christmas. I can't believe that December is here, and that 2009 is almost over. It seems pretty unreal that time could have flown by so quickly...and that so much could have happened in one year. Am I going to miss 2009? Probably not that much, but 2010 isn't going to start on a good foot for me.
Oh, look at that, pessimism. In all seriousness though, the past year has been a mad ride, and I imagine that next year will be just as insane.
So what happened in my long absence? Thanksgiving, obviously; I actually had a nice break for once, even if my parents were raging about how they can't cook anything properly. (I think I know where I get my pessimism.) I got to spend time with my cat, which was greatly needed, and to just relax and enjoy myself.
And then last Friday arrived, and changed everything.
Some of you may have heard of this, but there was a group of gamers in St. Catharines, ON that were working with Big Brothers Big Sisters in the area to raise money for charity. What did they do, you ask? Well, what all gamers do: play games. The small team put together a Zelda marathon session of seven games, and played 24 hours a day to raise money for BBBS. I began watching at some point late Friday, and...well, I quite literally could not stop watching. It worsened when I got back to school. How you say?
Well, try sleeping only 7 hours in an 86-hour period. I pulled some crazy feats of sleep deprivation and stayed in the live chat almost all of the time, watching the live feed of the games (and the gamers) to provide my support where my money could not. By the end I think I clocked 100 hours of the 125-hour marathon. The people in the chat were simply amazing, as we all were very civil and fun to talk to, and the guys playing at the other end would chat with us as well. We all really bonded as a group and were very sad when the last credits of Twilight Princess rolled, but we had accomplished something great.
They, on the one hand, had completed seven Zelda games in five days, on little sleep and mostly just the combination of Pepsi, pizza, and the chat. The donators and chatters, on the other hand, raised nearly $2800 for the charity, which considering it was their very first event is a huge success. They are definitely thinking of doing these marathons more often, and I can't be more excited.
I wonder, though, if I'll be able to donate next time. This time around I chipped in $10 (and became a celebrity of sorts, lolwut?) and I hope I can give more next time, but I believe I'm going to switch into save mode soon. There's an offering going around for the honors students here to spend ten days in Stratford-upon-Avon and London, and I do not want to pass up that opportunity. I'm estimating that I'll need somewhere around $4000 total for the entire trip, and I think that in the span of six months I can save that up if I get a job. Fingers crossed, says I...fingers crossed. Not to mention I'll need to have a job for next year, as I'm moving off-campus with S. Italy and Japan. Why is money so incredibly, ridiculously hard to come by?
Hm. We shall see what happens, shall we not? And I'll still be working a good month after the trip too, so I really hope I can save up the money I need. With that...I bid you all adieu for another...week I imagine. I think weekly updates are pretty good, though I'll have to change up the days a bit.
Oh, look at that, pessimism. In all seriousness though, the past year has been a mad ride, and I imagine that next year will be just as insane.
So what happened in my long absence? Thanksgiving, obviously; I actually had a nice break for once, even if my parents were raging about how they can't cook anything properly. (I think I know where I get my pessimism.) I got to spend time with my cat, which was greatly needed, and to just relax and enjoy myself.
And then last Friday arrived, and changed everything.
Some of you may have heard of this, but there was a group of gamers in St. Catharines, ON that were working with Big Brothers Big Sisters in the area to raise money for charity. What did they do, you ask? Well, what all gamers do: play games. The small team put together a Zelda marathon session of seven games, and played 24 hours a day to raise money for BBBS. I began watching at some point late Friday, and...well, I quite literally could not stop watching. It worsened when I got back to school. How you say?
Well, try sleeping only 7 hours in an 86-hour period. I pulled some crazy feats of sleep deprivation and stayed in the live chat almost all of the time, watching the live feed of the games (and the gamers) to provide my support where my money could not. By the end I think I clocked 100 hours of the 125-hour marathon. The people in the chat were simply amazing, as we all were very civil and fun to talk to, and the guys playing at the other end would chat with us as well. We all really bonded as a group and were very sad when the last credits of Twilight Princess rolled, but we had accomplished something great.
They, on the one hand, had completed seven Zelda games in five days, on little sleep and mostly just the combination of Pepsi, pizza, and the chat. The donators and chatters, on the other hand, raised nearly $2800 for the charity, which considering it was their very first event is a huge success. They are definitely thinking of doing these marathons more often, and I can't be more excited.
I wonder, though, if I'll be able to donate next time. This time around I chipped in $10 (and became a celebrity of sorts, lolwut?) and I hope I can give more next time, but I believe I'm going to switch into save mode soon. There's an offering going around for the honors students here to spend ten days in Stratford-upon-Avon and London, and I do not want to pass up that opportunity. I'm estimating that I'll need somewhere around $4000 total for the entire trip, and I think that in the span of six months I can save that up if I get a job. Fingers crossed, says I...fingers crossed. Not to mention I'll need to have a job for next year, as I'm moving off-campus with S. Italy and Japan. Why is money so incredibly, ridiculously hard to come by?
Hm. We shall see what happens, shall we not? And I'll still be working a good month after the trip too, so I really hope I can save up the money I need. With that...I bid you all adieu for another...week I imagine. I think weekly updates are pretty good, though I'll have to change up the days a bit.