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Tired...
Man, am I tired.
I'm so tired that between typing the last sentence and this one I ran out of steam and just sat there for five minutes, blinking stupidly at the screen.
Blink, (pause), blink.
The night before last I got caught up playing Diablo online with the clan. By the time I checked the clock, it was 12:48am.
I should mention that playing with the clan has been a lot of fun. I've learned quite a bit, and over the weekend I took my druid from 32nd level to 56th. The secret was open Baal runs, which I hadn't understood before; you start an open game with a name like "baalrun01", and wait for people to enter. Once you've got the maximum, eight people, at least one player makes their way to the Throne of Destruction as quickly as they can - it's basically a mad dash, bypassing almost every attacking monster. Once in the door on the level of the Throne, you open a town portal. Everyone else comes in (you've all joined the same party, of course, so as to share experience points), and deal with the waves of powerful monsters that Baal throws at you.
Once all the monsters are dead and Baal has departed, you announce "02" (or whatever the next number in sequence is), exit the game, start a new game with the next sequential number, and do it all over again. It only takes five to ten minutes per run, and typically you'll gain a level every run or two.
I was given a Gavel of Pain, and socketed it with a Shael rune to increase the attack speed. I'm doing something like 1,200-2,000 damage per blow, and my life-stealing percentage is so high that I'm basically healing myself to full on every attack.
Okay, enough Diablo. Last night...oh yeah. I left something out.
Blink, (pause), blink.
You wouldn't believe the number of typos I'm making here.
Remember back a while when I had to get a big filling? And the dentist told me that it might well turn into a root canal, because it was so deep? He said I'd "know" if I ended up needing one.
With my dental phobia my brain immediately interpreted that as a prediction of agonizing, mind-raping pain.
Oh, and I'll spare you a recap of my dental phobia, okay?
Anyway, I was scheduled for a cleaning for last night. Inevitably, a few weeks ago I woke up early in the morning and had a drink from the glass I keep by the bed. When the tepid water hit the tooth that had been filled, it hurt. Quite a painful twinge.
Instantly I entered a state of absolute terror. I spent the next hour or two trembling in fear, sweating and shaking in the dark, until the alarm went off and I went to work.
I spent the next morning the same way, although the pain didn't come back.
Blink, (pause), blink.
So I was morally certain that I'd be facing my first root canal. Or probably two of them, maybe three (I know that's not rational, but that's why it's called a dental phobia).
But I've learned some techniques to help me cope. And so, although I was tense, I was able to live with it. I practiced relaxation techniques as often as I could.
I think I'm starting to wake up a little, finally.
Anyway, last night I rushed home, put on a brave face for Sebastian and kissed him goodbye, and drove to the dentist. And to my amazement, it went quite well. There was a back tooth with had a very sensitive filling (I've never had any problem with it before), but there were no cavities and no real problems. I'll start using flouride rinse to remineralize a couple of decalcified points, but that's all.
Incidentally, Sebastian had his first dental cleaning a week or two ago. Teri took him, and apparently he was really good and had a great time.
After the cleaning I drove home for a few minutes, kissed Sebastian goodnight, and headed over to my weekly D&D game. As always, Sebastian begged me to stay home and play with him. He breaks my heart every Tuesday!
At the game my sleep deficit hit me, as it sometimes does. But once combat started (the first combat in three weeks) I woke up again.
We had teleported into a temple to free a priest from mind control, only to discover that he was a lich, an undead monster. Shadows (evil ghosts, basically) boiled out of the walls and ceiling. The cleric (who served the same god that this temple supposedly served) realized that not only were we not on holy ground, the ground was now actually unhallowed.
We were in trouble.
Lots of combat, an NPC taken down and turned into a shadow himself, and the lich finally touched my character, Mongo, with a Harm spell that did 134 points of damage. Anyone else in the party would have died, but Mongo just went deeply unconscious.
A round or two later I was healed, and the lich was destroyed moments later. At which point we looked at the clock, and saw that it was almost 11:30pm! I headed out and drove home. Fortunately I was still charged up from the battle, or else I would probably have been fighting to stay awake the whole way.
I got into bed just after midnight, and while the thought flashed across my mind that I could play Diablo or check my email, I ignored it. I was asleep within five minutes.
At 5:08am, a small boy shuffled into our room and climbed up between me and Teri. I closed my eyes and went back to sleep.
5:30am BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! That damned alarm. I turned it off.
Twenty minutes later I got up, dressed with frantic speed, and ran out of the house. Made it to the train station just in time to snag one of the last two parking spaces and catch my train.
Fell asleep on the train, of course, and woke with a start when the conductor shouted "Ruggles!" Ran out of the train, upstairs to the station, and was corralled for a quick handshake by a Presidential candidate. He was charged up, smiling and full of energy as he pumped my hand.
"We need to get out of Iraq, and get healthcare for everyone!" he said enthusiastically.
Dazed, I could only say "That's true!" and smile as I walked on.
It wasn't John Kerry, of course, nor that bastard Bush (I wouldn't have shaken his hand). It was David Cobb of the Green Party. I'll give him credit; as far as I know he's not campaigning anywhere where he might throw the state to Bush. Campaigning in Boston six days before the election? That sends a pretty clear message. He might well pick up some votes, because this is a pretty liberal state in some ways (particularly because at Ruggles he was in the center of a comparatively poor urban area with a high minority population AND a large urban university at the same time), but he's not going to threaten Kerry's chances here. Good for him.
So that makes two candidates for the US Presidency that I've met in Ruggles station.
Okay, looks like I've woken up now.
I'm so tired that between typing the last sentence and this one I ran out of steam and just sat there for five minutes, blinking stupidly at the screen.
Blink, (pause), blink.
The night before last I got caught up playing Diablo online with the clan. By the time I checked the clock, it was 12:48am.
I should mention that playing with the clan has been a lot of fun. I've learned quite a bit, and over the weekend I took my druid from 32nd level to 56th. The secret was open Baal runs, which I hadn't understood before; you start an open game with a name like "baalrun01", and wait for people to enter. Once you've got the maximum, eight people, at least one player makes their way to the Throne of Destruction as quickly as they can - it's basically a mad dash, bypassing almost every attacking monster. Once in the door on the level of the Throne, you open a town portal. Everyone else comes in (you've all joined the same party, of course, so as to share experience points), and deal with the waves of powerful monsters that Baal throws at you.
Once all the monsters are dead and Baal has departed, you announce "02" (or whatever the next number in sequence is), exit the game, start a new game with the next sequential number, and do it all over again. It only takes five to ten minutes per run, and typically you'll gain a level every run or two.
I was given a Gavel of Pain, and socketed it with a Shael rune to increase the attack speed. I'm doing something like 1,200-2,000 damage per blow, and my life-stealing percentage is so high that I'm basically healing myself to full on every attack.
Okay, enough Diablo. Last night...oh yeah. I left something out.
Blink, (pause), blink.
You wouldn't believe the number of typos I'm making here.
Remember back a while when I had to get a big filling? And the dentist told me that it might well turn into a root canal, because it was so deep? He said I'd "know" if I ended up needing one.
With my dental phobia my brain immediately interpreted that as a prediction of agonizing, mind-raping pain.
Oh, and I'll spare you a recap of my dental phobia, okay?
Anyway, I was scheduled for a cleaning for last night. Inevitably, a few weeks ago I woke up early in the morning and had a drink from the glass I keep by the bed. When the tepid water hit the tooth that had been filled, it hurt. Quite a painful twinge.
Instantly I entered a state of absolute terror. I spent the next hour or two trembling in fear, sweating and shaking in the dark, until the alarm went off and I went to work.
I spent the next morning the same way, although the pain didn't come back.
Blink, (pause), blink.
So I was morally certain that I'd be facing my first root canal. Or probably two of them, maybe three (I know that's not rational, but that's why it's called a dental phobia).
But I've learned some techniques to help me cope. And so, although I was tense, I was able to live with it. I practiced relaxation techniques as often as I could.
I think I'm starting to wake up a little, finally.
Anyway, last night I rushed home, put on a brave face for Sebastian and kissed him goodbye, and drove to the dentist. And to my amazement, it went quite well. There was a back tooth with had a very sensitive filling (I've never had any problem with it before), but there were no cavities and no real problems. I'll start using flouride rinse to remineralize a couple of decalcified points, but that's all.
Incidentally, Sebastian had his first dental cleaning a week or two ago. Teri took him, and apparently he was really good and had a great time.
After the cleaning I drove home for a few minutes, kissed Sebastian goodnight, and headed over to my weekly D&D game. As always, Sebastian begged me to stay home and play with him. He breaks my heart every Tuesday!
At the game my sleep deficit hit me, as it sometimes does. But once combat started (the first combat in three weeks) I woke up again.
We had teleported into a temple to free a priest from mind control, only to discover that he was a lich, an undead monster. Shadows (evil ghosts, basically) boiled out of the walls and ceiling. The cleric (who served the same god that this temple supposedly served) realized that not only were we not on holy ground, the ground was now actually unhallowed.
We were in trouble.
Lots of combat, an NPC taken down and turned into a shadow himself, and the lich finally touched my character, Mongo, with a Harm spell that did 134 points of damage. Anyone else in the party would have died, but Mongo just went deeply unconscious.
A round or two later I was healed, and the lich was destroyed moments later. At which point we looked at the clock, and saw that it was almost 11:30pm! I headed out and drove home. Fortunately I was still charged up from the battle, or else I would probably have been fighting to stay awake the whole way.
I got into bed just after midnight, and while the thought flashed across my mind that I could play Diablo or check my email, I ignored it. I was asleep within five minutes.
At 5:08am, a small boy shuffled into our room and climbed up between me and Teri. I closed my eyes and went back to sleep.
5:30am BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! That damned alarm. I turned it off.
Twenty minutes later I got up, dressed with frantic speed, and ran out of the house. Made it to the train station just in time to snag one of the last two parking spaces and catch my train.
Fell asleep on the train, of course, and woke with a start when the conductor shouted "Ruggles!" Ran out of the train, upstairs to the station, and was corralled for a quick handshake by a Presidential candidate. He was charged up, smiling and full of energy as he pumped my hand.
"We need to get out of Iraq, and get healthcare for everyone!" he said enthusiastically.
Dazed, I could only say "That's true!" and smile as I walked on.
It wasn't John Kerry, of course, nor that bastard Bush (I wouldn't have shaken his hand). It was David Cobb of the Green Party. I'll give him credit; as far as I know he's not campaigning anywhere where he might throw the state to Bush. Campaigning in Boston six days before the election? That sends a pretty clear message. He might well pick up some votes, because this is a pretty liberal state in some ways (particularly because at Ruggles he was in the center of a comparatively poor urban area with a high minority population AND a large urban university at the same time), but he's not going to threaten Kerry's chances here. Good for him.
So that makes two candidates for the US Presidency that I've met in Ruggles station.
Okay, looks like I've woken up now.
no subject
They can make a slick brochure, and they have the door to door thing down pat, but have no real fortitude from what I've seen, creativity or a desire for anything more than money for the kitty.
The one locally running for a rep position (the only one in the state trying for a state office that I know of) seems to think all she needs to do is hand you a pamphlet and the job is done. She also has made the mistake of being involved in the weak attempt to bring back rent control locally (which of course you can't because it's state law that banned it, not local).