Calling the doctor’s

So, today I’ve finally gathered up my courage to call the doctor and make an appointment. Should have done so years ago and only tried calling him last summer. I was told that the doctor’s office is closed from June to August and that unless I was about to collapse and die there was no way I could really get an appointment. No need to say that my case wasn’t quite that pressing. I’m just a bit concerned really. I happen to be one of those people with moles all over and some of them don’t look all too good, but at least they’ve been like that for ages and surely that’s a better sign than them changing constantly? Could be worth checking it out and that’s one of the reasons I sat on hold for nearly 10 minutes, listening to that dreary, classical piano piece in the background. There’s something odd about those musical pieces they churn out whenever you’re on hold. For some reason they always get me worked up and, in the case of calling my doctor for an appointment, a bit nervous. Haven’t been to the doctor since my on-and-off-for-two-months sore throat, which turned out to be a bacterial infection. Since then I haven’t had anything worse than a couple of flus, a stomach bug and some colds. But you never know, one health check too many is probably better than one too few. Mine will be on Tuesday two weeks from now. Can’t say I’m looking forward to it, but I’ll probably be glad to get it over and done with….. 

Another year older and no wiser….

Today is the day I celebrate myself getting older. Yes, it is indeed my birthday and 26 years have passed since I was pushed out into the world. So far the day has been splendid. I nearly missed the bus this morning. Work is piling up all around me. I so to say incinerated a couple of chocolate-chip cookies by putting them in the microwave. It said on the package to leave them in for 2 minutes, a pity I didn’t notice until after that it said OVEN, not microwave. Thus I nearly set the office on fire and it’s only 20 past nine. The place smells like burnt fur and I have to live through all the “where’s the fire?” comments for the rest of the day. At least the sprinklers didn’t go off(would have been a disaster if they had, possibly ruining equipment worth 1000’s of $). At any rate it is probably the most embarrassing thing I’ve done here since the first summer I worked in this place, when I nearly got sacked for falling asleep at work(not to mention being consequently 10 minutes late every morning).

 Three and a half hours have passed since I wrote the above paragraph. Says everything about how much I have to do around here, doesn’t it? On the bright note I have received lots of lovely birthday wishes(even though two of my closest colleagues forgot it completely and the third one only remembered it nearly an hour after coming to work). I frantically try to convince myself that as many people as possible remembering your “big day” isn’t all that important, but to be honest I do feel a bit gutted when people I know really well forget it. Well, apart from my best friend that is- I’ve forgotten her birthday twice(not intentionally of course) so she kind of owes me;) I know she’d go mad if she read this and that she’d feel really guilty, but I won’t hear of it. The only people I actually expect a “Happy birthday” from would be my closest family(sister, mom and dad), my best friend in Norway(considering that I’ve known her for 10 years and we spend A LOT of time together), my friends at Gaia Forum(because, hello…..I’m a moderator and everyday-member, have been for a year and three months and my name is written in bold types all over today’s calendar) and my closest colleagues(because I’ve been working here for 6 years now and I mentioned it both last week and yesterday).

I spent last night making my specialty chocolate cake. I had promised my colleagues I would do so for my birthday, so that we could enjoy a slice of cake during today’s lunch break. And what happens? Everyone leaves long before lunch- they’re going to a seminar of some sort- leaving me alone with a full box of chocolate cake PLUS the cookies I bought at the store. Talk about celebrating in solitude. Well, the worst part is that I’m left alone to do all the work- answering the phone, making phone calls, registering papers, verify examinations, burning cd’s and so on is enough work for at least three people!!! Luckily the phone has been unusually quiet over the past couple of hours. May it continue that way indeed!  

So, what are my plans for today? First of all I’m planning on leaving at 2:30 PM like I always do when starting work at 07 in the morning. I don’t care if my colleagues aren’t here or if the office is empty half an hour early. If I could have things my way there wouldn’t be a seminar today in the first place. I’m meeting my dad for dinner at 03:30 PM- we’re going to a lovely Italian-style restaurant not far from where I live. That particular restaurant is kind of special to me, because when I was a kid we used to have dinner there on every one of my birthdays. I had to struggle hard and long to convince my dad to go with me though(the man hardly ever goes anywhere and claims he enjoys staying at home- and to be honest I don’t doubt for a second that he means every word of it). My mom and her partner are still down-under(they have this once-every-two-years ritual, where they spend three weeks or so in some exotic location. Two years ago it was China/Hong Kong, this year it’s Singapore/Australia). Tonight I’ll be laying all over the couch with a beer in my hand watching the soccer match……what a perfect way to end the day:)

 To make things better I also received my two vials of DuWop Lip Venom yesterday. OMG, I’m totally and utterly in love. It tastes like bubblegum and leaves you with a sultry pout, a tingling sensation and a wet, glossy shine. Like most products it has also harvested a whole bunch of frustrated reviews from buyers who complain that their lips do not look anywhere near as irresistibly lush as promised. Lucky for me I have rather full lips already and I’m also very happy with the added zest. For this I will brand it a must-have. It’s worth a try right? Since I’m in a generous mood I’ll even add the link to a site where you can purchase this product: http://shop.duwop.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=11

Enjoy it…..I know for certain I am

A flu for Easter

The Lady of Spring is standing on your doorstep. The sun is shining, the sky is blue, birds are singing frantically outside the bedroom window early in the morning, the temperature is rising and the first flowers of spring are lifting their heads to greet the first touch of the new season. It’s soon time for people all over the world, regardless of beliefs and religion, to celebrate the coming of spring and Easter.

Turns out this was also the time for me to catch the first flu of the year. Haven’t been ill since that stomach bug hit me a few hours after ringing in the New Year with champagne and the distant, popping sounds of fireworks. But yesterday it hit me again, as swift and without mercy as the morning express, so now I’m sitting here with a chest that feels like it’s about to explode, a sore and swollen throat, clogged nose and tired, bleary eyes. At work, of course. I’m way too stubborn to let a little cold knock me off my feet, no matter how big. Luckily I’m only working until noon and then I have five days off for Easter. What a wonderful way to spend a holiday!!!!  

Last day at work this week…..

….and boy, am I glad!!! Things have been like always around the office this week, sort of. There’s only one major difference: all the work has been shoveled away at an incredible speed, as opposed to the ever-growing pile of paper that we’ve gotten so used to. In fact we’re so well off that I’ve started doing work that is due in two weeks just to have something to do. It’s 09:35 am, which means that there’s currently 5 hours and 25 minutes separating me from the weekend. And in 3 hours my mom and her partner set off for their three-weeks vacation “down under”. If we could only be so lucky….

All I have is five and a half days off during Easter, but at least that’s better than getting up before the break of dawn five days a week. Will be lovely to finally have some days to rest after having worked five days a week since mid-January. Now that I have received my paycheck(as of last Wednesday) I think that I might just go on a tiny shopping spree this afternoon. Been invited to a party tomorrow evening so what would be a better time for boosting up that warderobe or the already overflowing makeup-cabinet or add another shampoo, conditioner, body scrub, body lotions, firming lotions, moisturizers, nail polish, creams and so on ad infinitum. No, seriously. I know exactly what I’m going to wear(for once in my life) and I have plenty of makeup, lotions and skin care products. All I really need is a semi-decent shampoo that won’t make my hair look all greasy 30 minutes after getting out of the shower. And I was planning on going by the bookstore to check if the new stocks of Conversations with God(the first part) have arrived. Last time I went by there I could only find the second and third parts and I was duly convinced that they would order a new stock the upcoming week(that was two weeks ago, so it better be in by now). Already been going wild at the Kalimera webstore and Ebay: wax melting candles, necklaces, incense and a pendulum at the former, two DuWop Lip Venom glosses at the latter. According to the manufacturers the lip plumpers leave you with a cinnamon tingle and an irresistible, sultry pout. The reason I ordered them, I might add, was the promise of a cinnamon tingle. To put it like this: when it comes to lips I have absolutely nothing to complain about(they’re full and even come with a natural pout). I just love that tinkling, moist sensation(oh dear, that really did come out wrong) on my lips when I apply a stroke of lip plumper. The Fusion products are among my favourite brands of makeup ever, especially LipFusion and LashFusion(my eyelashes have never been fuller). When I was younger(say late teens/very early 20’s) I couldn’t even go to the mailbox without putting on all the makeup needed(moisturizer, foundation, powder, blush, eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara and lipstick/gloss). Nowadays I’ve just realised that I have no time for getting up at 05 am to put on my makeup. That early in the morning I’d look like I had just crawled out of the grave whether I wear makeup or not, so I just prefer the extra 50 minutes of beauty sleep. Putting on makeup when I’m going out is a completely different story. Ah, that reminds me: I need a new eyeliner….  

A quiet hour….

That’s what my colleague here in the office called it, the hour between 10 and 11 am. Must have been something she just said as an excuse to slip off to a meeting and leave me alone here with a phone ringing at a rate of once every three minutes. If only all hours at work could be quiet hours. But then again, that would probably leave us with less work and the day would pass by even more slowly than it does already.

Don’t get me wrong: I love my job and I have every reason in the world to do so. I spend a mere 37,5 hours a week in an office with poor ventilation doing something so simple that a child could easily be taught up to do the same thing. And for that I earn about 21-something bucks an hour, which again turns into $156 a day. After all I should be glad I have a job at all. Nearly a year after I graduated from the Uni and I still haven’t found anything permanent. All I have is this part-time job and this upcoming summer I’ve been present here in the office for the past 6 years of my life. Part-time riiiight? Still, there are plenty of advantages. Such as the high salary(considering how simple the job really is) and the fact that I’m familiar enough with the routines to perform each and every one of them blindfolded.

Then comes the disadvantages. One of those is not knowing for how long I’m keeping the job. Yes, I know I am to go out job-hunting, but for as long as you’re keeping your head above water(i.e. you have a job and an income) it’s easy to just postpone things. I’m at least confident that I would be guaranteed work here up until August/September. The question is: do I want to? Over the past years while I’ve been studying I’ve worked maybe tops five-six days in one month. Some months there’s been no work for me whatsoever. But ever since I walked out of the faculty with my diploma last July I’ve been offerede more and more work here. I’ve practically worked on a permanent basis, five days a week, since November(bar my five weeks-vacation in the US december/january).

Another disadvantage is the discomfort of getting up before 06 am every day. Yeah, yeah…who am I kidding right? Think of all the people who get up way earlier or all the people who don’t have the priviledge of having a job to go to every morning. It’s true and I’m not denying it: a lot of people are way worse off than I am. But this is, to be quite frank, no the first thing that goes through my mind as I’m torn out of sweet slumber by the sound of an alarm clock piercing through the air after less than six hours of beauty-sleep.

 My colleague was so definitely wrong about the quiet hour. The phone has been ringing non-stop while she was gone. And the fax machine has broken down….again. Everything is just like it’s supposed to be on a mild Tuesday afternoon in March. And tomorrow is payday:)  

Now what?

Seems like I’m suffering from a major writer’s block today. Quite funny actually, because you wouldn’t expect such words to come out of the mouth of a walkthrough writer. “What’s the big deal, you just write down the progress of a game right?” is what most people would ask themselves. Wrong, just totally and utterly wrong. At least I’ve learnt a thing or two through my career as a walkthrough writer(which, I might add, is not really a career per se, but a hobby and a heartwarming passion that I’ve been keeping up since the early months of 2005). One of these things is that writing a good walkthrough can be compared to writing a good novel(or a short story at least). It’s really not as far-fetched as it might sound, becuase also when it comes to writing walkthroughs there are certain standards that are to be met. One day I’ll write a complete guide to walkthrough writing and gameplay, but for now I’ll stick to jotting down a couple of tips.

1) Be as accurate as possible. This is a very important aspect of walkthrough writing. Remember that the person reading the walkthrough is most likely playing the game for the first time and they were not there inside your head as you wrote down those words and lines. You might have easily spotted that invisible crevice up on the wall at the far end of the room, but if you start with a “grab the crevice and start shimmying left….” the reader will most likely be wandering around for ages wondering where the heck that crevice is located. This again will contribute in robbing the player of an otherwise splendid gaming experience. Instead of starting a paragraph with the line I put down as an example, begin by explaining where the crevice is located before describing how to reach it or where to go once you’re there. Or if a player needs to set up a jump with a left angle, just make sure you don’t write ”right angle” instead. The player might still see where s/he is going, but that won’t change the fact that they have a black-ink-on-white-paper proof that you’ve made a mistake.  

 2) Know when and how to pay attention to details. As a rule of thumb I ALWAYS write down a detailed description of sights and sounds for every new room I walk into. This adds a whole deal to the walkthrough and makes it more pleasant on the eye for a keen reader. Besides, as we spoke of in terms of accuracy above, it helps to ensure the reader that s/he is in the correct room before even exploring it. Describe the flowers in the field, the smoke rising from the chimneys, the cascades flowing down the mountainside and the leaves twirling through the autumn breeze. See? Not only does this paint a picture of the scenery surrounding the game character; it also makes it more real to the player/reader and makes the read a more enjoyable experience. Walkthroughs that go along the line of: “Walk five steps to the left. Pick up a batch of ammo. Turn right and run to the far wall. Pull the switch to open the nearby door. Go through. And so on and so forth….” might be very effective in that you know exactly what to do, but does it make for a very interesting read? I think not.

On that note make sure you don’t exaggerate. You don’t really have to describe every crack in the floor in depth, unless of course that one particular crack bears a certain importance to the gameplay(such as something essential being hidden below it or it being an indication of a hidden trapdoor). It doesn’t really matter whether the painting on the wall is a Picasso or a Miró and it’s not all that important to know that the bench in the courtyard is made from marble and not granite. It’s okay to call it simply a painting or a bench.

 3) Use variation when writing. This is maybe one of the most important aspect of any kind of writing (bar certain types of poetry where monotony actually plays an essential part in emphasizing the atmosphere and message of the poem). With walkthroughs variation is not only important, but also very difficult to maintain. During the run of a game the player tends to be repeating certain moves and actions over and over again (in some cases these things become more than just a tad repetetive). The difficulty comes when you try to accurately capture the essence of the many movements without constantly using the same terms and explanations. This is to a certain extent impossible to avoid, but by cleverly employing descriptions, details and different words and explanations you can easily disguise the tediousness of a paragraph constantly repeating the same things over and over. Try to use a blossoming language and grab a hold of lots of synonyms. Whether they are correct synonyms doesn’t really matter as long as they describe what you’re trying to convey. A jump becomes a flip(as in back- or sideflips) becomes a leap becomes a hop becomes a bounce and so on.

Another rule of thumb I use in terms of variation is the following: I write my walkthroughs as Microsoft Word-documents. After each paragraph I stop writing, sit back and look at what I’ve just written. If I find any occurrences of the following:

and………………………………………

and………………………………………

and………………………………………

and………………………………………

I simply go back and check how and where I can rewrite some of the paragraph to avoid that unnecessary repetition of that one particular word (in this example illustrated by the word “and”, which is a quite common repetition in walkthroughs).

Finally: if you happen to encounter a writer’s block don’t fret about it. Simply close the game/document or both, breathe calmly and move away from the computer. Do something else until you feel inspired to once more sit down and continue the work. Even if you are in a hurry to get it over and done with(someone might be sitting there waiting for you to send it to them) do take some time off for a break or two. When I write a walkthrough I usually spend anything from two-three days to a couple of weeks only on a single level, depending on how I feel from day to day and how much time I have for it(believe it or not: I do have a life too and it doesn’t always make room for gaming and walkthrough writing, quite the contrary actually). When it comes to writing there’s hardly anything worse than sitting down and literally shoving yourself along, feeling as if you’re walking up a steep hill that never comes to an end. Some of my best walkthroughs/parts of them are written during my most inspired moments and that’s when I truly feel that my full potential is permitted to bloom……