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General Comings and Goings

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GuyPerfect:
Coming out here to Washington, I brought with me a little Novatell Wireless USB internet dongle thing that I use through the Verizon network. It's very handy, as it's portable broadband that doesn't cost too much a month and I don't have to be near a wireless access point or what have you in order to use it.

But today... it was wonky! Turns out it was actually because of that little 3-inch USB extension cord that's useful for A) connecting USB flash drives that are shaped so obnoxiously you can't fit them into the spot where the USB port is and B) keeping delicate devices that normally just stick out of the computer from getting accidentally knocked and damaged. I used one such cord for purpose B, and the cord is going bad due to constant flailing every time I move my laptop around.

The short-lived anti-internet scare led me to realize something, though. How long have I been using the internet? Years. Several years. How many days have I gone without internet, on purpose? I'd say the number is probably less than 25, at least from the point when the internet became commonplace and not just that special time you take out of your day to dial up for a half hour. But yeah, internet's like a blood filter these days! An extension of the psyche!

I realized that whenever I'm not working or sleeping, I tend to be right here in front of the screen, clicking various links or checking to see if any new posts have been made or any new articles have gone up. There's so much I could be doing, but I'm not doing it! Well, since I have no particular obligations online, I have decided to do the unthinkable: I will go for a week with no internet! On purpose!

Fret not: this is not merely a whim; I've been considering such a fast for a while. But I figured now was a good opportunity to do so, so I will. At 0:00 Eastern tonight (which is when the calendar flips over to June 15), I'll be offline for a week. If I need emergency directions or if I need to place an order for something, I may use the internet for those purposes, but otherwise... nothing. And I have no reason to believe that I'll use the internet at all for the next week.

Instead, I'll have to find other things to do with my time. Pull out old video games? Work on something? Go outside and... socialize!? Such unfathomable opportunities will be presented to me. Well, guess I have an hour left. Leave your comments here in the mean time!

*Waits for the obligatory "See you tomorrow!" post*

Dullstar:
Did you ever succeed at doing that?

Clam:
Y'know, ever since this idea came up, I've been considering doing something like it sometime.

That time is now.

Unlike our esteemed colleague who originated this concept (well, he probably stole it from somewhere else, but anyway) I can't just cut myself off from the internet since I need it for my course work. So instead I'll do the next best thing: I'll give up Lemmings. This afternoon, I'm going to remove every trace of this accursed game from my sight and hide it all in a dark cupboard (or electronic equivalent).

Why am I doing this? Well, I need to. For my own sake. I've been spending my afternoons frantically checking these forums for updates, and trawling through the levels looking for something to add to the wave of challenge threads that has swept through this place. My enthusiasm for challenges is gone, my level designing side has fallen away, and whatever good intentions I've had - like (*gasp*) doing something other than Lemmings - just haven't been followed through. The quality of my posts on this forum is slipping, and worse, thinking about this game has kept me awake at nights. It's clear to me that I need a "Lemming holiday".

I'm going to stick around for the rest of today, but after that I'll be gone until next Saturday. (That's New Zealand time - for most of you it will still be Friday). When I get back, I'm going to try to be a more rounded Lemmings fan - and that means going back to work on my own levels instead of just tearing through challenge threads. And maybe, just maybe, I'll learn to enjoy this game in moderation.

Wish me luck

Yawg:
Wow, its going to be a quiet week here 

Regardless, good luck with your lemmings vacation!

Clam:
Thanks.

Only a couple of hours of today left, then I'm outta here. I'm sure you'll barely even notice my absence.


By the way, has anyone seen GuyPerfect's blog lately? I just noticed he's been offline for some time, and this might go some way towards explaining it.

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