After shortly logging on FFXI only to have dinner and have an upsetting conversation at the dinner table, I decided to log off and did the following: play 40 minutes of DDR, think, think, and think a lot more. I’ll be up front about this: 2007 totally sucked for me. But this is a new year and a new chance for me to start anew. However, while I did all that thinking, I knew I didn’t want to start off my new year with a bitter taste in my mouth of all the things that went wrong last year. So, as a blogger and such, I thought what better way of trying to refocus my thoughts and such by writing the top five positive things that happened? They will, of course, be gaming/technology related since this is primarily my gaming blog. Doh. Anyway, here are my top 5 recaps for 2007:

#1 Getting BRD to 75.
I have been playing this game since NA PC release, started with an Elvaan WHM and then BRD, and restarted to finish up my goal as a Tarutaru BRD. I couldn’t have done it without the help of my good friends: Mekare, Orophen, Aenslade, Reiokyu, Guster, Chakura, and Kiln. These guys really helped me in ways that no one else has, and if it weren’t for them I doubt I would have still been playing for as long as I have. I still laugh remembering getting lost in Oztroja with Chakura, Kiln calling Chakura a wuss when she was a WHM escorting us, and how Mekare and I tormented Reiokyu when he first joined us on the Ragnarok server. I am also glad Guster helped become part of our 5 man Promyvion Holla win (we started with 6, but one had to log out after awhile), and Orophen is just… Orophen. I know I hate on him a lot, but I’m nothing without the guy.

#2 Starting the BLU set.
Despite running into several snags (mostly because of me), the BLU set is fun and AMAZING. We’ve proved several people wrong by doing what they believed to be impossible in terms of CoP missions, and hope to continue that when I’m not withering around in agony with wrist and other health problems.

#3 Making new friends!
Although it happened late 2007, I am still glad I was able to make some friends both online and IRL. I also strengthened some relationships, and it makes me feel really great inside considering I don’t always have the time to come online. Its nice knowing that despite my absence I’m still missed and hardly forgotten when I do come back. This is important, because its one of the reasons I’m able to keep coming back time and time again.

#4 More Gaming Than Ever!
Believe it or not, I did a lot more gaming during 2007 than I had in recent years. I became a Tetris fiend for awhile, I became heavily engrossed in the world of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, I dabbled in Pokemon Diamond, I cooked it up with Cooking Mama, I performed surgeries with Trauma Center, I hacked and slashed in the Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess, I boxed it out on Wii Sports, made friends with Viera on FFXII, did a toxic dance with the Blood Elves on WoW, and even had a chance to prove how much rhythm I DON’T have by playing Ouendan 2. There are probably much more to add to the list, but that’s what I could remember so far. Most of the games were on the DS, followed by the Wii, and then the PS2. For 2008 I already have three games (Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings, the Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, and Phoenix Wright: Trials and Tribulations) on my list to play and finish, and possibly a fourth if I can ever get myself to sit through Final Fantasy Tactics…

#5 Had a brief taste of FFXI end game!
I’m probably the few out there who doesn’t participate in the end game scene, despite having wishes to do so. With things such as homework (and after I get my certification, I’ll be doing MORE studying for graduate school), long commute times, religious obligations, and health concerns? Trying to find an LS that meets my special needs is a damn hard thing to do. So, it was with much surprise that I was able to be invited to a Sky LS that did weekly events on weekends! And NOT on times when I had religious obligations! Woo! I was psyched. Granted I only attended one or two events, it was really cool while it lasted. I am not optimistic that will happen again, but at least I can go away happy knowing I did it at least once or twice during my gaming career! I still have an Abj. they tossed me, but since I’m poor… I just get to keep it as a memento of that day.

If anyone happens to read this, feel free to post or comment on our Top 5 things of 2007! The more the merrier!

Although several days late, I thought I should remind and/or bring awareness to several people about yet another way RMT users are trying to get your precious information. We know that several weeks ago they have inserted an iFrame onto Somepage, but there are news going on that they have managed to exploit a security hole in WordPress (a popular blogging script) and try to take your information the same way they tried to when you visited Somepage. Maiev of the StarOnion has great news about it and details on how to better protect yourself here: FFXI Blog Writers, heads up! by Maiev.

I also wanted to take the time to state that doink! has been updated and that my Web Monkey Slave (a.k.a. Orophen/Derrick), has checked the coding to make sure that things are ok. If, however, you find something that is suspicious, please feel free to leave a comment or e-mail me at calaera(at)mreh(dot)net.

Awhile ago, I said I would post shots comparing the Vaio CR and the Vaio SZ. There aren’t many shots, but it was nagging me for awhile so I went ahead and took the pictures before I started studying. Before I go into that, I thought I’d talk more about the laptop since I’ve had it for awhile now.

Overall, it is SO much better than the Inspiron 1520 I had. I thought I would be ok with such a large laptop, but I found that it wasn’t really for me. My commute is long (can total about up to 4 hours round trip) and I also study best outside of my room. I end up playing video games if I am in my room, whereas outside? I feel guilty and forced to study! I also like being around the noise, as it tends to help me concentrate more than a totally silent room. Of course, all of this is hard to do when I’m lugging around 6lbs on a laptop alone. When I commute, I bring books, notebooks, my purse, and sometimes I even bring along a blanket (ride the longer ferry to Seattle during the commuter rush, and you’ll see a lot of people doing this and more). So the SZ really slims back the extra weight that can be put to other things like… more books!

The SZ is also great because of the dual graphics card. There is a dedicated and an integrated that is used as “Stamina” and “Speed” mode. Stamina mode is great for when you’re doing just word processing or internet browsing, and speed mode is great for when you watch movies or play video games. With “Stamina” mode, I can clock up to four – five hours depending on my settings. That helps a LOT as it cuts the need for me to carry around the power adapter! I can also sit in front of the TV and just watch stuff, if I wanted to.

The downsides to the SZ, however, primarily come with the keyboard, the OS, and the dedicated graphics card. How?

The Keyboard:
It is sometimes uncomfortable to type on. I am able to type well on it, but it still feels weird at times. I still wish it had the TZ and CR keyboard, because those are much more attractive and easy to type on.

The OS:
Vista sucks. Period. I should have ordered XP, but P1 is great because they are sending me a free XP disc to install onto my laptop. If you are ever looking to buy a laptop? I HIGHLY recommend P1!

The Graphics Card:
WoW and FFXI are installed on this computer. WoW runs beautifully here, but FFXI chokes like someone forgot to chew their food and just inhaled it… If I had time, I’d find a way to get it to work… but I don’t, so I’ll just wait it out awhile.

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For you FFXI’ers, the background is from WoW’s Burning Crusade area. :3 The area is the Blood Elf city of Silvermoon! One of my favorite places, since Undercity has really scary looking guard, er, things.

On FFXI today, I was talking about creating a pair of Gnome mages for the fun of it. Orophen was wanting to try it out after watching several WoW videos, and I just thought it might be a fun thing to do. Midgets, after all, seem to have much fun than their taller brethren. We weren’t able to start this right away, so we leveled up DNC and SAM until the log in server was restored and made our stumpy little characters. I’ve got to admit its pretty much like playing Tarutaru but not as cute and kind of… weird looking. Anyway, I had a few moments of fun and then my friends started talking about Alliance and stuff…

Out of the three of us, I think I’m the only one that is more interested in the Horde than Alliance. Its nothing bad, but I kind of feel alone when people talk about their alliance characters and I go… “Huh?”

So, again, I decide to give the good guys a chance and made myself a horned something-something. Sue me, I can’t remember their names. I just know that they are tall and have a very thick accent. It was sort of my only choice, seeing as though I couldn’t stand leveling a Night Elf, Humans are really ugly (sorry to those who do play WoW and play Humans), and Gnomes are… Gnomes. The only drawback? No Rogue class, but I do get to choose from an assortment of… mage classes. Woo hoo?

So far I’ve tried out Mage and Shaman. Shaman is alright, and Mage comes close to a second. Both classes are much better than the alternatives I have on this race, which again makes me thankful that I don’t have to deal with this kind of bullshit on FFXI. I think I’d go batty if the ONLY job I had available to me on Tarutaru were mage jobs. Ick.

Moving away from WoW, I’ve been Mario Partying it up for awhile. Mostly on the DS and mostly losing either to the PC, my kuya (Filipino for older brother; in this case, I’m using it for a Filipino male friend who is just older than I am), or my younger sister. It is frustrating as heck, and the only consolation I have is being able to roast everyone in a particular mini game or two. My sister has also badgered me and my brother enough to play Mario Party with her on the Wii. Sadly, I found that during this time our Wii was making really weird noises when reading the discs. It was MUCH louder than normal, and I started to wonder if I needed the poor thing to get checked out. But then I got lazy and forgot all about it when I started to hack up a lung… or two.

So, before I lay down to rest (bronchitis sucks, yo), I thought I post a great WoW video. Even if you hate on WoW, watch it because you don’t need to know much about WoW to really figure it out and enjoy the movie!

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In case you were wondering or are unable to read the title (you’ll need to have JP font enabled), the title is read “kita”. If you’re familiar with the manga/movie/drama/whatever story of Densha Otoko, frequent 2ch or 4ch, or just know a lot of Japanese, then I don’t think I have to go further. For the rest of you who don’t, it simply means either that “I have come/arrived” or that “It has come/arrived”! And if you’ve been paying attention to an entry made sometime last week, then you know exactly what to anticipate behind the cut later on! ;)

Before we get to that, I took a rare day off (other than me being sick and all) and used the time to spend with my new LS. We were aiming to do a BLU set session, but that never took place due to personal reasons. On the other hand, I went up to the ol’ Tree and got a few skill ups on dagger and sword. Wasn’t many, but I’ll take what I can get! There were a few who were getting the item needed for Windurst 9.1, another who was getting Sleepga II done, and many of us just seeking to either have some fun or skill up.

Afterwards, Mekare asked a few people if they could get together at the last minute and help me finish Windurst 8.1. I have been on that mission for who knows how long, but never really made it a point to get it done. I figured it would get done when it would get done, and well… it got done! During the skill up session and the mission, I couldn’t help but feel rusty. That one month break really did a number on me, and I found myself forgetting how to get to point a and b. It was worse when I was beginning to get paranoid over songs for what situation, but I kind of just sailed along with it. I figure if people do think I’m a bit off, I can just play myself off as one of those people who leveled up bard not caring if Ballad landed on the melees or not.

Of course, I have mostly Edoine, Tyrian, and Mekare to thank for, since they took the time out to help me get this mission done. I’m still sorry for the deaths, but still very grateful to have this mission done once and for all. That doll was starting to drive me BATTY. I just wish I could have stood on Tomoky’s shoulders a little longer so that I wouldn’t have to have everyone /sit in order to be on my level…

Its ok. One day the Tarutaru will own the world of Vana’diel with our trusty Mandragora HNM at our every beck and call. Mwhahaha!

Ok, now the part I’m sure Maiev is waiting for…

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Out of curiosity, I went and checked the stats for this subdomain. Its the only active site I have on my domain, and I wanted to see how people were finding me and so on and so forth. I check these stats once in awhile, but this time I thought I’d share a few things.

As of late, I have been getting a lot of hits from TTO and the Musketeer’s forum. I also get hits from my friend’s on Livejournal and other journals I am linked to. There are a few that seek me out on google, and this is what they are usually looking for (at least for this past month):

FFXI Test Your Might
FFXI
Die by the Sword BCNM
download doink them
bluegartrls
ffxi toyer
hiroshiko girl (Hiro, is there something you AREN’T telling us?)
doink game
getting out of gusgen mines
screenshots doink

Sometimes, my site also appears if people are searching for the SpikeFlail site. Sorry, I’m not in their LS! Nor have I played with Toyer, I’m pretty sure Hiro is a boy, and I am on the wrong server (and too gimp) to be associated with BG. I had a few less hits last month since I rarely updated that month, but a lot of LJ search sites have been hitting my site trying to scan for images. Kind of annoying, but I’m rather attached to my LJ plugin.

I’ve also had my other friends searched and have had hits from those people looking for Mekare, Reiokyu, and even Orophen. Why anyone would want to search for my boyfriend(s) is beyond me…

A busy day to make up for a lousy week due to problems with Orophen’s installation and what not. I finally finished Divine Might (ZM 14), made it in time to participate in Campaign battles, joined a new linkshell, helped some people, and toured Orophen through as much of WotG as we could. Whew! Read on to see the screenshots and more:

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