I won my very first challenge with the XBox 360. I busted my ass to do it, too. Jake was wonderful in letting me completely take over the console to do it. I really didn't think I had a chance, either. There were a few games that made me absolutely crazy. Kameo's Deep Blue element is like the seventh ring of hell. The mechanics are horrible with it and Jake and I were both wanting to through the controller out of the window. At least it wasn't just me. Apparently that section makes everyone angry. Really REALLY angry. Then there's King Kong. I have mixed feelings about that one. It is a First Person Shooter, which is something I hadn't really tried. I did an okayish job on it, but I'm still not sold on that type of game. The surprise hit for me was Kung Fu Panda. If you haven't gotten it you're missing out on a really fun game. I got the game as a package deal with the console and never tried it out. After playing a few games and getting frustrated I popped it in. I'm hooked!

I think winning this challenge was a HUGE boost to my confidence. I have been feeling as though I'm never going to get any better. Then Jake and I played our first game together last night (Peggle rocks my socks) which meant so much to me. I've been wanting to play a game with him for so long. We had an absolute blast. I'd say that even if I didn't win. Which I did. *grin*

This weekend went by in a blink. I did some cleaning, played some games and fought off feeling sick... AGAIN. Honestly this is getting so old it should be called a classic. At least I had the extra day to rest up... sorta.

I started playing Fallout 3 again. Besides it being UBER creepy it tends to make me a tad nauseous. I am determined to play this game. So of course Jake had to play through the first two spots. Scary Grocery store and scary kids school. I was jumping and gasping every time some raider popped up. Oy... Later on a dog ran up and Jake had to take over. I just couldn't bring myself to kill it. He leaves to go to the store and guess what happens... Yeppers, THREE dogs attack me. I was equipped with a bat, which made it worse. Jake came home to a mortified looking girlfriend. Later on I watched him for a bit. He goes so fast I can only watch him for a few moments before I get nauseous. I don't think I'll ever get that comfortable with the controller. *grumbles*

My favorite holiday is one week away. I cannot WAIT! I'm sad that we aren't going to be able to spend it with his folks but it will be nice to just spend a few days wrapped around each other and munching on food. Jake is a great cook and his Thanksgiving dinner is going to rock. Turkey, homemade mac and cheese and stuffing for starters. Hopefully we'll be able to go see a movie and just do something fun.

We've been laying low on the weekends, which isn't too bad. I don't want to go broke when the holidays are right around the corner. With Jake having to sign up for classes and get books I know we'll be saving up for our next one for a while. Lately he's been playing Fallout 3 and I am loving it. I can actually watch the game without getting too dizzy and the atmosphere is awesome. I am just amazed at the design. It's creepy and really gets you thinking. One spot he was walking by a raised freeway that was blown to bits. It almost made the hair on my neck stand on end.

Speaking of games... sims2 has another SP that I am sooo getting. I think I might also pre-order Sims3. Not sure yet. I think I'll wait to see if it will be compatible with my computer. I'm not about to buy a game that makes me have to upgrade again.

Yeah, so yesterday sucked major donkey balls. Hairy, sweaty, infested donkey balls. My server decided to take a nap and I had no idea what to do. I spent twelve hours trying to work with two different support options (and a wonderful woman who sent me to her friends for help) only to go to bed without the email part resolved. This morning I clicked some random "Manage email" button and got slammed with over 1,111 emails. At least the damn thing is working. Part of me wants to know what happened so it doesn't happen again. The other half wants to burn yesterday from my memory and never revist it again. So far the latter is winning.

In other news I tried Second Life and hated it. The characters are nothing compared to Sims and they walk like there's an umbrella up their ass.... open. The best part about this game is watching Zack and his molester midget character. At one point Reli took us to get some free clothing/hair/etc... I'm looking through the free outfits and Zack flies in on a pink dildo. Then he turned into the Kool-Aid guy and it really got weird. I think I had a dream like this...

Okay, so I fucked up the damn game... AGAIN. I'm one of those people that LOVES all the extras you can get to enhance the game. The clothing, the hair, the furniture, the walls/floors, etc... It makes what is a cute game something I am addicted to. The problem lies with how much I've downloaded. Over a thousand extras to date. Instead of trying one thing at a time I downloaded all sorts of goodies... then turned on the game. Instant heartache, man. After spending all fucking day going through the files without finding which item was causing it to go wonky I gave up. The game takes so long to load it's hard to do a test run each time without wasting five minutes per addition. My only other option is to start all over again... and that's going to be a pain in the ass. This time I'm going to have so many sub folders it's disgusting. It's better than the alternative... nuke the game and go back to playing in my forum's arcade. With another gig of RAM on the way to the house so I can play that's not an option... YET. So yeah... I won't be online for a while. Oy...

My Sims2 characters are not happy. Mini Jake just HAD to go and birth that thing so now we have a mini abortion running around. I was told that if you ignore it the Child Welfare Services come and take it away. That sounded easy enough. Wrong! Every time I click off of the baby for them to do other things it pops back into their mind. I've tried everything. Sex, swimming, making out, exercising... the whole gamut. That little green thing still pops into their head. Meanwhile Mini Jake just HAD to leave it in the kitchen which means every time they go in for food it's there. In order to make it unhappy I can't use the cheat mode to Make All Happy, which means all is not cheery in the Jake/Diva household. Now I have three fussy, whiny, stinky, hungry Sims. it's just like real life. Personally I think this is the best birth control you can offer. Here kiddies, play mommy and daddy for a while. Not fun, is it?

At least, that's what happened in the Sims2 Nightlife game I've been playing. It's been so long since I've had a game that I could get into this has been a pleasant surprise. I wasn't sure if I'd even like it. The only downside is that when you are playing it you can't chat. The minute you click on someone's IM the game minimizes and takes a while to reload. Next on my wish list: A laptop to play the game on. Dude... it IS like crack!

I have been sucked into the time stopping game called Sims 2. I'm playing the Nightlife expansion pack to be precise. I made a Mini Me and a Mini Jake in one game and just a Mini Me in another. Ironically the Mini Me and Jake Sims characters get along just like we do. Heh. My vote is to start off with the cheats until you get used to how it works. Cat was kind enough to endure all my questions and panic driven IMs until I got the hang of it. Some of the highlights are:

Diva: why are my Sims fighting?
Cat: uh oh

Diva: and it wont let me inside the house!
Cat: did you put on a front door?
Diva: yes
Cat: hmm

Diva: a bunch of sims came by too
Diva: so help me if that redhead ends up flirting with Jake I'll nuke it from orbit.... its the only way to be sure
Cat: ha ha ha
Cat: you can make him start a fight with her

Diva: dude, how do you just.... SEE them?
Diva: I keep seeing walls
Cat: hang on
Cat: there's a button that let's you change the way the walls work

Diva: I think they're dying
Diva: :(
Diva: how do I feed them?
Cat: pause the game

Diva: I died
Diva: :(
Cat: what?
Cat: oh god
Diva: she ate cookies
Cat: Um
Diva: *cries*
Cat: what did she die of?
Diva: she just fainted on the floor
Cat: is she still on the floor?
Cat: if the grim reaper hasn't come, it just means she fell asleep on the floor
Cat: because she needs to be told to go to bed
Diva: jake is sparkly
Diva: and she wont go to bed
Diva: stupid sims
Cat: I think I need to supervise you ;-)

Now that I've FINALLY sorta kinda gotten the hang of it, I'm really liking this game.