Pyramids by Terry Pratchett

Pyramids by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Pyramids is one of those Discworld novels that doesn't involve the wizards, the witches of Lancre, or even Death (besides his invariable cameo appearances). This novel follows, Pteppic, the trained assassin and heir to the thrown of the Discworld's version of ancient egypt, Djelibeybi (Pronounced: Jelly-Baby). There's lots of time twisting and fun with what makes one a king. Also there is plenty ruminating on belief and the gods in the Discworld universe.

I actually liked this one quite a bit. Sometimes the none main story line novels don't hold the same fascination for me, but this one does. Besides you find out that camels are the most intelligent creatures on the Disc, principally because they're smart enough to not let humans in on the secret.

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Guild Wars Is An Experiment That Worked

Here's a reprint of an article talking about the success of Guild Wars in the face of subscription based MMOs. Its the no subscription that got me playing this game, but it is the design philosophy that has kept me playing. It is not a grind-based game. You don't have to play hours on end to find enjoyment in it. Without the subscription you can also stop playing for a while, get a few things done in the real world, and not feel like you've wasted money while not playing.

Thank you ArenaNet!

From Digg:
“Our design goal when creating ‘Guild Wars’ was this: ‘If I’ve got 30 minutes before dinner, will I have fun playing this game?’” says Strain.

read more | digg story

Sunspear Max Title

Managed to get my main Guild Wars character to max rank in the Sunspear Title Track. I've been sitting somewhere in rank 9 for quite a while. Luckily with the great Title Rebalance of Nov 13, 2008 it made it much easier to hammer out those last title points.

The trick is they added sunspear point awards for vanquishing areas in Elona. This is something I was needing to do anyway, so getting the points was a nice bonus. It'll be a while before I can vanquish all areas in any of the campaigns, but it's a start. I'm also trying to finish the cartographer title in Elona as it is the only one I am missing.

I'll probably work on the Kurzick title too as the title rebalance has made that easier and more enjoyable to boot.

Me and the Frog

Me and the Frog

Originally uploaded by FlipSide3.

Okay, so maybe I have a couple screen shots to show off. This is from Halloween 2008. I was up at in the wee hours because one of the kids decided to wake us, and I figure it was time to sneak over to the computer for some Halloween party time!

Not only did I get both festival hats (the "Zombie Paint" mask is in the pic), but saw some celebrities (well to me anyway). The frog in the picture belongs to Gaile Gray the former Community Relations Manager for the game. It's always cool when she shows up.

Guild Wars-ian Update and Thoughts

I've been keeping my notes on Guild Wars progress in Google Notebook lately, when I should post it out here. I know no one cares but at least it would be archived and I'd actually be using this blog for something. Usually I wait until I have some good screen shots to post up, but I think I'll forgo that more in the future.

So what's going on in the Guild Wars universe... well I don't have time to say. Ha! Let's see if I get around to it later.

Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett

Wyrd Sisters is yet another Terry Pratchett Discworld novel. I've been devouring them like candy. This is the second book in the witches series and the first hooking the intrepid Granny Weatherwax with two other witches. In this case the two being Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick.

Equal Rites gave had good character development for Granny, but it's a ton of fun seeing her react to the other witches. Also fleshes out the witch culture and shows that not all witches are like Granny (if any at all). This books theme revolves are Shakespeareean tales, specifically Macbeth, and plays with them to great effect.

Perhaps not my favorite Discworld novel, but very high on the list.

Euless ranked among best places to raise children

The city I work for... Euless, Texas... has been ranked by BusinessWeek magazine as one of the best places to raise kids. Granted we live in the neighboring city to the north, but if we didn't live there we'd live here. Come on everybody, move to Euless which will increase the tax base and get me a raise. That'll make things better for my kids!

From Digg:
BusinessWeek magazine has named Euless, TX as one of the Best Places in America to Raise Your Kids for 2009. Communities on the list were ranked for such things as school performance, affordability, safety, air quality, job growth, racial diversity, local parks, ballfields, zoos, recreation centers, museums and theaters.

read more | digg story