Thinking Out Loud
Here we are again with another post consisting of some random thoughts and ideas that I’ve been recently contemplating. Some could be a bog post in themselves but that isn’t really the point of this recurring post. It’s more a case of just throwing some ideas out there. Please note that the first point of discussion is an explanation as to why things have been quiet of late, here at Contains Moderate Peril. As always, please feel free to leave a comment.
Illness
I appreciate that talking about illness can often make people uncomfortable. It’s not exactly my favourite thing. However, I do not subscribe to the school of thought of avoiding such matters. We all get ill from time to time to varying degrees and we’re all going to die one day. You can’t just wish problems away. My significant other, Mrs P, has a history of heart disease and her overall health has declined this year. To cut a long story short, she is having surgery on 28th November to effectively repurpose a previously bypassed artery. Throughout this month we have been going to outpatient clinics as well as meetings with consultants. We have also been busy putting practical measures in place for her recovery. As you can imagine, it is a worrying time. Hence, I have not written much in recent weeks as her well being is my current focus.
Blogging and more
With regard to my current blogging activities, I will post occasionally between now and the end of December but it will be very much on a “as and when” basis. At present, it is my intention to resume a more structured writing schedule in the New Year. I am also considering some additional projects. Let’s see how the year pans out and I’ll review the situation in January.
MMORPGs
I have a cyclical relationship with the MMORPG genre of games. Certain MMOs such as The Lord of the Rings Online get and Star Trek Online get played at regular intervals. They are a gaming mainstay throughout the year. Others such as Guild Wars 2, The Elder Scrolls Online and Star Wars: The Old Republic get played every 18 months, or so. Often an event, expansion or even a YouTube video can prompt a return to a particular game. Recently I received an email from Broadsword, the developers of SWTOR, that they may reuse names from dormant accounts, so I reinstalled the game. As each class has a unique story associated with them, the game has a great deal of replayability. I have yet to play the Sith Inquisitor, Jedi Knight or Jedi Consular class, so I think I’ll resubscribe and play a new character over December.
This nostalgic reverie for MMOs got me thinking about Age of Conan, which I have not played since 2011. Although effectively in maintenance mode by developers Funcom, I was able to log into my old account and reinstalled the game client. My original character was still where I left them but I had to rename them due to 13 years of account inactivity. I spent a few hours trying to figure the control out and actually managed to complete a few basic quests. Although the game has aged somewhat, it runs well and has a great deal of content to play through. I am tempted to create a new character and play through the game’s main storyline. However, it should be noted that this MMOs population is low. I only saw about five other players while on the Crom server, so if I do replay Age of Conan then I shall treat the game as an RPG.
Presents
Christmas is fast approaching, which raises the spectre of presents. Mrs P and I do not buy presents for each other, mainly because we don’t need anything. We don’t see the point in “novelty” gifts or anything that is just arbitrary. Plus I have a birthday that is a week before Christmas which further compounds the complexity of the issue. Hence presents are bought mainly for the grandchildren, our son and daughter-in-law. Let it suffice to say that through no fault of their own, the grandchildren are thoroughly spoilt with respect to presents. I actually witnessed them getting bored with opening Christmas presents, a few years ago. So we have tried to show some moderation this year but it remains to be seen whether any other family members will follow suit.
There is often a complex social dynamic to both giving and receiving gifts. People feel obliged by tradition to give presents and often are confused by comments like “ I don’t need anything, thanks”. Hence, I often find myself the recipient of novelty socks, aftershave and gin. I see these sorts of presents as the lesser of two evils. IE something you don’t need but don’t mind, as opposed to something that just isn’t needed and ends up going to a charity shop or being re-gifted. In a perfect world, it would be nice if someone actually considered what my hobbies and interests are and used those as a guide. A £20 Steam or Audible voucher would be most welcome but alas, is never considered. It was all much easier when I was a child in the seventies. My present aspirations seldom went beyond Lego and if I was lucky enough to get any, it was considered the proverbial “top brick of the chimney”.
