Warp Zones, Fast Travel, and Teleportation: Screw the Journey

Awesome!

I'm currently reading (very slowly) The Legend of Zelda And Philosophy and I'm having a very hard time getting through the first proper chapter because it is pissing me off. It is arguing that being able to skip the journey in video games is... degrading to the experience? It stops you from being able to appreciate the areas in between where you'd like to go and rips you out of the illusion of space that video games provide. I freaking love being able to fast travel (to borrow Oblivion's term) because I find going the long way in games to be extremely tedious. This also sort of applies to my life.

The Town

"This is not the fucking-around crew" -- Adam Frawley 

Sense memory is weird. I didn't believe it existed for a long time as anything other than a subset of affective/emotional memory for method acting. I had never experienced it before 2007. It just never really mattered to me, and when people would mention it in conversation, I assumed they were full of shit. For those unaware, sense-memory is the interaction of the five senses with memory. Or, in simpler terms when some external stimuli, sight, smell, touch, taste or sound, instigates a memory recollection. It is a widely discussed, documented and studied phenomenon that has granted extensive insight for scientists, psychologists and whatnot with regard to our minds, and memories, and how they work. So, why bring this up on this particular Wednesday? Well, I have been affected by sense-memory near constantly for the past few days pretty heavily, and it got me to thinking about how I used to not even believe in its existence.

Dr. Seuss' The Cat in The Hat

Fulview is essential in this situation.

"It's a thing-thing, you wouldn't understand." -- The Cat 

 First. Stop. Click on that picture. Read it. The guy in the black is me. The other two are every couple I know. I'm not joking. It is EVERY couple I know. My mom and Clay, that couple. Kaka and Chris, that couple. Kaka and her previous boyfriend, Adam, that couple. Gina and Jake, that couple. Anne and Chris, that couple. My grandparents, that couple. I could go on. The thing is, I am never a part of that couple. Not because I'm never part of a couple, but because I'm never that disgusting in a relationship. I'm never a part of the cute, adorable, lovey-dovey couple that spends their weekends at B&Bs, or can't be seen without being wrapped in each other's arms. More importantly, I have never been in part of one of those relationships. I hate it.

Whip It

"We deserve better villains." -- Bliss Cavendar

First and foremost, welcome to the New Year ladies & gentlemen! Did you miss me? Did you miss us? Sure you did. You have been gazing intently at facebook waiting ever-impatiently for either Kaka or I to give your lives meaning in this New Year by updating our blog and giving you something to do with yourselves. Either that, or you're bored shitless and you wanna know what's up. Well, are you in for a treat, sir, or ma'am! I am here to tell you the tale of my New Years celebration and to recount my adventures in sickland.