Why I Hate the Start of New Semesters: An Introspective Look

The new semester started for me on Monday, and it marks a few big things. Firstly, it kicks off my last semester in my Associate's program. Secondly, it beats my ass down into a rhythm and schedule that it's gotten used to not having over winter break. And thirdly, it opens that old can of worms that is, in a nutshell, all my phobias and paranoias at once.

You might think that last part sounds silly, but the start of a new semester brings me more stress than it does anything else. And I'm not talking about things like getting lost on campus (it's small) or not being able to get my books (because my aunt buys them online as long as I keep my grades up) or thinking my professor is going to be a dick (because they're all pretty decent people.) I'm talking about big, panic-inducing things like:

• Obsessing over the male/female ratio of the class I signed up for.
  That might not seem like a big deal, the male/female ratio of a class of students, especially when I talk so casually about hanging out with friends and meeting people. But the first day of class presents me with more stress than anything else because being in a room with strangers makes me feel vulnerable to begin with. Being in a room full of strangers who are all men amplifies that tenfold, even though I've historically gotten along better with men than with women. I feel more comfortable when there's at least four to six other women in a classroom with me, even though chances are I won't talk to one of those women. As it stands, for the first two weeks of classes, I won't talk to anyone unless I absolutely have to, and that leads me to...
• I hate having to make new connections and meet new people.
  This is where it starts getting sticky. When I go into a classroom full of other people, I go there to learn things and listen to what the professor has to say, and read my Facebook if he starts getting boring. I don't go into class to make friends. So, nine times out of ten, I'll be sitting in class minding my own business and someone starts talking to me and I'll freeze. I'm not exactly socially awkward, but talking and meeting new people has never been my greatest skill. So when someone does talk to me, I have to mentally reboot and think of something to say back while trying not to look like some kind of socially stunted community college kid. Half the time, the response I give out is prickly, short, or offhanded. That's not because I don't want to know you, per se, it's just because I'm dealing with so much stress that I don't know what to do with myself, let alone this person next to me who just asked what my major is.
• Not knowing if there's anyone else I know in class.
  This is a good one. I work in my college's greenhouse, and one of the things I've heard my professor say before is, "You act differently in here with me than you do out in the hall or in class." When I asked him to clarify, he told me that outside of class, unless I'm with a friend, I'm more prone to flee from groups, avert my eyes from contact, and sit away from central locations and just be by myself. But when I'm with people I know (as well as when I'm in the greenhouse,) he pointed out, I'm more likely to be open, to tell jokes and meet new people. So his question was, why the change in personae? Because having people with me who already know my personality makes it easier for me to act like that in front of other people. My friends already know that I'm prone to sudden song and dance, that I like to tell jokes and tell anecdotes. They don't give me a whole lot of grief for who I am, because we're fairly like-minded people to begin with. So when I'm already with a group of people "like me" it's easier for me to apply that to group settings. It's easier for me to do the things that I do, because I won't be "that weird girl who bursts into song." Instead, I'll be "that weird girl who bursts into song with those other guys." So when I walk into a classroom and see people I know, that stress level goes down by a whole lot, and it makes it easier to adjust to a new setting.
• I contemplate dropping a class depending on what the room looks like.
  And by "what the room looks like," I mean that whole male/female ratio thing and the friends in class thing, not "this room is yellow and it sucks, so I'm not taking this class." I'll stay in a class for a week before deciding if I'm going to stay or not. If the male/female ratio doesn't work itself out, or if there's no one in my class that I know, I'm more likely to drop that class than I am if there's a lot of women in the room, or if I have a friend I can sit next to.

My classes this semester are a really great example of this. I'm in three classes that I need to finish my degree: a lab science, a social science, and an English elective. Each one of these classes pretty neatly describe all the points that I noted above that make me really nervous.

In my lab science, the men far outweigh the women almost 2:1. But I know a woman in the class who was nice enough to sit next to me. She's not a friend in the strictest form of the word, but we've had a class together before and we got along well and I felt comfortable in her presence, so when I saw her walk into the room, it was a complete relief.

My social science, by comparison, is mostly women with just a few men. We outnumber them at a fairly high 3:1. I have no problems with those numbers, I sit beside a bunch of girls, and I've already started talking to a few of them. It's a more comfortable atmosphere than my lab, and I feel like I can cope better.

Lastly, my English class has two people that I not only know, but that I'm good friends with. And I know these two people well enough to know that they'd get along well together, to boot. So even though it's mostly men in the class, I have two people I'm really, really close to in class with me, and no one else matters. We can sit in a corner and chat before class, and then communicate through our series of eye rolls and grins during class. I wouldn't even consider switching out to another class, because this one is fun.

It doesn't seem like it'd be a big deal about who would be around you in a classroom, but those are the first things that I take note of every semester on the first week of classes. I become a week-long nervous wreck until I can calm down and start communicating with people like a normal human being. In a week, I'll be fine, but until then, I'll be a trainwreck.

Well, it's a new year...

This year, I'm going to try harder to update. I'm realizing that there's a lot of stuff I've been noodling around with that I could/should/wanted to put up here but never did. So, this year, there's going to be more posts from this guy.

Here's hoping I can maintain that enthusiasm.

Topic: Gaming - Tales Series

February 2012 is going to be a big month for me. Honestly, I'm excited. No, it's not because there's a major life event coming my way, nor is it because I'll be in my final semester of college. Remember when I said that gaming was a big part of what I did? That it was my "thing?" February is going to be a big month because my all-time favorite game series is releasing two new US titles that month: Namco-Bandai's Tales series will be releasing Tales of Graces F on the PS3 and a remake of 2005's Tales of the Abyss for the 3DS.

I'm so excited that I can hardly contain it.

In the US, the Tales series is overshadowed by the Final Fantasy series, and we hardly ever get to see Tales titles here in the US. The last one that came out here was 2008's Tales of Vesperia on the Xbox 360. (True facts: I bought a 360 just so I could play Vesperia. I'm not kidding.) In Japan, four Tales games have come out since Vesperia. Those are Tales of Vesperia (remade for PS3 with new playable characters and a deeper storyline to coinside with the movie), Tales of Hearts (DS), Tales of Graces (originally on the Wii, and remade for PS3), and Tales of Xillia (also on PS3). US fans will never see Hearts, and there's a decent chance that we won't see Xillia, either, which is a damn shame.

Namco-Bandai has been hinting that, if Graces and Abyss 3D sell well enough, we might see a localized version of Tales of Xillia. "Might" is the key word there. I said it once up there, and I'll say it again: that's a damn shame, because the Tales games are some of the finest JRPGs I have ever played, and I've played a lot of them.

For starters, every mothership title to date has had an extremely strong storyline behind it, with a cast of extremely strong (and well-voiced) main characters to drive it. 2004's Tales of Symphonia had Lloyd Irving as its leading man - kindhearted, strong-willed, a bit slow, and a strong sense of justice - and Colette Brunel as its leading lady - polite, quiet, and overwhelmingly kind. The rest of the main cast was just as strong and believable as its two main characters were, and even when the story hit a cliche that would otherwise make you groan, it somehow worked within the game's universe and kept you pulled in. It's been seven years since that game has come out, and I still sit down to play through its story. That alone should tell you something. 2006's Tales of the Abyss on PS2 was just as strong. Main characters: Luke fon Fabre, selfish, bratty prince, and Tear Grants, a disciplined, tough soldier. Storyline: gave me a mindfuck the first time I played it. Did it again the second and third time, and I knew that it was going to happen.

I could run through all the Tales games that I've played and tell you why it's a strong game while trying not to give away the plot, but we'd both be here all day. The best way to see for yourself is to go down to GameStop, or go over to Amazon, and get yourself a used copy of Tales of Vesperia on the 360. Play it, give it at least until you get to Capua Nor to make up your mind. If you like role playing games, the Tales series will never disappoint.

If you're too lazy to go out there and play a game, or you don't have the necessary time, go watch an anime. Phantasia, Eternia, Symphonia, Abyss, and Vesperia all have anime adaptations. Phantasia and Abyss are out in the US.

Don't just brush the Tales series off as another run-of-the-mill JRPG. It's so much more than that, I promise.

HEY! 
Do you maybe already know all about what I said about the Tales series up there? Do you want to help out - as a fan - to try to get more of these games over here in English?

Then hop on over to Facebook - I know you have one - and go "like" the Aselian Movement. It's the headlining page in a fan-created movement to get Bamco to acknowledge that yes, Tales fans exist outside of Japan, and YES WE WANT GAMES DAMMIT. And then go like the other pages involved in the movement. You can read about what the Aselian Movement is all about, as well as find about the other games involved in the movement by reading about them here.

Review: Harvest Moon: Tale of Two Towns (3DS)

Title: Harvest Moon: Tale of Two Towns
System: Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS
ESRB Rating: E
Number of Players: 1
Buy It:

• Nintendo DS version - Amazon | GameStop | Play-Asia.com
• Nintendo 3DS version - Amazon | GameStop | Play-Asia.com

Before we start off, let me say this: for all intents and purposes, this review is for the 3DS version of Harvest Moon: A Tale of Two Towns. Other than 3D effects, an animal-petting minigame, and the 3DS region-locking, I know of no differences between the two versions. Now, with that out of the way, let's get to talking about HM:ToTT!

The Harvest Moon games have remained mostly unchanged since the franchise started in 1996 on the SNES. As much a dating simulation as it is a farming simulation, it has a niche following in the United States, making it a small - but successful - franchise. Other than some graphic re-hauling over the years, the main HM franchise has always been about two things: rising up to create a successful farm, and finding yourself a spouse. In that regard, HM: Two Towns does nothing new. But the new things it does bring has kept me interested and occupied.

The most interesting part of Two Towns is that you can choose which town you want to live in at the beginning of the game. The first choice is the farming village Konohana, a tranquil and pretty Japanese-inspired town that centers around raising crops over livestock. On the other side of the mountain, you have your second option: the town of Bluebell, a more European-looking town that centers its income on raising livestock. No matter which town you choose, you can utilize the land on both farms. (This makes it easy to live in Bluebell and raise a lot of livestock and still use the fields in Konohana to raise long-lasting crops like soybeans, corn, tomatoes, etc.) Living in Bluebell is almost like cheating. Living in Konohana is a lot more typical of other Harvest Moon games: being broke all the time and struggling to get the money needed for important things like seeds, fertilizer, and pet food.

Other activities - fishing, bug gathering, and foraging - are back from other games and work just as well as they ever have. Fishing has a new option, though: you can now wade into shallow water and catch fish with your hands by walking up to them and hitting the "A" button. These tiny fish can't be used in cooking, but they can be sold for ten to thirty gold and be used to fulfill requests for villagers.

The 3D graphics add a cute shadow effect to the game, but overall isn't worth the ten dollars extra you have to plunk down for it. The 3DS-exclusive animal petting minigame, however, makes your animals friendlier faster, and is an interesting benefit to getting the enhanced version.

In spite of everything that Two Towns is doing right, though, classic HM bugs are still present. The game freezes periodically and at random times, and when your only option for saving is before you go to bed, a lot of things can be lost. Additionally, the game lags when there's a lot of things going on: riding your horse while other livestock roams around in their pens will cause the game to slow a little bit. In 3D mode, it's motion-sick inducing. In 2D, it's just annoying. The last thing that this game has wrong with it - really, really wrong - is that the weather system only kind of works. Listen to the radio before you go to bed, and it will tell you what the weather for the present day and the next day will be. There's about a 45% chance that the weather forecast for the next day will be wrong, making it confusing and difficult to plan ahead for the next day, especially for weather-specific events like flower events and figuring out what to do with your livestock for the day.

Overall, Harvest Moon: The Tale of Two Towns is fun and addicting. The typical bugs are still present, but are as much a part of the Harvest Moon experience as courting a villager.

Bottom Line: Mostly the same Harvest Moon, but with an interesting addition of choosing where you can specialize. It's a welcome - and interesting - change. Typical HM bugs are still present and more annoying than ever.

Final Score: 8/10

Topic: Gaming - Pokemon

Gaming is an important part of my lifestyle. What little time I have left between chillaxin' with friends, writing, homework, and life screwing me over, I dedicate to gaming. It's something that was in the house before I got there, and I'll be taking with me to my own household, when I finally decide to strike it out on my own.And one of the franchises that's been in my house since I was a small child was Pokemon. It's a staple in the house, along with Mario, Zelda, Ratchet and Clank, Spyro the Dragon (the original Insomniac games), and Crash Bandicoot (the Naughty Dog games.)

But lately, I've been catching shit for the whole Pokemon thing. No one can give me a reason why, but I'll suspect that it's "Hurrr, you still play Pokemon. You should grow up." But you know what? I loves me some Pokemon games, even now.

Above left: What someone who makes fun of
my Pokemon habit looks like.

There's a mix of reasons for that. One, Pokemon Blue was the first game that was ever truly mine. I didn't have to share it with anyone. I got to play my game, on my GameBoy Color. And the feeling was amazing. Two, I like seeing the games evolve into what they've become today (inb4 sellout.) Three, I still enjoy the hell out of them for what they are - a solid strategy RPG. And four, the spinoffs are fun too.

Now, before you go jumping down my throat about being in my 20s and still playing games designed for children, take a second to stop and think for a second: if you do, you'll look like that guy up there. Do you really want to look like that guy up there? Nah, didn't think so.

The main games in the Pokemon franchise are, whether you like it or not, solid tactical RPGs that're pretty damn customizable. And if you're really into it, it opens a whole new set of doors into the mechanics of the whole thing. Essentially, there's two tiers to everything in a Pokemon game: a casual tier, where you can just play through the story, get your badges, and battle your friends over local wi-fi. And then there's the hardcore tier, where you can specially train your Pokemon for their best stats (IV and EV training,) competitively battle with others, or set special rules that you have to follow throughout the course of your journey. (Go watch a Nuzlocke challenge on YouTube or read the comic on nuzlocke.com to get a better idea of what it is and to see how srs bns Pokemon can get.)

And it's not just the mainstream games that get that treatment, it's spinoffs as well. And everyone knows that when it comes to spinoffs, Pokemon is pretty damn successful. (Just off the top of my head, there's the Pinball franchise, Mystery Dungeon, Ranger, Stadium/Colosseum, PokePark, the upcoming Rumble Blast and more that I know I'm blanking on.) And when Pokemon does a spinoff, they do it right. PMD (Pokemon Mystery Dungeon) is one of the best mystery dungeon games I've ever played. (Keep an eye out for a post on those in the coming couple weeks.) Pokemon Stadium entertained me for literal months when I was a kid, and still does. There's a few horrible games in the franchise, sure, but every franchise has their weak spots.

Any way you slice it, Pokemon's not just for kids anymore. As long as adults can have fun too, Pokemon will continue being everyone's game.

Announcing a spin-off blog!

So, as we all know, I'm young and insane.

And as you may not know, I've got severe wanderlust.

With one more semester ahead of me before I get my Associate's in Creative Writing, I've been thinking more and more seriously about something I've thought about since I first got my car: a road trip. Not just any road trip, mind you: this would be a road trip for the ages. To go out and see what you've never seen, to do what you've never done, to live like you've never lived.

That's my goal, after I graduate. To go out on an epic road trip and do, see, eat, and experience things I've never done/seen/eaten/experienced before. You can check out the new blog, Smart Across America, and see what my plans are. And when I finally get going on my trip, it'll be everyone's main way to creep on what I'm doing, where I'm going, where I've been, and where I'll be going next.

In the meantime, during pre-trip, feel free to suggest places for me to go/eat/see/do. I'll admit, while I've been doing research myself, sometimes the best things to do are the ones that you learn about from other people. The blog is empty and sad right now, but check back. I'll start putting things up soon!

Power Outages and Lacks of Updates

So, you might have heard about the recent snowstorm that pummelled the Northeast. We're out of power here, and that means a lack of updates. I have a few scheduled for the coming days, but unfortunately, until powe is restored, there won't be anything new from here after the last few post. Hang tight, I'll be back soon!