One of the things that has made it easier for me to put off posting to the .org is the fact that hardly anyone else I know seems to post very often these days. I've subscribed to nearly every blog I follow in the Google Desktop Web Clips app for Google Desktop on the side of my desktop, and over the past year or so I can't help but notice that so many blogs that were once updated two or three times a week are now updated only once a week, if that. Granted, a lot of these people now use Twitter, as do I, and I make it a point not to go a day without tweeting, but things are different for me because I'm a writer, and I can't very well market my writing skills without writing more often than I have here for the past four months. Now that my winter classes are over, I'm going to try to get better at posting regular updates here.
However, as I was thinking about how rarely I see a blog update on the RSS feed on my Google Desktop, I couldn't help but think about how rarely I even use Google Desktop any longer. I like having the time and temperature on my desktop at all times (I auto-hide my taskbar so I have more desktop space), but right now those are the most useful parts of my setup. I used to use the built-in MP3 player, but when I started using last.fm I had to switch to Windows Media Player because last.fm doesn't support the Google Desktop player. (Winamp once fired Bonnie, and Apple products are right out for me, so don't try to get me to switch over.) Worse yet, the Google news feed has only been sending me stories from ESPN.com for the past couple of months, and most of them are days if not weeks old. Given that I don't make much use at all of the indexing feature of Google Desktop, it seems to be a real waste for me at this point.
What makes matters worse is that I'm using an older version of Google Desktop, and I'm guessing that switching to a newer version might correct this problem. However, the new version of Google Desktop on the Google Desktop site only supports 32-bit Windows, and I'm running 64-bit right now. I don't understand why Google wouldn't choose to support 64-bit Windows, and why they would just drop it like they have when older versions of the software used to work fine for me. I'm used to seeing this kind of behaviour from other companies -- Hewlett-Packard refuses to release a Vista driver for my old scanner, so I'm stuck having to buy a new one some time soon -- but this isn't the kind of behaviour I'd expect from Google. Google Desktop was a great product for me at one point, and I feel like it may yet be of some use to me, but right now it's just taking up space on the right side of my desktop and not really being that useful. Maybe I should just get rid of it and start visiting the blogs I like manually; it's not like they update that often these days.
Among the other things that have been put on the back burner of my life lately is video games; after treating myself to a Wii after slogging through that miasma of an election cycle, I pretty much let it collect dust from early February until this past weekend. I'm finishing up my "weekend off" where I didn't have any real work to do for teaching; tomorrow my classes end and I get final portfolios, and of course those will keep me occupied for the next week as I get final grades for the semester calculated. Since I had a few days off here, I busted the Wii out, nought a couple of new Virtual Console games (I don't understand how my gaming skills on so many other games can die so easily, but for some games, like Super Mario World, it's like I never stopped playing them), and tried to decompress. As with sports, however, I feel like video gaming may be something that's becoming much less important in my life, as I have other things to do that I feel are of more importance and are more fun to do.
(Of course, when I say "video gaming," I'm not counting dance games, which for me are about exercise. To that end, this past month I finished collecting and assembling all of the items for a PC-based setup, which means that now I can add the songs I want -- if I want to play Björk and Tori Amos songs now, all I have to do is rip the tracks and make stepcharts for them -- and I don't have to deal with the deficiencies in all the home versions of the arcade games I'd been collecting for so long. I haven't had a chance to use this setup as much as I'd like lately -- I've been busy, and the weather and other factors haven't been cooperating -- but it's finally rekindled my passion for that, so I hope I can get back on my diet soon and start taking all of this weight off.)
I guess that as fun as the Wii is, though, I'm still just fascinated by the general design of it. I'm not the Japanophile I once was, but there's still something about the general aesthetic of some Japanese goods that appeals to me. Too often, Japanese video game stuff that has come here has been "Americanized" and, I feel, made worse; I'm specifically thinking about the redesign that the Super NES went through from its Japanese roots. The Anerican Wii's menu retains the soft curves and somewhat ethereal background noises of its Japanese counterpart, though, and I really appreciate that. I understand that this is probably a small thing for most people, but honestly, if I'd had to put up with generic nu-rock every time I turned my Wii on, I don't think I'd be half as likely to play it. The same holds true for the design of the various channels; there's something distinctively Japanese about them, and not only do I find it more soothing than the kinds of menus that American designers develop, but it's a nice change of pace from what I'm used to on my PC and my other video game consoles.
When I first got Wii Fit, I was especially pleased with the voice that's used during the body test. I've always been fascinated at how differently female Japanese voices sound compared to female American voices -- something I've attributed to various factors, such as lower rates of female smoking in Japan and different cultural expectations -- and the difference means a lot to me. I guess this may be due to me getting into anime in the mid-90s, back when the English dubs that were being done were mostly horrible. Anyway, I really like that Nintendo put a similar voice in Wii Fit (although the non-body test voices are definitely more American), and I like that it keeps with the Japanese aesthetic of the game's visuals.
Labels: videogames
There have been some pretty big changes in my life so far this year. Part of the reason my posts here have slowed to a trickle is that I just haven't had the kind of time to devote to the .org that I've had in the past. I've still got lots of potential topics on my trusty whiteboard, but finding the time and focus to write a proper entry on them has been difficult lately. It probably doesn't help that I've been Twittering more than usual, but that's kind of unavoidable under my present conditions. I really need to post here more often -- I still view the .org as an extension of my professional career, so it reflects poorly on me when I don't keep it updated -- so I hope to remedy that soon. Too many parts of my life seem to be falling by the wayside, and I need to correct that.
As a case in point, my interest in sports seems to be dwindling to almost nothing. Normally I make a point of catching the first Tigers game of the regular season, but I really didn't feel like watching it, and then I had a dinner date pop up at the last minute. I figured that I would catch another game after that, but the only time I've been home and able to catch a game was Tuesday night, and I just didn't feel like watching past the first couple of innings. I'll probably catch a game sometime next week, but I'll be doing so more out of a sense of obligation than because I actually want to.
I don't think I need to say too much about the Pistons or the Bengals here, except that I'll catch the NFL Draft later this month, as usual, because I like watching thirty-two-sided chess matches where I have no idea what the pieces do or who the players are. The only way the Bengals were going to be interesting this year was if they'd signed Terrell Owens; I loathe his homophobia and egomania, but trying to see him and Chad Johnson, er, Chad Ocho Cinco trying to function on the same team would have too intriguing of a trainwreck to ignore.
I don't even feel that attached to hockey any longer. The Red Wings will either get knocked out in the first round, or they'll lose to San Jose in the conference finals; there's no way they can repeat as champions this year given how erratically they've been playing. It says something that even I want the Red Wings to start Ty Conklin in net instead of Chris Osgood; I love Ozzie dearly, but he just hasn't been dependable this year. If nothing else, it would give USA Hockey a chance to audition Conklin for Vancouver 2010. I'll go ahead and give my pick for the finals, as much as it hates me to say it: Sharks over Devils. Worse yet, I'll even be rooting for the Devils, if only because they have Brendan Shanahan. I don't mind if Shanny doesn't get his name on the cup again, but it'll be worth it to me if he cheap shots Claude Lemieux and takes him back out of the NHL. (I'd also love to see Shanahan knock Sean Avery's lights out if they meet in the conference playoffs.)
It's not just Red Wings hockey I've lost interest in; I really don't care to watch Hockey Night in Canada like I used to. The show used to be a staple for me, but I've missed it more times this season than I can remember, and I don't really care. I still love Don Cherry dearly, but between the new presentation, the loss of the old theme song, and my general lack of enthusiasm for sports in general, I can't bring myself to care for the show like I once did. I'm making a point of catching the final broadcast of the regular season tomorrow night, but honestly, I'm kind of hoping the Red Wings get knocked out of the playoffs early this postseason so I have an excuse to stop watching. I wouldn't have even entertained these thoughts one or two years ago, but now I just want to stop feeling so tied to the Red Wings and the NHL, so I have time for other, more important, things.
Labels: hockey, personal, sports