T-Hybrid

For my birthday, I got a Best Buy gift card (of indeterminate value). I also recieved one for about $40 when I returned a game (I had opened it, and the only way they'd give me a refund was as store credit, I accepted). Then I got one for $20 from a friend as a thank you for watching their cats while they on a trip. So the other day I picked up Mario Galaxy from Toys R Us. Part of the deal is that I got a $25 gift card. So now I'm sitting on about $80 worth of gift cards. And that's without the one that I got that I'm not sure how much it is. This Saturday I'm taking my car in to have a remote starter installed. I live in Minnesota, and it can get cold. Considering the cost per month of a stall here, it's a better value for me to put the starter in. It'll be useful when I'm getting out of work in the evening, as well as when exiting restaurants, malls, and any other place where there could sometimes be a bit of a walk. I'm going to use the BB cards to pay off the cost of installation (I was supposed to use the first one towards the initial part, but I forgot it at home when I picked it up), and then the rest is fun money. The only hitch with all of it is that the TRU card is only valid until the end of the year. So I have to take a gamble that something I'm getting now isn't coming as a gift. Or I wait till after Christmas and track down something worth getting in 5 days. Thankfully I usually keep a handful of items off my list for just these types of situations. I have a number of movies, games, and other random items that I can pick up without throwing my gift list all outta whack. It's rough having a birthday and Christmas so close together, my sister has it worse though. Just under two weeks between her birthday and Christmas. Though she sometimes gets *big* gifts that count as both. Last year it was an iPod... So I guess it evens out.

Crackdown is definately on my list. The demo was sweet. I enjoyed AC2, haven't played it in a while though. If it has online that'll be sweet. I'm still looking for a good FPS, there's a lot of Xbox, and I'm not a Halo fan.

Oddly enough, the numbers 11 and 6 make up the date of my birth (oddly enough the same day I found the fortune)

I got this out of a fortune cookie in Mankato a while back. Just found it the other day while cleaning out my wallet. Best. Fortune. Ever.

23 now. Can't really tell the difference between 23 and 22. I was alotted a new monitor at work a while back, and of all days it arrived today. Had forgotten about it. Best of all, they let me keep the old one. So I'm running dual-monitors now. The one is huge. Perfect for coding on. I also got my flu shot. Hooray? I can't remember the last one I got, I figured I'd get one this year since I'm going to be in a busy environment with a lot of different people, so it'd probably be good. Though it leaves me a bit of a jam this year. See I've got like 3 sick days (and a personal holiday) and only four weeks to use them before I go on vacation till the end of the year. But that's not important today, because today is about cake and partying, and free stuff. But it's also about looking back at everything I've accomplished. It's funny to think that this time last year I still wasn't sure if I was going to graduate on time...or where I'd be working. Now things have come together. Who knows what the next year will bring!

Nintendo stole the thunder from my Fantasy Draft a few weeks back when they annouced King Dedede out from underneathe me. I promised that I wouldn't let it happen again, and today I keep that promise. T-Hybrid Franchise: Create-a-Character First Appearance: Dynasty Warriors 4 (as Torhu Xi) Why?: This is purely an ego move. And after all, it is a Fantasy Draft. So why not have some fun and think about what it would be like to have my own character in Smash Bros. Could I take on Mario? Stand up to Samus? Stare down Master Hand? I had thought about adding myself in the draft as a way to have fun with it. And it's my birthday tomorrow, so why not go a little crazy in the name of celebration? Appearance: What you see is what you get. I'm a pretty casual guy, and yes...I do own a jacket that looks like that. In fact, I've got two. At one point while in the dorms, somebody pointed out that my winter coat and summer jacket were essentially the same thing. Blue Adidas with the white stripes. As such, it sorta became my "look". It's not anything fancy, or flashy...just what I wear. And since my favorite color is blue, and the theme of the Haven is the Blue Vice, it fits in well. Moveset: It fed my ego enough to put myself in the game, but I'm going to refrain from making myself broken. Nobody likes cheap characters. And since T-Hybrid (or some variation of Torhu or Hybrid) is a name I use frequently both online and in games, why not make my Brawl version an amalgam of the various fandoms I belong to? Hsi standard attacks would be a string of combos similiar to a Dynasty Warriors character (I would be swinging a Great Sword, as is my usual weapon when I create a character in DW). Up+B would draw at the Kanohi Miru and lift him back to the platform. For Down+B, Hybrid would grab his guitar (it'd be from Guitar Hero of course) and strum a chord that would stun his opponents. A second strum while stunned would launch them back. Standard B would charge the Kamehameha from Dragonball fame. Side Smash attack would be a strong Throat Punch (in-joke, but he has to have it). Up and Down Smashes? I think just a standard uppercut for a pop-up, and then some kind of hard strike down for the down-smash. The taunt would be a brush of the hair and the little hand sign that Maes Hughes throws out in the Full Metal Alchemist opening. Final Smash: The theme at the Haven is Digimon (and the Blue Vice). So Hybrid's ultimate attack would involve calling forth ViceGreymon Code Blue and unleashing his Blue Heaven attack. Hybrid would perform an abbreviated Hyper-Evo (as seen in Digimon Frontier), which would bring his Digimon partner into battle. Then from the background, ViceGreymon would unleash the attack which would rain down from the top of the screen. It would be dodgable, since no Final Smash is a guaranteed hit, however it would be tough to do so. This is purely fantasy, but I thought it would be fun to take a break from existing sleeper hits and have a little fun in the name of vanity. Hopefully this inspiries you gamers out there to dream up a character of your own. I'd consider starting a spinoff of the Draft linking to other people's ideas if they start making them. Well, g'night. I'm going to get some sleep tonight so I can fully enjoy tomorrow. As a famous movie baddie once said: "Oh yes. There will be cake!" ...At least I think that's what he said.

As cool as XIII is going to be, the PS3 right now is apparently doing everything in it's power to make me not want it.

It was a one way trip. But by getting you Health Insurance now, your futureself has set things up so you won't be put in the same situation he was in later on.

If it's strictly for MOCing, then your reasoning for Brown is a good one. There's less brown in Bionicle so if you ever need it you're going to be hard pressed to find it in recent sets.

Hay-low? What is this Haylow you speak of? Mass Effect may definately be worth picking up. But that probably won't be till the New Year. Crackdown, Rock Band, GHII, N3, Armored Core 4....there are a ton of games I need to look at. And with the cost of the system I'm a little low on fun money right now.

Today was payday, and with my birthday coming up I treated myself to a...treat. Gathered up a bunch of games I rarely play anymore (all my Dynasty Warriors games except 5, and the two LEGO Star Wars games....and all four Guitar Hero games), and went to Gamestop. Traded them in for a slick $150 bucks. Took that and picked up GHIII and Dynasty Warriors: Gundam (hereafter referred to as Gundam Warriors) for the Xbox360. "But Torhu," you're probably saying. "You don't have a 360." Well, that was the treat I was talking about. I have a gamer tag, but only GHIII can do anything with it. And that's only for the time being while I decide if I want to sign up for XBox Live Gold on a more longterm basis. For the time being, I'm more than open to start adding people who want to rock out for a month or so. I'm also looking for suggestions to fill the Online gaming portion of my life (something I'll slowly be delving into if I decide to go Gold).

Oh you take that BACK. Bionicle was at least still Technic/LEGO, whereas Galidor was just toys that you could "break"

At least Jack Stone was somewhat LEGOish. Galidor is the perfect example, however, of why Bionicle will never have action figures.

I got a friendly reminder that plans are already under way for Brickfair in 2008. And I did say that I would take an opportunity to make it out there at some point following graduation. With a year's notice. I can start getting plans together with enough time to make sure I can afford it all. $95/night for the hotel? Wowza. Not sure what all expenses are involved aside from airfair and accomodations, but it's definately something I need to do. Thanks for the reminder! I'll keep y'all up to date as I start to get things together for next August. If my first four months at work are any indication...time's going to fly by.

I sincerely hope that your friend does not betray the trust you have showed him.

I was more disappointed she didn't include them in the writings. The way she did it seems more like a cheat to me. I wish she would've trusted me as a fan enough to actually include it.

Have you changed your surroudings significantly? I know when I first moved into the dorms I had a number of bloody noses simply because the school didn't change the filters as often as they did back home. So the air was dustier than I was used to. It could also be stress. But it all depends on how you're feeling otherwise. If it's just the nosebleeds than it's a good sign (as "good" as something like that can be)

Well, since they're going to be putting you under (from the sounds of it) at least you'll be sleeping through most of it. That's the best advice I could give. Go to bed sooner so that you sleep through the hunger. You'll wake up probably growling, but you'll have cut the wait in half. Then when you can eat again, you celebrate with something like a pizza or some Chipotle.

But all the best Jellos are red or orange!

I'm not going to be around this weekend, so I thought I'd make up for it with a bonus Fantasy Brawl Draft update. King Dedede Franchise: Kirby First Appearance: Kirby's Dreamland (GB) Why?: Metaknight may be the mysterious brooding villian, but King Dedede was the original baddie of the Dreamland universe. Well, until the very next game when he gave way to Nightmare, and later Dark Matter. But that hasn't stopped King Dedede from making guest appearances in nearly ever Kirby game since his debut. He's just as important to Kirby, if not more, than Metaknight. And because of that deserves a spot in Brawl's roster. Appearance: Though his appearance has gotten a bit "nicer' since his debut, Dedede has never been seen without his trademark mallet. And aside from his "toned down" evilness, Dedede hasn't changed his look since day 1. Why mess with a classic. Moveset: Dedede's known for his hammer, his ability to float (like Kirby) and his head-....Hold on a second. Not now VGM. I'm busy. ... Okay fine. What is it? ... They what? When? ... Seriously? Okay, wait here. Well, I got beat to the punch. Apparently Nintendo's decided that I'm too big a threat and have decided they need to start one-upping my little ol' Haven. Well, I guess that pretty much renders today's update pretty pointless. Boy, I had this whole draft planned out since I posted K. Rool, and now it's all outta whack. Do I count this guy in my draft? I had wanted to put him last week, but because they didn't announce anything big I'd thought I'd spring a surprise of my own. That pushed Dedede back until sometime in November, and caused this. If anything, I get at least half-credit on the call. Oh well, I've got an ace up my sleeve for the next one. Nintendo won't be stealing my thunder again!

When in doubt, one can't go wrong with Rikku. If you want to challenge yourself, you can try he Machina Maw Dressphere. (I don't know your opinion on X-2)

If you're on the Staff radar for potential offers to Moderator, I don't think a name change will cause you to disappear. They're more talking about those who change their names as often as the software allows.

The stone at least sorta makes sense... From Wikipedia: So in it's most precious form, Opals are Red. So it matches. It's funny, because the November birth stone is a Topaz. So I don't get to have blue regardless of how I roll with my birthday.

I just figured it was a name you came up with. Why is Omi...Omicron? Where did "Kex" come from. Why did she decide to add "Husky" after Hahli?

See, now that's cool. They wrote a song about Aquarius.