Category Archives: non-wow

meta-wow, non-wow

Art, Life, and the End of the World

15 Comments

I want to thank the huge response my art commissions announcement got. It was so huge, in fact, that it warrants this second announcement, which is basically to say that if you are still waiting on your art, don’t worry, you’re in a queue.

You guys are lifesavers though, really.

In further good news I have secured myself a job… it’s part time, and seasonal, and a long drive away, but it’s something and I’m desperately hoping that it will turn into something more stable.

For being my faithful readers who have been here through thick and thin, you deserve nothing less than the truth, and the truth is as such: my personal life has been in pretty dire straights for about a year now. I won’t go into excruciating detail but suffice to say that anytime things start to pick up, they immediately take a nosedive again. Over the course of the last year, I’ve lost my apartment, lost my job, had to move to a remote corner of the world far from all my friends, watched my family fall apart, and been slammed with medical bills that I cannot pay. Really the only stability I’ve had, aside from the glorious escapism of writing, has been my online friends, including World of Warcraft and the various social networks I’ve made there, the blogging and Twitter community in particular.

I’m telling you all of this partly so you know what’s going on, and partly to explain the constant yo-yo “I’m hiatusing! I’m back for good! I’m not back for good!” etc. that has been happening here over the last several months.

And I’ll come right out and say it: I probably can’t afford Cataclysm. That’s fine; World of Warcraft is the first thing to get dropped in the priority queue any time crap hits the fan (which has been happening a lot lately) which is why I’ve been a dedicated “weekend casual” for a while now. I can scrape up enough for month-long subscriptions every now and again and I look forward to leveling a gnome priest and probably a tauren… paladin, I’m thinking. And so long as I am doing that, I will continue to blog as I can. I can’t guarantee a set schedule or theme, but I’ll still be posting. Not just for you guys, but for me. Because I love doing this.

Welp, that’s that. Much love for all, and see you when the world explodes <3

non-wow

AFK. No, I mean, REALLY AFK

22 Comments

There are rumors on the internets that I’m returning to Aspect of the Hare full-time.

And you know what, I’d love to do that.

It’ll be different. At the moment I lack both the time and interest to raid or really play “hardcore” or provide hunter guides. However, I had a lot of fun writing, say, the food post and I’d like to do more “fun” stuff like that, a few times a week, if possible.

Unfortunately this is going to have to wait a bit. See, due to a REALLY long and convoluted series of events I am moving to the west coast (Western Washington to be specific.) I am doing so, uh… *checks watch*… in under twenty-four hours. I also had to quit my job. And I haven’t been able to find a new one yet. (Which has me absolutely terrified, by the way.) So these next few weeks will involve the following: throwing things into a truck, driving 600 miles west, unpacking, and frantically job-hunting because I have bills and crap due in a few weeks.

I’m telling you all of this primarily because I feel bad about repeatedly getting everyone’s hopes up about the return of the Prodigal Pike which is inevitably followed by me not really delivering. But this is what’s going on, so now you know.

TLDR: I’d love to come back but gimme some time to make sure I can actually afford food and stuff.

Much <3 to my most dedicated readers.

non-wow

Merry Christmas From BabyPike

7 Comments

Long, long ago, in a galaxy far away, there was a BabyPike.

BabyPike had a computer.

BabyPike was playing on this thing before she could talk. If you opened up her “Baby Book” you could find a spot for “Baby’s Favorite Games”, and instead of “Patty-Cake” or “Peek-a-Boo”, it said things like “Dig-Dug, Donkey Kong, and Pac-Man”.

It also said “Christmas Game”. That one might not be so recognizable. See, “Christmas Game” wasn’t actually a game. I just called it that (when I finally put down the joystick long enough to start talking.) “Christmas Game” was actually a technical demo for the Commodore 64 and I loved it and would watch it over and over. I think it was because Frosty the Snowman dances at the end. (I distinctly remember that being my favorite part.)

Merry Christmas! <3 And NEVER FORGET: THE COMMODORE 64 64K MEMORY 16 COLORS HI-RES GRAPHICS SPRITE ANIMATION SOUND SYNTHESIS CP/M OPTION THE PERFECT HOLIDAY GIFT ONLY $595!

non-wow, photos

Ever Wonder What It Would Be Like to Live in Northrend?

30 Comments

Today was my day off. I was going to go do errands and grocery shopping and stuff, but then I looked out my window and saw this:

WheresPikesCar

I know it’s hard to believe, but under that big pile of snow? That would be my car. AKA “Epic Geekmobile” (the upgrade from my last car, the normal “Geekmobile”, may it rest in pieces), AKA “Nautilus“.

So I promptly changed my mind about the errands business and decided to stay home. I’ve got oatmeal and ramen and Transformers fruit snacks and Dr. Pepper; I can hold out a bit.

Then I remembered I have to go to work at 6am tomorrow. So I went outside to survey the damage and realized I couldn’t even get to my car.

Fortunately, I have relatives with shovels:

PikesCar1

PikesCar2

Slowly but surely…

PikesCar3

Somehow, the front of my car turned into a wall o’ snow. You can see the shovel and one of my front tires for size comparison.

But look guys! We’ve found buried treasure!

PikesCar5

Bwahaha!!

The snow has– finally– started to let up a bit, so here’s hoping tomorrow morning doesn’t have it back at Square One. Now, about those non-plowed, 5:30am roads… /shudders

FAQ (Frequently Anticipated Questions): Pike, where in the gorram world do you live? Right heah. And I say we redirect “Storm Peaks” to it. Since clearly this series of pictures is depicting my new mount there.

fun, non-wow, screenshots

The Worst Boss In the History of Video Games…

12 Comments

…isn’t Ragnaros, and it isn’t C’thun, and it isn’t Algalon, and it isn’t Illidan, and it isn’t Hogger.

It isn’t Ganondorf.

It isn’t Psycho Mantis.

It isn’t Sephiroth or Kefka.

It isn’t the Elite Four.

It isn’t Bowser, or Dr. Robotnik, or Dr. Wily.

It isn’t the Z-shaped block in Tetris.

It isn’t Donkey Kong.

It isn’t the ghosts in Pac-Man.

…

…

…

MineBoss

It’s THAT STUPID MINE BOSS.

/blames Deathwing

non-wow

Can't Buy Me Blogging

19 Comments

As a warning, this post is not really WoW related so much as it is sort of “a state of the blog” related so if you’re looking for WoW guides and the like it won’t hurt my feelings if ya skip this one.

Basically some stuff has been going on with me RL-wise and as it may have the potential to affect my blogging it seemed appropriate to mention it here.

Without either beating around the bush or turning this into some sort of sob story– between a job that has been cutting back my hours as much as they can while still technically keeping me “full time” and various other strokes of misfortune, I am not exactly doing well financially at the moment. I am, yes, still playing WoW– although the temptation to temporarily cancel my account in the name of financial tightness is sometimes strong, on the other hand I refuse to let a crappy economy and some bad luck destroy something which I’ve really enjoyed doing– playing and blogging about a video game. Why yes, I am a stubborn fool.

Anyways, now on to the point. Right now, since the hunt for a new full-time job is going rather dismally, and the chances of me ever getting paid to blog are somewhere between a decimal point and a bunch of zeros, the smartest thing for me to do would probably be to get a second job or invest in the forex market at an online trading platform. If this were to happen I fear it would pretty much mean game over for WoW and for the blog. See, I’m one of those weirdos who has never had access to a computer at work (in fact, it’s still a foreign concept for me), so all of my blogging/researching/reading other blogs goes on at home. As does all my other home-related stuff like, you know, spending quality time with my friends or with The Significant Other, or making sure my apartment isn’t a (complete) disaster area. If my “home time” dwindles, as it would if I got a second job, then unfortunately WoW and the blog, as much as I love them, would be rather low on the totem pole and I couldn’t guarantee I’d get it any time for them at all. And since I am the aforementioned stubborn fool I refuse to let this happen.

Which brings us to the “good news” portion of this post, which is that I am going to start doing art commissions. Yes, I am going to try doing that as a “second job”. It would net me more control over my schedule and more “home time”– busy home time, but still, home time. Hopefully enough to continue to allow me to blog and play the game that powers my blog. And it’d be rather enjoyable work, to boot. More details on this will come later after I’ve finished up some projects I’d like to finish up before jumping into this; so it’s not officially underway. But! Soon.

Another thing– I have in the past had people suggest to me that I put up some sort of donation button on my blog to help offset site costs and WoW subscriptions. For several months my pride has prevented me from doing this. However, I think now is probably a good time to swallow my pride so there is now a PayPal “Donate” button on my about page. I don’t plan on hawking it or mentioning it again because I don’t want anyone to feel pressured into donating, but it is there.

So, there you have it. My crazy plans for a last-ditch effort to maintain blog quality while still keeping microwave pizzas on the table. Er, computer desk. Obviously if things take a turn for the worse then I will have to suck it up and put the blog on hiatus for a while. But I figured it was worth it to exhaust other possibilities before getting to that point– you’re not getting rid of me that easily. =P

non-wow

An Ode to Pike's First Love

13 Comments

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…

Before WoW and before hunters…

…there was Starcraft.

Oh how I played this game way back in the day, not long after it first came out. Oh how I played it to death. I knew it like the back of my hand. Units? Memorized. Tech tree? Yup. Don’t ask me to pick my favorite race, either. I love ’em all to pieces. I can extol the virtues of each one.

My playstyle really depended on my mood. Sometimes I would feel “hardcore” and I’d go sit and play Terran on The Lost Temple over and over, carefully trying to improve my micromanagement skills.

Then I’d say “screw it” and go start an eight-player Free for All on Big Game Hunters, make some 150 Hydralisks, and go on a rampage. First base down… second base down… third base down… hey I’m bored, let’s make some Guardians. *evil laugh*

The units all said the best things, especially if you clicked on them multiple times. Oh the hero units would get all ticked at you, and Artanis would tell you vehemently that “This isn’t Warcraft in Space!” and insist that “it’s much more sophisticated!”, but then there was the Battlecruiser who would say “I’ve reeeeally got to go… Number One”; the Science Vessel’s “E=MC…d’oh let me get my notepad”; and the Corsair’s “Zefram Cochrane, is that you?”

Perhaps the great thing about the game, aside from its sky-high replay value, was that each of the races was perfectly balanced. That’s not hyperbole either. So each game was a surprise because each game could go any way.

Well, as was inevitable, the StarCraft obsession eventually faded away, until I just recently decided to pop in that ol’ scratchy CD-ROM for the first time in a long time. Ahh the memories came flooding back and I was reminded just how great of a game it was. Truly one of the all-time greats and one of the few games that has ever gripped me the way it did. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time held me under its firm spell for a while, as did Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, Halo, and some of the earlier Pokémon games. (Oh, and Banjo-Kazooie, please tell me some of you guys played that one.) I also made a valiant attempt to get into DotA but I was never very good at it (although I got to a point where I was decent enough with the Netherdrake) so that phase didn’t last very long.

But Starcraft was somethin’ else, and I’m sure there are at least a few of you out there who understand.

Good game, Blizz.

Good game.

non-wow

I am alive!

3 Comments

I apologize for my lack of updates these past few days. I’ve been a bit busy and had some stuff going on. A couple days ago I went and had allergy testing done because I’ve been having some allergy issues and I figured it was about time I did something about it. The good news is– the hunter is not allergic to animals! The hunter is, however, allergic to the wild outdoors, as apparently I am severely allergic to all grasses, weeds, and molds.

This condition necessitates the need for me to take extra precautions while considering contacting Aqua Lock for any mold removal. I also recently discovered a hidden mold problem in my home, and I’m relieved to have hired a professional Mold Cleanup Toms River service to thoroughly address and resolve the issue.

I’m having further testing done to determine whether I’m allergic to anything else aside from the basics. Lemme tell you though, I’m actually finding myself wishing Aspect of the Wild could be used in real life. I could use some nature resistance against those level 72 elite bales of Timothy Hay that like to crit me when I’m feeding my guinea pigs.

I’m also a little behind in my blog-reading, so if I respond to one of your posts a few days late, well, that’s just me tryin’ to catch up!

Anyways, I have a few different post ideas planned for the near future and oh, I suppose I do have one little tiny thing of importance happening this Saturday, March 8.

I’ll give ya a hint. It starts with a K.

/grin