I’m on a weird kick of late.  Case in point, I wanted to go bowling.

I come from a low income background, and bowling was a relatively cheap activity that could be done all year round.  I make no allusions – my perception of bowling relates to those days and the neighborhood I was in.  It feels regressive.  But it’s also a fun activity.

Interestingly, a good friend of mine also likes bowling.  Our families were able to get a lane for 10 pins, with 3 adults and 4 small kids (5,5,7,7).  We also went to a local pizza joint that’s pretty famous in our town.  (Side note, pizza does not agree with my stomach.  It does agree with my mouth.)

There’s something to be said of 4 squirts rolling a giant ball at slower-than-walking pace down a lane – and ending up with a spare.  The entire place was super dingy, but that really is part of the charm I guess.  Just like the pizza place, there’s something to be said about nostalgia and taking a small step back.  It hit the right notes, but I am also aware that trying the same activity again in a week or a month won’t have the same effect.  I guess I’ll wait a year or two before trying again.

Summer is Over

Seriously.  The whole North East seems to be getting a late snow kicking.  We missed the snowfall and instead received a quarter inch of freezing rain.  Fun enough to roll down the windows and punch out the ice… but oh so painful to be scraping it off the windshield.  If I recall, Toronto had >1200 accidents on the weekend alone.

Climate isn’t weather though.  We had an extremely mild February, and an ice cold March.  I am a bit curious as to how the late spring / early summer will work out given this overall lack of trends.

Then again, I’m glad I don’t live in Wisconsin.  That is some messed up weather.

Ancient Egypt

Perhaps that’s the draw for AC:O.  Egypt on a projection screen gives a certain illusion of warmth.  Sure looks more comfortable than here!

I think I figured the dip in progress.  The early game (say level 6 to 15) is a mess due to lack of options to level.  Once you find Aya, a large portion of  the game opens up and experience is found everywhere.  That and the patrolling uber-guards that can take you out in a few swings, with little effort.

The next post will talk about the game’s itemization and combat mechanics.  Still trying to get a good handle on it.