Getting My Ducks in a Row
I got my flight itinerary for my big trip to the left coast in a couple of weeks. It's pretty much the exact same flight I took when I went to interview last month, and leaves at a time which I think will be very convenient. Although I continue to be rather nervous about getting all my proverbial ducks in a row to make this trip, obstacles seem almost to be melting away as I approach each one. Now if only it stays that way until I'm settled in my new place...
(Aside: Comics Buyer's Guide columnist Mark Evanier has written a couple of columns about "unfinanced entrepreneurs" - the guys who call you up if you have talent and tell you about their sure-fire can't-miss get-filthy-rich idea, which will net you both buckets of money "if only you can write a few plot synopses" or "dash off a few drawings", and who scream bloody murder if you actually suggest that you be paid for your efforts, or mention the word "contract". Anyway, Evanier says that the only time he ever hears someone seriously use the phrase "getting my ducks in a row" is from these flim-flam men. Which of course guaranteed the moment he said it that I'd start using it myself once in a while, because my brain picks up on weird concepts like that. Sheesh!)
(And often I want to protect things that have value to me but not much commercial value. I want to protect them because I like them, and sometimes because they'd be hard to replace. Often items are hard to find not just because supply is low, but also because demand is low, so stores aren't interested in stocking them.)
I also got to pet Kim and Kathi's five cats. After I'd been there a while, all five of them - even the two fairly shy ones - were happy to come out and see me. One cat thoroughly licked my hand all over!
While I was there, Kim was using a laptop he'd borrowed to dial up and play Ultima Online, which looked fairly fun, or - at least - something I could easily envision myself wasting large amounts of time on - if, of course, there were a version of the client available for the Mac.
This reminds me of the entries that Ceej and Diane have written about playing Clan Lord, which apparently is available for the Mac. Maybe when I get settled in my new locale I'll look into it.
(Or maybe I'd be better off not.)
Plus, another friend of mine is working at a game company where they're making another on-line game, which I think is not even in beta yet. But I think he said it won't be Mac-friendly, either.
I do have some fondness for Ultima, though. I remember playing Ultima II with my friend Rob in junior high, and although it was rather silly in many ways, it was quite cool in many other ways. I played the next two games, too, which added additional complexity and which still in my mind stand out as pretty neat game systems. But then the traitorous curs at Origin Systems abandoned the Apple platform and I haven't played one since. Grr.
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