Working it

Some weeks ago, I quit doing masonry. Between the disregard for masks, misgendering, verbal abuse, and one instance of getting grabbed by the neck, I didn't feel safe. I've probably complained here before about that job, but this year it finally got worse than the pay's worth.

Last week, I started work as a visiting paraeducator - substitute teacher's assistant, in deprecated terms. One teacher commented that it comes naturally to me. I wouldn't mind making a career out of this.

I have also been constructing a wood overhang with my parents in their yard. It has the same issues as masonry, but no physical confrontations yet. The project won't last long enough to wear me down entirely. Staining the wood has been the most enjoyable part of the project; I get to do it alone while listening to punk and riot bands on my phone, and there's no loud machinery to hurt my ears.

Being paid isn't important to me. I'm not sure accomplishment is too powerful a motivator either. I just like feeling safe while I work. I'm praying that you're safe too.

Show me there's still hope

On Friday night, I decided to play a videogame that you're very familiar with. It's been sitting in my library for some years now, and on Friday I spent the night on my PS3 with Final Fantasy XIII.

Within the last few days, I've been exploring each chapter blindly and thoroughly, but typically not for as long as that first night. So I'm not halfway through the game, not even at a point where I can pick my party members and leader. But for all the "gets good 20 hours in" I've heard around YouTube, I already find myself invested.

The battle system makes such large leaps away from the installment before, which we played some of together. Even the ATB system is different from what I recall. The multiple actions per turn took adjustment. Starting with Slow ATB fill helped me to understand how this and later mechanics work. Paradigms have taken me several chapters to really get, and I wouldn't call myself a master of them at this point.

I never knew the story of FFXIII. Again, YouTubers made it seem like it would be indecipherable without reading the datalogs. I find that, so far, it just takes watching cutscenes. Event datalogs are just narrative descriptions of the cutscenes, and they're well-employed in load screens to remind returning players where we've gotten. Many of the quips and one-sided chats that the party spouts offer great insight into the characters and their relationships.

The English voice acting is kind of wonky at places, but for the most part I like it. I have a hypothesis about the way Fang and Vanille talk, and I'm eager to see if it's right. Sazh in particular has a great voice actor, even if the lines can get silly. A point of ridicule would be Lightning's, "Get out of my house," during an argument with Snow. Instantly diffused the moment for me.

Speaking of Snow! Snow did nothing wrong. He and Serah deserve each other. I ship it! I wonder what the name of that ship is.

I'm less enthusiastic about what the game has thus far insinuated about Sazh and Vanille.... I was suspicious that Sazh may harbor unrequited attractions toward her. As their relationship has progressed though, I've come to think it's the reverse. I could be projecting on her though, because Sazh is honestly a pretty charming dad, even with the pessimism and gloom.

Lastly, nobody told me that these people have Personas! I know we weren't into the Persona series, buuut still. Winning them over and using them makes me giddy. Well, I rarely summon them since I'm so whelmed by paradigm shifts, abilities, and statuses that I neglect to scroll into the techniques. Surely they'll get better use from me in future chapters.

Since there's not much work to do, and I've got a lot of fight in me to work out, I'll definitely be picking up the game again tomorrow. I want to stay up with it on Friday again. There will be at least two more entries here about this game, I assure you. I'm grateful that my time with you has influenced me to play this game, yes even a decade late. Take care, and keep going!

Whoa sick

The world has been struggling with a viral pandemic since the turn of the decade. Governments and people are either doing very little too late or entirely overreacting. Authoritarian California is shooting at the feet, going as far as to essentially make all public loitering a misdemeanor. It's not worth poking the bear on this, since lives are actually at stake.

For weeks, I've been taking several precautions short of hoarding. I want to delay the spread of this coronavirus to my housemates, or avoid it entirely. One of them inundates himself for hours, twice daily, with coronavirus news. This obsession concerns me, since anxiety rattles the immune system.

Many are taking this time to call and write out to loved ones. As you can see, so am I. Wherever you are, I pray that you're keeping safe from the virus. Please be healthy, be happy, and keep going with a level head.