The Great Hurricane Iselle Adventure

While life has become much better since the events of the recent Hurricane Iselle some two weeks ago, last week I wanted to put up a blogpoast talking about my experiences regarding the matter. As I am as of this writing still internetless since the Great Hurricane of August 8th, it is only now that I have been able to find a computer terminal with internet that can put together a poast of this magnitude. So, with minimal edits and commentary (all in red), I can finally present to you the Great Hurricane Iselle Adventure. ~teh_chris, Aug 22

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So, it's been a while here at Traditionally Virtual, and I bet you're all just chomping at the bit to read more dreck quality poastings. With this knowledge firmly in hand, I have decided to descend from upon my mountain of silence to give to you, my readers, what you've all been waiting for. A poast.

As those who have been following the past week of US news already know, the Big Island of Hawaii had been hit with a category 1 hurricane, known by its name "Iselle". Being that I actually live in the affected region, and because I'm waiting for Hawaiian Telcom to grant me the privilege of using it's fabled fantastic telecommunications service #alwayson, I've decided on writing about my limited experiences here in the Puna district within Hawaii County, State of Hawaii during the Great Hurricane 2014. For those who are looking for a personal record of the power of nature alongside the coming together of a community in need, you may want to just look on Facebook or walk over to the Pahoa Fire Station. For those looking for a humorous yet mostly true account of a real event, full of snark, irritation, and other First World Problems, read look no further.

Thanks, HawaiianTel!~

Without further ado: a short, day by day account.

Wednesday

The Wednesday before the hurricane, I go out and help with the gathering of supplies -- water, paper towels, paper plates. I even took the opportunity to renew my IDs at the public safety building, since they were on the verge of expiration. All of the things purchased were at normal amounts, and not like those crazy people I see on facebook with a veritable truckloads of bottled water being assholes and hoarding that shit. Just restocking our normal supply, since we were expecting some wind, but nothing too bad. I go about my day, downplaying the hurricane with friends and family, as I know the past couple either missed us, or did so little by the time it hit that I couldn't be bothered about it.

Thursday

The day was festive. Downplaying the seriousness with clanmates and other friends on teamspeak, I even went so far as to change my name to "teh_chris [>implying hurricane]" on Steam. I played games as usual and I got to taste the last bit of internet before the storm came on time at around 6p. Heralded with a couple of power losses over the next couple of hours, the power struggled to stay on until it finally went out and stayed out at 8:30p. We stayed up for a short while, listening to the howling of the wind as it smacked down tons of brittle albezia trees, which would continue well into the night. With the reasonable knowledge that the power should be up by morning (so we thought), I decide on calling it a night, and my family and I all hit the bed by around 9pm or slightly thereafter.

Friday statuses after the storm.

Friday

Friday was the worst. Before the batteries on all my electrical devices died, I was able to get this short faecbook status out. We also got a phone call from my grandmother, which I found amazing, due to all the damage the storm caused. We haven't had a call since. Dozens of destroyed power poles, and ruined telephone wires meant that it felt like repairs would be weeks away. By the time nightfall came, we were wondering about the state of the food in the refrigerator. This "oh shit" sentiment would continue until the power returned the next day. The cool thing about it was I got to see my family do stuff I never thought we'd ever do again. Play board games, for instance. I haven't played a board game with my family for probably 5 years or so. It was weird. But we came together, and had a blast.

Saturday's statuses.

Saturday

The day of the Primary Election was one of general sadness. Due to the massage damage all around the area, I was still unable to leave my house and therefore unable to exercise my right to vote at that time. My family went to survey the neighborhood, leaving me to watch the property. At around 3, the power returned, which brought general feelings of gratitude and calm to the house.

Yes, that is Dynasty Warriors 4 on the PC. You jealous?

Thank god for cell phone towers, right?

Sunday and Beyond

With having power but no internet, I was forced to return to a pre-internet world, in which I regress to my adolescent days of not having internet. What better way of doing this than to play my number one three favorite PS2 game of all time, Dynasty Warriors 4? Thankfully, a port for the PC was developed, and I put my copy to good use, since I can't go on the internet and hang out with people. I have since also been able to watch anime again, and have but a considerable dent in my backlog, knocking out entire shows in one day. I also found my old Command and Conquer Zero Hour CDs and have moved to the church of GLA Stealth, a faction whose feel is much like piloting a tier 1 deck in Modern -- stupid and almost un-fun. For a couple of days I lost cell phone service, and I almost went crazy when I couldn't even check my faecbook. It taught me a lot about how connected we are and just how much we rely on technology.

Reflection

I've thought about it for some time (like, fifteen minutes), and I put together a tentative pros/cons of my experience:

Pros:
-Family came together for like two days. Seriously. That's huge for a family like mine.
-It pays to have friends, who knows where they'd be years down the road.
-Made me much more aware of how much we rely on electricity.
-I got to sleep at much earlier times than I normally do. And I'm going to try to keep it that way, because it's Healthier™.
-I didn't have to eat nasty-ass cold cuts. (No really, I'm sick of Cotto Salami and Velveeta. It's all my family eats nowadays.)
-In the grand scheme of things, this wasn't nearly as bad as the experience of living in really bad areas (looking at you, Middle East, and you too, West Africa).
-I was able to knock out a few anime on my backlog that I've been dragging my feet over. More on that in a later blogpost.
-I got to write something because I felt like venting.


Cons:
-My dad's arowana died. I sort of liked that fish, and I'm very sad it's dead.
-Good bye, DickerMax.
-I have been proven yet again just how bad HawaiianTel's service really is. HELCO got their shit together in like a day, and explained themselves. What's your excuse?
-Thanks to the hurricane, I got screwed out of not just voting in the primary election, but also working at the polls - an activity I enjoy. No Scott Nago, your first plan to send everyone an absentee ballot was smarter -- this new plan basically screws me out of voting, never mind working. Thanks. Luckily, everything should be back to normal for the General Election. Actually, I was able to vote in the makeup election that happened a week later. Due to me being unable to contact the Election's Office, I still wasn't able to work at the polls. Whatever. It's the small victories, right? I'll be back for the General.

-I realize just how badly I utilize my time. For example, here's what I've done in the past week:

Taiga is like the best anime tracking program ever.

Yuan Zheng undertakes the Great Chinese Crusade of 203.

Funny thing is, I was playing as USA Lazer.

I'm mean, god damn. I can't wait for the fall semester to start up again, because I feel like I'm wasting everyone's time - including my own.

Looking Ahead

Don't get me wrong, there are still communities to this day that are still without power, internet, even basic running water due to their inaccessibility to the main power grid. I applaud the efforts of HELCO to return everyone back to the grid. I also want to throw a shout-out to the folks from the other islands that sent repair crews to help our guys. Big mahalos there. Also shout-out to County Councilman Greg Ilagan, a guy I've known for about as long as our families have been friends here -- his hosted free breakfast, lunch, and dinner for a week after the storm hit, all out of his humble home within Paradise Park for anyone who could make it there.

My own experience was very light compared to some of the other people living in Paradise Park and the greater Puna area. I know of friends who have literally received power yesterday. I also know of friends who weren't affected at all (lucky bastards). There are still some who need ice for their food and medicines, and others who need water. This is only one story in the Iselle experience, and I wanted to share it for those interested.

Pappy's Home

It's good to be "back".

Happy belated New Years, from Traditionally Virtual to what's left of you, the readers.

So, for the record, it's not like I left you. It's more like I neglected you.

You see, I had planned on there being more blogposts involving top ten lists, album reviews, complaints spirited discussion about gaming (both traditional and virtual), and a host of other interesting and insightful content that I felt had the potential to not only be interesting, but be entertaining. Instead, real life reared its ugly head, and this blogproject fell to the wayside. Hard. There were points where I had forgotten this had existed. And suddenly I realized it was May of 2014, on a relatively sunny, breezy day and I had the sudden desire to blog again.

As for my absence, I have nothing more to say but sorry.

With all that said, I've come into a patch of relatively free time, and I plan on using it to the fullest. I have big plans for the blog, and I'm going to be writing up a review on an album given to me for review. I'm pretty excited as it's an opportunity to train my ears critically as well as write in a genre that I'm not very good at. It's a band a friend of mine is in, and so this is an opportunity to plug the talent that I'm honored to know.

~

So, it's been a couple of years since the last post, and while a lot has happened, a lot more is on it's way. Hopefully I'll be able to share more experiences with you all.

It took so long for me to blog, Sabaton put out a new album.

Oh, and a new Sabaton album is out. That's right, during the time I was away, a new Sabaton album had been researched, recorded, produced, and released in the time between this and the last post.

The Year is Dead, Long Live the Year!

Happy New Year!

Yes, we didn't die this year. Rejoice.

My goodness, it's another year. From multiple reports of the end of the world being nigh, to the controversial presidential election, to me being unable to do anything with online video games except for World of Tanks and Dota 2, I'll go ahead and say it was a good year, albeit rough. A new year brings a new set of resolutions that will most likely be broken before January is over. In an attempt to abide by my "do more blagspot blagging and not that tumboor/faecbook trash", as well as attempt to do a better job than last year, here is  "Best of 2012" blagpost. Enjoy.

Best of 2012 - Gaming

[haha noep]

As I said earlier, this year was rather rough for me regarding video gaming. Hell, I couldn't even sit through this year's Call of Duty, and I always find time to play that piece of garbage. I'll most definitely try to finish it, so I can ramble about it in a future blagpost. World of Tanks continues to enthrall me, and while I've been tempted to throw down cash for some gold/premium tanks, I still have yet to do some. Yay for FTP games, I guess.

As far as Traditional Games go, Magic The Gathering's Return to Ravnica block was a return to the "fun" in what I felt was becoming a very stale Standard environment. Now, all we need is Thragtusk to go away, and I might start playing Standard again. Maybe. On the board game front, I bought Munchkin, which is awesome, as well as some other board games. Talisman caught my eye, and is an amazing addition to anyone's collection of board games.

Best of 2012 - Music

A selection from my notes.txt file that I do all this in.

A challenge that I personally undertook this year was to actually list albums that I listened to that were released this year. This (I hoped) was to assist in my "Best of Year X" posts that I now do. Without further ado, here is my top 5 for music for 2012. All of these albums are 5/5 stars for me, and are honestly ranked by my personal preference. I would recommend any and all of them to anyone willing to try them out. The link in the header is a link to the entire album in YouTube, while the links at the end of each section are selections from the album, also in YouTube.

5. Paradise Lost - Tragic Idol

Badass album art? Check.

Paradise Lost's thirteenth release, released in April, showed that after thirteen albums, the British doom group still has the ability to make an album that is enjoyable. Excellent solos, great lyrics and vocals. An all around great album. Highlights: Crucify, In This We Dwell, Tragic Idol, Worth Fighting For

 4. Antimatter - Fear of A Unique Identity

Embracing a lie/Got stuck on rewind/Requiem in constant replay

We continue our tour of the UK with Antimatter's fifth debut album, released in November. Singer/songwriter Mick Moss describes the album as "a concept album that explores the mimics in society that would rather blend in with the masses rather than stand as a unique entity for fear of being singled out. This becomes a problem if the masses themselves are actually on the wrong path spiritually and ideologically." Personally, I haven't enjoyed an Antimatter album since Planetary Confinement, and this had the same ambiance about it, just.... darker. And that's why this makes my top five. Highlights: Fear of A Unique Identity, Here Come the Men, Uniformed & Black

3.  Syven - Corpus Christi

36:26. In one track. Wish it was longer.

My love for the kantele brings me to the newest release by the Finnish duo Syven. Inspired by an old English carol, Syven creates a symphony of sorts, blending their unique shamanistic music with what they felt was a proper interpretation of Medieval-era choral music. Personally, I think it's genius. The piece is loosely broken up into four movements, one of them being the actual Corpus Christi carol. The song also comes with a sweet video which is meant to be viewed as you listen to the track (this is included in the YouTube link listed above). Highlight: Movement II - Corpus Christi (6:50 -13:20)

2. Sabaton - Carolus Rex (SWE)

To the skiiiies, see Carolus rise!

As is customary when dealing with unadulterated manliness like the 2012 Sabaton album, you need to understand something that made this release different from the others: they did the entire album in their native Swedish as well. And it's better than the English version. It's an excellent telling of the story of King Karl XII, better known as Carolus Rex. As such, I put both complete versions of selections above and below for you to listen/compare. Highlights: The Lion From the North (Lejonet från Norden), A Lifetime of War (En Livstid I Krig), Carolus Rex (Carolus Rex), Poltava (Poltava) 

Album of the Year 2012: Woods of Ypres - Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light

One of the best swansongs I've ever heard.

To be perfectly honest, I had a very difficult time choosing my Album of the Year. Even now, I'm still thinking about whether or not I made the correct decision in declaring Woods of Ypres' final album to be my AotY 2012. This album was -as most WoY albums are- full of emotions. Walls of emotions even. The band died when David Gold was killed in a tragic car accident in November of 2011, and the album was released in Feburary of 2012. As I would go through other albums, and even when Carolus Rex was released, I would find myself coming back to this album. Strange, yes. I guess this ability to draw one back to it is the tipping point that would put Woods V over Carolus Rex for Album of the Year. Highlights: Lighting & Snow, Keeper of the Ledger, Travelling Alone, Silver, Career Suicide (Is Not Real Suicide)

Honorable Mentions:

Comus - Out of the Coma
Kamelot - Silverthorn

Arjen Anthony Lucassen - Lost in the New Real

What Next?

Next post will feature another Top Five list from 2012. A medium that I haven't really covered at all on this blag before, but I figure why not? So I will have a Top Five list covering what I feel to be the Top 5 Anime from 2012. Yes, I'm expanding my topic coverage because I'm awesome.

It's been a while, I know.

Yeah, it's been awhile. So what?

Summer is here, which means I have more time to discuss important issues that pertain to the content of this blog. Namely, the new music I've listened to from this year, as well as video game/card game experiences I've had over the past few months.

Stay tuned to Traditionally Virtual as I whine about things that annoy me! Or, as I talk on and on about things I enjoy!

For now, enjoy this new lyric video from Nuclear Blast featuring a song from Sabaton's new album: Carolus Rex, due some time this month.

GSC Game World Closes Doors?

Dead? Seriously?

A troubling bit of information hits me right as I begin finals week for my university classes. Apparently, Ukrainian based GSC Game World has been abruptly shut down today, and all of its employees have been let go.

Sadly, this appears to be not rumor, but truth, as posted by Joe Mullin, GSC's social media manager.

GSC themselves have not commented on the issue, but will do so on Monday, according to their own official twitter.

When more information becomes available, it will be reported here for the readership to view on their own.

Changin' Things About Stuff

Hit me up on last.fm
http://www.last.fm/user/DivNecZL

In the interest of continuing this blag, and so as to find more stuff to write about, I have decided to add music to the list of topics I discuss on this blog. I figure writing about albums I enjoy might help breathe new life into this thing, since I've had writer's block for some time now. When I listen to a new (to me) album that's worth talking about, I'll throw it up here for your perusal.

Also: note the new box in the sidebar listing the last 5 new albums I've listened to. Pretty neat, I'd think.



Hopefully this means I'll write more QUALITY content for you, the readership.

Cheers,

The Management.

Spotlight: Upcoming Releases

I've felt ways about many different upcoming video games, but a few of them stand out as ones that I am actively trying to acquire to play. Here are just a few of them:

1. Assassin's Creed: Revelations

With the final installment of the Ezio Auditore da Firenze story arc taking place in this game, and the connections between Ezio and Altair (along with the game taking place around the old Masyaf fortress), I'm sure Revelations will bring some of the best story driven gameplay that Ubisoft brought to the table with the earlier Ezio games.

Also, that E3 trailer with Woodkid's Iron playing in the background. Incredible.

2. Red Orchestra 2 - Heroes of Stalingrad

With the game close to release, I still want to put in a word or two about the newest game by Tripwire Interactive. Their first game (and the first game in this series), Red Orchestra - Ostfront '41-45 is still one of the most widely played and popular first person shooters online. I can't say enough about how incredible this game will be. I've come to place Tripwire at about the same level as VALVe in some respects, with their ability to really listen to the community and include features that not only make gameplay challenging but also exciting. Also, every single game you guys have made (bar The Ball) has been awesome. Keep up the good work.

3. Warhammer 40000: Space Marine

Relic Entertainment is known for bringing the Warhammer 40000 universe to life, most notably through the last two Dawn of War sequences (Dawn of War, Winter Assault, Dark Crusade, Soulstorm and Dawn of War II, Chaos Rising, Retribution). Having done more than enough real time strategy games, Space Marine is an action adventure shooter much in the same vein as Gears of War. While I usually wouldn't care for a game like Gears of War, I personally enjoy the Warhammer 40k universe and always look for ways to do things within it.

Just keep Matt Ward away from it, and I'll be fine.

4. Defense of the Ancients 2

People who know me in real life would probably raise an eyebrow at this next one. I have for the most part been against DoTA and it's other MOBA spinoffs (mainly League of Legends and Heroes of Newerth) finding them to be dull, unentertaining and for the most part, unfun. Having recently seen what VALVe has done to this new version of the popular WarCraft III custom map in conjunction with the DoTA team has made me take a fresh look at this game. As of this writing, VALVe is hosting a tournament with a $1 million prize and the game is still in beta. If VALVe has the confidence to host such a tourney, then I should be a bit more open-minded and give this game another try.

5. Path of Exile

I recently got into the closed beta of this game, and I like what I'm seeing with it. Path of Exile is an Action RPG in the vein of Diablo I and II which is being developed by Grinding Gear Games. As of right now, the game has 5 different character classes, and spans across 2 different Acts. The game will launch as a free to play title and will be constantly updated with new content.

6. Saints Row The Third

For the sandbox GTA category, I have decided on Saint's Row III. Why? Well, Saint's Row is about awesome. It's a million times better than GTA and I loved Saint's Row II. That's about all I need to say about this awesome game.

7. Dead Island

In the horror genre, Dead Island stands out as a real competitor. The game takes place on a resort island that has fallen to what is basically a zombie infection. Your character must try to survive on this resort hellhole.

8. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

To be clear: I'm not buying this game. I'm going to acquire it to play single player. I've put too much time into this ass backwards story (starting with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, then going full retard in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2), and I'm going to see this damn thing through. Activision can go screw itself, for all I care.

And finally:

9. Diabl- LOL JUST KIDDING

The more I look and hear about the newest installment of one of the best RPG's I've played ever, the more I want to weep. Between the art style getting shat on by that Warcraft influence that StarCraft II also suffers from, to the recent reports of Blizzard removing single player and LAN functionality, along with the money grubbing auction house bullshit that reeks of Bobby Kotick, I'm going to skip Diablo III. Granted, I'll acquire a means to play it on my own. I'm just not going to spend $60 dollars like I did with StarCraft II. Talk about buyers remorse. Instead:

9. Torchlight II

I'm buying Torchlight II. It's literally done by all the old members of Blizzard North (makers of all those classic Blizzard games that came out before World of WarCraft and it's ilk.). This essentially makes it the spiritual successor to Diablo II and Lord of Destruction. I'm also buying it as a big "FUCK YOU TOO" to Blizzard, who has really betrayed my trust as of late.