Improvement?

I think matters are improving. It takes an hour of sitting upright before I start feeling really cruddy, rather than 5 minutes. This is improvement. Yay. Hating having to take the antibiotics, though. Pooh on antibiotics. Well, not literally. That would be weird and gross.

I'm bored. Too tired and achy to do much, but bored all the same. I think work would be preferable. Yeah, really. Anything's better than sitting around the house and not be able to do anything productive because you're just too fragged. And frankly, schlepping in front of the TV is not my idea of a good time. I want to go out and do something. Actually, I want to go out to GAME and pick up a copy of Sim City 4, which I understand is on sale and I would like to have the classic version so I can make Sims 2 neighbourhoods. (I'd get Rush Hour too, which is bundled with the Deluxe set, but frankly I'm not interested in Sim City except as a Sims 2 adjunct, and Rush Hour has a lot of options that Sims 2 can't use, so 'Classic' is best. And on sale.)

But everything hurts and I'm tired and generally grumpy, so I'm not sure I can manage leaving the house today. I feel like such a wuss. Feh.

Three Questions

1) Many thanks to pknight. She informed me in a comment on my last entry that Amazon was having some kind of problem getting Affils Player's Guides or something. We have emailed Lightning Source, the printer / publishers, who say that there's no reason they can see why it should have happened and they are going to email Amazon and find out what the problem is. It's entirely possible that it's just Amazon having yet another case of the spazzes (as it often seems to), but in the meantime, we have pointed pknight to Barnes and Noble. Hopefully some news that isn't just "WTF? I'll talk to Amazon" will be forthcoming. Bah. I don't know how many people on my friends list actually bought a hard copy through Amazon or anywhere else, but if any of you did, could you please let me know if you had any problems?

2) The alternate-to-Mage-Sunday game shall be Changeling. More details forthcoming soon, but suffice it to say that players should be Seelie. First session (which will probably be entirely prelude and any further character gen that needs doing) will be on 19th March. Can I please have a roll call of those who will be participating?

3) Still waiting on confirmation of my Galliard-auspice Glass Walker for The Hollow City. We're stuck on a minor point about Dex at the moment. A question for y'all: Character starts doing gymnastics and martial arts at age 8, takes up ballet at age 10. Keeps all three activities up through high school, adding cheerleading to the mix. Leaves home and high school at 17 after First Change, travels the country, fights various agents of the Wyrm, keeps in training and pole-dances at strip clubs to make ends meet. How is Dex 5 "not in keeping with the character concept"? I know it seems a little extreme, but the rules did say that Attributes could be raised above 4 with Freebies, and Dex, as can be seen in the background info, would be the one place at which this character would likely be phenomenal. And yet the STs say it's "not in keeping with the character concept". I'm also having minor problems with the whole "We don't generally let people have Attributes at 5 when they start": see above about how the rules say that Attributes can be raised above 4 with Freebies, which is what I did and paid through the nose for it. I'm curious; does it seem that unreasonable?

New Sims 2 Stuff!

And finally, the next Sims 2 expansion pack (Open for Business) comes out on Friday. I have been looking forward to this one but of course, being me, I haven't been paying the remotest bit of attention so it's come as a bit of a surprise. If I didn't check Mod the Sims 2 so often, I might not have known about it at all until next time I was in GAME or something.

Now, of course, this makes me think about my budget and the need to make Spending Guilt as painless as humanly possible. I am mindful of the things I need to replace, mostly in the field of essential oils. Patchouli and marjoram, mainly; I used those up (except for some Boots crap patchouli I bought when I was a little less choosy about where my oils came from) making a bottle of oils for dodgyhoodoo's preferred bath foam mix. I've kind of given up on the sandalwood, because no one seems to have much at the minute and apparently dodgyhoodoo got evils when he asked for it at Neal's Yard the once. As for Watkins, which is where I prefer to buy my oils, the spot for sandalwood is just empty and I'm kind of afraid to ask - at this point, I'm considering getting a lump of sandalwood for burning (they do sell it there) and trying to make my own. I'm not much of a fan (actually, I'm not much of a fan of patchouli either) but dodgyhoodoo likes it.

Anyway, what I'm saying is that there are expenses, and those expenses will make Spending Guilt an issue, particularly when I'm being gouged by Transport for London on a monthly basis. So Sim City is going to have to go on the "to be purchased next payday" list, along with more memory for the Frankenbox and another iTunes music card. At least there's a plan. Plans are good. Plans make Spending Guilt less of an issue.

I wish it were out RightNowThisMinute, though; I'm so bored. Still ill and tired and achy (but less achy), though. Then again, if I'm still feeling crappy and unable to attend l0stmarbles' anniversary do on Friday night, I'll have something to keep me company while everybody parties without me. Then again, I'm a little trepidatious about the anniversary do, mainly because since I'm on antibiotics, I can't drink, and it's always distressing to me when the occasion contains drinking and I can't indulge. (I don't mind if it's because I don't want to, but not being able to sucks rocks.)

However, come hell or high water, I'm going to the Saturday Pagan con thing. Well, not literally, but you know what I mean.