Monday Musings

Well, I didn't complete HL2 like I had intended to over the weekend, although I'm not sure I eve had much chance to do that, considering how I digest game content. I did, however, advance to Ravenholm, one of my favorite sections during my first playthrough, so I'm definitely looking forward to that.

In my defense, I did have a lot of distractions that kept me from putting in a goodly amount of game time. My kids, for one (or two, since they're twins), justifiably garnered much of Daddy's attention. The Red Sox games on Friday and Saturday nights also ate into game time. The fact that I impulsively went out and picked up Portal cost me some advancement in HL2 also, since Portal is one of my favorite experiences in gaming. Even after convincing myself that I should wait to install Portal until after HL2 was done, I couldn't resist. In only a short half-hour of actual gaming, I found myself at the start of the 14th test chamber, and I also found myself loving the experience nearly as much as the first time through. The game plays a bit differently on the PC with mouse and keyboard than it did on the 360 with the controller, probably for the better. I'm not one of those hardcore gamers who think mouse and keyboard always beat the controller, probably because I'm not a hardcore 1st person shooter player. I enjoy my games both with a mouse and with a gamepad, but I digress. That's a topic for another day...

Going back to the Sox, I was pleased to see them earn a split in Tampa, as they didn't fare very well in the Trop during the regular season (in all fairness though, nobody did, considering the Rays' 57-24 home record). Dice-K spun a gem on Friday, which was equaled in anthesis by Josh Beckett's 4-1/3 inning, 8 run performance on Saturday. On the upside, the offense woke up on Saturday, and if the hitters can keep that momentum going in the friendly confines of Fenway, the series may not make it back to Tampa.

The Patriots came out in San Diego and got creamed by the Chargers, 30-10, which only confirmed my suspicion that this is a team that's going to be mediocre for the rest of this season. It's difficult to see this team, who have been among the best in the NFL for so long, struggle so mightily on both sides of the ball. Maybe the defense will figure things out and maybe Cassell will grow into his new role as starter, but I see more painful performances in the future.

As the blog moves forward, I hope to provide more 'feature-type' content as opposed to the off-the-cuff daily ramblings that make up the majority of the posts so far. I have some ideas to flesh out the content provided, now the onus is on me to bring them to fruition. That is something I've struggled with all my life (I'm full of great ideas, but often lack the follow through to see them to completion), and this blog is my latest attempt to break that cycle. Wish me luck as I push forward.

Enough of my ramblings. I'll be back soon, hopefully with something more structured and 'meaty'.