Last Wednesday I was out all day pretty much. I went to three malls in a single day heheh... I went to Shoppesville in Greenhills to get the CDs that didn't work on my PC exchanged for others that did work, then I passed through Megamall from Greenhills just to ride the MRT. At the Megamall I played a couple of games of Ez2Dancer then I left. When I got off the MRT, it was already raining hard, which was good for me, except for the fact that most people are afraid of a little water, and started wussing around trying not to get wet when they're already wet anyway. o_o It's about 200-300 or so meters from the MRT station to the entrance of SM North, so I struggled with people hopping over puddles and staying away from drips in the rooves of the waiting sheds and covered sidewalks, etc.

Anyway let's start with details from Greenhills. What I got in exchange for the Rainbow Six game I bought last week, which didn't work on my PC because my video card was "not supported", was Medal of Honor: Allied Assault. Good thing MoH:AA specifically supports my video card. The game's great fun too. I'm around halfway through the single-player missions, though I'm only playing it in the easiest mode because I'm not used to the controls and the feel of the game (being too much of a Day of Defeat veteran).

I wasn't at the Megamall long enough for anything particularly eventful to happen, so let's skip to SM North. I went to SM North for one thing in particular: a chance to play Pump It Up. PIU is a dance game by Andamiro, a Korean company. It has five steps, set up in an X formation, so there are two steps at the front, two in the back, and one in the middle. The game features an impressive 130+ songs, though the genre selection is somewhat limited (for instance, they don't have any pure techno songs; they have a lot of KPop and a few hip-hop, some R&B, some rock/metal, etc.). Still, the songs that they do have are pretty good. I remember a lot of the songs, especially the more recent ones, such as HOT by 1Tym. Even though my first encounter with a PIU machine was about three years ago, back at the two-peso arcade in Kamuning, which is sadly closed now, I never really played it. So I'm still learning the ropes of the game, but as many of the players are Korean, I'm picking up a lot of moves already. And I can also apply the moves to Ez2Dancer. Oh how I wish though that Amuseworld would update Ez2Dancer, and add more songs. ~_~ They went on full-time with Ez2Dj, which is doing very well. But I want to have more variety in Ez2Dancer, because I can practically do all of the songs in Ez2Dancer already.

As I'm typing this, I'm downloading freestyle videos. Just like combo videos are useful to fighting gamers, freestyle videos are useful to dance gamers. So I can learn more moves, and practice them, which I should've done earlier today but forgot to because of MoH:AA.

Finally, the weather is annoying. It's hot in the mornings to the afternoon, then it'll rain for a bit in the late afternoon or evening, then it'll stop. The heat and humidity in the mornings are in the extremes, and it becomes cold suddenly for with the rain. I think we'll get sick from the temperature changes alone. I pray that doesn't happen.

I finally went to Greenhills, thanks to God. I went there alone, because mom was busy and Abby had class. I went looking for a trench coat, or any kind of longcoat. It's safe to say that I was fairly disappointed. I did find a lot of coats for women, and only one for men that I really liked. It was black and everything. It had a removable padding inside, which was what kept it warm (and dry from rain; it's waterproofed). If you remove it, the trench coat is very cool, as in ventilated-like, and not hot as many would expect from such a coat. The drawback was, though, that it's P6,500, which is a bit too high for me. Okay a lot too high. I was expecting it to be expensive but not that much.

- edit (12:21 PM): Bah. Right after I wrote this entry, I tried to play it, and it said that my video card isn't supported. Hubbawha?! Nowhere on the system requirements did they say anything about video cards, not even in the readme and the FAQs. Bleh. It looks like I'll have to return the game for replacement.

And since I didn't see anything that I could buy there, I'll ask around a bit more (because I may have just looked in the wrong place, as my friends said there should be one really cheap), but if I don't find anything, I'll just buy fabric and get a tailor to make me one.

From Greenhills though, I bought a bunch of stuff, including a copy of Rainbow Six: Raven Shield. Wahaha. I think the Rainbow Six series is still the best FPS/tactical game on the market, but that's a biased opinion, since I have fond memories of playing this game once (Rainbow Six: Rogue Spear), back when I was in high school! And the memory goes like this: I was playing for the whole night until the morning, then I went out to take a walk in the cool 5 AM air, then I didn't sleep much at all because that morning, we had to go somewhere (I think it was Greenhills, hahaha!). Being made by a novelist ensures the game a thrilling feel, without having anything supernatural or whatnot. I really felt the tension as I waited for several minutes as an armed sentry was walking about two yards in front of me, and I was unarmed, hiding in the bushes, holding a bug to tap the phone in one of the rooms in the estate of a suspected criminal! Good grief that was fun. What's better is that this time around, we're on a network, and we can play the multiplayer games now.

The NBA 2005 Finals series between San Antonio and Detroit is going interestingly. So far, all games either team's home court ended up in a blow out in favor of the home team (In San Antonio, game 1 was 69-84 and game 2 was 76-97; in Detroit, game 3 was 79-96). Could it be that the home crowd is the real advantage? Anyway they were criticizing Detroit's performance in games 1 and 2, and I agree that they were a little sloppy. But my friends and I talked about how Detroit could win, and it has at least a small bit to do with Ben Wallace's performance as an individual. Ben Wallace in game 3 got 15 points (in 7/10 FG), 11 rebounds, 5 blocks and 3 steals. In game 1 Ben only had 5 points and 7 rebounds, and in game 2 he only had 9 points and 8 rebounds, 1 block and 0 steals! Defensively in game 3, they held Tim Duncan only to 14 points and Ginobili to just 7! If the trend follows suit, game 4 might go Detroit's way as well, if the Spurs don't take control. Personally I want to see a close game at least once in this series. I don't want to think that the two teams are mismatched, because they're both defensive teams with nice, deep line-ups.

Finally, since I bought Abby her needed software (Microsoft Office and Adobe Photoshop), she spent most of the night backing up her files and looking for the drivers she needs, because she plans to format her PC soon. Maybe tomorrow, I dunno. Finally, we'll be rid of that stupid virus that has plagued her PC for months and months now.

I'll begin my post with a random rant. I was at the Megamall today, as I usually am, and I went to the foodcourt, like I usually do. Sitting there, near the kiddie rides, I noticed a little boy, probably around 3 or 4 years old, standing next to a ride in the shape of Yoshi, the dinosaur, with Mario riding in the back (behind where the children are supposed to sit).

Nothing wrong with this scene, then the child exclaims, "Daddy dinosaur! Roaaar!!!"

What the kid said wasn't wrong, because it's true that Yoshi is a dinosaur... of sorts. Well he was supposed to be one. They even gave him the title of "- the dinosaur" just to be sure that you wouldn't think he's some kind of enlarged iguana or komodo dragon.

But what really saddened me is the fact that the boy did not know who Yoshi was. In fact, I'm pretty sure none of the kids there know who Yoshi is, up to the kids that are about 10 years old probably. Why, I remember back when Mario was the biggest thing in console gaming. Every kid knew who he was, and Yoshi made his popularity jump even greater, because it was a dinosaur. For crying out loud, everybody loved dinosaurs back then! And this was only about a dozen years ago or so.

The Yoshi franchise has quickly vanished, and only a few traces and a less-extravagant-than-expected games could be seen featuring him. It's kinda sad. I bet people that grew up with Pong and Space Invaders may be thinking the same thing. Well, not really, since strange people like me still know about Pong, even if I'm not old enough to have grown up with them. The pioneers of gaming will probably always be known among real gamers.

Ah anyway enough of that tomfoolery. o_o Time for some NBA news! As expected, Detroit defeated Miami, in a game 7 that went at Detroit's pace all the way. But it scares me to know that even if Miami was playing with an injured starting 5, they still weren't blown out. Wade is a really scary person, and what's even scarier about him is that he isn't a loudmouth; so he quietly gets his MVP-quality stats and performances. I've always had great respect for Miami, even back in the days of Tim Hardaway. They're eliminated already this year, but their future is really bright. Maybe next year, Zo?

Anyway, game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Pistons and the Spurs begins on Friday morning here (Thursday Night in America). I can't wait. Personally, the Spurs have an upper hand because of their established offense, nevermind the fact that they're a superb defensive team. But the Pistons are getting better offensively too. Rasheed Wallace can shoot anywhere, up to the 3-pt line and a bit beyond. So he's scary. Ben Wallace has been experimenting on some jump shooters himself. Chauncy Billups is a frightening 3-pt and freethrow shooter, one of the most accurate in the league in both categories. Rip Hamilton reminds me (and so many other people) of Reggie Miller, except that Rip is better at the drive and Reggie is better at the jump shot. Anyway, I think the whole series will depend on how San Antonio wants to play it: Will they go with an offensive or defensive style?

Next, I wanted to try to play VF4. I haven't touched the game since VF1 about 10 years ago. The game looks great now, compared to previous versions (obviously). I've decided I'm going to learn how to play it, though I wish it were emulated already, so I can learn at home and not have to waste money on learning tokens. >_<

Finally, in my "Read the Bible in a Year" course, I came upon the 23rd Psalm, which I remember memorizing and reciting as a kid, during my Kindergarten graduation. It's one of my favorite Bible passages of all time.

From the New King James Version of the Bible, just like I recited it back then:
¹The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
²He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
³He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name's sake.
⁴Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
⁵You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.

I went home early after Sunday worship for the first time since I started going to CCF. o_o Right after the service, we took a taxi straight home, while mom went on to her work. It feels a little weird and simultaneously refreshing.

The Spurs already beat Phoenix days ago. It was a bit inevitable really. The depth of San Antonio's team really showed. I think they're an even better team this year than they were when they won championships, except that they had David Robinson then.

Meanwhile, Detroit won game 6 in a huge 91-66 blowout, as probably everyone expected. The entire starting lineup of Miami is injured somehow. And without those guys performing at their best (and completely without Wade), Detroit really stomps on them. Now the series shifts to the final game to be played in Miami, which will be the real deciding game. If the Miami lineup is still out of shape for game 7, it looks like Detroit could win it easily.

Ah, Jzone. I was actually thinking of hopping out of the Jzone scene already myself, because I'm getting old. I'm past college age already; I'm almost too old for Soul Stop already. But it looks like God had different plans for me, as he gave me a small d-group to head every Saturday. It's actually Juancho's d-group, split up. He had too many members and they had to disperse to maximize the break-out experience for each member. I tell you, I feel even older when I look at some of the kids there in Jzone. One of the boys in my d-group, Tom, is only in 5th grade. He's literally half my age. The other kids are obviously good kids, but I forget to establish an important rule: no talking while others are talking. Anyway, with God's grace, I'll be able to handle the group properly, and we can all grow together spiritually.

Tomorrow, Monday, we'll be going to Greenhills. Good grief it's been a long time since we went to [and stopped in] Greenhills. o_o We're going tomorrow for some random shopping at the Viramall, which we haven't done in years (last time we were there we didn't go to the Viramall; we went to look for a Bluetooth connection, IIRC).

I also updated the Gospel FAQ with a few adjustments. You might not even notice them if you've read the FAQ already before. If you've read it and you learned something from it, share the URL with friends and even acquaintances, or even people you don't know.

Lastly, I'm back into CPS2, NEOGEO and other arcade emulation. I was already into this before, as I was a sprite-ripper, making sprites to be used by MUGEN character makers. Now I'm only into the emulation for practice lol. I get the games I want to learn to play, so that when I play at the arcade I can maximize my playing time and enjoyment.