Cav's Place

It still reads quickly, and maybe also because I got more used to it, but it seemed better written than the first, and the number of obvious mistakes has been noticeably reduced, though for me it remains unacceptable. Otherwise, I wasn’t necessarily bothered by many things, though this again has in good part to do with the fact that I don’t care about the characters. And I know flashy action isn’t spared early on, and the bus scene at the gas station in Hungary is actually funny, and at the same time again very “real”, reconfirming this anchoring in Romanian realities, with the same odd exception of some “miles” instead of kilometers.
Still, scenes like the one from that church, or the attack that caused the crash, plus all the dead, can’t not attract attention at a level impossible to control, regardless of all the spells used. I mean, they’re not allowed to have a Facebook account and the concern about any possible witness with a phone is mentioned, but they do things that would make all the news and attract the attention of entire cities and there’s no mention of consequences. But speaking of consequences, the rape is rather troubling due to this approach that seems very common and possibly even sought after, apparently actually by women, where “don’t” becomes “don’t stop” and rage quickly turns into desire.
As for Nicol, it’s I’d say downright sickening how dumb she becomes, even if the reason is obvious. And what happens to mothers of boys was clearly specified in the first book, so it’s pointless for it to be a “surprise” in this one. But I keep returning to wondering how come she has a child, and I’m not saying this just as a militant antinatalist furious over the fact that such a main character exists, but considering that at the beginning of the first book she mentions abortions, so even if she was quite obviously bewitched to keep him, anyone else, starting with Roxana, should have realized that something’s very wrong, and maybe even exactly what.

Rating: 3/5

I can say that Thursday was my first attempt at interval training, at first aiming to push as hard as possible on sector one of lap one, sector two of lap two and sector three of lap three but realizing after that first sector that I’ll have nothing left on lap three if I do that and deciding to just alternate, the fast sector three also being on lap one, and then just struggle to make it to the end after sector two of lap two. The total time was just decent, 48:13, but sector times were 3:56, 5:01, 5:24, I think 4:35, most likely 4:42, probably 6:18, 4:42, 5:26, 6:20 and 1:49, making for lap times of 14:21, 15:35 and 16:28, so I have new records for each sector and also for one lap. Do have exact times as well, and I’m actually more certain of the hundredths than of the seconds on that second lap, so assuming the seconds are right, the exact times I saw were 48:13.71, with sector times of 3:56.20, 5:01.50, 5:23.87, 4:34.71, 4:42.35, 6:17.86, 4:41.98, 5:26.46, 6:19.45 and 1:49.33, making for lap times of 14:21.57, 15:34.92 and 16:27.89.
The issue is that I seem to remember something about 59 seconds at one point but it doesn’t fit with anything, the most likely total times between the end of sector one of lap two and the end of sector one of lap three may have caused me to get confused, as I recall them as 18:56, 23:38, 29:56 and 34:38, and I’m quite sure I didn’t calculate the time for sector three of lap two, being surprised that the total time was still under 30 minutes at that point and calculating just the time for lap two, and since that was 15:35 I ended up believing the time for that sector had been 5:35 and it obviously didn’t add up, making me even more confused. But I am quite certain of that sector two time, being a new record, and I guess I’m pretty sure of all of them in the end, but I’m just making a note of this confusion, just in case something did happen with my memory.
Either way, managed to avoid another cramp when I woke up that day, since a muscle was again about to react like that when I stretched but, after having it happen Tuesday and Wednesday, once on each leg, I managed to react just a bit faster and prevented it from happening again, which likely made quite a bit of difference during the run. Still felt a bit tired as I was starting to run, and hadn’t even eaten what I normally would before a run, but went out at 3:15 PM and it worked out quite well in the end, despite being quite exhausted after that last fast sector and just struggling to finish, resulting in that awful lap three. Probably had a couple more seconds in me on that sector two of lap two, actually, since I took a couple of steps after the start of the sector before going for it, then I think a tiny fly got right in my eye, and then a teen on a scooter actually looked straight at me as he was coming towards me, then turned his head away and turned around right in front of me, making me need to quickly avoid running into him. And since I mentioned that tiny fly, still felt something in my eye when I got back, and while I thought I washed it out at that time, when I again felt something there at night I had a look after washing well again and actually pulled a tiny fly out of there. Now I somehow doubt it was the same one, as I had noticed something flying around my room just before feeling something in my eye at night, but it was a weird moment either way.

The timed squats during this period were 2:31 yesterday, 2:34 on June 2 and I think 2:42 on June 1. And since I mentioned June 2, slept really poorly that morning. Woke up around 6:40 AM and took over an hour and a half, probably closer to two hours, to get back to sleep, but kept briefly drifting off during that time as well, yet had those dreams that made me think I was still awake yet one scary detail was different, so I was waking up again immediately and getting more and more frightened, and the sleep I did get after that period was quite restless as well. Also, speaking of sleep, two days later I was first woken up at exactly 11 AM by a call, but I didn’t answer and didn’t learn anything when I later tried to look up the number, so no idea what that was about.
Otherwise, since I’m at odds and ends, Thursday I noticed a couple of double middle clicks again, though those were the only obvious ones during this period, so it’s still not worth the trouble, and the risk, of taking it back to the store. On the other hand, on May 31 I did confirm that a process of G DATA Antivirus, AVKWCtl.exe, is responsible for those brief freezes happening every 15 minutes, but asking support didn’t produce any solution, whether for that or for the update issues I keep having. And also on May 31, but actually in its early hours, after eating at night, I saw someone ask for a cheap piece of additional content, costing $0.59, on the Community Gifting thread on the GOG.com forum and I had the equivalent of $1.08 left on the Paysafecard code still lying around, so I bought that for him and a copy of Heretic Kingdoms: The Inquisition for the Community Giveaway and cleared it out completely, the remaining balance being 0.00 RON. Had purchased that game for myself more than five years ago, for $2.99, and I’m yet to even install it, since the requirements state that it doesn’t work with integrated graphics and I didn’t even care to try to check whether that’s actually true.

As for buying stuff, Monday I woke up at 8:55 AM and was out the door one hour later, since it was no longer raining after having been rather stormy at night and the forecast stated that the break was going to end around noon. Had the metro card, so went to the Kaufland and Carrefour at Obor and got what I meant to get from there, though for the first time I didn’t see discounted, expiring stuff at that Carrefour, probably because it was early and they hadn’t gone through the shelves yet. Did use that discount code received for taking an on-line survey for Carrefour though, so I saved 10 RON that way. And then I also got some cheap apples and cabbage from that market on the way back, and returned here at 12:50 PM, quite sweaty due to having taken my jacket and the rain not returning. Felt a few drops just as I was getting back, but nothing else and it actually got sunny right after that, the weather only changing again after dark. So I left the jacket here when I went right back out to go to Auchan as well, using their free bus both ways and returning again at 2:45 PM. There was no hot water again that day, and in fact I had to wait until after I woke up on Wednesday to shower, because the site stated that it should start working again at 6 PM on Tuesday but it was only starting to get warm when I was about to go to bed, having still been cold even an hour and a half or so earlier, when I brushed my teeth.
But to return to buying stuff, went out again yesterday, leaving just as the Nadal-Federer match was starting and getting back just in time to see the last few points, in the last game. The idea was to get some spray against mold, since I really need to spray in my room again. Probably should have done it back in April or so, but now I finally asked dad to help me move the desk and he said he’ll be able to, so next week we should do that, when we’ll find a day without rain, so I’ll be able to spend the day outside after spraying, that will also work for him. The thing is that the spray we tended to use seems to have been recalled recently, apparently due to a risk of something coming off and the solution spilling on the user, and if when I checked on-line and saw it listed as available at two Auchan stores I never went to before I thought that maybe they had a new shipment which they had just distributed there first, when I got to one of them that day I saw that they only had the other kind from that brand. And since I heard the guy stocking that area tell someone else that they just did the inventory but are waiting for the manager to get back from vacation before ordering new stuff, I guess that instead of those stores getting new shipments first, they may in fact be the last ones that get updated and the information I saw was outdated. On the other hand, it may be a matter of the picture on the site being wrong, since the price was the one listed for the product I was searching for and the site didn’t actually mention the exact name of the product, so I went by the picture.
Either way, despite the fact that the kind I found is mainly for bathrooms and I think has a lower concentration but is sold at the price I expected to pay for the other one, I did get one, but also two of another kind, which is much cheaper and has a higher listed concentration… And when I got back I saw another one, of yet another kind, in the place where we keep them, so I guess dad had purchased one as well before I went there, even though I told him I was going to do that. But the bathroom is in a dreadful state as well and I’m sure there are places with plenty of mold in other rooms too, so it’s not like we won’t need them. The problem is that we keep maintaining these conditions that make mold always appear, and it’s only getting worse with just dad here, since he doesn’t care about this and continuously behaves in ways which clearly create those conditions.

Before ending this, I’ll also mention that I took the book with me yesterday, reading a chapter each way on the metro, finishing after I got off both times, since I just had a couple of pages left. Then I finished it after getting back, and in the evening also posted the quick review, in both Romanian and English on Goodreads. And I will say that I feel quite betrayed by Alma, who praised these books while she read them to the point that I got it in my mind to buy them, instead of warning me away due to one of the lead characters having a child, that child also becoming her motivation and, spoiler warning, ending up being crucial to the plot. I mean, I’m a militant antinatalist, with overpopulation as my main cause and considering having children under the current circumstances as the worst single crime anyone may commit, and on the recommendation of a friend who conveniently “forgot” to point out these “little” details I end up buying a series of books about a fucking breeder and her spawn, which series is also very well anchored in the day to day reality of Romania, so not something I can pass off as happening in another world, another time, another place, but something that, fantasy elements aside, is taking place right here and right now! Not that the books themselves, or at least this one, would be anything more than average, but this lowers my opinion of them even more and makes me quite angry at everyone involved, myself included.

At least it reads quickly, and managed not to piss me off for reasons other than the obvious, but that’s because I no longer gave a fuck about the characters. Otherwise, any other positive aspects I may mention are minor things and/or also go both ways. For example, except some “miles” instead of kilometers at one point, I recognize that it’s well anchored in Romanian realities, but perhaps too well, not only because I don’t want obvious “reality” in what I read, it’s why I read fantasy after all, but also because some things used as explanations would confuse those who haven’t lived here, or merely tore themselves away from those aspects. Or I’d say nice touch with Nicol’s Romglish, but if it’d be another language I’d complain about the lack of translation, and that also applies to that coworker’s bits of Italian.
Speaking of Nicol, I “disqualified” her completely from chapter two, for the obvious reason, and the rating is so poor in good part because that becomes the main motivation and even theme, so I have some choice words for the person who praised the books until I got it in my mind to buy them instead of warning me away from them. Otherwise, day to day things are presented in detail but the relevant action is on fast forward, including instant romance. Then, perhaps it seems to sound strange to me also because it’s extremely unusual for me to read a book by a Romanian author, in Romanian, and the verb tenses that keep seeming out of place to me may have to do with a regionalism, but at least the typos and grammar errors are obvious and some are really jarring, which is the least you’d expect to no longer find in something that’s not only not self-published, but a second edition as well. And it’s Lenore, not Leonore. And Nightwish didn’t break up at all in 2005; they just kicked one person out. And, regardless of the spell, how do you screw, roughly too, when you’re so burned, considering that this changed only after that?

Rating: 2/5

While not something to write home about, as they say, Eschalon I is a pretty nice game that was, for the most part, quite enjoyable. Despite its limitations, the most obvious being that speed can only be doubled or halved, I’m somewhat fond of this type of turn-based gameplay, there was enough to explore and do, and despite the relatively simple graphics and, for lack of a better term, structure, it was more immersive than it might seem at first glance, at least while exploring the wilderness. The music likely helps with that too.
Unfortunately, character attributes are rolled, which is awfully frustrating, and then I have to point out the annoying skill system, requiring the player to read a guide first, in order to know which skills have trainers and/or books available before putting any points into them, and which may be increased by equipment before putting too many, so the limited skill points won’t be wasted. Other issues directly affecting the gameplay would be the fact that maximum regeneration is limited to one point per turn, which doesn’t seem right, and I’d say also the way movement is handled. As for lesser annoyances, I’d list the fact that selecting spells to cast can get rather tedious once you have many and the limited container space, with only eight items per container, requiring storing items in multiple places, though at least you can do so close to places you can quick travel to. I could also mention that locks and traps are a matter of reloading until you get the right roll, but that’s all right.

Since this is the last personal post I can post at the moment while still sticking to the one remaining rule, I’ll have to put everything in it now and then maybe finally get around to throw that quick review for Eschalon here as the week’s second post. Could have gone to the book fair today instead of yesterday, instead of sitting here trying to write this, and could have even used dad’s metro card in this case, since he got back not long after I woke up anyway, but Tuesday the forecast listed storms starting Thursday afternoon, and even before I went to bed this morning it still listed them in the evening, yet it was only stormy last night, while today it was just sunny. But at least this way I can post this now and include everything in it.

To start with yesterday, with just over ten kilometers to walk to the book fair and it closing at 8 PM on that first day, as well as today and Sunday for that matter, I meant to leave no later than at 4 PM, yet it was 4:06 PM when I finally rushed out the door, actually taking my watch too, to make it easier to check the time on the way, since I had one more reason to really want to get there before 6 PM, the president launching his new book there at 6 PM, which made me think it might be somewhat harder to get in and wander around if I’ll arrive while he’ll be there. But I managed that well enough, getting in at 5:44 PM, and in fact he was late, walking in at 6:08 PM… Just when I was back at that entrance, after having taken my time glancing at that area, just to get back on the other side of that first group after 6 PM. And it was just that place in front of that entrance, on the side I had returned on, that had some stuff I could have been interested in, so I saw that, meant to start checking out what they had on the outside first, but then noticed all the cameras and reporters at the entrance and realized what was happening. Still tried to get behind them and have a look, but just then they all stepped back and I darted behind that partition, on which that store seemed to just have CDs and DVDs anyway, so not what I’d have been interested in. As a result, I was just starting to look at the books when the president and the others who were with him walked past.
After I finished looking, I marked the place on the map of the fair which I had taken at the entrance and decided to return there at the end, since I was sort of considering something, but on top of the fact that I really shouldn’t spend anything on anything not absolutely necessary now, a bug had been squashed with the single copy that was on display. Then I pretty much just wandered around, just looking at things despite obviously having no interest, and covering about a third of the area before I decided to head straight for the area at the other end, where most of the small stands are, since those tend to close early, and I did indeed see three or so already closed, with nobody there anymore, when I reached them, a few minutes after 7 PM, a few others putting things away and getting ready to close as well. However, it was in that area that I found a second point of interest, a store selling used books in English that actually took up a larger space than the others around it. Nothing particularly interesting there at that time, but I could have considered a few titles and the prices were good, so I marked that place on the map as well. Then continued the other way, to cover the remaining area, finding another potentially interesting place but it wasn’t even enough to mark it on the map, then getting to the place where the president had launched his book well after the event had ended and finding it quite deserted, and then needing to rush through the remaining area, in fact including some of the biggest publishers, since it was getting late. But, of course, I’d have no interest in what those publish anyway, so I just got back to that first store’s area at 7:50 PM, had another look, decided against getting anything and was out at 7:55 PM.
Didn’t care to push myself so hard on the way back, and also spent a couple of minutes at the toilet at the exit of Herastrau Park, first waiting for it to finish the cleaning cycle after the previous person and then just going in to wash my hands, since they felt rather sticky for some reason. So I was back at 9:45 PM, after over 20 km walked there and back, and probably around 25 in total, counting all that wandering around inside… And then, while making a salad, I “managed” to cut my finger in the top of the salt shaker as I was trying to unscrew it, and it’s actually quite a cut. But, either way, ate and then also showered at night, before going to bed.

That long walk was actually right after another one I took the day before, when I also again noticed no visits recorded, in either view. Woke up around 11 AM then and at first meant to try to get back to sleep, but the noise from the HDD got my attention, decided to go to the toilet too, also put some meat left by dad in the kitchen on a plate, since blood was pooling under it, then since I heard those noises again I decided to check what was going on. Not that I figured anything out, but since I’m seeing a pretty clear pattern, looking at the HDD LED, I’m thinking it’s possible that it has to do with G DATA Antivirus, since ever since installing it there are frequent moments when the computer seems too busy to respond for a couple of seconds, and I noticed a spike in CPU use from one of its processes for no obvious reason when I happened to have Task Manager open at one point. It’s hard to check everything at once and at the right time to confirm it, but at the moment that seems most likely, so I’m trying not to worry about it. I’ll be getting rid of this when the trial expires anyway, since it’s not a good enough option this time around either, and I’ll see what happens then.
Getting back to that morning, since I was at the computer, I decided to install and start Regions of Ruin, which I had actually asked for after seeing it among the available games on the Community Giveaway on the GOG.com forum on May 26. Received the code that evening as well, before midnight, but it was well after midnight when I redeemed it, so I’ll say I actually got it on May 27, and I’m actually playing it a bit. Meant to read the first of those Romanian books this week, and have the quick review for it as the week’s second post, but guess I’ll be using that time, and likely more, to play this instead.
Either way, eventually decided to give sleep another chance and got back in bed at 12:35 PM, only managing to nap a bit before finally getting up at 2 PM. Then, around 3:55 PM, I went out for the second attempt to get that failed LED tube back to the store, taking the plastic out as well. And this time around I did get there well enough, at 5:15 PM, without getting lost again, and the matter was sorted out very quickly and simply. I mean, I obviously had the receipt with me and expected them to take it and tell me I should come back some time later, or at best that they’ll send a replacement some time later, but instead they replaced it on the spot and didn’t even look at the receipt. I went in, said I had a problem and was searching for the word to describe what happened to the tube when the guy who was there helpfully asked whether it had “deceased”, saying that it happens when I confirmed it. Then one of the women just took it away and a bit later just came back with another. Did hear the guy say that it was less than 10 RON, and indeed I saw that it was on sale for 9.50 RON ($2.23 or €2.00) at the time, but I wasn’t really listening to what they were saying to each other, so I’m not sure what he was replying to. So I was quite surprised, asked whether that was it, then just thanked them and came back, getting here just before 6:45 PM. And yes, it works just fine. Would sure be nice if all warranty problems would be handled like that… But, speaking of that, I still dread the prospect of needing to take my mouse to be fixed, since Saturday there were obvious double clicks on the middle button again. Really comes and goes though, so I’m still waiting at the moment.

I mentioned above that it was the second attempt to take that LED tube there because the first had been last Thursday and that went badly. After all, the rule is that the shortest route is the one you know, but I saw that I could walk about one kilometer less if I got off the metro three stops later and decided to try that, even if the amount of time the train needed to cover that distance meant that I’ll actually gain very little time, and the fact that doing so required taking one train instead of either of the two meant that I could even end up losing time, if I’d have had to wait for it. So I got off at that stop, but didn’t realize that it had three exits, two of them on the side I needed to walk out on, and the one I actually needed to use was hidden behind something when I looked around, so I used the other and after that it was obvious that my mental map could no longer apply, and by the time I finally got back there and saw which exit I should have taken, it was 5:25 PM and too late.
I left at 3:50 PM, taking out the plastic and metal, and since after reaching that station I didn’t see that other exit or the map, which was also hidden behind something, I just went straight out… And in the wrong direction. I mean, in what would have been the wrong direction if I’d have used the right exit, but as it was it actually would have allowed me to go the right way if I’d have realized it. However, when I noticed that I reached the exit from the other side, I realized I was going in the wrong direction and turned around on the spot, while if I’d have turned left I’d have ended up going the right way, only losing a few minutes. As it was, I just kept going until I finally reached a major intersection, which definitely seemed to be the one close to that bigger Carrefour, but I just ignored what I was seeing and kept following my mental map, getting a bit lost on the streets that I ended up on and eventually returning to confirm that I had indeed reached that intersection, and the metro station that’s there. I tried to check a map on my phone but obviously couldn’t get any to load, looked for signs but saw none that made sense, went to that metro station to look for a map of the city but there was none, and then, instead of taking the metro from there and getting back to cut my losses, I decided to walk back to the metro station I had gotten off at in the first place, to try to figure out what was really happening. And that did help, as otherwise I wouldn’t have known what to do Tuesday.
What made things worse was that we still had no hot water, and I hadn’t showered after running, two days earlier, either, since that’s when it had been turned off, so I felt just soiled and said I’ll heat some while eating that night and wash that way if it won’t get back by then. However, in part because the pressure had returned as I ate and the site stated that it was “starting up”, and in part because my mother pissed me off by throwing out some glass jars and bottles which I was actually still trying to persuade myself to try to offer to someone, and which are either way among the things I just want to dispose of myself and in a particular way, just because I want to, and I didn’t feel like going through all that trouble anyway as a result, I decided to give up on that idea, hoping I’ll find hot water when I’ll wake up, possibly just to pee, and be able to shower properly then… Which still wasn’t the case. What we got, and paid, as hot water that following day was just a few degrees above the cold one, probably due to the pipes being insulated, but I nevertheless used it to quickly wash below the waist, my underarms and arms… Only to see that the problem was finally sorted out a few hours later. Didn’t wash again then though, instead doing so the next day.

Since I mentioned last week’s run, this week’s was Monday, and the time was 47:53, with sector times of 4:18, 4:55, 5:43, 4:24, 4:58, 5:55, 4:35, 5:13, 6:07 and 1:45, making for lap times of 14:56, 15:17 and 15:55. And since I have the exact times I saw as well, those were 47:53.27, with sector times of 4:18.13, 4:55.01, 5:43.68, 4:23.59, 4:58.22, 5:55.12, 4:34.56, 5:13.53, 6:06.43 and actually 1:45.00, making for lap times of 14:56.82, 15:16.93 and 15:54.52. That was an awful lap three, but to stay under 48 minutes when I pretty much just decided on the spot to run, unprepared and after having barely slept the previous day, I’ll take it. I mean, had just eaten an apple and something sweet, not the usual stuff I eat before a run, not even the tea I drank was what I tend to make when I run, but with dad saying he’ll only be able to give me his metro card, to take that LED tube to the store, the next day, the book fair starting Wednesday and storms supposed to start today, it seemed to be the only chance, so I decided on the toilet, when it was already past 4 PM, to go then, being out the door at 4:40 PM. Expected worse wind and more people, but there were just a few places where the wind was something of an issue, mainly on lap two and the first part of lap three, and there weren’t that many people either.

As for Sunday, with dad supposed to get back a bit before 7 AM and my mother still here at the time and, as usual, not sleeping, she was saying they’ll go vote right then, at 7 AM, as soon as the stations open… And while I somehow didn’t wake up when he came in, I did wake up when they left, and then they got back after a bit, he left again, I guess to buy something, she did something in the kitchen, then he got back and he was in the kitchen for a while, and by the time they both went to their rooms and it got quiet, it was after 8 AM and I hadn’t been able to get back to sleep. Wondered whether I should stay in bed and keep trying to sleep, but that seemed like just a waste of time at the moment, so by 8:30 AM I was up, took those bottles and cans I just came back with after finding what I needed and turning around before reaching Auchan a month earlier and a part of the others which had gathered since then, and left for Auchan a few minutes before 9 AM, also taking out some old magazines and a couple of cardboard boxes my mother had set aside.
Walked, and was there at 9:35 AM, but somebody was using the recycling machine, which at least was working. However, she had a lot of stuff and filled it, so she then had to call someone to empty it and wait, and after having waited around the corner until then, inside, at that point I went around, going out through another exit and returning to wait in a spot from where I could keep an eye on that spot without standing there behind her, to know when my turn will come, which only happened at 10:05 AM. Not that those machines give even what little they used to give, considering those changes in legislation, the discount received now dropping from 0.05 RON per bottle and 0.03 RON per can, as it used to be at Auchan, though elsewhere it seemed to be 0.04 RON each, to just 0.02 RON each.
Either way, just got some bread for these days, seeing that they had increased the price for that yet again, from 6 RON / kg to 6.80 RON / kg, then got back with the 10:55 AM free bus, and after dropping off the bread I took the rest of the paper out and went to vote as well, getting there at 11:20 AM and being back out just before 11:40 AM. It was odd to see a line, and just when I was getting there an older man told others he met at the gate that there was quite a line inside and he’ll try again later, and they turned around and left as well, and as I was waiting an older woman said she won’t wait like that and also left, but I just had to wait for some 15 minutes, so I definitely don’t see why that’d be a problem. It’s not like it was what some of those living abroad had to go through, with some even waiting for ten hours only to be sent away at the end of the day…