Yeah. That title would confuse me too. At least maybe. See, I came up with this tweet on my Twitter¹ account a few minutes ago:

Polishing off produce while pondering and postulating pixels for a purchaser.

And it reminded me of one of the tools I use to increase my vocabulary for writing. I pick a random letter of the alphabet and try to use alliteration to create some silly sentence.² For example, if I would have wrote the tweet³ in normal English I would have said, “I’m eating fruit while thinking about the graphics I’m doing for a client.” Instead, I decided to use alliteration to make it sound funnier and/or more interesting. Alliteration is good for that. But it’s also good for “waxing your word wisdom.”⁴

Sometimes you just don’t have enough words in your head to cover the words needed for creating the alliteration. So you look to a thesaurus.⁵ While doing so, you are naturally increasing your vocabulary.

Try it for yourself. Pick a letter of the alphabet and use it to create alliteration in your comment to this post. You’ll see what I mean.

1. Make sure to follow me: http://twitter.com/Saphrym
2. Hey. I used it again!
3. Not everything must be typed of course. You could use some promotional pens to write it by hand.
4. Which means increasing your vocabulary.
5. I use thesaurus.com.

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1. I’m sorry I haven’t been around much. And no, I’m not stuck in Fallout 3. On the contrary, I haven’t played it since the post I wrote about it. I’ve been busy with the new job, college, and multiple website and graphic clients I’ve been working with. I just haven’t had enough time to work on the blog. Hopefully that will change soon. And hopefully I’ll get more sleep too.²

2. It seems that when I updated a setting in one of my plugins, it decided to mass mail everyone who has commented on my site. I’m very sorry about that and have removed the offending plugin. For those of you with Word press, the plugin is called Comment Relish. If it’s going to spam people, I’m not going to use it³.

3. I’m also sorry about causing an end to a friendship a couple of years ago. I never meant to hurt anyone.

No, I’m not in a 12 step program or anything. But I needed to apologize to my readers and the third one was for me. I’ll be back tomorrow with more posts that might actually be of interest to you guys.⁴ I’ve collected a few pictures I want to share and I have some good news.

1. There may be others, but I’m too worn out to think of them right now.
2. If I wasn’t male, I’d say I have symptoms of fibromyalgia right about now.
3. I hate spam. So I’m very sorry about this one. I’ll do my best to make sure nothing like that happens again.
4. Might is the operative word of course.

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It’s what I imagined it was. I haven’t gotten that far into it right now as I’ve been quite busy with work and home life. But still. Just playing the character creation and tutorial storyline to the game was quite amazing. The choices I made effected things around me. And the story immersed me right into the game from the very start.

I’m currently at the normal “Fallout” beginning of the game. If you’ve played the first 2, you know what I mean. It’s when that big round door² has just closed behind you and you’re out in the rad-filled world. But before that I started to feel for the characters in the game. Not just my own, but those that he grew up around. That’s a sure sign of great authors. And when a great literary piece can be experienced, rather than just read, I think that makes it even better.

Oh, and I got my first chance at V.A.T.S. It’s the “turn-based” aspect to the game. You hit the “V” on your keyboard³ and you get this neat little green aiming system. You pick a few body parts while the game is paused, hit the “E” key to tell V.A.T.S. you’re done picking, and the slow motion starts up. Your shots come slowly out of your gun⁴ and the huge cockroach goes >splat<. It was quite cool.

Now, I will say this game is not meant for children. It’s mature for a reason. So, parents, be careful about buying this for your kids. I know I would not let my daughter play it or even watch me playing it. But for the older gamer, the storyline looks likes it’s going to be great⁵ and the graphics look quite awesome. So I’ll be playing this one for a long time to come. After all, it was created by Bethesda, and their games are always epic in length.

1. Banner image comes from the official website.
2. Must have took tons of linear motion parts to make that happen.
3. I have the PC version.
4. or the bat moves slowly in your hand
5. when I have the time to play it through

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Ok. The Splenda thing is cool. Johnson and Johnson may own like half the companies out there, and people may think they’re the “devil,” but you have to admit they have some pretty cool healthcare products. I mean Splenda is a dieters dream.¹ It gives you sweet stuff without calories and carbs. So it’s also great for diabetics. And now they have this flavored water stuff that comes in lemon and raspberry. Gotta love it.²

But then you have those other two. One is a quick shower and shave thing and the other is a stress reliever. They are both geared towards women. Why? What about us guys who want our own quick shower and shave. I’d love to be able to wash my hair, bathe my body, and shave my face using the same stuff from the same bottle. I think any guy would. But no. They have to market it to ladies. Well, I’m going to try it anyway. So nyah!

And that stress reliever. Sheesh. I work at a middle school. I could use a little stress relief myself. And no, I don’t mean the kids. The kids are awesome compared to other schools I have had the, um, pleasure to work in.

The same thing happens with some books. The Uglies series is a great young adult series with action and sci-fi. But it’s marketed to girls. I have no idea why. Boys would love it to. But since it’s called “Uglies,” and has a picture of a girl on the front, guys shy away from it.

Well, here is the feminine side of me saying just because you may be a guy doesn’t mean you have to stick to only guy stuff. We’re allowed our guilty pleasures just as much as women. And other than the xBoxes, PS3s, and Guitar Heroes of the world, I see nothing wrong with using some stress relief after a quick shave in the shower to make myself feel better.

So those environmental minded people over at J & J better watch out. I might start a trend and have guys buying products geared towards women more often. Then they’ll have to make even more of it, and maybe change some packaging.³

1. At least in my opinion.
2. I’m a fan of raspberry.
3. I know. I know. The trend will never happen. This is one of those times where I’m dreaming that I have much more influence than I ever could.

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Some of my favorite quotes can be used to describe the “perfect” teacher.¹

“The mind is a terrible thing to close.” - Saphrym

Yeah. I said that one. It’s a play on the old slogan of the mind is a terrible thing to waste. But it means that we should always keep an open mind. And that goes double or even triple for teachers.

“If you capture kids’ hearts, you have their heads. If you don’t capture their hearts, you have no business messing with their heads.” - Menville Flippen

Teaching is not just about spitting out information for students to learn. Teachers are role models whether we want to be or not. Students will come to us for advice. They will want us to understand them as people. If a teacher doesn’t want that part of teaching, they should probably pick a different career.

“Know your students.”

I have no idea who said that, but it is the foundation of teaching. How can you possibly provide the best education for a student without knowing about that student? Sure, a mediocre education can be provided to just about anyone, but the best education can only be provided when the teacher knows how to teach each individual student. That requires knowledge of the student.

Those are the 3 quotes I live my life and professional life by. Of course, I’ve recently added another one to that:

“Risk more than others think is safe. Care more than others think is wise. Dream more than others think is practical. Expect more than others think is possible.” - Claude Bissell

It may be a common cadet quote, but I think it fits the teacher profession quite well too. Don’t you?

1. Although there is no such thing as a perfect teacher because there’s always more to learn.

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Risk more than others think is safe. Care more than others think is wise. Dream more than others think is practical. Expect more than others think is possible.

I know this because I recently purchased a plaque for my wife that had that saying on it. Figured it would be a great decoration on her desk. She’s now a special education teacher. So I thought the quote was quite appropriate when I saw it. That last part is especially important: “Expect more than others think is possible.”

Isn’t that what we should do as teachers? We should always expect the best from our students. And when I say that, I don’t mean they should always get 100s on their tests. What I mean is we should always expect them to do THEIR best. And we should always push them to do better. This means EVERY student. We should never give up on our students. We should never say, “Well, he’s got [insert disorder here] so he’ll never be able to [insert activity or goal here].” There are students with disabilities that have surpassed any expectations that were put on them because people believed in them and expected the best from them. What about those people without arms who paint beautiful paintings with their feet? What about the blind people who can navigate a room better than most sighted people? What about deaf people who can see things we never could see?

Students can and will meet our expectations with the right tools and dedication. So if we set those expectations low, then can we be surprised when they meet them and go no further? And those labels should have absolutely no bearing on us expecting their best. None. Nada. Zip.

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I bought this game yesterday and have played it for about 10 minutes at a time in various locations. For instance, while waiting for High School Musical 3 to start², I checked on my villagers to see how well they were building the school in their village. I also got some more research started and played a few mini games to get their progress going a little faster. All of this within a 6 or 7 minute stretch while sitting in the middle of the theater.

Mobile games are great for those few minutes here and there lifestyles. And this game lets you play something very similar to the Sims in concept any place you want. Since I have my iPhone everywhere I go, this is a great game to have. It’s definitely worth the pittance³ I paid for it. My rule is I must get at least one hour per $5.00 I spend on a game. Well, with all of the time I’ve put into this game and will put into this game, I’ll definitely get my money’s worth.

You’ve definitely got to play it if you’re a fan of the Sims and like easy to pick up and quick to play games. Check it out here:

Virtual Villagers: A New Home

1. works on unlocked cell phones also
2. Yep. Went to see it today with my wife, daughter, and friends.
3. $8.00

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²

But now Fallout 3 is coming out. If you know me, you know I’m easily bored. I constantly change games and have never really played many games all the way through. I’ve been screamed at for not finishing KoToR³. I’ve never finished leveling a character in an MMO as far as they can go.⁴ But I have completed exactly 3 games since graphical RPGs have come out. Those 3 are: Mass Effect, Fallout, and Fallout 2. So, Fallout 3 excites me. And the fact that it will be an open world done by Bethesda excites me even more.

Check out this trailer for it. It definitely shows the 50s retro style from the original 2 games that I fell in love with. Oh, and did you notice the 3 games I finished were not fantasy based games. And the only MMO I fully leveled in was a Sci-Fi? Hmmm. Sorry. Got off track. Back to the trailer that also shows the great graphics:⁵

1. like the $0.99 apps for the iPhone or the cheap WiiWare games
2. Banner image comes from the official website.
3. If you don’t know what it stands for, you won’t understand anyway
4. Well, other than Star Wars Galaxies, but that was different.
5. Although I may now have to go shopping for video cards.

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But I have kept the weight off. Considering it’s been over a year since this diet started, I think it’s actually a great thing that I’ve lost 90 pounds and kept it off. It’s gone. It’s not coming back. And I’m not going to let it.

So, no. I haven’t lost any more weight. But I’ve done something that is just as tough. I’ve kept it off. I’ve kept 90 pounds of weight away from me. And I’m quite proud of that.

1. Although I have found a few casserole recipes I like.
2. Seriously. It does. I’m only substituting for them right now because their teacher had a baby, but she will be back next week. I’m going to miss my kids. I’ve had them for over 2 months, so yes, I claim them as mine right now.

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It is impossible for any test to measure personality perfect. This is why there are general terms for people. The problem with people trying to figure out who they are on their own is some people don’t know where to start. Some people have no idea. And just the act of taking the personality tests can get a person thinking about how they feel and what they would do in certain circumstances. So, in that case, the test results are not the important part. And again, the act of reading the result and finding a little of yourself within it helps you think more and more about who you are. In no way should a personality test results be deemed perfect. It’s impossible ¹. But the act of taking it and reflecting on the results helps a person to become more aware of who they are.

Also, a personality test is sometimes false because we don’t answer truthfully or don’t realize some of the things we do. I used to use a program called Dr. Shrink with my friends. It was just a fun thing to do. It was very accurate in many cases though. But my rule was that at least 2 other people who knew you had to agree on the answers given. If nothing else, the results were more reflective of how other people see you, and that can be an enlightening journey all by itself.

Finally, I will end by saying that for a person to truly love another individual, they must love themselves first. Not in the egotistical way. Self-esteem is very important in my own opinion². But I agree that self understanding is even more so. Both lead to a fuller life.

I really do believe that personality tests can help someone to understand themselves better. But not necessarily the test itself. It’s the journey, not the destination.³

1. Almost as impossible as doing well in futures trading.
2. The other person believed it to be dangerous to have esteem in oneself.
3. Some philosopher said that, and I agree with it.

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So I decided to try it in my class. I bought a very soft ball. It kind of looks like a big golf ball but it squishes down flat on the table.¹ You could hit someone and it wouldn’t hurt. Actually, this one could probably even be played with inside a house easily.² My point is, the ball is safe. A sponge ball would work well too. You, know, like those orange ones that Nerf put out.

Now, what I do is I make all the students be quiet. Only the person with the ball can talk. So I throw it to the students I want to answer questions and such. A good side benefit of this particular method of classroom management is the fact that I also throw it to random people who might not have their hands up. What this does is makes the students pay attention to me so they don’t get hit with the ball without notice. So, now the students are paying attention, they’re having fun, and they’re answering questions. It’s hard to beat that as a classroom management tool.

1. I know this because I like to flatten it and watch it grow again. I know. I’m easily amused.
2. Of course outside is even better on sunny days. And no need for outdoor furniture covers to protect them form the ball either.

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The students will be divided into groups of 4 or 5 students. The students should be grouped in such a way that at least one creative student and one student who is not shy are in each group.

Day 1: The students will be introduced to the poems The Weary Blues by Langston Hughes¹ and Yet Do I Marvel by Countee Cullen². They will be asked to read them in their groups and try to comprehend as much as possible. Teacher lead discussion will be used to help the students understand the poems.

Day 2: The students will write a compare/contrast short essay about the two poems. One essay is due per group so they can work on this together.

Day 3: The students will use the information they learned on the first two days to rewrite both of the poems. The poems will be rewritten in such a manner that the poems still contain the same meanings that the students found but in a modern day language.

Day 4: The students will continue rewriting the poems and will also prepare for the poetry reading.

Day 5: Each group will present their custom written versions of the two poems. They will also read their comparison/contrast essay to the class.

Some notes about this assignment:

• Students should be encouraged to be as creative as possible with their rewrites of the poems. To incorporate more “modern” language, they could make the poems sound like a conversation that takes place on the Internet or use jargon that is prevalent these days.³
• Students should also be allowed to prepare for the poetry reading in a creative manner. The poetry reading should be set up to be a similar atmosphere as could be found during the Harlem Renaissance. The smoky jazz clubs are where these took place, so provide candlelight and maybe some piano jazz in the background. Dry ice could be used to create the smoky environment. The children could wear costumes that fit the time period or if that’s not feasible, maybe hats could be found to give some semblance of the era.
• The instructions are provided in a simple manner because the creativity of the teacher truly comes into play with this type of lesson. The school administration might allow this to be a presentation to the entire school. Parents could be invited and asked to dress in their Sunday best. There are many routes a teacher could take with this lesson to make it fun for the students⁴.

1. Hughes, Langston. “The Weary Blues.” Anthology of Modern American Poetry. Ed. Cary Nelson. New York: Oxford Press, 2000. 504-505.
2. Cullen, Countee. “Yet Do I Marvel.” Anthology of Modern American Poetry. Ed. Cary Nelson. New York: Oxford Press, 2000. 530-531.
3. As long as they leave out the spam language like “Leptovox” and other such nonsense found in e-mails today.
4. Or even the whole school

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One very effective way of getting the students ready to read a particular text is to get them in the “mood” for the text. Another way of putting that is to say that the context is being set for the text. For “Lord of the Flies,” a great activity that can be used for the students to get in the mood of the text is to create a “message in a bottle.” Materials for this would include “aged” paper along with some form of bottle. An example would be empty water bottles without the labels. As for the paper, it can either be aged by soaking it in dark tea and then baking it in the oven or aged paper can be purchased. The point is to provide the students with paper that could have been with them when they had a plane wreck. Have the students write a letter to whomever they choose on the paper. The topic should include what their life on the island has been like in the past week on the island, as they are to act as if they are shipwrecked on a deserted island² just like the boys are in the book. This is an effective way of setting the mood for the story and it also improves writing skills and specifically letter writing skills as the teacher will assess the writing and help the students come up with clear images of how life has been on the island.

Another technique for increasing the understanding of “Lord of the Flies” before it is read is to introduce the students to vocabulary found within the book or a specific passage in the book. For example, the following text contains words that may or may not be understood by the students:

The shore was fledged with palm trees. These stood or leaned or reclined against the light and their green feathers were a hundred feet up in the air. The ground beneath them was a bank covered with coarse grass, torn everywhere by the upheavals of fallen trees, scattered with decaying coconuts and palm saplings. Behind this was the darkness of the forest proper and the open space of the scar. Ralph stood, one hand against a grey trunk, and screwed up his eyes against the shimmering water. Out there, perhaps a mile away, the white surf flinked on a coral reef, and beyond that the open sea was dark blue. Within the irregular arc of coral the lagoon was still as a mountain lake—blue of all shades and shadowy green and purple. The beach between the palm terrace and the water was a thin stick, endless apparently, for to Ralph’s left the perspectives of palm and beach and water drew to a point at infinity; and always, almost visible, was the heat³.

Vocabulary words within the text could be “fledged,” “upheavals,” “saplings,” “flinked,” “irregular,” “apparently,” “perspectives,” and “infinity.” An excellent graphic organizer for learning vocabulary is the Personal Word List⁴. Following is an example of a Personal Word List using those words:

Students can be given that form along with the excerpt from the book and be asked to fill out the chart as best as they can. Dictionaries can be provided if necessary to fill out the optional fourth column. This will help the students understand those words when they come to them within the text. Teachers should feel free to discuss the words as much as possible and use them in more modern sentences that relate to the students in their daily lives.

Finally, another reading strategy that can be used before the book is even read is to analyze the title. This is simple to explain, but teachers are encouraged to make this activity their own so they can have some fun with the students. The title, “Lord of the Flies,” should be given to the students. They should write down the title and begin writing what they think the title means. The teacher can then ask the students to share their concepts of the meaning of the title. As the teacher and students discuss the title the teacher can help the students understand that “flies” can mean death and that “lord” can mean leader or “god.” The discussion should continue until a meaning of the title is obtained by each student. That meaning should be written down in a journal or notebook so that when the book is finished, the students can go back to their title meaning and determine if they were correct or how close they came to the actual meaning of the title before even reading the story. This strategy helps students learn to infer what a book may be about based on the title alone. In some instances this may cause confusion depending on how well the author titled their book, but in other cases, such as with “Lord of the Flies,” finding the meaning of the title or predicting that meaning can help the students understand the text more and keep them focused on the important aspects of the book.

“Lord of the Flies” may be a tough book for students to read, but when strategies for after reading and during reading are used, the students will understand the book better. However, strategies used before they even read the book are the best preparation the students can receive in order to begin understanding the book the moment they begin to read it. Using all of the categories of strategies will enable students to understand tough material better than ever before. Teachers are encouraged to use these strategies as a jumping off point. They should come up with their own that fit their own teaching styles along with what is available to them by way of materials and ideas.

1. I had a tough time with it too when I first read it.
2. Won’t be needing international credit cards there.
3. Golding, W. (1954). Lord of the Flies. New York, New York: The Putnam Publishing Group.
4. Vacca, R. T., & Vacca, J. L. (2005). Content Area Reading: Literacy and Learning Across the Curriculum. Boston, Massachusettes: Pearson Education, Inc.

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This is not a bad thing. The Sword of Truth series² is my favorite series of all time and has not been dethroned yet. The Ranger’s Apprentice series has the same kind of concepts within it. In both books there are not as many of the details you’d normally find in a high fantasy novel. What seems like magic is not really magic in most cases. And there are no “normal” fantasy races like elves and dwarfs. This helps the reader to suspend disbelief and allows you to read between the lines even more during both series.³

However, this review is about Ranger’s Apprentice. It’s about a boy who ends up being picked to be a Ranger. He didn’t expect the position and hardly welcomes it, but later he loves it. This book truly has tons of moral issues and political concepts that if the reader really pays attention, can be a huge learning experience.

Again, I highly recommend this series. It’s also a young adult series but this 34 year old loved it and can’t wait to read the rest.

1. Normally I buy the books I’m reading, but if I would have done that this summer, it would have cost a lot of money.
2. the one by Terry Goodkind
3. This won’t be a world where you can buy term life insurance on every corner, but it’s a believable world nonetheless.

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But right now, I can say I love this story. It’s tough to talk about it without giving away information, but I can say a little. It’s about a boy who finds out it’s his job to save existence. He’s able to travel between multiple realms which in some cases includes time traveling. He’s also very much like a teenager and has the same problems as a teenager but multiplied by many times because of his new responsibility. In other words, the author has made him “real” enough even in this fantasy world he’s created.²

Oh, and you may know DJ MacHale if you’re as old as I am because not only is he the author of this series, but he was also the creator of Encyclopedia Brown. So he has the necessary credentials to pull this kind of story off. And he does so quite beautifully. Each book has a great story, but where he truly shines is the interwoven nature of the story being told throughout the series. This war between “good” and “evil” is enthralling and wonderful.

I’ll sum this up by putting it to you this way: If you buy the first book, you might as well buy the other 8 that are out right now and be prepared to be as aggravated as I am that you have to wait for number 10.³

1. Which as soon as it’s out and sent to me, I’ll be pulling out my box cutter and ripping through the package.
2. Although parts of this fantasy world take place right here on earth.
3. grumble grumble

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1. still without using weight loss pills
2. although I didn’t think that was possible after walking around at 355 pounds for so long

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“Twilight” was written by Stephanie Meyer. It’s the first book in the series and it’s also going to be in theaters in November. Some people have called it the next Harry Potter. I’d have to disagree with that, but I will say that this series is worth every minute that it takes to read it.

The basic premise of this series is that a girl enters into a secret world of vampires and “werewolves.”² She shows no fear of this new world and that’s easy to see because you’re constantly in her thoughts. The author does a great job of letting the reader know the mind of the main character. Just the concept of vampires gets me interested, but her writing style kept me hooked.

My wife originally had been loaned this book by a teacher at the school we work at. She read it and started saying how good it was. I couldn’t help myself, so I started reading it. From the first chapter, I was hooked. I went through the first 3 books rather quickly. The fourth book, “Breaking Dawn,” hadn’t come out yet. As soon as it did, I had it in my possession and, well, let my wife read it first.³ Then I read it.

The fourth book is more mature than the first 3. And it’s not as action filled as the first three. However, it was the most enthralling book of the 4. In my opinion, it was a masterpiece of emotion and drama with tons of the good stuff thrown in too.

I highly recommend this series of books to anyone. For more on them, visit Stephanie’s site.

1. 47
2. No indoor lighting necessary.
3. I would have got into trouble otherwise.

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1. Sorry. Couldn’t help myself.
2. May not be as pretty as Wilmington NC real estate, but it still looks cool.

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The interface is very much like World of Warcraft, but don’t let that fool you. Although the fighting is similar to WoW², there are so many features they’ve added and tweaked that make this very unlike WoW. The public quests are quite fun. I’ve done them over and over just because it’s actually fun to be in a PUG³ in this game.⁴ The classes are all pretty much fun. I’m low level because although I’m normally a pet/ranged guy, I’ve been trying them all out. I’ve created a character for every class and am working on getting them all to 5 so I can see how they play.

The sorcerer is an extremely powerful caster. Can’t take a beating, but gets a deaggro⁵ pretty quick in the game.⁶ The mauler is cool because of the mutating arm and it’s fun to watch him slash away with it. My main, the squig herder, is also fun to play. The witch elf is kind of like the rogue from WoW when it comes to the melee damage she can do.

As for the PvE quests, they are very much like all other PvE quests in other games, however, there is a 100% drop rate, meaning you don’t have to kill thousands of them for 5 items. And everyone who kills it gets the item. Speaking of quest items…

There are many little additions to this game that make it where they have removed the tedious aspects of other games and just allowed you to have fun. For example, inventory management isn’t as bad because quest items are instantly put in a separate tab and take up no space in your main inventory. Quest areas on maps are highlighted so it’s easy to find the general vicinity of your quests.There’s a little arrow on the right of your inventory bags that lets you pick what items you prefer to go into what bags. For instance, I make it put my specific crafting materials and potions in my second bag so I know that most stuff in the first one is able to be sold or worn. The quests do not require long walks/runs so far. Everything is pretty close by⁷. And those are just a few of the little extras in the game. It’d take me another few paragraphs to talk about the loot system, which I believe to be quite nice.

When it comes to the environment, it SCREAMS Warhammer. They’ve done a great job of making it look like there’s a war going on around you no matter where you start. I’m a fan of the tabletop game, and this captures the spirit of it in many ways. Even the ground is littered with rust and bones. Many areas have constant animations providing a very living atmosphere. In the orc areas you have cannon shots raining down around you. In the elven area there are constant interactions with prisoners⁸. In the chaos area, there are cannons that shoot dead bodies. You are one of the ones who helps load them up. The world is very alive and the quests do a good job of making you fell like you’re contributing to that life.

And then there’s the RvR. I haven’t played with it much just yet, but from what I have done, it’s quite an amazing way of having PvP without the normal problems of PvP. The long queue lines for some of the instances get me aggravated, but I’ll just go do other stuff while I’m waiting and sometimes even forget I’m waiting for them. With more people joining every day, I’m betting those lines will get shorter as they match people up.

All in all, it’s been a very enjoyable experience. Will it keep me interested after that first month that comes free with the purchase of the game? I have no idea. I’m easily bored. But for now it has breathed new life into my MMO experience, at least until Stargate, Star Trek, or Champions is released, because I’ll probably try all of those too.

1. Which means you won’t need incontinence supplies to keep you going through a 24 hour session nearly as much.
2. Which is fine by me.
3. Pick-up group, meaning a party of players who just get together.
4. That may be because we’re on the RP server and because of the strict rules about it, I haven’t seen any irritating people yet.
5. An ability to make the enemies stop wanting to attack you so much.
6. I used it often against the dragon in the first dark elf PQ.
7. Other than one annoying quest in the elven lands that has you run all the way back north to turn it in.
8. That you help capture.

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The way it works is first you need to have the basic number images memorized. You will always use the same images to represent those numbers. The reason why the images listed below were chosen is because they look like or represent the numbers really well. So make sure to have the first list in your mind to begin with. Once you have them, you have them for good. I haven’t used them in a few years, yet I was still able to easily recall them for this post.

Here are the images for the numbers:

1 - A candle. Have it burn whatever the item is.
2 - A swan¹. Have it biting the item.
3 - A sideways W. Have it act like a handle on the item.
4 - A sailboat. Have the item balancing on the mast²
5 - A hand³. Have it grabbing the item.
6 - Golf club. Hit the item with it.
7 - A garden hoe. Have it chopping the item.
8 - Two links of a chain. Have the item going into and out of the links over and over.
9 - A balloon on a stick. Have the item pop the balloon.
10 - A martini⁴. Stir the martini with the item.⁵

Now, in your mind, imagine those pictures for the numbers interacting with the items you’re trying to memorize. So for example⁶:

1. Tire - The candle burns the tire. Could even mention the burning rubber.⁷
2. A book - The swan has taken a bite out of the book and is chewing it.
3. Pencils - The W is attached to the side of the pencil. But now there’s more pencils. You now have a suitcase made of pencils.
4. A computer - The computer is plugged into a socket in the sky and is balancing on the mast. It falls over and shorts out in the water.
5. A mountain - Your hand is holding the mountain. You must be a giant.
6. A water melon - The golf club hits the melon and gets embedded into it. Now you could hit a soccer ball with that club.
7. Homework - Chop up those papers like you mean it!
8. Phone - The phone has sprouted legs and is running through the links of the chain.
9. A spoon - Actually it’s now a spork so it has pointy tips and you pop the balloon with it.
10. A broom - Must be a really large martini if it requires a broom to stir it.

Now close your eyes and try and list the items in your mind. You’ll find that you remember this entire list. Not only that, but if you get someone to call out random numbers, you should be able to tell them the specific item for that number. And finally, get them to call out about 5 or 6 items/numbers, and you’ll not only be able to tell them the item or number that goes with it, but also the items and numbers they did not call from the list.

Try coming up with your own lists. Give your brain time to “forget” between lists though or you’ll end up getting them confused. Oh, and for this to be useful, you might want to make up useful lists. Works great for short shopping lists.

1. looks like one
2. the weirder, the easier to remember.
3. five fingers
4. toothpick and olive
5. Since the days of capresso machines have been around, you could also try making this the overhead view of a cup of coffee and a straw. The stirring still fits.
6. make sure to picture each of these in your mind as you read them
7. Smells are easy to remember.

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