Evening Entry: One Azerothians old Content is another Azerothians Stranglethorn Sunset! Blaugust Entry #8

Welcome Muffett and Tuffette to Azeroth!

After several days of trying to match our schedules , my mother and I finally had the opportunity to log in together for the first time and create new characters in World of Warcraft together! She has been playing her baby hunter on Borean Tundra on her own but we still wanted to have some characters to play together when time allows. It also makes it easier for her to learn when someone is walking her through stuff.

We had a bit of a rough start because she misplaced her password and didn't know there was a box asking if it was "OK for Blizzard to make changes to her computer" for the patch updates.  LOL! It took about an hour of troubleshooting over the phone until I finally figured out why her battlenet launcher kept saying, " Initializing" .  I did not realize how many things come first nature for me in regards to the entire process of playing world of Warcraft. There are a lot of things I take for granted! You do not realize how much of the game is "trial and error" and research based until you are trying to teach someone who has never played Warcraft, an MMORPG or even a video game in the last 30 years. The last game my mom had played was Frogger on my parents Atari and a very brief stint of Super Mario Brothers that ended after running Mario into the first gap in the ground and dieing OVER AND OVER ! She did it at least 15 times in a row and made my sister and I want to pee ourselves so very badly! Now, after years of hearing me talk about it on my podcast, at family gatherings, and with friends, she decided to give World Of Warcraft whirl. ! Ha! It was hilarious to say the least and I was truly happy and humbled to be joined by her in game. She knows I have played for 8 years, but I don't think she every knew why, until the other night...

We are Role playing as little Gnome Sisters on an RP Server

and

We are rolling WARRIORS! RAWR!

I think one of the things that brought her the most laughs was the ability to emote! The first thing I did to her in game was run up and do the /chicken. Here is a handy list of emotes you can do in Warcraft if you want to broaden your emote abilities!

 She got a huge kick out of the /dance emote because lets be honest, these new gnome models are totally adorable and even more so when they are dancing. It felt really good to hear her laugh the way she did . It had been quite a while since she got to really get a chuckle out of something. Everyday is rough for us as we make our way through the fog and different stages of emotions that grieving brings. There is something about being able to touch in with your child like side that completely outshines any darkness the adult world can bring you. I think that is what gaming offers many of us. That opportunity to fly in a world where we are without wings. It is a world where you can stand side by side with others just like you to conquer horrendous beasts instead of lowering your head as you walk past the bullies of life hoping to go unnoticed. It allows people to climb mountains when life has them feeling like they can't even climb out of bed. It allows shy people to flex their voice and it allows followers to become leaders. It allows you to sneak in a laugh or two in between the tears, and that is why I am so happy to introduce my mom to gaming and to World of Warcraft. 

I think that this popular cliche often gets overlooked.

During the last couple, days following the World of Warcraft Expansion Reveal, and todays "Live Warcraft Q&A" from Gamescom, there has been quite a debate once again on social media.  There has also been a lot of excitement and joy, and for that I am pleased! I have never understood why people think that berating, threatening, and attacking others will ensure that they get their way and that their voice will be heard and respected. I find myself feeling like I am in the middle of two very different reactions for the same game. I look to my left and see the absolute amazement for Azeroth through my mothers reactions to this new and fantastic world. I actually feel quite proud of my home away from home as I take her on a tour of the place. THEN I look to my right... I see people who seem to spend more time out of Azeroth dissecting, scrutinizing, and complaining about the game and its developers, than actually playing the game. 

I seem to see and hear, "EVERYONE FEELS THIS WAY! WHY ARE THEY NOT LISTENING!?" regarding game development and game developers. I can assure you that not everyone feels the same about anything in this world, pixel based or not. One woman's/man's trash is really another woman's/man's treasure. The same game someone is spending the majority of their free time scrutinizing is another persons escape, paradise, and source of complete entertainment!

Everyone needs to call it a night in Warcraft, so I showed her how to tuck her little Gnome in bed!

The night ended with the famous words, " ITS ALREADY GOING ON 1 am!?"

I assured her that this wouldn't be the first time.

I bet my mom never thought she would be staying up late and "Warcraf-ting" with her daughter as much as I never thought I would be "Warcraft-ing" with my mom!

Well that is all the time I have for today's post as my babes will be waking up from their nap soon!

My final thoughts on the matter I put into a graphic :)

Esme out!

Afternoon Entry: Excited! Snorefest...Excited! Warcraft Exp Announcement Blaugust #6

Ok, So I made my celebratory breakfast this morning consisting of biscuits and gravy and a big mug of coffee. I informed Mr. Sky that I will be loading the dishwasher, busting out breakfast but then I am going to be selfish and make time to do what I have been looking forward too and that meant WATCH THE EXPANSION ANNOUNCEMENT for World Of Warcraft from Gamescon 2015
Well just as Murphys law states "If it can go wrong it will!".

 I had the stream set up to watch on my tablet so I could be dazzled while eating breakfast but then I thought NO ! Bigger and Better! So I opened up You tube on the Big TV in the living room hoping that it would be an AMAZING show for the family to join in on! So then I went to open up my phone to cast the screen to my TV and it was totally frozen! Then I thought Phew! I have my tablet streaming in the kitchen, I'll be fine if my living room TV plan doesn't pan out! Just then My Sky walks into the living room and holds my tablet up and says," It is starting!" He is not very tech savvy and I just knew that his big man thumbs would tap the screen and close it all down and I will be left with NOTHING. I froze into place and said very slowly ," P L E A S E...SET ...IT.........DOWN.......CAREFULLY......" Like it was a damn grenade missing the pin or something! He looked at me and started laughing. He obviously did not grasp how serious I was about making this MY TIME after all I very rarely make a stance and demand anytime because I do all of my non mommy stuff while everyone is sleeping. I finally got the you tube to stream the Gamescon 2015 reveal on my big TV and we all settled down to watch it and I WAS PUMPED!!!!!!!! The expansion trailer grabbed my husbands attention and my little moons attention right away. She fell in live with the "Pretty Orc" the moment she saw Guldan lol  We had bought them some Orc toys to play with the other day that are for her age and she immediately went to go and find him and thought he was behind the Entertainment stand and went to pull it away from the wall almost unplugging the tv chord from the wall. I leaped up from the couch once again to stop my precious stream from being shut off and that once again set my husband laughing in hysterics. I said, " I don't think you understand that this is some very important STUFF!" LOLOLOL He then starts to ramble about not getting to go fishing as much as he used to because of work and I quickly told him to suck it up and get a real hobby that is not victim to the weather, GAMING!
SO now I am tucked away in my bedroom with my headphones on fully prepared for a meteor to shooot down from space and smash my computer to keep me from watching this damn expansion reveal I have had to pause and re watch now a GAZILLION times......

 So FINALLY After I had to pretty much extract myself in a selfish and

AND HOLY CRAP!!!!!

World Of Warcraft Legion

 and 

HOLY CRAP! SNORE-FEST!!!!!

Before I had went to hide away and watch the stream in my room, my husband and I were watching the first speaker, Who I can honestly only say, is Alex "Blah Blah Blah" as my stream lagged and even the you tube stream jumps when his last name is mentioned. That oddly seems kind of fitting because sweet baby Thrall.... this guy put us to sleep! I kept fighting off the feeling that I was back in high school listening to some boring teacher ramble on and on. I really felt like they dropped the ball here. :( Is it just me or did Alex have an extra earpiece compared to what Ion Hazzikostas  had? I told Mr. Sky it looked like he was listening to someone say something in his ear then he would relay it. The delivery came out flat, slow, and lacking passion and excitement. It could easily be argued that this may have been his first time public speaking , maybe he was just nervous, but that does not explain why he was chosen to deliver the most anticipated message about Warcraft all year. It was quite painful to watch and listen too . You would think that who over was chosen to deliver the expansion news would be just as pumped up and geeked out as we are but Alex did not look or sound excited lol Not one bit. He walked around the stage staring toward the floor and attempting to crack little jokes here and there. I feel they really really needed to have someone drop this expansion news that had the same excitement for it as the crowd had and as we do. I think they should have had Ion or Chris Metzen drop the news then have Alex step in. I feel they really needed to deliver the news with such an overload of passion, excitement, and energy . So fired up that the crowd would rawr so loudly that they would have to pause to wait for the sounds to die down to talk again, but a lack luster delivery leads to a lack luster crowd response. 

When Ion got up to speak you could totally feel his passion. He talked fluidly and with first hand knowledge. You could get the impression quickly that he knew what he was talking about and had all the answer ready to flow from his mouth to our ears like he usually does . I told Mr. Sky that this Ion dude has this weird confident hypnotic voice that just seems to make you smile and nod as he explains things. 

So once I got over the obvious wet noodle of an introduction, I found myself really looking forward to what's in store.

Here is the Official Legion Website for your to check out!

I am honestly more geeked out about this expansion and all they are "Promising" us so far. I know everything is subject to change, but I am thrilled to be able to rock out a Demon Hunter, 

To explore the Broken Isles, 

AND HELL YEAH TO HONOR SYSTEM VERSION 3

A Pvp Talent Tree System

Are us PVP loving players finally seeing some love!?

I truly truly hope so!!!!!

 There is sooo much to go over and comb through to give an honest effort so that will be for future posts. I succeeded in at-least getting to watch the stream and soak in all of the awesome aspects of the new expansion. It really felt like Christmas all over again and for us Adults, the butterflies of excitement comes very far and few the older we get, so we have to enjoy our childlike excitement when we can get it, and I am EXCITED!

Well, My mother duties are kicking in! Time to his the road and head to the park. 

OH! And thank god we don't have to go around for months referring to the new expansion with some form of crazy initials like the past expansions of MOP and WOD! It is soooo nice to just say 

LEGION!!!

Esme out!

Evening Entry: Don't judge an Expansion by it's introduction. #warcraft #Blaugust #5

Parent Roulette!
Today started out as a win! On the parent roulette table I did not do so bad! Last night my baby moon woke up crying and shouting out for us at 4:30 am. I of course rush in and see whats causing such a reaction and she seemed to just have had a bad dream, but then realized that daddy was now home from work so she immediately requested he sleep on her floor. He could not say no to his biggest fan so he walked like the tired daddy zombie he is and curled up on the floor next to her toddler bed. I tossed him pillows and a blanket because I know she won't let him out of her sight lol Now I am going to be honest. I was thrilled. I had completely dodged that bullet ! I adore by babies, don't me wrong, but I am tethered to my mini's all day and night and this little reprieve when they would prefer to have their daddy is a perfect every now and then. I soon realized that every day when you are raising a family is a big game of RNG just like in the games I play! lol You might be holding the baby that will crap them self next and BOOM! It is your turn to change that diaper. It literally is a crap shoot. The parent left standing free and clear of the #2 bomb gets permission to laugh and point and even do a celebratory dance if one is so inclined. It is the rules..well at least in my house >:) We got to get out and go to the park today and it was such a gorgeous day. The one thing I want to stress is SUNSCREEN PEOPLE ! Use that all the time and really make sure to coat your baby in it. Don't forget the little areas on the tips of their ears and try to avoid the spray stuff because a report I had read said that the FDA is warning against it due to it being inhaled by the little ones and that the spray doesn't cover as well as a lotion. They say that if you want to use it spray it on your hand and smear it on. I have not checked to see if anything has changed though, I'm just going to stick with what works for us.I prefer the stuff that's formulated safe for kids. Make sure you reapply too. More and more der da der people are popping up on the internet complaining sunscreens are not working and they are not re applying after the time the products label says. I have found that the stick suncreens work  great and they have some all natural child safe ones, your kid just gets to go around looking like casper as it is a sunblock and stays on top of the skin. I have used the Aveeno Brand one for babies when my toddlers were little nuggets and it worked great.

"Here we go again Jay... time to re-explore Frostfire Ridge!"

Gaming

I spent last night running LFR. 

Thats right! I am not ashamed to admit it! 

I AM AN LFR HERO and I am OK with that! I got in a decent group with minimal jackholes and fantastic healers. I love being healed! It makes me feel loved :) We got down Gorefiend and Kilrogg Dead eye and I was lucky to have received a trinket upgrade:) I was pretty pleased as I am not a raid type player but I like to see the content, upgrade my gear, and still get to learn some mechanics when I get the time too. I did not log in with the intent to do LFR as I had forgot it was Tuesday! I was actually going to go and finish my exploring of Draenor to work toward the flying I probably wont have for quite a while. One thing that sucks is that I had faction changed my main to Alliance and that means I have to re-discover FrostFire Ridge now lol Lucky me! My least favorite zone and I have to do it twice !? Well it was fun, I am not going to lie. I made pain trains all up and down that ridge like a boss!

In other news! I made a graphic that explains what I have been seeing on Twitter and the forums:P

The Warcraft Expansion is announced tomorrow!

I am thrilled to see what is in store for us and I seem to be in the minority on twitter (based on those I currently follow). Not everyone is as geeked out as I would like to see. Everyone seems to be holding their breath or already preparing to throw tomatoes the minute the expansion is announced. I had a brief discussion with some great ladies on twitter today about how we were noticing so much negativity toward the announcement tomorrow. I have seen a great spectrum of statements from people who don't play, people who used to play, people who are subbing but not playing, people who are playing but are threatening to not play if they do get the expansion they want... Yes, there are people like me and those whom I was discussing this with, that are excited to see what is in store. We agreed it seemed really really silly to be all worked up and looking forward to being mad. The announcement has not even been made but people are already getting ready to be pissed off. That just seems so silly to me! That moment in time does not even exist yet, but many are more excited to hit the angry mob switch than to give it a fair shot. It reminds me of when I am watching Americas Got Talent and the judges have to hit their buzzer if they don't like what they are seeing on stage. When they hit their buzzer a big red X glows big and red for everyone in the audience to see. The thing is, sometimes the audition ends up really surprising them. Sometimes they realize that they had totally hit their buzzer way too fast they never gave the contestant time to prove them self. Other instances you can clearly see that the Audience is doubting the performer and is almost sure that they will fail... Like Mr. Prince Poppycock :)

When you watch the video you can see the audience looking at each other and immediately doubting this contestants ability to deliver them entertainment. I am happy to say they were completely WRONG. Do you think they were judging him based on seeing hours of people fail and get the buzzer so they assumed he would be no different? Do you think their doubts were based off of past experiences with people with the name Prince Poppycock? Do you think they were thinking he lacked talent because of how he looked? Well, to be honest it doesn't matter why they doubted him, it only matters that they did. They immediately cast judgment instead of just sitting back and enjoying his performance.

I can't help but wonder if a lot of people I am seeing on social media and in forums are guilty of the same thing. I also can't help but wonder what exciting gaming announcements would be like without forums or social media for people to whine about stuff. Would they just wander the streets of their city ranting angrily to themselves about the upcoming World of Warcraft expansions looking like total whack jobs? I can see them now, twitching and wandering up and down the streets in their bath robe shaking their fists at the sky and proclaiming, "If I can't tame murlocs as pets I am un-subbing! DO YOU HEAR ME!?!?!? 

I would like to think that any true fan of World of Warcraft would do the logical thing and wait to play it. 

Get excited , buy it , play it, THEN give their opinion. 

There were a lot of people who hated the entire Panda theme of MOP but then actually ended up liking it. How many times have you cooked your family or friends a meal only to find out they don't want to eat it. They proclaim that they will hate it because it has mushrooms in it. They won't even give your creation the time of day. We test drive cars before we make a decision to buy them and we try on clothes in fitting rooms to make sure they fit the way we like! 

Call me crazy, but it seems that the logical thing to do would be to try it out and cast your opinion. The odds that you will like it are the same odds you might hate it, 50%. Either way, the delivery of your opinion matters greatly. Have respect for those around you and for those you wish to actually respect what you have to say in return.

Well, I'm pooped. 

Happy Expansion Announcement Eve!

Esme Out!

Warcraft Opinion Entry & Diving into #Blaugust! Blaugust Post #4

Happy Tuesday to you!

Today started out with some great music off of spotify. I found an EDM playlist that got my house pumping while I pretended to bust out the beats from my DJ booth (aka my stove) to my husband and babies . Who knew pans of scrambled eggs and bacon could make such amazing sounds :)

So I came across a tweet a few days ago asking what this hashtag #BLAUGUST was all about and I admittedly had no clue. I looked around and found that there is a blogging contest that takes place during the month of august. It caught me by surprise because I had just decided to make the commitment to blog everyday so this just makes it easier for me to really want to get my thoughts out there. They seem to have no problem flooding my mind while I sleep, or while I'm cleaning but when it actually comes down to sitting in front of a screen to pour my thoughts out I find myself procrastinating.  So I joined in the event with every intention to complete it and the good news is that you can play catch up this year unlike last year,from what I have read. I have a couple posts to finish I had actually started but I did not get to finish. Wish me luck! If you would like to participate, here is the info: Blaugust Anook Page .

GAMING related Opinion stufffffs:

           Please don't be like that cute puppy!

Twitter was a buzz with anticipation to see what the Blizzard-Activision Second quarter numbers were today. I snooped around and found that it hit the internet pretty quickly and Blizzard claims it actually did better than what hey had anticipated with 5.6 million subscriptions. Part of me doesn't understand the hype that goes into waiting for such information. It seems more appropriate for those types who love a juicy bone to chew on as opposed to someone who likes to pick the meat they want off of the bone and call it good. I tend to just take what I want , what fills me up and makes me happy. I guess I kind of approach this situation that way too. I enjoy myself in the games I play regardless if they go up or down in profits. I also don't slow down to spy on an accident on the highway. I say a prayer for those involved and their families and I keep driving. I really don't take any joy speculating on the failure of any person, place, or thing..( unless they are just an all around asshole. Then I might smile if they trip and fall >:D ).  Maybe I am just not curious enough or invested enough to care, but I find myself not really feeling the need to jump aboard the "blah blah downer hype train." Yes there are a lot of people who are not happy with this expansion but there are a lot of things to do in Azeroth that previous expansion offered and I bet a lot of us have not completed. I for one, was just thinking yesterday about knocking some stuff off I missed out in Mists of Pandaria. I had just given birth to baby moon when MOP launched and I was more interested in my new precious baby than I was grinding rep to get mounts and now I want to go back and work on that too.

I have heard people say, "I don't want to pay $15 dollars a month to just do old content!" Well that's fine and good for you but in my opinion if you have never done it or seen it , it is still new content . There are so many things that we have not seen or done in Azeroth yet it gets brushed off by those who's appetite is never satiated. Sometimes I feel people get swept up in the attitude of those they play with or look up to. In my opinion, it is OK to be critical. I believe  a certain amount of PRODUCTIVE criticism shows passion for what you love. I find that when you are critical about every angle of something you used to love maybe you just need to move on to something else as you may have outgrown your interests. Seeking new interests could bring you more joy than trying to force something into the shape of your expectations.  I think that many people become lazy  in regards to being entertained. I believe that you have to be proactive in seeking your enjoyment instead of being spoiled and waiting for your exact demands to be fulfilled and delivered in a nice package on your lap. 

                                                 

When you log into Azeroth you make the decision to run around and go,"I HAVE NOTHING TO DO!" or you can Google some mounts, achievements, or content you haven't had the chance to do. Blizzard has even tried to help grab your hand and lead you to try new aspects of the game with these weekend events and time walking and even the little guide that pops up reminding you of stuff you can do in game as your character progresses.  If all of that sounds tedious to you, then honey I am sorry to say, maybe you are looking in the wrong place for what it is you seek. Maybe you are just pining for times in your past? Maybe you are failing to realize you have changed and what the game has to currently offer is no longer your type of game or entertainment?

I'm sure you have heard the cliche, " You cant squeeze blood from a turnip" ?
Well I would like to say that you can't squeeze a MOBA from an Azeroth and you can't squeeze an FPS from an Azeroth.

If your time and tastes have changed it might just be time for you to explore new lands or at least go on vacation so that you don't pee on everyone's parade.

Well that's my quick take, I have dinner to make!

Esme out!

August 3rd 2015 Entry: Everyone Counts in Azeroth so Suck it :) Blaugust #3 post

So I know I'm living in a fairy tail world right now because I'm sitting at the kitchen table with my cup of coffee and a doughnut hole with the intent to write a quick blog post. The odds of this happening are very low... lol But a girl can hope right?

Well I had been brainstorming possibly breaking my entries into sections Covering recipes, gaming, and family and odd opinions so I think that this will be the first post I will try this ! I think it might help me remember what I was actually going to write about so when I hop topics I'll label them this time :)

FOOOOOOOD
Why not start  this dandy post with food?! I was inspired by @disneygirl85 on twitter to make some BBQ Chicken sandwiches for everyone and I am really glad I did. I am trying to start my meals ahead of time , in the evening so that I don't have to feel rushed the next day . This menu choice allowed me to slow cook the chicken in a baking pan with some apple cider vinegar , butter, and a bit of brown sugar to start. I chose to add some BBQ sauce later once the chicken started to loosen up . I slow cooked it at 200 degrees for 4 hours and then another hour the next day to get the juices flowing again. I made sure to cover the chicken with foil so it would not dry out. I can't get too crazy with spices with anything I cook because of our little ones and their sensitive taste buds, but apparently I can put ranch on anything and baby moon will eat it lol

GAMING
I haven't been playing Heroes of the storm as much as I have wanted too. I really wanted to get my hero to 20 sometime ago but I am only level 13. lol BUT I really enjoy myself every time I do get to play. JUST A REMINDER that anyone who hasn't played gets a free 7 day stim pack, today is the last day for that. That boosts your gold and your xp so you can level your heroes quickly and save enough gold to buy heroes with in game currency. I have shifted into really enjoy playing Li-Li. I am not a fan of playing support classes but I really love healing and DPSing with her . I hope to get better each time I get to play. :) I did get to have my mom join Azeroth this past week, and she is loving her experience so far. I check in with her every night to see what she has figured out for her self, this is entirely a new experience for her so I am jazzed about having her be able to share a hobby with my sister and I. 

I also had a chance to catch the latest Final boss Twitch stream yesterday and while I was watching I had first thought, "Wow! What a great combination of guests!" They had Qleric, Alt- ternative Chat, Preach , Nobble,  and Bellular. Each guest seemed to bring a different flavor to the stream potluck. Everything was going smoothe until the numbers proceeded to climb. The chat room filled up fast with ass-hats who were so trashy and ruthless. They started yelling "CASUAL!!!! STUPID CASUAL!!!" among other things I care not to post. To be honest, there were so many ban hammers coming down once the stream reached over 6000 viewers that every jack-hole that resides in the gutter of the internet seemed to slither into the chat room to bash whatever was said that they did not agree with.  It made me think to how much World of Warcraft is divided into such a huge pie chart. Every slice detailing what the game means to everyone and the part they play in the larger scheme of things.

I thought of this because, here I am inviting my Mother into Azeroth knowing full and well that among the basic NPC's and Mobs we interact with and kill, are the Ass hats dressed in our factions gear waiting to attack you if you don't play like they do or value what they value. I could go on and on defending my fellow Dirty Casual's but I won't because the truth needs no defense to be true. I am the kind of player who keeps the home fires burning in Azeroth when all of the fair weather citizens unsub and sit on the bench scowling at everyone who is still enjoying the game. I have always looked at the problems the world has and broken them down into smaller pieces. Every thing I have ever complained about I can see on a world scale, a country scale, a state scale ,a work scale and a game scale. Different place same shit. Azeroth is no different.

I see it when people go about their day acting as though their degree makes them superior to someone who has not gone to college, or when someone compares their Jaguar to the Mini Van of their neighbor and makes fun of them. I see it with the  house owner who looks down on a renter. There will always be different EVERYTHING. Not everyone can look the same, have the same , do the same or be the same or everything would hit a wall really fast and I feel the same about World of Warcraft. Each one of us are a special piece to the puzzle of the world and to Azeroth. Even though the different sectors may not understand where the other one is coming from ALL ARE NEEDED to make it possible. Even my totally noob mother who is level 5. She is just as important as a Mythic Raider. A Mythic Raider is just as important to the top pet collector who is just as important to the world PVP fanatic..The Blood Elf dancing on the mail box is just as important as the Guild leader who runs the latest mega guild.

All of us are an intricate part of the machine that is World of Warcraft and those who don't see it that way, well they are part of the puzzle too whether they like it or not, so they can suck it and have a nice day <3

Last words of the entry?

You guessed it folks, I did not get to finish my post this morning lol I got the first paragraph done and poof ! Time to make breakfast to for the troops.

I'm ironically finishing this entry to a "Run Wild" play list on spotify as I sit on my butt blogging.

Also, just as the graphic states at the top of the blog post, you don't have to do what everyone else is doing.
Play how you play regardless of  the amount of criticism, the misunderstanding, the audience, expectations, the status quo, the fear, the prejudice...

JUST KEEP GOING IF YOU ARE HAPPY.

I always say,
"You did not come out of your moms va-jay-jay so someone else can dictate your life. It is your life, now go on and live it."
they have their life, let them go control their life, this is yours. This is your life and this is your game.

Azeroth has a new citizen!

Woah! I finally got time to sit down! It has been a busy family & "Warcrafty" two days! Mr. Sky finally had a day off after 2 straight 60 hour weeks so we treated us to some ice cream and a petting zoo with the babies and dinner with grandma. It has been so hot and muggy and saturated with deer and mosquitoes flies that we had began to feel like prisoners in our home! We desperately needed to get out on the road and make a day of it. Even though we had a blast, I hate when the babes have to go without a nap because they turn into Betty White from the Snicker Bar commercials... or gremlins ...... yes they turn into Gremlins and not the fluffy cute kind.

Azeroth acquired a new citizen yesterday! I helped my mom log into her battle net launcher and select World of Warcraft for the first time and it was awesome!  She chose a Blood Elf and I suggested she play a Hunter because I love mine and l knew she would love to have a pet to share her travels with. I also didn't waste any time showing her that she can name her pet and she was elated. We were lucky to get her into the guild I play my Blood Elf hunter in called Fates Call on Borean Tundra ran by Marathal. The last video game she  had played was Frogger on Atari decades ago so this was quite a different experience for her and for me too.
I realized how much I take for granted in regards to the knowledge that seems to be second nature to me. It is weird trying to teach someone entirely from scratch with zero MMORPG experience how to play a game that really is never finished! That you can equip gear, that you can run around and see other players also running around, that you can log out and pick up right where you left off! I also asked myself, " How in the hell did I survive when I started!?" I didn't have anyone teaching me the little things about the game lol I mean yeah, I could have asked someone but I am stubborn and like to tough stuff out on my own. lol  It was cool to see how she was starting to pick up the AWSD keys and then incorporate the mouse to move around toward her questing zone on the map.

At first she said she was scared and felt intimidated and I had to keep reminding her it is just a game. You are here to just have fun and explore a beautiful world like nothing you have ever seen before. Before she knew it, she got to level four before my little ones started to wake up and she felt so proud of herself. I had to laugh though because during one of her quests in the Blood Elf starting zone had to kill Spring Paw Cats and Cubs and she was wondering why none of the cats she was killing were dropping collars and Iooked and saw she had been shooting the little kitty cats that are pets and running around ! LOL I laughed so hard , I said , "Oh no, you have to go outside of the building and kill those cats, they drop the collars and you will loot collars off of those." She started to feel bad about killing the little tabby cats running around the house but got a kick out of the brooms I showed her that swish around cleaning on their own lol Boy Oh Boy those would sure come in handy to us parents wouldn't they!?

After showing her around a bit and seeing the game through a new set of eyes it made we think of how critical veterans of the game actually are. It is actually kind of sad in comparison to the excitement a new player has. I have a feeling that if more people saw Azeroth through the eyes that they had first seen it they would spend less time feeling so jaded... It was nice to sit down with her and show her the ropes and then I suddenly became full of excitement thinking of all the things I will get to show her that many of us consider an old hat. Many of my fellow Warcraft brothers and sisters feel let down, mad, angry , or  thirsty for better. They hang on every Dev tweet and examine it with the largest magnifying glass they can find and pick as much meat off of the PTR bone they can with such a hunger I often wonder if they will ever be as happy as they were when they first steped foot in their starting zone.  I felt particularly proud to show her how big the community actually is. I even sat her down over a pot of tea one evening and took her on a mini you tube tour of what Warcraft is to others. I showed her some of my favorite You Tube Parodies, I found her some You Tubers who took the time to do starting zone walk throughs of the characters she will be able to play. I had her listen to some of the beautiful music that she will be listening too. I had fun sharing with her the world that expands past the actual game and she had no idea that there were so many people involved with what had first seemed like just a little video game she would hear her daughters talk about. lol It was nice!

Well it is time to make dinner, I am sure I will have more stories to share in the future!
Esme Out!

Afternoon Entry: Red Pop Cake , Chicken Bacon Pasta & how to be a friend.

3:47pm 7-27-2015
Good Afternoon!
Today has flown by. It felt like I woke up an hour ago but it is already going on 3pm.  The day started off as it normally does, and that is to my the sweet sounds of little babies talking to themselves on the baby monitor. If I could bottle up the joy you feel when you hear those little voices and sell it I would be a rich person, but just by those standards I am already rich then!

My "Faygo Red Pop" Cake I made last night turned out pretty tasty. My mothers neighbor told her that you can replace the one cup of water that is called for in a basic white boxed cake mix with any flavor of pop you would like to try and bake it as you normally would. Mr. Sky wanted me to give red pop a try, or as some other people would refer to it, Red Soda! I don't care what you say, it is POP not Soda :P I think I will try a more unique flavor next time. Her neighbor tried a cup of Coke, either way this cake recipe scream good old "MERICA" cooking lol

Mr. Sky has been working a lot of overtime this week so I thought his old man butt needed some more sleep. That meant that I had to think of something I could cook while keeping tabs on both of my munchkins. They are suddenly obsessed with Mary Poppins so I put that on and started pondering what I could throw together for lunch. I came up with a Chicken Bacon Pasta which I had never tried. It turned out to be a fast and tasty concoction for lunch! I had boiled some chicken breast, fried up some bacon, took a table spoon of diced garlic and tossed that in a skillet together. After about 15 minutes I dumped in a medium size can of organic diced tomatoes and let those hang out for about another 15 minutes. Then I cheated and grabbed a jar of alfredo sauce I nabbed from the store and poured that into the mix with the rest of the flavors that were bubbling in the skillet. While I let that simmer on low I boiled some wheat rotini pasta and when that was done and drained, I mixed it all together and TADA! 

I was pretty impressed, everyone liked it except for baby Sun. He wanted to stick to his cottage cheese so he grabbed it and threw it on the floor... And that is why I love having dogs.

The babes are down for their nap and I am enjoying my afternoon mint tea and thinking about some stuff that had been on my mind.

I have a plaque on my wall that says "The only way to have a friend is to be one." I bought it because it matched two other cutesy plaques I came across years ago and because  it is a simple statement and a damn good piece of advice. 

I realize some people do struggle with the basic of social interactions, but they take practice and in my opinion a lot of them I consider to be common sense. I also acknowledge that the mere definition of friend varies from person to person so we set our friendship bar however HIGH or LOW as we choose and then we let in people that fit our stringent or non existent qualifications for friendship. 

I have found my bar being raised every year that goes by. I always laugh and say it is because my "Bull Shit" intake valve is plugged therefor it can no longer accept new crap. I have also found that since my father passed last year, I am even more selective of who I will choose to hang around. I do not have the emotional energy to spend any amount of time on my defense anymore. Environments that were rough and abrasive were never a problem for me because I had an extra jug of "Jack -ass" juice ready and waiting to sip on. It allowed me to quickly dish it back. Now I don't even want to waste my time and energy and sanity. I can still pipe up and defend myself, but one day I found myself asking, "Why?" 

The Quote rings true to me because it is so simple. You have to BE a friend to HAVE a friend. It means that you can not just sit on your butt and wait for the friendship bus to roll up! A bus will never just appear in front of your house to drop off a newly packaged friend and drive off. You actually have to get up and be a friend. Be the kind of friend you want to have. Don't wait to see what you can get out of others before you decide to be a friend, you have to put something into the pot too. If you continue to put yourself out there, sooner or later the perfectly matched person will speak your same friend language and you will understand what it means to truly means to be a friend and have a friend. I have known many different people who struggle treating others how they would like to be treated and they wonder why they are alone. They wonder why they always feel they are on the outside looking in. They want to paint their present and future experiences the color of their past experiences so they let fear keep them frozen...stagnant...and alone.

I believe that you get out of life what you put into life just as you do when you are cooking. 

If you use the wrong ingredients or spoiled ingredients you will have an awful tasting meal, full plates and empty seats at your table.

Anyways, I already got the first round of chores done, time for some Heroes of the Storm!
Here's the free Rotations for this week and next week!

Esme Out!