Lord of the Rings Online goes to Free to Play

Given that my oldest son was Legolas in a family Lord of the Rings parade of characters (I hope that pictures are coming soon to a blog near me), this is as good a time as any to again recommend my game of choice, Lord of the Rings Online.


The "Free to Play" paradigm is an interesting one if you follow the gaming industry. It presumes that players will try almost anything if it is free, and then boldly assumes the game will be interesting enough for players to invest money into it so that they can continue to play.

So anyone who wants to try, come and see. You can at least come bob for apples and learn a dance by Bilbo's home in Hobbiton...

Gruesome Update

The nail is dead. Long live the nail.
It doesn't hurt anymore, now it just *itches*.

One of These Things Is ...

... not like the others.

Can you see how gray/blue the left big toe is?

I stubbed it fiercely on a concrete sidewalk Monday morning. I mean it connected with the edge of the sidewalk right at the nadir of a foot swing, full and directly striking the front of the toe. It cracked the nail and discolored the nail plate. It hurt/stung for the rest of the day. I freely acknowledge that my tendency to wear sandals until there is snow on the ground is a contributing factor to this first injury. Toe boo-boos are worth the perpetuation of my summer-time frame of mind.

Then yesterday, I stubbed the same toe on a couch and it ... I guess "popped" is the right word. The force of this second stubbing separated the nail from the toe a little bit across the top of the nail. Blood everywhere. It's been leaking lymph (I think that's the right term for the translucent fluid that oozes from a wound once the blood stops) all day. I finally took a rubber band and wrapped a napkin around the toe, there's no way a bandaid is going to absorb the fluid.

Gross.

Interesting job news coming soon (I hope). If things go well, I will soon be teaching again.

In a State Prison. (!)