Wachi's Nonsense: Hearthstone Addiction

EVERYBODY GET IN HEEEREEEE!!! Good Morning readers and happy Friday, today I wanted to talk about my newest gaming addiction, since I honestly haven't had one for a while (ignoring Super Smash Bros Wii U which was inevitable), anyhow it all started one summer day (it's summer here in Costa Rica) I was looking for a card game on my phone to entertain me aside from Solitaire, as despite not being too into card games, on a mobile device I admire the simple yet challenging distractions they provide. Now while on the google play store Hearthstone caught my eye immediately with the "Easy to play, hard to master" slogan on the app's page. I downloaded it out of curiosity and was sucked in. 

I found myself playing every free moment I had, and ranking up and out, and I fell for its addictive trap, a trap so vile it can plague us all without even realizing its bite, I am of course talking about micro-transactions, I needed more cards, more adventures, more everything, before I knew it I was reaching $100 in pure micro transactions, and I had to stop myself, I am now free from them, as I have noticed my blunder, but the temptation is always looming above. Now, I play the game with what I got and enjoy myself quite a bit playing various classes.

The point of the game is to defeat the other player by lowering their health to zero with a collection of minions and spells. Here's the catch though, each minion/spell has a certain mana cost and your mana increases by only 1 per turn, so you have to really balance your cards in terms of not only strength and usages but value as well. Not only that, but of the 400+ cards currently in circulation, your decks can only be made up of 30, so choosing wisely is a must. Now there are 9 classes to choose from, all with their own specific hero power and class specific cards, all of which have different play styles and tactics, so it's always interesting to see what fun decks you can build to meet your play style, which is what I did.

I currently play Rogue, as 1. it's my preferred class in just about every RPG ever made, and 2. the class favors the use of pirate cards, and I am a sucker for all things pirates, the adventures, the lore, the One Piece lol. Anyhow, the current game's meta doesn't really have a truly phenomenal pirate synergy, but even so I have a lot of fun with this deck and it is my favorite deck to use as I built it myself, however it isn't perfect, and you will quickly find yourself getting to rank 17 with your awesome Pirate Rogue only to find that everyone you face has fully "sinergized" championship level decks they got from pros on Reddit, and that my friends is the only "flaw" to this game, you will reach a point where you will need to find some pre-constructed wonder deck that will keep you afloat and that you also find fun to play, because even though it's fun to win, it's more fun to win with your own deck, so that's just a balance one will need to make.

For those who do play and would like the list of my current deck (and if you are really good at the game scoff at it lol) here it is;

Backstab x2
Deadly Poison x2
Buccaneer x2
Southsea Deckhand 
Blade Furry
Eviscerate x2
Ship's Cannon x2
Beneath the Grounds
Burgle
Shady Dealer
SI:7 Agent x2
Southsea Captain x2
Tinker's Sharpsword Oil
Ancient Brewmaster
Dread Corsair x2
Assassin's Blade
Assassinate
Azure Drake
Bomb Lobber
Captain Greenskin
Dr. Boom

Skycap'n Kragg

-------------------------------------------

Now that that is out of the way, this game is not just about skill, strategy, and synergy, no, it's also about luck of the draw! That's right, luck, and this is where hearthstone can get frustrating, you can have a perfect, unbeatable plan, but if you don't draw a good starting hand and your opponent does, that delay could be the difference between a win or a loss, however, in the mid game you can also draw some beautiful combo possibilities that can make it all worthwhile. Just accept that sometimes luck's not on your side, blame it on a bad match up and move along....

For example this BS, where I have the whole freaking board full, and she only has 1 HP, but also has the Fireball spell dealing 6 damage to me and winning the match... Stupid mage, I call BAD MATCH UP! (Sodium levels rising)

And then same applies for a more positive outcome, where the salt is lovingly sprinkled over the wounds of your opponent, observe..

OH SNAP!!! Thank you lady luck for SkyCap'n Kragg and his CHARGE, I should not have won this one,but I did <3

Need another example? No? Well tough bananas, because I am super proud of this next one.

Yar har har, how does she feel Face Hunter trash?? Seriously screw Face Hunter players

*AHEM* Sorry, don't know what got into me, in conclusion, if you have more self control than I and enjoy pick up and play fantasy card games, I highly recommend this one, it is a bit of a pay to win type game, but if you can get a good starting deck going, every 30 wins you can get another card pack free, so if you are a more patient player your wallet will thank you. And with that my dear readers, I leave you, hope you are enjoying your easter week, and I hope you enjoy Hearthstone should you choose to get into it. (Here's hoping that the upcoming Whispers of the Old God's expansion brings more pirates)


Much Love, 
Wachi

Never be afraid to be bananas

MS Paint Mondays 36 (and 37)

Readers, it's Tuesday and a week later, and I'm sorryyyyy!!! I am still part of the living, lol. These past couple of weeks have been incredibly hectic with meetings, mails, forms, and trainings, and I just needed a break from all things computer. But we are back, it's MS Paint Mon--er TUESDAY!!!!

--Thoughts of the day--

* So I currently find myself amidst mandatory ITIL training, various customer e-mails, meetings, and a form for one of my future plans is longer than Goku's journey down Snake Way, seriously, like 12 pages long, and I need to write a letter of recommendation about myself. *Ahem* 

* Anyhow, due to the fact that I have been so pre-occupied, I began to think back, to a simpler time, a time where I would come to work and be able to finish by lunch time, and it wasn't due to a lack of work either, but I was doing much simpler tasks, something that I begin to miss from day to day.

* However, I am incredibly thankful for my past 2 promotions, they have helped me learn so much, and given me plenty of opportunities, and way less daily tasks to do compared to my start, however these tasks, are lengthy and cluttered with twists and turns. Then again unlike the simple tasks, the harder ones give you authority to push others to move their processes to your needs, since no one will listen to a simple peon about escalations.

* It's truly an interesting balance, but is authority and power something worth giving up our peace of mind for? 

That said, this week's paints (yes with an 's' we plural this week ya'll) are based on a simpler time, from when I still failed quality exams, but others from my group passed them in perfection. Specifically these 2, who were in my training and eventually began dating, then it didn't last but that's not the point, it's a time celebrating when one would be recognized for their achievements, something that appears to happen way less the higher up the corporate ladder you get. Oh and I call this paint "Kat and Osvaldo´s double 100!"

Continuing on with the simpler life, I give you this paint from the 2010 world cup, during that time we had a screen in the middle where we could watch the games and make bets on them should we chose, in this paint, simply titled "My Conscience and Me World Cup" my conscience, Tusky, a mouthless, bunny eared boar (his origin is a story for another day) is pummeling me with a ball, for taking to partake in the beats and losing quite a bit, despite his warnings before hand. lol. Ah, the simpler inner struggles.

As always, I hope this exercise helps you ease that weekly case of the Mondays and inspires you to start creating new things, and really help expand the creative construct that is your brain! I encourage you to share/send me your own MS Paint Monday creations, if I get enough I plan to do an MS Paint showcase at the end of every week so we can enjoy each other's styles and imaginations.

Much Love, Wachi

I Was On TV (A Third Time)

Random Life Update!!

***I Was on TV... A Third Time***

Can you believe it readers!? Despite my ugly mug poisoning national TV two times previously, I was called to appear yet again, it's like they enjoy the torture haha!! Any whom, this time it was the 50th episode special of the show, and we answered the decades old question, "Are there Jewish roots in Costa Rica?"

***Spoilers*** 
There are. But they aren't as obvious as one may think. Now I do apologize since it is a national show it is all in Spanish, but should you have any questions on what is or isn't discussed please let me know and I will do my best to answer you.

Fun Fact: I was told to wear a dessert headdress for the entire hour and a half before I filmed my scene so my hair looks like a mess for that reason, in case anyone was wondering why I looked like I just got out of bed.

Here is a couple of pictures as to how I looked with a headdress, before it was violently removed from my character;

#NotTheThreeWiseMen

Link: 50th Episode Special

Anyhow enough with my creepy Jewish glare, and on with the show, my brief scene appears at around the 6 minute mark, again apologies that it is in Spanish, but hey maybe you'll understand a thing or two.

As always I am open to any criticism on my tv reenactment skills, or lack thereof.

Anyhow, that was my jewtastic televised adventure last week, I appreciate those who decided to watch and support the national channel, even if you didn't understand a thing.

Much Love,

Wachi

MS Paint Mondays 35

Good evening my readers! I hope you are doing well this fine Monday evening!! I do apologize for the after dark paint, but today was a full day for me doing work trainings, they really are a time sponge. Anyhow enough about work day woes, it's time to wet our toes with a nightly MS Paint Monday!!!

--Thoughts of the day--

* Well today was mentally tiresome due to the mandatory training I have been taking part in, therefore my thoughts for today mainly consist of "How much longer til this ends?" or "Is it me or is this just saying the same points over and over in different ways??"

* Regardless, it reminds me of when I was in school, the repetition, the feeling of time stopping during a long winded pre-test review day. The one difference is the lack of an interesting teacher.

* That is what serves as a root to today's paint, the reminiscence of my old educators and the high school environment as a whole, and how when you get high enough in a corporate chain, you end up in a similar spot you were all those years ago, still taking tests, and doing reviews you once thought would never be found in "the real world."

So with that in mind, this week's paint is dedicated to my old High school, Chemistry and Physics teachers, Mr. Atya and Mr. Brown. Personally, two of my worst subjects were graced by two of my favorite teachers, the Egyptian Super Mario look alike with the heavy accent Atya, and the Jamaican verb-inventor, story-teller Brown; and in this week¿s paint, titled, "Atya and Brown Vs CG" I illustrate on of our High school's biggest myths, Crab Girl (CG), this girl who would go out on the lunch courtyard when it snowed and would play crab soccer by herself, many rumors arose about her odd behavior, but it was believed that only to educators of the highest caliber would be able to eventually put a stop to her!! Anyways, that's a small window into my inner workings of my high school mind... Now I need some sleep.

As always, I hope this exercise helps you ease that weekly case of the Mondays and inspires you to start creating new things, and really help expand the creative construct that is your brain! I encourage you to share/send me your own MS Paint Monday creations, if I get enough I plan to do an MS Paint showcase at the end of every week so we can enjoy each other's styles and imaginations.

Much Love, Wachi

Wachi's Rants: OIJ and Cellphones

Good day readers, I hope you are all doing well, and that life is good! Today, I'd like to introduce a brand new segment to my Blog, simply titled "Wachi's Rants" and as the title may allude to it is a simple rant section. Why? Because despite priding myself on the positive things in life, sometimes, like most, I need to point out something I think is stupid, in sometimes a stupider fashion to make my own point. Now I realize rants are a double edged sword as my opinion could either garner support or make me look like a psycho, but to be honest, I am willing to take that chance. *Tee hee* ♥




So ok, so this rant is about the law enforcement here in Costa Rica, otherwise known as "OIJ" or "Organismo de Investigación Judicial" which translates to the "Judicial Investigation Department"; Now, I have always found law enforcement in this country to always be lacking and or a bit ridiculous in some matters, but my rant is about their way of handling simple tasks, and how they justify their dealings of such.

Now I want to preface this with the fact that I am usually a patient person, and that part of this rant's frustration stems from my cousin's own stupidity which led us to my impatience with the OIJ. You see, back in mid December my cousin's phone was pick-pocketed at the park by a peculiar pedestrian (try saying that 17 times fast), any how he and his at the time girlfriend, Judith, came running to my house as I live right by it asking for immediate assistance, we went to the service provider who refused to track the phone without a signed police referral. So we went all the way to the opposite side of town to the police station, waited for over an hour, my cousin explained the situation and the police refused to help since he didn't have the original receipt or box as he had purchased the phone overseas. Normally, though unfortunate, I can understand the cop's view point since he had no way of proving we were the original phone's owners or if there was even a phone to begin with, but the way he explained it is what irritated me. You see the officer went on to say, like the receipt or original box, we need some sort of documentation to prove the purchase of the phone otherwise it's just all bologna to him, he went on to say, documentation is the proof for any and all things, if a crime occurs and the victim has no documentation to assist in proving that he was wronged, more often than not, the case won't be taken, no exceptions. To this I found myself, documentation is like a shield, but if there are no exceptions, and crimes aren't crimes without the proper info, what is stopping me from shooting people to death simply because they aren't able to present me with their birth certificate??? HUH??? Think about it, documents rule all, no documents, mean whatever it is isn't what is being claimed, so without a birth certificate, you were never born, you are only believed to be alive, but without any real proof is it actually murder?? Yeah, deep stuff I know. 

However, I ignored this "twistable" explanation and we left, my cousin noticeably depressed. A few weeks passed and my phone planned had expired, when I went to renew it, I was given a chance to completely upgrade my phone model for $199.99, I took the deal and gave my Samsung Galaxy S5 to my cousin so that he could have a phone again, he was so thrilled, it was quite nice. Now let's fast forward to this Tuesday, March 1st, 2016... we had to go to our local house of culture (which is a small establishment with various cultural activities and arts) for our theater classes, well despite my warnings for him to get changed before class he didn't until after we arrived, and he accidentally left his phone in the bathroom, he realized 30 min later ran back and it was gone, he became much more distraught than the last time. So after class, we went back to my house, as I did keep the original box and manual. We went to the police station, made our claim, and the police chief promised he'd attend to our phone dilemma; he then disappeared for an hour only to return with Chinese Take-out, loving the urgency... Anyways, after they finished stuffing their face, we had to wait until 3 officers helped another guy, because one is incapable of taking info by himself it seems. Well, long story short, the cop saw we had all the documentation and told us with his chief's signature we could go to the phone company to track it no problem! Great right!? WRONG!! Because this cop wasn't going to get it signed, he said this was my cousin's fault for leaving it unattended, and theft caused by the owner's carelessness will not be handled by the police. Now, I work for customer service, we too are told that carelessness on the customer's part voids warranties, and it's really a "too bad so sad" type situation. However here we have someone who stole a phone, carelessness or not there is a thief in our midst, and all we need is a signature to find him, but no, no way. The chief cannot be bothered to sign something where carelessness was the prime factor... The officer then tried to cheer us up by telling us it's the norm. That if someone had reached in under the stall whilst he was pooping and stolen it, then they would have signed it, just not like this, and that this isn't just for phones but anything of value, he mentioned that earlier that week a woman parked her car at a McDonald's to use the bathroom but left her keys, so she got no help, since it was her own damn fault, isn't life grand? With that logic, if a mother walks into a shoe store to check out a wicked good sale, and leaves her daughter unattended I have every right to kidnap her, since it isn't a crime, the mother was being careless, not my fault, it's hers, is that right??? 

So using the OIJ's logic I should be able to murder and kidnap people without being penalized because of lacking documents and carelessness, wow, don't I feel safe and secure, geeze... So the officer wouldn't budge and told my cousin to be more careful with his stuff, and obviously my cousin became incredibly upset, since when he found an Iphone on the floor in class he returned it to the office, and now thanks to the police he no longer sees values in doing good deeds... Atta boy law enforcement, helping inculcate those good values over your unwillingness to budge in fairness!

Now, this may seem overboard nit picking to a lot of folks, and that's ok, and others may feel my analogies are way out of line, which is fine too, the point is, I find it so difficult to believe they would take such pride in denying a simple signature to help out a person who came to their aid, that and the incredible wait times they had us undergo just to tell us "sorry, nothing we can do." seriously why ask us what happened at the door and make us wait if you know this is something you cannot help with??? UGH!!

All in all, I feel the interaction of our law enforcement as well as their soft skills could use some work, they had a calm and collected tone the whole time through mind you, never did they sound, pitch wise, annoying or upsetting, but maybe that's what made what they were saying sound extra annoying... Just remember kids, always keep your phone and other valuable belongings on you or in a safe place of yours, and if you lose it, lie and say it was stolen, but make sure you still have documentation on it, otherwise no help for you, you silly ducks. So respect the law and those in authority, but also demand enough respect for you and your time as well so that this doesn't happen to you also! Thanks to all of you who made it this far and for tolerating this rant, I appreciate any and all my readers who take the time to read anything I vomit out of my keyboard, it means a lot.♥

Much Love,
Wachi