Hi?

So I made this blog thing. I'm not entirely sure about this class yet- I know *of* things like Skype, RSS feeds, FTP, etc, but I've never actually used them myself. I've flipped around the textbook and noticed that I know some of the stuff in it already, so I guess that means I'm off to a good start here. But to be honest, I only ever seem to learn technological stuff by poking and prodding at something until it kinda-sorta work. That, and my dad's a programmer, so I've grown up surrounded by computers and computer stuff.

I'm kinda psyched that one of our assignments involves using Second Life. How many classes grade you for playing a video game? Finally, all of those hours I've spent in front of the TV and computer will be put to good use!

Speaking of video games, that's where my username and blog name/theme comes from. My favorite game is this old Super Nintendo RPG called EarthBound. In EarthBound, you're a normal suburban kid named Ness, and you discover that you not only have psychic powers, but it's your destiny to save the world from an alien invasion. So you grab your baseball bat and head out to travel the world and kick some alien butt. Along the way you meet these little critters called Mr. Saturn (they're all named "Mr. Saturn") who live in Saturn Valley. They give you coffee and build you a time machine, and they like to say random things like "boing!" "zoom!" and "ding!" The first one you come across will greet you by saying "We feel groove!"

So now to ramble a little about me: I live with my family- my parents are letting me stay with them until I finish grad school and can afford my own place. I have a brother who goes to VCU, and we have a golden retriever named Zam, short for "zamboni" because my parents are hockey freaks (our last dog was named Puck). I have a BA in English from Longwood University, which obviously means I love to read. As you might have noticed, I'm a nerd, but I've long since come to terms with that. I also love to draw, though my skills are only slightly about "cartoonish".

We just moved into a new house- my parents have been dying to get a bigger house for years, and since my brother and I are going to be sticking around for a couple more years (sorry mom & dad), we needed the space. Most of my stuff is still packed up in boxes on one side of my room, but hopefully the giant bookcase I ordered should be coming soon and I can finally get organized (organized? what's that?).