Wow, I just typed out a huge response, and I made sure I copypasta’d to save it in case of a crash. Then I went to embed a pic, obviously copying the pic’s URL, and my post crashes. Response, take 2.
First off, we rented, and our landlord promised us before we moved in that he would help us get cheap renter’s insurance. It was pricier than normal I believe since we were in a flood zone. Ok, he never came through. We tried to get insurance before Hurricane Irene but all the companies denied new accounts because it was too close to the storm. Understandable, and then obviously after that it just wasn’t something that crossed our mind.
The landlord was also supposed to have flood insurance, but he didn’t because dat paypuh. Wouldn’t have cost him much at all, but that’s what greed does to you I guess. He was rich too, it’s not like he couldn’t afford it.
So basically we didn’t have insurance and our landlord didn’t have insurance, but neither of us knew the other didn’t have insurance. Communication for the win.
Now, FEMA did give us our rental assistance check, which covers the security deposit and the first month’s rent on a new place. Because of a technical hiccup though, it ended up being a good amount less than it should have been. Our FEMA check for damaged and lost property was also much lower than they promised (around $600 for a whole house worth of stuff lost) so you’d better believe we’re appealing that shit.
The problem for now isn’t that we’re too broke to find a new home. The problem is that everything is being rented before it even hits the market, and what doesn’t get rented has an inflated price anywhere from $300-$800 more per month than it normally would be. The amount of inconsiderate people that thrive on the misfortune of others is astonishing really.
Now, that being said, you’d think we were celebrities if you knew the amount of people we had looking for a place for us. That amount is also astonishing, because several of my local sports communities are busy spreading the word to everybody on the inside. So I have no doubt that we’ll find a place soon, it’s just about if it’s soon enough.
In the meantime, I’m just busy losing my mind, lol. Part of me wants to finish Pokémon White 2, part of me wants to keep doing miscellaneous stuff like this to keep me occupied, and part of me wants to write a journal so in another estimated 70 years when a storm with that trajectory comes again, I’ll have quite the story to tell about 2012. Not quite the end of the world, but you look at some pictures and it looks like it. I think one magazine we picked up that had tons of Sandy pictures (@Kaiten92 shut up) even referred to it as the Living Armageddon or something like that, which is pretty much what all the victims agree happened. It sure looks like it.
I know I’ve said this before but when you see the devastation to places on TV, you feel sad for the victims. It’s really hard to imagine it hitting this close to home though, and I think for the first time in my life I really don’t have an emotion for it. You know, I’m not in tears, I don’t think it’s funny, and I’m not angry. It’s just very… Disturbing, I guess. Not to put any hurricanes down, because I know all hurricanes devastate someone somewhere and my heart goes out to them, but from a completely honest standpoint this is the worst storm since Katrina. I’m not kidding when I say that literally entire towns have been washed off the map. Our town wasn’t one of them, but obviously we still got hit very hard.
SFW but tough to see if you know a Sandy victim
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http://wodumedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Streets-damaged-during-Hurricane-Sandy-in-Ortley-Beach-New-Jersey-on-November-10-2012.-ReutersTim-LarsenGovernors-Office-650x433.jpg
Ortley Beach, one of the many towns that was completely destroyed. Houses, buildings, structures of any kind, and roads were uprooted and shredded to pieces in the storm.[/details]
Now, for something actually happy (because I’m on the road and I feel like talking), I should clear up a common misconception that I heard going around somewhere in these glorious pages. And that misconception is that Shadow is lame.
Shadow, the Ultimate Life Form, is the coolest freaking thing that ever happened in 3D Sonic. He was created by Doctor Eggman’s grandfather as a weapon of mass destruction and as a means of revenge. This guy is just badassery in motion.
SFW, spoilering images to reduce loading times
Spoiler
http://static.minitokyo.net/downloads/28/35/246778.jpg
He was created in the image of Sonic the Hedgehog, yet according to the in-game events he’s actually stronger than his cocky alter ego. He can speed around just as fast, only on hovering roller-skates which is just plain cool.
His power is pretty awesome as well, all things considered. Not only does he come fully equipped wielding the power of the Chaos Emerald to bend time itself, but he possesses so much might that he wrecked his predecessor, the Ultimate Life Form Prototype, even though the lizard on steroids was over 100 times as large as Shadow.
So why do people hate Shadow? Well, SA2 got a lot wrong. From the disgustingly bad camera to all the emerald hunt levels, everybody has a bone to pick with this game. It’s kinda like Marvel in that sense - it’s mainly fun because it’s a shitty game with a raw feel, so if you can get past its flaws you’ll have a blast.
One of the many flaws was that although the story itself was good, the actual writing was pretty watered down. It often took five lines of dialogue to get a simple point across, and the voiceovers were pretty bad as well (although this is all opinion). Because of this, Shadow seemed pretty… Dull. Everyone did. It was state-the-obvious writing, so that’s no surprise.
Every now and then, you could get a glimpse of his personality. That’s why my favorite part of the game was Shadow’s encounters with Maria, as well as the final cutscenes. This is a hedgehog who was created to be the Ultimate Life Form and he sacrificed himself to save those he was created to rule.
If he wasn’t immortal, he wouldn’t have survived a fall from the edge of the earth. But what the hell good is an Ultimate Life Form if it can die? Haha, no. Shadow laughs in the face of death, making him once again a badass. Good luck finding a valid reason to hate this character other than Sega developing God-awful games like Sonic 06. Do you really think Shadow is what made the games he appeared in bad?
