(((misanthropy central)))

Down on the Farmville

This article details how companies are pulling in cash through scam-filled games on social networking sites. Games such as Farmville and Mafia Wars and countless others.

Similar to my rationale for joining Twitter, I decided I needed to investigate the phenomenon first-hand to get a better sense of this new trend of "appointment gaming".

What's the appeal?

It's a dollhouse sim. Amassing enough money to afford decorations to create some farm you think's pretty.

For the unemployed (*cough*), there is the added illusion of making "money" via some simple, repetitive, carpal-tunnel-syndrome-inducing mouse-clicks. What a remarkably empty sense of accomplishment, when you "master" a certain crop.

Along those lines, my renewed commitment to health involves incorporating a regular intake of bananas and carrots.

Carrots keep a lot better than bananas. I am terrible at buying produce because it generally spoils so easily. But I am trying to get stronger. The stress of the past few months has taken a certain toll and I am determined to rise above this.

All I Want is a Tomb Somewhere

One of the... challenges with my new living situation is that my bedroom was partially furnished. The previous roomie fixed up the room nicely with some carpentry and furniture and left it all in here. Which has meant I haven't been able to fit most of my own furniture in my bedroom. I've adapted most of the stuff here for my needs. I'm gradually adjusting to the new setup. But living here kind of feels like living in a hotel room. There is a black recliner chair in my bedroom that serves as the perfect place to sit while watching television; amidst all the negatives and compromises attached to living here, this feels like a peculiar luxury.

It is NOT quiet in The Tomb. The traffic noises keep up into the night. There is an oasis of hours during the dead of the night when it quiets somewhat, but it does not last very long. And the trade-off to living within walking distance of some good bars is that you're hearing the drunkards shouting at each other into the wee hours, sometimes.

Attended my first free screening Wednesday evening. It was a screening of FUNNY PEOPLE, one of the many movies I missed this year, trying to save money. It was a bit all over the place, but I enjoyed it for what was there. Bit of a shame that it probably marks the end of the Apatow streak. With a little more script work, and/or a little more work in the editing room, it could have come together a lot better. But I've become a lot more forgiving of other people's work since I've been let into the film industry. I respect anyone who can make a living in this godforsaken industry.

Trying to focus on a brand new original spec script now. I've got so many fucking FRAGMENTS of ideas, recorded in notebooks and Word files. I'm trying to compile the ideas into a document to share with my reps so they can decide which one I should focus on. This is what I've been doing. There are things I can't share with you right now, Dear Blog, but I am doing this in antici-PATION of some bigger heat to come....

I am trying to get my groove back. The past several months and weeks, I've faltered. Now, it's time to get stronger again.

Tomb with a View

$190.08

That's what it cost to get the cable/internet service restored at The Tomb.

Cable was cut off on 11/16/09.

Internet was cut off on 11/17/09.

So hard-up for television, I spent a good hour of elliptical time at my new New York Sports Club location watching CNN instead of listening to music on Tuesday.,.

Straws and camel-backs, you know...

TIME WARNER internet and cable are now restored. FWIW, you should know that my ever-previous DVR box continued to successfully record programs even after access was cut off. "Attack of the Show" on G4 and "How I Met Your Mother" on CBS HD... perhaps I've said too much...

BARNONE, this is one of the craziest times of my life.

But I will live through this. That's what I do. I live through hard times.

and what becomes of you, my love...?

Cable gets shut off because the roommate—who's trotting about Asia till some vague date in December—has failed to pay the bill in months. Sucks, right?

I don't think you fully understand...

Years living in Fortresses of Solitude were made less painful with the opiate of cable television. As the walls closed in, my electric window offered relief. The illusion of a larger world.

Now... living in the newly christened TOMB... I need this escape more than ever...

The apartment is literally a dump, in a shitty area that is noisy as fuck through the better part of a 24 hour stretch. I've only been here a few days and the experiment is already failing. I'd pay the debt off myself but I can't afford to pay 3-4 months of overdue cable bills right now. I can't afford anything right now, which is why I'm fucking in this situation.

If the internet gets shut off, however, I'll need to take heavier measures.

Nothing Ever Lasts

Cable TV just got cut off. Phoned the cable company and was notified it was because of "lack of payment". I'm unable to do anything since I am not the account holder in this apartment, and the absent-minded account-holder is traipsing around Asia until December.

Sent him an email. Internet still works, for now. Will see how long that lasts.

Where Do We Go...?

My manager was in town and took me to dinner Saturday night. For all the exciting, encouraging news he related to me, I walked away feeling bummed out.

I'm on the cusp of big things. Perennially, I'm on the cusp of big things. Still, it's hard to enjoy when you're broke with no clear view toward a paycheck. A friend suggested I should just live as if money weren't such an obstacle... and I do, at times... but it ain't too fun.

Been steadily excavating The Tomb. It's a small blessing to have one roommate away in Asia till sometime in December and the other roommate only here about half the week. Sunday night, I got rid of a shitload of stuff that they'd left piled up in the apartment for forever. We're talking stacks of newspapers from years ago. Busted old computer monitors and stereo systems, ghosts of roommates past. Like an episode of HOARDERS. Been feverishly clearing things out just so I might have some space for my stuff.

I really hope that the next place I can afford to move into will have enough square footage to accommodate everything I own without necessitating a dramatic purge. Though I'll definitely be working on lightening the burdens before then.

The Tomb is in bad need of an extreme makeover, just to make it a place I can comfortably live and work in. Wee hours of Monday mourning, I can see it starting to come together. And yet, it seems there are miles to go before I'll be home.