More Blatherings on WoW

Wrath of the Lich King has been out for just over a month now, and so far I have to say I’m enjoying much of the new content.

Well, let me put a disclaimer on that.  I’ve found ways to enjoy the time I’m spending in game much more than I was before the expansion was released.  For one, I’ve been holding off on doing any quests until such a time as Krystalle is available to run with me.  As she’s been crazy busy recently, that means my main character has only hit level 75.  I’m ok with that.  I figure I’m only going to get a chance to see the new stuff once with fresh eyes, and I’d like to actually do that with her so we can share the experience instead of going back and running it with her again when I’ve already blown through it.

From everything I have encountered so far, though, and from everything I’m reading online and seeing in our guild, I am severely dissapointed in how easy they have made everything as far as new content is concerned.  Yes, I realize I haven’t encountered much of it yet – but it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that when one guild manages to beat the most difficult dungeon in the expansion within a week of release there really isn’t much in the way of challenge waiting for me.

I’m not the only one, either.  I’ve noticed that a lot of the formerly “hard core” raiders in our guild are in no rush to get to the current endgame and the sentiment is pretty much the same throughout – if there’s no challenge waiting for us, there’s no motivation to get back to the point where you are doing the same thing night after night.  Only two of the five officers in the guild have characters at the level cap.  Of the sub officers, of which there are four, only one is there.

Interestingly we have a good number of players in guild who HAVE hit 80.  Some of them on multiple characters.  I log into game and watch them, and other than the fact that they have gotten to experience some of the more interesting parts of the game that I haven’t gotten to yet I do not at all envy the fact that every night I see them running the same dungeons over and over again trying to get that “one drop” or grinding a faction.  Someone mentioned in guild today that we should be attempting to do a raid boss in Wintergrasp every week because it’s quick and will gear people up.

Ugh.

I just can’t find the motivation to get back into that mindset.  I want to be challenged.  I want my accomplishments in game to represent the fact that I worked hard and was dedicated to getting something done.  That’s why I’ve been spending a lot of time working on achievements.  As much as I bagged on them as being a way to get players to run content again that they have already done, I can at least take some solace that you have to either be really dedicated (or insane) to get many of them.

The hope out there among the hard core WoW players is that we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg as far as new content in the expansion and that later raids will be more challenging.  One can only hope.  Of course, when that happens I’ll be behind the curve as far as gear is concerned…but you know what?  Again, not so much with the caring.  I’ve made up my mind that if I’m not having fun doing something in game I’m simply not doing it anymore.  I spent far too long treating the game like a job, and more often than not for other people’s benefit.  I’m paying to play this game.  When someone decides they want to pay me to play I’ll re-evaluate my stance.

NY Governor Proposes 15% “Obesity Tax” On Soda

Image by sallyvan

Image by sallyvan

One of the biggest obstacles that many of us in the geek subculture have to overcome when trying to be healthy is our love of caffeinated beverages.  While many a light night gaming session has been powered by a case of Jolt Cola, the “empty calories” in those jittery all-nighters are brutal on the waist line.  One can of Mountain Dew has 110 calories alone!

Well, residents of New York will soon have more motivation to cut a few extra cans out of their diet.  Governor David Patterson has added an item to the 2009 state budget that would add a 15% “obesity tax” on non-diet sodas.  According to the New York Daily News this plan will raise an estimated $404 million dollars a year for the State of New York.  Unlike similar tax increases on luxury items such as cigarettes and alcohol, the money raised by these taxes do not appear to be earmarked for heatlh care purposes.  In fact, Governor Davis is reportedly proposing a $3.5 billion cut in health care spending.

On the whole we could all probably stand to have a few less sodas in our lives, but whether or not a tax increase will have a noticeable impact on sugary cola consumption remains to be seen.  The $404 million dollar number seems like it is based on current soda purchases, so if Governor Davis is counting on those dollars it doesn’t seem very likely that he believes the new tax is going to be much of a deterrent either.  Sadly, it appears as though he is counting on the soda drinkers in New York to continue their sugary ways.