Life update, veggies, link, etc (RL mostly)

[thistlechaser]

First off, a link rec: weepingcock is one of the most amusing comms around. They go out and read the worst of adult fanfics and then link and "review" them. They make me laugh out loud on a regular basis!

Over the weekend, I made fried rice. Wonder of wonders, it came out amazingly good! I have never, in my whole life, cooked something that came out good. At best I made things which were okay or passable, this was the first time I cooked something from scratch and it came out yummy. Since I knew I could make the "base" fried rice (nothing but rice and eggs in it), I expanded and bought lots of bags of frozen veggies so I could add various things to it. Last night I made it again, this time with a "stir fry" assortment of veggies. Alas, it was not as good. The rice wasn't cooked enough (guess I was short on water in the rice maker), so the center of each grain was a little hard. Blech. I didn't like any of the veggies (chief among them green beans and snow peas), but that could very well be because they were frozen and then I had to nuke them before adding them to the pan.

Unfortunately that was dinner last night and I forgot breakfast this morning. c.c I suck, because I actually bought yogurt for breakfast this week, all I had to do was grab one out of the fridge on the way out.

Other than that, I'm happily reading the second Raised By Wolves book. So much love for them being 500+ pages long! I can read for hours and hours and not finish in one sitting!

FFXI: Meh. RDM is flying along (69, halfway to 70), but I'm thinking about switching things around. If I clear my Retributor I can sell my Maneater (I know Maneater is better, but I only use axes on DRK a couple times a year -- no use holding on to a 500K weapon for that). If I campaign in Pashhow I can clear the axe on the crabs there. The XP would suck next to sitting in Jugner, but... I don't know.

I was looking at RDM merits (since 75 is close) and they're more meh than I remember. Why are Slow II and Dia III and such merit spells and not scrolls? c.c Whatever. At least meriting RDM should keep me busy for a while. Overall I'm just meh on it though. I feel like it's just busywork, which I guess it is.

Comments

[ani-mama.livejournal.com]

Fried rice is a staple in our house. It is an excellent way to use up leftover rice! What I do with frozen veggies is nuke them just enough so that the clumps fall apart. Then I cook that first in the pan with a bit of butter or bacon grease, until it is still crisp but hot. You should season it at this point as well, with seasoned salt and pepper, to give the veggies some flavor. Eggs get added next, then the precooked rice when the eggs are nearly done. I like soy sauce in the mix, so that goes in after the rice warms up a bit. If the soy sauce is added too early it will burn and taste nasty... Usually I toss in whatever leftover meat I have in the fridge too. Bulgogi beef or teeny ham cubes or bacon bits... happy cooking!

I cook a lot because I have to...the nearest decent restaurant is 45 minutes away! And if I want good Asian food, it is 5 hours to Seattle.

[iniadelphinae.livejournal.com]

The meh-ness of RDM merits is why it remains my least merited job, even though it was the first to 75.

Idk why some spells are meritable and not scrolls, but the same thing goes for AM2 for BLM, Pro/Shellra V for WHM, and elemental San spells for NIN.

Having said that, I wouldn't bother with the Group 2 merits on RDM if you are not doing endgame because you do not need them. I see RDMs casting Para 2, Slow 2, Dia III, etc on meripo mobs. Para 2 and Dia/Bio 3 in particular are a complete waste of MP on meripo mobs, and Para 2 is a waste of merits period IMO. You should be able to land plain old Paralyze with minimal +skill gear and loads of MND gear so it processes well at 75. Para 2 does not automatically process more often than Para 1. Slow 2... well, I may differ here. IMO, it's still a waste of MP on a meripo mob. However, it does actually slow the mob more than plain old Slow, so it's up to you.

Phalanx 1 has greater DEF boost than maxed Phalanx 2. For this reason, it gets a lot of crap in some circles. My reply to this is that the greater DEF on Phalanx 1 doesn't help anyone else at all. I've had a lot of tanks mention they've noticed the difference with and without Phalanx 2, and I just have it unlocked.

As for Group 1, it again depends on what you're going to do with it. If you're doing lots of endgame, Wind/Ice Acc at 5/5 is going to help with the MUST LAND spells like Silence, Gravity and Bind. If you're not an endgame person, however, I'd go Convert/Wind/Ice 5/3/2.

[taperkat.livejournal.com]

As far as I know, you can't break latents in Campaign, fyi.

and slow2, para2, phalanx2 = win

[southern-hell.livejournal.com]

Frozen peas have a completely different taste than fresh peas, I can eat snow pea pods fresh as a snack the same way one would eat baby carrots but I don't use frozen peas. Cheap, Americanized Chinese restaurants and buffets use frozen peas and carrot cubes on yellow rice as their version of "fried rice" and it's gross imo.

Many category II merits across all jobs are aimed primarily at end-game usefulness. Having different RDMs within your LS with different CatI&II combos is quite nice. Slow II and Paralyze II allow more time for resting and overall MP management due to their lengthened duration. Paralyze II is also easier to land on HNM type mobs, though the proc effect on both versions has a high /random factor. Slow II stacked with MND is more potent and combined with Elegy cannot be beat. DiaIII is nice for zerg fights, although not quite as useful as the others imo. Phalanx II is generally appreciated by tanks and helpful in things like Salvage especially. Capped BioIII along with Dark Skill gear is king for cutting down soloing time. BlindII... lolBlindII.

Campaign tags on = skilling and latent breaking restriction. It is not just hitting campaign mobs which would allow hitting other mobs with tags on to work, as you can skill up on campaign mobs without tags on.

[quistie.livejournal.com]

Do you really want to farm for Paralyze II scrolls and such? I am okay with the fact that those are merit spells and not scrolls. I am not sure if you want to worry RDM-specific merits before capping out your Enfeebling magic merits, as that would help out both your DRK and your RDM, and make your DRK enfeebles more reliable. Unless, of course, you're planning on doing something else with your Magic Skills merits.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

The first component of fried rice is fully cooked leftover rice! That will eliminate the "not properly cooked rice" problem. Seriously, the rice should be cooked and allowed to go completely room temperature-cool before use.

Mmm, fried rice.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Ah, that might have been part of the issue then -- mine went straight from the rice cooker hot and steaming into the pan! Next time I'll wait.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I am not sure if you want to worry RDM-specific merits before capping out your Enfeebling magic merits, as that would help out both your DRK and your RDM, and make your DRK enfeebles more reliable.

Ah, that's a good idea. Thanks!

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I sure do wish it was summer, then I'd have lots more veggie options. :/

Campaign tags on = skilling and latent breaking restriction.

Yeah, I meant on the crabs behind the outpost between Campaign battles.

And thanks for the merit info!

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

As far as I know, you can't break latents in Campaign, fyi.

You're correct! I meant clear on the crabs between battles, since they're so nice and close by (and EP to 75).

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Ah, that's true. I forgot that WHM and BLM have merit-spells, too. *is so not a mage*

Having said that, I wouldn't bother with the Group 2 merits on RDM if you are not doing endgame because you do not need them.

I doubt I'll be doing anything with RDM, other than Campaign. I fear how sucky I'd be at the job, when I did 1-64 more than two years ago and then 65-75 in Campaign battles only. Not only is everything going to be underskilled, but as a player how much am I going to know about the job? (Or at least working in a group as it.)

Thanks for the info!

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Ah, *cough* I hadn't thought about seasoning the veggies, that's a good idea! I also didn't know soy sauce could burn, I was tossing it in in the beginning!

Thanks for the hints! :)

[ani-mama.livejournal.com]

Eckh! That will make fried mush!

[ani-mama.livejournal.com]

You are welcome! And I went to that Weeping cock site and just about had an aneurysm...Winnie the Pooh porn!!!! Egads.....

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

*laughs* That was a great/horrible one! Did you check the one with all the foods?

"Logan's pecker spritzed like a popping can of soda..."

Link: http://community.livejournal.com/weepingcock/107314.html#cutid1

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Ha, yeah, that's just what it made. :P

[ani-mama.livejournal.com]

Ewwwww...I will never look at a can of soda the same way again.

[refreshwhore.livejournal.com]

weepingcock @_@

My new favourite "shits and giggles" community.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Yes! It rocks for that. :D