I still think I suck at MSPR, but I'm definitely getting better and I'm falling in love with the game more and more the more I play it. That said, I'm trying really hard to give up the addiction and move back to FFXII. I tried it on Sunday and it was surprisingly easy for me to jump back into my five month old gamesave and pick up where I'd left off. So that's a good sign.

Now as for my "getting KenobiEagle online" quest, I've made quite a bit of progress, but I think I've really only been walking in place the whole time, metaphorically speaking. I did return that router that I mentioned in my last post, and in its place, I bought a NETGEAR RangeMax Wireless-N Gigabit Router with 4-Port Ethernet Switch. It wasn't a hasty decision; I spoke with an employee that I hadn't spoken to the previous Saturday and after relaying my situation to him, he told me all about his situation, which turned out to be very similar to my own. This is the router he suggested because he uses it himself. It can't hurt; I can always return it if it fails me.

Well, it already kinda failed me. Apparently, it requires that the computer connected to the modem has a wireless G or N network adapter set up in its tower, something the seven-year-old computer in the study does not have. "Frick!" I said. I was totally planning on returning it this coming Saturday when I remembered that I had asked a question similar to the one I asked in my last blog post to the folks in the PS3 forums. Somebody there had suggested the TRENDnet TEW-647GA Wireless Gaming Adapter. It sounded really promising and really set itself up to be my last hope. It arrived in the mail today and well, it just so happens to also require that the computer connected to the modem and router (which means I can't return the N router after all) has a wireless network adapter set up. So now I'm browsing the internet for a cheap, reliable adapter for the computer in the study that no one ever uses ever because it's old, S-L-O-W, old, and did I mention, S-L-O-W. Any suggestions?

Believe it or not, I'm still really excited about all this. I feel I've bought some great equipment. Hopefully, everything will fall into place once I buy the network adapter and my PS3 will become the bee's knees. Playing user-created LBP levels online solo or with others, online MSPR races, and let's not forget ModNation Racers in all its sharing goodness!

P.S. I'm really sorry about the recent lame as all heck blog posts; I just feel that as this has become quite the saga, some of you might be interested to hear the play-by-play, especially since if this all works out alright in the end, I'll be able to play with some of you online and you'll know exactly how I got in the position to be able to do that!

P.S.S. It seems I failed to mention a rather humorous part of this past week's progress. Two days ago, I called Verizon again to see if I could make an appointment to have someone come to the house and determine if it would be possible to have a second modem installed in my bedroom. Evidently, this is impossible for two reasons: 1) Verizon doesn't do house calls (WTF?! They should!) and 2) the two modems would each send their own signals which would conflict and wage invisible war with each other. The guy I spoke to didn't end the call there with all my hopes dashed, however. He gave me two tips to try. 1) Wrap a wok or frying pan in aluminum foil and stick it half a foot behind the modem pointing in the same direction as the modem's antenna (Seriously. But it is working. The PS3 still hates the internet like it kicked its puppy in the face a few times while forcing it to watch, but my desktop computer acts as though it's in a sponge bath of euphoric, sudsy wireless internet goodness.). 2) Plug an ethernet cable into the jack I have in my room and see if I can get a wired connection in my room after all (turns out I can't because the jack is too small for the cable. Blegh.).

P.S.S. Speaking of the bee's knees, I got a hold of the soundtrack for Pacific Rift and have been listening to it on the way to and from work. It is amazing. Rock, electronica, electronica-infused rock. Win, win, win. It's one thing that a majority of the songs are stellar simply as stand-alones, but it certainly doesn't hurt that when certain songs come through my car's speakers, my mind goes straight to that incredible first trailer that started my fascination with the game or that one amazing race in Razorback or Badlands Volcanic that went down just a few days ago while my brother was still home for break, fighting through ten other far-more-skilled-than-us AI racers, vying for a spot in the top three alongside me.

P.S.S.S. If you're going to click on any of the links in the postscript above, I highly recommend pumping up your volume. 8)