As you might have noticed, I finally put up a new layout. It does retain elements from the previous one (noticeably the platypus on the header), but sees a major improvement in color scheme. There might very well still be quirks here and there, but overall it should work fine.

One problem I have is with the header. It worked fine when I didn't see the Delicious bookmarks while working offline, but not I think it looks too huge. Perhaps I'll scrap the bookmarks altogether and replace them with something else. Or maybe try with only 3 bookmarks?

Anyway. If I haven't blogged in a while, it's simply because there isn't much interesting to say. I have quit my job. I received RPG Maker VX, Dexter season 2 on DVD and a PlayStation 2 (!, used, from my brother) for Christmas. The later was really unexpected, but I was very happy.

It has been brought to my attention that the platypus on the header image looks a lot like the Pokémon Psyduck. I assure you this was completely unintentional. Psyduck is, well, a duck, but with hands and whatnot that make him look like a platypus. My brother-in-law, who created this cute platypus, has no interest in Pokémon and merely followed my instructions (a goofy looking platypus). It even has claws and a flat tail!

So, where have I been? Well, just here, turning my computer on once in a while and playing Hearts.

I have returned to Montreal in August. I live in a residence for people with mental health problems. There are eight of us (nine when the other girl comes back from the hospital).

Once I got a table to put my computer on, I called a company to get an internet connection. They required a prepayment, so I did that, and faxed a confirmation. Then I waited. And waited. In the past month, I spoke with three or four different people from the company, had my order canceled a couple of times, was given two different appointments that were both canceled for various reasons, etc.

Their system just can't accept that multiple people living at the same address could want separate internet connections.

I finally got a connection with a different company, activated today. The guy worked around the system, so that, while the bill will be sent to my home address, it is written that I live next door.

I was bloody relieved when I turned my computer on and was signed in to MSN. AT LAST! Needless to say I am pissed at the other company and will obviously ask to get my prepayment back.

In the meantime, I have a new boyfriend. He is one of the residents here. I don't feel very well, rather depressed. And the web has gone on without me. I have many things to catch up on.

Freedom for Freedom

On one side you have those who prone freedom for the sake of Freedom. Your laws, your opinions, your beliefs, they all can exist provided that they do not come in the way of My Freedom. For example, those who advocate against gun control in the United States will cite the US constitution. "I don't care about any other arguments, because wanting to keep me from owning a gun is against my freedom."

Freedom for Well Being

On the other side, where I find myself, are people who prone freedom as being one of the many things that promote the well being of humans. We believe we must strive for the good of people and that, in order for the world to be better, people need some freedom: the freedom to vote, assemble in public, participate in harmless religious practices, love and live with a person of the same sex, etc.

The Problem of Freedom for Freedom

The problem of believing in freedom for its own sake is that, along the way, you can find yourself harming other people. I could use the freedom argument to do horrible things, something which I will not do if I think that freedom is only one of the many aspects of a good life.

There are people in this world who are denied rights such as voting (including gender-based discrimination) or who live in horrible conditions. When I hear people say that my not wanting them to keep an unlocked, loaded gun in their house goes against their freedom, I find it rather insulting to all those people.

Is this man completely stupid? He has just killed whatever credibility he might have had: the idea behind transgenic food is that is has been modified using science. I wonder if this should be taken into a larger context, where conservatism tends to see science as that Other thing, the thing that doesn't really concern us because it's all theories and calculations and stuff that doesn't apply to Us. What does science have to do with our food, anyway?

As for the good news, they have nothing to do with European economics. I am moving back out of my parents' home around mid-August. I will be living in a home for speshol peepel. I'm not quite sure what the correct expression would be in English, but basically it is a home under supervision by counselors. Up to 9 people can live there at any given time.

I will be paying a pension. It is more expensive than a regular renting would be for one person, but it includes food, electricity, furniture, etc. Meals are prepared by the counselors, although we are welcome to help. We must all contribute to the maintenance of the home (cleaning, doing the dishes, taking out the trash, etc.).

My goal is to increase my autonomy. For example, I haven't washed a bath in years, simply because I am unable to. I know how, obviously, but I have a complete blocking due to ewness. The kind that makes me scrub my hands until they get infected.

Oh, and the place I'll be living is in a nice area of Montreal.

Anyway, on to the main topic of this post. My brother and sister were discussing online games. More particularly, they talked about an online RPG-like game my brother plays. The game is free, but you can get more features if you buy a membership. The same goes for a game I play, DragonFable. You can register for free and play for free too, but there are items and quests that are only available to paying players.

They both agreed that they didn't see a reason to pay for something which you can get for free. There I completely disagree. Like everyone I do enjoy free things. One of the reasons I use OpenOffice and Firefox is because I don't pay for them.

I would gladly contribute money to some projects such as DragonFable (I really have to get around to buy a DragonAmulet there!). Why? Because there are people behind that project. Sure, they have advertising and probably another job. They're however devoting many hours of their time to this project. What's a small 30 something dollars contribution from me compared to all the time and effort that goes behind the creation of a video game?

I enjoy their game, using their creation, and loading their servers with one more person. I certainly don't see that "investment" as being a waste for me.