mDuo13

I don't know how long it took me to beat Metroid - certainly long enough that Samus didn't take even her helmet off - but I'm done with the game. And that feels like a real accomplishment, given how hard the game - or nearly any NES game, for that matter - is, compared to modern games. I'm also feeling pretty done with Hawaii after sunburning myself pretty thoroughly yesterday (although I caught a lot of good waves).

The first time I came to Hawaii was quite a few years back, and we spent a bunch of time in Honolulu and Lanikai. I did not enjoy that trip and came to dislike Hawaii entirely. The second time I came to Hawaii, we went to Maui and had a distinctly more laid-back time, which was better, and getting to swim with sea turtles and spend the rest of my time lounging around by the ocean. After that, I scaled back my dislike of the place. I've come to the conclusion now, on my third trip to Hawaii, that I have nothing against the place itself, though it's also not necessarily paradise. I only hate going vacationing with my parents, who want to spend most of their time driving, shopping, or sipping Mai Tais, all of which I'd rather skip.

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My vacation is coming along pretty well. I've had plenty of time to chill out, catch some waves on Kilama Beach, and play Metroid. It's funny: I bought Zero Mission thinking, "This will substitute for that frustratingly difficult classic Metroid in my experience of the series." But when I fired up the game and glanced at the extras, it had the original Metroid available. I decided half-heartedly to try it out, and now I've spent a lot of hours, beaten Kraid and gotten almost all the power-ups, despite how mind-bogglingly difficult the game is.

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First off, a bit of context: this post comes to you from all the way on the island of O'ahu in the great island state of Hawai'i. Well, actually, I'm not all that fond of Hawaii, but for the sake of my cousin's wedding and related business, I find myself sitting in a sweltering room in a rented beach house, pattering away at my Eee's miniscule keyboard, with no internet at the moment of this writing (though if you're reading this it seems safe to assume I've found a wireless point for long enough to upload it). Completely by coincidence, my good friend Spiritsnare is also in Hawaii at this moment, though he's a few klicks west on the map, visiting the island of Kaua'i. Judging from the little compass attached to my bag, this means he's somewhat forward and to the left of my current sitting position.

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