In Which I Get My Lamp!

You're in a cave, it's dark, what will you do?
GET LAMP, that's what! This film both made me smile
And stirred old wistfulness; the timeline through
Which we are taken largely took place while
Computers were unheard of where I dwelt
(Excepting those typesetting beasts employed
By newspapers). You'd best believe I felt
Deprived as I read how others enjoyed
Computer gaming in those early days,
How stories weren't just read but lived by those
Who solved their puzzles in ingenious ways,
How smart people were having fun! "But," crows
My fav'rite pusher "It is not too late!
(I paraphrase)" And thus he's sealed my fate.

In Which I Lose My Mind But Gain More Time Sinks

I'm told I have a tendency to spin

Scenarios with little data, so

I should not be surprised that I am in,

Hip-deep, a new obsession. We all know

I'm prone to those as well, so, no surprise

When someone turned me on to these new games,

These interactive fictions, a few tries

Had me quite hooked. Rejoicing in such names

As "Jigsaw", "Edifice" and "Fragile Shells"

And puzzling me at ev'ry turn, these things

Have eaten up my brain for longer spells

Than any have in months. It's running rings

'Round bad TV and neuroscience class

In my obsession race. I hope to pass!

In Which The IsoCore Shall Have A Western Brother

This looks more like a spaceship flown by Borg

Than a computer, I'm first to admit.

Ere my laptop is shipped off to the morgue,

Though, I must poise to replace it.

I want one to play games on and to keep

Ungodly files of media, and that suits

My strange aesthetic, so I shall go deep

Into the hardware catalog: the roots

Of PC architecture I know well,

Though it's been fourteen years since last I built

A new computer, I say what the hell,

And lo shall I go at the plan full-tilt.

I've chosen a processor and a case

As you may see above. So starts the chase!

In Which Shift Work And Ebay Prove A Poor Match

A Yaesu FRG was my first pick --
A proper shortwave radio my need.
A taste for analog tech makes me tick,
And Ebay seemed the best place for to feed
My hunger for a new toy. Oh, alas,
The auction ended while I was at work,
And so this dreadful thing did come to pass:
The Yaesu got snapped up by some rare jerk
While I was earning what I need to live.
Split seconds were the difference. One more
Was snapped up while I toiled. For now I give
Right up. But there are other toys galore.
A Hallicrafter S28 will be
A compensation. Now, just come to me!