OddballGreg - Late Night Gaming Sessions

Payday: The Heist banner from http://starbreeze.com/games/payday-the-heist/. Complete with Hoxton rocking a clown mask and devil horns hand gesture. You can just feel the friendliness as a new batch of coulrophobia sets in..

Any gamer will tell you how easy it is to lose track of time when you're having fun. Recently, we here at TCSA discovered that Late Night Gaming Sessions aren't the greatest of idea's when you've got work to do and blog posts to write. Let's talk about that.

A few days ago, I noticed that the Starbreeze made game Payday: The Heist was going for the absolute steal of roughly R50 for 4 copies on the (in)famous game online distribution store, Steam. (I say roughly because that's a rounded number from after we converted the price from dollars.)

Of course, having heard about the huge reputation Payday has for being an awesome co-op game, and having played games like Left 4 Dead which are very much similar in gameplay, I saw no reason as to why we should pass up the opportunity to net 4 copies of a great game on the cheap. (I do not regret this decision.) Steam sales are notorious for the way they encourage people to open their wallets. (Or beg their friends to open theirs such as in this case. Teehee. Thanks JovialJman.)

In any case, a day or so after downloading Payday, backing it up to a flash and distributing the game files to my fellow would-be-criminals who were gifted the additional copies of Payday, it was decided that it would be fun to at last, try the game out and play a couple games while talking over Skype. Now, I don't mean to say we weren't thinking at this point. I will however, point out that Payday is a disgustingly huge amount of fun to play with friends, and the cumulative result of what supposed to be a couple games was a nine hour long Skype call and gaming session which resulted in myself, JovialJman and my brother being severely incapacitated for the next few days. (Friday, Saturday, Today to a lesser degree.)

As it turns out, planning bank heists, leveling up your criminal characters and just having a regular ball as you realize, for the 10th time in a row, that someone just hit a panic button and the S*** has just hit the fan again, can become rather addictive, even when we all knew we had things to do the next day. My brother and I were going to a friends place for the weekend and JovialJman had to work the next day. Suffice to say, I was unable to stay awake any later than 7pm and JovialJman was unable to work properly or write his already late post. Unfortunately, since I was not at home and had ruined my ability to write any posts while I was still at home, it would not be until today that I could finally write this post and finally publish it late. JovialJman is also in the process of, or already has, published his post from Friday as well.

Suffice to say, one 9 hour gaming session was the most schedule damaging thing we had ever done (yet.) Thankfully, part of the joy of the job is that we aren't getting yelled at for it. Though we are sorry for letting anyone down if they were looking forward to reading some new posts these past few days. On the upside, you'll be getting all the posts that should have been up, as well as the new posts as per our schedule in the next couple days, so better late than never right? (Please don't hit me.)

In any case, perhaps I shall do a proper review of Payday: The Heist in the upcoming few days considering it has the honor of being the first game to actually put us here at TCSA behind schedule. If you would like us to do so, or simply wish to moan at us for being so silly, do be sure to do so down in the comments below, or via Facebook/Twitter. If you have any friends who might be interested in reading up about Payday and perhaps seeing if it might be a game that they would enjoy playing, consider sharing this post with them so that they can see just how fun it can be. Of course, if you yourself would like to read that review, or any other of our posts, as they come out, consider liking the Official TCSA Facebook page and/or following us on Twitter to get all the latest posts, as they're published. Regardless of what you do, I thank you for having taken the time to read this post; hope that you have/had an absolutely FANTASTIC day, and I will speak again soon.

Work hard and work first my friends.

OddballGreg - =3 (Funny Videos and Presenter Comedy)

Do you know how hard it is to take a screenshot of a person while they're talking that doesn't make them look constipated or in pain? VERY. Picture is from the =3 video "Sheep to the Balls".

Do you like videos of animals doing stupid things? (Or people?) Do you like people making jokes about things? Well fantastic, because the popular YouTube show "=3" does both these things... TOGETHER! The show also happens to quite funny too.

Robby Motz, Actor who talks loudly for a living, (at least according to his twitter account), is the new(ish) presenter of =3, the internet show where they find the latest viral videos, put the best parts of them into one neat little package, and then crack jokes about them for good measure.

While originally the creation of Ray William Johnson, the famous actor and comedian who created =3 as well as other interesting and generally succesful projects including the now retired music project "Your Favorite Martian"which was one of the most successful YouTube band start-ups and a relatively unheard of thing in it's time.

A generally well liked individual for his iconic humor and willingness to make fun of occasionally controversial subjects, Ray William Johnson was and still is a highly respected individual who famously grew the =3 show to massive heights. He is often cited as inspiration to many for their own YouTube careers, with individuals such as Boogie2988 fingering his featuring of their videos on =3 as the reason for their own success on YouTube and resulting lifestyles. (Basically, he's just awesome.)

Of course, most things do come to an end, and he eventually ended his career as the =3 presenter when he found that the show was no longer satisfying his needs as an artist, much to the outcry of his fans. Thankfully, he found the young and thoroughly entertaining Robby Motz (Pictured Above) to hand the reigns over to. While perhaps a bit young and inexperienced, (and initially mocked for looking like he had been crying), Robby Motz has taken up the mantle from Ray quite effectively and has brought back the brilliant show to its former glory.

Fun fact, I just spent 4 paragraphs not talking about this articles topic, and you actually read it. (Teehee) Jokes aside, =3 is a rather funny show to watch, what with cameo's from many a character about the internet, (usually) cleverly thought out jokes, recurring humor from previous episodes and just general fun from hilarious videos on the internet that you may not have known about. If you've got some time to burn, I highly recommend checking out the show here on Ray William Johnson's YouTube Channel.

Anyways, that's all she wrote. (Or so the saying goes.) If you enjoyed the article, want to yell at me for talking about the wrong things in detail, or simply which to thank me for providing you with yet another way to waste your life, then do be sure to say so down in the comments below, or via Facebook/Twitter. We here at TCSA love to hear your feedback, as it helps us to make the blog better for you guys. Better yet, why don't you share this post with your friends, if they've got nothing better to do, (or even plenty better to do), they may appreciate the thought. And of course, if you yourself would like to read more articles like this one, then do be sure to like the Official TCSA Facebook page and/or follow us on Twitter to get the latest posts as they're published. Regardless of what you do, I thank you for having taken the time to read this post; hope that you have/had an absolutely FANTASTIC day, and I will speak again soon.

Farewell my Friends.

OddballGreg - Social Awkwardness

According to the internet, being a penguin is about as socially awkward as you can get... Or at least, according to the meme.

You ever put up your hand for a high five and been left looking like a monkey that doesn't realize it's not in a tree? Or offered a hug and ended up looking like you were auditioning for a role as a tree in the school play? If so, you've probably experienced a bit of social awkwardness in your life. Good thing it's funny.

I have met many socially awkward people in my life. I speak to a someone who believes she is socially awkward every day. (Don't tell her I said so, but I think she's socially awesome. Teehee) And, to be fair, I was and am rather socially awkward myself. The difference being that I find it amusing these days. (Have you ever walked around a shopping center in mafia gear? The way people avoid eye contact is hilarious.)

Believe it or not, my magnificent self was not always as confident as I am now. For the first 15 years of my life, I was more awkward than a penguin that's had it's toes glued together. No confidence, stared at my feet when I walked to avoid tripping, spent break times at school reading Harry Potter in class, spent my days playing with computers. Very much your typical nerd. (Ironically, I still do the latter 2. Harry Potter is still cool, I'm sorry.)

What's really fun about being socially awkward is realizing just how funny it is. Everyone is weird in their own little ways, (okay, in my case, many big ways.), so why I should I be embarrassed about who I am? Saying awkward things at the wrong time, drawing unicorns and chirping out unnecessary innuendo's is funny because everyone makes such a big deal about it. Can you imagine if it was awkward to breath? ("Hey. Did you see that guy over there? He's totally a breather. Oh my gosh... you're doing it to... and so am I. We are such losers.")

The ridiculousness is that people say things are awkward, when in truth, awkward is just another term for something out of the ordinary that nobody knows how to deal with. Once you get around that, the person is as awesome as anyone else, but with the benefit of being something different and fun. The other day I was at a funeral and while leaving, stood with my arms outstretched to offer a hug to the grieving... who didn't notice me and continued with a conversation she was having. Haha, after standing like a tree for about 30 seconds I dropped the hug and started laughing with everyone else. It wasn't embarrassing, it was just funny, and everyone present understood that as they laughed with me.

So the next time you meet someone who does something that you're not sure how to deal with, don't make the other person feel awkward. The greatest people have the strangest habits. (Mine is having one sided conversations with the internet? Sounds quite sane when I put it that way. Teehee) So if you're a fellow awkward person, or simply someone who understand how to deal with us, why not say hello in the comments below or over Facebook/Twitter. We're always happy to meet cool people. Even better, if you know someone who's been feeling awkward and out of place, why not share this post with them. I'm sure they'll appreciate your thought. And of course, if you would like to read more thoughtful posts like this, then do be sure to like the official TCSA Facebook page and/or follow us on Twitter so that you can get the latest articles, as they're posted. Regardless of what you do though, I thank you for having taken the time to read this post; hope that you have/had an absolutely FANTASTIC day, and I will speak again soon.

Stay awesome my friends.

JovialJman - The Truth About Spongebob

"The Truth About Spongebob" Because TCSA must do it's part to continue the tradition of media sensationalism. - OddballGreg. (Image is from http://spongebob.wikia.com/wiki/Thread:104210 and TCSA is in no way related to or sponsored by Spongebob or Nickelodeon.)

Have you ever wondered if the cartons you and/or your children are watching might have a deeper meaning, or be an allegory for something else? There are always theories about such things with all cartoons, but lets talk about Spongebob Squarepants today.

Spongebob Squarepants has been one of my favorite cartoons of all time, for a long time. The humor in it can still tickle the fancy of the oldest (possibly immature) person. I still enjoy watching it to this day. Watching it yesterday reminded me about a discussion I had with someone in the past, (I strangely don't remember who it was though.), where we were trying to determine if Spongebob was actually an allegory for the 7 deadly sins.

7 deadly sins meme. Because blue and obviously a slow colour, and blood is red. Even colors can be stereotypical.

It can be said that each of the main characters in Spongebob Squarepants is a representation of one of the biblical 7 deadly sins, of which in the cartoon they are:

• Spongebob- LUST. Not in the traditional sex meaning but rather for the love of others.
  "He shows his love of others with his overeagerness to do good and help people. If anything is true about SpongeBob its that he loves everyone around him, even if they don't exactly love him back." - www.toonzone.net This can be seen when he tries to play with Squidward in most episodes. 
• Patrick- SLOTH. Well this one is rather self explanatory if you know the show, as Patrick is always slow and lazy. I remember there was even an episode where he tried doing "absolutely nothing".
• Gary the Snail - GLUTTONOUS. This one would need a fair knowledge of the series, but you may notice that Gary often wants to be fed in most episodes, Spongebob tries to remind himself to feed Gary frequently and he even ran away in the one episode that he was not fed. (Albeit to Patrick.)
• Squidward- WRATH/ANGER. Squidward fits this one to a T. He is always angry, shouting and he dislikes Spongebob greatly.
• Sandy the Squirrel- PRIDE/VANITY. Sandy is always saying she is proud of where she comes from and that she can do many things that others cannot since she is the only land mammal under water. (because **** logic) 
• Plankton- Envy. Plankton is always trying to get that Crabby formula and wishes it was his. This causes Plankton to do many a stunt to try and get the recipe.
• Mr Crabs- Greed, There's a fair bit you could say about Mr Crabs for greed, but the image below effectively sums it up.

"Crab who can magically make his eyes into dollar symbols? Yeap, that seems fairly accurate." - OddballGreg

There has been a scientific study that has shown that the fast paced cartoon Spongebob may decrease the attention span and concentration levels of pre-schoolers. So is it "killing their brains". (According to Gizmodo.) This may not just be Spongebob and the attention span of preschoolers is a hard thing to determine as it is all over the place to start with, so the credibility of such a study, like many, is questionable.

Now there are many other theories about so many things on the internet, and if there is content of it on the internet, there is a most likely a way to link it to the illuminati. (Whatever that is.) I think that there may or may not be a link between the 7 Sins and Spongebob but either way it is still a rather strange coincidence.

If you have an opinion on Spongebob, the 7 deadly sins or the Secret group, (sssssh, we don't talk about them.), please share it with us in the comments down below or via Facebook/Twitter. If you have any friends who are a fan of cartoons or like reading conspiracy theories for laughs, please share it with them. Of course, you found today's post thought provoking or amusing, do be sure to please like our Facebook page and/or follow us on Twitter to get the latest posts as they go up.

Also, Sorry about all the links, I am a little link crazy. (Just not as crazy as crazy dave.)

See you later, alligators.

Storytime Sunday - The Tale Of Plugless (Another Of My Nicknames)

Hello and welcome to Storytime Sunday; that day of the week where I detail the story of how I earned yet another of the countless strange nicknames I have.

This could be the weirdest thing I've used in a header image so far... Well. First time for everything. :D

Have you ever done something so incomprehensibly silly, that the only reaction for both yourself and those around you, was to laugh? Probably. People do stupid things all the time. In my case though, it was bad enough that some of the fairer humored individuals took to calling me Plugless afterwards. Quite the story actually.

If you've read some of the articles that I post on this blog, such as the fantastic idea I had of jumping off of a almost 2 story high platform of sorts, you'll understand that I have a certain propensity towards ill thought out decisions, often in the name of spontaneous fun. While perhaps not always a bad thing, this does sometimes lead to strange situations such as today's topic, how I came to be known as Plugless.

Just less than 3 years ago from today, I had just become a leader (prefect) at my High School, and was, alongside the rest of the leader body, tasked with helping to get the school into a condition that would allow for the marking of that years Matric Examination papers to proceed without an issue. This also involved the assistance of running a small shop which was to provision the South African teachers marking said papers with food and drinks so that their job could pass by with less hassle.

So here's the fun. For some reason, South African teachers are coke addicts. (Not that coke... The stuff you drink. On a side note, I've tried sniffing coke before. The bubbles kept tickling my nose.) In any case, running this shop passed by with relative ease apart from the near constant demand for cans of Coca-Cola. The shop had set up a massive metal bin which was filled with water and ice in order to keep the cans cool as they were sold nearly as quickly as they were put in.

The problem with such a setup of course, is that the freshest cokes were always placed into the tub on top, and the oldest ones were to be found at the bottom of said metal container... by the rubber plug which held the frigid contents in their watery suspension. So of course Murphy's law dictates that at the end of the day when there is no longer a supply of ice to further cool more drinks, I knocked the infernal plug out of the drain.

Allow me to place this into perspective. This bin was tall enough to reach over your average persons hips, and deep enough that placing your arm in, your shoulder would be submerged if you placed your hand flat against the base. So there I was, innocently searching for a cold coke, when the sudden splatter of water on the ground gives away what I've done, and seeking to preserve the now more precious supply of cold water for the remaining drinks, I quickly weighed my options. 

There was no way to refill the bin, and no alternative plug, and after frantically brushing my hands about the bottom for 30 seconds, I decided that the only remaining option was to sacrifice my own limbs to frostbite in the name of preserving the precious commodity that was cold water. (I should point out that almost 3 years later, I'm still laughing at how ridiculous this sounds.) Placing one hand over the drain to prevent leakage, I stood with my arms up to my shoulders in icy water with my behind dangling over the edge of the bin as if I was bobbing for apples. 

If you're wondering how funny that looked, one of the school teachers accompanying the leaders with this job spotted this and asked what I was doing, only to break out into non-stop laughter for 5 minutes when I told her; while I continued to desperately find the rubber plug beneath all the cans of drinks with my remaining arm. Good times.

Thankfully, as luck would have it, I eventually managed to find the rubber plug and pulled my now shinning pink arms from the water. If I'd seen that colour on a hunk of meat I would have called it pork most likely. And it hurt... a lot. Thankfully, this was during the spring so they warmed up quick enough. As an added bonus, the still cackling teacher decided to thereby dub me "Plugless", hero of the cooldrink bin from there onward. In good humor of course. Still, what a sight my round bottom over the edge of that tub must have been. (Teehee)

In any case, since then, Plugless has been one of the many strange nicknames that I am known by. Still not quite as strange as "Dr. Unikorn" though. In any case, if you think that Plugless suits me as a nickname, or perhaps just want to let me know how stupid you think I am, make sure to do so in the comments below; and make sure to share this with any of your friends who appreciate stories of people doing things that make no sense. Everyone likes a good laugh. And of course, if you would like to read more stories like these, make sure to like my Facebook page and/or follow me on Twitter using the associated button on the bar to the right so that you can get the latest articles as I post them. Regardless of what you do however, I thank you for taking the time to read this post; hope that you have/had an absolutely FANTASTIC day, and I will speak again tomorrow.

Fare Footing (and solidly held plugs) in your travels.

Random Subject Saturday - The Oddball Dialect

Hello and welcome to Random Subject Saturday; the day where I tell you about the extremely strange words that myself and friends use, and then try to teach it to you for laughs.

There are occasionally times when I really have no idea what to use for a header image, and just look for something vaguely relevant. Today was one of them.

Odds are, you have friends. Odds are even better, you've been friends with said friends for long enough that you've developed an understanding of the way they think and speak. If I'm correct, then Odds are good that you'll be able to relate to "The Oddball Dialect". (As I so named it 3 seconds ago and nobody has agreed to refer to it as.) That magical language that apparently only I and my friends speak. It's weird.

You may have noticed a fairly common trope on the internet where people poke humor at everything from languages, to accents, to slang, and everything in between. (Here's looking at you, YouTube.) So here's the fun, it occurred to me the other day that the people I spend a fair bit of time with, (and myself), seem to speak somewhat differently than others.

The difference isn't English to Japanese obviously, but there are occasionally times where even the most open minded individuals have difficulty following precisely what we're talking about. Even more interestingly, is that the words we use weren't made by us, but are simply an amalgamated jumble of slang, jargon, game terms and 1337 speak from such a wide variety of locations that it's weird to hear. (Seriously, where have you ever heard a bunch of people talking about an "APC ganking a nub tank for lulz?" And that's just mainly League of Legends jargon.)

As such, just for "lulz", I'm going to put a list of some of the strange words and terms we use, just for the laughs to be honest. Perhaps the words catch on, perhaps they don't. It'll be funny to see either way. So without further ado:

• APC: Usually means Armored Personnel Carrier, APC is also League of Legends jargon for an Ability Power Carry, which is character that uses their abilities to deal immense damage and let their team win. 
• ADC: like APC, but stands for Attack Damage Carry.
• Lulz: A word that came up, literally, because it sounds funnier than "lol" (laugh out loud, not to be confused with the abbreviation of League of Legends.)
• Teh Lulz: This is about as internet as it gets, teh lulz is basically "the laughs" and is often used as the reason when you don't actually have a good reason or just to be funny. "I did it for teh lulz."
• Gank: Some military folks would probably understand that to "gank" someone means to kill someone. Again, the term was appropriated to LoL (League of Legends) as a term for when several people gang up on a single enemy.
• Ossim: Like "Lulz" but for the word Awesome.
• Tank: A large, motorized military vehicle normally, a tank in gamer speak is a character with an immense amount of health whose purpose is simply to stand "soak damage" while other character deal it.
• Fanks: A funnier way to say "thanks".
• Facedesk: This one is somewhat common on the internet, but since I use it so often on this blog, here's a link to help you figure it out. (Teehee)
• BSOD: IT guy's term for Blue screen of death. 
• PICNIC: IT guy's term for Problem in chair, not in computer.
• Dakka: A fun term from the orcs of Warhammer40K, this is a general term for anything guns, ammunition and explosive.
• Nub: "None-useful body". It's about as insulting as you can get for some people for obvious reasons.
• Noob: Considered rather offensive among gamers, a noob is someone who is not new to something, but is bad enough at it that they could be compared to a Newbie.
• Newbie: Often shortened to Newb, someone who is new to something. Not to be confused with the offensive Noob.
• Sexy: An adjective to describe good things, strangely, this term has ended up being part of a greeting just to make people feel awkward. (Possibly, we say "Hey Sexy" because we're describing good things when we greet each other. But I could be wrong.)

Strangely, I feel like this isn't even half of the strange words and terms we use, but it's hard to remember this stuff off the top of my head. Perhaps I'll make a list of more for "teh lulz" at some point. If you would like me to do so, please tell me so down in the comments below. Also, don't forget to share this with your friends if you think that they also talk funny. (Or maybe just for lulz.) If you found this entertaining for some strange reason, or perhaps just like the way I write, perhaps consider liking my Facebook page and/or following me on Twitter using the associated button on the bar to your right. Regardless of what you do, "fanks" for reading, I hope you have/had an "ossim" day and I will see you tomorrow.

Go well my friends.

Madness Monday - Crazy Cat People (And Crazy Cats)

Hello and welcome to Madness Monday; that day of the week where I talk about those strange people that keep cats and about these strange cats that keep people.

OOOOH. Fancy new pictures :D

Have you ever met those strange, fuzzy little creatures that for some reason decide that we humans are fun to be around? Have you met the strange people that think cats are fun to be around? (I'm one of them.) I've really got to ask. What on earth made us think that was a good idea?

Cats are very weird animals. Some of them are completely docile, some are friendly enough to sleep on your lap (or face), and some are utterly off the ball and demented that you can't help but wonder if it's not currently contemplating your ultimate demise. Humans are like that too.

Behind that facile guise of cuteness, this guy is imagining your death...

I can't help but wonder at the first human who saw one of these fluffy, feline fur-balls in the wild and decided "Hey, I like him, lets keep it in my house so that it can retch hair onto my carpets, eat all my food and purposefully place it's tail in my mouth while I'm snoring." He was probably a previous incarnation of me, but I still think he may have been on something. (Perhaps the cats brainwashed him? You never know.)

"Hooman. You shall luv us. Or else."

Perhaps more strange though, is the fact that so many of us don't seem to care. We invite these frightening little caterwauling creatures into our abodes, spend excessive money on beds they'll never sleep in, toys they'll never play with and food they don't particularly like eating; since you'll probably give them your's instead, and don't once think it's strange that the only time they want to cuddle is when they're hungry. Hmmm. Sounds like human children actually when I put it that way. (Teehee) On the upside, they make impeccable hot water bottles if you don't mind the licking.

"Skweeese me agen hooman, and I won't be teh only nootered one in this house."

To be honest though, despite the fact that these cats treat humans like walking furniture and can-openers, I do not actually regret ever wanting to keep them. Sure some people are scared to come by my house now due to some strange fear of black that they associate with my little fuzzy's; but I would be sorely hurt to ever find any of these frightful predators that I call my pets hurt or missing. Who else would lick my hands clean until they were clean, especially after I've washed them?

"Hey Hooman. Boo!"

To be honest, these cats may be strange, but I think that us humans that keep them are far stranger. You have to be fairly crazy to listen to a screaming cat at 3AM, climb out of bed in the middle of winter, and go investigate to make sure this little whiskered creature is okay, despite the fact that you may be dying of hypothermia. 

"I wsnt actually screaming, I jus wntd to see if choo would come. Feed me?"

Humans are perhaps the maddest creatures I've met, but I suppose that what makes us so much fun. Is predictability really that satisfying? Who knows, but at least we'll have these maddening little mammals around to prick us with their claws, lest we be dreaming. In any case, I hope you found something to laugh here on the hardest day of the week. If you're a fellow cat lover (or even if you're not), perhaps consider dropping a comment below, and sharing this with someone who needs a laugh. If you really liked it, "would you kindly" follow me on Twitter or like my Facebook page with the buttons on the sidebar to your right.

No matter what, I hope you have/had an AWESOME day, and I shall see you tomorrow.

Abschied freunden.