Or at least, I should type and you should read it and hear it in your head, preferably in the voice of someone interesting or impressive.

Or hell, in the voice of Ethel Merman played at triple speed, see if I care. Just read the damn thing any way you like.

Sorry. In a bad mood. Going through a dark patch where I feel crummy and angry and bitter and all the rest of the Negative Emotion Squad. Dunno if it’s because it’s been a long time since my last Avandia, or just that I am tired and need more rest, or what. But I feel like smashing things, and that’s not a good thing.

Part of it is the game I am playing, Final Fantasy Fables : Chocobo Dungeon, for the Wii. Despite some of the trappings of a children’s game, and being fairly easy for the most part so far, there is this one dungeon that was unreasonably, suddenly, and mind bogglingly hard.

In said dungeon, both you and the monsters are reduced to 1 hit point each, so the only way to survive is to always, always, always get in the first hit.

That’s bad enough, right there. Instant death lurks everywhere. That is not something human beings enjoy, apart from a few sociopaths. It’s the constant danger from all directions that wears out soldiers from battle fatigue.

Oh, and there’s invisible traps everywhere, and any one of them could leave you helpless as an enemy comes up and kills you.

But hey, it’s turn-based, so if you are super careful and think a few steps ahead, you can always make sure to get in the first hit and always win, right?

Right. Except…. there’s always a chance you will miss. And then the enemy gets a turn, and kills you anyhow.

All this adds up to an incredibly difficult and stressful experience in an otherwise quite sedate and low-key game. It’s a terrible design no matter how you slice it, and completely out of place in the game, and while I just recently finally got through it, it took, I would guess, about forty tries total, spread out over six playing sessions.

I came very close to just sticking the thing back in the mail and letting Game Access send me the next thing on my list. I mean, I got rid of Monster Hunter for the precise reason that it was far more frustrating and stressful than it was relaxing and fun. The last thing I needed was another game to give me that same feeling but in a more concentrated dose!

But I am through that part now, so I am tentatively willing to give the game another chance. Another design disaster like this one, though, and I am done with the damn game.

I find it hard to believe that a big and well-respected game company like Square Enix (or Squenix, as I like to call them) could somehow have not known what a nightmare they had included in their otherwise soft and shiny game.

I blame the Enix half of the family.

So part of my foul mood is likely tiredness (slept all day and still want a lot more sleep, damn my sleep issues) and part of it is likely ambient frustration from stupid god damn video games (but I play them to relax…. really… ) and part of it is likely just messed up blood sugar from lack of Avandia.

I called up my pharmacy to check on that drug my doctor wants me on, and they have no indication in their system that anything was ever submitted. So, no new miracle drug for me. I tried to leave a message for my doctor, but I lost my game of Receptionist Roulette and got the one that does not speak full and proper English, so I have absolutely no idea if she understood a word I said or took the message properly or what.

So I am angry and frustrated over that, too. Would it be terribly rude, do you think, to ask for the other receptionist, the one who actually speaks English as a native speaker, when I call the office? I find dealing with someone with poor English skills to be incredibly frustrating and stressful. I am sure she is a great receptionist for the Chinese community, but I am intensely verbal and so being understood is really important to me.

I am going to call again soon, and see if I can get things worked out. I would hate to have to do an office visit just to undo an administrative tangle, but I will if I have to.

So all in all, I guess it’s no surprise that I am feeling crappy.

Oddly enough, that makes me feel somewhat better.