Cleaning Spree Discovery

I've been on a massive cleaning spree as of late and lots of stuff were uncovered and even more given away. Four boxes were filled with items I had no use for and completely forgot they were in my possession. Of the discovered were my old log books from those summer breaks in school that were spent reading and playing video games.

There was an on/off mention of the fabled red journal documenting my Legend of Dragoon game sessions during one of the restarts. A teaser pic of sorts was shared but didn't cover the full length of the session itself as it only showed the early stages. In addition to the red journal, there was also an orange journal that documented my other gaming sessions, but it didn't record the amount of time played.

The Mysterious Orange Journal

GT2 Owned Cars List

Interesting name for an item that was purchased on impulse. It was a cute journal I saw on the shelf at a discount outlet and felt I just needed it even though its purpose was unknown. Eventually it was used for random stuff.

At the time, the early pages were used for random notes, and later were used for game notes. More specifically, Gran Turismo 2 (GT2) and game ideas. Needless to say, the game ideas didn't fly but they kept me occupied during downtime.

Anyway, the GT2 notes were more or less a way to keep track of all the vehicles I owned in game at that point in time. Not sure of the time-frame but do know 83 cars were collected during gameplay. The name of the car, the HP (horsepower) and drivetrain were recorded for quick reference.

When the documenting started, I wanted to be as detailed as possible; but after five cars that plan was thrown out the window. This information assisted in the choosing of the ideal car for a chosen event that rewarded much needed funds. There were tracks I adored and tracks I disliked with a passion especially when it came to qualifying for licenses; looking at you Laguna Seca (links to gameplay video of player going through license challenge).

Mitsubishi Lancer EVO Gear Ratio Test Specs.

Not sure when, but a heightened interest surfaced when upgrades began on selected cars. Most notably would be the gear upgrades. The upgrades were simple at first but got curious when the option for custom surfaced.

There were warnings about tampering with the ratios without sound understanding so I held off for a bit before taking the plunge and installing it on my dream car at the time, the Mitsubishi Lancer; the Evo VI RS to be precise (in-game because all I saw was Lancer EVO and nothing else when it was first viewed). This is where things took an interesting turn as every adjustment made was noted and adjusted and noted and adjusted some more. Looking at the piece of paper, around six different adjustment settings were made and tested.

Thinking back, the Lancer was the only one of two cars that was full custom; number two was the Skyline GT-R. The Lancer was also the only one of the two to be converted to a full rally car. It was an accidental upgrade but bit the bullet and purchased a second Lancer for the street race; non-custom.

What Else There Be?

MKA Game Files; still a favorite as
you can customize your fighter's
fight style move-4-move.

Was super excited to see the car list and notes from tuning that I didn't think more was included in the journal. Though random, the repeating theme was video games for the most part. There were:

• quick jots from Soul Calibur 3, 
• lyrics from a song called 'Dreamcatcher', 
• Skill Notes (known as Additions) from Legend of Dragoon, 
• MK Armageddon pass codes for custom characters and game files, 
• a quote from Billy and Mandy's Jacked-Up Halloween, 
• a brief layout for a past college project, 
• list of presenters for Exit Portfolio, 
• a Longhorn Steakhouse coupon from 2008, 
• poems, 
• an old class schedule, 
• timezone information, 
• psych-thriller movie suggestions, 
• failed contest entries, 
• a lost movies reminder, 
• ideas for my first blog, 
• plus a cute pink turtle paper clipping.

The book always got misplaced so it wasn't used to its fullest up to this point. Though I will be using it to write out task lists and milestones for my upcoming projects.