Lost bits

My whole day...shot...down the drain...ruined!  Why, you ask?  Because my BITS keep getting lost on Farmville.  It's not bad enough that my computer/internet/whatever is running like a turtle.  I only have so much time in the day to collect as many special items off the feed and I REEEAALY need another two scarves for my limited time collection.  Boy, this just makes life very difficult.  Okay, I don't really have much else to do but flip back and forth on the feed.  No, I can't just clean house or pay bills.  NO, doing something more productive is not in the least bit appealing to me.  Not a bit. 
Oh, that reminds me...WHERE do these bits go?  Are they floating around in cyberspace?  Will they all end up being found on someone's farm in some random inappropriately timed event?  Is that how I suddenly get a gift with no avatar/profile picture face on it?  Has it materialized on the other side of the world as a mysterious apparition?  Hmmmmm....still wish my bits would find themselves back in my Facebook page.  Gotta get some more collections completed.  There IS a TIME factor here!!

Retirement

I am at a point in my sickness, er ehem, project that I need to evaluate my future with THE game.  Months and months of checking the status of the farm several times each day.  Scheduling my day around plantings and harvests have been my lifestyle.  I am at level 98 and have the largest farm possible...well, not really.  A new expansion is available for cash.  It just came out a few days ago.  I have yet to spend real cash on the game, though I don't pass judgment against those who do. In fact, I admire their commitment.  It's kinda like back when I was a closet smoker.  I never bought a pack of cigarettes, cuz I wasn't really a "smoker.'  Well this is virtually the same thing.  But I digress.

There's this new expansion...soon to be available to us Amish farmers.  I like to call myself Amish because for a very long time I only clicked to plant and harvest.  Each little tiny square I would click.  Click. Click. Click.  I had to conserve the precious fuel.  That was well before the automated equipment became all the rage and more importantly before the "products" could be sold to get FUEL!!!  What a boon that was.  I now have so much fuel I could go global.  But back to the expansion and my dilemma. 


At this time I have about seventy crop mastery signs.  They are lined up across the south property line.  The only crops I have left to achieve are long term.  This means it will leave me for DAYS without harvesting, except of course the trees and animals.  So, I am seriously considering retirement.  I did retire once before.  The hiatus was short lived, about 3 months.  When I jumped back in I was really lost.  There were all kinds of new gadgets and buildings and special animals and WOW was I in for a treat.  It didn't take long to get all caught up.  So now here I am.  Level 98. 

Once before I thought I would stop when I reached 70.   That was as high as you could get at that time.  THEN, shortly after I reached that level they expanded.  I have no idea now how high it goes.  It wouldn't be too difficult to figure out I suppose...if I had the drive to do it.  I just don't know which way to go now.  So, I'll harvest in the morning and see how I feel.

How did this happen?

I blame it all on my teenage daughter.  The first step to recovery is admitting there is a problem.  That does not apply here.  In fact, as I a write this I am checking the feed for gifts and collectibles regularly.

About two years ago my daughter was spending a lot of time on the internet, “Facebook.” She said.  Then she told me about this, “…fun little game…” and, “You should play this, Mom!”  Oh, I pooh-poohed it for awhile. “Ha, ha sure, I am way too busy for those kind of games.” A few days later she said, “Mom, I need neighbors. Let me help you get started.”  She set me up on Facebook and hooked up THE Game.  She included instructions about planting and harvest timing.  There was little more to THE Game than that.  Things have certainly changed.

There were a few little plots and a cow, if I recall correctly.  It is all a blur at this point.  I remember wondering how to water and feed.  Where’s the irrigation and fertilizer?  I even posted that question.  Responses included but were not limited to:  “LOL you are so funny!”  “Only YOU would come up with something that silly!”  I was still baffled yet curious.  Within a short time I discovered that timing was important.  Though there was no watering or feeding there was the whole “harvest time” issue.  Withered crops were costly and could not be tolerated.  This sent me into research mode. 

I clicked around wildly trying to find answers to questions about strategy and tactics. Every crop had cost and time factor.  My budget was dependent on getting every detail finely timed.  I could gain income by setting each crop with new plots.  With each success my determination grew.  My level increased.  My avatar or profile picture on the “film strip” at the bottom of THE Game screen quickly passed my “neighbors.”  I was “leveling up” regularly. The adrenaline and motivation mounted.  The endorphin rush had a tight grasp on me.

Each day I would plan responsibilities, work and chores around farming and harvesting.  THE Game was evolving quickly.  There were new crops and gifts.  There were new animals and gifts.  There were crops and gifts that were untouchable until certain levels were achieved.  I MUST have more levels.  Every waking minute I checked the feed for gifts and then I hit a wall.  There were expansions that could not be achieved without more neighbors.  I must have more neighbors.  I am not proud of this but I resorted to threatening my daughter’s friends.  They had to become my Facebook friend and my neighbor on THE Game.  Every opportunity I had was directed toward getting new neighbors.