Hidden Expedition: Amazon (2008 - PC)

It's a little "oldschool" for a hidden object game, but Hidden Expedition: Amazon does have some tough puzzles, use of inventory items, and secondary quests, such as finding all the beetles and journal pages, and trying to score high enough to rank first at the end. The scenery is pretty and has some animation, but it lacks style. Many of the items look like generic clipart and they often blend severely into the background. While this does make them challenging to find, it can also be rough on the eyes. You'll probably find yourself using the silhouette hint feature quite often. I attempted to clear the game once without using it, but gave up on a screen where I could not locate a very tiny green caterpillar on a background comprised of mostly green objects.

The story is written with a tongue-in-cheek sense of humor and that even shows up in the scenery animation sometimes - wait long enough on certain stages and UFOs will fly by in the background. The orchestral score is amazing - the developers got an actual film orchestra to perform it. Overally, HE: Amazon is a game I could recommend to HOG fans who feel that the genre has strayed too far away from its roots of just looking for hidden objects, as many newer games have more focus on puzzle-solving. Sure, it's not the most technologically advanced HOG, but it's one of the best of the oldschool style I've played.

3.5/5

Happiness is an Inside Job: Practicing For a Joyful Life
Author: Sylvia Boorstein, Ph.D.; Reader: Pam Ward
(Audiobook & Original Book - 2007)

One issue I have with this book is that the title is a little misleading. I have a friend who's into Buddhism, so I wondered if it would be a good idea to take some interest in it myself for therapeutic reasons. If you're someone who feels generally unhappy in life, I'm not sure this book is the answer. Mainly what the author does is talk about specific anecdotes from her life where she was involved in stressful situations, usually involving someone's death or terminal illness, and how the teachings of Buddhism helped her remain calm and be helpful. These practices often amount to praying for the victims and remembering that death is inevitable. For the less harrowing tales, such as when a bedroom set ended up costing more than she originally planned to spend, her method of dealing with it is to say, "These things happen." I tend to be concerned about the fine line between not letting all of life's annoyances get to you and allowing people to walk all over you. The books is not always mindful of this distinction.

Maybe if you take some of her lessons to heart, you can learn to be less stressed out over trivial matters. But I'm not real convinced these personal stories will turn your life around, if that's what you're looking for, and maybe that's not even really the intention of the book so much as the implication of its title. It does have a lot of high ratings from people who appear to be fans of the author's other writings. Maybe that's who the book is mostly for. But as an introduction to Buddhism or a lesson on how to be happy in life...it's rather basic, and more in-depth study is likely required.

Rating: 2.5/5