★ First Impressions Review: Last Seen Online ★

Disclaimer: The following post contains spoilers on Last Seen Online by Qwook and Sochin Studio. The game touches upon abandonment issues along with themes surrounding depression, toxic parent dynamics, suicide (kinda), religious cults, and online grooming. If these topics cause you distress, discomfort or agitate symptoms of PTSD please skip this entry. Your safety and convenience are of the utmost importance. A quick warning for gameplay and narrative spoilers too! The game takes around thirty minutes to an hour to complete and I highly recommend you play it yourself before proceeding. If you're exiting after this content warning I wish you well and hope to see you at another time.  

Good evening lovelies! I don't have much to share from my day tonight. I spent the entire early morning running errands then napped at noon. Later, while scrolling through YouTube shorts I came across a video that recommended an escape game called "Last Seen Online" (LSO) that caught my attention.

LSO is a psychological horror puzzle flash game where you, the main character, come across an old desktop computer at a garage sale. Curiosity gets the best of you and you decide to boot it up without formatting the hard drive to explore the files left by the previous user, a fourteen-year-old girl named Liz. 

The system unit having little pink stickers was a cute detail!

When you turn it on you come across the game's first puzzle which isn't difficult and a nice introduction to how you'll have to pay attention to the information across the screen and windows you'll encounter later on. The wallpaper also establishes the tone of the game. I was creeped out by the picture since we don't fully see any of the children's faces and the one eye we can see from the little girl wearing the polka-dot shirt is fully black. 

Inputting the password will log you into the home screen. You can click on each icon and interact with its contents except the Other World, an MMO like Second Life, and a locked zip file. Upon logging onto Buddy List, you're immediately greeted by one of Liz's friends. By chatting and scrolling through chatlogs we learn about Liz's relationships, aspirations, and burdens. After gathering the information needed to decode the password for the zip folder, you unlock six files, including a notepad file containing Liz's digital diary where we gain more in-depth knowledge of her character. 

  

The playlist being key to the zip folder was super creative! All songs can be played and serve their intended purpose while adding another layer to Liz's psyche. Fourteen-year-olds in the early 2000s should have been listening to caramelldansen, these songs were a clear cry for help.

I'll stop myself from further spoiling any additional gameplay that should be experienced firsthand. 

Beyond the nostalgic graphics and horror themes, Last Seen Online is about an impressionable teenager being groomed by strangers on the internet and ending in tragedy. It's hard not to be sympathetic towards Liz as we read through her hardships and as an adult recall a time when any form of conflict felt like the end of the world. While the word "suicide" is never mentioned in the game, Liz talks extensively about wanting to "run away from this earth" which is further agitated by her strained relationship with her mom and results in her needing to find solace in Other World. Online she meets sketchy users who introduce her to horror manga about serial killers and eventually the demonic rituals that lead to her being trapped on a filesystem. According to a John Hopkin's article, suicide is the third leading cause of death in youths aged ten to twenty-four. A teen is more susceptible to suicide after encountering unsettling and traumatic events like death which Liz comes across at school through the passing of a classmate. Moreover, Liz has no other reliable adult figure besides her disgruntled, borderline-abusive, mother whose outbursts and decision to take away her computer as punishment ultimately push her to terminate her existence on this plane.

I've seen two playthroughs of LSO since I started typing this post and I am still waiting to see people use the game as an opportunity to talk about online safety in the comments section. While we can all go to sleep at night knowing there's no way we can be tricked or manipulated into uploading our soul onto the internet, the danger of having ill-intentioned individuals seek out children and other vulnerable groups of people is real. The cult and ritual Liz is tricked into performing is just an allegory for how easy it can be to encounter unsafe interactions with adults and older teenagers who want to exploit a naive tween. Unfortunately, the internet hasn't become safer since Liz was online.

That's it for tonight! Like always, thank you for taking the time to visit my blog 👋

★ Mid Week Treats ★

Hello again lovelies! 👋💘 Reporting to you from my phone again. I hope everyone is doing well!! 💗

To celebrate the midway point of the work week I showed a friend an Asian market I frequently get snacks from. We both got onigiri, a frozen dessert, and tea, along with lovely little treats before going to the gym. 

Throughout high school and my earliest years in college, I'd go to different Asian markets with friends after class so making a habit of it again is nostalgic.

I also took advantage of getting more eyeliner and mascara for my other purse ⭐

 The last time I went I got a Sanrio lanyard that my coworker always compliments me on so I got her a similar one as a small present✌ 

I can't wait to give it to her tomorrow 🌸

I bought the dark brown eyeliner this time - my mom always told me that wearing black eyeliner during the day is too "dramatic" so let's see if being able to create a more subtle look will suit me best at work. 

That's it for tonight, sweet dreams! 💕

★ Ice Cream Date ★

Good evening angels!💘How is everyone doing? I hope this entry finds you well! 💌

I'm more than content that this Monday concluded on a high note. It's the second week of the summer camp I'm working at and the kids are settling in beautifully. The class size feels huge, especially considering how my students just turned three in the spring but I'm so lucky to be part of a wonderful classroom team with seasoned teachers.

After work my friends and I got ice cream at a paleteria with multiple dairy-free options that weren't just sorbet. I got an Oreo crumble bar dipped in dark chocolate with almonds. I don't typically go for chocolate; luckily, it wasn't overpoweringly sweet. We chatted by the store window as it drizzled outside. A group of kids walked by and waved at us while making heart signs. It was so silly!

After hanging out I went to the gym and did three different classes as a sort of comeback after a long hiatus. Enthusiasm got the best of me and seeing my instructors and workout buddies again made me so happy! I hope I'm not too sore tomorrow.

Thanks again for taking the time to read! See you in the next one!

★ [March 2024] Cheers ★

Hi lovelies! Today I'm publishing a post that has been sitting in my drafts for quite some time. During Spring Break one of my closest friends invited me and another darling to watch Faye Webster. I knew of her but hadn't listened to any of her songs before the concert. It's been more than two months since then and I can't say I followed up with discography or plan on it but I still enjoyed watching her perform especially alongside my best friends 💞💫

I'd been to the venue many times beforehand and was surprised at how small the crowd was. Faye Webster has a large following so I expected more people at the show. There was enough room to roam the space without struggle, and the food and drink carts could freely roam around the audience! One of my friends and I were able to slow dance to the songs without being a bother to others too 

Chiikawa nation rise up!

After the concert, the three of us enjoyed boba tea at a shop closeby to the venue just before everyone else and their auntie raided the store.

I ended up having to hike up my bell bottoms and my pants still ended up wet @_@

We ended our night by going to the beach and chatting on the sand while trying to take pictures of the moon. I got really excited and started running up and down the shoreline. I got too confident and got my pants soaked by an oncoming high tide oops

That's all for this entry, thanks again for reading! See you next time 💓

★ The Tide is High ★

Hello again lovelies! I hope your summer is going well! ⭐ Now that school's out I've had more time to hang out with friends and take many naps at the beach.

Last week some work friends and I traveled North for work and after being crammed in a room for almost five hours we visited the local beaches! 🌴 ☀️

We agreed to have lunch with an ocean view and found the perfect spot! 💞 The beaches were wonderful and there was a pier too!! The waves were ginormous and I was so jealous of how the surfers fearlessly rode them

The pier was charming and picturesque! As much as I tried to take it all in I was still nervous about how high up it was - I was so psyched that I was convinced I could feel every single vibration that rang throughout the planks under my feet. Luckily friends helped me keep my cool and I could go back to appreciating how beautiful the ocean and the surfers were. The pier is also a popular fishing spot which was neat to witness! 

After walking around we did a little shopping before enjoying some frozen desserts! I got a coconut-flavored SPF lip balm and a fun hat!

Despite being there for work, I'm truly grateful we made the most out of what started out as a nerve-wracking work trip. I hope we can all go back up there again soon! 

I hope my recent thread of updates has been enjoyable! I have some posts I want to get through before the summer school cycle starts. Thanks for sticking around! Sweet dreams everybody 🌙💖