We all know that the next World Cup will be located in Brazil and in the next 24 hours we will learn the locations of the 2018 and 2022 tournaments. It seems as though Europe will be hosting the games in 2018 as the only remaining contenders for that year are England and Russia with joint bids from Spain/Portugal and Netherlands/Belgium. The competition for 2022 will prove more interesting as the US and Australia probably have the most legitimate shot at becoming the hosts, with South Korea, Japan and even lowly Qatar also in the mix. Current scuttlebutt holds that Russia has 2018 locked up, as Putin has confidently declined an invitation to further sway the Cup committee in person. Hopefully the strong showing by the Americans combined with the rather pathetic performance by the Australians in this year's tournament will shift the selection in our favor for the more distant World Cup.

I mentioned yesterday that I had more to say about the music from the Legend of Zelda series and I typed truthfully when I did so. I have anecdotes aplenty on the subejct; why, just the other day I heard a girl playing Epona's Song on her phone in the Physics building. I could go on about all the recognizable songs in the series, like Saria's Song, Zelda's Lullaby, or the Main Theme, but I'm personally more partial to the more eerie tracks like the Song of Storms, The Dark World Theme, and much of the music from my favorite game in the series, Majora's Mask. In my opinion, The Song of Healing is the greatest of all the Zelda songs. If you have played Majora's Mask, then you know that the emotional impact of its simple, haunting tune is unparalleled. Of course, these are by no means the only good Zelda songs, but if I was only allowed to post one more Zelda-music oriented link, it would have to be this one.

Expect more information about video game soundtracks at a later date.

Homework is done for the week, so now the studying for my finals will begin. Given the amount of time I have to prepare I don't find myself too worried; the mysteries of Clebsch-Gordon coefficients will be resolved soon enough. My main problem right now is running through all the gouda cheese in the fridge; so far I've topped pasta with some and made grilled gouda sandwiches.

A villain, you say? Well, I suppose I can scrounge one up. No pictures exist anywhere in the world of this man, so I had to create a likeness. Behold my rendition of Fernando Sanchez!

The image that I quickly crafted, while crude, captures Fernando's main features: his armor, his diabolical facial hair and his four eyes that just so happen to be gemstones. Fernando's tale begins with that of Kolmox, the four-eyed god and forgotten deity of the Isle of Talon. Legend tells that after the creation of the world, Kolmox saw that it was lacking, forged the island with fire and magma and then watched over his land and its peoples for eons. Slowly though, Kolmox's followers abandoned him in favor of new ways, and with the last of his waning consciousness he selflessly scattered his eyes (and the power they contained) across the island to preserve it for eternity. The evil cleric Fernando heard these tales and set out for the island intent on stealing the eyes for his own machinations. To achieve his goal Fernando wrecked a ship upon the isle, killing most of its passengers and crew, and then proceeded to con his way around the continent and wade his way through the blood of those who opposed him, gathering the four eyes of Kolmox as he went. His acquisitions complete, the mustachioed menace slammed the gems into his eyes and forehead achieving an incomplete form of godhood and immense power. Before his vile transformation could be completed though, he was vanquished through the might of adventurer monk Hikaru Sakamoto and the dwarf Stannis Grumblebeard Copperbottom VII, saving the Isle of Talon and its inhabitants from certain doom.