I did it, I went my first 24 hours without playing any Animal Crossing: Wild World.

Since I got the game on day of release it's been as essential day in-day out as eating or going to the toilet, it's had an absolutely huge grip on me, even if it has only been for ten minutes a day. There's turnips sitting around the house though ready to be sold, so I imagine i'll be back to it sometime soon. And i've got orders to collect, and letters to post, and, well, you know how it is.

The reason behind the no-play is that I finally got round to buying Mario Kart DS.
It's a fantastic example of a handheld console gem -pick up & play, finish a race in three minutes, then switch off- none of this adventure mode or lengthy campaign malarky. I was surprised too at the visuals and the frame rate- naturally it doesn't look as good as the Gamecube version, but the trackside scenery is packed full of detail and charm. I've yet to play it with others but it's something i'm planning for this weekend, if it's anything like past MKs the multiplayer mode will be a real highlight.

I've been meaning to upgrade my Flickr account now for ages, probably since when I first joined the site. This last weekend finally saw me doing so.

Along with the Gamma version in general the new features are great and easy to use, and i'm especially loving the bigger monthly upload limit. Not that i'll ever use it all or even need more, but it's reassuring that it's there should, one month I suddenly get snap happy.

The new sets (photo folders) are a nice addition too, finally I can have more than the previous three of "Flowers", "monochrome" and "architecture". Plus I get a little "Pro" icon next to my name, which, while totally irrevelant, does make me feel slightly more important. Yeah, it's silly I know.

Well, kind of.

Regular readers should already know how big my love for cult-mainstream smash LOST is, so imagine my excitement upon finding out that a new line of action-figures would be coming out this fall.

All I need now is the cast of Nip/Tuck, My Name Is Earl and Prison Break and i'll be sorted.

Joystiq is currently reporting what the finalised price of the PS3 in the UK will come in at:

"Sony has officially announced the U.K. price of the Playstation 3 as £425, representing the fully featured PS3 which comes in at $599 in the U.S. and 599 EUR in Europe. GamesIndustry.biz suggests that Sony won't be selling the cut down model over the pond, although this isn't confirmed."

Blu-Ray doesn't interest me in the slightest, and at the moment no must-have launch window game has any desirability to me whatsoever- plus I still absolutely detest the design. After E3 last week i'm more excited than ever about Nintendo's plans, strategies, and general future innovations anyway. I'm in no hurry for this, I can easily wait. Who knows, I may get round to finally buying a 360 while I wait.

If there's one thing I absolutely love about LOST, it's the dream sequences that crop up every so often.

Wednesday's episode, the mysteriously titled "?" was interestingly full of them, as John Locke and Eko went into the jungle in search of, again, confusingly, the question mark on a map that Locke saw before him. You'd really have had to be paying attention, LOST unfortunately isn't one of those shows you can dip into every so often.

On their travels the pair came across the Nigerian Beechcraft made famous by legendary episode "Deus Ex Machina" and more recently Eko's last centric episode, home as it would happen, to yet another hatch. In true LOST fashion, this discovery will turn things on their head.

I think this episode succeeds because generally, it's that classic LOST formula. Discoveries and revelations are there followed almost inevitably by the further questions and queries that the discovery produces. What also helps is this episode's link to previous episodes, be it via the settings, the details within the flashbacks or even the actions that take place on the island.

Furthermore, the character development for Eko himself is deeply satisfying, finally shedding some light on (amongst other things) why he was on the doomed Flight 815. Terry O Quinn, naturally, as John Locke, is equally impressive throughout.

With only three hours of episodes left until this season is over, things, are going to get a lot more interesting...