| Live from Gotham! | |||
| 12:19am 15/01/2011 | |||
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So, a long time ago (talking a couple of years), I came up with this halfassed Teen Titans fan comic idea called Teen Titans Live! which involved a cast of performers dressed as the Teen Titans doing a series of rehearsed 'battles' and stunts (in the same vein as the Six Flags Magic Mountain Batman Stunt Show). This being me, it also involved at least one musical performance and, offstage, a whole lot of teenage angst. Deos, the man who plays Robin, was an actual (retired) caped crime fighter, and gets pulled back into the business due to Jump City being Jump City. Once in awhile the idea gets pulled back into my head since it's really fun to play with. Deos was the only one who got a real character concept drawing, though most times in my Today on my walk I came up with a Gotham version of the show, featuring a very excitable, attention-whoring Joker character and a Harley Quinn (male, what else)? Who's a classically trained opera singer and more than a little unbalanced and the two of them figure out a way, through specific audio frequencies and flashing patterns of lights, to hypnotize people long enough to steal their belongings, get back on stage, and finish their act without their victims having any recollection of the event. Joker thinks it's great fun, and a fantastic prank on stuffy rich people; Harley Quinn would gladly slit every throat in the audience as long as Joker stayed happy with him. I guess eventually Joker realizes what they're doing is serious and thinks maybe they should stop, only to finally realize just how much of a nutcase his partner in crime (and dance!) is. What really bothers me about the whole business is that even if I had the time, patience and artistic talent to produce a great comic from these ideas and even if it really took off and gathered a lot of attention and recognition, I would probably end up getting a Cease and Desist letter from DC. So there's that. [end transmission] |
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| They're the world's most fearsome fighting team | |||
| 11:12pm 18/12/2010 | |||
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"Wait, why is she crying? She's getting married to that guy she loves, right?" "They've been betrothed since birth--" "-- but they grew up to be friends." "Exactly. She's crying because when they marry their relationship has to change. He has to take on a role as a man, and she as his obedient wife. It wouldn't be proper for either of them to go off on adventures anymore-- they have to start a family and move in the right social circles." "They should just forget all that and do what they want." "It wasn't exactly that easy in feudal Japan, miss." Apparently while thinking about fanfiction I end up writing Japanese-esque tragedies instead. DAMN YOU, TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES!* [end transmission] *I know, I'm weird. |
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| I love you, you love me, ho-mo-sex-u-al-i-ty | |||
| 09:48pm 08/12/2010 | |||
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Day 2 - Your favorite character. Day 3 - A game that is underrated. Day 4 - Your guilty pleasure game. Day 5 - Game character you feel you are most like (or wish you were). Day 6 - Most annoying character. Day 7 - Favorite game couple. Omggggg why would you ask me cruel questions like this. I'm gonna pick a couple at random and say Cecil/Kain (Final Fantasy IV) (SHUT UP IT'S CANON TO ME) because oh god, it's so clear how much Cecil loves Kain. Kain's still struggling with his sexuality, but Cecil's like "I'MMA MAKE EVERYTHING ALL RIGHT FOR YOU BUDDY ;_;" *pets Kain's hair* Day 8 - Best soundtrack. Day 9 - Saddest game scene. Day 10 - Best gameplay. Day 11 - Gaming system of choice. Day 13 - A game you’ve played more than five times. Day 14 - Current (or most recent) gaming wallpaper. Day 15 - Post a screenshot from the game you're playing right now. Day 16 - Game with the best cut scenes. Day 17 - Favorite antagonist. Day 18 - Favorite protagonist. Day 19 - Picture of a game setting you wish you lived in. Day 20 - Favorite genre. Day 21 - Game with the best story. Day 22 - A game sequel which disappointed you. Day 23 - Game you think had the best graphics or art style. Day 24 - Favorite classic game. Day 25 - A game you plan on playing. Day 26 - Best voice acting. Day 27 - Most epic scene ever. Day 28 - Favorite game developer. Day 29 - A game you thought you wouldn't like, but ended up loving. Day 30 - Your favorite game of all time. [end transmission] |
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| Here's me missing a bunch of days again | |||
| 11:55pm 06/12/2010 | |||
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Day 2 - Your favorite character. Day 3 - A game that is underrated. Day 4 - Your guilty pleasure game. The only game that I really liked that there's a lot of hate for is Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core.  Yes, it's fanservice, but it's pretty fanservice. It served a great purpose-- to let us see the complete story of Zack Fair, Dorkiest Man Alive. Day 5 - Game character you feel you are most like (or wish you were). I wish I had the bravery, persistence, heart and fashion sense of Luso from the FF Tactics series.  Don't you? Day 6 - Most annoying character. EMMA EMMERICH.  EMMA. FUCKING. EMMERICH. "oh no bugs! oh no water! oh no more bugs! I have chopsticks in my hair and expect the secret agent to care! I can't walk for some reason! I'mma go really slow! I'm in love with my brother! (O_o) I'm the only one that can save the world! ...so I think I'll get stabbed! My parrot flies around and says annoying things even after I'm dead!" DIE. Day 7 - Favorite game couple. Day 8 - Best soundtrack. Day 9 - Saddest game scene. Day 10 - Best gameplay. Day 11 - Gaming system of choice. Day 13 - A game you’ve played more than five times. Day 14 - Current (or most recent) gaming wallpaper. Day 15 - Post a screenshot from the game you're playing right now. Day 16 - Game with the best cut scenes. Day 17 - Favorite antagonist. Day 18 - Favorite protagonist. Day 19 - Picture of a game setting you wish you lived in. Day 20 - Favorite genre. Day 21 - Game with the best story. Day 22 - A game sequel which disappointed you. Day 23 - Game you think had the best graphics or art style. Day 24 - Favorite classic game. Day 25 - A game you plan on playing. Day 26 - Best voice acting. Day 27 - Most epic scene ever. Day 28 - Favorite game developer. Day 29 - A game you thought you wouldn't like, but ended up loving. Day 30 - Your favorite game of all time. [end transmission] |
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| Video Game Meme | |||
| 07:30pm 04/12/2010 | |||
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(I missed a day because I'm an ass.) Day 2 - Your favorite character. Oh my god, why would you ask me such a hard question. It changes by the day and depending on what game I'm playing and my mood... PICDUMP TIME!! 1. Cecil and/or Kain (Final Fantasy IV)  Both of them so loyal, so conflicted... so obviously doing it... Cecil's a badass character no matter what side of the lightswitch he's decided to be on, and Kain is a Dragoon which automatically makes him awesome no matter what other good qualities he has (and there are many). 2.Phoenix Wright and/or Miles Edgeworth (Ace Attorney Series)  One's a loveable goofball, the other is sort of a square but you can count on him do always do the right thing, no matter the cost 3. Zack Fair (Final Fantasy VII Anthology)  Face it, if you don't like Zack you obviously eat nails and kick puppies all day long. 4. Frog and/or Magus/Janus (Chrono Trigger)  Both of them lost a loved one and are driven by revenge, pushing away anyone who tries to come close lest they let their heart be broken again 5. Alucard (Castlevania: Symphony of the Night)  Twilight would be a lot shorter with Adrian Tepes as the main romantic interest, but it would be a thousand times more awesome. There'd be none of this Team Edward/Team Jacob crap, just Team Alucard or Team Took Ninety Daggers To The Face. 6. Flik and/or Viktor (Suikoden)  Another fantastic team. If you're gonna have one, you've got to have the other. 7. Ramza Beoulve and/or Delita Hyral (Final Fantasy Tactics)  I can't even talk about this without crying. Go play the game. Day 3 - A game that is underrated.  I'm going to say Breath of Fire III is my Favorite Game That No One Else Has Played. I really connected with the characters, and the gameplay was both fun and challenging. I tried BoF IV but it just didn't do it for me the way III did. I wish they'd re-release it for PSP. Day 4 - Your guilty pleasure game. Day 5 - Game character you feel you are most like (or wish you were). Day 6 - Most annoying character. Day 7 - Favorite game couple. Day 8 - Best soundtrack. Day 9 - Saddest game scene. Day 10 - Best gameplay. Day 11 - Gaming system of choice. Day 13 - A game you’ve played more than five times. Day 14 - Current (or most recent) gaming wallpaper. Day 15 - Post a screenshot from the game you're playing right now. Day 16 - Game with the best cut scenes. Day 17 - Favorite antagonist. Day 18 - Favorite protagonist. Day 19 - Picture of a game setting you wish you lived in. Day 20 - Favorite genre. Day 21 - Game with the best story. Day 22 - A game sequel which disappointed you. Day 23 - Game you think had the best graphics or art style. Day 24 - Favorite classic game. Day 25 - A game you plan on playing. Day 26 - Best voice acting. Day 27 - Most epic scene ever. Day 28 - Favorite game developer. Day 29 - A game you thought you wouldn't like, but ended up loving. Day 30 - Your favorite game of all time. [end transmission] |
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| Why do I not have a CT icon? | ||||
| 12:31am 02/12/2010 | ||||
Day 1 - First video game.  Fanart by TheRagingSpaniard on DA My brother and I played a lot of 'throwaway' games when we were little-- we'd go to the video store once a week and we'd each get to rent a game. Generally, though, I didn't do much more than watch my brother play video games until Chrono Trigger, the first game I played and beat (mostly) by myself. (DAMN YOU OCEAN PALACE WHY ARE YOU SO CONFUSING AND MAZY) To this day it's one of my favorite games of all time. It helps that with thirteen (!) endings, it has a fuckton of replay value. (I'm replaying it right now, lol.) Day 2 - Your favorite character. Day 3 - A game that is underrated. Day 4 - Your guilty pleasure game. Day 5 - Game character you feel you are most like (or wish you were). Day 6 - Most annoying character. Day 7 - Favorite game couple. Day 8 - Best soundtrack. Day 9 - Saddest game scene. Day 10 - Best gameplay. Day 11 - Gaming system of choice. Day 13 - A game you’ve played more than five times. Day 14 - Current (or most recent) gaming wallpaper. Day 15 - Post a screenshot from the game you're playing right now. Day 16 - Game with the best cut scenes. Day 17 - Favorite antagonist. Day 18 - Favorite protagonist. Day 19 - Picture of a game setting you wish you lived in. Day 20 - Favorite genre. Day 21 - Game with the best story. Day 22 - A game sequel which disappointed you. Day 23 - Game you think had the best graphics or art style. Day 24 - Favorite classic game. Day 25 - A game you plan on playing. Day 26 - Best voice acting. Day 27 - Most epic scene ever. Day 28 - Favorite game developer. Day 29 - A game you thought you wouldn't like, but ended up loving. Day 30 - Your favorite game of all time. [end transmission] |
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| Reer reer reer-reer reowrrrr reeneereeneereeneeree nee nee neeeoooowwwrrr* | |||
| 09:16pm 11/11/2010 | |||
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So I watched Iron Man finally and then thought, "Hey, I bet it'd be a cool thing to maybe read some Iron Man comics, since I greatly enjoyed the movie!" I looked IM up on wikipedia to kind of get a short rundown of what the story's been like so far! ...and then stopped around the point where he and Dr. Doom went back in time to bother King Arthur! (Just kidding I went all the way onto where there were like NINE IRON MANS and Tony Stark was DEAD but no he was FAKING but then he REALLY died but the suit came to life by ITSELF and then he came back to LIFE and then he went all INSANE so they went back in TIME AGAIN to get his YOUNGER SELF to show up and kick his OLDER SELF'S ASS and then they all died AGAIN except for they were stuck in some kind of POCKET UNIVERSE WHERE HE WAS STILL ALIVE and then he came back in a time where he HADN'T DIED and MERGED WITH HIMSELF and then...) (the above is a paraphrased, slightly mixed-up version of Iron Man's life, BUT IT WAS ALL THERE IN THE ARTICLE. WHO KEEPS TRACK OF THIS SHIT?) Why is it that I like DC better? Is it because DC tends to sometimes make sense? I mean, not always, because come on it's comix, but HOLY JESUS. TOPIC: Billionaire Genius With Dead Parents Who Wants to Fight Injustice MARVEL: He builds a MECHA SUIT powered by COOL STUFF and then FLIES AROUND then goes BACK IN TIME then COMES BACK and FAKES HIS OWN DEATH SORT OF and is generally full of wacky hijinks. DC: He's the Goddamn Batman. (also he might be gay. you can try saying that to his face. go ahead, try.) Marvel does have Deadpool, though. *these are the opening notes to Ozzy's Iron Man, in word form. I know, I'm super talented. In other news I fell off of a curb while carrying a bird cage (with bird in) and banged the fuck out of both knees and now it hurts to walk, but I still managed not to GO BACK IN TIME TO KING ARTHUR GEEZ. Ow. [end transmission] |
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| Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to Hate. Hate leads to Glenn Beck. Which leads to death by idiocy. | |||
| 12:38am 08/11/2010 | |||
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Thought this was kind of interesting, from Mental_Floss' "Cocktail Party Cheat Sheets": Buddha Name-dropping: The Buddha (pronunciation: BOO- duh) (c. 563–483 BCE). Also known as Siddhartha Gautama and Gautama Buddha—the nirvana-achievin’ founder of Buddhism who, contrary to what you might have heard, was neither Chinese nor obese. When to Drop Your Knowledge: Buddhism is immensely helpful for late-night, really deep conversations. Like, have you ever thought about how everything—like, everything—is going to fall apart? You and me and the couch we’re sitting on and the planet and everything? Well, the Buddha already thought of that, fortunately. And he did it without any intoxicants. The Basics Most of what we know about the Buddha isn’t based on reliable histories but on legends, many of which weren’t written down until centuries after the Buddha’s life. But the story goes like this: The Buddha was born a prince in an area that today straddles the border between India and Nepal. At the time, being a prince involved a life of carefree luxury (and, potentially, a Wilt Chamberlain–like promiscuity). But because a soothsayer told Siddhartha’s mother that the baby would either grow up to be a great king or a great holy man, Siddhartha’s father tried in vain to make him the former. In fact, he went so far as to shield the boy from any sort of religious education and exposure to human suffering. When he was 29, however, Siddhartha started traveling outside the palace and encountered “the four sights”: a crippled man, a diseased man, a rotting corpse, and finally a wandering ascetic, who roamed the hills of India much like the hippies once roamed the Haight. Siddhartha quickly became every parent’s nightmare: He ditched his money, his parents, his wife, and his palace to spend his life searching for a way to overcome the inevitability of human suffering. After a couple years of nearly starving himself to death as an ascetic, the Buddha sat down beneath a tree (called the Bodhi tree) and asserted that he wouldn’t move a muscle until he found enlightenment. He found it, and from then on, Gautama came to be known as a “Buddha,” or “Awakened One.” Initially preaching to just five people, the Buddha’s disciples soon multiplied. Further, his teachings of impermanence and karma, along with the “Four Noble Truths” and the “Eightfold Four Noble Truths Path,” became the foundation point for a philosophy and religious tradition that would, by the first century CE, be a driving force in the lives of people from India to China. Four Noble Truths The philosophy of the Buddha is often summed up in the following “Noble Truths”: 1. “There is suffering.” This one is fairly simple, and fairly obvious, too, and if you disagree we will come to your house and punch you in the face to prove you wrong. 2. The cause of suffering is desire. “Desire” here is not so much a reference to romantic desire as to one’s general attachment to people, places, and things. 3. The way out of suffering is to eliminate desire. 4. The Eightfold Path is the way out of suffering. If you’re wondering what the Eightfold Path is, well—then we’ve got a sidebar just for you. Eightfold Path 1. The Right Perspective 2. The Right Thinking 3. The Right Speech (i.e., no lying) 4. The Right Action (i.e., no stealing, no killing, no intoxicants, and no sex if you’re a monk) 5. The Right Livelihood (i.e., not being an investment banker. We kid. Sort of.) 6. The Right Effort 7. The Right Mindfulness 8. The Right Concentration THE LOW-FAT PATH The Buddha is often portrayed as being a bit—how to put this politely—fat. But was he? Probably not. The Buddha competed throughout his life in wrestling and archery, and he spent much of his time hiking great distances. Depictions of a fat Buddha are often not of Gautama at all, but of another Buddha named Hotei. An eccentric, pudgy, and happy monk, Hotei is known as the Laughing Buddha and is a common subject of Buddhist artwork. Conversation Starters ◆ Before kabbalah, Buddhism was all the rage among Western celebrities. Fads pass, but a few have stayed loyal to the faith, including Richard Gere, Tina Turner (who has credited Buddhism for helping her to ditch Ike), and the Beastie Boys’s MCA. ◆ Most Buddhists do not consider Siddhartha Gautama to have been either the first or the last Buddha. Since enlightenment is available to everyone (even if you are, say, a grasshopper), there have been many Buddhas throughout history. Those who achieve enlightenment but forgo nirvana, choosing to remain in the cycle of death and rebirth, are known as bodhisattvas—and these, too, are numerous and widely revered by Buddhists. ◆ In 2004, a Japanese candy manufacturer sought to register a trademark for a popular candy it produced called “Snot from the Nose of the Great Buddha.” A group of priests stopped the company from getting the trademark for its gooey, sugary snack, but it remains on sale—complete with a wrapper depicting the Buddha beatifically picking his Buddha nose. ◆ From the Interreligious Dialogue Files: The Buddha, who lived well before Jesus, was once a Catholic saint. St. Josaphat, as he was known, was the son of an Indian king whose father tried to keep him from going religious. When it became clear to scholars, however, that Josaphat was, you know, the Buddha dressed in a saint suit, he was quietly taken off the list of saints. Sorry it's been quiet around here lately. Check out White Wolf Bayou for news on my Nano progress. [end transmission] |
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| Doubletap | |||
| 08:32pm 04/11/2010 | |||
 Boosting my wordcount currently by attending an official write-in at Overpriced Bread and Coffee Chain. The food smells REALLY GOOD and the atmosphere is great and very college-y, but I am resisting their charms by eating peanut M&Ms (and also I am very broke). The girl I'm sitting across from is so quiet and studious and dedicated to her novel, and I feel bad bothering her. I probably shouldn't try to throw M&Ms onto her keyboard to get her attention... Speaking of getting attention, I have been experiencing something at home that I like to call "the shoulder-tap." Small children come up to me while I have my cans on (large headphones of the style I find sexy for some reason) and tapping me on the shoulder to show me things like: a cat a new hat an old hat a drawing and various other things that have nothing to do with their being on fire. Generally I respond to the shoulder tap with a quick shake of the head, and Skittle comes to my rescue to say things like "don't bother Miss Jaydee, she'll bite your face off." If the shoulder tap comes again I ask them, in my nicest 'I'm going to rip your spine out through your throat' voice, to go away. It's worked so far, but kids are kids. I may have to murder them and then find replacements come December. crossposted to White Wolf Bayou. [end transmission] |
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| Day Three | |||
| 09:47pm 03/11/2010 | |||
 Still chugging along :3 [end transmission] |
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| Nano10 Day Two | |||
| 09:01pm 02/11/2010 | |||
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I'm trying to build up a buffer so that when the Week Two Blues hit, it doesn't kill me as badly as it has in the past. So far, no good. People keep trying to talk to me while I'm writing. I ranted briefly on my writing blog. To Those People: I still love you very much, I just need to write right now. COME ON JAYDEE YOU CAN DO THIS [end transmission] |
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| An Oily Sheen Like a Dirty Rainbow on My Soul | |||
| 09:58pm 28/10/2010 | |||
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I should probably get back into the habit of real(ish) blogging; it's good for me to sort of barf stuff out at the end of the day. Also it'll be nice to sort of exercise my writing muscles as the 1st of the month looms. What I'm Reading Right Now The Office of Letters and Light Blog The OLL is the nonprofit company behind Nanowrimo (actually, it would be more accurate to say that Nanowrimo is the project behind OLL): they run around donating books, building libraries in poverty stricken countries and running the Nanowrimo servers off of money donated during November and also off of the profits from their online store. A recent entry I liked was My Cup of Tea, which touches both on "tea weather" and how to properly brew a cup of black tea. Since tea comes second only to coffee as the favorite drink of Nanoers the world over, it's an important topic to cover as November hurtles closer. Nail Your Novel by Roz Morris True to the reviews, this is a pretty step-by-step guide to churning out a novel, written by a man who's pretty obviously an old hand at the craft. There's something a little off-putting about a guy who talks about writing a novel as if it were the same thing as putting together an Ikea table, but it does get the job done, I guess. I've been sort of browsing through the book-- writing guides are a guilty pleasure of mine-- but instead of happy, fluffy 'find your happy place' stuff like a lot of books have, this guy basically says "sit down and get it done, you lazy ass." I'm sure I'll find it useful when I stop being taken aback at the sharp edges of his instructions. What I'm Watching Mendy, Skittle and I decided to go in for Netflix together earlier in the month so we can watch the movies that we've had to miss in the theatres because of the money crunch lately. We're still in our free trial, so we just get one movie at home at a time, but Skittle and I've been taking full advantage of the insta-watch online feature. We've watched a few things together (including Ouran High School Host Club), and I saw the new Alice in Wonderland and a bunch of documentaries. Alice was... I dunno. It was weird. Alice's character development was REALLYREALLYFAST. First she was insisting that she wasn't the right Alice and that everything was a dream, but then she decides suddenly that she's going off to save the Mad Hatter (played by Johnny Depp and whose accent sort of flails around without ever really settling down in once place for long). I kept having the feeling that the movie was based on a book or something-- there seemed to be a lot of backstory that I was missing somehow. Also, the Hatter had way more screentime than was necessary. I know Tim Burton has a major mancrush on Depp, but does he really have to be in everything and steal every movie he's in? This movie could have gone on fine without him in it at all! The Knave was cool though. (He likes largeness.) I watched District 9 on a recommendation from a friend, and really enjoyed about half of it. I liked the parallels the movie drew to racism and poverty and the useless "fixes" that countries enact in order to please the more wealthy classes that are offended by poor people living near them. Then the movie rapidly devolved into your basic science fiction romp, and I was pretty damn disappointed. I mean, it could have been something really great, but they decided to invent a GUTS GO KABOOM gun instead. Skittle and I went together to Paranormal Activity 2 last night and got the shit scared out of us. If you liked the first movie, you'll like the second one, but it's not really a movie with a whole lot of re-watch value... there's a lot of jump moments, and there's much more "activity" than in the first movie, but the plot seems sort of forced, just something shoved in there in order to have the creepy stuff happening for a reason. Still, good date movie :3 Inglorious Basterds is waiting in a little red envelope for us, and we're supposed to watch it tomorrow morning, but I am currently drinking and may be feeling buh. What I'm Trying to Drink But Can't Find Four Loko is this "blackout in a can" stuff that's supposed to be really great and on the verge of being banned in eighty states or something. The product locator on the Four website says that every gas station and liquor store within a thousand miles of me is packed with the stuff, but everywhere I go, I either get "Four-what?" or "Isn't that that stuff on the news? No, never seen it in stock..." It's getting kind of frustrating. I just want to know what it tastes like, that's all (prolly tastes like ass but whatever)! Why I Can't Pay My Rent Once again, as a manager, I work just one day next week, and it's not even a full shift: I get a whole three hours, eleven to two. Hours are supposedly based on performance (reserve percentages), but the schedule is invariably made up before I even go to work that week, which means that my percentages don't figure into the hours-by-reserves equation. I'm starting to think I'm just being harassed. I've been looking everywhere for another job, even responding to ads on Craigslist wanting someone to write erotic fiction for $10 a story. I reopened my 'gig' on Fiverr but haven't gotten any bites yet. I even applied to the National Guard, but I'm like forty zillion pounds over their "maximum weight limit" for my height (147 lbs. With the size of my tits, I'd snap in half trying to walk). I'd sell my blood, but there just isn't enough of it to turn a profit. What I'm Listening To KNX1070, an AM news radio station in Los Angeles that has the most soothing-sounding announcers that I've ever come across. I could (and do, sometimes) fall asleep just listening to them talk about TRAFFIC AND WEATHER TOGETHER ON THE FIVES! They've also got CBS World News, which definitely has a liberal slant (as does the station itself) and is a nice change from ALL FOX ALL THE TIME here at home (the cat watches Glenn Beck). Other than that I've got the same couple playlists on my iPod; I've been using Skittle's netbook (sort of long story) so I haven't updated it in a long time. Even if I could, I don't know if there are any new songs that I'm dying to have as my own. I think the last one I bought was Bad Company, and the new song by Five Finger Death Punch is just lame. And We Can't Have a Blog Post in October Without Mention Of  Plot structure is chugging along. Got a moleskine notebook and an official Nanowrimo "noveling" pen and am following a three-act structure as well as the Monomyth (see other posts) as scaffolding. Planning on attending a Kick-Off party on Sunday, if only for the free stuff, since it's taking place during the day and no actual writing will be taking place... Ugh, headache. [end transmission] |
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| *stuffs into writer's backpack* | |||
| 05:17pm 15/10/2010 | |||
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(also xposted to the nanowrimo.org forums.) Because I've had a LOT of trouble with wandering plotlines before (I can usually get to 50k if I push myself, but have NEVER actually written 'the end' in a nano novel), I decided that this year I'm going to try to follow the "Hero's Journey Archetype" to outline my plot. It's a sort of set path that many stories, including recent ones (including the Star Wars saga and D*sney's The Lion King) have followed, and the pattern goes all the way back to Gilgamesh (an epic poem from Mesopotamia and one of the earliest known works of literature). The Hero's Journey is actually a part of the Hero Archetype, a theory outlined by Joseph Campbell (...I think he was the first, anyway, it's been a long time since literature class) in his book A Hero With a Thousand Faces, which you can pretty much find in any bookstore, anywhere. If you're still in school and have an awesome English or Mythology teacher, you can also ask to pretty please borrow a copy from them, since there's a good chance they'll have it lying around (or use in in their curriculum). Um, so, here are the simple steps (copypasta'd from here): # Departure 1. The Call to Adventure The call to adventure is the point in a person's life when they are first given notice that everything is going to change, whether they know it or not. 2. Refusal of the Call Often when the call is given, the future hero refuses to heed it. This may be from a sense of duty or obligation, fear, insecurity, a sense of inadequacy, or any of a range of reasons that work to hold the person in his or her current circumstances. 3. Supernatural Aid Once the hero has committed to the quest, consciously or unconsciously, his or her guide and magical helper appears, or becomes known. 4. The Crossing of the First Threshold This is the point where the person actually crosses into the field of adventure, leaving the known limits of his or her world and venturing into an unknown and dangerous realm where the rules and limits are not known. 5. The Belly of the Whale The belly of the whale represents the final separation from the hero's known world and self. It is sometimes described as the person's lowest point, but it is actually the point when the person is between or transitioning between worlds and selves. The separation has been made, or is being made, or being fully recognized between the old world and old self and the potential for a new world/self. The experiences that will shape the new world and self will begin shortly, or may be beginning with this experience which is often symbolized by something dark, unknown and frightening. By entering this stage, the person shows their willingness to undergo a metamorphosis, to die to him or herself. # Inititation 1. The Road of Trials The road of trials is a series of tests, tasks, or ordeals that the person must undergo to begin the transformation. Often the person fails one or more of these tests, which often occur in threes. 2. The Meeting with the Goddess The meeting with the goddess represents the point in the adventure when the person experiences a love that has the power and significance of the all-powerful, all encompassing, unconditional love that a fortunate infant may experience with his or her mother. It is also known as the "hieros gamos", or sacred marriage, the union of opposites, and may take place entirely within the person. In other words, the person begins to see him or herself in a non-dualistic way. This is a very important step in the process and is often represented by the person finding the other person that he or she loves most completely. Although Campbell symbolizes this step as a meeting with a goddess, unconditional love and /or self unification does not have to be represented by a woman. 3. Woman as the Temptress At one level, this step is about those temptations that may lead the hero to abandon or stray from his or her quest, which as with the Meeting with the Goddess does not necessarily have to be represented by a woman. For Campbell, however, this step is about the revulsion that the usually male hero may feel about his own fleshy/earthy nature, and the subsequent attachment or projection of that revulsion to women. Woman is a metaphor for the physical or material temptations of life, since the hero-knight was often tempted by lust from his spiritual journey. 4. Atonement with the Father In this step the person must confront and be initiated by whatever holds the ultimate power in his or her life. In many myths and stories this is the father, or a father figure who has life and death power. This is the center point of the journey. All the previous steps have been moving in to this place, all that follow will move out from it. Although this step is most frequently symbolized by an encounter with a male entity, it does not have to be a male; just someone or thing with incredible power. For the transformation to take place, the person as he or she has been must be "killed" so that the new self can come into being. Sometime this killing is literal, and the earthly journey for that character is either over or moves into a different realm. 5. Apotheosis To apotheosize is to deify. When someone dies a physical death, or dies to the self to live in spirit, he or she moves beyond the pairs of opposites to a state of divine knowledge, love, compassion and bliss. This is a god-like state; the person is in heaven and beyond all strife. A more mundane way of looking at this step is that it is a period of rest, peace and fulfillment before the hero begins the return. 6. The Ultimate Boon The ultimate boon is the achievement of the goal of the quest. It is what the person went on the journey to get. All the previous steps serve to prepare and purify the person for this step, since in many myths the boon is something transcendent like the elixir of life itself, or a plant that supplies immortality, or the holy grail. # Return 1. Refusal of the Return So why, when all has been achieved, the ambrosia has been drunk, and we have conversed with the gods, why come back to normal life with all its cares and woes? 2. The Magic Flight Sometimes the hero must escape with the boon, if it is something that the gods have been jealously guarding. It can be just as adventurous and dangerous returning from the journey as it was to go on it. 3. Rescue from Without Just as the hero may need guides and assistants to set out on the quest, often times he or she must have powerful guides and rescuers to bring them back to everyday life, especially if the person has been wounded or weakened by the experience. Or perhaps the person doesn't realize that it is time to return, that they can return, or that others need their boon. 4. The Crossing of the Return Threshold The trick in returning is to retain the wisdom gained on the quest, to integrate that wisdom into a human life, and then maybe figure out how to share the wisdom with the rest of the world. This is usually extremely difficult. 5. Master of the Two Worlds In myth, this step is usually represented by a transcendental hero like Jesus or Buddha. For a human hero, it may mean achieving a balance between the material and spiritual. The person has become comfortable and competent in both the inner and outer worlds. 6. Freedom to Live Mastery leads to freedom from the fear of death, which in turn is the freedom to live. This is sometimes referred to as living in the moment, neither anticipating the future nor regretting the past. Sometimes it's easier for me to recognize the steps if I have something to compare them to; I know that in addition to SW and TLK listed above, the Lord of the Rings trilogy adheres pretty closely to this archetype, as well as Harry Potter (and pretty much every Disney movie follows the path or a pared-down version of it. Hercules is a good one, since it's [omg so very very loosely] based on a myth anyway). You can find out more by picking up Hero With A Thousand Faces, raiding Google for "Hero's Journey" or "Hero Archetype," or bother-bothering your nearest English teacher (but offer to do it over coffee or something, teachers are stressed and need more love.) [end transmission] |
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| Secret Project Notes | |||
| 12:33pm 07/10/2010 | |||
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Wrote up an insanely long, rambling reply to a question from buddy Eve about the battlecards, and thought I'd post it here as well in case anyone had any ideas or input. I was thinking 3 cards vs 3 or 5v5, where the cards were individual characters. You could, for instance, have two knights and a mage for healing, and their turns would be based on their speed, sort of like a video game rpg. Turn actions would probably be based on dice roll, for how strong your attack would be or whatnot. I didn't want it to be as complicated as even DnD 4e-- that many stats wouldn't even fit on both sides of a card ><; But the base stats would be something like attack-defense-magic (as in magic attack)-speed. A different class would have different stats, for instance a thief (...or a locksmith) would be pretty fast and hard to hit but have weak attack and almost no magic. Mages would obviously be better in magic but weaker in attack and defense stats. I was just thinking, should I add modifiers? I don't want to add weapons because that's like a thousand more things I'd have to worry about... But based on someone's defense, how much damage would, say, 10 out of a 2d6 do? Would it just do ten damage, flat? Or would it be tempered by the other person's defense? Like if you're stabbing a mage through soft robes as opposed to clanking your sword off of a knight's armor... and if you leveled up, how much would your stats go up with your level? How much experience would you get per battle won? Would it depend on number of people defeated, the levels they were at? And would a mage learn more spells as they went along? Should I have a choice of spells, or...? I dunno if I'm in over my head or not. *Goes back to reading "Dungeons and Dragons 4e for Dummies* [end transmission] |
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| SECRET PROJECT | |||
| 12:54am 07/10/2010 | |||
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I came up with this harebrained idea to create a battlecard game, one where you can have your li'l avatar on a card with his or her stats, and fight other li'l battlecard avatars, and gain levels and stuff. I'd base the system on DnD 4e, and super-simplify it so that with some cards and online-generated dice, it would be easy to run around and battle people. (turns out even 4e, which is the oversimplified version of the 'classic' Dungeons and Dragons system, is insanely complicated to pick apart and put back together. I'm gonna have to take it slow.) So yeah, I figured male and female versions of a couple basic classes like Knight and Magething, customizable (for a price. because my life is about money). I did the Chicken Knight, and his counterpart, the Sparrow Knight (because Hen Knight just sounded demeaning).   I'm gonna knock out a couple a week, I think, just because I like to do it. If you have an idea for how I can simplify-and-steal a battle system, I'd love to hear it ;_; Until then I'll just be over here doodling. [end transmission] |
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| Massive Picspam | |||
| 06:20pm 02/10/2010 | |||
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I've been drawing a hell of a lot lately for Gaia commissions, and I forgot to inflict my drawings on people here. So, Picspam.  Darkling, from Pet. The first of my Kinky Bumpers.  Gaia Commish for Lulu!  I did this one for free, but the lady insisted on giving me 5k for it. It's a signature thing for her panda-themed journal.  Gaia Commish.  Kakechii tellin' y'all to f yourselves.  This was my Gaia avatar for awhile, the second of my Kinky Bumpers and the closest thing to an official character design for Nahne from Pet that I've ever done.  Kakechii, from Pet. Kinky Bumper :3  Gaia Commish. I love the colors, am starting to hate the rest of it.  Dragonfly from Pet. I probably should have tried harder on this but didn't.  OC Commission.  I found this hysterically funny because I'm twelve.  Garren, from Pet and various other works. My first attempt at not drawing a girlyman.  'Nother Gaia Commish.  I had a blast drawing Pekku and kept taking screencaps of his rainbow lines before I blacked them all out. LOOK I R A REAL ARTIST  Another work-in-progress screencap, this time of the fuckton of hair on a Gaia commission.  If you don't know what the Reverse Reaper is, it's better that you don't/  Meant to color this and didn't. Something isn't right but I'm not sure what.  Hey look, it's the hair again! And the rest of her!  A sort-of OC commission... the lady wanted me to draw her 'version of the irl' her? Um. Anyway she gave me a reference to work off of so I did what I could.  For Skittle's avatar :3  I'm slowly overcoming my fear of drawing hats since so many people on Gaia can't live without headgear. I liked this one.  She wanted something 'sexy' with her avatar. I made the tits as big as possible. Tits are sexy, right?  Kam, the main character for this year's Nano novel. I colored his hair pink intending to make it a darker black or brown, and then decided that pink was totally him.  ...aaaaand what I'm working on currently. Instead of cleaning. *hides* [end transmission] |
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| boys boys boys | |||
| 12:13pm 01/10/2010 | |||
It's October first, and you know what that means... Once again, it's time for THE COUNTDOWN TICKERSSSSS Also some arts.  It has been fucking windy as hell here lately. [end transmission] |
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| Check his Vitals! | |||
| 11:26am 08/09/2010 | |||
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Okay, I was going to start off posting some art that I did, but I just noticed a new framed picture directly to the right of where I'm sitting. It reads: May you find peace and strength in knowing that an angel has been called home. If love could have kept you here, you would have stayed forever. Uh. Besides the 'new home' caption, isn't that something you'd be likely to find on the inside of a sympathy card? Now it's hanging on the wall and every time I look at it I'm going to wonder where the heck it came from and why it sounds like they thought somebody died. Anyway. Arts! Lamestop cut my hours again this week (I work for a whole day!), so I borrowed Skittle's netbook and went on Gaia do start doing avatar commissions again. It's fun and makes me feel important, and most importantly it makes the time pass more quickly. Takes me about two and a half to three hours to finish a deluxe one with shading and errything.  The skirt was different on the avatar on this one, but I changed it up a little so it'd show within the confines of my canvas (I can talk professional!) instead of just being black.  This was the same person's second order and I kind of wanted to make it look peaches-and-cream pale. I dunno if I'm kidding myself or not but I think it looks okay.  Also I drew Lullus (the character, not the avatar) while the internet was out. ...sigh... I gotta get ready for my one day of work. Hopefully BP calls me back so I can supplement my income. [end transmission] |
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| And where did you get that giant sheaf of twenties anyway?! | |||
| 12:23am 02/09/2010 | |||
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Exposition: Generally at Lametop my manager likes to schedule 'double coverage,' meaning there are at least two employees on the clock at all times (excluding lunch break) so that there is always someone on the floor if one of us has to go into the back room to format systems, bag accessories or pee. However, since we're short two people this week, in my shifts this week there's a one-hour gap between when my manager leaves (at 2:45 ish) and when my backup arrives (usually early, so about ten to four). Most of the time I'm fine with it; I get stuff done since it's dead and I can talk to myself loudly. Today, just as my manager left, a kid came in to trade in his XBOX360, but was unable to because the case had been opened (company policy). He'd brought the whole thing in a backpack, and his aunt had dropped him off, so he was stuck in the store until she came back. I put his backpack behind the counter so he wouldn't have to lug it around, and later, I also set his newly-purchased ps3 next to it (this kid was loaded). Our counter is only open on one side, so anyone trying to steal his stuff would have to walk all the way to the end to get it. 3:30 rolls around and I begin to have what I like to politely refer to as a "bowel attack." (I've got IBS.) Usually if I'm alone and the store is empty, I lock the door and rush to do my business, then come back and unlock it when I'm done with no one the wiser. Today, lucky me, there were three or four groups of customers in the store, so going into the back room was a no-go. I took care of most of the customers and saw them off with buttocks clenched, leaving only Rich Kid and his friend. I turn to them and say, "Okay, I really really have to pee, so I'll be RIGHT BACK, I trust you guys not to steal anything." (and I really did. Maybe I'm stereotyping, but the kid just did not look like the type to go shoving stuff down his pants.) So I RUN to the bathroom, do my duty, RUN back to the floor where all appears normal until I notice that the ps3 and xbox-in-backpack of the kid's had changed positions; in fact, the backpack was now empty, and Rich Kid's friend had gone. (I was in the bathroom for forty-five seconds, tops.) Apparently, while I was gone, Rich Kid had gone behind the counter to give his xbox to his friend, who wanted it (Rich Kid has a special edition Halo Reach Xbox360 slim on preorder, natch) and moved his boxed up ps3 to the end of the counter where anyone could take it. I immediately launch into a silent freakout of "oh my god not only did I leave these two kids in the store by themselves but they went behind the counter holy shit this is all on camera when my boss finds out she is going to FIRE ME and I'm going to have to get a job at the Waffle House and there is NO WAY I'll ever be able to afford a decent place to stay and--" etc. Meanwhile I try to stay calm, putting the ps3 back out of harm's reach and counting out a cash drop (Rich Kid is in the far corner of the store). Then I go to shelve some games, and turn around to find Rich Kid behind the counter again, picking up his ps3 so he can leave. This time I gave him a talking to about how the counter is an employees-only area and how I could lose my job by letting him go back there by himself, and sent him off with his aunt, who'd finally come to pick him up after an hour. The worst part? I didn't even get to wipe properly, so now my ass is all chafed and raw. (I didn't end up losing my job. My boss thought it was funny that I was making such a big deal over it.) ETA: An extremely abridged version of this post got me banned at Customers_Suck. Apparently I'm a troll. Who knew? It was the perfect ending to a really, really, really bad day. [end transmission] |
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| A post for a change. | |||
| 12:58am 28/08/2010 | |||
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Only this time, it's a video of me, Naked For a Cause. [end transmission] |
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flusterdance |
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Friends Info Calendar Penny Candy |
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