![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Not many people seem to realise, or remember, if they know, that I read a lot of fanfic. Fanfic gives an alternate point of view on an existing world, sometimes one that I know very well. I've written some, in my time; it was vile and has now, thankfully, been lost.
Here, though, is a set of Narnian fanfic, not yet complete, which makes me want to write in that world:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
bedlambard's Dust in the Air. It's an AU around the era of The Last Battle, and it's absolutely brilliant. It helps, of course, that I never liked The Last Battle, but I still think bedlambard's version is better.
Here, though, is a set of Narnian fanfic, not yet complete, which makes me want to write in that world:
bedlambard's Dust in the Air. It's an AU around the era of The Last Battle, and it's absolutely brilliant. It helps, of course, that I never liked The Last Battle, but I still think bedlambard's version is better.Gamers! I am going to K2, and I will be cooking. On Saturday morning (well, 12:00, which under K2 conditions is morning) I will be making pancakes. Pancakes will be free to all comers, but I'd like to have a rough idea of numbers. I will probably have some maple syrup and golden syrup for them, and if anyone wants to bring other stuff to go on them, go right ahead. I hear some strange people go for lemon. I will also grill bacon for them if a) it's handed to me, and b) you'll accept me taxing a slice.
On Sunday afternoon/evening, I will also cook something. The options are rather more open here, and I'll be looking for contributions from them as wants to eat. I could do one of:
Roast beef - a huge roast, with potatoes, some vegetables, gravy and a a Yorkshire pudding on the side.
Beef stew, which will contain beef, potatoes, onions, carrots, turnip unless someone talks me out of it, celery, and whatever other vegetables look good at the time. If the potato content in it looks insufficient, I may do more potatoes on the side, and will also have bread.
A red onion and tomato risotto, with smoked bacon on the side. This is technically vegetarian, but I like to have meat with it, hence the bacon. It's rather good, even if I do say so myself.
A jambalaya. This is a rice dish, with chicken, prawns and some other stuff in. It's spicy (though not very) and I usually try to have flatbread to serve with it, although I may resort to pita bread if numbers are very high. Because this dish takes several forms of protein, it's a bit pricier to make, hence the higher subscription.
Majority vote from people going will carry the Sunday dish, and I'll post another poll later to gather actual numbers for supply buying.
[Poll #1337236]
On Sunday afternoon/evening, I will also cook something. The options are rather more open here, and I'll be looking for contributions from them as wants to eat. I could do one of:
Roast beef - a huge roast, with potatoes, some vegetables, gravy and a a Yorkshire pudding on the side.
Beef stew, which will contain beef, potatoes, onions, carrots, turnip unless someone talks me out of it, celery, and whatever other vegetables look good at the time. If the potato content in it looks insufficient, I may do more potatoes on the side, and will also have bread.
A red onion and tomato risotto, with smoked bacon on the side. This is technically vegetarian, but I like to have meat with it, hence the bacon. It's rather good, even if I do say so myself.
A jambalaya. This is a rice dish, with chicken, prawns and some other stuff in. It's spicy (though not very) and I usually try to have flatbread to serve with it, although I may resort to pita bread if numbers are very high. Because this dish takes several forms of protein, it's a bit pricier to make, hence the higher subscription.
Majority vote from people going will carry the Sunday dish, and I'll post another poll later to gather actual numbers for supply buying.
[Poll #1337236]
I like fonts. If I had time, I would probably assemble huge collections of fonts, all tagged and categorised, and maybe print out short bits of text and stick them on walls and things.
Usually, I can get away with free ones. However, I really covet Authentic Ink, which costs $25.
What fonts do you like?
Usually, I can get away with free ones. However, I really covet Authentic Ink, which costs $25.
What fonts do you like?
A couple of gaming-related links I want to look at later, and which might of interest to other people:
Diaspora
Spirit of the Blank
Diaspora
Spirit of the Blank
Three days have passed, and the reconnaissance has gone well. There's now a clear picture of the area in which the ship has crashed. To the east lie mountains, populated by dragons and their servants. They're powerful, and should probably be avoided.
To the west and north lie entire kingdoms of people like the King; you now know that he's a child, and that the adults of his kind look somewhat more real. They don't seem to have much in the way of magic, and it looks like there's a great deal of political turmoil among and within the kingdoms, verging on open warfare in places.
To the south lie uncultivated lands containing the ruins of towns and castles. The ruins look to be hundreds of years old, but the border between that uncultivated area and the kingdoms east of it is very clearly delineated, which seems strange.
The ship will take more magic than is currently available to repair, but a start could be made by removing some of the good cut stone from ruins to the south. Efforts to contact local authorities were broken off when it became clear that there are wars starting. Efforts to contact a global defence force like your own, by magic, have received peculiar results; there are apparently several groups claiming precedence under the names of "The Defenders", "The New Crimson Empire", "The Eight", and "The Revenant Gods".
The question asked of the King about how he could be served and who his enemies are got a confused and unclear response, and the child fell asleep soon after. In the days since, he's been telling people to let him think, and sometimes marching people in circles and lines, which is an entertainment that he doesn't seem to tire of.
Now, however, there's a more immediate concern. Someone has apparently shown the King how to extend his voice throughout the ship from the bridge, and his high-pitched tones echo around you, "I've changed my mind. You can stop the marching - I want you to take over the world and make me King of Everything!".
[Poll #1333726]
As usual, if you want to do something that's not in the options, comment below.
To the west and north lie entire kingdoms of people like the King; you now know that he's a child, and that the adults of his kind look somewhat more real. They don't seem to have much in the way of magic, and it looks like there's a great deal of political turmoil among and within the kingdoms, verging on open warfare in places.
To the south lie uncultivated lands containing the ruins of towns and castles. The ruins look to be hundreds of years old, but the border between that uncultivated area and the kingdoms east of it is very clearly delineated, which seems strange.
The ship will take more magic than is currently available to repair, but a start could be made by removing some of the good cut stone from ruins to the south. Efforts to contact local authorities were broken off when it became clear that there are wars starting. Efforts to contact a global defence force like your own, by magic, have received peculiar results; there are apparently several groups claiming precedence under the names of "The Defenders", "The New Crimson Empire", "The Eight", and "The Revenant Gods".
The question asked of the King about how he could be served and who his enemies are got a confused and unclear response, and the child fell asleep soon after. In the days since, he's been telling people to let him think, and sometimes marching people in circles and lines, which is an entertainment that he doesn't seem to tire of.
Now, however, there's a more immediate concern. Someone has apparently shown the King how to extend his voice throughout the ship from the bridge, and his high-pitched tones echo around you, "I've changed my mind. You can stop the marching - I want you to take over the world and make me King of Everything!".
[Poll #1333726]
As usual, if you want to do something that's not in the options, comment below.
Tags:
I am a very recent convert to the whole podcasting thing. I tried it some years ago, when I first got any sort of MP3 player, and didn't like it much. Because I read very fast, I get a bit frustrated with pure audio for information; it's too damn slow, and there are no secondary cues to follow, like body language in conversations, or the whole visual thing if you've video as well. And at the time, many podcasts had poor production quality, and all the ones I could find on topics I was interested in were done by... there's no nice way to say this. They were done by people with no skill at ALL for the spoken word.
However, late last year, I was pointed by a co-worker at the podcast done by Wiggly Wigglers, an online shop selling composting, wormery, and small gardening goods. It had interviews, discussion, was well-presented, and had fantastic British accents to listen to. I was an immediate convert.
Since then, I've come across a few more podcasts that I think are worth listening to. From "absolute favourite" down to "this is great!", with all the crud removed, they are:
The Game Master Show: (link)This is produced by a bunch of gamers in... Chicago, I think? Anyway, there are six of them, and five of them run games on a regular basis. The sixth guy seems to be a combat monster. Some of their episodes are three-hour-plus recordings of games they're trying out, others are reviews and discussions of general topics in GMing. It's a fantastic show, made good by the passion they invest in their discussions, as occasionally made evident by heart-felt uncensored swearing.
Van Hemlock & Jon: (link)I found these guys via EVE Online blogs. The podcast is about MMOs and video games in general, but it's made excellent by the complete cakes-and-ale Britishness of its presenters. They alternate themed shows with news ones, and have lately started to combine the two. Listening to these two is like a good pub conversation.
Wiggly Wigglers: (link) This is the one that changed my mind about podcasts. It's done by the owner of the company, Heather, and features various employees (the primary one being Richard - I suspect he was the original prime mover for the podcast), her husband Phil, who runs a small-medium farm in Herefordshire, with some appearances by their son, Monty. It covers a huge range of subjects, but all focussed on countryside and environmental issues. There's plenty of personality, and plenty of good discussion, particularly between Phil and Richard, who seem to have something of a clash of personalities.
The Alternative Kitchen Garden: (link) Emma Cooper is a softspoken freelance writer who lives in Oxfordshire. She has chickens called Hen Solo and Princess Layer, so is clearly the right kind of people. The podcast is about growing vegetables, and various other aspects of organic gardening, permaculture, and natural history. My only quibble with her podcasts is that they're too short, averaging out around 17 minutes.
Warp Drive Active: (link) An EVE Online podcast, probably of no interest to anyone who doesn't play. Winterblink is Canadian, Urban Mongral is English. I think they do the podcast on Skype. It's not up there with Van Hemlock and Jon in terms of enjoyment, but they cover more material, and of course, are more focussed on a game I play.
I've no doubt I'll add more over time -evilrobotshane is looking to get one off the ground, for a start, and I'll do another recommendations post when I accumulate some more.
However, late last year, I was pointed by a co-worker at the podcast done by Wiggly Wigglers, an online shop selling composting, wormery, and small gardening goods. It had interviews, discussion, was well-presented, and had fantastic British accents to listen to. I was an immediate convert.
Since then, I've come across a few more podcasts that I think are worth listening to. From "absolute favourite" down to "this is great!", with all the crud removed, they are:
The Game Master Show: (link)This is produced by a bunch of gamers in... Chicago, I think? Anyway, there are six of them, and five of them run games on a regular basis. The sixth guy seems to be a combat monster. Some of their episodes are three-hour-plus recordings of games they're trying out, others are reviews and discussions of general topics in GMing. It's a fantastic show, made good by the passion they invest in their discussions, as occasionally made evident by heart-felt uncensored swearing.
Van Hemlock & Jon: (link)I found these guys via EVE Online blogs. The podcast is about MMOs and video games in general, but it's made excellent by the complete cakes-and-ale Britishness of its presenters. They alternate themed shows with news ones, and have lately started to combine the two. Listening to these two is like a good pub conversation.
Wiggly Wigglers: (link) This is the one that changed my mind about podcasts. It's done by the owner of the company, Heather, and features various employees (the primary one being Richard - I suspect he was the original prime mover for the podcast), her husband Phil, who runs a small-medium farm in Herefordshire, with some appearances by their son, Monty. It covers a huge range of subjects, but all focussed on countryside and environmental issues. There's plenty of personality, and plenty of good discussion, particularly between Phil and Richard, who seem to have something of a clash of personalities.
The Alternative Kitchen Garden: (link) Emma Cooper is a softspoken freelance writer who lives in Oxfordshire. She has chickens called Hen Solo and Princess Layer, so is clearly the right kind of people. The podcast is about growing vegetables, and various other aspects of organic gardening, permaculture, and natural history. My only quibble with her podcasts is that they're too short, averaging out around 17 minutes.
Warp Drive Active: (link) An EVE Online podcast, probably of no interest to anyone who doesn't play. Winterblink is Canadian, Urban Mongral is English. I think they do the podcast on Skype. It's not up there with Van Hemlock and Jon in terms of enjoyment, but they cover more material, and of course, are more focussed on a game I play.
I've no doubt I'll add more over time -
evilrobotshane is looking to get one off the ground, for a start, and I'll do another recommendations post when I accumulate some more.An Post are looking for suggestions for stamps for 2011.
Every year An Post invites members of the public to suggest interesting topics for our stamp issues. Throughout January we're looking for topics that will feature in our 2011 collection. Perhaps there's an event, from the past or in the future, that you believe merits commemoration. Maybe there's an anniversary, a person or an aspect of Irish Life that deserves celebrating. We'd like you to send us your suggestions before the end of January, 2009.
We are particularly interested in significant Anniversaries - e.g. 100th/200th Anniversaries, major Irish cultural or historical events, Irish people/events or people/events with an Irish connection.
http://www.anpost.ie/AnPost/StampIssuePolicy.htm
If you want to see something on a stamp, now's your chance!
Every year An Post invites members of the public to suggest interesting topics for our stamp issues. Throughout January we're looking for topics that will feature in our 2011 collection. Perhaps there's an event, from the past or in the future, that you believe merits commemoration. Maybe there's an anniversary, a person or an aspect of Irish Life that deserves celebrating. We'd like you to send us your suggestions before the end of January, 2009.
We are particularly interested in significant Anniversaries - e.g. 100th/200th Anniversaries, major Irish cultural or historical events, Irish people/events or people/events with an Irish connection.
http://www.anpost.ie/AnPost/StampIssuePolicy.htm
If you want to see something on a stamp, now's your chance!
So, with all the year reviews, etc, out of the way, let's look at something I'm really interested in: games.
2008
I got in a good amount of gaming last year. I wound up Locksmith's Folly, continued A Thousand Ships, started The Living & The Dead, and have continued with some mini-campaigns in Davon, mostly around a vague theme of examining the long-term effects of historical events. I played some WoW, early in the year, a good bit of EVE (though not, I feel, enough - more on that below), and some WAR, late in the year when it came out. I also tried a few other online games, but nothing really grabbed me. There were a fair few boardgames, and I even got to play some tabletop games - I never really got started inevilrobotshane's short-lived Cyberpunk 2020 Silhouette game, but the newer and hopefully more sustainable Spirit of the Century got off to a good start.
2009
Looking forward, A Thousand Ships is going very well indeed, once we get past some scheduling issues. I'm starting to think that three schedules are the maximum you can really expect to be able to convene on a regular basis - that is, couples who are living together can be treated as one 'schedule', and once you get past three, you're starting to run into problems with other regular activities, be they evening classes, other games, other hobbies, or work requirements.
The game itself is well underway, with one long section (a season, if you like) completed, and the second going strongly. There's a lot of plot engagement, and the players are driving events very well. I'm not sure they quite believe me when I tell them that the massive pilgrimage that made up the bulk of Season 1 was wholly their idea, but it really was. I'd love to see more player-driven events like that in games ("Let's invade Burgundy!") but it's hard to make things like that available while avoiding railroading - which of course is exactly the opposite of what you want. I reckon Fate lends itself more to this than more traditional rulesets, but I also think we could make much more use of the player-control aspects of that than we currently are.
The Living & The Dead has just started, really, and is coming up on the second 'Episode'. It's not at all clear yet how that's going to shape up; we've three experienced players and one complete newcomer, and a very developed setting. I need to work more on matching game events and plotlines to characters, but that takes time, and really can't be rushed.
I have, as usual, lots of games I want to run, and almost certainly won't have enough time for. Here are four current concepts.
One concept, which is fairly well-developed in my mind, and which I've been doing research and reading for, is an Arthurian game, set in a fairly dark age early in the Old High Kingdom (for those who know the campaign setting). I'd really like to run this, but the overlap of interested players and available timeslots isn't working out very well.
I'd also like to run a short 4th Edition D&D game ("short", for me, is 6 or 8 sessions). I have a setting in mind for this too, with which I'm fairly pleased, at least in concept. It's not connected at all with my established world/continuity.
I'm also mulling over the concept of a long-term 'simulationist' game. This would be one in which the interest is not in a grand long-term plot, but more a sandbox-style, what-will-happen-if situation. It would still involve a lot of politics and secrets to be discovered, etc, but wouldn't have the actual GM-provided core plot. This might possibly be merged with the next idea.
And that next idea is a space-opera game, set in a huge, galaxy-wide, Vingian- or Banksian-style crossover of cultures and species. I'd like to run this in Fate, although if it's also the Sim game, I might possibly opt for something a bit crunchier. Maybe. I'd also like to start this off with characters who don't know much about the setting, so that it can be a whole discovery thing for the characters as much as the players; this has been something missing from recent fantasy games as either the players or the characters know the setting very well.
Online, I'm going to be continuing with EVE, which is entertaining me a lot at the moment for sim/sandbox thinking, and WAR, which is excellent for toe-to-toe PvP action, and adequate in PvE. EVE is getting most of my online game attention, because the more I play, the better it gets, which is not a curve that always happens in MMOs. I'm concentrating on manufacturing and trading on Atrakus at the moment, which is going well, and have got a second account (Artemisia) to train up for missioning (some) and PvP (hopefully lots). Atrakus is currently skilling up for invention, and after that, he's going to be working on maxing out his trading skills.
I'm aware that the PvE game in WoW is much improved in Wrath of the Lich King, but the more I see the game community I know there obsess over raids, the less interested I get. Mass-effort high-organisation gear-dependent PvE is right at the very bottom of MMO features, as far as I'm concerned, and might even be on the list of bugs instead. RP efforts have more or less vanished, and the only real interest left in the game is the PvE levelling (which I'll grant looks good, insofar as single-player-with-other-people-around stuff goes) and the crafting/trading aspects, which are interesting indeed, but not enough to pay 35 quid plus 15 quid a month for. Not to mention that Blizzard keep messing with the trade aspect, and completely resetting it with every expansion. So for now, I'm leaning heavily on the side of can't-be-bothered with regard to WoW.
In small bits: I am watching the news about Darkfall Online with interest, but don't really anticipate buying it unless the one-month-in reviews are very good indeed. I'm poking Wizard 101 when I want some overly cute stuff (although I have to admit, the gameplay is actually VERY good). I bought Civ IV Complete, and have played maybe three hours of it. I'm playing no CCGs at all, really, although I'm hanging on to my EVE cards for future games, and in boardgames, I have Game Of Thrones and Arkham Horror, both unplayed, and in need of playing sometime this year.
2008
I got in a good amount of gaming last year. I wound up Locksmith's Folly, continued A Thousand Ships, started The Living & The Dead, and have continued with some mini-campaigns in Davon, mostly around a vague theme of examining the long-term effects of historical events. I played some WoW, early in the year, a good bit of EVE (though not, I feel, enough - more on that below), and some WAR, late in the year when it came out. I also tried a few other online games, but nothing really grabbed me. There were a fair few boardgames, and I even got to play some tabletop games - I never really got started in
evilrobotshane's short-lived Cyberpunk 2020 Silhouette game, but the newer and hopefully more sustainable Spirit of the Century got off to a good start.2009
Looking forward, A Thousand Ships is going very well indeed, once we get past some scheduling issues. I'm starting to think that three schedules are the maximum you can really expect to be able to convene on a regular basis - that is, couples who are living together can be treated as one 'schedule', and once you get past three, you're starting to run into problems with other regular activities, be they evening classes, other games, other hobbies, or work requirements.
The game itself is well underway, with one long section (a season, if you like) completed, and the second going strongly. There's a lot of plot engagement, and the players are driving events very well. I'm not sure they quite believe me when I tell them that the massive pilgrimage that made up the bulk of Season 1 was wholly their idea, but it really was. I'd love to see more player-driven events like that in games ("Let's invade Burgundy!") but it's hard to make things like that available while avoiding railroading - which of course is exactly the opposite of what you want. I reckon Fate lends itself more to this than more traditional rulesets, but I also think we could make much more use of the player-control aspects of that than we currently are.
The Living & The Dead has just started, really, and is coming up on the second 'Episode'. It's not at all clear yet how that's going to shape up; we've three experienced players and one complete newcomer, and a very developed setting. I need to work more on matching game events and plotlines to characters, but that takes time, and really can't be rushed.
I have, as usual, lots of games I want to run, and almost certainly won't have enough time for. Here are four current concepts.
One concept, which is fairly well-developed in my mind, and which I've been doing research and reading for, is an Arthurian game, set in a fairly dark age early in the Old High Kingdom (for those who know the campaign setting). I'd really like to run this, but the overlap of interested players and available timeslots isn't working out very well.
I'd also like to run a short 4th Edition D&D game ("short", for me, is 6 or 8 sessions). I have a setting in mind for this too, with which I'm fairly pleased, at least in concept. It's not connected at all with my established world/continuity.
I'm also mulling over the concept of a long-term 'simulationist' game. This would be one in which the interest is not in a grand long-term plot, but more a sandbox-style, what-will-happen-if situation. It would still involve a lot of politics and secrets to be discovered, etc, but wouldn't have the actual GM-provided core plot. This might possibly be merged with the next idea.
And that next idea is a space-opera game, set in a huge, galaxy-wide, Vingian- or Banksian-style crossover of cultures and species. I'd like to run this in Fate, although if it's also the Sim game, I might possibly opt for something a bit crunchier. Maybe. I'd also like to start this off with characters who don't know much about the setting, so that it can be a whole discovery thing for the characters as much as the players; this has been something missing from recent fantasy games as either the players or the characters know the setting very well.
Online, I'm going to be continuing with EVE, which is entertaining me a lot at the moment for sim/sandbox thinking, and WAR, which is excellent for toe-to-toe PvP action, and adequate in PvE. EVE is getting most of my online game attention, because the more I play, the better it gets, which is not a curve that always happens in MMOs. I'm concentrating on manufacturing and trading on Atrakus at the moment, which is going well, and have got a second account (Artemisia) to train up for missioning (some) and PvP (hopefully lots). Atrakus is currently skilling up for invention, and after that, he's going to be working on maxing out his trading skills.
I'm aware that the PvE game in WoW is much improved in Wrath of the Lich King, but the more I see the game community I know there obsess over raids, the less interested I get. Mass-effort high-organisation gear-dependent PvE is right at the very bottom of MMO features, as far as I'm concerned, and might even be on the list of bugs instead. RP efforts have more or less vanished, and the only real interest left in the game is the PvE levelling (which I'll grant looks good, insofar as single-player-with-other-people-around stuff goes) and the crafting/trading aspects, which are interesting indeed, but not enough to pay 35 quid plus 15 quid a month for. Not to mention that Blizzard keep messing with the trade aspect, and completely resetting it with every expansion. So for now, I'm leaning heavily on the side of can't-be-bothered with regard to WoW.
In small bits: I am watching the news about Darkfall Online with interest, but don't really anticipate buying it unless the one-month-in reviews are very good indeed. I'm poking Wizard 101 when I want some overly cute stuff (although I have to admit, the gameplay is actually VERY good). I bought Civ IV Complete, and have played maybe three hours of it. I'm playing no CCGs at all, really, although I'm hanging on to my EVE cards for future games, and in boardgames, I have Game Of Thrones and Arkham Horror, both unplayed, and in need of playing sometime this year.
I don't have many resolutions lined up. I thought about a whole bunch, but really, I have enough projects in hand at any given time anyway, and work travel - of which there will be at least some this year - steals some of my project time.
However, here are some.
1) Pay attention to the the concepts and rules set out in Household Management for Men. I'm not saying I'll manage to hit all of them, for the simple reason that I reckon nobody in existence, male or female, could do so, but I'm going to give it a shot.
2) Learn to draw people. The idea here is to draw something every day that gets me, by the end of the year, to a point where I can draw people - and in particular, clothing. I have a billion and one concepts in my head for clothing in different cultures in my campaign worlds, and no ability to get them out there in anything other than words. And really, by the time you're using the word "armoured scapular", you need images.
3) Stay organised. The use of the concepts from Getting Things Done has changed a lot of my thinking, and I'm going to need that in work as much as at home, if not more so. In this job, I have the chance to use it.
4) Grow things. There's more to growing things - vegetables and fruit, and maybe even some of those pesky flower things - than sticking the seeds in the ground and standing back, and I intend to get the hang of it.
However, here are some.
1) Pay attention to the the concepts and rules set out in Household Management for Men. I'm not saying I'll manage to hit all of them, for the simple reason that I reckon nobody in existence, male or female, could do so, but I'm going to give it a shot.
2) Learn to draw people. The idea here is to draw something every day that gets me, by the end of the year, to a point where I can draw people - and in particular, clothing. I have a billion and one concepts in my head for clothing in different cultures in my campaign worlds, and no ability to get them out there in anything other than words. And really, by the time you're using the word "armoured scapular", you need images.
3) Stay organised. The use of the concepts from Getting Things Done has changed a lot of my thinking, and I'm going to need that in work as much as at home, if not more so. In this job, I have the chance to use it.
4) Grow things. There's more to growing things - vegetables and fruit, and maybe even some of those pesky flower things - than sticking the seeds in the ground and standing back, and I intend to get the hang of it.
This survey had been cpoied and pasted from gerrowadat while completelt plastered. Mistakes are probable mine, but might, conceeivably, be his. You have no idea how difficult it is to type on a Finnnish keyboard while drunk. I'm totally gonna wear the backspace key out.
1. What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before?
Bought a house. That counts, right?
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I didn't make any. I have some for this year,. yes.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Brid (I'd put the accent on the i, but thus keyboard isnät cooperating.)
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Not this year, thank god.
5. What countries did you visit?
Finland, er.... was in I in UK? Donä't think so. Cork!
6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
Financial Liquidity, I reckon.
7. What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
May 1st. Day we signed the particular set of papers that said we own a house now.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Buying a house, I reckon. Chnaging jobs, maybe. Changing whole damn career, maybe? I is evil marketer now, as opposed to evil webmaster for gambling company?
9. What was your biggest failure?
What is is this strange word you speak of?
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Several colds and flus.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
A house. Stuff from IKEA. A new laptop, thanks toinannajones, who is the bomb. As is the laptop. Man, I'm drunk.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
inannajones, as ususal. Also olethros, who deals with all our eccentrcities with equanmity. I can type that, but damned if I can say it.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Hrmm. The manager in my old job, maybe, although he was acting in a sound business sense. George Bush, on a global scale. The global economy, that's been pretty fucked up.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Mortgage. Loans. Ugh.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
I don't do three magnitives. But I was pretty stoked about the new job.
16. What song will always remind you of 2008?
Something epic metallish. Donät ask me to remember names.
17. Compared to this time last year, you are:
i. happier or sadder? Happier.
ii. thinner or fatter? Fatter, I think.
iii. richer or poorer? Um. No idea, actually. Given that I now am paying off a loan on property, properly technically richer.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Slept, really. Maybe written?
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Work. Not that I have any objection to work, mind, but it gets in the way of fun.
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
Gods, man, tenses. I spent Christmas in Finland. See previous post.
21. What was the most embarrassing thing that happened to you in 2008?
I'm not sure I do embarrassing, to be honest.
22. Did you fall in love in 2008?
Over and over again.
23. How many one-night stands?
I don't remember any. I'm sure someone will point it out if I missed one.
24. What was your favorite TV program?
Heroes.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
I don't think so.
26. What was the best book you read?
Oh gods. That's a question to answwer when sober. I thinkn Spirit of the Century is pretty rockin'.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Epic Metal.
28. What did you want and get?
Haus!
29. What did you want and not get?
A lottery win. Not buying tickets might have something to do with it.
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
The Batman one.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I was, appropriately and numerically, 31. I have no memory of what I did.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Immeasurably? Isnät that technically impossible to answer_? I dunno, more fudge?
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
More business?
34. What kept you sane?
inannajones.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Why would I fancy a celebrity?
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Sadöly, the American election.
37. Who did you miss?
cartographer, I reckon.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
New work people.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
Stress is not a natural state.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
"Give me my broadsword/ and clear understanding"
gerrowadat while completelt plastered. Mistakes are probable mine, but might, conceeivably, be his. You have no idea how difficult it is to type on a Finnnish keyboard while drunk. I'm totally gonna wear the backspace key out. 1. What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before?
Bought a house. That counts, right?
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I didn't make any. I have some for this year,. yes.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Brid (I'd put the accent on the i, but thus keyboard isnät cooperating.)
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Not this year, thank god.
5. What countries did you visit?
Finland, er.... was in I in UK? Donä't think so. Cork!
6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
Financial Liquidity, I reckon.
7. What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
May 1st. Day we signed the particular set of papers that said we own a house now.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Buying a house, I reckon. Chnaging jobs, maybe. Changing whole damn career, maybe? I is evil marketer now, as opposed to evil webmaster for gambling company?
9. What was your biggest failure?
What is is this strange word you speak of?
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Several colds and flus.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
A house. Stuff from IKEA. A new laptop, thanks to
inannajones, who is the bomb. As is the laptop. Man, I'm drunk.12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
inannajones, as ususal. Also olethros, who deals with all our eccentrcities with equanmity. I can type that, but damned if I can say it.13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Hrmm. The manager in my old job, maybe, although he was acting in a sound business sense. George Bush, on a global scale. The global economy, that's been pretty fucked up.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Mortgage. Loans. Ugh.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
I don't do three magnitives. But I was pretty stoked about the new job.
16. What song will always remind you of 2008?
Something epic metallish. Donät ask me to remember names.
17. Compared to this time last year, you are:
i. happier or sadder? Happier.
ii. thinner or fatter? Fatter, I think.
iii. richer or poorer? Um. No idea, actually. Given that I now am paying off a loan on property, properly technically richer.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Slept, really. Maybe written?
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Work. Not that I have any objection to work, mind, but it gets in the way of fun.
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
Gods, man, tenses. I spent Christmas in Finland. See previous post.
21. What was the most embarrassing thing that happened to you in 2008?
I'm not sure I do embarrassing, to be honest.
22. Did you fall in love in 2008?
Over and over again.
23. How many one-night stands?
I don't remember any. I'm sure someone will point it out if I missed one.
24. What was your favorite TV program?
Heroes.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
I don't think so.
26. What was the best book you read?
Oh gods. That's a question to answwer when sober. I thinkn Spirit of the Century is pretty rockin'.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Epic Metal.
28. What did you want and get?
Haus!
29. What did you want and not get?
A lottery win. Not buying tickets might have something to do with it.
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
The Batman one.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I was, appropriately and numerically, 31. I have no memory of what I did.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Immeasurably? Isnät that technically impossible to answer_? I dunno, more fudge?
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
More business?
34. What kept you sane?
inannajones.35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Why would I fancy a celebrity?
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Sadöly, the American election.
37. Who did you miss?
cartographer, I reckon.38. Who was the best new person you met?
New work people.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
Stress is not a natural state.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
"Give me my broadsword/ and clear understanding"
I'll try to make this coherent, but we're just in from tobogganing (well, plastic bagging, if you want to get technical) down dedicated slopes near the local elementary school with inannajones' mother, and I'm a bit stunned by that and the shower.
So, Christmas in Finland is a routine I know by now. Like any such thing, it's never quite the same two years in a row - there are different members of the family around, the weather is different, and there are small changes in the local landscape as bits of forest are harvested and areas I've only known as open land begin to produce new forest. There are elements that are always the same, though. We will always decorate the tree on the morning of Christmas Eve, always go to the graveyards with candles at dusk, always go to the sauna when we come back, always eat a staggering huge meal, and distribute presents afterward.
This year,inannajones' uncle Jukka has finished building a gorgeous new house next door to her grandmother's place, where he and his new wife (Mira) and new child (a daughter, Inga) are living. There was snow this year, which hasn't been the case for a while, and temperatures below freezing, but still comfortable. inannajones' cousin Janni has got to the stage where her English is now confident (it was probably perfect last year, mind), so I can hold a conversation with her. She's not-quite-fifteen, and if she comes to visit in the summer as planned, I may have to get a shotgun to keep the boys at bay. She has a horse, who we went to visit at the stables on Christmas Day, where he galloped in circles and snorted and posed and was generally a fine example of equinity.
The Big Black Cat, Kalle, had been missing all summer and well into the autumn, and was presumed to have met a bear he couldn't handle (an unlikely prospect, I felt). He turned up about a month ago, demanding food and warmth for the winter. He is, if anything, denser, more muscular and more panther-like than ever, and I reckon he was actually off working with the Justice League for the summer. His stay-at-home counterpart, Killi, menaced my legs during the nights, and slept on the bed during the day. Killi always looks like a peaceful cat, but after a savage attack on my feet at five in the morning about four summers ago, I treat her and her dagger-like claws with respect.
I have a working theory aboutinannajones' family. Her grandmother claims to be from Karelia, but I reckon she's actually from Faerie. This is evidenced in the way the family can regress in age whenever they want. Her grandmother herself is in her early eighties, and still chops logs when necessary. As far as I can see, she has shown no signs of aging further in the nearly ten years I've known her. Her uncle had grey hair and looked old two years ago; he's now back to blondish hair (right down to the roots, before anyone points out the miracles of hair dye) with some grey streaks and a sprightly attitude. And her mother, in her fifties, was the one leading the charge on the playground facilities when we were out walking last night, and is the undisputed champion plastic-bag-tobogganeer. I reckon she's got younger while I've known her as well. Not to mention the party games she comes up with. Like I say, fey blood.
I've had a slight cold, which has slowed me down a bit, but it seems to be pretty much gone now. I've clearedinannajones' mother's front yard of snow twice, walked about six miles in total, examined bird and mouse and hare tracks in the snow, taken photographs of falling snow against trees at night, and seen the way in which birch branches look red in the distance.
Great-aunt Hellä brought over some photographs, and two more boxes were produced as well, some very old indeed. I was fascinated by some old school pictures, from which you can construct an easy chronology, and see that clothes and hairstyles didn't change at all in the 50s, and then had begun to change rapidly in the 70s.
I'm still processing some bits and pieces, aided by the very deep sleep that I usually enjoy here, and no doubt they'll make appearances at later dates.
inannajones' mother, and I'm a bit stunned by that and the shower.So, Christmas in Finland is a routine I know by now. Like any such thing, it's never quite the same two years in a row - there are different members of the family around, the weather is different, and there are small changes in the local landscape as bits of forest are harvested and areas I've only known as open land begin to produce new forest. There are elements that are always the same, though. We will always decorate the tree on the morning of Christmas Eve, always go to the graveyards with candles at dusk, always go to the sauna when we come back, always eat a staggering huge meal, and distribute presents afterward.
This year,
inannajones' uncle Jukka has finished building a gorgeous new house next door to her grandmother's place, where he and his new wife (Mira) and new child (a daughter, Inga) are living. There was snow this year, which hasn't been the case for a while, and temperatures below freezing, but still comfortable. inannajones' cousin Janni has got to the stage where her English is now confident (it was probably perfect last year, mind), so I can hold a conversation with her. She's not-quite-fifteen, and if she comes to visit in the summer as planned, I may have to get a shotgun to keep the boys at bay. She has a horse, who we went to visit at the stables on Christmas Day, where he galloped in circles and snorted and posed and was generally a fine example of equinity.The Big Black Cat, Kalle, had been missing all summer and well into the autumn, and was presumed to have met a bear he couldn't handle (an unlikely prospect, I felt). He turned up about a month ago, demanding food and warmth for the winter. He is, if anything, denser, more muscular and more panther-like than ever, and I reckon he was actually off working with the Justice League for the summer. His stay-at-home counterpart, Killi, menaced my legs during the nights, and slept on the bed during the day. Killi always looks like a peaceful cat, but after a savage attack on my feet at five in the morning about four summers ago, I treat her and her dagger-like claws with respect.
I have a working theory about
inannajones' family. Her grandmother claims to be from Karelia, but I reckon she's actually from Faerie. This is evidenced in the way the family can regress in age whenever they want. Her grandmother herself is in her early eighties, and still chops logs when necessary. As far as I can see, she has shown no signs of aging further in the nearly ten years I've known her. Her uncle had grey hair and looked old two years ago; he's now back to blondish hair (right down to the roots, before anyone points out the miracles of hair dye) with some grey streaks and a sprightly attitude. And her mother, in her fifties, was the one leading the charge on the playground facilities when we were out walking last night, and is the undisputed champion plastic-bag-tobogganeer. I reckon she's got younger while I've known her as well. Not to mention the party games she comes up with. Like I say, fey blood.I've had a slight cold, which has slowed me down a bit, but it seems to be pretty much gone now. I've cleared
inannajones' mother's front yard of snow twice, walked about six miles in total, examined bird and mouse and hare tracks in the snow, taken photographs of falling snow against trees at night, and seen the way in which birch branches look red in the distance.Great-aunt Hellä brought over some photographs, and two more boxes were produced as well, some very old indeed. I was fascinated by some old school pictures, from which you can construct an easy chronology, and see that clothes and hairstyles didn't change at all in the 50s, and then had begun to change rapidly in the 70s.
I'm still processing some bits and pieces, aided by the very deep sleep that I usually enjoy here, and no doubt they'll make appearances at later dates.
On the night before Christmas, the Norse Gods gave to me:
Twelve Campaign Seeds,
Eleven Fiction Settings,
Ten Plot Outlines,
Nine Character Concepts,
Eight Fate Aspects,
Seven More Fate Aspects,
Six Plot Twists,
Five Evil Plans,
Four Website Notions,
Three Unfinished Sonnets,
Two Impractical Projects,
And a short play set IN SPAAACE.
(I had insomnia on the night of the 23rd)
Twelve Campaign Seeds,
Eleven Fiction Settings,
Ten Plot Outlines,
Nine Character Concepts,
Eight Fate Aspects,
Seven More Fate Aspects,
Six Plot Twists,
Five Evil Plans,
Four Website Notions,
Three Unfinished Sonnets,
Two Impractical Projects,
And a short play set IN SPAAACE.
(I had insomnia on the night of the 23rd)
We are in Finland. It's hovering above freezing outside, and it's been snowing for about an hour. The snow looks like it will continue through tonight and much of the next couple of days, and temperatures are forecast to fall well below freezing on Christmas Eve, and down to minus double digits on Christmas Day. This is how things should be.
There is no central authority for the English language. Therefore, I'm claiming it. I am now IT as far as English is concerned. You have queries on English, come to me, and I'll ignore most of them. This is mostly because I'm taking on this authority with two things in mind, and one footnote.
First and foremost, the word 'fail', and all its variants, are now, hereby and forever, excised from English. They no longer exist.
Second, the pseudo-word 'meh' is likewise sentenced to destruction. It is returned to being a nonsense syllable, carrying no meaning. It did not have far to go.
Footnote: 'Bleah' is on a last warning.
Carry on, then.
First and foremost, the word 'fail', and all its variants, are now, hereby and forever, excised from English. They no longer exist.
Second, the pseudo-word 'meh' is likewise sentenced to destruction. It is returned to being a nonsense syllable, carrying no meaning. It did not have far to go.
Footnote: 'Bleah' is on a last warning.
Carry on, then.
Tags:
The last few hours have been chaotic. Some people moved out to find and intercept the "big boy", and others seemed to interpret the orders of the King in different ways. The end result has been that the other boy has been found and brought back to the ship - and he doesn't seem all that much bigger - and while there has certainly been discomfort for him, he has also provided a lot of information.
A few things have become clear. First and foremost, this is not your world. Or perhaps it is, but if so, you've jumped forward in time by a huge amount, so that all the civilisations, all the kingdoms and empires, are forgotten, and most of you look like monsters to the people of this time. Even a great many of the gods have changed. The only thing that seems unchanged is the language of the dragons, which many of you use for spellcasting. The other boy understands a few words of this, and confirms it's still the province of dragons and spellcasters. You're familiar with timejump magic; you've used it before on operations, but this is beyond anything you've experienced.
Your ship, now that some of the logistics people have had time to look at it, has crash-landed in an uncultivated valley. It's at a slight angle, but the decks are nearly level, and it's possible to use it as a base until it can be repaired - although what it'll take to repair it will take some work in itself. To the locals, the stone ship probably looks like a streamlined castle.
The King, though, is going to be a problem. He is currently engaged in making members of the group march in lines and circles, and let him try to lift and use their weapons. Nobody is at all clear how he came to be recognised by the spells as King, and things are not helped by the older boy's confusion about things as basic as the time of year; he thinks it should be wintertime, when it's plainly around Midsummer. The King now seems to have forgotten completely about the other boy.
There seems to be a consensus that some investigation of the area and situation is necessary.
[Poll #1302615]
If any of you have specific questions for the King or the other boy, leave them in comments below.
A few things have become clear. First and foremost, this is not your world. Or perhaps it is, but if so, you've jumped forward in time by a huge amount, so that all the civilisations, all the kingdoms and empires, are forgotten, and most of you look like monsters to the people of this time. Even a great many of the gods have changed. The only thing that seems unchanged is the language of the dragons, which many of you use for spellcasting. The other boy understands a few words of this, and confirms it's still the province of dragons and spellcasters. You're familiar with timejump magic; you've used it before on operations, but this is beyond anything you've experienced.
Your ship, now that some of the logistics people have had time to look at it, has crash-landed in an uncultivated valley. It's at a slight angle, but the decks are nearly level, and it's possible to use it as a base until it can be repaired - although what it'll take to repair it will take some work in itself. To the locals, the stone ship probably looks like a streamlined castle.
The King, though, is going to be a problem. He is currently engaged in making members of the group march in lines and circles, and let him try to lift and use their weapons. Nobody is at all clear how he came to be recognised by the spells as King, and things are not helped by the older boy's confusion about things as basic as the time of year; he thinks it should be wintertime, when it's plainly around Midsummer. The King now seems to have forgotten completely about the other boy.
There seems to be a consensus that some investigation of the area and situation is necessary.
[Poll #1302615]
If any of you have specific questions for the King or the other boy, leave them in comments below.
Tags:
I've just posted a long-ish article to ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-syndicated.gif)
politicaledu about Recession Era Supplies. This is something I'd appreciate more thinking on, so even if you don't normally read my political/economic stuff (such as it is), please scoot on over, read, and leave comments if you think of something.
politicaledu about Recession Era Supplies. This is something I'd appreciate more thinking on, so even if you don't normally read my political/economic stuff (such as it is), please scoot on over, read, and leave comments if you think of something.inannajones and I, assisted by giftederic, and bluedevi and Dan-who-has-no-LJ on Saturday, ran a bring-and-buy stall at Gaelcon this year.The deal was that we'd sell the stuff we got from people, keep 20% for the Gaelcon/IGA charity fund, and give them back the rest. Some people opted to give more to charity than 20% - as much as 100% in some cases. We had some stuff going in, culled from my collection,
giftederic's, mr_wombat's, puritybrown's, and dualpurpose's. We got a few extra bits on the day, and then this one guy arrived in with SEVEN SUITCASES of books, plus three large shopping bags more. So all in all, we took in more than €3500 over the three days, of which something over €1700 has gone (or in some special deal cases, will go) to the charity fund. There was some slight worry that the other traders (who couldn't possibly match our prices) would meet us outside with pitchforks and torches, but the stock overlap was very small, and any I spoke to seemed fine - and indeed, some of them bought stuff. It remains to be seen if they growl at the convention organisers, but I hope they don't do so - aside from not wanting to annoy people, I'd like to run the stand again next year.I didn't get to see a lot of the rest of the convention, but it seemed good for most folk. I did wander by some of the "real" traders, and we went to the charity auction. I had diverted a limited edition Game of Thrones RPG from the B&B supply to the auction, because it was far too nice to just sell at the table, and then spent €400 getting it back for myself. It's a very nice book indeed, and the money is all going to the charity fund. The auction itself came in at over €20,000 for the fund.
I bought some of the D&D Miniatures game minis from other stands, and from the stuff coming in to ours, I bought the Game of Thrones board game, ARIA, Nobilis (and a supplement for it), Sorcerer, and some other odds and ends.
inannajones got real (as in not pre-painted) miniatures, and a castle from the auction for them to live in. One of the nice things about running the stand is that I effectively got first refusal on all the goodies coming in, and I think I was remarkably restrained. I really, really enjoyed running the stand, and I'll be looking forward to doing it again next year, with some optimised organisation. And special thanks are due to
inannajones, who put up with this as she does with all my other schemes, and did a LOT of driving and hauling over and above the stand-standing, and to giftederic, who gave lots of good advice, and helped immensely, especially on the boardgames end.When you see this, quote from Shakespeare in your journal.
Juliet: You kiss by the book.
- Romeo & Juliet, Act I, Scene V.
For all my usual command of Shakespearean dialogue - and I've never had any trouble with the rhythm, the words, or the patterning - I can never quite decide what Juliet means here. It's plain elsewhere that she's impressed with Romeo, but to my ear, this has always sounded a bit insulting. It follows a whole chain of banter about pilgrims' lips and hands, so could be a biblical reference, I suppose.
Any enlightenment, before you take off your heads to recite Shakespearean quotations?
Juliet: You kiss by the book.
- Romeo & Juliet, Act I, Scene V.
For all my usual command of Shakespearean dialogue - and I've never had any trouble with the rhythm, the words, or the patterning - I can never quite decide what Juliet means here. It's plain elsewhere that she's impressed with Romeo, but to my ear, this has always sounded a bit insulting. It follows a whole chain of banter about pilgrims' lips and hands, so could be a biblical reference, I suppose.
Any enlightenment, before you take off your heads to recite Shakespearean quotations?
So, one of my colleagues is starting out on a large new project here. One thing he has to do is collate information about the client's website, which contains something between 200 and 1600 pages. Is there any piece of software out that that will spider through a site, and at the end, provide a listing - ideally, a CSV or something - containing all the page URLs and titles?
He's not overly technical, so nothing TOO involved, if it can be helped.
He's not overly technical, so nothing TOO involved, if it can be helped.
A scanned photograh of me, in or around 1997, on a family-and-friends trip to the Saltee Islands. I have no memory of the kid's name; she was the daughter of a guy who owned a holiday cottage near our house. She's probably in college by now. Photograph thanks to brucius.
(Click for larger, even grainier, but slightly less distorted version; I cannot be arsed with the maths for a non-distorted size for here.)
All resemblances to The High are coincidental; I am not actually a Majestic-class superhuman.
brucius.
(Click for larger, even grainier, but slightly less distorted version; I cannot be arsed with the maths for a non-distorted size for here.)
All resemblances to The High are coincidental; I am not actually a Majestic-class superhuman.
Nassim Nicholas Taleb's The Fourth Quadrant: A Map of the Limits of Statistics is a fascinating read, particularly if you're into economics. I commend it particularly to giftederic, sares2000, olethros and nhw.
I reckon he's completely right, for what it's worth.
giftederic, sares2000, olethros and nhw.I reckon he's completely right, for what it's worth.
There's a babble of noise - some people assuring the creature that as it's their king, they can't possibly hurt it, some casting defensive spells, and some standing still. The creature begins to look less apprehensive.
"Will you do what I say?", it asks. There's reassurance from several members of the group that indeed, they will, and an expression of something like glee crosses its face. It turns, spinning on its heel, and points, away across the landscape. "There's a big boy out there, and he hurt me. Make him hurt!"
[Poll #1258446]
"Will you do what I say?", it asks. There's reassurance from several members of the group that indeed, they will, and an expression of something like glee crosses its face. It turns, spinning on its heel, and points, away across the landscape. "There's a big boy out there, and he hurt me. Make him hurt!"
[Poll #1258446]
Tags:
inannajones remarked earlier that she can't keep up with the amount of writing I do. This makes me think that there are probably plenty of other people who can't, either. So to make it easy for y'all, here's a list of my main feeds and outputs. This, of course, does not include my game writing, most of which is not for public viewing. I think my current average daily output, not including the day job, or emails, but including that game writing, comes to something around 4000 words.dukestreet is the feed for The Wizard of Duke Street, which is about science fiction, fantasy, and gaming.houseinireland is the feed for House in Ireland, which is about home improvement, gardening, and vegetables. It includes photographs whenever I can.rockinggrass is the feed for inannajones' site, Rocking Grass. I write articles there, which aren't as good as hers.isleswinter is the feed for How to Survive Winter, a guide to winter in the British Isles.politicaledu is the feed for my sporadically updated political blog, A Political Education. Mostly it consists of me saying sensible things and other people pointing out that the world doesn't work that way.fireflymmo is the feed for fireflymmo.com, a news site for the (currently "delayed") Firefly MMORPG by Universal.woodworkie is the feed for Woodwork Ireland, which would be updated much more frequently if I was more involved in woodwork.And there are more in development, including one about wild food in Ireland, and possibly one about Warhammer Online tradeskills. Maybe.
I love my job.
On tomorrow's task list is "Research World Heritage Site promotion". Essentially, we're looking into how various World Heritage Sites (and less high-profile ones, too) are promoted online, with a particular eye to constructing websites (or other things - Second Life locations, podcasts, streaming video, whatever) that allow visitors a feeling that they've "been there".
So, I know a bunch of you have visited various places, and presumably looked at them on the web as well - point me at resources!
On tomorrow's task list is "Research World Heritage Site promotion". Essentially, we're looking into how various World Heritage Sites (and less high-profile ones, too) are promoted online, with a particular eye to constructing websites (or other things - Second Life locations, podcasts, streaming video, whatever) that allow visitors a feeling that they've "been there".
So, I know a bunch of you have visited various places, and presumably looked at them on the web as well - point me at resources!
This has just been posted to the igaming list:
So if anyone reading this has gamerish stuff they'd like to get rid of, for cash and charity - get it to me at Gaelcon, or even better, beforehand.
"In addition to the Charity Auction, this year, courtesy of Drew Shiel, Gaelcon will be running a Bring and Buy stall!
Get rid of your old gaming stuff, make money (and give some to charity)! Bring in old games, parts of games, or anything else game-related you think might sell, to Drew, at the bring-and-buy stand. He'll set a price, of which you'll get 80% - the other 20% going into the charity auction fund. Anything not sold must be collected by Monday at 17:30, or it all gets rolled up into one big bag for next year's auction.
Drew can be contacted at gothwalk@gmail.com for further information"
So if anyone reading this has gamerish stuff they'd like to get rid of, for cash and charity - get it to me at Gaelcon, or even better, beforehand.
An Post (client of my employers, and the Irish post office, for those not familiar) are running an art-by-postcard thing, and it's kinda cool, but it's not getting NEARLY enough attention. Go here:
http://www.anpostcbothsides.ie/index.php?item_id=11
... and do some voting, or even send in art of your own.
And feel free to repost this!
http://www.anpostcbothsides.ie/index.php?item_id=11
... and do some voting, or even send in art of your own.
And feel free to repost this!
If you live in Ireland, or know a bit about the place, what do you think of as "Irish Food"?
If you had to provide a recipe for "something Irish", what would it be?
If you had to provide a recipe for "something Irish", what would it be?
This is the project formerly known as So, It Begins. It now has a proper name, for reasons you'll see below. My apologies for the long gap; new jobs will do that.
The creature stares, mouth still open, for a few seconds. Defensive spells go up, weapons and offensive spells are readied, and a few people step forward with the intention to speak. Then the creature says, in a language that is unfamiliar, but words that are all too clear, and it says "Don't hurt me!"
There's a moment of clear, perfect silence. And then you're filled with a steady, pulsing rage, that anyone, anywhere, would considering hurting your King and Master. For it's perfectly clear that this creature, unfamiliar, small, and strange as it is, is your King, and you are compelled to obey it. The anger is familiar, though. You've had it all the years you've worked for the King, and while it burns, it's good to have it back.
[Poll #1249637]
The creature stares, mouth still open, for a few seconds. Defensive spells go up, weapons and offensive spells are readied, and a few people step forward with the intention to speak. Then the creature says, in a language that is unfamiliar, but words that are all too clear, and it says "Don't hurt me!"
There's a moment of clear, perfect silence. And then you're filled with a steady, pulsing rage, that anyone, anywhere, would considering hurting your King and Master. For it's perfectly clear that this creature, unfamiliar, small, and strange as it is, is your King, and you are compelled to obey it. The anger is familiar, though. You've had it all the years you've worked for the King, and while it burns, it's good to have it back.
[Poll #1249637]
Tags:
For those of you who said you'd come to inannajones' birthday dinner, El Bahia is booked for dinner for 15 for the 4th of September at 19:00. There may be drinks somewhere beforehand depending on timing; watch this space for details.
inannajones' birthday dinner, El Bahia is booked for dinner for 15 for the 4th of September at 19:00. There may be drinks somewhere beforehand depending on timing; watch this space for details.Originally published at Now Is A Long Time Too. You can comment here or there.
Seth Godin is a bloke I have a lot of time for; he gets a lot of things very right. However, I’ve rarely seen anything I agree with more than this post about patience and persistence. Read it, it’s really good.
Tags:
So, if you could request from a web development company any website at all, to do anything (within the bounds of current technology, mind) what would you ask for?
These are some questions tied into my current research for game world development. If anyone can answer them, fantastic. If not, some speculation is welcome. It doesn't have to be logical, or even meaningful.
1) What governed the conduct of warfare in the Enlightment era (18th century)? There were plenty of them, and there seem to have been accepted ways to fight them, but obviously they weren't governed by, say, the Geneva Convention, and chivalry, if it ever existed in that context, was if not dead then well forgotten.
2) What is the major (historical, pre-trains) barrier to overland trade from Europe to China? Is it down to the terrain between here and there, the people along the way, or just the fact that it's a bloody long way?
3) Are there credible, or even semi-credible alternatives to the Westphalian nation-state system in the modern era?
I'm going to do the dishes, and I expect some entertaining answers by the time I get back. Sunny weather is no excuse.
EDIT: Woah, answers! Thank you all. Individual replies to follow...
1) What governed the conduct of warfare in the Enlightment era (18th century)? There were plenty of them, and there seem to have been accepted ways to fight them, but obviously they weren't governed by, say, the Geneva Convention, and chivalry, if it ever existed in that context, was if not dead then well forgotten.
2) What is the major (historical, pre-trains) barrier to overland trade from Europe to China? Is it down to the terrain between here and there, the people along the way, or just the fact that it's a bloody long way?
3) Are there credible, or even semi-credible alternatives to the Westphalian nation-state system in the modern era?
I'm going to do the dishes, and I expect some entertaining answers by the time I get back. Sunny weather is no excuse.
EDIT: Woah, answers! Thank you all. Individual replies to follow...
There's a sudden blaze of daylight, and one wall, some distance away, swings down to form a ramp. Sunlight pours in, illuminating the stone chambers. It's not clear if someone opened it, or it happened automatically.
However, standing at the end of the ramp, where it reaches the ground, is a peculiar creature. It's humanoid, dressed in plain, undyed linen clothes. It's too small to be an elf, and its features are too smooth to be really human. Its mouth is open in an expression that could be astonishment or naked aggression - you can't really tell.
[Poll #1225838]
(Feel free to email me if you'd like to do something secret)
However, standing at the end of the ramp, where it reaches the ground, is a peculiar creature. It's humanoid, dressed in plain, undyed linen clothes. It's too small to be an elf, and its features are too smooth to be really human. Its mouth is open in an expression that could be astonishment or naked aggression - you can't really tell.
[Poll #1225838]
(Feel free to email me if you'd like to do something secret)
Tags:
In the growing light, you can see other people - other creatures - around you. Each of them is fastened by strapping and buckles into niches in the stone walls of the passageways. You do recognise some of them as allies, but others are unknown to you. Some are moving, some look to still be unconscious. It's time, you feel, to do something, to serve your King in some way.
Do you:
[Poll #1219412]
Do you:
[Poll #1219412]
Tags:
The voice continues, "Alright, so I'm not the Commander, but I don't know where she is, or if she's still alive. We'll settle who's in charge here in a short while. In the meantime, can we have some light?"
Someone incants, and light creeps into existence, just a glimmer, but enough to show you your surroundings. The space you are in is made of stone, but shaped by tools. You're in one carved niche in a corridor or passageway, along with your tools and weapons, and around you, you can see the outlines of people in others. Some of them are of shapes that seem unfamiliar, until you realise that you don't know what is familiar, and look down at yourself.
[Poll #1212822]
Someone incants, and light creeps into existence, just a glimmer, but enough to show you your surroundings. The space you are in is made of stone, but shaped by tools. You're in one carved niche in a corridor or passageway, along with your tools and weapons, and around you, you can see the outlines of people in others. Some of them are of shapes that seem unfamiliar, until you realise that you don't know what is familiar, and look down at yourself.
[Poll #1212822]
Tags:
Any WoW players in the Dublin area interested in being interviewed / talking about MMOs / voicing their character for a short film?
http://www.tribune.ie/arts/article/2008/jun/22/another-shooting-spree-in-dublin/
Particularly looking for players with dwarf, elf, orc, troll characters, and players who are not from technical backgrounds.
Anyone who's interested, mail me at gothwalk@gmail.com, and I'll forward it on to the guy doing the film. I and Wormson are interviewing for it tomorrow evening.
http://www.tribune.ie/arts/article/2008/jun/22/another-shooting-spree-in-dublin/
Particularly looking for players with dwarf, elf, orc, troll characters, and players who are not from technical backgrounds.
Anyone who's interested, mail me at gothwalk@gmail.com, and I'll forward it on to the guy doing the film. I and Wormson are interviewing for it tomorrow evening.
There is darkness, pain, and a growing sensation that something has gone very, very wrong. You're just not sure what. You remember that you're a Legionnaire, that you serve the King - and you know what you can do. They must really have drummed that into you, though, because you can't remember a damn thing otherwise, not even your name.
There's movement around you - other people waking up too? - and then there's a man's voice that reaches down into your guts, and pulls you to attention. "For the King!" it roars, "Legionnaires! We've crashed, we have memory problems. Call out your section, and we can start sorting things out!"
[Poll #1202642]
There's movement around you - other people waking up too? - and then there's a man's voice that reaches down into your guts, and pulls you to attention. "For the King!" it roars, "Legionnaires! We've crashed, we have memory problems. Call out your section, and we can start sorting things out!"
[Poll #1202642]
Tags:
Sometime this month - the exact date escapes me, and defies my historical research capabilities - the 20th anniversary of my picking up a gaming book will happen. It was the summer of 1988, and during the Strawberry Fair in Enniscorthy, I acquired a copy of a book called Fighting Fantasy: The Riddling Reaver, which was an expansion of the Fighting Fantasy game, based very closely on the choose-your-own adventure style solo games. It's gone from there.
To celebrate the anniversary of this, I'm going to be doing some interesting stuff in my campaign world. I invite you - anyone who's reading this - to have some influence on it. I'll be presenting a number of options for you, and you can take up any you want. The first and simplest ones will be a series of LJ polls, with the option to comment. For this, I'll be shamelessly ripping offmytholder's methods in his Now We Are Here game.
At a step up from that, I'll talk you through describing a character in the world, and some of the decisions that character can make as the events unfold - sort of a play-by-email/comment-lite.
For people who're interested, I'll be offering a slightly more intensive play-by-email game, playing through a number of events.
Interaction between your character and the world will also be available by IM, should you have some ideas you want to follow up on.
For those latter two forms, if you had a character in Threshold of Ages or The Big Easy, please drop me a line letting me know roughly what your character would now be up to - or you can come up with a new one, I don't mind. If you played in Kingfisher's Way, and your character was one that might be around 4600 years later (and we haven't already discussed this), fire me a similar mail.
The idea of all of these is to let all of you have some input to my campaign world. There are no obligations for you; I'll extrapolate as I need to.
And finally, this will of course impact on some or all of my present and future tabletop games, and if things go the way I expect them to, there will probably be some one-off tabletop events.
The first LJ poll will appear either later today or tomorrow, and we'll go from there. If you've an idea for a character for any of this you want to talk about now, or if you have any questions, fire them into comments here.
To celebrate the anniversary of this, I'm going to be doing some interesting stuff in my campaign world. I invite you - anyone who's reading this - to have some influence on it. I'll be presenting a number of options for you, and you can take up any you want. The first and simplest ones will be a series of LJ polls, with the option to comment. For this, I'll be shamelessly ripping off
mytholder's methods in his Now We Are Here game.At a step up from that, I'll talk you through describing a character in the world, and some of the decisions that character can make as the events unfold - sort of a play-by-email/comment-lite.
For people who're interested, I'll be offering a slightly more intensive play-by-email game, playing through a number of events.
Interaction between your character and the world will also be available by IM, should you have some ideas you want to follow up on.
For those latter two forms, if you had a character in Threshold of Ages or The Big Easy, please drop me a line letting me know roughly what your character would now be up to - or you can come up with a new one, I don't mind. If you played in Kingfisher's Way, and your character was one that might be around 4600 years later (and we haven't already discussed this), fire me a similar mail.
The idea of all of these is to let all of you have some input to my campaign world. There are no obligations for you; I'll extrapolate as I need to.
And finally, this will of course impact on some or all of my present and future tabletop games, and if things go the way I expect them to, there will probably be some one-off tabletop events.
The first LJ poll will appear either later today or tomorrow, and we'll go from there. If you've an idea for a character for any of this you want to talk about now, or if you have any questions, fire them into comments here.
Tags:
Being a short series of observations about a recently concluded trip to Portugal.
Doing Nothing Is Sometimes Completely Necessary
I have developed a mental metric for how much I needed a given holiday. This is measured by the time after which I get bored of "doing nothing" (which is actually reading, but text intake for me is so easy that it's essentially nothing), and start to look for something to do (usually writing). On most holidays, this happens after two or three days. In this case, from the 1st right through to the 8th of June, I did not get bored. At all. I read a lot, but also spent a lot of time really doing nothing; staring into space.
The Iberian Landscape is Different
This is something that's really obvious when you say it directly, but it's something I forget. It's not just the different plants, it's the shape and colour of the land itself, the feeling of the air, and a good few other cues that I recognise, but can't describe. I spent a good bit of time watching this difference, and trying to find ways to pin it down, so that I can use it later. I wonder, too, if it's a climate thing; if California or Mexico might seem similar.
Oddity of Language
Portugese looks very similar to Spanish, in text. It sounds completely different, and depending on the speaker, makes me think instead of Russian, French, or something completely unfamiliar. It does not sound like Spanish, though.
Portugese Architecture is All About The Details
We looked at a number of houses around the hotel where we were staying, with an eye to picking up details we liked. And I discovered, they're almost nothing but details. The way they're built, on hillsides with the entrances at the top, and steps going down to doorways, and small courtyards, it's very hard to see all of the house at once, and as soon as you're far enough away to try to take in a lot of it, there are trees or cacti or bits of landscape or something in the way. No two chimneys are the same. No two roofs look quite the same. All the places we'd expect angles, there are curves. Even in blocks of houses clearly built as a unit, there are variations in the way window and door spaces are formed, in the way external stairs climb - and then there are the tiles - glazed ceramic tiles used as wall decorations, adorning the risers of stairs, for house names and numbers... mostly in white and blue, and invariably gorgeous.
That was a really good, and very much needed holiday.
Doing Nothing Is Sometimes Completely Necessary
I have developed a mental metric for how much I needed a given holiday. This is measured by the time after which I get bored of "doing nothing" (which is actually reading, but text intake for me is so easy that it's essentially nothing), and start to look for something to do (usually writing). On most holidays, this happens after two or three days. In this case, from the 1st right through to the 8th of June, I did not get bored. At all. I read a lot, but also spent a lot of time really doing nothing; staring into space.
The Iberian Landscape is Different
This is something that's really obvious when you say it directly, but it's something I forget. It's not just the different plants, it's the shape and colour of the land itself, the feeling of the air, and a good few other cues that I recognise, but can't describe. I spent a good bit of time watching this difference, and trying to find ways to pin it down, so that I can use it later. I wonder, too, if it's a climate thing; if California or Mexico might seem similar.
Oddity of Language
Portugese looks very similar to Spanish, in text. It sounds completely different, and depending on the speaker, makes me think instead of Russian, French, or something completely unfamiliar. It does not sound like Spanish, though.
Portugese Architecture is All About The Details
We looked at a number of houses around the hotel where we were staying, with an eye to picking up details we liked. And I discovered, they're almost nothing but details. The way they're built, on hillsides with the entrances at the top, and steps going down to doorways, and small courtyards, it's very hard to see all of the house at once, and as soon as you're far enough away to try to take in a lot of it, there are trees or cacti or bits of landscape or something in the way. No two chimneys are the same. No two roofs look quite the same. All the places we'd expect angles, there are curves. Even in blocks of houses clearly built as a unit, there are variations in the way window and door spaces are formed, in the way external stairs climb - and then there are the tiles - glazed ceramic tiles used as wall decorations, adorning the risers of stairs, for house names and numbers... mostly in white and blue, and invariably gorgeous.
That was a really good, and very much needed holiday.
Originally published at Now Is A Long Time Too. You can comment here or there.
Daniel Dociu is Chief Art Director for ArenaNet, who make the Guild Wars game. There’s an article on BLDGBLOG featuring his art. You need to see it. Go look.
I don’t think I’ve my mind as thoroughly lit up by artwork in years.
Tags:
We spent a good chunk of the weekend in Maynooth, getting to know the place, moving over a few boxes of stuff, and rather usefully, unpacking them at the other end so that they can go back and get refilled. We also bought a lawnmower - the self-propelled kind for reasons of environment, exercise, and not having to buy fuel for it - and some gardening tools. And we got a microwave, which will make the process of eating while we move more stuff a lot easier.
I dug a sort of test vegetable bed, which I think totals about four square feet, but it'll be enough to get some planting done - more can follow. I'm starting to give some more consideration to raised beds, since there are trees in the hedge whose roots come a long way out, and one tree in the middle of the back garden. I had to use an axe for some particularly tough roots in my test bed. It looks like good soil, though I'm no expert, neither sand or clay, and a good few earthworms and such.
We also mowed some lawn. It should be easier next time; there were some patches of grass long enough to choke up the blades. The back lawn is full of daisies, and I can't bring myself to be bothered about that. I'm leaving a stretch at the back long, and will see about getting some more wild flowers into it at some stage, although some of it will be sacrificed to more vegetable beds.
It's very noticable that it's Not In A City - you can hear birds all the time, even inside with the windows closed, and there's a definite difference in air quality. The cats are going to love it when we move them, once they finish sulking.
Today, I've managed to contact Eircom and the ESB, and am trying to get onto Bord Gáis to get everything changed over and hooked up. Their phone system seems to be lightly b0rked, and the options which should let me talk to them about it keep cutting me off, or on one occasion, announcing in Very British Tones that the "specified number has redirections active", before cutting me off.
We don't really know yet when we'll be Moving Properly - at the moment that's dependent on things like broadband, transport, time, whim and chance.
I dug a sort of test vegetable bed, which I think totals about four square feet, but it'll be enough to get some planting done - more can follow. I'm starting to give some more consideration to raised beds, since there are trees in the hedge whose roots come a long way out, and one tree in the middle of the back garden. I had to use an axe for some particularly tough roots in my test bed. It looks like good soil, though I'm no expert, neither sand or clay, and a good few earthworms and such.
We also mowed some lawn. It should be easier next time; there were some patches of grass long enough to choke up the blades. The back lawn is full of daisies, and I can't bring myself to be bothered about that. I'm leaving a stretch at the back long, and will see about getting some more wild flowers into it at some stage, although some of it will be sacrificed to more vegetable beds.
It's very noticable that it's Not In A City - you can hear birds all the time, even inside with the windows closed, and there's a definite difference in air quality. The cats are going to love it when we move them, once they finish sulking.
Today, I've managed to contact Eircom and the ESB, and am trying to get onto Bord Gáis to get everything changed over and hooked up. Their phone system seems to be lightly b0rked, and the options which should let me talk to them about it keep cutting me off, or on one occasion, announcing in Very British Tones that the "specified number has redirections active", before cutting me off.
We don't really know yet when we'll be Moving Properly - at the moment that's dependent on things like broadband, transport, time, whim and chance.
So, we've bought a house in Maynooth. We got the key yesterday evening. I've just sent the we're-moving-out mail to the landlord of the current place.
This is still in the realm of the not-quite-believable, so we won't be posting the address or any pictures until we've had a chance to go there and establish that it is, in fact, ours. That'll be happening over the weekend.
This is still in the realm of the not-quite-believable, so we won't be posting the address or any pictures until we've had a chance to go there and establish that it is, in fact, ours. That'll be happening over the weekend.
Our head designer is heading off to South-east Asia for 6 weeks. We need a designer to pick up the slack, so for about 2 months. Are you, or do you know anyone, who could do this? It'd be from pretty much ASAP.
.
