Poem - "Birth"

I found a poem I had written; scrawled on a torn piece of paper stuffed into one of my writing notebooks in the back.  I vaguely recall writing it, so I wish I could speak more on my mindset at the time of its creation.

"Birth"

Brave soul, Brave enough for this world

Of slanderous walls and roadways of greed.

You come, despite them, into this earth,

Clothed in a shell cracked in weakness.

You live among them,

You become them

As we all do, it seems.

The world we leave is worse than before.

Yet we return, more and more of us.

Crowding the wretched planet of sin;

The weight slowly crushing the hope from its center, their center,

Our center.

Our bravery is strong.  We will always come back.

We never are defeated.

Dungeons & Dragons Night: "The Thunderhaven Joust" (Part 1)

This time, instead of simply describing the adventure as it happened on the game table, I’ve decided to dramaticise it a bit, and write it more as a narrative.  I hope you all enjoy it.  This story is an interpretation of how the events of the game played out from the character’s perspectives.

            The Lygers, having proven victorious against the Fire Elemental Lord, returned to the fortress city of Thunderhaven.  Most of the shops were closed now, and the people of the city had migrated to the center court, where a jousting field had been erected.  The stands were full of cheering townspeople, awaiting the exciting joust that would determine their future ruler, for the winner of the jousting tournament would receive a great prize: the hand in marriage of Princess Camille, middle daughter of King Rast, ruler of Thunderhaven.

The party quickly made preparations for the upcoming event. Both Reinhardt Van Nystrom, and Kaluryn Parfore had previously registered for the tournament using forged documents.  To be eligible to participate in the festivities, the champions needed to prove they were of noble blood, and also register a horse, and squire.  Gjertrude volunteered to play at squire for Kaluryn, and Faye would be the squire for Reinhardt.

            After a brief ceremony where the combatants shared a glass of wine in front of the king, and with each other, the champions moved to their places to begin the first round of battles. Champion Gillroy sat atop his white steed, his silver armor shining brightly in the hot sun of the day.  Reinhardt sat atop his own horse, quivering a little with the anxiety of the moment.  Gillroy’s stance was disciplined and perfect.  His lance held out straight and unwavering.  This is going to be a hard match to win, thought Reinhardt, reaching up a moment to see Princess Camille’s kerchief nestled into the wrist joint on his armor, neatly tucked away behind his shield.  The princess had chosen Reinhardt to accept her favor before the match, and something about that act empowered him slightly.  He wanted to do his best to impress her.  Still, he knew this would not be an easy challenge.

    The horn rang out, and both combatants charged forward, their horses galloping swiftly.  Reinhardt did his best to hold both his lance and shield steady, which was difficult enough without the horse moving as well.  There was a loud thunk, and Reinhardt felt Gillroy’s lance strike his shield, the impact of which nearly ripped the protective item out of his hand, and caused him to almost lose his balance on his horse.  He steadied himself somehow, and made the round to face his opponent again.  There was another trumpet blast, and the two combatants charged forward once more.  This time, Reinhardt felt the lance strike his armor straight on.  A few chaotic moments later, Reinhardt found himself lying on his back in the dirt.  He had been unhorsed and lost the first phase of the joust.  If he had any chance of winning, he would need to beat Gillroy in martial combat.  Faye, acting as his squire, approached with his sword, and helped him out of the dust before taking his lance and horse back to the sidelines with her.

          Reinhardt readied himself, and the trumpet blast out for the third time.  Knowing he had the disadvantage, Reinhardt attempted to use the wooden pillars as cover to help protect his back from his foe.  Gillroy, however, simply walked forward, poised and ready to strike.  Reinhardt thought he saw an opportunity to land a blow, but as he swung, he overextended, exposing himself to attack.  Gillroy, having trained in combat his whole life quickly took the advantage, and landed multiple heavy blows to Reinhardt, ending the fight in a matter of moments.  Reinhardt was simply outmatched, and no amount of luck, favor from the princess, or skill was going to add up to a winning combination against this dangerous foe.  With Gillroy’s final blow, Reinhardt dropped his sword and yielded, knowing he had been defeated.  Now that Reinhardt had failed, the Lyger’s chances in the tournament rested on Kaluryn’s shoulders.

          The next match was between the stout and domineering Ogden Stonedealer and Kaluryn Parfore.  Kaluryn mounted his horse and rode out to face his enemy.  Ogden was a large man, wide around the belly, with a big busy beard sticking out the bottom of his helmet.  He also appeared to be very powerful.  Kaluryn knew this would be a tough foe to beat.  Using one of the two ‘spell-secret’ marbles given to him by Taymos’ friend Loquo, he quietly cast a haste spell on himself.  Instantly, he felt quicker and more alert.  This would help him react faster in combat, and possibly give him an edge.

          The joust match played out much like Reinhardt’s had, except for that Kaluryn had been fortunate enough to land a very lucky blow with his lance that somehow had snuck between Stonedealer’s lance and shield.  The burly man was knocked to the ground.  Success!  Kaluryn had managed to get lucky.  If he could somehow win the hand to hand combat phase, he’d be able to move on to the next round and possibly win back some of the money that the party pooled together for an entrance fee / dowry.  Kaluryn hopped off his steed and led the horse over to Gjertrude who was approaching with Kaluryn’s sword.  He handed the reins off to the druidess, and took his place on the martial combat field.  The trumpet sounded, and with a speed he wouldn’t have expected of it, Ogden Stonedealer charged forward, his flail swinging wildly.  Kaluryn ducked behind one of the wooden pillars.  If the burly adversary landed a direct blow, Kaluryn knew he would be done for.  Stonedealer approached rapidly, and took a large heavy swing for Kaluryn’s head.  The nimble wizard managed to duck just in the nick of time, and Stonedealer’s flail impacted with the wooden pillar, sending wooden splinters raining over him.  Fortunately, the attack left the burly man’s flail stuck in the wood, and Kaluryn took the opportunity to go on the offensive.  With a reflexive speed, Kaluryn slashed and stabbed at the brutal giant, skewering him several times, his blade sliding in between the plates of heavy armor that the bearded man wore.  In a matter of lucky moments, Kaluryn had brought the big foe to his knees, and forced him to yield.  Kaluryn would go on to the next round of the joust!

            The final match was almost no contest whatsoever.  Ryn Redclaw, the mysterious warrior in black and red armor had effortlessly dispatched of his opponent, Gleiss J’ho.  The last match went quickly too.  Hogan Hiro faced off against McHali Na’avi, losing in a close finish to the knight.

            With the first day’s matches completed, the King announced that a royal ball celebrating the jousting festival would be held that evening, and the party left to their rooms to prepare for the festivities.

          The ballroom was full of all the noble lords and ladies of Thunderhaven, as well as many of the more affluent citizens.  The King and Queen had a fair sized crowd around them, and musicians were playing music on a small stage that had been erected on one side of the room. Kaluryn, Reinhardt, Grimnash, and Faye all entered, impressed with the classy festivities, atmosphere, and merriment of the ball.

          Gjertrude and Constance followed behind too, but when she saw the large crowds, Constance decided to head back to the Inn to get some fresh night air.  Gjertrude followed after her, as she wanted to go back to the Inn as well, to check on some of her animals.

          Grimnash immediately moved for the refreshment table at the ball, burying himself behind a stein of ale and a large plate of food.  He shoveled the hors-d’ouvres into his mouth so quickly that much of the food and ale dribbled down his chin and made a mess of his beard. He finished off the meal with a triumphant belch, garnering rude stares from other party patrons.  Grimnash didn’t care, though, and disappeared in search of a place to take a nap and sleep off his meal.

            Reinhardt was enjoying a glass of wine, when suddenly he heard a voice from behind.  It was the princess.  She expressed to Reinhardt how truly disappointed she was about how his match had gone during the first day of the joust, and how she still desired and wished that he could be her champion and marry her.  The two of them left the party briefly to go on a short secret tour of the castle.  Princess Camille even showed Reinhardt her collection of books in the expansive library of the castle, where she would spend hours reading about the adventures of knights fighting dragons, and the heroes of ages past.  Reinhardt flirted back, hoping that perhaps this might sow the seeds for a future option, should they somehow need to convince the Princess to help them later.

            Meanwhile, Gjertrude and Constance had arrived back at the Inn, The Foggy Hallway.  Constance was quick to return to the room, but what she saw when she reached the hallway was alarming to her.

            The door was ajar?  Had anyone left it open before they had left?  No, thought Constance, and in a swift moment, she slinked up to the door and peered inside.  Whoever had invaded their room at the ‘Foggy Hallway’ had already left. The window was open as well, and the curtains flapped in the cool night breeze.  Hoping to catch a glimpse of whoever had escaped, Constance quickly dashed to the window and peered out of it.  The infiltrator had disappeared, but she  thought she caught a shadow moving into the alley down the street.  As she was about to climb out the window and use her spider climb ability to creep down the side of the Inn, Constance spotted a shiny chain hanging from a loose nail in the window frame.  Here a small amulet had gotten caught on the nail while whoever had been rifling through the party’s belongings was escaping.  In a moment, Constance snatched up the amulet and hunted down Gyertrude, who had been following behind her after the two of them had left the royal ball.

With little time to explain, Constance grabbed Gyertrude’s hand and led her along, explaining the situation as they ran. They moved into alley after alley in pursuit of their prey, Constance using her powerful sense of smell, and Gyertrude using her tracking experience to eventually arrive at a small stable in the North side of Thunderhaven, deep in the slum district of the city.  In the stable was a single mount: a black warhorse with deep red eyes that almost seemed to glow when the two women adventurers examined it.  Next to the stable was a small shanty, and Constance, without thinking, quickly moved to kick the door down.

“Wait!” hissed Gyertrude, attempting to stop her companion. “We don’t know what’s in there!”

“I got this!” was all Constance said before bursting through the door to confront her foe.  It was Ryn Redclaw, the joust participant who had been mysteriously absent from the royal ball.  For the first time now, Constance was able to see her foe.  Ryn was a sinister and powerful looking man, hidden beneath twisted black armor, and thick black wool strips that were wrapped around the larger plates of armor. His face was more than half obscured by the black cloth, as it stretched across his face and mouth, leaving only his eyes exposed.  Through the cloth, Constance could see the heavy scratch-scar that darted in a diagonal across his face. His skin was unusually dry and cracked as well.  Wherever he was from, it must be hot, thought Constance.

          Not wasting time, Constance summoned her deep vampiric intimidation skills, lowering her voice, and strengthening her piercing gaze.  “Stop there!” she shouted, not desiring Ryn to attempt to flee.  “What were you doing in our room at the Inn?” Her voice dripped with power as she interrogated the dark knight.

          Ryn hesitated for a moment, then denied the accusation.  Constance would have none of it, however, and swiftly brought a blade against Ryn to further empower her threatening talk.  Her other hand began to harden with the stone-charm bracelet on her wrist; becoming a stone weapon she could use if things got messy.  However, she would not need them.  Her intimidating glare was enough for Ryn to cave.  “How did you know I was there?”

          Constance held out the amulet.  “You dropped something, didn’t you?”  As she and Gjertrude had been tracking Ryn to his shanty, they managed to contact Taymos the Wizard back at the Lyger Farms, using the mystical portal hoops as a tool for communication.  She had explained the nature of the magic spell locked away in the charm: a polymorph spell that would allow the wearer to take the form of a minotaur. Immediately they knew that this was the man who had framed their friend Zax for murder.  Using her influence, Constance bullied Ryn into promising to come forward and absolve Zax from his crime in Thunderhaven.  With that she left, as quickly as she had entered the shanty, hoping that Ryn would be true to his word and fulfill his promise.  As she left, Gjertrude was waiting.  Constance explained the entire situation to her, and the two of them returned to their room at the Inn to rest up, and await the next day’s jousting events.

           

            The next morning came, and the party traveled to the jousting grounds together.  This would be a difficult match, as the drawn lots for that day’s match-ups had Kaluryn facing off against the dangerous Champion Gillroy who had bested Reinhardt in the previous match.  This would be another difficult match.

            After a second wine ceremony, Kaluryn put on his helmet and mounted his horse to ready himself for the jousting phase.

          

Dungeons & Dragons Night: "Thunderhaven and the Fire Cave"

Those who know me know that I enjoy the occasional night of Dungeons & Dragons pen-and-paper gaming. We have been playing through a campaign currently involving a team of adventurers (who have chosen 'The Fighting Lygers' as their moniker), who have been questing around a created region of a medievalist fantasy world centered around the three major cities of Windhill, Darrowbank, and Thunderhaven.  Though this wasn't the first adventure with this group, I decided it would be fun to record and share the adventures of the party during their quests and campaigns.

The Story So Far:
The party began their adventures in the city of Darrowbank.  Darrowbank was a small city caught in the midst of a long-standing war between the much larger city states of Windhill and Thunderhaven.  They had many adventures in Darrowbank, including saving a vinyard from marauding kobolds, clearing an old sentry tower of goblins, besting a crooked quarry-owner in a fist-fight, stopping a dangerous and close-minded 'Pacifism Cult', stopping a would-be lich in an enormous mausoleum, halting the opression of a local hill giant, participating in a gladiator tournament in Gladiatortonshirevilleburg, and saving the town of Primrose from a young green dragon.  Through the adventures, the party managed to acquire a number of powerful items, armor, and magic items, including a mystical chalice that, when combioned with two others like it, would create a mysterious, but extremely powerful potion.  They also were given a farm outside of Primrose as a reward for stopping the dragon.

"The Fighting Lygers" 

• Kaluryn Parfore, Martial Wizard, Leader of the Lygers. (Represented on the white-board by Pewter Wizard Figurine)
• Zax, Minotaur Barbarian (Represented by Large knight figurine with flail) 
• Grimnash Honeyloaf, Dwarven Fighter. (Represented by small Street Fighter II "Blanka" figurine)
• Reinhardt, shapeshifting Bard. (Represented by wooden "pawn" peg)
• Gjertrude, Elven Druid.  (Represented by glass dragon figurine)
• Faye, Human Rogue,  (Represented by orange ninja figurine)
• Constance Burrows, Halfling Vampire / Rogue. (represented by purple duck figurine)

Party Members at Lyger Farms:

• Lelumina, Elven Cleric
• Taymos Busy, Human Wizard, Former member of Thunderhaven Mage-Police (Yellow Pewter Figurine)
• Grygor, The Hill Giant of Darrowbank Hills. (Hulk Hogan Finger-Puppet)

 The Lygers arrived in the sprawling fortress city of Thunderhaven with the intentions of finding a blacksmith with a magic-powered forge capable of fashioning the dragon scales they acquired into armor for their druid, Gjertrude. The recent events in the campaign involved one of the party members, Zax the Minotaur Barbarian being arrested in the city of Thunderhaven under accusations that he murdered a beloved inn-keeper. After catching wind of the city's corruption, the party felt it best to free their companion. Under the pretense of visiting him, the group encountered a woman in the prison cell next to Zax who claimed she was once a member of the city's elite Mage-Police force, that used powerful magic to maintain order and regulate spell-casting within the walls of Thunderhaven. Eventually, ther party decided to trust this woman, a wizard named Taymos Busy. They pushed their way through the brick wall behind Taymos' cell, and fled into the sewers beneath the city, looking for a way out.

The Party made their escape from the city sewers, running into fierce slimy creatures in the murky depths of the fortress city. Among these creatures were Otyughs, and Bone-Claws, the latter of which emerged from a pile of corpses and trash that the party was investigating for treasures.

While Zax and Taymos made a quick escape to the party's farm, "Lyger Farms" outside of a town called Primrose on the road between Thunderhaven and Darrowbank, the rest of the party chose to accept a quest from the master-blacksmith. In return for fetching a fire-orb made from the trapped essence of a dangerous Fire Elemental, they would recieve free access to the forge for their own use.

The party entered the black obsidian fire cave, and were met with great pools of lava, and hundreds of tiny steam and flame vents lining the floor of the cave. The fire Elemental Lord was waiting for them, and began to use his influence to cause giant pillars of fire to erupt from the floor of the cave and barrel down on the adventurers (Represented as Bottle-caps on the white-board).

The Fire Elemental Lord was a dangerous foe, who caught several of the party members on fire during the battle. Fortunately, Constance emerged from her hiding place to quickly douse the fires with a carefully prepared pool of water hidden inside of her bag of holding.

At the end of the battle, the group proved victorious, and had managed to charge a small magic orb with the essence of the Fire Elemental.  They returned hastily to the city in order to return the orb, repower the magic forge, and make preperations for the Joust to be held in Thunderhaven in the coming days.  The prize of which is: The hand of Princesss Camille, daughter of the King of Thunderhaven!

Favorite Video Games #3: "Grim Fandango"

My history began with this game the day it was released. My actual playing of it, however, did not.

Grim Fandango was a very highly anticipated adventure game from the core team of adventure game creators at Lucasarts, the video game devision of Lucasfilm Ltd. It was released the day before Halloween in 1998, and told a surreal but epic noir-styled storyline (in the vein of the Maltese Falcon), set in the world of the dead, heavily inspired by artwork created in association with the Dia de los muertos celebrations in Mexico. At the time that I purchased it, the game required 32MB of RAM to play. I only had 8. The game would frequently lock up, and be unplayable because my computer did not meet the minimum requirements to play it. A year or so later, after I had the opportunity to upgrade my computer, I was finally able to play the game that had tempted me for so very long

The main character of the game, Manuel Calavera (or 'Manny' for short) begins the game as a reaper, shepherding a poor dead soul to the land of the dead. As it turns out, he's little more than a travel agent, attempting to pay off debts he accrued in life by working for the Department of Death in the afterlife. From this downtrodden platform, he stumbles across an elaborate conspiracy that has been robbing the honest souls entering the afterlife of their just dues, as well as thieving Manny of the lucrative clients he deserves to help him pay off his community service debts.

The game stretches across 4 years, and introduces the protagonist Manny to a vast array of intriguing and amusing characters, including the loud and brash Glottis, a “travel spirit” whose existence relies on driving very, very fast. There’s also an old sea captain, a cranky TSA agent, a very unlucky French butler, a determined man attempting to cross the ocean floor on foot, and a Che Guevara-inspired revolutionary. Meeting and interacting with the intriguing characters is most of the fun of this epic game, as Manny Calavery attempts to solve the mystery of who is behind the nefarious scheme to steal honest souls’ tickets on the “Number 9”, a train that can ferry the souls of the dead to the land of eternal rest in 4 minutes instead of the 4 years the journey might take otherwise.

Most of the characters in the game are modeled after calacas skeletons which are common in Dia De Los Muertos celebrations. Other characters in the game are closer to typical 'Tim Schaefer' fare: bizzare anthropomorphic bee-men, orange monsters, and vampiric fire-beavers. There are many puzzles to solve, and sinister forces to stop. The charm and inventiveness of the world is what made the experience so endearing to me. The locations and story were just so unique and creative, that it made me want to learn more about Dia De Los Muertos, and about South American history and culture. The game was funny too. The dialog was sharp and witty, and a joy to experience.

My Favorite Games: #4 "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim"

One of my favorite games of all time is “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim”, commonly referred to simply as “Skyrim”. It is the fifth game in the long running Elder Scrolls series of games that deal with a huge fantasy world, full of elves, orcs, humans, lizardmen, cat-people, and more. Each game in the franchise has focused on a different region of the world, but Skyrim is one of the most exciting provinces to date; spanning the frigid northern part of the continent, and including environments ranging from frozen tundras, to snowy mountain peaks, to damp bogs, to forest paths.

The game’s story begins with an unnamed character being carted off to his or her execution for being “in the wrong place at the wrong time” and being associated with a wanted criminal who killed Skyrim’s last king. As you are about to be executed, a dragon suddenly attacks. No one in the world has seen a dragon for thousands of years. In the confusion you escape, and from that point on, you are free to explore this gigantic world.

The world is populated with numerous villages, cities, caves, fortresses, and ancient ruins. As you explore, you begin to uncover a prophecy that tells of the return of the dragons and the end of humanity. In the past when the dragons were subjugating or destroying the people of the world, a defender would be born known as the Dovahkiin, or “Dragonborn”; a warrior with the soul of a dragon, who is able to destroy the monsters permanently. The Dragonborn is sent on a quest to discover a way to defeat Alduin, the dragon-lord, and save the people of Skyrim from total destruction.

There are also many other things to do in the world besides following the main questline and saving the people. There are guilds you can do quests for and rise to leadership positions of. These include the Thieves Guild in the “mafia-run” city of Riften, The battle-hardened Companions of Whiterun, The Mage College of Winterhold, and the illusive Dark Brotherhood assassins guild. Along with all that, there are hundreds and hundreds of side quests you can complete in order to help people in various cities, or to acquire ancient and powerful weapons to help you in your mission to destroy the dragons.

Throughout the game, you’ll fight a variety of enemies that inhabit the wilds of the province of Skyrim. One of the most exciting enemies you’ll encounter are dragons: ancient beings resurrected by the evil dragon-lord, Alduin. Fighting these enemies is dynamic and incredibly exhilarating as they fly around, land on buildings and rocks, and breath fire or ice while trying to destroy you. When you finally bring one of the dragons down, it feels very rewarding. One of the most interesting aspects of the game for me, is simply exploring the fully-realized and enormous world of Skyrim. There are so many interesting places to discover, that sometimes my favorite thing to do is to just wander the landscape, and explore any forts, dungeons, or caves that I come across. Most of the time, they will be filled with bandits, trolls, or evil wizards. You can spend a ton of time just exploring these interesting and beautiful locations, without even contributing to the overarching quest to stop Alduin. You can also buy a house in any of the major cities, become Thane under the Jarl’s in each of their holds, and even find a wife and get married! To top it off, there’s also a major questline involving picking a side in the civil war going on in Skyrim, and leading that respective army to victory; thus unifying the province. There really is a massive number of things to do in this world.

In conclusion, this is a game I would recommend to anyone. It’s fun to play, and very rewarding to explore. The combat is satisfying and varied (You can use swords, shields, bow-and-arrows, magic spells, axes, or hammers). As Dragonborn, you also have the ability to “Thu’um” or Shout at your enemies, using the ancient dragon language to forcibly push enemies away, breathe fire or frost, and even slow down time! Very fun, indeed.

A Winner Is Me!

That's right, I finished National Novel Writing Month. My story The Balance Keepers passed the 50,000 word mark at 10:25 AM on November 30th, 2011.

NaNoWriMo Continues...

Hi everyone(and by 'everyone' I mean the 7 or 8 of you who read this),

I just wanted to take a moment to tell you that this year I've managed to stay on task with the National Novel Writing Month competition, a feat I've usually become overwhelmed with and given up in years' past. This year, thus far, I've proudly reached the milestone of 25,000 words, and am still continuing to write each and every day. The important thing to note is that I'm still on task towards the great goal of 50,000 words written in a 30-day period. This year really does look like the year that I'm actually going to finish.

Continue to wish me luck!

Onward to NaNoWriMo! Onward to Victory!

So, this year will be my 4th attempt at National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo, as it is frequently shortened to. It is an annual self-regulated event that happens every year on November 1st, and ends on November 30th. The goal of the event is to compose a 50,000 word novel over the period of a single month. It's a lofty and difficult goal to attain. I have yet to ever complete it, as November tends to be one of the busiest months of my year, every year.

Still, this year I am determined to put forth my best effort ever, and finish this thing. I've got an outline for the novel worked out, plot, and characters, so I'm all set. I just need to do my best to keep pace. Any of you out there who'd like to cheer me on, feel free to do so. If you do decide to join in, be sure to 'friend' me at NaNoWriMo. http://nanowrimo.org/en/participants/shivy

"Character is half the dynamic of plot, a given situation is the other half." ~Anne Bernays~

My Favorite Video Games #2: 'Final Fantasy VIII'

Videogames are like films to me. I mean this in the sense that my opinion of a game is often strongly influenced by what how I was feeling emotionally at the time. Final Fantasy VIII is one of the most impacting games that I recall playing, and one that holds a special place in my memories.



A powerful story set in a huge world on the brink of war; what attracted me to this Final Fantasy above all others was its focus on the love story developing between Squall and Rinoa, rather than the conflict of the world. Squall himself, was a character that I felt held a lot of qualities and conflict that were very personal to me. As a character, Squall embodies traits that a large cross section of gamers can relate to.


I did not own a Playstation at the time, but managed to borrow one in order to play this game. Wanting to return the system to him as quickly as possible, I played the game almost non-stop for a week. Eventually I hit what I consider to be one of the most powerfully sad scenes in any game. Towards the end of the third disc, I found myself crying through the entire “Eyes on Me” scene, as well as what happens immediately afterward. It was enough to depress me, and I decided to take a break at this point.

During my break, my friend returned, claiming that he needed his Playstation back for a week, and that I could borrow it again when he returned. I reluctantly returned it to him, and spent the week miserable, pondering the fate of Rinoa and Squall, unable to know how it would be resolved.


I didn’t realize something like a video game could affect my mood so drastically. I guess this was an early sign that I was destined to find passion and beauty in video games, and experience them as I would any film or book. These were powerful stories with truth and emotion to be discovered, not only in the characters, but also in the hearts and minds of the players themselves.



The game play of Final Fantasy VIII revolved around encountering enemies in battle. This is typical of the Final Fantasy games, but in this iteration the designers created a 'Junction' system to change things up a little. Throughout the game your party acquires these mythical beasts known as 'Guardian Forces' that can 'bond' with your characters and augment their abilities and skills. These junctions are powered my magical energies that you can harvest from the monsters you encounter throughout the game. Many people were critical of this system, since it was so different from the previous Final Fantasy games, and required, initially, some time spent drawing magical energies from the foes you face. Later in the game, this behavior becomes less necessary as you can break down items and loot into magic bits.



The Guardian Forces make up some of the most incredible monster designs of any Final Fantasy leading up to this installment, including the return of some favorite 'summoned' creatures, like Shiva and Ifrit.


All of this is framed around (at the time) professional quality CG Cinemas, including a sweeping opening sequence that features a bombastic orchestral piece called Liberi Fatali (Fated Children). This features prominently into the overarching theme of the story: being forced to take on adult roles in an organization called SeeD that trains war orphans to become profitable mercenary teems to be dispatched around the world. Most of the characters in the story are under the age of 18, and are forced to confront some harsh truths about the adult world that they would have been shielded from had their childhood experiences been different. There are some extremely poignant scenarios throughout the 4-disc epic storyline.


Now that the world has had 13 seperate Final Fantasy games in the franchise, not including sub-sequels or spinoffs, there exists a large pool of games to compare Final Fantasy VIII to. While I enjoyed the gameplay changes made to this particular game, I have to say that it was the emotional impact of the story that pushed the game to being my clear favorite of the franchise, and a game that I will cherish as I play through it again and again.

Bacon, King of the Breakfast Table

A popular topic amongst various peoples of the internet and multimedia worlds these days is that of bacon. Bacon is salt-cured strips of pork, usually from the back or side of the pig. because of their salty flavor and fatty crispy crunch, people tend to hold this food item in very high regard. I count myself amongst this number.

Those that know me, know that bacon is one of my favorite foods. I hold bacon as king amongst the breakfast foods, and have even been known to indulge in the aged Italian 'bacons' such as prosciutto and pancetta. Bacon makes it's own cooking grease that slowly melts off of the meat as you fry it in the pan. Because of this, it is difficult to question bacon's convenience factor. It is as though the salty little tendrils themselves are trying to help you cook them.

Bacon does it's best work when mixed with other foodstuffs. For example, when placed on pizza, it manages to create a delicious treat that is superior, in my opinion, to even salami and pepperoni: other cured meats. On a Bacon Lettuce and Tomato sandwich (or BLT) it steals the show! Even on a club sandwich where it is relegated to a more minor role, the bacon tends to have a way with it's keen flavor for greeting your tongue most thoroughly in every bite. Bacon is delicious when sprinkled into macaroni and cheese, chili, and I even like it when it is finely chopped into pancake batter and fried on a skillet.

Bacon itself has some surprising qualities. Part of the popularity of the food likely stems from the fact that it contains no fewer than 6 different ingredient types that contribute to addictive aspects of 'umami', or the savory response of food to taste buds. This allows bacon to be a stand out flavor that is both striking and delicious enough that even certain vegetarians might find an excuse to turn to the 'dark side' and enjoy a piece or two.

All in all, bacon is simply one of the best foods that exists in the world today, and stands out as a reminder of how wonderful it is that we get hungry again every handful of hours.

Getting Married

Those of you that know me also know that I am imminently going to be married. My fiancée is an extremely talented woman who I would describe as a ‘Jill of All Trades’. She can cook, she sews, quilts, crochets, makes jewelry, clothes, blankets, purses, and all manner of other creative goods. I really count myself as lucky. (She has her own blog about our wedding process here: Lydibug-Fluff)

One of the favorite things that Lydia and I do together is watch films. We regularly watch movies together, and have a subscription to Netflix that keeps us nice and supplied with new things to watch. Of course, we don’t always see eye to eye on the types of movies we watch. Lydia, for some reason that surprises and amazes me, loves thrillers and scary movies. If there’s a haunting, or a killer, or some sort of paranormal threat, she’s there (she does draw the line at the subgenre of ‘slasher flicks’ she doesn’t care for those ones as much). I on the other hand, enjoy watching more lighthearted fare, as well as being prone to watching the same movies again and again. Seems like every year that I watch the Star Wars saga, the Back To The Future trilogy, The Karate Kid movies, and the ever excellent Bill & Ted films (Speaking of which, I still have a very exciting Bill & Ted themed blog entry I’ll finish soon). Lydia knows what she’s getting into with me and Star Wars. She’ll begrudgingly let me watch all 6 movies, as well as endure my enthusiasm for them (she did make me an excellent Jedi costume that I wear whenever I can find a good excuse to). As an accommodation, I’ve agreed to watch the entirety of the Harry Potter movies with her each year. That’s a total of 8 films, so she’s the winner by quantities’ standards.

Lydia also puts up with many of my quirks. I see her roll her eyes and laugh whenever I open an automated motion-sensor door by waving my hand like a Jedi, or where I stop the microwave at the last possible moment as though I were disarming a bomb, or when I go into ‘Adventure mode’ while driving whenever a particularly action-themed musical score begins to play on my CD player (In adventure mode, I focus my eyes on the road and try to give my best, stern, action-hero face while I drive).

The date of the marriage is swiftly approaching, and I'm eagerly looking forward to it. I had no idea organizing and planning a wedding would be as much work as this, but in the end it will all be worth it. Hopefully the transition from being a singular into a true married couple will go smoothly.

My Favorite Video Games #1: "Riven"

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a huge Myst fan. I've read all the books, i've played all the games, countless times, and in my younger years I even helped maintain an AOL Help forum for Myst and Riven, its sequel. I've gone to Mysterium, the annual Myst convention, when it came to Los Angeles back in 2007, and I also regularly contribute to a monthly podcast called The Cavern Today, dedicated to the Myst franchise as well as the Online Multiplayer exploration of Myst Online: Uru Live, which has recently become a free-to-play online game.

The Myst series over the years has remained my favorite franchise, created by the remarkable creative minds at Cyan Worlds. No other game spoke to me so powerfully with a deep story of betrayal and consequence, told subtly through the clues and environment, rather than through cut scenes and dialogue.

I was at CompUSA as a child, shopping for a new PC with my parents; the first real computer my family would own after the ancient 386 I had been using. With this computer (a prefabricated Compaq model that eventually proved less than sufficient. My parents weren’t the savviest computer shoppers), my parents allowed each of their children to select a software title of their choice (within reason; no $400 AutoCAD or anything like that.) My sister chose some Winnie-The-Pooh Clipart program; my older brother selected an early home-architecture program from Broderbund. My younger brother chose Jet Fighter 2, and I chose a game that captivated me with its box-art of a lonely island amongst an endless sea: MYST.

Playing the game is among the happiest childhood memories I have of playing games with my siblings. My older brother and I worked hard to solve the puzzles in the game together, drawing out notes and maps. I felt so proud of how well we had done when at last we solved the final puzzle and completed the game.

By the time Riven had been released, my siblings were already starting to move on from games, or adopt a more casual attitude towards them. He didn’t want to play Riven with me as he had done before with Myst.

This was a pattern that could continue on until today, where I still remain deeply passionate about video games, and my siblings either no longer play them, or only retain a passing interest in them (With the distinct exception of my brother Jon who is well into the clutches of World of Warcraft). Even so, playing these games with my siblings would leave me with my fondest childhood memories.



While Myst was an intriguing game unlike anything I had ever played before, it couldn't compete with the far superior Riven. The game had a much darker and almost steam-punky feel to it, thanks to the hiring of Richard Vander Wende, an artist and designer who worked for Disney on Aladdin.



Throughout the game there are some pretty dynamic moments. Chief among them are the sequences where you travel between the five various islands that compromise Riven. Most of them are connected by Mag-Lev transport (Magnetic Levitation) or through mine cart tracks.


The sensation was pretty incredible. The other aspect that really intruigued me was the design of the puzzles. Everything in that wolrd felt like it belonged. The game didn't follow the common adventure game tropes of having puzzles for the sake of having puzzles. All the puzzles in Riven felt like they belonged where they were, and had a good reason for being there.
A good example is a puzzle involving decoding a security password written in D'ni, the fictional language of the Myst series of games. Solving the puzzle involved figuring out the unusual base 5 and 25 number system, which meant finding a school-house on one of the islands that was being used by the villagers to teach their children. There is a mechanical hangman game in the classroom where one could watch the D'ni numerals come up, and count the number of clicks, extrapolating from what they've learned to pick up the remaining numbers. All of it felt natural, as though you were a detective using all your resources to solve a mystery.


To date, I own 7 copies of Riven:
1. Original 5 CD-Rom release (Cardboard art-sleeves)
2. 5 CD-Rom release (Double Jewel-case)
3. Playstation Release, 5-Discs
4. Ages Beyond MYST - Myst + Riven CD-Rom bundle
5. MYST Anniversary DVD Versions (Includes MYST, Riven, MYST III: Exile)
6. GoG (Good Ol Games Digital Copy)
7. Steam Release Digital Copy

This may seem like a lot, but I own nearly every version of *all* the MYST games. Everyone's gotta collect something, right?




Yes, there were Myst III action figures!


And finally, the MYST Board game.... It's not very good. Basically a 'Competitive Jigsaw Puzzle'

Powered by Coffee

There’s a few things that start off just about every day of my life. The first is a shower, since I like starting the day with a refreshing blast of water in my face.

The second thing is a hot mug of coffee. In fact, (and this may be strange to some of you), but I have a coffee pot that I keep set in my unusually large bathroom. That means that in any given morning, I can step right out of the shower and have a hot mug of coffee waiting for me. What can I say, I really like coffee!

As a young child, I was reviled by the fierce bitter taste of the coffee bean. It was an unpleasant beverage when compared to sweeter fare such as Dr. Pepper or apple juice. Still, as I grew older, I began to lose my taste for the sour and sweet candies I enjoyed most, and began to gravitate towards bitter flavors. Things like unsweetened teas and coffee.

Coffee is a delightful drink. In many ways it’s an adventure with every cup, since coffee tastes different every time I brew up a pot full. This is the nature of extracting a flavor from a living-growing plant that holds a slightly different flavor each and every day of its life and subsequent roasting. I drink it black too. No cream, no sugar, I take it straight. Some people like to put a pinch of salt into their coffee grounds to cut some of the acidity. I’ve recently tried this, but found I prefer the unaltered nakedness of a hot cup of smooth, bitter coffee.

The coffee I tend to drink every morning is Yuban. I really like the smell and taste of that particular South American blend, but there is also a strong factor of nostalgia involved, since that was what my father always brewed up every morning. One of the coffees I really like is the Dunkin Donuts brand. It is usually expensive to buy at the supermarket, and comes in smaller bags, so It is reserved as a rare treat. I have always wanted to try a hot cup of coffee at a Dunkin Donuts franchise, but the closest one to California is in Las Vegas… A little out of the way for morning joe, ya know? (Hey, I rhyme!)

Something I did not know about coffee: Coffee was used during some religious ceremonies in Africa, and during the 17th century, it was banned in some parts of Turkey as part of a political battle.


I typically drink 3-4 cups of coffee in a given morning. That might seem like a lot, but I always picture Fry from Futurama buying 100 $3 cups of coffee in a day with his $300 tax break.

Dogs

So, I've never been much of an animal person. The "pets" I've taken care of mostly consist of the few plants I've managed to take care of and keep alive; mainly my Succulent plant, which I've named Ereshkigal, after the Sumerian Queen of the Underworld.

Also in recent life are the two new kittens that terrorize me in the mornings, and throughout most of the day... actually pretty much any time their little eyes are open. It's a good thing they're cute.
Leonard

















Sheldyn
(Yes the names are inspired by characters from "The Big Band Theory")

But despite the presence of the kittens (who aren't actually mine), I've never really been in touch with animals, much less dogs.

Dogs have also seemed pretty normal for a pet. I don't know what it was historically that first connected man and dog, but they seem to be a made to coexist in a full symbiotic relationship. Dogs are fiercely loyal, and the perfect companions for most human beings. They're pretty strange too. I don't know how often anyone thinks about the existence of a hidden "dewclaw", but anything that doesn't exist on the human body is fascinating to me.

I never thought I would be one to really be exposed to dogs. As a child the barking dogs of the neighbors would frighten me. When visiting any childhood friends I knew who owned dogs, I invariably would cause a normally placid dog to begin to bark at me. They didn't seem to ever like me. Any dog. Furthermore, I have always been mildly allergic to dogs. Not to quote movies here, but when it comes to dogs, I constantly "Had. A bad. Experience."

So along comes my Lydia, who you may know to be my fiancée, and the love of my life. She has always loved dogs. When I began dating her, I was exposed to her old dog, Jesebel. While she was certainly a nice dog (didn't bark at me, for once), I never really felt comfortable around canis lupus familiaris. It wasn't until Jesebel sadly passed away that I was exposed to a different dog.

Tori, short for Victoria (After the queen, since this dog certainly thinks she is one).

This is the tiny little dog (a cross between a Papillon and a Long-Hair Chihuahua) that was rescued by my bride-to-be one fateful day. The dog is generally quiet, friendly, clean, and enjoys attention. Constant attention. Still, the little gal has really began to grow on me over the years. I think she likes me because I'm thin. When I sit in a chair, I sorta act as a nice concave lap to sit in; bowl shaped. I believe this is the base of my friendship with this tiny dog.

Dogs are always going to be a part of my life from this point on, since my future wife is going to want to have them around. She makes accommodations for me, though; Tori is bathed nearly every week in an effort to limit my allergies to her. Which his fine, because it's nice to sleep in a bed with a tiny animal curled up next to you, and let's face it: cats are far too aloof for that.

Favorite Album #1: The Protomen - "Act II: The Father of Death"

So, one of my favorite albums is the second album from the acclaimed Tennessee rock band "The Protomen".


Their self-titled debut album told a high-energy story of a man entrenched in an oppressive society watched over by powerful robots. This man, Dr. Thomas Light builds a 'child' to pour his hopes and dreams for a better future into. Eventually the child, Protoman, decides that the way to build this better future is to defeat the man responsible for controlling the robots and to restore hope to the beleaguered city. He fails, and is lost to the mercy of the machines that protect Dr. Albert Wily, the man responsible for the city's fascist state.

Years later, Dr. Light attempts to build a second 'child' named Megaman. Light decides this time, to protect this child and be content with the company. It isn't long before Megaman decides to follow in his brother's footsteps and attempt to save the dark city. In an intriguing twist, it's discovered that the general in command of Wily's robot army is now his own brother, Protoman. Protoman tries to convince Megaman that the people refused to back him in his quest, rather they left him as a martyr to fight and die for them, without being willing to help force the change themselves. Megaman, with sadness, strikes out at his brother, and leads the attack, but knows that Protoman was right, and the mass of people at his rear will do nothing to keep the revolution going once he's fallen in combat. Still, the album ends with the hopeful last words of Protoman: "If these people...tell this story...to their children...as they sleep...then maybe someday...they'll see a Hero...is just a man...who knows he's free."

The entire story is told through high energy rock mixed with some spaghetti-western influences. The music and powerful, and the vocal performances really strengthen the delivery of a story inspired by a simple video game franchise created by Capcom known in the United States as 'Megaman'.

I told you all of that so that I could tell you this:

Their second album "Act II: The Father of Death" is a follow-up to their first album that tells the story of how the city fell into darkness in the first place, and how Dr. Light himself was a partner with Dr. Wily, who unwittingly played a part in bringing the city itself into an industrialized robotic-driven work-state.


After losing his father to mining accidents, Dr. Light began work on a robotic work force that could aid the miners in more dangerous tasks. As he neared the projects completion, he grew hesitant to take the work away from such able-bodied people, but with the urging of his partner, Dr. Wily, he throws the switch and sets things into motion.

At the same time, Dr. Wily has plans of his own. After refusing to join him, Dr. Light's fiancée, Emily, is murdered by an assassin robot, and evidence is left to implicate Dr. Light. With the entire city keening in hunt of the man, he is soon taken into custody, and placed on trial. Despite feeling he has nothing to live for after losing the love of his life, he is found innocent, against the popular opinion that Light is a callous murderer: all a ploy by Wily to gain the city’s trust by proclaiming that the justice system was broken, and that his glorious technocracy is the best thing for the future of the city. Light is placed in exile, and the city begins to decay into darkness.

Years later, a boy named Joe begins to feel that things in the city are not right. He leaves town in an attempt to discover what can be done about it. Out in the outskirts he encounters Dr. Light, who shares his plan for “freeing” the city by cutting off the ever-present communication network that Wily uses to keep his constant propaganda fed to the people.

The mission is a success, and Joe sacrifices himself to make certain the ever-present illuminated communication screens around the city go black… But there was a backup, and within moments the screens are back, and Wily has an excuse to declare complete martial control of the city “for the people’s safety”. The city enters its darkest days, but Light, driven by the spirit the young boy Joe showed begins to formulate a new plan…. Too build a robot of his own: a son he will call Protoman.

The story is one of a dystopian future, but it’s the attention to the emotions of the characters as the album is performed that really makes it something I love to listen to. The Protomen are a band that stays “in character” during their performances and interviews, claiming to be “freedom fighters gathering support for the war against Wily”. The songs are acted out on stage, and the audience is drawn into a story that they get to participate in. The music itself is epic, pulling inspiration from spaghetti westerns and the futuristic cyber-punk feel of the story itself. For being loosely based on a simple video game, the Protomen have really made the story their own, and I look forward to anything else they decide to do as a band.

Rebirth

New posts coming soon. I'm not dead yet!

On Staff Meetings and Bathroom Breaks

So yesterday I went to a staff meeting at the school. It was an interesting experience. After an announcement made by the principle in regards to the “Staffulty” of the month, there was a sort of trophy handed off to that teacher as a physical symbol of the good work he had done.

The meeting itself was very much like a class. The teacher who gave the ‘lesson’ did so using teaching strategies and methods that they would have used in their own classes; In essence, reinforcing our teaching behaviors through clear, concise modeling. After a description of the lesson, the teachers were broken up into groups to create a product to present to their “class”. It was interesting to see the teachers all working together in a manner similar to the ways that students work in class. Each group had their strengths and weaknesses, goofballs and focused adults. It was interesting, and it all tied directly into the goals that the staff and faculty of the school wanted to set to continually improve themselves, and the school they work at.

I’ve been thinking about my own teaching as well. Since I am now in the heart of teaching a full load of classes by myself, I find a lot of struggles coming to the forefront. Planning lessons seems to be the easier part. I know what I want to teach the students when I come into the classroom, and I come up with strategies for doing so. The problem is in implementation. While I know some of this is tougher simply because this is not “my” class, persay; meaning I didn’t start with this class, and they may see me as a more glorified substitute teacher. It makes it difficult to command the same respect that my mentor teacher does. I know a lot of this also comes from my experience with classroom management. I don’t yet have eyes in the back of my head. I can’t tell what each student is doing just by looking at them. I don’t fully grasp the spocial dynamics of a class well enough to perfectly group the students where they will be most effective. That said, I have noticed some improvement in what I’m doing.

One of the issues I struggle with is dealing with students who need to use the restroom during class. I certainly don’t want to be an ogre that never lets them go, but I also don’t want to be taken advantage of. In reading the book I’m teaching as a class, having a student get up to use the restroom is an incredible disruption. Not only is the student missing a chunk of the book that they are absent for as they disappear to the restroom, I also have to stop the class to remind the student what page their on now, or one of their peers has to do it. Either way, it’s distracting the students from learning.

I spoke to one of the other teachers on campus who has an interesting approach to bathroom breaks. She offered a great system that I’ve decided to implement with my students. The students need to use the restroom during break, during lunch, and during their passing periods. If they ask to use the bathroom during class, I allow them to go, but their name gets added to the board. If they ask again (even on some other day, since the names stay all semester), they get a check next to their name that indicates that they’ve moved down a level in their citizenship grade (From Outstanding to Satisfactory to Unsatisfactory). Each time they ask to use the restroom during class, they receive an additional check. Obviously if they have a specific problem with this (For example, a medical condition) then there will be accommodations made. All in all, though, I think this is going to work out very effectively for me.

Classroom Management is Like a Box of Chocolates...

By this point, I’ve done some teaching. It’s been challenging, because no matter how much I seem to prepare, the most difficult part to master is the classroom management. My mentor teacher mentioned to me that once I get a good handle on managing my classroom, all the rest of the parts seem to fall into place rather easily. There’s a lot going on that you simply don’t think about until you’re actually trying to improve the things that you do in front of the class that help keep the students engaged.

One thing I quickly came to realize is that middle school students only have a 10-15 minute attention span. Once I get them working on something, I only have a short window of time in which they can work independently on one thing before they begin to grow restless and noisy. Obviously this makes certain longer activities, such as 30 minutes of Silent Sustained Reading much more difficult, since the students grow bored of whatever they are doing far before the activity is complete. A way that I’ve learned to get around this is to break up an activity 10-15 minutes into it and refocus the students by asking them questions as a class to check for understanding, or reiterating the directions of a section that I notice them struggling with in my observation as I walk around checking their work over their shoulders. Optimally, this will also help influence the way I structure my lessons in the class, since I know I need to segment them into small bite-sized chunks for the students to take in small doses before they change focus and reset their attention spans.

It can be tough to get a class back under control once I’ve lost it. Part of the challenge is asserting myself as just as important a teacher as the mentor teacher I’m learning from. I’m attempting to get across to the students that I’m not just a substitute; I have the same authority as their other teacher, and I deserve the same level of respect and obedience. This has been a challenge, but In working with them each day, I know they are starting to treat me better. Some of the ways I think I’ve managed to procure their trust and respect is that I’ve been around long enough to begin to know and share their interests and different personalities. I try to greet them all at the door, and I ask them how their day is going. From my classes, I’ve learned that this is a fairly effective strategy, especially when you know that some of the students possibly haven’t had any adult in their life take an interest in them personally, that day.

My mentor teacher summarized her stance on classroom management as “creating an environment where all students can feel safe and secure both physically and emotionally.” Secondary school is a tumultuous time for students. They need to feel that they are someplace where they are safe. If I am in control of my classroom, the students, on some level, know that they are safe there. If I lose control of the class, the students will turn towards the next person who can give them the sense of safety that they crave, and this is usually the class clown or an outspoken student. Once that happens, it becomes extremely difficult to gain that control back.

It’s a struggle, each day, but I’m learning as I go, and I believe I’m developing strategies and techniques that are working. Hopefully things will have gelled between the students and I by the time I take complete control of the classroom for several weeks while I solo teach.

"Wolverines!"

So one of my students was presenting a report on a career in the military, mentioning that they'd like to bomb the enemies of America, including Russia. It was unsettling to the other teacher, but I thought it was pretty funny. While Russia is certainly an ally now, I simply saw it a side effect of the fact that Russians still play a large part of "enemy forces" in a lot of popular video games, such as Modern Warfare 2, which more or less plays out a "Red Dawn" scenario of Russians invading US Soil. This, working in tandem with the fact that so many beloved movies deal with the looming confrontations of the cold war, make it difficult for younger students who aren't aware of global current events to the level that adults might be, to interpret and understand the current state of non-fictionalized relations between the US and other countries.

Raining and Pouring

Teaching in rainy weather is TOUGH! The students are noisier then they might have acted otherwise, probably because they’re wet and uncomfortable just sitting their in the dampness. There’s water everywhere. The sound of thunder causes all of them to excitedly chatter about the noise, disrupting any focus I may have had with the students. Oh, and then there’s the smell. Students simply toss their soaking clothing in the corner instead of hanging it up or tossing it in the drier. Over time, the damp smell begins to grow into something more odorous. The concept of mold prevention hasn’t caught on yet…

It really is a challenge, but it does introduce some fresh excitement into the classroom. Just gotta keep up the ‘go for gusto’ spirit, right?