Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Holidays

First of all, happy holidays! And Happy New Year!

Second of all, sorry I've dropped the ball on posting.

It's been busy, I've been working, and friend visiting, and family visiting.

It's been good though. My friend recently got me involved in Eve online.

Eve online is an MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game). You create a character, and have a spaceship. You then go through space and blow things up and do missions.... and thaaaaat is about as far as I've gotten. I did the tutorials just before Christmas, and haven't had much chance to look at it since.

I have also spent a lot of time reading. I got the book Inheritance as a gift for Christmas, so I'll be immersed in that for a while.

Now that it's 2012, I suppose it's a good time to reflect on 2011.

You know what? 2011 was a good year.

A really good year, for me at least.

I turned 18, finally giving me some freedom to be myself.

I gained confidence in myself, confidence being in short supply before now.

I graduated high school and managed to get into college, and stay in college.

And I made a lot of new, great friends; as well as keeping in touch with some older friends.

I'm hoping 2012 will be just as good.

School starts again this week, so I'll have a regular posting schedule again soon.

Until then I bid you all farewell, and hope you had a safe and happy holiday season.



Friday, December 16, 2011

First week of Freedom

For the first week of relaxation from school... I have slept. A lot.

I also saw the new Sherlock Holmes movie, which was pretty darn good.

But this week I've really got nothing to blog on right now, I work later tonight though.

We're having a staff party later too, blacklight mini golf.

But, bye for now!

Friday, December 09, 2011

End of a Semester

This was a triumph.
I'm making a note here: Huge success.
I cannot overstate my satisfaction.


Aperture science. We do what we must because we can.


School is almost over for my class for this semester (one more exam Monday), and I am truly happy. I'm not happy to be leaving our class though (I'll miss you, Section 1 D= ) I'm just happy to get a chance to slooooooow down (Powerthirst reference anyone?)

Also, during the break there are two movies that I am planning to see come hell or high water.

The first is Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, which officially comes out on December 16th, but they're doing a 22 o'clock (that's 10 p.m., if you don't read 24 hour time) showing at the Empire Theater at Grant Park Shopping Centre on the 15th. Since school's done by then, I think I might have to mosey over and see that.

I haven't seen the first Sherlock Holmes movie (of this incarnation) since it was in theaters, but I remember it was really, really good. It has good acting, keeps you guessing, and it's pretty darned funny.

In A Game of Shadows they also have Noomi Rapace playing a character.

For those who don't know Noomi Rapace plays Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish version of the Millennium Trilogy. I've only had the chance to see the first movie from that series (in Swedish), but the one thing I've asked for for Christmas is a box set of the movies they have at McNally Robinson book store. Even if that doesn't happen, I think I'm pretty willing to spend a little bit to get the box set on my own.

Dun dun duuuuuun

And that brings us to the next movie! The American version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is being released December 21st.

I'm a little aprehensive about it, since they're remaking a movie that's already fantastic. But it looks like it will be on the upside of decent.

They've got Daniel Craig playing Mikael Blomkvist, and Rooney Mara playing Lisbeth Salander. 

Both versions of the movie are rated R, due to violence, nudity, and rape, among other things.

It doesn't look too bad.
Another thing to look forward to is the fact that Trent Reznor was part of creating the soundtrack. I'm a fan of Nine Inch Nails and their music, so I'm very hopeful for the soundtrack as well.

For those who haven't read the books in the Millennium Trilogy, I would suggest you get on that. Though they're very long (about 750 pages per book, if I recall correctly) they're worth the time. When I was reading the first book it took me a year to get it done, partially because I'd just picked it up on a layover in Amsterdam,  and partially because the first 100 pages or so are really slow, and talking about Swedish economy. Once I got past that though, I finished it in a week.

I then picked up the second one to read on the flight to Greece to visit my father that summer. I finished it in about a week as well.

Leaving Greece that summer, I found the last book, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, in English, at a little kiosk by my gate for about 7 Euro. I didn't hesitate in buying it, and I finished it in less than two days.

Now I think I'll go read them again!

Talk to you all next week.

Tuesday, December 06, 2011

Movies missed

I have had it pointed out to me on several occasions that I need to watch more movies.

"Watch more movies!" They say.
"But I don't have the time to dedicate to sitting down and just watching a movie." I say
And then they threaten to smack me. In a funny way, because I don't tolerate people hitting me willy-nilly.

I've come to realize that at a lot of these times they're right.

There's something going on right now where a t.v. station is broadcasting Disney movies frequently. (I'm not sure how frequently, since my mom's the one PVRing the movies).

So far we have Mulan. Which I've seen in several languages actually, but it loses something in Greek.

I actually still have a Mulan Barbie doll, although I've lost the hair extension piece that was supposed to be before she cut off her hair to join the Army in her father's place.
Secret Hero Mulan!

We've also PVR'd Beauty and the Beast... which I can't ever remember watching. I've read the book, and seen  it performed at Disney On Ice... but I don't think I've watched the movie.

I kind of feel like I may have missed part of my childhood never having watched it.

My teapots never dance =(

So I'm making a list of movies I need to watch (or need to watch again, if the only time I saw them was before I could form memory).

Thus far, I have:

Beauty and the Beast
The Lion King
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Up
Robin Hood
Sleeping Beauty
Mary Poppins
Brave (which isn't out yet, but it must be seen)
Pocahontas
Nightmare Before Christmas
The Sound of Music
Dark Crystal
Labyrinth
Battle Royale
Goemon
Dragonslayer
Ong-Bak
Braveheart
The Patriot

Some of these have been suggested by friends, so they might just be them messing around.

I won't deny that I watched a lot of T.V. when I was younger. I was an only child until I was 10, and even then I couldn't really play with my siblings.

I think I might have enjoyed shows that weren't typical. Things like Mumies Alive.
Mummies Alive






That's probably not the best example of why the show was good... since that was pretty terrible. It's so cheesy. To me it's actually so bad that it's good.

The show is about a boy who finds out he's the reincarnation of a Pharaoh, and he's being hunted by... someone, for some reason. It's been a few years since I've seen it, and I'm going off memory. Anyway, he's being hunted, but luckily some mummies are there to protect him.

Like I said, so bad it's good.

Dark Oracle


This is one of those offbeat shows. Dark Oracle is a Canadian show about fraternal twins, Callie and Lance Stone, who have their lives basically taken over by a comic book (it's the best description I can give).




That's the intro to the show, as well as a commercial for it that was run on YTV. I've been a fan of this since I was in elementary school (so about six years). Being a little more... dark minded than others, you could say, it was a good semi-dark show.

Actually, Alex House, who plays Lance, has been filming the show Todd and the Book of Pure Evil in Winnipeg.

Here's the IMDB for Dark Oracle:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0437711/

And here's the IMDB for Todd and the Book of Pure Evil:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1558128/

I'll be posting again later, bye all!

Friday, December 02, 2011

New Dungeons and Dragons fun!


Finally, I get to go back to playing Dungeons and Dragons, just in time for school to be going on break.

As far as I understand, it's the same group I was with before, so that guarantees some interesting stories.

Unfortunately, I still have to make my character. Writing her up should be easy, but assigning her skills will be the more difficult part, since I have to roll my numbers in front of the DM.

I've decided not to gender bend this time, since last time I had a male character, at least for a while. That's a funny story actually. My character (when he was still a male half-elf), was helping another character in our group hunt down a young T-Rex to feed his wolf, when the T-Rex ate me. The rest of my group was so close to saving me, but I died one turn before they could kill the T-Rex.

I would have been fine with them leaving my character dead, and then writing a new character. They essentially told me that I didn't get a say in the matter though, and resurrected me.

Funny thing about resurrection in D&D, you get to roll  two dice, a percentile dice, and a D10 (a 10 sided dice).

Then you add them together, and depending on what percentile you get, that's the species you're resurrected as. It depends on which chart you're using, but it generally isn't the same species you were before.

Then you get to roll the dice again, to use the percentage to find your gender.


   
Essentially from something like this...
to this.
And that's how I ended up going from a male half-elf, to a female gnoll.











I didn't have it as bad as another character in our group though, he had a minion who got eaten by another dinosaur. The minion, Leonardo (name after the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, not the artist), was a male human. He had the luck to be resurrected as a female centaur.
Yup. He wasn't too happy.
Poor guy (gal?) then had the luck to be caught when we were attacked by a hydra.
It also could breath fire.
The fact it could breath fire was a very important fact. Because it set him on fire. So, we had our Druid resurrect him again.

This time he had the luck to come back as a female Gnoll, just like me.

My friend let the minion go home after that, he felt Leonardo had been killed enough.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Anyway, back to the not gender bending this time. 

Since this is an all rouge group this time, I decided to go for a tiny unassuming female assassin/healer.

I've based her on a character on the character Kyler Stern from Brent Weeks Night Angel Trilogy. The big way they will be similar is that both of them are assassins with a good grasp of poisons.

They are both orphans, though he, if I recall correctly, always was an orphan, while she watched her parents and siblings die.

I suppose I should mention her name, I've decided on Aidan. Aidan is Irish in origin and means little fire.

Anyway, Kylar is trained as an assassin, and poses as a number of other profession (such as a healer). Aidan will have a healers background, thus knowing the properties of plants and having some surgical knowledge, and turn assassin after her family is killed.

Once I've got a full background written up on her, I will post it, possibly with a sketch of her I'm working on.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Something I'd like to point out to people who might be thinking of joining a D&D group who enjoy writing, this is a great way to bring your characters to life.

Aidan might be based partially on a character from another book, but my previous character, Kori, was based on a story I've been writing, I basically picked him up out of that story, and ploped him into D&D character format.

But now I must be off! Bye Bye!

Thursday, December 01, 2011

Japan!

I am going to go to Japan this summer.

http://www.uni.edu/becker/japanese.html

Or at least, I'm going to do my damnedest to get there.

Other than the fact that for many many years I've wanted to go to Japan, I know two people who will be teaching there.

My cousin is in Gifu teaching English there as I... um... type. I also have a friend who will be going out there in a few months to teach English, and he'll be trying for Osaka.
Osaka Castle
I'm starting to save up once Christmas has passed, and if anyone has any knowledge of what it's like to travel to Japan, and any great places to visit, it would be greatly appreciated if you would comment! ^w^ (That's a cat smiley face)

My cousin who's out there, Kevin Brown, told me that I can use his photo's in my blog, so I've got some beautiful pictures of Japan to put in here today! I've also got some silly photo's! If anyone has any questions about the photo's comment and I can ask him for more information about them. ^w^























































ありがとう!おやすみ
Thank you! Goodnight!