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JournalFen for Lyssa Fairfellow.
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| Friday, September 5th, 2008 |
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If I ever do run that urban fantasy Berkeley game, I'm totally going to make this into a giant golem boss. Also? Google Chrome is weird when you highlight things. It actually shows me tables, and it's just weird after years of browsers that gloss over that. But, hey, on the bright side, I don't have to look at source to see how a page was coded anymore. |
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| Friday, August 22nd, 2008 |
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Well, my parents are still Republican. And voting McCain most likely. And believing all the crap the Repubs spew. I knew it, but it's still all :( McCain scares the shit out of me. And my phone died in the middle of a heated conversation (that I should have just ended) and my mom sounded upset and I feel really shitty about it. Bleh. |
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| Monday, August 4th, 2008 |
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When I move back to the mystic homeland of where all my friends live, I totally want to run a modern fantasy game set in Berkeley. Because my depression compels me to make others just as miserable as me! But, come on! I can make the tree sitters into vampire thralls! I can put players in the horrible moral dilemma about whether to save Code Pink or the rich, privileged undergrads! I can make them spend hours trying to navigate random road blocks in an attempt to find a parking space! It'd be fantastic. And then, they'd kill me. |
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| Wednesday, June 11th, 2008 |
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I really wish grammar pedants would learn three things: 1. Regional dialects aren't necessarily wrong or unintelligible. 2. English isn't Latin. Some of these "errors"? Perfectly natural English. There are standard rules of pragmatics in discourse, that allow sentences to do things like end in prepositions ("to put up with" is an entire verb by itself, it is not a variant of "to put") or verbs (antecedent deletion ftw, we drop things in discourse that are commonly understood. Not as much as in Japanese, but we still do it). 3. The internet, for the most part, is not the place for formal written English. Especially on venues like Livejournal. I still believe in proper capitalization and the like, but it is still very allowed to mimic casual discourse. It's kinda what we're doing. So harping on someone for using a casual, standardized speech pattern because it isn't perfect formal written English is really stupid. Your/you're and that sort of thing? Sure, harp on it, though, as much as it pains me, I'll bet that in a hundred years we'll have lost certain distinctions along that vein. First they came for our subjunctive... |
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| Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 |
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LOL. There is a hunter, in the WoW community that was complaining about holy paladins wearing cloth. After having leveled two healers, I repeat, LOL There's also a druid in there complaining about getting wisdom. HEY NOW. I'm a resto druid and I loves me some wisdom! Stupid if there are no mana using druids in the group, but learn how greater blessings work. I do want to slap some people into remembering that you give EVERY healer wisdom and not fucking kings first, except maybe a holy pally, but that's for another day. And this is hilarious coming from a priest. So glad I never had to PuG tanks on Lhyssa. |
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| Thursday, May 22nd, 2008 |
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He's making me GM him a solo. I'm going to have to actually read the manuals. OH GOD HOW DO I GM SEND HELP. (Well, I staffed a LARP for two years as Head Storyteller, but that totally doesn't count because I made other people do the hard parts for me. And he's told me his GMing secrets. But, um, I hate describing things. This sounds like a problem.) As an aside, what is this never get tired, but if you go to sleep, wake up with a migraine if you try to wake up before 11:30 crap? It is providing me with WAY too much time alone. |
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PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT: I'm sick and fucking tired of people telling me to ignore misogyny, or any other bullshit, in media. I really, really am. They point to "real suffering" har har. It's harmless, har har. But, um, no. It makes such treatment as part of common media culture that we all, as a culture, share. It sets a baseline. And every time it is displayed as normal, as peachy, it gains a smidge of validation. Shortly, you have an entire media culture based around these values. This is bad. We internalize them without realizing it. I certainly have just not noticed the bad shit until it was pointed out. (And have always felt horrible and dirty afterwards) Media culture is also something, as consumers, that we can have a bigger say in. If we stop ignoring it, make a fuss, and make it less profitable, we can change it, and in the end, change a silent cornerstone of the culture that helps to produce rapists and other assholes. So, kindly, go die in a fire if you think the only way I should use my energy is to fight against what has already happened rather than try to prevent the little things that help to build it. Also, chasing after one criminal actually probably does less overall than trying to change the underlying culture. We catch a criminal, and he can be classified as other, so I don't think it really affects us as much as the mass culture we live with (also, I am not a cop). It's also chasing after the effects, playing damage control, rather than trying to change the cause. I am not exactly saying that sexist media makes rapists, but it certainly contributes to the dismissive attitudes of women that so permeate American culture. /end of convoluted 2AM rant. Damn, and teal deer penis guy? My inner linguist tittered in glee at a Finnish man telling native English speakers how to feel about their swear words. It's not like they were raised in the culture and understand them more completely or anything. I've been seeing this a lot recently. Not simply relegated to Finns, but non-native speakers doing things like reclaiming words that they've never had a true culture experience with. Of course it is not as offensive to you, nor has the baggage from real life use as a slur, and was easier to change! The world would be a much better place if people understood linguistics :( |
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| Wednesday, April 16th, 2008 |
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Is it just me, or are the sample pages for The Dresden Files kinda ugly? They aren't Anita Blake ugly, but I just can't get into it. This makes me sad, as with Butcher so involved in the writing of it, it shouldn't suck. I may give it a try anyway at some point, as Butcher's writing style should translate alright into comic form, but I suppose there is a reason I am not a comic fen. I also think I run into stumbling blocks as I have such solid, yet not concrete, mental pictures of the characters in my head. It's neat that he's doing prequel-like work, too, rather than just translating the books into comic form. I just wish I didn't think it was ugly :P It was cute the other day, though, my husband, in so few words, pretty much said he wanted to send Jim Butcher his fanfiction (which he hasn't written yet). He's not a fandom guy, but he wanted to send him stories set in the same universe with a caveat of "if it sucks, ignore me, if it's good, you can use it!" I felt so bad telling him that this wasn't a good idea, and that a lot of authors can't look at fanfiction, or original fiction set in the same universe, because of legal issues. He wanted a rapport or something, as he wants to write sometime in the future, and it was just plain adorable. |
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| Monday, April 14th, 2008 |
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See, I wasn't too excited about Small Favor as I thought it was going to be another fairy book, and, well, I'm not that keen on fairy books. Fairies can die in a fire, you see. But it wasn't really a fairy book, and it was awesome, and now I have to wait a year for more =/ Hell, even the fairy parts in them were actually interesting undertones. THE BAIT AND SWITCH ISN'T FAIR MR. BUTCHER. (And OMG he does NERO and makes Harry carry gaming dice with him. How cool is that?) I just wish the SciFi channel series didn't fill me with feelings of OMG WHAT IS THIS KILL IT WITH FIRE. Because it really sucked from the episode and a half I was able to watch. Talk about missing everything about the books that make them so enjoyable. I am also trying not to think about the fantasy series he's writing. I love The Dresden Files, but dude's writing style or plotting doesn't sound like it'll complement fantasy at all. I flipped through one and read the back, and even the fantasy fan and Butcher fangirl in me couldn't get into it. It's actually kinda embarrassing in its own little way. At least I'm getting a semi-rip off BESM d20 solo where I get to be a magically-augmented physical combat badass. BRING IT. |
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| Wednesday, March 12th, 2008 |
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I exist again! Maybe FW will be better after a break, tends to be how I consume it, anyway. Oh, and I changed my thesis research to something cooler. I'm going to look at perceptions of crime and justice in Japanese mystery novels (probably Kirino Natsuo's work). And everyone keeps telling me not to use theory! Yay! I love humanities so much. |
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| Thursday, August 30th, 2007 |
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Is it sad that whenever I hear "fandom," I think of porn? My word association would seriously be something like: Q: Fandom? A: Porn! (Porn, shipping, slash, all the same. I'm sure fandom does other things, but the hell do I hear about it while I lurk wank comms? That's my excuse anyway.) |
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| Wednesday, August 29th, 2007 |
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Can I still blame the n00bs for the funny speeding downhill? I mean, this was very much a n00bfest. The majority of comments that were SRS BZNZ turned out to be from names I didn't recognize. And the amount of people willfully refusing to understand and play along with sarcasm pained me. Attempts to start funny isn't an invite for SRS BZNZ, yo! I hate n00bs :( and PvE servers, but that is neither here nor there. I almost feel like some fandom is coming to an end, in a way, even Fandom Wank. Though, I must admit, the Wraeththu stuff was pretty good (says the gaming nerd in training). At the very least, fandom is about to evolve to a new version of itself, as I am not sure it's going to stay on livejournal, at least the funny kind anyway. Harry Potter is calming down and clamping down, both because the series is over, and because a lot of people are scared shitless of being caught writing porn about characters in a children's set of novels (age of said characters notwithstanding). As I step back from fandom, I suppose it's much different to say that you write porn about a pair of FBI agents in an adult sci-fi TV show (X-Files), or for a teenage show (Buffy), or some fantasy series, or even comic books (lulz basement dweller). These are things that have been sanctioned as alright for adults to watch and, in a way, perv over. But, children's books? It's like dirtying the children's boundaries to some, I would imagine, not to mention the idiocy of "the children will find it and have their fragile little minds warped!" (This gets worse the more gay you add... and HP has plenty in fandom). In a way, Harry Potter belongs to children and young adults before it belongs to adults, and for adults to make it porny probably makes the mainstream far more uncomfortable than doing so for something that isn't aimed at children. You're weird regardless, but it's skeezier to write about stuff kids enjoy. The tainting of future childhood nostalgia aside, you're also admitting to the world that you LURVE something people consider to be "for children" to a point of near-obsession. It seems off, and childish, to some. There are people that like to make a big deal about their adult interests, and so this concept of liking HP THAT MUCH is likely rather foreign. You may also be creating rule 34 infractions for the next generation, which amuses me greatly. This is likely a good part of why HP authors have been getting more paranoid, as they are being targeted, and everyone is likely going to think them even more freaky than the fen writing about hot hobbit sex. If you live in a conservative enough place, it may even ruin your career or at least get you ostracized from the community at large for a bit. BUT, REALLY, WHY IS THE FUNNY GONE? Now, I'm sure Fandom Wank will survive, and the n00bs will either learn, or get bored and wander off somewhere they can be serious business in peace. I even know a lot of why the funny is gone, and it isn't just the n00bs. We need some more fandom scouts, and a new Big Name Fandom... and for fen to decide where they're going to hold fandom court now that LJ is looking too unfriendly for their persecution complexes. Wow, this turned into some mighty teal deer, pretty quick, eh? I just wanted to whine about n00bs some more. |
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| Saturday, August 18th, 2007 |
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I'm pretty sure this requires doublethink to actually function, or at least a very, very poor grasp of basic science. Either way it's epic-shooting-fish-in-a-barrel lulz. Granted, this is the same fringe group that uses "well, if what you say is true, then it follows that God is a liar, and since that is impossible, your argument must be false" as an actual argument. Repeatedly. |
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| Friday, August 17th, 2007 |
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My husband sat on top of a door last night (which I had to get out of bed to hold) in order to reach the smoke detector to get it to stop telling us it needed a new battery. At least the Shoebox has high ceilings! Yeah. And as soon as I finish this post, he's going to alternate between beating the shit out of me as I figure out my new weapon, and working on wrist strength (AH). TRUE FAX. |
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Why oh why must the wiki be down when I finally want to use it? Like to read up on Aja and the Fall of Gryffindor Tower? (...it's like a Slytherin Mary Sue fanfic title, isn't it) Man, Harry Potter is some fucked up fandom. Though I suppose that's a byproduct of its hugeness. Is Star Wars this bad? I figure Star Trek has to be. |
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| Wednesday, August 15th, 2007 |
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Being tired is kinda like being drunk, especially when it's partially medication-induced. Oh, and I must say, GAH at this. I understand that there are common tropes in stories, especially for children, that reinforce stereotypes and gender roles, and that we need to really think about these things, especially as it's kids that's going to watch it. But, sometimes you see what you want to see. This summary just pisses me off for some reason, though I can see where she's coming from. That, and, uh, if you want to pick on non-feminist stuff in the film, there are both the points that there are no female rats as far as I could tell, and that the romance happened just because it was a guy and a girl in a movie, and was really degrading towards the woman. And God, the Randian nonsense in the comments. I almost wish someone would burn it all so I'd never have to hear about Ubermensch philosophy pervading our lives at pointless times ever again. This is what happens when English majors get together and use their powers for evil. |
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I'm starting to think the best litmus test ever for FW is to have Sep temporarily joke ban a newbie and track them for a response. I mean, I would like to think kids would roll with the punches, but there are apparently a lot of tl;dr tightwads in fandom, who would have known? Plus, hey, it gives the martyrfen a quick way to leave with a nice flounce. Granted, this would take far too long and they'd all catch on to the hazing process. I suppose all the new kids will either get with the program, leave in tears about mean girls, or (godforbid) mold FW into Playtime Wank Discussion while the older members move on. I mean, am I the only one that lurks for awhile before posting to see if I can keep up with the pace rather than making an ass of myself? And I really need to get a written style guide as my punctuation appears to be full of fail lately. |
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If everything goes according to plan tomorrow, I should be able to commence the It'll help me study for the placement test, honest! /obsession What can I say, I like playing clerics in D&D because a fantasy world is the only place gods actually exist. That, and no one else tends to leap for them and they make interesting tanks, if money-whoring ones (though I think the cleric/wizard is worse for it). And, for my off-topic comment of the day, I'm really sad this community is dead, stillborn even. If only I gamed with a group of wankers. Hell, if only I had a solid gaming group out here at the moment. |
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A recent post on Pharyngula got me thinking about writing, of all things. Myers mentioned that he was never really able to get into Harry Potter as it was rather formulaic, which, in retrospect, I can heartily agree with. Which, of course, got me to thinking about other series and their formulas. Anne McCaffrey, for an obvious example, seems to write the same book over and over again (especially in her sci-fi novels, which I had a big thing for when I was younger and had less taste). I can't remember the exact formula, but I do remember that in the last sliver of every book, the hero and heroine realized their feelings and got it on in what appears to be the same sex scene copy and pasted into each book with minor variations. When I was ten and the only true response I remember was sweaty palms and a racing heart, these final slivers of love declaration and softcore banging were my favorite (my copy of Damia was rather worn there, to be honest). I've also been reading Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files, which have both pleased and displeased me. His characters are hit-or-miss with me, but I like how Butcher has seamlessly woven together Earth's occult traditions in a vaguely realistic-feeling manner. What ends up grating is the fact that the books follow a very similar formula in some ways. The plots are decently well put together (though I think I can piece one together now and track it if I had to -- though, his are far better than most in the paranormal detective genre), and I like his character has flaws (kind of) and makes mistakes. I also like that there is a lot of past there, and it is well woven into the story to make it deeper and give later mysteries to build on. Bob is, in fact, one of the best characters ever. But, well, I'm getting tired of the hero getting the snot beat out of him several times (shouldn't he be dead? Brain-damaged?), then getting down to HIS ABSOLUTE LAST TINY BIT OF ENERGY OUT OF MANA IN SO MUCH PAIN I CAN HARDLY MOVE OMG... then finding enough power to incinerate the bad guy and win. This seems to be a common ending, though it is woven differently every time. Oh, and add in misunderstandings with his cop buddy because he's being chivalrous and protecting her or something stupid. It isn't even a full formula, and yet it grates because it is always there. I suppose this is what happens when you pop out about a book a year. So, is a formula good or bad? Is it the sign of a lazy writer or a natural thing to writing? Is it comforting to some, am I alone in finding it grating? Is it equally grating when someone obviously tries to buck a formula and be a super special snowflake? Does bucking cliches and tropes completely just make you look pathetic? Or is it just the repetitiveness and artificial feel of the formula that I find so displeasing? A taste thing? All I know is that I eventually lose patience with being able to predict a book completely. I wonder if a part of it is that the reader just isn't drawn into the book, the details, and the interactions that make this iteration unique. Are there authors that avoid this with any sort of skill? I'm pretty sure Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire is doing alright with it, but the fact there are five million narrators helps make the plot so complicated that it is hard to tell :P I'd post this to fandom_discuss, but it's late and I'm feeling wussy at the moment. |
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| Tuesday, August 14th, 2007 |
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Dear Fireborn, Having a true god stat in a system with four stats? Lame, especially when both casters and physical fighters need it to be high. (Of course, mine is low, so I get no actions. :'( GO TEAM ME) And having what amounts to a core rulebook that is missing about twenty pages, twenty pages that are conveniently the core of the DMG with a bunch of BS filler about secret societies? Also lame. Watching Bob prepare for a session consists of him grumpily flipping through both books. If I didn't know better, this would seem like a ploy to get more money out of interested parties, as an extra twenty pages or so would have made the entire system contained in one book. And no, I really don't care about your mediocrily thought out worldscope. If you didn't hit his weak spot (LOL DRAGONS) I swear you'd be abandoned. I'm still dreading combat sequences, though the feel is going well (NO THANKS TO YOUR DMG). Though, I suppose a reborn dragon PI in a film noir style game doesn't need to fight, right? Right? Guys? |
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JournalFen for Lyssa Fairfellow.
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