June 6, 2003
Blue Man Group
Is anyone interested in going to the Blue Man Group Complex Tour show August 23rd? I'll be ordering tickets by the end of the weekend (tickets range from 30-50 dollars, I'll probably snag the 50 dollar ones).
Blocked
I'm blocked at the moment. Maybe I can only write when my supervisor (who's currently on vacation) threatens to peer over my shoulder and see that I'm not coding.
Ugh.
Ugh.
Ugh.
This morning I threw on my preferred pair of jeans, and I had a pressing feeling of discomfort.
Anyone want to join the rock climbing gym again?
Anyone want to join the rock climbing gym again?
June 5, 2003
Other aromatic herbs
If I've been relatively silent for the past couple of days, it's because I've had numerous things to do--the APA City Cup is coming up, and since I'm captain of the team, I've been trying to get things put together so we go into our match on Saturday prepared.
On top of that, I've been writing some things for fun (a couple of Buffy crossovers and stuff like that). It's not really anything substantial, but it feels good to get back into writing.
Work has got me continuing to code the e-mail client (gee, let's reinvent the wheel again). Of course, developing this from scratch is rather better than grabbing something just for Windows CE, especially if we want to migrate our client to a more robust platform like Windows 2000 (eyugh) laptops or hopefully, a Linux handheld product.
The nice thing is that we've finally released the previous revision of our code, so I can finally start integrating the changes that I've been making over the past two months, and start testing. We need to implement CVS here.
Over the course of this week, I've purchased Hero (see icon), The Animatrix, Castle in the Sky, a bunch of comic books, and five TokyoPop Manga releases, including Love Hina 11, Cowboy Bebop, Kare Kano, and Battle Royale. The last three manga are just to see if I like them (plus Waldenbooks was having a 'buy 4 books, get the 5th free' sale).
If you liked Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, I'd strongly urge you to look for a copy of Hero.
I spend too much money. It's a good thing I took a couple of Poker tournaments two weekends ago...
On top of that, I've been writing some things for fun (a couple of Buffy crossovers and stuff like that). It's not really anything substantial, but it feels good to get back into writing.
Work has got me continuing to code the e-mail client (gee, let's reinvent the wheel again). Of course, developing this from scratch is rather better than grabbing something just for Windows CE, especially if we want to migrate our client to a more robust platform like Windows 2000 (eyugh) laptops or hopefully, a Linux handheld product.
The nice thing is that we've finally released the previous revision of our code, so I can finally start integrating the changes that I've been making over the past two months, and start testing. We need to implement CVS here.
Over the course of this week, I've purchased Hero (see icon), The Animatrix, Castle in the Sky, a bunch of comic books, and five TokyoPop Manga releases, including Love Hina 11, Cowboy Bebop, Kare Kano, and Battle Royale. The last three manga are just to see if I like them (plus Waldenbooks was having a 'buy 4 books, get the 5th free' sale).
If you liked Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, I'd strongly urge you to look for a copy of Hero.
I spend too much money. It's a good thing I took a couple of Poker tournaments two weekends ago...
June 4, 2003
You know, working with someone who used to work for the NSA is pretty entertaining.
Lifted from,
1.You're a character in a work of great literature not originally published in English. Which work and who are you?
Li Mu Bai, the man who cannot pursue the object of his affections because of his loyalty to his comrade from Wang Du Lu's Crane - Iron Pentalogy (which includes Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon).
2. The orchestra is building to the crescendo of the Ode to Joy. Who and where are you?
I'm myself, in my car, singing along.
3. Someone just died. How are you involved?
I'm not. I'm getting informed of it second-hand.
4. Two people are having an argument. Why is it your fault?
Because I haven't told the truth.
5. You're cooking a meal in a kitchen that is not your own. What are you making?
This is never going to happen in the near future.
6. You're standing quietly with your eyes closed. How many other people are standing around you and who are they?
Zero. I'm standing under the shower with the water turned too hot.
Lifted from
1.You're a character in a work of great literature not originally published in English. Which work and who are you?
Li Mu Bai, the man who cannot pursue the object of his affections because of his loyalty to his comrade from Wang Du Lu's Crane - Iron Pentalogy (which includes Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon).
2. The orchestra is building to the crescendo of the Ode to Joy. Who and where are you?
I'm myself, in my car, singing along.
3. Someone just died. How are you involved?
I'm not. I'm getting informed of it second-hand.
4. Two people are having an argument. Why is it your fault?
Because I haven't told the truth.
5. You're cooking a meal in a kitchen that is not your own. What are you making?
This is never going to happen in the near future.
6. You're standing quietly with your eyes closed. How many other people are standing around you and who are they?
Zero. I'm standing under the shower with the water turned too hot.
You know, working with someone who used to work for the NSA is pretty entertaining.
Lifted from,
1.You're a character in a work of great literature not originally published in English. Which work and who are you?
Li Mu Bai, the man who cannot pursue the object of his affections because of his loyalty to his comrade from Wang Du Lu's Crane - Iron Pentalogy (which includes Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon).
2. The orchestra is building to the crescendo of the Ode to Joy. Who and where are you?
I'm myself, in my car, singing along.
3. Someone just died. How are you involved?
I'm not. I'm getting informed of it second-hand.
4. Two people are having an argument. Why is it your fault?
Because I haven't told the truth.
5. You're cooking a meal in a kitchen that is not your own. What are you making?
This is never going to happen in the near future.
6. You're standing quietly with your eyes closed. How many other people are standing around you and who are they?
Zero. I'm standing under the shower with the water turned too hot.
Lifted from
1.You're a character in a work of great literature not originally published in English. Which work and who are you?
Li Mu Bai, the man who cannot pursue the object of his affections because of his loyalty to his comrade from Wang Du Lu's Crane - Iron Pentalogy (which includes Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon).
2. The orchestra is building to the crescendo of the Ode to Joy. Who and where are you?
I'm myself, in my car, singing along.
3. Someone just died. How are you involved?
I'm not. I'm getting informed of it second-hand.
4. Two people are having an argument. Why is it your fault?
Because I haven't told the truth.
5. You're cooking a meal in a kitchen that is not your own. What are you making?
This is never going to happen in the near future.
6. You're standing quietly with your eyes closed. How many other people are standing around you and who are they?
Zero. I'm standing under the shower with the water turned too hot.
May 31, 2003
May 30, 2003
Zig-a-zig-ah
This turned out entirely differently than what I had intended to write, but I like it nonetheless...
For,
In the moments after the bus stops, they trade quips and wisecracks to one another, seeing how far they can go to make each other laugh.
It's become something of a ritual to them now.
It helps them loosen the tension of just having been in an apocalyptic battle for the world. It helps them cool down from the fighting and the running. Mostly, it helps them not burst into tears or soil their underwear.
Xander tries his best for something witty, playing off of Dawn, but his lines mostly fall flat, and he knows it. He usually obliterates everyone's apprehension with some self-effacing joke, but something's wrong this time.
Even in her exhaustion, Willow sees, and though she looks towards the bus, scanning its windows and the line of people streaming out, she somehow knows that she won't find one person coming out.
By now, Xander is trying desperately to hold himself back, and he wonders how exactly weeping works when one of your eyes is gone. In the warming blurriness of his periphery, he sees the pale red of her hair approach, and she wraps his hand within hers. Willow notices, for a moment, that she has quieted a taut shaking which has gone unnoticed by everyone else.
He can feel the cool wetness of a tear flow down his cheek, but, his hand clasped in hers, he makes no move to wipe it away.
For
Aftershock
In the moments after the bus stops, they trade quips and wisecracks to one another, seeing how far they can go to make each other laugh.
It's become something of a ritual to them now.
It helps them loosen the tension of just having been in an apocalyptic battle for the world. It helps them cool down from the fighting and the running. Mostly, it helps them not burst into tears or soil their underwear.
Xander tries his best for something witty, playing off of Dawn, but his lines mostly fall flat, and he knows it. He usually obliterates everyone's apprehension with some self-effacing joke, but something's wrong this time.
Even in her exhaustion, Willow sees, and though she looks towards the bus, scanning its windows and the line of people streaming out, she somehow knows that she won't find one person coming out.
By now, Xander is trying desperately to hold himself back, and he wonders how exactly weeping works when one of your eyes is gone. In the warming blurriness of his periphery, he sees the pale red of her hair approach, and she wraps his hand within hers. Willow notices, for a moment, that she has quieted a taut shaking which has gone unnoticed by everyone else.
He can feel the cool wetness of a tear flow down his cheek, but, his hand clasped in hers, he makes no move to wipe it away.
Zig-a-zig-ah
This turned out entirely differently than what I had intended to write, but I like it nonetheless...
For,
In the moments after the bus stops, they trade quips and wisecracks to one another, seeing how far they can go to make each other laugh.
It's become something of a ritual to them now.
It helps them loosen the tension of just having been in an apocalyptic battle for the world. It helps them cool down from the fighting and the running. Mostly, it helps them not burst into tears or soil their underwear.
Xander tries his best for something witty, playing off of Dawn, but his lines mostly fall flat, and he knows it. He usually obliterates everyone's apprehension with some self-effacing joke, but something's wrong this time.
Even in her exhaustion, Willow sees, and though she looks towards the bus, scanning its windows and the line of people streaming out, she somehow knows that she won't find one person coming out.
By now, Xander is trying desperately to hold himself back, and he wonders how exactly weeping works when one of your eyes is gone. In the warming blurriness of his periphery, he sees the pale red of her hair approach, and she wraps his hand within hers. Willow notices, for a moment, that she has quieted a taut shaking which has gone unnoticed by everyone else.
He can feel the cool wetness of a tear flow down his cheek, but, his hand clasped in hers, he makes no move to wipe it away.
For
Aftershock
In the moments after the bus stops, they trade quips and wisecracks to one another, seeing how far they can go to make each other laugh.
It's become something of a ritual to them now.
It helps them loosen the tension of just having been in an apocalyptic battle for the world. It helps them cool down from the fighting and the running. Mostly, it helps them not burst into tears or soil their underwear.
Xander tries his best for something witty, playing off of Dawn, but his lines mostly fall flat, and he knows it. He usually obliterates everyone's apprehension with some self-effacing joke, but something's wrong this time.
Even in her exhaustion, Willow sees, and though she looks towards the bus, scanning its windows and the line of people streaming out, she somehow knows that she won't find one person coming out.
By now, Xander is trying desperately to hold himself back, and he wonders how exactly weeping works when one of your eyes is gone. In the warming blurriness of his periphery, he sees the pale red of her hair approach, and she wraps his hand within hers. Willow notices, for a moment, that she has quieted a taut shaking which has gone unnoticed by everyone else.
He can feel the cool wetness of a tear flow down his cheek, but, his hand clasped in hers, he makes no move to wipe it away.
So this is why I'm single...
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Apparently I need more friends, too... :)
So this is why I'm single...
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Apparently I need more friends, too... :)
A Buffy Casting Quiz
I threw this together while I was mulling over the odd connections between cast members in Buffy and Angel. I'm going to name characters from Buffy and/or Angel. Name the movie/tv project in which the actors who played the listed characters shared roles. They don't necessarily have to be on-screen together, and in the television series case, they don't necessarily have to be in the same episode.
Bonus question: Buffy and Whistler shared a scene in a seminal teen comedy from the 80s. Can you name the movie (or for extra points, recite the most famous line from the scene...)?
I'll wait for someone to get everything right, or post the answers on Monday.
Edit: Well, got everything right, not nearly an hour after I posted it, but I've screened her answers so some other people can have some fun. I'll unscreen everything at 6:00 PM (Eastern) or so.
- Spike, Whistler
- Tara, Faith, Maggie Walsh
- Ford, Darla
- Jesse, Gavin Park
- Parker, Darla
- Luke, Natalie French
- Faith, Glory
- Willow, Oz
- The Master, Chao-Ahn
- Whistler, Holland Manners
Bonus question: Buffy and Whistler shared a scene in a seminal teen comedy from the 80s. Can you name the movie (or for extra points, recite the most famous line from the scene...)?
I'll wait for someone to get everything right, or post the answers on Monday.
Edit: Well,
A Buffy Casting Quiz
I threw this together while I was mulling over the odd connections between cast members in Buffy and Angel. I'm going to name characters from Buffy and/or Angel. Name the movie/tv project in which the actors who played the listed characters shared roles. They don't necessarily have to be on-screen together, and in the television series case, they don't necessarily have to be in the same episode.
Bonus question: Buffy and Whistler shared a scene in a seminal teen comedy from the 80s. Can you name the movie (or for extra points, recite the most famous line from the scene...)?
I'll wait for someone to get everything right, or post the answers on Monday.
Edit: Well, got everything right, not nearly an hour after I posted it, but I've screened her answers so some other people can have some fun. I'll unscreen everything at 6:00 PM (Eastern) or so.
- Spike, Whistler
- Tara, Faith, Maggie Walsh
- Ford, Darla
- Jesse, Gavin Park
- Parker, Darla
- Luke, Natalie French
- Faith, Glory
- Willow, Oz
- The Master, Chao-Ahn
- Whistler, Holland Manners
Bonus question: Buffy and Whistler shared a scene in a seminal teen comedy from the 80s. Can you name the movie (or for extra points, recite the most famous line from the scene...)?
I'll wait for someone to get everything right, or post the answers on Monday.
Edit: Well,
May 28, 2003
Pool and a book thing...
Played pool against the new Sidelines team last night. Ollie played it straight for the first time ever, and I eked out a win against their captain, Corey. He had taken the first four games in a five-three race, but his teammate was talking on the phone and said during the fifth game "and Corey's about to win his match..." Corey groaned, and I hooted. Weauxf Gawds, you rock. I managed to win the next three games with a combination of hooks, forced banks and kicks, and blocked pockets. Ollie really helped out with the timeouts. I couldn't make a shot all night, but I ended up playing some really awful defense shots against him, as well as getting quite lucky on some leaves after a few missed shots. He finally tried a jump shot after I hooked him on the eight ball, and the eight knocked the cue into a pocket. Whew!
Lifted from...
Lifted from
- What's your favorite book of all time? Why? Top ten favorites?
Of all time?? I can't really pick one. I haven't really read a lot of books (at least nothing I would call great), but from my current library, I couldn't really point to one single book and say it's my favorite. The wide variety of subjects and genres in my top ten list doesn't really help...
Top ten (in no particular order):
The Biggest Game in Town A. Alvarez
Into Thin Air Jon Krakauer
Endurance Alfred Lansing
Stardust Neil Gaiman
The Prince of Tides Pat Conroy
A Prayer for Owen Meany John Irving
Hackers Steven Levy
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban J.K. Rowling
Amped: Notes from a Go-Nowhere Punk Band Jon Resh
Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky
And this is setting aside any comic books/graphic novels that I care for... - Is there any author who's been so consistently wonderful that you've devoured all of his or her work and actually enjoyed *all or most* of it?
Neil Gaiman is the obvious choice, but John Irving as well. A. Alvarez and Jon Krakauer both have smaller bodies of work which I relish reading. - What book do you most often recommend to other people?
Both The Biggest Game in Town, because I mostly associate with lowlifes and gamblers and Amped: Notes from a Go-Nowhere Punk Band, because it's an absolutely hilarious look at some of the antics of some of my Florida colleagues. - What book should be turned into a movie? Should they even *do* that? Does it kill the book?
The Biggest Game in Town or Bringing Down the House by Ben Mezrich. Both books have great Mamet-esque characters (based on real-life people), and enough of the seedy Las Vegas gambling world to make things interesting.
In general, I tend not to like movie adaptations (Sorcerer's Stone did nothing for me), but there are occasional gems which come out. I quite liked the movie adaptation of The Cider House Rules; but Simon Birch was just a bastardization, and Streisand completely ruined The Prince of Tides (way to excise the entire Luke Wingo subplot, Babs). - What's your favorite biography? Am I the only one who likes those?
I haven't really read any biographies, but I'm hoping Amarillo Slim in a World Full of Fat People (by Amarillo Slim Preston) will be a good read about the former World Series of Poker Champ.
Pool and a book thing...
Played pool against the new Sidelines team last night. Ollie played it straight for the first time ever, and I eked out a win against their captain, Corey. He had taken the first four games in a five-three race, but his teammate was talking on the phone and said during the fifth game "and Corey's about to win his match..." Corey groaned, and I hooted. Weauxf Gawds, you rock. I managed to win the next three games with a combination of hooks, forced banks and kicks, and blocked pockets. Ollie really helped out with the timeouts. I couldn't make a shot all night, but I ended up playing some really awful defense shots against him, as well as getting quite lucky on some leaves after a few missed shots. He finally tried a jump shot after I hooked him on the eight ball, and the eight knocked the cue into a pocket. Whew!
Lifted from...
Lifted from
- What's your favorite book of all time? Why? Top ten favorites?
Of all time?? I can't really pick one. I haven't really read a lot of books (at least nothing I would call great), but from my current library, I couldn't really point to one single book and say it's my favorite. The wide variety of subjects and genres in my top ten list doesn't really help...
Top ten (in no particular order):
The Biggest Game in Town A. Alvarez
Into Thin Air Jon Krakauer
Endurance Alfred Lansing
Stardust Neil Gaiman
The Prince of Tides Pat Conroy
A Prayer for Owen Meany John Irving
Hackers Steven Levy
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban J.K. Rowling
Amped: Notes from a Go-Nowhere Punk Band Jon Resh
Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky
And this is setting aside any comic books/graphic novels that I care for... - Is there any author who's been so consistently wonderful that you've devoured all of his or her work and actually enjoyed *all or most* of it?
Neil Gaiman is the obvious choice, but John Irving as well. A. Alvarez and Jon Krakauer both have smaller bodies of work which I relish reading. - What book do you most often recommend to other people?
Both The Biggest Game in Town, because I mostly associate with lowlifes and gamblers and Amped: Notes from a Go-Nowhere Punk Band, because it's an absolutely hilarious look at some of the antics of some of my Florida colleagues. - What book should be turned into a movie? Should they even *do* that? Does it kill the book?
The Biggest Game in Town or Bringing Down the House by Ben Mezrich. Both books have great Mamet-esque characters (based on real-life people), and enough of the seedy Las Vegas gambling world to make things interesting.
In general, I tend not to like movie adaptations (Sorcerer's Stone did nothing for me), but there are occasional gems which come out. I quite liked the movie adaptation of The Cider House Rules; but Simon Birch was just a bastardization, and Streisand completely ruined The Prince of Tides (way to excise the entire Luke Wingo subplot, Babs). - What's your favorite biography? Am I the only one who likes those?
I haven't really read any biographies, but I'm hoping Amarillo Slim in a World Full of Fat People (by Amarillo Slim Preston) will be a good read about the former World Series of Poker Champ.
May 27, 2003
May 26, 2003
Spades
Tonight, I discovered that I am an extremely sore loser when it comes to games where my ultimate performance depends on someone else.
It's a wonder that I'm not even more bitter than I already am.
It's a wonder that I'm not even more bitter than I already am.
Spades
Tonight, I discovered that I am an extremely sore loser when it comes to games where my ultimate performance depends on someone else.
It's a wonder that I'm not even more bitter than I already am.
It's a wonder that I'm not even more bitter than I already am.
Notes from the weekend...
- Amy and Runa, in the process of playing four poker tournaments have had a meteoric rise in their Texas Hold'em playing ability.
- If you're going to hold a tournament with over T$6000, make sure you start the blinds out significantly higher than with a tournament with T$250 in chips.
- Playing tournaments is a great way of learning what to play and what not to play.
- Smokers get very, very irritable when they're not allowed to smoke, especially at the card table.
- When you're playing heads-up, anything can happen. Don't be too wary to push all in on a less-than nut hand; otherwise, you'll just end up losing your blinds.
- If you're chip leader, bullying raises will get you a lot of blinds.
In other news, we gave
He had no clue what was going on with it, and his confusion was even more exquisite because Tony got him a Garth Brooks CD to add to the mystery. When he finally found the CF card, though, he held it up between two fingers and looked at us all, and exclaimed, "Sweet..."
Notes from the weekend...
- Amy and Runa, in the process of playing four poker tournaments have had a meteoric rise in their Texas Hold'em playing ability.
- If you're going to hold a tournament with over T$6000, make sure you start the blinds out significantly higher than with a tournament with T$250 in chips.
- Playing tournaments is a great way of learning what to play and what not to play.
- Smokers get very, very irritable when they're not allowed to smoke, especially at the card table.
- When you're playing heads-up, anything can happen. Don't be too wary to push all in on a less-than nut hand; otherwise, you'll just end up losing your blinds.
- If you're chip leader, bullying raises will get you a lot of blinds.
In other news, we gave
He had no clue what was going on with it, and his confusion was even more exquisite because Tony got him a Garth Brooks CD to add to the mystery. When he finally found the CF card, though, he held it up between two fingers and looked at us all, and exclaimed, "Sweet..."
May 23, 2003
I just freaked myself out.
I was listening to music and suddenly got in a mood to make an icon just now--Looking up and down my playlist, I saw Lyle Lovett's "If I Had a Boat," which is a really great song. So I decide to make an icon with the line "and if I had a pony, I'd ride him on my boat." Except I can't really find a good picture to go with that image from my usual fandoms. Buffy never really rides a horse. Until I hit upon the perfect subject.
The Ring, with the whole horse-on-the-ferry, creepy-blood-psycho thing.
And then I get a total wiggins. ::shudder::
I think I'll leave that icon for someone else...
The Ring, with the whole horse-on-the-ferry, creepy-blood-psycho thing.
And then I get a total wiggins. ::shudder::
I think I'll leave that icon for someone else...
I just freaked myself out.
I was listening to music and suddenly got in a mood to make an icon just now--Looking up and down my playlist, I saw Lyle Lovett's "If I Had a Boat," which is a really great song. So I decide to make an icon with the line "and if I had a pony, I'd ride him on my boat." Except I can't really find a good picture to go with that image from my usual fandoms. Buffy never really rides a horse. Until I hit upon the perfect subject.
The Ring, with the whole horse-on-the-ferry, creepy-blood-psycho thing.
And then I get a total wiggins. ::shudder::
I think I'll leave that icon for someone else...
The Ring, with the whole horse-on-the-ferry, creepy-blood-psycho thing.
And then I get a total wiggins. ::shudder::
I think I'll leave that icon for someone else...
May 22, 2003
Buffy thingy...
- Name your favorite character ever. Yes. You can only pick one. Maybe two: Xander. Duh.
- Give one line you love: Well, shit...
Xander's "Do you know what's a good day to break up with somebody? Any day BUT Valentine's Day! I mean, what, were you running low on dramatic irony?" has a particular resonance for me, considering an ex broke up with me on Valentine's; which leads to Spike's "I may be Love's bitch, but at least I'm man enough to admit it," but I just can't get past the pure, unadulterated snark of Giles' "If you want to criticize my methods, fine. But you can keep your snide remarks to yourself. And while you're at it, don't criticize my methods." - Favorite three episodes. Maybe five: "When She Was Bad," "Becoming II," "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered."
- Favorite villain: Angelus.
- Favorite song used in a scene: "Sugar Water" by Cibo Matto during the Buffy-Xander Nasty Dance in "When She Was Bad."
- Favorite season: Season 2, the zenith of Buffy writing.
- Scariest episode: "Hush" (or I could say "Beer Bad" for the utter fear it awakened in me that my favorite television show was dying...)
- Best kiss/sex scene/romantic whatever... it can be tame or not: Either the clothes fluke or t-shirt-clad Willow trying to seduce Xander from his bed in "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered."
- Favorite relationship (of any kind): Xander/Willow (big shock, huh?).
- Set/location you'll miss the most: The High School Library.
Buffy thingy...
- Name your favorite character ever. Yes. You can only pick one. Maybe two: Xander. Duh.
- Give one line you love: Well, shit...
Xander's "Do you know what's a good day to break up with somebody? Any day BUT Valentine's Day! I mean, what, were you running low on dramatic irony?" has a particular resonance for me, considering an ex broke up with me on Valentine's; which leads to Spike's "I may be Love's bitch, but at least I'm man enough to admit it," but I just can't get past the pure, unadulterated snark of Giles' "If you want to criticize my methods, fine. But you can keep your snide remarks to yourself. And while you're at it, don't criticize my methods." - Favorite three episodes. Maybe five: "When She Was Bad," "Becoming II," "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered."
- Favorite villain: Angelus.
- Favorite song used in a scene: "Sugar Water" by Cibo Matto during the Buffy-Xander Nasty Dance in "When She Was Bad."
- Favorite season: Season 2, the zenith of Buffy writing.
- Scariest episode: "Hush" (or I could say "Beer Bad" for the utter fear it awakened in me that my favorite television show was dying...)
- Best kiss/sex scene/romantic whatever... it can be tame or not: Either the clothes fluke or t-shirt-clad Willow trying to seduce Xander from his bed in "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered."
- Favorite relationship (of any kind): Xander/Willow (big shock, huh?).
- Set/location you'll miss the most: The High School Library.
May 21, 2003
Script for "Chosen"
I'm not sure of the validity of it, but I just skimmed a script for "Chosen" linked to off of Usenet. If this is, indeed, an earlier draft of the episode, I think it sits thematically better than what was presented. Of course, major spoilers for the episode, and a slightly more catatonia-inspiring ending (this means you, ...)
Part the first * Part the second
Part the first * Part the second
Script for "Chosen"
I'm not sure of the validity of it, but I just skimmed a script for "Chosen" linked to off of Usenet. If this is, indeed, an earlier draft of the episode, I think it sits thematically better than what was presented. Of course, major spoilers for the episode, and a slightly more catatonia-inspiring ending (this means you, ...)
Part the first * Part the second
Part the first * Part the second
May 19, 2003
A little bit of writing...
Yes. I wrote fanfic. This was for . I've since revised what I placed there--this is the result.
Title: Still untitled...
Summary: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Timeline: Second Age, sometime. Prior to the forging of the One Ring.
He found her at her mirror.
He watched her as her seemingly empty stare fixed on the near-overflowing pool of water--he made no motion to interrupt her, fearing to break her concentration.
"Celebrimbor," she called out to him.
"Lady, it is finished," he replied as he hurried forward. The cloth bundle he carried was slightly longer than his arm, and he unwrapped it as he proffered it to her. Inside, an axe head glinted silver in the moonlight.
"The blade is without compare, shaped from the Mithril of Hadhodrond by the hand of Narvi--and just as you asked, my handle--" He turned the axe and traced a finger down the studded handle to where it joined to wood--a solid section that tapered to a point.
"Splendid," she replied, and took the weapon from him.
From all around, a throng of women--human women--crept from the shadows of the forest. She gave them the axe, and they retreated to a clearing close by.
Celebrimbor watched as each woman, softly muttering, reached her hand beneath her own underclothes and brought it out, smeared with blood. Together, they touched the blade and handle, painting the weapon red.
"Lady?" he asked, incredulous. "We are at peace. What man requires such an enchanted weapon?"
"No," she countered. "No man." The Lady gestured to the mirror.
In the rippled images, Celebrimbor spied a peasant girl striking at a giant bat; a shield-maiden, sword in hand, her flesh melting as she grappled with a balrog. Girls, countless faces--some in braids, some dressed as men--all fighting the unknown and unspeakable.
And a young, fair-haired girl, bloodied and bruised, standing strong in strange clothing, ready for battle against an array of beasts.
"It is for her alone."
Notes: My first real foray into fanfic. In Tolkien lore, Celebrimbor forged the Three Elven Rings, he and Narvi created the Durin's Door ("Speak 'friend'..."), and Hadhodrond is the Elven name for Moria. I think from now on, I'm going to call what everyone's mislabelling "The Scythe," the "mmglih."
Title: Still untitled...
Summary: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Timeline: Second Age, sometime. Prior to the forging of the One Ring.
He found her at her mirror.
He watched her as her seemingly empty stare fixed on the near-overflowing pool of water--he made no motion to interrupt her, fearing to break her concentration.
"Celebrimbor," she called out to him.
"Lady, it is finished," he replied as he hurried forward. The cloth bundle he carried was slightly longer than his arm, and he unwrapped it as he proffered it to her. Inside, an axe head glinted silver in the moonlight.
"The blade is without compare, shaped from the Mithril of Hadhodrond by the hand of Narvi--and just as you asked, my handle--" He turned the axe and traced a finger down the studded handle to where it joined to wood--a solid section that tapered to a point.
"Splendid," she replied, and took the weapon from him.
From all around, a throng of women--human women--crept from the shadows of the forest. She gave them the axe, and they retreated to a clearing close by.
Celebrimbor watched as each woman, softly muttering, reached her hand beneath her own underclothes and brought it out, smeared with blood. Together, they touched the blade and handle, painting the weapon red.
"Lady?" he asked, incredulous. "We are at peace. What man requires such an enchanted weapon?"
"No," she countered. "No man." The Lady gestured to the mirror.
In the rippled images, Celebrimbor spied a peasant girl striking at a giant bat; a shield-maiden, sword in hand, her flesh melting as she grappled with a balrog. Girls, countless faces--some in braids, some dressed as men--all fighting the unknown and unspeakable.
And a young, fair-haired girl, bloodied and bruised, standing strong in strange clothing, ready for battle against an array of beasts.
"It is for her alone."
Notes: My first real foray into fanfic. In Tolkien lore, Celebrimbor forged the Three Elven Rings, he and Narvi created the Durin's Door ("Speak 'friend'..."), and Hadhodrond is the Elven name for Moria. I think from now on, I'm going to call what everyone's mislabelling "The Scythe," the "mmglih."
A little bit of writing...
Yes. I wrote fanfic. This was for . I've since revised what I placed there--this is the result.
Title: Still untitled...
Summary: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Timeline: Second Age, sometime. Prior to the forging of the One Ring.
He found her at her mirror.
He watched her as her seemingly empty stare fixed on the near-overflowing pool of water--he made no motion to interrupt her, fearing to break her concentration.
"Celebrimbor," she called out to him.
"Lady, it is finished," he replied as he hurried forward. The cloth bundle he carried was slightly longer than his arm, and he unwrapped it as he proffered it to her. Inside, an axe head glinted silver in the moonlight.
"The blade is without compare, shaped from the Mithril of Hadhodrond by the hand of Narvi--and just as you asked, my handle--" He turned the axe and traced a finger down the studded handle to where it joined to wood--a solid section that tapered to a point.
"Splendid," she replied, and took the weapon from him.
From all around, a throng of women--human women--crept from the shadows of the forest. She gave them the axe, and they retreated to a clearing close by.
Celebrimbor watched as each woman, softly muttering, reached her hand beneath her own underclothes and brought it out, smeared with blood. Together, they touched the blade and handle, painting the weapon red.
"Lady?" he asked, incredulous. "We are at peace. What man requires such an enchanted weapon?"
"No," she countered. "No man." The Lady gestured to the mirror.
In the rippled images, Celebrimbor spied a peasant girl striking at a giant bat; a shield-maiden, sword in hand, her flesh melting as she grappled with a balrog. Girls, countless faces--some in braids, some dressed as men--all fighting the unknown and unspeakable.
And a young, fair-haired girl, bloodied and bruised, standing strong in strange clothing, ready for battle against an array of beasts.
"It is for her alone."
Notes: My first real foray into fanfic. In Tolkien lore, Celebrimbor forged the Three Elven Rings, he and Narvi created the Durin's Door ("Speak 'friend'..."), and Hadhodrond is the Elven name for Moria. I think from now on, I'm going to call what everyone's mislabelling "The Scythe," the "mmglih."
Title: Still untitled...
Summary: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Timeline: Second Age, sometime. Prior to the forging of the One Ring.
He found her at her mirror.
He watched her as her seemingly empty stare fixed on the near-overflowing pool of water--he made no motion to interrupt her, fearing to break her concentration.
"Celebrimbor," she called out to him.
"Lady, it is finished," he replied as he hurried forward. The cloth bundle he carried was slightly longer than his arm, and he unwrapped it as he proffered it to her. Inside, an axe head glinted silver in the moonlight.
"The blade is without compare, shaped from the Mithril of Hadhodrond by the hand of Narvi--and just as you asked, my handle--" He turned the axe and traced a finger down the studded handle to where it joined to wood--a solid section that tapered to a point.
"Splendid," she replied, and took the weapon from him.
From all around, a throng of women--human women--crept from the shadows of the forest. She gave them the axe, and they retreated to a clearing close by.
Celebrimbor watched as each woman, softly muttering, reached her hand beneath her own underclothes and brought it out, smeared with blood. Together, they touched the blade and handle, painting the weapon red.
"Lady?" he asked, incredulous. "We are at peace. What man requires such an enchanted weapon?"
"No," she countered. "No man." The Lady gestured to the mirror.
In the rippled images, Celebrimbor spied a peasant girl striking at a giant bat; a shield-maiden, sword in hand, her flesh melting as she grappled with a balrog. Girls, countless faces--some in braids, some dressed as men--all fighting the unknown and unspeakable.
And a young, fair-haired girl, bloodied and bruised, standing strong in strange clothing, ready for battle against an array of beasts.
"It is for her alone."
Notes: My first real foray into fanfic. In Tolkien lore, Celebrimbor forged the Three Elven Rings, he and Narvi created the Durin's Door ("Speak 'friend'..."), and Hadhodrond is the Elven name for Moria. I think from now on, I'm going to call what everyone's mislabelling "The Scythe," the "mmglih."
May 16, 2003
More Free Advice...
If you opt to wear your glasses instead of contact lenses because your eyes are bothering you, make sure to tighten the screws on your glasses. You wouldn't want a lens to pop out suddenly and force you to bum a ride from your coworker to the eyeglass shop for a new screw.
More Free Advice...
If you opt to wear your glasses instead of contact lenses because your eyes are bothering you, make sure to tighten the screws on your glasses. You wouldn't want a lens to pop out suddenly and force you to bum a ride from your coworker to the eyeglass shop for a new screw.
May 15, 2003
Free Advice (or "Please Yell if You're Paying Attention")
If you've just been eating heavily-salted garlic-flavored plantain chips, make sure you wash your hands before putting contact lenses into your eyes.
Free Advice (or "Please Yell if You're Paying Attention")
If you've just been eating heavily-salted garlic-flavored plantain chips, make sure you wash your hands before putting contact lenses into your eyes.
May 13, 2003
The "perfect" film
A university lecturer has determined the formula for a "perfect" film
Now, I'm not necessarily saying that this is the definitive formula for a successful project, but does this sound like anything familiar? That's right... Early seasons of Buffy had this kind of mix. Season 4 suffered from too much Love/Sex/Romance and Plot, while Season 6 suffered from not enough comedy.
In fact, I'd daresay that the quality of comedy on Buffy took a tremendous downturn after Season 3.
- Action 30%
- Comedy 17%
- Good vs. Evil 13%
- Love/Sex/Romance 12%
- Special Effects 10%
- Plot 10%
- Music 8%
Now, I'm not necessarily saying that this is the definitive formula for a successful project, but does this sound like anything familiar? That's right... Early seasons of Buffy had this kind of mix. Season 4 suffered from too much Love/Sex/Romance and Plot, while Season 6 suffered from not enough comedy.
In fact, I'd daresay that the quality of comedy on Buffy took a tremendous downturn after Season 3.
The "perfect" film
A university lecturer has determined the formula for a "perfect" film
Now, I'm not necessarily saying that this is the definitive formula for a successful project, but does this sound like anything familiar? That's right... Early seasons of Buffy had this kind of mix. Season 4 suffered from too much Love/Sex/Romance and Plot, while Season 6 suffered from not enough comedy.
In fact, I'd daresay that the quality of comedy on Buffy took a tremendous downturn after Season 3.
- Action 30%
- Comedy 17%
- Good vs. Evil 13%
- Love/Sex/Romance 12%
- Special Effects 10%
- Plot 10%
- Music 8%
Now, I'm not necessarily saying that this is the definitive formula for a successful project, but does this sound like anything familiar? That's right... Early seasons of Buffy had this kind of mix. Season 4 suffered from too much Love/Sex/Romance and Plot, while Season 6 suffered from not enough comedy.
In fact, I'd daresay that the quality of comedy on Buffy took a tremendous downturn after Season 3.
May 7, 2003
Fray Musings
The appearance of Fray's axe/scythe in the most recent episode of Buffy, "Touched," kicked off a train of thought that's been brewing since I started picking up the series.
Spoilers for everything up until issue 6... most notably issue 3 and speculation for the final episodes of Buffy. (Excuse me if this has been discussed before...)
Maybe I'm just remembering "A New Man."
Since the beginning of Fray, I've had this suspicion that Urkonn is Giles. I've since revised that theory--I think Urkonn is one of the Scoobies (or the AI gang).
If you recall "A New Man," Giles somehow becomes transformed into a demon, and he and Spike have to somehow convince Buffy that he's not dangerous.
Now Urkonn and his spiraling goat horns bear a strong similarity to the Demon that Giles turned into in "A New Man," but there's other evidence:
Apparently, 200 years from now, projectile weapons are now antiques and the average street-wise thief has no idea what a bullet could be.
From Fray's description, the Internet and computing has grown beyond its current bounds and is now known as the Grid. She's not especially familiar with the current vernacular term "Computer," but she deduces that it means the Grid.
So based on the previous two items, I find it a bit strange that this demon, Urkonn, whose general speech is grounded in twenty-first-centuryisms doesn't really know what happened to the last slayer. He has "[his] reasons" for helping Fray, though. Granted these reasons could very well coincide with yet another plot by the demons that he's working for (from the opening sequence of Issue 1). Artist Karl Moline, however, imbues the close-up of his decayed face when he says "Because I don't know" with a certain melancholy--a sense which carries through his description of the final battle to his off-camera "I do not know if she lived..."
There is one facet of Fray that doesn't quite fit with these theories--when speaking with his superiors in Issue 5, one of them, Vrill is concerned about "[their] enemy." Urkonn responds, "The Watchers have presented themselves no threat ..." If Urkonn is a former Scooby, then why would ally himself against the Watchers? As he describes, however, the Watchers, after two hundred or so years of waiting, have become impatient and fanatical.
A theory on Urkonn and what it might mean for the Buffy Series Finale:
If you recall the bit of dialogue where Urkonn describes the final battle, the illustration that accompanies it shows a silhouette of a girl, a stake in one hand, and a simple battle axe in the other. Within the confines of Fray the comic, I think we may be meant to assume that this is Buffy. But because she isn't wielding the Slayer's Axe/Scythe (and because Angel the series likely wouldn't continue were she to banish all demons and magick from the Earth) I don't think this is Buffy (or, at least, it's not the series finale).
This scenario, however, offers up a good reason why one of the Scoobies/AI crew would be around and in demon form two hundred years hence. As we've seen from "A New Man," any human character can be transformed into a demon. If Joss does write this as the series finale, I've a couple of suggestions of who Urkonn could be.
Spike: When Fray first meets Urkonn, she attacks him, and in his short temper, Urkonn is a bit violent in his response. As we've seen in "Faith, Hope, and Trick," Kakistos, after an extremely long life as a vampire eventually transformed into a less-humanoid vampire, indeed one with cloven hooves, like Urkonn. As a demon, he would be banished with the other demons away from the Earth.
Angel: Like Spike, Angel could eventually transform into a Kakistos-like vampire with cloven hooves. The Sanshu prophecy doesn't really lend itself to this interpretation, although I wouldn't put it past Joss to give that new life to Spike (the other vampire-with-a-soul) and screw Angel, especially now, after we're meant to question everything we've seen until now on Angel.
In the opening sequence for Issue 6, Urkonn laments the horror of war, and both Spike and Angel have lived through wars.
Giles, Wesley, or Xander: Transformed into a demon, one of these three is banished with the other demons into a hell dimension, and all three would have ample reasons to help a new Slayer.
Conner: Purely cheesy: "Conn-er"/"Ur-Konn" -- yeah, it's rather silly, but as we've seen on Angel, Conner's humanity is in question. Indeed, throughout Fray, Urkonn makes passing comments on the behavior of humans. If this Slayer does banish all demons, would Conner be banished as well? And if the Slayer that banishes the demons is not Buffy, could it be Faith? We've seen that Conner holds a flame for her, and their future relationship is not really set.
So, again, if Joss does write the final battle that Urkonn describes as the series finale of Buffy, then I think one of the Scoobies, with the two frontrunners being Giles and Spike, will be transformed into a demon (in Giles' case) and banished from the Earth along with everything else magickal.
My brain hurts now. Thoughts?
Maybe I'm just remembering "A New Man."
Since the beginning of Fray, I've had this suspicion that Urkonn is Giles. I've since revised that theory--I think Urkonn is one of the Scoobies (or the AI gang).
If you recall "A New Man," Giles somehow becomes transformed into a demon, and he and Spike have to somehow convince Buffy that he's not dangerous.
Now Urkonn and his spiraling goat horns bear a strong similarity to the Demon that Giles turned into in "A New Man," but there's other evidence:
Issue 2: When Urkonn first meets Fray, she points a gun at him. On page 3, panel 2, Urkonn replies, "You are a fool, Girl. I am Urkonn, of the D'Avvrus. Bullets [emphasis mine] cannot harm me."
"What's a bullet?" Fray replies, as she shoots him with what appears to be a stun gun/tazer pistol.
Apparently, 200 years from now, projectile weapons are now antiques and the average street-wise thief has no idea what a bullet could be.
Further into the issue, Fray grabs a flying robot. "What is that?" Urkonn asks.
"Carrier Pigeon. Means I got a job." She replies.
"You do not have computers on the earth anymore?" he asks.
"What, you mean the Grid?" she responds.
From Fray's description, the Internet and computing has grown beyond its current bounds and is now known as the Grid. She's not especially familiar with the current vernacular term "Computer," but she deduces that it means the Grid.
Issue 3: Urkonn describes the traditional role of Watchers and Slayer--"They were trained. Sought out and guided by Watchers, descendants of the shamans who created the first Slayer."
"So are you my Watch-"
"No."
-"No."
"No."
"Then why--"
"My reasons are my own."
[then...]
"Why don't you tell me what happened to the last one?"
"Because I don't know. It was some hundreds of years ago, in the twenty-first century. What we know is this--there was a battle. A Slayer, possibly with some mystical allies, faced an apocalyptic army of demons. And when it was done--they were all gone. All demons, all magicks, banished from this earthly dimension."
"And the Slayer? Did she..."
"I do not know if she lived. But, the demons being gone, she was the last to be called."
So based on the previous two items, I find it a bit strange that this demon, Urkonn, whose general speech is grounded in twenty-first-centuryisms doesn't really know what happened to the last slayer. He has "[his] reasons" for helping Fray, though. Granted these reasons could very well coincide with yet another plot by the demons that he's working for (from the opening sequence of Issue 1). Artist Karl Moline, however, imbues the close-up of his decayed face when he says "Because I don't know" with a certain melancholy--a sense which carries through his description of the final battle to his off-camera "I do not know if she lived..."
There is one facet of Fray that doesn't quite fit with these theories--when speaking with his superiors in Issue 5, one of them, Vrill is concerned about "[their] enemy." Urkonn responds, "The Watchers have presented themselves no threat ..." If Urkonn is a former Scooby, then why would ally himself against the Watchers? As he describes, however, the Watchers, after two hundred or so years of waiting, have become impatient and fanatical.
A theory on Urkonn and what it might mean for the Buffy Series Finale:
If you recall the bit of dialogue where Urkonn describes the final battle, the illustration that accompanies it shows a silhouette of a girl, a stake in one hand, and a simple battle axe in the other. Within the confines of Fray the comic, I think we may be meant to assume that this is Buffy. But because she isn't wielding the Slayer's Axe/Scythe (and because Angel the series likely wouldn't continue were she to banish all demons and magick from the Earth) I don't think this is Buffy (or, at least, it's not the series finale).
This scenario, however, offers up a good reason why one of the Scoobies/AI crew would be around and in demon form two hundred years hence. As we've seen from "A New Man," any human character can be transformed into a demon. If Joss does write this as the series finale, I've a couple of suggestions of who Urkonn could be.
Spike: When Fray first meets Urkonn, she attacks him, and in his short temper, Urkonn is a bit violent in his response. As we've seen in "Faith, Hope, and Trick," Kakistos, after an extremely long life as a vampire eventually transformed into a less-humanoid vampire, indeed one with cloven hooves, like Urkonn. As a demon, he would be banished with the other demons away from the Earth.
Angel: Like Spike, Angel could eventually transform into a Kakistos-like vampire with cloven hooves. The Sanshu prophecy doesn't really lend itself to this interpretation, although I wouldn't put it past Joss to give that new life to Spike (the other vampire-with-a-soul) and screw Angel, especially now, after we're meant to question everything we've seen until now on Angel.
In the opening sequence for Issue 6, Urkonn laments the horror of war, and both Spike and Angel have lived through wars.
Giles, Wesley, or Xander: Transformed into a demon, one of these three is banished with the other demons into a hell dimension, and all three would have ample reasons to help a new Slayer.
Conner: Purely cheesy: "Conn-er"/"Ur-Konn" -- yeah, it's rather silly, but as we've seen on Angel, Conner's humanity is in question. Indeed, throughout Fray, Urkonn makes passing comments on the behavior of humans. If this Slayer does banish all demons, would Conner be banished as well? And if the Slayer that banishes the demons is not Buffy, could it be Faith? We've seen that Conner holds a flame for her, and their future relationship is not really set.
So, again, if Joss does write the final battle that Urkonn describes as the series finale of Buffy, then I think one of the Scoobies, with the two frontrunners being Giles and Spike, will be transformed into a demon (in Giles' case) and banished from the Earth along with everything else magickal.
My brain hurts now. Thoughts?
Fray Musings
The appearance of Fray's axe/scythe in the most recent episode of Buffy, "Touched," kicked off a train of thought that's been brewing since I started picking up the series.
Spoilers for everything up until issue 6... most notably issue 3 and speculation for the final episodes of Buffy. (Excuse me if this has been discussed before...)
Maybe I'm just remembering "A New Man."
Since the beginning of Fray, I've had this suspicion that Urkonn is Giles. I've since revised that theory--I think Urkonn is one of the Scoobies (or the AI gang).
If you recall "A New Man," Giles somehow becomes transformed into a demon, and he and Spike have to somehow convince Buffy that he's not dangerous.
Now Urkonn and his spiraling goat horns bear a strong similarity to the Demon that Giles turned into in "A New Man," but there's other evidence:
Apparently, 200 years from now, projectile weapons are now antiques and the average street-wise thief has no idea what a bullet could be.
From Fray's description, the Internet and computing has grown beyond its current bounds and is now known as the Grid. She's not especially familiar with the current vernacular term "Computer," but she deduces that it means the Grid.
So based on the previous two items, I find it a bit strange that this demon, Urkonn, whose general speech is grounded in twenty-first-centuryisms doesn't really know what happened to the last slayer. He has "[his] reasons" for helping Fray, though. Granted these reasons could very well coincide with yet another plot by the demons that he's working for (from the opening sequence of Issue 1). Artist Karl Moline, however, imbues the close-up of his decayed face when he says "Because I don't know" with a certain melancholy--a sense which carries through his description of the final battle to his off-camera "I do not know if she lived..."
There is one facet of Fray that doesn't quite fit with these theories--when speaking with his superiors in Issue 5, one of them, Vrill is concerned about "[their] enemy." Urkonn responds, "The Watchers have presented themselves no threat ..." If Urkonn is a former Scooby, then why would ally himself against the Watchers? As he describes, however, the Watchers, after two hundred or so years of waiting, have become impatient and fanatical.
A theory on Urkonn and what it might mean for the Buffy Series Finale:
If you recall the bit of dialogue where Urkonn describes the final battle, the illustration that accompanies it shows a silhouette of a girl, a stake in one hand, and a simple battle axe in the other. Within the confines of Fray the comic, I think we may be meant to assume that this is Buffy. But because she isn't wielding the Slayer's Axe/Scythe (and because Angel the series likely wouldn't continue were she to banish all demons and magick from the Earth) I don't think this is Buffy (or, at least, it's not the series finale).
This scenario, however, offers up a good reason why one of the Scoobies/AI crew would be around and in demon form two hundred years hence. As we've seen from "A New Man," any human character can be transformed into a demon. If Joss does write this as the series finale, I've a couple of suggestions of who Urkonn could be.
Spike: When Fray first meets Urkonn, she attacks him, and in his short temper, Urkonn is a bit violent in his response. As we've seen in "Faith, Hope, and Trick," Kakistos, after an extremely long life as a vampire eventually transformed into a less-humanoid vampire, indeed one with cloven hooves, like Urkonn. As a demon, he would be banished with the other demons away from the Earth.
Angel: Like Spike, Angel could eventually transform into a Kakistos-like vampire with cloven hooves. The Sanshu prophecy doesn't really lend itself to this interpretation, although I wouldn't put it past Joss to give that new life to Spike (the other vampire-with-a-soul) and screw Angel, especially now, after we're meant to question everything we've seen until now on Angel.
In the opening sequence for Issue 6, Urkonn laments the horror of war, and both Spike and Angel have lived through wars.
Giles, Wesley, or Xander: Transformed into a demon, one of these three is banished with the other demons into a hell dimension, and all three would have ample reasons to help a new Slayer.
Conner: Purely cheesy: "Conn-er"/"Ur-Konn" -- yeah, it's rather silly, but as we've seen on Angel, Conner's humanity is in question. Indeed, throughout Fray, Urkonn makes passing comments on the behavior of humans. If this Slayer does banish all demons, would Conner be banished as well? And if the Slayer that banishes the demons is not Buffy, could it be Faith? We've seen that Conner holds a flame for her, and their future relationship is not really set.
So, again, if Joss does write the final battle that Urkonn describes as the series finale of Buffy, then I think one of the Scoobies, with the two frontrunners being Giles and Spike, will be transformed into a demon (in Giles' case) and banished from the Earth along with everything else magickal.
My brain hurts now. Thoughts?
Maybe I'm just remembering "A New Man."
Since the beginning of Fray, I've had this suspicion that Urkonn is Giles. I've since revised that theory--I think Urkonn is one of the Scoobies (or the AI gang).
If you recall "A New Man," Giles somehow becomes transformed into a demon, and he and Spike have to somehow convince Buffy that he's not dangerous.
Now Urkonn and his spiraling goat horns bear a strong similarity to the Demon that Giles turned into in "A New Man," but there's other evidence:
Issue 2: When Urkonn first meets Fray, she points a gun at him. On page 3, panel 2, Urkonn replies, "You are a fool, Girl. I am Urkonn, of the D'Avvrus. Bullets [emphasis mine] cannot harm me."
"What's a bullet?" Fray replies, as she shoots him with what appears to be a stun gun/tazer pistol.
Apparently, 200 years from now, projectile weapons are now antiques and the average street-wise thief has no idea what a bullet could be.
Further into the issue, Fray grabs a flying robot. "What is that?" Urkonn asks.
"Carrier Pigeon. Means I got a job." She replies.
"You do not have computers on the earth anymore?" he asks.
"What, you mean the Grid?" she responds.
From Fray's description, the Internet and computing has grown beyond its current bounds and is now known as the Grid. She's not especially familiar with the current vernacular term "Computer," but she deduces that it means the Grid.
Issue 3: Urkonn describes the traditional role of Watchers and Slayer--"They were trained. Sought out and guided by Watchers, descendants of the shamans who created the first Slayer."
"So are you my Watch-"
"No."
-"No."
"No."
"Then why--"
"My reasons are my own."
[then...]
"Why don't you tell me what happened to the last one?"
"Because I don't know. It was some hundreds of years ago, in the twenty-first century. What we know is this--there was a battle. A Slayer, possibly with some mystical allies, faced an apocalyptic army of demons. And when it was done--they were all gone. All demons, all magicks, banished from this earthly dimension."
"And the Slayer? Did she..."
"I do not know if she lived. But, the demons being gone, she was the last to be called."
So based on the previous two items, I find it a bit strange that this demon, Urkonn, whose general speech is grounded in twenty-first-centuryisms doesn't really know what happened to the last slayer. He has "[his] reasons" for helping Fray, though. Granted these reasons could very well coincide with yet another plot by the demons that he's working for (from the opening sequence of Issue 1). Artist Karl Moline, however, imbues the close-up of his decayed face when he says "Because I don't know" with a certain melancholy--a sense which carries through his description of the final battle to his off-camera "I do not know if she lived..."
There is one facet of Fray that doesn't quite fit with these theories--when speaking with his superiors in Issue 5, one of them, Vrill is concerned about "[their] enemy." Urkonn responds, "The Watchers have presented themselves no threat ..." If Urkonn is a former Scooby, then why would ally himself against the Watchers? As he describes, however, the Watchers, after two hundred or so years of waiting, have become impatient and fanatical.
A theory on Urkonn and what it might mean for the Buffy Series Finale:
If you recall the bit of dialogue where Urkonn describes the final battle, the illustration that accompanies it shows a silhouette of a girl, a stake in one hand, and a simple battle axe in the other. Within the confines of Fray the comic, I think we may be meant to assume that this is Buffy. But because she isn't wielding the Slayer's Axe/Scythe (and because Angel the series likely wouldn't continue were she to banish all demons and magick from the Earth) I don't think this is Buffy (or, at least, it's not the series finale).
This scenario, however, offers up a good reason why one of the Scoobies/AI crew would be around and in demon form two hundred years hence. As we've seen from "A New Man," any human character can be transformed into a demon. If Joss does write this as the series finale, I've a couple of suggestions of who Urkonn could be.
Spike: When Fray first meets Urkonn, she attacks him, and in his short temper, Urkonn is a bit violent in his response. As we've seen in "Faith, Hope, and Trick," Kakistos, after an extremely long life as a vampire eventually transformed into a less-humanoid vampire, indeed one with cloven hooves, like Urkonn. As a demon, he would be banished with the other demons away from the Earth.
Angel: Like Spike, Angel could eventually transform into a Kakistos-like vampire with cloven hooves. The Sanshu prophecy doesn't really lend itself to this interpretation, although I wouldn't put it past Joss to give that new life to Spike (the other vampire-with-a-soul) and screw Angel, especially now, after we're meant to question everything we've seen until now on Angel.
In the opening sequence for Issue 6, Urkonn laments the horror of war, and both Spike and Angel have lived through wars.
Giles, Wesley, or Xander: Transformed into a demon, one of these three is banished with the other demons into a hell dimension, and all three would have ample reasons to help a new Slayer.
Conner: Purely cheesy: "Conn-er"/"Ur-Konn" -- yeah, it's rather silly, but as we've seen on Angel, Conner's humanity is in question. Indeed, throughout Fray, Urkonn makes passing comments on the behavior of humans. If this Slayer does banish all demons, would Conner be banished as well? And if the Slayer that banishes the demons is not Buffy, could it be Faith? We've seen that Conner holds a flame for her, and their future relationship is not really set.
So, again, if Joss does write the final battle that Urkonn describes as the series finale of Buffy, then I think one of the Scoobies, with the two frontrunners being Giles and Spike, will be transformed into a demon (in Giles' case) and banished from the Earth along with everything else magickal.
My brain hurts now. Thoughts?
Eleventh Hour Desperation Sex
First some questions to all the fen out there:
1. Where did the term "squee" come from?
2. Why does everyone misspell "whining" as "whinging"?
Spoilers for episodes up to "Touched."
Aside from my sense of excitement at recognizing what most people are calling the Scythe (it's actually more of an axe...) from Joss Whedon's Fray comic series for Dark Horse Comics, my other reaction to the episode is one of general dissatisfaction.
Others have written that the episode "read" like bad fanfic--not having read a great deal of fanfic, I can't really speak to that assertion, but I suspect what they mean is
Of the former, I think the episode really speaks for itself.
Of the latter, I can say that I didn't feel any of the sexual tension between Faith and Principal Wood--a tension that was so palpable in "Empty Places." Sure, their discussion of how the First manipulated both of them was, in a way, breaking new ground between the both of them, and in the past, Faith has shown sexual recklessness, but nothing about the scene preceding their coupling said, "and now I want to jump your bones." The sex just seemed tacked on the end of their dialogue, with a feeling of "I'm bored, let's have sex."
Willow and Kennedy. Some others have posted some pretty winded diatribes on this pairing, some for, but mostly against, and while I'm not particularly wishing for Kennedy's head on a stick, I don't feel like Willow and Kennedy have any reason being together other than that the both of them are lesbians. In my more cynical moments, I rather feel like Kennedy's increased presence in the Scoobies is just a role thrown in to placate the lesbian fans. In a comment to, I wrote that Willow had more chemistry in the hospital scene with Xander in "Empty Places" than in this scene--or really, any scene all season--with Kennedy.
And we really don't need to hear about your first kiss turning you into Warren, Willow. Kennedy was there. Unless she's frighteningly stupid, she remembers.
Of the sex itself, I find it interesting that (speaking as your typical, "girl-on-girl action"-loving, red-blooded American male) the tongue-with-piercing-neck-licking/feigned-moaning had really no appeal, and, as a matter of fact, was a bit of a turn-off. Maybe this is the director's fault, given that, even without a sensible reason for sex, Faith and Wood's scene (as well as Anya/Xander) had more sex appeal.
Of the three pair-offs, Xander and Anya's seemed the most natural, maybe because we're rather used to their having sex. In light of Xander's most recent trauma, however, using him and Anya like comic-sex fodder just irks me a bit.
The entire eleventh-hour-desperation-sex read like a high school Creative Writing class exercise in writing parallelism.
Because of these failures, the Buffy/Spike scene actually shines better for me within the context of the episode, which is a bit startling because I've never been one for Spuffy. But their scenes, at times despite the dialogue (Spike, how did you know Buffy wanted to rush the Vineyard when all you did was walk in to the Summers house, find out they kicked Buffy out, beat on Faith, and leave?), show a tenderness which I've seldom seen in their interactions--about the only other time I recall seeing it is Spike's "I know you'll never love me" speech in the Season 5 finale.
ETA: even without a sensible reason for sex
Umm, who needs a "sensible" reason for sex? Replace "sensible" with "compelling."
1. Where did the term "squee" come from?
2. Why does everyone misspell "whining" as "whinging"?
Aside from my sense of excitement at recognizing what most people are calling the Scythe (it's actually more of an axe...) from Joss Whedon's Fray comic series for Dark Horse Comics, my other reaction to the episode is one of general dissatisfaction.
Others have written that the episode "read" like bad fanfic--not having read a great deal of fanfic, I can't really speak to that assertion, but I suspect what they mean is
- Lack of consistent characterization, and
- Pairing characters for no good (or even bad) reasons.
Of the former, I think the episode really speaks for itself.
Of the latter, I can say that I didn't feel any of the sexual tension between Faith and Principal Wood--a tension that was so palpable in "Empty Places." Sure, their discussion of how the First manipulated both of them was, in a way, breaking new ground between the both of them, and in the past, Faith has shown sexual recklessness, but nothing about the scene preceding their coupling said, "and now I want to jump your bones." The sex just seemed tacked on the end of their dialogue, with a feeling of "I'm bored, let's have sex."
Willow and Kennedy. Some others have posted some pretty winded diatribes on this pairing, some for, but mostly against, and while I'm not particularly wishing for Kennedy's head on a stick, I don't feel like Willow and Kennedy have any reason being together other than that the both of them are lesbians. In my more cynical moments, I rather feel like Kennedy's increased presence in the Scoobies is just a role thrown in to placate the lesbian fans. In a comment to
And we really don't need to hear about your first kiss turning you into Warren, Willow. Kennedy was there. Unless she's frighteningly stupid, she remembers.
Of the sex itself, I find it interesting that (speaking as your typical, "girl-on-girl action"-loving, red-blooded American male) the tongue-with-piercing-neck-licking/feigned-moaning had really no appeal, and, as a matter of fact, was a bit of a turn-off. Maybe this is the director's fault, given that, even without a sensible reason for sex, Faith and Wood's scene (as well as Anya/Xander) had more sex appeal.
Of the three pair-offs, Xander and Anya's seemed the most natural, maybe because we're rather used to their having sex. In light of Xander's most recent trauma, however, using him and Anya like comic-sex fodder just irks me a bit.
The entire eleventh-hour-desperation-sex read like a high school Creative Writing class exercise in writing parallelism.
Because of these failures, the Buffy/Spike scene actually shines better for me within the context of the episode, which is a bit startling because I've never been one for Spuffy. But their scenes, at times despite the dialogue (Spike, how did you know Buffy wanted to rush the Vineyard when all you did was walk in to the Summers house, find out they kicked Buffy out, beat on Faith, and leave?), show a tenderness which I've seldom seen in their interactions--about the only other time I recall seeing it is Spike's "I know you'll never love me" speech in the Season 5 finale.
ETA: even without a sensible reason for sex
Umm, who needs a "sensible" reason for sex? Replace "sensible" with "compelling."
Eleventh Hour Desperation Sex
First some questions to all the fen out there:
1. Where did the term "squee" come from?
2. Why does everyone misspell "whining" as "whinging"?
Spoilers for episodes up to "Touched."
Aside from my sense of excitement at recognizing what most people are calling the Scythe (it's actually more of an axe...) from Joss Whedon's Fray comic series for Dark Horse Comics, my other reaction to the episode is one of general dissatisfaction.
Others have written that the episode "read" like bad fanfic--not having read a great deal of fanfic, I can't really speak to that assertion, but I suspect what they mean is
Of the former, I think the episode really speaks for itself.
Of the latter, I can say that I didn't feel any of the sexual tension between Faith and Principal Wood--a tension that was so palpable in "Empty Places." Sure, their discussion of how the First manipulated both of them was, in a way, breaking new ground between the both of them, and in the past, Faith has shown sexual recklessness, but nothing about the scene preceding their coupling said, "and now I want to jump your bones." The sex just seemed tacked on the end of their dialogue, with a feeling of "I'm bored, let's have sex."
Willow and Kennedy. Some others have posted some pretty winded diatribes on this pairing, some for, but mostly against, and while I'm not particularly wishing for Kennedy's head on a stick, I don't feel like Willow and Kennedy have any reason being together other than that the both of them are lesbians. In my more cynical moments, I rather feel like Kennedy's increased presence in the Scoobies is just a role thrown in to placate the lesbian fans. In a comment to, I wrote that Willow had more chemistry in the hospital scene with Xander in "Empty Places" than in this scene--or really, any scene all season--with Kennedy.
And we really don't need to hear about your first kiss turning you into Warren, Willow. Kennedy was there. Unless she's frighteningly stupid, she remembers.
Of the sex itself, I find it interesting that (speaking as your typical, "girl-on-girl action"-loving, red-blooded American male) the tongue-with-piercing-neck-licking/feigned-moaning had really no appeal, and, as a matter of fact, was a bit of a turn-off. Maybe this is the director's fault, given that, even without a sensible reason for sex, Faith and Wood's scene (as well as Anya/Xander) had more sex appeal.
Of the three pair-offs, Xander and Anya's seemed the most natural, maybe because we're rather used to their having sex. In light of Xander's most recent trauma, however, using him and Anya like comic-sex fodder just irks me a bit.
The entire eleventh-hour-desperation-sex read like a high school Creative Writing class exercise in writing parallelism.
Because of these failures, the Buffy/Spike scene actually shines better for me within the context of the episode, which is a bit startling because I've never been one for Spuffy. But their scenes, at times despite the dialogue (Spike, how did you know Buffy wanted to rush the Vineyard when all you did was walk in to the Summers house, find out they kicked Buffy out, beat on Faith, and leave?), show a tenderness which I've seldom seen in their interactions--about the only other time I recall seeing it is Spike's "I know you'll never love me" speech in the Season 5 finale.
ETA: even without a sensible reason for sex
Umm, who needs a "sensible" reason for sex? Replace "sensible" with "compelling."
1. Where did the term "squee" come from?
2. Why does everyone misspell "whining" as "whinging"?
Aside from my sense of excitement at recognizing what most people are calling the Scythe (it's actually more of an axe...) from Joss Whedon's Fray comic series for Dark Horse Comics, my other reaction to the episode is one of general dissatisfaction.
Others have written that the episode "read" like bad fanfic--not having read a great deal of fanfic, I can't really speak to that assertion, but I suspect what they mean is
- Lack of consistent characterization, and
- Pairing characters for no good (or even bad) reasons.
Of the former, I think the episode really speaks for itself.
Of the latter, I can say that I didn't feel any of the sexual tension between Faith and Principal Wood--a tension that was so palpable in "Empty Places." Sure, their discussion of how the First manipulated both of them was, in a way, breaking new ground between the both of them, and in the past, Faith has shown sexual recklessness, but nothing about the scene preceding their coupling said, "and now I want to jump your bones." The sex just seemed tacked on the end of their dialogue, with a feeling of "I'm bored, let's have sex."
Willow and Kennedy. Some others have posted some pretty winded diatribes on this pairing, some for, but mostly against, and while I'm not particularly wishing for Kennedy's head on a stick, I don't feel like Willow and Kennedy have any reason being together other than that the both of them are lesbians. In my more cynical moments, I rather feel like Kennedy's increased presence in the Scoobies is just a role thrown in to placate the lesbian fans. In a comment to
And we really don't need to hear about your first kiss turning you into Warren, Willow. Kennedy was there. Unless she's frighteningly stupid, she remembers.
Of the sex itself, I find it interesting that (speaking as your typical, "girl-on-girl action"-loving, red-blooded American male) the tongue-with-piercing-neck-licking/feigned-moaning had really no appeal, and, as a matter of fact, was a bit of a turn-off. Maybe this is the director's fault, given that, even without a sensible reason for sex, Faith and Wood's scene (as well as Anya/Xander) had more sex appeal.
Of the three pair-offs, Xander and Anya's seemed the most natural, maybe because we're rather used to their having sex. In light of Xander's most recent trauma, however, using him and Anya like comic-sex fodder just irks me a bit.
The entire eleventh-hour-desperation-sex read like a high school Creative Writing class exercise in writing parallelism.
Because of these failures, the Buffy/Spike scene actually shines better for me within the context of the episode, which is a bit startling because I've never been one for Spuffy. But their scenes, at times despite the dialogue (Spike, how did you know Buffy wanted to rush the Vineyard when all you did was walk in to the Summers house, find out they kicked Buffy out, beat on Faith, and leave?), show a tenderness which I've seldom seen in their interactions--about the only other time I recall seeing it is Spike's "I know you'll never love me" speech in the Season 5 finale.
ETA: even without a sensible reason for sex
Umm, who needs a "sensible" reason for sex? Replace "sensible" with "compelling."
On Buffy, "Touched"
A little background on what people are calling "The Scythe" (or maybe it should be 'foreground'...):
I have a gift for you. It is a weapon, forged eons ago, for the Slayer alone. Lost for centuries. Carry it, for it is your sword and your scepter. Let it proclaim you the hero--and the monster--that you will need to be.
Make your war.
I'm so glad this comic has started coming out again...
On Buffy, "Touched"
A little background on what people are calling "The Scythe" (or maybe it should be 'foreground'...):
I have a gift for you. It is a weapon, forged eons ago, for the Slayer alone. Lost for centuries. Carry it, for it is your sword and your scepter. Let it proclaim you the hero--and the monster--that you will need to be.
Make your war.
I'm so glad this comic has started coming out again...
May 6, 2003
Don't fuck with the Yellow Bastard
Some 45 minutes ago, I got a call from a pre-recorded message telling me to press '9' to talk to people if I wanted to be pre-approved to buy a new car. I pressed 9. I got a person. Had her put me on the do-not-call list. And then I went to the FCC website and filed a complaint against them for violating the TCPA. Pigfuckers.
My cable company sucks. I called them last night to report that the WB had been out since Saturday. They could only take a message because they're located in Seattle. Yes, A SEATTLE company is servicing our cable in Atlanta, GA. I called today, and they said they can't get anyone out to fix the WB until Thursday. Luckily I can get Smallville from DirecTV. I record Buffy before Gilmore Girls, however, so I'm stuck without Lorelai. I'm going to call and bitch them out for leaving me without Lauren Graham this week. Pigfuckers.
My cable company sucks. I called them last night to report that the WB had been out since Saturday. They could only take a message because they're located in Seattle. Yes, A SEATTLE company is servicing our cable in Atlanta, GA. I called today, and they said they can't get anyone out to fix the WB until Thursday. Luckily I can get Smallville from DirecTV. I record Buffy before Gilmore Girls, however, so I'm stuck without Lorelai. I'm going to call and bitch them out for leaving me without Lauren Graham this week. Pigfuckers.
Don't fuck with the Yellow Bastard
Some 45 minutes ago, I got a call from a pre-recorded message telling me to press '9' to talk to people if I wanted to be pre-approved to buy a new car. I pressed 9. I got a person. Had her put me on the do-not-call list. And then I went to the FCC website and filed a complaint against them for violating the TCPA. Pigfuckers.
My cable company sucks. I called them last night to report that the WB had been out since Saturday. They could only take a message because they're located in Seattle. Yes, A SEATTLE company is servicing our cable in Atlanta, GA. I called today, and they said they can't get anyone out to fix the WB until Thursday. Luckily I can get Smallville from DirecTV. I record Buffy before Gilmore Girls, however, so I'm stuck without Lorelai. I'm going to call and bitch them out for leaving me without Lauren Graham this week. Pigfuckers.
My cable company sucks. I called them last night to report that the WB had been out since Saturday. They could only take a message because they're located in Seattle. Yes, A SEATTLE company is servicing our cable in Atlanta, GA. I called today, and they said they can't get anyone out to fix the WB until Thursday. Luckily I can get Smallville from DirecTV. I record Buffy before Gilmore Girls, however, so I'm stuck without Lorelai. I'm going to call and bitch them out for leaving me without Lauren Graham this week. Pigfuckers.
Auntie Em...
Well, the thunder has started. When I left for lunch around 12:45, it was a bit muggy and overcast. Now it's dark, dark, dark, and the rain is drumming at the pavement in thick blades, nearly horizontal. The rumbling in the distance sounds not unlike a dance club, where you feel it and it's a constant beat. I read the weather report about five minutes ago, and there's a Tornado forming and heading this way.
I hope it clears up enough so the DirecTV doesn't go out when I'm recording Buffy and Smallville.
Taken from, pick a singer/band and answer each part with a song title.
This is kinda hard with a group that only has two albums filled with single-word titles (Blue Man Group).
1. Are you male or female? Utne Wire Man
2. Describe yourself: The Complex
3. How do some people feel about you? Tension 2
4. How do you feel about yourself? I Feel Love
5. Describe your girlfriend/boyfriend/interest: Club Nowhere
6. Where would you rather be? TV Song
7. Describe what you want to be: Synaesthetic
8. Describe how you live: Time to Start
9. Describe how you love: Endless Column
10. Share a few words of wisdom: Sing Along
And number nine is far more "Endless" than "Column."
I hope it clears up enough so the DirecTV doesn't go out when I'm recording Buffy and Smallville.
Taken from
This is kinda hard with a group that only has two albums filled with single-word titles (Blue Man Group).
1. Are you male or female? Utne Wire Man
2. Describe yourself: The Complex
3. How do some people feel about you? Tension 2
4. How do you feel about yourself? I Feel Love
5. Describe your girlfriend/boyfriend/interest: Club Nowhere
6. Where would you rather be? TV Song
7. Describe what you want to be: Synaesthetic
8. Describe how you live: Time to Start
9. Describe how you love: Endless Column
10. Share a few words of wisdom: Sing Along
And number nine is far more "Endless" than "Column."
Auntie Em...
Well, the thunder has started. When I left for lunch around 12:45, it was a bit muggy and overcast. Now it's dark, dark, dark, and the rain is drumming at the pavement in thick blades, nearly horizontal. The rumbling in the distance sounds not unlike a dance club, where you feel it and it's a constant beat. I read the weather report about five minutes ago, and there's a Tornado forming and heading this way.
I hope it clears up enough so the DirecTV doesn't go out when I'm recording Buffy and Smallville.
Taken from, pick a singer/band and answer each part with a song title.
This is kinda hard with a group that only has two albums filled with single-word titles (Blue Man Group).
1. Are you male or female? Utne Wire Man
2. Describe yourself: The Complex
3. How do some people feel about you? Tension 2
4. How do you feel about yourself? I Feel Love
5. Describe your girlfriend/boyfriend/interest: Club Nowhere
6. Where would you rather be? TV Song
7. Describe what you want to be: Synaesthetic
8. Describe how you live: Time to Start
9. Describe how you love: Endless Column
10. Share a few words of wisdom: Sing Along
And number nine is far more "Endless" than "Column."
I hope it clears up enough so the DirecTV doesn't go out when I'm recording Buffy and Smallville.
Taken from
This is kinda hard with a group that only has two albums filled with single-word titles (Blue Man Group).
1. Are you male or female? Utne Wire Man
2. Describe yourself: The Complex
3. How do some people feel about you? Tension 2
4. How do you feel about yourself? I Feel Love
5. Describe your girlfriend/boyfriend/interest: Club Nowhere
6. Where would you rather be? TV Song
7. Describe what you want to be: Synaesthetic
8. Describe how you live: Time to Start
9. Describe how you love: Endless Column
10. Share a few words of wisdom: Sing Along
And number nine is far more "Endless" than "Column."
Foolish Westerner
Tired of the crappy pseudo-Asian mysticism that your friends keep trying to foist onto you? All Feng Shui-ed out? Here's some shirts for your poseur, yellow-fevered friends who don't know the difference between mom and horse.
Foolish Westerner
Tired of the crappy pseudo-Asian mysticism that your friends keep trying to foist onto you? All Feng Shui-ed out? Here's some shirts for your poseur, yellow-fevered friends who don't know the difference between mom and horse.
May 5, 2003
Notes from the House of Pain
1. When you vow to yourself to play tight, fuckin' play tight, dumbass.
2. Stop trying to bluff Amy. She always calls. For that matter, stop trying to play against Amy; she has the luck of the devil.
3. The people at your weekend games do not play like Hoyle Casino. This means that people will not raise flushes against your two-pair bets.
4. Stop getting upset when you're bad beat. This serves no other purpose than to make other people laugh at how seething you get and anticipate how much more money they can possibly take from you.
That is all.
2. Stop trying to bluff Amy. She always calls. For that matter, stop trying to play against Amy; she has the luck of the devil.
3. The people at your weekend games do not play like Hoyle Casino. This means that people will not raise flushes against your two-pair bets.
4. Stop getting upset when you're bad beat. This serves no other purpose than to make other people laugh at how seething you get and anticipate how much more money they can possibly take from you.
That is all.
Notes from the House of Pain
1. When you vow to yourself to play tight, fuckin' play tight, dumbass.
2. Stop trying to bluff Amy. She always calls. For that matter, stop trying to play against Amy; she has the luck of the devil.
3. The people at your weekend games do not play like Hoyle Casino. This means that people will not raise flushes against your two-pair bets.
4. Stop getting upset when you're bad beat. This serves no other purpose than to make other people laugh at how seething you get and anticipate how much more money they can possibly take from you.
That is all.
2. Stop trying to bluff Amy. She always calls. For that matter, stop trying to play against Amy; she has the luck of the devil.
3. The people at your weekend games do not play like Hoyle Casino. This means that people will not raise flushes against your two-pair bets.
4. Stop getting upset when you're bad beat. This serves no other purpose than to make other people laugh at how seething you get and anticipate how much more money they can possibly take from you.
That is all.
May 2, 2003
Honeychalking and the Friday Five
So Frank, my boss, and I were trying to get our WiFi network back up and running. Prior to my arrival here, they had wireless network running, but got here and somehow messed it all up.
Frank had wanted to put the Access Point outside of the firewall, in order to ensure that everything we have behind it (which, Frank admits, is pretty much nothing) is relatively secure. The AP is acting up on that part of the network, though (I think it's either the old, possibly-failing BNC connector, the cable, or the hub that the BNC's connected to). It works fine when it's just hooked up to the internal network.
At some point in the past few months, Frank tried to connect to our Access Point and discovered that he was actually surfing on the bandwidth of the wireless network of the dentist's office next door.
No encryption, no security, just an open AP broadcasting its SSID out to the whole world.
Frank posed the question: should we leave the WAP connected to the internal network? We've got 128-bit WEP keys set up and MAC address filtering, while the dentist's office has no means of security.
I found myself suggesting that we warchalk the outside of our building with the dentist's open SSID as a honeypot for hackers and bandwidth junkies.
Sometimes my lack of scruples disturbs me.
and the Friday Five:
1. Name one song you hate to admit you like.
"Hit Me, Baby, One More Time" - Britney Spears
2. Name two songs that always make you cry.
Not always, but I'm really invested in these two:
"Waiting for Her" - a-ha
"The Wedding Night" - Patrick Doyle, from the Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Score.
3. Name three songs that turn you on.
"Sexual (li da di)" - Amber
"Both Hands" - Ani Difranco
"Cold" - VNV Nation
4. Name four songs that always make you feel good.
"Time to Start" - Blue Man Group
"Our Own Way" - Hot Water Music
"Don't Stop Believin'" - Journey
"Good Morning, Starshine" - Oliver
5. Name five songs you couldn't ever do without.
Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2, Second Movement
"(You're the) Devil in Disguise" - Elvis Presley
"The Way You Look Tonight" - Frank Sinatra
"We've Got Tonight" - Bob Seger
"Cupid" - Sam Cooke
Frank had wanted to put the Access Point outside of the firewall, in order to ensure that everything we have behind it (which, Frank admits, is pretty much nothing) is relatively secure. The AP is acting up on that part of the network, though (I think it's either the old, possibly-failing BNC connector, the cable, or the hub that the BNC's connected to). It works fine when it's just hooked up to the internal network.
At some point in the past few months, Frank tried to connect to our Access Point and discovered that he was actually surfing on the bandwidth of the wireless network of the dentist's office next door.
No encryption, no security, just an open AP broadcasting its SSID out to the whole world.
Frank posed the question: should we leave the WAP connected to the internal network? We've got 128-bit WEP keys set up and MAC address filtering, while the dentist's office has no means of security.
I found myself suggesting that we warchalk the outside of our building with the dentist's open SSID as a honeypot for hackers and bandwidth junkies.
Sometimes my lack of scruples disturbs me.
and the Friday Five:
1. Name one song you hate to admit you like.
"Hit Me, Baby, One More Time" - Britney Spears
2. Name two songs that always make you cry.
Not always, but I'm really invested in these two:
"Waiting for Her" - a-ha
"The Wedding Night" - Patrick Doyle, from the Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Score.
3. Name three songs that turn you on.
"Sexual (li da di)" - Amber
"Both Hands" - Ani Difranco
"Cold" - VNV Nation
4. Name four songs that always make you feel good.
"Time to Start" - Blue Man Group
"Our Own Way" - Hot Water Music
"Don't Stop Believin'" - Journey
"Good Morning, Starshine" - Oliver
5. Name five songs you couldn't ever do without.
Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2, Second Movement
"(You're the) Devil in Disguise" - Elvis Presley
"The Way You Look Tonight" - Frank Sinatra
"We've Got Tonight" - Bob Seger
"Cupid" - Sam Cooke
Honeychalking and the Friday Five
So Frank, my boss, and I were trying to get our WiFi network back up and running. Prior to my arrival here, they had wireless network running, but got here and somehow messed it all up.
Frank had wanted to put the Access Point outside of the firewall, in order to ensure that everything we have behind it (which, Frank admits, is pretty much nothing) is relatively secure. The AP is acting up on that part of the network, though (I think it's either the old, possibly-failing BNC connector, the cable, or the hub that the BNC's connected to). It works fine when it's just hooked up to the internal network.
At some point in the past few months, Frank tried to connect to our Access Point and discovered that he was actually surfing on the bandwidth of the wireless network of the dentist's office next door.
No encryption, no security, just an open AP broadcasting its SSID out to the whole world.
Frank posed the question: should we leave the WAP connected to the internal network? We've got 128-bit WEP keys set up and MAC address filtering, while the dentist's office has no means of security.
I found myself suggesting that we warchalk the outside of our building with the dentist's open SSID as a honeypot for hackers and bandwidth junkies.
Sometimes my lack of scruples disturbs me.
and the Friday Five:
1. Name one song you hate to admit you like.
"Hit Me, Baby, One More Time" - Britney Spears
2. Name two songs that always make you cry.
Not always, but I'm really invested in these two:
"Waiting for Her" - a-ha
"The Wedding Night" - Patrick Doyle, from the Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Score.
3. Name three songs that turn you on.
"Sexual (li da di)" - Amber
"Both Hands" - Ani Difranco
"Cold" - VNV Nation
4. Name four songs that always make you feel good.
"Time to Start" - Blue Man Group
"Our Own Way" - Hot Water Music
"Don't Stop Believin'" - Journey
"Good Morning, Starshine" - Oliver
5. Name five songs you couldn't ever do without.
Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2, Second Movement
"(You're the) Devil in Disguise" - Elvis Presley
"The Way You Look Tonight" - Frank Sinatra
"We've Got Tonight" - Bob Seger
"Cupid" - Sam Cooke
Frank had wanted to put the Access Point outside of the firewall, in order to ensure that everything we have behind it (which, Frank admits, is pretty much nothing) is relatively secure. The AP is acting up on that part of the network, though (I think it's either the old, possibly-failing BNC connector, the cable, or the hub that the BNC's connected to). It works fine when it's just hooked up to the internal network.
At some point in the past few months, Frank tried to connect to our Access Point and discovered that he was actually surfing on the bandwidth of the wireless network of the dentist's office next door.
No encryption, no security, just an open AP broadcasting its SSID out to the whole world.
Frank posed the question: should we leave the WAP connected to the internal network? We've got 128-bit WEP keys set up and MAC address filtering, while the dentist's office has no means of security.
I found myself suggesting that we warchalk the outside of our building with the dentist's open SSID as a honeypot for hackers and bandwidth junkies.
Sometimes my lack of scruples disturbs me.
and the Friday Five:
1. Name one song you hate to admit you like.
"Hit Me, Baby, One More Time" - Britney Spears
2. Name two songs that always make you cry.
Not always, but I'm really invested in these two:
"Waiting for Her" - a-ha
"The Wedding Night" - Patrick Doyle, from the Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Score.
3. Name three songs that turn you on.
"Sexual (li da di)" - Amber
"Both Hands" - Ani Difranco
"Cold" - VNV Nation
4. Name four songs that always make you feel good.
"Time to Start" - Blue Man Group
"Our Own Way" - Hot Water Music
"Don't Stop Believin'" - Journey
"Good Morning, Starshine" - Oliver
5. Name five songs you couldn't ever do without.
Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2, Second Movement
"(You're the) Devil in Disguise" - Elvis Presley
"The Way You Look Tonight" - Frank Sinatra
"We've Got Tonight" - Bob Seger
"Cupid" - Sam Cooke
May 1, 2003
Just watched Buffy and Angel...
Did anyone notice the Miracles shout-out on Angel?
The sign in front of the church where Jasmine put Cordy:
Uhh, guys, it's "God is Now Here." You don't want freaky teenager coming to murder you for seeing it the wrong way...
God is Nowhere. Jasmine is the way!
Uhh, guys, it's "God is Now Here." You don't want freaky teenager coming to murder you for seeing it the wrong way...
Just watched Buffy and Angel...
Did anyone notice the Miracles shout-out on Angel?
The sign in front of the church where Jasmine put Cordy:
Uhh, guys, it's "God is Now Here." You don't want freaky teenager coming to murder you for seeing it the wrong way...
God is Nowhere. Jasmine is the way!
Uhh, guys, it's "God is Now Here." You don't want freaky teenager coming to murder you for seeing it the wrong way...
April 30, 2003
The New AccessAtlanta
I used to work for AccessAtlanta.com, and we threw together some pretty good sites (and some pretty aggravating ones, at least from the management perspective). For a while, the job was quite fun, and the people were great.
It all went downhill at some point, and I'm now at my "new" nine-month-old job, so I don't really think about those days much.
A couple of days ago (maybe yesterday...), I was listening to a morning show in my half-waken stupor, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution had an radio ad for "AccessAtlanta"--their weekend preview fun guide thingy. Feeling both nostalgic and curious, I hit the site.
Ugh. That looks worse than a bowl of pus.
It all went downhill at some point, and I'm now at my "new" nine-month-old job, so I don't really think about those days much.
A couple of days ago (maybe yesterday...), I was listening to a morning show in my half-waken stupor, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution had an radio ad for "AccessAtlanta"--their weekend preview fun guide thingy. Feeling both nostalgic and curious, I hit the site.
Ugh. That looks worse than a bowl of pus.
The New AccessAtlanta
I used to work for AccessAtlanta.com, and we threw together some pretty good sites (and some pretty aggravating ones, at least from the management perspective). For a while, the job was quite fun, and the people were great.
It all went downhill at some point, and I'm now at my "new" nine-month-old job, so I don't really think about those days much.
A couple of days ago (maybe yesterday...), I was listening to a morning show in my half-waken stupor, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution had an radio ad for "AccessAtlanta"--their weekend preview fun guide thingy. Feeling both nostalgic and curious, I hit the site.
Ugh. That looks worse than a bowl of pus.
It all went downhill at some point, and I'm now at my "new" nine-month-old job, so I don't really think about those days much.
A couple of days ago (maybe yesterday...), I was listening to a morning show in my half-waken stupor, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution had an radio ad for "AccessAtlanta"--their weekend preview fun guide thingy. Feeling both nostalgic and curious, I hit the site.
Ugh. That looks worse than a bowl of pus.
Well, I've got good company...
Looks like I'm joining in the fifth level of hell...
The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Fifth Level of Hell!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:
Take the Dante Inferno Hell Test
And here I thought I'd be lumped in with the Lustful, but apparently I'm not Lustful enough. I guess I need to work on that...
The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Fifth Level of Hell!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:
| Level | Score |
|---|---|
| Purgatory (Repenting Believers) | Very Low |
| Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers) | Very Low |
| Level 2 (Lustful) | Very High |
| Level 3 (Gluttonous) | High |
| Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious) | High |
| Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy) | Very High |
| Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics) | Moderate |
| Level 7 (Violent) | Very High |
| Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers) | Very High |
| Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous) | Moderate |
Take the Dante Inferno Hell Test
And here I thought I'd be lumped in with the Lustful, but apparently I'm not Lustful enough. I guess I need to work on that...
Well, I've got good company...
Looks like I'm joining in the fifth level of hell...
The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Fifth Level of Hell!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:
Take the Dante Inferno Hell Test
And here I thought I'd be lumped in with the Lustful, but apparently I'm not Lustful enough. I guess I need to work on that...
The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Fifth Level of Hell!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:
| Level | Score |
|---|---|
| Purgatory (Repenting Believers) | Very Low |
| Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers) | Very Low |
| Level 2 (Lustful) | Very High |
| Level 3 (Gluttonous) | High |
| Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious) | High |
| Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy) | Very High |
| Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics) | Moderate |
| Level 7 (Violent) | Very High |
| Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers) | Very High |
| Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous) | Moderate |
Take the Dante Inferno Hell Test
And here I thought I'd be lumped in with the Lustful, but apparently I'm not Lustful enough. I guess I need to work on that...
April 29, 2003
Bronze Archives
Having run the for close to five years now, I've gotten a lot of mail from Buffy fans. A lot of people write in to thank me for putting the site together, and reading those messages gives me warm fuzzies.
Originally, the Bronze Archives were just going to be for myself, because 1) I didn't have time to troll the board all the time to wait for a VIP, and 2) I liked my contributions to discussions about Buffy to be a bit less spur-of-the-moment--I always thought Usenet made for easier-to-follow discussions.
Much of the mail is from people who are trying to be helpful--telling me about VIPs that I've missed or giving suggestions on how they'd like to see the archives. There was the time where I mis-recorded "Bargaining," and so I put a note on the site, and some very helpful people offered to make tapes for me.
And then there's the mail in error. I get a lot of messages from people wanting me to tell Joss something or tell Sarah something. It's understandable. Mostly I just let the sender know that I'm not affiliated with Mutant Enemy or the WB or UPN, and your best bet to contact the writers or actors is either by hanging at the Beta around showtime or writing the studio.
I get a lot of really confused mail, too, where people address it "Dear Sarah" or "Dear Joss." I got mail today, though, which rather takes the cake:
Someone wrote me a message asking if Buffy was really cancelled.
Huh?! You did watch the past few weeks where UPN was saying "Only five episodes left," right?
I suppose I'm being a bit harsh (I was polite in my response), but if this is really "[your] absolute favorite!!" shouldn't you already know what the deal is with the show?
Originally, the Bronze Archives were just going to be for myself, because 1) I didn't have time to troll the board all the time to wait for a VIP, and 2) I liked my contributions to discussions about Buffy to be a bit less spur-of-the-moment--I always thought Usenet made for easier-to-follow discussions.
Much of the mail is from people who are trying to be helpful--telling me about VIPs that I've missed or giving suggestions on how they'd like to see the archives. There was the time where I mis-recorded "Bargaining," and so I put a note on the site, and some very helpful people offered to make tapes for me.
And then there's the mail in error. I get a lot of messages from people wanting me to tell Joss something or tell Sarah something. It's understandable. Mostly I just let the sender know that I'm not affiliated with Mutant Enemy or the WB or UPN, and your best bet to contact the writers or actors is either by hanging at the Beta around showtime or writing the studio.
I get a lot of really confused mail, too, where people address it "Dear Sarah" or "Dear Joss." I got mail today, though, which rather takes the cake:
Someone wrote me a message asking if Buffy was really cancelled.
Huh?! You did watch the past few weeks where UPN was saying "Only five episodes left," right?
I suppose I'm being a bit harsh (I was polite in my response), but if this is really "[your] absolute favorite!!" shouldn't you already know what the deal is with the show?
Bronze Archives
Having run the for close to five years now, I've gotten a lot of mail from Buffy fans. A lot of people write in to thank me for putting the site together, and reading those messages gives me warm fuzzies.
Originally, the Bronze Archives were just going to be for myself, because 1) I didn't have time to troll the board all the time to wait for a VIP, and 2) I liked my contributions to discussions about Buffy to be a bit less spur-of-the-moment--I always thought Usenet made for easier-to-follow discussions.
Much of the mail is from people who are trying to be helpful--telling me about VIPs that I've missed or giving suggestions on how they'd like to see the archives. There was the time where I mis-recorded "Bargaining," and so I put a note on the site, and some very helpful people offered to make tapes for me.
And then there's the mail in error. I get a lot of messages from people wanting me to tell Joss something or tell Sarah something. It's understandable. Mostly I just let the sender know that I'm not affiliated with Mutant Enemy or the WB or UPN, and your best bet to contact the writers or actors is either by hanging at the Beta around showtime or writing the studio.
I get a lot of really confused mail, too, where people address it "Dear Sarah" or "Dear Joss." I got mail today, though, which rather takes the cake:
Someone wrote me a message asking if Buffy was really cancelled.
Huh?! You did watch the past few weeks where UPN was saying "Only five episodes left," right?
I suppose I'm being a bit harsh (I was polite in my response), but if this is really "[your] absolute favorite!!" shouldn't you already know what the deal is with the show?
Originally, the Bronze Archives were just going to be for myself, because 1) I didn't have time to troll the board all the time to wait for a VIP, and 2) I liked my contributions to discussions about Buffy to be a bit less spur-of-the-moment--I always thought Usenet made for easier-to-follow discussions.
Much of the mail is from people who are trying to be helpful--telling me about VIPs that I've missed or giving suggestions on how they'd like to see the archives. There was the time where I mis-recorded "Bargaining," and so I put a note on the site, and some very helpful people offered to make tapes for me.
And then there's the mail in error. I get a lot of messages from people wanting me to tell Joss something or tell Sarah something. It's understandable. Mostly I just let the sender know that I'm not affiliated with Mutant Enemy or the WB or UPN, and your best bet to contact the writers or actors is either by hanging at the Beta around showtime or writing the studio.
I get a lot of really confused mail, too, where people address it "Dear Sarah" or "Dear Joss." I got mail today, though, which rather takes the cake:
Someone wrote me a message asking if Buffy was really cancelled.
Huh?! You did watch the past few weeks where UPN was saying "Only five episodes left," right?
I suppose I'm being a bit harsh (I was polite in my response), but if this is really "[your] absolute favorite!!" shouldn't you already know what the deal is with the show?
Rock Concert Movement No. 1
No, I did not feel the earthquake this morning; I slept through it--living in a somewhat sub-ground-level condo, I suspect I didn't feel the quake as pronounced as say, someone who lived on the 15th floor of a high-rise.
Nothing really happened to my stuff, either. Hearing the news, I fully expected the LEGO TIE Interceptor to be in pieces on the floor of my computer room, but it was sitting pretty on the top of my bookshelf.
Nothing really happened to my stuff, either. Hearing the news, I fully expected the LEGO TIE Interceptor to be in pieces on the floor of my computer room, but it was sitting pretty on the top of my bookshelf.
Rock Concert Movement No. 1
No, I did not feel the earthquake this morning; I slept through it--living in a somewhat sub-ground-level condo, I suspect I didn't feel the quake as pronounced as say, someone who lived on the 15th floor of a high-rise.
Nothing really happened to my stuff, either. Hearing the news, I fully expected the LEGO TIE Interceptor to be in pieces on the floor of my computer room, but it was sitting pretty on the top of my bookshelf.
Nothing really happened to my stuff, either. Hearing the news, I fully expected the LEGO TIE Interceptor to be in pieces on the floor of my computer room, but it was sitting pretty on the top of my bookshelf.
April 28, 2003
Donuts, is there anything they can't do?
Having spied someone talking about Krispy Kremes on the friendsfriends page, I'm now craving some Hot Donuts Now. Ugh. I should be eating right, and here I can taste the melting, sweet glaze of a couple of Kremes. Make it stop!
Donuts, is there anything they can't do?
Having spied someone talking about Krispy Kremes on the friendsfriends page, I'm now craving some Hot Donuts Now. Ugh. I should be eating right, and here I can taste the melting, sweet glaze of a couple of Kremes. Make it stop!
April 27, 2003
Spent most of the day playing Baldur's Gate, but I did work some productivity into it--while I played, I taped South Park, Black Sash, Smallville, Buffy and Angel for , and at one point, I had the Pathfinder's oil changed.
I still need to check on what's up with the exhaust system leak...
When I got home from the oil change, I found an Amazon box on my doorstep. The contents: Music from Cirque du Soleil's O, and Blue Man Group, The Complex.
The Complex, with its rock influences, is an orthogonal opposite to how I previously described O's soundtrack--the distorted guitars, and syncopated rhythm-driven songs make me want to get all jungle boogie. But all the beats belie some really intricate melodies.
Of the Music from O, however, I don't think I've felt this way about a work of music since Patrick Doyle's The Wedding Night or the second movement to Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto #2. I could listen to the first and last track on repeat for hours, swelling with emotion. I'm having trouble deciding if the visual spectacle of the show or the sweeping music is more beautiful.
And it's precisely this cathartic lyricism that's keeping me awake after only getting five hours of sleep last night.
I still need to check on what's up with the exhaust system leak...
When I got home from the oil change, I found an Amazon box on my doorstep. The contents: Music from Cirque du Soleil's O, and Blue Man Group, The Complex.
The Complex, with its rock influences, is an orthogonal opposite to how I previously described O's soundtrack--the distorted guitars, and syncopated rhythm-driven songs make me want to get all jungle boogie. But all the beats belie some really intricate melodies.
Of the Music from O, however, I don't think I've felt this way about a work of music since Patrick Doyle's The Wedding Night or the second movement to Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto #2. I could listen to the first and last track on repeat for hours, swelling with emotion. I'm having trouble deciding if the visual spectacle of the show or the sweeping music is more beautiful.
And it's precisely this cathartic lyricism that's keeping me awake after only getting five hours of sleep last night.
Spent most of the day playing Baldur's Gate, but I did work some productivity into it--while I played, I taped South Park, Black Sash, Smallville, Buffy and Angel for , and at one point, I had the Pathfinder's oil changed.
I still need to check on what's up with the exhaust system leak...
When I got home from the oil change, I found an Amazon box on my doorstep. The contents: Music from Cirque du Soleil's O, and Blue Man Group, The Complex.
The Complex, with its rock influences, is an orthogonal opposite to how I previously described O's soundtrack--the distorted guitars, and syncopated rhythm-driven songs make me want to get all jungle boogie. But all the beats belie some really intricate melodies.
Of the Music from O, however, I don't think I've felt this way about a work of music since Patrick Doyle's The Wedding Night or the second movement to Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto #2. I could listen to the first and last track on repeat for hours, swelling with emotion. I'm having trouble deciding if the visual spectacle of the show or the sweeping music is more beautiful.
And it's precisely this cathartic lyricism that's keeping me awake after only getting five hours of sleep last night.
I still need to check on what's up with the exhaust system leak...
When I got home from the oil change, I found an Amazon box on my doorstep. The contents: Music from Cirque du Soleil's O, and Blue Man Group, The Complex.
The Complex, with its rock influences, is an orthogonal opposite to how I previously described O's soundtrack--the distorted guitars, and syncopated rhythm-driven songs make me want to get all jungle boogie. But all the beats belie some really intricate melodies.
Of the Music from O, however, I don't think I've felt this way about a work of music since Patrick Doyle's The Wedding Night or the second movement to Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto #2. I could listen to the first and last track on repeat for hours, swelling with emotion. I'm having trouble deciding if the visual spectacle of the show or the sweeping music is more beautiful.
And it's precisely this cathartic lyricism that's keeping me awake after only getting five hours of sleep last night.
April 25, 2003
Poker notes; Attack of the Middle School Meme Monster
Played poker last night with 's friends. Made a good stack of money--I was really lucky. The games we played were all pot limit, but were far tamer than the pot limit games we play when Ollie, Tony, and are around. Playing 5-stud low (dealt one down, four up), I paired aces against my opponent who paired eights. I hit a boat to beat Chris' Flush in seven stud natural. I had the Ace in the hole in High Chicago.
I introduced my hosts to Screwy Louie, which we played pot limit. Kinda scary, because, like I said, the table was far tamer then my usual games; once the cards were getting played out, though, the betting started rising--especially after we declared. I declared high showing 652A, while the only other player going high was showing 7654. With three players, he checks his open. The low checks (like I said, tame), and I bet three dollars, and the other high raises me 12.50. Something about his initial check, though--a hint of exasperation in his demeanor, perhaps--led me to believe that he didn't have the straight. I call, and he mucks his cards.
Whew. I hope my luck lasts tonight.
I found these memes on the friendsfriends page. All of these questions feel like something out of a Middle School Slambook, which begs the question, "Why in the hell am I answering?" I dunno. In the immortal words of Odd Todd, "Beats working..."
// series 1 - you
---> Name: James Tze-Ming Hsiao
---> Birthdate: December 19, 1973
---> Current Location: Tucker, GA on the outskirts of I-285
---> Hair Color: Black
---> Righty or Lefty: Righty
---> Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius
---> Innie or Outtie: Innie
// series two - describe
---> The shoes you wore today: Black Leather Lace-ups
---> Your hair: Short, thick, with a few gray hairs strewn about the sides.
---> Your eyes: So brown they can look black sometimes.
---> Your weakness: I'm a sucker for a pretty face.
---> Your fears: Being alone.
---> Your perfect pizza: Pineapple only. Ham is ok, but just pineapple is preferred
// series three - what is
---> Your most overused phrase on aol\aim: gotcha
---> Your thoughts first waking up: Should I watch TV?
---> The first feature you notice in the opposite (or same) sex: the whole face.
---> Your best physical features: My voice
---> Your usual bedtime: 1:00 - 2:00 AM
---> Your greatest accomplishment: Writing Abraham
---> Your best memory: Just lounging in bed with a former lover, with a whole day of planned activities foregone.
// series four - do you
---> Smoke: No.
---> Cuss: Yes.
---> Sing well: Yes.
---> Take a shower everyday: Most of the time. Sometimes twice.
---> Like high school: Not particularly, although I do have some nostalgia for it.
---> Want to get married?: Yes.
---> Type with your fingers on the right keys: Mostly.
---> Believe in yourself: Not terribly.
---> Get motion sickness: Yes.
---> Think you're attractive: Sometimes.
---> Think you're a health freak: Nope.
---> Get along with your parents: Yes.
---> Like thunderstorms: Sometimes.
---> Play an instrument: Yes. (see previous meme)
// series five - in the past month, did/have you
---> Drank alcohol: Yes
---> Smoked: No
---> Done a drug: No
---> Made Out: No
---> Go on a date: No
---> Go to the mall: Yes
---> Been on stage: No
---> Been dumped: No
---> Gone skating: Yes
---> Made homemade cookies: No
---> Been in love: Yes
---> Gone skinny dipping: Yes (see above meme)
---> Dyed your hair: No
---> Stolen anything: No
// series six - have you ever?
---> Played a game that required removal of clothing: Yes
---> Been trashed or extremely intoxicated: Yes
---> Been caught "doing something": Yes
---> Been called a tease: No
---> Gotten beaten up: Depends on your definition of "beaten up"
---> Shoplifted: Technically, yes.
---> If so, did you get caught: No
---> Changed who you were to fit in: Yes.
// series seven - the future
---> Age you hope to be married: 32?
---> Numbers and Names of Children: I have no idea.
---> Describe your Dream Wedding: See above.
---> What age do you want to die: What kind of stupid question is this?
---> What do you want to be when you grow up:
---> What country would you most like to visit: China, SARS be damned!
---> Current Clothes: Jeans, Long-sleeved T-shirt, black socks.
---> Current Mood: Perturbed at the stupidity of these memes.
---> Current Taste: Honeybaked Ham Turkey Sandwich remnants.
---> Current Hair: Didn't I just answer this?
---> Current Annoyance: Stupid memes.
---> Current Smell: Turkey
---> Current thing you ought to be doing: Working on adding e-mail functionality to our application on a handheld Windows CE device.
---> Current Desktop Picture: No picture. At home I have Mom, Dad, and Jerry, and Rose Marie in another frame.
---> Current Favorite Groups: Blue Man Group, t.A.T.u., Hot Water Music, a-ha
---> Current DVD In Player: Nothing; most recently Boondock Saints
---> Current Worry: Getting home in time to get the poker table and meet up with everyone for the movie.
I introduced my hosts to Screwy Louie, which we played pot limit. Kinda scary, because, like I said, the table was far tamer then my usual games; once the cards were getting played out, though, the betting started rising--especially after we declared. I declared high showing 652A, while the only other player going high was showing 7654. With three players, he checks his open. The low checks (like I said, tame), and I bet three dollars, and the other high raises me 12.50. Something about his initial check, though--a hint of exasperation in his demeanor, perhaps--led me to believe that he didn't have the straight. I call, and he mucks his cards.
Whew. I hope my luck lasts tonight.
I found these memes on the friendsfriends page. All of these questions feel like something out of a Middle School Slambook, which begs the question, "Why in the hell am I answering?" I dunno. In the immortal words of Odd Todd, "Beats working..."
- Would you ever date someone younger than you?
This sounds a bit like a quiz written for junior high schoolers...Yes I have dated someone younger than I was. - Someone Older?
I have also dated numerous people older than I was. - Have you ever smoked weed?
Nope. - Ever been drunk?
A few times. Mostly on birthdays. - Been in love?
"Abso-fuckin-lutely." - Loved someone who you knew you couldn't have?
Yes. In both cases, the woman was unavailable due to marriage. - Gotten in a car accident?
Yes. Some idiot without working reverse lights backed into me in the parking lot of my high school when I was going to take the ACT. I rear ended someone while driving angry on a rainy day in Gainesville--my girlfriend of the time wasn't treating me well, and when she heard about it, she had no sympathy. Finally, about four years ago I inched my way into an old GM car driving my parent's Lexus. It was technically my fault, but I was maybe going like 5 MPH. - Broken a bone?
Nope. Unless you count the chipped tooth. - Had your heart broken?
Don't talk to me. - Last time you said I love you to someone?
Yesterday, to my mother. - Last time you cried?
Two nights ago while watching Inu-Yasha, I teared up in my usual overly-emotional way at a particularly emotional moment. The last time I wept openly was two years ago while talking to my former lover, who's husband had just died. - Last time you laughed?
This morning, thinking about this from The Tard Blog. - Where do you see yourself in 10 Years?
I don't know. - What age do you see yourself married at?
I have no clue. 32? - Describe your dream wedding:
Err... Classy, but not ostentatious? - Do you sleep with a stuffed animal?
- If you could dye your hair one color what would it be?
Didn't I answer these like two days ago? - Have you ever been skinny-dipping?
Not really, unless you count the hot tub in the Oasis Spa at the Luxor - Do you eat chicken with fingers or with a fork?
I grab it in a hamfist and rip pieces off of the bone with my teeth. I then suck the marrow from the bones. Who wrote this quiz?? - Would you rather give or receive?
Give. - How many homes have you lived in?
About nine or so, counting my college apartments/dorms - Do you play any instruments?
For a while I played the viola, and in the loosest sense of the word, I play the guitar. - One pillow or two?
Four. - Do you get along with your parents?
Yes. My dad and I have occasional fights, but for the most part, we're happy. - Favorite town to chill?
Sin City. - Do you drive?
Yes. I live in Atlanta. - What kind of car do you have?
'94 Nissan Pathfinder. It's falling apart on the outside, but still runs fine on the inside. Besides, it's paid for... - What's your favorite color(s)?
Dark Green. - Do you work?
Yes. At least, that's what people call it when they see me at the computer... - What's your favorite food?
Meat. - Do you have braces?
Never have. - How many guys/girls have you kissed?
In a romantic/sexual sense, eight. - When was the last time you went on a date?
I think it was about two years ago. - Have you ever got in serious trouble?
I got laid off from my job November of 2001. Is that serious trouble? - Who was your first crush?
Christina Nuñez, in the third grade. I don't remember why--I think it was because she paid attention to me. Sandra Vargas in the fourth grade, because she was really quite breathtaking. - Do you have a crush?
Yes. - When you meet a person of your preferred sex, you first notice their:
Face. - Are you the romantic type?
In general... - Have you ever been chased by Cops?
Yes. I got a ticket for speeding in Gainesville not three weeks before I was to leave school for good.
// series 1 - you
---> Name: James Tze-Ming Hsiao
---> Birthdate: December 19, 1973
---> Current Location: Tucker, GA on the outskirts of I-285
---> Hair Color: Black
---> Righty or Lefty: Righty
---> Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius
---> Innie or Outtie: Innie
// series two - describe
---> The shoes you wore today: Black Leather Lace-ups
---> Your hair: Short, thick, with a few gray hairs strewn about the sides.
---> Your eyes: So brown they can look black sometimes.
---> Your weakness: I'm a sucker for a pretty face.
---> Your fears: Being alone.
---> Your perfect pizza: Pineapple only. Ham is ok, but just pineapple is preferred
// series three - what is
---> Your most overused phrase on aol\aim: gotcha
---> Your thoughts first waking up: Should I watch TV?
---> The first feature you notice in the opposite (or same) sex: the whole face.
---> Your best physical features: My voice
---> Your usual bedtime: 1:00 - 2:00 AM
---> Your greatest accomplishment: Writing Abraham
---> Your best memory: Just lounging in bed with a former lover, with a whole day of planned activities foregone.
// series four - do you
---> Smoke: No.
---> Cuss: Yes.
---> Sing well: Yes.
---> Take a shower everyday: Most of the time. Sometimes twice.
---> Like high school: Not particularly, although I do have some nostalgia for it.
---> Want to get married?: Yes.
---> Type with your fingers on the right keys: Mostly.
---> Believe in yourself: Not terribly.
---> Get motion sickness: Yes.
---> Think you're attractive: Sometimes.
---> Think you're a health freak: Nope.
---> Get along with your parents: Yes.
---> Like thunderstorms: Sometimes.
---> Play an instrument: Yes. (see previous meme)
// series five - in the past month, did/have you
---> Drank alcohol: Yes
---> Smoked: No
---> Done a drug: No
---> Made Out: No
---> Go on a date: No
---> Go to the mall: Yes
---> Been on stage: No
---> Been dumped: No
---> Gone skating: Yes
---> Made homemade cookies: No
---> Been in love: Yes
---> Gone skinny dipping: Yes (see above meme)
---> Dyed your hair: No
---> Stolen anything: No
// series six - have you ever?
---> Played a game that required removal of clothing: Yes
---> Been trashed or extremely intoxicated: Yes
---> Been caught "doing something": Yes
---> Been called a tease: No
---> Gotten beaten up: Depends on your definition of "beaten up"
---> Shoplifted: Technically, yes.
---> If so, did you get caught: No
---> Changed who you were to fit in: Yes.
// series seven - the future
---> Age you hope to be married: 32?
---> Numbers and Names of Children: I have no idea.
---> Describe your Dream Wedding: See above.
---> What age do you want to die: What kind of stupid question is this?
---> What do you want to be when you grow up:
---> What country would you most like to visit: China, SARS be damned!
---> Current Clothes: Jeans, Long-sleeved T-shirt, black socks.
---> Current Mood: Perturbed at the stupidity of these memes.
---> Current Taste: Honeybaked Ham Turkey Sandwich remnants.
---> Current Hair: Didn't I just answer this?
---> Current Annoyance: Stupid memes.
---> Current Smell: Turkey
---> Current thing you ought to be doing: Working on adding e-mail functionality to our application on a handheld Windows CE device.
---> Current Desktop Picture: No picture. At home I have Mom, Dad, and Jerry, and Rose Marie in another frame.
---> Current Favorite Groups: Blue Man Group, t.A.T.u., Hot Water Music, a-ha
---> Current DVD In Player: Nothing; most recently Boondock Saints
---> Current Worry: Getting home in time to get the poker table and meet up with everyone for the movie.
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