I've had an odd week so far.
Monday: Had a nasty dream. I dreamt that it was dark skies outside, felt like a thunderstorm was coming down. I was looking down at the neighboring village, where I see a roiling black cloud heading up one of the other villages roads. I didn't know how or why, but I knew that I was seeing a tornado. I could see white plumes of dust swirling into its center. I was concerned, and wanted to warn everyone in the house. I turned around and saw my mother heading out the screen door - and in the space she just vacated was another roiling black cloud. I shouted a warning to her, and reached out to pull her to safety, when suddenly the cloud turned into a full-blown dark funnel and lifted my mother up and away from me. Needless to say, I scared myself awake, a nasty wrenching in my heart region chasing away the drowsiness that usually accompanied my waking up every day.
Tuesday: An even nastier dream - I dreamt I was picking bits and pieces of my teeth out of my
mouth, the pieces ranged in size from fragments I could swallow and not notice to whole teeth and gum bone assemblies. Ugh.
Wednesday: I just sent in my thesis proposal to the dean. I hope it gets accepted - I have less than a month to work it if I want to graduate this October.
I've been amusing myself online with Kingdom of Loathing and this ecchi flash game. At home, the stories in my head drive me to write until my fingers hurt. I don't mind - it keeps the insanity at bay.
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
Monday, August 01, 2005
I hate DoTA. At least, I hate playing against experts / addicts in our shop.
It's like feeding them. Make that it's like spoon-feeding them.
I almost seem to always go for the underpowered, underdog characters. Thus, resulting in constant ownage of my in-game ass.
If I play the game for fun, and end up getting trounced every single fucking time, should I quit?
I figure it's like Magic: The Gathering, or MechWarrior - he who has the better equipment wins, especially if the said pieces of equipment are no brainers. I mean, it's not hard to lose when you're behind a Red&Green Fires of Yavimaya+Fading deck, or when you're fielding One-Eyed Jack's Jupiter. It would take total noobs to lose using those.
In contrast, I play with no-name red and green cards that have never made it to tournaments. I field BattleMechs that can't perform charging attacks without melting down 33% of the time, and when they don't melt and hit the target, the accuracy is shot to hell. I have fielded such in a tournament, and did horribly. After all, the most expensive piece of my army was only around 1200 pesos - my opponents were fielding more. They were literally playing with tuition fees on a 3' x 3' table.
Should I quit?
Maybe I would quit, but not entirely. I'd probably play the next time a new DoTA hero comes out. Much like in the way I try to keep up with the latest trends in the collectible games that I've played, a few innocent years back.
Or maybe I should stop playing against people better than me. I could take noobs to school - they're the only ones I probably can.
It's like feeding them. Make that it's like spoon-feeding them.
I almost seem to always go for the underpowered, underdog characters. Thus, resulting in constant ownage of my in-game ass.
If I play the game for fun, and end up getting trounced every single fucking time, should I quit?
I figure it's like Magic: The Gathering, or MechWarrior - he who has the better equipment wins, especially if the said pieces of equipment are no brainers. I mean, it's not hard to lose when you're behind a Red&Green Fires of Yavimaya+Fading deck, or when you're fielding One-Eyed Jack's Jupiter. It would take total noobs to lose using those.
In contrast, I play with no-name red and green cards that have never made it to tournaments. I field BattleMechs that can't perform charging attacks without melting down 33% of the time, and when they don't melt and hit the target, the accuracy is shot to hell. I have fielded such in a tournament, and did horribly. After all, the most expensive piece of my army was only around 1200 pesos - my opponents were fielding more. They were literally playing with tuition fees on a 3' x 3' table.
Should I quit?
Maybe I would quit, but not entirely. I'd probably play the next time a new DoTA hero comes out. Much like in the way I try to keep up with the latest trends in the collectible games that I've played, a few innocent years back.
Or maybe I should stop playing against people better than me. I could take noobs to school - they're the only ones I probably can.
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
I'm writing this straight off the crest of several high waves. Oldest news (pun intended), yay, I'm 23 now, and still stuck in college. I got me a new pair of rubber shoes out of it. They're a vibrant blue, and I love 'em.
Not as much as I love the copy of Neverwhere which Neil Gaiman signed. On the title page, he scrawled, "Mind the gap!" and emphasized it by encircling the cryptic remark. Help me out here! If a British author tells you to mind the gap, what is he really saying? I'm all for it being a Neverwhere reference, but what if it isn't? What if in his uniquely British-author way telling me that I talk to much?
Here's a transcript of our conversation (which came about after waiting for seven hours in a line).
Me: Good evening, Mr. Gaiman. I hope we haven't tired you too much.
NG: It's been what, three bloody days?
NG: The next time I hold one of these things here, I should do it over a week, and not a weekend. But I have this feeling that this bunch - you'll be there every single day!
Me: Oh yes we would, Mr. Gaiman, yes we would!
I know, I know, after waiting all that time, I should have had some more memorable dialogue. But, hey, it has been eight hours for me, and three nights of this book-signing for him. Neither of us were up for witty banter - besides, I didn't want to hog his time for the other 400 or so people waiting downstairs.
It was a real long line. We started outside the mall (1:30 PM) and seven hours later, we were two floors up. My girlfriend and I were numbered 398 and 399. And there were more people trailing after us; with each passing hour the lines grew longer still.
And lastly, just earlier today, I watched Pinoy Blonde with my girlfriend. All I can say is that the director has had one heck of a great time shooting it - how many people get to order greats like Eddie Garcia and Jaime Fabregas to sing on a film? How many directors get to cast popular names in showbiz in bit roles? I bow to Peque Gallaga!
Not as much as I love the copy of Neverwhere which Neil Gaiman signed. On the title page, he scrawled, "Mind the gap!" and emphasized it by encircling the cryptic remark. Help me out here! If a British author tells you to mind the gap, what is he really saying? I'm all for it being a Neverwhere reference, but what if it isn't? What if in his uniquely British-author way telling me that I talk to much?
Here's a transcript of our conversation (which came about after waiting for seven hours in a line).
Me: Good evening, Mr. Gaiman. I hope we haven't tired you too much.
NG: It's been what, three bloody days?
NG: The next time I hold one of these things here, I should do it over a week, and not a weekend. But I have this feeling that this bunch - you'll be there every single day!
Me: Oh yes we would, Mr. Gaiman, yes we would!
I know, I know, after waiting all that time, I should have had some more memorable dialogue. But, hey, it has been eight hours for me, and three nights of this book-signing for him. Neither of us were up for witty banter - besides, I didn't want to hog his time for the other 400 or so people waiting downstairs.
It was a real long line. We started outside the mall (1:30 PM) and seven hours later, we were two floors up. My girlfriend and I were numbered 398 and 399. And there were more people trailing after us; with each passing hour the lines grew longer still.
And lastly, just earlier today, I watched Pinoy Blonde with my girlfriend. All I can say is that the director has had one heck of a great time shooting it - how many people get to order greats like Eddie Garcia and Jaime Fabregas to sing on a film? How many directors get to cast popular names in showbiz in bit roles? I bow to Peque Gallaga!
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Just had to nitpick this once. Prepare for a quick katakana Romanization hop.
Last post I mentioned something about Zengar / Sanger. Taking a closer look at the katakana, it reads "ze-n-ga- so(inflected)-n-bo-ru-to." As the first part has been officially translated as "Sanger" (oh, the wonderful Japanese habit of replacing "er" sounds with the "extended short a" symbol), that leaves us with the second part.
Begging the question, the name could have been transliterated as Zengar with even better similarity to the katakana pronunciation, but why'd Banpresto stick with the 'Sanger' romanization? Ugh.
The second part of the katakana sequence reads 'zo-n-bo-ru-to'. The use of the "ru" kana indicates that there is a distinct R or L sound, which must not be glossed over. E.G., 'bo-ru-to' = bolt, but 'bo-- to' (in the tradition of Japanese swallowing their Rs) would be "boat" or "vote".
The N kana before the Bo is interesting. The N might take on the sound of the English M, which would result in Zombolt. Then again, it could stay as N, giving us Zonbolt. The same controversy plagues the three-piece monstrosity Zambot / Zanbot 3 (below).
This was a sad show. I can't believe Yoshiyuki Tomino would kill kids, but he did. SPOILER: 2 of the 3 pilots die in the final battle. Bah. It's a Super Robot show, for crying out loud! Readers are supposed to be happy at the end!
Then again, it is a genuine Tomino piece. Sigh.
Last post I mentioned something about Zengar / Sanger. Taking a closer look at the katakana, it reads "ze-n-ga- so(inflected)-n-bo-ru-to." As the first part has been officially translated as "Sanger" (oh, the wonderful Japanese habit of replacing "er" sounds with the "extended short a" symbol), that leaves us with the second part.
Begging the question, the name could have been transliterated as Zengar with even better similarity to the katakana pronunciation, but why'd Banpresto stick with the 'Sanger' romanization? Ugh.
The second part of the katakana sequence reads 'zo-n-bo-ru-to'. The use of the "ru" kana indicates that there is a distinct R or L sound, which must not be glossed over. E.G., 'bo-ru-to' = bolt, but 'bo-- to' (in the tradition of Japanese swallowing their Rs) would be "boat" or "vote".
The N kana before the Bo is interesting. The N might take on the sound of the English M, which would result in Zombolt. Then again, it could stay as N, giving us Zonbolt. The same controversy plagues the three-piece monstrosity Zambot / Zanbot 3 (below).
This was a sad show. I can't believe Yoshiyuki Tomino would kill kids, but he did. SPOILER: 2 of the 3 pilots die in the final battle. Bah. It's a Super Robot show, for crying out loud! Readers are supposed to be happy at the end!
Then again, it is a genuine Tomino piece. Sigh.
Saturday, June 25, 2005
I owe the new layout to my girlfriend. I love you dear.
It's been a really long while since I had anything of not happen to me that's worth writing about.
The squatter who slugged me will, and probably already did so, escape the pathetic claws of justice. The system sucks in the way that if I had a gun under the table that time, shot his leg or arm to prevent him from running away or hitting me some more, I'd have been the one to be arrested. I can see the newspaper tagline - "Mauled student arrested for defending self with gun." You can't win ever at some things, it seems.
For the more recent happenings... Well, I've seen the Super Robot Wars OAV, oohed and aahed, and left wanting to see the next two episodes.
The much-anticipated Super Robot Wars Alpha 3, the conclusion of the series, features bounciness yet again! It seems that Banpresto has found the way to keep its target market captive. But beware, they seem to be targeting a new sector of the market - bishonen addicts. I'll explain.
(Above) Zengar Zombolt / Sanger Somvold, one of Banpresto's more popular "Original Characters."
(Above) A new "Original Character" in SRW Alpha 3. Has been called a 'Zengar-ette' by one of the people in a message board I frequent. The thing is, this one's a guy. He's the male Real-type pilot.
It's been a really long while since I had anything of not happen to me that's worth writing about.
The squatter who slugged me will, and probably already did so, escape the pathetic claws of justice. The system sucks in the way that if I had a gun under the table that time, shot his leg or arm to prevent him from running away or hitting me some more, I'd have been the one to be arrested. I can see the newspaper tagline - "Mauled student arrested for defending self with gun." You can't win ever at some things, it seems.
For the more recent happenings... Well, I've seen the Super Robot Wars OAV, oohed and aahed, and left wanting to see the next two episodes.
The much-anticipated Super Robot Wars Alpha 3, the conclusion of the series, features bounciness yet again! It seems that Banpresto has found the way to keep its target market captive. But beware, they seem to be targeting a new sector of the market - bishonen addicts. I'll explain.
(Above) Zengar Zombolt / Sanger Somvold, one of Banpresto's more popular "Original Characters."
(Above) A new "Original Character" in SRW Alpha 3. Has been called a 'Zengar-ette' by one of the people in a message board I frequent. The thing is, this one's a guy. He's the male Real-type pilot.
Thursday, June 23, 2005
Friday, April 08, 2005
Tuesday, March 15, 2005
I suck as a blog-keeper. Check out when my last posr was, and you'll see what I mean.
I write this on a keyboard whose key layout is all but rubbed off by gamers' hands, including mine. My hands seem to be good only for nothing. Now, watch as I use them to fend off my girlfriend's attempt to tickle me to death for lumping her in the "Nothing" pile...
I'm serious. Laughing too much can kill a person - something to do with not getting enough air properly to the lungs. It's not a funny way to die - not that death is funny in the first place.
What have I done in the past three months? Academics? Pfftz. Big fat egg there. Fan-writing? Some. Some success, lots of rewrites. Online gaming? I have a level 49 character in an MMORPG that's going Pay-to-Play soon, very soon. He's the most powerful character I ever had in an online game, and I think I'll keep him.
Emulation? I've recently finished Super Robot Taisen Original Generation 2. Once, that is - the game begs to be fnished thrice, to unlock more stories and features I guess, but when you can't read kanji and hiragana fluently, you don't care much.
Besides, I'm part of this BBS that discusses this stuff - I'll just mooch off their knowledge.
Animation? I'm waiting eagerly to leech the Super Robot Taisen Original Generation OAV, once it's released. I'm currently watching His and Her Circumstances, needing a change of pace after Chobits. I missed seeing the 24th episode of the CLAMP obra - I really wanted to see the relation dynamics between Chii's boss, a bakeshop manager named Hiroyuki Ueda (voiced by Yuji Ueda, whose other roles I am a fan/jealous of) and Hideki's co-worker, Yumi Omura. I know Hiroyuki's beef - he gave his heart to a cute Persocon who died saving him, a Persocon he married but who eventually lost all memory of him. (READ: Bad hard disk.) As for Yumi - she seems to have an anti-human-sized Persocon ax to grind, that's all I know. Then at the end of the TV series, she's seen in Ueda's shop - I want to know if that was a social call or if Yumi's looking for work there, or if Yumi's actually a masochist - I wanna know!!!
"Love is being with someone you like, even if it causes the two of you some hurt, because being apart from each other hurts a hell of a lot more." -- Paraphrased from Hideki Motosuwa, last episode. One of Hideki's more lucid moments, and I agree with him.
SPOILER ALERT: Chii is actually holding 3 personalities in her cute little head. One is her original self, Elda, created by landlady Chitose Hibiya's husband as a daughter. Elda was built to be Freya's younger sister - Hibiya-san's 1st daughter, also a sentient & feeling gynoid (pardon the Ghost in the Shell term) who falls in love with her "father" in a non-filial way, and decides to go away for good when she found out that it mustn't be. In a surprising turn of events, Elda allows Freya to transfer her 'ghost' (again, a GITS term) into her. Going 'Gaaah!' yet? Some people decide to toss Elda away, and Hideki finds her. Her learning program creates a knowledge storage shell, and this is what we know as Chii.
Then again, I'm not really new to the "machine with feelings and soul" concept - there's plenty of it in SRW, especially SRWOG2. One of them also does a heroic 'human shield' for an asshole who doesn't think much of created people, not because it's her orders, but because she develops totally inappropriate feelings for her boss. (Hmm, are they trying to tell us something here?)
I write this on a keyboard whose key layout is all but rubbed off by gamers' hands, including mine. My hands seem to be good only for nothing. Now, watch as I use them to fend off my girlfriend's attempt to tickle me to death for lumping her in the "Nothing" pile...
I'm serious. Laughing too much can kill a person - something to do with not getting enough air properly to the lungs. It's not a funny way to die - not that death is funny in the first place.
What have I done in the past three months? Academics? Pfftz. Big fat egg there. Fan-writing? Some. Some success, lots of rewrites. Online gaming? I have a level 49 character in an MMORPG that's going Pay-to-Play soon, very soon. He's the most powerful character I ever had in an online game, and I think I'll keep him.
Emulation? I've recently finished Super Robot Taisen Original Generation 2. Once, that is - the game begs to be fnished thrice, to unlock more stories and features I guess, but when you can't read kanji and hiragana fluently, you don't care much.
Besides, I'm part of this BBS that discusses this stuff - I'll just mooch off their knowledge.
Animation? I'm waiting eagerly to leech the Super Robot Taisen Original Generation OAV, once it's released. I'm currently watching His and Her Circumstances, needing a change of pace after Chobits. I missed seeing the 24th episode of the CLAMP obra - I really wanted to see the relation dynamics between Chii's boss, a bakeshop manager named Hiroyuki Ueda (voiced by Yuji Ueda, whose other roles I am a fan/jealous of) and Hideki's co-worker, Yumi Omura. I know Hiroyuki's beef - he gave his heart to a cute Persocon who died saving him, a Persocon he married but who eventually lost all memory of him. (READ: Bad hard disk.) As for Yumi - she seems to have an anti-human-sized Persocon ax to grind, that's all I know. Then at the end of the TV series, she's seen in Ueda's shop - I want to know if that was a social call or if Yumi's looking for work there, or if Yumi's actually a masochist - I wanna know!!!
"Love is being with someone you like, even if it causes the two of you some hurt, because being apart from each other hurts a hell of a lot more." -- Paraphrased from Hideki Motosuwa, last episode. One of Hideki's more lucid moments, and I agree with him.
SPOILER ALERT: Chii is actually holding 3 personalities in her cute little head. One is her original self, Elda, created by landlady Chitose Hibiya's husband as a daughter. Elda was built to be Freya's younger sister - Hibiya-san's 1st daughter, also a sentient & feeling gynoid (pardon the Ghost in the Shell term) who falls in love with her "father" in a non-filial way, and decides to go away for good when she found out that it mustn't be. In a surprising turn of events, Elda allows Freya to transfer her 'ghost' (again, a GITS term) into her. Going 'Gaaah!' yet? Some people decide to toss Elda away, and Hideki finds her. Her learning program creates a knowledge storage shell, and this is what we know as Chii.
Then again, I'm not really new to the "machine with feelings and soul" concept - there's plenty of it in SRW, especially SRWOG2. One of them also does a heroic 'human shield' for an asshole who doesn't think much of created people, not because it's her orders, but because she develops totally inappropriate feelings for her boss. (Hmm, are they trying to tell us something here?)
I suck as a blog-keeper. Check out when my last posr was, and you'll see what I mean.
I write this on a keyboard whose key layout is all but rubbed off by gamers' hands, including mine. My hands seem to be good only for nothing. Now, watch as I use them to fend off my girlfriend's attempt to tickle me to death for lumping her in the "Nothing" pile...
I'm serious. Laughing too much can kill a person - something to do with not getting enough air properly to the lungs. It's not a funny way to die - not that death is funny in the first place.
What have I done in the past three months? Academics? Pfftz. Big fat egg there. Fan-writing? Some. Some success, lots of rewrites. Online gaming? I have a level 49 character in an MMORPG that's going Pay-to-Play soon, very soon. He's the most powerful character I ever had in an online game, and I think I'll keep him.
Emulation? I've recently finished Super Robot Taisen Original Generation 2. Once, that is - the game begs to be fnished thrice, to unlock more stories and features I guess, but when you can't read kanji and hiragana fluently, you don't care much.
Besides, I'm part of this BBS that discusses this stuff - I'll just mooch off their knowledge.
Animation? I'm waiting eagerly to leech the Super Robot Taisen Original Generation OAV, once it's released. I'm currently watching His and Her Circumstances, needing a change of pace after Chobits. I missed seeing the 24th episode of the CLAMP obra - I really wanted to see the relation dynamics between Chii's boss, a bakeshop manager named Hiroyuki Ueda (voiced by Yuji Ueda, whose other roles I am a fan/jealous of) and Hideki's co-worker, Yumi Omura. I know Hiroyuki's beef - he gave his heart to a cute Persocon who died saving him, a Persocon he married but who eventually lost all memory of him. (READ: Bad hard disk.) As for Yumi - she seems to have an anti-human-sized Persocon ax to grind, that's all I know. Then at the end of the TV series, she's seen in Ueda's shop - I want to know if that was a social call or if Yumi's looking for work there, or if Yumi's actually a masochist - I wanna know!!!
"Love is being with someone you like, even if it causes the two of you some hurt, because being apart from each other hurts a hell of a lot more." -- Paraphrased from Hideki Motosuwa, last episode. One of Hideki's more lucid moments, and I agree with him.
SPOILER ALERT: Chii is actually holding 3 personalities in her cute little head. One is her original self, Elda, created by landlady Chitose Hibiya's husband as a daughter. Elda was built to be Freya's younger sister - Hibiya-san's 1st daughter, also a sentient & feeling gynoid (pardon the Ghost in the Shell term) who falls in love with her "father" in a non-filial way, and decides to go away for good when she found out that it mustn't be. In a surprising turn of events, Elda allows Freya to transfer her 'ghost' (again, a GITS term) into her. Going 'Gaaah!' yet? Some people decide to toss Elda away, and Hideki finds her. Her learning program creates a knowledge storage shell, and this is what we know as Chii.
Then again, I'm not really new to the "machine with feelings and soul" concept - there's plenty of it in SRW, especially SRWOG2. One of them also does a heroic 'human shield' for an asshole who doesn't think much of created people, not because it's her orders, but because she develops totally inappropriate feelings for her boss. (Hmm, are they trying to tell us something here?)
I write this on a keyboard whose key layout is all but rubbed off by gamers' hands, including mine. My hands seem to be good only for nothing. Now, watch as I use them to fend off my girlfriend's attempt to tickle me to death for lumping her in the "Nothing" pile...
I'm serious. Laughing too much can kill a person - something to do with not getting enough air properly to the lungs. It's not a funny way to die - not that death is funny in the first place.
What have I done in the past three months? Academics? Pfftz. Big fat egg there. Fan-writing? Some. Some success, lots of rewrites. Online gaming? I have a level 49 character in an MMORPG that's going Pay-to-Play soon, very soon. He's the most powerful character I ever had in an online game, and I think I'll keep him.
Emulation? I've recently finished Super Robot Taisen Original Generation 2. Once, that is - the game begs to be fnished thrice, to unlock more stories and features I guess, but when you can't read kanji and hiragana fluently, you don't care much.
Besides, I'm part of this BBS that discusses this stuff - I'll just mooch off their knowledge.
Animation? I'm waiting eagerly to leech the Super Robot Taisen Original Generation OAV, once it's released. I'm currently watching His and Her Circumstances, needing a change of pace after Chobits. I missed seeing the 24th episode of the CLAMP obra - I really wanted to see the relation dynamics between Chii's boss, a bakeshop manager named Hiroyuki Ueda (voiced by Yuji Ueda, whose other roles I am a fan/jealous of) and Hideki's co-worker, Yumi Omura. I know Hiroyuki's beef - he gave his heart to a cute Persocon who died saving him, a Persocon he married but who eventually lost all memory of him. (READ: Bad hard disk.) As for Yumi - she seems to have an anti-human-sized Persocon ax to grind, that's all I know. Then at the end of the TV series, she's seen in Ueda's shop - I want to know if that was a social call or if Yumi's looking for work there, or if Yumi's actually a masochist - I wanna know!!!
"Love is being with someone you like, even if it causes the two of you some hurt, because being apart from each other hurts a hell of a lot more." -- Paraphrased from Hideki Motosuwa, last episode. One of Hideki's more lucid moments, and I agree with him.
SPOILER ALERT: Chii is actually holding 3 personalities in her cute little head. One is her original self, Elda, created by landlady Chitose Hibiya's husband as a daughter. Elda was built to be Freya's younger sister - Hibiya-san's 1st daughter, also a sentient & feeling gynoid (pardon the Ghost in the Shell term) who falls in love with her "father" in a non-filial way, and decides to go away for good when she found out that it mustn't be. In a surprising turn of events, Elda allows Freya to transfer her 'ghost' (again, a GITS term) into her. Going 'Gaaah!' yet? Some people decide to toss Elda away, and Hideki finds her. Her learning program creates a knowledge storage shell, and this is what we know as Chii.
Then again, I'm not really new to the "machine with feelings and soul" concept - there's plenty of it in SRW, especially SRWOG2. One of them also does a heroic 'human shield' for an asshole who doesn't think much of created people, not because it's her orders, but because she develops totally inappropriate feelings for her boss. (Hmm, are they trying to tell us something here?)
Thursday, December 30, 2004
And so this is Christmas / And what have you done / The old year is over / A new one begun...
Aside from seeing my first year with my girlfriend, I can say nothing much. I 'm thankful that I'm alive - despite all the misery and unexpected that comes with living, it sure beats being dead. Living dead, perhaps, but still alive - and being alive is what counts.
My prospects for the future look grim. It's not that I'll go insane once my girlfriend leaves the country to study abroad - never fear - but I ponder on what will become of me once I fail my family once more. I've no desire to test how tenuous the string called family ties are - in my case, it's almost a certainty, though.
No thesis = no place in the family and house. I could point out that neither my mother nor my aunt-godmother had college diplomas, but then I'm not exactly cooking meals or cleaning the house or washing laundry or being helpful to the family in anyway. Put that way, why would anyone want another mouth to feed, another source of dirty clothes, a non-deductable from the income tax return?
I could find work, I guess - though the chances of a college dropout finding decent jobs is slimmer than for college graduates finding decent jobs in today's market.
Staying to run with the computer shop isn't an option - we close down this coming October, thanks to the greedy bloodsucking landlord who doesn't do anything about spark-spewing wall outlets, faulty toilets, and water and electrical outages. AND HE STILL HAS THE NERVE TO RAISE THE RENT! Madness!
Aside from seeing my first year with my girlfriend, I can say nothing much. I 'm thankful that I'm alive - despite all the misery and unexpected that comes with living, it sure beats being dead. Living dead, perhaps, but still alive - and being alive is what counts.
My prospects for the future look grim. It's not that I'll go insane once my girlfriend leaves the country to study abroad - never fear - but I ponder on what will become of me once I fail my family once more. I've no desire to test how tenuous the string called family ties are - in my case, it's almost a certainty, though.
No thesis = no place in the family and house. I could point out that neither my mother nor my aunt-godmother had college diplomas, but then I'm not exactly cooking meals or cleaning the house or washing laundry or being helpful to the family in anyway. Put that way, why would anyone want another mouth to feed, another source of dirty clothes, a non-deductable from the income tax return?
I could find work, I guess - though the chances of a college dropout finding decent jobs is slimmer than for college graduates finding decent jobs in today's market.
Staying to run with the computer shop isn't an option - we close down this coming October, thanks to the greedy bloodsucking landlord who doesn't do anything about spark-spewing wall outlets, faulty toilets, and water and electrical outages. AND HE STILL HAS THE NERVE TO RAISE THE RENT! Madness!
Saturday, December 25, 2004
I can't believe it's been almost two months since I've been here. Merry Christmas.
Fanfiction.net has done something very bad to me: they've taken my pen name out of their search function. Don't ask me why, don't ask me how. A friend of mine was witness to this. I logged in, as if trying to add a new chapter. It worked, confirming I was still an author in ff.net. Then I try searching using the site's search function for all variations of Jemu Nekketsu - NOTHING CAME UP.
Nothing came up. I'm serious. I was logged in, I have the document manager and the works, but I could not find my name in the search Author by Pen Name thingy.
I'm thinking of putting up my future stories spun off copyrighted material here, but I can't recall if the Terms of Agreement allows me to do so. Heck, I have faulty memory, and I didn't care to print the stuff.
Fanfiction.net has done something very bad to me: they've taken my pen name out of their search function. Don't ask me why, don't ask me how. A friend of mine was witness to this. I logged in, as if trying to add a new chapter. It worked, confirming I was still an author in ff.net. Then I try searching using the site's search function for all variations of Jemu Nekketsu - NOTHING CAME UP.
Nothing came up. I'm serious. I was logged in, I have the document manager and the works, but I could not find my name in the search Author by Pen Name thingy.
I'm thinking of putting up my future stories spun off copyrighted material here, but I can't recall if the Terms of Agreement allows me to do so. Heck, I have faulty memory, and I didn't care to print the stuff.
Thursday, October 28, 2004
I'm ready to throw in the towel with this blog. The spacing between paragraphs (or lack of it - see my previous post) is counter-intuitive. What I see I do not get. What I want to see I can't make happen. Fudge.
Why does it work sometimes, and botch on all others? I checked the HTML code, and there is a lot of formatting tags enclosing... nothing. It's allwith no text inside. It confounds me. I'm pretty sure I didn't want that to happen.
So much for WYSIWYG, I guess. It's back to Edit HTML for me. Boy, this sure brings back high school sophomore days.
Why does it work sometimes, and botch on all others? I checked the HTML code, and there is a lot of formatting tags enclosing... nothing. It's all
So much for WYSIWYG, I guess. It's back to Edit HTML for me.
Back to Basics. I hope the bold and italic tags are up to par with the message boards I'm a part of.
This will be my workbook post. Here, I'll try to play around with the text controls. Notice that the fonts here are of different sizes. The rule, I think, is to put down all the text first before performing doodads.
I shall rectify that error now.
This will be my workbook post. Here, I'll try to play around with the text controls. Notice that the fonts here are of different sizes. The rule, I think, is to put down all the text first before performing doodads.
If anyone has noticed, I've deleted my previous post - it's got too much endemic errors to make me let it live longer. The presentation of the topic is also botched - I was explaining the features of a particular side of an RTS game to a reader who probably hasn't played it yet.
I shall rectify that error now.
Dawn of War Basics
Controls and Gameplay
Dawn of War is a real-time strategy (RTS) game. Unlike chess, where each side takes turns, one after the other, in RTS games the sides perform their actions simultaneously, thus creating a sense of excitement as to who can outsmart who faster.
DoW is a point and click game - you select units and structures with your mouse, and click on some buttons on the game screen to give them commands, or on the map to give them orders. No keyboard-pounding action here, I'm afraid. :)
It's a war simulation - you gather resources, build up the necessary production facilities, gather an army, and try to conquer your opponent with it. All in all, a regular RTS pattern - gather, build, and attack.
Distinguishing Features
There are two resources involved in creating an army - Requisition points and Power. Requisition points are gathered by capturing Strategic Points, Critical Points and Relics. Power can be obtained from Generators. Capturing key areas and building Generators increase the rate at which these resources trickle into your reserves.
DoW offers a twist in army management - squads. Infantry are requisitioned in squads of 1-5 units to start with, and can be commanded to recruit more members to increase a squad's capability. This recruitment can be done even in the middle of combat! Squads need not be monotonous - some members of a squad may be assigned different weapons from their comrades (as in a real-life army), and squad leaders may be assigned to them to improve their performance. Lastly, there are some infantry units that do not come in squads when they are created, but may join a squad, increasing their survival chances.
This is because squads take damage as a whole - the damage is distributed evenly to all members, as opposed to direct damage when attacking a unit that is acting alone, i.e., a vehicle. In the crudest terms, a squad is a meat shield for special infantry units, who more often than not are support units like medics or powerful attack units. The more members the meat shield has, the better.
Vehicles also can be tweaked - a Predator tank, for example, may exchange its main artillery gun for a laser cannon, in the same manner that a squad may be assigned weapons to deal with various situations. This customization to the point of twinkiness is a direct translation of the War Hammer 40,000 tabletop miniature game into the PC-RTS format (The minis game is turn-based.). The point-value limit of the tabletop game has been replaced with a Squad and Vehicle cap, which prevents massive rushes of generic troops to drown the enemy. Quantity is good, but quality is too. A 16-Ork attack force equipped only with axes and pistols is going to flounder when faced with an Eldar hovertank. An 8-strong Space Marine Squad, half of which are carrying Missile Launchers, with an Apothecary to heal wounds and a Sergeant with a Plasma Gun will take said hovertank down with only minor casualties.
It seems that researching upgrades for your units is a must for any strategy game that wishes to score in the market. It stands to reason - it is easier to maintain a small body of well-armed troops than a horde of spear-wielding peasants. DoW is not without this requisite, which is a trend that Blizzard's games started - if you don't research and upgrade, you die. Upgrades come in the form of extra weapons, special abilities, or in passive bonuses (say, to each unit's health).
My task here is done. Hopefully, I can move on to the wonderfully biased unit descriptions in my next posts.
Thursday, October 14, 2004
I didn't mean to allow so many days to pass after my last post, but I got sidetracked by Dawn of War. Dawn of War is a/an RTS (Real-Time Strategy) game taking its elements from Games Workshop's WarHammer universe. The game has a campaign, skirmish mode (where you fight against AI), and multiplayer is supported (though I haven't tried it yet).
The WarHammer universe is big, and its different races are always at war with each other. The campaign puts you behind the reins of the Space Marines, Blood Ravens Chapter. They're pretty much your run-of-the-mill people in power suits that have high-tech weapons and gear, except that they have cybernetic implants. Space Marines have no sense of humor - you might get bored of hearing the same old "For the Emperor!" "The enemies of the Emperor will be crushed!" lines. I was wondering idly if there's a chapter (kinda like monks, their organization is) that has white power armor, and only its commanders wear black. The Space Marines have the nasty habits of hardwiring their crippled/maimed/disabled soldiers into humanoid weapons platforms (read: SUPAA ROBOTTO!), binding a protective spirit in each one of their super tanks, and dropping firepower, troopers, and aforementioned robots from their orbiting battleships. Crazy humans.
The first race you meet and massacre in the campaign are the Orks. Yes folks, that's Orks, not orcs, due to some wish to not be identified with Tolkien perhaps. Green-skinned people with a love of battle, no I'm not talking about the Hulk. Orks do not possess high levels of technology, preferring weapons that go bang, chop, boom, or burn. Only the smartest of them get the stuff that go zap and blink. Still, when it comes to close combat, they are a match with Space Marines and their strength-increasing armor. Their accuracy has a lot to be improved on, but when a full gang of Orks outnumbers a Space Marine squad 2:1, well, now... Their nasty habits include equipping every gang in the field with explosives of all sorts, strapping some huge guns on a big, BIG lizard, and using goblins as spies and workers. The Ork side is full of laughs - one of their heroes says "Where's my trukk? Why am I WALKING?!!!" The other hero says upon entering the field "I'ze the biggest, so I'ze DA BOSS!"
Next up on your plate are the fast yet frail Eldar. For those not in the know, 'Eldar' is WarHammer-speak for 'Elves.' They look tame and lame compared to Orks - none of them have siege capable infantry, i.e. soldiers that can deal significant damage to structures oustside of hand-to-hand combat. They make up for it with their vehicles - three are highly maneuverable hovertanks, and the other one is a humanoid weapon similar to what the Space Marines use. What Eldar infantry are best at is appearing suddenly and disappearing quickly - they run really fast, and they have teleportation gates. Did I mention that some Eldar structures also teleport? Talk about cheating. In fact, they so need to cheat badly, they can summon their war god to fight on the ground with them.
The last race / faction included in the game are the Chaos Marines. They're basically D3V1L W0RSH1PP1NG Space Marines, and its reflected in their structures' and units' look. Their version of the Space Marines' SUPAA ROBOTTO has four legs, two arms ending in pincers, and a horned helemet complete with glowing eyes perched on top of its hull. They can also summon daemons - in fact, one of their big plays is to sneak a squad in, undetected, to your HQ, then transform the squad leader into a Bloodthirster, one of Baphomet's meaner cousins. Oh yeah, summoning the big horned, winged guy doesn't kill the other members of the squad, so they can stick around and provide fire support for the big, strong and ugly guy. They're funny that way.
There is a 5th group, the Imperial Guard, who are in the campaign - you can't play as them in the skirmish and multiplayer modes. They're plot devices, literally. All they have going for them are their 15-man squads armed with grenade launchers, laser rifles, and plasma guns, and their cute tanks.
Graphics-wise and game-wise, Dawm of War has been described as a Warcraft killer. It's so easy to learn - the Space Marines that is, as the in-game tutorial puts you in command once again of a Space Marine force. It has camera controls that allow a player to zoom in and pan the view as they wish to really get up close to the action.
I'll discuss units in-depth on my next post.
The WarHammer universe is big, and its different races are always at war with each other. The campaign puts you behind the reins of the Space Marines, Blood Ravens Chapter. They're pretty much your run-of-the-mill people in power suits that have high-tech weapons and gear, except that they have cybernetic implants. Space Marines have no sense of humor - you might get bored of hearing the same old "For the Emperor!" "The enemies of the Emperor will be crushed!" lines. I was wondering idly if there's a chapter (kinda like monks, their organization is) that has white power armor, and only its commanders wear black. The Space Marines have the nasty habits of hardwiring their crippled/maimed/disabled soldiers into humanoid weapons platforms (read: SUPAA ROBOTTO!), binding a protective spirit in each one of their super tanks, and dropping firepower, troopers, and aforementioned robots from their orbiting battleships. Crazy humans.
The first race you meet and massacre in the campaign are the Orks. Yes folks, that's Orks, not orcs, due to some wish to not be identified with Tolkien perhaps. Green-skinned people with a love of battle, no I'm not talking about the Hulk. Orks do not possess high levels of technology, preferring weapons that go bang, chop, boom, or burn. Only the smartest of them get the stuff that go zap and blink. Still, when it comes to close combat, they are a match with Space Marines and their strength-increasing armor. Their accuracy has a lot to be improved on, but when a full gang of Orks outnumbers a Space Marine squad 2:1, well, now... Their nasty habits include equipping every gang in the field with explosives of all sorts, strapping some huge guns on a big, BIG lizard, and using goblins as spies and workers. The Ork side is full of laughs - one of their heroes says "Where's my trukk? Why am I WALKING?!!!" The other hero says upon entering the field "I'ze the biggest, so I'ze DA BOSS!"
Next up on your plate are the fast yet frail Eldar. For those not in the know, 'Eldar' is WarHammer-speak for 'Elves.' They look tame and lame compared to Orks - none of them have siege capable infantry, i.e. soldiers that can deal significant damage to structures oustside of hand-to-hand combat. They make up for it with their vehicles - three are highly maneuverable hovertanks, and the other one is a humanoid weapon similar to what the Space Marines use. What Eldar infantry are best at is appearing suddenly and disappearing quickly - they run really fast, and they have teleportation gates. Did I mention that some Eldar structures also teleport? Talk about cheating. In fact, they so need to cheat badly, they can summon their war god to fight on the ground with them.
The last race / faction included in the game are the Chaos Marines. They're basically D3V1L W0RSH1PP1NG Space Marines, and its reflected in their structures' and units' look. Their version of the Space Marines' SUPAA ROBOTTO has four legs, two arms ending in pincers, and a horned helemet complete with glowing eyes perched on top of its hull. They can also summon daemons - in fact, one of their big plays is to sneak a squad in, undetected, to your HQ, then transform the squad leader into a Bloodthirster, one of Baphomet's meaner cousins. Oh yeah, summoning the big horned, winged guy doesn't kill the other members of the squad, so they can stick around and provide fire support for the big, strong and ugly guy. They're funny that way.
There is a 5th group, the Imperial Guard, who are in the campaign - you can't play as them in the skirmish and multiplayer modes. They're plot devices, literally. All they have going for them are their 15-man squads armed with grenade launchers, laser rifles, and plasma guns, and their cute tanks.
Graphics-wise and game-wise, Dawm of War has been described as a Warcraft killer. It's so easy to learn - the Space Marines that is, as the in-game tutorial puts you in command once again of a Space Marine force. It has camera controls that allow a player to zoom in and pan the view as they wish to really get up close to the action.
I'll discuss units in-depth on my next post.
Wednesday, October 06, 2004
Mahou Senshi Louie
Fun crazy sh!t. Arguably one of a local channel's better moves, but then again, it has this penchant for showing magical, fantasy anime - heck, it's biggest primetime draw is a soap opera about bird-men with human problems.
My friend says that we're slowly retrograding back into the '80s. I can't say I don't like it, but if it means coming up with more soaps, I'll just go back to my old-school Japanese robots, thank you very much. But I digress.
This is supposed to be a Mahou Senshi, or Rune Soldier post. So it shall be. My expectations for this show were met, and more. After all, the commercial teasers promised one guy, and at least two girls (one for teenagers to gawk at, and the other one's lolicon bait) in a fantasy setting - reminiscent of Bakuretsu / Sorceror Hunters.
Louie is the adopted son of a mage academy's Head Wizard or somesuch (I didn't catch his title). You'd expect him to be a regular wimpy Merlin-wannabe, but no: he's got a lot of brawn, height, hair, and ignorance. Not "I'm-gonna-fireball-that-pile-of-orcs-pinning-down-my-buddy" but "I'm-gonna-skip-magic-school-and-just-booze-and-brawl-and-babe-around " ignorant. Reminds me a lot of myself, which is maybe why I love the show already. Or it could be the fact that he gets to travel with a lolicon bait thief, a sin-inspiring nun, and an Amazon swordswoman who prefers to fight in swim suits.
It's great to see anime that offers pantyshots during the opening to middle minutes of the first episode. I mean, big, hulking novice mage trips drunkenly on his feet, and snags thief-girl's skirt, exposing white cotton unmentionables? I bow. As far as first episodes go, Mahou Senshi's is a masterpiece - you get fanservice AND a lot of explanations without a feeling a lecture is going on.
Quick and dirty ep 1 summary -
SCENE 1: Merril (thief), Genie (fighter), and Melissa (cleric) find a trapdoor in some ruins. Thief skills won't open it though - they need a mage's magic! (A Knock spell, in Dungeons and Dragons parlance. Note that the character classes are old D&D as well.) They decide to call it a day and head back to town - the sudden appearance of regenerating monsters spurs them on.
SCENE 2: Merril wanders around town, looking for mage hangouts. She is suddenly ambushed by a bunch of women who demand if she has seen a tall, muscular guy with long hair. She tells them "he went that way" and points to where she came from, and the mob heads off. She sighs, and hears a man's voice thanking her for getting rid of those women. She turns around, and out of a fruit crate a tall, muscular guy with long hair stands up. He tries to buy her dinner in gratitude; refuses and turns away, he tries to stop her, trips drunkenly on his feet, and snags thief-girl's skirt - well, you pretty much know what happens after that. For those who can't tell, no they did not DO IT , she beat him silly and stalked off, muttering "Pervert" or something like it.
SCENE 3: Genie is confronting 3 punks with swords. Punks announce the extortion attempt; she says she'll just whip their asses. Suddenly, a new voice is heard (oh, really?) and says that if there's a fight going to happen, he wants in. A few seconds later the fight ensues, and the seemingly drunk brawler with long hair wipes the floor with the punks. One of them draws a sword, and is immediately dispatched by Genie. (She reminds me a lot of Kanna from Sakura Taisen - tall, buff, tanned, sexy in a scary way.) She harangues the brawler for fighting fist to sword, and the participants in the brief spat scatter as a watchman runs over to investigate the ruckus.
SCENE 4: Bar scene. Genie and Merill meet up in another bar with Melissa, a traveling cleric for the god of War. Talk of a divination ritual, ditzy nun jokes, then Merill says she heard that there's a tavern in the northern part of the city where the mages chill out at the end of the day, and the three decide to head there to recruit a female magic-user for their party.
SCENE 5: Another tavern. The three approach a woman drinking alone - yes, she's a mage, no, I don't do adventures, but a friend of mine might be able to help you. Said friend walks in - it's the drunk, long-haired pervert brawler from before! Ila introduces her friend Louie to the three adventurers. Melissa asks dazedly where they knew the guy from. Louie is brought up to speed, and says he'll gladly join the three. BZZZZT!!! Sorry, no men allowed. Tempers flare, Genie draws her sword, and Louie shows her a glowing red pearl (it's a delayed blast fireball) and tells her he's been ready for this fight, and not to come closer or the red gem will paralyze her. As he gloats about how good he is, he notices Ila and the other tavern patrons have taken cover.
Louie: Hey, Ila...
Ila: Louie, don't you pay attention to class? Red isn't paralysis, it's blue!
Louie: Ok, so what's this for?
Ila: Explosive....
Louie tries to get rid of the gem ASAP, but he trips again and drops the sucker. BOOOOMM!!!!
FAST FORWARD: Louie is bailed out of jail by the faithfuk Ila. They talk, and Louie tells her he's joining the three - their talk of not wanting to take him means that they think they are not fit company for one as him. He decides to sell his pitch to the cleric girl, who is preparing for a divination ritual. She wants to see the hero she will dedicate her life to, as adventuring members of her order are wont to do, becoming heroines in the process. Louie tries repeatedly to enter the cloister, but is defeated by staff-wielding nuns at each turn. He does get beyond the gate, and onto the roof of the cloister - only to be met by Genie and Merill, who are still pissed off at him and aren't willing to give him a chance to talk to Melissa. As they battle on the domed roof, Melissa is underneath, oblivious, as she stands naked in hip-deep water praying - nay, communing with her deity. Her deity tells her that the next person she lays eyes on will be the one whom she must dedicate herself to. On the roof, Louie pulls of a powerful desperation spell, meaning to finish the fight then and there. The spell looks good, there's a circle of light on the roof centered on him - when suddenly the spell goes haywire and the circle explodes, sending Louie up into the air and down the hole - yep. Straight into Melissa's prayer pool. Remember what the deity said? Yep. Mr. Tall, Brawny, and Bumbling. Her reaction? "NOOOOOOOO!!!"
There goes her dreams of offering herself to a brave and noble paladin. She gets stuck with a mage initiate who's better with his fists than with his spells.
The second episode makes his description worse - a perverted novice mage whose sword skills are on par with his magic skills, who nonetheless is still very deadly with his fists, especially if he flies into a white-eyed rage. Seriously. His irises go white, and he can take out those regenerating monsters from episode 1 with just his bare hands. Focusing mana in his fists? Maybe this guy should have been a monk. Or a martial artist. But perhaps they've already an overload of those in the Aniverse, which is why they used a guy like Louie instead.
Fun crazy sh!t. Arguably one of a local channel's better moves, but then again, it has this penchant for showing magical, fantasy anime - heck, it's biggest primetime draw is a soap opera about bird-men with human problems.
My friend says that we're slowly retrograding back into the '80s. I can't say I don't like it, but if it means coming up with more soaps, I'll just go back to my old-school Japanese robots, thank you very much. But I digress.
This is supposed to be a Mahou Senshi, or Rune Soldier post. So it shall be. My expectations for this show were met, and more. After all, the commercial teasers promised one guy, and at least two girls (one for teenagers to gawk at, and the other one's lolicon bait) in a fantasy setting - reminiscent of Bakuretsu / Sorceror Hunters.
Louie is the adopted son of a mage academy's Head Wizard or somesuch (I didn't catch his title). You'd expect him to be a regular wimpy Merlin-wannabe, but no: he's got a lot of brawn, height, hair, and ignorance. Not "I'm-gonna-fireball-that-pile-of-orcs-pinning-down-my-buddy" but "I'm-gonna-skip-magic-school-and-just-booze-and-brawl-and-babe-around " ignorant. Reminds me a lot of myself, which is maybe why I love the show already. Or it could be the fact that he gets to travel with a lolicon bait thief, a sin-inspiring nun, and an Amazon swordswoman who prefers to fight in swim suits.
It's great to see anime that offers pantyshots during the opening to middle minutes of the first episode. I mean, big, hulking novice mage trips drunkenly on his feet, and snags thief-girl's skirt, exposing white cotton unmentionables? I bow. As far as first episodes go, Mahou Senshi's is a masterpiece - you get fanservice AND a lot of explanations without a feeling a lecture is going on.
Quick and dirty ep 1 summary -
SCENE 1: Merril (thief), Genie (fighter), and Melissa (cleric) find a trapdoor in some ruins. Thief skills won't open it though - they need a mage's magic! (A Knock spell, in Dungeons and Dragons parlance. Note that the character classes are old D&D as well.) They decide to call it a day and head back to town - the sudden appearance of regenerating monsters spurs them on.
SCENE 2: Merril wanders around town, looking for mage hangouts. She is suddenly ambushed by a bunch of women who demand if she has seen a tall, muscular guy with long hair. She tells them "he went that way" and points to where she came from, and the mob heads off. She sighs, and hears a man's voice thanking her for getting rid of those women. She turns around, and out of a fruit crate a tall, muscular guy with long hair stands up. He tries to buy her dinner in gratitude; refuses and turns away, he tries to stop her, trips drunkenly on his feet, and snags thief-girl's skirt - well, you pretty much know what happens after that. For those who can't tell, no they did not DO IT , she beat him silly and stalked off, muttering "Pervert" or something like it.
SCENE 3: Genie is confronting 3 punks with swords. Punks announce the extortion attempt; she says she'll just whip their asses. Suddenly, a new voice is heard (oh, really?) and says that if there's a fight going to happen, he wants in. A few seconds later the fight ensues, and the seemingly drunk brawler with long hair wipes the floor with the punks. One of them draws a sword, and is immediately dispatched by Genie. (She reminds me a lot of Kanna from Sakura Taisen - tall, buff, tanned, sexy in a scary way.) She harangues the brawler for fighting fist to sword, and the participants in the brief spat scatter as a watchman runs over to investigate the ruckus.
SCENE 4: Bar scene. Genie and Merill meet up in another bar with Melissa, a traveling cleric for the god of War. Talk of a divination ritual, ditzy nun jokes, then Merill says she heard that there's a tavern in the northern part of the city where the mages chill out at the end of the day, and the three decide to head there to recruit a female magic-user for their party.
SCENE 5: Another tavern. The three approach a woman drinking alone - yes, she's a mage, no, I don't do adventures, but a friend of mine might be able to help you. Said friend walks in - it's the drunk, long-haired pervert brawler from before! Ila introduces her friend Louie to the three adventurers. Melissa asks dazedly where they knew the guy from. Louie is brought up to speed, and says he'll gladly join the three. BZZZZT!!! Sorry, no men allowed. Tempers flare, Genie draws her sword, and Louie shows her a glowing red pearl (it's a delayed blast fireball) and tells her he's been ready for this fight, and not to come closer or the red gem will paralyze her. As he gloats about how good he is, he notices Ila and the other tavern patrons have taken cover.
Louie: Hey, Ila...
Ila: Louie, don't you pay attention to class? Red isn't paralysis, it's blue!
Louie: Ok, so what's this for?
Ila: Explosive....
Louie tries to get rid of the gem ASAP, but he trips again and drops the sucker. BOOOOMM!!!!
FAST FORWARD: Louie is bailed out of jail by the faithfuk Ila. They talk, and Louie tells her he's joining the three - their talk of not wanting to take him means that they think they are not fit company for one as him. He decides to sell his pitch to the cleric girl, who is preparing for a divination ritual. She wants to see the hero she will dedicate her life to, as adventuring members of her order are wont to do, becoming heroines in the process. Louie tries repeatedly to enter the cloister, but is defeated by staff-wielding nuns at each turn. He does get beyond the gate, and onto the roof of the cloister - only to be met by Genie and Merill, who are still pissed off at him and aren't willing to give him a chance to talk to Melissa. As they battle on the domed roof, Melissa is underneath, oblivious, as she stands naked in hip-deep water praying - nay, communing with her deity. Her deity tells her that the next person she lays eyes on will be the one whom she must dedicate herself to. On the roof, Louie pulls of a powerful desperation spell, meaning to finish the fight then and there. The spell looks good, there's a circle of light on the roof centered on him - when suddenly the spell goes haywire and the circle explodes, sending Louie up into the air and down the hole - yep. Straight into Melissa's prayer pool. Remember what the deity said? Yep. Mr. Tall, Brawny, and Bumbling. Her reaction? "NOOOOOOOO!!!"
There goes her dreams of offering herself to a brave and noble paladin. She gets stuck with a mage initiate who's better with his fists than with his spells.
The second episode makes his description worse - a perverted novice mage whose sword skills are on par with his magic skills, who nonetheless is still very deadly with his fists, especially if he flies into a white-eyed rage. Seriously. His irises go white, and he can take out those regenerating monsters from episode 1 with just his bare hands. Focusing mana in his fists? Maybe this guy should have been a monk. Or a martial artist. But perhaps they've already an overload of those in the Aniverse, which is why they used a guy like Louie instead.
Tuesday, September 28, 2004
My 1st post got erased. Sigh. You'll have to settle for the abbreviated version below:
8:00 AM - Ensuring the ATX team and their friends didn't die prematurely.
9:30 AM - The Call. (Listen baby I’m sorry. Just wanna tell you don’t worry. I will be late, don’t stay up and wait for me. Say again, you’re dropping out, my battery is low. Just so you know, we’re going to a place nearby.Gotta go!) Dammit, where did that come from?!?! It was my dad calling for assistance with a spreadsheet.
10:00 AM - I go, I go, I go, I go, I go.
11:00 AM - The cavalry AKA me, has arrived. Off I go then.
12:00 AM - Lunch at a chicken restaurant, where my meal which cost PhP 120 was charged against a government agency's budget. Sweet! I feel so evil!!!
I spent the afternoon at the shop, getting information and data from the Net.
I hope these guys make it into SRW OG 2. This baby is confirmed in, as is its drool-worthy pilot.
8:00 AM - Ensuring the ATX team and their friends didn't die prematurely.
9:30 AM - The Call. (Listen baby I’m sorry. Just wanna tell you don’t worry. I will be late, don’t stay up and wait for me. Say again, you’re dropping out, my battery is low. Just so you know, we’re going to a place nearby.Gotta go!) Dammit, where did that come from?!?! It was my dad calling for assistance with a spreadsheet.
10:00 AM - I go, I go, I go, I go, I go.
11:00 AM - The cavalry AKA me, has arrived. Off I go then.
12:00 AM - Lunch at a chicken restaurant, where my meal which cost PhP 120 was charged against a government agency's budget. Sweet! I feel so evil!!!
I spent the afternoon at the shop, getting information and data from the Net.
I hope these guys make it into SRW OG 2. This baby is confirmed in, as is its drool-worthy pilot.
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
My head hurts. Pressure is mounting.
Today the shop was visited by a couple frat tools.
Up till now, I still don't get it. Why people need to be paddled a dozen times or more so that they can be considered as members of an institution of dubious repute. And why some people believe that they need it.
Baka baka.
The frat tools wanted to print out their initiation rites programme - y'know, like the one for graduations, or weddings, or plays - they had a programme for hazing.
That's right - hazing. Part of the document that I remembered, which of course any members of the so-called fraternity will deny, follows:
I LOVE TAU ................................................... 1 PADDLE
I LOVE TAU GAMMA .................................. 1 PADDLE
Of course, if my organization had some stuff like this written down in its rules , I'd purge the Recent Documents folder of the document I had to print, too. Just like what those frat scum did.
Today the shop was visited by a couple frat tools.
Up till now, I still don't get it. Why people need to be paddled a dozen times or more so that they can be considered as members of an institution of dubious repute. And why some people believe that they need it.
Baka baka.
The frat tools wanted to print out their initiation rites programme - y'know, like the one for graduations, or weddings, or plays - they had a programme for hazing.
That's right - hazing. Part of the document that I remembered, which of course any members of the so-called fraternity will deny, follows:
I LOVE TAU ................................................... 1 PADDLE
I LOVE TAU GAMMA .................................. 1 PADDLE
Of course, if my organization had some stuff like this written down in its rules , I'd purge the Recent Documents folder of the document I had to print, too. Just like what those frat scum did.
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
Sunday, September 19, 2004
It's Saturday again. Which means that I'm imprisoned once more in our PC rental shop, trying not to go psychotic as I deal with a neurotic Epson Stylus Color printer and electronic escape junkies. Doing absoultely 0% work on my thesis, as a result.
Today is a cloudy day. I just checked the window after hearing a boom of thunder - there goes another one. Sigh.
If I told my mother that I hated watching the shop, she'll probably banish me from it until it closes down. It's not the watching per se that I detest, but the people.
Topping my list are those gaming addicts that don't even bother letting you know that they're gonna sit down and escape for a few minutes (or hours) from reality. Whenever this happens, I just glare at them, but when they make it so that they slip in behind a console while I'm dealing with the neurotic Epson, I lose it and let loose some some of my frustration.
Next on my list are those kids that I hear for the whole school week don't go to their classes and spend their allowances on us instead. Now, that may sound hypocritical, seeing as they're giving us they're money instead of those evil school canteens that make evil food, (food that doesn't taste good, or tastes good but still leaves you hungry after finishing it) but I really want to ask them point-blank: Hindi ka pa ba nagsasawa? Araw-araw na may pasok na ginawa ng Diyos nandito ka, tapos ngayon andito ka na naman? (Every God-forsaken school day, you're here, and now, Saturday, you're here again?)
Following a close third are those kids that like to aim the industrial fans steady at themselves and not let the fans sweep the room. I'm like, "Did you learn nothing from kindergarten, or first grade?" Those kids tick me off.
I take a good look out the window - what the heck, it's sunny again! It's hot as blazes, it's humid, clouds cover the skies in the distance, but the sun is shining! I'll go take another look.
(Leaves computer to peer out the window.)
(Returns to computer to write some more.)
It's your typical 2:30 afternoon in Quezon City - hot, sunny, bright. No more thunderclaps and dark clouds in the vicinity. As I type, a small break in my skin (courtesy of punching the side of the Epson) sends out little stingers of pain. It's not bleeding anymore.
Today is a cloudy day. I just checked the window after hearing a boom of thunder - there goes another one. Sigh.
If I told my mother that I hated watching the shop, she'll probably banish me from it until it closes down. It's not the watching per se that I detest, but the people.
Topping my list are those gaming addicts that don't even bother letting you know that they're gonna sit down and escape for a few minutes (or hours) from reality. Whenever this happens, I just glare at them, but when they make it so that they slip in behind a console while I'm dealing with the neurotic Epson, I lose it and let loose some some of my frustration.
Next on my list are those kids that I hear for the whole school week don't go to their classes and spend their allowances on us instead. Now, that may sound hypocritical, seeing as they're giving us they're money instead of those evil school canteens that make evil food, (food that doesn't taste good, or tastes good but still leaves you hungry after finishing it) but I really want to ask them point-blank: Hindi ka pa ba nagsasawa? Araw-araw na may pasok na ginawa ng Diyos nandito ka, tapos ngayon andito ka na naman? (Every God-forsaken school day, you're here, and now, Saturday, you're here again?)
Following a close third are those kids that like to aim the industrial fans steady at themselves and not let the fans sweep the room. I'm like, "Did you learn nothing from kindergarten, or first grade?" Those kids tick me off.
I take a good look out the window - what the heck, it's sunny again! It's hot as blazes, it's humid, clouds cover the skies in the distance, but the sun is shining! I'll go take another look.
(Leaves computer to peer out the window.)
(Returns to computer to write some more.)
It's your typical 2:30 afternoon in Quezon City - hot, sunny, bright. No more thunderclaps and dark clouds in the vicinity. As I type, a small break in my skin (courtesy of punching the side of the Epson) sends out little stingers of pain. It's not bleeding anymore.
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