Monthly Ramblupdate - May 2015

Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me a better introductory phrase!  I need only to get started, and I will proceed on a ramble of most ramblonic ramifications.  According to the online Etymology Dictionary, the word 'ramble' comes from a dutch word meaning the 'nightly wanderings of an amorous cat.'  I think this is hilarious, especially since we use the word so much.  I really love etymology.  

Alright, what's up?  Well, on this very day I am going to start a garden at a local community garden.  I'm pretty happy about that.  I really love gardening, and since I don't have a yard, or even a porch, it will help get me outside.  Of course, the weather is heating up, 90 degrees this week, so outside is kind of a shitty place.  Still, it's worth it.  

In other news, I'm looking forward to playing an adventure game with my best girl.  We've picked out Blackwell Legacy,  which is supposed to have a good story.  I'll let you know how it turns out.  She's also a big fan of Mario Kart, and to that end, I've been hunting around for a used Nintendo Wii and copy of Mario Kart Wii (6?).  Granted, it's not Mario Kart 8, which is really a fantastic game, it's not a Wii U either, but it's a much cheaper alternative, which fits my budget.  I spent $100 on Magic Cards last month, and I really need to take it easy on spending.  

Yes, Magic the Gathering has devoured my brain.  I play it regularly, I even started a Magic Online account.  Magic Online is clunky, but it's nice to have a digital way to organize my cards.  The game has a learning curve that could wrap around the world,  but I finally feel like I'm catching up to todays standards.  It helps that I started listening to the Limited Resources Podcast.

Oh, that's right, I've been consuming other media as well.  I'm currently reading 'Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro.  He writes a lot of British stuff.  This book is the most unusual genre fiction story I've ever read.  It's the sort of book that is really easy to spoil, so I'll try not to.  There is an air of mystery that pervades early on and carries through the whole book.  However, there is also a powerful sense of sentimentality, but I wouldn't say it was sappy.  I recommend this book, though it may not be quite what you're used to, if your into Sci Fi and other nerdy things.  Nonetheless, I really do recommend giving it a chance.  

On a more sci-fi front and center note, Jane and I just finished up "Other Space" a sci-fi comedy released by Yahoo.  Yes, even Yahoo has TV now.  But Other Space is really funny, and actually tends to contain at least one legit science fiction plot point in every episode.  It's a bit like a live-action Futurama.  I recommend it and I hope it gets picked up for a second season.  The first one is kind of short.  

Hmm, yes, I think this may be all the nerd fit to print.  Looking forward to Blackwell Legacy and Nintendo Wii!  Hasta Pasta,

-D

P.S.  I think the entertainment world is long overdue for a sitcom about hens and roosters.

Link Dump version 1-2-1.3

Lately I've been collecting links, so very many links. But I haven't really been posting much. So I've got a bit of a back log, and it's time for a link dump. Here are some interesting things:

http://imgur.com/gallery/PJ0sQnc

I love this animation. I imagine you will as well. Speaking of Animation, it turns out Chuck Jones actually had a set of rules for Coyote and Roadrunner cartoons. They're pretty much what you imagine, though maybe not with the same words. On a different note, I really like the enclosed definition of the word 'fanatic.'

http://www.avclub.com/article/fairies-dancing-screen-4-classic-video-game-sprite-215639

Here's an article breaking down four classic jumps from video game history. linked from John B.

http://jpbruneau.tumblr.com/post/115704339194/kturbio-street-fighter-stages-in-real-life
if you needed another reason to follow jpbruneau: Street Fighter stages in real life.

http://theomeganerd.tumblr.com/post/114376010304/little-dovakiin-skyrim-cosplay
the luckiest kid on the planet.

http://www.manaleak.com/mtguk/2015/03/well-this-is-a-bit-of-a-buggerance/
"Well, this is a bit of a buggerance. A Thank You letter" by manaleak author Christopher Cooper. It's a Magic The Gathering tribute to Terry Pratchett, and is full of inside jokes. In fact, it's composed almost entirely of inside jokes, I still thought it might be nice for you to peruse.

If you're still reading this, why not read about some Alien 3 concept movies that never were:

http://www.empireonline.com/features/alternative-alien-3-concept-movies/p6

And, if that's not your thing, this article shares some love for Donkey Kong Country 3, a perspective I found refreshing, despite the fact that I never played the game.
http://kotaku.com/the-best-donkey-kong-country-ever-made-1683495417

-D

Monthly Update: April

Chief Medical Officer's log, earth date 4/5/2015.9:04.  Nice trip to San Francisco.  Visited the Academy of Sciences.The planetarium presentation on the interconnectedness of all life on earth was cool.  Also an Albino Alligator named Claude.

Played Mario Kart 8, was a lot of fun.  Tough game but seems like lots of room for growth.  Very impressed at resolution on the Wii U controller.  Seriously considering Wii U purchase.  Also played card game called 'Bang' that was pretty fun and available online.  In the meantime, on the gaming front, I've also played Mario Kart 64, Star Fox and Turok.  Looking into Magic Online.

I also saw a really cool play called 33 Variations at a local theater.  The story follows both a Beethoven scholar whose body is progressively shutting down from symptoms of ALS, while trying to complete a final study on Beethoven's composition 33 Variations on a waltz by Anton Diabelli.  Concurrently, another set of actors perform the story of Beethoven, Diabelli and Schindler as Beethoven struggles to compose his variations and Schindler struggles to keep him in his sponsors good graces.  It was a lot of fun, I have a soft spot for Beethoven's cranky, crazed genius, and the principle and supporting actors were fantastic.  Not to mention the play was performed with a live piano player.  There were also bits of music theory that I found really exciting, having enough understanding to be interested.

On the subject of artists and performers now past, I wanted to say something about Leonard Nimoy and something about Terry Pratchett.  I almost feel I've missed my window.  But... well, I suppose that's not really possible.  Anyway, it turned out Leonard Nimoy was even more of a badass then I ever realized.  And I also realized that Spock is very much the mascot of Star Trek.  Or maybe Kirk is the mascot, dancing around to keep us entertained, but Spock was the heart and soul.  He was the best character in the original series, bar none.  He was an example of how Star Trek would try new things.  He was an alien, he was biracial, he adhered to a bizarre and mystic code of logic.  He had psychic powers.  He was insufferable and yet he was deeply compassionate.  He's everything Star Trek was about.

It's hard not to make it all about Spock.  Nimoy clearly dealt with that his whole career.  Since his passing, I've learned that Nimoy was a Yiddish scholar, director, writer and photographer.  I'm thrilled that Jaconian and I were both able to see him speak at a Star Trek convention.  Twice.  During those talks, I learned that Nimoy did a one man stage show as Theo Van Gogh, exchanging letters with his Mad Genius brother Vincent.  You might have heard of him.

Terry Pratchett I knew less well.  I've read only The Color of Magic, the first book in the Discworld series.  I would like to say, however,  that when I read The Color of Magic, I felt a certain sense of coming home, as though I had been there before, and I had been reading Sir Pratchett's work since childhood.  And if I had to use just one word to describe his writing, it would be delightful.  Perhaps now is as good a time as any to return to his work.

Looking forward, I'm not sure what to expect.  I'm settling into my new apartment, as is my cat, Enkidu.  He has been very playful of late, and that's been fun to watch.  I'm struggling with my laptop connection to my TV, something went wrong and now my laptop screen turns off when I hook in the HDMI cable.  This is really frustrating because I was excited at the prospect of playing Steam games on a big screen.  The Nintendo 64 still works, and my girlfriend really likes Mario Kart, so I may seeing more of that in my future.  Until next time,

-D

Magic the Gathering: OCD, Deck Building and Sorting Exercises

I recently started playing Magic: the Gathering again after a five year hiatus.  These hiatuses are fairly consistent for me, and I'm glad to be again indulging in this fun strategy distraction.  

After about a month back to Magic, one thing I really find interesting is that one of the more appealing things about having a card collection is, actually, the process sorting and organizing the cards.  I already know that I like sorting-- I've done a lot of it, files, books, albums at KDVS and so on.  But with Magic cards it's particularly nice because they are compact, but contain a great deal of information and there is an element of strategy even to the sorting.  On one small card there is color, casting cost, card type and then the actual abilities of the card itself.

My first wave of sorting is always color.  It's just how the game is played.  Five colors plus Artifact, Multi-colored and Lands.  I usually put the last three in one pile, but if I've got the time and inclination, I will separate them.
 
Second wave is, for, me, casting cost.  When building a deck, I like to be sure to have plenty of cheap spells, for the early phases of the game.  This is also nice because Ghost says he doesn't even consider casting cost when building a deck.  This might/could give me an edge.

Third is card type.  This is another item of consideration when building a deck.  Creature/spell balance is important so you don't find yourself consistently lacking.  I don't usually make it this far in the sorting.   

The next step would be to separate the spells into Instant, Sorcery, Enchantment.  This could be useful, as each of these play different.  However, when building a deck I usually have an idea of what I'm going for by this point, and 40 cards runs up pretty quickly.
   

One of these is worth fifty bucks now!  And I just so happen to have a few.

Another advantage to sorting the cards is that it gives me a chance to review them.  It's always nice to have a good vocabulary of the cards you have, so that when building a new deck, you can go straight to something that might have a nice place within the deck.
One thing I will do when sorting is to pull interesting cards out and set them aside.  

When building a collection of Magic cards, one thing you will find is that there are a LOT of cards.  A lot.  And, unfortunately, a great number of htem are unremarkable.  Typically, these are common cards, though uncommon and rare cards can be equally 'Meh.'  So, sometimes when I find a card that catches me fancy, I'll set it aside, to look at later when I'm coming up with deck ideas.  Separating the wheat from the chaff, as it were. My biggest issue in this way is that I don't face the fact that large swaths of cards I own are useless.  But some really are.  My next idea for sorting is to remove the truly BAD cards.

To be fair, I don’t think this is OCD.  If things aren’t sorted, I don’t have a conniption.  I have many times had unsorted Bookshelves and CD collections.  I’m neither obsessive nor compulsive about it.  However, I do enjoy the sorting.  It’s nice.  It’s a nice process and it’s nice to look at when it’s done.  In addition, because I am not OCD, it isn’t always a high priority item.  And there’s a great feeling in getting to low-priority items.  Yes, there’s procrastination, that’s always fun, but there’s also getting to things in due time, and taking the time to do them right.  So many high-priority things got to be high priority by force of stressing me out.  It’s the low priority things that leave me alone, wait for me to come to them, and are generally more enjoyable. I don’t think this is OCD, but it’s probably something with a name.

-D

Moonthly update- Octubre

Not a Dragon, exactly, but you might call him a...Wyrm?

Welcome to October, the Spookiest of Months!  

No, I have no plans to dress up and party hearty on Halloween.  But that may change between now and then.  I don't place a lot of stock in Holidays.  Call me Scrooge or Grinch if you like.  I think I just haven't developed traditions of my own as an adult.  Also I've never been all that into costumes. But I'm not completely without seasonal cheer.  I may just carve some pumpkins, which is always fun. 

Because it's October, I think I’ll dust off that Lovecraft Collection Jaconian picked up for me a couple years ago.  Have you ever read Lovecraft?  If you have any interest in American Gothic Horror, you pretty much have to read Lovecraft.  He’s like the awesome sequel to Edgar Allen Poe.  Seriously, he's like the Terminator 2 of American Horror.  Between Poe and Lovecraft, pretty much every Classic Element of American Gothic Horror is brought to life.  Seriously, he’s that good.  You’ll find it familiar.  It will comfort and terrify you.  At least that’s what it does for me.

I would also like to indulge in some horror games.  At least try, if not beat Amnesia: The Dark Decent.  Others I can revisit, such as Six Days a Sacrifice and Lone Survivor.   On the other hand, it also looks like this October is Dragon Month, given our two Dragon Themed posts so far in October, with more planned for the near future.  I've also got a Dragon Themed Magic deck in the works.. This previous month I have been playing Magic: The Gathering – buying lots of packs, building decks, sorting cards.  This marks one of many returns I've made to this game.  It seems like about every five years now. 

Also, I have continued playing Starseed Pilgrim.   I love this game, I've gushed about how much fun it is to figure out how to play it.  But now that I've figured it out and gotten through a lot of the game, I've discovered that it's frickin' hard!   I've confirmed that it has an end.   And I think I'm near it.  But geez louise, this game is tough!  I can only go further through tenacious obsession!  Painfully crawling my way up a hill.  Sysiphus, eat your heart out. 

 I’ve got a new job, with lots of down time, which has led me to write more posts.  Of course, I'm always nervous composing this stuff at work.  .... shiver!  There's a horror game for you, sit at a desk for eight hours, but you never know when boss man will suddenly appear and catch you surfing the web! Ahhh!

-D

Product Review: Geekify Inc.

I recently purchased two products from the good people at Geekify Inc. whom are based over in one of the quadrants of Colorado.  I cannot remember how I first spotted them, be it in an add over in the facebook margin or from Reddit or someone who retweeted something about the company or someone I follow on facebook.  The point is they were founded out.

The people over at Geekify Inc. make products based off of, mainly books from various sources such as Beetlejuice, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Myst, The Neverending Story and Skyrim.  There are a lot more sources that they pull from, but then I would be simply listing nearly everything in their catalogue. 


I initially sent the company a request for a custom job to make an iPad cover for Conklederp for her birthday.  I loved the book covers that they currently had on hand from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, but Conklederp's character, Magicia, focused more on destructive magic and that option was not available.  I sent the company an message to their Esty account asking for a quote on making the Destruction Spell Book.

Three days later, Mr. John Taylor at Geekify Inc. let me know that in fact they had just put up the destruction spell book in their catalogue.  A day later I went ahead and ordered the iPad cover and patiently waited for its arrival.

The only pseud0-complaint that I have is that it took roughly a month to receive the cover from the time I placed my order.  Both their Etsy page and official webpage say that it can take "7-10 business days to craft and ship," but once I received the cover and was able to hold it in my hands, I knew that the longer processing/creating/shipping/receiving time was well worth the wait.

The cover is made from what feels like a 2mm thick piece of wood covered with faux-leather.  The circles around the border are white paint.  The Destruction Magick emblem is layered wood, brown on white and solidly glued on the cover.  The inside consists of a thick cardboard-type material (I am only guessing) covered with black micro suede on both the front and back covers as well as the spine.  The iPad is held in place by four 1" thick elastic bands, one crossing each of the corners.  Presently, Conkelderps main critique is that the upper right strap would cover up the volume buttons and mute switch, so she leaves that strap off.  The three remaining straps however are securely holding the iPad in place with no slippage or fear of coming loose.

Impressed with the quality of their work with this gadget cover, I knew that I wanted to buy one for my Kindle.  I first checked their Etsy store, but then decided to see if their non-Etsy webpage held any additional offerings.  They do not.  But, their prices on their page run $4-10 cheaper due to Etsy's operating costs.  Plus by ordering from Geekify's page, you have additional options such as name engraving, quote engraving, magnetic cover clasp or a strap for the spine, all for a separate additional cost.  

Ultimately I went with The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy cover for the Kindle Paperwhite.

As with Conklederp's cover, mine took about a month from the date I ordered to the date the package arrived.  

The Hitchhikers Guide is wood covered with faux-leather.  The inside is that hard cardboard-type material covered with a deep red micro-suede.  The "blocks" on the cover and back are additional pieces of wood to give them an industrial appearance.  I could easily have seen bolts or screws in each of the four corners, but it looks equally great without them.  The cover thumb and lettering are all paper with each of the red letters being glued on top of the the yellow letter backing, making the "THE" about a quarter of an inch tall and impressively cut.  The Kindle fits very well with the elastic straps (these being about 1cm wide) and do not cover either the usb charging port at the base or the on/off button right next to the port.

When I placed my order, I asked if I could have The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy text read from the top of the spine to base as opposed to how it looks on their page.  Since 99% of my books and DVDs all have the text reading from top to bottom, I knew that having the text go the other way would bother me, so I put in the request.  Request was fulfilled and at no additional cost.

When I received the cover, I did notice that the upper left corner of the "P" in "DON'T PANIC" was starting to peel back, maybe about a millimeter or two, but enough that I knew if something was not done, the whole word would eventually peel off.  I contacted Geekify the same day and within an hour received a reply from Mr. Taylor as to how to fix the peeling "P."  "A dab of superglue will keep it sticking forever," and it currently is and aside from the very slight crease that I put in the corner of the "P" moving it back to make sure the glue reached back far enough, you would not be able to tell.

Geekify also makes other products such as pendants/necklaces based off of the Imperial symbol from The Elder Scrolls, a wall poster based off of Portal, something I do not recognize from Starcraft or you can do as I thought I was doing an request a quote for a custom order.  They also can do laser cutting and custom 3D printing if you happen to be looking for company that does that sort of thing.  They come across as good people who make a great looking product so give them a look the next time you are looking for something "geeky" that is handmade and that you cannot find on ThinkGeek.com.


~JWfW/JDub/Jaconian
Like The Daybreak In Spring


P.S.  And a very big thank you goes to Heidi at Geekify who made both my Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy cover and Conklederps Destruction Magicka Spell Book.