RolePlay onLine RPoL Logo

, welcome to Community Chat

14:01, 28th March 2024 (GMT+0)

More good stuff.

Posted by bigbadron
bigbadron
moderator, 12948 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Thu 21 Jun 2012
at 13:04

More good stuff.

Time to start a shiny new thread...
Shei-kun
member, 732 posts
A Giant Shei draws near!
Fight-Magic-Item-Flee
Thu 21 Jun 2012
at 20:17
  • msg #2

Re: More good stuff.

<celebration>

We've got a new anti-vent thread!  Woohoo! \o/

</celebration>
shady joker
member, 1409 posts
Fri 22 Jun 2012
at 01:31
  • msg #3

Re: More good stuff.

I won my disability case. I now can move into my own place.
Mika
member, 67 posts
Fri 22 Jun 2012
at 01:36
  • msg #4

Re: More good stuff.

shady joker:
I won my disability case. I now can move into my own place.



CONGRATS!
Alexei Yaruk-Mundhenk
member, 804 posts
Ad Majorem
Dea Gloriam
Fri 22 Jun 2012
at 02:12
  • msg #5

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to shady joker (msg # 3):

Mue Buena! (that is kinda like 'very awsome' in spanish, I think...)
bigbadron
moderator, 12953 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Sun 24 Jun 2012
at 11:31

Re: More good stuff.

While I was eating lunch today the solution to the vexing problem of how to bring about world peace simply popped, unbidden, into my thoughts.  And it's really easy.

Pizza.  With a fish and chips topping.

It would simply put everybody in far too good a mood to fight each other.
nuric
member, 1562 posts
Love D&D,superhero games
Not very computer savvy
Sun 24 Jun 2012
at 18:02
  • msg #7

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to bigbadron (msg # 6):
*laughs*
If I ate pizza with a fish n' chips topping, I'll admit that I'd be too horrified and disgusted to even consider taking over the world as an evil overlord.

Still, There's nothing like a good joke and memorable food to bring us all together.

On another note: I've had some good news in a series of medical tests.
Well, "nothing bad found" more than anything, but I'll take that.
I've got a somewhat tedious and stressful job, but I'm grateful that I've got one, especially one with medical coverage, when so many people don't.
I've got a bit of "survivor's guilt" but I'm able to stay healthy for my family.
soulsight
member, 149 posts
An older man, much like a
fine wine, will improve.
Sun 24 Jun 2012
at 19:01
  • msg #8

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to bigbadron (msg # 6):

I think the real question would be what cheese to use?

On the bright side, the temperature is so high I get to wash all the heavy bedclothes and hang them on the line to save money (no need to run the dryer).
meisa
member, 38 posts
I wish to somehow stop
This endless fight.
Mon 25 Jun 2012
at 00:46
  • msg #9

Re: More good stuff.

Was given Orange Gum to chew on.... It made my tongue swell.

As compensation, I was given a box of delicious cookies. <3
jait
member, 201 posts
Mon 25 Jun 2012
at 03:43
  • msg #10

Re: More good stuff.

Corrupt Bluray discs.  Almost lost nearly 180 Gigs of image data representing a huge portion of the images I've shot over the past couple of years.  Granted, it's a redundant backup, but the primary backup is off-site and difficult to access right now.

Then I discovered CD Roller.

More than 98% reocvery-rate.

Bloody awesome software.
Wyrm
member, 141 posts
Age 31
Mon 25 Jun 2012
at 13:22
  • msg #11

Re: More good stuff.

After reading the wedding stuff on the vent thread: I am happy that for weddings, I only need the same suit I can fit in.
nuric
member, 1567 posts
Love D&D,superhero games
Not very computer savvy
Mon 25 Jun 2012
at 15:53
  • msg #12

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to Wyrm (msg # 11):

That's what I'm leaving for today:  My brother-in-law's wedding, out of state.

I'm happy that he's found a great woman who loves him and puts up with him.
(granted, he was SUPPOSED to be having the wedding in Hawaii, but then moved it to Alaska, but I'm not bitter or anything.....This is about him, not me....)
Mortixx
member, 150 posts
Mon 25 Jun 2012
at 17:19
  • msg #13

Re: More good stuff.

Yay instead of November a therapy slot opened for me as of tomorrow. Finally i can start on getting back to work and drag my mind out of the gutter.
Pyrate
member, 60 posts
Excellent! Now I can
attack in all directions.
Mon 25 Jun 2012
at 17:50
  • msg #14

Re: More good stuff.

I have a million reasons to lament, but the weather is too good for me to chose any of them.
^_^
Brianna
member, 1601 posts
Wed 27 Jun 2012
at 02:08
  • msg #15

Re: More good stuff.

Just came from a staff meeting, all of a sudden I have a lot more shifts at work.  Money!  I just hope I'm up to it physically, at least I got the change I asked for, originally they had us working five shifts one week, only two the next, now it's more even.
MagickalMelody
member, 4591 posts
THE GUMMIE BEAR OVERLORDS
WILL RULE US ALL!
Thu 28 Jun 2012
at 01:49
  • msg #16

Re: More good stuff.

<Anti-Vent> I think I'm gonna hop back on and join a game on RPoL again. For the first time in years :D Or, well, I think it's been years.

Time to go through the fun process of finding a game and character creation. I've missed this ^_^</Anti-Vent>
wyldchild
member, 300 posts
While I breathe, I hope
Fri 29 Jun 2012
at 18:12
  • msg #17

Re: More good stuff.

<Anti-Vent/Praise>

RPOL has a wonderful staff and I am extremely greatful for all the hard work, and the personal time, that everyone puts in to the site.  I joined when the site was at the start of its evolution ... when there were no 'changeable' backgrounds, there were no portraits, there wasn't a week that went by when some 'well meaning' individual didn't question policy regarding mature/adult content and the location of the games that held it, etc., and all the new users were asking for these things or the reforms.  jase and elSpike worked almost tirelessly on coding and design, and cruinne, Shannara, & Jhael worked tirelessly with them to keep the public forums running smoothly, set up and regulate the Adult games (there was a mass explosion of those), and get the portrait gallery going and organized.  And all of them did it without pay (meaning they were doing something else in addition to this site to support themselves) and while still trying to enjoy the games that they ran and played in that were the reason that jase and elSpike created the site to begin with.  As it appears that the only money the site receives is (for now) donations, I must assume that their time and hard work (and bigbadron's) is still given freely while they continue to support themselves and enjoy their games.

Very, very rarely did/have I ever see/read a harsh post from any of them ... and honestly, there were/are many times when they would have been/are well within their right for the way they were addressed or the context of the post they were replying to.  All I've ever seen them request from users is that we keep public forums clean and free of sensitive topics, that we be honest with them and the gaming community by posting under one user account, and that we report genuine breaches of the TOU (which have always been clear, concise, and readily available to anyone who chooses to read them.)  We're all extremely lucky for their love of gaming and commitment to creating & maintaining a site that is so easily traversed,that attracts good gms and players, that provides so many options, and we're lucky for their patience and good will.

In truth, the only complaint I can find with the site is that from time to time a user forgets how much the RPOL Creators & Moderators have done and continue to do in exchange for following a few simple rules.
Hondo
member, 78 posts
+3 Defense vs. Girls
and Mods
Sun 1 Jul 2012
at 00:50
  • msg #18

Re: More good stuff.

Hear Hear! Agree with wyldchild 100% ^_^

So many good things today. OOhh--the comic book anthology I contributed to is on sale now, but have yet to receive my copy. Still--finally! I'm published. Just have to get crackin' on the next thing so I don't lose me steam.
deadmanshand
member, 1095 posts
Sun 1 Jul 2012
at 00:55
  • msg #19

Re: More good stuff.

I have discovered that organization makes a huge difference. I've always been a by the seat of your pants kind of guy but I've made a concentrated effort to organize my day to actually make some progress towards my goals and it's working. My games are starting to pick up, my eating and sleeping habits are improving, and I have a chapter of a rough draft novel written.

And that's based off using 2 and a half hours of the 16 hours I'm awake every day. Who knew that I had that much time on my hands? It's kind of an eye opener.
Iammara
member, 172 posts
Sun 1 Jul 2012
at 10:19
  • msg #20

Re: More good stuff.

I decided to preorder Funcom's The Secret World (was kind of leery after Age of Conan but it looked too good to pass on). Yesterday I did my first dungeon with my guild. Despite only having been a member of the guild for a few hours everyone was really friendly, my tanking went awesome (which was a relief - I'm not good with dungeons generally) and the dungeon itself was so much fun. It made me realize that I haven't had a lot of fun in MMO's lately. I think I'm in love <3
This message was last edited by the user at 13:06, Sun 01 July 2012.
Serrational
member, 125 posts
Ponies! Trees! Hooray!
Blue Exorcist fan.
Sun 1 Jul 2012
at 11:46
  • msg #21

Re: More good stuff.

Made a few new friends, and found out that a shop not too far from me has a monthly sale of manga. A blind bag of 10 volumes for £5 just made my eyes water with anticipation...
bigbadron
moderator, 12971 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Sun 1 Jul 2012
at 12:18

Re: More good stuff.

Who'd have thought it.  I never got into MMO's.  Tried some, but was sort of, "meh".

Now, suddenly, I'm having so much fun in DC Universe Online that I've actually paid for a subscroption.  Shocking!  :)
facemaker329
member, 4962 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Mon 2 Jul 2012
at 07:44
  • msg #23

Re: More good stuff.

So, I got one of the more unusual compliments that I can recall yesterday...

I was working as part of the entertainment at a corporate event, at an Old West photo booth they set up (we had an assortment of costumes...we'd dress people up, put them on a set, and shoot pics of them for 10-15 minutes, then burn them a cd with all the pictures, including several that were color-changed to B&W or sepia-toned)...

Late in the day, after a VERY long and hot time, some of the kids at the event had finally stumbled across us, and to their great delight, discovered that we had guns (most of them were props, and the ones that weren't, were not loaded...one little kid was really annoyed that there weren't any guns that he could actually fire, there, but after seeing the way he handled the ones that WERE real, even though they were unloaded, you couldn't have paid me money to put a loaded gun in that kid's hands...someone would have been killed, I'm sure).  Different kid, however, was in there, at least had the good grace to restrict his horsing around to the prop guns.  At one point, he was talking with a lady outside and thought he'd convinced her to take a bunch of pictures of him in just his normal clothes, with one or two of the guns (which he kept holding 'gangsta-style', even after I explained to him the reason why doing that would actually increase your odds of completely missing your target...)  She, apparently, had a completely different take on what the conversation was about, because he came into the booth to borrow a couple of the pistols and then when he was walking back out the front, she'd turned and walked off.  He pointed one of the pistols (toys...realistic size and color, but with the big orange plug on the barrel) after her and I commented, "You know, pointing a gun--even a toy--at someone who was just talking with you is a great way to screw up a first impression."

He shrugged, and said, "But I already made my first impression with her...we've known each other for a while."

Trying very hard not to roll my eyes, or give into my impulse to reach over and smack him in the head, I explained, "Maybe so, but everyone else that sees you doing it probably doesn't think much of you...you're screwing up your first impression with them."

Very much to his credit, the kid thought for a couple of seconds, and then said, "You're trying to tell me to stop playing with the guns, aren't you?"  I grinned and said, "Well, that's part of what I'm trying to tell you, yeah..."

He walked back over to the table, put the guns down, started to walk out, and paused and looked at me.  "You know, you're a real good peacemaker. I should get your email address so I can get ahold of you next time my sister and I are tryin' to kill each other..."

I've been told I'm good at settling arguments before...but never had it phrased quite that way...
Serrational
member, 126 posts
Ponies! Trees! Hooray!
Blue Exorcist fan.
Tue 3 Jul 2012
at 13:56
  • msg #24

Re: More good stuff.

My bro started saying that OotS is original, and that Homestuck is a generic piece of rubbish which should be judged by the awards it has won.

I got a good laugh out of that.
spectre
member, 606 posts
A myriad of paths fell
away from that moment....
Tue 3 Jul 2012
at 15:28
  • msg #25

Re: More good stuff.

A partner at my work said I was a miracle worker in handling her trouble ticket. I was quite pleased.
Brygun
member, 1348 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Tue 3 Jul 2012
at 16:34
  • msg #26

Re: More good stuff.

Recently a roommat'es Jewish employer followed their genorsity virture by donating to us their 12,000 BTU air conditioner. Its replaced the cheapo 5,000 BTU $100 minimalist unit we got when we first learned a high floor apartment gets hot.

Happy to say we blew two fuses, a sign of the power it converts into chilling power. Found a different circuit and no more blown fuses.

12,000 BTU living/dining room
10,000 BTU in the "cold bedroom"
0 in the "hot" bedroom.

We also here they will dontate to us their portable air conditioner which will take care of me "hot" bedroom.
praguepride
member, 529 posts
Tue 3 Jul 2012
at 17:49
  • [deleted]
  • msg #27

Re: More good stuff.

This message was deleted by a moderator, as it was off-topic, at 10:19, Thu 05 July 2012.
facemaker329
member, 4972 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 5 Jul 2012
at 07:24
  • msg #28

Re: More good stuff.

The director of the show I'm in has expressly ordered all of us to learn to play chess, as it's kind of an underlying theme in the staging of the show.  Now, I grew up playing chess...my dad taught me when I was maybe 7 or so, and we used to play at least a couple of times a month, until I was about 17--the Christmas Day that I beat him, 5 out of 5 times, he swore he'd never play chess with me again (it was a rare demonstration of Dad's competitive side...the only other time I really remember that coming out was during waterfights, where it wasn't so much that he hated to lose as it was that he loved to escalate things...)

Anyhow, we never played another game of chess for the rest of his life, and I think I can count the number of chess games I've played since that day on the fingers of both hands...so I've gotten REALLY rusty.  But I found a decent online chess game...I'm consistently beating its 'beginner' setting...although I tried starting out on 'easy' and got my butt handed back to me on a platter, over and over again...

But it's an odd way of reconnecting with Dad.  We had an awful lot of chess games together...and while the strongest memory of all of that is Dad saying, "That's it, I'm never playing you again," there's an unusual sense of...comfort?  I don't know, exactly, but it's yet another reason for me to be thankful that I auditioned for this show.
truemane
member, 1586 posts
Firing magic missles at
the darkness!
Thu 5 Jul 2012
at 16:30
  • msg #29

Re: More good stuff.

I just sold a screenplay. For real money. To a real production company that shows every sign of turning it into a real movie. Just a little one, true, but still, professional screenwriter! Woot!
Serrational
member, 128 posts
Ponies! Trees! Hooray!
Hee hee hee. Smile!
Thu 5 Jul 2012
at 19:57
  • msg #30

Re: More good stuff.

Heh. I cracked a joke to somebody, and they tried to use a position of authority to make a "joke" back. It flopped.

Oho! Eees funny because their joke vas not funny!

Tired reference go!
Bigun Eagle
member, 38 posts
Sun 8 Jul 2012
at 00:21
  • msg #31

Re: More good stuff.

Normally when I make the hour drive up the mountian to the closest comic book shop to where I live, I leave annoyed, angry, or down right irate.

Today for the first time in 4 years of going to Magic the Gathering pre-releases up there I came back happy, even though I lost over half my games.
Brygun
member, 1365 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Sun 8 Jul 2012
at 15:48
  • msg #32

Re: More good stuff.

Doctor Who marathon on Space!

Who! Who! Who!
temperance
member, 19 posts
Sun 8 Jul 2012
at 19:01
  • msg #33

Re: More good stuff.

Started applying for jobs yesterday. First interview offer today.

In this economy at my experience level and field? Even an interview offer that quick is cause for major celebration. Whohoo!
Brygun
member, 1368 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Mon 9 Jul 2012
at 01:20
  • msg #34

Re: More good stuff.

Ladies who normally cook are both out today so their son is hanging out with me. We got hungry. Since the ladies also handle the grocery shopping (my job in that to carry heavy things and drive them around ^_^ ) I run into the issue of opening the fridge and cabinets not really knowing what we have or what plans they have.

Staring at the options for a while decided to do a varation. Turned out pretty awesome!

In the big pot lots of maccaroni noodles with parsley for flavour and break up the colour.

In the frying pan two tins of corned beef, onions and our common spices like lemon & herbs plus some oregano.

When ready mixed noddles and beef on the plate. Guess its a beef casserole.

Dang! This was good. Very filling too!

Lad cleaned up and boiled some vegetables to have on the side.

Bonus... made enough that there 2-4 more servings so tomorrow the ladies have the option of not cooking for their lunches, just grab this stuff.
TheWarriorPoet519
member, 1297 posts
Resident porch-squatting
stick-shaker
Mon 9 Jul 2012
at 04:32
  • msg #35

Re: More good stuff.

My company's kickstarter campaign got its funding, and I'm getting a nice fat advance on the next project. Life is good.
truemane
member, 1588 posts
Firing magic missles at
the darkness!
Thu 12 Jul 2012
at 17:22
  • msg #36

Re: More good stuff.

Got my Order of the Stick Kickstarter package in the mail! Every book, autographed by Rich Burlew himself. And beside every autograph? A little OOTS picture!

SO AWESOME.

*fanboi*
persondude
member, 229 posts
I collect hobbies.
Sat 14 Jul 2012
at 22:02
  • msg #37

Re: More good stuff.

After a great interview Wednesday, I was told I would know if I was hired or not "Friday at the latest."  Sent the lady an email Friday at 5pm after never getting a response.  She finally answered today: I'm to show up for training Tuesday at 9am.

After a year and two months since graduation, I've finally found full time employment (okay, 36-38 hours a week isn't quite full time, but I WILL TAKE IT!).  I can finally start blasting away at this loan debt!  And buy things like the cigars, beer, and Gushers I'm currently celebrating with!
Wine Guy
member, 291 posts
So many reds...
So little time.
Tue 17 Jul 2012
at 20:30
  • msg #38

Re: More good stuff.

Popped open an outstanding Old Vine Merlot from Kestrel Wineries.  Normally, not a big merlot fan, but this one is exceptional.  Now I wish I'd bought a whole case of it.
DarkwindStriker
member, 485 posts
Better known in many
places as Gatewalker.
Mon 23 Jul 2012
at 19:31
  • msg #39

Re: More good stuff.

It is not nearly hot enough today for the cold shower I just took on account of not having hot water in the house right now to have felt refreshing intsead of annoying.

This was initially going to be a vent. However...

It is not nearly hot enough for the cold shower to feel good. And I'm *totally* okay with it not being that hot.
wyldchild
member, 303 posts
While I breathe, I hope
Fri 27 Jul 2012
at 01:37
  • msg #40

Re: More good stuff.

*cheers*  Hurray for being so insane about the care of my own teeth that I might actually make it the four years I need to wait for treatment without any serious repercussions (I hope.)
SomewhatOperational
member, 50 posts
60% of the time
I work every time
Fri 27 Jul 2012
at 04:59
  • msg #41

Re: More good stuff.

My son can roll over.
My son can roll over.

I can say it one million times, I can see it one million times and it never gets old.
GreenSerpent
member, 121 posts
Casting darkness at the
Magic Missiles!
Sat 28 Jul 2012
at 16:18
  • msg #42

Re: More good stuff.

Got my laptop infected with a nasty piece of scareware. Managed to remove it.
Brygun
member, 1410 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Sat 28 Jul 2012
at 23:38
  • msg #43

Re: More good stuff.

The parachuting Queen of England.

Q E 2 my kinda gal.
XxSoulReaper97
member, 1 post
Mon 30 Jul 2012
at 04:33
  • [deleted]
  • msg #44

Re: More good stuff.

This message was deleted by a moderator, as it was against the forum rules, at 05:49, Mon 30 July 2012.
Utsukushi
member, 1038 posts
I should really stay out
of this, I know...but...
Mon 30 Jul 2012
at 16:29
  • msg #45

Re: More good stuff.

Yay!  My thrift-store box of Dungeonquest does have all the pieces!

Well, it's missing a d12, apparently, but we have those.  And one of the characters has lost his feet, but he can be replaced, too.  I've got a box full of pewter miniatures that would love to have his job, for half what we were paying him.
Serrational
member, 132 posts
Ponies! Trees! Hooray!
Hee hee hee. Smile!
Mon 30 Jul 2012
at 23:28
  • msg #46

Re: More good stuff.

Discovering that you can work twitch-shooters slightly better than you thought. It's kinda yay. YAY all over.

'specially when Avernum has been wearing thin recently.
facemaker329
member, 5014 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Tue 31 Jul 2012
at 07:40
  • msg #47

Re: More good stuff.

It's nice to have friends who know you well enough that you can make potentially awkward jokes and have them take it as a joke, rather than as awkward (telling a woman half your age that she makes you feel like a dirty old man sometimes is definitely a risky thing to say...)
facemaker329
member, 5019 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Fri 3 Aug 2012
at 08:01
  • msg #48

Re: More good stuff.

Man...I can't believe how fast this summer's gone.  Seems like yesterday, I walked into an audition.  Two months later, and we're a week out from performances.  Been awesome, watching this stuff come together...and I feel incredibly lucky/blessed/what-have-you for the cast I'm working with...for a community theater production, they're remarkably professional about stuff, and everyone has been very good-spirited about changes being made, rehearsals sometimes running long, rehearsing out in the heat of the day, etc (the one complaint I've heard consistently is from the guy playing Treville...his teen-aged daughter is in the cast, and it's been REALLY hard on him to watch her flirting with a guy twice her age, even though it's just part of the scene...)

I'm both excited and just a little scared at this one...I've never played a character important enough to appear on the show's promotional posters, before, and if this isn't the largest role I've played on stage, ever, it's definitely in the top 3.  I feel like I've got the general gist of everything that needs to happens...I just need to get to the point where I'm not struggling to remember all my lines.  There's just one or two scenes where the word flow of my dialogue gets unwieldy and I'll say what I remember and as I'm saying it, think, "Now, I KNOW that's not the way that line goes, even if I'm saying the same basic thing..."

Four more run-throughs...We can do this!  (After that, there's an audience...)
facemaker329
member, 5023 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sun 5 Aug 2012
at 07:06
  • msg #49

Re: More good stuff.

I know, I know...I post these things in clusters.  What can I say?  A lot of good stuff happens in my life...

A friend of mine hired me to help her figure out what to do for her role as the Witch in Into The Woods (for those unfamiliar with the story, she starts out hideously ugly...partway through the show, a curse that she cast gets broken, and she goes from being the ugly old hag to being young and beautiful...and the change happens in a few seconds, on-stage...)  She was having visions of having to put makeup on and take it off and all kinds of stuff that would make the process far more challenging than it needed to be...

I came up with a simple, cheap, extremely effective option that didn't require gluing anything to her face.  When she made her first entrance of the show, the lady sitting next to me gasped in surprise...'cause she was REALLY ugly--a mass of gray hair with a massive hooked nose and a long chin that poked out past in, when she stood in profile to you.  It looked even better than I thought it would...and she had NO trouble with it at all.

I love it when plans work out smoothly.  I love it even more when those plans are the cheapest, simplest option and they work as good or better than some really elaborate, time-consuming, expensive, laborious options would.
SomewhatOperational
member, 65 posts
60% of the time
I work every time
Sun 5 Aug 2012
at 07:10
  • msg #50

Re: More good stuff.

The owner of our apartment building didn't tell us it was being forclosed on. We have to be out in 90 days. Why is this good news? Bank just offered us $2,500 to be out by the 17th. We had already saved up to move and signed on another place anyways.
Brygun
member, 1442 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Thu 9 Aug 2012
at 19:15
  • msg #51

Re: More good stuff.

TCM channel is doing one of their dedicated to actor days.

Today is:

Toshiro Mifune!

Wooo! Samurai overdose!

*goes play Shogun Total War 2 while watching*
This message was last edited by the user at 19:15, Thu 09 Aug 2012.
Malakhon
member, 1981 posts
Fri 10 Aug 2012
at 05:13
  • msg #52

Re: More good stuff.


<GOOD>

I have been permitted to become a volunteer author on Christwire/Daily Bleach and write humorous articles for them!!




</GOOD>
TheDemonIslington
member, 176 posts
RPoL's UN
Peace keeping you to Hell
Fri 10 Aug 2012
at 06:20
  • msg #53

Re: More good stuff.

Got made redundant at work...

Already had a job lined up anyway.

BOOM!
facemaker329
member, 5032 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Fri 10 Aug 2012
at 22:38
  • msg #54

Re: More good stuff.

Just got a chance to read the review from our opening night.  Granted, theater around here is pretty tight-knit, so reviewers aren't terribly cut-throat...after all, most of them are theater folk, themselves, and it would be really awkward to end up auditioning for someone who you tore apart a week earlier in a review...

But, even with that consideration in mind, we got a great review!  Nice to know that, while we're having fun on stage, the audience is enjoying what we're going, as well.  That's what it's all about!
Bigun Eagle
member, 55 posts
Sun 12 Aug 2012
at 00:20
  • msg #55

Re: More good stuff.

Last night I had a bolt of lightning hit very near my house. It ruined my fathers car, badly damages my mother's minivan, destroyed the phone connection box, threw 10+ pound rocks over 20 feet, likely killed a 50 foot tall hickory tree that stands less than 30 feet from where I was sitting at the time, and dug an 8 inch deep crater.

Yet everyone at my house is alive and well, including the outside dogs that usually sleep on the porch right less that 6 feet from that crater.

Makes you get real humble real fast when you see the power of nature.
facemaker329
member, 5061 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sat 1 Sep 2012
at 18:48
  • msg #56

Re: More good stuff.

I woke up sore and stiff this morning.  Why is this a good thing?  Because I got sore and stiff helping execute a show the likes of which have never been seen in this area.  And, all things considered, it went off pretty smoothly (there were a lot of things that I noticed that went wrong, but I was 'in the know' and on the inside...the audience didn't notice anything hugely problematic).

What's so special about this show?  Well...first off, we didn't ever get to do a full rehearsal (or even group read-through) of it.  It was at a public pool, and the producers couldn't afford to rent the venue for more than the one night.  It had high-divers, mermaids, aerialists performing from an anchor that was raised above the pool during the show, pirates, singers, dancers...

Man, when I start describing it in those terms, I feel kinda like I'm doing the initial pitch that leads into 'Spectacular Spectacular' (from Moulin Rouge)...

And I got to go swimming for the first time in years (and it was even intentional).  Found out I'm in better shape than I thought, but in worse shape than I'd like to be...
Killer Rabbitt
member, 296 posts
He's got huge sharp fangs
Run away! Run away!
Sat 1 Sep 2012
at 23:27
  • msg #57

Re: More good stuff.

I found out yesterday that I don't need surgery. While thAt's good news to begin with for most people, it's especially good for me. I have a congenital heart defect, and at 26 years of age have already had 5 open-heart surgeries. Since last October they've been tracking some findings on various tests that were pointing to the possibility that my valve is calcifying, which would mean replacing it. While valve replacements are, at least as heart surgeries go, fairly routine, because of the number of other replacements I've had there would be a lot of very troubling complications. In particular there's a good chance the heart's electrical regulators could fail, requiring the additional installation of a pacemaker; and the surgeons would have to cu into the base of where the coronary artery branches from the aorta (itself more than a little risky without all the other problems). So anyway for the past year they've been running a battery of tests to determine what's going on, and evidence was piling up that it was as we'd feared and I'd need surgery. So yesterday they did a cardiac catherization and flouroscopy - short of opening up the heart the best way to see what's going on inside. And turns out there's nothing to worry about. There is some calcification, but it's minor and no more than what's typically to be expected. Oddly enough I don't feel super elated. I guess I was so prepared for bad news that the good news hasn't really sunk in yet.
This message was last edited by the user at 23:28, Sat 01 Sept 2012.
cero1
member, 81 posts
Sat 1 Sep 2012
at 23:37
  • msg #58

Re: More good stuff.

It was my birthday recently and over two days the Landlord of my local has been really cool, on the day I got a free pint on the house. I was out last night and he was equally accomodating.
I enjoy my local immensely, I really feel like I'm becoming a regular, even though I only really pop in every other day for a single pint. Really good people who have been great to me since I first popped in on an off-chance after a job interview to get rid of the post-interview butterflies :)
shady joker
member, 1456 posts
Sun 2 Sep 2012
at 00:25
  • msg #59

Re: More good stuff.

I had a deepfried oreo sundae. With a beer. COOKIES AND BEER! it was so cool.
Pyrate
member, 98 posts
Excellent! Now I can
attack in all directions.
Mon 3 Sep 2012
at 10:27
  • msg #60

Re: More good stuff.

They're saying that the weather this weekend is going to climb up over 15 degrees! ^_^
I'm so taking my friends to the beach.
PushBarToOpen
member, 612 posts
Mon 3 Sep 2012
at 10:52
  • msg #61

Re: More good stuff.

i think i can touch type. this msg is done using the skills a lifetime of gameing using a wsad setup. so although i can just about write this msg without looking at the keyboard its quicker if i do and i keep getting the first hit of anything on the left hand side wrong for the first couple of strokes

still writing all this without looking at the keyboard has to indicate that without training i can just about touch type.

however i am starting to feel the strain in my hand from using my odd 6 finger touch typinf skills. (my little fingers still refuse to type)
nuric
member, 1697 posts
Love D&D,superhero games
Not very computer savvy
Tue 4 Sep 2012
at 05:27
  • msg #62

Re: More good stuff.

This is the first official rpol post on my brand new computer!!!
It's a laptop that's not exactly top of the line, by any estimation, but it's better than the one I'd recently broken, and even though I need to get used to it, it's a darned sight faster than posting on my phone.

Now, if I can just get caught up with everything that I fell behind on.
facemaker329
member, 5070 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 5 Sep 2012
at 07:45
  • msg #63

Re: More good stuff.

One of my best friends has turned to me as a kind of 'brain trust' for ideas on what to do with her Star Wars game.  It went from me being an occasional player (she lives an hour and a half away, so being a regular at a weekly game just wasn't an option), to me making up some characters for her to use as NPCs, to me creating several pivotal NPCs that she's now running the entire game around (not that they're part of the group, they are serial bad-guys and mysterious former Jedi Masters that keep crossing the group's path for various reasons.)

Now, without any input from me at all, she's stumbled across a way for the bad guys to be working for the good guys, while still working on what they were doing as bad guys...and she's picking my brain for input on what each of them would do with the situation.  In the last 48 hours, I think we've exchanged about twenty emails, some of them rather lengthy, about motivations and attitudes and contingencies and what-ifs, and plot ideas for the party that may or may not be even remotely connected to what the rest of the NPC discussion was about.

Got another email message from her tonight, thanking me for all of my help.  Apparently, from what she said, I have, in two days, given her enough material for her to run her game for the next year or so.  (Now, if I can just muster up that kind of creative energy for my own game...I need someone to start asking me the right questions, I think...)
PushBarToOpen
member, 619 posts
Wed 5 Sep 2012
at 10:51
  • msg #64

Re: More good stuff.

An oppertunity arose at work to go to mexico for 3 months shadowing one of the higher ups and I GOT IT.

I am crossing the pond and advancing my career WOOT
Brygun
member, 1511 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Thu 6 Sep 2012
at 14:00
  • msg #65

Re: More good stuff.

Roommates got a costco membership yesterday. Today begins devouring of those double chocolate giant muffins.
adrasteia1
member, 813 posts
Casting the dice
of an uncertain future
Thu 6 Sep 2012
at 14:02
  • msg #66

Re: More good stuff.

I got a letter today inviting me to take an aptitude test tomorrow for an accounting course I've applied for. Hopefully it will go well. :)
Stix4armz
member, 6 posts
Thu 6 Sep 2012
at 15:35
  • msg #67

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to PushBarToOpen (msg # 64):

What part of Mexico?
bigbadron
moderator, 13157 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Fri 7 Sep 2012
at 04:03

Re: More good stuff.

An RPoL game that I figured would run for a year, tops, when I first set it up has been running for ten years today.  Happy Birthday to my game, and a big "thank you" to the players.  :)
This message was last edited by the user at 04:07, Fri 07 Sept 2012.
doomedfate
member, 559 posts
I'm a Furry, and
dang it, I'm proud!
Fri 7 Sep 2012
at 11:47
  • msg #69

Re: More good stuff.

Happy B-day, bigbadron's game!

Yesterday, we won another game, this one 28-0, bringing us to 2-0 AND so far we have given up 0 points! This is football, FYI. The main thing, I finnally got in and got to hit someone NOT on my team!

Hope you pass :)
Bigun Eagle
member, 57 posts
Fri 7 Sep 2012
at 16:39
  • msg #70

Re: More good stuff.

Got my first paycheck in more than 5 years today.

WOOT!!
adrasteia1
member, 817 posts
Casting the dice
of an uncertain future
Fri 7 Sep 2012
at 17:05
  • msg #71

Re: More good stuff.

Congrats! (for BBR and BE)

I think I passed the aptitude test for the accounting course. I zoomed through it and was the first to finish, but then I worked in the job (untrained) for 2.5 yrs.

It's a pretty good opportunity - study a certified qualification for free AND get paid to do it, but I need to think on it to be really certain it's what I want to do.

I applied late so may not get into the course during this round anyway.
MILLANDSON
member, 1273 posts
Postcognition Man
Power of Hindsight
Sat 8 Sep 2012
at 04:51
  • msg #72

Re: More good stuff.

I got my results from my Masters in Law back, and I got 60%, which nets me a Pass with Merit, and means I now have an LLM!

The list of letters after my name is now:

BA(Hons), LLB(Hons), PGDipLaw, LLM

:D
facemaker329
member, 5076 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sat 8 Sep 2012
at 05:04
  • msg #73

Re: More good stuff.

So, spent the afternoon and evening at the State Fair, with a woman who I'd really like to be dating...and it was her idea.  After all the times I tried to invite her along to something over the summer and had plans fall through, I wasn't holding my breath for this one...

But, sure enough, it actually happened.  And I got a chance to get a little more acquainted with her son (which is harder than it sounds...he's legally blind so it's been challenging for me to relate well to him.  While I'm generally good with kids, a lot of time it is, I think, because I'm willing to clown with them a bit and make myself look a little foolish, and he doesn't see any of that, so my 'primary weapon' is rendered null-and-void.  But he still seems to like me...)

And not only that, but a couple of other odd incidents that ended up being both totally unexpected and somewhat endearing happened while we were there.  Another friend of mine, we discovered, was showing goats at the Fair...and her goats apparently think I'm awesome, one of them just stood there and let me scratch her head for the better part of ten minutes--very much like a dog, every time I stopped, she'd step forward and nuzzle my hand.

And the baby lemurs that my 'friend' was so eager for her son to touch?  I don't know if it was because of scratching the goat, or what...but they decided that my hand tasted AWESOME.  I've never had my right hand groomed by lemurs before...it was kind of an odd sensation (I'm glad they didn't decide to really bite down when they were mouthing my fingertips...they've got a lot of fairly sharp teeth...)  And I think the guy handling the lemurs was impressed that I didn't freak out and jerk my hand back when they started mouthing me (these 'babies' were actually about five months old, so they looked a lot like the adults, just half-sized...)

So, all in all, three cool things that I didn't expect to happen.  I like days like this.
Brygun
member, 1520 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Sat 8 Sep 2012
at 16:26
  • msg #74

Re: More good stuff.

Missed the Legend of Khorra on YTV for the 2nd week in a row. Last time a power failure had mean the timer hadn't reset. This time they had changed the schedule. What is this good news? Well in checking for the new schedule it turns out ytv web-airs the previous episodes so I got to see the one I missed last week! yeah!
Utsukushi
member, 1077 posts
I should really stay out
of this, I know...but...
Sun 9 Sep 2012
at 00:57
  • msg #75

Re: More good stuff.

I'm not Hoshana!

This seems like a good night to be not Hoshana.

But good luck to anybody who is!
soulsight
member, 193 posts
An older man, much like a
fine wine, will improve.
Sun 9 Sep 2012
at 02:25
  • msg #76

Re: More good stuff.

My eldest came home from college, and the family spent the day at local outdoor festival-type things in our town and the next largest nearby town.
I'm smiling.
TheWarriorPoet519
member, 1303 posts
Resident porch-squatting
stick-shaker
Sun 9 Sep 2012
at 02:27
  • msg #77

Re: More good stuff.

Got paid my latest advance for the new book. Life is good.
rogar308
member, 106 posts
Mon 10 Sep 2012
at 19:24
  • msg #78

Re: More good stuff.

10 years left until retirement. I can do it!
truemane
member, 1599 posts
Firing magic missles at
the darkness!
Mon 10 Sep 2012
at 20:03
  • msg #79

Re: More good stuff.

After a whole week without her, I get to spend the whole evening with my True Love. Two years ago I didn't even believe in love, let alone Capital-L-Love.

Never been happier to be proved wrong in all my life.
truemane
member, 1599 posts
Firing magic missles at
the darkness!
Mon 10 Sep 2012
at 20:03
  • msg #79

Re: More good stuff.

After a whole week without her, I get to spend the whole evening with my True Love. Two years ago I didn't even believe in love, let alone Capital-L-Love.

Never been happier to be proved wrong in all my life.
deadmanshand
member, 1247 posts
Sat 15 Sep 2012
at 00:46
  • msg #80

Re: More good stuff.

I love the block option on Rmail. :)
Tortuga
member, 842 posts
Wed 19 Sep 2012
at 02:58
  • msg #81

Re: More good stuff.

My steampunk mystery collection has hit #1 on Amazon Kindle's UK mystery anthology best-sellers chart. I'm not exactly sure how that works, but I think I now technically qualify as minor gentry.
This message was last edited by the user at 02:58, Wed 19 Sept 2012.
PushBarToOpen
member, 646 posts
Wed 19 Sep 2012
at 08:08
  • msg #82

I'm A Winner

I Just Won a Competition at work

I now have the choice between an Ipad 2 or a samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 But which one do i choose?
adrasteia1
member, 843 posts
Time you enjoy
wasting isn't wasted
Tue 2 Oct 2012
at 21:13
  • msg #83

More good stuff!

I'm happy because I got into a web design course I applied for. Not only is it fully paid for, but I get paid to study it. It's like an 'almost job' for that reason, even though it isn't. Providing I pass the test near the end, I'll get an Adobe certification from it.

I start on Monday morning. :)
Sallyann
member, 1497 posts
go away and don't come
back til a tree hugs you
Tue 2 Oct 2012
at 21:45
  • msg #84

Re: More good stuff!

my firstborn has a job.  A real paid for work job that he got on his own without assistance from the school, etc.  1st day is over and he's still employed. On top of that, the hours they've given him so far are ones he can do and use the bus to get there.
praguepride
member, 747 posts
Asker of Questions
Finder of Answers
Tue 2 Oct 2012
at 22:42
  • msg #85

Re: More good stuff!

I found a brownie!
TheWarriorPoet519
member, 1309 posts
Resident porch-squatting
stick-shaker
Wed 3 Oct 2012
at 01:42
  • msg #86

Re: More good stuff!

Running at night listening to the Rocky IV score.
ShadeTheFallen
member, 169 posts
Live in the Light of Hope
Not in the Shadow of Fear
Wed 3 Oct 2012
at 02:05
  • msg #87

Re: More good stuff!

The Gorillaz.

and Jun Maeda.

and, well, music period.
cero1
member, 106 posts
Wed 3 Oct 2012
at 02:21
  • msg #88

Re: More good stuff!

Playing Deadpool in MHR and writing ooc stuff as dialogue, thanks to him breaking the fourth wall and cracking (bad) jokes whilst doing it! I really need to play him in more games :)
flakk
member, 454 posts
Dark Heresy!
Warhammer Fantasy RPG (2)
Wed 3 Oct 2012
at 02:25
  • msg #89

Re: More good stuff!

Reading a big ole' stack of Alpha Flight=:)
Queenmandikat46
member, 296 posts
another one who met her
love through RPOL
Wed 3 Oct 2012
at 05:14
  • msg #90

Re: More good stuff!

Finding proof that there are still gamers out there that want to just have fun.
adrasteia1
member, 844 posts
Time you enjoy
wasting isn't wasted
Wed 3 Oct 2012
at 12:11
  • msg #91

Re: More good stuff!

I got a form signed yesterday in the city so I could begin my course (it was more of an ordeal than it sounds... red tape etc), only to just realise that in the process of sorting it out and getting utterly drenched in the rain coming home, it and my other forms for my course are sodden (realising this the next afternoon)!

Thanks be to ballpoint pens. The ink hasn't run! And the pages are now drying out.
bigbadron
moderator, 13212 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Fri 5 Oct 2012
at 09:28

Re: More good stuff!

Finally!

Got a rare, randomly dropped item that I've been after for ages in DC Universe Online.  A Green Lantern hoodie for my main character.  Been after one for months, but they've only been dropping for alts that don't have hard light powers, and they can't be traded.

Now, at last, my hard light using main character has a GL symbol on his chest...

All is right with the world.  :)
facemaker329
member, 5114 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Tue 9 Oct 2012
at 07:13
  • msg #93

Re: More good stuff!

Had two of the performers I work with for our Halloween season at the park tell me about the number of compliments they get each night about how awesome their makeup and costumes are.  While I'm not responsible for every aspect of all of that, I did come up with and okay the initial concepts for makeup...helped put together all the costumes (and in at least one case, built a significant portion of the costume from scratch, including making my own modifications to a pattern so it looked right).

When park patrons are favorably comparing your work to the stuff they see at Disney and Knott's, etc, you're doing something right.  I knew the performers liked the makeup stuff...but it's nice to hear that the park patrons are impressed by it, as well.

(Now, if only the guy who actually signs off on everyone's pay rates was hearing all this praise...my rent went up this summer, I need a raise!)
Wyrm
member, 232 posts
Age 31
Tue 9 Oct 2012
at 13:56
  • msg #94

Re: More good stuff!

My incompetant boss finally put in her notice after seven long months of ineptitude hell. I'm poised to have a pretty good shot at her position and double my pay.
Even if I don't get it, Ding Dong! The Witch is dead!
Pyrate
member, 128 posts
Excellent! Now I can
attack in all directions.
Tue 9 Oct 2012
at 19:13
  • msg #95

Re: More good stuff!

Gleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! ^_^
There's a new series of Museum of curiosity out!
facemaker329
member, 5116 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Mon 15 Oct 2012
at 08:27
  • msg #96

Re: More good stuff!

Enjoyed a most excellent Halloween party over the weekend.  Even if I hadn't enjoyed the rest of the party (which I did), it would have been worth sitting through for the last ten minutes.  Been a long time since I had a good-night kiss like that...
rubberduck
member, 3198 posts
Apocalypse World
will save your soul
Mon 15 Oct 2012
at 11:36
  • msg #97

Re: More good stuff!

Just discovered that one of my favorite book series (Tales from the Age of the Solar Clipper) has a new book out. I had more or less resigned myself to the fact that it might never happen. Great!
habsin4
member, 575 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Mon 15 Oct 2012
at 13:25
  • msg #98

Re: More good stuff!

Did any of you guys hear about the man from Turkey who was planning a trip to India, but ended up going to Europe by mistake?

His whole trip was occidental.
DaleN
member, 51 posts
"We aren't slavers...
just ask the Wookie."
Mon 15 Oct 2012
at 14:34
  • msg #99

Re: More good stuff!

In reply to habsin4 (msg # 98):

Ba-dump-bump!
nuric
member, 1797 posts
Love D&D,superhero games
Not very computer savvy
Mon 15 Oct 2012
at 21:37
  • msg #100

Re: More good stuff!

In reply to habsin4 (msg # 98):

Much like the man who traveled the country with a hatchet in his mouth.

His trip was Axe-in-dental.
DaleN
member, 52 posts
"We aren't slavers...
just ask the Wookie."
Mon 15 Oct 2012
at 22:21
  • msg #101

Re: More good stuff!

In reply to nuric (msg # 100):

That one does NOT deserve a rim-shot.
DarkwindStriker
member, 490 posts
Better known in many
places as Gatewalker.
Mon 15 Oct 2012
at 22:33
  • msg #102

Re: More good stuff!

Sometimes laziness can be a virtue. Like when I just found a $50 gift card I'd gotten for my birthday over a month ago that I apparently couldn't be bothered to find something to spend it on. Time to order a couple things online~
habsin4
member, 576 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Tue 16 Oct 2012
at 01:46
  • msg #103

Re: More good stuff!

In reply to DaleN (msg # 99):

He tried to find his way home, but he couldn't orient himself.  After a long Kuwait, he ended up stuck between Iraq and .....

Can you complete the sentence?  Because I sure can't.
Evil Empryss
member, 179 posts
Your Game Choices:
1) Take it; 2) Leave it
Tue 16 Oct 2012
at 17:51
  • msg #104

Re: More good stuff!

Effie Trinket costume for Halloween so awesomely coming together.  Lady at the wig store sold me a discontinued $130 human hair wig for $25!!!  It's perfect!  I can't wait to dye it pink!

"May the odds be ever in your favor!"
habsin4
member, 579 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Fri 19 Oct 2012
at 20:49
  • msg #105

Re: More good stuff!

Paternity leave workplan finished.  Assistant now has tasks to keep her busy while I'm home with the Little Squish for 5 weeks.  Looking forward to a relaxing, easy month-long vacation watching a 4 month old.  <gulp>
facemaker329
member, 5119 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 24 Oct 2012
at 03:22
  • msg #106

Re: More good stuff!

So, I was a little stressed out about my finances, this month.  One of my jobs wrapped up the pay period early, last month, because the accountant was going out of town, so that check (which really isn't for much, anyway) ended up being just a few bucks.  And since they've raised my rent, my paycheck for the first half of the month is pretty much shot in the process of paying that.

So, I hung on by my fingernails until my second check came in...and by the time I payed my bills (some of them overdue), I was down to just a couple of dollars again.

AND THEN...

I got the paycheck with the missing hours from the end of last month.  AND I got the check for one of the freelance jobs I did.  AND it was for more than I was expecting.  I've gone from "I might just scrape by if I live off Hot Pockets and Ramen for the rest of the month" to "I can actually afford to buy something tasty for dinner tonight."  I can pay my dental bill.  I can even pay most of what's left of the bill for my root canal.  And our season's almost over, so I should be getting a bonus check from my primary job in the next pay period, as well.  Been a long couple of months of trying to hold on, but I think I'm gonna make it.
Sallyann
member, 1499 posts
go away and don't come
back til a tree hugs you
Wed 24 Oct 2012
at 21:06
  • msg #107

Re: More good stuff!

last week my secondborn got a fulltime job.  Today, the house is no longer ours, we dont' have to send bunches of money back to pay for a place we no longer live in.

breathe, just breathe.
This message was last edited by the user at 22:14, Thu 01 Nov 2012.
Evil Empryss
member, 202 posts
Silently critiquing your
spelling and grammar.
Mon 29 Oct 2012
at 21:48
  • msg #108

Re: More good stuff!

Raw cookie dough right out of the tube on a rainy day.

Mmmmmm.....
chandlerandrew
member, 2 posts
Wed 31 Oct 2012
at 23:43
  • msg #109

Re: More good stuff!

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 108):

Basketball season started yesterday. yayyyyyyyyyyyy
ashberg
member, 195 posts
Beware the Groove.
Groooooove.
Thu 1 Nov 2012
at 06:31
  • msg #110

Re: More good stuff!

The site got launched....

Five days of leave; catching up with the oldest of old friends; my besty's's firstborn's first birthday party and a 9 hour drive each way.

Oh yeah. I can feel it.
ginny
member, 68 posts
Thu 1 Nov 2012
at 11:20
  • msg #111

Re: More good stuff!

Day after Halloween, kids are at school
Evil Empryss
member, 207 posts
Silently critiquing your
spelling and grammar.
Thu 1 Nov 2012
at 11:28
  • msg #112

Re: More good stuff!

Addendum to Ginny:

Kids are at school and I'm home with their bags of candy. XD
ShadeTheFallen
member, 174 posts
Where the tongue slips,
it speaketh only truth.
Fri 2 Nov 2012
at 10:38
  • msg #113

Re: More good stuff!

Passed the hardest test in my classes yesterday. True, it may have been with the absolute minimum score possible, but it was a lot better than I expected to do!
PushBarToOpen
member, 695 posts
Fri 2 Nov 2012
at 23:23
  • msg #114

Re: More good stuff!

I have just been promoted At Work!!!!!!!!!

Fair enough I have Gone From Trainee Design Engineer to Assistant Design Engineer but thats Still something And it comes with a pay rise!!!!

So I'm no Longer a Trainee I'm an Assistant I see Little diferance But i don't care Its still good News!!!
facemaker329
member, 5140 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Fri 9 Nov 2012
at 02:35
  • msg #115

Re: More good stuff!

I love it when friends throw good-paying freelance gigs my direction, even if it is last-minute.  Going to do some fairly basic makeup for a video shoot tomorrow...eight hours of work, and I'm getting paid more than my take-home pay is for an entire week's work at my regular job.

"Why, certainly, I'd be happy to show up and glue on pre-made prosthetics and get paid a few hundred dollars in the process."
facemaker329
member, 5144 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Mon 12 Nov 2012
at 05:32
  • msg #116

Re: More good stuff!

Finally found a way to take the vinyl Predator mask they gave me at the paintball game last fall, and attach it to a paintball mask (all the adhesives and tapes that I had available at the time didn't hold...managed to get it on there long enough for a good photo...but that was about it).  Going to see about coming up with some version of the 'Predator dreds' to finish off the headgear...looking forward to the scenario game this year!  (Hopefully, they do it on a weekend where I do NOT have to work...)
Evil Empryss
member, 262 posts
Silently critiquing your
spelling and grammar.
Mon 12 Nov 2012
at 20:14
  • msg #117

Re: More good stuff!

Free dinner for veterans and active duty personnel at the Golden Corral tonight.  There'll be a heck of a line, but it'll be nice to be back in the middle of my fellow vets.  :)
Evil Empryss
member, 325 posts
Silently critiquing your
spelling and grammar.
Wed 21 Nov 2012
at 05:17
  • msg #118

Re: More good stuff!

Saw an old geezer getting out of a beat up pickup truck today. License plate:

PLMYFNGR

Grandpa is full of Win!
Tlaloc
member, 416 posts
From the island of Nunya
Wed 21 Nov 2012
at 05:24
  • msg #119

Re: More good stuff!

Old farm lady in my area.  Plate reads EIEIO.

Her last name McDonald.
facemaker329
member, 5178 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 21 Nov 2012
at 05:24
  • msg #120

Re: More good stuff!

Trying not to count the chickens before they're hatched, but...

Sometimes it really IS who you know.  A college friend of mine (that I'd reconnected with via Facebook) offered me a job writing for the company she works for...basically, writing copy for a website that's promoting some new technology developments.  I have no idea what I'm getting paid, yet, haven't even had a chance to really look, in-depth, at what it is that I'm writing about...but I'm thrilled that she was impressed enough by my writing to offer me the job.  Never expected to get offered something like this.

And, to make my week just that much better, found out that the movie theater isn't changing any films this week.  My holiday schedule got SO much simpler with that bit of news (since Thanksgiving dinner was going to be 60 miles away, and the rest of the weekend was to be spent with friends another 25 miles beyond that!)
Tlaloc
member, 417 posts
From the island of Nunya
Wed 21 Nov 2012
at 05:30
  • msg #121

Re: More good stuff!

Not getting political or anything but I voted against the person who just won re-election here in the good ol' USA.

The interesting part is that I am a data architect who has extensive experience in the healthcare/insurance industries.  I have been bombarded with so many job offers in the last week it is sick.  By sick I mean good.

It seems that a hardcore campaign against the 1% just propelled me into the 1%.
Evil Empryss
member, 331 posts
Silently critiquing your
spelling and grammar.
Fri 23 Nov 2012
at 05:38
  • msg #122

Re: More good stuff!

Got everything I went shopping for at the Black Friday sales -- two of the items even cheaper than they had been advertised!  New TVs and Blu-ray players!  Woohoo!
jait
member, 231 posts
Mon 26 Nov 2012
at 07:50
  • msg #123

Coming Soon - Fate  Core!

http://www.evilhat.com/home/coming-soon-fate-core/

Very pleased to see this coming...  I'll definitely be kicking in to help make it happen!
This message was last edited by the user at 02:38, Wed 28 Nov 2012.
Evil Empryss
member, 333 posts
Silently critiquing your
spelling and grammar.
Tue 27 Nov 2012
at 03:17
  • msg #124

Christmas Lights 2012

Forget the Lords of Winter!  Do it Gangnam Style!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jWN5Myxtwg

Sweet!

ETA:  This one's even better!  It has a singing face!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...&feature=related
This message was last edited by the user at 04:16, Tue 27 Nov 2012.
truemane
member, 1627 posts
Firing magic missles at
the darkness!
Tue 27 Nov 2012
at 17:34
  • msg #125

Re: Christmas Lights 2012

Life of Pi. I'm just happy that it exists. great art makes the world a better place just for being there.
adrasteia1
member, 922 posts
Time you enjoy
wasting isn't wasted
Wed 28 Nov 2012
at 01:54
  • msg #126

What to do?

My web design course finishes up in the new year and I'm considering whether to study another after it (they've got courses in Photoshop, PHP and other related subjects coming up) or focus fully on finding another job.

Maybe I should just sign up to a course and keep looking for work, but I don't like taking on a course if I may not stick around to see it through.
facemaker329
member, 5183 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 28 Nov 2012
at 05:23
  • msg #127

Re: What to do?

Just had a first meeting with a new writers' workshop group that a friend of mine is starting up.  We talked about some ideas for stories, about setting some easily attainable goals that will still get us to a good point in a reasonable amount of time, and discussed concepts like knowing your target audience and how to write a 'genre' novel without falling into the stereotypes of the genre.

I think this could be a really big...REALLY big...help for me, to get off my butt and get focused on consistently writing again.
adrasteia1
member, 923 posts
Time you enjoy
wasting isn't wasted
Wed 28 Nov 2012
at 17:42
  • msg #128

Re: What to do?

I placed an order for heating oil today, so in a few days it should be warm and toasty instead of utterly freezing. :)
bobbofeet
member, 34 posts
Thu 29 Nov 2012
at 19:11
  • msg #129

Re: What to do?

Finishing up work to go on a week long vacation with my beloved tomorrow morning sans the wee ones.   Good, good, good.
facemaker329
member, 5200 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 5 Dec 2012
at 07:06
  • msg #130

Re: What to do?

So, it's official, as of today (well, tomorrow, technically, since that's when the assignment would start).  I have a third job...freelancing as a copy writer for an online marketing company.  And I might have a big costume project to take care of in the next two weeks...find out tomorrow.  I have a makeup gig on Friday.  The last big hitch I was dreading in the script I'm writing (adapting, actually, from a fanfic story in a Star Trek club newsletter that some friends in the club want to turn into a video project) fell into place because the one person I could think of who used to speak Klingon with any degree of fluency still remembered enough of it to translate the appropriate lines for me.

It's been a pretty awesome day.  I wouldn't even mind if the costume project fell through.  With so many things going right, I don't want to get greedy.  Let the good fortune spread itself throughout the season, y'know?
Evil Empryss
member, 347 posts
Silently critiquing your
spelling and grammar.
Tue 11 Dec 2012
at 16:08
  • msg #131

Re: What to do?

My gaming buddies.

I'm taking an exam today that will (finally!) fulfill the last of my requirements to get a bachelors degree. I'm pinging off the walls from nerves, but I've gotten nothing but support and encouragement from all my gaming buddies. Some of these people I've known online for years, others are newer friends, but all of them are awesome.

Is it dusty in here?  I think I've got something in my eyes....
This message was last edited by the user at 16:09, Tue 11 Dec 2012.
Alexei Yaruk-Mundhenk
member, 1127 posts
Ad Majorem
Dea Gloriam
Tue 11 Dec 2012
at 17:36
  • msg #132

Re: What to do?

My son is no longer sick and will get to enjoy Christmas!
Tortuga
member, 961 posts
Tue 11 Dec 2012
at 17:40
  • msg #133

Re: What to do?

Proofs for my paperbacks arrive today, and my audiobook is live in Amazon and iTunes!
facemaker329
member, 5222 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 12 Dec 2012
at 07:13
  • msg #134

And here we are at Chapter One...

So...I just finished the first draft of my first ever freelance writing assignment.  I'd be ecstatic about this, but it was writing a white paper for a technology firm (don't know what a white paper is?  Neither did I, before getting this assignment...)

I'm incredibly relieved that I've actually been able to glean enough for the heavily-jargon-laden information that was passed on to me to be able to figure out where to look online for other stuff that was actually easier to understand, which explained what it was that they wanted me to re-write for them.  I also feel like my brain has flowed out of my ears and congealed in my lap.  *grin*

But, hey...first draft has been sent in for a review, and it's not due until Friday, so if it needs some polishing (and I know it does, in at least two places, because I ran out of brain cells before I ran out of topics to cover), I've still got some time to do something about it!
Iammara
member, 201 posts
Mon 17 Dec 2012
at 10:27
  • msg #135

Re: And here we are at Chapter One...

I was just promoted to team leader! I worked so hard this year and I didn't think it was going to happen because of the crisis. I'm super happy right now :3
sciencemile
member, 1849 posts
Sunshine, lollipops and
rainbows, la la la, la
Tue 18 Dec 2012
at 17:20
  • msg #136

Re: And here we are at Chapter One...

I just received reduced rent at my apartment complex, effectively doubling my amount of discretionary income <_< now time to pay off some bills.
Masamunekaigen
member, 1158 posts
Welcome to the jungle.
We've got fun and games!
Fri 21 Dec 2012
at 05:32
  • msg #137

Re: And here we are at Chapter One...

Months ago, brother-in-law calls me lazy bum.

Yesterday, I carried out a 50lb. bag of road salt out of the basement and out to his car with one hand.

Tonight, he can barely move it a fraction of the distance out of the car, with no steep stairs involved and employing both his hands and with a lb less salt in it.

Win for ego.
Andrew Wilson
member, 74 posts
A cunning Rogue
HP 6/14
Fri 21 Dec 2012
at 06:34
  • msg #138

Re: And here we are at Chapter One...

ikr im a beefy bum too *high fives* :D
bobbofeet
member, 37 posts
Fri 21 Dec 2012
at 17:35
  • msg #139

Re: And here we are at Chapter One...

No zombie-pocalypse on the West Coast yet...
pitademon
member, 690 posts
hi all
Fri 21 Dec 2012
at 18:13
  • msg #140

Re: And here we are at Chapter One...

been to California....Zombies have been there since the 1960's.  how can you tall if it has apocalypsed or not?
RedWizard
member, 398 posts
http://dgsforum.freeforum
Sat 22 Dec 2012
at 03:00
  • msg #141

Re: And here we are at Chapter One...

Old Faithful hasn't Super-Erupted yet.  So I got that going for me.
ginny
member, 70 posts
Sat 22 Dec 2012
at 03:09
  • msg #142

Re: And here we are at Chapter One...

East Coast is still here :)
ShadeTheFallen
member, 177 posts
Where the tongue slips,
it speaketh only truth.
Sat 22 Dec 2012
at 06:23
  • msg #143

Re: And here we are at Chapter One...

Just passed the biggest exam of my life :)
Diurnal Lee
member, 29 posts
Into indie storygames
TSoY, PTA, DitV, BtI
Wed 2 Jan 2013
at 13:46
  • msg #144

More Good Things

In 2012, I reduced my debt by 21% of my net pay. We're not fooling around anymore. *Happy dancing.*
ginny
member, 73 posts
Wed 2 Jan 2013
at 13:47
  • msg #145

Re: More Good Things

The kids went back to school today  ^_^
bigbadron
moderator, 13340 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Wed 2 Jan 2013
at 20:20

Re: More Good Things

Elite: Dangerous is going to be made.  Now I just have to survive until next year to see it.
facemaker329
member, 5245 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Fri 4 Jan 2013
at 23:12
  • msg #147

Re: More Good Things

It just dawned on me that I'm trying to make prosthetics for the first time in about 6 years...actually, more like 8.  Considering how out of practice I am at it, it's been going pretty well, thus far.  We'll see whether I come back to edit this point and exult in having managed to get my first attempt right, or if I wind up venting about how I screwed it up...*grin*

But part of me is kinda tickled to just be getting back into it again, even if it's for a project that isn't paying me anything.

EDIT: (I warned you this was gonna happen...)  It took me a few attempts (lucky the stuff that I'm using is quick...well, relatively quick, anyway), but I finally got the right combination of release agent, mold temperature, compound ratios, etc etc etc to come up with two usable Klingon foreheads and a set of Andorian antennae.  Now, I just need to make them up (and figure out how to attach the antennae to the wig...) before the video shoot tomorrow.

Have I mentioned my procrastination habit?  *grin*
This message was last edited by the user at 08:01, Sat 05 Jan 2013.
facemaker329
member, 5251 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 9 Jan 2013
at 02:14
  • msg #148

Re: More Good Things

A couple of things...

Went to put the Christmas money Mom gave me in my wallet last night, and discovered a check from one of my pre-Christmas freelance gigs that I had not yet deposited.  This is a two-parter...first, YAY for unexpected money! (over $200 worth of it!)  Second, it's nice to FINALLY be in a place, financially, where I don't feel like my first stop after receiving any check MUST be the bank, for the sake of covering expenses.  I still regard myself as living from paycheck to paycheck...but at least I've got a little bit of a safety net in place (how long that will last, we'll see...I've got a dental appointment at the end of the month and have a bill to pay off with the dentist on top of the new bill that will come from that...)

I also heard back from my 'boss' at my new freelance-writing job.  Considering the fact that I had very few of the reference materials that she told me to use in the style-guide for my last project (stuff the client hadn't bothered to provide for us), her one big note on it was some stuff that she had to change to make it match up with a layout decision that nobody ever told me about (and, yes, she acknowledged the fact that I was never given that information, either.)  She also asked me if I'm ready for my next project with this client.  I must be doing something right...

And, because of the timing of the first paycheck from said freelance job, I finally decided I could afford to buy the drywall stilts I've been thinking about getting for a couple of years, now.  These may open the door to still other freelance gigs, as one of the people I freelance for regularly hires stilt-walkers for corporate events, and the ones that she uses are popular enough that it's sometimes difficult to get them--and some of the alternates are not-so-reliable.  So, if I can get myself to the point of being confident moving around on these things (they should get here Friday), I could find myself getting some additional phone calls for work in front of a crowd (something I really enjoy, but don't get to do very often.)

2013 is off to a good start, I have to say...
Dottie_V
member, 12 posts
Wed 16 Jan 2013
at 05:39
  • msg #149

Re: More Good Things

Yay~ My professor fixed my grade and now I have the GPA to apply for my school's nursing program. On a side note, that also means I finally spoke up for myself and got things taken care of by MAHSELF! Woo! +10 Confidence! :D
Mustard Tiger
member, 228 posts
Wed 16 Jan 2013
at 18:26
  • msg #150

Re: More Good Things

I work from home, so never see my boss. And I only ever talk to my boss during monthly phone calls, or if I've screwed something up. Today I got a call from her, and NOT for our monthly call. Naturally I thought I'd botched a job or something. Quite the opposite: I received a 15% pay bump, totally out of the blue.

Cha-ching!
facemaker329
member, 5276 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sun 20 Jan 2013
at 09:32
  • msg #151

Re: More Good Things

Needed a third to round out the pattern here, got one tonight.  Call it silly, call it vain...even call it pathetic, I don't care.  But I went to my friend's gig tonight (she's one of the singers in an 80's band), and while sitting there, enjoying the music, I noticed a woman on the dance floor looking at me.  And, for about the next ten minutes, she kept looking at me...even when she was dancing with some guy (or with the girl she came to the bar with).

No, I didn't go look for a hook-up.  Didn't even go looking for a phone number.  (For one thing, she was pretty obviously drunk.  For another thing, I didn't go to the bar to hook up with some stranger...never really been into that kind of scene).  But it was good for the ego, I must say, to have some stranger giving me smouldering looks from across the room.  I don't get that often.
Spuddies
member, 43 posts
Tue 22 Jan 2013
at 02:13
  • msg #152

Re: More Good Things

Haven't been in this thread before, but seeing as how this is freakin exciting news for me, I figured I'd share with the lovely RPoL community.  I found out over the weekend that I'm going to be a father! Been trying for close to two years now, and finally the time is here! I'm' over the freaking moon and can't stop smiling.  Cheers!
Stix4armz
member, 41 posts
Tue 22 Jan 2013
at 02:42
  • msg #153

Re: More Good Things

Spuddies:
I'm' over the freaking moon and can't stop smiling.  Cheers!


Last Friday I asked my girlfriend to marry me and she said yes! I can't stop smiling either!
Noxatrum
member, 78 posts
Tue 22 Jan 2013
at 04:23
  • msg #154

Re: More Good Things

Got a new roommate. He's a good person. He is quiet, respectful, and doesn't find every excuse to blame us for his issues and problems. The house is peaceful and we're not behind on bills because our new roomie is responsible. I feel relaxed for the first time in a very, very long time. My migraines are not being triggered by 'broken' doors that are slammed day in, day out. Not one door's been slammed since he got here - proving that the 'broken' argument was yet another lazy excuse to not be a decent human being.
CrazyIvan777
member, 70 posts
Tue 22 Jan 2013
at 04:58
  • msg #155

Re: More Good Things

Getting a non-bad roomie is truly awesome. Congrats on that!

I'm gonna brag on something for myself, and something for a friend. For myself, I'm finishing up a bunch of freelance writing for a game company in Texas. It's nothing huge, but in the end, if I told my younger self, "You'll be writing RPG stuff professionally," I'd have been over the moon!

As for my friend, she, until this point, has been the soux-chef in one of the high-end restaurants in Chicago. She's not anymore... She got picked up by a different high-end Chicago restaurant as executive chef! I'm so damn proud of her!
Masamunekaigen
member, 1169 posts
In Soviet Russia, quests
pay you to go on NPCs.
Thu 24 Jan 2013
at 07:51
  • msg #156

Re: More Good Things

Not really huge or anything, but I thought I would share a crowning moment of awesome I had in a DnD 3.5 game recently.

We were using Tome of Battle stuff BTW.

Anyway, we were having a 'diplomatic' meeting with the leader of an enemy guild. Essentially it was a bring a party of 5 and we'll bring 5, we can talk this out and if that fails fight it out. It was agreed that we would meet on the top of a neutral guild's tower so that no snipers or shady hijinks could happen.

The enitre time I am playing around with on end of my signature "double grappling hook" (just a 50 ft rope with a grappling hook on each end) while every other person there has a weapon drawn for safety. The enemy guild leader is clearly a bad guy and cops an attitude. So I start taunting him, poking him with the tool in my hand and then hooking his tie to pull him close and get in his face about his attitude.

Talks go officially sour (though they were already souring) and initiative is rolled. I go first and use a maneuver that let's me make a trip attempt and if successful throw the target 10ft and prone him. I succeed and throw him off the tower with my grappling hook still hooked to his tie and me still holding the rope.

The turn continues, the enemy guild leader spending his turn falling down (next round on his turn the rope will go taught and he'll get the chance to stop himself but he'll take falling damage from the hanging and I'll have to make a Strength check or be yanked off the wall. So on my turn (which is right before his BTW) I toss the other end of the double g-hook to his second-in command. Enemy leader's turn comes around and the rope goes taught, and he swings to the wall... but starts falling the second his feet touch in an almost cartoony way as his second rolls a 1 on his strength check to not get yanked off the roof and falls, taking the other end of the rope with him.

Both fell to their deaths. :)
This message was last edited by the user at 07:52, Thu 24 Jan 2013.
facemaker329
member, 5278 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 24 Jan 2013
at 09:05
  • msg #157

Re: More Good Things

I was nervous about agreeing to design this show...I mean, right away you have the almost insurmountable task of trying to find period-appropriate firearms (that will actually fire blanks!) for nine characters, from the 1860's to the 1980's (luckily, it's only one or two per era, and not all nine in the different eras together...)  But it's a show that's intrigued me since I first heard about it, and friends of mine run the theater company producing it, so...I caved, and said yes.

Went home after the first production meeting and started looking for rental options, and the VERY first place I checked out had a couple of pages dedicated, specifically, to listing prop weapons for this same show!  And they had options in stock (not great options, but better than I'd be likely to find anywhere else at the budget level I've been asked to work with!)  So, feeling reassured, I pressed on.  Started getting nervous about some other very specific stuff...like a 70's-vintage Kentucky Fried Chicken bucket or cans of Tab soda.  First two places I went (after ransacking my own inventory, which got me surprisingly far) had almost everything I needed.

And, thanks to the freelance writing job I started last month, when I was looking at the gun-rental place and noticing that I really didn't like a couple of the options they had available, I was able to find a place that had some good alternatives for sale...at a price I could afford.  So, I'm expanding my own 'arsenal' by two blank-firing pistols, which I'm renting to the production for the same price that it would have cost to rent the sadly-inadequate-options from the other place (which will add up to be about a third of the purchase price!)

Stuff like this is why I feel so certain that I'm where I should be, doing what I should do...too often, really ridiculously large problems just kind of seem to evaporate as I wade into them.  Makes up for those other occasions when I feel like I'm barely hanging on by my fingernails and just scraping by.  I keep thinking I want to start my own production company...or, rather production design studio.  Stuff like this just gets me that much closer...I've had a lot of that happen over this winter.
Grimmond
member, 61 posts
Antler-care by LIV THATCH
"RALPH" The Wonder Llama
Thu 24 Jan 2013
at 18:37
  • msg #158

Re: More Good Things

I am getting married tonight in Seattle ... and I stayed at a Holiday inn Express last night ! Pretty cool either way !
TheWarriorPoet519
member, 1320 posts
Resident porch-squatting
stick-shaker
Fri 25 Jan 2013
at 04:30
  • msg #159

Re: More Good Things

I'm going to be a guest lecturer at an International Swordsmanship Symposium next month, doing a panel on writing Medieval Martial Arts in fiction.

That I'm getting to a point in my career where people want to have me stand in front of a room and talk is beyond bizarre to me.
ginny
member, 75 posts
Fri 25 Jan 2013
at 14:50
  • msg #160

Re: More Good Things

So after getting an eviction notice due to a busted pipe, a week before Christmas, taking the next 1 1/2 months looking for a new place and being turned down by everyone, we finally found a place this morning.  My husband and I sign the lease tonight with the new landlord and can start moving in anytime  ^_^

*Does a happy dance*  :)  I feel like the world has been lifted from my shoulders, I can finally start to relax and calm down.
DarkwindStriker
member, 504 posts
Better known in many
places as Gatewalker.
Fri 25 Jan 2013
at 16:59
  • msg #161

Re: More Good Things

TheWarriorPoet519:
I'm going to be a guest lecturer at an International Swordsmanship Symposium next month, doing a panel on writing Medieval Martial Arts in fiction.

That I'm getting to a point in my career where people want to have me stand in front of a room and talk is beyond bizarre to me.


It's not quite as bizarre to the folks who've watched you progress over the years.

-------------

Anyway, as for my own bit of "yay", this may not seem like anything to be happy about, but I accidentally popped a filling out while flossing last night. The good thing, that I'm quite happy about, is that it doesn't hurt and isn't preventing me from eating normally. So I can basically just carry on as normal until I get to the dentist next week.
Dottie_V
member, 14 posts
Sat 26 Jan 2013
at 06:05
  • msg #162

Re: More Good Things

I only need to wear my retainers at night now! I'll be rid of this horrible lisp that has plagued me since I started wearing braces! *happy balter*
DarkwindStriker
member, 507 posts
Better known in many
places as Gatewalker.
Thu 31 Jan 2013
at 07:21
  • msg #163

Re: More Good Things

So just played 7.5 hours straight of Ni No Kuni after picking it up today.

Considering the effort it took to put it down even now, when I'm dead tired, I think I can say the game is officially very good.

Haven't really had one of those "sit down, play FOREVER" video game sessions in a long time. Felt pretty good~
ginny
member, 76 posts
Thu 31 Jan 2013
at 17:42
  • msg #164

Re: More Good Things

Thanks to the horrible wind we're having today, I dont have to spend a couple of hours taking apart my storage shed.  It did it for me :)
facemaker329
member, 5294 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 31 Jan 2013
at 20:09
  • msg #165

Re: More Good Things

Just got back from the dentist.  No new issues to report!  And I've got an appointment for late March (the first time I'll have some downtime to recover!) to take care of two of the three issues that are still pending (a replacement for a chipped filling and taking out a wisdom tooth...)
bobbofeet
member, 47 posts
Fri 1 Feb 2013
at 02:21
  • msg #166

Re: More Good Things

Effective tomorrow, I have been married 21 years!  Officially more than 1/2 my life in wedded bliss!  :)
facemaker329
member, 5295 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sat 2 Feb 2013
at 02:29
  • msg #167

Re: More Good Things

Okay, I realize that getting excited over a one-night-a-week, usually-2-to-4-hours-a-night job is kinda silly, but I am, anyway.  Not because I got it...I've had it for years (I'm the guy who changes out the films when we get new titles at the local movie theater).  I was about to lose it, however, because they're upgrading to digital which means my job will cease to exist.

However, they've been so impressed with my work ethic and reliability that they want to keep me around...and THAT is what excites me.  I don't know if they feel the same way, but they've become kind of 'extended family' for me, and I've really grown fond of showing up at the theater and having some part of that be 'mine'...my domain and responsibility.  So, they're training me for some new positions and keeping me on after the transition.

Nice to be appreciated enough that they'll ask you to stick around.  Even nicer that they didn't just assume, either...gave me the option, up front, to walk away when they changed over.  Wish my other, 'day' job was anywhere near as cool in how they treat employees...
Dottie_V
member, 17 posts
Mon 4 Feb 2013
at 19:37
  • msg #168

Re: More Good Things

I forgot how exciting it is to get ready for a trip. ^_^
st_nougat
member, 117 posts
Wed 6 Feb 2013
at 17:55
  • msg #169

Re: More Good Things

Snog vs. The Faecal Juggernaut of Mass Culture

The name of that album just makes me happy


What i've heard off of it is pretty good as well.
This message was last edited by the user at 18:03, Wed 06 Feb 2013.
facemaker329
member, 5299 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 6 Feb 2013
at 18:49
  • msg #170

Re: More Good Things

Just made my first bottle mold (working on a show that needs break-away bottles, and for the cost of three of them, I bought a mold kit and all the supplies to cook up a supply of them.)  Had a bad moment this morning...I mixed up the silicone for the mold LATE last night, and the instructions said it should be cured in five hours.  Apparently, having my apartment 5-10 degrees below their suggested working temperature equates to several more hours of curing time for the silicone, because it wasn't quite done setting up when I woke up this morning.  Been stalling going into work so I could get the whole thing ready for the next step, but we're good to go now.

The weird stuff I end up doing in my career field...last night's other project was making a fake chicken drumstick (to go with the fake hamburger I made two nights ago...)
bigbadron
moderator, 13397 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Wed 6 Feb 2013
at 18:58

Re: More Good Things

quote:
last night's other project was making a fake chicken drumstick

Couldn't you have just bought some from KFC?  :p
Spuddies
member, 57 posts
Wed 6 Feb 2013
at 22:19
  • msg #172

Re: More Good Things

Rolling a d100 because your GM demands a die roll, and you land on a 42.


So long and thanks for all the fish!
cero1
member, 236 posts
Wed 6 Feb 2013
at 23:47
  • msg #173

Re: More Good Things

The 9000 things I'm not allowed to do in an RPG thread on this very forum... It's anecdotes have been getting a smile out of me recently ^^
habsin4
member, 594 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Thu 7 Feb 2013
at 01:18
  • msg #174

Re: More Good Things

Homeless hatchet surfer dude.  There's still heroes in the world.

Also, smash, smash suhmash!!
facemaker329
member, 5301 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 7 Feb 2013
at 10:05
  • msg #175

Re: More Good Things

This is a post-script to my earlier Vent...

Second time around?  SOOOO much better.  Still lots of room for improvement (I think I cooked the batch up too quickly, the color's a little off and they say heating it up too fast caramelizes it and turns it brown.  But the details came out beautifully!)

I just added another skill to my array of abilities that would be almost useless in any other field...in theater, they make me the go-to guy when you've got a weird project and don't know how to get it done.  I'll have to write in a bit about busting bottles over someone's head for my friend's fan-film, now that I know how to make the bottles...*grin*
Masamunekaigen
member, 1188 posts
In Soviet Russia, quests
pay you to go on NPCs.
Tue 12 Feb 2013
at 02:58
  • msg #176

Re: More Good Things

Got a job interview tomorrow. Sure it's just for a call center that will hire pretty much anyone, but still... in this economy and with the local job market being one of the worst in my part of the country any job is welcome.

I've been trying to find employment here for 3 years now and it looks like I might finally have a chance of getting one. Wish me luck!
This message was last edited by the user at 03:00, Tue 12 Feb 2013.
facemaker329
member, 5309 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Tue 12 Feb 2013
at 10:24
  • msg #177

Re: More Good Things

This is jumping the gun just a little bit, but...

Got my birthday plans nailed down tonight.  I'm turning 45, so I wanted to do something memorable (at 40, the burlesque troupe I design for pulled me up on stage at one of their shows and had the whole audience sing 'Happy Birthday', so this milestone has to be unique to stand out in its own right...)

Found out that the tour of 'Evil Dead: The Musical' is performing locally on my birthday!  Got my ticket (in the Splatter Zone, of course!) tonight...and some friends of mine, who own an old church house that they've been renovating, and LOVE to host big parties, gave me the okay for an after-party at their place.  Karaoke...maybe some hot tub time...who knows what might happen there?  (This is the same place where, just a few months ago, I played Spin The Bottle for the first time in my life, so it could be an interesting night!)

I don't usually make much of my birthday...because, usually, anything that I plan falls through in a spectacular fashion.  The circle of friends I've built here in the area over the past four or five years?  They've actually been consistent enough that I dare try and throw an occasional party or two...so I'm guardedly optimistic about this one.  But, I suspect, even if the afterparty completely fell through, the show on my birthday would be awesome enough.  Never thought I'd be excited to be turning 45...*grin*
OceanLake
member, 607 posts
Tue 12 Feb 2013
at 12:53
  • msg #178

Re: More Good Things

'Tis better to reach 45 than not. So Happy Birthday then, even if you're contributing carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. (But breathe on a plant; its gratitude will increase our karma.)

P.S. Is it sexist that there is "karma" but no "karpa"? Wrong again; Karpa is a village in Poland. Couldn't sleep so wound up writing, in this post, my contribution to the welfare of humankind.
facemaker329
member, 5311 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Tue 12 Feb 2013
at 17:55
  • msg #179

Re: More Good Things

Yeah, getting older has its drawbacks...but it beats the alternative.  I'll keep doing my best to stir up good karma...maybe add a few more houseplants to the one that I've somehow managed to not kill off over the winter, but I think I'm done rescuing birds with broken wings for a while...the one I adopted is MESSY.  I keep finding little feathers all over the place...

(And I'd never considered the 'karma vs. karpa' question before.  Thank you for enlightening me...*grin*)
ginny
member, 78 posts
Tue 12 Feb 2013
at 23:32
  • msg #180

Re: More Good Things

I found someone I used to go to school with years ago using FB.  I love Karma  ^_^
adrasteia1
member, 1005 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Wed 13 Feb 2013
at 01:22
  • msg #181

Re: More Good Things

Like karma, synchronicity is interesting. It could be anything, but that thing will crop up time and time again in some form or another.

And then there's running into people you know when the odds are very slim (a person msgs you out of a web site of thousands, and after talking you realise you already know each other).
This message was last edited by the user at 01:24, Wed 13 Feb 2013.
Brianna
member, 1640 posts
Wed 13 Feb 2013
at 01:41
  • msg #182

Re: More Good Things

Happy birthday, facemaker!  And 45 is a very good age, enjoy it.

*wishes she were 45*  *sigh*
Masamunekaigen
member, 1189 posts
In Soviet Russia, quests
pay you to go on NPCs.
Thu 14 Feb 2013
at 06:26
  • msg #183

Re: More Good Things

I got the job I previously mentioned! Also, though the schedule will require that I take the bus to work, I just so happen to live only a mile away from the central hub of the bus system, where all routes depart from. So I have an easy ride to work and can get in some exercise on my way to work every day. Boss.

Sadly, I have to work Sundays, which no buses run on, so I'll have to arrange something there. All in all though, good goings on.
This message was last edited by the user at 06:26, Thu 14 Feb 2013.
facemaker329
member, 5315 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 14 Feb 2013
at 07:16
  • msg #184

Re: More Good Things

Congrats on the new job!  Always a good thing to hear someone getting a job that they wanted...
facemaker329
member, 5318 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 14 Feb 2013
at 10:31
  • msg #185

Re: More Good Things

Preview night...the (almost) culmination of weeks of effort by an awful lot of people.  We only had a scant handful of people show up for it...but it went really well.  Not flawless, by any means...but there were no 'the show's gone completely off the rails' moments, either, and most of the foul-ups were things that the average audience member wouldn't notice, except to say, maybe, "Well, THAT was an odd choice for a sound/light/music cue..." or wonder why there wasn't something more in this spot or that spot.

But, for me, the best part of the night was the director's note, after the show, that even though the breakaway bottles I made aren't completely clear, they're still working right and getting the reaction we want from the audience, so I don't need to worry about it if they're a little amber-colored.  That's good, because I came home and whipped up a batch of the sugar glass...which caramelized on me.  So, they're gonna be amber/brown.

Now I just need to wrap up a truckload of props and costumes for a dress rehearsal for someone else for tomorrow night...
adrasteia1
member, 1008 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Fri 15 Feb 2013
at 12:52
  • msg #186

Re: More Good Things

Not only is my rabbit fine (I was worried about her and wrote in the vent thread), but I just passed my Photoshop certification with 95%.
Kyra25
member, 1278 posts
Tattooed Jesus Freak
From Indiana
Fri 15 Feb 2013
at 16:12
  • msg #187

Re: More Good Things

Rarely does my husband surprise me for any holiday or birthday.  He just doesn't have it in him to think outside the box.

Well yesterday was a first.  Not only did he get me tickets to participate in Run For Your Lives again this year but also got me Jesus Culture tickets.

Woot!

(odd combination, I know!)
facemaker329
member, 5321 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sat 16 Feb 2013
at 21:04
  • msg #188

Re: More Good Things

I did it.  Two shows, same weekend.  It's likely that none of you will be around to do anything about it...but just in case--if you hear me talking about designing for two shows that are running concurrently, stop me, right there.

(But, y'know, it's satisfying to know that I managed it.  Granted, I ended up overdrawn on my bank account because of last minute problems, and would likely have been stuck WAY up a creek without a paddle had it not been for a snafu at my movie-theater job...one of the few times where something going wrong has actually been a benefit...but I pulled it off, bad shoulder and all.)

Now, I just need to catch up on two weeks of severely insufficient sleep...*grin*
Dottie_V
member, 19 posts
Sun 17 Feb 2013
at 01:55
  • msg #189

Re: More Good Things

Ahhh! I have a pen pals in The Netherlands and Russia now! Snail mail pen pals!! So cool~! :D
TheWarriorPoet519
member, 1323 posts
Resident porch-squatting
stick-shaker
Sun 17 Feb 2013
at 07:16
  • msg #190

Re: More Good Things

I suppose there are much worse things that waitress could have decided to nickname me.

I'm now known in a Canadian Irish Bar as "Rocker Dude."

I need to remember that my fellow authors have holes in their ankles. Drink with them at thine own risk.
Iammara
member, 208 posts
Thu 21 Feb 2013
at 09:35
  • msg #191

Re: More Good Things

This gen the PS3 really won me over with its quality exclusives, and the Infamous games were my absolute favourites. However, the ending to Infamous 2 created a situation in which no sequel seemed likely. When announcing the PS4, Sony also announced a new Infamous title which has made me super happy :3
Eggy
member, 31 posts
Thu 21 Feb 2013
at 10:54
  • msg #192

Re: More Good Things

I have found a perfume that smells just like blueberry waffles.

I think my 2013 signature scent will be Breakfast. :)
Amyante
member, 38 posts
Nobody ever considers
the feelings of a weapon
Thu 21 Feb 2013
at 13:13
  • msg #193

Re: More Good Things

My boss is no longer calling me to tell me my work is lagging behind when it's finished before the end of the day anyway ^^

Yeah... bit of a slow starter in the morning XD
arshes_luna
member, 22 posts
Thu 21 Feb 2013
at 13:51
  • msg #194

Re: More Good Things

Today I have an appointment for having pictures taken with two of my godchildren.  :)
Hoshana
member, 835 posts
War's a blueberry.
Wear a helmet.
Fri 22 Feb 2013
at 06:36
  • msg #195

Re: More Good Things

I got my new biometric pistol safe from FedEx today.. approximately two months before I get my first pistol, to allow for adequate testing time of the safe.

The best part is the picture I took of my cat right after he crawled inside. :D
facemaker329
member, 5338 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Fri 22 Feb 2013
at 21:29
  • msg #196

Re: More Good Things

It's a bad news/good news kinda thing, but I'm going to focus on the good aspects of it...

Finally got to a doctor yesterday and got my shoulder checked out.  What I was afraid might be a rotator cuff injury or rheumatoid arthritis is, actually, most likely just severe tendonitis and/or bursitis, and should be cleared up with some anti-inflammatory meds and physical therapy.  The other potential health concerns I had, in talking to the doctor (first non-emergency doctor visit I've had in over two decades), are all things to be noted, but not necessarily concerned about, as none of them sounded severe enough to be alarming and/or I could describe specific conditions that caused them (like my migraines).

The ironic thing?  The day after the visit, I'm coming down with a serious cold...
Dottie_V
member, 21 posts
Sat 23 Feb 2013
at 18:30
  • msg #197

Re: More Good Things

My grades were finally changed, finally another worry off my shoulders. ^___^
Brianna
member, 1646 posts
Sat 23 Feb 2013
at 20:15
  • msg #198

Re: More Good Things

In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 196):

Glad it's not a rotator cuff problem, but I'd suggest when you're in therapy, you ask for some guidelines/exercises for that too.  In your line of work, I'd expect you to be at risk, and some pre-knowledge might avoid that.

And if it wasn't so soon after, I'd say you caught the cold at the doctor's - prime place for exposure!

For myself - had a lovely evening last night with my sisters and daughter, in honour of my mother's birthday.  She died in the fall, but we had always done this (and several others have birthdays around this time), so we've decided to continue the tradition, and it was a great idea!
facemaker329
member, 5345 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sun 24 Feb 2013
at 02:37
  • msg #199

Re: More Good Things

In reply to Brianna (msg # 198):

No, I'm pretty sure how I ended up with the cold, and it wasn't the doctor's office.  Both Friday and Saturday nights last week, I didn't get to bed until about 6 am, and had been frantically scrambling to get props finished for one show and costumes finished for another.  Between the lack of sleep from those two nights, and the natural post-production letdown, I'm actually surprised I'm not more sick than I am now.

But it was worth it...*grin*
adrasteia1
member, 1051 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Thu 28 Feb 2013
at 21:34
  • msg #200

Re: More Good Things

Thank the goddess for backups. :)
adrasteia1
member, 1052 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Fri 1 Mar 2013
at 03:03
  • msg #201

Re: More Good Things

I got offered an interview for an internship today. While it's not quite as good as a job interview, it still sounds like it might be a good opportunity.
st_nougat
member, 128 posts
Fri 1 Mar 2013
at 21:36
  • msg #202

Re: More Good Things

My Neighbor finally dumped her cheating boyfriend
rogar308
member, 252 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Fri 1 Mar 2013
at 22:14
  • msg #203

Re: More Good Things

Had my annual review today and got a 5 (scale 1 to 5) on one of my review tasks. My boss who in my best estimation is a truthful person said that I have been the only person ever to be given a 5 by him for something. Man that sure feels good. Rest of review was good so hopefully I'll remain gainfully employed for a bit longer. :)
RaistlinMuyo
member, 64 posts
Fri 1 Mar 2013
at 23:20
  • msg #204

Re: More Good Things

I'm not currently on fire.
Dottie_V
member, 22 posts
Sat 2 Mar 2013
at 02:48
  • msg #205

Re: More Good Things

My puppy came home after running away.
deadmanshand
member, 1506 posts
Sat 2 Mar 2013
at 02:51
  • msg #206

Re: More Good Things

In reply to Dottie_V (msg # 205):

Awesome!

On my own note I am finally feeling somewhat human after weeks of letting my knee heal after a dislocation and several days of my stomach going on revolt. I've managed to eat, sleep, and walk with only a small amount of pain today. It's not much but I'll take it.
adrasteia1
member, 1055 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Sat 2 Mar 2013
at 03:04
  • msg #207

Re: More Good Things

:)

I'm reading the Chronicles of Amber and really enjoying them. I'm up to book 4 in a week or less. My games may be suffering slightly, but wow they're good books. :)
facemaker329
member, 5359 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sat 2 Mar 2013
at 03:51
  • msg #208

Re: More Good Things

Heh...so, our local movie theater just upgraded to digital projection equipment.  A couple of months ago, I was very nervous about the change, because my job at the theater was all about handling the film (I wasn't actually the projectionist, as we didn't have any specific individual for that...I did the film-building--joining the individual reels together, putting the trailers in place, etc--and taking it all apart after we were done and ready to ship it back to the distributors).

In the course of a couple of days, I've gone from being one of the least-educated people on the projection gear to being one of the most knowledgeable, as I'm the only one who's been trained how to put everything together in the new system and I was the only one who was able to be present for all of the training stuff we did between yesterday and today.  Any lingering concerns I had about my job security were cleared up tonight when the manager informed me that she was telling everyone, "If something goes wrong or doesn't start up, call HIM first.  If he can't help you, call me and I'll call the company..."

It's a family-run theater, and I've commented to several people that they've made me feel like I'm part of the family, there.  Now, moreso than ever.  Nice to have a place where your value is truly appreciated...
Dottie_V
member, 25 posts
Thu 14 Mar 2013
at 23:44
  • msg #209

Re: More Good Things

So I spent the whole day in an amusement park and not once did I have a panic attack nor did I faint when I was forced onto an amazingly high and twisty roller coaster. Yay~! ^___^
facemaker329
member, 5389 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 21 Mar 2013
at 09:03
  • msg #210

Re: More Good Things

Literally more good stuff from the movie theater...

Got a pay raise on my last check...and not just a little one, either.  They increased my pay by 20%.  Granted, it's not like I'm getting paid a phenomenal amount to start with...but this actually makes this the second-highest hourly wage I remember earning (for regular work...if you count the occasional event that I've worked as a makeup artist, it become the fourth or fifth highest wage, but those were one-night affairs and not on-going positions.  And, actually, since the highest hourly wage I recall earning was a short-term scenic art job, I guess it should also be disqualified in that regard).

AND--I was saddened by the death of my DVD player a couple of weeks ago, but I finally got paid for my design job and bought a Blu-Ray player to replace it.  Problem is, my TV is old enough that it doesn't have HDMI inputs, and the BD player ONLY had HDMI outputs.  So, what did I do?

Asked my boss if I could trade my brand-new Blu-Ray player for the old one at the theater (which was old enough to have standard AV outputs, as well as HDMI).  So, I am once again able to enjoy my movie collection.  (My only complaint is, this player doesn't have a repeat-play function on it.  That's probably for the best, however, as I killed the DVD player prematurely with my tendency to put a disc on repeat and just leave it going for days or even weeks at a time, turning the TV on for background noise.  No longer an option!)
ginny
member, 82 posts
Sat 23 Mar 2013
at 03:52
  • msg #211

Re: More Good Things

So the month of March has turned out to be pretty rough for me.  I got a $300 ticket, my car broke down, and my youngest needs minor surgery.  And we got more snow.  But through all the stresses Ive encountered I have remained 14 months smoke free  ^_^  YAY ME!
habsin4
member, 610 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Wed 27 Mar 2013
at 19:28
  • msg #212

Re: More Good Things

http://www.buzzfeed.com/awesom...-places-in-the-world

Some gorgeous shots of abandoned sites. WWII fortresses in the English Channel, sunken boats in Antarctica, abandoned hotels on cliffsides in Colombia and sunken Jesus.
facemaker329
member, 5413 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Fri 29 Mar 2013
at 09:05
  • msg #213

Re: More Good Things

In a little over six and a half hours, I will no longer be 44.  Some would ask why this is something to be excited about, but I'll try and elaborate, just a bit...

At an age when a lot of men are starting to exhibit signs of potentially serious health issues, I recently got a clean bill of health from the doctor (after the first visit to a doctor in 25 years).  My blood pressure was marginal, but I'd been in full-on 'production mode' while working on a show (which involved me drinking anywhere from 3-6 cans of caffeinated soda daily), and I was also coming down with what proved to be a pretty nasty cold.

If this pattern holds true, I should still have a few years before I actually hit 'mid-life'...my aunt passed away at age 90, I have an uncle who's still alive and a little past that, on my dad's side of the family.  On my mom's side, my grandpa was in his late 80's or early 90's when he finally said his final goodbyes to the world.

People I went to high school with are starting to look at slowing down and taking it easy, and I feel like I'm finally getting up to speed.  :D  Time is being pretty good to me.
IvanH
member, 10 posts
Fri 29 Mar 2013
at 21:58
  • msg #214

Re: More Good Things

The films of Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata and Studio Ghibli, not to mention Akira Kurosawa.
katisara
member, 5793 posts
Nazis. I'll Godwin
if I want to.
Fri 29 Mar 2013
at 23:32
  • msg #215

Re: More Good Things

The designer of School Daze and One Shot is at my house, and we are having crabs for dinner. Yumm ..
adrasteia1
member, 1199 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Tue 9 Apr 2013
at 01:05
  • msg #216

Re: More Good Things

I was feeling quite down but hubby cheered me up with a hug and a friend cheered me up with a really dirty joke.

:) I'm really glad to have such wonderful people in my life (occasionally wielding terrible yet funny jokes).
This message was last edited by the user at 01:10, Tue 09 Apr 2013.
Iammara
member, 217 posts
Tue 9 Apr 2013
at 11:04
  • msg #217

Re: More Good Things

Didn't count on a bonus this quarter but we did get one. Yay! :D
ginny
member, 93 posts
Wed 10 Apr 2013
at 22:23
  • msg #218

Re: More Good Things

My 6 year old was being picked on yesterday morning while getting on the bus for school.  Her big sister turned around and stood up for her telling the bullies to leave her little sister alone.  They sat together on the bus to school, and I got to see with my own eyes the love between them.  I know I raised good girls. :)
facemaker329
member, 5437 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 10 Apr 2013
at 22:44
  • msg #219

Re: More Good Things

Got to experience first-hand the fact that not every tooth removal has to be an excruciating and arduous process.  They spent more time fixing a bad filling (originally done in acrylic, but it started cracking pieces off, so they replaced it with amalgam)...shoot, they spent almost as much time actually getting a good X-ray of the tooth that was coming out.  Glad to have it gone...should have a lot fewer toothaches (and headaches!)

And I was even dollars enough ahead that I could afford to pay for it in one lump, as well as the prescription meds to help with the aftermath.
Bigun Eagle
member, 64 posts
Thu 11 Apr 2013
at 01:43
  • msg #220

Re: More Good Things

Holy cow, the dice roller decided to like me for once!
Dottie_V
member, 40 posts
A compilation of neuroses
And a bad temper too. ;D
Fri 12 Apr 2013
at 06:47
  • msg #221

Re: More Good Things

I had a giggle fit at the most inopportune time ever, which made me laugh even more, which got me into trouble...


I REGRET NOTHING!!
adrasteia1
member, 1218 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Fri 12 Apr 2013
at 11:50
  • msg #222

Re: More Good Things

I wasn't going to apply for anymore internships, but there is one that's just a few minutes walk from where I live. It means I probably wouldn't need to spend any money on transport and it's a 9 month internship so should be somewhat stable.

While I have my name down for a full-time course starting next month, it would only run for a few months and then I'd be wondering what I'm doing again (though I am really interested in the subject). So, I'm going to apply for this.

I know I was only venting about internships in the vent thread the other day, but I'm weighing up possibilities.
facemaker329
member, 5454 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 17 Apr 2013
at 03:25
  • msg #223

Re: More Good Things

So, I was really nervous when I got the email from my auto insurance company, because I haven't paid them yet, but I had a gig today that required me to drive some twenty-five miles each way.  So, I promised myself that I would do nothing that would necessitate referencing my insurance (like getting pulled over or having an accident).

Got home, finally decided I better check the message.  It's a cancellation WARNING, not the actual notice.  The actual cancellation doesn't kick in until a little over a week after my next payday...and I can get paid up by then.  I'd have been fine, money-wise, if I hadn't had a $200 dental bill last week for the wisdom tooth removal (which is healing up nicely, thank goodness!)
OceanLake
member, 644 posts
Wed 17 Apr 2013
at 05:19
  • msg #224

Re: More Good Things

Only $200? Insurance? Hooray for healing!
facemaker329
member, 5456 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 17 Apr 2013
at 15:41
  • msg #225

Re: More Good Things

Unfortunately, my health insurance doesn't cover dental.  And the pain meds are still below the deductible for my coverage.  I just have an awesome dentist who doesn't believe that he's gotta wring every available dollar (plus a few more) out of my wallet anytime I go in to see him.  I mean, I don't like going to the dentist...but I like my dentist.  I picked the right guy to go to after two decades without any dental care beyond my own efforts at proper dentifrice.
CrazyIvan777
member, 82 posts
Thu 18 Apr 2013
at 06:15
  • msg #226

Re: More Good Things

I was complaining to a friend of mine who is waist-deep in the sci-fi and speculative fiction authoring world about how my days now feel somehow frustrating if I haven't put down 1500 words or more on a page, and how it was beginning to bug me. He told me (with a grin I could hear over Skype) "You're an author now."
Hearing it from him really made my day.
facemaker329
member, 5458 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 18 Apr 2013
at 06:33
  • msg #227

Re: More Good Things

Started working on putting together a costume for an event I'm working at the end of the month (which is, I'm starting to realize, a lot closer than it sounds).  The theme for it is sci-fi/time-traveler, with kind of a 'modern hippy' vibe to it (one of the two production groups collaborating on it has a pretty large contingent they send to Burning Man every year...and since they don't get enough of that, they do their own smaller, local take on it a few more times during the year...)

Started rummaging through my closets, and found several items that I'd tucked away 'just in case the need arose' (sleeves I took off a chain-mail shirt for a film I worked on, silver pants, vintage motocross boots, an old-school tactical vest...)  Started mixing and matching and I feel like I've got something that I can wear to this without feeling like I'm hopelessly out of my depth.  There will still be a lot of people there with cooler outfits...but I'm used to that.  I'm pretty sure I'll be the only one with chain-mail chaps...*grin*
arshes_luna
member, 51 posts
Fri 19 Apr 2013
at 02:12
  • msg #228

Re: More Good Things

My room.  It is rearranged and completely SPOTLESS.  I am very happy about this.

It fits me completely for the first time since I moved into this house.

I have room for another bookshelf and I will be doing a portrait gallery above my bed.

Epic win.  That is all.

^_^
ginny
member, 98 posts
Mon 22 Apr 2013
at 17:43
  • msg #229

Re: More Good Things

Today I celebrate my 13th wedding anniversary with the greatest man in the world ^_^  Im looking forward to 13 more.
bobbofeet
member, 78 posts
Tue 23 Apr 2013
at 19:19
  • msg #230

Re: More Good Things

My boys' team just won the school "Battle of the Books" and will be representing their school at the district meet!  Proud papa...
facemaker329
member, 5465 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 24 Apr 2013
at 01:30
  • msg #231

Re: More Good Things

Got a glowing review from the head of our Safety/Loss Prevention Dept. at work, during the recent round of inspections with the local fire marshal.  There's stuff that needs to be fixed, and they're coming back for a 'verification check'...apparently, we're not allowed to have anything stacked within 18 inches of the ceiling (why that's suddenly an issue this year, when we've had stuff on those shelves for AGES without anyone batting an eye, I don't know, but whatever...)

Fortunately, we just found another storage space for the junk piano someone dumped in the far corner of our work area, so I had space to set up some other shelves over there to accommodate all the junk we had to take down.
Dottie_V
member, 49 posts
The fifth in a seiries of
odd things you saw today.
Mon 6 May 2013
at 17:33
  • msg #232

Re: More Good Things

My dad came home from his trip to Mexico and he brought a suitcase full of candy *_* It's like Christmas in May.
adrasteia1
member, 1296 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Tue 7 May 2013
at 14:24
  • msg #233

Re: More Good Things

I'm celebrating today. :)
facemaker329
member, 5498 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 8 May 2013
at 04:11
  • msg #234

Re: More Good Things

Finally got a chance to see the pictures, and I've gotta say it...I'm really pleased with how my Jedi costume turned out (wore it for a friend's May the Fourth karaoke party...)  *grin*
arshes_luna
member, 52 posts
Wed 8 May 2013
at 14:22
  • msg #235

Re: More Good Things

They are making an Ender's Game movie.

No more need be said, imho.
adrasteia1
member, 1322 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Fri 17 May 2013
at 17:23
  • msg #236

Re: More Good Things

I'm excited because I'm starting a full-time course on Monday.

So, it's not the same as a full-time job, but it'll be good to have some more constructive things to do with my time, other than job hunting and playing online games.. and chatting (can't forget the chatting). ;) Not to say I don't love *some* of those things, because I do.

It's in PHP/MySQL, so look out for more unsolicited advice! In truth though, there will probably be less. I may have taken on a few too many games of late and they need keeping up with. They're fun, though.
cero1
member, 399 posts
Sat 18 May 2013
at 00:46
  • msg #237

Re: More Good Things

Munchkin is a very fun card game and probably made me love rpgs all over again when I was losing the faith. We're now at a point where we're going to play until the first person gets to Level 20 to keep games going longer...

Epic Munchkin! XD
facemaker329
member, 5515 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sat 18 May 2013
at 08:29
  • msg #238

Re: More Good Things

Not quite sure where to put this, but here seemed to be as good a place as any that exists on here...

Found out that a friend of mine, many years ago before I ever even knew her at all, was in the throes of depression compounded with the all-too-common sense of adolescent disconnectedness, not knowing where she fit in or feeling like she belonged anywhere.  She had it all figured out...how she was going to do herself in, even the day she was going to do it...

She got to school that day and saw a poster for auditions for the school musical--a show that she loved--on the very same day that she'd planned to put herself out of her misery.  She opted for the audition...and that started a string of experiences that totally turned her life around.  By the time I met her, she was one of the sweetest, happiest people it's ever been my pleasure to work with.

So, on top of the nine years of shows that I've worked on with the guy, I'm thankful to the director of one of the local high school drama departments for creating an environment that convinced my friend that she did, in fact, belong somewhere in this world and she did have something worth living for.  We're not particularly close or anything like that...but I can't help but think my world would be a less-awesome place had she been absent from it.  And as I consider the fact that he's taught for over 35 years, I can't help but wonder just how many others stepped back from the edge because his efforts--totally unaware of their problems--ended up shifting their self-perception from loathing to acceptance.

One man can make a difference...it's not just a platitude.
st_nougat
member, 184 posts
Sat 18 May 2013
at 22:57
  • msg #239

Re: More Good Things

when I was young I may not have understood or appreciated all that my father had to teach me.  but now that I am older and hopefully wiser I can look upon some of my actions and realize that some of the things I do, I do because that is how my father taught me.


Earlier this week I volunteered myself to assist in the repair of the mats at the Hapkido school I train at, I was told it would take up to 8 hours.  I asked the man in charge if I needed to bring any tools, he said just a battery drill if I have one.


This morning when I was getting ready to go to class, yes I went to class and then stayed to fix the mats, I pretty much packed ALL of my tools.  I don't if we will need a hammer but I brought one,  I didn't know if a staple gun or pliers would be useful but I brought them, etc etc.


We used a lot of the tools I brought including the pliers, hammer, and staple gun.  I stayed the whole time and worked hard.  my contribution was greatly appreciated.


I realize that I did that because of the lessons my father taught me.  He always volunteered to help at school, with boy scouts, in indian guides, anything.  If somebody needed volunteers my father could be counted on to help and to work hard.  My father always brought more than enough tools to get the job done.  And my father was always one of the last to leave, making sure that the job was done and everything was cleaned up.


These are lessons that my fathered passed onto me and sometimes I find it interested to see these connections.


Thank you Dad
cero1
member, 405 posts
Sat 18 May 2013
at 23:26
  • msg #240

Re: More Good Things

I know tonight that which ever dark place my depression leads me to, whatever may happen... There are memes that I have passed onto my close friends and I see my interetes and motivations passed onto them.

This gives me pride and a new found sense of freedom. I know they will all be fine. I may be an agent of chaos, but sometimes chaos brings good change.
Amyante
member, 156 posts
Nobody ever considers
the feelings of a weapon
Sun 19 May 2013
at 18:28
  • msg #241

Re: More Good Things

Maybe not much, but i was checking the RPoL Chamber of Lost Souls section when i spotted something i hadn't before. Not sure why, maybe i just looked past it a number of times, but i hadn't really noticed it was there until today:

quote:
You do not currently participate in this game, click here to request to join.


Dunno, just made me grin. For a second my mouse hovered over the 'Request Access' button, but i decided not to after making a guess which thread my account name would have shown up in.

Some games you just want to not be a part of i guess :P
PushBarToOpen
member, 790 posts
Tue 21 May 2013
at 12:59
  • msg #242

Re: More Good Things

Redundancy to Job offer in 2 hours. now thats good going.
Kyra25
member, 1282 posts
Tattooed Jesus Freak
From Indiana
Sat 25 May 2013
at 14:25
  • msg #243

Re: More Good Things

My son finished this semester with a 3.8 GPA - all A's.  I am so proud I could bust.  Such a smart kid and has to put forth little effort.  He plans on going to college for graphic design or video game technology or something along those lnes.  He talked of moving to Seattle for school (gulp) but now he is talking Chicago (I live in Indiana so that is a relief!).

On a less than bright note - I am now the mom to a senior.  Say what?!
facemaker329
member, 5522 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sat 25 May 2013
at 19:08
  • msg #244

Re: More Good Things

It's opening night.  I'll admit it...when the Power That Be said they wanted a show built around a live rock band on the stage with the singers, I had my reservations.  A LOT of reservations.  And if the band members had been cast wrong, I think it could have been a disaster.

But the band is awesome, the singers are great (and with only a couple of exceptions, are learning how to make the most of having a live band on the stage with them and interact with the band instead of acting like the band is set dressing and the music tracks are still pre-recorded), and I'm more excited for this show to open than I've been for opening a show at the park in a LONG time.  Even though about half the music is stuff that we've used in other shows, earlier, I actually feel like we've created something new, rather than just recycling the same stuff again and again.  It helps that we've got new choreographers this year...who actually believe that even if the song is something we did before, we should try and make it SOMEHOW a little different (the choreo we've had for the past eight or so years just remounted the old numbers, without bothering to figure out a different dance routine...)

But I'm excited about being excited, even...sometimes I worry that this job gets me jaded, that I get so tired of the same stuff that I stop caring as much and stop trying as hard.  It's good to know that I can still be hyped for opening night, as opposed to coming into it thinking, "Well, thank goodness we made it through dress rehearsals without me wanting to shoot anybody..."  THIS feeling is part of why I got into theater...the joy of coming up with something new and original.  I've missed it, here.

Welcome back, old friend...
Kyra25
member, 1283 posts
Tattooed Jesus Freak
From Indiana
Tue 28 May 2013
at 14:08
  • msg #245

Re: More Good Things

One week from today I will be heading off for vacation!!  Two weeks of being away from the stress of every day life.  Woot!
facemaker329
member, 5552 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Wed 5 Jun 2013
at 06:36
  • msg #246

Re: More Good Things

I love the fact that I live so close to a small community-appeal movie theater.  Yeah, if I want to see the latest and greatest movies before people get a chance to spoil them at least a little bit for me, I've gotta go to one of the megaplexes in the area, but I never get into the same kinds of conversations with people there as I do in the one just down the street...

Like tonight...went to see 'Admission', and saw Michael Sheen's name in the credits when it was done and knew it was familiar, but couldn't remember why.  I was apparently not the only person to have that reaction, because some lady on the other side of the theater whipped out her iPad as soon as the credits started and looked him up.  She found a picture of him in the last Twilight movie and pointed it out to her friends, who all started discussing it quite animatedly.  At this point, we were pretty much the only ones left in the theater, and it looked to be a good bet that we were all staying until the credits finished...and it was literally impossible to NOT overhear the conversation.

Now, I'm no fan of Twilight, at all.  Haven't read the books, couldn't be bothered to go see the movies, even though I could have seen any and all of them for free--it just utterly failed to inspire my interest.  But the mention of Michael Sheen's name in the context of vampires and werewolves reminded me...'Lucian', from Underworld.  So, as we all stood up as the final credits scrolled up the screen, I mentioned that he'd also been in the Underworld films...and the same lady responded, in surprise, "THAT'S RIGHT!  I had completely forgotten about that, but now that you mention it, I can totally see him with the long hair and all..."

We walked out of the building talking about Underworld and Van Helsing and how incredible Dracula's brides were (both as beautiful women and in the way they handled them with the visual effects for the movie), while the rest of her group looked back and shook their heads.  She laughed and said, "I love movies like that...I don't think any of them ever watch anything like that, though..."

Now...if she'd just been about fifteen or twenty years younger....
TheDemonIslington
member, 297 posts
RPoL's UN
Peace keeping you to Hell
Thu 6 Jun 2013
at 04:18
  • msg #247

Re: More Good Things

The CEO of another company just vomited praise about me to my CEO.
Brianna
member, 1679 posts
Thu 6 Jun 2013
at 20:04
  • msg #248

Re: More Good Things

I finally have a pair of new shoes!  OK, they aren't perfect (is there such a thing??), but they are new, not held together by gobs of glue, and they fit well enough that I'm not thinking about my feet all the time!  (My requirements for shoes are very specific, in a size large enough not to allow much choice, let alone anything that will do.)
Dottie_V
member, 65 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Sun 9 Jun 2013
at 05:22
  • msg #249

Re: More Good Things

I was finally able to buy my ticket for my vacation this summer! ^_^
cero1
member, 477 posts
Sun 9 Jun 2013
at 13:55
  • msg #250

Re: More Good Things

Had a great night over friends last night. Saved my one mate's relationship and kind of sorted things out with my first love to be in the comfortable friend-zone rather than the exes-now-friends-but-still-kinda-awkward-but-it's-cool-I-guess zone. I'm hung over but I made myself feel good by making other people feel good and resealing bridges.
Good stuff.
facemaker329
member, 5595 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Tue 11 Jun 2013
at 17:53
  • msg #251

Re: More Good Things

Here's to making a good impression on the boss!  The senior exec where I work asked me...for the second time...to mark some suitcoats for alterations for him.  The first time, I told him that I have no formal training in it, and my experience in alterations is all theatrical, where it doesn't have to look good when you're right up close and personal, as long as it looks good from stage.  But apparently, I did something right, because he had me do it again.

Never a bad thing when the president of the company has you coming by his office to do him a favor...and it was nice to see a more 'human' side of him--his sister (another one of the execs there) and daughter were both there to provide feedback on the suits, and hearing the interaction between them (and occasionally even chiming in on it) gave me a more nuanced view of the man.  I still disagree with the way he does a lot of stuff...but I've definitely got a more personable image of him in my head than I did last week.
Evil Empryss
member, 549 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Sat 15 Jun 2013
at 04:41
  • msg #252

Re: More Good Things

Three times the minimum number of responses needed for hubby's research and they're still coming in!

A big thanks to everyone here who completed the survey!  *hugs*
ginny
member, 105 posts
Tue 25 Jun 2013
at 01:57
  • msg #253

Re: More Good Things

Husband is at work, and kids are gone for the night.  I have the house ALL TO MYSELF!!  ^_^
Evil Empryss
member, 563 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Wed 26 Jun 2013
at 16:14
  • msg #254

Re: More Good Things

Not only did I finally sell off the eyesore of an entertainment center that's been hogging up a ton of room in the living room, but while cleaning up around it I found two jackets... with a total of $15 in the pockets!

Found money is always good.  Time to go to lunch!  XD
cero1
member, 507 posts
Wed 26 Jun 2013
at 16:15
  • msg #255

Re: More Good Things

I think I might be able to afford to buy something cool from amazon today! ^^
facemaker329
member, 5663 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 27 Jun 2013
at 10:59
  • msg #256

Re: More Good Things

Well, if I'm going to have a bout of insomnia, at least this was a good reason for it (definitely not a good time for it, but...*shrug*)

A friend of mine who's recently gotten into film-making (can you call it that when it's all shot on digital video and there's no actual film involved?  I don't know...  Anyway...) said a few weeks ago that the next project he wants to do is a Western.  With no dialogue.  Just visual storytelling with some sound cues to help move it along.

When he said it, I thought, "Hmmmm...that could be kinda cool."  A week later, I thought, "Okay...I've got a general concept that would work for this...."  A couple of days ago, I started thinking about titles.  Tonight, the title gelled in my head and I also found a great, significant name for the town where this fictional story is set.  And discovered that I couldn't sleep because it was all rolling around in my head.

So, I wrote it.  Just the bare bones of it...the action, the characters (which have no names because nobody has any dialogue, so the characters are 'the horseman', 'the marshal', 'the saloon girl', etc), and the few key visuals that I thought were necessary to tell the story.  My version of it, double-spaced, came in just under 4 pages.  I'm curious to see how long it ends up being when he goes through and puts it in 'proper' screenwriting format, along with all the extra notations about shot selections and camera movement and such.  But I feel like it's a very do-able project (if we can just find locations for the exterior shots we need.  I think I know of a location for the interior shots...but whether or not we can use them will wind up coming down to a question of how much money are we willing to sink into this, and how much do the people who own the various locations that I'm thinking of want for the use of their space...

But at least now I think I can sleep.
w byrd
member, 1975 posts
I coudn't think of
a really cool screen name
Sun 30 Jun 2013
at 02:21
  • msg #257

Re: More Good Things

When Albert Einstein was making the rounds of the speaker's circuit, he usually found himself eagerly longing to get back to his laboratory work. One night as they were driving to yet another dinner, Einstein mentioned to his chauffeur (a man who somewhat resembled Einstein in looks & manner) that he was tired of speechmaking.
"I have an idea, boss," his chauffeur said. "I've heard you give this speech so many times, I'll bet I could give it for you."

Einstein laughed loudly and said, "Why not? Let's do it!"

When they arrived at the dinner, Einstein donned the chauffeur's cap and jacket and sat in the back of the room. The chauffeur gave a beautiful rendition of Einstein's speech and even answered a few questions expertly.
Then a supremely pompous professor asked an extremely esoteric question about antimatter formation, digressing here and there to let everyone in the audience know that he was nobody's fool.

Without missing a beat, the chauffeur fixed the professor with a steely stare and said, "Sir, the answer to that question is so simple that I will let my chauffeur, who is sitting in the back, answer it for me."
Dottie_V
member, 68 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Sun 30 Jun 2013
at 05:22
  • msg #258

Re: More Good Things

Well would you look at that, I made it to my 21st birthday intact!
facemaker329
member, 5678 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sun 30 Jun 2013
at 21:22
  • msg #259

Re: More Good Things

Oh, thank you for cancelling rehearsal tonight.  I need the rehearsal, I know...but I also desperately need the five or six hours of rehearsal time we would have spent to try and get stuff finished up for the other show I'm working on.  Your timing could NOT have been better.
facemaker329
member, 5681 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Mon 1 Jul 2013
at 18:17
  • msg #260

Re: More Good Things

As a follow-up to the last one...Still not done with everything I need to finish before rehearsal tonight.  I was SURE that I had to work today...got to work and saw that my name was, in fact, not on the calendar at all for today.

Thank you!!!!  Six more hours of unexpected prep time...(now, if you'll all excuse me, I've gotta go make good use of them!!!)
Shei-kun
member, 775 posts
A Giant Shei draws near!
Fight-Magic-Item-Flee
Tue 2 Jul 2013
at 04:25
  • msg #261

Re: More Good Things

I might have part time work that will extend past the summer and through the rest of my education so I can have work experience when I graduate!
adrasteia1
member, 1350 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Wed 3 Jul 2013
at 20:29
  • msg #262

Re: More Good Things

I passed the first of my Oracle exams today (with a fairly decent grade), so I'm happy about that. I have the next one in around 2 weeks time, so I'm not anticipating much of a break between now and then.
bigbadron
moderator, 13798 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Fri 5 Jul 2013
at 17:22

Re: More Good Things

Evil Hat are Awesome.  With a capital "A".

I got my copy of FATE Core on Wednesday, and it had been damaged in transit.

Yesterday I got an email from Evil Hat, saying that they'd had a few Kickstarter backers contacting them to say their books had arrived damaged, so they would replace any damaged copies, free of charge, no questions asked.  And no need to return the book, just send them some photos of the damage.

Sent them an email today, with photos, and said that since I don't live in the US I'd understand if I'm not included in the offer to send a replacement.  Five minutes later I had a reply telling me they'd send out a new copy today.

Would definitely spend money with them again.
rogar308
member, 453 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Fri 5 Jul 2013
at 17:31
  • msg #264

Re: More Good Things

Recently announced the Volkswagen GTD (diesel version of the GTI) is FINALLY coming to the United States. About bloody time. Sadly, it looks like we'll still have to wait another year, maybe two, before actually driving one off the lot. To quote the birds from the movie Nemo. "Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine...". Estimated price was stated at $27,000 USD. Not cheap but more or less in line with the pricing for the current VW GTI model.
Brygun
member, 1696 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Sat 6 Jul 2013
at 05:00
  • msg #265

Re: More Good Things

Yeah! I'm still alive.

Always something to have on a good things list! ^_^
Snowmantle
member, 420 posts
Sat 6 Jul 2013
at 05:13
  • msg #266

Re: More Good Things

My daughter chose to go to an agricultural high school and just finished her freshman year. She's a smart kid but had a tough time with her math class and was worried her average might not be high enough to get into her first pick - large animal focus - since that's what everyone wants and selection is grade-based. She worked teally hard this last term, brought her average up and got in though, letter came today.

The best part is knowing that she gets the relationship of effort and reward
LastChance
member, 396 posts
Can you hear it?
The spirits sing of glory
Sat 6 Jul 2013
at 10:23
  • msg #267

Re: More Good Things

My wife is pregnant with our first child. Due January 1stish.
Brianna
member, 1694 posts
Sat 6 Jul 2013
at 17:44
  • msg #268

Re: More Good Things

Timing on moving seems to be working out.  Landlord has listed this place citing 60-90 days possible possession, the buyer for the kids' UK flat that doesn't need vacant possession seems to be stepping up to the plate finally, and probably possession for the new place would be 60+ days also.  It would be scary if everything syncs, but probably best if we are out of here shortly before the landlord sells.  Have to see what interest he gets, but at least he's set a reasonable price.
DivineSingularity
member, 15 posts
Sat 6 Jul 2013
at 17:45
  • msg #269

Re: More Good Things

Got a job interview finally for a job I can actually make decent money.
Jarodemo
member, 348 posts
I didn't do it...
...it wasn't my fault!
Sat 6 Jul 2013
at 17:55
  • msg #270

Re: More Good Things

The Lions beat the Wallabies, first series win since 1997!
ginny
member, 112 posts
Sun 7 Jul 2013
at 00:17
  • msg #271

Re: More Good Things

Had a great day at the lake with my daughters and nephews. ^_^
facemaker329
member, 5690 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sun 7 Jul 2013
at 01:30
  • msg #272

Re: More Good Things

Both shows are up and running or over and done...back down to just my regular gig at the park and the once-a-week bit at the movie theater.  Going to a friend's party tonight...it will be nice to get there and not have some nagging voice in the back of my head saying, "You should really be at home working on the show..."

SHOW'S DONE!!!  I'm gonna have some fun!
Evil Empryss
member, 588 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Sun 7 Jul 2013
at 04:32
  • msg #273

Re: More Good Things

Just finished running one of the statistical analyses on Hubby's dissertation data and two of his hypotheses are supported by statistically significant results!  That's ambiguous academic talk that means two of the things he thought he would find, he found.  While he would get his doctorate whether he found anything or not, it's always nicer when your final work is supported by the data.  :)

And in case anyone's curious, he has found that people who are usually GMs have higher levels of self-efficacy than those who equally GMs and players and much higher than those who are typically just players.

Woo-HOO!
Alexei Yaruk-Mundhenk
member, 1337 posts
Ad Majorem
Dea Gloriam
Mon 8 Jul 2013
at 00:04
  • msg #274

Re: More Good Things

I am now one of the 1337 members of RPoL.
Amyante
member, 166 posts
Nobody ever considers
the feelings of a weapon
Mon 8 Jul 2013
at 01:50
  • msg #275

Re: More Good Things

More RPoL stuff:

http://i42.tinypic.com/ezpxjo.jpg

...Okay, so it's not a REAL milestone in that it's not exactly 7.5 mil, but odds are i won't be online at the time that happens, given it can only be witnessed by raw chance.

Either way, congrats on 7.4 mil :P
This message was last edited by the user at 01:51, Mon 08 July 2013.
ginny
member, 118 posts
Fri 12 Jul 2013
at 22:22
  • msg #276

Re: More Good Things

I finally have my own vehicle ^_^
DivineSingularity
member, 17 posts
Fri 12 Jul 2013
at 23:59
  • msg #277

Re: More Good Things

Going back to my old tabletop group,  I'm kind nervous its been so long since i've seen them and I've changed so much in more ways than I can count.  I'm nervous but terribly excited to get back around the table.
jaberwok
member, 125 posts
Twas brillig & the slithy
toves did gyre and gimbal
Sat 13 Jul 2013
at 00:33
  • msg #278

Re: More Good Things

My book is finally done!
bobbofeet
member, 94 posts
Sun 14 Jul 2013
at 06:15
  • msg #279

Re: More Good Things

Started out as vent and turned into a good stuff...

Took my wife and 12 year old boys to see Despicable me 2 (good movie if you're into that kind).  Son had surgery two weeks ago and is in full leg casts and uses a wheelchair to get around.  We need handicap parking or space to park.  No handicapped parking, so we put up our handicapped placard and took up two spots.

Left the movie to find some jerk had parked in one of the spots (leaving us 3" on the driver's) side and someone had legally parked on the other side, pretty much blocking us from getting in our car.  To make matters worse, they put a sign in our window "Teach you to take two parking spots."  Wife takes note to manager of movie theater and comes out crying.  End Vent.

Begin good stuff.  Manager calls local sheriff's deputy on duty at movie theater.  Deputy sees situation and is PISSED.  (His mom is disabled.)  He takes pictures, and calls a tow truck.  Jerk's car is towed.  Cop looks to see if there are any outstanding warrants or a revoked license (did I mention cop was pissed).  Cop is on duty at theater for several hours and is looking forward to meeting the person who will claim that their junker was stolen.  Theater manager gives us 4 comp tickets for next time at the theater.

Moral of the story - don't kick the idiots doors in when you are frustrated with them.  Let the local authorities do their job - they do a much better job of it than I ever could.
facemaker329
member, 5707 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sun 14 Jul 2013
at 07:36
  • msg #280

Re: More Good Things

This could easily have been a rant, but, hey...I'll take the good slant on it...

So, the Powers That Be at work decided that our drummer isn't up high enough for the audience to see him.  I already had to build a small platform to extend that level of the stage, so there'd be room for the drum set--and I almost had to fight with my boss to get him to agree to have me build it.  He kept telling me to draw up plans and give them to the carpenters and have them build it (at a time of the season when we couldn't even get them to show up and install a door they'd already been booked to install for several months).  I finally just said, "Look, there is NO reason to give this to the carpenters...I can build this.  It's not that big, it's not that hard, and they're already overbooked as it is."

I must've done the job well, because when HIS boss decided another riser was needed for the drum set, there was apparently no talk about having the carpenters do it.  My boss called me and told me that we needed another 6" riser and I needed to figure out what supplies I needed to make it happen ASAP.  Got him the supplies list Tuesday night, he expedited the paperwork, we had the lumber arrive yesterday, and I started cutting stuff for it this afternoon.  If all goes well, I'll be painting it by tomorrow night.

Yeah, I know, it seems like a simple thing...but for several years, my biggest obstacle at work was getting the higher ups to realize that Wardrobe Manager was just a job I did, and there was a LOT more there to be taken into account.  The more diverse the variety of jobs they want me to tackle, the better my job security gets (I've had several people comment that, if they ever decided to get rid of me, they'd have to hire three people to cover all the different things I do for them...)  *grin*

This also follows on the heels of my successfully arguing with my boss about needing shelves in our new instrument storage area (he wanted to just have the musicians hang their instruments on wall hooks, because that's what he does with his) and having the band pretty much universally rave about how fast I put them in and how useful they are...and our tech supervisor and I also won the argument (sort of) about whether or not the instrument room should have AC overnight...couldn't get the boss to agree to leaving THAT particular AC unit running, but he did agree to the notion of propping the door open so the AC from the rest of the building could help keep that space climate-controlled.

It's frustrating to have to fight for every improvement that needs to be made, right out of the chute...but it's gratifying to have them start piling up to the point that, when the improvements come down from 'on high', I'm the first person they call to get it done.  (Now, I've just gotta live up to it...that's the tricky part...)
doomedfate
member, 732 posts
Proud 2 be a Fur
I... am Alsend Drake
Tue 16 Jul 2013
at 15:39
  • msg #281

Re: More Good Things

In arvel: Avengers Allience a bug in PvP season 9 gave me all the rewards, even the hero, Angel! And that was the season they nerfed my main combo, by makeig Rescue nowhere near as good as she'd used to be, and I hadn't even gotten into the place for the 2nd reward, let alone all. Yay glitches! And the company said we get to keep the stuff!
facemaker329
member, 5720 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Thu 18 Jul 2013
at 09:56
  • msg #282

Re: More Good Things

I've been thinking for years, "Man, I should take some pictures of some of the cool stuff that happens in these shows..."  And for the last several years, by the time things settle down enough for me to start worrying about bringing a camera to work and taking pictures, I'm sick of the show and don't want to sit through it long enough to take pictures.

FINALLY, this year, we have a show that doesn't have me bored to tears, with a cast that doesn't make me want to place-kick small mammals in frustration.  These guys are awesome...talented, fun to work with, (mostly) down to earth...dug out my camera (got it second-hand, with no manual, so every time I pull it out to start shooting something, there's a LOT of guesswork on my part), and started shooting some pics a few nights ago.

And I'll admit it...I've got some really good stuff.  Granted, there's a LOT of garbage between the really good shots, but I managed to sift through what I'd shot over the course of two or three nights and pick out thirty or so images that I didn't mind showing the general public...good clear focus, a relatively good spread of who's in the pics (even with a group like this, some are more photogenic than others and some of them just don't capture in a still image very well but are fascinating to watch in motion), visually interesting, and I feel like they capture a lot of the fun of the show.

I feel pretty pleased with myself...looks like I haven't quite forgotten everything I ever learned about photography just yet...
facemaker329
member, 5747 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Fri 26 Jul 2013
at 20:28
  • msg #283

Re: More Good Things

Just got around to replacing the window that got busted in my car back during the Thanksgiving Holiday (I've been driving all winter, spring, and thus far into summer with a homemade lamination job of clear shipping tape holding what was left of the window together).  Nice to find a place that was not only close to home and easy to find, but it was also affordable (my biggest consideration, right now) and the guys were extremely competent.  And nice.  I mean, I've been at places that had a 'you MUST wait in the waiting area' policy...but I was curious.  I wanted to see how it was done.  They let me watch.  And when I didn't ask questions or try and keep a line of small talk going or make noises like I wasn't sure if they knew what they were doing, they started talking to me, telling me what they were doing, asking me how long I'd had my car, etc etc...

Here's hoping I don't have to replace another window anytime soon...but if I do, I know where I'm going.
RPGuru92
member, 61 posts
Fri 26 Jul 2013
at 21:27
  • msg #284

Re: More Good Things

After a rather disturbing lying on the couch followed by a scared pee on my rug, my wonderful Louisiana mutt bolted out the door , completely disappearing into the night. My dog, Taylor, has been my constant and loyal companion, getting me through various jobs, bad relationships and doing wonderful clean-up on the floors whenever I cook.

I combed the neighborhood after she activated her cloaking device, driving up streets and usual haunts that she had. I even called the police and the next day I called and went to shelters, hearing the line that if there is only a collar, someone could have picked her up and there would be only the click of that collar standing between she being my dog and someone else's. At the pet shelter (if you sympathize with animals I suggest you DO NOT go to a shelter, puppies and great great dogs all behind chain link. Worst was a wheelbarrow of puppies which made me think of sick dead-baby jokes. Best advice I heard was to put the dog's bed, bowl, or toy on the front porch, they could smell that from very far away. This I did I put up posters, I talked to people. I decided that whether or not I found my dog, I could probably run for mayor.

I drove around one last time before the sun went down. When it did I plopped on my sofa and just looked out my porch window, turning at ever movement of leaf, bug or passerby. Then I saw her back, gone for almost 24 hours and just started eating- voraciously. I opened the door and she came in, drinking more water than I have ever seen her.

Behold my puppy came home, all on her own.
Starchaser
member, 262 posts
GMT+0
Posts Monday-Friday
Sat 27 Jul 2013
at 00:13
  • msg #285

Re: More Good Things

<Thank you>
Drop the chaff. Stop looking back and get on with the now.

Sound advice and perfect common sense.

Nice to have found someone I was able to confide in. It means a lot :)
</Thank you>
This message was last edited by the user at 00:15, Sat 27 July 2013.
ginny
member, 128 posts
Sat 27 Jul 2013
at 02:42
  • msg #286

Re: More Good Things

Leaving bright and early tomorrow morning with the family for a fun filled camping trip.  Everything is all done and ready, just waiting for the new day to start.

See y'all in August ^_^
facemaker329
member, 5750 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sun 28 Jul 2013
at 06:54
  • msg #287

Re: More Good Things

This could be a rant about being almost famous, but I'll take the more positive slant...

My friends' band is performing in Miami, tonight, at the wrap party for Burn Notice.  One of them posted something about it on FB, and I half-jokingly told him if he got a chance, to give Gabrielle Anwar a kiss for me.

He just let me know he did it.

I've got some awesome friends...*grin*
adrasteia1
member, 1368 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Thu 1 Aug 2013
at 10:08
  • msg #288

Re: More Good Things

I passed my Oracle MySQL exams. Despite deciding otherwise, I'm thinking of giving the DBA exams a go.

I'm not going to let it overwhelm my time completely, so that might decrease my odds, but I need some time for me and other things I want to do. It's nice to have the choice.
bigbadron
moderator, 13858 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Thu 1 Aug 2013
at 10:56

Re: More Good Things

Congratulations.  :)
facemaker329
member, 5782 posts
Gaming for most of
30 years, and counting!
Sun 4 Aug 2013
at 09:15
  • msg #290

Re: More Good Things

I was nervous with this upcoming Halloween season...I've lost a third of my makeup crew (one moved to California, the other is moving to Indiana to go to grad school), and I'm always nervous about looking for new makeup artists, because what we do is actually fairly uncommon in this area, especially for Halloween time (people are used to haunted house makeup, which is often done quick-and-dirty and designed to be seen for a few seconds in a darkened room...we're doing makeup for people who are going to be on a well-lit stage and/or standing just a few inches away from people for photo ops, etc...but we still have a fairly stringent timetable for getting this detailed makeup done, and most of the people who are used to working fast aren't used to doing detail work, and vice versa...)

Found out one of the makeup artists that we used years ago wants to come back and work with us again.  Also found out that one of the friends of the artist moving to Indiana is interested in working for us.  So my problem may be solved.  Even with one of the remaining artists having auditioned (and done fairly well, from what I've heard), I'm still not worried about it...I've got a couple of alternates that I should be able to sweet-talk without too much trouble, if I have to.

(Man, it would be nice to have SOMETHING I'm responsible for happen the easy way, this year...)
ginny
member, 129 posts
Sun 4 Aug 2013
at 21:49
  • msg #291

Re: More Good Things

Just spent the last week and a half camping with my family.  We head home tomorrow.  My bed has missed me terribly ^_^
Evil Empryss
member, 636 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Sat 10 Aug 2013
at 04:13
  • msg #292

Re: More Good Things

Hubby's dissertation is written, passed his committee review, and is on its way to the final departmental review!  Holy cow... in another month I'll be married to a DOCTOR!

I'll be Mrs Dr Evil Overlord!  :-D
auraxiannc
member, 40 posts
Sat 10 Aug 2013
at 10:57
  • msg #293

Re: More Good Things

What would be more scary is if your name is Clara (You will never tell us!) or your husband is named either Leonard, Sheldon or Rajesh (Mind you, you're pretty scary...)

Moving on

Good Thing: This thread has restored my faith in humanity, thank you very much.
facemaker329
member, 5818 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 11 Aug 2013
at 07:38
  • msg #294

Re: More Good Things

Okay, so that was just funny...

Went out to watch the last few numbers of the last show tonight, was helping close up the gates and stuff when a group of mildly drunk guys came in (as everyone was going out, which was guaranteed to catch the attention of those of us waiting for everyone to leave so we could pack up to go home...)  They had that slightly furtive look about them, the one taken on by people who think they're about to get away with something...

So one of them started to get up on the stage...surprisingly enough, he immediately got down when I started walking toward the stage shaking my head and giving him the 'come here' gesture with my hand.  And that's when things got REALLY funny...

First, they tried to tell me that they were going to get up on the stage and have a quick jam session because they were the backup players for the band (they're not...I was at the call-back auditions, these guys weren't even in the running.  I don't even know if they auditioned...)  Then they tried to talk me into jamming with them (wouldn't have been tempting, even if I played any of the instruments up there, because I know and like the guys who own all those instruments and I wasn't going to let these guys monkey with them).  They tried about five or six different approaches, and I didn't know whether to yell at them in frustration or burst out laughing at the ludicrous lengths they were trying to go to...

They finally realized it wasn't going to happen, and turned around to walk out...and, surprisingly enough, thanked me for being so tolerant of them screwing around.  (That was actually almost more surprising to me than the thought that they believed we would just somehow turn a blind eye and let total strangers horse around with a few thousand dollars worth of musical equipment...)

Fourteen summers working there...plus the two Halloween seasons I worked before I got on the regular staff...and I've never had anything even remotely similar to that happen.  And people think I'm just echoing empty platitudes when I tell them that working in entertainment provides a never-ending supply of new and unexpected experiences...
auraxiannc
member, 42 posts
Sun 11 Aug 2013
at 22:06
  • msg #295

Out of Alpha....

Just finished building the mechanics of my Survival RPG System Hypothermia and have started to test it, feels good.
facemaker329
member, 5834 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 15 Aug 2013
at 00:22
  • msg #296

On the upswing...

So, just a couple of weeks ago, I was on the verge of going back to looking through the W:P list to add a couple of games, as I'd dwindled down to two active and one semi-active games that I'm involved in.  Everything else had kinda wasted away...didn't ask to get dumped from the games, just took them off my sticky list and figured if something happened, they'd pop back up.

Since then, I got invited to join a new game (that sounds very intriguing to me), and the GM of another game that I'd really been enjoying before it folded up decided to try and revive it.  Which will put me right back at about the max number of games I like to be in, once they're all up and running.
ginny
member, 135 posts
Fri 16 Aug 2013
at 15:32
  • msg #297

Re: On the upswing...

My favorite Grandmother, and the woman I named my first born child after, turns 82 today!  Happy birthday Gram :)
Brianna
member, 1710 posts
Fri 16 Aug 2013
at 17:16
  • msg #298

Re: On the upswing...

Finally going to finish up my mother's estate - looking forward to having it done after all these months, and to spending an evening with my sisters, good food, some wine...
Dottie_V
member, 76 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Wed 21 Aug 2013
at 07:04
  • msg #299

Re: On the upswing...

Yay~! My dad fixed the air conditioner after the dogs chewed through the wires, now the house is comfortably chilly. ^____^
facemaker329
member, 5877 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 21 Aug 2013
at 20:33
  • msg #300

Re: On the upswing...

I can almost touch the ceiling with my left hand again.  Considering the fact that, five or six months ago, I had a hard time raising my left arm past horizontal, I'm thrilled with that!  Our bodies really are remarkable things...
facemaker329
member, 5885 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 25 Aug 2013
at 19:06
  • msg #301

Re: On the upswing...

May have finally found a location for one of the more troublesome shots in a short film I'm working on.  It's hard to find an Old West main street that's still in 'working condition', that doesn't have a bunch of modern stuff in the background...

It's just a question of whether or not the website I saw it on has up-to-date pictures posted, and how much they'll charge for a no-budget short film to use it.

And then we need to find the saloon interior.  Which, if we're really lucky, will actually be part of the town location.  (I actually know a couple of interiors we could use, I'm just pretty sure that they would be prohibitively expensive.)
The_Blob
member, 307 posts
Sun 25 Aug 2013
at 21:04
  • msg #302

Re: On the upswing...

In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 301):

try Antique Archeology (from the History Channel's show American Pickers) they encounter many people that have entire transplanted towns (not just facades) from many eras in their travels.
Dottie_V
member, 77 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Mon 26 Aug 2013
at 20:29
  • msg #303

Re: On the upswing...

The kids went back to school today!
ginny
member, 139 posts
Mon 26 Aug 2013
at 20:31
  • msg #304

Re: On the upswing...

In reply to Dottie_V (msg # 303):

My kids go back to school in 7 days and 15 hours  ^_^
Evil Empryss
member, 688 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Wed 28 Aug 2013
at 17:23
  • msg #305

Re: On the upswing...

Husband just passed his oral defense for his psych dissertation.  The rest of the process is rubber-stamp paperwork.  Therefore, I'm calling it official:

I am now Evil Empryss, wife of DR. Evil Overlord!

Sheldon Cooper:
You know, it’s amazing how many supervillains have advanced degrees. Graduate schools should probably do a better job of screening those people out.

Dottie_V
member, 79 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Thu 29 Aug 2013
at 07:51
  • msg #306

Re: On the upswing...

Thank goodness for expedient paramedics and kind nurses.
facemaker329
member, 5921 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 1 Sep 2013
at 09:22
  • msg #307

Re: On the upswing...

Had a good time at one of the area bars where my friend's 80's band was playing.  I didn't expect to know many people there...turns out, I didn't know ANYBODY there, except my friend (and I recognized the guys in the band, even though I don't know them all that well).

As someone who has a hard time 'letting loose' and enjoying myself if I don't know someone in the place, it was an interesting step outside of my comfort zone.  No, I didn't end up striking up a conversation with someone that resulted in me getting a date, or even a phone number...not what I was there for, either.  I'm just pleased that I managed to push past my 'I'm all alone in the crowd' reaction and actually got up and started dancing (with nobody in particular, just moving to the music), singing along with what I knew (and could at least kind of sing), and had a good time.  I need to do that kind of stuff more often (not necessarily the dancing to 80's music, although that was a good workout and I should probably do something along those lines more often, yes...but the going out on my own to see something that interests me, yes.)
Brianna
member, 1723 posts
Mon 2 Sep 2013
at 16:57
  • msg #308

Re: On the upswing...

Well, this is a mixed post, since I'm not really looking forward to moving, but it now seems to be on track to actually happen, and before the place we're living now sells, leaving us with no home.  Still no definite date for the move, but dates for some of the steps along the way of the kids completing the deal on their UK property...
ginny
member, 143 posts
Tue 3 Sep 2013
at 10:57
  • msg #309

Re: On the upswing...

Its the first day of school today.  Im more excited than my girls are I think ^_^
facemaker329
member, 5929 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 3 Sep 2013
at 16:12
  • msg #310

Re: On the upswing...

In reply to ginny (msg # 309):

I've actually found that to be a pretty common reaction among parents...*grin*  Unless it's the first day of school for their first child.  But once they get past that hurdle?  Oh, yeah, they're all kinds of excited for school to start...
Shei-kun
member, 781 posts
A Giant Shei draws near!
Fight-Magic-Item-Flee
Tue 3 Sep 2013
at 18:03
  • msg #311

Re: On the upswing...

So, normally this would be a vent, but the ending just has me feeling so much relief that I think it belongs here.

So, after spending the weekend at my brother and sister-in-law's house (we got the car problem fixed from my rant, since the battery just needed to be replaced and my brother came down at 9am to help me do it) helping them with taking down a tree and stripping the paint off of their deck, I came home Sunday evening and crashed.  The next morning, I wake up stiff and sore, so I vow not to do much moving.

I should note that my parents' house, which I currently reside, is on 10 acres of land and the field is rented out to a cattle rancher, so there are 17 cows and none of them belong to us, and my parents are still very much in Iceland right now, which is very much not anywhere near Washington state in the good ol' USA.

Cue the stray cow in my driveway, with a helpful neighbor having herded it in.  With his help, I get it into the field after spending several trips up and down the 1/4 mile driveway testing keys for the field (I'm housesitting while the 'rents are gone, and one set of keys was mislabeled so it was not, in fact, keys to the fence gate's lock), and I check the fence line that I can (very muddy and one side's on a treeline so I can't get to it easily) and find that there's no gaps or problems and the electric wire's running fine.

So I figure it was a fluke and I'll be fine.

Wake up this morning at 9:30 am to have a county sheriff knock on my door, having herded the SAME cow into my driveway.  Try the same solution, but the cow decides it will have none of this strudel and takes a left instead of a right, climbing over a downed fence, getting its hind legs stuck for 20 seconds (further throwing me into a panic) before getting through, then climbing over ANOTHER fence and into the neighbor's horse pasture.

So, after going through more panic and trying to contact the neighbors, who are not home, I call my brother, who is still very much an hour's drive away (and at work) for advice.  Following his advice, I finally calm down enough to contact the owner of the cows (which, had I been thinking straight, I would have done first thing) and got him to come down.

Turns out, all his cows are in the field, and the other cow somehow escaped the horse pasture.

So it was never a problem with our fence or any of the cows we're supposed to take care of getting out, and the problem cow (which was the exact same one, by the way) has proven itself to be the fruiting Houdini Cow, Bovine Master of Escape.

Which means someone down the road is missing a cow.  But it's not my problem.
facemaker329
member, 5938 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 5 Sep 2013
at 09:09
  • msg #312

Re: On the upswing...

Got some brilliant life advice from my 80-something-year-old neighbor, quoting her mother...

"It's better to wear out than to rust out."  She then told me that she was pretty sure that I wasn't doing much rusting, since I'm rarely home and always off doing something at some odd hour of the day or night...

She kinda reminds me of my maternal great-grandmother...
adrasteia1
member, 1406 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Fri 6 Sep 2013
at 22:38
  • msg #313

Re: On the upswing...

My pet rabbit is knocking her ball with a bell in it around the floor. It amuses me when she does things cats do.
PrettyBirdie1
member, 69 posts
Ayleth, Birdie, Chrysaor
Sun 8 Sep 2013
at 04:28
  • msg #314

Re: On the upswing...

I'm so excited! I got an awesome picture when I went hummingbird banding, and it's already moved up to first place in this contest I'm in! Now I just need it to stay there for 308 days. XD
http://photobucket.com/ibeatyou?entry=2039772
Tenchinow
member, 66 posts
Sun 8 Sep 2013
at 05:10
  • msg #315

Re: On the upswing...

Got to replace my beat-to-hell Dodge Neon with a sweet 2009 Ford Fusion.

Now I'm just waiting for everything else to fall into place.
facemaker329
member, 5949 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 9 Sep 2013
at 02:40
  • msg #316

Re: On the upswing...

Just got to do my first high-concept, 'artistic' makeup job, for a photoshoot.  I had a lot of fun with it, the people I was working with were awesome, the imagery I saw from a few of the pictures was REALLY cool...

Would've been nice to have a paycheck from it, but considering I've got less experience at that kind of makeup than the (self-described amateur) photographer had at those kinds of pictures, I'm just grateful for a chance to experiment and try some stuff that I've never had a chance to do before.

Hope it leads to more stuff.  Enjoyed the photographer, the model was beautiful (and personable)...I'd work with these folks again in a heartbeat.
w byrd
member, 1981 posts
I coudn't think of
a really cool screen name
Wed 11 Sep 2013
at 21:16
  • msg #317

Re: On the upswing...

well, my morning yesterday started with a flat tire, went to go change it and the spare was shot...great start to the day huh.

well the good stuff starts when a lady stops gives me a ride up to the store to get a patch kit and fix-a-flat So I can get the truck to the auto shop for a repair on the tire.

So she drops me off and the tire fights back. I cant even get the patch into the hole the nail I picked up left....more fun.. now I am hot sweaty dirty and late for my date with a lady I haven't seen in months.


good thing two happens a few moments later when a fella I don't even know stops and offers help, between the two of us we get the tire patched and re-inflated...he follows me back to the tire shop where the folks at the shop patch the tire, check to make sure it's on good and tight and get me out the door in less than fifteen minutes.  all for 8 dollars and change :D

I raced home showered changed into clean clothes slapped on more deodorant and cologne and back out the door nearly tripping over my chihuahua and my roommate.

I drive the fifty miles to meet with my Lady Friend, no construction no slow traffic, no detours....

My lady friend is smiling ear to ear when she sees me then gives me a mock frown Where were you.... I thought you had ditched me " and grins wide again giving me a hug that I can say was very enthusiastic


So with the assistance of two strangers I managed to beat Murphy, make the drive in record time, and get the best hug I have had in months..Yayyyyy friendly strangers

thanks to the lousy start of the day Just making it to our meeting was great, made the day and our shared time even better :D


Murphy 2
Kindness of Stranger 2
Strangers for the win!!!:D
Brygun
member, 1780 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Sun 15 Sep 2013
at 11:35
  • msg #318

Re: On the upswing...

Flipping through a stack of CDs came across my backups from 2001.

Among that is my sound set clips used for custom sound files. Including one used for Windows error messages: Johnny Bravo's: Runaway weini dog!
facemaker329
member, 5960 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 15 Sep 2013
at 14:05
  • msg #319

Re: On the upswing...

Freelance gig yesterday, working an 'Old Tyme Photo Booth' at a harvest festival, dressing people up in Western attire for a photographer to shoot pics of them looking all cowboyed out...

Seven hours (11, if you count drive time) work...

And the paycheck for it?  Almost equal to one week's take-home pay from my regular job.  On the day I found out my rent check hit the bank and dropped my account balance negative.  Excellent timing for getting a good paycheck...
ginny
member, 153 posts
Mon 16 Sep 2013
at 11:38
  • msg #320

Re: On the upswing...

My 11 year old is in middle school this year and already she has her plate full with extracurricular activities.  Tonight is her first Cross Country meet and she is super excited.  Im going to be one of those crazy moms there cheering her on  ^_^
facemaker329
member, 5965 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 16 Sep 2013
at 15:00
  • msg #321

Re: On the upswing...

We start dress rehearsals for our Halloween shows tonight.  I was at work, yesterday, trying to figure out just what was most urgently needing to be focused on in order to be ready.  So, I asked my one assistant, who was there, where we stood, because I'd been running around doing so much other stuff (out of three shows PLUS roaming atmosphere performers, I'm responsible for the wardrobe, scenery, AND makeup, so there was plenty of 'other stuff') that I didn't feel like I had any idea what was going on.

The show they asked her to design?  Almost done...she was taking care of the final details on the last costume.  Our 'monster' show?  She thought we were done, so I texted my other assistant to find out. Yep...all the alterations were complete.  The third show?  Well, it's been on hold because a quarter of the costumes we ordered shipped in the wrong color so we're waiting for the replacements.  And the fourth?  Well, again, Assistant #1 had that one in hand.

So, basically, my wardrobe duties are taken care of.  The set designer for one show came in and started working on his project yesterday, as well, which freed me up to worry about painting the stage floor for the other venue.

After the custard fruitpie that was dress rehearsals at the start of this summer, this is an incredibly welcome change of pace.  THIS is the way it's supposed to work!
Evil Empryss
member, 739 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Wed 18 Sep 2013
at 02:53
  • msg #322

Re: On the upswing...

I saw a man in an old roadster, top down, enjoying the pleasant weather, his dog by his side... Both of them wearing driving goggles.

It made me  :-)
Mustard Tiger
member, 514 posts
Wed 18 Sep 2013
at 03:18
  • msg #323

Re: On the upswing...

Found out that due to an initially infuriating change in our company's leave policy, I now have a total of a month of paid leave that I can use throughout the next fiscal year.
facemaker329
member, 5981 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 23 Sep 2013
at 07:01
  • msg #324

Re: On the upswing...

Well, the 'weak link' in my makeup crew (oddly, not the least experienced makeup artist...just the one so worried about appearing to be inexperienced that she wouldn't ask for help or explanations when we were doing the makeup tests, and ended up needing a second night to reassure all of us that she could actually do the makeup we needed her to do) took care of my worries about her by simply choosing to not show up--at all.

Why is this on the 'good stuff' list?  Because her no-call-no-show cleared the way for me to hire one of the artists that I worked with a couple of years ago, who'd mentioned to one of the other makeup artists that she was interested a couple of days after we'd finished hiring.  So, on a crew of six, we have four seasoned professionals, one excellent artist who's finally adapting to the notion of makeup being just another medium in which to work (much to my relief, as I hired her back over my boss' concerns that her work last year--her first year--was not up to par), and one newbie who's got a really good eye, conceptually, and is quickly learning how to translate that into an actual design.  My Halloween season, over the course of one weekend, went from 'Oh, please, let this work out' to 'HA!!!  This is AWESOME!'  Can't quite say that I've got my Halloween makeup dream team working with me...but they wouldn't let me hire enough people to put together my dream team, even if I could convince all of them to come back and work for us again.

But half my crew is on that 'dream team', so I'm pretty happy.

On a different note--digging out my dad's golf clubs to go play tomorrow morning.  I don't know how many years before he passed away was the last time he used them, but I've had them for 16 years.  And as I was dusting them off, I realized just how much sentimental value they have for me...wiping them off reminded me of playing at caddying for Dad and my maternal grandfather--Dad wasn't an avid golfer, by any means, but he and Grandpa went golfing at least once every summer when we went up to visit (my grandpa was the groundskeeper at a golf course near where he lived).

I have no idea how well or poorly I may do tomorrow.  Don't even care.  Dad and Grandpa will be out there with me, in a way, and that will be reward enough, even if I'm scoring 7 or 8 or 10 on every hole.
Dottie_V
member, 86 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Wed 25 Sep 2013
at 18:25
  • msg #325

Re: On the upswing...

I finally got the last vaccine I required and it turns out that I only need one for having had chickenpox as a younger oddity. And the nurse was very nice, and had a very light hand. ^___^
Brianna
member, 1743 posts
Sat 28 Sep 2013
at 19:14
  • msg #326

Re: On the upswing...

Well, it looks as though the move is a go.  The kids sold the UK flat (and temporarily 'rich', yay), the house inspection is done, now they just need to arrange a time to sign the papers for the new place.  Just in time too, the landlords apparently have a buyer, their house inspector is probably coming Tuesday.

Of course this means I have to pack.  *shudder*  And figure out how to get my cable switched over so that there's no big gap in coverage, even if at some point that means coverage is not where I'm currently living.  The biggest problem is to have enough furniture and the TV and computer moved to have the new installation done, separately from the main move.
adrasteia1
member, 1412 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Sat 28 Sep 2013
at 20:10
  • msg #327

Re: On the upswing...

I passed my PHP cert, though there still seems to be way more that I don't know than what I do.
DarkwindStriker
member, 572 posts
Better known in many
places as Gatewalker.
Sun 29 Sep 2013
at 15:57
  • msg #328

Things like this happen alot, I find.

me:
I have managed to lose a $50 gift card I was given for my birthday.

I am *really* hoping that complaining about this will miraculously lead to me finding it.


It worked! Found it in the desk drawer that I forget that I even have since it's completely hidden from sight under the keyboard tray. I *probably* put it there on purpose so it wouldn't get...well, lost. -_-;
Evil Empryss
member, 758 posts
No one listens
until I make a mistake
Sun 29 Sep 2013
at 18:53
  • msg #329

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

One dog may have been needlessly put down, but today my family saved the life of another shelter dog.  Copper comes home Wednesday, after he gets fixed, and I get to start training a new service dog.  YAY!!!  XD
PrettyBirdie1
member, 94 posts
Cruelty to animals? Nice.
Now ALL my OCs hate you.
Mon 30 Sep 2013
at 02:24
  • msg #330

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Finally found a job opening that looks like a nice place to work and is close - going to apply tomorrow, hopefully I get it. :) They seemed like really nice people.
Herpalerp
member, 18 posts
Mon 30 Sep 2013
at 03:43
  • msg #331

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Nyquil. Nyquil is good stuff. It lets me sleep through whatever this internal hell is.
facemaker329
member, 5995 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 2 Oct 2013
at 00:27
  • msg #332

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Our Office of Employee Services actually did something useful...for the second year in a row.  They sent out online surveys for employees to provide feedback (in relative anonymity) about working for the company.

--Do you feel you're being paid enough to keep you from looking elsewhere for work?  (My one regret is that there wasn't a 'hot-cross buns no!' option as an answer...)

--Can you tell us some things that would make your work experience more enjoyable?
(Teach your managers to communicate with their employees in a non-condescending manner...I realize that the majority of employees for the summer are teenagers, but for those of us who are old enough to be parents of said teenagers, being treated like we're one of them gets old, fast...and actually pay the people in skilled positions a wage that is competitive with the marketplace for that skill, in general, rather than paying them relative to what everyone else who works for the park is making.  Two-thirds of your employees could be trained chimpanzees and we'd still run pretty much like we do now...paying me just a couple of dollars an hour more than them to 'be fair' when I've been doing my job longer than some of them have been alive is just insulting to me.)

--Can you suggest some additional prizes for our incentive programs?  (Yeah, how about cold, hard cash?  I'll get more mileage out of a $10 than I will out of a turn on the skycoaster ride.)

Been biting my tongue about all that for MONTHS...hope this one yields results as effectively as the last one did.
habsin4
member, 636 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Wed 2 Oct 2013
at 17:27
  • msg #333

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

I just received this amazing email from my wife, who is home today with our 15 month old.

Subject line: Milestone

Amos just farted, paused a beat and then giggled hysterically.



This father couldn't be more proud.
facemaker329
member, 5997 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 3 Oct 2013
at 01:35
  • msg #334

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Don't know you, habsin4, but I'm guessing from your reaction that this is a case of the acorn falling pretty close to the tree...?  ;)
Evil Empryss
member, 761 posts
No one listens
until I make a mistake
Thu 3 Oct 2013
at 01:50
  • msg #335

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

In reply to habsin4 (msg # 333):

Maybe it tickled.  :-)

My good news.  Got a new dog today with good service dog potential.  Only problem is my old girl isn't sure she likes the new guy.  Goldie is very people-oriented, while Copper (at only a year old) is still very much a puppy and wants to play with her.  I think things will settle down nicely in a few days.
habsin4
member, 637 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Thu 3 Oct 2013
at 02:00
  • msg #336

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 334):

I believe toilet humor definitely has it's place.  Timing is key.
facemaker329
member, 5998 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 3 Oct 2013
at 04:05
  • msg #337

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Timing is the key to most comedy...*laugh*
Wyrm
member, 327 posts
Fri 4 Oct 2013
at 10:03
  • msg #338

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Oh thank God, thunder.
Brianna
member, 1749 posts
Fri 4 Oct 2013
at 18:15
  • msg #339

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Finally got into the new place with a tape measure, not too many unpleasant surprises.  Fair number of electrical outlets, enough phone jacks (yes, I have a landline).  I hope she's going to get that garage cleared out ASAP, so I can go measure it with an eye to filling it with my stuff!
Shiv
member, 135 posts
Fri 4 Oct 2013
at 18:32
  • msg #340

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

In reply to Brianna (msg # 339):

Just walked into my Mom's house.  It smells like bad meat or good cheese...

Update: Turned out to be fondu for a 70s themed birthday party.  Thank goodness.
facemaker329
member, 6002 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 8 Oct 2013
at 00:24
  • msg #341

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Having a ridiculously proud "I fixed it myself" moment...just flushed the heater core in my (almost 30-year-old) car.  Setting up and cleaning up took most of an hour.  Actually getting the blockage cleared that's had my car running just above freezing for the last year and a half?  All of about three seconds.  Turned on the water, there was some gurgling from the core, and then this massive gout of rusty water blew out of the end of the drain hose I was using.  Three seconds later, it was flowing clear.  Hooked everything back up, started the car, and within seconds, the defroster was blowing warmer air that it did after I'd been driving for an hour and a half.

Driving places will be a much less miserable experience this winter...
ginny
member, 161 posts
Tue 8 Oct 2013
at 20:32
  • msg #342

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Sitting in the living room watching TV with the hubby, our 7 year old is outside playing with her friends.  What do we hear her say?

'Say hello to my little friend'  ^_^

So cute
facemaker329
member, 6015 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 11 Oct 2013
at 05:30
  • msg #343

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

This is kind of a 'silver lining' thing, but...

I'm really grateful for my second job.  Not for the income, because, let's face it, how much money are you going to earn on a 2.5 hour/week (on average) job?  Nope...the thing I value most about that job is the fact that, week in and week out, for five and a half years, now, I have felt appreciated every time I've gone to work.  It's not like they seek me out each time I'm there and say 'thank you' or anything like that...but it's a family business, and they treat me like I'm family (better than family, in a few cases...there are a couple of the nephews that are tolerated because they ARE family, but that's pretty much the only reason they're still there...)

I compare that to my regular job, where I'm there almost daily (6 days/week, this time of year, for at least 6 hours/day) and doing all kinds of stuff that nobody else there knows how to do...and I'm treated like a glorified grunt laborer.  Someone's always looking over my shoulder, they're so busy pinching pennies that we actually got mildly chewed out last week for talking with the costume designer when she stopped in to see how things were going with the show she designed, and my assistant will pretty much only be able to help with makeup during the second half of the month because the guy scheduling labor hours didn't stop to consider the fact that we have enough extra days that we're open to basically equal a whole additional weekend and then some, so he scheduled her for the same number of hours that she had during the first half of the month, when there were no extended weekends.

So, when I go to the local movie theater and lock myself up in the projection booth, just the thought that they trust me enough to not feel like I need to provide a detailed breakdown of what I did when I was there, or they don't feel like they need to install additional surveillance gear to make sure that I'm working...they're willing to part with free soda, popcorn, and candy (my regular job regards 'free' to be a dirty word, unless it's free to them and they can charge someone else for it)...it's refreshing to work at a place that actually practices the notion of, "Hey, we hired you to do your job...we're gonna stand back and let you do it."

They've been the anchor to my sanity for the past few years, now...without that one night to reset my perspective on the world, I think I would have snapped and had a case of screaming profanities at anyone who entered the building (it's come close, as it is, a few times...)

I wish I could trade bosses...except if I did, I'd lose out on the free movies and popcorn and stuff, because Dave would never surrender that much potential monetary value...

So, thank you, Bill (RIP), for bringing me into such a wonderful organization, and thank you, Lisa and Jeff, for carrying on in Bill's tradition after he was no longer able to.  And, David?  Well, I make it a general principle to never wish ill on people I know.  So...yeah.
Brianna
member, 1752 posts
Sat 12 Oct 2013
at 16:53
  • msg #344

Re: Things like this happen alot, I find.

Well, we now have possession of the new place, and keys - lots and lots of keys.  Figured out what some are for, lot we haven't, and some doors we haven't matched a key to.  Kids are probably painting as I speak, went shopping for bathroom fixtures yesterday, going again today.  Previous owner left a lot of junk, hopefully they got the real estate guy (who has too much going on in his life ATM, poor fellow) to do something about that.

And then on to the tough part, packing and moving all my stuff!
Eggy
member, 32 posts
Mon 4 Nov 2013
at 16:12
  • msg #345

Re: Moving!

I'm moving in to a new space today. The people seem nice and the neighbourhood is friendly. There's a game shop not too far away, but I don't know if it's for board games or rpgs. Looking forward to exploring the town.
Eur512
member, 576 posts
Mon 4 Nov 2013
at 18:12
  • msg #346

Wool

They gave it their best, but a team from Norway was unable to break the current record in sheep-to-sweater knitting (i.e, start with unshorn sheep, then shear, spin, knit, produce finished sweater) currently held by the Australian team, 4 hours 51 minutes.

Not really sure whether this goes with Vents or Good Stuff.  It depends on who you root for in the exciting world of team knitting, I suppose.

For the record, Norway's team finished at a dismal 8 hours and 33 minutes.   Norway's NRK television broadcast the whole thing live, along with 4 hours of knitting-related additional programming.  (NRK is Norway's television network)

And also for the record, about a quarter of Norwegians tuned in.

I guess, from the American point of view, the Good Stuff is this:  although Europeans can still sneer at American culture, when it comes from a Norwegian, we can giggle a little bit.
Eggy
member, 33 posts
Mon 4 Nov 2013
at 18:45
  • msg #347

Re: Wool

I'd say that counts as Good Stuff, Eur512. I'm an American and I'm happy to see the Back to Back Wool Challenge posted somewhere besides my favourite fiber forum. The Australians are still the world record champs, but the Norwegian team was fun to watch. I liked the fun, competitive energy between all of the teams.

Mumbles something about hot dudes shearing sheep.
Doccus
member, 22 posts
Happily GMing since 1979.
Mon 4 Nov 2013
at 19:12
  • msg #348

Re: Wool Is Not a Valid Halloween Costume

I met my wife at a post-Halloween party, November 1st, 1985 :)  We've been having fun together ever since!
This message was lightly edited by the user at 21:17, Mon 04 Nov 2013.
rogar308
member, 646 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Mon 4 Nov 2013
at 21:15
  • msg #349

Re: Wool

Your wife is a sheep?...

Maybe u wanna change the subject before setting yourself up like that. Wish I could party like it was 1985. I am glad you have a fun filled relationship. I think that's good thing.
Doccus
member, 23 posts
Happily GMing since 1979.
Mon 4 Nov 2013
at 21:18
  • msg #350

Re: Wool ... etc.

There ... fixed the Subject line :)

Yeah, we're pretty goofy fun folks.  We embarrass our teenager constantly :)
facemaker329
member, 6041 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 6 Nov 2013
at 08:07
  • msg #351

Well, whaddaya know....

My digital camera stopped working a little over a week ago.  It'd power up, but it normally runs through a zoom test-cycle of sorts when it powers up, and it couldn't run the cycle, so it stopped doing anything at that point and became utterly useless.  Luckily, I had a friend who loaned me her camera to finish the project I was working on (since I wasn't familiar with the settings on her camera, the shots didn't turn out quite as nice as I would have liked...my zoom is better and my camera, despite being considerably cheaper, has better low-light settings than hers...but it worked and I feel like I earned the money I was paid for the project.)

I like my camera, though, but I'm on tight funds, and inherited a persistent do-it-yourself streak from my father, so I decided to take a look and see what was posted online about this particular error...if it was a flaw with this particular model of camera, or this particular brand, etc etc.  The first site I checked out had the standard disclaimer, "The BEST solution is to take it to a professional and have it cleaned," but, as stated, tight funds and all, so I kept reading...

And I kept coming across references to an 'old telephone fix' that didn't make any sense, but apparently was very effective, because every other comment on the forum was about how the 'telephone fix' had worked for their camera.

Finally found what it was.  I do NOT recommend this unless you're at the point where you're prepared to replace the camera if it doesn't work, because, well...you'll see.

The 'telephone fix' is, basically, smacking the camera against a solid object, like a book, or a counter, or your thigh.  Smack it a couple of times, power it up...if it doesn't work, power it down and smack it again.  Since I bought the camera off eBay a couple of years ago, as a refurbished model, I didn't feel like I had THAT much to lose...

Welcome to the Han Solo School of Repair...which does actually work on things other than aging YT-1300 transports.  I've temporarily fixed ignition switches in two cars, a stubborn headlight switch in a third, a stubborn starter motor in two others...and a digital camera.  Now I just need to figure out why it was sticking and make sure it doesn't do it again...
rogar308
member, 648 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Wed 6 Nov 2013
at 14:06
  • msg #352

Re: Well, whaddaya know....

Sounds like you need a Wookie technician... :P
habsin4
member, 642 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Thu 14 Nov 2013
at 15:55
  • msg #353

Re: Well, whaddaya know....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v..._ZaiJNRg&index=3

Awesome poem by Shane Koyczan.
Evil Empryss
member, 818 posts
One bad GM away
from losing my mind
Fri 15 Nov 2013
at 04:08
  • msg #354

Re: Well, whaddaya know....

My new dog is Moon Moon.

  • He slides off the sofa while sleeping.
  • He faceplants  while running in the backyard (my other dog is partially to blame, bodyslamming him and sweeping his legs out from under him as he runs past).
  • He can't figure out how to catch--he just watches as treats and toys alike arc toward his face and bounce off his nose.
  • He barks and growls with his hackles puffed up at plywood cutouts of german shepherds!



I love him and I hope he smartens up enough for me to train him as my service dog, but if he doesn't I'll still love him for being a big lovable bag of duh.
facemaker329
member, 6062 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 15 Nov 2013
at 06:14
  • msg #355

Re: Well, whaddaya know....

You had me at 'slides off the sofa while sleeping'.  Can't help but love a dog with a quirk like that...:D
Evil Empryss
member, 819 posts
One bad GM away
from losing my mind
Fri 15 Nov 2013
at 08:13
  • msg #356

Re: Well, whaddaya know....

This is how he looks when he does it, head-first onto the floor.  Then he lays there, looking up at everyone laughing at him like he can't figure out how everyone ended up on the ceiling.

http://weknowmemes.com/wp-cont...damnit-moon-moon.jpg

I wish I could get a pic of him, but this is as close as I can get to it.  :-)
ginny
member, 174 posts
Wed 20 Nov 2013
at 03:05
  • msg #357

Re: Well, whaddaya know....

With the holidays quickly approaching, money is tight right now for most everyone I know, including myself.

As my husband and I were stressing over finances and talking about what we were going to do for presents for our children, we both realized at the same time, we bought them brand new bikes last month with his safety bonus.  Now all we have to do is wait to see their happy faces next month when they get them.  No more stressing ^_^
Eggy
member, 47 posts
Thu 28 Nov 2013
at 15:39
  • msg #358

Re: Well, whaddaya know....

Found an Arabic dub of Inuyasha! :) Not the best show, but I feel good about being able to follow the conversations.

ETA: And Lady Oscar/The rose of Versailles!! This is the best day!
This message was last edited by the user at 17:11, Thu 28 Nov 2013.
Evil Empryss
member, 830 posts
One bad GM away
from losing my mind
Thu 28 Nov 2013
at 15:47
  • msg #359

Re: Well, whaddaya know....

The whole house is smells like roast turkey.  Mmmmmmmmm....
PrettyBirdie1
member, 152 posts
Bird-brained
bird lover.
Sun 1 Dec 2013
at 03:25
  • msg #360

Yumm

My wonderful father made a smoked bacon-wrapped turkey for Thanksgiving...

Best. Meal. Ever.
This message was last updated by the user at 03:26, Sun 01 Dec 2013.
ginny
member, 183 posts
Mon 2 Dec 2013
at 14:15
  • msg #361

Re: Yumm

Me:  Im down, Im down.  By the back window.
Receptionist:  Oh, do I need to let you go?
Me:  Huh?  Oh no.  Im playing Black Ops Zombies with my husband.

This is how I started my morning ^_^
facemaker329
member, 6081 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 3 Dec 2013
at 05:49
  • msg #362

Ready or not...

So, tonight is supposed to be the beginning of the first major winter storm of the season here.  Overnight, we will be going from daytime highs in the mid-50s to highs in the mid-20s.  Should have at least a couple of inches of snow, and possibly as much as 6 inches, by the end of the week.

So, why is this in the 'good stuff' section?  Because, for the first time in a long time, I think I'm actually ready for the snow to fall.  Got my snowblower to start up (which was an iffy prospect, considering I didn't have any place to put it over the summer, so it sat on my back porch with some plastic over it), shovel and snow melt are on the front porch.  I'm just tickled that I managed to get the snowblower running (that was the end result of a lot of pulling the starter cord and even taking the cover off to make sure it was getting a good spark.  Put the plug back in and gave another pull and it started...)
Jarodemo
member, 413 posts
Vestibulum nescio latine.
Wed 4 Dec 2013
at 19:42
  • msg #363

Re: Ready or not...

Just got through my Aspie son's nativity play. Went really well and he was fantastic. Last year he got so stressed and upset he blacked out, but this year he was a star, and in front of about 400 people!

Now time to put him to bed and enjoy beer and pizza!
Kyn
member, 8 posts
Wed 4 Dec 2013
at 23:32
  • msg #364

Clear!

My father was declared cancer-free today! One parent cleared, one to go.
Brianna
member, 1781 posts
Sun 8 Dec 2013
at 01:15
  • msg #365

Re: Clear!

Well, we've got everything into the new place.  Can hardly move in the garage, house isn't much better, still no bathroom or laundry room, and the spare room is full of the appliances for those two unfinished rooms, but at least this is one big hurdle down.  Now to work on visualizing my space in the living area, despite the sofa bed (intended for the spare room) in here...
Evil Empryss
member, 861 posts
Potato is my favorite
color of the alphabet
Sun 8 Dec 2013
at 18:28
  • msg #366

Moon Moon Strikes Again

Watching my idiot dog chase a lazer light.  *sigh*  My dog is dumb.
cero1
member, 712 posts
Tue 10 Dec 2013
at 18:39
  • msg #367

Re: Moon Moon Strikes Again

My nan was looking through her collection of Christmas cards to write to people, got me to help and I found a bunch of photos of my mother who died years back, of which I had little left to remember her by, until today ^^

My happy tears are flowing like twin waterfalls!
Eggy
member, 56 posts
Mon 16 Dec 2013
at 09:05
  • msg #368

Re: Moon Moon Strikes Again

I procrastinated so hard this weekend. I put off the portion of my homework that I was dreading the most until the morning it was due. Then I finally cleaned up my desk, brewed my favourite tea and got to work. I finished the assignment before I finished the tea.

Good news: I'm getting better at this class.

Not so good news: I wasted my weekend with guilt! No more procrastinating! until next time.
This message was last edited by the user at 09:30, Mon 16 Dec 2013.
Brianna
member, 1783 posts
Tue 17 Dec 2013
at 15:14
  • msg #369

Re: Moon Moon Strikes Again

Follow up to the vent of yesterday - the toilet is now in working order (yay, one toilet for six people was just too awful to contemplate), and the sink is a possibility (otherwise my kitchen sink is going to be very busy), apparently the tub isn't going to be fully functional until later (OK, since bathing will be dependent on the capacity of the water heater anyway), and we are all back into our own beds.  Sofa bed is a sofa again, but still in the living room, somehow we have to get it into the spare room, which is still occupied by many tools, our closet doors, a collection of mirrors, and especially a full-sized washer and dryer.
facemaker329
member, 6101 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 18 Dec 2013
at 07:58
  • msg #370

Re: Moon Moon Strikes Again

So, a friend and I have a script we're hoping to shoot sometime soon...started out with him saying that he wanted to do a short film without any dialogue (not a silent movie...just the whole story is told visually, no words spoken).  I was intrigued by the notion, sat down after visiting him one weekend...and banged out a script (of sorts).

We've got cameras covered (shooting digitally, he and another mutual friend of ours have nice DSLRs that shoot some really nice HD footage), got most of the costumes and props covered and know people we can hit up for the rest, and can probably scare up enough friends with acting chops to cast it (one of the benefits of working in entertainment...)

Our big obstacle?  Location.  It's hard to find a place that looks right for the time period we're after...it's even harder to find one where the owners aren't asking fees that would require you to mortgage your major organs (we both thought of one particular building we knew of for the interior shots...the owners want $600/4 hours, and there are enough different shots and set ups that I doubt we could finish all the interior work in 4 hours...but that's the shortest time increment they'll negotiate for).  So, we've been on hold, for several months.

Started looking around the State Film Commission website and stumbled across a couple of options...and he just emailed me to report that he'd gone to visit his mom this weekend and had seen a place under construction (thus far, five buildings done and one still in progress)...he had no idea what it was for, or what they'd charge to use it.  So, next week, during Christmas break, we may be road-tripping down to where he saw it (and, possibly, the other place I saw, as well...unless they wind up being one and the same).

So...at the risk of jinxing the whole thing, I'm cautiously optimistic.  I'm even more optimistic because one of the new contacts I've come up with this past year is a guy who does a lot of publicity stuff for a major film festival...while I'd like us to handle this on our own, if it comes to that point, this guy should be able to find anything suitable and possibly even pull some strings to get us a better rate if needed.

It'd be nice to shoot something that ISN'T a fan-film (they're fun and all...but it's different when the story is purely your creation, y'know?)
Brianna
member, 1786 posts
Thu 19 Dec 2013
at 19:47
  • msg #371

Re: Moon Moon Strikes Again

Progess!  We now have a functional two piece bath on our level, the washer and dryer are gone to a new home, the workers expect to have their stuff out of the spare room tomorrow, so Saturday we should be able to clean and set up that room for the guests who are already in this country today, and will be coming here on Sunday.  The painting in the laundry room should be done tomorrow, the floor there is going in Monday (good not only for that room, but because the flooring is currently a large roll in the road in the hall), so the laundry room is well on the way too.  Don't know about the bathtub, apparently it will take a crowd to level it, it will have to be moved out, levelled for the floor where it's sitting, moved back and measured to determine the difference in levelling for where it belongs, rinse, repeat, until it is level where it belongs.  The wall around it has to be tiled, and we need to get things like towel bars etc.  Somehow doubt a lot of this will happen over Christmas, we will see.
Evil Empryss
member, 869 posts
Potato is my favorite
color of the alphabet
Sun 22 Dec 2013
at 03:17
  • msg #372

Re: Moon Moon Strikes Again

Having a rough time due to family troubles, but right now I'm watching my dog stalk a stink bug that got into the house. The singleminded intensity with which he's focusing on herding it is distractingly entertaining.

Sometimes it's the little things in life....
This message was last edited by the user at 03:17, Sun 22 Dec 2013.
facemaker329
member, 6114 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 22 Dec 2013
at 06:24
  • msg #373

Re: Moon Moon Strikes Again

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 372):

MOST of the time, it's the little things in life...*grin*
ginny
member, 185 posts
Wed 25 Dec 2013
at 05:02
  • msg #374

Re: Moon Moon Strikes Again

Spent this afternoon playing D&D 2nd edition with our 11 and 7 year old daughters.  It was really nice RPing with the family on Christmas Eve, and they both did pretty good in their first battle together :)
PrettyBirdie1
member, 184 posts
Bird-brained
bird lover.
Wed 25 Dec 2013
at 05:27
  • msg #375

Merry Christmas!

I'm sure there's going to be lots of posts here in the next several hours... ^^

Merry Christmas to all.



My good thing? I had a wonderful time with my family making a gingerbread house together. Hilarity ensued, of course, but it was certainly a lot of fun.
facemaker329
member, 6128 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 26 Dec 2013
at 11:13
  • msg #376

Re: Merry Christmas!

Absolutely made my friend's Christmas this year...I mean, he'd already gotten some cool stuff, but...

He's a junior high science teacher, and has always been fascinated with the early years of the space program.  And when my mom decided to sell her house, and we cleaned out the attic, there were a bunch of old Life magazines up there...so, he's got the Life magazine issues that talk about the Apollo XI, XII, and XIII missions, plus I got him a copy of 'The Right Stuff' and 'From Earth To The Moon' (it's a Tom Hanks-narrated documentary series about the early space program).

If there's anyone I know who could truly appreciate those items, it's him.
Rez
member, 1791 posts
Whatever
Revetahw
Thu 26 Dec 2013
at 11:35
  • msg #377

Re: Merry Christmas!

32" Flatscreen TV and a Kurig.

Nice. :)
DarkwindStriker
member, 588 posts
Better known in many
places as Gatewalker.
Thu 26 Dec 2013
at 16:46
  • msg #378

Re: Merry Christmas!

Someone else did the Christmas dinner dishes after I cooked, *without me even needing to ask*.
Evil Empryss
member, 882 posts
Potato is my favorite
color of the alphabet
Sat 28 Dec 2013
at 10:14
  • msg #379

Re: Merry Christmas!

For Christmas I gave my sister (an RN with a masters in History) a microscope from the 1920s, complete with its wooden storage box and the original instructions and dated purchase invoice, and she hasn't stopped talking about how cool it is.

I won Christmas this year.  :)
Evil Empryss
member, 883 posts
Potato is my favorite
color of the alphabet
Sat 28 Dec 2013
at 15:25
  • msg #380

Re: Merry Christmas!

Dogs are playing out back.  It was cold last night, so their water dish froze over.  I pulled the ice out and dropped it on the deck because my new dog (nicknamed Moon Moon) likes to chew on the ice.

He likes it so much that now he's trying to save it for later by burying it.

Laughter is good for the soul, and I'm laughing my apple off ever since I got this knucklehead from the shelter.
adrasteia1
member, 1437 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Sat 28 Dec 2013
at 17:41
  • msg #381

Re: Merry Christmas!

That's really great.. and cute, that he was trying to bury the ice. :)
facemaker329
member, 6132 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sat 28 Dec 2013
at 20:13
  • msg #382

Re: Merry Christmas!

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 380):

The more I hear about your dog, the more I love him...
ShadoPrism
member, 313 posts
Insane and loving it
Sat 28 Dec 2013
at 22:25
  • msg #383

Re: Merry Christmas!

Our dog loves ice to. We did the same thing, he spent hours trying to break it up and carried around chunks of ice almost wider than his mouth for a while.
It's so cold here that the ice is only barely melting and will refreeze tonight. Meaning he will have hours more fun with it tomorrow.
(he does not bury things though, he is more the type to leave something in one spot so he can find it later. Confuses the heck out of him when we move his toys.)
facemaker329
member, 6138 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 2 Jan 2014
at 08:38
  • msg #384

Re: Merry Christmas!

This will hopefully be just the first of a few of these that will be related to each other.  Got introduced to the Rock Band games this year, back on Thanksgiving, and enjoyed it enough that I decided I'd like to pick it up for myself (which is saying something, because I don't have ANY gaming consoles and only a scant handful of PC games).  I was thinking about getting it before Christmas...but when I started looking around, initially, the cost was putting it out of the question.  Not only did I need the game, I needed the instruments AND the actual console.

Then, just before Christmas Eve, I found out that GameStop had used Wii consoles available (which was the console I wanted, anyway...) for about $70.  And just a couple of days after Christmas, I found someone selling both the first two Rock Band games, AND all the instruments on eBay...and (I guess because it was after Christmas and people were either broke or tired of buying stuff) nobody was bidding on it.  So I did.

Don't have the Wii yet (I can afford it, but I'll probably wait until I get my first paychecks of the year), but the instruments and game discs are on their way.

I get the feeling I'm gonna waste a whole lotta time in the evenings this year...
Eggy
member, 65 posts
Thu 2 Jan 2014
at 17:03
  • msg #385

Lost and Found

I just got my wallet back. I throught I'd lost it 20 minutes ago at a train station. Someone turned it in to a train station attendant. The attendant called me. I am so relieved. :D
Silverlock
member, 79 posts
Fri 3 Jan 2014
at 06:43
  • msg #386

Re: Snow Day

Ha, in over 10 years of being essential personnel and having to report to work on time in conditions that would intimidate the most intrepid, I am scheduled OFF on the first blizzard of 2014 !  Of course I had two doctor's appts to make today, bet they're cancelled, but I have a whole day to clear out snow and get about town for errands.  Yes, I was nice enough to let my coworkers borrow my camping gear at work so they can sleep over.  And yes, I have the essential worker card so I can travel around without difficulty from overzealous law enforcement should I wish to do so.  Spouse on other hand will lose a day's pay for not reporting to work but at least we're both home for a change.  I shall now settle in for another winter's nap as the first one was brought on by stiff celebratory eggnog, and see how much more snow falls between now and when I next wake up.

edit: 8 inches of snow.  Still falling.  La la la.
This message was last edited by the user at 13:00, Fri 03 Jan 2014.
Wyrm
member, 417 posts
Mon 6 Jan 2014
at 18:12
  • msg #387

Re: Snow Day

Found a sealed package of bacon in the parking lot as I was coming out of the store. The Good stuff too. My inner rabbi is willing to think it is a gift from God after all.
facemaker329
member, 6156 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 7 Jan 2014
at 10:53
  • msg #388

Re: Snow Day

Two good bits of news this evening...the bird that I thought was at death's door is recovering.  Where even a couple of days ago he was having a hard time moving around his cage without flopping over on his side or stumbling crazily into everything, he's now eating...A LOT, for him, about three times what he normally eats in a day and scattering a lot less of it than normal around his cage in the process...walking almost normally, and is even feeling spry enough to start cooing at people again.

And I've found a location for the short film I'm hoping to shoot.  I'm not sure how affordable it will be...Sundance is a popular place and that usually means lotsa money to rent space.  However, we'll be shooting during their off-season...and there's a chance that a place with such strong ties to a film festival will cut a couple of indie film-makers a break on prices for something like that.  But there IS a place that will do the job.  My nephew also gave me a line on a possible option that isn't as nice as the Sundance place...but it's also bound to be a lot cheaper, and not-as-nice lends itself to the film.  It's also local to the guy I'm working with on the film (it was actually his idea that inspired me to write the story), which means less time on the road for all involved.

I'm starting to think this thing might actually happen...and that excites me in a way that not much else has in a long time.
PrettyBirdie1
member, 196 posts
Bird-brained
bird lover.
Wed 8 Jan 2014
at 18:20
  • msg #389

Re: Snow Day

Neat! What kind of bird do you have?
facemaker329
member, 6162 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 8 Jan 2014
at 18:31
  • msg #390

Re: Snow Day

*grin*  It's a pigeon (or, as one of my friends who spent time in NYC calls them, a rat with wings).  I found him in my driveway in early 2006 with a broken wing, took him to a vet who called the breeder, who said he didn't have money to patch up a broken bird when he had so many others...the vet said they could put the bird down or I could take him.

I've got a friend who used to be a vet tech, and who has an uncanny instinct for animals, so I took him.  He's never been able to fly very far since then (a couple of laps around the room), but the vet said the odds were high he'd never fly at all again, so he's already ahead of the game.
PrettyBirdie1
member, 197 posts
Bird-brained
bird lover.
Wed 8 Jan 2014
at 19:03
  • msg #391

Re: Snow Day

That's so cool. ^^
You said he came from a breeder, is he a messenger or is it more for bloodline?
facemaker329
member, 6164 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 8 Jan 2014
at 19:19
  • msg #392

Re: Snow Day

I think he was being raised as a racing pigeon, but I don't know.  I never talked to the guy, it was just the vet talking to him while I was standing there watching the bird.  If he'd been a 'wild' pigeon, I might have left him there and shrugged it off as nature running its course...but when he moved, I saw the band on his leg, and that kinda sealed it.
PrettyBirdie1
member, 198 posts
Bird-brained
bird lover.
Wed 8 Jan 2014
at 19:46
  • msg #393

Re: Snow Day

That's awesome. I wish I could raise pigeons, but that might interfere with my plans to be a raptor rehabilitator. XD


Oh, right! My good thing! This year I get to go to the Texas Hawking Association field meet! :D
facemaker329
member, 6165 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 8 Jan 2014
at 19:54
  • msg #394

Re: Snow Day

That's awesome...I've long entertained the notion of getting into falconry or raptor rehab, but in my current living situation, it's just not an option (I think my landlord...and the city...might take exception to me making a raptor enclosure behind my fourplex.  I think my neighbors would just look at it and go, 'huh...wonder what he's into now?')

Birds are on the short list of pets that are allowed in the apartments here.  It's basically birds, or fish, and fish don't make noise to greet you when you walk in the front door.  *grin*  He IS messy, though...
Shiv
member, 201 posts
Wed 8 Jan 2014
at 21:13
  • msg #395

Re: Snow Day

facemaker329:
I think my landlord...and the city...might take exception to me making a raptor enclosure behind my fourplex.


This statement is much funnier if you think of raptors as carnivorous dinosaurs instead of birds.
Eur512
member, 600 posts
Wed 8 Jan 2014
at 21:18
  • msg #396

Re: Snow Day

Shiv:
This statement is much funnier if you think of raptors as carnivorous dinosaurs instead of birds.


Or this.

Well, it IS a Raptor Enclosure.

http://img.posterlounge.de/ima...-air-base-297723.jpg
ginny
member, 202 posts
Thu 9 Jan 2014
at 23:21
  • msg #397

Re: Snow Day

In reply to Eur512 (msg # 396):

My seven year old's homework asked what the opposite of young is?

Hubby: Meme....
Daughter: Old!
FrozenMonkey
member, 9 posts
Mon 20 Jan 2014
at 05:33
  • msg #398

Wow

With my luck, I'm usually the last to find Good Things so I tend to spot the darkness first, but today?

She said Yes.
Dottie_V
member, 92 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Wed 5 Feb 2014
at 23:39
  • msg #399

Re: Wow

Finding blood pressures is getting easier now! ^_^ Now I just have to work on pulse and respiration and I'll have vitals check down. Yay!
Evil Empryss
member, 926 posts
Rocky Mountain Oysters
The Original Sack Lunch
Mon 10 Feb 2014
at 16:27
  • msg #400

Re: Wow

I am such a geek that I about died when I saw the sign for this business:

Schrodinger's Funeral Services

Don't ask about what's in the box!
Jarodemo
member, 458 posts
Vestibulum nescio latine.
Thu 20 Feb 2014
at 12:08
  • msg #401

Re: Wow

Just found every single Lone Wolf adventure book in Ebook format... free to download!!!

Happy as a pig in poo!
cero1
member, 916 posts
Thu 27 Feb 2014
at 16:06
  • msg #402

Re: Wow

http://www.comicvine.com/artic...-series/1100-148205/

Perfect, just perfect ^^

I know it's probably timed to go with the movie and it's all marketing... But this puts a genuine smile on my face :)
brother_1
member, 127 posts
Knowing is 1/2 the battle
the other 1/2 is violence
Thu 27 Feb 2014
at 16:40
  • msg #403

Re: Wow

Just one semester left.  Just one.
Dottie_V
member, 95 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Fri 28 Feb 2014
at 19:15
  • msg #404

Yay!

I successfully completed the CNA training program, survived the week of clinicals with the most antagonizing instructor ever, got two letters of recommendation, and I even made three new friends!

I'm kinda happy ^____^;
facemaker329
member, 6290 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 28 Feb 2014
at 19:20
  • msg #405

Re: Yay!

Found a new, relatively healthy snack that's easy to do...

Peanut butter on dehydrated apple slices.  I think I'm becoming mildly addicted...
ShadoPrism
member, 409 posts
Insane and loving it
Fri 28 Feb 2014
at 19:53
  • msg #406

Re: Yay!

In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 405):

I like Cream Cheese myself - Philadelphia low fat preferably (on multigrain crackers is a plus to).
Dottie_V
member, 96 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Sun 2 Mar 2014
at 05:52
  • msg #407

Re: Yay!

Found two Flash Comics at the thrift store from '87 and '88, both in pretty good condition. One of them even had a back cover ad for Dungeons and Dragons.

Nice way to start a comic collection, I suppose. ^__^
ginny
member, 216 posts
Tue 11 Mar 2014
at 19:07
  • msg #408

Re: Yay!

Woke up to both my girls getting ready for school with no problems and 'Happy birthday Mom!'.  Spent the morning with my mom at the casino, had a blast.  Then we had lunch with my husband and an old friend of the family, picked the kids up early from school to spend the afternoon together as a family.

It truly has been a happy birthday ^_^
rogar308
member, 795 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Tue 11 Mar 2014
at 19:40
  • msg #409

Re: Yay!

Somehow managed to get a bonus and a raise at work! And good timing too since the wall next to our driveway decided to fall over.
Broletariat
member, 136 posts
The Gods come summoned
or not-Jungs office sign
Tue 11 Mar 2014
at 19:46
  • msg #410

Re: Yay!

Dottie_V:
Found two Flash Comics at the thrift store from '87 and '88, both in pretty good condition. One of them even had a back cover ad for Dungeons and Dragons.

Nice way to start a comic collection, I suppose. ^__^


Those D&D ads bring back the smell of 88' and it did have a unique odor, the very root of the word Nostalgia.  Forgive my greek, "Bring Home" + "Pain".  Wonderous.

There was one 80's ad in particular where three boys huddled around the book, and each one looks like they ingested large amounts of LSD forty five minutes earlier and the mere mentioning of the phrase Chaotic/Neutral has blown their minds forever!
Shiv
member, 251 posts
Tue 11 Mar 2014
at 20:01
  • msg #411

Re: Yay!

Dottie_V:
Found two Flash Comics at the thrift store from '87 and '88, both in pretty good condition. One of them even had a back cover ad for Dungeons and Dragons.

Nice way to start a comic collection, I suppose. ^__^


Was it issue number #8 or #17?  I recall that they had adds for the Forgotten Realms Campaign Box Set.

TSR did a lot of marketing with comics back then.  They also did stuff for the Buck Rogers board game.
Silverlock
member, 83 posts
Fri 14 Mar 2014
at 22:01
  • msg #412

Re: Snow Day

In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 394):

Wheeesht, lads and ladies.  Remember that your neighbour can watch your cat, or your dog, but NOT your raptor.  You'll need another falconer to take charge of your bird of prey while you go on holiday, unless you're going to the field meet with her to hunt.   Not to mention you'll need a state permit, a federal permit, and a hunting license in the US of A particularly; as well as an apprenticeship, quarters for the bird, and written documentation of hunting sites for the bird.

And yes, I am a falconer, specifically an austringer, I am owned by a proud Harris hawk.  I have been flying hawks to hunt for 27 years.  Glad to hear your pigeon's doing better, Facemaker - they don't live but about six-ten years so you are giving that bird excellent care !
FrozenMonkey
member, 13 posts
Sat 15 Mar 2014
at 05:23
  • msg #413

Re: Snow Day

After twelve and a half long hours of surgery plus almost four of prep, the doc advises they managed to excise the cancerous section of my brother's esophagus and repair at least the majority of the damage caused by all the radiation.

Long, long day finally over.
facemaker329
member, 6315 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sat 15 Mar 2014
at 06:53
  • msg #414

Re: Snow Day

In reply to Silverlock (msg # 412):

He actually ended up not making it...but if they only live 6-10 years, I don't feel quite so bad about him not making it, considering I had him for almost eight.  The one book I found about pigeons led me to believe they had a considerably longer lifespan (that part of the book wasn't terribly helpful to me, but the part that talked about pigeon behavior?  That made a huge difference in how Edgar and I got along...)

I used to entertain notions of getting into falconry...and still may, at some point, if my living circumstances ever get to the point of making that a practical option.  I have a couple of friends who have, through the years, not been falconers, necessarily, but have been rehab specialists for birds of prey that ended up being brought into vet clinics in the area.
Brygun
member, 1941 posts
RPG since 1982
Author, Developer
Sun 16 Mar 2014
at 15:59
  • msg #415

Re: Snow Day

WOOOOOOOO!!!!

My game just hit 10,000 posts.

WOOOOO!!!!

Thanks to all the hard work, all the players, some core players from the start still here. All those who came and went.
facemaker329
member, 6316 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 16 Mar 2014
at 17:52
  • msg #416

Re: Snow Day

It's DONE.  The show I've been working on (in the back of my head for most of the the last year, and almost constantly for the last month) is finally over and done and in the history books.  This is both a happy and a sad thing, because there were a lot of really talented kids in this show, who are graduating, and I'm not likely to be working with them again anytime soon.  But I also have my evenings back, and I'm not going to be preoccupied with worrying about whether or not the 3 pigs will look good, or if I'll get the 3 bears' masks done, or how we're going to come up with replacements for the missing ogre ears that were supposed to come with our rental package.

It was a spectacularly successful show, however, both in terms of realizing an artistic vision (on several fronts) and in terms of ticket sales (I've been helping with shows at this school for a decade, now, and this was hands-down THE best-selling show of the lot...)  I'm very satisfied to have had my name associated with this production (I always am, but considering I went into this one being utterly unimpressed with the show's script and the one other production of it I saw, coming out of this able to say, "Yeah, that's right...I was part of that show!" is particularly noteworthy, to me.)
ginny
member, 221 posts
Tue 18 Mar 2014
at 15:37
  • msg #417

Re: Snow Day

I did it!  I finally got up to my ideal weight of 110 pounds. Its been a long time since I've been at a healthy weight.  Yay me!  ^_^
Eggy
member, 123 posts
Tue 25 Mar 2014
at 01:44
  • msg #418

Re: Snow Day

Thai food delivery! :)
Eggy
member, 124 posts
Wed 26 Mar 2014
at 01:50
  • msg #419

Re: Snow Day

It's Tuesday! RuPaul's Drag Race Snatch Game Episode is online tonight.
ginny
member, 224 posts
Wed 26 Mar 2014
at 11:10
  • msg #420

Re: Snow Day

Was supposed to get 4-8 inches of snow by dawn today.  Woke up to no new snowfall!  ^_^  Maybe spring is coming after all :)
Dottie_V
member, 99 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Sat 29 Mar 2014
at 00:00
  • msg #421

Re: Snow Day

I haven't heard from my friend in almost a whole year and she called me today to tell me that she's going to have a baby!! It was wonderful and I almost cried.

I am going to make so many baby clothes and blankets for this kid, like wow. I knew today was going to be awesome.

YAY!
Genghis the Hutt
member, 2040 posts
Just an average guy :)
Sat 29 Mar 2014
at 17:14
  • msg #422

Re: Snow Day

We had some snow here on Wednesday.  This weekend it broke into the 60's.  On Wednesday it's projected to snow again.
facemaker329
member, 6329 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 30 Mar 2014
at 19:30
  • msg #423

Re: Snow Day

Heh...we're on the opposite end of that, here...it was in the 60's yesterday, it's currently snowing harder than I've seen it snow since January.  The amusement park where I work officially opened for the season (weekends only) yesterday.  Supposed to be back in the 60's in a day or two.  Springtime in Northern Utah...*laugh*

(I'd be upset about this, except for a couple of things...first, it happens EVERY year, so it's not that noteworthy to me.  Second, we were looking at very grim predictions of a drought this summer, so a storm that's going to lay a bunch of snowpack in the mountains right now is a VERY GOOD THING...no matter who may complain about it.)
facemaker329
member, 6343 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 8 Apr 2014
at 06:58
  • msg #424

Re: Snow Day

I just have to say, I have AWESOME friends.  The clutch on my car died a couple of weeks ago.  One friend loaned me his extra car (which I'm going to see about buying, because it gets awesome gas mileage and it's fun to drive), another friend drove 40 miles to load my car in a trailer and take it back to his very well-equipped garage, and worked on it with me until midnight on three different nights, despite the fact that he had to get up at 4 am to get ready for work.

Car's fixed...I just have to figure out how to get it from his place back to mine.  Given the kinds of friends I have, I'm pretty sure that's not going to be much trouble.
Sithraider
member, 42 posts
The dead, they walk!
16 in the clip...
Tue 8 Apr 2014
at 07:30
  • msg #425

Re: Snow Day

Count those friends every night Ron. They are truly the ones worth keeping. I have a few just like that. I thank the maker every time I can for them.

Sorry to hear about the car trouble. I had to drop a few too many grand on my ford diesel last year. So I feel the vehicle woes. I hope everything works out

~cheers
Misty Reynolds
member, 121 posts
Life is deadly. So am I,
but only when crossed.
Tue 8 Apr 2014
at 12:14
  • msg #426

Re: Snow Day

In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 424):

Friends help you move.  Real friends help you move bodies.
ginny
member, 229 posts
Tue 8 Apr 2014
at 12:16
  • msg #427

Re: Snow Day

Misty Reynolds:
In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 424):

Friends help you move.  Real friends help you move bodies.


Those are the best friends to have :-)

On another note, its not snowing :-)
Shei-kun
member, 804 posts
A Giant Shei draws near!
Fight-Magic-Item-Flee
Sat 19 Apr 2014
at 05:16
  • msg #428

Welp

My 3DS was located.

Also, a learning experience with how to recover content purchased via the Nintendo eShop was also had by me.  Of which there appears to be none from what I could see.

So, bullet dodged.
Dottie_V
member, 102 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Tue 22 Apr 2014
at 19:07
  • msg #429

Re: Welp

I passed both parts of my CNA state licensing exam and all of my skills were easy. ^__^
Verisimilitude
member, 15 posts
Tue 22 Apr 2014
at 19:40
  • msg #430

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to Alexei Yaruk-Mundhenk (msg # 5):

Muy bueno - very good - if I recall my espanol correctly
Dottie_V
member, 104 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Wed 14 May 2014
at 00:52
  • msg #431

Re: More good stuff.

Got my first job interview in less than three weeks of getting my license. I was starting to get worried, lol.

Also, two older ladies offered to buy the shawl I was working on while I was in the waiting room for physical therapy.

Oh that reminds me, therapy is going well too!

Things seem to be looking up now, thankfully.


I GOT THE JOB!!
This message was last edited by the user at 16:16, Thu 22 May 2014.
bobbofeet
member, 160 posts
Mon 2 Jun 2014
at 17:52
  • msg #432

Re: More good stuff.

Yay, Dottie! Hope it's going well!

Best. Wedding. Ever.  Married off my daughter and had a top 5 day of a lifetime.  My heart is so full, still two days later.

Brought the entire reception to tears during the father-daughter dance.
Eggy
member, 198 posts
Tue 3 Jun 2014
at 21:58
  • msg #433

Re: Yay!

Finished an oral exam today. Grades get posted on Friday, but I've got the inkling that I aced it. Written exam is tomorrow and I'm feeling pretty confident.
st_nougat
member, 339 posts
Wed 4 Jun 2014
at 21:20
  • msg #434

Re: Yay!

My friend won the party nomination in her primary election

Woot
cero1
member, 1107 posts
Mon 9 Jun 2014
at 23:19
  • msg #435

Re: Yay!

Just realised the new MGSV:Phantom Pain trailer is out today and watched it... I don't often get psyched over a video game, but this one... This one I am :)
w byrd
member, 2014 posts
I coudn't think of
a really cool screen name
Tue 10 Jun 2014
at 23:23
  • msg #436

Re: Yay!

Mongoose games accepted some of my work.....
Eggy
member, 213 posts
Wed 11 Jun 2014
at 00:02
  • msg #437

Re: Yay!

In reply to w byrd (msg # 436):

Congrats!
Wyrm
member, 473 posts
Wed 11 Jun 2014
at 00:12
  • msg #438

Re: Yay!

In reply to w byrd (msg # 436):

Seconded!
Dottie_V
member, 110 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Wed 11 Jun 2014
at 01:16
  • msg #439

Re: Yay!

I cashed my first paycheck today and needless to say it's pretty cool not having too worry so much now.
ginny
member, 239 posts
Mon 16 Jun 2014
at 16:44
  • msg #440

Re: Yay!

SUMMMER VACTION!!!!  ^_^

No more alarms set for 6 am for the next two months!  Love it!  ^_^
Misty Reynolds
member, 159 posts
Life is deadly. So am I,
but only when crossed.
Fri 27 Jun 2014
at 13:11
  • msg #441

Re: Yay!

I decided that we needed a family dinner out last night.  We went to our usual family sit down place.  Dinner was great and we decided to splurge on desert.  Our thirteen year old son ordered pumpkin pie with lots of whipped topping.  His first huge bite slipped off of his fork and cascaded down his front leaving a white trail down his red shirt.  He looked down, then back up.  His comment?

"The pie dodged."
Eggy
member, 243 posts
Sat 28 Jun 2014
at 03:56
  • msg #442

Re: Yay!

I went out to buy an inexpensive desk. Just somewhere to put my laptop and some books. I found a yard sale on Craigslist. Came home with an amazing oak, claw-foot sewing table. It's gorgeous. And when I move back home, I'll mount my Rocketeer* on it.

*vintage electric sewing machine, Singer 500A
facemaker329
member, 6403 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 3 Jul 2014
at 07:33
  • msg #443

Re: Yay!

Touring show came to our park last week, and I've been having a grand old time doing a little of everything to help them get it up to speed.  Started out helping hang lights...then, somewhere along the line, someone told the director that I was a scenic artist, as well, and he had a couple of signs he needed made...and they have these wigs that a couple of the performers wear that have sailing ships on top of them, but the ships didn't tolerate traveling in a box well, so I rebuilt those (they were convinced the ships were a total loss...)  Reworked a light-stand prop for them, did some costume alterations, put fabric up to screen off the dressing rooms...helped them trouble-shoot one bit in their show that wasn't working...

When I was in college, my professors all kept pushing me to choose an emphasis so I could hurry up and get my degree...and I couldn't ever decide what I wanted my emphasis to be in, because I enjoyed ALL of it.  It's been a very long, very tiring week to get them open and running...but I feel kinda like a kid locked in a candy-shop after hours...*grin*
cero1
member, 1157 posts
Sat 5 Jul 2014
at 01:23
  • msg #444

Re: Yay!

Random name tables in the Firefly rpg... Have some hidden gems in them, that made me smile ^^

It is possible to randomroll your character to be called depending on where they're from; Hank McCoy, James Bond, Tom Sawyer or Margaret Thatcher...

Now thats a Crew! XD
Cuddly Cthulhu
member, 176 posts
When life gives you
limes, demand lemons.
Sat 5 Jul 2014
at 02:21
  • msg #445

Re: Yay!

The Sailor Moon reboot premiers in eight hours. I'm barely containing myself right now.
Eggy
member, 266 posts
Sat 5 Jul 2014
at 02:22
  • msg #446

Re: Yay!

In reply to Cuddly Cthulhu (msg # 445):

WHAAT?? WHAT CHANNEL??!
Cuddly Cthulhu
member, 177 posts
When life gives you
limes, demand lemons.
Sat 5 Jul 2014
at 02:30
  • msg #447

Re: Yay!

In reply to Eggy (msg # 446):

As far as I know, Hulu and Crunchyroll. The full title is "Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal".
Wyrm
member, 488 posts
Sat 5 Jul 2014
at 03:58
  • msg #448

Re: Yay!

There's just something about hearing a new song on the radio, finding it on youtube, then abuse the replay button on it with headphones turned up.
Eggy
member, 267 posts
Sat 5 Jul 2014
at 15:39
  • msg #449

Re: Yay!

In reply to Cuddly Cthulhu (msg # 447):

Thank you so much for posting this notice! I would have missed it. I was able to gather up all my friends to watch. We had a little Premiere Party. We prepped with the Sailor Moon Movies last night and then started the day with the new show. It was a blast!

I really love The Rose of Versailles and Revolutionary Girl Utena, so I thought it was beautiful.
This message was last edited by the user at 15:55, Sat 05 July 2014.
w byrd
member, 2016 posts
I coudn't think of
a really cool screen name
Sun 6 Jul 2014
at 01:45
  • msg #450

Re: Yay!

Setting out at the Local SCA event...and getting to watch the test firing of the Baronies newest weapon.a BALLISTA!!!! WE HAVE A BALLISTA!!!!!!
Eggy
member, 284 posts
Wed 9 Jul 2014
at 04:14
  • msg #451

Re: Yay!

I found a store with Cinnamon Bears! I will weep tears of sugary joy.
ginny
member, 240 posts
Wed 9 Jul 2014
at 20:01
  • msg #452

Re: Yay!

My cat Oreo has been missing for days.  We left to go camping over the weekend, and when we got home he wasn't there.  Three days of searching and calling the animal shelters in the area, nothing.

Oreo came home just a little while ago!  So happy ^_^
Little_Devil
member, 99 posts
Wed 9 Jul 2014
at 21:41
  • msg #453

Re: Yay!

After a long hard time of saving and now being given the reason to finally move i have! I love my new apartment and I'm glad i made the move, best feeling is a new place. Now to make it my own. :)
facemaker329
member, 6406 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 10 Jul 2014
at 05:57
  • msg #454

Re: Yay!

Time to celebrate the little victories...

For the first time EVER, I finished a round of golf with the same ball I had when I started.  My score was only marginally better than last time, but I normally lose two or three balls each round (I find more than I lose, which makes it difficult for me to get rid of all the crappy old golf balls I inherited with my dad's clubs...but it does save me a chunk of change on golf balls).  So, to go from the first tee to the last hole with the same ball?

I consider that a breakthrough event, of sorts.  I didn't even have to fish it out of a water hazard.
steelsmiter
member, 992 posts
GURPS, FFd6, Pathfinder
NO FREEFORM!
Sat 12 Jul 2014
at 05:01
  • msg #455

Re: Yay!

So Terry Goodkind announced the death of Richard Rahl. I really hope it doesn't turn out to be one of those things like what Zed did to Kahlan. I stopped reading the series at 6 or 7. It was a viscious circle. If it really is over, I'll be glad.
facemaker329
member, 6407 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sat 12 Jul 2014
at 05:34
  • msg #456

Re: Yay!

Put myself out on a limb today and pitched a couple of show ideas for our Halloween season to my boss.  No idea if we'll end up using them or not...but he liked the ideas, and agreed with a lot of what I said about why I opted to use what I did for them.

There's a lot of changes in the works for our department...if I can get myself positioned to be more involved with the creative end of things, so much the better.  I like our current artistic director, as an individual...but sometimes I feel like he's more worried about not doing something wrong than he is about doing something right.  And I feel like he's very often more worried about showing off the vocal abilities of the performers than he is in trying to engage the audience and get them into the show.  If the management shift involves people agreeing with my assessment, I'd be quite happy to have them thinking that I'm a good option to put together something with some solid audience appeal.

Time will tell...but the first move's been made, and if nothing else, my boss knows that I'm interested in doing more than just what they've been having me do for the last decade.  We'll see where it goes from here.
Evil Empryss
member, 1077 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Thu 17 Jul 2014
at 01:38
  • msg #457

Re: Yay!

As I've been stressed out for the last few weeks with getting the family's move arranged, my teen daughter is (as I type) soaking my feet and giving me a pedicure.  This is after she brushed my hair and after the pedicure comes a facial scrub.

I don't know what she wants, but she's going to get it.  :)
Merevel
member, 449 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Thu 17 Jul 2014
at 02:46
  • msg #458

Re: Yay!

My move went well internet is on. And I am getting almost 2.5-3 times the pay.

Now if I could learn to get to sleep earlier rofl!

Um I thought the sword of truth series ended with the big conclusion?
Wyrm
member, 494 posts
Thu 17 Jul 2014
at 12:33
  • msg #459

Re: Yay!

I love radio stations going with internet streaming. Allows me to feel like I am still at home.
Eggy
member, 305 posts
Thu 17 Jul 2014
at 13:49
  • msg #460

Re: Yay!

Weird Al's Tacky. I keep singing along. :)
Brianna
member, 1869 posts
Thu 17 Jul 2014
at 23:11
  • msg #461

Re: Yay!

In reply to Eggy (msg # 460):

I haven't seen Tacky, not sure I know the original video well enough to fully appreciate it, but have you seen Foils?  I think it's pretty funny, and shows that Al isn't a bad singer.
Merevel
member, 454 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Thu 17 Jul 2014
at 23:23
  • msg #462

Re: Yay!

He was never a bad singer, now I am confused @.@
steelsmiter
member, 1028 posts
GURPS, FFd6, Pathfinder
NO FREEFORM!
Thu 17 Jul 2014
at 23:58
  • msg #463

Re: Yay!

Merevel:
Um I thought the sword of truth series ended with the big conclusion?

I would say that Richard Lived On and Terry Goodkind is surely bound to have a reason for advertising his subsequent death other than money grubbing, but the implication sounds somewhat like slander. Basically the Sword of Truth kept repeating the same ol' "Richard loves Kahlan but in order to get back with her he needs bigger magic to fix the big magic he had caused in the last book" and presumably this 'big conclusion' is that he doesn't need to fix any more magic. Chances are though, with him advertising Richard's Death on his facebook page, he probably isn't going that route.

Don't get me wrong, it was still a better love story than Twilight for the first seven or 8 books.
This message was last edited by the user at 23:59, Thu 17 July 2014.
Merevel
member, 455 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Fri 18 Jul 2014
at 00:02
  • msg #464

Re: Yay!

Yeah the last book just... felt... cheap. Till then I was hooked at least?
steelsmiter
member, 1029 posts
GURPS, FFd6, Pathfinder
NO FREEFORM!
Fri 18 Jul 2014
at 00:04
  • msg #465

Re: Yay!

Merevel:
Yeah the last book just... felt... cheap. Till then I was hooked at least?

Oh I got out several books before you then. The last book I read was the one where he made the sculpture.
Merevel
member, 456 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Fri 18 Jul 2014
at 00:39
  • msg #466

Re: Yay!

It got... confusing at points after that. Might be I need to reread em idk. It just felt more and more like he was grasping for straws and easy plot points after that. Some of em I do not remember making much sense. Then again there are some good time gaps between books for me.
Brianna
member, 1870 posts
Fri 18 Jul 2014
at 01:33
  • msg #467

Re: Yay!

In reply to Merevel (msg # 462):

True, but a lot of his parodies don't really showcase his singing IMO.
Eggy
member, 306 posts
Fri 18 Jul 2014
at 01:49
  • msg #468

Re: Yay!

In reply to Brianna (msg # 461):

I have a new favourite! Weird Al's Word Crimes. My English isn't that great and I still think it's funny. It should be be the RPOL Anthem.
Merevel
member, 458 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Fri 18 Jul 2014
at 02:25
  • msg #469

Re: Yay!

I love that song, I through it at people on kong sometimes. Also I learned a couple of new things even though I am native to english lol.
Eggy
member, 329 posts
Sun 27 Jul 2014
at 15:52
  • msg #470

Re: Yay!

Twlight Zone Marathon! Yeah, Baby!
Evil Empryss
member, 1083 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Sun 27 Jul 2014
at 16:15
  • msg #471

Re: Yay!

As I do the final dry wall repair, painting, shoe mould installation, tiling, and electrical for the house to be ready for rental, I'm bopping along to Weird Al's Handy. Yeah, this ones a good album. :-)

And for all that this is ton of work that needs to be done, tomorrow I turn the house over to property managers to take care of renting it out. I'll be out of here and back with the Hubby in our new home.
Talon
member, 339 posts
Sun 27 Jul 2014
at 16:18
  • msg #472

Re: Yay!

The apartment is clean, there are no errands to run for the day, I've actually made leaps and bounds in editing my novel, and I have an afternoon of catching up with over college friends planned via skype and bonding through the shared rage of League of Legends.

Mmm, a good weekend!
HornetCorset
member, 204 posts
Sun 27 Jul 2014
at 23:23
  • msg #473

Re: Yay!

In reply to Eggy (msg # 470):

Crap, I missed it. Twilight Zone is either my #1 or #2 favorite TV show ever (the jury is still out on that one). Of course, that means I have all 5 seasons on DVD. Still, it's not quite the same thing.
Eggy
member, 339 posts
Thu 31 Jul 2014
at 19:16
  • msg #474

Re: Yay!

I found the button that popped off of the Logitech keyboard! It was in the bottom of my backpack.
bigbadron
moderator, 14544 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Thu 31 Jul 2014
at 19:19

Re: Yay!

Serves you right for trying to type inside a backpack.  ;)
Merevel
member, 572 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Thu 31 Jul 2014
at 20:50
  • msg #476

Re: Yay!

I missed a twilight zone marathon... this post belongs in a vent thread lol.
Tileira
member, 369 posts
Fri 1 Aug 2014
at 10:24
  • msg #477

Re: Yay!

Friday cake.
Wyrm
member, 499 posts
Sat 2 Aug 2014
at 04:18
  • msg #478

Re: Yay!

Guardians of the Galaxy
Little_Devil
member, 106 posts
Sat 2 Aug 2014
at 12:11
  • msg #479

Re: Yay!

Watched Guardians of the Galaxy last night and i must say, it had me laughing amongst other things and i left the cinema happy that i chose that film to watch.
Evil Empryss
member, 1095 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Mon 4 Aug 2014
at 13:58
  • msg #480

The Kindness of Strangers

... And of friends.

I started up a page on a donation site to help pay for my dog's surgery and people are already adding money to it. I'm not even sure I know who the first person to donate was, but I'm thankful for every penny that gets me closer to having my old girl taken care of.
cero1
member, 1250 posts
Mon 4 Aug 2014
at 20:29
  • msg #481

Re: The Kindness of Strangers

People are hyping up Guardians of the Galaxy...

Don't get me wrong, I was waiting for the film for a year and a half and its now my fave film going... But I'mma here to say I got my copy of the Awesome Mix, the GotG OST and that really is the best thing going right about now :)

Nostalgia city, I'mma gonna come stay for a little bit ;)
Evil Empryss
member, 1097 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Wed 6 Aug 2014
at 02:32
  • msg #482

Re: The Kindness of Strangers

I found a veterinarian who will perform my dog's surgery for half what the first place wanted to charge!  I still need help, but that means I'm that much closer to getting her fixed up!
bobbofeet
member, 170 posts
Wed 6 Aug 2014
at 20:53
  • msg #483

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

Say what you will about arrogant professional athletes - my family of 5 (2 disabled kids) were able to go to a practice session for our local professional team and were treated like world class citizens.  From the get-go the staff and volunteers were helpful and friendly (making sure that our wheelchair kids didn't have to be carried onto the school buses to the practice facility - they found us a parking space there) to the staff at the practice - helpful and friendly.

My 13-year-old son was excited to pose with the cheerleaders and after the practice several of the players and the head coach came over and greeted my kids and signed their autograph books.

It's kind of nice living in a town where a sports team knows how to treat their fans (and the fact that they just won a Super Bowl is icing on the cake)!
spectre
member, 723 posts
Myriad paths fell
away from that moment....
Wed 6 Aug 2014
at 20:55
  • msg #484

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

Getting married in less than two weeks. Honeymoon in exactly twenty days. I'm really excited!
Genghis the Hutt
member, 2299 posts
Just an average guy :)
Thu 7 Aug 2014
at 00:41
  • msg #485

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

I took a typing test.  I now officially type more than 100wpm (103, corrected down to 102). :D
Brianna
member, 1878 posts
Thu 7 Aug 2014
at 01:19
  • msg #486

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

In reply to Genghis the Hutt (msg # 485):

Wow!  I wonder if my daughter would even believe that.  LOL  Once she was listening to me type, and asked if my output actually made sense; I guess she thought I was just hitting random letters or at least making a lot of mistakes, and I certainly can't come near your speed!
Merevel
member, 618 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Thu 7 Aug 2014
at 01:28
  • msg #487

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

In reply to Genghis the Hutt (msg # 485):

Dang, I think my last check was 60 or so.

I have tomorrow off, good enough reason for me to post here lol.
Genghis the Hutt
member, 2303 posts
Just an average guy :)
Thu 7 Aug 2014
at 04:25
  • msg #488

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

I've been hovering around 90wpm for about a decade now every time I take an "official" test and I was just really happy to finally break the 100wpm barrier.  That really is ridiculously fast -- when I say ridiculously I'm not bragging about how fast it is, I'm saying that it's faster than any typist really needs to be since most people don't really think that fast when they're composing something.  I'd like to someday get up to about 120 wpm so that I can better transcribe what I hear when I have to take detailed notes about what sort of arguments people are bringing forth as they hash out topics during meetings (I also volunteer as secretary for some organizations and keep minutes), but most of the time I'm just summarizing what people say.  As far as regular office work goes, it's faster than a typist really needs to be.
facemaker329
member, 6430 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 7 Aug 2014
at 06:56
  • msg #489

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

Man, I count myself doing well at 45 wpm (and have been to job interviews where they were actually surprised that I could type that fast...although it's been a long time since those interviews and with nearly every home in the nation sporting a computer now, typing is not the rarity that it was when I was first job-hunting in college...)
Merevel
member, 645 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Fri 8 Aug 2014
at 01:44
  • msg #490

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

Fixed my can opener. Apparently a piece was missing.
Eggy
member, 364 posts
Fri 8 Aug 2014
at 02:44
  • msg #491

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

A song came on the radio that I hadn't heard in ages. Lots of good memories. ^_^
Eur512
member, 643 posts
Fri 8 Aug 2014
at 14:07
  • msg #492

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

Got an email from my cable TV provider.

The title was "Info just for you!"

It was the TV schedule.

Since it was "just for me," I gather I am the only person they chose to share this with.  Only Me.  I am The One who knows what's going to be on television tonight.

I am feeling very honored and privileged.
Brianna
member, 1879 posts
Fri 8 Aug 2014
at 18:45
  • msg #493

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

In reply to Eur512 (msg # 492):

LOL The wording was a bit fuzzy, but it didn't actually say exclusively for you.
Merevel
member, 649 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Fri 8 Aug 2014
at 19:39
  • msg #494

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

In reply to Eur512 (msg # 492):

Cool story bro. Changed my life.
Genghis the Hutt
member, 2307 posts
Just an average guy :)
Sat 9 Aug 2014
at 02:41
  • msg #495

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

Yes, Merevel, now you know who to ask for the schedule! :)
ginny
member, 247 posts
Sat 9 Aug 2014
at 12:11
  • msg #496

Re: Fanstastically Good Stuff

It is 8 am and I have four 8 year old girls all up, fed and ready to start the day.  My daughter had her first slumber party last night with three of her friends.  Im half awake and getting breakfast for them, they all want something different of course, and I hear one of them say 'This is the best slumber party ever.'

Aww, I think I'll keep that one :)
Eggy
member, 367 posts
Sat 9 Aug 2014
at 13:18
  • msg #497

HA!

There's a series of classes begining next weekend at my community center: How To Avoid Falling In Love With A Jerk.

I've signed up some people I think could use it.
Merevel
member, 656 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Sat 9 Aug 2014
at 18:45
  • msg #498

Re: HA!

Where do I sign up...

On the bright side I have 3 days off next week.
Evil Empryss
member, 1119 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Sun 10 Aug 2014
at 14:58
  • msg #499

Re: HA!

I'm in the final stages of an interstate move and I bought an enclosed utility trailer to help with the odd and ends. Unfortunately, its roof leaks, so I have a big tarp tied to it.  We started to load the trailer this morning and my sister forgot that it wasn't connected to my Jeep. When she stepped on the back it tipped....

It has been raining buckets here and when the thing tipped, she fell to the ground and the rainwater dumped on her in a total deluge.

I held back laughing my apple off long enough to find out if she was hurt. We're still laughing!
Merevel
member, 687 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Sat 16 Aug 2014
at 00:57
  • msg #500

Re: <3

I have my boys for the weekend <3
Evil Empryss
member, 1131 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Sun 17 Aug 2014
at 23:00
  • msg #501

Re: <3

In the ER because I passed out, but there's a silver lining: this is the best ER I've ever been to. It's clean, well-staffed, and the staff is cheerful and efficient. Since I just moved from a different state it's nice to know I at least have this to fall back on if I need medical attention.
Shei-kun
member, 808 posts
A Giant Shei draws near!
Fight-Magic-Item-Flee
Mon 18 Aug 2014
at 11:48
  • msg #502

Mabel Pines would make a great Avatar

Friends have allowed me to watch all of Gravity Falls to date as well as the first season/book of Avatar: The Last Airbender, with more to come.

Life is good.
w byrd
member, 2031 posts
I coudn't think of
a really cool screen name
Fri 22 Aug 2014
at 21:19
  • msg #503

Re: Mabel Pines would make a great Avatar

Signed contract with Mongoose publishing  :D

I iz gonna get published..as soon as I finish the thing, get it proofread, rewrite it a dozen more times and satisfy my publisher....geesh maybe this part ought to be over in vents....
facemaker329
member, 6437 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 22 Aug 2014
at 23:42
  • msg #504

Re: Making headway...

Some friends and I have started making short films...it started out as wanting to make a fan film for the Star Trek club they're in.  Learned a lot from the first one, turned around and did a second one...

Which is being screened as part of the film festival at the Salt Lake City ComicCon next month.  I know the guy who's in charge of the festival...if he felt our project was good enough to take a look at (even as a fan-film at a ComicCon), we did something right, because he's VERY picky about film and movies.

We're already starting to talk about a third one...that will lay the foundation for an on-going series of them, some of which will cross-over into fan films for some of the other Trek clubs in the region (because they've been helping us with ours), and we've also got basic scripts put together for two short films that are NOT fan films...

This is nice, for me, because I'm one of those 'easily bored with the same old thing' personalities and lately, more and more of my theatre work is starting to feel like 'the same old thing'. So, finding a new outlet for those creative impulses is a good thing.  Having them validated by a third party with no vested interest in our work?

That feels REALLY good.  Can't wait until it's screened...want to see if the audience has anywhere near as much fun watching it as we did making it.
spectre
member, 731 posts
Myriad paths fell
away from that moment....
Fri 22 Aug 2014
at 23:49
  • msg #505

To New Chapters...

Getting married tomorrow to my best friend.
ginny
member, 252 posts
Sat 23 Aug 2014
at 15:01
  • msg #506

Re: To New Chapters...

My husband was hit by a car while riding his bike to work yesterday.  What's the good news?  He is home safe and alive with his family today.  :)
PsychoJester
member, 388 posts
Why so serious?
Gaymer
Sun 24 Aug 2014
at 07:09
  • msg #507

Re: To New Chapters...

Just got all 5 of 5FDP's albums! So. Much. Metal! |,,| >_< |,,|
pyrosorc
member, 54 posts
GM and player
Exalted specialist
Tue 26 Aug 2014
at 13:26
  • msg #508

Re: To New Chapters...

Just got a 1st (to the exact mark!) on my course for this year :)
Evil Empryss
member, 1132 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Fri 29 Aug 2014
at 03:36
  • msg #509

Re: To New Chapters...

I've had a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles costume pattern from the 90s that I bought on a whim a decade ago dirt cheap as part of a lot of patterns and have just had sitting in my pattern collection since.  I put it up for auction and it's already almost $40.

As with all collectibles, timing is everything.  Thank you Paramount for releasing the new movie right before Halloween costume season begins!
facemaker329
member, 6443 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 1 Sep 2014
at 07:44
  • msg #510

Re: To New Chapters...

This is a simple thing...and could almost as easily have been a minor vent.  But for whatever reason, I'm happy about it, rather than annoyed...

I just realized, earlier today, that I've been inadvertently lying to people about my age for several months, now.  I've been telling people for a while that I was 47...

A few weeks ago, I started having some nagging doubts about that, because the math didn't work out for the class reunion I'll be having in a couple of years...if my age calculations had been right, it would have meant I graduated high school at 19...and that just isn't the case.

Then, at work this afternoon, I realized that I was born in an even-numbered year...and this was an even-numbered year...which meant that my age had to be an even number for the math to work.  Call it an extended senior moment, or a months-long brain fart, I guess...but just to make sure I wasn't wrong, I counted again.  On my fingers.

46, not 47.  Not that it matters all that much...I tell people that you're only as old as you let yourself feel, which means, on any given day, I'm actually somewhere between 14 and 85...but most consistently, hover around my late 20's or early 30's.  But, still...not only do I not look as old as I really am, I'm also not as old as I thought.
facemaker329
member, 6445 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 4 Sep 2014
at 07:14
  • msg #511

Faith rewarded...

So, as per the vent I posted yesterday, some costume armor I made for someone wasn't going to be able to be paid for, because the guy was out of work.  But I told him, since he'd paid an advance on it (for materials) and it was made specifically for him, I'd hang onto the armor for a while and give him a chance to come up with the money fr it.

Got an email from him earlier today...he managed to come up with the remaining balance due on it.  That means that the vacation I'm taking later this month to Vegas, with some friends, isn't going to be as lean as I thought it was going to be (I was already going to be able to afford it, thanks to another job I did last month...but this just pads things a little bit so I'm not holding my breath every time someone says, "Where should we eat tonight?")

Pretty sure if I'd been a jerk about it, he wouldn't have bothered trying to get the money lined up right away.  And it's nice to have someone who's actually concerned enough about getting their costume that they're willing to come back after I said 'sorry, but I've been burned too many times by people who said they'd pay me later if I gave them the costume now.'  I have...if I totalled up all the costume projects I've done that I was supposed to get paid for and never did, I'm pretty sure I'd have at least $400-$500 in delinquent accounts.  Made me very leery of the phrase, "I'll pay you next time I see you..."

But this autumn just got a lot brighter for me...
Merevel
member, 755 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Thu 4 Sep 2014
at 21:10
  • msg #512

Re: Faith rewarded...

My kids are with me :-)
Eggy
member, 400 posts
Thu 11 Sep 2014
at 02:20
  • msg #513

Re: Faith rewarded...

My husband and I got married in Legend of Zelda t-shirts.

His: http://www.myteespot.com/images/Images_d/DSCF7456.jpg
Mine: http://thumbs4.ebaystatic.com/...gHf-vbW3CVqdOUVQ.jpg

Not what we wore to the ceremony, but minister presiding over the ceremony was in the Army, too. We all used to be in the same unit. We swapped so many stories that he hung out all night and missed somebody else's wedding later that day. Days later, we realized none of our legal documents were signed. When we finally tracked him down and had everything done up proper, we were wearing out Zelda shirts. I thought it was funny because these are our only matching shirts. We've got a bunch of other pop culture and souvenir shirts, we didn't tell each other what we were wearing and we didn't see each other all day until we met at the notary.

Last week, I tore my shirt and I just started crying. Today, I got a package in the mail for my birthday: a small box full of them. He says, "Just in case they stop making them before our Silver Anniversary."
pfarland
member, 228 posts
Thu 11 Sep 2014
at 02:39
  • msg #514

Re: Faith rewarded...

In reply to Eggy (msg # 513):

Ok, you win the "Awwwwww" award from my fiance and I.  Darn good to hear things like this!
facemaker329
member, 6449 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 12 Sep 2014
at 06:15
  • msg #515

Re: Faith rewarded...

Taking a three-day mini-vacation in Vegas with a group of friends this weekend.  The timing sucks...we start tech and dress rehearsals next week and open our Halloween shows next weekend...but I've been working there for a decade and a half, and this is the first vacation I've taken.  And it'll be a good reminder for my bosses about how much stuff they actually have me do, when I'm not there to do it for them and they have to find someone else...
Halford
member, 1 post
Sun 21 Sep 2014
at 18:27
  • msg #516

Epic Thread

I was called by a member of the 501st legion who (if you haven't heard) donate their time to make children's dreams come true by dressing up as Darth Vader and the storm troopers and visiting children's hospitals.

(touching story that chokes me up every time)
They told me that a 5 year old girl/star-wars fan who was in the children's hospital walked up to Darth Vader and just held his hand for a long time (which in and of itself is not that uncommon, but is still super cute). She got her picture taken and later that week was looking at pictures with her mother, and when they got to the picture of the little girl holding Vaders hand, the little girl pointed and said "I love him".   Super cute right?  But thats not the half of it because in fact the doctors had told her mother that the little girl would never be able to speak in her life and those were the first words she ever spoke.  ever.
(choking up again :) )

P.S.  I almost wrote that good thing for me is ... I found this thread.  It is AWESOME and there is not nearly enough of this on the web.
Jarodemo
member, 690 posts
My hovercraft
is full of eels
Thu 25 Sep 2014
at 17:15
  • msg #517

Re: Epic Thread

Just met '80s pop star Toyah at the vet. She has a rabbit!
PeaceLoveScience
member, 2 posts
Fri 26 Sep 2014
at 03:48
  • msg #518

Re: Epic Thread

May have made a scientific breakthrough!! But you can never really know with these things.. ;P
Merevel
member, 787 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Sun 28 Sep 2014
at 22:24
  • msg #519

Re: Epic Thread

My brother is letting me have the set of DnD books I grew up with.
Wyrm
member, 515 posts
Sun 28 Sep 2014
at 22:40
  • msg #520

Re: Epic Thread

Made a little girl, who was messing with my kid, cry just by showing up.
adrasteia1
member, 1440 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Sun 28 Sep 2014
at 22:55
  • msg #521

Re: Epic Thread

Dropping back in after a lot of time away and catching up with some old friends. :)
pfarland
member, 247 posts
Mon 29 Sep 2014
at 01:15
  • msg #522

Re: Epic Thread

SCORE!!!!!

Just got a bunch of Jane's Guides!
sugarrushx6
member, 22 posts
Mon 29 Sep 2014
at 21:53
  • msg #523

Re: Epic Thread

So much free audible book possibilities...
http://www.audible.com/pewdiepie
/jarek120
/minutephysics
/kipkay
/roosterteeth
/numberphile
/vsauce
/nerdist

Anyone want to recommend some good audio books to me?
pfarland
member, 251 posts
Tue 30 Sep 2014
at 04:51
  • msg #524

Re: Epic Thread

Quotes from CIA Officer ratings reports.  Good for many a laugh!

http://www.foia.cia.gov/sites/...s/DOC_0000620487.pdf
Evil Empryss
member, 1171 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Thu 2 Oct 2014
at 00:57
  • msg #525

Re: Epic Thread

Saved two kittens from getting squished by a train today and found them a home.
pfarland
member, 258 posts
Thu 2 Oct 2014
at 01:02
  • msg #526

Re: Epic Thread

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 525):

Good to go!
ginny
member, 259 posts
Thu 2 Oct 2014
at 19:08
  • msg #527

Re: Epic Thread

Found my inlaw a place to move into.  He leaves tomorrow.

I GET MY HOME BACK!  Yay! ^_^
Jarodemo
member, 699 posts
My hovercraft
is full of eels
Tue 7 Oct 2014
at 18:37
  • msg #528

Re: Epic Thread

Wife out...

Kids asleep...

Boring chores done...

It's Princess Bride Time!!!
Evil Empryss
member, 1174 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Tue 7 Oct 2014
at 18:46
  • msg #529

Re: Epic Thread

Supernatural Season 9 marathon right now... and Season 10 starts tonight!
ginny
member, 262 posts
Tue 7 Oct 2014
at 19:14
  • msg #530

Re: Epic Thread

Got home a little while ago with the kids, hubby was off to work already.  Left us a note on the table "Love U All"  :)

Little things like that make me smile :)
pitademon
member, 793 posts
hi all
Fri 10 Oct 2014
at 04:14
  • msg #531

Re: Epic Thread

Got my PFD check deposited last week.  Used it to buy my place a new sliding glass door for my deck.  One more insulated and nicer!  It is going to save me a lot on my energy bill.  Even better.... getting it installed this weekend!
Jarodemo
member, 704 posts
My hovercraft
is full of eels
Fri 10 Oct 2014
at 17:39
  • msg #532

Re: Epic Thread

My 3.5yo son just said "mummy" for the first time! Wife now has happy tears!
Undeadbob
member, 1696 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Sun 12 Oct 2014
at 15:48
  • msg #533

Help I'm lost!

Tried to set up this epic real-life game, and all the players have jobs and can't play today. Seriously I had to looks this unfamiliar word up. Also I haven't been on rpol for a very long time. Anyone remember this guy? I hardly remember anyone, except for Big Bad Ron we had some awesome conversations; he called me Exhumed Robert onetime and I had no idea what he meant lol.
I am venting that so many people have more posts than me, so I look like some 6 monther or something. How embarrassing.
Eggy
member, 415 posts
Sun 12 Oct 2014
at 16:38
  • msg #534

Re: Help I'm lost!

In reply to Undeadbob (msg # 533):

Don't be stressed out, Bob. Here's a good thing: the number of posts in Community Chat isn't a measure of how much you play or how much fun you have. :)
Merevel
member, 814 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Sun 12 Oct 2014
at 19:37
  • msg #535

Re: Help I'm lost!

Plus I know a GM that write for groups like Talislant (sp?) and only have three or four hundred posts. Remember those are just forum post counts. They do not count in game posts. If they did it would be a higher count for many people.
Undeadbob
member, 1697 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Sun 12 Oct 2014
at 19:55
  • msg #536

Re: Help I'm lost!

Oh I am aware of that my friend, when I used this site 10 or so years ago I used to have allot of posts. And not that it really matters how many posts you have. I mean I've lost my RPGA card a long time ago, so Its funny I thought my number was important enough to put in my description. Its like waking up from a coma or something.
This site hasn't been around for 10 years has it? Maybe its only been like 5 who knows lol
bigbadron
moderator, 14695 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Sun 12 Oct 2014
at 20:03

Re: Help I'm lost!

Hi Undeadnoob.  :p

Actually RPoL was 14 years old this year.
Merevel
member, 815 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Sun 12 Oct 2014
at 20:04
  • msg #538

Re: Help I'm lost!

13 or 14 I forget? I turned in my old account to the mods when I realised it was this site that I once used a LONG time ago in college.
Undeadbob
member, 1698 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Sun 12 Oct 2014
at 21:28
  • msg #539

Re: Help I'm lost!

Man 14 years, that was before all this facebook BS. I'm glad this site is still around, spreading joy and harry potter free form rpgs.
kouk
member, 487 posts
Mon 13 Oct 2014
at 02:36
  • msg #540

Re: Help I'm lost!

Nearly 1700 posts (at the time of this writing) is pretty darn respectable Undeadbob. It's already more than most of the people in this thread, if not the entire site ...
Eggy
member, 423 posts
Mon 13 Oct 2014
at 02:37
  • msg #541

Re: Help I'm lost!

In reply to kouk (msg # 540):

No game I've run has ever broken 1700 posts. :D
pfarland
member, 290 posts
Mon 13 Oct 2014
at 02:42
  • msg #542

Re: Help I'm lost!

Heck my game only started on August 30 and already has over 1400 hundred posts.
Undeadbob
member, 1700 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Mon 13 Oct 2014
at 02:48
  • msg #543

Re: Help I'm lost!

Yes it just shows how much free time I had 14 years ago. Now I have even more free time. But will I ever surpass bigbadrons 14'000? Dunno thats like 1000 posts a year since the site started, I don't I can talk that much lol :)
facemaker329
member, 6461 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 13 Oct 2014
at 07:32
  • msg #544

Re: Help I'm lost!

Your odds of ever catching up with BBR aren't helped any by the fact that he's probably the most prolific of the moderators when it comes to responding to questions and commentary within the various threads (at least in the forums I read...)

It's not just that he talks a lot...it's that he has an actual responsibility to talk a lot.  *grin*
GreenTongue
member, 707 posts
Game Archaeologist
Wed 15 Oct 2014
at 12:29
  • msg #545

Re: Help I'm lost!

Undeadbob:
Yes it just shows how much free time I had 14 years ago. Now I have even more free time. But will I ever surpass bigbadrons 14'000? Dunno thats like 1000 posts a year since the site started, I don't I can talk that much lol :)

You likely don't remember me but I remember seeing you before.
Be glad that you are still "around" many are no longer.

It is so hard to get people the stick with any game (online or face2face) that I mostly do Magic the Gathering.
On that note, my daughter just bought me an entire box of MtG cards for my birthday. :O
=
PushBarToOpen
member, 862 posts
Wed 15 Oct 2014
at 12:43
  • msg #546

Re: Help I'm lost!

Long lkive the RPOL magic community!!!!!

I just bought 4 boxes. they didn;t bother unpacking them from the wizards box. thus iu now have official wizards packaging tape :)
Undeadbob
member, 1711 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Wed 15 Oct 2014
at 12:47
  • msg #547

Re: Help I'm lost!

GreenTongue, that name does seem familiar. Well its good there a feel old hats still around. Funny thing is one of my new players IRL is someone I had met on rpol years ago that finnaly drifted into my town recently. So I am sure they are still around, they're just lurkers much like me. Waiting for the moment to strike!
MTG! I have so many of those cards and no players that I tried to make a magic system for one of my games using those cards, I never really used it though.
Eggy
member, 443 posts
Sun 19 Oct 2014
at 01:54
  • msg #548

Mind. Blown.

I've been a lousy shot with a rifle for years. I used to be alright. Then I had some great training and got pretty good. Then I went back to being lousy. I couldn't figure it out since I was still "doing everything right" according to my friends and coaches.

Last week, I had a string of familiar headaches. It felt like it was time for new glasses. I got an appointment and had my eyes checked. Got a new prescription. Went to the range today and nothing had changed. I was pretty bummed when I got pulled off the range for remedial training. But then the trainer was the same guy from the optometrist's. He said, "I remember you. And you're going to be here all day if you think you're still Right-Eye Dominant."

And we went over the fundamentals again, except this time, I had to shoot with my left. I wasted a few rounds just figuring out what to do with my right hand. Mirroring my usual position wasn't comfortable. And shooting became awesome again.

Then he shook my hand (the left one) and said, "Welcome to the Secret World of Lefties."
Merevel
member, 826 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Mon 20 Oct 2014
at 22:00
  • msg #549

Re: Mind. Blown.

I was not fired yesterday, even though by rights I should have at least be written up and maybe suspended... WOOOT!
Wyrm
member, 520 posts
Thu 23 Oct 2014
at 01:22
  • msg #550

Re: Mind. Blown.

The Avengers 3 Trailer was nice, even if the Pinocchio reference was a bit silly.
Evil Empryss
member, 1209 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Sun 26 Oct 2014
at 15:30
  • msg #551

Re: Mind. Blown.

Pocket money.

Due to a fruit-up in billing, hubby didn't get paid for the last two weeks. Needless to say this makes things tight for the end of the month. While doing laundry I was emptying my jeans' pockets and found $20 worth of assorted bills. Woo-HOO!  Time to buy Halloween candy so we don't get egged!
Eggy
member, 454 posts
Sun 26 Oct 2014
at 15:33
  • msg #552

Re: Mind. Blown.

Pocket Money is awesome!
facemaker329
member, 6467 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 27 Oct 2014
at 04:53
  • msg #553

Re: Mind. Blown.

I've gotta say, one of the best things to happen to a bruised ego (mine) was to show up at a friend's party, have a guy I only see a few times a year introduce me to his girlfriend and practically gush about how highly he thinks of me, and have her look at me and say, "Oh, he's told me lots of stories about you.  And they're all good!"

Granted, the booze was flowing pretty freely, so he may have been feeling more generous and effusive than he would normally...but he's also a guy who has no reason to brag me up to anyone.  Funniest thing about it, to me, is that the first time I met him, about four years ago, he was going through a rough time (his marriage was going through yet another rough patch on the way to an eventual divorce), and he was kind of bitter and angry about a lot of stuff.  At THAT party, he got much too drunk and ended up asking me for a ride home, to which I answered that if I knew where he lived, I'd gladly do it.

His somewhat bitter response was, "Man, I thought every guy here knows where we live..." (because he was convinced, at the time, that his wife was cheating on him).  That highly unusual exchange turned into the start of one of the more unusual friendships in my life...

It was good, though.  I'd been having a rough time lately, and between the two events I made it to this weekend, and the stuff discussed with friends at those events, I feel a lot more at peace with the world.  The problems that caused my doubts and frustrations haven't been solved, by any means...but I feel a lot more capable of dealing with them.
Undeadbob
member, 1736 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Tue 28 Oct 2014
at 02:29
  • msg #554

Re: Mind. Blown.

Man I read the threads on here, and it makes me laugh. Half the time I just want to post some nonsense comment just so everyone knows how ridiculous their argument on the internet is. But i don't, I just sit and laugh so my family looks at me weird.
Brianna
member, 1904 posts
Tue 28 Oct 2014
at 19:26
  • msg #555

Re: Mind. Blown.

Yay, my husband has a job for another four years!  And on the whole, the rest of the people elected are a good group, or at least no worse than he's used to.
truemane
member, 1904 posts
Firing magic missles at
the darkness!
Tue 28 Oct 2014
at 19:42
  • msg #556

Re: Mind. Blown.

I found out that one of my old university professors has been handing out one of my old short stories to his classes as an example of a well-written story. No idea which story, but always a nice thing to hear.
Evil Empryss
member, 1210 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Wed 29 Oct 2014
at 02:49
  • msg #557

Re: Mind. Blown.

Yesterday was a beautiful day and, for the first time since her injury in August and surgery in September, my dog ran.  This wouldn't have been possible without the help of those who donated money towards her surgery.  Thank you!

I have been trying to load a video in my Photobucket, but I'm having trouble with it.  If you really want to see it, rmail me and I'll link you to the Dropbox file.  :)
Evil Empryss
member, 1213 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Fri 31 Oct 2014
at 01:41
  • msg #558

Re: Mind. Blown.

For my Halloween costume this year I decided to try my hand at making a latex "ripped mouth" prosthetic using Kiana Jones SFX YouTube video as my guide. Best costume reception ever!  I terrified children and adults alike, and was stopped more than a dozen times for pictures as I took my zombiefied son trick or treating.

Now to take what I've learned to prep for next year!
Eggy
member, 456 posts
Fri 31 Oct 2014
at 02:03
  • msg #559

Re: Mind. Blown.

I just told my friends in a game about this.

An hour ago, I came home from a costumed fun run. I didn't know what to wear and I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on something that I'd run around in on a damp day, so I went as Fifty Shades of Grey. I got a bunch of paint samples from the hardware store, taped them together and safety pinned them to my shirt.

Someone asked me if I was really wearing fifty shades.

I said, "No, because like E. L. James, I didn't fact check."
Undeadbob
member, 1742 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Fri 31 Oct 2014
at 02:37
  • msg #560

Re: Mind. Blown.

I'm 32 and have no kids. Super excited about that lol. Is that wrong?
Eggy
member, 457 posts
Fri 31 Oct 2014
at 02:53
  • msg #561

Re: Mind. Blown.

Undeadbob:
I'm 32 and have no kids. Super excited about that lol. Is that wrong?

Unless they've recently passed away, I see nothing wrong with it.
Undeadbob
member, 1743 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Fri 31 Oct 2014
at 03:00
  • msg #562

Re: Mind. Blown.

Oh no nothing so morbid, never had them. Or at least they haven't tracked me down and kidnapped me yet.
nuric
member, 2789 posts
Love D&D,superhero games
Not very computer savvy
Fri 31 Oct 2014
at 04:17
  • msg #563

Re: Mind. Blown.

Undeadbob:
I'm 32 and have no kids. Super excited about that lol. Is that wrong?


Nope.  Good for you.   I'm child free as well.
facemaker329
member, 6468 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 31 Oct 2014
at 10:35
  • msg #564

Re: Mind. Blown.

Just wrapped up our season at the park.  While I'm of mixed emotions about not seeing the people I've been working with for the last six weeks (and, some of them, for the last six months), I've gotta say that I'm beyond proud of the work my makeup crew did.  Every day, we made up six band members and four singers for one show, seven not-scary zombies for another show, and anywhere between six and sixteen roaming characters.  Not once did they delay the start of a show because of the makeup crew (in fact, on the second-to-last day, the makeup crew was the ONLY reason they were able to start the show on time with a full cast, since one of the zombies got stuck in traffic and arrived to get makeup done fifteen minutes before the show started--we were allotted forty-five minutes to do their makeup, so we did as much work in less than one-third the time, and it actually looked every bit as good as the ones we took our time with earlier in the afternoon).  Several times, we were working short-handed due to illness, work conflicts with other jobs, or just plain old personal conflicts that we knew about when we hired people...and we still made it all happen.

This crew wasn't quite my 'dream team' for makeup artists...but the only way I could make my dream team happen now would be if they'd let me hire three more artists, because I honestly wouldn't want to get rid of any of my 'regulars' on my crew this year, even to bring back one of the other artists that are no longer working with us (I had a couple of substitute artists that I'd consider swapping out...and one of those isn't even out of high school yet and might just build up the skills to achieve 'dream team' status.  The other one?  We'll he's talented...but his personality often bears a striking resemblance to male genitalia, so he's not very easy to work with most of the time, and is flaky to boot.)

But I had more fun this Halloween season than I've had in years.  And a lot of that is due to a crew that was solid enough to run with the ball when nobody else seemed to have a grasp on it.  I worked with some really, truly awesome people...and I'm gonna miss seeing them all.
Wyrm
member, 525 posts
Sun 2 Nov 2014
at 05:03
  • msg #565

Re: Mind. Blown.

Snow on Nov 1 and I am the only one not needing to dress "warmly"
Eggy
member, 473 posts
Mon 10 Nov 2014
at 11:07
  • msg #566

Re: Mind. Blown.

No work today! No classes today! Taking some time to just chill.

Facial + Veggie Pizza + RuPaul's Drag Race + Comics = Great Morning :)
Bigun Eagle
member, 73 posts
Tue 18 Nov 2014
at 16:36
  • msg #567

Re: Mind. Blown.

This might only be funny because of the horrid cold I'm fighting right now. But I just noticed that the Chamber of Lost Souls has a 'Request to Join' link at the top.

I applaud the Mods sense of humor. Bravo. I needed that laugh on a day like this.
Eggy
member, 492 posts
Tue 18 Nov 2014
at 20:49
  • msg #568

Re: Mind. Blown.

In reply to Bigun Eagle (msg # 567):
That is a good one. Chamber of Lost Souls is the best game on RPOL.
Brianna
member, 1918 posts
Tue 18 Nov 2014
at 21:10
  • msg #569

Re: Mind. Blown.

Some people do seem to request, even beg, to join the CoLS!
Undeadbob
member, 1771 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Thu 20 Nov 2014
at 01:38
  • msg #570

Re: Mind. Blown.

Rpol Greeting:
We have 6,795 games with 8,994,916 posts.


In your face other roleplaying sites!
facemaker329
member, 6483 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 25 Nov 2014
at 04:50
  • msg #571

Re: Mind. Blown.

Wow...that hasn't happened in a LONG time...logged onto RPOL, and ALL of the games I'm in have new messages!
Undeadbob
member, 1776 posts
RPGA member #6004591
Just a little weird
Fri 28 Nov 2014
at 00:19
  • msg #572

Re: Mind. Blown.

Sent a submission to a game by a GM i used play in a game with about seven years ago, he said he would not remember old user names so people should give character names. I was not accepted into the game, which is cool, because he actually remember by name. Hopefully I'll be next in line, since he's a good GM.
Merevel
member, 877 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Wed 3 Dec 2014
at 00:28
  • msg #573

Re: Mind. Blown.

Wooot, we quit selling RIBS!
facemaker329
member, 6495 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 3 Dec 2014
at 07:11
  • msg #574

Re: Mind. Blown.

So, after talking with a friend over the holiday and deciding we were getting pretty close to being ready to shoot one of the short film projects we've been polishing for a while, I started feeling a little nervous about the prospects of casting.  I mean, we want this to be a good, solid project...not something that people would watch and go, "Man...good story, nice camera work...too bad they didn't find someone who could actually act."  At the same time, we're tackling this out-of-pocket...it's something we're doing for fun, not because we're expecting a big monetary return on it (if we do it right, the monetary return might happen...but it's not part of the planning.)

So, as I often do when confronted with daunting problems, I turned to my friends.  Posted something on Facebook about just testing the general interest level, explained in brief what we were doing and how it most likely wouldn't be paid...

In 24 hours, I've had over 40 individuals respond in one way or another, saying, "Yeah, I'm interested!"  Granted, some of them don't have much experience.  Some of them wouldn't work at all for what we've got in mind for our first project.  Several of them weren't speaking for themselves, they mentioned that one of their kids, or another friend, or some of their kids' friends might be interested.  But still...with the number of people who responded, and the talent level of the ones who did?  I feel like we could schedule shooting for all the projects we've got on the table right now, and do a solid job of casting them (the inexperienced folks?  We still need extras, we could find a place for them.  And if they turned out to be good, we'd find something more featured for them.)

Granted, at this point, this is just a newly-developing hobby for me.  But it's a hobby that just became a much more plausible prospect.
Merevel
member, 898 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Sun 21 Dec 2014
at 13:24
  • msg #575

Re: Mind. Blown.

I am not sure if this should go here or in vents lol. I just found graph paper maps from my old dnd campaigns I made as a kid... wow they were bad and brought back some memories. Though some left me scratching my head.
ginny
member, 266 posts
Tue 30 Dec 2014
at 22:47
  • msg #576

Re: Mind. Blown.

Last month our cat Oreo went missing, we thought him to have been run over by a car.  I was searching our local Humane Society's web page today just for fun, and found a picture of another cat that looked just like him.  When I went there to see if it really was him, I was happy beyond words to discover Oreo was still very much alive. ^_^

Whoever found him must have kept him inside over the last month, because now he is huge.  Hoping to bring him home tomorrow ^_^  So happy :)
Holobunny
member, 8 posts
Fri 2 Jan 2015
at 22:27
  • msg #577

Re: Mind. Blown.

Playing board games with my dad and brothers and some other folks on New Year's Eve. Time well-spent. I learned Terra Mystica. Highly recommended for anyone who likes a good strategy board game.


Now to win a match. I've played 3 so far and ended up in second place about 5 points outside of first every time.
st_nougat
member, 428 posts
Fri 23 Jan 2015
at 14:16
  • msg #578

2 week notice

broke up with my job today
pfarland
member, 375 posts
Fri 23 Jan 2015
at 22:26
  • msg #579

Re: 2 week notice

Finally won custody of my girls!
GamerHandle
member, 624 posts
Umm.. yep.
So, there's this door...
Fri 23 Jan 2015
at 22:32
  • msg #580

Re: 2 week notice

Quit my job - only to literally have a new job appear in my life a few hours later.  Was serendipitous.
facemaker329
member, 6566 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sat 24 Jan 2015
at 02:14
  • msg #581

Re: 2 week notice

Latest freelancing project?  A friend of a friend of mine has hired me to be a fight choreographer and teach stage combat to her students...

I'd be happier about it if said friend of friend was in...oh...Vegas.  Or Southern California.  Or Florida.  Flying to North Dakota in late January feels a little too much like Russian Roulette to me...*grin*  But I'll be getting paid almost as much for a week of having fun as I get paid for two weeks of my regular job.  So even if the weather isn't what I'd like it to be, I'm still excited for the prospect.
Shei-kun
member, 816 posts
A Giant Shei draws near!
Fight-Magic-Item-Flee
Thu 29 Jan 2015
at 04:02
  • msg #582

Re: 2 week notice

I have a job interview in twelve hours.

I learned about it half an hour ago, because the position opened today due to someone leaving the tax firm.

I just graduated from university with a B.A. in General Business and a B.A. in Accounting.

But I haven't done any actual accounting stuff for a year.

Here's hoping I get to post the results of this interview in this thread soon instead of the vent thread.
Merevel
member, 956 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Thu 29 Jan 2015
at 04:05
  • msg #583

Re: 2 week notice

In reply to Shei-kun (msg # 582):

Relax, I will tell you a secret my brother, an auditor, told me. No matter how experienced you are, no matter how fresh from college are or your grades, everyone needs training.
nuric
member, 2806 posts
Love D&D,superhero games
Not very computer savvy
Thu 29 Jan 2015
at 04:39
  • msg #584

Re: 2 week notice

In reply to Shei-kun (msg # 582):

I've been told that most places that hire don't want perfect skills as much as want a competent person with a good attitude.
In other words, they want someone they can train who'll work well with them, than a brilliant person who won't get along with anyone.
So attitude is everything.
Brianna
member, 1946 posts
Thu 29 Jan 2015
at 06:06
  • msg #585

Re: 2 week notice

Also, sometimes the person who isn't so well trained works out better, because they aren't set in someone else's pattern.
Merevel
member, 959 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Sat 31 Jan 2015
at 01:22
  • msg #586

Re: 2 week notice

Found out today that my sons are both ok with me dating. They pretty much demanded I get a girlfriend or get back with their mom. I am not sure whether to be annoyed or find this cute.

>.<
Brianna
member, 1947 posts
Sat 31 Jan 2015
at 22:51
  • msg #587

Re: 2 week notice

In reply to Merevel (msg # 586):

Depends why?  Do they want you to be happy?  be busy and butt out of their lives?  or??
Merevel
member, 960 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Sun 1 Feb 2015
at 00:29
  • msg #588

Re: 2 week notice

They are 2 and 4 lol. At least once a week my oldest yells at me about it. So either he misses having his mommy around all the time, or she is putting him up to it.

Then again, he is not the only one trying to get me to date again.
facemaker329
member, 6577 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 1 Feb 2015
at 04:15
  • msg #589

Re: 2 week notice

Finished up a week as a 'guest artist' teaching stage combat.  And I've gotta say, I've had a GREAT time.  I still need to type up the choreography notes...but everybody seemed to pick up what they were taught quickly (and, just as importantly, nobody did anything stupid to get hurt, and they all listened and adjusted what they were doing when I made suggestions or provided critiques).

I'll admit, the whole thing's made me a little nostalgic for my college theater days...but only if someone else is paying the bills.  *grin*

Still...even though it's a tiny university in the middle of North Dakota, and there's precious little glamorous about the city, or the university, I've had a really good time.  Certainly didn't suck...and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.
Lancebreaker
member, 134 posts
Sun 1 Feb 2015
at 04:59
  • msg #590

Weight loss goals

I rededicated myself to some health goals at the first of the year.  I've already lost 24.5 lbs since January 1st, and I feel great!  23% of the way to my goal weight for the year in just a month, I started at 310 lbs, and I am shooting for 201.5 lbs.

Before you balk at the weight loss rate as being unhealthy, I am eating plenty of good food and giving myself plenty of fuel and nutrients to maintain my body as I work out.  I just finished a Whole 30 (strict elimination Paleo diet), and I've also been doing T25 (yeah, yeah, I know it's Team Beachbody, and I got it through an infomercial, but its a good, solid workout), and a nice, moderate three classes a week of Bikram yoga.

Just thought I would share. :)
facemaker329
member, 6578 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 1 Feb 2015
at 05:24
  • msg #591

Re: Weight loss goals

One thing I've noticed through the years...weight gain/loss is a very individual process.  I mean, I work at an amusement park, in entertainment...we've had dancers that joined us at the start of a season with a 36" waist measurement, who have, by the time six weeks of rehearsal are over, slimmed down to a 32" waist.  And I've worked with guys who started the summer with a 38" waist and barely changed at all over three months of full-time performance.
Merevel
member, 961 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Sun 1 Feb 2015
at 10:44
  • msg #592

Re: Weight loss goals

In reply to Lancebreaker (msg # 590):

Good for you for losing weight. All I can say is consult a doctor. Fad diets are terrible for your health. One of my coworkers was on a diet once that was less then 600 calories a day, that does not even cover base metabolism... Reminds me of the zen diet that hit news years ago.
Brianna
member, 1949 posts
Mon 2 Feb 2015
at 19:02
  • msg #593

Re: Weight loss goals

Congrats on the weight loss!  But remember you are already dealing with a different body and metabolism than you started with.  It's unlikely you will lose so fast now (at least for a while), even likely you will hit a plateau while everything adjusts.  Don't let this discourage you!
Holobunny
member, 65 posts
Trust no one.
Keep your laser handy.
Thu 5 Feb 2015
at 22:56
  • msg #594

Re: Weight loss goals

In reply to Brianna (msg # 593):

Good on you! I trust when you say you have a good workout and a good diet plan. As Brianna said, though, beware the plateau. Your body will adapt. You may find switching between two or three diet plans and workouts that you are confident are healthy non-quick-fix plans is the way to go.

Anyway, to my good thing... The Waltons. I don't care what anyone says, this is some of the best television ever made. I think it's funny that I had this preconceived notion my youth gave me. I was sure before I started watching it that The Waltons was garbage. I couldn't have been more wrong. To anyone out there who remembers all the jokes from the 80's but is too young to remember the actual show... Watch it. It's seriously one of the greatest shows of all time.
Wyrm
member, 539 posts
Sat 7 Feb 2015
at 22:45
  • msg #595

Re: Weight loss goals

The cat got into the fish dinner tonight :D
DaleN
member, 88 posts
"We aren't slavers...
just ask the Wookie."
Sun 8 Feb 2015
at 01:17
  • msg #596

Re: Weight loss goals

What?  You didn't want fish for dinner?
Wyrm
member, 541 posts
Sun 8 Feb 2015
at 02:21
  • msg #597

Re: Weight loss goals

I got burgers instead, so win.
facemaker329
member, 6583 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 11 Feb 2015
at 07:12
  • msg #598

Re: Good timing...

So, I spent this past weekend on a whirlwind roadtrip with my mom and two of my brothers, going to visit another of my brothers.  I know for some people, this would hardly be the stuff of a 'Good Stuff' post, but I get along pretty well with my family, so it was good.

But the real good part is this--as we were on our way back home, driving through the barrens of mid-Nevada, Mom started asking if any of us had a carousel slide projector.  We've been working, in fits and starts, on trying to get some family history stuff done, and there's a HUGE chunk of it that's missing, because for decades, Dad shot pictures almost exclusively on slides (because they were easier to share with a group of people than prints were, I assume...and they take up less space to store...)  She thought most of them had vanished somewhere along the line, but she found a box full of them (and I mean FULL...), and now she's interested in trying to get them organized and scanned into a digital format.  Problem is, most of them aren't labelled...and while she has a slide viewer, and even a projector that will take slides one at a time, she wanted a faster way to review them and select the ones that actually mean something and should be scanned.

None of us have one, however...I only ever did stuff with slides during about four or five years of my life, I'm not sure my older brothers EVER did much with slides (I'm not even sure how much they actually bother taking pictures...)  So, Mom was a little disappointed and had started to resign herself to doing the project the hard way...

Well, earlier today, I was in a thrift store, shopping for props for one of the shows we're producing at work this summer...and there it was.  A carousel slide projector.  And I thought, "Hey, if this doesn't cost too much, Mom would probably love it..."  So I found the price tag--$5.  And then I thought, "If the light actually works, I should get this..."

And it did.  So I did.  And dropped it off at Mom's place, where we filled it up with slides and skimmed through them pretty quickly (most of them were taken before I was even born...)

I also got costume pieces for my friend's 80's-themed event this weekend (enough to make about four or five different outfits, I think...since she performs in an 80's band every few weeks, I'm pretty sure I'll find occasions to wear the ones I don't wear this weekend), AND I got several of the prop items I was looking for in the first place.  Good time to make a sweep through the area thrift stores!
Brianna
member, 1953 posts
Wed 11 Feb 2015
at 19:37
  • msg #599

Nice family time

Spent the afternoon with my four sisters on Saturday.  Our mother's birthday was last week, we've been celebrating it together as far as when my father was still alive, and we are trying to carry on the tradition even though both parents are gone now.  We get together as an extended family around the typical holiday occasions, but there are so many there we don't get the chance to interact much with siblings.  (My brother would be welcome too, but he lives in Ottawa, many hours away, though we do invite the one of my daughters who lives here now.)  It was, as always, great to see them, catch up on a bit of the news, and have a nice lunch - well, I think all of us had a second breakfast since the restaurant serves that through the day.
facemaker329
member, 6586 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sat 14 Feb 2015
at 18:30
  • msg #600

Re: Famous firsts...or something...

So, it finally happened...

I showed up for a show last night, with my full kit of emergency repair gear...with the exception of helping tape a couple of things up before the show started, I didn't have to fix anything.  No props to glue back together, no costumes to be repaired or altered...I actually got to sit back and enjoy the whole show, and socialize a bit before it started, even.

That NEVER happens...*grin*
srgrosse
member, 2247 posts
Fri 27 Feb 2015
at 16:41
  • msg #601

Re: Famous firsts...or something...

After five years in a soul crushing job (3rd shift at a gas station) and a month of being unemployed, I have a new job! (Working at Bojangles)
Holobunny
member, 68 posts
Trust no one.
Keep your laser handy.
Mon 2 Mar 2015
at 15:10
  • msg #602

Re: Famous firsts...or something...

Way to go Srgrosse! At least its not 2nds. ;)

I, myself, just got out of construction where I'm not the best fit, and opened a new Indy restaurant (Bacon, Legs, and Turntables if you're in the area.) There's talk of me moving to Minneapolis and taking my boss's job when we open the next one. Apparently I've been turning heads. :D
Brianna
member, 1958 posts
Mon 2 Mar 2015
at 19:19
  • msg #603

Re: Famous firsts...or something...

Since I didn't get along very well with one of the cats we acquired in the summer, and she also harassed the other cat (like siblings of the bad variety), we'd been looking to re-home her, not easy since we didn't want her to go to a collector, and her temperament meant her needs were a bit specialized.  A week ago she went to her new forever home, and apparently it's going extremely well.  The remaining cat also seems to be much more relaxed. so wins all round!
ginny
member, 271 posts
Thu 12 Mar 2015
at 01:20
  • msg #604

Re: Famous firsts...or something...

My husband came home early from work tonight to spend my birthday with me <3
JxJxA
member, 101 posts
Thu 12 Mar 2015
at 06:55
  • msg #605

Re: Famous firsts...or something...

That feeling when you learn that the 1.5 hour thing you had to do after work on the day before you leave for vacation gets canceled. XD
facemaker329
member, 6602 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 12 Mar 2015
at 07:50
  • msg #606

Re: Famous firsts...or something...

Inexperienced as I am, my coaching helped my friend shave almost ten strokes off his golf game today, including helping him overcome a tendency to stiffen up on his tee shots and miss the ball completely.

Now, if I can just figure out what to do about my putting game...
jait
member, 330 posts
Tue 21 Jul 2015
at 09:09
  • msg #607

He quit!

Oh, that glorious feeling of relief when that roiling, overbearing ball of whine decides he's had enough, quits, and walks out...

He thought he was screwing the company by leaving us short-staffed.

I'll gladly cover his hours just to be able work in peace!
facemaker329
member, 6660 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 22 Jul 2015
at 06:23
  • msg #608

Job security

In the course of two days at work, I reconstructed a fold-out bench, patched holes in a couple of theatrical drops, repaired two crates used as set pieces, managed to repair the same pocket-watch twice (different things breaking), and rebuilt an electronic candle that fell off a table onstage and broke into five or six pieces.  Now, I know I'm not the only person with the expertise to do all of that...

But I'm the only person who works there that has all that expertise.  And, perhaps more importantly, I'm the only person dumb enough to say, "Well, I don't know if I can fix that, but I'll take a look..."  Most of the time, the fix is actually relatively easy...but everyone else seems too intimidated by this stuff to look and see what's actually wrong with it.  (Either that, or they're just used to saying, "It's broken...he'll fix it...")

I'm nowhere near arrogant enough to presume that they wouldn't be able to keep operating without me...but they'd sure have a hard time finding people to do all the stuff I do.
praguepride
member, 1026 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Wed 22 Jul 2015
at 15:08
  • msg #609

Sleeeeeeep

The realization that for the first time, your baby slept 8 hours straight...
Wyrm
member, 569 posts
Sat 25 Jul 2015
at 23:08
  • msg #610

Re: Sleeeeeeep

In reply to praguepride (msg # 609):

I find a weird sense of amusement reading the archived ooc threads of locked games.
Eggy
member, 589 posts
Tue 28 Jul 2015
at 21:50
  • msg #611

Re: Sleeeeeeep

I really like my new dentist. My Old Dentist removed a permanent retainer, but told me that he couldn't remove the bonds cementing them in place. So there were these rough lumps on the backside of my teeth. New Dentist saw them and said "No problem" and ground them off with a dremel. No harm done.
Evil Empryss
member, 1343 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Mon 3 Aug 2015
at 00:49
  • msg #612

Powering Up for a Long Flight

Finding a charging point open in the airport... and an empty chair right beside it.  Traveling win!
Brianna
member, 1989 posts
Tue 4 Aug 2015
at 02:15
  • msg #613

Re: Powering Up for a Long Flight

We were lucky!  Very bad storm here last night, probably a tornado just a few miles east, but all we had was a few twigs and already dead small branches down, the gazebo moved over a few feet and the very tall tomato plants were almost flat but still rooted.  Thanks, kids who own the house for having branches removed from the trees in the back, and one tree entirely removed from the front!  There are places nearby where there is still no power, where very large trees were totally uprooted (sometimes on top of vehicles), where buildings were at least partially destroyed but we are good.  Thank you, God, and I pray for those more unfortunate.
Eur512
member, 691 posts
Tue 4 Aug 2015
at 20:14
  • msg #614

Sweet victory

ME:                  1
NYC Department of Motor Vehicles Traffic Violations Bureau:  0

Feeling like powerful attorney, despite not actually doing much to accomplish that.
But happy anyway.
Brianna
member, 1991 posts
Tue 4 Aug 2015
at 21:55
  • msg #615

Re: Sweet victory

In reply to Eur512 (msg # 614):

Well, can't you share more of the story?  That's just a teaser!
Eur512
member, 692 posts
Tue 4 Aug 2015
at 22:10
  • msg #616

Re: Sweet victory

Like I said I didn't really do much.  I had this whole line of logic prepared to fight a $138 ticket  (for the honor and rightness of my cause more than the money!) but the Judge found it and pursued it first.

Very smart woman.  After the officer described the situation, which involved a school bus, and then very officially testified that he had an unobstructed 360 degree field of view, the judge realized the same thing I did- not unobstructed, not with a BUS in the way!  So she asked him exactly where HE was, and he started to hem and haw and couldn't recall.  Of course he couldn't recall- he was on the far side of the bus.  That was the point I was going to make, but she figured it out immediately.

And I had taken pictures of the scene.  So she declared, "Not Guilty".  I didn't have to say a word.
Brianna
member, 1992 posts
Wed 5 Aug 2015
at 09:49
  • msg #617

Re: Sweet victory

In reply to Eur512 (msg # 616):

Nice!
Evil Empryss
member, 1359 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Tue 25 Aug 2015
at 15:18
  • msg #618

Re: Mind. Blown.

Impressive: My 16 year-old daughter starts college next week.

Epic: My 13 year-old son skipped up from 7th to 9th grade today and is also starting college next week.

I better train in zombie killing, 'cuz with the brains in this family we'd be in a world of trouble if the zombie apocalypse started!
Little_Devil
member, 151 posts
Fri 28 Aug 2015
at 01:00
  • msg #619

Simplicity & Bliss

After a recent hiccup in health of a family member and myself I can now safely say things have returned to normal. A lot has been lost and yet gained. My work started to ease off with the night shifts and has now agreed to sign a contract with only daylight hours, this is such a huge relief for me and lifts stress off my shoulders by bounds.

I've also been accepted into a new job for next year. Training starts next year also but it's something to look forward to and something to bring more positive vibes into my life.

Plus side I've had such big support from my friends here on this site and even though it goes quiet sometimes I've finally found a place I can fill my spare time in. The simple things in life can be overlooked and I had done this every day whilst being under stress. But now that's gone I've found the simplicity and bliss this site gives me, that and the new paths opened up for me in the future.

Soppy moment over. But it needed to be said.
Muaadeeb
member, 62 posts
Fri 28 Aug 2015
at 01:29
  • msg #620

Simplicity & Bliss

In reply to Little_Devil (msg # 619):

Little Devil I can't recall we have ever interacted with one another.  Having said that your positive upbeat attitude is refreshing.

I wish you well.

Muaadeeb

Eggy
member, 609 posts
Wed 9 Sep 2015
at 00:43
  • msg #621

To my excellent landlady

I've rented a room for nearly two years. The time came for me to move on to another worksite. I thought that I'd have to move on at least three months ago, but there was an emergency at home I had to take care off. She was so flexible with my schedule changes. When my transfer came through, I kept her updated and tomorrow is my move-out date.

Just a moment ago, I told her that I'd be leaving between 9:30 and 10am and I asked her if she'd like me to leave the key in her office or in the mail slot. I almost always slipped the rent through the mail slot, but sometimes, she'd ask me to drop it in her office with a note. She started to cry and told me that she was really going to miss me and if I ever came this way again, I was welcome to stay.

I had a sewing table and chair posted on Craigslist. They're darling, but I can't bring them along. She's so sweet, she bought them off me for more than my asking price. We were both in the hallway crying.
Evil Empryss
member, 1362 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Fri 11 Sep 2015
at 03:15
  • msg #622

To my excellent landlady

The personalized plate I want for the car I'm going to rebuild is available in my state.  Sweet!
Little_Devil
member, 155 posts
Mon 14 Sep 2015
at 23:24
  • msg #623

Noises at my window.

Whilst mostly.. I'd be very scared at anything knocking on my window.

Right now I can hear the tiny patter of my cats paws on the window to say she's had enough of the cold and wants in, I don't know why but it amuses me.

Brb: letting the cat in.
habsin4
member, 698 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Fri 25 Sep 2015
at 15:41
  • msg #624

More Good Stuff

Woooooooooooo!!! Just got a donor to donate their papers to my library along with a nice cash gift!!!!
ginny
member, 277 posts
Thu 15 Oct 2015
at 11:33
  • msg #625

More Good Stuff

After more than a decade of being a stay at home mom, I finally found a job a couple weeks ago.  I just got my first paycheck this morning, feeling good now.  :)
facemaker329
member, 6682 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 16 Oct 2015
at 06:22
  • msg #626

More Good Stuff

It's really hard to convince the Powers That Be at work to buy new equipment sometimes...so when one of our sewing machines kinda crapped out on us, I had a hard time talking myself into putting up the fight to get it fixed or replaced.  My assistant had her mom's sewing machine--an older Bernina--that she brought in so we'd have enough machines to keep everyone busy, and it has become our favorite machine (a lot of the older machines were just better built...the new ones are nice, if you can afford to go high-end and want all the bells and whistles...but we just need something reliable that does the basics...)

So, I've been prowling thrift stores, looking for machines.  I tried a Singer that someone gave me, originally...but something broke on it before I even got a chance to really use it.  Tried another old thrift store machine, which kind of worked, but the tension springs on it were kind of messed up so threading it was a pain.  Picked up a cheap Elna machine that's almost identical to the one that broke on us in the first place...and it's not bad.  It's just not particularly good, either...

These have all been tried over the past couple of years.  I'd basically given up on it...and then, a couple of days ago, I found another one.  An older White...from back when they made all-metal bodies for the machines.  Only has about six or seven different stitch options, which is about three more than we typically use.  And it was only $15...so I decided to gamble on it.

Last night, I was frustrated.  The gamble wasn't paying off, something was messed up and it was tangling the thread in the bobbin.  Poked around online, saw a lot of forum threads talking about that problem or similar ones and a lot of suggestions for what to do...but nobody coming back to the forum to say, "So, this is what I did and it fixed the problem!"  At $15, I didn't want to put the money into paying someone to take a look at it, especially if it was something I could fix myself (and I am at least moderately mechanically inclined, so...)

Went to work today with thoughts of trying to reset the timing on it...which could be a really arduous process, since all I had were descriptions of machines that weren't even made by the same company to use as guides.  But in the process of trying to determine what needed to be tweaked which way for the timing adjustment, I discovered a much simpler solution...adjusting the needle height.  Loosen one screw, slide a metal bar a fraction of an inch, and tighten the screw again...and, suddenly, the thing has gone from not even being able to put three stitches together to sewing beautiful, even stitches.

Today, I felt like a genius.  *grin*
ginny
member, 278 posts
Fri 16 Oct 2015
at 19:38
  • msg #627

More Good Stuff

Im working the Motley Crue concert Sunday night ^_^
Wyrm
member, 586 posts
Thu 29 Oct 2015
at 21:22
  • msg #628

More Good Stuff

I love the intertube. It allows me to argue with people who think themselves morally or intellectually superior.
Eggy
member, 639 posts
Sat 31 Oct 2015
at 02:50
  • msg #629

More Good Stuff

There is a magnificent lightning storm tonight!
Wiglaf
member, 781 posts
Sat 31 Oct 2015
at 03:13
  • msg #630

More Good Stuff

Was frustrated about work, then remembered that I am still the guy who took the time to fix a vital machine and thus save the store a lot of vital revenue.  That combined with other things has me feeling much better today.  And, Halloween is tomorrow!  Good times!
Evil Empryss
member, 1381 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Sun 15 Nov 2015
at 05:27
  • msg #631

More Good Stuff

A friend took me to her company's holiday party because her husband refused to get dressed up.

I won the iPad Air 3 door prize.

I can't wait to hear how papaya'd he is that he lost out on that!
V_V
member, 501 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Tue 24 Nov 2015
at 04:19
  • msg #632

More Good Stuff

I heard a song I've been searching for, for the past two decades. It's such serendipity I'd find it and then have it mirror the love I have in great friendship. I think if ever I was to marry someone, it would be to my greatest friend. Fortunately I don't have to marry her for her to be my friend, and she doesn't have to be my wife for me to say I love her.

Suicide loomed like a waste stuck in the toilet bowl that just wouldn't be rid of. Only be distancing myself from such a toxic environment could I smell the scent of flowers, feel the touch of a kind hug, and and hear the music that makes you glad to be alive.

It is a hard time right now, a defining milestone that I will never have to again face. I am giving thanks for my great friend, Anne, and a song to remind me of why we became friends. I'm eating some nice food (I'm not fat but I am a foodie. Food is so lovely as an adult and not struggling with trauma). Then I'm exchanging gifts with her and a couple other close friends.

The reason why holidays were once holy days is evident to me. I feel closer to goodness and grace. I feel more at home than I ever have in my life. I know I can't afford to by a house, but I can rent it. I also "...know you can't buy love, but now I know you can rent it".

The song I heard is a bit acoustically dated, but I think the majority of RPOL veterans on here will find it "new pop" compared to the "classics". To me I heard it once when I was young. I looked all over for years trying to find it, I knew the artist but never could find the exact song. Years passed and words passed to rhythm, and as the youth turned to adulthood it was merely a wisp in memory. Now with a clever stroke of luck, I find this song. Not the best by most standards, but in my heart of hearts, it's a great find, at least for me. Something Happened on my Way to Heaven by Phil Collins

Mental illness hurts those that love us. Love means never having to say you're sorry, but I am, to have missed something so great for so long and only upon a dark hour when turning to face the setting sun did I lament the star that was brightest in days gone by. We all rest when we've had enough of the day, I'm glad that day isn't over. I'm glad that I don't have to be sorry, but even more glad that I don't have to lose something to fully appreciate it.
Nazid
member, 95 posts
Wed 25 Nov 2015
at 13:38
  • msg #633

More Good Stuff

Frustration:  Being one of only two programmers at work and not really being a programmer.

Happiness: Realizing that I am one of only two programmers at work and they put me in the position even though I'm not actually a programmer.
Evil Empryss
member, 1384 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Sat 28 Nov 2015
at 02:46
  • msg #634

More Good Stuff

I found some scratched-off scratch-off lottery tickets in a mall parking lot today.  I picked them up because my state has special game just for losing tickets and I figured I'd try it out.  When I got home and actually looked at the tickets, one was a $5 winner and another was for $28!  Woo-hoo!  This is the only time I've actually won anything on a scratch-off.
Wyrm
member, 599 posts
Sat 28 Nov 2015
at 12:42
  • msg #635

More Good Stuff

I think my dog prefers me to be fat.
Wiglaf
member, 801 posts
Sat 28 Nov 2015
at 18:55
  • msg #636

More Good Stuff

I had an unexpectedly awesome Thanksgiving.  All it took was allowing myself to say 'yes' to an opportunity, then keep saying yes as each new opportunity comes up.  Thank you, friends, for asking.
Wyrm
member, 600 posts
Thu 3 Dec 2015
at 01:24
  • msg #637

More Good Stuff

Tonight, I did something that I didn't think I would do before tonight that melded my own mental image of self, and the actual image of self.
Evil Empryss
member, 1393 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Thu 3 Dec 2015
at 21:26
  • msg #638

More Good Stuff

That look on the office witch's face when you're telling her exactly why she's being fired from her job and, when she jumps up from her chair to get up in your face, you just stare her down and ask "Are you expecting me to step back?".

She looked like I gut-punched her and sat right back down.

I don't know who she thought she was dealing with, but I don't flinch from temper-tantrum-throwing, incompetent fools.
praguepride
member, 1064 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Fri 4 Dec 2015
at 02:51
  • msg #639

More Good Stuff

When you let loose a window shaking fart...and the house is empty so there is nobody to judge :)
Evil Empryss
member, 1394 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Fri 4 Dec 2015
at 02:53
  • msg #640

More Good Stuff

And on that note (snickers)... I heard my daughter giggling upstairs a little bit ago.  Seems she farted so loud it scared the new puppy.  She says that's the funniest thing to happen to her today  ^_^
praguepride
member, 1065 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Fri 4 Dec 2015
at 06:46
  • msg #641

More Good Stuff

Not so good stuff...tonight my dog farted on the bed...and followed through :(
V_V
member, 504 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Mon 7 Dec 2015
at 23:29
  • msg #642

More Good Stuff

I switched my game over to adult. Saw the part about not requested and looked at it. what does this mean. Went back and read the top notice, the older one that is most relevant but requires the new edit. Which is separate thread. So I panicked. First instinct, hit the confirm. Whoops. Okay, so I can change it back. That's easy. Oh? there's a post I made. Okay, time to find these rules I KNOW I didn't imagine. Found them. And the n breathed a huge sigh or relief.

Me being a "I coded a QBasic dungeon & dragons simulator. Me's know this coding real gud." kind of person I thought about something that scared me. The fact is I, someone is in an adult game, could view threads, maybe not post but SEE threads; so anyone in my game could now see the access to the adult threads. Threads which I just labeled A (I thought that was clever but very simple idea--not mine though). So I thought, okay...well nothing graphic yet, it was mature before and is pretty much the same now. It just say Adult.

My relief was the foresight jase (and//or anyone who might have helped him) put into the programming. Let them read, but not post. Let them see group 0 and public threads which people not in the game can see. Then if they were already able to see every thread except Z, when it switchs over to adult the doors all close and it's just the lobby again. I liked that. I was twitchy and was going to just switch it back and do more reading. Then I realized. Oh...that makes sense. Gee, I wish I knew how to program code (actually deep programming), or even understand the lingo to discuss it. I should learn that sometime soon. I think I may start by borrowing some peripherals and waiting for a raspberry pi. I think that would be something fun too start with. I had Windows 98 up until 2009 on a '99 machine (I think) so it's shiny enough by my standards.

Good stuff I found out today. Some frivolous news too that I won't cram in. I laughed at the fart jokes too. Actually I couldn't stop smiling at Evil Empryss's post. That to me was not so frivolous. That was simple and made me glad farts were invented. Mostly daughters, and dogs, and Evil Empyrss and, and just...stuff.
Brygun
member, 1985 posts
RPG since 1982
Author & Inspiration
Mon 7 Dec 2015
at 23:40
  • msg #643

More Good Stuff

Still no confirmed sightings of large numbers of salt water crocodiles coming out of the great lakes.  That would be a bad day. Since that's not happening it must be a good day.
This message was last edited by the user at 23:40, Mon 07 Dec 2015.
Eggy
member, 661 posts
Thu 10 Dec 2015
at 03:21
  • msg #644

More Good Stuff

Having a good laugh with friends.

I met with my gym buddies for a run this morning. We'd barely started, not even a quarter mile down the road when my trusty ol' sports bra bit the dust. At first, I was too embarrassed to explain, but then I just let out with it. We power walked to a dumpster and pulled up an Enya song to bid it farewell.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7wfYIMyS_dI
Sittingbull
member, 113 posts
Thu 10 Dec 2015
at 03:26
  • msg #645

More Good Stuff

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 638):

Must be in a state that doesn't allow for severance pay.
pdboddy
member, 484 posts
Thu 10 Dec 2015
at 03:53
  • msg #646

More Good Stuff

Today I got up the courage to try running games here again. :D
Eggy
member, 663 posts
Fri 11 Dec 2015
at 03:12
  • msg #647

More Good Stuff

The Changeling 20 Kickstarter has kicked off.
Eggy
member, 667 posts
Wed 16 Dec 2015
at 03:31
  • msg #648

More Good Stuff

Got a trim. Now I love my hair again.
facemaker329
member, 6702 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 1 Jan 2016
at 01:08
  • msg #649

More Good Stuff

I no longer owe anything on my student loans!  My new year is already off to a flying start!!!
adrasteia1
member, 1449 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Tue 5 Jan 2016
at 16:53
  • msg #650

More Good Stuff

I published another book on Amazon the other day and it went live on Smashwords today.
praguepride
member, 1093 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Sat 30 Jan 2016
at 03:59
  • msg #651

More Good Stuff

That feeling you get as a GM when you finish updating all your games and you go back to the main rPoL page and there are no red/blue/purple numbers just calling to you to start all over again...yet...!
facemaker329
member, 6728 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 1 Feb 2016
at 02:41
  • msg #652

More Good Stuff

I feel like I'm doing alright for a middle-aged guy.  Had a big snowstorm that started Friday night and lasted into the mid-afternoon yesterday.  I spent an hour and a half shoveling the front walks of my fourplex (I'm no longer the only able-bodied resident, but the twenty-something guy who moved in next door to me is rarely home and when he is, he never shovels)...went back inside for something to eat and to let that settle for a bit...then went back outside and spent another two and a half hours shoveling the drive and the parking area, as well as the back walks.

I'm almost 48, and I can still shovel snow for four hours (granted, it was only about 3-4", but we're talking about a lot of square footage to be cleared, too!)  I even had enough energy to go to my friend's gig (she sings in an 80's band) and dance for a couple of hours.

I'm paying for it today, though.  Everything is sore...in a good way.
Digishade
member, 3 posts
Sun 7 Feb 2016
at 06:54
  • msg #653

More Good Stuff

Finally, after a full year of complete unemployment (and a failed school enrollment,) I have a job that I not only utterly love doing, but is for an amazing company that actually appreciates the people who work for them (it's actually insane how much they value people opposed to most previous employers I've worked for, where you're just another cog moving the machine of Assumed Entitlement.)

I still owe a bunch of money to a bunch of different places, and I'm still just a temp at this new job, but there are some huge vacancies with this company and I'm hoping I'll have the option to learn other things that I'd love to do with them. I won't go back to being a Phone Slave again. Never again!

Also, Katatonia's "Onward Into Battle" is a great song, and even my art sketches have been pretty good lately! Something's bound to go wrong! lol :D
Townsend
member, 30 posts
Fri 12 Feb 2016
at 16:53
  • msg #654

More Good Stuff

Having true friends is a gift. Thankfully, I have several locally, and try hard to be one. I've been on both sides this week, between my well dying and the mother of one of my best friends (and pretty much my adopted aunt/foster mother for the last 25+ years) going into hospice with her body failing part by part.

This week, I visited my dying friend and said my farewell to her; she was unaware of it, but the family, whom I've been so much a part of for so long, greatly appreciated it. I covered feeding my friend's livestock, so she could spend more time with her dying mother.

In her turn, my friend loaned me her water trailer and water account to go to the commercial well company and get water for my livestock.

When I needed back up to get the rig safely back where it belonged last night (like all old farm trucks, this one has many issues -- the relevant one here being a tendency for the lights to go out while driving...), I called another friend to swing by on her way home, after a 14-hr shift, to follow me while I returned the rig.

And while it's always very hard to lose a friend, it's also good to know she's been freed of the painful prison her body had become. Go in peace, Mrs. Flanagan, and say "hi" to my dad for me.
Tyr Hawk
member, 148 posts
You know that one guy?
Yeah, that's me.
Mon 15 Feb 2016
at 18:01
  • msg #655

More Good Stuff

I have no idea why, but seeing bigbadron's 15000th post made me smile just now. Not because of the content or anything, just because he has 15000 posts.

I think it comes down to wanting to celebrate milestones, especially when it's for other people. Who knows though? Maybe I'm just a fan of all the zeroes. Either way, congrats to bbr on 15k posts.
bigbadron
moderator, 15001 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Mon 15 Feb 2016
at 18:21

More Good Stuff

Fift.... wait... what?  When did that happen.  It's only been about ten minutes since I hit 10k.  :)
Brianna
member, 2048 posts
Mon 15 Feb 2016
at 21:05
  • msg #657

More Good Stuff

Ron has always been a prolific poster.  Before he was a mod, he was so often the first to post answering any questions that some of us thought he never slept, and I'm sure his diligence was one of several reasons he was asked to be a mod.  :-)

Ron, I'm not sure whether congrats on your landmark post are called for, or whether we should still be telling you to get more sleep, but congrats anyway, you're a great mod, and still often the first on the scene when moderation is needed.
Boomcoach
member, 71 posts
Gaming since 1975
Bluffton, IN
Tue 16 Feb 2016
at 00:12
  • msg #658

More Good Stuff

I have been abandoned by my wife, who is spending a week in Florida with her Mom and sister.  While I will certainly miss her, this means the next few days are ALL MINE!!!

Once upon a time I would have been bar-hopping, but now I'm an old fart, so I come home, crank up some metal and get some serious work done on RPoL.  Not as party oriented, but still a week I have been looking forward to.
This message was last edited by the user at 00:13, Tue 16 Feb 2016.
bigbadron
moderator, 15009 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Fri 19 Feb 2016
at 17:52

More Good Stuff

So... w-a-a-a-a-y back in January 2013, I signed up for a Kickstarter with an expected delivery date for the project of February 2013.

And I've been waiting, and waiting.  And waiting some more.  People involved in the project got sick and couldn't work, and there were all manner of complications along the way.

But today I finally got my copy of Deluxe Tunnels and Trolls.  And it is a gorgeous book, made all the more awesome by having the name BigBadRon in the acknowledgements.

So happy right now that I could hop a flight to Australia and hug Skald.  :)
Wyrm
member, 611 posts
Thu 25 Feb 2016
at 01:29
  • msg #660

More Good Stuff

That dentistry has gotten to the point that what major pain I am feeling now, is probably a mere shadow of what it was had I had this done a mere hundred years ago.
Brianna
member, 2052 posts
Fri 26 Feb 2016
at 21:21
  • msg #661

More Good Stuff

So we started with a new dentist end of last year.  Need a lot of work done, insurance only covers 80%, cap per calendar year, so I hadn't been back yet.  But then I broke a back tooth, lacerating my tongue and leaving a rough spot, making it very painful to swallow and no hope of getting better until the sharp bit was gone.  I tried to call them Friday and Saturday, when I did have a way to get there, but they didn't get back to me till Monday.  I told them I had transportation so they sent one of the girls to pick me up and bring me back home after my tooth was fixed, and another filling done while she had me there.  Tongue is still sore, but at least it's getting better now.  But what kind of service is that?!?
Genghis the Hutt
member, 2457 posts
Just an average guy :)
Fri 26 Feb 2016
at 21:41
  • msg #662

More Good Stuff

That's awesome that your dentist will pick you up and bring you there/back for treatment! :)
Brianna
member, 2053 posts
Sun 28 Feb 2016
at 00:56
  • msg #663

More Good Stuff

In reply to Genghis the Hutt (msg # 662):

Yes, I was very surprised.  They even offered to do the same if we set up a series of appointments to get the rest of the work done.  But it's already almost March, my husband's fair-weather car will be out of storage the first second weather allows.
facemaker329
member, 6760 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 16 Mar 2016
at 05:44
  • msg #664

More Good Stuff

Spent my afternoon and part of my evening judging the Regional Drama competition for the high schools in my state.  I went into it half-fearing that I'd have to sit through some truly dreadful monologues or agonizingly off-key musical theater pieces...

Couldn't have been more wrong.  There were a couple of people who could really have used some more work on their pieces...but even those were still enjoyable.  And the REALLY good ones?  WOW!!!  I had a great time watching these kids at work!

I always tell people there's an incredible amount of talent in this area.  Nice to spend a day having my words proven true...
RPGuru92
member, 107 posts
Wed 16 Mar 2016
at 23:25
  • msg #665

Re: More good stuff.

A few weeks ago I survived a Pulmonary embolism, now that I have a child it is proof that since my biological imperative is satisfied, my own body is trying to kill me.
Fyrerain
member, 36 posts
Tue 22 Mar 2016
at 18:48
  • msg #666

Re: More good stuff.

As the saying goes, I love it when a plan comes together. :)

Bypassing an indifferent, lazy tech, I hit up someone at District Office to find out who I should contact regarding our discards, to see if a part could be scavenged from something there, to fix something here. The District guy stepped up and checked himself -- then extended his check to the other sites (which had been the next step in my own plan). Lo, another site had what I needed! He's sending it over.

Now I can fix something that can't currently be simply replaced. Problem solved without any additional expense.

Even nicer, after the last couple days, is knowing there are still a few other folks in this department willing to be helpful. That's an exotic treasure, these days. Wish I could send the District guy a beer in inter-office mail. He deserves a toast in acknowledgement of his efforts. :)
GammaBear
member, 630 posts
Gaymer
Wed 23 Mar 2016
at 01:37
  • msg #667

So this just happened...

So, my long-standing TT group that meets every Monday started a Victorian era steampunk game about six, seven, maybe even eight months ago. Not really sure as it's been a blast from the start. It started off with our mercenary group being contacted by the Queen's daughter to investigate missing dignitaries who were on their way to the new world.

We get there, do some exploring, find this Druid conclave who help us out with some things and point us on some leads. We find one town with all the inhabitants dead at some altar in the center of the place, then another town where everyone is infected with brain slugs. So after taking care of that we discover that everything is part of some elaborate plan that someone is trying to control the elemental Monoliths (essentially the gods of the elementals, for those who don't know). Well, after finding more dead towns, and dealing with some of the Monoliths' avatars, we discover that the group behind everything is...wait for it...the Druids! Their plan has been to use the Monoliths to draw down the Elder Gods.

After restoring order to the four Monoliths and calling in favors they gave us, the Elder God Ragnora has been called down, destroyed a town and everything within a thousand miles of it and new we're on our way to take her out.

Here's where it gets interesting. Since the game started, one of our players left b/c of a new teaching position he took and I'm leaving at the end of the month. The other guy's character was some freaky Air Elemental descended Unchained Monk. I WAS a normal Human Fighter until I called in the boon from the Fire Monolith. I asked to be imbued with his essence. So he obliged. So now I possess elemental traits as well as some other nifty abilities.

Point being, now that our characters are within vicinity, the GM told me that since our two characters are elemental in nature, we're going to be controlled by Ragnora, the mother of all monsters. Next game our characters are gonna turn on the group and probably wipe them out.
Fyrerain
member, 39 posts
Fri 1 Apr 2016
at 21:51
  • msg #668

Nice to have the right neighbors

Much as I miss my old mechanic (he's been down for almost 2 years for a back injury), my friends and I have lucked into finding another trustworthy, reliable, and competent mechanic -- who's right in our neighborhood. Our old mechanic is up in the city, almost 50 miles away.

The new guy gave me a ride to my friend's -- only about 2 miles away (which is right next door, around here). And while here, put in a temp fix on her little truck so it'd start again (why she didn't pick me up as planned).

This morning, in and around my brake job, he installed the replacement part we brought him for the truck, replaced the alternator in my friend's van so it will now start reliably, and now has the battery from my truck charging. If my battery's still good, I could have my truck back on the road today. :)

So nice to have this all so very local, given not much is, when you live in the middle of nowhere!
OceanLake
member, 956 posts
Sat 2 Apr 2016
at 03:36
  • msg #669

Nice to have the right neighbors

Beautification, at least.

And how about this wonderful color scheme...simultaneously creative and soothing.
habsin4
member, 702 posts
Putting old paper in new
boxes since 2005
Wed 6 Apr 2016
at 14:33
  • msg #670

Nice to have the right neighbors

If you need some happy tears today.

http://aplus.com/a/david-beast...as-lindsay-ratcliffe

Weight lifter befriends 12 year old girl with progeria, a rare but serious condition.
facemaker329
member, 6768 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 7 Apr 2016
at 05:33
  • msg #671

It's not how many times you fall down...

So...Friday, I got home from work near the depths of despair, because a project I was working on had gone all sorts of wrong...I'm not an experienced carpenter, by any means, but I've done enough construction and set work to feel competent, at least...but several little things all compounded on each other and things were all out of kilter, and I felt totally defeated by it all.

Went home, vegged out in front of a few episodes of Doctor Who...and things started clicking together in my head...understanding where the problems had happened, how things had gotten so far off.  And understanding that it was just little stuff...a missed detail here, trying the wrong thing to correct for it there...I felt better.

I went to bed that night, still feeling a bit down, but at least not feeling like I'd totally failed.  And, sometime during the night, my brain kept chewing on those little errors.  I woke up knowing how to fix almost all of them.  Spent Monday correcting those errors...and all those little fixes that came to mind while I was sleeping did the trick.  There were still a few more errors that I couldn't bring myself to worry about when the rest of things were so out of whack, but with the big stuff straightened out, I went back to work yesterday, and spent a few more hours making a series of little fixes here and there.

And today, I painted.  And it works.  Works even better than I'd expected.  This was a project I wanted to do last year at this time (well...around this time. We didn't realize, a year ago, that we'd need this done.)  Our purchasing department kept bungling the purchase requests...they didn't order the lumber for months, and then they didn't order the hardware to go with it...it took them months longer to order the hardware, and by then all the lumber they'd ordered had been used on other projects, so we had to order it again.  Seriously, I started drawing up plans for this right around the end of April last year.

But it's a year later.  And the project is done.  And it's even better than I thought it would be.  And part of me just wants to bust a gut with pride over getting it done at all.

It's been a good week.
ginny
member, 284 posts
Mon 25 Apr 2016
at 13:35
  • msg #672

It's not how many times you fall down...

My daughters got to spend the last five days in Washington DC on vacation with their grandmother and cousins, visiting their uncle and his daughter.  I was talking to my mother this morning about their vacation and how everything was going.

My brother took all 5 kids out sight seeing on Saturday, and they had a blast.  They went shopping and were licking national monuments but had fun doing it, lol.  They'll be home tomorrow night and I cant wait to see the pictures of their trip and to hear their stories. ^_^
praguepride
member, 1154 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Mon 25 Apr 2016
at 14:50
  • msg #673

Office Prank

NOTE: NOT A POLITICAL COMMENTARY! CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH! TALKING POLITICS WILL GET YOU BOOTED, THIS IS JUST AN OFFICE PRANK!

A co-worker of mine is very much a supporter of Hillary Clinton. He's with Her. He is also on vacation for a week.

In that week's time I have collected pledges from other co-workers to Make His Cubicle Great Again! I am decorating it with Trump swag, Trump posters, Trump hats, Trump books. And the pièce de résistance: A lifesized cardboard cut out of Donald Trump (with his red hat) to stand in his cubicle.

I've also created a giant 3' x 5' poster parody of the campaign slogan to Make His Cubicle Great Again

I may also use a bunch of left over balloons and streamers from a recent party, it will be a spectacle to behold!
GamerHandle
member, 906 posts
Umm.. yep.
So, there's this door...
Mon 25 Apr 2016
at 14:53
  • msg #674

Office Prank

In reply to praguepride (msg # 673):

You're my kind of practical joker =)

Regardless of persuasion/politics/whatever - this is the kind of stuff that makes me laugh.

My father, who can't stand any music made after 2006, despises Justin Bieber.

His previous office made it a game to try to hide Justin Bieber headshots around his office; under his computer, mini ones under the keyboard, etc.

*chuckle*
praguepride
member, 1155 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Mon 25 Apr 2016
at 15:24
  • msg #675

Office Prank

My old co-workers did that with Miley Cyrus...
facemaker329
member, 6778 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 26 Apr 2016
at 06:28
  • msg #676

Office Prank

Way back when, during the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, I was part of the wardrobe crew for the opening ceremonies of the Paralympic Games.  My boss had a HUGE crush on Justin Timberlake (he was absolutely breathless about the prospect of maybe seeing N'Sync perform at the Medals Plaza during the Olympics).  So, one day, he brought in an N'Sync poster...and a calendar...and a couple of other pieces of memorabilia.

So, I had a little fun, with a magic marker and the sticky section of some post-it notes, and drew up little moustaches for all of them, that stuck flat to the poster, so it looked like they'd been drawn on until you got right up close.  Oh, you could feel the disturbance in the Force when he initially saw the poster...

And then he got a closer look and realized what it was and laughed.  A lot.

And made us promise, under threat of intense physical pain, to never do anything like that to his poster again.  *grin*
momo135
member, 1 post
Fri 6 May 2016
at 03:16
  • msg #677

;)

hiii.... anyone out there? I'm so bored. Someone tell me a story ;)
facemaker329
member, 6781 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 6 May 2016
at 07:39
  • msg #678

;)

I got paid to spend four hours in a Mandalorian costume yesterday...just walk around at a couple of events and take pictures with people.  It was awesome...*grin*
Fyrerain
member, 48 posts
Fri 6 May 2016
at 21:03
  • msg #679

Heheheh

I went to many different schools prior to graduating high school (16, not including the couple I sampled for only a day or two). Needless to say, academic programs didn't always mesh perfectly.

So, it was moderately satisfying to have my mother admit, when I was in my 30s, that she should have backed me up back in 4th grade, when the change to a new school resulted in being held back in English/reading.

Now, four times a year, I find it immensely satisfying to know I'm getting a little bit even for what the educational status quo did to me back then: I'm the editor of the quarterly newsletter for the high school at which I work. This means I get to edit grammar and punctuation for everyone, from the principals on down.

Considering I nearly flunked out of English in high school (that 4th grade incident adversely skewed my attitude toward school), this circumstance amuses the hell out of me. }:>
This message was last edited by the user at 17:06, Thu 12 May 2016.
Evil Empryss
member, 1463 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Fri 6 May 2016
at 22:16
  • msg #680

Heheheh

The new Deadpool DVD commercial!

It's barely PG rated... and it's just a commercial!  ^_^
Isida KepTukari
member, 104 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Thu 12 May 2016
at 16:45
  • msg #681

Heheheh

Finally sold our house.  And the buyers didn't want us to fix a thing.

Finally have an accepted offer in on another house (#3 in this year-long process, the other two sold out from under us).  We gave them a list of things to fix (mostly electrical things, GFCIs, getting outlets grounded, along with some venting) figuring we could bargain down to a couple things.  Instead they're fixing everything.

We're going to be moving into a house where the only things that need to be done are cosmetic, a house with the spaces, kitchen, bedrooms, and basement we've been wanting for a long time.

It's finally happening.
Evil Empryss
member, 1465 posts
Because knowing
is half the battle!
Fri 13 May 2016
at 12:34
  • msg #682

Heheheh

A new donut shop opened in town -- a little mom-and-pop place, not Kruddy Kreme -- and they have maple-bacon donuts!!  ^_^
Merevel
member, 1029 posts
Gaming :-)
Very unlucky
Fri 13 May 2016
at 14:53
  • msg #683

Heheheh

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 682):

Im jealous.

I have not had really good donuts since Peanut Butter Angels were discontinued. ;-;
Manticore
member, 402 posts
Cthulhu gamed with me
HE lost 2d6 SAN points
Fri 13 May 2016
at 15:00
  • msg #684

Heheheh

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 682):

I certainly agree with the Kruddy Kreme name. That's the worst donut chain I've ever tasted. On the other paw, bacon?? I know that savory donuts can be quite good - I used to have tuna & cheddar filled ones at work - but I just do not get this bacon fad going on.

And on the gripping paw, maple sounds delicious. The real thing, or artificial?
This message was last edited by the user at 15:01, Fri 13 May 2016.
adrasteia1
member, 1454 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Fri 13 May 2016
at 19:24
  • msg #685

Heheheh

Our local donut shop is also a gaming store (Dungeons and Donuts). They do 40k and other gaming-themed donuts. http://www.dungeonsanddonuts.net/
Eggy
member, 711 posts
Sat 14 May 2016
at 10:33
  • msg #686

Heheheh

In reply to adrasteia1 (msg # 685):

I don't like donuts, but I'd go to that shop. It looks adorable and I bet it smells heavenly.
adrasteia1
member, 1455 posts
Even a small star
shines in the darkness
Sun 15 May 2016
at 15:25
  • msg #687

Heheheh

Sometimes it smells like gamers but yes, coffee and donuts. :) Mostly it just has a really great atmosphere. It can get super-packed, but when it's not, it's just relaxed. They have lots of board games, and card games and things to play there too.
EightBitEighties
member, 36 posts
A Blast From
The Past!
Sun 15 May 2016
at 19:52
  • msg #688

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

So I added a new treasure to my "Retro" Video Game Museum this past week. It's weird to think of it as "Retro" since all the systems in my current collection are ones I grew up with, but I digress.

After taking the system completely apart, cleaning, refurbishing, repairing, all that good stuff, I plugged it in and it works BEAUTIFULLY considering that it's spent the last thirty-some years in an outdoor storage shed. One small problem, though (naturally). The two action buttons on the only controller don't work and online searching reveals that finding a replacement, sight unseen, will be modestly expensive. I paid $65 for the system as-is and a used controller is $50 easy, plus shipping. I started calling around to places in my local area and found ONE(!) place an hour away that has a controller for $15, plus a good size collection of games.

Looks like there'll be a minor road trip in my future. (On the bright side, the store that sells the controller ALSO has another treasure for sale that I've been hunting for since time immemorial).
Evil Empryss
member, 1466 posts
Try tasting your words
before spitting them out
Thu 19 May 2016
at 04:10
  • msg #689

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

My first 3D printer.

My cosplay game just stepped up a notch.  ^_^
facemaker329
member, 6787 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 19 May 2016
at 07:30
  • msg #690

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

So, a guy commissioned me to build a costume for him, for a Star Wars-themed corporate event (Max Rebo).  He'd been looking to hire someone else, because she does some really awesome work, but she told him she just didn't have time...and a friend of mine that was doing some other work for him threw my name out there...

Seeing as this was unlike anything else I've done before, I really had no idea how much to charge...so I poked around some of the local fabric stores (wanted to make sure I could find materials do even attempt it, before I said yes), figured out how much materials would be, roughly (at full retail...one place was going out of business and had everything marked down, and I had a 50% coupon for the other), and then doubled that...told him I'd need half, up front, for materials, and the other half when he got the costume...

He gave me the half, I built the costume, I dropped it off to him...since I was already working the same event (hired as a costumed character by someone he'd subcontracted for roaming characters), I just told him he could pay me after the event was over.  When we got done, I was ready to leave while he was still just starting to get all of his stuff loaded out, so I told him I'd give him my address and he could just mail me a check.  He said he wanted to pay me more than what we'd agreed on...I told him I wasn't expecting more, but if he wanted to, I wasn't going to argue...

And, so, when I got the final check for the project...

I basically got a 75% tip for doing the job and getting it done in a timely manner.  When the initial price tag is a few hundred dollars, and you're getting 75% ON TOP of that?

If he calls again, you better believe I'm gonna say, "Sure!  What do you need?"
Evil Empryss
member, 1477 posts
Try tasting your words
before spitting them out
Sat 4 Jun 2016
at 21:08
  • msg #691

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

I am sitting in an auditorium, listening to speeches, waiting for my firstborn to walk across the stage and receive her high school diploma.

Parenting Achievement 1 unlocked!

Now on to college and military service!  ^_^
Isida KepTukari
member, 107 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Mon 11 Jul 2016
at 16:56
  • msg #692

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

Finally got our move done.  Figured out problems with our internet and AC and resolved them.  Still waiting on our contractor to take out some paneling and paint some rooms, but everything we can move in has been moved in.  Also, I have my basement game room set up, something I've been wanting to do for about as long as I knew my dad played D&D.  I have made a Magic Tavern in my basement, and nearly all of my fantasy art and medieval-esque game props are on display.  I went to Goodwill and found some tankards, wooden bowls, pottery platters, and a metal coat of arms for cheap.  I put up my oversized Faerun map on the walls, and put LED candles in all of my glass lanterns I've been collecting.  I even found printer block cases to put on my wall that will hold a good portion of my minis.

I have a dedicated game room.  DM ultimate physical achievement: Unlocked!
Wyrm
member, 623 posts
Fri 15 Jul 2016
at 08:46
  • msg #693

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

Hooray, it's moving day!.

And soon, I get my own basement to do the same as the prior poster.
facemaker329
member, 6811 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sat 16 Jul 2016
at 07:13
  • msg #694

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

This one could have gone either way...but I'm gonna call it a good thing...(if I wasn't on salary, it would definitely be a bad thing...)

Somebody managed to fry our sound board today, after the first show of the day.  And I mean, FRY...it will power up...but NONE of the functions work, we can't get the control screen to even light up, much less display any information, no sound through it...it's pretty thoroughly shot.  So, the rest of the shows for the day were cancelled.  Makes me happy, we were all hoping for another day off...the only people upset by this news were our managers, the park management, and a few of the patrons who'd come specifically to see the shows (I hope they went back to the Guest Services office to ask for refunds, like they were threatening to do...top management doesn't seem to accept the fact that people actually do come to the park just to see the entertainment, having someone demand their money back because there was no entertainment would kind of underscore the principle...)

In calling around, we learned that NOBODY in our area has this model of sound board available...nor do they even have something that has the same capabilities, apparently, because the earliest a replacement could get shipped in would be Wednesday.  Because it died on a Friday, nobody could send anyone to look at it and see if it can be repaired...so the best-case scenario on that is Monday.  And since a large group of my friends were getting together for a big party all day tomorrow (Saturday), and I'd been telling them I would have to miss it because of work...

Turns out, I won't be missing it, after all.  And I'll even have some downtime to spare to do some repairs and touch-ups on the set, before we get back to someone performing on it every day of the week.  I should probably feel a little bad that I don't feel at all bad about this happening...but I don't.
w byrd
member, 2055 posts
I coudn't think of
a really cool screen name
Fri 29 Jul 2016
at 18:38
  • msg #695

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

for years I've written my own material for my sci-fi campaigns.ships guns, locations. etc...I got serious about trying to put together some stuff to submit and evidently it was good enough to catch the eye of a publisher when I submitted it.

last year while i was working on a project I had trouble relating to the artist what I wanted a few things t look like. So I decided to set down and learn to do 3d Modeling, and CG renders of my ideas.

well then things went south for a bit, the publisher overloaded their plate with projects and canceled my project releasing my material back to me. but then suggested I self-publish it using a community content agreement.

For a while my art was not up to snuff, I mean some of it looks lame even to me. but I think I am getting the hang of it. Or at least close enough for people to take a liking to it...don't ask me I think most of it still looks lame.

But in the last week or so things have sort of happened at once. I have received some decent support and advice, and encouragement to go ahead and publish, on top of that I am now selling some of my art for that funny green stuff that everyone is so excited about. Enough to take my lady out to dinner with at least.

And now A local Gaming Shop has given me shelf space and is definitely behind selling my prints in the shop...for cash...

On top of that's I have an opportunity as an artist providing illustrations ( two opportunities actually)for a pretty successful product line... nothing major not like I'll ever be getting rich or famous..but it's kind of cool to know at least a few people think am able to do professional quality work.
facemaker329
member, 6854 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 6 Sep 2016
at 18:07
  • msg #696

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

The flip-side of the vent I just posted...

In spite of massive car trouble, and thanks massively to some truly awesome friends, I'm making a dream come true...at least, on a small scale.  With my car dead, a neighbor loaned me his Astro van...which was good, because last night, we started shooting a Star Wars fan film, and I needed to haul costumes, props, some lighting, all the food for the cast and crew...

This is a dream come true for me because it's a story I wrote.  Had some input from a couple of friends on it, but it's my story, and while I've had stuff that I've written produced before (a few times, actually), this is the first time I've been the director for it...it's my story, and my vision of my story.  Yeah, it's only five minutes long...but it's happening.  And it looks pretty good, I have to say, so far.

Again, because I have awesome friends.  A friend with some nice lights and a very nice camera.  A friend whose family owns a small sheep ranch, and is willing to let us bang around in some unused corners of it at all hours of the night.  Two friends who are experienced actors, and a third who's not all that experienced, but is game for anything.  A friend who heard about the project and suggested her son as an actor.  Other friends who've provided logistical and moral support.  A friend who's doing all my CGI work on his own time.

I really do have a lot to be thankful for in life.
Isida KepTukari
member, 120 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Wed 21 Sep 2016
at 18:45
  • msg #697

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

After about 9 years, I finally have a piano in my house again.  After 9 years, I have begun to reteach myself how to play.  Within three run-throughs of an old favorite song of mine, I had an intact, mostly in-tempo piece of music filling my house.

Thanks, Mom, for all those lessons when I was a kid.
RedTeamPyro
member, 159 posts
So edgy he cant cut paper
Idon'tknowwhattoputhere
Thu 22 Sep 2016
at 02:53
  • msg #698

You Take The Good, You Take The Bad And There You Have...

Something slightly related to the origional post, a buddy of mine has been having issues with sign stealers stealing his yard signs. While I don't like to publicly discuss politics irl, I was able to offer him a solution. I learned about bird repellent from a post online where someone talked about their sign stealer issue, so I suggested my buddy get bird repellent.

It worked gloriously. He said one person tried to call the cops over it. Nope, bird repellent isn't illegal, kid.

If I get yard signs or anything at some point, I'm buying bird repellent too.
jwneil
member, 19 posts
Fri 7 Oct 2016
at 13:13
  • msg #699

Luke Cage

Wow!  The series was incredible and the music....Man, was that good.

Lots of R&B, smooth soul, jazz. Can't say enough.  Definitely good stuff!
ashlayne
member, 1681 posts
May you have exactly the
God/dess you deserve. =p
Sat 29 Oct 2016
at 18:23
  • msg #700

Yay competent people

So glad my ISP hires some competent people in tech support. I had an issue with my internet connection this morning, and being in tech support myself I went through all the standard junk: check the cables, swap one out, power cycle the modem, connect directly to the modem (as opposed to wifi), check the management address, etc. Still didn't resolve the issue, so ISP tech here I came. As soon as the guy picked up and got my account open, I rattled off everything I had done plus the status of the lights on the modem, and he just sat there in stunned silence before going straight into the modem to check it. Five minutes later, internet was back due to an issue on their end. Thanks Rob @ TWC! :D
Isida KepTukari
member, 124 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Wed 2 Nov 2016
at 18:46
  • msg #701

I win against nature!

This almost was a vent, and then it turned out good!  I had some pumpkins and gourds, so I made a little basket for a harvest display for my front porch.  The squirrels then proceeded to gnaw on everything, leaving me with a tattered mess of half-rotten squash.

Then I had a coupon in the mail for a crafting store, and used it to purchase several nearly identical fake gourds and pumpkins, hot-glued them together so they couldn't be blown away, and now the display looks better than ever and is 100% non-edible by squirrels!
OceanLake
member, 983 posts
Mon 7 Nov 2016
at 12:40
  • msg #702

I win against nature!

Oregon has vote by mail. We receive our ballots about three weeks before the due date, fill them out after due consideration, and either drop them off at any of the numerous collection boxes or mail them in. No lines, no chads, and there is a paper trail. And no excuse for not voting.
Eggy
member, 756 posts
Tue 27 Dec 2016
at 15:39
  • msg #703

I win against nature!

I got a lovely Christmas gift: a can of tea that smells like hot cocoa. Tastes great with my morning biscuit. ^_^
Eggy
member, 759 posts
Tue 3 Jan 2017
at 01:29
  • msg #704

New Year's Resolutions

At the airport. My flight was late. Landed at gate E12 with 15 minutes to board the connecting flight at B12. Ran down there and got a courtesy text that the gate changed to B18. Ran there. Gate personnel told me the gate had been changed again to B76. Ran there so fast that I beat the courtesy text.

New Year's Resolution to run more: So far, so good!
Tyr Hawk
member, 264 posts
You know that one guy?
Yeah, that's me.
Tue 3 Jan 2017
at 02:33
  • msg #705

New Year's Resolutions

So, after the official forum for one of my favorite RPGs went down, I moved to the unofficial official forum. Then, about a month ago, THAT went down without any warning whatsoever, and I was heartbroken. Today, out of the blue, I was linked to the new official forum, where the game's creator himself is an active member! Which is amazing for so many reasons, but most amazing because I posted up one of my pet projects that I've been working on for the system, and he was the first one to reply to the thread, and he said it was amazing.

I'm like... on a bit of a Cloud 9 thing right now. I don't even know how feelz works. I literally cannot even.
wyrmpuff
member, 131 posts
I need a name change.
I want more games.
Wed 4 Jan 2017
at 23:20
  • msg #706

I am amused

I am amused by the movie Sing. Gunther sorta grows on you... like fungus.
Darbbackwards
member, 181 posts
My name is Brad, which is
darb spelled backwards
Tue 10 Jan 2017
at 21:33
  • msg #707

Happy news!

I am now a father! :D
Brianna
member, 2106 posts
Wed 11 Jan 2017
at 20:42
  • msg #708

Happy news!

In reply to Darbbackwards (msg # 707):

Congrats!  Being a parent is wonderful, frustrating, terrifying, gratifying... pretty much any adjective fits at one time or another!
Darbbackwards
member, 182 posts
My name is Brad, which is
darb spelled backwards
Wed 11 Jan 2017
at 20:57
  • msg #709

Happy news!

In reply to Brianna (msg # 708):

Thanks! It's been awesome:D It's crazy that I loved her as soon as she was born (before that as well, but holding her just made it so real)
CrazyIvan777
member, 186 posts
Thu 12 Jan 2017
at 03:13
  • msg #710

Happy news!

The RPG that I helped write for four years ago and got screwed out of payment for, I not only got my promised pay for (which I'd written off long ago) but 20% more because the guy who ended up with the rights to it is a stand-up, honorable guy who wanted to make sure the freelancers got paid!

In other news, my youngest nephew read my novel, and has decided he wants to write sci-fi / fantasy. He's really making me proud, every damn day.
Eggy
member, 761 posts
Thu 12 Jan 2017
at 03:28
  • msg #711

Happy news!

Most Excellent, Ivan!
Alex Vriairu
member, 383 posts
Thu 12 Jan 2017
at 05:16
  • msg #712

Re: Happy news!

CrazyIvan777:
The RPG that I helped write for four years ago and got screwed out of payment for, I not only got my promised pay for (which I'd written off long ago) but 20% more because the guy who ended up with the rights to it is a stand-up, honorable guy who wanted to make sure the freelancers got paid!



would it be against the rules to ask what rpg that is?
facemaker329
member, 6884 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 16 Jan 2017
at 08:38
  • msg #713

Re: Happy news!

I work with the theater program in one of the local high schools...they just closed a two-weekend run of Jeckyll and Hyde...which is some deep stuff for a high school program to tackle.  These kids handled it like champs...seven sold-out performances (they sold so well the first weekend that a matinee was added for the second), doing a show that I've had mixed feelings about (it's got some grwat music, and it's very demanding for the leads...but prior to this, I hadn't seen a production that didn't feel tedious, even the one produced by and starring several of my friends, that I painted the set for.  Maybe it was the way the director cut the show down (almost every song lost a verse, at least, just because they went on and on and on...), but even in terms of performance, this was just a really good show.

And I feel incredibly blessed to be involved.  I've been doing theater pretty intensively for a couple of decades, now...and working with these students always reminds me of the joy and delight I felt when it was new to me.  I seriously think they're one of the reasons that I stay young (a soon-to-be 49-year-old who routinely gets taken for being in my mid-30s...)
facemaker329
member, 6890 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 23 Feb 2017
at 07:17
  • msg #714

Re: Happy news!

Next show with the same group of theater kids.  This time around, they're doing The Little Mermaid (the Disney one)...and this is NOT a small show.  I think, when all is said and done, it's a cast of over 90 people.  And they're GOOD.

And I'm loving this show for a very different reason, this time around.  I'm a chronic Jack-of-all-trades (I get it from my dad), and especially in theater.  They initially asked me if I would do makeup for them.  Gladly.  Then they asked if I'd be willing to help paint some of the set.  Absolutely.  Then they asked me if I could make the costumes for Flotsam and Jetsam, and make Ursula's wig (sculpted out of foam).  Certainly.  And I've been helping with building and dressing the set.  Today, I started painting fish-scales on the leotards of all the mermaids (two sisters left, plus Ariel...)  If I can figure it out, I may also be helping the tech side of the show run, because they've got a pile of very nice body mics that are broken...and while I haven't fixed mics before, I've worked on enough shows to have a pretty good idea what the problem is...and solder well enough that I may be able to fix it.

I've never been so widely involved in a production before...and while part of me is flailing to try and keep up with all of it, part of me is all kinds of tickled to finally be facing this kind of challenge.
facemaker329
member, 6895 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 13 Mar 2017
at 06:07
  • msg #715

Re: Happy news!

Hey, it's a three-peat!  My jack-of-all-trades status is getting a workout.  We're renovating a haunted house ride, at work...giving it a facelift for its fiftieth anniversary.  Normally, I have little or nothing to do with the rides...but this one's a special case.

So far, I've cleaned up four wax figures...helped do extensive repairs on two of them and light repair on one more.  Today I finished repainting a fiberglass figure...kind of like a mannequin, but not free-standing.  When I started, it was fluorescent orange...now, it's all flesh-toned.  Next project?  Repainting a prop Egyptian sarcophagus.

And in the middle of all this, I'm making a dragon-helmet for a friend's cosplay.  DEFINITELY not getting bored with my day-to-day anytime in the near future...
Wyrm
member, 630 posts
Mon 13 Mar 2017
at 22:49
  • msg #716

Re: Happy news!

MY man cave got an upgrade: an LED Ultrabright shop light with Bluetooth speakers built-in.
Evil Empryss
member, 1524 posts
Try tasting your words
before spitting them out
Mon 20 Mar 2017
at 14:28
  • msg #717

Re: Happy news!

Thought for the day:

Just passed Harbor Freight where they have a sale sign up and realized that in a fantasy world the phrase "Giant Liquidation" means something completely different.
NowhereMan
member, 125 posts
Mon 20 Mar 2017
at 16:45
  • msg #718

Re: Happy news!

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 717):

Eh, they're both fun, cause huge messes, and usually end with somebody's house getting leveled. So pretty much the same thing.
ginny
member, 289 posts
Sun 2 Apr 2017
at 00:28
  • msg #719

Re: Happy news!

I love this day. Its been filled with anticipation, pranks, and laughs.  I also love that its only once a year :-)
MythZarya
member, 21 posts
Wed 19 Apr 2017
at 02:22
  • msg #720

Can I just say...


The Players in my game are absolutely fantastic! Every IC post is a gem in some fashion or another and they're so much fun to torment roleplay with. They rock the casbah! Seriously. They're awesome.

I'm a lucky GM. :)
Darbbackwards
member, 186 posts
My name is Brad, which is
darb spelled backwards
Sun 23 Apr 2017
at 18:52
  • msg #721

Noobie GM

Just made my first post as a GM. wish me luck!
horus
member, 120 posts
Wayfarer of the
Western Wastes
Mon 24 Apr 2017
at 00:23
  • msg #722

Re: Noobie GM

Darbbackwards:
Just made my first post as a GM. wish me luck!


Let me wish for you preparedness instead of luck.  When you're the GM, a Smith & Wesson always beats four aces...

Aw, what the heck.  Good luck in your new game!
MythZarya
member, 22 posts
Mon 24 Apr 2017
at 01:01
  • msg #723

Noobie GM

In reply to Darbbackwards (msg # 721):

All the best! Have fun!
Wyrm
member, 631 posts
Sat 29 Apr 2017
at 04:26
  • msg #724

Noobie GM

Well, now I can officially say I got a promotion to the highest I have ever been in a career. And It is scaring me. But yay for more money.
Evil Empryss
member, 1533 posts
Try tasting your words
before spitting them out
Sat 29 Apr 2017
at 12:26
  • msg #725

Noobie GM

My 15 year old Evil Prince just won a $30,000 college scholarship for creating a mobile app!  Woot!
aguy777
member, 191 posts
Join Date:
Fri, 29 Nov, 2013
Sat 29 Apr 2017
at 17:51
  • msg #726

Unexpected Rewards

Back in November, a GM on this site wound up in the hospital and couldn't continue their game. I offered to step in, and ran the game for a brief bit while they were out of action. They've been running their game again for a while now (with me assisting), and decided to get me a gift for helping them. I now own a nice, shiny, copy of Volo's Guide To Monsters.

Thanks, GB!
Evil Empryss
member, 1539 posts
Insert witty and
appropriate quote here
Mon 8 May 2017
at 22:16
  • msg #727

Health Food Can Be Bad For Your Health

I now know what the Heimlich feels like, and thanks to an ex-cop classmate of mine, I'm here to write this.

Health food is deadly: a fruiting carrot tried to kill me. <goes back to eating caramels>
Evil Empryss
member, 1542 posts
Insert witty and
appropriate quote here
Wed 17 May 2017
at 02:48
  • msg #728

Warm Fuzzies

That feeling you get when no one has posted all day, and none of your games have "new post" indicators, but you click on one and find that someone has just posted for you.
RosstoFalstaff
member, 110 posts
Sat 27 May 2017
at 15:22
  • msg #729

Feeling Happy

A year and about one week ago, I kicked out a toxic player from one of my games, and it was the last toxic player that game has seen since. I don't know how they do it, but I got to say I love my players to death for being so amazing!
aguy777
member, 198 posts
Join Date:
Fri, 29 Nov, 2013
Fri 9 Jun 2017
at 04:39
  • msg #730

Feeling Very Happy

After 16 months, one of my games has just crossed 20,000 posts. I don't even know what to say about that. That's simply a ludicrous number. I kinda feel like I should make a Ric Flair-esque "WOOOOO" at this point in celebration.
SunRuanEr
member, 50 posts
Fri 9 Jun 2017
at 13:02
  • msg #731

They Made It!

The very last of my teenager's friend group (AKA: my spare children) graduate tonight!

I'm so tickled to see them all grow up and get to where they can spread their wings and head away from their small-town nest.
jwneil
member, 25 posts
Tue 20 Jun 2017
at 14:27
  • msg #732

Resident Evil:  Vendetta

Saw RE: Vendetta on the big screen last night.  It was very good.  The action sequences were awesome.  And what made them even better is that the heroes and zombies were mo-capped.  Their "action team" worked through all the stunts.

Pretty cool.  Reminded me of the ballet gun battles of John Woo movies.
Evil Empryss
member, 1554 posts
Insert witty and
appropriate quote here
Tue 27 Jun 2017
at 00:38
  • msg #733

Resident Evil:  Vendetta

Just got back from the store where an absolutely gorgeous full double rainbow was brilliant against the deep gray clouds.

And everywhere I turned, people were coming out of stores, cars, and homes to stop and gawk at it and take pictures.  It was a beautiful sight all around.
CrazyIvan777
member, 194 posts
Thu 29 Jun 2017
at 22:59
  • msg #734

Good stuff!

That wonderful moment when one of your PC's comes to you and spills her pet conspiracy theory about one of the antagonists, and you just smile, nod, and realize it's -awesome-, so therefore... It's now pretty much true!
GreyGriffin
member, 94 posts
Portal Expat
Game System Polyglot
Sat 1 Jul 2017
at 06:51
  • msg #735

Good stuff!

My tabletop GM just greenlit the most ridiculous Mutants and Masterminds character I have ever conceived of.

I'm going to need to color code sheets and it is going to be so ridiculously awesome.
Wyrm
member, 634 posts
Sat 1 Jul 2017
at 22:35
  • msg #736

Good stuff!

My jerk of a cat and my overly friendly dog. Not sure if they love me because they have to or not, but I am glad I have them with me now.

Not sure how much worse I would be without them.
chupabob
member, 197 posts
Mon 3 Jul 2017
at 05:04
  • msg #737

Re: Good stuff!

CrazyIvan777:
That wonderful moment when one of your PC's comes to you and spills her pet conspiracy theory about one of the antagonists, and you just smile, nod, and realize it's -awesome-, so therefore... It's now pretty much true!


I've done this. I agree; it is wonderful.
facemaker329
member, 6942 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 4 Jul 2017
at 02:23
  • msg #738

Re: Good stuff!

Choosing to look at the bright side of this...outside contractors are coming back to the park where I work, to tweak some settings and adjust a few things that we put in earlier this year...they specifically asked for me to be available to help them.  It's nice to have a reputation for being a solid choice to have around (the dark side of it is, I'm basically on graveyard shift for three nights because that's the only time we can work on the ride...)
Wyrm
member, 635 posts
Wed 12 Jul 2017
at 03:04
  • msg #739

Re: Good stuff!

Finally got to see Fantastic Beasts and where to find them. Made me remember the fun bits of the HP games I played here and still wish were running. Then I get sad. But it was a good sad.
KaiWriter
member, 43 posts
Thu 27 Jul 2017
at 15:12
  • msg #740

Re: Good stuff!

Got to looking through some old records about some of the old games I used to play here a few years ago, and stumbling right onto my account name and password so I can get back on.

I'm currently trying to choke my printer getting as much of this stuff as I can into paper form before one of my favorite games is forever deleted.

It turns out I missed playing Rain and Alicia so, so much... among others.
Wyrm
member, 636 posts
Sat 29 Jul 2017
at 23:06
  • msg #741

Re: Good stuff!

I got a new set of swords.I have a new cat. I have finished three vehicles for my 40k army and I have Chinese food for supper. This is the first good day I have had in a very long time.
Merevel
member, 1195 posts
The Unlucky Gamer
Sun 30 Jul 2017
at 15:56
  • msg #742

Re: Good stuff!

Haveing friends that flat out guess your game ideas before the game even begins.

Priceless.
GamerHandle
member, 948 posts
Umm.. yep.
So, there's this door...
Sun 30 Jul 2017
at 17:45
  • msg #743

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to Wyrm (msg # 741):

That day - sounds awesome!  Three vehicles?!  You're ambitious! I finally got my Grey Knight Paladins completed.  Took 'em out for a spin, (small game - 900 points 'cause that's all I had) - totally annihilated the Salamander Player.
Fyrerain
member, 77 posts
Mon 31 Jul 2017
at 00:14
  • msg #744

Re: Good stuff!

I haven't run a game in over 30 years, but I've been thinking about it, refamiliarizing myself with my world, and working out a couple starting adventures. When the opening came up in my tabletop group, I offered to run for a while... and we rolled up characters today. I'm excited, but it's also nerve-wracking, worrying about all the stuff I need to remember and keep track of!

Regardless, next week, my world comes back to life again. :)
facemaker329
member, 6948 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 31 Jul 2017
at 06:12
  • msg #745

Re: Good stuff!

Horseback riding...I used to be able to go at least a couple of times a week, for a few hours each time.  Those days have, sadly, long since passed...but I still like to ride.  And I still seem to be good at it.  I was on one of my friend's 'tricky' horses...the ones that seem really well-behaved until they think they can get away with something with you.  Over an hour on her back tonight, and nothing more extreme than her shying away from some critter in the bushes.

I miss this...
Isida KepTukari
member, 154 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Wed 2 Aug 2017
at 01:07
  • msg #746

Re: Good stuff!

My cat, who wasn't eating, has started again!  He's not quite eating with the same vigor, and because he's seemed to develop an aversion to nearly everything we already owned (due to him being nauseated for unknown reasons for 4 days), but at least he's eating!  And he seems to be more vocal, more perky, and acting much more normal.  So yay!
OceanLake
member, 1009 posts
Tue 22 Aug 2017
at 19:45
  • msg #747

Re: Good stuff!

If you read the "I need some help." thread, you will be reading a whole lot of Good.
CrazyIvan777
member, 207 posts
Mon 4 Sep 2017
at 16:14
  • msg #748

Re: Good stuff!

That wonderful moment when one of your players sends you the mock-up art for the PCs' school jackets, and says she wants to order actual ones for the players. As a GM? Blown. Away.
facemaker329
member, 6968 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Mon 23 Oct 2017
at 07:03
  • msg #749

Re: Good stuff!

Here's to being prepared...

One of our performers choked on her lunch yesterday, upstairs in the dressing rooms, while the rest of us were down on the stage, talking.  She started beating her hand on the stair rail to get someone's attention...and someone noticed, and yelled, "She's choking!"

It's been thirty years and change since I was taught the Heimlich maneuver (First Aid training in the Boy Scouts), and in all that time, I've never needed to use it...never even seen it used, except as a gag bit in comedy movies.  But I remembered it well enough that I went into auto-pilot the moment I realized nobody else was moving.  And it worked, and someone is still alive because I paid attention in Boy Scouts a LONG time ago.

I don't share this because I find myself heroic.  I share it because it's really easy to tell ourselves, "I'll never need to know that," or, "Someone else will know what to do if that's ever needed."  But sometimes, YOU are that 'someone else'.  We can't be prepared for everything...but there are a lot of situations we can be prepared for.  Learn what you can.  It's not just an advertising cliche when they say you migyt save someone's life.
DarkLightHitomi
member, 1212 posts
Mon 23 Oct 2017
at 22:28
  • msg #750

Re: Good stuff!

I like to say that when someone's life is on the line, it'll be saved or lost based on knowledge and skills that go unused in day-to-day life.

Therefore, unless you roll 15+ (to put it in gaming terms :), choosing to know nothing beyond day-to-day stuff will be a death sentance for someone. The fewer people with those life saving skills, the more higher you need to roll.
Tyr Hawk
member, 334 posts
You know that one guy?
Yeah, that's me.
Wed 1 Nov 2017
at 22:22
  • msg #751

Re: Good stuff!

GEIST 2E PREVIEW! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!
CrazyIvan777
member, 212 posts
Mon 13 Nov 2017
at 03:31
  • msg #752

Re: Good stuff!

My brother, now two years cancer-free. They say if he hits three, he's completely out of the woods. I'm so damn happy I could cry!


And me... Eating healthier. Finding fruits and vegetables I really like. Smaller portions. I mean, granted, I'm on day four of this, and the cravings for pizza are strong, but man... I never thought I'd like good-for-me food! It's kinda awesome!
Eggy
member, 769 posts
Wed 6 Dec 2017
at 07:20
  • msg #753

Re: Good stuff!

Went to my company's Christmas party dressed as an elf. Santa and Mrs. Claus visited us for cookies and milk and took photos with the children. My supervisor asked a few of us to dress up as elves and help with the kiddos. Santa came with his own troupe of elves, but we got to help out anyway. It went well and we've been invited to Elf School on Friday. After that, we'll do a few parties and the town parade this weekend. So excited!
Yaztromo
member, 128 posts
Thu 7 Dec 2017
at 01:24
  • msg #754

Re: Good stuff!

CrazyIvan777:
My brother, now two years cancer-free. They say if he hits three, he's completely out of the woods. I'm so damn happy I could cry!

I know the feeling. Very best of luck!
CrazyIvan777
member, 218 posts
Thu 7 Dec 2017
at 01:29
  • msg #755

Re: Good stuff!

Eggy:
It went well and we've been invited to Elf School on Friday.


You're gonna walk out knowing how to use the longbow and longsword! Excellent! :D
Eggy
member, 770 posts
Sat 9 Dec 2017
at 16:26
  • msg #756

Re: Good stuff!

Ran a half marathon in my elf costume. Almost passed out from the heat and it added five minutes to my time, but it was still great. 13th in my gender/age group. 113th overall.
facemaker329
member, 6975 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 10 Dec 2017
at 02:27
  • msg #757

Re: Good stuff!

Going with the 'glass is half full' line of thought, I'm glad my timing belt decided to slip Wednesday night, leaving work, rather than waiting until, say, a couple of days before Christmas, when I'd be driving to see friends and family and could have broken down twenty miles from anywhere.  It'll be fixed in time for the holidays.

I was very unhappy about it when it happened.  A little perspective has given me plenty of reason to be glad.
Wyrm
member, 644 posts
Thu 14 Dec 2017
at 00:26
  • msg #758

Re: Good stuff!

Me, a bit incredulously: "Alexa: play 'If I were a Rich man'".
Alexa: "Playing 'If I were a Rich man', by Fiddler on the Roof."

And the mellow voice of Topol wafts through the air.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the user at 05:13, Thu 14 Dec 2017.
chupabob
member, 199 posts
Sat 16 Dec 2017
at 03:05
  • msg #759

Re: Good stuff!

I posted the eighth chapter of my web novella today. I also received my first feedback. It's a bad review, but I like bad reviews best, so the criticism is welcome.
Tyr Hawk
member, 342 posts
You know that one guy?
Yeah, that's me.
Tue 2 Jan 2018
at 18:30
  • msg #760

Re: Good stuff!

Okay. So. I'm late to the party on this one, but I've been holding back on looking for information, hoping it might come to me first. But, I got into a debate with someone and...

https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/10.2514/1.B36120

NASA CONFIRMED THE EM DRIVE WORKS! It's not like... it's still not 100% and "needs to be reconciled with physics" but it's... IT'S A THING! AND THINGS ARE... JUST... AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!

Additional Paper on the subject: https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/10.2514/6.2015-4083
Original Experiments: http://ssi.org/2016-breakthrou...pulsion-proceedings/
A well-done layman's explanation: https://motherboard.vice.com/e...ion-system-explained

Edited for a minor correction. Original Paper wasn't original paper. XD My bad.
This message was last edited by the user at 19:59, Tue 02 Jan 2018.
Mrrshann618
member, 125 posts
Tue 2 Jan 2018
at 19:01
  • msg #761

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to Tyr Hawk (msg # 760):

There was an engine tested a few years ago, I think the developers called it an Ion drive, where it slowly built thrust.
During the initial orbital test it went to nearly full operation and then shut down at the last second due to some failure?
Is this that same drive version 2?
Tyr Hawk
member, 343 posts
You know that one guy?
Yeah, that's me.
Tue 2 Jan 2018
at 20:22
  • msg #762

Re: Good stuff!

Mrrshann618:
Is this that same drive version 2?

It is not. The EM Drive has only been through the studies I linked over the past two years, and in none of them did it fail. Ion propulsion has been a thing for a while according to https://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/about/fs21grc.html , so if it was an Ion drive it would've been an experimental one trying something new. The EM Drive is awesome because it breaks one of the laws of physics (or at least as we understand them), and, thus far, it has only been confirmed in experiments (few as they may be).*

Truly a wondrous time to live in. :)

*Again, it is still possible it doesn't actually work the way we think it does, but 2/2 on direct experiments and 1/1 on "Well, it's not this instead" is reason to get excited in my book!
bigbadron
moderator, 15489 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Tue 2 Jan 2018
at 20:28

Re: Good stuff!

Bah!  The "Laws" of Physics are just guesses anyway.  :p
facemaker329
member, 6980 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 3 Jan 2018
at 04:56
  • msg #764

Re: Good stuff!

Yeah, the cool/baffling thing about the EM Drive is there is no discernable reason why it should create thrust...but it does.  I can't remember the article I saw that speculated on what makes it work (or, rather, cited a paper speculating on why it works)...

But it doesn't burn any fuel.  It doesn't have any exhaust.  It's terrible, for those reasons, for rapid acceleration.  But because it doesn't burn fuel, it's an incredible theoretical option for long-duration voyages, because it can continue accelerating beyond its initial thrust to break orbit...which means it has the potential to build up speeds that, heretofore, have been the stuff of dreams.  If I recall correctly (it's been a long time since I read any articles about it, so I may have this wrong), it is speculated that, if they can scale it up to an appropriate size and it still functions in the way it has with small-scale tests, it would cut travel time to Mars down to a couple of months or less...
phoenix9lives
member, 955 posts
GENE POLICE!  YOU!
GET OUTTA THE POOL!
Wed 3 Jan 2018
at 14:48
  • msg #765

Re: Good stuff!

Spent nearly eight hours bowling and playing laser tag with my family for my seventh anniversary Monday.  My wife even got in on the laser tag for a few games; she prefers bowling, but the kids wanted laser tag and video games.  All-in-all, a good anniversary.  She had fun shooting at me.LOL
CrazyIvan777
member, 223 posts
Thu 4 Jan 2018
at 19:37
  • msg #766

Re: Good stuff!

That sounds like a great anniversary!


After an entire lifetime of being sedentary (and paying the health price for such) I am now on week 3 of biking (stationary bike in my apartment) 3 days a week, adding one minute to the ride each time. Today I crested 19 minutes 20 seconds. Super proud of myself!
Tyr Hawk
member, 344 posts
You know that one guy?
Yeah, that's me.
Fri 5 Jan 2018
at 16:21
  • msg #767

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 764):

Add in that, because there's no fuel, you don't have to allocate space for fuel in your build, which accounts for huge amounts of both volume and weight in modern rockets and spaceship design. Now, getting it to the point where it could lift a rocket off the ground is currently difficult to imagine, but for spaceships it's incredible.

Also, new Monster Hunter World trailer and beta announcement has me so hyped! SUCH NERDGASM.
V_V
member, 668 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Sat 13 Jan 2018
at 07:11
  • msg #768

Re: Good stuff!

WHOOOOOOOoooooooooOOOOOOO strong Onion! and Horseradish... I finally got my turkey sandwich "recipe" down pat. Very cheap, very yummy, and (sort of) SPICY! I'd be glad to make anyone one, if they want one. I'll even give you a REAL one if you ever come by my part of Kansas. Whoooo! Very strong. :'D

*Hands out onion and horseradish SPIIIiiiIIICY turkey sandwiches* This'll clear the sinuses. Well, and maybe the room. :|

Edit: I'll post the recipe elsewhere on CC.
This message was last edited by the user at 10:47, Sat 13 Jan 2018.
aguy777
member, 249 posts
Join Date:
Fri, 29 Nov, 2013
Sat 13 Jan 2018
at 07:33
  • msg #769

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to V_V (msg # 768):

Mind sharing the recipe? I'm curious and would love to try "V's Spicy Turkey Sandwich".
facemaker329
member, 6982 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sat 13 Jan 2018
at 09:37
  • msg #770

Re: Good stuff!

Wrapping up my third consecutive week of "gotta be done by the end of the week" projects...and everything worked out well, all three times!  Masquerade mask stencils for a New Years Eve event, a pile of clothes to be altered for a friend who left for Thailand first thing this week, and makeup for The Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and The Cowardly Lion for promotional photos for the show.

This also puts me WAY ahead of the game for the actual show run.  I've never had a chance to 'test run' prosthetics this far in advance.  I need to remake a few pieces...but I know I've got stuff that will work, and look good.
Dottie_V
member, 117 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Wed 17 Jan 2018
at 00:53
  • msg #771

Re: Good stuff!

I got the job! Being bilingual and fully certified nationally and statewide bumped up my starting pay offer too!

I haven't stopped smiling since the interview concluded. <3
jpetoh
member, 366 posts
As irrational
as pi.
Tue 23 Jan 2018
at 03:18
  • msg #772

Re: Good stuff!

In September, my son face-planted at the bottom of a six-foot deep pool. In an effort to encourage the swimmers to dive over and out instead of belly-flopping from the platform for a racing start, his coach had been using a skinny PVC pipe wrapped in a pool noodle for the kids to dive over. Per the teams governing league and the American Red Cross, this training method needs to be done into at least 12 feet of water, twice as deep as the pool my son was in. The injury resulted in an ambulance ride, a ten-hour ER visit, and a $2.5K+ medical bill.

After a LOT of e-mails, meetings, and go-rounds, I finally got the agent at the team's liability insurance to agree that, yes, we should receive full compensation for the post-insurance bill and ambulance ride. It may take a few more weeks to get a check, but it the answer we wanted and needed.
Tyr Hawk
member, 346 posts
You know that one guy?
Yeah, that's me.
Tue 30 Jan 2018
at 19:55
  • msg #773

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to jpetoh (msg # 772):

That's awesome. I'm so glad to hear that after having read your story elsewhere!
Rinandien
member, 48 posts
Have fun,
help others.
Sun 4 Feb 2018
at 17:57
  • msg #774

Re: Good stuff!

My wife and kids are away for a week. I spent the weekend drinking, eating, watching and playing. It's the best time I have had in a very long time!
engine
member, 535 posts
Mon 5 Feb 2018
at 17:44
  • msg #775

Re: Good stuff!

Very minor, but bear with me:

My very favorite movie is The Last Starfighter. Now, I know it's utterly ridiculous, and I am in no way expecting it to be accurate about anything. It sounds cool, it looks cool, it does everything I want.

But one part always bugged me: in the midst of a whole bunch of ridiculous stuff, like a flying car leaving Earth and passing Saturn a few minutes later just before jumping to another solar system, a character says "Shifting into stardrive at Columba Zeta. Hold tight."

It was jarring to me because "Columba Zeta" just sounds like nonsense. It sounds like it's a stellar location, but why say it at all when it's clearly made up?

Except that it's only partially made up, and actually sort of refers to a real thing.

I didn't know until today that "Columba" is an actual constellation, the Dove, just south of Canis Major and Lupus. Now, there's no "Columba Zeta" or "Zeta Columbae" listed, and it's still a nonsense thing to say, but it's at least plausibly to do with actual outer space. I'll also note that the Dove often represents peace and the characters are headed to a league of peace-lovers who have been forced into conflict.

Made me smile.
Dottie_V
member, 119 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Fri 9 Feb 2018
at 04:40
  • msg #776

Re: Good stuff!

I completed my first night of cashier training/perscription sorting! Some hiccups but pretty good for the most part. I'm tired but in a happy accomplished kind of way.
facemaker329
member, 6998 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 11 Mar 2018
at 06:57
  • msg #777

Re: Good stuff!

Well...at least, I hope it's good stuff.  It usually is...

I've been helping one of the high schools in my area with their spring musical production every year, since 2005, doing makeup (and, in the past few years, fabricating some specialty pieces like Ursula's wig, Flotsam and Jetsam's costumes, the Great and Powerful Oz's head...)

Just found out what next year's show is going to be.  Phantom of the Opera.  Now, as shows go, I find it a lot more spectacle than substance...but I'm looking forward to it, as a designer.  The costume designer already asked me to start working on a mask (no problem, masks are easy) and this gives me a LOT of time to come up with some really cool prosthetics for the Phantom to wear under the mask.  So, I'm looking forward to it.  It's almost certainly going to be a much simpler makeup show than the past few I've done there!  (Wizard of Oz, Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Shrek...)  Need to track down a copy and watch it with an eye to what I'd do with the characters if I was responsible for how they look (because, to a certain extent, I will be...)
Yaztromo
member, 151 posts
Sun 11 Mar 2018
at 16:01
  • msg #778

Re: Good stuff!

I really love the Phantom of the Opera!
facemaker329
member, 6999 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 11 Mar 2018
at 21:59
  • msg #779

Re: Good stuff!

I'm kind of excited for it...I was a percussionist in my university symphony when it was still riding high on its initial wave if fame, gotto play some of the music.  It's not the deepest story ever told on stage, by any means, but it will be a really good show, and we've got a couple of really solid guys who will be seniors next year that will make a solid base to build a cast around.  I just hope they haven't taken it for granted that they'll get specific roles, just because they were leads in this year's musical.  Their odds are really good...but auditions are still a ways off.

I'm certainly glad I'm not the one in charge of casting!
praguepride
member, 1238 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Tue 20 Mar 2018
at 22:25
  • msg #780

Re: Good stuff!

It's my RPOL birthday! My best guess is this makes it 13 years!
jkeogh
member, 76 posts
Tue 20 Mar 2018
at 23:10
  • msg #781

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to praguepride (msg # 780):

Thanks for being here so long and doing all that you do here! I have loved your contributions!
jwneil
member, 33 posts
Thu 29 Mar 2018
at 12:32
  • msg #782

Re: Good stuff!

Happy Opening Day everyone!  Good luck to all 30 teams.  Well, except to the Yankees.  They have a duo who might hit 100 home runs between themselves.  They don't need luck.  :P
bigbadron
moderator, 15526 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Thu 29 Mar 2018
at 14:39

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to praguepride (msg # 780):

Was surprised to realise that this coming June my RPoL account will be 16 years old.  About time it started looking for a job...
facemaker329
member, 7004 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 29 Mar 2018
at 16:55
  • msg #784

Re: Good stuff!

As of an hour (and a little change) ago, I've been on this world for half a century.  I can remember when 50 seemed ancient, to me...and while I'd be lying if I said I still feel like I'm 25, I definitely don't feel like what I expected fifty to be (most of the time...there are some days at work that definitely remind me I'm middle-aged...)  In good health, with a decent job...my life is by no means perfect, but I'm pretty content with where I'm at.
This message was last edited by the user at 17:54, Fri 30 Mar 2018.
Yaztromo
member, 160 posts
Thu 29 Mar 2018
at 16:59
  • msg #785

Re: Good stuff!

All the best!
facemaker329
member, 7006 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Fri 13 Apr 2018
at 18:08
  • msg #786

Re: Good stuff!

In a long-standing practice of recognizing the good along with the bad, I heard something from the guy who came to help resolve our system FUBAR yesterday...he was talking to me about upgrading some physical components in our setup, and I just grined and shrugged, and said, "That's not my call to make, you need to talk to Lisa about that."  (Lisa's my boss...THE boss, everyone answers to her.)  The service guy (the one who actually knew what he was doing and fixed our system, rather than screwing it up) gave me a confused look, and answered, "I just don't understand how things work here, I guess...every time I talk to Lisa, she makes it sound like you're her go-to miracle worker...she's always saying you keep the place running..."

I do a lot, there...but I'd never describe it in those terms.  It's a good feeling, though, to hear that what I do is appreciated.  Stuff like that is one of the reasons I was willing to spend eleven and a half hours there, getting everything in our system back as close as possible to normal.  I don't generally interact much with most of the staff, there...almost all my work is behind the scenes, entirely, so I'm in my own quite often...but it's gratifying to hear, from someone outside, that my work is appreciated so deeply.
Fyrerain
member, 89 posts
Fri 20 Apr 2018
at 23:29
  • msg #787

Re: Good stuff!

I started looking for new housing last winter, given my current residence fell well below standard with the failure of the A/C last summer and no running water for the last 8 months. (It is, however, still better than trying to live in my truck, which doesn't have running water, either, and A/C is limited to when I'm driving; I cope.)

I could find houses within my budget, and have an excellent credit rating -- but I have no real downpayment available. And as it turns out, none of the loan companies I've tried to date offer loans as low as I need. (Given my objective is to pay off the loan, getting one that doesn't permit that isn't acceptable.)

Today, I was offered a solution, and the property is literally right around the corner from one of my best friends. I'll have to buy a travel trailer to live in for a while, as the house needs major work, but the price is low enough I should be able to pay it off in ~15 years.

So, the hunt is on for a suitable used travel trailer. Meantime, I'm going to start packing this weekend! :D
Eggy
member, 787 posts
Fri 20 Apr 2018
at 23:46
  • msg #788

Re: Good stuff!

Ringwormy IT Guy has been kicked out of my office! And I got to tell a bunch of people I Told You So.

Wormy still works for us, but he's been suspended for 1 week (he may return with a doctor's note giving him the OK) and received a scathing reprimand. He is also not allowed within ten feet of my office space, which is a pretty large area. If we have any network issues, his department must send another technician. A plus for his team: more IT workers are getting the training/permissions previously bogarted by Wormy.

My complaint was finally taken seriously when, unfortunately, one of the kids visiting our workspace caught ringworm. One of our seniors is moving on and we had a little ceremony and after party for him. His family attended. Not too long after, they noticed the ringworm on their kid's hand. A few other people had it, too. Lots of grumbling around the office. Some people thought the kid came to the party with it and spread it around. I reminded them that not only has this Filthy Dude had ringworm for days, but I've been filing a complaint against him every day I saw him at work and they still let him serve the cake at the going away party.

Wormy filed a complaint against me, saying that I was singling him out for a genetic skin condition, but that's going over like a lead balloon.
Brianna
member, 2148 posts
Mon 23 Apr 2018
at 01:30
  • msg #789

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to Eggy (msg # 788):

He's trying to say he has genetic ringworm??  Wow!
Robotron
member, 55 posts
Mon 23 Apr 2018
at 21:05
  • msg #790

Re: Good stuff!

A new pho restaurant opened up close to work and the food is delicious!
V_V
member, 708 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Tue 24 Apr 2018
at 08:04
  • msg #791

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to Eggy (msg # 788):

Belated! But good for you! People exploit prejudicial laws far too often, and want to get away with being unsafe. Sure, going to the doctor ain't cheap, fine, live with ring worm! BUT then that stops when it affects other people.

So good for you Eggy. It's sad your plight only gained ground too little too late, but I guess it could be worse. /:

Good for you holding ground and sparing the poor innocent kid shame of being the plaguebearer. Good for you! I'm also glad you helped get some IT guys a chance, and that wormy won't step foot near your office of the doorway. But watch out! That guy is now gunning for you (if he comes back), so be ready. *nods confidently*

So MY good news is that my girlfriend came by. We've been on good terms and she has been "faithful" still considering me her boyfriend, but we've been separated for over a decade! She lives about three or four hours from me, and so it was best for both of us to maintain a distant relationship...but over the years it's cooled. And it's sad...BUT she heard about my situation (see vents) and drove out to see me. So I spent some time with her. It was really nice. One because I had help, but moreover to see her again. I seriously left her alone, thinking she was better off with me. Thinking I was a burden. Or that I somehow guilted her into remaining "tied" to me. It really made me glad to SEE her, not just hear her occasional voice, to see how much she still cares and misses me too. I contemplated breaking it off many times, I thought what's the point, but now I'm glad I didn't. For love or money, and she somehow chose both, but knew that money could come now and love wouldn't give up. It really...it just got my heart racing. Bittersweet to see her go, but now I know to pursue it as an active relationship. She works very hard, which is why she moved, for her career, but she's still very interested in me, and that really just made me happy....and guilty.

I'm really happy though, really happy. Sort of sad that I let my relationship with her wither, while unknowing she very much was torn. So I'll make the point to call her...although right now he phone is off...or I have the wrong number.

It's just this humbling and happy cry feeling that someone you gave up on, because you thought they gave up on you, still loves you, even after years of separation. I mean something to someone else...that's huge. A reminder that silence does not always been indifference. Quite the opposite in this case. :)
Fyrerain
member, 90 posts
Fri 4 May 2018
at 14:14
  • msg #792

Re: Good stuff!

Yay! I get to go back to work today!

I could afford the days off (I have ample leave days banked), but the uncertainty was stressful. The last week was definitely a learning experience, but I'm glad it's over.
CrazyIvan777
member, 235 posts
Sun 6 May 2018
at 18:18
  • msg #793

Re: Good stuff!

Getting back to talking with an absent friend that I feared might be gone for good, got 7 of my 24 requested events from GenCon (I overbooked intentionally, and assumed I wouldn't get more than four), did some nice editing for the game I'm helping run there, and got invited to write for a charity short story anthology.
Oh, and I played some D&D over google chat.

Not a bad morning after having an awful few days!
facemaker329
member, 7014 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 10 May 2018
at 04:42
  • msg #794

Re: Good stuff!

I'm a few days late posting this one, but...

I got the rare chance to re-visit a show I've designed twice and done makeup for once, and got to add some new nuances to my design.  It was for a junior high, so the actors were VERY green (experience-wise...only a couple were green due to makeup), but they did a solid job.  Got to tweak some things I wanted to do differently last time I did the show, got to try a few new things, enough of the old 'tricks' worked to keep it from being a tremendous undertaking (considering what I charged them for the week was less than a standard makeup artist's day rate for a production, that was a serious consideration for me), and got to create or refine some ideas that I never had to worry about either of the last two times I designed it.

Everyone was happy with how it turned out...even me.  Just enough new stuff to it to keep me from feeling bored about doing it again.  And I might just have set up a new regular patron for my services, depending on how her shows go and what kind of production budget she has going into future shows.
V_V
member, 721 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Sat 12 May 2018
at 15:27
  • msg #795

Re: Good stuff!

My roommate and best friend is awesome! I won't bore everyone with this story or that, but I'm just so proud of her! Taking it all in stride, improving herself, having positive disposition, encouraging me to do the same, handling stuff my PTSD makes difficulty, but helping me get better to do it myself when I can.

The latest thing is that she is cleaning the heck out of the home, which a disaster, through little (but some) fault of our own).

I've often told people I'd marry her if there was any romance, any real attraction beyond platonic, but she's my best friend, and we would be financially poorer for it. Still, we've "taken" those oaths without even meaning it. I've been sick, she's been sick, we've gotten slowly better, and she's been homeless, I've been near homeless, I've bought us a car when the other PoS broke down, and she's supported me by working two jobs doing events that she got paid for to cover her student loans (which she was paying already). She talks very highly of us seeing each other in an afterlife, and I often tell her that's not how eternity works. Even after a hundred years though, even after three hundred, maybe there would still be something to explore, or just feel comfortable retreading fond memories. IT makes me bitter sweet happy, because I enjoy it, NOW when I can, and take mental photographs of the good and bad, because who knows when circumstances will separate us. She really is wonderful, and I can't imagine losing her.
What's His Face
member, 77 posts
Sun 13 May 2018
at 01:59
  • msg #796

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to V_V (msg # 795):

It sounds to me like you want to marry her but you're worried about meeting prerequisites that aren't actually requisite; you're just imposing them on yourself. I know this is long winded but hear me out.

You're describing how I feel about my marriage of 3 years and 1 kid so far: a lot of platonic stuff but not a lot of roses. Who ever said that that's not how it's supposed to be? Movies? TV shows? Companies trying to sell you diamonds, roses, chocolates, etc? Just like Christmas went from being about Christ to being about gifts for many people, many people also think relationships are more about romance than about love.

When I was thinking about marrying my wife I was worried because I didn't feel any "fireworks." One of the people I asked for advice was an uncle who had been a divorce attorney for 15 years or so. I asked him what the most common things were that ruined marriages. He said that #1 was money problems and #2 was that they had romance without love.

It sounds like you guys are already wise with money to make ends meet. Most USA couples spent between $19,000 and $32,000 total on their wedding, honeymoon, etc. My wife and I spent about $3,000 because we went very basic with everything. A fancy ceremony can be done as a vowal renewal on an anniversary and a fancy vacation can be did on an anniversary instead of an immediate honeymoon. So if you're both okay with it you can saves tens of thousands of dollars upfront and postpone more trends of thousands for years, giving you time to save up.

As for the love vs romance thing, my divorce attorney uncle said that romance wears off for 99.9% of people within a few years. It's normal. You're not heartless. The problem is when people build their whole relationship on romance (read the lyrics to the song "Breakfast at Tiffany's" for what that looks like to people in the relationship). Love is doing things that matter to the other person even if it doesn't matter to you. Romance is doing things that matter to society even if it doesn't matter to either of you.

I know multiple couples who just walked into a courthouse in pretty simple clothes (dresses, suits, t-shirts, jeans, etc.) and walked out married a couple hours later. Just do something romantic occasionally to cover your bases; it shows you think about what she may want even if she hasn't mentioned it yet.

Final thought: my dad died this morning a little after midnight. He and my mom started out as just friends 40 years ago. He was totally not romantic but he loved her and it worked out for 40 years and they've been talking about meeting back up in the afterlife and him doing the guardian angel thing in the meantime. So forget what other people think and just go for it. Otherwise you lose her by default.
horus
member, 484 posts
Wayfarer of the
Western Wastes
Sun 13 May 2018
at 02:18
  • msg #797

Re: Good stuff!

I've been married to my best friend for going on thirty-one years now.  It ain't been all beer and skittles, but we've been there for each other through it all.  Was there romance?  Sure there was.  We didn't let that stop us.

Probably the most romantic thing about our relationship is that I knew from the moment I set eyes on her that she was the one.  Just had this feeling, you know?  I followed my heart until my mind showed me my heart was right.  Now that's my idea of romance.  I found out several years later she felt the same way, we just never talked about it because it wasn't such a big deal.  Both of us were supremely comfortable with each other.

The good news is:  we still are.
Brianna
member, 2150 posts
Sun 13 May 2018
at 10:41
  • msg #798

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to horus (msg # 797):

I think maybe that's the point, at least one of them doesn't feel she's 'the one'.  I'd agree that friendship is more important than romance, especially in the long run, but I do think romance (and sexual attraction) is also important, otherwise you have a room mate which is what they have now, except with financial and legal implications they don't have now.
Wyrm
member, 650 posts
Mon 14 May 2018
at 02:35
  • msg #799

Re: Good stuff!

Surpisingly, Workman's comp is being kicked in for an injury I otherwise thought would not be reported for such.
V_V
member, 722 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Tue 15 May 2018
at 04:15
  • msg #800

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to Brianna (msg # 798):

Yeah, we have no sexual attraction or romantic inclination. I enjoy her company, and that's really it. I am really proud of her, and enjoy the same activities. It would be nice to have a love life, but I wouldn't give her up for that. Whomever, if anyone, I would be with would need to understand Anne's and my friendship.

But no, I have no intention of marrying her. It was more hyperbole to explain the kind of awesome she is. :)
This message was last edited by the user at 09:03, Tue 15 May 2018.
TheatricalHysterics
member, 7 posts
A little theater
Never hurt anyone.
Tue 15 May 2018
at 22:24
  • msg #801

Re: Good stuff!

I think that in order for anyone to truly understand your friendship with Anne, V_V, they would need to be introduced to her pretty early on, and perhaps in a way personally entwined in your friendship somehow. This could mean they have their own friendship of some sort, or even a distant friendship where there is a mutual comfort level all around. This is, of course, assuming you probably already know all this, but I'm sort of saying it here just to cover ground, and perhaps also from a bit of experience being with someone who had a best friend similarly to the way you sound like you're friends with this Anne girl.

If you do find someone you intend on having a romantic relationship with, I hope you'll remember to consider how she feels about your relationship with Anne, and to try your best to include her and make sure she's also not just understanding of your friendship, but also feels comfortable because you've set it up so she's happy seeing you enjoy your friendship with her. It was hard for me when I was the girlfriend to see my boyfriend share things with this woman I never truly felt comfortable around. In a way, I feel like he never gave me a real reason to trust him around her too, and that hurt our relationship more than me blindly trusting him.

EDIT: Oh, and I'm officially able to apply for adult access since joining RPoL! The wait is over! (Hooray!) Finally all those games I've been saving on my sticky list will get put to good use! :D
This message was last edited by a moderator, as it was against the forum rules, at 02:15, Wed 16 May 2018.
V_V
member, 724 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Wed 16 May 2018
at 08:12
  • msg #802

Re: Good stuff!

In reply to TheatricalHysterics (msg # 801):

If, or when, I find a woman that I have gone past the third date of, this conversation will come up, yes.
 Very simply, my love life wasn't what I was happy about. I have to sort of kick myself for phrasing marriage into it. xD




Since I brought it up though, might as well cover me bases.
  1. Yes, this would be romantic interest wouldn't be left the scraps. I would devote time to her, and cultivate trust and friendship. After all, I probably won't want a hot date, I'd want another relationship.
  2. Yeah, Anne and this woman would be aware of each other. Probably not on the first date, most likely on the third.
  3. Circumstance on the then present would be taken into consideration. Would I mover out, onto my own? Would this girl care? If Anne and this woman don't like each other, how to I handle that?


Bottom line, I'm not ready for a romantic relationship. I've had that, and right now, I don't miss the "low level" parts. There is no soul mate waiting for me. Having a relationship take work. Work I can't afford to spend right now.

I have PTSD and other problems I'm barely managing right now. I'm finally making progress though. I would need to think carefully about mixing in dating and a love life. I'm honestly happy as I am. When a love life becomes a present desire, then I will allocate the time and energy to.

I've learned I don't need a master plan, or much advice when it comes to that. My mistakes will teach me, and that will be acceptable. I'm not (as) afraid to fail, or be rejected.

It's only fair I take whatever woman I meet into account for whatever tactics I use to introduce them to Anne. Right now it's all hypothetical and in an unforeseeable point in the future.

Certainly though, yeah, I'm going keep all this is mind.







Most important, isn't my love life though. Most important is the kick ass job Anne has done in improving the home and herself. This place was a mess. She slaved over getting it done, and I helped until I hurt, but she did an amazing job. The place looks brand new! She also had to deal with her parents (whom arenot good people) coming in to town, and STILL finishing her finals for school. We'll see her grades soon, but I just have to applaud her. And she's STILL going! She started training for a new job on finals week, and tomorrow (today technically) is her last day of training. *Whew* She's been on fire!
This message was last edited by the user at 08:20, Wed 16 May 2018.
ShadoPrism
member, 1212 posts
OCGD-Obsessive-Compulsive
Gamer-Disorder
Sat 26 May 2018
at 16:19
  • msg #803

Re: Good stuff!

My good stuff.
I found a natural supplement that is proving to be a Huge help with my on going diabetes. I am an Insulin resistant type (meaning I have to take large doses for the normal effects) add to that over the past several years (3 at least) my blood sugar levels have been through the roof (A1C of 9 or better to those who know what that means ...)
This stuff, Gymnema, has gotten my blood sugars down in to the normal range for the first time in years. I have only been taking it for 3 weeks and am seeing these wonderful results. It's so great I just had to share it with you all.
(This weeks morning BS were in the mid 80's to 150's. Evening BS, highest hit 299, with an average in the 240's - mind you, this time last few months / years my evening BS were in the upper 500's.)
engine
member, 616 posts
Wed 6 Jun 2018
at 20:01
  • msg #804

Re: Good stuff!

On Monday, I finished the coursework for a certificate program in electrical engineering. I already have a master's degree in physics, but I don't really feel like I can do much with that. Now I feel a little better equipped for my job (which involves working with electrical engineers, as well as physicists) and for working on some electronics projects on my own.
CrazyIvan777
member, 240 posts
Mon 11 Jun 2018
at 21:28
  • msg #805

Re: Good stuff!

I had a rough night, a -really- rough night. Nightmares and waking up at 5 AM with a panic attack (first time I've woken to one). I've been sick for 10 days, and it just seems like it's not going away. And my apartment has ants, which, while an annual and minor thing, kicks off some phobias I have.

So why is this in 'good stuff'?

I mentioned it on social media today. What I was going through. I had four people contact me privately, all people I knew, and all of them just wanting to look out for me and help me through things. One even ordered me one-day-delivery of some stuff for the ants (and ordered it from her home in Europe, none the less). When one of my best friends got home from work, she just kept talking with me to draw me out of the fear and anxiety I was feeling.

I have people looking out for me. Some days it's hard to remember that. But on days like today, it's stunning how much of a difference that can make.
facemaker329
member, 7021 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 21 Jun 2018
at 04:25
  • msg #806

Re: Good stuff!

Well, the year's almost half-over...but I finally made it out to play my first round of golf for 2018.  And while it was pretty rough (which I expected), it wasn't catastrophically bad (well, a couple of holes were, but overall...)  And since it's starting to look like my boss is going to keep me on a somewhat regular schedule for the summer, I should get a chance to play quite a bit with a couple of friends of mine (assuming I can afford it...playing 18 holes on the nicer courses they prefer is pricey!)

But it was a fantastic day for it.  Sunny, not obscenely hot, just enough breeze to keep things comfortable without making it difficult to play, and some absolutely fantastic scenery.  After spending most of the past month and a half racing deadlines, it felt fantastic to be out there, knowing I didn't need to be anywhere for several hours, just enjoying the fresh air and the view and spending some time with a friend I've known for almost twenty years.
V_V
member, 747 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Mon 25 Jun 2018
at 14:46
  • msg #807

Re: Good stuff!

After a few months of not feeling I was able to, I've started eating raw vegetables again. Broccoli and Cauliflower, with a little bit of dip is really my favorite right now. I'm eating like a pound of those two each day.

I just hope I don't spike any of my values. I remember a few years ago I had check up, and they found SUPER high levels of...I forget what, I think calcium. Which they asked me if I took supplements, and I'm like "No" and they aksed what my diet was, and nodded "That's a lot of broccoli"
Kessa
member, 562 posts
Dark Army:
Out to Lunch
Tue 26 Jun 2018
at 01:57
  • msg #808

Re: Good stuff!

I told a GM I hadn't played in his *system* for a while and now that person thinks I've never played RPGs before.  They are very concerned I will be overwhelmed by things like "dice" and "character sheets." I've been playing pen and paper continuously for two decades to say the least, I just made a conscious decision years ago not to play that particular system anymore. This is the funniest thing to happen in a long time. I'm very curious how long it will take for this person to understand that I don't need hand-holding and that I've really, truly got this! If it takes too long, I may have to start muttering about THAC0 and telling the other players to get off the lawn!
ShadoPrism
member, 1222 posts
OCGD-Obsessive-Compulsive
Gamer-Disorder
Tue 26 Jun 2018
at 02:40
  • msg #809

Re: Good stuff!

I am diabetic and to make it worse, insulin resistant.
Back in May, while looking for a suger free electrolyte supplement I stumbled across an herbal pill called Gymnema.
Been taking it everyday since then (almost 2 months now) and my blood sugars have dropped between 200 to 250 points from where they were (around the low 500's for the last 3 years). I am super stoked about it and decided to share this wonderful find with everyone I can think of, hoping it will help more people with their blood sugar control.
It is also said to help with weight loss. I don't know how much wieght I have lost, but I am a pants size down as of today than when I started taking it. (from a 48 to a 46). So that is good to.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the user at 02:40, Tue 26 June 2018.
facemaker329
member, 7025 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 26 Jun 2018
at 05:30
  • msg #810

Re: Good stuff!

Every so often, I manage to be in the right place at the right time...

Upgrading my transportation.  Time to retire my '92 Toyota Camry (with a dodgy transmission, a multitude of electrical problems, and 292k+ miles on it) for the '96 Nissan Pathfinder I found for $1500 (with only 144k miles on it!)  Four years newer, MUCH nicer looking, the previous owner didn't hit something and crack the front bumper, deploy the airbags, and screw up the electrical system...and it's mine, free and clear, no financing hanging over my head...it was the right time to look at the classified ads on Saturday!
praguepride
member, 1304 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Fri 29 Jun 2018
at 03:27
  • msg #811

Re: Good stuff!

I love it when you express an opinion about something, someone jumps up and says "You're wrong!" and then proceeds to accidentally prove your point every time they think they're making a rebuttal :P
Fyrerain
member, 92 posts
Fri 29 Jun 2018
at 07:01
  • msg #812

End in sight :)

After 10 months of no running water -- with livestock to provide for -- I finally have somewhere else to move to. YES! The moving process sucks -- packing up ~10 years of living, alone, in an un-air conditioned house, in the desert in summer is NOT a good time. And down-sizing into a travel trailer makes packing even more interesting... but I am so looking forward to exciting things like being able to wash my hands after feeding, showers, and even washing the dishes (never thought I'd look forward to that!) at home again. :)
Hunter
member, 1450 posts
Captain Oblivious!
Lurker
Tue 10 Jul 2018
at 05:11
  • msg #813

More good stuff.

As I normally screen my calls, even the one I got today raised an eyebrow.

It showed an out of state number, not really that usual.     However, it was the caller id that got my attention....
ILLEGAL SCAM.
aguy777
member, 282 posts
Join Date:
Thu, 28 Nov, 2013
Tue 10 Jul 2018
at 05:21
  • msg #814

More good stuff.

In reply to Hunter (msg # 813):

Wait, the caller ID said 'Illegal Scam'? Well, I guess you can't say they were dishonest...
facemaker329
member, 7031 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Sun 15 Jul 2018
at 03:53
  • msg #815

More good stuff.

Got a chance to remind my boss why they keep me around (not that I had any worries about it...but it never hurts to have those "Oh, yeah...this is why we pay this guy" scenarios come along every now and then...)

We had both of our female 'swing' performers (basically, understudies, except for ensemble instead of a key role) in the show tonight.  Problem was, they'd never planned to have both of them in at the same time...and they're both enough smaller than the regular performers that several of the costumes are too big for them...but close enough to the same size that we'd only lined up onedress for the closing number of the show, which they both used (because, until tonight, onky one of them was ever in the show at one time...)

So, my boss presents me with a pretty plain-cut dress she pulled out of storage and fit to the smaller of the two, and said, "She's in the show in two hours...I need these alterations done and appropriate trim added to this dress to make it match the others."

Not only did I have it ready to go before the show started, there was even time for her to try it on, realize the trim didn't stretch so she couldn't pull it on, and for me to solve the problem by putting in a zipper...while also fixing props that got broken in the show before that.  And everyone loved how the dress looked (except me...I like how it looked, hut I also know all the places where the lining got bunched up because I was working fast and didn't have time to do it right.)  And it looked great on stage.

It was a good night at work.
Dottie_V
member, 123 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Sun 15 Jul 2018
at 18:15
  • msg #816

More good stuff.

Turns out my boss is a super cool person.

When I brought my dad's 7 prescriptions to be filled she put them all through super fast and had them done in like 15 minutes. Then she saw how expensive they were and helped me find two copay assistance cards for his insulins and helped me get cheaper alternatives for his supplies.

One of the cards brought a $600~ box of insulin pens down to like $45 and I very nearly cried. Didn't have much luck on the other box of insulin, that one was like $475 even with the assist card. There was a sale on the store brand diabetes supplies (Buy a box of test strips, get the meter free) and being store brand, I got an extra 30% employee discount.

Then she explained everything about his new meds, what to expect, what to look out for. She even faxed my dad's doctor for me to request an alternate for his way-too-expensive insulin. She was so nice the entire time.

It was a lucky day for the _V household when she hired me.
This message was last edited by the user at 23:47, Sun 15 July 2018.
Genghis the Hutt
member, 2555 posts
Just an average guy :)
Sun 15 Jul 2018
at 19:18
  • msg #817

Re: More good stuff.

Dottie_V:
It was a lucky day for the _V household when she hired me.
Are you related to V_V (who posted earlier in this thread)?
Dottie_V
member, 124 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Sun 15 Jul 2018
at 19:22
  • msg #818

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to Genghis the Hutt (msg # 817):

No, I don't think so. Unless V_V is one of my cousins on the west coast. ^_^"
Briel
member, 36 posts
Mon 16 Jul 2018
at 16:24
  • msg #819

Re: More good stuff.

aguy777:
In reply to Hunter (msg # 813):

Wait, the caller ID said 'Illegal Scam'? Well, I guess you can't say they were dishonest...


A lot of cell phone carriers will now mark suspected numbers as such. I don't know what the criteria are, but I've seen it more over the last couple years.
ShadoPrism
member, 1228 posts
OCGD-Obsessive-Compulsive
Gamer-Disorder
Mon 16 Jul 2018
at 18:48
  • msg #820

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to Briel (msg # 819):

I get allot of 'Scam' or Fraud numbers - I tend to answer them with 'Fraud Investigators' or similar, it's amazing how fast they hang up.
facemaker329
member, 7034 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Wed 18 Jul 2018
at 05:27
  • msg #821

Re: More good stuff.

For the first time in almost twenty years, I'm doing back-to-back shows (as an actor...I've often done back-to-back-to-back and even overlapping shows as a technician/designer/run crew).

Funniest thing is, I haven't had to audition for either one.  The first role came about because the man they had cast originally became suddenly seriously ill and had to drop out of the show...and one of my neighbors was in the show and said, "I might know a guy..."  A quick text-message conversation later, I was part of the cast.  Small part (two spoken lines, and the majority of my time spent on stage is 'asleep')...they later added me to an ensemble role in the second half of the show because one of the actors they had been planning to use was having issues trying to resolve how he could be one character in one part of the show and another character in a different part of the show, but I don't have any lines in that role and don't even really have much in the way of specific blocking.  They didn't even make me learn the lyrics for the songs I'm supposed to be helping sing (which, I think, was a good choice on their part...and part of selling me on doing the show in the first place was that there was no singing for my character...)

The second one came about because one of my friends is directing the show, and posted something about needing actors to play a small role at the end of the show on Facebook.  I responded with a joke about needing to cut my hair and shave my beard...someone else saw the joke and didn't realize I was joking and asked me about it, and something about the way she asked made me realize just how desperate my friend must have been to throw things open to anyone that would respond...so I said yes (even though I need to cut my hair and shave my beard.  She apologized about that tonight, and I laughed...I started growing my hair out for a part that I didn't get, so it seems somehow poetic that I cut it off for a part that I did.  And it only takes me a few weeks to grow a pretty good beard, so I'm not worried about that.)

I enjoy acting...but I don't get to do it that often.  Most places around here produce musicals, and I consider myself a mediocre singer, at best, and definitely NOT a dancer.  And my job ties up significant portions of my time, and at least a couple of months out of the year, I just can't even think about doing another show because I know how much time work will eat up.  So, having two roles basically land in my lap, at times when I can fit them in around work...this is unprecedented!
CrazyIvan777
member, 244 posts
Mon 23 Jul 2018
at 16:55
  • msg #822

Re: More good stuff.

Getting that 'right role' is so awesome! I'm happy for ya, Face!

As for me...
For reasons I won't go into, my brother is in charge of a travel budget I have, and my brother is... To put it lightly.. A huge pain in the behind. He has actively blocked things because he just wants to be petty and vicious in the past.

Well, after two months of struggle, my trip to GenCon has finally cleared the last hurdle! I've been nervous about it for weeks, and now I'm sure I'm going and I have a great hotel! I'm so excited!
Dottie_V
member, 127 posts
The fifth in a series of
odd things you saw today.
Thu 26 Jul 2018
at 22:12
  • msg #823

Re: More good stuff.

My Dad's vision is making a slow recovery. He's adhering to his new med schedules. His labs came back and he's not as terrible as we thought he was (a surprise to us all: apparently he has a very minor anemia). He's even using his glucose monitor like he's supposed to!

I'm not as much debt as I thought I would be over this whole ordeal. As a jumping off point, we're not in as bad a shape as I thought we were.

Right now, this is all I can ask for.
aguy777
member, 284 posts
Join Date:
Thu, 28 Nov, 2013
Mon 30 Jul 2018
at 00:17
  • msg #824

Re: More good stuff.

Just passed my Occupational First Aid level 2 exam. With all the stress that's been lifted off of me, I feel 10 lbs lighter. Also, I now get an extra week of paid vacation per year. I'm a tad exhausted (a 4 hour exam where ~2.5 hours are practical will do that), but I'm so relived and happy that it doesn't matter.
Isida KepTukari
member, 224 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Wed 22 Aug 2018
at 14:46
  • msg #825

Re: More good stuff.

My mom, who has been allergic to cats for four+ decades, inherited her boyfriend's cat when he passed away last year.  Since then, she's been virtually inseparable from The Boss (as he's known), with only very minor symptoms of her allergies.  The Boss has proven to be a cuddly companion and good lapcat.  He also travels very well, being super chill in the car, strange houses, or even just the basket of a shopping cart.  And he doesn't mind visiting the vet.

(His only "flaw" is he has no real hunting instinct - bats got into the house twice and he was like, "What? Not my problem. I'm gonna go take a nap.")

Somehow my mom ended up with the perfect "starter cat" and best possible pet out of what had been a sad time in her life, and The Boss brings her so much joy.
acera
member, 151 posts
Sun 2 Dec 2018
at 13:18
  • msg #826

Re: More good stuff.

My workplace benefits include access to mental health help (quite substantial, too). It used to just be for those who received benefits, but apparently the company is now expanding access to our staff. Big boss has to specifically request it, but I’m impressed that they’re doing it.
facemaker329
member, 7067 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Tue 4 Dec 2018
at 08:39
  • msg #827

Re: More good stuff.

Here's to opening new doors in life...I'm in dress rehearsals this week for my first musical role (I've been in a musical before...but with a strictly non-singing part.)  I spent most of my life thinking that I couldn't sing...and as a result, I never did, so it was kind of a vicious cycle.

Several years ago, some friends of mine convinced me to try singing at a karaoke party.  It was at another friend's place, relatively small crowd, I knew almost everyone there, and most of them were drunk, so I figured it was a good time to give it a try, because if I was terrible, it would be in front of friends who knew I didn't sing, and most of them wouldn't remember it, anyway.

Turns out, I wasn't terrible.  And I enjoyed it.  I don't consider myself a great singer, by any means...but I'm at least mediocre, and on a good night, I'm actually pretty good (as long as I stick to stuff in my vocal range).  So, when some friends from another show told me about this one, I decided I'd audition...nothing ventured, nothing gained, and all that.  And I was initially auditioning for a non-singing part...but the director decided that my voice was good enough to gamble on.  And it's been a lot of fun (more fun than I expected, considering the show, itself, is one of my less-preferred musicals...fun enough that my opinion of the show has been tempered somewhat).

I still think I'm a lousy dancer, though...but not bad enough to take me out of any of the numbers (although I'm only in two where I have to dance at all, and that's only briefly)...but I've gone from 'I don't do musicals' to 'I'd audition for one that interests me' (or for one with a lot of people I enjoy working with involved in the production).

Fifty years old, and I'm still trying stuff that scares me...and discovering how much fun it can be.
Brianna
member, 2163 posts
Tue 4 Dec 2018
at 13:19
  • msg #828

Re: More good stuff.

Yay, Annabelle (my cat) ate all the last dish of food I put out for her!  She recently developed diabetes, and is (supposedly) eating a different food in double the quantity of her previous more varied diet.  Her BG has been pretty good, but I'm afraid that's more because she hasn't been eating much of anything, and because she's been losing weight.  Have to see how her next test goes, may have to give her insulin again, but I guess that beats seeing her waste away.
Aleph Null
member, 12 posts
I have my PhD
In Wumbology
Tue 4 Dec 2018
at 16:34
  • msg #829

Re: More good stuff.

I just found out this morning that I have an extra 3-ish days to study for my exam. I have been stressed about it so the extra time means I should do quite a bit better than I was originally thinking I would do, assuming I spend it correctly.
V_V
member, 785 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Tue 4 Dec 2018
at 17:33
  • msg #830

Re: More good stuff.

Holy Swiss Cheese on onion bagels! Mmmmmm...oh yeah! the dice roller has...MAGIC EIGHTBALL? OMG! jase! Man every December I find cool stuff I didn't know I wanted and now can't live out. My face to face group threatens to use the dice roller (a big no non  without board support) and I must never divulge that they have systems like "Magic Eight Ball". They will ruin my IP record of good behavior! Anyway, that is SO cool that you have magic eight ball. That made my day! I wish I had an onion bagel though. :( *Shakes Magic Eightball* auh..."Concentrate and Ask Again" sad catface. Ooooooooooooh "My reply is no" q:< FINE! I'M GOING TO EAT YOU THEN! And if you taste bad it's your fault.
This message was last edited by the user at 17:37, Tue 04 Dec 2018.
facemaker329
member, 7069 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 13 Dec 2018
at 08:35
  • msg #831

Re: More good stuff.

I have some really awesome friends.  I agreed to build a prop gondola, for a corporate event (because a friend asked me to). It's winter.  I have a 1br apartment that's ridiculously overstuffed from a little over two decades of theater and entertainment work, on top of my 'stuff-intensive' hobbies.

So I hit Facebook to see if any of my friends had a space I could work in.  A couple of new friends I made over the past year responded, and let me use a third of their garage, their table saw, their propane space heater and their propane, and even fed me a couple of times.  They let me work there all day while they were at work, let me keep working after they'd gone to bed, and even made a hardware store run with me to pick up some supplies that didn't fit in my car.  Thanks to them, the project is done, in less than a week.  Saved my sanity, and likely my health, as well.
Fyrerain
member, 99 posts
Fri 21 Dec 2018
at 00:41
  • msg #832

More good stuff.

I'm alive.

And contrary to popular belief, looking death in the eye doesn't cause your past to go flashing through your mind... sometimes, there just isn't that much time.

I was turning left off the SR on my way home last night, blinker on, slowed, with a car right on my tail. I'd already turned across the center line when there were suddenly headlights in my left side mirror as a car came barreling around me. I had an instant to realize what was happening, yank the wheel to the right, and pray the guy on my tail hadn't decided to whip around me on the right rather be bothered with slowing down.

Thankfully, he didn't, he was still behind me and somehow, I didn't end up dead in the center of a 3-car pile of crumpled steel. I had a brief glimpse of a white or silver sedan similar in size to my car right outside my door, and then the psycho was past.

I've seen a lot of stupid driving, having an hour+ commute, with half of it on one of the state's deadliest highways, but I've never seen a stunt like that.
Isida KepTukari
member, 253 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Wed 23 Jan 2019
at 04:07
  • msg #833

More good stuff.

My external windscreen cover is a miracle.  When I put it on my car, I haven't had to worry about scraping my windscreen from frost, snow, or ice this winter, and at the end of a 12-hour shift that is such a relief to know I can get home just that much sooner, because I can actually see out of my car instead of having to scrape.
This message was last edited by the user at 17:52, Wed 23 Jan 2019.
V_V
member, 806 posts
You can call me V, just V
Life; a journey made once
Fri 1 Mar 2019
at 02:20
  • msg #834

More good stuff.

So, I just had my brain tickled and exercised (so to speak) at the same time.

I was watching a video on Youtube (which was dry and technical) in which the voiceover said (in an excerpt) "...the error cost the company 150 million dollars, which is more than the average average American makes in a year" and I was just O_O wait, what?! I felt somehow, for a good minute really pathetic. I tried to rationalize it by the super rich and then it dawned on me. I felt really dumb for about the next ten seconds and then had a great laugh.

Another excerpt, which I'm sad to say I saw as only an excerpt and not into the context of its entirety, was talking about (I'll insert an example to make it coherent) the fact every person that ever lived had more ancestors than the number of stars in the solar system. That one, sadly, I also was baffled at, and also made me crack up when I caught the nuance. This was in CONTEXT to the above. I was still taken for a ride. I am an astro physics enthusiast...and I still fell for the deadpan joke.

I won't assume that people need this, but just in case I'll explain it. I'm sleep deprived from taking care of a sick friend. So maybe it was just that fact, or maybe others might have fallen for the trick.


Spoiler for the blunt truth: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)

  1. Even if the average American made $365 a year (which obviously they make more than), 150 million is still more than that. ALOT more...but still more.
  2. The solar system only has one star in it. The Milky way and other galaxies are what contain the vast array of stars.



It made me smile. No, grin in fact. I needed that! I like that kind of humor. Especially when the content is otherwise dry, and it makes you pause and your common sense fights with this esoteric suspicion.
Yaztromo
member, 224 posts
Tue 5 Mar 2019
at 02:25
  • msg #835

More good stuff.

My oldest game still open just reached 3,000th posts!
Isida KepTukari
member, 264 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Sat 20 Apr 2019
at 15:04
  • msg #836

More good stuff.

Today I was a hoopy frood who knew where her towel was!
Starchaser
member, 603 posts
GMT+0
http://bit.ly/2NvdzWG
Mon 22 Apr 2019
at 16:30
  • msg #837

Re: More good stuff.

Isida KepTukari:
Today I was a hoopy frood who knew where her towel was!


Did you round the day off with breakfast at Milliways?
Isida KepTukari
member, 266 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Tue 23 Apr 2019
at 01:55
  • msg #838

Re: More good stuff.

Alas no, but I did help corral a dog who had escaped his owners, and bundle him up in said towel to keep him safe and warm until the police could come to get him to the shelter (and he was reunited with his owners later that day).
CrazyIvan777
member, 271 posts
Mon 29 Apr 2019
at 03:41
  • msg #839

Re: More good stuff.

Yay happy safe dog! Good job, you!

In two and a half weeks, my second book comes out. I honestly... I never thought I'd even get -one- published, let alone two. I continuously think of how my parents regularly stifled my hopes in that direction, and how the first book was partially inspired by the 3-year-lingering death of my dad due to ALS. But now I've got not one, but two. I did what my parents told me was impossible, and I'm still doing it. I'm excited. I can't wait to get a physical copy of the second novel. I'm just... Kinda stoked.
icosahedron152
member, 951 posts
Mon 29 Apr 2019
at 04:06
  • msg #840

Re: More good stuff.

Congrats Ivan - twice!

Never let anyone tell you what's possible and what isn't.

Nobody knows what you're capable of - not even you, until you try.
Yaztromo
member, 235 posts
Sun 12 May 2019
at 02:07
  • msg #841

Re: More good stuff.

Another of my games reached the 2,000 posts mark!
I came back to GMing on RPoL after long years to run just a one-off memorial adventure (targeting a few weeks or perhaps a couple of months of gaming) and... weeks became months, then years, and the number of games I run or play grew... very unplanned...
praguepride
member, 1393 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Sun 12 May 2019
at 16:42
  • msg #842

Re: More good stuff.

A co-worker put in a request for me that basically gives me two days off of work. There are some tasks that we do that are super easy and low effort but take a long time. I covered for him while he was on vacation and in response he made the request for me to do it for a couple of days. It is helpful to the company but I always feel kinda guilty requesting it myself but he went to bat for me and now I get to
have two days working that is mostly me monitoring diagnostics while watching TV.
V_V
member, 863 posts
Remember me as V, just V
My journey is near an end
Tue 1 Oct 2019
at 22:39
  • msg #843

Re: More good stuff.

Wow...look like a good comment might be overdue.

I'm really glad I FINALLY got our stuff moved out of our storage unit. I had a fire in late Feburary, and our stuff was there (apparently to save for OTHER people). So that's a couple hundred to save for the November to Feburary to save for the next
move.

In other good news, which is what prompted me to make this post, I discovered the colored text and strikethrough option. Wherein you can color the strike-line the surrounded color See here! or you can have the stricken out text be marked over by the same color. Like this!

I know I'm middle-aged, and typically the type to be amazed, but I REALLY appreciate that level of care jase took. It's little gems like this that renew the delight when I find them. :D

P.S. if you don't have colored text enabled, just do a faux-post and quote it, it'll make more sense that way to see the coding difference. It's just a seeding order. Still! I love it!
This message was last edited by the user at 22:40, Tue 01 Oct 2019.
SunRuanEr
subscriber, 156 posts
Tue 1 Oct 2019
at 22:52
  • msg #844

Re: More good stuff.

Holy schnickies, that colored/not-colored strikethrough option is spectacular! I had no idea you could do that, either. Thanks for pointing that out, V_V! :)
V_V
member, 864 posts
Remember me as V, just V
My journey is near an end
Wed 2 Oct 2019
at 00:19
  • msg #845

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to SunRuanEr (msg # 844):

Yeah! I thought someone, or a maybe a group of people, might not know that already either.

I love end user coding! Like this--not actual production coding [the real work]).

I'm slow to catch on, but once I know a trick on RPoL, or in spreadsheet, I'm quick to add it to my creative toolbox.

I took a year of college for a programming degree, at the height of the Dot-com bubble and html razor's edge. I, sadly, couldn't quite grasp base 12, and confused it with base 13. So flunked out, solely because of that small fallacy and similar ones, essentially adding an erroneous numeral. During that first semester though, I was a golden child, and was great for my fellow schoolmates to debug their code. Having OCD, I was like a monkey grooming for that single pesky bug and not content until I found it. I loved it!

I still enjoy being able to help friends with spreadsheet coding, and things like this. I know I'm far behind the curve, as the digital age demands horizon walking, but I kindle the flame of that young adult V's passion in little end user appreciation. :) It's like when I worked in my school cafeteria for a year, and served the whole district's faculty. Once you're/I'm behind the code/counter, you're/I'm always quick to recognize, appreciate, and complement the work done to bring the product to you/me. :)
horus
member, 902 posts
Wayfarer of the
Western Wastes
Wed 2 Oct 2019
at 06:01
  • msg #846

Re: More good stuff.

V_V:
Wow...look like a good comment might be overdue.

I'm really glad I FINALLY got our stuff moved out of our storage unit. I had a fire in late Feburary, and our stuff was there (apparently to save for OTHER people). So that's a couple hundred to save for the November to Feburary to save for the next
move.


I bet you are glad of that.  I have a storage unit to go through very soon, and I'm not looking forward to it, but gotta get that thing off the books!

quote:
In other good news, which is what prompted me to make this post, I discovered the colored text and strikethrough option. Wherein you can color the strike-line the surrounded color See here! or you can have the stricken out text be marked over by the same color. Like this!


A similar thing occurs with underlined text.  Let me see if I can demonstrate:

This goofy sample text is colored first, then underlined.

This goofy sample text is underlined first, then colored.

quote:
I know I'm middle-aged, and typically the type to be amazed, but I REALLY appreciate that level of care jase took. It's little gems like this that renew the delight when I find them. :D


I'm getting to be rather old, and it amazes me to see the level of care being taken, not only in the coding, but in listening to users and attempting to incorporate their feedback into the new site and the old.  Yep, I agree, jase has got this thing under power.
Yaztromo
supporter, 298 posts
Wed 2 Oct 2019
at 06:16
  • msg #847

Re: More good stuff.

Great news (for me): I understood the above post! :P
Mad Mick
member, 972 posts
GURPS beyond measure,
outlander
Sat 5 Oct 2019
at 05:54
  • msg #848

Re: More good stuff.

I just finished a game today that I started seven years ago for some folks from another site who wanted to play a play-by-post game. I'm really awful as a GM and have had a tendency to disappear for half a year at a time in the past (I've been better since this summer, but I'm not out of the woods yet), and all the original players have long since left. I had one player left, someone who joined six years ago and took over a PC from one of the other characters. I've played with this person in a number of other games, but this is the only time I've been a GM for this player.

I feels so great to actually finish an adventure! I've been privileged to have completed a few other adventures as a GM, but this one feels particularly good, especially since it should have died, but my player didn't give up on me. I'm really grateful for the excellent players we have here on RPOL.
V_V
member, 888 posts
Script like razors
Absence like wire
Sat 11 Jan 2020
at 12:17
  • msg #849

Re: More good stuff.

I had mildly positive day after months of agony and turmoil. I gamed, had enough to eat, didn't need to raise my voice (except in character) and just generally felt like the elephant went to another room.

Thank yous to the countless people that Rmailed me since almost a year ago. Back in late February. I'd name drop some, but I can just tell you personally and tailored to you. For those I do not count or remember; it did mean the world to me to have that positivity to latch onto. It's a mad, mad, mad, MAAAAD world. MY problems were so common, but so heavy, and the cheering up and company, the tolerance or my tactiturn disposition, the general tickling of updates; they finally brought me to...and pretty a good day. :)

I hope to have another soon. (c:
This message was last edited by the user at 12:18, Sat 11 Jan 2020.
V_V
member, 889 posts
Script like razors
Absence like wire
Mon 13 Jan 2020
at 04:17
  • msg #850

Re: More good stuff.

I know this is a super double post, but damn it! This made my day. Being such a stick in the mud for sports; football, American football, soccer, hockey, rugby, baseball, cricket, blah, blah blah...it does nothing for me. THIS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sxMqLjTv6k

did though. Having a friend who LOVES Dr. Mario, one would think I would gravitate toward that, but no, my Youtube feed knows I like Snooker (sp?) and Tetris. This was THE best Sports match I've ever seen...ever. Granted I wasn't THERE, and it wasn't live, but I still felt the hype. I got, in this moment, what my area must have felt with the KC Chiefs and Royals in the past decade turn around, and the KU Basketball that just...did nothing for me. I finally got fired up feeling that I know so many others get from others sports.

Some may call E-sports "not real" sports, but the feeling, the attitude the appreciation is I think what's important to me. Whether or not it is aerobic, it's still PHYSICAL. The Brain is an organ, and it needs exercise to stay sharp. The muscle retention, in this match if nowhere else, is just legendary. Sure, they're sitting, but to me it's still a sport, and I loved this match! It made my day. Just such an unexpected treasure in my Youtube feed. :)
V_V
member, 900 posts
Just like that...
my journey..finds me home
Mon 3 Feb 2020
at 03:38
  • msg #851

Re: More good stuff.

I started playing PlugY (a Diablo 2 "unofficial" content patch) and really getting into hell difficulty. I was doing countess runs, because I'm even too pitiful to do pits on players 1. Anyway, Last night Diablo clone spawns, and I'm curious. So I check it out. I end up planning for like 45 minutes what gear I have,m what runes I can afford to combine...all that that. I beat him! That was last night.

Well, what makes this post isn't that. It's that I'm just sitting in town, today, waiting for my roommate and friend to join the game after she's done eating dinner (after work). Well, sure enough, Diablo clone comes back, and I'm like O_o "really?" and OF COURSE Anne wants to see it. We totally forget she can join, as right then she was in spectator mode. Again, I use the same plan, I end up feeling like I just went to a sleazy payday loan place in act 1 trying to pawn off anything I can to get my merc rezzed. I must remind you all, I'm level 82. I have SOME good gear, but not much. It's SUPPOSED to be done like level 90...but anyway, we can't resist.

I run down to the dregs and tell Anne "I gotta throw in the towel. I just can't afford to pawn off the rest of my stuff." I mean, I sold gems and shhhh to Akara I was so on point to SHOW Anne I could do it. Then I'm like, off handed "I wish there was some way I could do this. I wish you could join the game" then I looked up, and remembered. I'm in a LAN! I STARTED the game to item gift her stuff.

Anyway, we beat him. Through grit and MUCH crushing blow and DEATH...and a playlist of fight songs. But we beat it,m andf right then! The Chiefs win the superbowl (at least I <>think</i> they did) and fireworks go off. I couldn't care less, but I don't...oh! another firework! Anyway....I don't begrudge people who are sports fans, as stated before, I loved that with Tetris. I live in Johnson County Kansas, so yeah, Chiefs winning the super bowl (???) is going to turn Anne's school and work into a PTO. Which is sweet! I just thought it epic that the fireworks went off, RIGHT, after I beat Diablo (again) lmao. For those who aren't familiar, I mean the Realms event Diablo; not typical Chaos Sanctuary. xD Okay? Just in case you haven't played since it was in patch....oh god...like ywhat 17 years ago?! This is suped up version of Diablo. It's how you get a unique charm. Just saying, it wasn't just hell Diablo. Anyway...
facemaker329
member, 7239 posts
Gaming for over 30
years, and counting!
Thu 30 Jul 2020
at 06:03
  • msg #852

Re: More good stuff.

So...it's been a while.  About time someone posted something here again, even if it's a stupid-simple thing...

A friend of mine does event entertainment production.  That is, event planners contact her to book entertainment of various sorts.  She's been having, understandably, a pretty lean year.  I usually help out with some of the events...in some cases, I'm even part of the entertainment...but with no events happening, I haven't gotten to play a whole lot this summer.

Tonight was the first event I've worked in ages.  And it was...kinda weird, actually.  A charity group set up in a Parade-of-Homes house and...just invited people, I guess.  There was no real coherent theme to anything.  It was a HUGE house...three stories, any one of which was probably four times larger than my entire apartment PLUS the storage space there PLUS the storage space I'm renting.  There was one room up on the second floor that was a Cinderella bedroom.  The Rec Room (adjacent to the in-home theater) had a Star Wars themed mural painted on one wall.  They had Cinderella upstairs with her fairy godmother.  There was also an area company that brought animals to events for photo ops (didn't see what they brought...probably puppies or something...)  I was dressed as an X-Wing pilot, together with Darth Vader and a Stormtrooper, in the rec room.  All we did was stand there and take pictures with people.  We had someone dressed as Moana that was roaming the ground floor (upstairs from us) and outside, with another company that brought snakes and lizards and other creepy-crawlies for photo ops (that guy, I actually know...he's done booth at local cons, and I have some pretty cool pictures of me in various costumes with five or six huge snakes draped around my neck...)  And at the end of the night, they had a Polynesian fire-dancer and a fire-breather.  Like I said, no real theme...just a chance for people to wander around an insanely large house with all kinds of cool stuff in it, and take pictures.

But it felt so refreshingly normal, for just a few hours...
Serai1@aol.com
member, 147 posts
Sun 11 Oct 2020
at 20:15
  • msg #853

Re: More good stuff.

I love a good epistolary, and I just read a nice one.
Fyrerain
member, 103 posts
Thu 1 Jul 2021
at 03:54
  • msg #854

Re: More good stuff.

Dang, people need to find more joy in their lives... October of last year?!

Okay, here's something more current. :)

I've been healing up after a surgery early this month. I'm back up to lifting - as of tonight! - 50 pounds. (I unloaded a 50 pound bag of grain, yay!) I also had to get more regular feed for my horses today. Those are 80 pound bags. I still can't lift that much, but I can drag it. So I got 10 bags at the mill, figuring I'd have to leave half in my truck and keep it tarped... but it turns out my tailgate is 4 bags high, so it wasn't that much harder to drag that 5th bag up onto the 4th. Two stacks of five, and I've unloaded all my feed myself! Yay!

I find it uncomfortable to ask for help in providing basic care for my animals on any kind of a long-term basis, so being able to do the work myself is important. :)
GreenTongue
member, 980 posts
Game Archaeologist
Thu 1 Jul 2021
at 17:14
  • msg #855

Re: More good stuff.

When Good is normal, it is sometimes easy not to appreciate it, till is isn't.
Winter51
member, 173 posts
Thu 1 Jul 2021
at 17:43
  • msg #856

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to Fyrerain (msg # 854):

I feel your pain. Going in for shoulder surgery next week. Fortunately, our mill only does 50 pound bags of feed (that's horses, dogs, chickens, etc) so I've been handling that when I must but I'm not supposed to lift over 20 pounds. Now, 2 to 4 weeks in a sling and 4 to 8 weeks recovery... gotta ask for help even though we don't want to.
Fyrerain
member, 104 posts
Fri 2 Jul 2021
at 00:25
  • msg #857

Re: More good stuff.

Ouch. One of my best friends is having surgery on her shoulder in the next month or so. She just found out this week the severe pain in her shoulder is because a muscle is torn 70% through. Her husband already does all the livestock care,  though - probably why this happened "spontaneously." Lifting her purse has been the extent of her exercising for years now. :/

Good luck on your surgery and recovery. Hope it goes as smoothly as possible!
facemaker329
member, 7350 posts
Gaming for over 40
years, and counting!
Fri 2 Jul 2021
at 01:23
  • msg #858

Re: More good stuff.

8 feel much better about the tendonitis I've been recovering from for a month, now...at least it didn't require surgery and it wasn't disabling...just highly inconvenient.  Shoving around scenery that weighs twice as much as you do in 95-plus degree weather is bad enough when you aren't limping...

I also "inherited" two pets...one of the illusions in the show was going to involve a bird...as they started coming to terms with the logistics of it all, they decided to change illusions...which meant they no longer needed the two parakeets they bought. And since I was the only one on the crew who had experience taking care of birds, they went home with me.  Not only two free parakeets, but a $100+ cage, another $100 in toys and cleaning supplies, and several weeks worth of food.  For free.

It's nice having someone/some thing in my apartment when I get home at night.  They haven't yet warmed to me the way my other bird did...but he had almost ten years and they've been with me less than a month.  There's time...
MelJill
member, 72 posts
Fri 2 Jul 2021
at 13:19
  • msg #859

More good stuff.

I'll go ahead and share more good stuff.

In May, the testing that I was having done finally came back with a definitive diagnosis: endometrial adenocarcinoma.  On June 17, I had surgery.  I've had my post op visit and the pathology shows no sign of spread, with a staging of 1b, so that means that all of the cancer was removed.  Recovery is going well.

In addition, the diet that I've been on since January has resulted in a substantial weight loss (still more to lose, but slow and steady is the way) and my fasting glucose levels have been dropping from just short of getting that type II diabetes diagnosis and now 33 points below that high point.  I'm in good standing to beat the family history (my dad is generation 7) and break the chain.  My oncologist also thought that the weight loss may have caused the hormonal shifts that triggered the symptom that led me to testing that got the cancer diagnosed before it progressed to a later stage.
GreenTongue
member, 981 posts
Game Archaeologist
Fri 2 Jul 2021
at 15:47
  • msg #860

More good stuff.

Two parakeets are much better than one as they are flocking birds and need the company.
A "feathered friend" is still a friend and we all can use friends.
engine
member, 839 posts
There's a brain alright
but it's made out of meat
Fri 2 Jul 2021
at 16:01
  • msg #861

More good stuff.

I joined a company soccer team and we played our first game last night. We won, and I even feel like I contributed.
GreenTongue
member, 982 posts
Game Archaeologist
Fri 2 Jul 2021
at 16:53
  • msg #862

More good stuff.

I guess it is only right I add my own "Good Stuff".
We remodeled our master bathroom and when we were done, it was all paid for.

As for gaming, I created a mod for Tabletop Simulator and over 400 people have subscribed to it. It makes me happy that people find it useful.
Isida KepTukari
member, 387 posts
Elegant! Arrogant! Smart!
Tue 6 Jul 2021
at 08:50
  • msg #863

More good stuff.

The new kitties are settling in a month or so after their adoptions, and we have finally wrangled and medicated some bugs one picked up in the shelter.  They're cute as buttons, and are providing us with a lot of fun and affection (and chaos).
ranna
member, 87 posts
Tue 6 Jul 2021
at 20:58
  • msg #864

More good stuff.

My 11-month-old gave me a smooch on the cheek for the first time ever yesterday.

Needless to say, my chest is ten times too small to contain all the feels about it.
Life is good. <3 :)
Fyrerain
member, 105 posts
Tue 27 Jul 2021
at 07:01
  • msg #865

More good stuff.

So my home was burglarized in spring of 2020. One of the many things stolen that day was my trusty Necchi sewing machine (a birthday gift from my mother). It was bought used, and nothing fancy, mostly just basic stitches, but it was a solidly reliable machine. I've missed it.

Today, I got a smoking deal on its replacements. Some lady was dealing with her late father's effects, which included over 40 sewing machines (she has no idea why he was collecting sewing machines). Nothing new, but all working, and cheaply priced. So I bought a nice little Kenmore, with a small selection of computerized stitches. And a slightly less computerized Euro Pro, with manuals, for $25 each. :)
Fyrerain
member, 109 posts
Mon 16 Aug 2021
at 22:25
  • msg #866

More good stuff.

Good weekend. I rescued a lost dog, and made some folks' weekend a great deal better than it started out. :)

Found the dog Friday night a few miles from home. I thought it was a vulture or raven standing at the edge of the road, heading into the sunset. Only as I passed did I realize it was a little Chihuahua-mix dog. He look very lost and unsure. So I turned around and went back. It's all farmland there, more than a mile to the nearest home, too far to be safe for a small dog (we have coyotes, foxes, hawks, and owls, never mind the cars). Surprisingly, he didn't immediately run away (like the last little dog I stopped for in almost the same spot). So I sweet-talked him and coaxed him to me. He was shy and uncertain, but not really fearful.

I took him on to my friend's house, so we could post him on the community pages on FB and Next Door, in case he had a family who wanted him back. We get a lot of dumped pets, sadly. He was small enough to take home for the night (I live in an RV; size matters). My dogs weren't sure what he was doing there, but he didn't have a Napoleon complex, so they were tolerant. My cats, OTOH, were variously offended, mortally offended, and fascinated by a dog no bigger than they are. :D

There were no bites on the ad in the morning, so my friend posted in a few more community pages -- and just before noon, the dog's people called. Turns out they live about three miles east of us, and he'd disappeared three days prior! He'd traveled nearly 5 miles across the desert, and only had one minor wound. No wonder he looked lost when I found him!

Happy ending all around. :) (My Aussie was seriously clingy that night; evidently he felt the need to remind me I already belong to someone. Heh.)
GreenTongue
member, 1002 posts
Game Archaeologist
Tue 17 Aug 2021
at 10:50
  • msg #867

More good stuff.

Dogs are wonderful. That is all.
SunRuanEr
subscriber, 404 posts
Tue 17 Aug 2021
at 13:52
  • msg #868

Re: More good stuff.

My 3 year-old crawled up into bed to read her 3 month-old baby brother a story this morning, of her own accord.

...and held still long enough for me to get pictures.

However crappy the rest of this day may or may not be, it'll be a good day. =)
Yaztromo
supporter, 447 posts
Tue 17 Aug 2021
at 21:10
  • msg #869

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to SunRuanEr (msg # 868):

Sounds awesome!
Zag24
supporter, 708 posts
Sat 21 Aug 2021
at 05:11
  • msg #870

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to SunRuanEr (msg # 868):

That's terrific!  My son, who is just shy of two years older than my daughter, used to read to her all the time -- from when they were 3 and 1 up through when they were 7 and 5 and she could read for herself.  Today they are 36 and 34, and are still very good friends.  They live about 15 minutes from each other and they have 'sibling dinner' once a week (in addition to them coming to my wife's and my home for dinner once a week).  I couldn't be prouder of them.
facemaker329
member, 7357 posts
Gaming for over 40
years, and counting!
Sat 21 Aug 2021
at 05:21
  • msg #871

Re: More good stuff.

Let's hear it for doing stuff that scares you, a little bit...

My second job is at a movie theater, where, among other things, I manage one night a week and a couple of weekend shifts each month.  Tonight is one of those weekend shifts...

Last night, our ticketing computer died.  So did the smaller kiosk-console that we tried moving from one of the concessions counters to replace it.  Replacements are coming in tomorrow...but tonight, we had to make due with one Point-of-Sale console between the ticket counter and both concessions counters.  It's also opening night (here) for a couple of movies that should be pretty big draws for us...so it was bound to be busy.

Well, hey...the late shows are all a couple of hours into playing (one of them is about to end), and we survived.  Nobody threw a major fit, nobody got in my face and complained about the inconvenience of how we ran things tonight...and we had what may be one of our busiest nights this year.  I'm brain-fried...but we did it!
ShadoPrism
member, 1386 posts
OCGD-Obsessive-Compulsive
Gamer-Disorder
Sat 21 Aug 2021
at 12:37
  • msg #872

Re: More good stuff.

I have finally started to put my short stories out. Site called Royal Road, free to read site that also allows people to publish their own original works and fan fictions. I got 3 stories there now and have read several other really good works by others.
I encourage you all to check it out.
Yaztromo
supporter, 448 posts
Sat 21 Aug 2021
at 14:56
  • msg #873

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to Zag24 (msg # 870):

You have very good reasons to be very proud of them! :)
Piestar
member, 953 posts
once upon a time...
...there was a little pie
Sat 21 Aug 2021
at 15:57
  • msg #874

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to ShadoPrism (msg # 872):

Congratulations! I came very close to selling a few  of my stories years ago, and I remember the high. I can't exactly say I've never gotten one accepted, one story was officially 'sold' I guess, but they pay on publication and went out of business before my would gotten printed. Sigh...

Still, better than nothing but rejections!

If I go to Royal Road, how will I know which ones are yours? Is ShadoPrism your name there too?
ShadoPrism
member, 1387 posts
OCGD-Obsessive-Compulsive
Gamer-Disorder
Sat 21 Aug 2021
at 16:40
  • msg #875

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to Piestar (msg # 874):

My nick there is Shadow Prism. My Stories, from oldest to newest: Adventures in Wonder - A Wish of a Life Time, Alternate Worlds (This one I got 3 stories done), Beyond the Gates of Death and Time.
For some unknown reason, the first person to look at my last story gave me a 1 star rating, which is hurting getting others to even look at it.
They are all Isiaki type stories in the short or light novel kind of set up as I am not good at longer stories. Though I got around some of that with Beyond the Gates by making 3 seperate 'books'.
Alternate Worlds is set up so I can show case some of my alternate writings ideas. Something I do from time to time, take the same character and then alter the plot around them. I just finished putting out the first group of these.
I am putting them out 1 chapter a day. Mostly to draw it out and hope to pull in more readers.
Piestar
member, 955 posts
once upon a time...
...there was a little pie
Sat 21 Aug 2021
at 16:50
  • msg #876

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to ShadoPrism (msg # 875):

That makes sense. I only ever wrote short stories too, which made me stick out whenever I joined writers groups, everyone else was doing novels.

I'll go read them soon!
GreenTongue
member, 1022 posts
Game Archaeologist
Fri 15 Oct 2021
at 15:35
  • msg #877

Re: More good stuff.

It's nice to have the option to retire but not _have_ to.
V_V
member, 983 posts
Read my biography...
Feel free to Rmail me :)
Sat 25 Dec 2021
at 14:23
  • msg #878

Re: More good stuff.

Merry Christmas! I for one (and I know I'm not the only one) love the holiday themes. i know some users dislike them, but they make me so happy. It's like I know they'll be coming up, but when I see them, it's still such a pleasant surprise. In fact it helps warn me on April 1st "Beware" ;) Thanks jase and mods for this place. Not posting anything else on here today, just reading, but I wanted to post this. :D
Gatecrasher
member, 76 posts
Sun 26 Dec 2021
at 01:03
  • msg #879

Re: More good stuff.

Merry Christmas to all!
donsr
member, 2460 posts
Sun 26 Dec 2021
at 01:34
  • msg #880

Re: More good stuff.

 whether one loves the themes or not?  they are  there for only one day..its not like your  on the  site 24 hours!

 i like it, because it adds to the flavor of the seasons.
Evil Empryss
supporter, 1583 posts
Insert witty and
appropriate quote here
Sun 26 Dec 2021
at 01:36
  • msg #881

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to donsr (msg # 880):

"its not like your  on the  site 24 hours!"

Speak for yourself, honey.  ^_^
ShadoPrism
member, 1394 posts
OCGD-Obsessive-Compulsive
Gamer-Disorder
Sun 26 Dec 2021
at 02:09
  • msg #882

Re: More good stuff.

This is my home page, so yeah I am here ALLOT.
donsr
member, 2461 posts
Sun 26 Dec 2021
at 04:45
  • msg #883

Re: More good stuff.

::chuckles:: well? i'm on alot..askmy players!..by not  near 24 hours!
ladysharlyne
subscriber, 3258 posts
Member before Oct 2005
A Pox on Vanishing Player
Sun 26 Dec 2021
at 11:50
  • msg #884

More good stuff.

Wishing ALL Members a Happy Holiday Season no matter what you believe!!

As for the theme colour Chang’s I too love them and look forward to them each time they are done!

May 2022 be a much better year for all of us!!!!

xxx
GreenTongue
member, 1069 posts
Game Archaeologist
Sun 26 Dec 2021
at 12:48
  • msg #885

More good stuff.

Happy Holidays!
May all the gatherings stay healthy.
ShadoPrism
member, 1395 posts
OCGD-Obsessive-Compulsive
Gamer-Disorder
Sun 26 Dec 2021
at 16:08
  • msg #886

More good stuff.

In reply to GreenTongue (msg # 885):

My best friend came over and fixed us spegetti with her own special version of a sauce, no tomatoes in it. Turkey, green and red pepper, onions, small amount of butter, all fried together, the juice out of the veggies made up the majority of the liquid in it. Was really good.
Had grands crescent rolls for the bread portion to.
NowhereMan
member, 477 posts
Tue 26 Apr 2022
at 18:58
  • msg #887

More good stuff.

Whelp, twelve years in the making, and it's finally happening. I'm opening my very own game and comic shop, adding Nowhere's Store to the venerable FLGS list. Still a few months from opening, as our space needs a lot of work before it's ready for customers, but we're past the point of no return, so it'll be happening one way or another.
NextLevelGames
member, 13 posts
Tue 26 Apr 2022
at 19:13
  • msg #888

More good stuff.

Got my stove replaced today! Whoooo! Only took about 3 and a half hours, no major set backs in the changeover between the two pieces of equipment.

Feels good man.
Yaztromo
supporter, 471 posts
Tue 26 Apr 2022
at 19:33
  • msg #889

More good stuff.

My sweet lady is doing better! :)
johnkennedy
member, 3 posts
Tue 26 Apr 2022
at 20:10
  • msg #890

More good stuff.

This concern my daughter and her encounters at school.

The first story, on her first day of grade 1, she was very eager to be there and quickly joined the other kids to play. I observed the teacher talking to another parent at the door. Her daughter was having separation anxiety issues and would not let go of her mother's leg. I called to my daughter and told her to introduce herself to the girl. My daughter happily went over and asked the girl to join her in playing. When the girl joined the other kids and began playing, the mother thanked me.

A couple of years later, I heard that another child was being taunted by other kids at recess for being socially awkward and apart. A group had gathered all around this kid and laughing at him and calling him names. MY daughter went to his defense, told the others that he was her friend and she would be willing to have him around. The other kids were stunned and silenced.

I was emailed this by a teacher who witnessed the whole scene. The greatest daughter learned and acted on what she had done earlier. Bless her.
1492
member, 21 posts
I like monkeys
Tue 26 Apr 2022
at 20:44
  • msg #891

More good stuff.

In reply to johnkennedy (msg # 890):

Have to confess this made me tear up a little. Well done. To you and your daughter.
phoenix9lives
member, 1094 posts
A brain driving a bone
mecha with flesh armor
Wed 27 Apr 2022
at 00:13
  • msg #892

More good stuff.

In reply to johnkennedy (msg # 890):

Wow.  Awesome kid.
johnkennedy
member, 4 posts
Wed 27 Apr 2022
at 01:59
  • msg #893

More good stuff.

In reply to 1492 (msg # 891):

Thank-you. Some 40 years ago, almost 30 years before being married and divorced, I was majoring in astro-physics. I took many side course in Child Psychology and did some baby sitting as a side hobby/job. Children are very important in my life. Even though my kids are all grown and moved away, I think I'm living like a grand parent. All the happiness but no more responsibility.
johnkennedy
member, 5 posts
Wed 27 Apr 2022
at 02:03
  • msg #894

More good stuff.

In reply to phoenix9lives (msg # 892):

That kid is all grown up now. While I live in Hawaii, she lives in Rhode Island. Currently visiting her friend in London, she is further away than she has ever been from me. I miss her considerably, but still have long talks with her by phone.
phoenix9lives
member, 1095 posts
A brain driving a bone
mecha with flesh armor
Wed 27 Apr 2022
at 02:51
  • msg #895

Re: More good stuff.

I can only hope mine are that awesome when they grow up....
Low Key
subscriber, 256 posts
Tue 21 Jun 2022
at 07:45
  • msg #896

Re: More good stuff.

All the 6s in the Community Chat post count!
ShadoPrism
member, 1416 posts
OCGD-Obsessive-Compulsive
Gamer-Disorder
Tue 21 Jun 2022
at 15:18
  • msg #897

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to Low Key (msg # 896):

Aaaaand you ruined it, made it 66.667 ...
Low Key
subscriber, 257 posts
Tue 21 Jun 2022
at 17:57
  • msg #898

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to ShadoPrism (msg # 897):

Nope, I took post 66,666 with my celebration post
It was someone else who decided their post was more important than all those matching 6s :p
This message was last edited by the user at 17:57, Tue 21 June 2022.
facemaker329
member, 7413 posts
Gaming for over 40
years, and counting!
Sat 27 Aug 2022
at 07:00
  • msg #899

Re: More good stuff.

Oh, the layers of personal satisfaction...

Small Problem: someone misplaced the mounting hardware for one of the stage lights at work.  Discovered that the supposedly non-compatible hardware for a different model light by the same company actually fits, so I could hang the light...

Larger Problem: Changing over lighting from summer shows to Halloween.  It's normally a week-long process involving a lot of changes.  But we have a week less turnaround time this year.  Started taking down lights on Monday, finished putting up the last one today at noon.  Four and a half days...two of which were shorter than they were expecting, because I had shows to go be in and another job.  I was working on it solo for a day and a half, with no crew to help, and when the contractors showed up to help out, their crew consisted of two guys...and we STILL finished ahead of schedule...

Even Larger Problem:  My boss and the director apparently had some kind of mutual freak-out about the fact that I had a stack of conflicts during this turnaround period, and they were worried about whether or not stuff would get done.  Well, stuff is done, and we still have two weeks left.  And I didn't try to weasel out of any of my conflicts to try and make their lives more secure.  I realize the director's 'throw spaghetti at the wall and see what sticks' approach to putting shows together creates a lot of uncertainty...but it's not on me.  Lights are done, everywhere they can be done (the electricians are still running power to our temporary stage, so we can't do much there...but we've got next week for that.)

So much for my boss worrying that my conflicts would put the show turnaround behind schedule...
V_V
member, 1021 posts
Tue 27 Sep 2022
at 06:01
  • msg #900

Re: More good stuff.

I thought about Rmailing the mods to say this my personally, but I don't want to do so when they expect moderation discussion. I just wanted to say thank you to jase and the mods, even those who are less active. I have had so many trials with RPoL, and while I'm on a break from the main attraction, I'm slowly finding a comfortable pace of being on here, and enjoying what has been going for two decades of my life (sans the two years I left the site in late 2004 to early 2007).

I've been keeping a gratitude journal, and I'm just so grateful to have this outlet. When people talk about toxic social media, I breathe a sigh that you all (speaking now to the mods and jase) make this place largely comfortable to navigate, while not censoring the ability to have those discussions in the private games. I hear complaints...I see complaints, but by large and far I know this rings through the community on here, that it's a haven, a hub and a home.

So thank you! I just feel so lucky to have had a chance to learn from my mistakes. I made many infractions, and had many Rmails of moderation, but everytime it's been helpful, for me and the community.

Anyway, that's all I wanted to say. *waves*
Yaztromo
supporter, 493 posts
Sun 2 Oct 2022
at 18:05
  • msg #901

Re: More good stuff.

I'm back from a much needed holiday and I feel good, looking forward to go back to work.
This is good stuff.
NowhereMan
member, 491 posts
Thu 6 Oct 2022
at 20:02
  • msg #902

Re: More good stuff.

My soon-to-be FLGS finally has carpet! My injured foot is very appreciative of this, and it's starting to look like an actual retail space and less like the run-down warehouse we started with.
ladysharlyne
subscriber, 3536 posts
Member before Oct 2005
Creative Writing ROCKS!!
Sun 18 Dec 2022
at 20:13
  • msg #903

Re: More good stuff.

It’s been a thoughtful season this far and I want to wish everyone and their families a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!

I have done the Scrooge turn around and changed some things in my games that have put some players off in the past.  After having an unpleasant visit in one of my games today I decided that it is time to put the past where it belongs!!  Welcome to everyone no matter what their sexual desires may be.

I have been around for almost 20 years here. I’m 69 yrs old.  Please stop judging me falsely my friends as you don’t know me. I have seen a lot of  things and had a lot of rules that certain ones find offensive but they were never meant to be offensive.  But you can’t make everyone happy all the time.  So I have made changes as I see fit so all players can be happy.  No longer living in the past but hoping for a better future to all players.

If you want to see the difference then read any of my rules in any game!

MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR
LS
 Xxx
dybbuk67
member, 105 posts
Mon 19 Dec 2022
at 03:28
  • msg #904

Re: More good stuff.

And tonight is the first night of Hanukkah so let me all wish you a Happy Hanukkah as well!
GreenTongue
member, 1136 posts
Game Archaeologist
Mon 19 Dec 2022
at 18:19
  • msg #905

Re: More good stuff.

Wishing All the Best for All the Holidays.

We need more holidays and less drama.  (Unless it is for entertainment purposes.)
Silverlock
member, 148 posts
Wed 21 Dec 2022
at 00:51
  • msg #906

Re: More good stuff.

Happy Hogswatch !
ladysharlyne
subscriber, 3537 posts
Member before Oct 2005
Creative Writing ROCKS!!
Wed 21 Dec 2022
at 13:40
  • msg #907

Re: More good stuff.

Happy Winter Solstice!
Sightless314
member, 47 posts
If there's a will
There's a way
Thu 22 Dec 2022
at 04:51
  • msg #908

Re: More good stuff.

 1. I'm a horrible human being.
2. What colors? I don't see any colors.
3. I'm not the only blind player on RPOL, the others are smart, and mostly hidden.
Wynternight
member, 164 posts
Fri 23 Dec 2022
at 04:08
  • msg #909

Re: More good stuff.

I got a Christmas gift from one of my patients yesterday: a silver bracelet inscribed with “Do No Harm but Take No Shit.”

:D
facemaker329
member, 7435 posts
Gaming for over 40
years, and counting!
Thu 26 Jan 2023
at 05:30
  • msg #910

Re: More good stuff.

Figured out why the new device I bought to help me do my job wasn't working.  Now, not only can I do what they're expecting me to do, but I can also do just that little bit extra that creates job security...that "I wouldn't even know where to start getting that done, thank goodness he did," margin.

Plus, there's the added satsifaction of learning some new tricks of the trade.  And I always enjoy that.
IamJacksUsername
member, 34 posts
Any Serenity RPG games?
South Africa, Cape Town
Sat 28 Jan 2023
at 13:20
  • msg #911

Re: More good stuff.

News sources are reporting that Pathfinder and Call of Cthulhu have recently sold up to 8 months' worth of books in just 2 weeks. A different RPG company's really been helping to encourage people to diversify their gaming and to look at all sorts of RPG systems out there. This cross-pollination may encourage better designs from other systems being incorporated in future RPGs.
ladysharlyne
subscriber, 3578 posts
Member before Oct 2005
Creative Writing ROCKS!!
Sat 28 Jan 2023
at 14:47
  • msg #912

More good stuff.

Yay!  Finally got my first appointment date, 6 March, for my cataract surgery in both eyes!  Hopefully after the surgery Ii can see my computer, laptop, TV, nature! All better again.  No more holding my eye phone up to my nose to post!

EDIT:  surgery will be this summer sometime but not befor my trip to Glasford, Illinois to see the places I grew up.  Alls gonna be a blur but on the plus side I am going to see my family!  Scotland to Illinois here we come!
This message was last edited by the user at 15:24, Mon 13 Mar 2023.
SunRuanEr
subscriber, 486 posts
Mon 13 Mar 2023
at 15:13
  • msg #913

More good stuff.

Brendan Fraser won Best Actor at the Oscars last night.

This makes me feel all kinds of warm and fuzzy.
facemaker329
member, 7446 posts
Gaming for over 40
years, and counting!
Tue 14 Mar 2023
at 05:30
  • msg #914

More good stuff.

I love the fact that A24, which is pretty much a small indie studio (comparatively speaking), cleaned house at the Oscars.  Fraser's Best Actor for The Whale, Michelle Yeoh's Best Actress, Ke Huy Quan's Best Supporting Actor, and Jamie Lee Curtis' Best Supporting Actress for Everything Everywhere All At Once, Best Picture and three other Oscars for EEAO...

In an industry that seems obsessed with sequels, reboots, and retreads, it's not only refreshing to see someone focusing on really developing original work but also seeing that work get both commercial and critical recognition.  I don't think Sony's going to try and do anything similar to The Whale anytime soon...but they'll at least give it serious consideration, now.

Which is not a knock on superhero movies and action adventures...I really enjoy them.  But it's also nice to sit down in a dark theater every so often and have something actually challenge you to think, or question your position in reality, or contemplate the hardships of your fellow human beings.  A lot of times I go to movies to sit down and turn my brain off...but I like the option of having something really turn my brain on, too.
Pres-Gas
member, 8 posts
Tue 28 Mar 2023
at 19:50
  • msg #915

More good stuff.

In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 914):

Agree on all of this. If you are looking for (video)essays on movies challenging you to think, I would recommend the YouTube channels "Like Stories of Old" and "Thomas Flight". They do good analysis on various movies and sometimes throw in a little philosophy here and there.
V_V
member, 1049 posts
Event: Arrival
Horizon: May 5th
Thu 27 Apr 2023
at 14:44
  • msg #916

More good stuff.

Boo ya!!! *Fist bumps to anyone who reached out in the last 14 months* *grins to them and everyone else*

I have a home!!! It's not definite, but it's likely. I'm already here.

If you need reference, I was homeless since February 2022. Without a car from November 2021 until the same month, about two weeks prior.

This was not exactly region-beta paradox, but identical outcome. I have better home, in many ways, and paid for it by my homelessness. My friend, Anne, said "Our luck finally paid off" and In looked to her with sober passion. "No" I said "This is the hardship and persistence that paid off. This is the efforts of the people who got us here, and their support. We EARNED this!" Them, those that aided and didn't just sent "cake in a crisis"*. Even if aid was listening--not giving advice!!--and talking to give morale.

I'd like to thank people by name publicly, but I think it will be better appreciated privately. Over a dozen of you on RPoL made definite, crucial and critical difference. Dozens more made my hardship less a burden. A select handful were knaves that hit me while I was down, and I consider it a great lesson of what people are like. In practice, not principle, so many, even some I'd never gamed with, showed why RPoL is community unlike many forums on the web.

*elated sigh* I want to cry. I just might. When I can. Weep for grief and thanksgiving. Weep for sacrifice and charity. Weep, then wonder, what I reap to revel. *bows*
1492
member, 106 posts
I like monkeys
Thu 27 Apr 2023
at 14:50
  • msg #917

More good stuff.

Congratulations! That is wonderful news. Your relief and joy is palpable and thank you for letting us share it with you. I pray that you'll be blessed in other amazing ways over the coming months.
aguy777
member, 379 posts
Join Date:
Thu, 28 Nov, 2013
Thu 27 Apr 2023
at 15:17
  • msg #918

More good stuff.

Congratulations! Glad to hear it all worked out for you!
GreenTongue
member, 1145 posts
Game Archaeologist
Thu 27 Apr 2023
at 17:34
  • msg #919

More good stuff.

That certainly is "Good Stuff".
ladysharlyne
subscriber, 3658 posts
Member before Oct 2005
Been here for appx 20 yrs
Thu 27 Apr 2023
at 18:11
  • msg #920

Re: More good stuff.

This is absolutely FABULOUS!

There will always be jerks that enjoy hitting folk when they are down.  Can’t weed the cockroaches out of any sites and just move on by.  You have preserved through many things to get to this point.  You have EVERY RIGHT to bee happy and move forward with your life and you have the support of many good people here and real life. gain CONGRATULATIONS!!!  You deserve this!
This message was last edited by the user at 01:53, Fri 28 Apr 2023.
phoenix9lives
member, 1120 posts
A brain driving a bone
mecha with flesh armor
Fri 28 Apr 2023
at 01:38
  • msg #921

Re: More good stuff.

Awesome!  And those who kicked you while you were down can go fruit themselves!
This message was last edited by the user at 01:38, Fri 28 Apr 2023.
V_V
member, 1051 posts
Event: Arrival
Horizon: May 5th
Fri 28 Apr 2023
at 01:54
  • msg #922

Re: More good stuff.

I am not a fan of the books, but I like the movies of Harry Potter. Largely from the fact it was the cast IRL that the Avengers would be if they were all actors. I vaguely remember a quote from a character, that was said of underestimating the unfailing kindness of others.

For decades, for, I guess just around twenty years, my modus operandi on RPoL has been, ad for a game and see who is interested in that. Just this past year, I find my philosophy to have changed, back to where it started. Long story short, my mother thought D&D was satanic (for context she's so superstitious she soon after joined a Mormon cult). I had no friends for a time, and one I had introduced me to D&D. When he moved out of State, he introduced me to his gaming group. When I first sat at the table with whom would be a 19 year face to face group, and contemplated the consequence of engaging in D&D, I did so because I sought fellowship. It didn't matter, I later realized in words, what I was doing, but who I was doing it with, and that we had something to do together, to cooperate in. I love games, but I LOVE games that are about cooperation.

All this, the above, has had me full circle seeing about trying new games, with people who I flourish in the company of. Unfailingly kind and considerate people. I still want to have games that are dedicated to the particular gamecraft, but I learned that I want to branch out, not for the gamesake, but for having the same shared activity.

Face to face friends were also shown for their true colors. There's a Tyler Perry Madea speech in a video I'll link, that I discovered about ten months ago. I wish I had clipped it, but thankfully I found the exact video, complete with the tone enhancing music and imagery. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnzhbI_Egek

The people who were ugly, the people who said "If you need anything, let me know"....this ordeal showed me where they are on the tree. In one profound sentence; these were strangers who gave their heart and time to aid me, and these were life long company that left when my fire consumed all light. That part is my own quote, but it could be said so many ways. The people who were ugly to me, did me a favor. If in bad times they act this way, they told me I never want to waste a moment of good with them. I really mean this. It helped me let go of leaves in the wind, and surrender my stubborn nature to go out of a limb, when I could instead form a chain of hand in hand contact with the forest the endures the seasons, years and lifetimes.

I have a friend I need to help. I won't put that all here, but they're on RPoL. They lost their home, they lost their income, they lost a family member, and in that moment they're losing their home again. They suffered through injury and surgery, and found the time for me. I want to find a way, my path, their way, to help them.



I am, however, going to return to rejoice for what I now have. My motivation, my driving force, my axiom of pursuit is having a home; one no one can take away. I want that, so that I can have company, and share time with people I love. I don't have permanent home yet, but one that will be stable and is showing remarkable aid, despite circumstances being far from ideal. Roses don't grow from gold, if you catch the scent. I'm just so very happy, so very, very happy! My closest friends stayed closer than ever. My closest face to face friend put me through an ordeal that frequently had me choose money, comfort...or company. I chose her. At times I wanted to walk away, at times she fled in fear. At times she wanted to leave this world. In times I told her I could not stop her, but I asked if she would stay, not for me, but for what I knew would come.




I'm also so much owing my survival to RPoL. An escape, pipeline, and lifeline.



:D *grins* makes me SOOOO giddy people are cheering with me! Makes me feel warm and fuzzy, and I laugh with joy and appreciation.

One thing, one tiny thing that grew and grew until it was a field, was dancing! I am on the ground floor in the apartment, so much so, I'm actually in a hill. My neighbors above have loud (sort of...) music or TV on weekends, but this isn't bad thing. It means that when I have my music loud enough to hear in the bedroom, they'll probably tolerate it, as I have their own sounds. So I danced. Put on music and just danced, danced like no one was watching. Then I danced with Anne, the face to face friend I went through all this with. The place is mostly empty, so we, without touching, stood in the same room and just danced to music we loved.
V_V
member, 1052 posts
Event: Arrival
Horizon: May 5th
Fri 28 Apr 2023
at 02:02
  • msg #923

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to phoenix9lives (msg # 921):

This is so true! They best fruit themselves, because no one else will. No one. No one else will give them a fruit. Poetic parallels of expression intended.



At the feast, whenever, wherever, they'll have the sour grapes; shriveled and misspent, at a table with those that sow the sour fruit. Not gonna lie, it crosses my mind and I find small humor at their expense, but then don't allow such negative thoughts of due justice linger.



Thank you for that. Sometimes I need to hear it (Er...see it), even though I know it. Thank you for the others here here. Thank you for every boost in my rejoice. I had my pity party quite awhile, and I'm glad you all and others attended to give a cheer to the happy party. :D

I best get back to my games. I have some games I want to work on that I couldn't attend to properly while homeless. Thankfully none started officially, and I had such enduring players.
facemaker329
member, 7451 posts
Gaming for over 40
years, and counting!
Thu 18 May 2023
at 06:35
  • msg #924

Re: More good stuff.

I think we set a new record for the speed of getting lights focused for the summer shows at work.  We were scheduled for a full eight hours...took about half that.  Part of it is just knowing well enough how lights will be used, so they can be rough-focused when they're hung...part of it is getting the lights hung in a better fashion, so there are fewer things to adjust when we're focusing...

But the biggest part of it is having a solid crew to get it done.  Having enough help is an improvement (we've tried to get through it in the past with the bare minimum of people, and it turns into a slog), but having enough help that is COMPETENT makes such a huge difference...
V_V
member, 1064 posts
Event: Arrival
Horizon: May 5th
Thu 18 May 2023
at 12:57
  • msg #925

Re: More good stuff.

I completed my auto battler for Exalted 2e. It took me the better part of a decade to slowly stitch the formulas and trim the fat on origin points. It's done though! It's actually in it's 1.0 functioning system. It makes choices based on IF then else, and seeds in random actions, rolls those actions, spends the motes and willpower and health, adds the limit. Pretty much runs a full combat or mass combat (no social combat, nor will there probably ever be one) from start to finish in just under 30 seconds. I'm sure if I knew Python, or someone looked at my spaghetti code they'd whip out a .02 second version with dynamic prompts and visuals. I'm happy with what I have though. It's basically worthless to anyone else, since it's made for my purpose by my method. I love it though.

It's hilarious though, I've been testing it and put in some old characters in past games and saw how combat went, and...it just...somehow...**kiss fingers* It just nailed the roles that are so nuanced, that played characters I've been at tables with for two decades, and made choices, over repeated battles as the players would have, and did.

I welcome the AI Overlords, but I appreciate my little spreadsheet abomination of code.

I haven't written in literally EVERY charm and spell, but the vast, vast majority are included. The output is excellent too. Well...very bloated if I'm honest, but I have OCD and so that's a feature not a bug. So it transcribes everything action by action and even preserves reflexive charm use in a way that doesn't make me want to cut my eyes with razor blade. That was huge hurdle that I overcame, but still couldn't reach the finish line for years with all the work that could have been done just aggregating that data to its own output. It was nightmarish to go through methods, and then when it was done, just groan and realize it really made no visual impact and was just as dreadful of hundreds of rows of text.

I'm so proud though. Just...I'm so proud of having completed this. 3e is old now, and I just finished by v1.0 for 2e Exalted. It does what I set out to do with it. I need to add more charms and spells, until every conceivable one is there. I need to better seed the random roles. I need to do things IF I want to improve it. It functions though. As is.

What this means is I can have PC's subordinates take independent actions (like manse defense, or infiltration) and not go through one of the two bad options; wasting GMing time rolling it out solo, or just waving my hand and making gut assessment. The latter is always an option I use when obviously appropriate. The former, and having players roll out their underlings actions, have been my MO. Now I can just set the database and save that version for a particular game.

I want to say so bad that that's what's "better" about having spreadsheet, versus a program; but I know that Python would be able to have protocols far more precise and still maintain permanent state based content. I wish I had the foresight to know it would take be eight years of work and one year of latency, I could have better used the time learn Arch Linux (for other reasons) or base functioning Python. I still can, but probably won't.

Anyway. This was such a cherry on top of a crap sundae that has been my day. It was such a minimal clearance to go from 99.99...% done to version 1.0. It could not have come at a better time. I ran a few dozen combats and just enjoyed seeing what came out.

I'll share one excerpt from the auto battler that particularly captured the spirit I always wanted the spreadsheet to have.

Kejak uses Without Assumption. He's set to the role of boss, has the attitude conservative, and the motive to kill. A Lunar has the role of defender, the attitude of at all costs, and motive of clearance. Lunar uses FRozen Ripple Lair with the enhancement that doubles time differential after an unknown assailant is harming his mate. Lawgiver mate casts Mists of Eventide and activates Metasorcerous Phylactery to release it when a "new foe appears". The Hidden state clicks on Kejak. The damage from Kejak on the Lawgiver is high, but mitigated down to 0. KEjak is 10 motes and 1 willpower down, after first attack but Lawgiver only down 8 motes. Kejak Water Spider Bites but chooses not to use sutra (master is only valid option, student is basically in the "N/A" or 0 priority, but Lawgiver is only down 21, 1 W to perfectly parry, while Kejak is down 30 motes and 1 willpower. Kejak finishes his action. The spread sheet processes this exactly as it should, in the right cells, at the right row, and with the correct values. Perfect! Lunar enters the High Alert attitude and opens the Frozen Ripple Lair. Lawgiver enters the conservative attitude and then in the same action changes again to the systematic attitude. Showing a best case outcome in a very high complexity combat. Being able to trip each level of checks flawlessly. Kejak enters the determined attitude and survivor role. Not sure why, the survivor attitude, but I'm guessing because his target has no appreciable impact shown, and Kejak's "player" registers this as a value less than acceptable, and must perceive he's outmatched. No idea. Didn't make the spreadsheet to ever open the black box. I just thought that was an interesting quirk. Kejak uses Master Sutra of PRismatic Arrangement of Creation AND Charcoal March of Spiders. Enters all but one Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Form, all but Games of Divinity Form (IIRC). Kejak next attacks the Lunar with WAter Spider bite with three attacks, costs another 38-ish motes. Hits with two attacks, but manages to roll zero successes on his 12 damage dice (between two attacks). Lunar and Lawgiver enter the Hidden state, as they enter the FRozen Ripple Lair. Kejak enters the ambush attitude, which just made me very gleeful. Kejak takes some actions I need to patch later, that by rights he should have been able to  use prior to the combat. I just didn't think about the fact I need preload for seemingly innocuous charms, that nonetheless cost KEjak 17ish motes he should have spent and respired. Kejak waits for ten actions, before entering the watchful attitude and having an amalgam summoned by Faithful Ally. Meanwhile Lunar and Lawgiver only have one action pass, during which they enter the ambush attitude and motive pause. They exit, and what follows is classic Kejak minimizing impact on himself while taking small but certain actions, instead of going for the Water Spider Bites, using his now incredible post soak damage and ability to tax any mote expenditure. Kejak, however, was caught by the contradiction note that actually showed he failed the Mists of Eventide. This was the final moment I cheered. Because the Phylactery and Without Assumption don't have special interraction, that is specifically for each other, but the Without Assumption noticed it was a reflexive action and an area effect. The Mists of Eventide recognized Kejak as not hidden. The program...I call it that because, to me, it is. This is just a spreadsheet though. I had planned for parallel instances to fracture rather than bottleneck. So it rolled out Kejak fighting but fleeing, but also long before that, Kejak being hit by the Mists of Eventide and losing his Hidden State. Ultimately I'd rule the Phylactery would issue the "attack" of the mists of eventide as a...I guess contingent action, or First Priority Reflexive. Not sure which term will be more universally applicable and thus which will be labeled. It was enjoyable to see the branching of the combat; I'm just glad it only branched once. I had not anticipated the halting problem coming up from that, but clearly I need to have some sort of count for how many times a given file can branch and failsafe aginst the spreadsheet crashing. Even four branches could be killer if I'm doing other loads of work and not thinking about it. The idea is to set it up and then just run it and go back to other tasks. Worse case scenario is the spreadsheet crashes and I look for nonexistant save that I "knew" I did, when in fact the program crashed before it could halt.

In conclusion. Kejak spent too many motes. That was the only patch I'd make. The fact is, I'd roll out Kejak myself or conclude the trial to be better hand waved. I wanted to test the limits and it...it actually was really rewarding. I don't have children, nor contact with my niece and nephew in many years; so it's a far cry, but I don't know how else to describe my pride in seeing the program I made do an excellent job. I created it, and rose to the task of fullfilling the purpose I created it for.

I had done so much debugging. I mean, seriously, that was my 2001 strategy showing of just bodging and debugging, but I think I can say without exaggeration that I was astounded that nothing seemed to be missed.

In the end, it's a file now. Like time is construct that in all its dimensions is static, and only seems to be linear to our human minds. The combat took more time in game, than in RL. By quite a bit. It's memory I'll have, but it's sort of sad too. I don't really know why. Maybe it's that such a grand battle, as I've seen it in games where PCs faced or sided with Kejak, should have had more than procedural dictation. Maybe it's that I coded the spreadsheet so thorughly it ran an unsurprising duplication of actual battle, with similar preferences and outcome. Or...maybe it';s that I've spent SOOOOO long waiting for this fireworks show, and just knew deep down, knew and accepted, and move on with how to go from acceptance to resolution...and it...it just worked. That while I built it to do a this job, that I've spent so many hours, countless weeks in fact, doing the work so it could do the rest...I no longer have a part that's necessary in this project. That it's finally done to a standard I may never have the need to update with any conviction. I think it's combination, but the fact that I have this spread sheet to...not roll out combat...it's...it's...it feel funny. Hollow almost. I'm glad I have it. It was fun to work through toward the end. It was a great boost to an awful day. I think the most likely and largest factor is...it's just a shortcut now. The wormhole is created, the hard part is over. It's supposed to be there for the little characters, not the Kejaks and PCs. I will probably never spend a tenth the time I have with it, even if I use it for every game I run, and I never stop running Exalted 2e. IT was worth the effort. There have been sessions that PCs spent time fortifying allies and defenses, and then sessions that felt bad when their characters weren't on screen, but I'd have to figure out "So how will this play out" without bias, but without missing the Forest for all the trees. This is a program that easily reduces  full month of posts, to a single hour of entry and then I hav the file saved to produce for player interraction. That will mean so much. IT will let me focus on the players, and also let the many, many hordemasters see fruition to having contingent defenses.

Today....well Today is no longer the day I thought it was. Well, by that I mean It went from Midnight to morning. Yesterday sucked. Today is good. I'm going to close down the web, and relax.
phoenix9lives
member, 1121 posts
A brain driving a bone
mecha with flesh armor
Tue 30 May 2023
at 01:41
  • msg #926

Re: More good stuff.

I spent my day in Washington DC for The National Memorial Day Parade.  I like to watch the spectators as we march by them.  As a Desert Storm vet, I march with other DS vets to bring attention to the National Desert Storm War Memorial we are trying to get built.  Ground was broken last July, and we are hoping for the dedication to happen by Veterans' Day 2024.
1492
member, 115 posts
I like monkeys
Tue 30 May 2023
at 01:46
  • msg #927

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to phoenix9lives (msg # 926):

That's awesome! Thank you for your service.
facemaker329
member, 7452 posts
Gaming for over 40
years, and counting!
Tue 30 May 2023
at 06:49
  • msg #928

Re: More good stuff.

Mixed blessings, I guess...but I'm trying to focus on the positive side of things...

We open a show in five days.  I had most of my projects for that show done by 5 pm yesterday, and spent yesterday evening and most of today helping someone else get caught up with their projects...

Tonight, at production meeting, I found out that the lighting that they had been talking about cutting from the works completely was now a go.  Not only that, but the plan is now to heavily modify something I've already done and try to make the new thing even more elaborate.  Plus, they want to add two fog machines in a location where it's almost impossible for me to get power to them...the most accessible circuits for them are already ridiculously loaded and within a few hundred watts of maximum capacity...these fog machines take more than that much power...

It sucks to have projects like this thrown into the mix this late in the process...but I also know the only reason they're talking about it is because they have confidence that I can actually make it happen.  The problem with developing a good reputation is you have to keep living up to it...but I feel like my reputation is really good right now.
Hunter
member, 1935 posts
Captain Oblivious!
Lurker
Tue 30 May 2023
at 08:27
  • msg #929

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to V_V (msg # 925):

I know how much work something like that is.

Congrats!
Hunter
member, 1947 posts
Captain Oblivious!
Lurker
Sun 25 Jun 2023
at 02:34
  • msg #930

Re: More good stuff.

I do believe that I've finally kicked the MMO habit.   I deleted all my characters and uninstalled about two weeks ago...no urge to go back!  ^_^
bigbadron
moderator, 16177 posts
He's big, he's bad,
but mostly he's Ron.
Sun 25 Jun 2023
at 02:58

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to Hunter (msg # 930):

In accordance with tradition... "Can I have your stuff?"  :)
Hunter
member, 1948 posts
Captain Oblivious!
Lurker
Sun 25 Jun 2023
at 06:10
  • msg #932

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to bigbadron (msg # 931):

Nya!

I already gave my stuff away meow.  It seemed the right thing to meow at the meow.   And in the end....meow.
V_V
member, 1070 posts
Event: Departure
Horizon: March 3rd, 2033
Thu 29 Jun 2023
at 23:37
  • msg #933

Re: More good stuff.

I had to order groceries. My roommate has not been a good friend to me recently. I paid for car for her to use, with the agreement (years ago) she would run errands. I don't have license (also directly due to her behavior) I didn't lose it, but essentially my social security card, and birth certificate were stolen by her parents. We were homeless too. So couldn't renew my license. Anyway, that's not good stuff, but I wanted to emphasize I had to order them for delivery.

So I'm writing a vent, about other things, and I am just about done, when there's knock at the door. I write about two or three more sentences, and answer the door.

I don't believe it love at first sight. I don't. This woman, however, was in an instant, beautiful, and as soon as she spoke calming. When I was shaking, from my parkisonism (basically an over arching diorder that includes parkison's. For those that dob't know, and don't want to look it up, the term technically includes parkinson's disease, but no one should or does say that, but clicnically speaking parkison's disease is under the parkisonism "umbrella" anyway the term parkisonism is used for other induced symptoms that follow parkison's but can be "Cured" by removal of the induction. In this case, I take Haloperidol, which in adults, can cause parkinsonism, and sometimes that can remain even when the medicine is discontinued. Anyway, I thought feel jittery. Even as I write this, and not just physically.

So I see this woman, and as first sight I am without breath. She offered to help me. I said no, but she insisted. I again declined, and she just smiled at me. This so very...I sort of want to cry...this angelic smile. I told her to have a good day, and and she gestured to help me carry the two bags. It made me shake more. I should have, and wished I had agreed. I don't know why I didn't. I do, but it isn't rational, it's learned behavior.

She was more athletic, taller and younger than I. I just didn't want her to feel threatened in my home. She offered, and I could have used the help. Every indication showed she was comfortable coming inside, but I trusted learned behavior, and that behavior is from over a decade ago.

I hope that if she delivers groceries again, she will offer again to help me. Her very presence, voice, and appearance helped me. She was very attractive, and not just visually. Her voice, accent, cadence, lilt, volume, confidence, cheer, care, and tone were all so calming. even if she's married, even if I dare not ask her for a more personal date to meet, when she's not working. Having her help me, becoming acquainated, knowing her name, and her knowing mine, when she bring me groceries. That would be so nice. Even if it stays professional, it could be a very pleasant and friendly dynamic.

This is hopeful, but not worth dwelling. I rarely have repeated deliveries. It's made me realize why I need to accept help, even from those that 18 years ago I I ight make uncomfortable. I need to accept someone's help, especially if they insist, and even upon further denial, go out their way, by body language to show they want to help.

I made my day, and believe it or not, my day just started less than two hours ago. I guess you can believe that, because likely you don't know I'm in US Central time zone. So it could be almost any time. I woke up at 5 PM.

As I stated above, at the opening, my roommate has not been kind to me. She used to be my best friend. My...only friend...locally that is. So this early, to have such a kind gesture make my day, that's a gift. It changed me. I will not forget her, nor obsess on her, but have her help remind me, to prompt me why accepting help is in my best interest if I want it, and they seem to want to to help me. Beautiful or not. Angelic or average. I need to stay strong, and if I think I can do something myself to wave off help but! If they insist, I should let them help me. I probably could use help and even if I don't need it.

I'm going to end on that both good and unfulfilled note.
WhiteComic
member, 454 posts
Fri 30 Jun 2023
at 01:25
  • [deleted]
  • msg #934

Re: More good stuff.

This message was deleted by the user at 02:25, Fri 30 June 2023.
V_V
member, 1072 posts
Fri 30 Jun 2023
at 02:08
  • [deleted]
  • msg #935

Re: More good stuff.

This message was deleted by the user at 02:45, Fri 30 June 2023.
WhiteComic
member, 455 posts
In omnia Paratus
Unus Annus
Fri 30 Jun 2023
at 02:25
  • msg #936

Re: More good stuff.

Forgive me for saying anything at all then. I shall now know for next time.
Hunter
member, 1950 posts
Captain Oblivious!
Lurker
Fri 30 Jun 2023
at 05:10
  • msg #937

Re: More good stuff.

My homebrewed Pathfinder campaign is finally at the point where it's "done".   *happy dance*
SunRuanEr
subscriber, 508 posts
Sat 8 Jul 2023
at 15:55
  • msg #938

More good stuff.

Finally managed to catch a TV series that I'd never been able to find anywhere (at least not affordably) midway through season 2 yesterday and got it set to record - AND for added bonus, found season 1 on demand on my streaming service!

Hooray!
Hunter
member, 1977 posts
Captain Oblivious!
Lurker
Mon 31 Jul 2023
at 21:53
  • msg #939

More good stuff.

I think that I've finally kicked the soda habit after thirtyish years.   Next challenge....sugar.
WhiteComic
member, 473 posts
In omnia Paratus
Unus Annus
Mon 31 Jul 2023
at 22:02
  • msg #940

More good stuff.

In reply to Hunter (msg # 939):

That's awesome! Good for you! You can do it! I cut soda and sugar out of my own diet many, many years ago and it has been wonderful on my health.
Smoot
member, 189 posts
Tue 1 Aug 2023
at 09:51
  • msg #941

More good stuff.

In reply to SunRuanEr (msg # 938):

What show?
SunRuanEr
subscriber, 515 posts
Tue 1 Aug 2023
at 16:43
  • msg #942

More good stuff.

Killjoys, Smoot. =)

I'd been looking for it (affordably) for quite some time, and just happened to stumble across it on SyFy one night that my spouse hadn't already commandeered the TV for their usual Friday night viewing.
GreenTongue
member, 1150 posts
Game Archaeologist
Tue 1 Aug 2023
at 18:07
  • msg #943

More good stuff.

I was so happy they let it run to a pause point and didn't just kill it mid-story like so many others.
Might even be worth paying a streaming service, if you haven't seen it.
V_V
member, 1102 posts
Event: Departure
Horizon: March 3rd, 2033
Wed 30 Aug 2023
at 15:05
  • msg #944

More good stuff.

I want to sincerely and directly, but openly--so as to reach all mods without demanding them read an Rmail as "needed" or "demanding"--express my deepest appreciation for tweaking my post. I understand it was within their power to delete it wholesale, and had I taken a few more minutes before hitting post from review I would not have needed to be moderated. I will do better, for the community, and especially in the letter of the rules quite literally. This is, however, a good thing. I have learned a line I crossed and recognize it with a nudge and compassionate but stern finger of disfavor. To be clear, a finger as it "1" or "one minute" not rude finger. As in a warning that very well could have--if not for the humanity of this moderation--been a shove back in line. Thank you! I should have been quicker with those words. I thank you, whomever made the kind and precise excision, and whomever stayed their hand, whomever would have paused to consider a vent worthy to preserve the heart and not the bile. I am very much humbled by your generosity and reminded to read what I write longer than I feel is best and instead also consider to I know what I post is best within a certain degree of certainty.

I also want to thank the patience of the nine slides that were given. I appreciate this empirical fairness. I appreciate everyone that donates to the costs of the server, and the mods and the code, and most of all, I am ashamed but deeply grateful to be given a seat in jase's gaming post store.

Today made me feel a mercy was given, where justice could have been dealt with impunity. I will endeavor to burn this line into my textual retina.

Thank you moderators for your part in my experience, as a gamer, as a user, as a problem, as a person. Thank you.

I hope this was not inappropriate. If it was...next time I will rmail it. I wanted this thank you to be waiting for you on your doorstep, not to ring the bell to distract you. I hope I made the right decision. If not, I will from now on know the right decision.
Hunter
member, 1996 posts
Captain Oblivious!
Lurker
Wed 30 Aug 2023
at 20:50
  • msg #945

More good stuff.

In reply to V_V (msg # 944):

That's because the mods here are AWESOME!
V_V
member, 1105 posts
Event: Departure
Horizon: March 3rd, 2033
Mon 4 Sep 2023
at 17:22
  • msg #946

More good stuff.

Got my Altar for Season 28. Haven't seen a Primal since then, but that's okay. It was a very fun penultimate to a game that made me choose my first gaming computer, and changed so much! I distinctly remember playing with all rares and magic items against those damned Mallet Lords, and I look fondly upon the Homunculus I found with my Witch Doctor. I really felt like I had community for times in the game's lifespan. I got to be somewhere between casual and serious. And that was fun! I'm looking forward to the Ethereals again some far flung day, as I really wanted to play a Crusader. LMAO. Season 29 though....wow! That's what I ended on with Season 28, for the Echoing Nightmares. Gonna be fun to pony up!

Glad the season is ending though! I have my games on RPoL set for then. Coincidence, but still nice.
SunRuanEr
subscriber, 528 posts
Thu 21 Sep 2023
at 13:25
  • msg #947

Re: More good stuff.

It's a silly thing, but every year when my spouse takes my car in for an inspection, the guys at the shop - even when it's not the same guys year-to-year - always gush over it. This year they were offering to buy it for cash on the spot. This makes me feel warm and fuzzy.

...and maybe a bit like an awesome parent, since it's going to go to the kid that's about to get their license.

(For context, my car is old enough to drink, so it's always nice to be reminded that it's still kinda cool!)
This message was last edited by the user at 13:32, Thu 21 Sept 2023.
bazhsw
member, 84 posts
Mon 16 Oct 2023
at 20:08
  • msg #948

Re: More good stuff.

This may not be the thread for it, but there are times when I read a game set up, and I don't have the headspace or time to join, but there is so much love, care and attention in the set up I just want to say to the GM, 'wow, I can't be in this game right now, but your work is brilliant'.  Now I recognise that maybe that sounds a bit weird, but it's easy to grumble about players and GM's but it's important to recognise our collective creativity and effort that makes our hobby so wonderfully rewarding.

Maybe I am just filled with a bit of positivity, but it really does amaze me how wonderfully creative some people are.
NowhereMan
member, 502 posts
Tue 17 Oct 2023
at 03:50
  • msg #949

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to bazhsw (msg # 948):

I very occasionally receive a similar message, and it's always a delight. Please continue, and I hope your post encourages others to do the same.
shinanai
member, 198 posts
Tue 17 Oct 2023
at 06:52
  • msg #950

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to bazhsw (msg # 948):

Yes, please! :)
Smoot
member, 196 posts
Tue 17 Oct 2023
at 21:00
  • msg #951

Re: More good stuff.

In reply to bazhsw (msg # 948): Very thoughtful!
OBorg
member, 27 posts
Mon 23 Oct 2023
at 12:52
  • msg #952

Re: More good stuff.

Got a double hit :)

After a looooooooong time in IT I took a career diversion into a slightly different job which still involves me using a computer most of the time, and given my background I immediately became the office IT guy.
Couple of months ago the owner brings in his home PC for me to have a look at "Worked okay, turned it on one day and everything was powered up but the screen was black."
Easy job I thought...until it wasnt. Long story short it wasnt the graphics card and I diagnosed it down to being either the motherboard (not a consumer model) or the CPU (Intel 10700k), and nothing else in the office was compatible to swap bits to test. Pretty sure it was the mobo which I found a genuine part from a reseller for £150. If it wasnt that it was probably the CPU at £300 second hand off ebay.
He bought the mobo, and it didnt work.

Face meet egg, reputation meet toilet...

I'm somewhat vindicated when a week later he gives it to a local PC repair place who after two weeks come back with the same conclusion as me, and they dont want to spend £300 for a second hand CPU that they cant be sure will fix it either. Machine is discreetly pushed into the corner.
Last week I'm looking at an upgrade for my home PC and found a couple of places selling brand new Intel 10400 CPUs for £95 and suggest to the boss we could try it, and if it doesnt work we can get hold of a generic mobo and upgrade one of the older office PCs.
CPU arrives next day, I plug it in and after several spchinter clenching reboots the boss's machine is now working, albeit slightly slower but he doesnt need a 10700k for email and visio diagrams.

Which segues me neatly into my second success. My new job involves a huge amount of time creating office and building plans in Visio, and I finally managed to get the Arc tool in Visio to draw a decent semicircle! Sounds stupidly simple, but every time I use it the centre point of the arc biases itself to one side and makes an uneven curve. I'm not sure if the method I use is the best or offical one but it works.
Hunter
member, 2004 posts
Captain Oblivious!
Lurker
Sat 28 Oct 2023
at 03:13
  • msg #953

Re: More good stuff.

I'm doing....better.   Not up to GMing....but better.
OBorg
member, 28 posts
Sat 28 Oct 2023
at 12:46
  • msg #954

Re: More good stuff.

Hunter:
I'm doing....better.   Not up to GMing....but better.

Welcome back!
V_V
member, 1121 posts
Condition: CovID
Prognosis: TBD
Sun 12 Nov 2023
at 04:45
  • msg #955

Re: More good stuff.

I said it privately, but I want to say it here too. Good to see you back in the pool of players at least. I...I hope this alright to say :s...I came to understand you might be playing Shadowrun. I'm glad you have a goal that will help you refresh and get through that/this streak of GM hiatus, and hopefully play some. :)



I have other good news. Well...not news, but something to actually be...eh...I'll just say it's another topic.

I have lived in Johnson County Kansas most of my life. I've always had residence here. So I can only compare my fanship for a movie series to the (Missouri) Royals and Chiefs; through the 90's and such. My topic is, however, one I am not allowed to discuss the whole, due to site rules, but I think it safe to generalize it as mostly garbage. The Saw series, with Tobin Bell.

So...I have watched EVERY Saw movie, every time it was out to rent. I was SOOOOOOOOOOO upset by Spiral, just livid. That was the straw that broke the camels back, but in Jigsaw fashion that was such a good let down to see Saw X. I loved Saw X so much. I had to really go into it knowing it wouldn't beat the original...but....it kinda did...for me! Not objectively. Just in my kind of taste. I know Alien, Aliens...should of stopped there, but both have their own genre. I feel like Saw, Saw X and Saw II complete what really is in my own little canon, the trilogy.

No spoilers, but I love the three of them. Saw X though...gotta say it's my favorite. I only disliked two of them. Again, even though it's garbage, even in a genre of mess,  I won't give spoilers, but two really had me hitting the bed (where I would sit for all but the last three--Jigsaw, Spiral and Saw X) in frustration. It was an ordeal to go to (then) red box, or get it from Netflix (for the two) and I was just like, wtf, that wasn't a twist that was a waste. Spiral, however, I don't count. I forget the count, but...simply put two really were almost as bad as spiral.

That's it though. I know it's not "good" stuff if it were real, but it gave me a good entertainment. This was my 2022 and 2023 Birthdays and last year's Christmas gift. On a lark, and because it was so recommended, and WAY too much to rent, I splurged and just bought it. I'm glad I did. I really am.

I'll always love Harry Potter's movies despite anything else, because it came when I was destitute but had my first home as an adult. I love LotR, because it was when I was first in my gaming hayday. I will, now, always love Saw, Saw X, and Saw II for the period that is marked. From zero to sixty to broke down and back on the road finally.

Anyway, I just wanted to say, it's dramatic. I recommend Chris Stuckman's review if Saw is a "maybe" for you. It is, however, faithful to the atrocity of the series without undoing it, or rehashing it. So if you haven't seen (≈70%) of them, you may not understand some context, but you don't need to. If you've been burnt out, but sat through the whole spill, and want to give Saw X a try, I recommend it; when the time is right for you.

That said, I know this is kinda of counter to the thread spirit, and bit macbre, but for me, for some, it's a kind of win.

If Saw is absolutely not your thing. I understand. I truly do. There are movies, movies people like, a lot of people like, that just...bug me...or bore me. For me, just from my point, it was a good break up with an old life into a new one.

</steam>
GreenTongue
member, 1159 posts
Game Archaeologist
Mon 13 Nov 2023
at 20:44
  • msg #956

Re: More good stuff.

Reading that felt like watching a bond fire. Yes, there was light and heat but also destruction. Burning books, artworks and antiques can give the pleasure of not freezing to some but sadness to others. How is this related? SAW.

I do like a good bonfire and the weather is starting to be perfect for one.
V_V
member, 1130 posts
Sat 2 Dec 2023
at 21:54
  • [deleted]
  • msg #957

Re: More good stuff.

This message was deleted by the user at 22:13, Sat 02 Dec 2023.
V_V
member, 1131 posts
Destination Critical
Inescaple Velocity
Sat 2 Dec 2023
at 22:16
  • msg #958

Re: More good stuff.

I just, minutes ago, realized the fact I can still, and only I (and the mods) can read my posts years after they're made, I think it's important feature that shows just how innovative jase was in designing failsafes.

I am getting closure on a chapter of my life, and helping my on again off again friend get closure, while she can, in the last year of her mother's life. I feel best when I am loved but loving, as a verb, loving someone.
Hunter
member, 2031 posts
Captain Oblivious!
Lurker
Wed 6 Dec 2023
at 14:04
  • msg #959

Re: More good stuff.

I think that I've finally switched from Windows 11 to Kubuntu, though it's only been a few days.   The oddest part is going to log into the online games I used to play...and they're not installed.    Change for the better, so far.
facemaker329
member, 7484 posts
Gaming for over 40
years, and counting!
Wed 6 Dec 2023
at 23:56
  • msg #960

Re: More good stuff.

End-of-season bonus checks can be a wonderful thing...I'm often in a situation where I can't afford to be without my car for a few days, and as a result, I have a tendency to just live with some automotive problems until I have both the funds to afford to fix them and enough time at my discretion that I can leave the car in the shop for a few days...

I will be very happy to be rid of that oil leak (that never showed up until the previous shop I was taking my car to replaced my timing belt and water pump...and then said they couldn't figure out why it was leaking, when I took it back to them...big shocker, they're out of business...), and I can still afford to do my Christmas shopping!
V_V
member, 1140 posts
For 2024 is the year
of Health and Career
Fri 29 Dec 2023
at 05:33
  • msg #961

Re: More good stuff.

Foreword: This is about Diablo 3 Set Dungeons

I have been a growing fan of Diablo 3, but played since it came out....well three days after IIRC. I have only done six seasons, but now that the game seasons are getting finalized, I took it more diligently and I also wanted to get my Set Dungeons done. So I did crusader, my favorite class. That's also what I did for my Season 28 Main and Season 29 only class, because it was just so much fun ponying around. So anyway...

I got Necromancer in two hours. I did Wizard in less than an hour, because I played wizard for the Ethereal season and was so set upon playing every class, I played with people who did the same, so I played so very under powered builds, like an electrocute wizard, or an arcane orb wizard. Silly stuff like that.

So then I thought, I'm just going to go alphabetically. That was not a mistake, but I knew my biggest challenge was Wrath of the Wastes. I JUST completed it less than ten minutes ago. I literally put me in a panic with my anxiety because of how high strung I was. So I'm on here to cool down. I did all the other barbarian sets first. The ones that have set dungeons I mean, if you don't play enough to know there's a newer set that doesn't have dungeon for each class.

So I took literally 20 hours farming for Nat's for demon hunter, in between my last failure of Wastes, and that was super frustrating. I was told that nats would be the easiest to get. Maybe that was Haedrig's (sp?) Gift IDK, but it took me 20 hours, and I had my friend run me on T16 with my Gem of Eased Maurader's set, just capitalizing on the portals and GR91's, where my friend has her Apex time to carry me, but can still get Primals. I ended up getting every other set some twice over, but not Nat's. So I went in, last night, and just did GR...IIRC 60? T9 equivalent. That was the right speed and I got my fifth Nat's and then rolled it until I got the piece I needed.

So it's Demonhunter next. Which I know has a sucky dungeon too...AND I suck with DH. I like Marauders set though!

Then it's Monk, IIRC. So I'm going to get back to my games, but I'm just SO happy I got through Wrath of the Wastes!!!!
V_V
member, 1141 posts
For 2024 is the year
of Health and Career
Fri 5 Jan 2024
at 09:27
  • msg #962

Re: More good stuff.

jase:
Fixed audio alert in the sticky list, on the off-chance anyone still uses it.


THANK YOU!!! I am one that actually has address "under a rock" and "offchance any-one" :DD

Mega thanks for being so attentive, jase! That...this is good stuff!!! I'm so HAPPY the audio will help me. OCD plus the common "update" smashing until it turns red. *shakes head* lol. So THANK YOU!!!

These micro considerations are why I lose interest in every other, literally every other online forum, because nothing compares to RPoL. It used to be my homepage, but now it's for my work. Anyway, thank you. I want to say just how much that affects my ability to engage and not waste time waiting, and at the expense of wasting other people's time while I rest from waiting too long. It's not often I see a change that so marginally affects people, that affects me so positively. Christmas colors....I don't know if that's an option anymore...but that's the other love. The care. It means so much. I may just be anyone...but I'm in good case. *beam*
Sign In