I CAN HAZ JOB NAO?

Those of you who follow me on twitter have probably noticed that I've been playing catch-up a lot (as I do), and deduced that I've been busy lately. Well, there's quite a good reason for that: I have a job now. I'm actually employed full-time and working in my field. So, hooray and all that.
I'm still getting adjusted to the new schedule and figuring out how to juggle everything. Once I get used to it, everything should go smoothly. Until then, it's going to be pretty crazy.

So, in conclusion: JOB GET!

I Should Keep Sudden Short Stories Sudden

It occurs to me that part of the reason that I don't get my sudden short stories written is that I end up just taking notes, and then fleshing them out later. The fleshing them out part takes time and effort, and also remembering that I have unwritten stories.
Originally, I wrote the sudden short stories, well, suddenly! But, so often, I get an idea right after I turn my computer off to go to bed, or right as I'm leaving for someplace else, so I need to make sure to write down enough info that I'll remember what I was thinking. Otherwise, I'd end up with no stories at all! D:
I'll try to keep them sudden, and we'll see how it goes.

In Which February is Annoying

February probably annoys most folks for the same reason that January does: It provides terrible driving conditions.
But, for me, February is annoying because it's so short. Specifically, I'm about to run out of February, and this will be my 3rd blog post for it. :P I just spent some time working on another post, only to determine that it makes no sense.
January slammed past me because I'd done a bunch of blog posts in December. February flew past by being so short. However! I expect to make about 10 blog posts in March. I've got about 8 in the works at the moment, and, if I keep getting ideas at the rate that I do, then I'll have even a few more.

On the "Sudden Short Story" Series

So, I now have what I suppose is a series on my blog. The "Sudden Short Story" series started out when I suddenly had an idea for a (very) short story back in ... October of 2009, apparently. I wrote it out and posted it. That has since turned into something of a theme for me. I'll have an idea for just a very short story, and I'll write it out.
Occasionally, I'll get interrupted or be otherwise unable to finish it in one sitting right away. Once, this caused me to go months between beginning and ending the story, but usually, that gap is filled with a combination of being busy and forgetting to finish it. These stories don't actually have months of work put into them: It's a few man-hours at the most. They're basically creative endeavors for me, but I share them with the world here on this blog that maybe 3 people read. Well, still, at least one person enjoyed at least one of my stories, so some good has come of it, anyway.
By the way, I've got 2 stories for which I've jotted down notes, and new ones can pop into my head at any time, so stay tuned. ;)

New Year's Resolution 2011

So, I'm probably not going to be able to make enough blog posts in the ... just over an hour before the end of the year to meet my 2010 resolution.
I'm going to make my 2011 resolution be similar to my 2010 resolution, but this time, I'll write at least 3 blog posts per month. Yes, this means fewer posts per year, but rather than trying to average 1 post per week (about 4 per month), I'm going to hold myself to 3 per month. That way, I won't be able to make a huge back log. The worst would be having to write 3 posts on the last day of a given month.
So, look forward to 3 blog posts from me in January, I guess.

Post Surge December 2010

Today & tomorrow, I'm going to be posting about 20 posts to this blog. There are a few reasons for this:
1. I have a handful of unfinished posts that I need to wrap up & publish.
2. I have several post ideas that I haven't gotten around to writing.
3. I resolved to do about 52 posts this year.
That last one is the biggest contributor to why they're all bunched up like this. There was a convention back in October, which kept me busy, and then I got sick afterwards, and then November was a bit weird, plus Thanksgiving was there at the end, and then pretty much the entire period between Thanksgiving and Xmas was used preparing for it (both w/ gift-getting and w/ trying to fix the lights on the tree (they still don't work, by the way)), and now it's just after Xmas and the year's nearly over.
So, yeah, expect lots of posts here today and tomorrow.

Resolutions for 2010

So, since New Year's is an occasion on which people customarily resolve to accomplish within the next 12 months, I figured that I might as well make some resolutions.
My first resolution is to blog weekly. So, I'm already losing at that one. I could limit myself to full weeks, so that the week of the 1st & 2nd doesn't count, or I could blog twice today, but frankly, if I have at least 52 blog posts this year, I'll be pretty happy, considering how little I usually blog.
Secondly, I'm working on a resolution on some web stuff of mine. I'm not being specific on it because I'm still not sure on the details of what I'll do with it. I'm planning to schedule various things over the course of the year. Also, there's a piece of hardware for me to get before I do anything with it yet.
Thirdly, I'm resolving to read several books this year. The list hasn't been finalized yet, but among other things, I expect to get around to finishing The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
I thought that there was something more, but I don't seem to remember it, so I'll just leave that there.

Announcement: Story Stuff

Alright, I'm hoping to post a bit of that story that I was writing. You remember that, right? Look for posts under the "story" heading to get caught up.

Here's the short version of good stuff to know if you care:
1. I first came up with the idea around 1999-2000 CE.
2. It originally took place in 2010 CE. Combining this with the 1st point, know that it was at least 10 times as far in the future then as it is now.
3. I'm using a numbering system for the segments that I post. That system is described here.
4. I may suck at writing, but you get that for which you pay. That said, constructive criticism is OK. However, that said, in the end, my purpose in writing this story out is my own. So, even if what I produce amounts to an affront to literature itself, well, so be it.
5. My writing is only done in my spare time. By no means do I consider myself a professional writer at this time. In fact, these are tied together - I do not dedicate working time to writing because I have no reason to believe that it will lead to gainful employment. At the moment, this is just a hobby.

Expect a story segment tonight.

Update: I'm Busy

OK, basically, I'm really busy right now. I'm trying to find a job. If I don't find a real job soon, then I'll have to go get a grunt job somewhere. That, of course, will take up even more time, since I'll still be looking for a real job.
Regarding my play by e-mail RPG, D. hasn't responded to my latest e-mail yet, so that's stuck. I have found a group with which to hang out once per week. Once I squeeze that in, though, there's not much time left for blogging.
Expect real blog posts about subjects that I actually want to discuss to appear after I get a real job.

Posts to Come: All-in-one List as of Xmas 2008

It's harder to track my list of posts to make when they're all spread about, so here's a consolidated list of what I still need to do, as of now:

Posts:
Was Serenity a Nail in Firefly's Coffin?
Things of a Literary Nature: Innate Timeline Branching in Fiction
Crisps, Chips, or Fries?
Centaur or Thri-Kreen?
something about Arkham Horror (mechanics, summer league, etc.)
some kind of game review

Edits:
Add to and update "RPGs for Me to Play".
http://games.yahoo.com/daily-games/sudokudaily for having found sudoku w/ green dots

I also intend to post a section of that story that I'm trying to write. I'm not doing it by chapter at this point. I am still trying to write, but I seem to have trouble getting the words to flow. Here's what else is going on in my life:
Basically, since commencement (Did I mention that I'm graduating? The bureaucracy still needs to do some stuff, but, as far as I know, I've got a diploma coming my way.), I've been taking a break. That won't last long, since I need to find a job.
I also want to get through the Arkham Horror Summer League (new URL: http://new.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite_sec.asp?eidm=6&esem=4 - and you have to log in for the text to turn into links). At this point, I'm doing it by myself, and I'm halfway through. The last scenario got released last week. I hope to get through the last of the scenarios that don't require Curse of the Dark Pharaoh by ... soon. Then, I need to get Curse of the Dark Pharaoh so that I can do the rest. I also got 4 books for Xmas, 3 of which I intend to read when I get the chance (the 4th is for either of two RPG systems that I don't use yet, so that will wait).
Of course, this is all aside from the stuff that I need to do, like looking for a job and working on getting some certifications. And losing weight. And practicing my martial arts. And cleaning my room.
That's all for now.

Miscellaneous Updates

Well, life's been pretty hectic this term. I've got finals this week, but after that I should be able to post more.
Quick notes:
-My play-by-e-mail game now has a genre, and will probably get a system soon. Once I'm out of school, I should be able to get a regular schedule, so that I can update regularly.
-I would like to update this blog at least weekly.
-I would like to do that story thing that I was trying to do.
-"War is other people." -me; this results from that war is hell and that hell is other people
-I want to do some stuff on games, including some reviews and some mechanics analyses.
-There should be a site like boardgamegeek for RPGs.
-Reminder to self: There are several posts that I wanted to go back and edit, as mentioned in the posts themselves.
I'll try to post something more complete later on. If I don't do it before Friday, then I probably won't do it on Friday, either. Saturday or Sunday would be the likely times then, assuming that I remember. :P
That's all for now.

Announcement: August and Arkham Horror

Alright, so, that stuff that I said that I would do doesn't look like it will happen soon. My previous summer classes really wore me out, and I need to use my current, lighter schedule to rest and recuperate. I just really don't feel like doing much of anything right now.
The RPG that I'm trying to run is currently completely stagnated, since C says that he's too busy to give me some genre decisions, and M ... I need to yell at him some more. Actually, if I get M's full input, I may have to use my power of ... being the GM ... to move on.
The main thing that I actually *do* for fun lately is Arkham Horror. I like it. Of course, it's not necessarily clear why. It's a cooperative game, a hard game to win, a complex game, and of course it has a Cthulhu Mythos theme. I've also seen it described as something like a light RPG, and I can see why. It has characters - though it takes away about a third of the rules compared to an RPG, since there are no character creation rules, since the characters are pre-generated. The characters even have back stories on the backs of their sheets, if you bother to read them. Random events also tend to come with descriptions around them, like when you get the chance to get Ruby Standish (an Ally). It involves bumping into her while she's sneaking around the Silver Twilight Lodge and ... I think that it's a Fight check to stop her. If you succeed but her Ally card isn't available, then you get an item - I think that the theme there is that she gives you something that she totally ganked from the lodge. This game has a good dose of atmosphere, all things considered.

Another fun aspect about these sorts of games (standalone tabletop fun times) is that they can be played with whomever, especially once they know the rules. For RPGs, assuming that we can somehow make character creation fast, the closest equivalent would be running all one-shots. An exception to this may be Spirit of the Century, due to its pulpy nature and the fact that character presence in adventures is pretty interchangeable. I've heard stuff to this effect around the internet, but right now, I don't know where to point anyone regarding that.

Actually, I'm looking to participate in the Summer League that Fantasy Flight Games is running. Ironically, I do have a couple of friends who should be regularly available (currently every Sunday), and we're not doing an RPG.
Here's the URL for the league: http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/ah_league.html
Normally, Arkham Horror is for 1-8 investigators, but for some reason, the league is for 2-8. It doesn't really matter, since one player could play two (or more) investigators. The league releases a scenario (on a fortnightly basis), which specifies the Ancient One to fight and adds special rules, including a list of cards to remove from the investigator decks (the items and such that investigators use). A common theme that I noticed in the first scenario is that they yanked everyting except Allies that help with evading monsters, including:
1. both Dark Cloaks (the only common items that boost Evade (none boost Sneak))
2. both copies of Sneak and both copies of Stealth (the two sneaky skills)
3. all copies of Mists of Releh (the only spell for Evading monsters)
So, the theme seems to be not sneaking past monsters. I think that I know why, but that's for more detail, perhaps in a coming post.

Well, I'm just rambling now. I'll try to get some more coherent AH thoughts (ironic, ain't it?) into a later post.

A Warning of Things to Come

I've decided to start a blog. For now, I'm just putting up this post to give this blog a post and to remind myself of posts to make.

Posts to come:
Was Serenity a Nail in Firefly's Coffin?
Dead Podcasts Society: Car Wars
Things of a Literary Nature: Innate Timeline Branching in Fiction

As I think of blog posts to make, but lack the immediate time to make them, I shall post them as a list, to let others know and, moreover, to remind myself.