Tattoos

So I have a tattoo and I have some ideas for some new tattoos in the future but I have a deal worked out with myself regarding where I will have to be financially before I can justify getting any more ink done. This has a dual purpose of making me feel more financially responsible while preventing me from having to decide on any actual designs.

But I think about it a lot and follow a blog called Fuck Yeah, Tattoos! that is a tumblr page where people upload images of their ink. Most of it is freshly done and a lot of them are geek related which is inspirational to me.

I thought for a while of getting something in Latin that is a profound saying.

This one really popped out at me.





















Here is the link to the original post where I saw it. The text "Mundus Vult Decipi, Ergo Decipiatur" translates to, the World wants to be deceived, so let it be deceived. The quote is credited to Petronius according to Wikipedia, A Roman satirist from the first Century.

I like the idea behind it because I feel so many people spend their life as the happy little cattle, just grazing through life on the path set before them. And for some of us that is not the life we would choose but we as disturbers of the status quo, who stand apart and point out the flaws in societies logic, can get much further if we let the cattle remain cattle. The person who wears the ink actually pictured, mentions that he does magic tricks and that is what it means to him. I find that awesome.


Then there was this one.






































I have been a huge fan of the Stephen King Dark Tower Series for many years

This Link to the original post does a great job of explaining much of the meaning being the symbol from the books

Dude!

Haven't posted anything in a while and I want to get back into it. Thought this image was too awesome not to share.

I got it from the /Film Blog www.Slashfilm.com were they said:

Dave MacDowell‘s Jaws/Big Lewbowski mash-up painting “Abide”, is part of his solo show at Thinkspace Art Gallery in Culver City which opens on April 30th.


I totally love it. It reminds me that I want to do a Cos play mash up of the Dude and Doctor Victor Von Doom from Marvel Comics. I just think it would be great to walk around a con all day in the green tunic and armor on my legs and arms, but then be long haired and bearded from the neck up sporting Sun glasses. I could be all chill and layed back and say, "the DOOM abides"

I think it's brilliant at least.

A foray into Facebook gaming

Facebook is the King of all time sinks for a lot of people, but I've found that I don't spend nearly as much time at it as many people seem to. and I figured the reason for this is that i have never been sucked into any of the terrible games offered on facebook. we are talking about things like Mafia wars, pirates vs ninjas, and seemingly countless other pyramid schemes involving turning your friends into vampires or farm hands or drug runners.
But in an effort to see if Facebook type casual gaming is the future of all gaming, and to see what is so damn addicting, I have decided to dive in, and blog about what I find.

Day 1: A little research goes along way

That is to say I jumped onto my Facebook page fully intending to look up Farmville and cut my self out a plot of virtual land, when i noticed an updated from a wow guildy/friend was playing something called D&D Tiny Adventures! Eureka! Now that is something nerdy enough for me to stand behind. I clicked a link though his update to find that several of my friends are playing this game but only one seems to be regressing really far. And he is of course an IT nerd, meaning he gets paid to sit in front of his computer all day, no doubt on facebook most of the time :)

The Adventure Begins...Dun Dun Duuuuuuun
My dreams of growing my own food completely abandoned I dove right into the familiar arms of swords and sorcery. Not being one to deviate from a well trod road, after scanning the 16 or so premade character class combos I choice a male spell caster (natch!) and started exploring the game.
The first thing I did was look at what sorts of characters my other facebook friends had created, and the progress they had made. I was given the option to buff three of them, and being the giving guy that I am I choose to do so (I've found a little good karma goes a long way when RPing).
Next I thought it was time to jump into my first adventure so i could start collecting some Xp and some wealth and save the kingdom I one day plan to rule over with an Iron fist. I was presented with several options for adventures to jump into, and I choose to explore a local forest/marsh that has the locals all in a tizzy due to monsters lurking there abouts.
The game isnt so much turn based as it is, something happens to you, then you have to wait 10-15 minutes to click next, progress the story and see what else happens to you, with a total of seven encouters making up this first little adventure. I was presented with two health potions at the beginings of my journey that have the power to heal 20 of my 22 total health.
Here what happened on my adventure.

The adventure begins . . .
Barryva sets off into Hornfang Forest to investigate the sinister secret of the mutant monsters.

Encounter 1: Forest
Barryva was getting tired of walking along the seemingly endless road through the forest when he heard a horse approaching. Hoping to hitch a ride, he struck up a conversation as the man approached. Barryva made a Charisma check with a difficulty of 12 . . . and rolled 4 They engaged briefly in the usual small talk, which quickly ended when Barryva offended the rider. The rider kicked Barryva to the ground and trampled his leg as he rode off down the long road. Barryva took 8 damage. Barryva gets -3 Strength for 2 encounters. Barryva received 18 XP.	Charisma check: d20: 2 CHA Bonus: +2 Total: 4 Difficulty: 12 8 Damage 18 XP

Lovely. :{ Its nice to see my natural skill at charming people seems to have leaked directly into the game. not the most fortuitous of starts.

Encounter 2: Forest
Barryva was ambushed by a goblin blackblade! The blackblade lunged at him with a glinting dagger. Barryva made an Armor Class check with a difficulty of 24 . . . and rolled 20 Barryva couldn't move aside fast enough and took a light stab to the arm. He finished the fight a moment later but, unfortunately, blood was now streaming down his arm. Barryva took 5 damage. Barryva received 20 XP. Barryva received a Holy Symbol.	Armor Class check: d20: 5 AC Bonus: +15 Total: 20 Difficulty: 24 5 Damage 20 XP Holy Symbol +1 ATT
Barryva used a Potion of Healing. (Heal 20 damage)

Damn goblin! and then stupid me! I was down to 9/22 health so I took one of my 2 potions. This didn't seem to be going well. My outlook was that my Facebook GM was just going to slowly kill me in this stupid Forest.

Encounter 3: Forest

Barryva was growing quite hungry and decided to throw a balanced stick at a rabbit as he had been taught to do by his uncle. Barryva made a Dexterity check with a difficulty of 12 . . . and rolled 18 It was almost easier than Barryva had remembered. He beaned the first rabbit on the head in one shot. It was a most delicious rabbit, and he felt much better with some meat in his stomach. Barryva gets +5 Constitution for 3 encounters. Barryva received 69 XP.

Dexterity check: d20: 16 DEX Bonus: +2 Total: 18 Difficulty: 12 69 XP

Finally a turn of good fortune! take that stupid rabbit!

The adventure continues . . .
Barryva has reached the end of the forest and slipped into the salty muck of the marsh.
Encounter 4: Swamp
While slogging along in the swamp, Barryva came upon a strange looking patch of wet sand. Barryva made a Wisdom check with a difficulty of 9 . . . and rolled 4 Thinking nothing of it, Barryva stomped right on through -- only to find himself waist deep in quicksand! Barryva knew better than to panic and get himself further mired. He relaxed and tried to float. Luckily another adventurer happened along, threw Barryva a rope, and pulled him to safety. Barryva received 16 XP.	Wisdom check: d20: 4 WIS Bonus: +0 Total: 4 Difficulty: 9 16 XP

Much like Blanche DuBois, I am now depending on the kindness of strangers. I like that the Dice rolls have an effect on what happens to you in let the RNG choose your own adventure sort of way. Though I am disamyed that i seem to be stupid and tackless with these virtual dice. ANd just how many hapless adventurers did those crafty, and suddenly much more scheming town folk trick into this forest? Clearly its all some arangment they have to feed us to waht ever awaits me further on...

Encounter 5: Swamp

Barryva came to a broad stretch of water with some rough stones just breaking the surface. He noticed something glittering on the far shore and thought it would be wise to investigate. Barryva made a Dexterity check with a difficulty of 13 . . . and rolled 11 The crossing was slow, mainly due to Barryva's lack of balance. He tumbled into the deep pool, hitting his head on one of the rocks on the way in. Barryva pulled himself together and swam the rest of the way. On the far shore, he discovered the corpse of an orc raider decaying among the brambles. He buried the poor brute, but not before removing everything he thought its family might want . . . you know, on the very slim chance he would later meet them -- and they wouldn't be trying to kill him. Barryva took 7 damage. Barryva received 33 XP. Barryva received a Potion of Glibness.

Dexterity check: d20: 9 DEX Bonus: +2 Total: 11 Difficulty: 13 7 Damage 33 XP Potion of Glibness +5 CHA for 4 encounters

Great more self inflicted damage, and now I'm looting courpses I didn't even kill. I like that the game adds some humor to reason why I am doing this, and it seems to want to add some balance to my appearent lack of charm. The potions must work, I am already liking this dead orc more.

Encounter 6: Swamp

Hearing the sounds of battle, Barryva hurried toward them, remaining careful not to be seen. A group of orcs had surrounded a small party of adventurers and was closing in for the kill. Barryva made an Attack Bonus check with a difficulty of 16 . . . and rolled 17 Approaching the nearest orc from behind, Barryva shouted a battle cry as he fircely blasted the brute. This surprise attack turned the battle against the orcs, rallying the frightened adventurers to victory. The orcs had been out raiding all day, and they were carrying plenty of gold. Barryva and the adventurers divided the treasure and parted company. Barryva took 4 damage. Barryva received 72 XP and 22 gold.

Attack Bonus check: d20: 13 ATT Bonus: +4 Total: 17 Difficulty: 16 4 Damage 72 XP 22 Gold

Nothing cowardly about hiding in the bushes til you can turn the battle to you advantage...nope nothing at all. lol. Nice to see that I am paying it back and helping out out fellow adventurers much like I was with that quicksand business. See, what I said about Karma is true.

Seeing that this adventure was at 6/7 encounters I decided to burn my last health potion, not know what I may encounter

Barryva used a Potion of Healing. (Heal 20 damage)
Encounter 7: Final Encounter	(Magic)
In the dark heart of the salt marsh, Barryva came upon its sinister secret. As he peeked through the reeds, he saw green steam rising from a large black cauldron. Three witches dressed in wispy black rags took turns stirring the concoction heating over glowing red coals. Occasionally one of the witches would ladle some of the green broth into a bowl and place it in a cage with a wild animal. Moments after the animal drank the brew, it cried out as its body twisted into that of a horrible monster. After the first monster burst from its cage and ran off, Barryva knew he had to put an end to this -- now! Barryva made an Intelligence check with a difficulty of 14 . . . and rolled 23 Barryva had a cunning plan. He soaked his cloak in the mud, climbed a tree, and slid out onto a branch over the witches. He dropped the cloak over one of them, dropped down onto the second, and blasted the third one with his Decrepit Wand. Back in town, the inn was abuzz with tales of Barryva's "triple kill." He didn't spread around the story of how he had found some saucy loot in the witches' hut. Barryva received 115 XP and 29 gold. Barryva received a Birchwood Wand.	Intelligence check: d20: 19 INT Bonus: +4 Total: 23 Difficulty: 14 115 XP 29 Gold Birchwood Wand +1 ATT

Success! Witches be trippin. It's nice to see that in a pinch the Dice came through for me in a big big way. I ended this first adventure with 343/1000 xp to lvl

Having successfully completed the adventure, Barryva headed home to rest.

Verdict
As Far as stumble upon games go I think this one was quite a find. I can see my self wasting alot of time on this in the future. I like that the design of the game encourages you to go do something else between turns, because ten minutes is a long time to stare at the clock tick down. Bottom line this game is Fun. Its got a randomness factor that keeps it interesting, the built in GM seems playful and funny, which trust me makes him better then some GM's I've had in the past. And the game has a huge replay value. I am totally sucked in now to try and catch up with and pass some of my friends on the leaderboard. I like the bite sized little adventures, this first one took about an hour total, but i was writing this post while I was doing it! (yeah Efficiency!). I give this game a full on...

Barry Approved!

Lost Marathon Update2

so I have fallen behind on this but I have an excuse or three.

I want to start by saying that I did indeed finish my marathon through the first 5 seasons of lost but it took me way longer then the weekend i set out to for my first goal. In fact when the sixth season started that Tuesday I was only through season 2. It actually took me almost another week after that to finish.
things that came up to interrupt my marathon include my grandmother passing away and the subsequent influx of family to attend her funeral. Most noteably my brother driving from Colorado, and then spending 4 days here. we actually watch the last two seasons together but he also insisted on playing wow all night on my computer and having me teach him the game. Teaching someone the ins and outs of surviving in azeroth is not nearly as fun while watching from over the shoulder. trust me.

So conclusions from the Lost marathon:

The show is amazing, I cant wait to get the 6th season wrapped up and on dvd to do it again. in fact I am going to try and watch these shows over again as often as possible and share their magic. maybe once a year, or every other year. And I think the things that makes the show so great is the layers. the show is an intricate web that keeps weaving new intrigue in each episode and keeps you interested in the over all mystery, and each season adds another layer over all.

so here's my quick and dirty Breakdown

Season one: A plane crashes on a weird island and our castaways bicker amongst themselves. Possible theme song "Should I stay or should I go?" referring to staying on the beach waiting for rescue, or to begin building huts and coconut radios.

Season two: The castsaways get a nifty apartment and meet the neighbors. spoilers: the apartments slightly explody and the neighbors all want you dead.

Season three: Starts out with a visit to the others. some get lucky, and Jack comes back with a girlfriend and news that the neighbors are living the high life, AND keeping them from escaping the island. so the castaway try to resolve this.

Season four: the castaway greet visitors with a boat, then kill most of them and the boat explodes. six of the castaways manage to leave the island.

Season five: the castaways who escaped spend three years denying the island exists then change their mind and go back...waay back. The castaways who stayed on the island ended up in the 70's and somehow when the returning castaways for back to the island they too end up in the 70's. (The sad thing is this isnt the strangest thing ever on the show). Ends with the castaways setting off a nuke.

so thats the most basic desription of what HAPPENS on Lost season to season, but it barely scratches the surface of what the show is about.themes like Fate, Destiny, Faith, Family, Time Travel, Miracle Healing and the Supernatural are all wrapped up in there too. and Its terribly Mysterious. I love it.

Lost marathon update 1

So I am about half way through season one, but I have no idea how I am doing time wise to make my goal I dont think i am too far behind but i need to figure out a plan for getting food soon.

Impressions of season one so far? well this is at least the third or fourth time I have watched these episodes and they are Terribly Mysterious. but we already knew that didn't we? I think they are a bit heavy handed with the mysteries so far in the first saeon but i am watching this looking for hints of an over all impression, like the implied Darma Initiative logo i just saw. hint hint. but its also funny to watch them take some stuff so seriously that DOES get explained later.

At his point I am wondering why they spent so much time with the whole Walt thing just to abandon it later. it speaks of the over all theme of fathers and sons and people with strange abilities being drawn to the island. but it also seems like one of those things they attempted then threw away, which supports the theory that they have no over all agenda and are just making it up as they go along.

It interesting to see the point here where they are shifting from character establishment to charster development. We know some, but also little about most of that characters at this point but there are also character being changed by the island. Ie. Locke Walking and Charlie kicking the drugs.
I am also noteing the characters slowly shifting to no sleeves. now i know what you are saying Its hot htere on that tropical island but I think there may be some corralary of when the sleeves come off to when the character accepts thier fate a being a new person on the island. side note that Locke's sleeveless-ness is represented by him wearing a vest over his t shirt, my theory on this is that no one want to see old man arms but hte ewearing of the vest still represents the point when Locke embraces the island life. also there is an exeption to this rule in the character Shannon who fgoes around scantly clad right off the bat, yet want to be on the island the least. and her shift to being more helpful to the rest of the castaways actually see's her putting more clothes on. I see this as a misdirection on the part of the show creators. and now I am wondering if I am ripping all this off in something I read/heard in a behind the scenes Documentary.

oh well...more to come

A Tale of Two Attempts

So I'm currently conducting two redicuolus experiments at once and in my own twisted mind they are intertwined .

The Lost Marathon

Since this one is easier, I will explain it first. I was doing some quick math last night and I figured out that witht he Season premiere of lost season six coming up on Tuesday evening I had JUST enough time to marathon the first 5 seasons straight through between now and then. Yeah it seems foolish and there is a serious chance that i will miss the mark just by sleeping too much. but I will do my darnedest thats for sure. I have tried similar things like this before. I once watched the first two lord of the rings movies on dvd back to back then rushed to the theater just in time to watch the 3rd one. that was hard and foolish but totally worth it. I also tried 9unsuccesfully) the read the first five Harry Potter books back to back just before the 6th one came out. and that just made it easier for me to do it right when the 7th book came out.

But this is different, and my secret is that I will be doing two things at once. which brIngs me to experiment number two...

The Horde Experiment

I've been playing World of Warcraft for over 4 years now, and almost the whole time ive been playing on only one side of the faction rift. So in an effort to see roughly half the game that i have been avoiding, or in other words to truly see how the other half lives. But i am not a complete masochist so I rolled Mage at least, my favorite class, and I didn't just pick the server randomly. I sort of know exactly 3 people on the server. But they are very busy playing in one of the servers top raiding guilds and actually give me very little assistance. or at least they have so far.

So it is at this point that you should be asking me "what exactly do these two things have in common other then the fact that you are doing them at the same time?" Well the answer is simple. when you reroll a new character on on new server in world of warcraft it is alot like being stranded on a dessert island. I have the tools and abilities to level, but I have no resources to fall back on. But the added wrinkle of switching factions to the other side makes it more alienating and really adds to the dessert island, fish out of water experience.



Stay tuned for future post with updates on how the efforts are going.

"Avatar" 2009

I went and saw this movie again on wednesday, and I am writing the post now, a few days later because I wanted to let it stew...and I put it off out of laziness. This was also right around the day that the internet final declared that this was the highest grossing movie of all time. though there was a bit of debate on that factor based on inflation and all kind of other minutia.

I saw it in 3D again, just like I had the first time I saw it. but this time i also went with an old friend from high school, which was fun to have someone to make snide comments to on the side. made the movie more fun.

But back to the topic of its position as the highest grossing movie of all time, it is interesting that it was anther james cameron movie to steal the title ...from him self. i wonder what it is about his movies that convince so many people to part with their well earned. but i do think that the inflation/huge price tag for the 3D and Imax screening HAVE to play a part in this whole thing. I mean if the movies are crazy expensive AND pretty good of course it going to pull in boat loads of cash.

So bottom line what did I think of this Movie? well I think as far as quality goes it was certainly well crafted. That is to say it was well made in all aspects from writing to the obviously cutting edge graphics. but at the samw tim its a bit silly. One review I read asked the question "why did James Cameron remake 'Last of the Mohicans' in Space?" which I find hilariously true. Even the most innovative movie of all time is still kind of a rip off. But its cool for sure and its nice to see that sci fi can win out again over a picture about a boat sinking. yeah for nerdy movies!